DETAILED ACTION
This action is in reply to an application filed September 26th, 2025. Claims 10-13 and 16-39 are currently pending.
The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on August 6th, 2023 was filed. The submission is in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status.
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.
Claims 10-13, 16-18, 20-27, 29, and 32-35 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over previously cited of record Liu et al. (US Patent No. 7502382 B10, herein after Liu, and further in view of previously cited of record Vaujour et al. (US Pub. No. 20200039665 A1), herein after Vaujour.
Regarding claim 10, Liu teaches [a] hybrid constellation formed in a LEO (Low Earth Orbit) comprising (Liu: Page 19 col. 15 lines 38-41, teaching a constellation of satellites which may include LEO satellites): a communication constellation in which a plurality of satellites, the plurality of satellites including a communication device that communicates with satellites in front and behind in a traveling direction on a same orbital plane, form an annular communication network (Liu: Page 13 col. 3 lines 51-56, teaching a constellations of satellites in multiple orbital planes in a combined space/ground system); and the mission satellite flies between a plurality of satellites forming the communication constellation, and the hybrid constellation is formed by rebuilding the annular communication network with a use of the mission satellite and the plurality of satellites forming the communication constellation (Liu: Page 13 col. 4 lines 39-61, teaching a constellations of satellites in multiple orbital planes which establish communications with each other to send communication messages from one end of the constellation to the other by relaying the message through the satellites of the constellation).
Liu is silent to a mission satellite to be provided with a communication device to communicate with satellites in front and behind and a mission device to execute a mission.
In a similar field, Vaujour teaches a mission satellite to be provided with a communication device to communicate with satellites in front and behind and a mission device to execute a mission (Vaujour: Para. 0061 and 0062, teaching satellites with specialized payloads for missions are part of a constellation that are controlled to fulfill their mission) for the benefit of improving the efficiency of the satellites in communication and mission completion.
It would have been obvious to one ordinarily skilled in the art before the filing of the application to modify the constellation of satellites in communication with each other and working together to achieve their goals from Liu with satellites with a variety of payloads to perform a variety of mission, as taught by Vaujour, for the benefit of improving the efficiency of the satellites in communication and mission completion.
Regarding claim 11, Liu teaches [a] hybrid constellation formed in a LEO (Low Earth Orbit) comprising (Liu: Page 19 col. 15 lines 38-41, teaching a constellation of satellites which may include LEO satellites): a communication constellation in which a plurality of satellites, the plurality of satellites including a communication device that communicates with satellites in front and behind in a traveling direction on a same orbital plane, form an annular communication network, and a plurality of satellites, the plurality of satellites including a communication device that communicates with left and right satellites on adjacent orbits, form a mesh communication network (Liu: Page 13 col. 3 lines 51-56, teaching a constellations of satellites in multiple orbital planes in a combined space/ground system); and the mission satellite flies between a plurality of satellites forming the communication constellation, and the hybrid constellation is formed by rebuilding the annular communication network and rebuilding the mesh communication network with a use of the mission satellite and the plurality of satellites forming the communication constellation (Liu: Page 13 col. 4 lines 39-61, teaching a constellations of satellites in multiple orbital planes which establish communications with each other to send communication messages from one end of the constellation to the other by relaying the message through the satellites of the constellation).
Liu is silent to a mission satellite to be provided with a communication device to communicate with satellites in front and behind and a mission device to execute a mission.
In a similar field, Vaujour teaches a mission satellite to be provided with a communication device to communicate with satellites in front and behind and a mission device to execute a mission (Vaujour: Para. 0061 and 0062, teaching satellites with specialized payloads for missions are part of a constellation that are controlled to fulfill their mission) for the benefit of improving the efficiency of the satellites in communication and mission completion.
It would have been obvious to one ordinarily skilled in the art before the filing of the application to modify the constellation of satellites in communication with each other and working together to achieve their goals from Liu with satellites with a variety of payloads to perform a variety of mission, as taught by Vaujour, for the benefit of improving the efficiency of the satellites in communication and mission completion.
Regarding claim 12, Liu teaches [a] hybrid constellation forming method comprising: forming a hybrid constellation formed in a LEO (Low Earth Orbit) (Liu: Page 19 col. 15 lines 38-41, teaching a constellation of satellites which may include LEO satellites) including a communication constellation in which a plurality of satellites, the plurality of satellites including a communication device that communicates with satellites in front and behind in a traveling direction on a same orbital plane, form an annular communication network (Liu: Page 13 col. 3 lines 51-56, teaching a constellations of satellites in multiple orbital planes in a combined space/ground system), and the mission satellite flies between a plurality of satellites forming the communication constellation, and the annular communication network is rebuilt with a use of the mission satellite and the plurality of satellites forming the communication constellation so as to form the hybrid constellation (Liu: Page 13 col. 4 lines 39-61, teaching a constellations of satellites in multiple orbital planes which establish communications with each other to send communication messages from one end of the constellation to the other by relaying the message through the satellites of the constellation).
