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 .
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.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph:
The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention.
Claims 21-40 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention.
Regarding claims 21, 38, and 40:
Independent claims 21, 38 and 40 are unclear and indefinite because each of these claims contain three alternative or “or” clauses. For claim 21 these statements are as follows:
Clause 1: “a storage area or a recycling area, wherein the storage area is configured to dispose a jumper storage apparatus, the jumper storage apparatus is configured to store standby jumpers, and the recycling area is configured to dispose a jumper recycling apparatus”
Clause 2: “a plugging apparatus movable between the distribution area and the storage area or movable between the distribution area and the recycling area”
Clause 3: “instruct the plugging apparatus to fetch the standby jumper from the jumper storage apparatus, and insert connectors at two ends of the standby jumper into the corresponding first port and second port respectively to implement an optical path; or instruct the plugging apparatus to fetch connectors at two ends of the connecting jumper from the first port and the second port, and transport the removed connecting jumper to the jumper recycling apparatus”
In each clause the first alternative is describing an embodiment of the invention having a storage area and the second alternative is describing an embodiment of the invention having a recycling area. The claim does not describe an embodiment having both a storage area and a recycling area. When reading the claim, one may choose the first alternative in each clause (storage area embodiment), or choose the second alternative in each clause (recycling area embodiment). However, one is not forced to choose only first alternatives, or only second alternatives. For example, one may choose the first alternative in the first clause (storage area), second alternative in the second clause (movable between the distribution area and the recycling area) and the second alternative in the third clause (transport jumper to recycling area), thereby describing an invention that is unclear, lacks antecedent basis and is confusing.
If applicant wishes to claim the invention in the alternative (an embodiment having a storage area or an embodiment having a recycling area), the claim language must be clear regarding how the various alternative clauses above are linked together. In other words, if one chooses the first alternative in clause 1, the claim language must be clear that the first option must also be chosen in clauses 2 and 3, and no other alternatives are allowed. As another option, the various embodiments (storage area only, recycling area only, both storage and recycling areas) may be claimed in separate independent claims to avoid the confusion altogether.
The examiner interprets both components as being necessary for prior art rejections, without asserting that such an interpretation is obvious or definite from the claim language provided. Appropriate correction is required.
Regarding claims 22-37, and 39:
These claims inherit the indefiniteness set forth in the base claims 21, 38, and 40, and are therefore rejected for indefiniteness as well.
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, 25, and 30-36, 38-40 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Vluegels (US20130209048A1) in view of Xia (US20090324179A1).
Regarding claim 21:
Vluegels discloses a device (optical fiber distribution 100), comprising:
a distribution area (Figure 1a/1b, patch panel 101) comprising a first port (Side A Adapters 103) and a second port (Side B Adapters 103);
a storage area or a recycling area (subset storage adapter 107),
wherein the storage area is configured to dispose a jumper storage apparatus (the storage adapters 107 and the connectorized fiber cables 105 loaded therein collective constitute the jumper storage apparatus housed in the storage area),
the jumper storage apparatus is configured to store standby jumpers (paragraph 54, “a certain amount of connectorized fiber cables 105 may be temporarily stored at their storage positions in storage adapters 107,” indicating that the jumper storage of 107+105 is intended to store standby jumpers), and
a plugging apparatus (paragraph 59, Figure 2 flowchart, the optical fiber distribution system [OFDS] 100 comprises a robotic unit configured to manipulate the connectorized fiber cables 105) movable between the distribution area and the storage area or movable between the distribution area and the recycling area (a robotic unit is positioning in the front of patch panel 101 and designed to move to the position of any adapter 103 or storage adapter 107 on the panel), wherein the plugging apparatus is configured to fetch a standby jumper of the standby jumpers from the jumper storage apparatus, and insert two connectors of the standby jumper into the first port and the second port respectively (paragraph 61-63, Fig 1a, Fig 2, the robotic unit inserts the first optical connector of the connectorized cable 105 into a side A adapter/first port and inserts a second optical connector into a side B/second port adapter, routing the cable over the steering unit 106 between the two insertions), to implement an optical path (the connectorized cable 105 is used to make a connection from, for example, the left side A to the right side B, see paragraph 47);
or the plugging apparatus is configured to remove the two connectors of a connecting jumper from the first port and the second port respectively (Fig 2, Fig 4, the robotic unit is also configured to disconnect a connectorized fiber cable 105 from an active adapter 103, to remove a connector of a jumper from a first or second port; the removal of both connector from the first port and the second port to fully deactivate the connecting jumper is a necessary intermediate step in any complete disconnection operation),
Vluegels does not disclose that the recycling area is configured to dispose a jumper recycling apparatus/ transport of the connecting jumper to the jumper recycling apparatus.
