DETAILED ACTION
Claims 1, 4-5, 7-16 and 18-24 are presented for examination. Claims 2-3, 6 and 17 are currently cancelled. Claims 1, 4-5, 7-16 and 18-20 are currently amended. Claims 21-24 are new. This office action is in response to the submission on 12/27/2023.
Response to Arguments
With Respect to the Claim Objection:
Applicant’s arguments, see page 11 of applicant response filed 8/, with respect to the objection of claim 1 have been fully considered and are persuasive. Therefore, the objection has been withdrawn.
With Respect to the 35 USC § 112 Rejections:
Applicant’s arguments, see page 12 of applicant response filed 8/, with respect to the 35 USC § 112 rejections of claims 7-8 and 10 under 35 USC § 112 have been fully considered and are persuasive. Therefore, the rejection has been withdrawn.
With Respect to the 35 USC § 101 Rejections:
Applicant’s arguments, see page 12 of applicant response filed 8/, with respect to the 35 USC § 101 rejections of all claims previously rejected under 35 USC § 101 have been fully considered and are persuasive. Therefore, the rejections have been withdrawn.
With Respect to the 35 USC § 102 and 103 Rejections:
Applicant’s arguments, see pages 12-14 of applicant response, filed 8/5/2026, with respect to the 35 USC § 102 and 103 rejection(s) of claims 1, 4-5, 7-16 and 18-23 under 35 USC § 102 and 103 have been fully considered and are persuasive. Therefore, the rejection has been withdrawn. However, upon further consideration, a new ground(s) of rejection is made in view of Itoh et al. (US20050018615A1) and Shimamura et al. (US20190049925A1). Although applicant implemented elements of the previous claim 6 in the newly amended claim 1, applicant additionally implemented limitations from the previous claim 17 and 18 in the newly amended claim 1, which the examiner had not considered previously with respect to the dependent claims of the previous claim 1. These added limitations (e.g. “a controller configured to sequentially generate a plurality of command data sets” and “acquire the plurality of command data sets from the controller”) to the currently amended claim 1 required further search and consideration which led to examiner using Itoh.
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.
The factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness.
Claims 1, 4-5, 9, 13-14, 20 and 23 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Iwashita et al. (JP2017005289A) (citations to examiner provided translation), in view of Itoh et al. (US20050018615A1), further in view of Shimamura et al. (US20190049925A1).
Claim 1:
Iwashita teaches “a communication system comprising: a first communication device configured to: acquire the plurality of command data sets from the controller: add order information to each of the plurality of command data sets, the order information including timing information that defines read timing:” (Iwashita teaches an input node 101a i.e. a first communication device that assigns input time to the header of packets i.e. order information which includes timing information that is used to define read timing in Iwashita [0055] "For example, the input node 101a shown in Figure 4 adds information to the header of the packet signal indicating the time (input time) when it received the packet signal from the Layer 1 relay node 906.In the example shown in Figure 4, the header of packet (1) is assigned the input time (00:01), the header of packet (2) is assigned the input time (00:02), the header of packet (3) is assigned the input time (00:05), and the header of packet (4) is assigned the input time (00:07).Here, the input time is shown in seconds for clarity, but in reality, times on the order of msec or microseconds are used depending on the communication speed." and in Iwashita [0056] "On the other hand, output node 102a temporarily stores the received packet signal in a buffer, and based on the information indicating the input time attached to the packet signal header, reads the packet signal from the buffer at a time obtained by adding a predetermined fixed delay time α, such as network delay, to the input time, and outputs it to Layer 1 relay node 907." and Iwashita [0057] "In this way, the output node 102a controls the timing of reading the packet signal from the buffer based on information indicating the input time stored in the header of the packet signal received from the packet forwarding network."),
“and sequentially transmit the plurality of command data sets to which the order information is added;” (Iwashita teaches the input node forwards the packets after adding information to header i.e. it sequentially transmits the data sets in Iwashita [0033] "In Figure 1, the input node 101 adds information to the header of the packet signal input from the Layer 1 relay node 906 that allows the output node 102 to restore the packet interval, and then forwards the packet signal to the packet forwarding network in Layer 2."; Iwashita teaches input node 101a having the same functions as input node 101 in Iwashita [0053] "Note that the input node 101a and output node 102a shown in Figure 4 have the same functions as the input node 101 and output node 102 shown in Figure 1."),
