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 .
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
The following is a quotation of the appropriate paragraphs of 35 U.S.C. 102 that form the basis for the rejections under this section made in this Office action:
A person shall be entitled to a patent unless –
(a)(1) the claimed invention was patented, described in a printed publication, or in public use, on sale, or otherwise available to the public before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claim(s) 1-4 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a1) as being taught by Hyundai (KR 10-1698780).
With respect to claim 1, Hyundai teaches an upper frame (fig. 1, 10) provided in an upward direction of a cage and provided with a main rope (3) connected thereto;
a position adjusting device (21) configured to connect the cage and the upper frame; and
a sensor device (22) configured to detect a landing error between a floor of the cage and a floor of a platform,
wherein the position adjusting device adjusts a distance between the upper frame and the cage based on the landing error detected from the sensor device to correct a height of the cage (paragraphs 0027-0038/0055).
With respect to claim 2, Hyundai teaches further comprising a tilt measuring device configured to divide an inside of the cage into a plurality of regions and calculate errors between the plurality of divided regions to determine whether (paragraphs 0027-0038/0055) the cage has been tilted to a specific region among the plurality of regions.
With respect to claim 3, Hyundai teaches wherein the position adjusting device includes a plurality of position adjusting modules (13/22/32) provided to respectively correspond to the plurality of regions and drives the plurality of position adjusting modules based on a measured value measured from the tilt measuring device.
With respect to claim 4, Hyundai teaches wherein the position adjusting device is configured to: generate integrated control information for integrally controlling the plurality of position adjusting modules based on the landing error measured through the sensor device when the tilt measuring device identifies that (paragraphs 0027-0038/0055) the cage has not been tilted to one region; and generate individual control information for individually controlling the plurality of position adjusting modules when the tilt measuring device identifies that the cage has been tilted to the one region.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 5-6 are objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
The following is an examiner’s statement of reasons for allowance:
With respect to claim 7, the Prior Art does not teach a connecting rope connecting an upper frame to which a main rope is connected and a cage; a rotating gear provided in contact with the connecting rope; and a driver configured to apply a rotational force to the rotating gear, wherein the connecting rope is provided to form two columns between the upper frame and the cage, and when the rotating gear is rotated, positional compensation is performed on the cage through crossing between the two columns of the connecting rope.
With respect to claim 8, the Prior Art does not teach acquiring a landing error related to a step difference between a cage and a floor through a sensor device; acquiring tilt detection information related to whether the cage has been tilted to a specific region through a tilt measuring device; and controlling a position adjusting device based on the landing error and the tilt detection information, wherein the position adjusting device includes a plurality of position adjusting modules provided between the cage and an upper frame provided with a main rope connected thereto, and each of the plurality of position adjusting modules includes a connecting rope connecting the upper frame and the cage, a rotating gear provided in contact with the connecting rope, and a driver configured to apply a rotational force to the rotating gear.
Any comments considered necessary by applicant must be submitted no later than the payment of the issue fee and, to avoid processing delays, should preferably accompany the issue fee. Such submissions should be clearly labeled “Comments on Statement of Reasons for Allowance.”
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to ERICK DAVID GLASS whose telephone number is (571)272-8395. The examiner can normally be reached Mon-Fri_8-5pm.
Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Eduardo Colon-Santana can be reached at 571-272-2060. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000.
/ERICK D GLASS/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2846