DETAILED ACTION
The Amendment filed 2/5/2026 has been entered.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
The text of those sections of Title 35, U.S. Code not included in this action can be found in a prior Office action.
Claim(s) 1, 2, and 16-20 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Choi et al. (US 2022/0158466). Choi discloses a robot (see para. 0068)/method, comprising: a body (300 and see paras. 0072-0073) and a wheel assembly (390), the wheel assembly defining a footprint of the robot; a battery chassis (310) coupled to the body and having a first battery compartment (311) and a second battery compartment (312); and a first battery module (501) disposed within the first battery compartment and entirely within the footprint of the robot (see Figs. 2A-2C and paras. 0072-0073), wherein when the battery chassis engages with a charging station, the battery chassis is arranged to release the first battery module from the first battery compartment and to receive a second battery module (502) within the second battery compartment and entirely within the footprint of the robot (see Figs. 2A-2C). The battery chassis is disposed within the body (see Fig. 2A) and the first battery module is accessible through an access opening defined in the body (see Figs. 2A and B). The first battery module is depleted, and the second battery module is charged (see para. 0009). The removing step and the transferring step occur simultaneously (see Figs. 2A and 2B). The first battery is transferred to a first charging terminal (421) of the charging station. The removing step includes breaking a mechanical, magnetic or electromagnetic connection (321) between the first battery module and the first battery compartment.
Claim(s) 1, 2, 6-8, 16, 17, 19, and 20 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Austrheim et al. (US 2021/0032036). Austrheim discloses a system/method, comprising: a storage structure(1), comprising: pillars (102) extending in a vertical direction, the pillars supporting a grid formed of a first set of rails (111) extending in a first horizontal direction and a second set of rails (112) extending in a second horizontal direction, the grid defining a plurality of grid spaces (122); and a charging station (40) disposed above the grid, the charging station including a first charging terminal and a second charging terminal (see paras. 0186-0187); and a robot (3), comprising: a body (generally at 3) coupled to a wheel assembly (19, 20), the wheel assembly including a plurality of wheels (19, 20) defining a footprint of a robot and a drive mechanism (see abstract) arranged to move the body along the first set of rails and along the second set of rails; and a chassis (27) coupled to the body defining a first battery compartment (see Fig. 20) and a second battery compartment (see Fig. 20), wherein, when the chassis and the charging station engage one another, the chassis is arranged to release a first battery module, disposed entirely within the footprint of the robot, from the first battery compartment and receive a second battery module within the second battery compartment and entirely within the footprint of the robot, and the charging station is arranged to receive the first battery module within the first charging terminal and release the second battery module from the second charging terminal (see para. 0207). The battery chassis is disposed at least partially within the body and the first battery module is accessible through an access opening defined in the body (see Fig. 20).
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
The text of those sections of Title 35, U.S. Code not included in this action can be found in a prior Office action.
Claim(s) 3 and 15 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Austrheim et al. (US 2021/0032036) in view of Austrheim (US 2021/0147145). Austrheim ‘036 discloses all the limitations of the claim, but it does not disclose that the first battery compartment is located above the second battery compartment. Rather, Austrheim ‘036 discloses that the battery compartments are side-by-side. However, Austrheim ‘145 discloses a similar robot including a first battery compartment (see Fig. 9 at 213’) located above a second battery compartment (see Fig. 9 at 213’’) for the purpose of reducing the horizontal size of the robot. It would have been obvious for a person of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the applicant’s invention, to modify Austrheim ‘036 by having the first battery compartment located above the second battery compartment, as disclosed by Austrheim ‘145, for the purpose of reducing the horizontal size of the robot.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 4, 5, and 9-14 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.
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed 2/5/2026 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive.
The applicant states that Choi does not disclose that the battery modules are disposed “entirely within the footprint of the robot” as recited in the independent claims. The examiner disagrees with the applicant. In Figures 2A and 2B, Choi discloses an embodiment in which the battery modules are entirely between wheels. Therefore, they are entirely within the footprint of the robot. Choi also discloses an additional embodiment in Fig. 2C in which the battery modules are entirely within the footprint of the robot.
The applicant’s statements regarding Austrheim don’t specifically point out how the language of the independent claims patentably distinguish them from the Austrheim. Austrheim discloses each claim limitation as noted in the rejection above.
Conclusion
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 nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) 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 mailing date of this final action.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to PATRICK HEWEY MACKEY whose telephone number is (571)272-6916. The examiner can normally be reached M - F 9-5.
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, Michael McCullough can be reached at 571-272-7805. 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.
/PATRICK H MACKEY/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3653