DETAILED ACTION
Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status
The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
Continued Examination Under 37 CFR 1.114
A request for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, including the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e), was filed in this application after final rejection. Since this application is eligible for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114. Applicant's submission filed on 01-09-2026 has been entered.
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.
This application currently names joint inventors. In considering patentability of the claims the examiner presumes that the subject matter of the various claims was commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the claimed invention(s) absent any evidence to the contrary. Applicant is advised of the obligation under 37 CFR 1.56 to point out the inventor and effective filing dates of each claim that was not commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the later invention in order for the examiner to consider the applicability of 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(2)(C) for any potential 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) prior art against the later invention.
Claims 1, 4, 7-15, 18-19, and 27-32 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Fan et al. (CN 107676185) in view of Pereira et al. (U.S. Pub. 2010/0174495).
Regarding claim 1, Fan discloses (Figs. 1-8) a detection system for detecting a breakdown in a fluid pathway of a fluid system (see pars. [0006] and [0013]-[0014]), the detection system comprising:
at least one conduit 1 [0039]/[0042] comprising a conduit wall which defines a fluid pathway for the transfer of fluid [0004] (as shown in Fig. 1) and at least one electrically conductive element 12/13 [0042] extending along the at least one conduit 1 (as shown in Fig. 1) and which forms an electrical signal path for a first electrical signal which is indicative of a condition of the at least one conduit 1 [0013]-[0014]; and,
an electrical terminal 62/63 [0047] electrically connected to the at least one electrically conductive element 12/13 [0019]/[0047] such that the first electrical signal is transmitted to the electrical terminal via the electrical signal path [0019] (as shown in Figs. 1, 6, and 7);
at least one connector 4/5/6 (see pars. [0020] and [0046]) connected to the at least one conduit 1 (as shown in Fig. 6) and at least one sensor 4/5/12/13 (i.e. the wires act as a sensor: see pars. [0006], [0013]; and the state of the connectors 4/5 is how the disconnection is sensed: [0054]-[0055]) configured to determine a condition of the at least one connector [0006]/[0013] and generate a second electrical signal (in regards to time, for example the first when the connection is good, the second when there is a fault/error: [0055]), said at least one sensor being electrically connected to the at least one electrically conductive element 12/13 (since the wires themselves are the sensors) such that the second electrical signal is transmitted to the electrical terminal 62/63 via the electrical signal path (as shown in Fig. 7); and
a processing unit ECU [0047] for receiving the first and/or second electrical signals [0047] and monitoring the first and/or second electrical signals for an electrical characteristic which is indicative of a breakdown of the at least one conduit [0054]-[0055] and/or a breakdown or disconnection of the at least one connector respectively [0054]-[0055].
Fan does not disclose the at least one electrically conductive element comprises at least one coil; wherein the at least one coil provides a wireless coupling for coupling to the at least one connector and/or the at least one sensor; wherein the electrical signal path further comprises a Radio-frequency identification, RFID, chip for transmitting data to or from the electrical terminal and/or the at least one connector; and wherein the at least one coil is resonant at a frequency generated by the RFID chip.
Pereira discloses (Fig. 13) the at least one electrically conductive element comprises at least one coil L1 [0084]; wherein the at least one coil L1 provides a wireless coupling for coupling to the at least one connector and/or the at least one sensor [0084]; wherein the electrical signal path further comprises a Radio-frequency identification, RFID, chip 96 [0084] for transmitting data to or from the electrical terminal and/or the at least one connector [0084]-[0086]; and wherein the at least one coil L1 is resonant at a frequency generated by the RFID chip 96 (see pars. [0084] and [0086]).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to modify Fan’s system so that the at least one electrically conductive element comprises at least one coil; wherein the at least one coil provides a wireless coupling for coupling to the at least one connector and/or the at least one sensor; wherein the electrical signal path further comprises a Radio-frequency identification, RFID, chip for transmitting data to or from the electrical terminal and/or the at least one connector; and wherein the at least one coil is resonant at a frequency generated by the RFID chip, as taught by Pereira.
Such a modification would enable the use of wireless reading of the sensor, which increases the flexibility and utility of the device.
Regarding claim 4, Fan discloses (Figs. 1-8) the processing unit ECU is configured to determine that a breakdown is present in the at least one conduit [0054]-[0055] or that the at least one connector is fully or partially disconnected using the monitored electrical characteristic [0054]-[0055].
Regarding claim 7, Fan discloses (Figs. 1-8) the electrical characteristic is one or more characteristic(s) chosen from the group comprising: resistance or a change thereof [0054].