“and a second communication device configured to: receive the plurality of command data sets from the first communication device;” (Iwashita teaches output node 102a i.e. a second communication device that receives the data with the header information including the input time in Iwashita [0056] "For example, in Figure 4, assuming a fixed delay time α of 0:03 seconds, packets (1) through (4) are read from their buffers and output to the relay node 907 at a time obtained by adding 00:03 seconds to the input time stored in the header of each packet (1) through (4).In Figure 4, the header of packet (1) stored in the buffer of output node 102a contains the input time (00:01). Therefore, output node 102a reads packet (1) from the buffer at a time (00:04) obtained by adding a fixed delay time α (00:03 seconds) to the input time and outputs it to relay node 907.Furthermore, since the header of packet (2) contains the input time (00:02), the output node 102a reads packet (2) from the buffer at a time (00:05) obtained by adding a fixed delay time α (00:03 seconds) to the input time and outputs it to the relay node 907."),
“arrange the plurality of received command data sets in a standby buffer as ordered data sets in an order of the read timing based on the timing information included in the order information; repeat a read cycle to sequentially read the ordered data sets from the standby buffer:” (Iwashita teaches that the received packets are stored in a buffer and they are read based on the input time in the header in Iwashita [0056] "On the other hand, output node 102a temporarily stores the received packet signal in a buffer, and based on the information indicating the input time attached to the packet signal header, reads the packet signal from the buffer at a time obtained by adding a predetermined fixed delay time α, such as network delay, to the input time, and outputs it to Layer 1 relay node 907.Here, the time at output node 102a and the time at input node 101 are synchronized by the reference clock unit 105.For example, in Figure 4, assuming a fixed delay time α of 0:03 seconds, packets (1) through (4) are read from their buffers and output to the relay node 907 at a time obtained by adding 00:03 seconds to the input time stored in the header of each packet (1) through (4).").
Iwashita does not appear to explicitly teach “and detect a missing data set based on a comparison between an execution timing of the read cycle and the read timing of a data set corresponding to the read cycle in the ordered data sets:” However, Itoh does teach these claim limitations (Itoh teaches a missing packet detecting section that checks whether a time stamp from a header of a data packet is within a range of a program start to end to determine whether a packet is missing i.e. it compares the timing of the data set to the execution timing of the read cycle in Itoh [0174-0175] "Next, the time stamp extracting section 804 and the sequence number extracting section 810 acquire a data packet (step S1402) and acquire a time stamp and sequence number from the header of the data packet (step S1403). The acquired time stamp and sequence number is notified to the missing-packet detecting section 808. Then, the missing packet detecting section 808 checks whether or not the notified time stamp and sequence number is within a range of from a program start to an end (step S1404).").
Iwashita and Itoh are analogous art because they are from the same field of endeavor of data transmission. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, having teachings of Iwashita and Itoh before him/her, to modify the teachings of a Delay fluctuation absorption method of Iwashita to include the determination of a missing packet using time stamps of Itoh because adding the media transmitting method of Itoh would allow for determination of a missing packet checking both a sequence number and a timing information, which a person having ordinary skill in the art would recognize as improving the robustness of the determination of a missing packet as described in Itoh [0169] “Consequently, in the case of using RTP in sending a data string, the sequence number field has only 16 bits. Even where the sequence number makes a round in the course of data transmission to cause a plurality of packets having the same sequence number within the transmission period, determination is possible from a combination of a time stamp and a sequence number of a transmission packet at an end edge.”
Neither Iwashita or Itoh appear to explicitly teach “A control system comprising: a controller configured to sequentially generate a plurality of command data sets:” or “and a local controller configured to: acquire the ordered data sets sequentially read by the second communication device; and operate a machine based on the acquired ordered data sets.” However, Shimamura does teach these claim limitations.
