DETAILED ACTION
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.
(a)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claim(s) 1, 4, 6-7, 11, 13, 37, and 41-42 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) and/or 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by DROUILLARD (US 20200356076 A1).
Regarding claim 1, DROUILLARD (US 20200356076 A1) teaches a laser marking system (Figure 6) comprising:
first and second laser marking heads configured to mark a product (Figure 6 Paragraph 59, each of an array of 32 downward-facing CLL lasers is mounted to one of 4 laser mounting shafts, with each of eight unique 4 laser subset from the array of lasers being assigned to an associated conveyor lane, each laser from a given 4-laser subset being positioned at different a spatial/linear position along and adjacent to that conveyor lane such that each one of the lasers from the 4-laser subset is aimed at/aligned with and adjacent to that conveyor lane; Paragraph 3, lasers mark the product as it is conveyed along the conveyor); and,
a first controller associated with the first laser marking head and a second controller associated with the second laser marking head (Paragraph 48, each of the laser markers comprise a local controller which can receive data packets from a master controller; Paragraph 46, Each laser marker 222-1, 222-2 can receive, via its associated data input 222F, data packets from one or more industrial components 201), wherein the first and second controllers are configurable to1:
receive data indicating information to be marked on the product (Paragraph 48, each of the laser markers comprise a local controller which can receive data packets from a master controller);
generate laser marking vectors based upon the received data (Paragraph 38, laser marking performed by the lasers under the control of a laser controller that can generate instruction sets and dynamically adjust the data input received from equipment upstream of the conveyor; Paragraph 38, said instruction sets include changing the laser markings and associated instruction sets such that when the product arrives at the laser the marking will be adjusted; Paragraph 46, lasing recipes include specifying an arrangement of vectors); and,
control their associated laser marking head based on the laser marking vectors (Figure 10 Paragraph 72, an update is sent to each associated laser from the plurality of lasers and during the operation of the plurality of lasers such that at least lasing parameter of the laser is adjusted).
Regarding claim 4, DROUILLARD teaches the laser marking system of claim 1,
wherein the first controller (Figure 2B Paragraph 48, master controller 200 can be interpreted as the first controller under a different embodiment wherein local controller 222E of the second laser marker is configured as the second controller) is configured to:
receive the data indicating information to be marked on the product (Paragraph 48, master controller receives signal data from industrial components 201);
determine a first sub-set of the data to be marked by the first laser marking head and a second sub-set of the data to be marked by the second laser marking head (Paragraph 48, each of the local controllers 222E can receive data packets from the centralized/common master controller 200, the data packets including lasing instructions generated by the master controller 200 using signal data received from industrial components);
generate a first sub-set of the laser marking vectors based on the first sub-set of the data and generate a second sub-set of the laser marking vectors based on the second sub-set of the data (Paragraph 48, master controller 200 generates the data packets including lasing instructions generated by the master controller 200 using signal data received from industrial components for each of the local controllers; Paragraph 46, lasing recipes include specifying an arrangement of vectors),
control the first laser marking head at least partially based on the first sub-set of laser marking vectors (Paragraph 38, instruction set for the laser is modified such that the laser marking will include the desired text when the product arrives at the laser); and
provide the second sub-set of the laser marking vectors to the second controller (Paragraph 48, each of the local controllers 222E can receive data packets from the centralized/common master controller 200, the data packets including lasing instructions generated by the master controller 200 using signal data received from industrial components),
wherein the second controller is configured to control the second laser marking head at least partially based on the second sub-set of the laser marking vectors (Paragraph 72, step 1008 wherein updates are sent to each associate laser from a plurality of lasers wherein during operation of the plurality of lasers, such that at least one lasing parameter of that laser is adjusted; Paragraph 38, instruction set for the laser is modified such that the laser marking will include the desired text when the product arrives at the laser).
