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 .
Claims 1-12 are pending in the current application.
Drawings
The drawings are objected to under 37 CFR 1.83(a). The drawings must show every feature of the invention specified in the claims. Therefore, “the winch”, “the winch control system”, “the drone controller”, “a submerged vehicle”, “an underwater drone assembly” and a “dynamically extending part of the drone” must be shown or the feature(s) canceled from the claim(s). No new matter should be entered.
Corrected drawing sheets in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(d) are required in reply to the Office action to avoid abandonment of the application. Any amended replacement drawing sheet should include all of the figures appearing on the immediate prior version of the sheet, even if only one figure is being amended. The figure or figure number of an amended drawing should not be labeled as “amended.” If a drawing figure is to be canceled, the appropriate figure must be removed from the replacement sheet, and where necessary, the remaining figures must be renumbered and appropriate changes made to the brief description of the several views of the drawings for consistency. Additional replacement sheets may be necessary to show the renumbering of the remaining figures. Each drawing sheet submitted after the filing date of an application must be labeled in the top margin as either “Replacement Sheet” or “New Sheet” pursuant to 37 CFR 1.121(d). If the changes are not accepted by the examiner, the applicant will be notified and informed of any required corrective action in the next Office action. The objection to the drawings will not be held in abeyance.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b):
(b) CONCLUSION.—The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
Claims 1-12 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
Regarding claim 1, the phrase "the winch of the mothership might be connected to a winch control system” renders the claim indefinite because the term “might be” is interpreted as an optional limitation not required to be part of the claimed invention. However, a winch control system appears to be a required feature of the invention necessary to raise and lower the first connecting device. While the specification is explicit that a heave compensation control system may be optional, a standard winch controller appears to be a necessary feature for the invention to perform the connection between the first connecting device and the second connecting device.
Claims 1 recites the limitations "the first connection part” and “the second connection part” in lines 7 and 8 respectively. There is insufficient antecedent basis for these limitations in the claim. The examiner believes these should be “first connecting device” and “second connecting device”.
Claim 3 recites the limitation “the sensor”. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim. The examiner believes that claim 3 should correctly depend from claim 2.
Claims 4 and 5 recite the limitation “the marking”. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claims. The examiner believes that claims 4 and 5 should correctly depend from claim 2.
Claim 11 recites the limitations “the second connection part”, “the first connection part” and “the spelter-socket” in lines 2-4. There is insufficient antecedent basis for these limitations in the claim.
Claim 12 recites the limitation “the drone part” in line 2. There is insufficient antecedent basis for these limitation in the claim. Additionally, it is unclear to the examiner what part of the drone this refers to since it is not shown in the drawings or identified in the specification with a reference numeral.
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.
Claim 1-3, 6-7, 10 and 11 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Grall, US 12473052 in view of JP 6583900 (disclosed by applicant). Grall discloses a system for handling marine or underwater drones and launching and recovering the same via a mothership #6 using a crane #61, lifting wire #62 a first connecting device (not explicit but some type of hook would be a common connection device at the end of the lifting wire #62, an unmanned daughter boat #1 having a second connection device #12. Grall does not disclose a drone assembly fastened to the lifting wire to move the lifting wire and the first connection part in a horizontal plane to a required position above the second connection part. JP 6583900 discloses a crane #10 and a control system #13 for controlling the crane with a lifting wire #29 and connection device #22 and a drone assembly #30 comprised of propellers and motors (#60 is a battery to power the drone, inherently electric motors), the drone removably attached to the lifting wire.
JP 6583900 further discloses where the drone assembly comprises one or more sensors (drone positioning unit 35 uses sensors 35a, 35b, 35c) and at least a camera #36 to communicate with a drone controller 80 to regulate the position of the drone and first connection part. Additionally, the drone controller 80, crane interlocking device 37 and drone positioning unit #35 are interconnected and operate automatically.
Regarding claim 10: The applicant claims a heave compensation system, such systems are widely employed in the marine industry to reduce vertical hook motions of cranes operating in a seaway. The examiner takes official notice that such systems could be employed as claimed by applicant and applicant offers no specific details of the heave compensation system envisioned.
Regarding claim 11: a mere reversal of connecting parts on the lifting wire and daughter boat are easily within the skills and abilities of an artisan.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the apparatus of Grall by adding a removably attached drone to the lifting wire to move the connection device on the lifting wire into horizontal alignment with the connecting device on the daughter boat to assist in making the connection quickly by stabilizing the hook end of the lifting wire in wind and weather conditions which ordinarily would cause uncontrolled swinging of the hook.
Claims 4 and 5 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Grall, US 12473052 in view of JP 6583900 in further view of WO 2022/149173. Grall as modified by JP 6583900 discloses the invention set forth above but does not explicitly disclose sensors to aid in aligning the drone to facilitate connection of the first and second connecting devices. WO 2022/149173 discloses sensors including cameras, sound producing devices, QR codes. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to use sensors on the drone/first connecting device to align with sensors on the daughter boat/second connecting device to facilitate autonomous connection between the connecting devices as taught by WO 2022/149173. The motivation for doing so is to allow precise navigation of the drone when first and second connection devices are in proximity to quickly align and make the connection.
Claim 8 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Grall, US 12473052 in view of JP 6583900 in further view of Breivik et al., US 6736082. Grall as modified by JP 6583900 discloses the invention set forth above but does not explicitly disclose wherein the daughter boat is a submerged vehicle and the drone assembly is an underwater drone assembly. Breivik discloses a method for connecting a crane to an underwater buoy where an underwater drone assembly #56 is connected to the lifting wire #38 to connecting first and second connecting devices. Additionally, the crane is provided with a heave compensation device.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective date of the claimed invention to modify the invention of Grall as modified by JP 6583900 to include capabilities of making an underwater connection between an underwater vehicle by using an underwater drone connected to the lifting wire. The motivation for doing so is to have increased utility by using a drone to guide the connection devices in both surface and subsurface hook ups.
Claim 9 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Grall, US 12473052 in view of JP 6583900 in further view of Sekrettaet al., US 9488203. Grall as modified by JP 6583900 discloses the invention set forth above but does not explicitly disclose wherein the second connection part comprises a funnel designed to fold and collapse when not needed (no specific disclosure or drawing shows or details how such folding and collapsing occurs). Sekrettaet discloses a funnel #155 for guiding the connection of a male and female subsea connector. Using a funnel shape to guide the male assembly 141into the female receptacle is a common arrangement. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the invention of Grall as modified by JP 6583900 to include a funnel guide on the second connection device to increase the tolerance of the alignment required by the control system when making the connection. Doing so reduces the cost of a more precise control and alignment system.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to ANTHONY D WIEST whose telephone number is (571)270-5974. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 6:00 - 3:00.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Samuel Morano can be reached at 571 272 6684. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/ANTHONY D WIEST/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3615