Shimamura teaches “A control system comprising: a controller configured to sequentially generate a plurality of command data sets:” (Shimamura teaches a control device 100 i.e. controller that transmits and receives data from field devices 500 in Shimamura [0042] "The control device 100 corresponds to an industrial controller that controls a control object such as various facilities and devices. The control device 100 is a type of computer that executes a control computation, which will be described below, and may typically be implemented as a PLC (programmable logic controller). The control device 100 may also be connected to various field devices 500 via a field network 2. The control device 100 transmits and receives data to and from the one or more field devices 500 via the field network 2 or the like."; Shimamura teaches sequentially executing commands i.e. the commands were generated in Shimamura [0118] "FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of an execution cycle of each functional configuration in the control device 100 according to the present embodiment. Referring to FIG. 7, the interpreter 168 of the control application processing unit 160 sequentially executes the application program 32 at every cycle longer than a control cycle. In an example illustrated in FIG. 7, the interpreter 168-1 of the control application processing unit 160-1 sequentially executes the application program 32 at every cycle that is two times longer than the control cycle, and the interpreter 168-2 of the control application processing unit 160-2 sequentially executes the application program 32 at every cycle that is four times longer than the control cycle."), and
“and a local controller configured to: acquire the ordered data sets sequentially read by the second communication device; and operate a machine based on the acquired ordered data sets.” (Shimamura teaches the robot controller 532 receiving commands from control device 100 in Shimamura [0051] "The robot system 530 includes a robot controller 532 and robot mechanisms 534, 536, and 538. The robot controller 532 calculates a trajectory, calculates an angle of each axis, etc. according to a position command or the like from the control device 100, and according to a result of calculations, drives a servo motor and the like constituting the robot mechanisms 534, 536, and 538."; Shimamura teaches sequentially executing commands in Shimamura [0118] "FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of an execution cycle of each functional configuration in the control device 100 according to the present embodiment. Referring to FIG. 7, the interpreter 168 of the control application processing unit 160 sequentially executes the application program 32 at every cycle longer than a control cycle. In an example illustrated in FIG. 7, the interpreter 168-1 of the control application processing unit 160-1 sequentially executes the application program 32 at every cycle that is two times longer than the control cycle, and the interpreter 168-2 of the control application processing unit 160-2 sequentially executes the application program 32 at every cycle that is four times longer than the control cycle.").
Iwashita, Itoh, and Shimamura are analogous art because they are from the same field of endeavor of data transmission. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, having teachings of Iwashita, Itoh, and Shimamura before him/her, to modify the teachings of a Delay fluctuation absorption method of Iwashita modified to include the determination of a missing packet using time stamps of Itoh to include the controller that receives commands and sequentially executes them of Shimamura because adding the Control device of Shimamura would allow for productivity to be improved as described in Shimamura [0172] “By employing the control device 100 according to the present embodiment, delay time or the like that is generated due to waiting between a plurality of devices can be reduced, and thus productivity can be improved.”
Claim 4:
Iwashita in view of Itoh, further in view of Shimamura teaches “The control system according to claim 1, wherein the first communication device is configured to repeat a transmit cycle to sequentially transmit the plurality of command data sets;” (Iwashita teaches output node 102a outputting multiple packets sequentially in Iwashita [0056] "Here, the time at output node 102a and the time at input node 101 are synchronized by the reference clock unit 105.For example, in Figure 4, assuming a fixed delay time α of 0:03 seconds, packets (1) through (4) are read from their buffers and output to the relay node 907 at a time obtained by adding 00:03 seconds to the input time stored in the header of each packet (1) through (4)."),
“wherein the timing information defines the read timing by indicating a reference timing that is predetermined in the transmit cycle,” (Iwashita teaches that output node 102a reads the packet at a time by adding a delay time to the input time i.e. the input time and delay time define the read timing in Iwashita [0056] "On the other hand, output node 102a temporarily stores the received packet signal in a buffer, and based on the information indicating the input time attached to the packet signal header, reads the packet signal from the buffer at a time obtained by adding a predetermined fixed delay time α, such as network delay, to the input time, and outputs it to Layer 1 relay node 907." and Iwashita [0057] "In this way, the output node 102a controls the timing of reading the packet signal from the buffer based on information indicating the input time stored in the header of the packet signal received from the packet forwarding network."), and
“and wherein the read timing is a timing at which a predetermined delay time has elapsed from the reference timing.” (Iwashita teaches that output node 102a reads the packet at a time by adding a delay time to the input time in Iwashita [0056] "On the other hand, output node 102a temporarily stores the received packet signal in a buffer, and based on the information indicating the input time attached to the packet signal header, reads the packet signal from the buffer at a time obtained by adding a predetermined fixed delay time α, such as network delay, to the input time, and outputs it to Layer 1 relay node 907." and Iwashita [0057] "In this way, the output node 102a controls the timing of reading the packet signal from the buffer based on information indicating the input time stored in the header of the packet signal received from the packet forwarding network.").
