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 .
Continued Examination Under 37 CFR 1.114
A request for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, including the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e), was filed in this application after final rejection. Since this application is eligible for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114. Applicant's submission filed on 06/24/2026 has been entered.
Response to Applicant’s Arguments/Remarks
Amendments and Remarks filed on 05/26/2026 have been fully considered and are addressed as follow:
Regarding the Claim Rejections Under 35 U.S.C. § 103: Applicants “Amendment and Remarks” have been fully considered. Applicant has amended the independent claims and these amendments have changed the scope of the original application and the Office has supplied new grounds for rejection attached below in the non-final office action and therefore the prior arguments are considered moot.
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, 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.
The factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness.
Claims 1-2, 4-7, 9, 11-13, 15-16, 19, and 23-25 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being anticipated by Yuzawa (US PGPub 2021/0163267) in view of Bonnet (US PGPub 2019/0033158) and in further view of Kean (US PGPub 2020/0032488).
With respect to claim 1: Yuzawa discloses a load moving machine comprising [Yuzawa, Figure 1]:
a chassis supported by supports [Yuzawa, Figure 1 element 1];
a boom mount carried by said chassis [Yuzawa, Figure 1 element 4];
a boom assembly pivotally affixed to said boom mount, said boom assembly having an end, wherein a position of said boom assembly comprises at least a part of a load handling geometry of the load moving machine [Yuzawa, Figure 1 and ¶ 0019];
a control system for manipulating said boom assembly to facilitate a desired configuration of said load handling geometry of the load moving machine [Yuzawa ¶ 0037 “The operating device 26 is a device that an operator uses to operate the hydraulic actuators.”];
a boom position sensor operatively located on said boom assembly and configured to generate boom position data [Yuzawa ¶ 0020 “A boom angle sensor S1 is attached to the boom 4.” and Figure 1 element S1];
one or more chassis position sensors operatively located on said chassis and configured to indicate chassis longitudinal and lateral position data [Yuzawa ¶ 0022 “The machine body tilt sensor S4 is configured to detect the tilt of the upper swing structure 3 (machine body tilt angle). According to this embodiment, the machine body tilt sensor S4 is an acceleration sensor that detects the tilt angle of the upper swing structure 3 about its longitudinal axis and lateral axis relative to a horizontal plane.”];
a pressure cylinder operatively connected to said boom assembly [Yuzawa ¶ 0028 “boom cylinder” and Figure 1 element 7];
a pressure sensor responsive to pressure in said pressure cylinder, and configured to generate pressure data [Yuzawa ¶ 0028 “The pressure sensor S6b detects the pressure of the bottom-side oil chamber of the boom cylinder 7 (hereinafter “boom bottom pressure”).” And Figure 1 element S6b];
Yuzawa does not teach a computer configured to: process said boom position data from said boom position sensor, chassis longitudinal and lateral position data of said chassis as indicated by said one or more chassis position sensors; process the pressure data from said pressure sensor; and calculate a weight of a load being lifted by utilizing said pressure data, said boom position data, and said chassis longitudinal and lateral position data; and determine a longitudinal load moment and a lateral load moment based on the calculated weight of the load being lifted, the boom position data, and the chassis longitudinal and lateral position data.
However, in a related field of invention, Bonnet does teach a computer configured to [Bonnet ¶ 0094 “a controller 350 that can be used to obtain measurements from an array of sensors positioned on a vehicle and a vehicle accelerometer and then use these obtained measurements to determine the stability of the vehicle suspending a load”]:
process said boom position data from said boom position sensor [Bonnet ¶ 0065 “The boom accelerometer 1070 can be positioned on the boom 1040 to determine the angle the boom 1040 is at.”], chassis longitudinal and lateral position data of said chassis as indicated by said one or more chassis position sensors [Bonnet ¶ 0063 “The vehicle accelerometer 1060 can be provided on the main body 1020 to measure any inclination of the telehandler 1000.”];
process the pressure data from said pressure sensor [Bonnet ¶ 0064 “The load pin 1064 can be provided connecting one end of the boom lift cylinder 1050 to either the boom 1040 or the main body 1020 of the telehandler 1000 to measure the force the boom lift cylinder 1050 is applying to the boom 1040.”]; and
calculate a weight of a load being lifted by utilizing said pressure data, said boom position data, and said chassis longitudinal and lateral position data [Bonnet ¶ 0112 "These indirect force measurements could use a load pin or hydraulic pressures in the boom lift cylinders to measure the amount of load required to keep a boom on the vehicle from falling under its weight and the weight of the slung load, which when combined with knowledge of the position of the distal end of the boom as determined at step 410 and the attitude of the boom with respect to the machine coordinate system can be used to calculate the slung load that would require such an amount of force." The slung load is the weight of the load suspended form the boom.]; and
determine a longitudinal load moment and a lateral load moment based on the calculated weight of the load being lifted, the boom position data, and the chassis longitudinal and lateral position data [Bonnet ¶ 0143-0144 "This lateral tipping moment can be determined using the determined slung load suspended from the boom 40 and the horizontal distance the slung load is acting from the tipping fulcrum 80, DTMSlung, in addition to the weight of the boom 40 and the horizontal distance the weight of the boom 40 is acting from the lateral tipping fulcrum 80, D.sub.TMBW. D.sub.TMBW will be the horizontal distance from the center of gravity of the boom 40 to the lateral tipping fulcrum 80." And Bonnet ¶ 0148 -0152 "Front tipping moment" and "rear tipping moment"].