Regarding claim 6, DROUILLARD teaches the laser marking system of claim 1,
wherein the first controller (Figure 2B Paragraph 48, master controller 200 can be interpreted as the first controller under a different embodiment wherein local controller 222E of the second laser marker is configured as the second controller) is configured to:
generate a third sub-set of the data indicating information to be marked on the product (Paragraph 48, master controller 200 generates the data packets including lasing instructions generated by the master controller 200 using signal data received from industrial components for each of the local controllers; Paragraph 38, modify laser markings to include desired text);
generate a third sub-set of the laser marking vectors based on the third sub-set of data (Paragraph 48, master controller 200 generates the data packets including lasing instructions generated by the master controller 200 using signal data received from industrial components for each of the local controllers; Paragraph 46, lasing recipes include specifying an arrangement of vectors); and,
provide the third sub-set of laser marking vectors to the second controller (Paragraph 48, each of the local controllers 222E can receive data packets from the centralized/common master controller 200, the data packets including lasing instructions generated by the master controller 200 using signal data received from industrial components),
wherein the second controller is configured to control the second laser marking head at least partially based on the third sub-set of the laser marking vectors (Paragraph 72, step 1008 wherein updates are sent to each associate laser from a plurality of lasers wherein during operation of the plurality of lasers, such that at least one lasing parameter of that laser is adjusted; Paragraph 38, instruction set for the laser is modified such that the laser marking will include the desired text when the product arrives at the laser).
Regarding claim 7, DROUILLARD teaches the laser marking system of claim 6,
wherein the third sub-set of data indicates dynamic information to be marked on the product (Paragraph 38, sizer upstream determines grade data wherein the laser markings will include grade text; grade text changes between products based on the grade of the product and thus is dynamic), and wherein the third sub-set of laser marking vectors is static (Paragraph 48, memory of each laser marker stores instructions to cause a predetermined pattern to be lased onto a surface of a product that is disposed; Paragraph 58, product logo and brand name are all static markings which do not change between products and thus the vectors are static as well).
Regarding claim 11, DROUILLARD teaches the laser marking system of claim 1, comprising a first detector configured to detect a position of the product relative to the first laser marking head and output a first detector signal indicative of the position (Paragraph 38, grade data and associated position data of the associated products can be transmitted from a detector positioned upstream to a master controller), wherein the second controller is configured to receive the first detector signal and control the second laser marking head at least partially based on the first detector signal (Paragraph 38, grade data of the associated products can be transmitted to a master controller which modifies an instruction set such that when the first product arrives at the laser the laser marking will include the text grade).
Regarding claim 13, DROUILLARD teaches the laser marking system of claim 1, comprising a holder (Paragraph 56, laser mounting shafts) configured to support the first and second laser marking heads in pre-determined positions relative to the holder (Paragraph 56, each of the downward facing lasers are each mounted to a different one of 4 laser mounting shafts are positioned at different spatial positions along and adjacent to a different conveyor).
Regarding claim 37, DROUILLARD (US 20200356076 A1) teaches a method of laser marking a product comprising:
receiving data indicating information to be marked on the product (Paragraph 48, each of the laser markers comprise a local controller which can receive data packets from a master controller);
generating laser marking vectors based upon the received data (Paragraph 38, laser marking performed by the lasers under the control of a laser controller that can generate instruction sets and dynamically adjust the data input received from equipment upstream of the conveyor; Paragraph 38, said instruction sets include changing the laser markings and associated instruction sets such that when the product arrives at the laser the marking will be adjusted; Paragraph 46, lasing recipes include specifying an arrangement of vectors);
using a first controller to control a first laser marking head based on the laser marking vectors to mark the product (Paragraph 48, each of the laser markers comprise a local controller which can receive data packets from a master controller; Paragraph 46, Each laser marker 222-1, 222-2 can receive, via its associated data input 222F, data packets from one or more industrial components 201; Figure 10 Paragraph 72, an update is sent to each associated laser from the plurality of lasers and during the operation of the plurality of lasers such that at least lasing parameter of the laser is adjusted); and,
using a second controller to control a second laser marking head based on the laser marking vectors to mark the product (Paragraph 48, each of the laser markers comprise a local controller which can receive data packets from a master controller; Paragraph 46, Each laser marker 222-1, 222-2 can receive, via its associated data input 222F, data packets from one or more industrial components 201; Figure 10 Paragraph 72, an update is sent to each associated laser from the plurality of lasers and during the operation of the plurality of lasers such that at least lasing parameter of the laser is adjusted).