Claim 5:
Iwashita in view of Itoh, further in view of Shimamura teaches “The control system according to claim 4, wherein the second communication device is further configured to set the predetermined delay time based on an input to a user interface.” (Iwashita teaches that output node 102a reads the packet at a time by adding a predetermined fixed delay time to the input time i.e. the user sets the delay time in Iwashita [0056] "On the other hand, output node 102a temporarily stores the received packet signal in a buffer, and based on the information indicating the input time attached to the packet signal header, reads the packet signal from the buffer at a time obtained by adding a predetermined fixed delay time α, such as network delay, to the input time, and outputs it to Layer 1 relay node 907.").
Claim 9:
Iwashita in view of Itoh, further in view of Shimamura teaches “The control system according to claim 1, wherein the second communication device is configured to detect the missing data set in response to determining that the read timing of a head data set located at a head of an arrangement in the standby buffer does not correspond to the execution timing of the read cycle.” (Itoh teaches a missing packet detecting section that checks whether a time stamp from a header of a data packet is within a range of a program start to end to determine whether a packet is missing i.e. it compares the timing of the data set to the execution timing of the read cycle in Itoh [0174-0175] "Next, the time stamp extracting section 804 and the sequence number extracting section 810 acquire a data packet (step S1402) and acquire a time stamp and sequence number from the header of the data packet (step S1403). The acquired time stamp and sequence number is notified to the missing-packet detecting section 808. Then, the missing packet detecting section 808 checks whether or not the notified time stamp and sequence number is within a range of from a program start to an end (step S1404).").
Claim 13:
Iwashita in view of Itoh, further in view of Shimamura teaches “The control system according to claim 1, wherein the second communication device is configured to: store the plurality of received command data sets in a reception buffer in an order in which the plurality of command data sets are received; read the plurality of stored command data sets from the reception buffer in the order in which the plurality of command data sets are stored; and arrange the plurality of read command data sets in the standby buffer in an order based on the order information.” (Iwashita teaches that the received packets are stored in a buffer and they are read based on the input time in the header in Iwashita [0056] "On the other hand, output node 102a temporarily stores the received packet signal in a buffer, and based on the information indicating the input time attached to the packet signal header, reads the packet signal from the buffer at a time obtained by adding a predetermined fixed delay time α, such as network delay, to the input time, and outputs it to Layer 1 relay node 907.Here, the time at output node 102a and the time at input node 101 are synchronized by the reference clock unit 105.For example, in Figure 4, assuming a fixed delay time α of 0:03 seconds, packets (1) through (4) are read from their buffers and output to the relay node 907 at a time obtained by adding 00:03 seconds to the input time stored in the header of each packet (1) through (4).").
Claim 14:
Iwashita in view of Itoh, further in view of Shimamura teaches “The control system according to claim 1, wherein the first communication device is configured to transmit the plurality of command data sets via network communication, and wherein the second communication device is configured to receive the plurality of command data sets from the first communication device via the network communication.” (Iwashita teaches the packets are received from a network in Iwashita [0057] "In this way, the output node 102a controls the timing of reading the packet signal from the buffer based on the information indicating the input time stored in the header of the packet signal received from the packet forwarding network.").
Claim 20:
The limitations of claim 20 are substantially similar to claim 1 and it is rejected for the same reasons.
Claim 23:
The limitations of claim 23 are substantially similar to claim 9 and it is rejected for the same reasons.