Liu is silent to a mission satellite to be provided with a communication device to communicate with satellites in front and behind and a mission device to execute a mission.
In a similar field, Vaujour teaches a mission satellite to be provided with a communication device to communicate with satellites in front and behind and a mission device to execute a mission (Vaujour: Para. 0061 and 0062, teaching satellites with specialized payloads for missions are part of a constellation that are controlled to fulfill their mission) for the benefit of improving the efficiency of the satellites in communication and mission completion.
It would have been obvious to one ordinarily skilled in the art before the filing of the application to modify the constellation of satellites in communication with each other and working together to achieve their goals from Liu with satellites with a variety of payloads to perform a variety of mission, as taught by Vaujour, for the benefit of improving the efficiency of the satellites in communication and mission completion.
Regarding claim 13, Liu teaches [a] hybrid constellation forming method comprising: forming a hybrid constellation formed in a LEO (Low Earth Orbit) (Liu: Page 19 col. 15 lines 38-41, teaching a constellation of satellites which may include LEO satellites) including a communication constellation in which a plurality of satellites, the plurality of satellites including a communication device that communicates with satellites in front and behind in a traveling direction on a same orbital plane, form an annular communication network, and a plurality of satellites, the plurality of satellites including a communication device that communicates with left and right satellites on adjacent orbits, form a mesh communication network (Liu: Page 13 col. 3 lines 51-56, teaching a constellations of satellites in multiple orbital planes in a combined space/ground system), and the mission satellite flies between a plurality of satellites forming the communication constellation, and the annular communication network is rebuilt and the mesh communication network is rebuilt with a use of the mission satellite and the plurality of satellites forming the communication constellation so as to form the hybrid constellation (Liu: Page 13 col. 4 lines 39-61, teaching a constellations of satellites in multiple orbital planes which establish communications with each other to send communication messages from one end of the constellation to the other by relaying the message through the satellites of the constellation).
Liu is silent to a mission satellite to be provided with a communication device to communicate with satellites in front and behind and a mission device to execute a mission.
In a similar field, Vaujour teaches a mission satellite to be provided with a communication device to communicate with satellites in front and behind and a mission device to execute a mission (Vaujour: Para. 0061 and 0062, teaching satellites with specialized payloads for missions are part of a constellation that are controlled to fulfill their mission) for the benefit of improving the efficiency of the satellites in communication and mission completion.
It would have been obvious to one ordinarily skilled in the art before the filing of the application to modify the constellation of satellites in communication with each other and working together to achieve their goals from Liu with satellites with a variety of payloads to perform a variety of mission, as taught by Vaujour, for the benefit of improving the efficiency of the satellites in communication and mission completion.
Regarding claim 16, Liu and Vaujour remain as applied as in claim 10, and Vaujour goes on to further teach [t]he hybrid constellation according to claim 10, wherein the mission satellite is an information collection satellite that is provided with an information collection device as the mission device, the information collection device collecting information of a ground surface or a flying object launched from the ground surface (Vaujour: Para. 0067, teaching that the satellites can collect information from other satellites which includes information telemetry collected during any suitable time; and Para. 0068, teaching that the information can include information about a geographic location), and satellite information acquired by the information collection device is transmitted across an ocean or a continent (Vaujour: FIG. 1B which shows a constellation of satellites collecting information from around the globe and transmitting it to other parts of the globe).
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Regarding claim 17, Liu and Vaujour remain as applied as in claim 10, and Liu goes on to further teach [t]he hybrid constellation according to claim 10, wherein the mission satellite is a positioning signal transmission satellite that is provided with a positioning signal transmission device as the mission device, the positioning signal transmission device transmitting a positioning signal (Liu: Page 13 col. 3 lines 51-56, teaching a constellations of satellites in multiple orbital planes which includes GPS satellites), and exchange of a time control signal between satellites is performed via a rebuilt communication network (Liu: Page 13 col. 4 line 62 through page 14 col. 5 line 14, teaching that the satellites transmits packets of information between each other that can be used to synchronize the satellites and control their schedule).
Regarding claim 18, Liu and Vaujour remain as applied as in claim 10, and Liu goes on to further teach [a] ground system to operate and control the hybrid constellation according to claim 10 (Liu: Page 13 col. 4 lines 62-65, teaching that the control of the satellites can be accomplished through ground stations).