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention with a reasonable expectation of success to combine the work machine with sensors as taught by Yuzawa with using the load moment indicator system as taught by Bonnet in order to create a safer and more accurate anti-tipping system for work machines traveling across sloping ground [Bonnet ¶ 0005].
Yuzawa and Bonnet do not teach a terrain sensor located adjacent the supports, the terrain sensor configured to generate data indicating a change to a topography of a surface supporting the supports; process chassis longitudinal and lateral position of said chassis as indicated by topography data as indicated by the terrain sensor; and determine a longitudinal load moment and a lateral load moment based on the topography data.
However, in a related field of invention, Kean does teach a terrain sensor located adjacent the supports, the terrain sensor configured to generate data indicating a change to a topography of a surface supporting the supports [Kean ¶ 0042 “ Terrain detector 254 is generally configured to detect a wide variety of different terrain characteristics to generate an accurate topographical representation of a geographic area surrounding machine 102 (e.g., ground surface 105).”]; process chassis longitudinal and lateral position of said chassis as indicated by topography data as indicated by the terrain sensor [Kean ¶ 0037 “Stability detection and control system 104”]; and determine a longitudinal load moment and a lateral load moment based on the topography data [Kean ¶ 0025 “Stability detection and control system 104 also predicts a likely orientation of machine 102 relative to a detected slope. Using this information, stability detection and control system 104 calculates a likely center of gravity of machine 102 at each of the predicted positions (the positions that machine 102 may be likely to occupy in the near future) across jobsite 100. It generates a measure of probability that machine 102 will have a likely center of gravity that renders the machine in an unstable state and implements dynamic control applications to avoid the unstable state.”].
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention with a reasonable expectation of success to combine the work machine with sensors as taught by Yuzawa and Bonnet with using the stability detection and control system that includes a terrain detector as taught by Kean in order to improve performance by preventing tipping over of a machine [Kean ¶ 0027].
With respect to claim 2: Yuzawa, Bonnet, and Kean disclose the load moving machine according to claim 1. Yuzawa further teaches a pivot arm connected to said boom assembly [Yuzawa, Figure 1 element 5];
wherein said control system is for manipulating said pivot arm to facilitate a desired configuration of said load handling geometry of the load moving machine [Yuzawa ¶ 0037 “The operating device 26 is a device that an operator uses to operate the hydraulic actuators.” Pivot arm 5 with cylinder 8 is taught being controlled by the control system];
a position sensor operatively located on said pivot arm for generating position data of said pivot arm [Yuzawa ¶ 0020 “An arm angle sensor S2 is attached to the arm 5” and Figure 1 element s2];
a pressure cylinder operatively connected to said pivot arm, wherein said pressure cylinder is a pivot arm cylinder [Yuzawa ¶ 0019 “The arm 5 is driven by an arm cylinder 8.” And Figure 1 element 8];
a pressure sensor for measuring pressure inside said pivot arm cylinder for generating pressure data [Yuzawa ¶ 0027 “A pressure sensor S6c, a pressure sensor S6d, and an arm cylinder stroke sensor S8 may be attached to the arm cylinder 8.”].
With respect to claim 4: Yuzawa, Bonnet, and Kean disclose the load moving machine according to claim 1. Yuzawa further teaches said control system comprising at least one of machine controls, a boom lifting control system, a telescoping control system, a pivoting arm control system, and a fork mount control system [Yuzawa ¶ 0037 “The operating device 26 is a device that an operator uses to operate the hydraulic actuators. … a right operating lever for boom operation”].
With respect to claim 5: Yuzawa, Bonnet, and Kean disclose the load moving machine according to claim 1. Yuzawa further teaches said configuration of said load handling geometry comprises one of one or more of a boom angle, a boom length, a load radius, a pivot arm angle, a fork position, and a fork angle [Yuzawa ¶ 0020 “A boom angle sensor S1 is attached to the boom 4. An arm angle sensor S2 is attached to the arm 5”].