Claims 7 and 21 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Iwashita et al. (JP2017005289A) (citations to examiner provided translation), in view of Itoh et al. (US20050018615A1), further in view of Shimamura et al. (US20190049925A1), further in view of Sawai et al. (JP2010167550A) (citations to examiner provided translation).
Claim 7:
Iwashita in view of Itoh, further in view of Shimamura teaches “The control system according to claim 1,” as described above. Neither Iwashita or Gerendai appear to explicitly teach “wherein the second communication device is further configured to stop at least one drive unit of the machine in response to determining that a number of consecutive read cycles in each of which the missing data set is detected reaches a predetermined number for drive stoppages.” However, Sawai does teach these claim limitations.
Sawai teaches “wherein the second communication device is further configured to stop at least one drive unit of the machine in response to determining that a number of consecutive read cycles in each of which the missing data set is detected reaches a predetermined number for drive stoppages.” (Sawai teaches that the controller stops the robot i.e. stopping the robot would require stopping a drive unit of the robot if the data is not received sequentially at an interval in Sawai [0092] "Furthermore, the controller 30 includes a communication unit 33 (second communication means, communication means) that verifies whether or not key status data A4 (packet data) related to the received non-priority key 16 has been received in sequential order at each of the periodic intervals, and that requests retransmission when a communication error occurs in the received packet data related to the non-priority key. Furthermore, the controller 30 performs robot control according to the key status data B4 (packet data) related to the priority key 15 received by the communication unit 33 and the safety receiving unit 32 (second communication means, communication means) if the key status data B4 is received sequentially at each of the periodic intervals. If the data is not received sequentially at each of the periodic intervals, the controller 30 stops the robot R.").
Iwashita, Itoh, Shimamura, and Sawai are analogous art because they are from the same field of endeavor of data transmission. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, having teachings of Iwashita, Itoh, and Shimamura before him/her, to modify the teachings of a Delay fluctuation absorption method of Iwashita modified to include the determination of a missing packet using time stamps of Itoh further modified to include the controller that receives commands and sequentially executes them of Shimamura to include the controlling of a machine and stopping of the machine when packets aren’t received of Sawai because adding the Robot control system and controller of Sawai would enhance safety as described in Sawai [0089-0090] “Furthermore, if a communication error related to the priority key 15 is detected, the safety receiving unit 32 (storage means) of the controller 30 releases the ON state of the stored teaching operation key, that is, sets it to the OFF state. The main CPU 31 (control means) stops the robot upon the release of the memory. As a result, when a communication error is detected during teaching, the controller that controls the robot will not experience a delay in response or become unable to operate, thus providing a network-enabled robot control system that enhances safety.” And in Sawai [0092] “As a result, in the communication between the teach pendant 10, which applies remote desktop technology, and the controller 30 that controls the robot, by providing two paths for transmitting the key state of the operation keys on the teach pendant 10, it is possible to provide a robot control system that guarantees real-time transmission of key operations when teaching robot movements using the teach pendant 10, enhances the reliability of communication, and ensures safe and stable operation.”
Claim 21:
The limitations of claim 21 are substantially the same as claim 7 and it is rejected for the same reasons.
Claims 10-12 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Iwashita et al. (JP2017005289A) (citations to examiner provided translation), in view of Itoh et al. (US20050018615A1), further in view of Shimamura et al. (US20190049925A1), further in view of Gerendai et al. (US20100058138A1).
Claim 10:
Iwashita in view of Itoh, further in view of Shimamura teaches “The control system according to claim 9” as described above. None of Iwashita, Itoh, or Shimamura appear to explicitly teach “wherein the second communication device is configured to, in response to detecting the missing data set, wait for reading of the head data set until a head read cycle corresponding to the read timing of the head data set.” However, Gerendai does teach this claim limitation (Gerendai teaches that the receiver transmits a NACK message if the elapsed time for the missing data packet is less than a predetermined time and doesn't retransmit if it hasn't met that time i.e. the receiver waits to receive the next message during a proceeding read cycle in Gerendai [0024] "After receiving a NACK message from the receiver, the sender checks the time elapsed since the transmission of each missing data packet listed in the NACK message. If the elapsed time for a missing data packet is less than a predetermined time interval (e.g., about one round trip time (RTT) for a data packet to travel between the sender and the receiver), the sender does not retransmit the requested (missing) data packet. On the other hand, if the elapsed time for the missing data packet is greater than the predetermined time interval, then the sender retransmits the missing data packet.").