Regarding claim 20, Liu and Vaujour remain as applied as in claim 10, and Liu goes on to further teach [t]he hybrid constellation according to claim 10, wherein a mission satellite provided with a positioning signal receiver and a positioning signal transmitter as the mission device is included (Liu: Page 13 col. 3 lines 51-56, teaching a constellations of satellites in multiple orbital planes which includes GPS satellites), and accurate time is calculated based on a signal received by the positioning signal receiver so as to calibrate a clock of own satellite and a synchronous control signal is exchanged between a plurality of satellites (Liu: Page 13 col. 4 line 62 through page 14 col. 5 line 14, teaching that the satellites transmits packets of information between each other that can be used to synchronize the satellites and control their schedule).
Regarding claim 21, Liu and Vaujour remain as applied as in claim 10, and Liu goes on to further teach [t]he hybrid constellation according to claim 10, wherein satellites provided with a ranging device are included and the satellites measure a distance between each other (Liu: Page 14 col. 6 lines 19-35, teaching that the satellites determine the distance of neighboring satellites from each other while in orbit).
Regarding claim 22, Liu and Vaujour remain as applied as in claim 10, and Liu goes on to further teach [t]he hybrid constellation according to claim 10, wherein satellites that form an annular communication network and fly in a same orbital plane perform forward time management for transmitting a time management signal in a satellite traveling direction and reverse time management for transmitting a time management signal in a reverse direction of the satellite traveling direction (Liu: Page 13 col. 4 line 62 through page 14 col. 5 line 14, teaching that the satellites transmits packets of information between each other that can be used to synchronize the satellites and control their schedule).
Regarding claim 23, Liu and Vaujour remain as applied as in claim 10, and Liu goes on to further teach [t]he hybrid constellation according to claim 10, wherein command information for the mission devices that are different from each other, the command information being generated in orbit, is exchanged between a plurality of satellites (Liu: Page 13 col. 4 lines 62-64, teaching that the control of the satellites can be accomplished by employing a constellation of satellites in communication with each other to achieve their tasks).
Regarding claim 24, Liu and Vaujour remain as applied as in claim 10, and Liu goes on to further teach [t]he hybrid constellation according to claim 10, wherein flying object information acquired in orbit is exchanged between a plurality of satellites (Liu: Page 14 col. 6 lines 19-35, teaching that the satellites determine the distance and speed of neighboring satellites from each other while in orbit and communicate the information about the other satellites to satellites in the constellation).
Regarding claim 25, Liu and Vaujour remain as applied as in claim 10, and Liu goes on to further teach [a] mission satellite that is provided with a front-rear communication device and a mission device and constitutes the hybrid constellation according to claim 10 (Liu: Page 13 col. 3 lines 51-56, teaching a constellations of satellites in multiple orbital planes that are in communication with each other), wherein any of an optical information collection device, a radio wave information collection device, a laser generation device, a radio wave generation device, an infrared monitoring device, a positioning signal generation device, a radio wave data relay device, and an optical data relay device is included as the mission device (Liu: Page 13 col. 3 lines 51-56, teaching a constellations of satellites in multiple orbital planes which includes GPS satellites which are capable of generating positioning signals; and page 13 col. 4 lines 39-43, teaching the uses of radio communication devices).
Regarding claim 26, Liu and Vaujour remain as applied as in claim 19, and Liu goes on to further teach [a] ground system to operate and control the hybrid constellation according to claim 19 (Liu: Page 13 col. 4 lines 62-65, teaching that the control of the satellites can be accomplished through ground stations).
Regarding claim 27, Liu and Vaujour remain as applied as in claim 10, and Vaujour goes on to further teach [t]he hybrid constellation according to claim 10, wherein a calculator and an edge server are provided as the mission satellite and edge computing is performed in orbit (Vaujour: Para. 0036, teaching the use of an edge server to perform the computational requirements of the satellite constellation).
Regarding claim 29, Liu and Vaujour remain as applied as in claim 27, and Liu goes on to further teach [t]he hybrid constellation according to claim 27, wherein the edge server stores orbital information of a satellite group constituting a constellation and flying object information acquired by a satellite constituting the constellation, and the calculator transmits the flying object information to a satellite constituting the constellation (Liu: Page 14 col. 6 lines 19-35, teaching that the satellites determine the distance and speed of neighboring satellites from each other while in orbit and communicate the information about the other satellites to satellites in the constellation).
Regarding claim 32, Liu and Vaujour remain as applied as in claim 27, and Vaujour goes on to further teach [t]he hybrid constellation according to claim 27, wherein the mission satellite is provided with a synthetic aperture radar and stores acquired information in the edge server (Vaujour: Para. 0020, teaching the use of various imaging sensors which includes synthetic-aperture radar sensors), and the calculator generates an image by synthetic aperture processing in orbit and transmits image data to a ground (Vaujour: Para. 0068, teaching that the generating an image of a ground map by processing the information received by the sensors to transmit to a user on the ground).