Regarding claim 41, DROUILLARD teaches the method of claim 37, comprising:
using the first controller to generate a third sub-set of the data indicating information to be marked on the product (Paragraph 48, master controller 200 generates the data packets including lasing instructions generated by the master controller 200 using signal data received from industrial components for each of the local controllers; Paragraph 38, modify laser markings to include desired text);
using the first controller to generate a third sub-set of the laser marking vectors based on the third sub-set of data (Paragraph 48, master controller 200 generates the data packets including lasing instructions generated by the master controller 200 using signal data received from industrial components for each of the local controllers; Paragraph 46, lasing recipes include specifying an arrangement of vectors);
providing the third sub-set of laser marking vectors to the second controller (Paragraph 48, each of the local controllers 222E can receive data packets from the centralized/common master controller 200, the data packets including lasing instructions generated by the master controller 200 using signal data received from industrial components); and,
using the second controller to control the second laser marking head at least partially based on the third sub-set of the laser marking vectors (Paragraph 72, step 1008 wherein updates are sent to each associate laser from a plurality of lasers wherein during operation of the plurality of lasers, such that at least one lasing parameter of that laser is adjusted; Paragraph 38, instruction set for the laser is modified such that the laser marking will include the desired text when the product arrives at the laser).
Regarding claim 42, DROUILLARD teaches the method of claim 41, wherein
the third sub-set of data indicates dynamic information to be marked on the product (Paragraph 38, sizer upstream determines grade data wherein the laser markings will include grade text; grade text changes between products based on the grade of the product and thus is dynamic), and wherein the third sub-set of laser marking vectors is static (Paragraph 48, memory of each laser marker stores instructions to cause a predetermined pattern to be lased onto a surface of a product that is disposed; Paragraph 58, product logo and brand name are all static markings which do not change between products and thus the vectors are static as well).
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.
Claim(s) 2-3 and 5 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over DROUILLARD (US 20200356076 A1) as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of Attarwala (US 20160205066 A1).
Regarding claim 2, DROUILLARD teaches the laser marking system of claim 1,
wherein the first controller is configured to:
receive the data indicating information to be marked on the product (Paragraph 38, a sizer upstream from the laser determines that a first orange being conveyed down the lane and associated position data of the associated products is transmitted to a master controller for the laser which modifies an instruction set);
generate the laser marking vectors based on the data (Paragraph 38, controller for the laser modifies an instruction set based on the received information; Paragraph 46, lasing recipes include specifying an arrangement of vectors);
control the first laser marking head at least partially based on the first subset of the laser marking vectors (Paragraph 38, instruction set for the laser is modified such that the laser marking will include the desired text when the product arrives at the laser);
wherein the second controller is configured to control the second laser marking head at least partially based on the second sub-set of the laser marking vectors (Paragraph 72, step 1008 wherein updates are sent to each associate laser from a plurality of lasers wherein during operation of the plurality of lasers, such that at least one lasing parameter of that laser is adjusted; Paragraph 38, instruction set for the laser is modified such that the laser marking will include the desired text when the product arrives at the laser).
DROUILLARD fails to explicitly teach:
wherein the first controller is configured to:
determine a first sub-set of the laser marking vectors to retain and a second sub- set of the laser marking vectors to provide to the second controller;
provide the second sub-set of the laser marking vectors to the second controller
Attarwala (US 20160205066 A1) teaches a unique device address assignment technique, wherein:
the first controller (slave device) is configured to:
determine a first sub-set of the laser marking vectors to retain (Paragraph 86, each slave device processes the command to determine if its assigned address is within range of the specified device address; Paragraphs 83-84, slave device receives the write command and processes the write command when the device address specified in the command byte matches the device address assigned to said slave device; Paragraph 84, multiple register pointer bytes and multiple data bytes can be included in each write command; Paragraph 49, memory register pointer byte can be a register located at a single slave device; said data bytes can reasonably include a first sub-set of laser marking vectors assigned to a particular register of a particular slave device) and a second sub-set of the laser marking vectors to provide to the second controller (Paragraph 83, slave devices read the command and forwards the write command to downstream slave devices; slave device determines a write command which includes data byte information and forwards it to the next slave device wherein said command can reasonably include a second sub-set of laser marking vectors);
provide the second sub-set of the laser marking vectors to the second controller (Paragraph 83, slave devices read the command and forwards the write command to downstream slave devices which could reasonably include a second sub-set of laser marking vectors)
It would have thus been obvious to someone of ordinary skill in the art before the filing date of the claimed invention to have modified DROUILLARD with Attarwala and have the controllers be connected in a daisy chain configuration. This would have been done such that each device can easily determine its relative position from the host controller and any other device in the network (Attarwala Paragraph 87).