With respect to claim 6: Yuzawa, Bonnet, and Kean disclose the load moving machine according to claim 1. Yuzawa further teaches an operator compartment supported by said chassis for housing an operator and machine controls [Yuzawa ¶ 00043 “The mode change switch 62 is a switch to change the operating mode of the work machine 100, and is a rocker switch installed in the cabin 10 according to this embodiment.” And Figure 1 element 10].
With respect to claim 7: Yuzawa, Bonnet, and Kean disclose the load moving machine according to claim 1. Yuzawa further teaches said control system comprises a boom lifting control system [Yuzawa ¶ 0037 “The operating device 26 is a device that an operator uses to operate the hydraulic actuators.” The control system can control lifting of the boom];
said boom lifting control system is for angularly rotating said boom assembly, relative to said chassis for establishing a boom angle, said boom lifting control system comprising said pressure cylinder [Yuzawa ¶ 0036-0037 “In the following description, the boom cylinder 7, the arm cylinder 8, the lifting magnet cylinder 9, the left travel hydraulic motor 1L, the right travel hydraulic motor 1R, and the swing hydraulic motor 2A are collectively referred to as “hydraulic actuators.” The operating device 26 is a device that an operator uses to operate the hydraulic actuators.”];
wherein said pressure cylinder is a boom lift cylinder [Yuzawa, Figure 1 element 7 boom cylinder is pressure cylinder].
With respect to claim 9: Yuzawa, Bonnet, and Kean disclose the load moving machine according to claim 1. Yuzawa further teaches a pivoting arm pivotally affixed to said end of said boom assembly [Yuzawa, Figure 1 element 5]; and wherein:
said control system comprises a pivoting arm control system [Yuzawa ¶ 0037 “The operating device 26 is a device that an operator uses to operate the hydraulic actuators.” And Figure 1 elements pivot arm 5 with cylinder 8];
said pivoting arm control system for selectively rotating said pivoting arm about said end of said boom assembly for establishing a pivot arm angle, said pivoting arm control system comprising a pivot arm cylinder [Yuzawa ¶ 0019 “The arm 5 is driven by an arm cylinder 8.’ And Figure 1 element 8 actuating cylinder rotates the pivot arm].
With respect to claim 11: Yuzawa, Bonnet, and Kean disclose the load moving machine according to claim 1. Yuzawa further teaches wherein said position sensor comprises: a boom angle sensor mounted to said boom assembly [Yuzawa ¶ 0020 “A boom angle sensor S1 is attached to the boom 4”].
With respect to claim 12: Yuzawa, Bonnet, and Kean disclose the load moving machine according to claim 1. Yuzawa further teaches a pivoting arm pivotally affixed to said end of said boom assembly [Yuzawa ¶ 0019 and Figure 1 element 5];
a pivoting arm angle sensor in communication with said pivoting arm [Yuzawa ¶ 0020 “An arm angle sensor S2 is attached to the arm 5.”].
With respect to claim 13: Yuzawa, Bonnet, and Kean disclose the load moving machine according to claim 1. Yuzawa further teaches a chassis angle sensor mounted to said chassis, wherein said chassis angle sensor is configured to determine an orientation of said chassis with respect to horizontal [Yuzawa ¶ 0022 “The machine body tilt sensor S4 is configured to detect the tilt of the upper swing structure 3 (machine body tilt angle). According to this embodiment, the machine body tilt sensor S4 is an acceleration sensor that detects the tilt angle of the upper swing structure 3 about its longitudinal axis and lateral axis relative to a horizontal plane.”].
With respect to claim 15: Yuzawa, Bonnet, and Kean disclose the load moving machine according to claim 1. Yuzawa further teaches said pressure cylinder is a boom lift cylinder [Yuzawa ¶ 0028 “The pressure sensor S6a detects the pressure of the rod-side oil chamber of the boom cylinder 7. The pressure sensor S6b detects the pressure of the bottom-side oil chamber of the boom cylinder 7 (hereinafter “boom bottom pressure”).” and Figure 1 element 7]; and
said pressure sensor is a boom lift pressure sensor in communication with a boom lift cylinder [Yuzawa ¶ 0028].
With respect to claim 16: Yuzawa, Bonnet, and Kean disclose the load moving machine according to claim 1. Yuzawa further teaches a pivot arm pivotally connected to said end of said boom assembly [Yuzawa ¶ 0019 and Figure 1 element 5];
a pivot arm cylinder operatively connected to said pivot arm [Yuzawa ¶ 0019 “The arm 5 is driven by an arm cylinder 8.” And Figure 1 element 8];
a pivot arm pressure sensor in communication with said pivot arm cylinder [Yuzawa ¶ 0027 “A pressure sensor S6c, a pressure sensor S6d, and an arm cylinder stroke sensor S8 may be attached to the arm cylinder”].