Iwashita, Itoh, Shimamura, and Gerendai are analogous art because they are from the same field of endeavor of data transmission. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, having teachings of Iwashita, Itoh, and Shimamura before him/her, to modify the teachings of a Delay fluctuation absorption method of Iwashita modified to include the determination of a missing packet using time stamps of Itoh further modified to include the controller that receives commands and sequentially executes them of Shimamura to include the determination of a missing packet of Gerendai because adding the Data Transmission method of Gerendai would allow for previously lost messages to be sent again, which a person having ordinary skill in the art would recognize as an improvement in ensuring the data is transmitted correctly as described in Gerendai [0023] “In one embodiment, a sender (e.g. gateway 14 or server 18) transmits to the receiver the data packets 20 sequentially in accordance with the PSNs so that a data packet 20 with a lower PSN is transmitted prior to one with a higher PSN (e.g., a data packet with PSN=2 is transmitted before a data packet with PSN=3). If the receiver determines that a data packet 20 is missing (e.g., it has received data packet with PSN=3 but not PSN=1), it transmits to the sender a negative acknowledgement (NACK) message listing the missing packet (e.g., PSN=1). Preferably, the NACK message lists not only the missing packet(s) of the most current data packet group but also the missing packet(s) of all previous data packet groups. Thus, if a data packet with PSN=3 is missing from packet group 1 (and not yet received) and data packet with PSN=25 is missing from packet group 5, the NACK message will list both missing data packets (PSN=3 and PSN=25). This is particularly advantageous because even if the previous NACK message is lost, the sender will still be notified of the missing data packet(s) of previously sent packet groups. It is contemplated that the NACK message may be sent before or after the receiver receives a GTR data packet of each data packet group.”
Claim 11:
Iwashita in view of Itoh, further in view of Shimamura, further in view of Gerendai teaches “The control system according to claim 1, wherein the second communication device is further configured to request the first communication device to retransmit the missing data set in response to detecting the missing data set.” (Gerendai teaches sending a negative acknowledgement message which includes the missing messages and the sender will retransmit the missing packets if a predetermined time interval has passed in Gerendai [0023-0024] "If the receiver determines that a data packet 20 is missing (e.g., it has received data packet with PSN=3 but not PSN=1), it transmits to the sender a negative acknowledgement (NACK) message listing the missing packet (e.g., PSN=1). Preferably, the NACK message lists not only the missing packet(s) of the most current data packet group but also the missing packet(s) of all previous data packet groups. Thus, if a data packet with PSN=3 is missing from packet group 1 (and not yet received) and data packet with PSN=25 is missing from packet group 5, the NACK message will list both missing data packets (PSN=3 and PSN=25). This is particularly advantageous because even if the previous NACK message is lost, the sender will still be notified of the missing data packet(s) of previously sent packet groups. It is contemplated that the NACK message may be sent before or after the receiver receives a GTR data packet of each data packet group. After receiving a NACK message from the receiver, the sender checks the time elapsed since the transmission of each missing data packet listed in the NACK message. If the elapsed time for a missing data packet is less than a predetermined time interval (e.g., about one round trip time (RTT) for a data packet to travel between the sender and the receiver), the sender does not retransmit the requested (missing) data packet. On the other hand, if the elapsed time for the missing data packet is greater than the predetermined time interval, then the sender retransmits the missing data packet.").