Regarding claim 3, DROUILLARD teaches the laser marking system of claim 1,
wherein the first controller is configured to:
receive the data indicating information to be marked on the product (Paragraph 38, a sizer upstream from the laser determines that a first orange being conveyed down the lane and associated position data of the associated products is transmitted to a master controller for the laser which modifies an instruction set);
generate a first sub-set of the laser marking vectors based on the first sub-set of data (Paragraph 38, controller for the laser modifies an instruction set based on the received information; Paragraph 46, lasing recipes include specifying an arrangement of vectors);
control the first laser marking head at least partially based on the first sub-set of the laser marking vectors (Paragraph 38, instruction set for the laser is modified such that the laser marking will include the desired text when the product arrives at the laser);
wherein the second controller is configured to:
generate a second sub-set of the laser marking vectors based on the second sub-set of the data (Paragraph 38, controller for the laser modifies an instruction set based on the received information; Paragraph 46, lasing recipes include specifying an arrangement of vectors); and,
control the second laser marking head at least partially based on the second sub- set of the laser marking vectors (Paragraph 72, step 1008 wherein updates are sent to each associate laser from a plurality of lasers wherein during operation of the plurality of lasers, such that at least one lasing parameter of that laser is adjusted; Paragraph 38, instruction set for the laser is modified such that the laser marking will include the desired text when the product arrives at the laser).
DROUILLARD fails to explicitly teach:
wherein the first controller is configured to:
determine a first sub-set of the data to retain and a second sub-set of the data to provide to the second controller;
provide the second sub-set of the data to the second controller,
Attarwala (US 20160205066 A1) teaches a unique device address assignment technique, wherein:
wherein the first controller (slave device) is configured to:
determine a first sub-set of the data to retain (Paragraph 86, each slave device processes the command to determine if its assigned address is within range of the specified device address; Paragraphs 83-84, slave device receives the write command and processes the write command when the device address specified in the command byte matches the device address assigned to said slave device; Paragraph 84, multiple register pointer bytes and multiple data bytes can be included in each write command; Paragraph 49, memory register pointer byte can be a register located at a single slave device; said data bytes can reasonably include a first sub-set of laser marking vectors assigned to a particular register of a particular slave device) and a second sub-set of the data to provide to the second controller (Paragraph 83, slave devices read the command and forwards the write command to downstream slave devices; slave device determines a write command which includes data byte information and forwards it to the next slave device wherein said command can reasonably include a second sub-set of laser marking vectors);
provide the second sub-set of the data to the second controller (Paragraph 83, slave devices read the command and forwards the write command to downstream slave devices which could reasonably include a second sub-set of laser marking vectors),
It would have thus been obvious to someone of ordinary skill in the art before the filing date of the claimed invention to have modified DROUILLARD with Attarwala and have the controllers be connected in a daisy chain configuration. This would have been done such that each device can easily determine its relative position from the host controller and any other device in the network (Attarwala Paragraph 87).
Regarding claim 5, DROUILLARD teaches the laser marking system of claim 2, wherein
the first and second sub-sets of laser marking vectors are different (Paragraph 58, first laser marking of the first laser of the lasers include a product grade while a second laser marking of the second laser of the lasers include a product logo and/or brand name).
Claim(s) 8 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over DROUILLARD (US 20200356076 A1) as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of Armbruster (US 20140247316 A1).
Regarding claim 8, DROUILLARD teaches the laser marking system of claim 1.
DROUILLARD fails to teach:
wherein the first and second laser marking heads are arranged such that their marking fields at least partially overlap.
Armbruster (US 20140247316 A1) teaches a marking apparatus, wherein:
the first and second laser marking heads are arranged such that their marking fields at least partially overlap (Paragraph 33, laser beams can be directed at a common spot such that they overlap)
It would have thus been obvious to someone of ordinary skill in the art before the filing date of the claimed invention to have modified DROUILLARD with Armbruster and have the marking fields at least partially overlap. This would have been done such that power can be combined from both lasers to form a common spot (Armbruster Paragraph 33).