With respect to claim 19: Yuzawa, Bonnet, and Kean disclose the load moving machine according to claim 1. Yuzawa further teaches a feedback generator controlled by said computer, said feedback generator comprising at least one of a display system, a visual alarm, an audible alarm, or a tactile feedback mechanism [Yuzawa ¶ 0059 “Furthermore, as illustrated in FIG. 2, the display device 40 can provide the operator with information on the work machine 100 by displaying the information on an image display part 41.” And Figure 1 element 40].
With respect to claim 23: Yuzawa discloses A method of detecting machine stability for a load moving machine comprising steps of [Yuzawa ¶ 0083 “The controller 30 may be configured to output an alarm in response to determining that the current weight exceeds a predetermined value.” A weight exceeding a safety value would affect the machine stability]:
selecting a desired configuration of components to establish a load handling geometry of the load handling machine with a control system [Yuzawa ¶ 0037 “The operating device 26 is a device that an operator uses to operate the hydraulic actuators.” and ¶ 0043 “The operator operates the mode change switch 62 to choose between a shovel mode and the lifting magnet mode.”];
receiving boom position data from a boom position sensor operatively located on a boom assembly of the load handling machine [Yuzawa ¶ 0020 “A boom angle sensor S1 is attached to the boom 4. And Figure 1 element S1] and chassis longitudinal and lateral position data indicated by one or more chassis position sensors operatively located on a chassis of the load handling machine [Yuzawa ¶ 0022 “The machine body tilt sensor S4 is configured to detect the tilt of the upper swing structure 3 (machine body tilt angle). According to this embodiment, the machine body tilt sensor S4 is an acceleration sensor that detects the tilt angle of the upper swing structure 3 about its longitudinal axis and lateral axis relative to a horizontal plane.;
receiving pressure data from one or more pressure sensors operatively located on one or more pressure cylinders of said load handling machine [Yuzawa ¶ 0028 “The pressure sensor S6a detects the pressure of the rod-side oil chamber of the boom cylinder 7. The pressure sensor S6b detects the pressure of the bottom-side oil chamber of the boom cylinder 7 (hereinafter “boom bottom pressure”)” and Figure 1 elements S6a and S6b];
Yuzawa does not teach calculating a weight of a load being lifted by utilizing said pressure data, said boom position data, and said chassis longitudinal and lateral position data; and determining a longitudinal load moment and a lateral load moment for the load handling machine based on the calculated weight of the load being lifted, the boom position data, and the chassis longitudinal and lateral position data.
However, in a related field of invention, Bonnet does teach
calculating a weight of a load being lifted by utilizing said pressure data, said boom position data, and said chassis longitudinal and lateral position data [Bonnet ¶ 0112 "These indirect force measurements could use a load pin or hydraulic pressures in the boom lift cylinders to measure the amount of load required to keep a boom on the vehicle from falling under its weight and the weight of the slung load, which when combined with knowledge of the position of the distal end of the boom as determined at step 410 and the attitude of the boom with respect to the machine coordinate system can be used to calculate the slung load that would require such an amount of force." The slung load is the weight of the load suspended form the boom.]; and
determining a longitudinal load moment and a lateral load moment for the load handling machine based on the calculated weight of the load being lifted, the boom position data, and the chassis longitudinal and lateral position data [Bonnet ¶ 0143-0144 "This lateral tipping moment can be determined using the determined slung load suspended from the boom 40 and the horizontal distance the slung load is acting from the tipping fulcrum 80, DTMSlung, in addition to the weight of the boom 40 and the horizontal distance the weight of the boom 40 is acting from the lateral tipping fulcrum 80, D.sub.TMBW. D.sub.TMBW will be the horizontal distance from the center of gravity of the boom 40 to the lateral tipping fulcrum 80." And Bonnet ¶ 0148 -0152 "Front tipping moment" and "rear tipping moment"].
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention with a reasonable expectation of success to combine the work machine with sensors as taught by Yuzawa with using the load moment indicator system as taught by Bonnet in order to create a safer and more accurate anti-tipping system for work machines traveling across sloping ground [Bonnet ¶ 0005].
Yuzawa and Bonnet do not teach receiving topography data from a terrain sensor located adjacent supports of the load moving machine, the topography data indicating a change to a topography of a surface supporting the supports and determining a longitudinal load moment and lateral load moment based on the topography data.