Xia discloses a system and method for optical fiber cross connections (Title), wherein a waste bit unit (Figure 7, unit 715) is associated with robotic arm (714), to which removed and discarded jumpers are transported by the robotic arm for disposal. The waste but unit 715 constitutes a jumper recycling apparatus, and robotic arm 714 performs the transport function.
Before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, one of ordinary skill in the art would have found it obvious to modify the invention described in the invention of Vluegels under the teachings of Xia to transport the removed connecting jumpers to a dedicated recycling apparatus, as taught in Xia. The motivation is expressly identified in Vluegels itself: the parking adapters 111 fill up over time, and require a technician to manually remove parked cables when full (Vluegels, paragraphs 71-72). This operational burden is recognized and circumvented by the teachings of Xia, via the automated waste receptacle, and predictably enables fully autonomous operation using methods, materials, and design oversight known in to a skilled artisan.
Regarding claim 25:
Vluegels in view of Xia teaches device according to claim 21, wherein:
the device comprises an integrated distribution panel (Figure 1a, the panel 101 is a single unified panel structure bearing both side A and side B adapters, with a steering unit 106 located between the two adapter sets – it is therefore a single integrated panel bearing both types of ports), a plurality of ports is disposed on the integrated distribution panel (adapters 103 are ports), and the plurality of ports comprises the first port and the second port (adapters 103 comprise a first and second port).
Regarding claim 30:
Vluegels in view of Xia teaches device according to claim 25, wherein:
lengths of all the standby jumpers are equal, and the lengths of the connecting jumper and the lengths of the standby jumpers are equal (Paragraph 51, “The connectorized fiber cables 105 are ultra-thin cables with a diameter of for example 1 mm and length of e.g. 110 cm. All connectorized fiber cables 105 in the optical fiber distribution system 100 may have the same diameter and length;” the standby cables are all equal, and the connection jumper by virtue of being a jumper that is non-standby, is also equal).
Regarding claim 31:
Vluegels in view of Xia teaches device according to claim 21, wherein:
the jumper storage apparatus comprises a first area (Figure 1a, 1b, the storage adapters 107 pre-loaded with connectorized fiber cables 105 comprise a ‘first area’ – a connector housing region) and a second area (the cable housing area), the second area is adjacent to the first area, interior space of the first area is connected to with interior space of the second area, connectors of the standby jumpers are located in the first area, cables of the standby jumpers are located in the second area (as the examiner interprets it, the storage adapters 107 define a region which houses the connector portions, or the connectorized fiber cables 105, which is an obvious and routine organizational design choice – you want the connection portion to be external and the cables to be housed within, and for the connecting portion to be segregated from the cable portion; this permits orderly storage and repeatable robotic access to the connector ends/ports),
the first area (connector housing) is provided with a jumper fetching window, the jumper fetching window is configured to accommodate connectors of one of the standby jumpers (this is not explicitly claimed as such),
though not explicitly claimed as such, a ‘fetching window’ is understood by the examiner as a defined aperture or opening in the first area through which the plugging apparatus accesses and grasps the connector of a standby jumper. This structural feature is essential/necessary for any jumper storage apparatus from which a robotic plugging apparatus must retrieve connectors in a repeatable and precise manner. It is disclosed that a ‘robotic unit’ (see rejection of claim 21 above) retrieves connectorized fiber cables from storage adapters 107, meaning that there must be a defined access point where the connector is presented to the robotic gripper – this is a ‘fetching window’ as understood by the examiner.
and the jumper fetching window is a position at which the plugging apparatus fetches the standby jumper from the jumper storage apparatus (the examiner again points out that the robotic unit/plugging apparatus fetches standby jumpers from storage adapters 107, Figure 2). Functionally, the fetching windows are thus disclosed via Vluegels’s robotic retrieval operation.