Regarding claim 33, Liu and Vaujour remain as applied as in claim 27, and Vaujour goes on to further teach [t]he hybrid constellation according to claim 27, wherein the mission satellite is provided with an optical monitoring device and stores acquired information in the edge server (Vaujour: Para. 0020, teaching the use of various imaging sensors which includes cameras), and the calculator generates an image by super-resolution processing in orbit and transmits image data to a ground (Vaujour: Para. 0068, teaching that the generating an image of a ground map by processing the information received by the sensors to transmit to a user on the ground).
Regarding claim 34, Liu and Vaujour remain as applied as in claim 10, and Liu goes on to further teach [t]he hybrid constellation according to claim 10, wherein both or either one of a super computer and a data center are or is provided as the mission satellite (Liu: Page 14 col. 5 lines 28-57, teaching that the satellites are equipped with routers that act as data servers to route communications between the satellites).
Regarding claim 35, Liu and Vaujour remain as applied as in claim 10, and Liu goes on to further teach [g]round equipment that is provided with a super computer or a data center…, wherein information is exchanged via the hybrid constellation according to claim 10 (Liu: Page 14 col. 5 lines 28-57, teaching that the ground stations are equipped with routers that act as data servers to route communications between the satellites) while Vaujour goes on to further teach [g]round equipment that... is located in a high latitude region with a latitude of 50 degrees or greater (Vaujour: FIG. 1B which shows a constellation of satellites collecting information from around the globe and transmitting it to other parts of the globe).
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Claims 28 and 30 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Liu in view of Vaujour as applied to claim 27 above, and further in view of previously cited of record Blondel et al. (US Pub. No. 20210011148 A1), herein after Blondel.
Regarding claim 28, Liu and Vaujour remain as applied as in claim 27, however they are silent to [t]he hybrid constellation according to claim 27, wherein the edge server stores orbital information of a satellite group constituting a constellation, and the calculator analyzes a collision risk between satellites constituting the constellation.
In a similar field, Blondel goes on to teach [t]he hybrid constellation according to claim 27, wherein the edge server stores orbital information of a satellite group constituting a constellation, and the calculator analyzes a collision risk between satellites constituting the constellation (Blondel: Para. 0049, teaching the use of artificial intelligence in performing calculations regarding collision of a satellite with other orbiting objects such as space debris) for the benefit of improved debris analysis and path prediction.
It would have been obvious to one ordinarily skilled in the art before the effective filing date of the applicant’s claimed invention to modify the calculations used to control of the satellite constellation from Liu in view of Vaujour to analyze the risk of collisions between the satellites, as taught by Blondel, for the benefit of improved debris analysis and path prediction.
Regarding claim 30, Liu and Vaujour remain as applied as in claim 27, however they are silent to [t]he hybrid constellation according to claim 27, wherein the calculator analyzes a flight path based on flying object information acquired from a plurality of monitoring satellites and foresight information stored in the edge server and transmits the flying object information to a monitoring satellite that can track a predicted flight path.
In a similar field, Blondel goes on to teach [t]he hybrid constellation according to claim 27, wherein the calculator analyzes a flight path based on flying object information acquired from a plurality of monitoring satellites and foresight information stored in the edge server and transmits the flying object information to a monitoring satellite that can track a predicted flight path (Blondel: Para. 0049, teaching the use of artificial intelligence in performing calculations regarding the flight path of the satellite and flying objects that are of interest to the flight path of the satellite) for the benefit of improved debris analysis and path prediction.
It would have been obvious to one ordinarily skilled in the art before the effective filing date of the applicant’s claimed invention to modify the calculations used to control of the satellite constellation from Liu in view of Vaujour to analyze and predict the path of flying objects around the satellite, as taught by Blondel, for the benefit of improved debris analysis and path prediction.
Claim 31 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Liu in view of Vaujour as applied to claim 27 above, and further in view of previously cited of record Ealy et al. (US Pub. No. 20210061497 A1), herein after Ealy.
Regarding claim 31, Liu and Vaujour remain as applied as in claim 27, however they are silent to [t]he hybrid constellation according to claim 27, wherein the calculator performs flying object landing prediction based on flying object information acquired from a plurality of monitoring satellites and foresight information stored in the edge server and selects a satellite that can transmit the flying object information to a ground asset, the ground asset enabling handling, so as to transmit a flying object information transmission command.