However, in a related field of invention, Kean does teach receiving topography data from a terrain sensor located adjacent supports of the load moving machine, the topography data indicating a change to a topography of a surface supporting the supports [Kean ¶ 0042 “ Terrain detector 254 is generally configured to detect a wide variety of different terrain characteristics to generate an accurate topographical representation of a geographic area surrounding machine 102 (e.g., ground surface 105).”]; determining a longitudinal load moment and lateral load moment based on the topography data [Kean ¶ 0025 “Stability detection and control system 104 also predicts a likely orientation of machine 102 relative to a detected slope. Using this information, stability detection and control system 104 calculates a likely center of gravity of machine 102 at each of the predicted positions (the positions that machine 102 may be likely to occupy in the near future) across jobsite 100. It generates a measure of probability that machine 102 will have a likely center of gravity that renders the machine in an unstable state and implements dynamic control applications to avoid the unstable state.”].
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention with a reasonable expectation of success to combine the work machine with sensors as taught by Yuzawa and Bonnet with using the stability detection and control system that includes a terrain detector as taught by Kean in order to improve performance by preventing tipping over of a machine [Kean ¶ 0027].
With respect to claim 24: Yuzawa, Bonnet, and Kean disclose the method according to claim 23. Yuzawa further teaches said control system is adapted to manipulate one or more of a boom angle, a boom length, a load radius, and a pivot arm angle [Yuzawa ¶ 0037 “Specifically, the operating device 26 includes a left operating lever for swing operation and arm operation, a right operating lever for boom operation and lifting magnet operation, travel pedals, and travel levers (none of which is depicted).”].
With respect to claim 25: Yuzawa, Bonnet, and Kean disclose the method according to claim 23. Yuzawa further teaches generating feedback to an operator by displaying information, displaying a visual alarm, sounding an audible alarm, or alerting the operator with a tactile feedback mechanism [Yuzawa ¶ 0083 “The controller 30 may be configured to output an alarm in response to determining that the current weight exceeds a predetermined value. The predetermined value is, for example, a value based on a rated lifting capacity. The alarm may be a visual alarm, an aural alarm or a tactile alarm. This configuration enables the controller 30 to inform the operator that the current weight has exceeded or may exceed a predetermined value.”].
Claims 3, 17, and 18 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being anticipated by Yuzawa in view of Bonnet in view of Kean and in further view of Hunter (US PGPub 2014/0320293).
With respect to claim 3: Yuzawa, Bonnet, and Kean teach the load moving machine according to claim 1. Yuzawa, Bonnet, and Kean do not teach forks proximate said end of said boom assembly, wherein said control system is for manipulating said forks to facilitate a desired configuration of said load handling geometry of the load moving machine, a position sensor operatively located on said forks or on a fork mount of the load moving machine for generating position data of said forks, a pressure cylinder operatively connected to said forks or to said fork mount, wherein said pressure cylinder is a fork leveling cylinder or a fork mount cylinder, a pressure sensor for measuring pressure inside said fork leveling cylinder or said fork mount cylinder for generating pressure data.
However, in a related field of invention, Hunter does teach forks proximate said end of said boom assembly [Hunter ¶ 0012 “The payload carrier 112 may be an attachment that supports a fork or forks” and Figure 1 element 112];
wherein said control system is for manipulating said forks to facilitate a desired configuration of said load handling geometry of the load moving machine [Hunter ¶ 0012 “The lift arm 110 may be controlled to adjust operational height and position of the payload carrier 112.”];
a position sensor operatively located on said forks or on a fork mount of the load moving machine for generating position data of said forks [Hunter ¶ 0014 “The payload carrier 112 is additionally connected to the pair of lift arms 110 by the tilt linkage 116” ¶ 0017 “Physical data concerning the payload carrier 112 may be gathered through sensors on the linkage that connect the payload carrier 112 to the chassis 104, such as through the lift position sensor 120 associated with the lift cylinder assembly 114 and the tilt position sensor 122 associated with the tilt cylinder assembly 118”];
a pressure cylinder operatively connected to said forks or to said fork mount, wherein said pressure cylinder is a fork leveling cylinder or a fork mount cylinder [Hunter, Figure 1 fork mount assembly 116 has cylinder 118];
a pressure sensor for measuring pressure inside said fork leveling cylinder or said fork mount cylinder for generating pressure data [Hunter ¶ 0021 “The tilt cylinder assembly 118, through the second pressure sensor 206 will provide a pressure signal to the controller 202”].
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention with a reasonable expectation of success to substitute the work machine with a lifting magnet as taught by Yuzawa, Bonnet, and Kean with using forks on the end of the boom assembly as taught by Hunter in order to more effectively lift items.
