DETAILED ACTION
Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status
The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
Response to Amendment
The Amendment filed 06/09/2026 has been entered. New claims 11 and 12 have been added. Claims 1, 2, 4 and 6-12 are presented for examination.
Claim Rejections – 35 USC § 103
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 103 which forms the basis for all obviousness rejections set forth in this Office action:
A patent for a claimed invention may not be obtained, notwithstanding that the claimed invention is not identically disclosed as set forth in section 102 of this title, if the differences between the claimed invention and the prior art are such that the claimed invention as a whole would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to a person having ordinary skill in the art to which the claimed invention pertains. Patentability shall not be negated by the manner in which the invention was made.
Claims 1, 2, 6 and 10-12 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Boone (US 2006/0242127) in view of Shiner (US 2020/0312121).
Regarding claim 1, Boone teaches a sensor box (10) for process-engineering and/or mechanical-engineering systems (Fig. 15, Abstract. [0067], an aggregator is a device that collects sensor data from multiple sensors; as seen in Fig. 15, the aggregator has a box structure), the sensor box comprising:
a control unit comprising a processor (Fig. 4, [0067, 0068], the aggregator includes a processor and memory), and
a plurality of interfaces (11) connected to the control unit ([0073], the aggregator has sensor inputs; [0036], sensors can be connected via wires to an aggregator, so inherently the aggregator must have interfaces to receive the wires),
wherein the plurality of interfaces are configured to be connected to a corresponding number of cables or transmitting and receiving devices in order to establish a communicative connection to corresponding sensors (13) connected to different functional points of a process-engineering and/or mechanical-engineering system (12) ([0036], the aggregator may be connected to sensors via wires or wirelessly i.e., it must use interfaces, wire cables or wireless devices to establish the connection; Fig. 1, [0032, 0048], sensors may be placed at points at monitored devices e.g., tanks, piping systems, processing or fluid/gas systems, etc.),
wherein the system is configured to request corresponding measurements of the
plurality of sensors (13) via the plurality of interfaces (11) ([0008], the aggregator may poll sensors to cause the sensors to transmit data; [0070], aggregator can request data from a sensor),
wherein the system is configured to request measurements from various sensors (13) of the plurality of sensors (13) according to predetermined frequencies of measurements per time ([0039], the system configures each sensor to report sensor data at a particular frequency; see also [0034], sensors may transmit data according to a predetermined schedule, while some sensors may transmit continuously),
wherein the functional points are provided in groups, each group corresponding to
one working area of the one or more working areas (14, 15, 16) of the process-engineering and/or mechanical-engineering system (12),
wherein a first working area (14, 15, 16) of the one or more working areas includes a first group of functional points (Boone Fig. 1, [0032, 0048], sensors may be placed at multiple points at monitored devices e.g., tanks, piping systems, processing or fluid/gas systems, etc.; as seen in Fig. 1, naturally the sensors are attached at points, and those points are inherently grouped by being associated with and being part of a device/working area), and
However, Boone does not expressly disclose that the system is the control unit.
It would be obvious for Boone to incorporate such a feature. Boone [0070] notes that the aggregator commands or requests data from sensors, and thus effectively controls the rate at which sensor data is reported to the aggregator. It would be desirable to modify the aggregator of Boone, as described in Boone [0070], to include the reporting frequency control of Boone [0039], to facilitate collection of data at the aggregator.
However, Boone does not expressly disclose wherein the processor is configured to set a first frequency of measurements per time for a sensor of the plurality of sensors in the first group of functional points based on the first working area (14, 15, 16) of the one or more working areas such that the first frequency of measurements per time for the sensor in the first group is different than a frequency of measurements per time for the remaining sensors of the plurality of sensors in the first group.
In the same field of endeavor, Shiner teaches wherein the processor is configured to set a first frequency of measurements per time for a sensor of the plurality of sensors in the first group of functional points based on the first working area (14, 15, 16) of the one or more working areas such that the first frequency of measurements per time for the sensor in the first group is different than a frequency of measurements per time for the remaining sensors of the plurality of sensors in the first group ([0039, 0037-0038, 0035, 0014-0015, 0033], when there are multiple sensors, it is known to adjust the polling rate of sensors e.g., a rate at which a status request is transmitted to a sensor, resulting in a sensor measurementr response; for example, the polling rate can be adjusted based on the location/zone that the sensor is in; for any group of one or more sensors, each sensor can be adjusted to poll at different frequencies; sensor polling rate can be calibrated based on location/zone, type, or any other critiera).