Regarding claim 8, Fan discloses (Figs. 1-8) the at least one electrically conductive element 12/13 extends along an entire length of the at least one conduit 1 (as shown in Figs. 1 and 3).
Regarding claim 9, Fan discloses (Figs. 1-8) the at least one electrically conductive element 12/13 extends circumferentially around a surface of the conduit wall of the at least one conduit 1 (as shown in Figs. 1 and 3).
Regarding claim 10, Fan discloses (Figs. 1-8) the at least one electrically conductive element 12/13 is at least partially embedded within the conduit wall [0017] (as shown in Figs. 1 and 3) and/or provides an external or internal surface of the at least one conduit (as shown in Figs. 1 and 3).
Regarding claim 11, Fan discloses (Figs. 1-8) the at least one electrically conductive element 12/13 comprises one or more wires 12/13 [0017].
Regarding claim 12, Fan discloses (Figs. 1-8) the at least one conduit 1 further comprises a plurality of electrically conductive elements 12/13 (as shown in Figs. 1 and 3; [0017]).
Regarding claim 13, Fan discloses (Figs. 1-8) the plurality of electrically conductive elements 12/13 comprises two or more separated electrically conductive elements 12/13 each configured to form parallel sensing portions of the electrical signal path (as shown in Figs. 1 and 3; [0017]).
Regarding claim 14, Fan discloses (Figs. 1-8) at least one of plurality of electrically conductive elements 12/13 is configured to form a return portion of the electrical signal path (see pars. [0017] and [0046]).
Regarding claim 15, Fan discloses (Figs. 1-8) the processing unit ECU is configured to monitor respective first and second electrical signals from each of the plurality of electrically conductive elements 12/13 for a relative change in the electrical characteristics of the respective first and second electrical signals [0054]-[0055].
Regarding claim 18, Fan discloses (Figs. 1-8) the electrical signal path comprises a sensing portion 12 (i.e. the wires act as a sensor: see pars. [0006], [0013]) extending from the electrical terminal 62 to a remote end of the at least one electrically conductive element (i.e. the far end of 12) at a first end of the at least one conduit 1 (as shown in Fig. 1 and 3), and, a return portion 13 extending from the remote end of the at least one electrically conductive element (i.e. the far end of 13) to the electrical terminal 63 (as shown in Figs. 1, 4, and 6).
Regarding claim 19, Fan discloses (Figs. 1-8) the electrical signal path comprises an electrical conductor 12/13, which is external to the at least one conduit (i.e. external to the inner tube 11 (as shown in Fig. 3).
Regarding claim 27, Fan discloses (Figs. 1-8) first electrical signal and the second electrical signals are the same signal [0054]-[0055].
Regarding claim 28, Fan discloses (Figs. 1-8) a vehicle comprising the detection system according (see pars. [0004]-[0005] and [0013]).
Regarding claim 29, Fan discloses (Figs. 1-8) the detection system is part of a positive crankcase ventilation system (see pars. [0004]-[0005] and [0013]).
Regarding claim 30, Fan discloses (Figs. 1-8) a method for detecting a condition of a fluid system using the detection system (see pars. [0006] and [0013]-[0014]), and comprising the steps of: receiving a first electrical signal and/or a second electrical signal from at least one electrically conductive element 12/13 in the at least one conduit 1 (see pars. [0047] and [0054]-[0055]); and monitoring the first electrical signal and/or the second electrical signal for an electrical characteristic which is indicative of a breakdown of the at least one conduit 1 [0054]-[0055] and/or a disconnection of the at least one connector [0054]-[0055].
Regarding claim 31, Fan discloses (Figs. 1-8) determining a breakdown in the fluid pathway of the fluid system based on a monitored electrical characteristic [0054]-[0055].
Regarding claim 32, Fan discloses (Figs. 1-8) the electrical characteristic is one or more characteristic(s) chosen from the group comprising: resistance or a change thereof [0054].
Claims 5-6 and 25-26 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Fan et al. (CN 107676185) in view of Pereira et al. (U.S. Pub. 2010/0174495), and further in view of Anton et al. (U.S. Pub. 2015/0252922).
Regarding claims 5 and 6, Fan’s modified device is applied as above, and discloses the first electrical signal is a conduit electrical signal encoded with from data relating to the condition of the at least one conduit 1 (i.e. from the wires 12/13: see pars. [0047] and [0054]-[0055]).
Fan does not disclose the second electrical signal is a sensor electrical signal encoded with data from the at least one sensor; and the conduit electrical signal is applied to the at least one electrically conductive element independently of the sensor electrical signal.