With respect to claim 17: Yuzawa, Bonnet, and Kean teach the load moving machine according to claim 1. Yuzawa, Bonnet, and Kean do not teach a fork mount affixed to said end of said boom assembly or to a pivoting arm, a fork mount cylinder operatively connected to said fork mount, and a fork mount pressure sensor in communication with said fork mount cylinder.
However, in a related field of invention, Hunter teaches a fork mount affixed to said end of said boom assembly or to a pivoting arm [Hunter ¶ 0014 “The payload carrier 112 is additionally connected to the pair of lift arms 110 by the tilt linkage 116” fork mount defined by tilting assembly 116 affixed to pivoting arm 132];
a fork mount cylinder operatively connected to said fork mount [Hunter, Figure 1 fork mount assembly 116 has cylinder 118];
a fork mount pressure sensor in communication with said fork mount cylinder [Hunter ¶ 0021 “The tilt cylinder assembly 118, through the second pressure sensor 206 will provide a pressure signal to the controller 202”].
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention with a reasonable expectation of success to substitute the work machine with a lifting magnet as taught by Yuzawa, Bonnet, and Kean with using forks on the end of the boom assembly as taught by Hunter in order to more effectively lift items.
With respect to claim 18: Yuzawa, Bonnet, and Kean teach the load moving machine according to claim 1. Yuzawa, Bonnet, and Kean do not teach forks carried by a fork mount affixed to said end of said boom assembly or to a pivoting arm, a fork leveling cylinder operatively connected to said forks, and a fork levelling pressure sensor in communication with said fork leveling cylinder.
However, in a related field of invention, Hunter teaches forks carried by a fork mount affixed to said end of said boom assembly or to a pivoting arm [Hunter ¶ 0012 “The payload carrier 112 may be an attachment that supports a fork or forks, as exemplified in FIG. 1” ¶ 0014 “The payload carrier 112 is additionally connected to the pair of lift arms 110 by the tilt linkage 116” fork mount defined by tilting assembly 116 affixed to pivoting arm 132];
a fork leveling cylinder operatively connected to said forks [Hunter, Figure 1 fork mount assembly 116 has cylinder 118 that can level the fork];
a fork levelling pressure sensor in communication with said fork leveling cylinder [Hunter ¶ 0021 “The tilt cylinder assembly 118, through the second pressure sensor 206 will provide a pressure signal to the controller 202” the fork mount cylinder comprises a pressure sensor].
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention with a reasonable expectation of success to substitute the work machine with a lifting magnet as taught by Yuzawa, Bonnet, and Kean with using forks on the end of the boom assembly as taught by Hunter in order to more effectively lift items.
Claim 10 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Yuzawa in view of Bonnet in view of Kean and in further view of Turnbull (US PGPub 2021/0354963).
With respect to claim 10: Yuzawa, Bonnet, and Kean teach the load moving machine according to claim 1. Yuzawa, Bonnet, and Kean do not teach a fork mount affixed to said boom assembly or to a pivoting arm, forks affixed to said fork mount, and wherein said control system comprises a fork mount control system.
However, in a related field of invention, Turnbull teaches a fork mount affixed to said boom assembly or to a pivoting arm [Turnbull, Figure 2 fork mount 109];
forks affixed to said fork mount [Turnbull ¶ 0045 “A fork carriage 113 is connected to the distal end of the second link 109 by a pivot joint” and Figure 2];
and wherein said control system comprises a fork mount control system [Turnbull ¶ 0050 “In order to achieve this, it is envisaged that there will be control circuitry to synchronize the operation of the tilt cylinder 112 and the link cylinders 115, 117. The control circuitry will be operable to ensure that as the links are raised or lowered, the tines 213 will remain in a fixed, substantially parallel relationship with the ground.” The control system is taught controlling fork movement];
said fork mount control system for selectively raising or lowering said forks on said fork mount, said fork mount control system comprising a fork mount cylinder [Turnbull ¶ 0051 “It can be seen from FIG. 8 that the telescoping cylinder 119 is configured to be at least partially extended in order to place the tines 213 substantially at ground level. When the telescoping cylinder 119 is retracted, the tines 213 will be raised off the ground to the position shown in FIG. 9 so that the tines may be used to engage tine pockets on a carrying vehicle for mounting the truck mounted forklift on the carrying vehicle.” And Figure 8 – 9].
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention with a reasonable expectation of success to substitute the work machine with a lifting magnet as taught by Yuzawa, Bonnet, and Kean with using forks on the end of the boom assembly as taught by Turnbull in order to more effectively lift items.