In a similar field, Ealy teaches [t]he hybrid constellation according to claim 27, wherein the calculator performs flying object landing prediction based on flying object information acquired from a plurality of monitoring satellites and foresight information stored in the edge server and selects a satellite that can transmit the flying object information to a ground asset, the ground asset enabling handling, so as to transmit a flying object information transmission command (Ealy: Para. 0083, teaching a machine learning model that is used to analyze the flight path of flying objects to assist with the flying object deorbits) for the benefit of improved landing of a flying object.
It would have been obvious to one ordinarily skilled in the art before the effective filing date of the applicant’s claimed invention to modify the satellite constellation system that analyzes the paths of flying objects in space from Liu in view of Vaujour to assist in operations involving a flying object deorbiting, as taught by Ealy, for the benefit of improved landing of a flying object.
Claims 19 and 36-39 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Liu in view of Vaujour as applied to claim 10 above, and further in view of Rhodas et al. (US Pub. No. 20220161944 A1), herein after Rhodas.
Regarding claim 19, Liu and Vaujour remain as applied as in claim 10, however they are silent to [t]he hybrid constellation according to claim 10, wherein a mission satellite provided with a high-precision master clock as the mission device is included, and a synchronous control signal is exchanged between a plurality of satellites.
In a similar field, Rhodas teaches [t]he hybrid constellation according to claim 10, wherein a mission satellite provided with a high-precision master clock as the mission device is included, and a synchronous control signal is exchanged between a plurality of satellites (Rhodas: Para. 0052, teaching that satellites can be equipped with a variety types of clocks including high precision clocks that can be used to synchronize the operations of the constellation of satellites) for the benefit of improved synchronization of the satellites during operations.
It would have been obvious to one ordinarily skilled in the art before the effective filing date of the applicant’s claimed invention to modify the satellite constellation system that synchronizes the satellites during missions from Liu in view of Vaujour to utilize high precision atomic clocks and other clocks on board the satellites, as taught by Rhodas, for the benefit of improved synchronization of the satellites during operations.
Regarding claim 36, Liu teaches [a] hybrid constellation formed in a LEO (Low Earth Orbit) comprising (Liu: Page 19 col. 15 lines 38-41, teaching a constellation of satellites which may include LEO satellites): a communication constellation in which a plurality of satellites, the plurality of satellites including a communication device that communicates with satellites in front and behind in a traveling direction on a same orbital plane, form an annular communication network (Liu: Page 13 col. 3 lines 51-56, teaching a constellations of satellites in multiple orbital planes in a combined space/ground system); and the mission satellite flies between a plurality of satellites forming the communication constellation, the hybrid constellation is formed by rebuilding the annular communication network with a use of the mission satellite and the plurality of satellites forming the communication constellation (Liu: Page 13 col. 4 lines 39-61, teaching a constellations of satellites in multiple orbital planes which establish communications with each other to send communication messages from one end of the constellation to the other by relaying the message through the satellites of the constellation).
Liu is silent to a mission satellite to be provided with a communication device to communicate with satellites in front and behind and a mission device to execute a mission, and the hybrid constellation includes a mission satellite provided with a high-precision master clock as the mission device and a mission satellite provided with a standard clock as the mission device, and calibrates the standard clock with reference to a synchronous control signal from the high-precision master clock while exchanging the synchronous control signal between a plurality of satellites.
In a similar field, Vaujour teaches a mission satellite to be provided with a communication device to communicate with satellites in front and behind and a mission device to execute a mission (Vaujour: Para. 0061 and 0062, teaching satellites with specialized payloads for missions are part of a constellation that are controlled to fulfill their mission) for the benefit of improving the efficiency of the satellites in communication and mission completion.
It would have been obvious to one ordinarily skilled in the art before the filing of the application to modify the constellation of satellites in communication with each other and working together to achieve their goals from Liu with satellites with a variety of payloads to perform a variety of mission, as taught by Vaujour, for the benefit of improving the efficiency of the satellites in communication and mission completion.
They are silent to the hybrid constellation includes a mission satellite provided with a high-precision master clock as the mission device and a mission satellite provided with a standard clock as the mission device, and calibrates the standard clock with reference to a synchronous control signal from the high-precision master clock while exchanging the synchronous control signal between a plurality of satellites.
In a similar field, Rhodas teaches the hybrid constellation includes a mission satellite provided with a high-precision master clock as the mission device and a mission satellite provided with a standard clock as the mission device (Rhodas: Para. 0052, teaching that satellites can be equipped with a variety types of clocks including high precision clocks that can be used to synchronize the operations of the constellation of satellites), and calibrates the standard clock with reference to a synchronous control signal from the high-precision master clock while exchanging the synchronous control signal between a plurality of satellites (Rhodas: Para. 0052, teaching that satellites can be equipped with a variety types of clocks including high precision clocks that can be used to synchronize the operations of the constellation of satellites) for the benefit of improved synchronization of the satellites during operations.