Claim(s) 12 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over DROUILLARD (US 20200356076 A1) as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of Florez (US 20230166529 A1).
Regarding claim 12, DROUILLARD teaches the laser marking system of claim 1.
DROUILLARD fails to teach:
comprising a second detector configured to detect a previously marked position on the product and output a second detector signal indicative of the previously marked position, wherein at least one of the first and second controllers is configured to receive the second detector signal and use the second detector signal to determine a subsequent marking position on the product.
Florez (US 20230166529 A1) teaches a marking method and marked receptable, comprising:
a second detector configured to detect a previously marked position on the product and output a second detector signal indicative of the previously marked position (Paragraph 32, first camera and second camera positioned on both sides of the receptacle), wherein at least one of the first and second controllers is configured to receive the second detector signal and use the second detector signal to determine a subsequent marking position on the product (Paragraph 32, first and second laser beams is controlled by the two independent cameras such as to ensure that each surface region is marked with its respective pattern; Figure 5 Paragraph 92, each successive laser-marked dot in each line is connected to one another in an overlap zone; using the cameras to control the processing would involve using previously marked positions to control subsequent markings to ensure that the pattern is within a certain tolerance).
It would have thus been obvious to someone of ordinary skill in the art before the filing date of the claimed invention to have modified DROUILLARD with Florez and have the cameras control the marking pattern on the product. This would have been done to ensure that the markings are within a certain tolerance (Florez Paragraph 32).
Claim(s) 19 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over DROUILLARD (US 20200356076 A1) as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of Mabee (US 20150273641 A1).
Regarding claim 19, DROUILLARD teaches the laser marking system of claim 1.
DROUILLARD fails to teach:
comprising a shielding apparatus configured to house at least one of the first and second laser marking heads, wherein the shielding apparatus comprises:
an external shielding portion configured to selectively allow physical objects to pass through the shielding apparatus; and,
an internal shielding portion configured to prevent at least some laser radiation from exiting the shielding apparatus.
Mabee (US 20150273641 A1) teaches a laser workstation with endless loop conveyor, comprising:
a shielding apparatus configured to house at least one of the first and second laser marking heads (Paragraphs 39-40, enclosure 52 is configured to house a laser workstation; Paragraph 25, unprocessed first workpiece is delivered to the laser workstation and subjected to laser processing by a laser robot 24), wherein the shielding apparatus comprises:
an external shielding portion configured to selectively allow physical objects to pass through the shielding apparatus (Paragraph 40, laser processing unit 10 further includes movable doors for respectively closing the openings of the wall sections of the enclosure 52); and,
an internal shielding portion configured to prevent at least some laser radiation from exiting the shielding apparatus (Figure 1 Paragraph 40, doors are in a closed position during laser processing with prevents the laser light from escaping the enclosure in combination with the walls of the enclosure).
It would have thus been obvious to someone of ordinary skill in the art before the filing date of the claimed invention to have modified DROUILLARD with Mabee and have the laser marking head be located within an enclosure. This would have been done to prevent laser light from escaping during the laser processing (Mabee Paragraph 40).
Claim(s) 25 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over DROUILLARD (US 20200356076 A1) as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of Attarwala (US 20160205066 A1) and Clement (US 5653900 A).