Claims 8 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Yuzawa in view of Bonnet in view of Kean and in further view of Geppert (US Patent 4178591).
With respect to claim 8: Yuzawa, Bonnet, and Kean disclose the load moving machine according to claim 1. Yuzawa, Bonnet, and Kean do not teach said control system comprises a telescoping control system; said telescoping control system is for selectively extending or retracting at least a first telescoping arm of said boom assembly for establishing a boom length and for establishing a load radius; said telescoping control system comprising a boom extending cylinder.
However, in a related field of invention, Geppert does teach said control system comprises a telescoping control system [Geppert ¶ Abstract “The crane operating aid is easily adapted to use with lattice or telescoping type cranes” and Figure 2];
said telescoping control system is for selectively extending or retracting at least a first telescoping arm of said boom assembly for establishing a boom length and for establishing a load radius [Geppert, Col 5 lines 6-7 “Crane boom mechanism 22 comprises a hydraulic telescopingly extendable boom” the boom can extend which defines a new load radius];
said telescoping control system comprising a boom extending cylinder [Geppert, Col 5 lines 6-8 “Crane boom mechanism 22 comprises a hydraulic telescoingly extendable boom comprising a base section 24, midsection 26 and tip section 28” and Figure 1 cylinder 32 the telescopic boom is taught being hydraulic].
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention with a reasonable expectation of success to combine the work machine as taught by Yuzawa, Bonnet, and Kean with the telescoping control system as taught by Geppert in order to effectively actuate the boom.
Claims 20 and 26 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Yuzawa in view of Bonnet in view of Kean and in further in view of Ichiba (US Patent 5730305).
With respect to claim 20: Yuzawa, Bonnet, and Kean disclose the load moving machine according to claim 19. Yuzawa, Bonnet, and Kean do not teach said display system displays information for informing said operator of a change of said load handling geometry for aiding said operator when the load moving machine is approaching working limits or for informing said operator of changes to said load handling geometry that would increase said longitudinal load moment beyond a longitudinal pre- determined allowable limit and/or said lateral load moment beyond a lateral pre-determined allowable limit.
However, in a related field of invention, Ichiba does teach said display system displays information for informing said operator of a change of said load handling geometry for aiding said operator when the load moving machine is approaching working limits or for informing said operator of changes to said load handling geometry that would increase said longitudinal load moment beyond a longitudinal pre- determined allowable limit and/or said lateral load moment beyond a lateral pre-determined allowable limit [Ichiba, Col 5-6 “Automatic Crane Safety Monitor Mode” “In accordance with the information supplied from the main unit CPU, the display unit CPU displays the current crane operation status, i.e., an outrigger setting 404, slewing position 405, operation radius 406, boom angle 407, lifting load 410, lifting distance 409, and boom length 402. The boom length is schematically displayed in the form of bar 403 whose length changes in correspondence with the actual length of the boom.” and Fig 4A].
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention with a reasonable expectation of success to combine the remaining weight display area as taught by Yuzawa, Bonnet, and Kean with the automatic crane safety monitor mode as taught by Ichiba in order to more effectively inform the operator of potential safety hazards during crane operation.
With respect to claim 26: Yuzawa, Bonnet, and Kean disclose the method according to claim 25. Yuzawa, Bonnet, and Kean do not teach informing said operator of a change of said load handling geometry for aiding said operator when the telehandler is approaching working limits or for informing said operator of changes to said load handling geometry that would increase said longitudinal load moment beyond a longitudinal pre-determined allowable limit and/or said lateral load moment beyond a lateral pre- determined allowable limit.
However, in a related field of invention, Ichiba does teach informing said operator of a change of said load handling geometry for aiding said operator when the telehandler is approaching working limits or for informing said operator of changes to said longitudinal load handling geometry that would increase said load moment beyond a longitudinal pre-determined allowable limit and/or said lateral load moment beyond a lateral pre- determined allowable limit. [Ichiba, Col 5-6 “Automatic Crane Safety Monitor Mode” “In accordance with the information supplied from the main unit CPU, the display unit CPU displays the current crane operation status, i.e., an outrigger setting 404, slewing position 405, operation radius 406, boom angle 407, lifting load 410, lifting distance 409, and boom length 402. The boom length is schematically displayed in the form of bar 403 whose length changes in correspondence with the actual length of the boom.” and Fig 4A].
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention with a reasonable expectation of success to combine the remaining weight display area as taught by Yuzawa, Bonnet, and Kean with the automatic crane safety monitor mode as taught by Ichiba in order to more effectively inform the operator of potential safety hazards during crane operation.
Claims 21-22 and 27-28 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Yuzawa in view of Bonnet in view of Kean and in further in view of Puzkiewicz (US PGPub 2003/0173324).