It would have been obvious to one ordinarily skilled in the art before the effective filing date of the applicant’s claimed invention to modify the satellite constellation system that synchronizes the satellites during missions from Liu in view of Vaujour to utilize high precision atomic clocks and other clocks on board the satellites, as taught by Rhodas, for the benefit of improved synchronization of the satellites during operations.
Regarding claim 37, Liu teaches [a] hybrid constellation formed in a LEO (Low Earth Orbit) comprising (Liu: Page 19 col. 15 lines 38-41, teaching a constellation of satellites which may include LEO satellites): a communication constellation in which a plurality of satellites, the plurality of satellites including a communication device that communicates with satellites in front and behind in a traveling direction on a same orbital plane, form an annular communication network, a plurality of satellites, the plurality of satellites including a communication device that communicates with left and right satellites on adjacent orbits, form a mesh communication network (Liu: Page 13 col. 3 lines 51-56, teaching a constellations of satellites in multiple orbital planes in a combined space/ground system), and the mission satellite flies between a plurality of satellites forming the communication constellation, the hybrid constellation is formed by rebuilding the annular communication network and rebuilding the mesh communication network with a use of the mission satellite and the plurality of satellites forming the communication constellation (Liu: Page 13 col. 4 lines 39-61, teaching a constellations of satellites in multiple orbital planes which establish communications with each other to send communication messages from one end of the constellation to the other by relaying the message through the satellites of the constellation).
Liu is silent to a mission satellite to be provided with a communication device to communicate with satellites in front and behind and a mission device to execute a mission, and the hybrid constellation includes a mission satellite provided with a high-precision master clock as the mission device and a mission satellite provided with a standard clock as the mission device, and calibrates the standard clock with reference to a synchronous control signal from the high-precision master clock while exchanging the synchronous control signal between a plurality of satellites.
In a similar field, Vaujour teaches a mission satellite to be provided with a communication device to communicate with satellites in front and behind and a mission device to execute a mission (Vaujour: Para. 0061 and 0062, teaching satellites with specialized payloads for missions are part of a constellation that are controlled to fulfill their mission) for the benefit of improving the efficiency of the satellites in communication and mission completion.
It would have been obvious to one ordinarily skilled in the art before the filing of the application to modify the constellation of satellites in communication with each other and working together to achieve their goals from Liu with satellites with a variety of payloads to perform a variety of mission, as taught by Vaujour, for the benefit of improving the efficiency of the satellites in communication and mission completion.
They are silent to the hybrid constellation includes a mission satellite provided with a high-precision master clock as the mission device and a mission satellite provided with a standard clock as the mission device, and calibrates the standard clock with reference to a synchronous control signal from the high-precision master clock while exchanging the synchronous control signal between a plurality of satellites.
In a similar field, Rhodas teaches the hybrid constellation includes a mission satellite provided with a high-precision master clock as the mission device and a mission satellite provided with a standard clock as the mission device (Rhodas: Para. 0052, teaching that satellites can be equipped with a variety types of clocks including high precision clocks that can be used to synchronize the operations of the constellation of satellites), and calibrates the standard clock with reference to a synchronous control signal from the high-precision master clock while exchanging the synchronous control signal between a plurality of satellites (Rhodas: Para. 0052, teaching that satellites can be equipped with a variety types of clocks including high precision clocks that can be used to synchronize the operations of the constellation of satellites) for the benefit of improved synchronization of the satellites during operations.
It would have been obvious to one ordinarily skilled in the art before the effective filing date of the applicant’s claimed invention to modify the satellite constellation system that synchronizes the satellites during missions from Liu in view of Vaujour to utilize high precision atomic clocks and other clocks on board the satellites, as taught by Rhodas, for the benefit of improved synchronization of the satellites during operations.
Regarding claim 38, Liu teaches [a] hybrid constellation forming method comprising (Liu: Page 19 col. 15 lines 38-41, teaching a constellation of satellites which may include LEO satellites): forming a hybrid constellation formed in a LEO (Low Earth Orbit) including a communication constellation in which a plurality of satellites, the plurality of satellites including a communication device that communicates with satellites in front and behind in a traveling direction on a same orbital plane, form an annular communication network (Liu: Page 13 col. 3 lines 51-56, teaching a constellations of satellites in multiple orbital planes in a combined space/ground system), and the mission satellite flies between a plurality of satellites forming the communication constellation, the annular communication network is rebuilt with a use of the mission satellite and the plurality of satellites forming the communication constellation so as to form the hybrid constellation (Liu: Page 13 col. 4 lines 39-61, teaching a constellations of satellites in multiple orbital planes which establish communications with each other to send communication messages from one end of the constellation to the other by relaying the message through the satellites of the constellation), and the hybrid constellation includes a mission satellite provided with a high-precision master clock as the mission device and a mission satellite provided with a standard clock as the mission device (Liu: Page 13 col. 4 line 62 through page 14 col. 5 line 14, teaching that the satellites transmits packets of information between each other that can be used to synchronize the satellites and control their schedule), and calibrating the standard clock with reference to a synchronous control signal from the high-precision master clock while exchanging the synchronous control signal between a plurality of satellites (Liu: Page 13 col. 3 lines 51-56, teaching a constellations of satellites in multiple orbital planes which includes GPS satellites).