Regarding claim 32:
Vluegels in view of Xia teaches device according to claim 21, wherein the first area is in a long strip shape (Figure 1a, 1b, the adapters 107, and all adapters in general are in rows on the patch panel 101, which read on ‘long strip shape’), and the connectors of the standby jumpers are arranged in a linear array along an extension direction of the first area (Figure 1b shows this explicitly).
Regarding claim 33:
Vluegels in view of Xia teaches device according to claim 32, wherein:
Vluegels does not disclose the one-first-area configuration in which both connectors of the same standby jumper are disposed adjacently within a single linear connector channel. However, given the present of the single linear connector channel in the claimed invention and the possible configurations, a skilled artisan would have found this implementation to be obvious.
There are two geometrically distinct configuration which would enable the function of this device:
Separate the two connectors into parallel channels with a cable body in between (two rows, essentially)
Fold the cable so that both connectors reside in a single channel (one row, but with adjacent channels in one row accomplishing what adjacent channels in two rows did in the other configuration)
There are no simple alternatives.
Selecting between a finite number of identified, predictable arrangements is not inventive. Given the disclosed layout, no hindsight reasoning is required to exhaust these two options: either the connection is in one row and you alternate the ‘first areas’, or you have two rows and use adjacent channels of a column to accomplish the same function.
Critically, the applicant’s own specification treats both a one-first-area and two-first-area configuration as co-equal “possible implementations” (paragraphs 31-45 details many iterations of the first area/two-first-area implementations), without one design having a technical advantage over the other.
Before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, one of ordinary skill in the art would have found it obvious to configure the invention described in the rejection of claim 32 above under the teachings of Vluegels to include a one first area, one jumper fetching window, and connectors at two ends of a same standby jumper which are disposed adjacently in the first area. This would require no new parts, only routine design oversight by a skilled artisan and would predictably result in a compact and automated optical fiber distribution device where low volume footprint is a design goal.
Regarding claim 34:
Vluegels in view of Xia teaches device according to claim 32, wherein:
wherein there are two first areas (Figs 1a/1b, side A, side B), each of the two first areas has one jumper fetching window (see rejection of claim 31 – the presence of the plugging apparatus/robot necessitates the fetching window), the second area is located between the two first areas (steering unit 106 is between side A and side B), and connectors at two ends of a same standby jumper are respectively located in different first areas of the two first areas (connectors are in both side A and side B).
Regarding claim 35:
Vluegels in view of Xia teaches device according to claim 31, wherein:
wherein the device further comprises a control system (paragraph 61, element management system [EMS]), the control system is capable of monitoring consumption of the standby jumpers of the jumper storage apparatus (paragraphs 61-70 disclose the functions of the EMS, including monitoring of the jumpers and storage), to remind of replacement of the jumper storage apparatus (paragraphs 96, 122).
Regarding claim 36:
Vluegels in view of Xia teaches device according to claim 21:
wherein the jumper recycling apparatus comprises a transmission mechanism (the robotic unit also functions as a transmission mechanism with a myriad of transport functions, and easily transports a discarded jumper from the port and transports it to a disposal location) the plugging apparatus (robotic unit) is configured to transport the connecting jumper to the transmission mechanism, and the transmission mechanism is configured to transport the connecting jumper to the recycling box (Vluegels’s robotic unit).
Vluegels teaches the robotic unit and the transmission mechanism, but not the recycling box.
Xia teaches a recycling box (Xia’s waste bin 715 reads on the recycling box, Figure 7).
Before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, one of ordinary skill in the art would have found it obvious to modify the invention described in the rejection of claim 21 under the teachings of Xia to include a recycling bin for handling of all transmission of discarded jumpers. This may be accomplished using methods and materials known in the art of part of the device of claim 21, and would predictably result in an efficient operation wherein the automated units handle both the transport of connected jumpers to ports as well as discarded jumpers to the recycling bin, removing the need for manual intervention and human labor and leveraging the advantages of automation.