Claim 12:
Iwashita in view of Itoh, further in view of Shimamura, further in view of Gerendai teaches “The control system according to claim 11, wherein the first communication device is configured to hold at least one of the plurality of command data sets that has been transmitted in preparation for a retransmission request from the second communication device.” (Gerendai teaches retransmitting missing packets if requested and a predetermined time interval has passed i.e. it holds the previously sent packets in case of a retransmission request in Gerendai [0023-0024] "If the receiver determines that a data packet 20 is missing (e.g., it has received data packet with PSN=3 but not PSN=1), it transmits to the sender a negative acknowledgement (NACK) message listing the missing packet (e.g., PSN=1). Preferably, the NACK message lists not only the missing packet(s) of the most current data packet group but also the missing packet(s) of all previous data packet groups. Thus, if a data packet with PSN=3 is missing from packet group 1 (and not yet received) and data packet with PSN=25 is missing from packet group 5, the NACK message will list both missing data packets (PSN=3 and PSN=25). This is particularly advantageous because even if the previous NACK message is lost, the sender will still be notified of the missing data packet(s) of previously sent packet groups. It is contemplated that the NACK message may be sent before or after the receiver receives a GTR data packet of each data packet group. After receiving a NACK message from the receiver, the sender checks the time elapsed since the transmission of each missing data packet listed in the NACK message. If the elapsed time for a missing data packet is less than a predetermined time interval (e.g., about one round trip time (RTT) for a data packet to travel between the sender and the receiver), the sender does not retransmit the requested (missing) data packet. On the other hand, if the elapsed time for the missing data packet is greater than the predetermined time interval, then the sender retransmits the missing data packet.").
Claims 15-16 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Iwashita et al. (JP2017005289A) (citations to examiner provided translation), in view of Itoh et al. (US20050018615A1), further in view of Shimamura et al. (US20190049925A1), further in view of Suneya (JP2020145573A) (citations to examiner provided translation).
Claim 15:
Iwashita in view of Itoh, further in view of Shimamura teaches “The control system according to claim 14” as described above. None of Iwashita, Itoh, or Shimamura appear to explicitly teach “wherein the first communication device is configured to transmit the plurality of command data sets via wireless communication, and wherein the second communication device is configured to receive the plurality of command data sets from the first communication device via the wireless communication.” However, Suneya does teach this claim limitation (Suneya teaches a transmitting device 1 is connected to receiving device 2 via a network 3 in Suneya [0012] "This communication system comprises a transmitting device 1 that transmits data containing multiple frames, and a receiving device 2 that is connected to the transmitting device 1 via a network 3 and receives data containing multiple frames transmitted from the transmitting device 1."; Suneya teaches the network may use wireless LAN in Suneya [0014] “Network 3 consists of networks such as a wired LAN (Local Area Network) or a wireless LAN (Wireless LAN).
Network 3 is not limited to this; it may also consist of networks such as the Internet, WANs (Wide Area Networks) including mobile phone communication networks, ad-hoc networks, Bluetooth®, etc." ).
Iwashita, Itoh, Shimamura, and Suneya are analogous art because they are from the same field of endeavor of data transmission. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, having teachings of Iwashita, Itoh, Shimamura, and Suneya before him/her, to modify the teachings of a Delay fluctuation absorption method of Iwashita modified to include the determination of a missing packet using time stamps of Itoh further modified to include the controller that receives commands and sequentially executes them of Shimamura to include the wireless transmission of Suneya because adding the Communication device of Suneya would allow for implementation using a variety of network types, which a person having ordinary skill in the art would recognize as an improvement as described in Suneya [0014] “Network 3 consists of networks such as a wired LAN (Local Area Network) or a wireless LAN (Wireless LAN).
Network 3 is not limited to this; it may also consist of networks such as the Internet, WANs (Wide Area Networks) including mobile phone communication networks, ad-hoc networks, Bluetooth®, etc."
Claim 16:
Iwashita in view of Itoh, further in view of Shimamura, further in view of Suneya teaches “The control system according to claim 15, wherein the first communication device is configured to transmit the plurality of command data sets via mobile communication, and wherein the second communication device is configured to receive the plurality of command data sets from the first communication device via the mobile communication.” (Suneya teaches a transmitting device 1 is connected to receiving device 2 via a network 3 in Suneya [0012] "This communication system comprises a transmitting device 1 that transmits data containing multiple frames, and a receiving device 2 that is connected to the transmitting device 1 via a network 3 and receives data containing multiple frames transmitted from the transmitting device 1."; Suneya teaches the network may use mobile communication in Suneya [0014] “Network 3 consists of networks such as a wired LAN (Local Area Network) or a wireless LAN (Wireless LAN).
Network 3 is not limited to this; it may also consist of networks such as the Internet, WANs (Wide Area Networks) including mobile phone communication networks, ad-hoc networks, Bluetooth®, etc." ).