Regarding claim 25, DROUILLARD teaches the laser marking system of claim 1,
a laser marking head sequence for sequential marking of the product (Paragraph 56, lasers 1-4 will apply a laser marking to the product sequentially)
wherein the laser marking system comprises a fourth detector configured to detect a position of the product and output a fourth detector signal indicative of the position of the product (Paragraph 38, grade data and associated position data of the associated products can be transmitted from a detector positioned upstream to a master controller),
wherein the first controller is configured to:
receive the data indicating information to be marked on the product (Paragraph 48, each of the laser markers comprise a local controller which can receive data packets from a master controller);
generate a portion of the laser marking vectors based upon the received data (Paragraph 38, laser marking performed by the lasers under the control of a laser controller that can generate instruction sets and dynamically adjust the data input received from equipment upstream of the conveyor; Paragraph 38, said instruction sets include changing the laser markings and associated instruction sets such that when the product arrives at the laser the marking will be adjusted; Paragraph 46, lasing recipes include specifying an arrangement of vectors),
control the first laser marking head based on the generated portion of laser marking vectors and fourth detector signal (Figure 10 Paragraph 72, an update is sent to each associated laser from the plurality of lasers and during the operation of the plurality of lasers such that at least lasing parameter of the laser is adjusted; Paragraph 38, associated position data and grade data is transmitted which modifies an instruction set such that the product will receive the desired laser markings); and,
wherein the second controller is configured to:
generate remaining laser marking vectors based upon the received signal (Paragraph 48, each of the local controllers 222E can receive data packets from the centralized/common master controller 200, the data packets including lasing instructions generated by the master controller 200 using signal data received from industrial components); and,
control the second laser marking head based on the remaining laser marking vectors and the fourth detector signal (Paragraph 72, step 1008 wherein updates are sent to each associate laser from a plurality of lasers wherein during operation of the plurality of lasers, such that at least one lasing parameter of that laser is adjusted; Paragraph 38, instruction set for the laser is modified such that the laser marking will include the desired text when the product arrives at the laser).
DROUILLARD fails to teach:
wherein the first and second laser marking heads are daisy-chained,
wherein the laser marking system comprises a fourth detector configured to detect a position of the product relative to a marking field of the first laser head and output a fourth detector signal indicative of the position of the product relative to the marking field of the first laser marking head
produce an output signal indicative of a remaining portion of the data indicative of information to be marked on the product, wherein the second controller is configured to:
receive the output signal indicative of the remaining portion of the data,
Attarwala (US 20160205066 A1) teaches a unique device address assignment technique, wherein:
wherein the first and second laser marking heads are daisy-chained (Paragraph 5, host controller and multiple slave devices are connected in a daisy chain configuration),
first controller produces an output signal indicative of a remaining portion of the data indicative of information to be marked on the product (Paragraph 83, slave devices read the command and forwards the write command to downstream slave devices; slave device determines a write command which includes data byte information and forwards it to the next slave device wherein said command can reasonably include a second sub-set of laser marking vectors), wherein the second controller is configured to:
receive the output signal indicative of the remaining portion of the data (Paragraph 83, slave devices read the command and forwards the write command to downstream slave devices which could reasonably include a second sub-set of laser marking vectors),
It would have thus been obvious to someone of ordinary skill in the art before the filing date of the claimed invention to have modified DROUILLARD with Attarwala and have the controllers be connected in a daisy chain configuration. This would have been done such that each device can easily determine its relative position from the host controller and any other device in the network (Attarwala Paragraph 87).
DROUILLARD modified with Attarwala fails to explicitly teach:
wherein the laser marking system comprises a fourth detector configured to detect a position of the product relative to a marking field of the first laser head and output a fourth detector signal indicative of the position of the product relative to the marking field of the first laser marking head
Clement (US 5653900 A) teaches a dynamic laser marking apparatus, wherein:
wherein the laser marking system comprises a fourth detector (Figure 2, sensing module 12 comprises opto-detectors 32 and 34) configured to detect a position of the product relative to a marking field of the first laser head and output a fourth detector signal indicative of the position of the product relative to the marking field of the first laser marking head (Column 5 Lines 6-26, sensing module 12 detects a position of the moving body on the conveyor belt; Column 8 Lines 53-54, sensing module 12 and marking apparatus are at a known distance from each other; Column 8 Line 66 – Column 9 Line 7, the estimated time of arrival of the body into the marking field of the marking apparatus can be estimated based on the sensing module)
control the first laser marking head based on the fourth detector signal (Column 9 Lines 8-32, laser marking is performed and controlled as a result of the estimated time calculated from the sensing module 12)
It would have thus been obvious to someone of ordinary skill in the art before the filing date of the claimed invention to have modified DROUILLARD with Clement and have a detector detect the position of the product relative to the marking field of the laser head. This would have been done determine when to begin the laser marking (Clement Column 9 Lines 8-32).
Claim(s) 38-40 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over DROUILLARD (US 20200356076 A1) as applied to claim 37 above, and further in view of Attarwala (US 20160205066 A1).