With respect to claim 21: Yuzawa, Bonnet, and Kean teach the load moving machine according to claim 19 Yuzawa, Bonnet, and Kean do not teach wherein said feedback generator provides outputs that prevent said operator from changing said load handling geometry into configurations that would increase said longitudinal load moment beyond said longitudinal pre-determined allowable limit and/or said lateral load moment beyond said lateral pre-determined allowable limit.
However, in a related field of invention, Puzkiewicz does teach wherein said feedback generator provides outputs that prevent said operator from changing said load handling geometry into configurations that would increase said longitudinal load moment beyond said longitudinal pre-determined allowable limit and/or said lateral load moment beyond said lateral pre-determined allowable limit [Puzkiewicz ¶ 0020 “The output signals are then utilized by an on-board control system of the processors 1 to assess vehicle stability and detect when the machine is approaching instability in order to warn the operator via an alarm 2 or the like and/or restrict vehicle movement via communication with vehicle driving components 3.”].
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention with a reasonable expectation of success to combine the remaining weight display area as taught by Yuzawa, Bonnet, and Kean with the controller that controls machine controls as taught by Puzkiewicz in order to more effectively prevent machine failure.
With respect to claim 22: Yuzawa, Bonnet, and Kean teach the load moving machine according to claim 19. Yuzawa, Bonnet, and Kean do not teach said feedback generator is integrated with machine controls and said control system to prevent travel of the load moving machine, to limit or stop travel speed of the load moving machine, or to allow said boom assembly to only move in a direction that will reduce said moment load.
However, in a related field of invention, Puzkiewicz does teach said feedback generator is integrated with machine controls and said control system to prevent travel of the load moving machine, to limit or stop travel speed of the load moving machine, or to allow said boom assembly to only move in a direction that will reduce said moment load [Puzkiewicz ¶ 0020 “The output signals are then utilized by an on-board control system of the processors 1 to assess vehicle stability and detect when the machine is approaching instability in order to warn the operator via an alarm 2 or the like and/or restrict vehicle movement via communication with vehicle driving components 3.”].
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention with a reasonable expectation of success to combine the remaining weight display area as taught by Yuzawa, Bonnet, and Kean with the controller that controls machine controls as taught by Puzkiewicz in order to more effectively prevent machine failure.
With respect to claim 27: Yuzawa, Bonnet, and Kean teach the method according to claim 25. Yuzawa, Bonnet, and Kean do not teach providing outputs that prevent said operator from changing said load handling geometry into configurations that would increase said longitudinal load moment beyond said longitudinal pre-determined allowable limit and/or said lateral load moment beyond a lateral pre-determined allowable limit.
However, in a related field of invention, Puzkiewicz does teach providing outputs that prevent said operator from changing said load handling geometry into configurations that would increase said longitudinal load moment beyond said longitudinal pre-determined allowable limit and/or said lateral load moment beyond a lateral pre-determined allowable limit [Puzkiewicz ¶ 0020 “The output signals are then utilized by an on-board control system of the processors 1 to assess vehicle stability and detect when the machine is approaching instability in order to warn the operator via an alarm 2 or the like and/or restrict vehicle movement via communication with vehicle driving components 3.”].
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention with a reasonable expectation of success to combine the remaining weight display area as taught by Yuzawa, Bonnet, and Kean with the controller that controls machine controls as taught by Puzkiewicz in order to more effectively prevent machine failure.
With respect to claim 28: Yuzawa, Bonnet, and Kean teach the method according to claim 23. Yuzawa, Bonnet, and Kean do not teach overriding machine controls with a feedback generator to prevent travel of the load carrying machine to limit or stop travel speed of the load moving machine, or to allow said boom assembly to only move in a direction that will reduce a moment load on the load moving machine.
However, in a related field of invention, Puzkiewicz does teach overriding machine controls with a feedback generator to prevent travel of the load carrying machine to limit or stop travel speed of the load moving machine, or to allow said boom assembly to only move in a direction that will reduce a moment load on the load moving machine [Puzkiewicz ¶ 0020 “The output signals are then utilized by an on-board control system of the processors 1 to assess vehicle stability and detect when the machine is approaching instability in order to warn the operator via an alarm 2 or the like and/or restrict vehicle movement via communication with vehicle driving components 3.”].
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention with a reasonable expectation of success to combine the remaining weight display area as taught by Yuzawa, Bonnet, and Kean with the controller that controls machine controls as taught by Puzkiewicz in order to more effectively prevent machine failure.
Conclusion
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/J.E.R./Examiner, Art Unit 3666
/SCOTT A BROWNE/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3666
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