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 .
Election/Restrictions
Applicant’s election without traverse of Group I (claims 21-27) in the reply filed on 12-22-25 is acknowledged.
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) 21-27 and 41-53 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Reid et al. (US 2018/0010437), hereinafter (“Reid”) and provided by applicant, in view of Halander et al. (US 2014/0216289), hereinafter (“Halander”) and also provided by applicant.
Re claims 21-27 and 41, Reid (Fig 5) discloses a truck for delivering explosives, the truck comprising: a delivery device to deliver an explosive into a blasthole; and processor circuitry (58) to: receive a target explosive energy profile, wherein the target explosive energy profile comprises target explosive energy values corresponding to segments along a length of a blasthole or along a blast pattern (see p. [0039]), the blasthole or the blast pattern having been segmented based on change points in geologic values corresponding to the blasthole or the blast pattern (Fig 5).
Reid does not disclose, however, controlling a flow rate of an energy modulating agent to the explosive. Halander (Fig 1) teaches a system for controlling a flow rate of an energy modulating agent to the explosive for the purpose of varying the explosive energy of explosives in a blasthole (p. [0025]). Before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, it would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art to modify the truck in Reid to have to capability of Halander. The motivation (as taught by Halander) would be for the purpose of varying the explosive energy of explosives in a blasthole. All claimed elements were known in the prior art and one skilled in the art could have combined the elements as claimed by known methods with no change in their respective functions, and the combination would have yielded predictable results to a skilled artisan at the time the invention was made.
Re claims 42-49, Reid (Fig 5) discloses a truck for delivering explosives, the truck comprising: a delivery device to deliver an explosive into a blasthole; and processor circuitry (58) configured to receive a target explosive energy profile, wherein the target explosive energy profile comprises target explosive energy values corresponding to groups within a geologic profile that are separated based on change points; and a delivery conduit configured to deliver the explosive (Fig 5).
Reid does not disclose a controller configured to control a flow rate of an energy modulating agent to an explosive. Halander (Fig 1) teaches a controller configured to control a flow rate of an energy modulating agent to an explosive for the purpose of varying the explosive energy of explosives in a blasthole (p. [0025]). Before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, it would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art to modify the truck in Reid to have to capability of Halander. The motivation (as taught by Halander) would be for the purpose of varying the explosive energy of explosives in a blasthole. All claimed elements were known in the prior art and one skilled in the art could have combined the elements as claimed by known methods with no change in their respective functions, and the combination would have yielded predictable results to a skilled artisan at the time the invention was made.
Re claims 50-53, Reid (Fig 5) discloses a truck for delivering explosives, the truck comprising: a delivery device to deliver an explosive into a blasthole; and processor circuitry (58) configured to: receive target explosive energy values corresponding to segments along a length of a blasthole or along a blast pattern based on change points in geologic values within the blasthole or along the blast pattern; and a delivery conduit to deliver the explosive (Fig 5).
Reid does not disclose, however, controlling a flow rate of an energy modulating agent to the explosive according to the target explosive energy values. Halander (Fig 1) teaches controlling a flow rate of an energy modulating agent to the explosive according to the target explosive energy values for the purpose of varying the explosive energy of explosives in a blasthole (p. [0025]). Before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, it would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art to modify the truck in Reid to have to capability of Halander. The motivation (as taught by Halander) would be for the purpose of varying the explosive energy of explosives in a blasthole. All claimed elements were known in the prior art and one skilled in the art could have combined the elements as claimed by known methods with no change in their respective functions, and the combination would have yielded predictable results to a skilled artisan at the time the invention was made.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to REGINALD S TILLMAN, JR whose telephone number is (571)270-7010. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 830-530.
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/REGINALD S TILLMAN, JR/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3641
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