Regarding claim 38, DROUILLARD teaches the method of claim 37, comprising:
using the first controller to generate the laser marking vectors based on the data (Paragraph 38, controller for the laser modifies an instruction set based on the received information; Paragraph 46, lasing recipes include specifying an arrangement of vectors);
using the first controller to control the first laser marking head at least partially based on the first sub-set of the laser marking vectors (Paragraph 38, instruction set for the laser is modified such that the laser marking will include the desired text when the product arrives at the laser);
using the second controller to control the second laser marking head at least partially based on the second sub-set of the laser marking vectors (Paragraph 72, step 1008 wherein updates are sent to each associate laser from a plurality of lasers wherein during operation of the plurality of lasers, such that at least one lasing parameter of that laser is adjusted; Paragraph 38, instruction set for the laser is modified such that the laser marking will include the desired text when the product arrives at the laser).
DROUILLARD fails to teach:
determining a first sub-set of the laser marking vectors to retain for the first controller and a second sub-set of the laser marking vectors to provide to the second controller;
providing the second sub-set of the laser marking vectors to the second controller; and,
Attarwala (US 20160205066 A1) teaches a unique device address assignment technique, wherein:
determining a first sub-set of the laser marking vectors to retain for the first controller (Paragraph 86, each slave device processes the command to determine if its assigned address is within range of the specified device address; Paragraphs 83-84, slave device receives the write command and processes the write command when the device address specified in the command byte matches the device address assigned to said slave device; Paragraph 84, multiple register pointer bytes and multiple data bytes can be included in each write command; Paragraph 49, memory register pointer byte can be a register located at a single slave device; said data bytes can reasonably include a first sub-set of laser marking vectors assigned to a particular register of a particular slave device) and a second sub-set of the laser marking vectors to provide to the second controller (Paragraph 83, slave devices read the command and forwards the write command to downstream slave devices; slave device determines a write command which includes data byte information and forwards it to the next slave device wherein said command can reasonably include a second sub-set of laser marking vectors);
providing the second sub-set of the laser marking vectors to the second controller (Paragraph 83, slave devices read the command and forwards the write command to downstream slave devices which could reasonably include a second sub-set of laser marking vectors);
It would have thus been obvious to someone of ordinary skill in the art before the filing date of the claimed invention to have modified DROUILLARD with Attarwala and have the controllers be connected in a daisy chain configuration. This would have been done such that each device can easily determine its relative position from the host controller and any other device in the network (Attarwala Paragraph 87).
Regarding claim 39, DROUILLARD teaches the method of claim 37, comprising:
using the first controller to generate a first sub-set of the laser marking vectors based on the first sub-set of the data (Paragraph 48, master controller 200 generates the data packets including lasing instructions generated by the master controller 200 using signal data received from industrial components for each of the local controllers; Paragraph 46, lasing recipes include specifying an arrangement of vectors);
using the first controller to control the first laser marking head at least partially based on the first sub-set of the laser marking vectors (Paragraph 38, instruction set for the laser is modified such that the laser marking will include the desired text when the product arrives at the laser);
using the second controller to generate a second sub-set of the laser marking vectors based on the second sub-set of the data (Paragraph 48, master controller 200 generates the data packets including lasing instructions generated by the master controller 200 using signal data received from industrial components for each of the local controllers; Paragraph 46, lasing recipes include specifying an arrangement of vectors); and,
using the second controller to control the second laser marking head at least partially based on the second sub-set of the laser marking vectors (Paragraph 72, step 1008 wherein updates are sent to each associate laser from a plurality of lasers wherein during operation of the plurality of lasers, such that at least one lasing parameter of that laser is adjusted; Paragraph 38, instruction set for the laser is modified such that the laser marking will include the desired text when the product arrives at the laser).