It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to have incorporated wherein the processor is configured to set a first frequency of measurements per time for a sensor of the plurality of sensors in the first group of functional points based on the first working area (14, 15, 16) of the one or more working areas such that the first frequency of measurements per time for the sensor in the first group is different than a frequency of measurements per time for the remaining sensors of the plurality of sensors in the first group as suggested in Shiner into Boone because Boone and Shiner pertain to analogous fields of technology. Boone pertains to a system that requests sensor measurements at particular rates from multiple sensors. For example, multiple sensors may be arranged at each of several devices e.g., see Boone Fig. 1, [0032, 0048], and those sensors may be of different types e.g., temperature, pressure and vibration sensors. Shiner also pertains to a system that requests sensor data at particular rates from multiple sensors in different locations. In Shiner, each sensor in a group of one or more sensors can be made to transmit data at different rates; and sensor polling/transmission rates can be adjusted based on a variety of criteria, including location, sensor type etc. It would be desirable to incorporate this feature into Boone, so that sensor transmission/polling rates could be adjusted based on a variety of criteria e.g., see Shiner [0039, 0037-0038, 0035, 0014-0015, 0033].
Regarding claim 2, the combination of Boone and Shiner teaches the invention as claimed in claim 1. The combination of Boone and Shiner also teaches wherein the sensor box (10) forms an enclosure for the control unit and is portable, transportable, detachably fixed, or can be hung up in space (Boone Fig. 15, [0067, 0007], as seen in the figure, the aggregator is hung up or positioned on a pole and has an enclosure for internal components; it is fixed and inherently can be detached; see also [0007], the aggregator may also be handheld i.e., portable).
Regarding claim 6, the combination of Boone and Shiner teaches the invention as claimed in claim 1. The combination of Boone and Shiner also teaches a system comprising a process-engineering and/or mechanical-engineering system (12) and a sensor box (10) according to claim 1, wherein
the process-engineering and/or mechanical-engineering system (12) is configured to perform one or more functions that are spatially separate and performed at least one of the different functional points or spatially adjacent to at least one working area (14, 15, 16) of the process-engineering and/or mechanical-engineering system (12) (Boone Fig. 1, [0032, 0048], sensors may be placed at points at monitored devices e.g., tanks, piping systems, processing or fluid/gas systems, etc.),
wherein the functional points are each equipped with or connected to at least one sensor (13) of the plurality of sensors (Boone Fig. 1, [0032, 0048], sensors may be placed at points at monitored devices e.g., tanks, piping systems, processing or fluid/gas systems, etc.), and
wherein the at least one sensor (13) is configured to measure different physical parameters or variables assigned to a function of the corresponding functional point or the corresponding working area (14, 15, 16) upon request by the control unit (Boone Fig. 1, [0032, 0048], sensors may be placed at points at monitored devices e.g., tanks, piping systems, processing or fluid/gas systems, etc.; Boone [0032], sensors may sense temperature, pressure, vibration etc.; Boone [0070] notes that the aggregator commands or requests data from sensors, and thus effectively controls the rate at which sensor data is reported to the aggregator).
Regarding claim 10, the combination of Boone and Shiner teaches the invention as claimed in claim 1. The combination of Boone and Shiner also teaches
a method for operating a process-engineering and/or mechanical-engineering system (12), the method comprising:
providing a sensor box (10) according to claim 1 in an operating space next to and/or in connection with the process-engineering, mechanical-engineering, and/or wastewater-engineering system (12) (Boone [0036], the aggregator may be connected to sensors via wires or wirelessly i.e., it must use interfaces, wire cables or wireless devices to establish the connection; Boone Fig. 1, [0032, 0048], sensors may be placed at points at monitored devices e.g., tanks, piping systems, processing or fluid/gas systems, etc.);
connecting at least one sensor (13) connected to the system (12) to the plurality of interfaces (11) leading to the control unit of the sensor box (10) (Boone [0073], the aggregator has sensor inputs; Boone [0036], sensors can be connected via wires to an aggregator, so inherently the aggregator must have interfaces to receive the wires; Boone Fig. 4, [0067, 0068], the aggregator includes a processor and memory);
requesting, by the control unit via the plurality of interfaces (11) to the at least one sensor (13), sensor measurements of the at least one sensor (13) (Boone [0008], the aggregator may poll sensors to cause the sensors to transmit data; Boone [0070], aggregator can request data from a sensor);
obtaining the sensor measurements of the at least one sensor based on the requesting (Boone [0008], the aggregator may poll sensors to cause the sensors to transmit data; Boone [0070], aggregator can request data from a sensor); and
transmitting the sensor measurements of the at least one sensor to an external entity for evaluation and assessment (Boone pertains to an aggregator that transmits gathered sensor data to an external device for further processing and analysis e.g., see Boone [0036-0038]).