Regarding claim 38:
Vluegels discloses a method, applied to an optical fiber distribution device, wherein the method comprises:
fetching, by a plugging apparatus, a standby jumper from a jumper storage apparatus (the storage adapters 107 and the connectorized fiber cables 105 loaded therein collective constitute the jumper storage apparatus housed in the storage area), and inserting connectors at two ends of the standby jumper into a first port and a second port, respectively, to implement an optical path (paragraph 61-63, Fig 1a, Fig 2, a robotic unit inserts the first optical connector of the connectorized cable 105 into a side A adapter/first port and inserts a second optical connector into a side B/second port adapter, routing the cable over the steering unit 106 between the two insertions);
or removing, by the plugging apparatus, connectors at two ends of a connecting jumper from the first port and the second port, and transporting the connecting jumper to a jumper recycling apparatus, wherein the optical fiber distribution device comprises (Fig 2, Fig 4, the robotic unit is also configured to disconnect a connectorized fiber cable 105 from an active adapter 103, to remove a connector of a jumper from a first or second port; the removal of both connector from the first port and the second port to fully deactivate the connecting jumper is a necessary intermediate step in any complete disconnection operation):
a distribution area (Figure 1a/1b, patch panel 101) comprising a first port (Side A Adapters 103) and a second port (Side B Adapters 103);
a storage area or a recycling area (subset storage adapter 107), wherein the storage area is configured to dispose the jumper storage apparatus (the storage adapters 107 and the connectorized fiber cables 105 loaded therein collective constitute the jumper storage apparatus housed in the storage area), the jumper storage apparatus is configured to store standby jumpers, and the recycling area is configured to dispose the jumper recycling apparatus (paragraph 54, “a certain amount of connectorized fiber cables 105 may be temporarily stored at their storage positions in storage adapters 107,” indicating that the jumper storage of 107+105 is intended to store standby jumpers), and
the plugging apparatus movable between the distribution area and the storage area or movable between the distribution area a second area (paragraph 59, Figure 2 flowchart, the optical fiber distribution system [OFDS] 100 comprises a robotic unit configured to manipulate the connectorized fiber cables 105) movable between the distribution area and the storage area or movable between the distribution area and a second area (a robotic unit is positioning in the front of patch panel 101 and designed to move to the position of any adapter 103 or storage adapter 107 on the panel).
Vluegels does not disclose that the recycling area is configured to dispose a jumper recycling apparatus/ transport of the connecting jumper to the jumper recycling apparatus.
Xia discloses a system and method for optical fiber cross connections (Title), wherein a waste bit unit (Figure 7, unit 715) is associated with robotic arm (714), to which removed and discarded jumpers are transported by the robotic arm for disposal. The waste but unit 715 constitutes a jumper recycling apparatus, and robotic arm 714 performs the transport function.
Before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, one of ordinary skill in the art would have found it obvious to modify the invention described in the invention of Vluegels under the teachings of Xia to transport the removed connecting jumpers to a dedicated recycling apparatus, as taught in Xia. The motivation is expressly identified in Vluegels itself: the parking adapters 111 fill up over time, and require a technician to manually remove parked cables when full (Vluegels, paragraphs 71-72). This operational burden is recognized and circumvented by the teachings of Xia, via the automated waste receptacle, and predictably enables fully autonomous operation using methods, materials, and design oversight known in to a skilled artisan.
Regarding claim 39:
Vluegels in view of Xia teaches the method according to claim 38, wherein
a process in which the plugging apparatus (robotic unit) fetches the standby jumper from the jumper storage apparatus comprises:
fetching, by the plugging apparatus, a first connector of the standby jumper first from a jumper fetching window, inserting the first connector into the first port, then fetching a second connector of the standby jumper from the jumper fetching window, and inserting the second connector into the second port (paragraph 54, the robotic unit fetches the fiber cables 105 from their location in the storage adapters 107 on side A from a first port and connect them to side B, containing the second port).