Anton discloses (Fig. 8) the second electrical signal is a sensor electrical signal [0082] encoded with data from the at least one sensor (implicit: [0082]); and, when taken in combination with Fan the conduit electrical signal is applied to the at least one electrically conductive element independently of the sensor electrical signal (necessary, otherwise the sensors signals from the sensors taught in Anton [0082] would not provide accurate data).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to further modify Fan’s system so that the second electrical signal is a sensor electrical signal encoded with data from the at least one sensor and the first electrical signal is a conduit electrical signal encoded with from data relating to the condition of the at least one conduit; and the conduit electrical signal is applied to the at least one electrically conductive element independently of the sensor electrical signal, as taught by Anton.
Such a modification would be a combination of prior art elements according to known methods to yield predictable results – see MPEP 2143(I)(A).
Regarding claims 25 and 26, Fan is applied as above, but does not disclose the at least one sensor is one or more sensor(s) among: a seal contact pressure sensor, an alignment sensor; an electrical contact sensor in which electrical contacts are made or broken with the connection of the at least one connector; a magnetic sensor in which a magnetic circuit is completed with the connection of the at least one connector; a wireless sensor or an ultrasonic sensor; and the at least one sensor is embedded in the at least one connector.
Anton discloses (Fig. 8) the at least one sensor is one or more sensor(s) among: a seal contact pressure sensor [0082] a wireless sensor [0082]; and the at least one sensor is embedded in the at least one connector (as shown in Fig. 8).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to modify Fan’s system so that the at least one sensor is one or more sensor(s) among: a seal contact pressure sensor, an alignment sensor; an electrical contact sensor in which electrical contacts are made or broken with the connection of the at least one connector; a magnetic sensor in which a magnetic circuit is completed with the connection of the at least one connector; a wireless sensor or an ultrasonic sensor; and the at least one sensor is embedded in the at least one connector, as taught by Anton.
Such a modification would be a combination of prior art elements according to known methods to yield predictable results – see MPEP 2143(I)(A).
Claims 16-17 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Fan et al. (CN 107676185) in view of Pereira et al. (U.S. Pub. 2010/0174495), and further in view of Saba et al. (U.S. Pub. 2003/0178015).
Regarding claims 16-17, Fan’s modified device is applied as above, but does not disclose a plurality of conduits and a plurality of connectors all connected to a common electrical terminal; and the plurality of conduits extend radially from the common electrical terminal.
Saba discloses (Figs. 1 and 5) a plurality of conduits and a plurality of connectors all connected to a common electrical terminal 46 [0052] (as shown in Figs. 1 and 5); and the plurality of conduits extend radially from the common electrical terminal 46 [0052] (as shown in Figs. 1 and 5).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to further modify Fan’s system so that a plurality of conduits and a plurality of connectors are all connected to a common electrical terminal; and the plurality of conduits extend radially from the common electrical terminal, as taught by Anton.
Such a modification would be an application of known technique to a known device (method, or product) ready for improvement to yield predictable results – see MPEP 2143(I)(D).
Claim 20 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Fan et al. (CN 107676185) in view of Pereira et al. (U.S. Pub. 2010/0174495), and further in view of Matsumoto et al. (U.S. Pub. 2006/0197508).
Regarding claim 20, Fan’s modified device is applied as above, but does not disclose the external electrical conductor is a chassis of a vehicle.
Matsumoto discloses the external electrical conductor is a chassis of a vehicle (i.e. the vehicle body can serve as the ground in the circuit: [0348]).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to further modify Fan’s system so that the external electrical conductor is a chassis of a vehicle, as taught by Matsumoto.
Such a modification would be an application of known technique to a known device (method, or product) ready for improvement to yield predictable results – see MPEP 2143(I)(D).
Claim 21 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Fan et al. (CN 107676185) a in view of Pereira et al. (U.S. Pub. 2010/0174495), and further in view of Basu (U.S. Pub. 2014/0149016).
Regarding claim 21, Fan’s modified device is applied as above, but does not disclose the processing unit comprises a bridge circuit.
Basu discloses (Fig. 1) the processing unit comprises a bridge circuit [0018].
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to further modify Fan’s system so that the processing unit comprises a bridge circuit, as taught by Basu.
Such a modification would be a combination of prior art elements according to known methods to yield predictable results – see MPEP 2143(I)(A).
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to claim 1 have been considered but are moot in view of the new grounds of rejection.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Benjamin Schmitt, whose telephone number is (571) 270-7930. The examiner can normally be reached M-F | 8:30-5:00.
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/BENJAMIN R SCHMITT/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2852