Regarding claim 11, the combination of Boone and Shiner teaches the invention as claimed in claim 1. The combination of Boone and Shiner also teaches wherein the sensor in the first group is queried at the first frequency of measurements per time, and the query at the first frequency is more frequent than a plurality of sensors in a second working area (Shiner [0039, 0037-0038, 0035, 0014-0015, 0033], Shiner contemplates that for any number of one or more sensors, each sensor may be assigned a different transmission/polling rate; if there are two groups of sensors at different devices e.g., as taught in Boone Fig. 1, where each sensor has a different transmission/polling rate, then naturally at least one sensor in one group will have a polling rate more frequent than those of a second group; Shiner [0039] further contemplates that sensor rates can be determined based on location e.g., sensor rates in a first location are higher than in a second location; Shiner [0038] further contemplates that all sensors in one location may have different rates; it is thus predictable that the sensors in the first location may have different rates, which all are higher than those of sensors in a second location).
Regarding claim 12, the combination of Boone and Shiner teaches the invention as claimed in claim 1. The combination of Boone and Shiner also teaches wherein the plurality of sensors in the first group are queried at a frequency of measurements per time that is more frequent than a plurality of sensors in a second working area (Shiner [0039, 0037-0038, 0035, 0014-0015, 0033], Shiner contemplates that for any number of one or more sensors, each sensor may be assigned a different transmission/polling rate; if there are two groups of sensors at different devices e.g., as taught in Boone Fig. 1, where each sensor has a different transmission/polling rate, then naturally at least one sensor in one group will have a polling rate more frequent than those of a second group; Shiner [0039] further contemplates that sensor rates can be determined based on location e.g., sensor rates in a first location are higher than in a second location; Shiner [0038] further contemplates that all sensors in one location may have different rates; it is thus predictable that the sensors in the first location may have different rates, which all are higher than those of sensors in a second location).
Claims 4 and 7-9 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Boone and Shiner, as applied in claim 1, and further in view of Mukkamala (US 2017/0192414).
Regarding claim 4, the combination of Boone and Shiner teaches the invention as claimed in claim 1. The combination of Boone and Shiner also teaches wherein
the processor is configured to set the frequencies per time wherein the frequencies of the measurements per time differ from sensor to sensor of the plurality of sensors (13) (Boone [0039], the system configures each sensor to report sensor data at a particular frequency; see also Boone [0034], sensors may transmit data according to a predetermined schedule, while some sensors may transmit continuously; Boone [0070] notes that the aggregator commands or requests data from sensors, and thus effectively controls the rate at which sensor data is reported to the aggregator; it would be obvious that the aggregator of Boone thus controls the reporting/measurement frequency of the sensors).
However, the combination of Boone and Shiner does not expressly disclose the specifying the setting the frequencies is performed by receiving input via a human-machine interface of the control unit externally on or in communication with the sensor box (10).
In the same field of endeavor, Mukkamala teaches the specifying the setting the frequencies is performed by receiving input via a human-machine interface of the control unit externally on or in communication with the sensor box (10) (Figs. 1, 2, [032, 0038-0039], Mukkamala relates to a similar system in which sensor data is gathered from multiple sensors monitoring industrial assets; the sensor data is passed on to an IoT cloud/platform for further analysis; based on the analysis, the system can configure the industrial assets and improve their performance; [0046-0049], for example, information about an industrial asset can be presented at an interface to a user; the system may also present options to optimize/configure the industrial asset; an operator can then select an option e.g., a parameter update, for the industrial asset, which is pushed to the industrial asset; in the context of Boone, it would thus be obvious for an operator to use a similar interface to push a parameter configuration e.g., a setting of a sensor report/measurement frequency, to a sensor).
It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to have incorporated the specifying the setting the frequencies is performed by receiving input via a human-machine interface of the control unit externally on or in communication with the sensor box (10) as suggested in Mukkamala into Boone and Shiner because Boone and Mukkamala pertain to analogous fields of technology. Both Boone and Mukkamala pertain to systems that aggregate sensor data from multiple sensors and transfer the data to an external device for further processing e.g., see Boone [0038]. Boone further teaches that the system can configure parameters in devices e.g., sensor data measurement or reporting frequencies e.g., see Boone [0007, 0039]. In Mukkamala, the system can also configure parameters in devices, using an interface utilized by an operator. It would desirable to incorporate this feature into Boone to allow for the use of an interface to configure operational parameters of devices in the Boone system e.g., see Mukkamala Figs. 1, 2, [032, 0038-0039, 0046-0049].
Regarding claim 7, the combination of Boone and Shiner teaches the invention as claimed in claim 6. However, the combination of Boone and Shiner does not expressly disclose wherein the system contains or is in communication with an Internet of Things (loT) platform comprising a database, wherein the measurements obtained from the at least one sensor (13) are transmitted to the loT platform, wherein the database is configured to record the measurements transmitted by the control unit in the form of time series and, based on the time series, to submit an evaluation for the system (12) and the functional points or working areas thereof.