Regarding claim 40:
Vluegels discloses a system, comprising:
an optical fiber distribution device (Title) comprising:
a distribution area (Figure 1a/1b, patch panel 101) comprising a first port (Side A Adapters 103) and a second port (Side B Adapters 103); a storage area or a recycling area, wherein the storage area is configured to dispose a jumper storage apparatus, the jumper storage apparatus is configured to store standby jumpers, and the recycling area is configured to dispose a jumper recycling apparatus;
and a plugging apparatus (paragraph 59, Figure 2 flowchart, the optical fiber distribution system [OFDS] 100 comprises a robotic unit configured to manipulate the connectorized fiber cables 105) movable between the distribution area and the storage area or movable between the distribution area and the recycling area (a robotic unit is positioning in the front of patch panel 101 and designed to move to the position of any adapter 103 or storage adapter 107 on the panel), and a controller (paragraph 61, element management system [EMS]), configured to:
instruct the plugging apparatus to fetch the standby jumper from the jumper storage apparatus, and insert connectors at two ends of the standby jumper into the corresponding first port and second port respectively to implement an optical path (paragraph 54, the robotic unit, controlled by the aforementioned EMS, fetches the fiber cables 105 from their location in the storage adapters 107 on side A from a first port and connect them to side B, containing the second port);
or instruct the plugging apparatus to fetch connectors at two ends of the connecting jumper from the first port and the second port, and transport the removed connecting jumper to the jumper recycling apparatus (paragraphs 61-70 disclose the functions of the EMS, including transport of the jumpers and storage).
Vluegels does not disclose a jumper recycling apparatus explicitly.
Xia discloses a system and method for optical fiber cross connections (Title), wherein a waste bit unit (Figure 7, unit 715) is associated with robotic arm (714), to which removed and discarded jumpers are transported by the robotic arm for disposal. The waste but unit 715 constitutes a jumper recycling apparatus, and robotic arm 714 performs the transport function.
Before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, one of ordinary skill in the art would have found it obvious to modify the invention described in the invention of Vluegels under the teachings of Xia to transport the removed connecting jumpers to a dedicated recycling apparatus, as taught in Xia. The motivation is expressly identified in Vluegels itself: the parking adapters 111 fill up over time, and require a technician to manually remove parked cables when full (Vluegels, paragraphs 71-72). This operational burden is recognized and circumvented by the teachings of Xia, via the automated waste receptacle, and predictably enables fully autonomous operation using methods, materials, and design oversight known in to a skilled artisan.
Claim(s) 37 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Vluegels (US20130209048A1) in view of Xia (US20090324179A1), and further in view of Dean (US 20020073815 A1).
Regarding claim 37:
Vluegels in view of Xia teaches device according to claim 36:
Vluegels does not disclose a jumper cutting mechanism.
Dean discloses an automated inline cutting device for optical fiber cables (Figure 1) with cutting members associated with a motor driven cutting mechanism operative to move at least one cutting member into cutting the optical cable. Dean thus discloses a motor driven, automated cutting mechanism for optical fibers of all kinds.
Before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, one of ordinary skill in the art would have found it obvious to modify the invention described in the rejection of claim 36 above under the teachings of Dean to further modify the jumper recycling apparatus such that it comprises a jumper cutting mechanism. A skilled artisan would be motivated to incorporate this feature as the connector housing on a discarded jumper obstructs automated transport to the recycling apparatus, and cutting off the connector before transport resolves this obstruction. Dean establishes that the cutting of cables is a known, routine technique in optical fiber processing, and would have ensured that the jumper cutting mechanism is configured to cut off a first connector of the connecting jumper, and the plugging apparatus is configured to transport a second connector of the connecting jumper to the jumper recycling apparatus. This may be accomplished using components and routine design oversight known to a skilled artisan, and would predictably result in a device which can transport the discarded jumpers to the recycling bin without obstruction.
Claim(s) 26-29 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Vluegels (US20130209048A1) in view of Xia (US20090324179A1), and further in view of Lecomte (US20030128951A1).
Regarding claim 26:
Vluegels in view of Xia teaches device according to claim 25.
Vluegels is silent on rotational symmetry and teaches rectangular distribution panels.
