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 .
Priority
Receipt is acknowledged of certified copies of papers required by 37 CFR 1.55.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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 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.
Claims 7-9 and 11-12 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Ito (US 20190189488 A1).
Regarding claim 7: Ito discloses a traveling vehicle system comprising:
a grid-patterned track of a suspended type (Fig.3); and a traveling vehicle to travel on the grid-patterned track (10; Fig.3); wherein the grid-patterned track includes a unitary unit corresponding to one cell of a grid (one cell of grid; Fig.3); the unitary unit includes: two first tracks extending along a first direction (two vertical R1 within one cell; Fig.3), two second tracks extending along a second direction, which is different from the first direction (two horizontal R1 within one cell; Fig.3), four intersection tracks corresponding to intersections between extension lines of the two first tracks in the first direction and extension lines of the two second tracks in the second direction, and spaced apart from each of the two first tracks and each of the two second tracks (intersection tracks at each corner of one cell R2; Fig.3), and a connection (RJ,C; Fig.4) that connects each of the four intersection tracks with each of the two first tracks and each of the two second tracks; and the grid-patterned track includes a plurality of the unitary units linked together, and two of the four intersection tracks are continuous between two of the unitary units linked to each other (apparent from Fig.3).
Regarding claim 8: Ito further discloses the traveling vehicle system according to claim 7, wherein the grid-patterned track includes a structure such that: one of two second tracks and one of another two second tracks are in contact with each other, between two of the unitary units linked in the first direction; and one of two first tracks and one of another two first tracks are in contact with each other, between two of the unitary units linked in the second direction (Fig.3).
Regarding claim 9: Ito further discloses the traveling vehicle system according to claim 7, wherein the unitary unit is linkable to another unitary unit at a position above each of the four intersection tracks (RJ; Fig.3).
Regarding claim 11: Ito discloses a unitary unit comprising: two first tracks extending along a first direction (two vertical R1 within one cell; Fig.3); two second tracks extending along a second direction, which is different from the first direction (two horizontal R1 within one cell; Fig.3); four intersection tracks corresponding to intersections between extension lines of the two first tracks in the first direction and extension lines of the two second tracks in the second direction, and spaced apart from each of the two first tracks and each of the two second tracks; and a connection that connects each of the four intersection tracks with each of the two first tracks and each of the two second tracks (intersection tracks at each corner of one cell R2; Fig.3).
Regarding claim 12: Ito discloses a grid-patterned track of a suspended type on which a traveling vehicle is able to travel (Fig.3), the grid-patterned track comprising, as one cell of a grid, a unitary unit (one cell of grid Fig.3) including: two first tracks extending along a first direction (two vertical R1 within one cell; Fig.3); two second tracks extending along a second direction, which is different from the first direction (two horizontal R1 within one cell; Fig.3); four intersection tracks corresponding to intersections between extension lines of the two first tracks in the first direction and extension lines of the two second tracks in the second direction, and spaced apart from each of the two first tracks and each of the two second tracks; and a connection that connects each of the four intersection tracks with each of the two first tracks and each of the two second tracks; and the grid-patterned track includes a plurality of the unitary units linked together; two of the four intersection tracks are continuous between two of the unitary units linked to each other (intersection tracks at each corner of one cell R2; Fig.3).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claim 10 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.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter:
The prior art fails to teach the combination of limitations recited in the dependent claim 10. More specifically, the prior art fails to teach wherein the guide surface of each of the four intersection tracks has a shape that does not come into contact with the guide wheel when the guide wheel turns as the traveling vehicle changes a traveling direction. It would require an improper level of hindsight to combine this feature with the prior art above.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to HEAVEN BUFFINGTON whose telephone number is (703)756-1546. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 9:00am to 5:00pm ET.
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/HEAVEN R BUFFINGTON/Examiner, Art Unit 3615
/S. Joseph Morano/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3615
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