DROUILLARD fails to teach:
determining a first sub-set of the data to retain for the first controller and a second sub-set of the data to provide to the second controller;
providing the second sub-set of the data to the second controller;
Attarwala (US 20160205066 A1) teaches a unique device address assignment technique, wherein:
determining a first sub-set of the data to retain for the first controller (Paragraph 86, each slave device processes the command to determine if its assigned address is within range of the specified device address; Paragraphs 83-84, slave device receives the write command and processes the write command when the device address specified in the command byte matches the device address assigned to said slave device; Paragraph 84, multiple register pointer bytes and multiple data bytes can be included in each write command; Paragraph 49, memory register pointer byte can be a register located at a single slave device; said data bytes can reasonably include a first sub-set of laser marking vectors assigned to a particular register of a particular slave device) and a second sub-set of the data to provide to the second controller (Paragraph 83, slave devices read the command and forwards the write command to downstream slave devices; slave device determines a write command which includes data byte information and forwards it to the next slave device wherein said command can reasonably include a second sub-set of laser marking vectors);
providing the second sub-set of the data to the second controller (Paragraph 83, slave devices read the command and forwards the write command to downstream slave devices which could reasonably include a second sub-set of laser marking vectors)
It would have thus been obvious to someone of ordinary skill in the art before the filing date of the claimed invention to have modified DROUILLARD with Attarwala and have the controllers be connected in a daisy chain configuration. This would have been done such that each device can easily determine its relative position from the host controller and any other device in the network (Attarwala Paragraph 87).
Regarding claim 40, DROUILLARD teaches the method of claim 37, comprising:
using the first controller to generate a first sub-set of the laser marking vectors based on the first sub-set of the data (Paragraph 38, controller for the laser modifies an instruction set based on the received information; Paragraph 46, lasing recipes include specifying an arrangement of vectors) and a second sub-set of the laser marking vectors based on the second sub-set of the data (Paragraph 38, controller for the laser modifies an instruction set based on the received information; Paragraph 46, lasing recipes include specifying an arrangement of vectors);
using the first controller to control the first laser marking head at least partially based on the first sub-set of laser marking vectors (Paragraph 38, instruction set for the laser is modified such that the laser marking will include the desired text when the product arrives at the laser);
providing the second sub-set of the laser marking vectors to the second controller (Paragraph 48, each of the local controllers 222E can receive data packets from the centralized/common master controller 200, the data packets including lasing instructions generated by the master controller 200 using signal data received from industrial components); and,
using the second controller to control the second laser marking head at least partially based on the second sub-set of the laser marking vectors (Paragraph 72, step 1008 wherein updates are sent to each associate laser from a plurality of lasers wherein during operation of the plurality of lasers, such that at least one lasing parameter of that laser is adjusted; Paragraph 38, instruction set for the laser is modified such that the laser marking will include the desired text when the product arrives at the laser).
DROUILLARD fails to teach:
determining a first sub-set of the data to retain for the first controller and a second sub-set of the data to provide to the second controller;
Attarwala (US 20160205066 A1) teaches a unique device address assignment technique, wherein:
determining a first sub-set of the data to retain for the first controller (Paragraph 86, each slave device processes the command to determine if its assigned address is within range of the specified device address; Paragraphs 83-84, slave device receives the write command and processes the write command when the device address specified in the command byte matches the device address assigned to said slave device; Paragraph 84, multiple register pointer bytes and multiple data bytes can be included in each write command; Paragraph 49, memory register pointer byte can be a register located at a single slave device; said data bytes can reasonably include a first sub-set of laser marking vectors assigned to a particular register of a particular slave device) and a second sub-set of the data to provide to the second controller (Paragraph 83, slave devices read the command and forwards the write command to downstream slave devices; slave device determines a write command which includes data byte information and forwards it to the next slave device wherein said command can reasonably include a second sub-set of laser marking vectors);
It would have thus been obvious to someone of ordinary skill in the art before the filing date of the claimed invention to have modified DROUILLARD with Attarwala and have the controllers be connected in a daisy chain configuration. This would have been done such that each device can easily determine its relative position from the host controller and any other device in the network (Attarwala Paragraph 87).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claim 27 is 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.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to FRANKLIN JEFFERSON WANG whose telephone number is (571)272-7782. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 10AM-6PM (E.S.T).
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, Ibrahime Abraham can be reached at (571) 270-5569. 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.
/F.J.W./Examiner, Art Unit 3761
/WOODY A LEE JR/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3761
1 The Office further notes that the term “configurable to” is functional claim language which covers all devices that are capable of performing the recited function. MPEP2144.IV. In this case, any controller which can be configured to receive data, perform processing, and output control signals would read upon the limitations.
Prosecution Insights