Kewitsch discloses connector ports (Figures 2 and 3, ports 63) rotationally symmetrically distributed on rotating disks which hold the ports (83-85, analogs for the distribution system) about a central axis as a center (pivot axis 11).
Before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, one of ordinary skill in the art would have found it obvious to modify the invention described in the rejection of claim 25 under the teachings of Kewitsch to modify the distribution panels to be rotationally symmetric discs with ports distributed in rotationally symmetric intervals about a common pivot axis. This may be accomplished using ordinary design oversight and techniques known to a skilled artisan, and would predictably result in a device which yield equal-length fiber strands across port positions disposed on along the perimeter, eliminating the needs for variable-length slack management and achieving compact device footprint.
Regarding claim 27:
Vluegels in view of Xia, and further in view of Kewitsch teaches device according to claim 26, wherein:
Insertion of the standby jumper or removal of the connecting jumper by the plugging apparatus is performed (Fig 2, Fig 4, paragraphs 59-61, the robotic unit is state to perform this function and many more).
Vluegels is silent on the rotational aspects of the invention.
Kewitsch explicitly discloses that each stacked disk is independently rotatable about the common pivot axis (11), actuated by dedicated motors (33-1, 33-2, Figs. 3 and 10).
Kewitsch does not explicitly disclose that the rotatable disk architecture is used for a plugging apparatus, but it would be an obvious modification for a skilled artisan in the invention of claim 26.
Before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, one of ordinary skill in the art would have found it obvious to modify the invention described in the rejection of claim 26 above under the teachings of Kewitsch to utilize the rotational distribution systems and ports therein and adapt them for use with the robotic system used in the plugging apparatus. This may be accomplished using tools and design oversight known in the art, and would predictably result in a device which leveraged automated plugging and unplugging of fibers in ports through simple rotation rather than the multi-axial translation of a plugging apparatus along a planar panel face. This drastically simplifies the process and reduces the degrees of freedom prone to modes of failure, while lowering the overall volumetric footprint of the device.
Regarding claim 28:
Vluegels in view of Xia, and further in view of Kewitsch teaches device according to claim 27, wherein:
a rotation range of the integrated distribution panel is greater than or equal to 180 degrees and less than or equal to 360 degrees.
While these values are not explicitly cited, this is range is a direct geometric consequence of implemented the rotatable integrated distribution panel of claim 27 with ports rotationally symmetrically distributed about the central axis as required by claim 26. For a circular port array spanning a full disc, up to 360 degrees is necessary to access all ports, and a minimum of 180 degrees is necessary to reach any port located on a diametrically opposed end under the short distance possible. These bounds are not independently inventive, and rather, represent an obvious physical limitation of any rotatable circular port array.
A skilled artisan implementing the rotatable integrated distribution panel of the combined inventions in claim 27 would arrive at a rotation range between 180 and 360 degrees as a necessary and predictable operating range of the design. No step beyond ordinary recognition of a circular geometry is required. See MPEP 2144.04 (obvious design choice) and MPEP 2144.05 (obvious range).
Regarding claim 29:
Vluegels in view of Xia, and further in view of Kewitsch teaches device according to claim 28, wherein:
a first distribution area and a second distribution area are disposed on the integrated distribution panel (Fig 1a, patch panel 101 bears side “A” and “B” adapter ports on opposite sides of a central steering unit 106), the first distribution area and the second distribution area are symmetrically distributed on two sides of a symmetry axis (this arrangement is clearly symmetric about a bilateral/central dividing axis, Figure 1a),
Vluegels does not alone teach the central axis, but the combination of claims 26, 27, and 28 include Kewitsch’s central axis (11).
In the combined invention, the symmetry axis intersects the central axis, the first port is located in the first distribution area, and the second port is located in the second distribution area (this corresponds to the axis a side A and a side B, subsets disclosed in Vluegels, which necessarily intersects the central axis about which the rotation occurs).
This is not an independently inventive feature so much as it is a natural consequence of two diametrically opposed distribution areas on a rotationally symmetric arrangement having both a symmetry axis which bisects them and a central axis about which they rotate. It would not be symmetrical if it did not bisect the central axis as claimed.