In the same field of endeavor, Mukkamala teaches wherein
the system contains or is in communication with an Internet of Things (loT) platform comprising a database ([0032], sensor data can be sent to the cloud to be analyzed; [0036, 0064], the cloud system can include a database to store data; [0055], sensor data is typically time series data), and
wherein the measurements obtained from the at least one sensor (13) are transmitted to the loT platform by the control unit (Fig. 1, Abstract, [0038, 0040-0041, 0072], a device e.g., gateway or IIoT machine, can be connected to various assets e.g., sensors, and send all their data e.g., sensor data, to the cloud platform),
wherein the database is configured to record the measurements transmitted by the control unit in the form of time series and ([0036, 0064], the cloud system can include a database to store data; [0055], sensor data is typically time series data),
based on the time series, to submit an evaluation for the system (12) and the functional points or working areas thereof (Fig. 1, Abstract, [0046-0049, 0039], the cloud system can gather information about an asset e.g., sensor data, and present it at an interface to an operator; based on the analysis of the data, the cloud system can also present options for optimizing the asset; the operator can then choose such optimizations and have them sent to the asset).
It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to have incorporated disclose wherein the system contains or is in communication with an Internet of Things (loT) platform comprising a database, wherein the measurements obtained from the at least one sensor (13) are transmitted to the loT platform, wherein the database is configured to record the measurements transmitted by the control unit in the form of time series and, based on the time series, to submit an evaluation for the system (12) and the functional points or working areas thereof as suggested in Mukkamala into Boone because Boone and Mukkamala pertain to analogous fields of technology. Boone pertains to an aggregator that transmits gathered sensor data to an external device for further processing and analysis e.g., see Boone [0036-0038]. Mukkamala also pertains to a system for aggregating sensor data and transmitting them to an external system for analysis. In Mukkamala, the eternal system is an IIoT platform, which can analyze the sensor data and suggest commands or optimizations. It would be desirable to incorporate these features into Boone so that the sensor operations could also be optimized based on analysis of the sensor data e.g., see Mukkamala Fig. 1, Abstract, [0038-0041, 0072, 0032, 0046-0049].
Regarding claim 8, the combination of Boone, Shiner and Mukkamala teaches the invention as claimed in claim 7. The combination of Boone, Shiner and Mukkamala also teaches wherein
the system includes a display instrument/display which is provided to query the
evaluation and/or the status associated therewith from the loT platform and
to display the evaluation and/or the status associated therewith to a user (Mukkamala Fig. 1, Abstract, [0046-0049, 0039], the cloud system can gather information about an asset e.g., sensor data, and present it at an interface to an operator; based on the analysis of the data, the cloud system can also present options for optimizing the asset; the operator can then choose such optimizations and have them sent to the asset).
Regarding claim 9, the combination of Boone, Shiner and Mukkamala teaches the invention as claimed in claim 7. The combination of Boone, Shiner and Mukkamala also teaches wherein
the system further contains one or more common gateways (17) via which the measurements are transmitted from the control unit of the sensor box (10) to the loT platform (Mukkamala [0040, 0043, 0047], it is known, when using a device that needs to communicate with a network or a cloud platform, to perform the transmission via a network gateway.)
Response to Arguments
The Examiner acknowledges the Applicant's amendments to claim 1.
Regarding the prior art rejection of independent claim 1, the Applicant alleges that the cited prior art does not teach the amended limitation of "wherein the processor is configured to set a first frequency of measurements per time for a sensor of the plurality of sensors in the first group of functional points based on the first working area (14, 15, 16) of the one or more working areas such that the first frequency of measurements per time for the sensor in the first group is different than a frequency of measurements per time for the remaining sensors of the plurality of sensors in the first group." Applicant has therefore rejected claim 1 under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Boone in view of Shiner. Applicant's remarks are moot in view of the new grounds of rejection.
Applicant's further alleges that claims 2, 4 and 6-12 are allowable in view of their dependency on claim 1. Claims 2, 4 and 6-12 are rejected as being taught by Boone, Archibald and/or Mukkamala.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
McNerney (US 2008/0228331) teaches measuring parameters from multiple sensing units e.g., see McNerney Abstract.
Applicant's amendment necessitated the new ground(s) of rejection presented in this Office action. Accordingly, THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. See MPEP § 706.07(a). Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any extension fee pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the date of this final action.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to ERIC YOON whose telephone number is (408)918-7581. The examiner can normally be reached on 9 am to 5 pm ET Monday through Friday.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Scott Baderman, can be reached at telephone number 571-272-3644. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/ERIC J YOON/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2118
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