Liu is silent to a mission satellite to be provided with a communication device to communicate with satellites in front and behind and a mission device to execute a mission, and the mission satellite flies between a plurality of satellites forming the communication constellation, the annular communication network is rebuilt with a use of the mission satellite and the plurality of satellites forming the communication constellation so as to form the hybrid constellation, and calibrating the standard clock with reference to a synchronous control signal from the high-precision master clock while exchanging the synchronous control signal between a plurality of satellites.
In a similar field, Vaujour teaches a mission satellite to be provided with a communication device to communicate with satellites in front and behind and a mission device to execute a mission (Vaujour: Para. 0061 and 0062, teaching satellites with specialized payloads for missions are part of a constellation that are controlled to fulfill their mission) for the benefit of improving the efficiency of the satellites in communication and mission completion.
It would have been obvious to one ordinarily skilled in the art before the filing of the application to modify the constellation of satellites in communication with each other and working together to achieve their goals from Liu with satellites with a variety of payloads to perform a variety of mission, as taught by Vaujour, for the benefit of improving the efficiency of the satellites in communication and mission completion.
They are silent to the mission satellite flies between a plurality of satellites forming the communication constellation, the annular communication network is rebuilt with a use of the mission satellite and the plurality of satellites forming the communication constellation so as to form the hybrid constellation, and calibrating the standard clock with reference to a synchronous control signal from the high-precision master clock while exchanging the synchronous control signal between a plurality of satellites.
In a similar field, Rhodas teaches the mission satellite flies between a plurality of satellites forming the communication constellation, the annular communication network is rebuilt with a use of the mission satellite and the plurality of satellites forming the communication constellation so as to form the hybrid constellation (Rhodas: Para. 0052, teaching that satellites can be equipped with a variety types of clocks including high precision clocks that can be used to synchronize the operations of the constellation of satellites), and calibrating the standard clock with reference to a synchronous control signal from the high-precision master clock while exchanging the synchronous control signal between a plurality of satellites (Rhodas: Para. 0052, teaching that satellites can be equipped with a variety types of clocks including high precision clocks that can be used to synchronize the operations of the constellation of satellites) for the benefit of improved synchronization of the satellites during operations.
It would have been obvious to one ordinarily skilled in the art before the effective filing date of the applicant’s claimed invention to modify the satellite constellation system that synchronizes the satellites during missions from Liu in view of Vaujour to utilize high precision atomic clocks and other clocks on board the satellites, as taught by Rhodas, for the benefit of improved synchronization of the satellites during operations.
Regarding claim 39, Liu teaches [a] hybrid constellation forming method comprising (Liu: Page 19 col. 15 lines 38-41, teaching a constellation of satellites which may include LEO satellites): forming a hybrid constellation formed in a LEO (Low Earth Orbit) including a communication constellation in which a plurality of satellites, the plurality of satellites including a communication device that communicates with satellites in front and behind in a traveling direction on a same orbital plane, form an annular communication network, a plurality of satellites, the plurality of satellites including a communication device that communicates with left and right satellites on adjacent orbits, form a mesh communication network (Liu: Page 13 col. 3 lines 51-56, teaching a constellations of satellites in multiple orbital planes in a combined space/ground system), and the mission satellite flies between a plurality of satellites forming the communication constellation, the annular communication network is rebuilt and the mesh communication network is rebuilt with a use of the mission satellite and the plurality of satellites forming the communication constellation so as to form the hybrid constellation (Liu: Page 13 col. 4 lines 39-61, teaching a constellations of satellites in multiple orbital planes which establish communications with each other to send communication messages from one end of the constellation to the other by relaying the message through the satellites of the constellation), and the hybrid constellation includes a mission satellite provided with a high-precision master clock as the mission device and a mission satellite provided with a standard clock as the mission device (Liu: Page 13 col. 4 line 62 through page 14 col. 5 line 14, teaching that the satellites transmits packets of information between each other that can be used to synchronize the satellites and control their schedule), and calibrating the standard clock with reference to a synchronous control signal from the high-precision master clock while exchanging the synchronous control signal between a plurality of satellites (Liu: Page 13 col. 3 lines 51-56, teaching a constellations of satellites in multiple orbital planes which includes GPS satellites).