Claim(s) 22 and 23 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Vluegels (US20130209048A1) in view of Xia (US20090324179A1), and further in view of Lecomte (US20030128951A1).
Regarding claim 22:
Vluegels in view of Xia teaches device according to claim 21, further comprising:
Vluegels is silent on a first and second distribution panel.
Lecomte teaches an optical fiber distribution and connection module (Fig 2,)
a first distribution panel (Figs 3&4, rack 11A) and a second distribution panel (rack 11B), the first distribution panel and the second distribution panel are oppositely disposed at an interval (Fig 4, 11A and 11B are separated by some interval), the first port is disposed on the first distribution panel, the second port is disposed on the second distribution panel (both first and second ports are disclosed in paragraph 40, as the distribution racks have sockets as described in the rejection of claim 1 above), and the first port faces the second port (11A and 11B face each other across cross-connect area 12, Figure 3 shows this best).
Before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, one of ordinary skill in the art would have found it obvious to modify the invention described in the rejection of claim 1 above under the teachings of Lecomte to include a first and second distribution panel disposed in the device as claimed. This may be accomplished using routine design oversight known to a skilled artisan, as facing the sockets towards each other minimizes the distance between them, predictably reducing the length of fiber needed and improving latency within the device.
Regarding claim 23:
Vluegels in view of Xia, and further in view of Lecomte teaches device according to claim 22, wherein:
the first distribution panel and the second distribution panel are securely disposed inside the device (Vluegels discloses that the patch panel 101 is securely mounted within the housing of the optical fiber distribution system 100, Figure 1A; in the combination presented in the rejection of claim 22, the racks 11A/11B taught in Xia would be securely disposed in the device housing, as Xia already discloses them in a rectangular framework of beams 14 and 15 that secure the racks),
Vluegels does not teach an extension between distribution panels.
Lecomte teaches that the plugging apparatus is capable of extending between the first distribution panel and the second distribution panel, and moving to the first port and the second port (Lecomte teaches a robotic tool set configured to operate in the cross connect area 12, which connects the racks 11A and 11B, Figure 3 and 4).
Before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, one of ordinary skill in the art would have found it obvious to modify the invention described in the rejection of claim 22 above, under the teachings of Xia to include a means for ensuring that the plugging apparatus reaches both distribution panels (or racks, as taught in Xia). This would predictably ensure the operation of autonomous functionality of the plugging apparatus between the two ports, using methods and tools known in the art and routine rationale in implementation.
Claim(s) 24 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Vluegels (US20130209048A1) in view of Xia (US20090324179A1), and further in view of Lecomte (US20030128951A1) and Kewitsch (US 20150098698 A1).
Regarding claim 24:
Vluegels in view of Xia, and further in view of Lecomte teaches device according to claim 22.
Vluegels does not teach the rotational symmetry of the distribution panels and ports.
Kewitsch teaches a fiber optic patch panel in which the connector ports (Figure 2, Figure 3, connector ports 63) are rotationally symmetrically distributed over a rotational symmetrical arc along the perimeter of rotatable discs (83-85), all sharing a common pivot axis (11). The distribution panels would be capable of rotating about the central axis (Kewitsch claims this explicitly, each disc 83-85 is actuated by a motor 33-1, 33-2 to rotate in programmed and controlled angular increments, Figures 3 and 10).
Before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, one of ordinary skill in the art would have found it obvious to modify the distribution panels and ports described in the rejection of claim 22 above under the teachings of Kewitsch to dispose the first and second distribution panels and connection ports such that they are rotationally symmetrically distributed about the central axis. It would have been obvious to apply this arrangement to the first distribution panel in the invention of claim 22, using materials and methods known to the skilled artisan, as it would predictably lead to equal-length fiber strands across all port positions and eliminate variable length slack management in a compact device footprint, all recognized benefits that a skilled artisan would have been motivated to incorporate.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to PREET B PATEL whose telephone number is (571)272-2579. The examiner can normally be reached Mon-Thu: 8:30 am - 6:30 pm.
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/PREET B PATEL/Examiner, Art Unit 2874
/THOMAS A HOLLWEG/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2874