Liu is silent to a mission satellite to be provided with a communication device to communicate with satellites in front and behind and a mission device to execute a mission, and the hybrid constellation includes a mission satellite provided with a high-precision master clock as the mission device and a mission satellite provided with a standard clock as the mission device, and calibrating the standard clock with reference to a synchronous control signal from the high-precision master clock while exchanging the synchronous control signal between a plurality of satellites.
In a similar field, Vaujour teaches a mission satellite to be provided with a communication device to communicate with satellites in front and behind and a mission device to execute a mission (Vaujour: Para. 0061 and 0062, teaching satellites with specialized payloads for missions are part of a constellation that are controlled to fulfill their mission) for the benefit of improving the efficiency of the satellites in communication and mission completion.
It would have been obvious to one ordinarily skilled in the art before the filing of the application to modify the constellation of satellites in communication with each other and working together to achieve their goals from Liu with satellites with a variety of payloads to perform a variety of mission, as taught by Vaujour, for the benefit of improving the efficiency of the satellites in communication and mission completion.
They are silent to the mission satellite flies between a plurality of satellites forming the communication constellation, the annular communication network is rebuilt with a use of the mission satellite and the plurality of satellites forming the communication constellation so as to form the hybrid constellation, and calibrating the standard clock with reference to a synchronous control signal from the high-precision master clock while exchanging the synchronous control signal between a plurality of satellites.
In a similar field, Rhodas teaches the hybrid constellation includes a mission satellite provided with a high-precision master clock as the mission device and a mission satellite provided with a standard clock as the mission device (Rhodas: Para. 0052, teaching that satellites can be equipped with a variety types of clocks including high precision clocks that can be used to synchronize the operations of the constellation of satellites), and calibrating the standard clock with reference to a synchronous control signal from the high-precision master clock while exchanging the synchronous control signal between a plurality of satellites (Rhodas: Para. 0052, teaching that satellites can be equipped with a variety types of clocks including high precision clocks that can be used to synchronize the operations of the constellation of satellites) for the benefit of improved synchronization of the satellites during operations.
It would have been obvious to one ordinarily skilled in the art before the effective filing date of the applicant’s claimed invention to modify the satellite constellation system that synchronizes the satellites during missions from Liu in view of Vaujour to utilize high precision atomic clocks and other clocks on board the satellites, as taught by Rhodas, for the benefit of improved synchronization of the satellites during operations.
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed September 26th, 2025 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive.
Applicant’s amendments filed September 26th, 2025 have rendered the 112(a) and 112(b) rejections of claims 27-33 moot. Therefore, the 112(a) and 112(b) rejections of claims 27-33 have been withdrawn.
Applicant's arguments filed September 26th, 2025 with respect to the 103 rejections of record have been fully considered but they are not persuasive.
Applicant contends (see page 15 line 11 through page 16 line 2, filed September 26th, 2025) that independent claims 10-13 and 36-39 are allowable as Vaujour is deficient in teaching a mission satellite that communicates with the satellites in front and behind the satellite. The examiner respectfully disagrees. The examiner notes that this element of the claimed invention is being rejected by Liu in view of Vaujour. In response to applicant's arguments against the references individually, one cannot show nonobviousness by attacking references individually where the rejections are based on combinations of references. See In re Keller, 642 F.2d 413, 208 USPQ 871 (CCPA 1981); In re Merck & Co., 800 F.2d 1091, 231 USPQ 375 (Fed. Cir. 1986). In this case, the primary reference of Liu teaches a satellite constellation wherein satellites in an orbital plane communicate with satellites in front and behind each other in the same orbital plane (Liu: Page 13 col. 3 lines 51-56) while the prior art of Vaujour brings in a mission satellite that is able to work in cooperation with other satellites in a constellation (Vaujour: Para. 0061 and 0062), thus the inclusion of a mission satellite into the communication network of Liu is reasonable for one ordinarily skilled in the art.
Applicant contends (see page 16 lines 16-, filed September 26th, 2025) that independent claims 36-39 are allowable as the claims recite “equipping some of the mission satellites with expensive, high-precision master clocks (e.g., optical lattice master clocks)” which is not recited in the prior arts of record. The examiner respectfully disagrees. The examiner notes that while the prior arts of Liu and Vaujour do not recite the use of high precision clocks, the prior arts of Blondel and Rhodas recite the use of atomic clocks which are high precision clocks. The prior art of Rhodas has been integrated into the rejections of these claims.
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.
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/A.K.M./Examiner, Art Unit 3663
/ANGELA Y ORTIZ/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3663