Claims 18-19 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Iwashita et al. (JP2017005289A) (citations to examiner provided translation), in view of Itoh et al. (US20050018615A1), further in view of Shimamura et al. (US20190049925A1), further in view of Hosokawa et al. (US20160359586A1).
Claim 18:
Iwashita in view of Itoh, further in view of Shimamura teaches “The control system according to claim 1,” as described above. Iwashita in view of Itoh, further in view of Shimamura additionally teaches “wherein the second communication device is further configured to: add second order information to each of the plurality of feedback data sets acquired by the local controller;” (Iwashita teaches an input node 101a i.e. a first communication device that assigns input time to the header of packets i.e. order information which may be used in transmitting the feedback data back from a second device to a first device in Iwashita [0055] "For example, the input node 101a shown in Figure 4 adds information to the header of the packet signal indicating the time (input time) when it received the packet signal from the Layer 1 relay node 906.In the example shown in Figure 4, the header of packet (1) is assigned the input time (00:01), the header of packet (2) is assigned the input time (00:02), the header of packet (3) is assigned the input time (00:05), and the header of packet (4) is assigned the input time (00:07).Here, the input time is shown in seconds for clarity, but in reality, times on the order of msec or microseconds are used depending on the communication speed." and in Iwashita [0056] "On the other hand, output node 102a temporarily stores the received packet signal in a buffer, and based on the information indicating the input time attached to the packet signal header, reads the packet signal from the buffer at a time obtained by adding a predetermined fixed delay time α, such as network delay, to the input time, and outputs it to Layer 1 relay node 907." and Iwashita [0057] "In this way, the output node 102a controls the timing of reading the packet signal from the buffer based on information indicating the input time stored in the header of the packet signal received from the packet forwarding network."),
“and sequentially transmit the plurality of feedback data sets to which the second order information is added,” (Iwashita teaches the input node forwards the packets after adding information to header i.e. it sequentially transmits the data sets and this method may be used to transmit the feedback data back in Iwashita [0033] "In Figure 1, the input node 101 adds information to the header of the packet signal input from the Layer 1 relay node 906 that allows the output node 102 to restore the packet interval, and then forwards the packet signal to the packet forwarding network in Layer 2."; Iwashita teaches input node 101a having the same functions as input node 101 in Iwashita [0053] "Note that the input node 101a and output node 102a shown in Figure 4 have the same functions as the input node 101 and output node 102 shown in Figure 1."),
“and wherein the first communication device is further configured to: sequentially receive the plurality of feedback data sets from the second communication device;” (Iwashita teaches output node 102a i.e. a second communication device that receives the data with the header information including the input time and this transmission method may be used to return feedback data in Iwashita [0056] "For example, in Figure 4, assuming a fixed delay time α of 0:03 seconds, packets (1) through (4) are read from their buffers and output to the relay node 907 at a time obtained by adding 00:03 seconds to the input time stored in the header of each packet (1) through (4).In Figure 4, the header of packet (1) stored in the buffer of output node 102a contains the input time (00:01). Therefore, output node 102a reads packet (1) from the buffer at a time (00:04) obtained by adding a fixed delay time α (00:03 seconds) to the input time and outputs it to relay node 907.Furthermore, since the header of packet (2) contains the input time (00:02), the output node 102a reads packet (2) from the buffer at a time (00:05) obtained by adding a fixed delay time α (00:03 seconds) to the input time and outputs it to the relay node 907."), and
“arrange the plurality of received feedback data sets in a second standby buffer as second ordered data sets based on the second order information; and sequentially read the second ordered data sets.” (Iwashita teaches that the received packets are stored in a buffer and they are read based on the input time in the header in Iwashita [0056] "On the other hand, output node 102a temporarily stores the received packet signal in a buffer, and based on the information indicating the input time attached to the packet signal header, reads the packet signal from the buffer at a time obtained by adding a predetermined fixed delay time α, such as network delay, to the input time, and outputs it to Layer 1 relay node 907.Here, the time at output node 102a and the time at input node 101 are synchronized by the reference clock unit 105.For example, in Figure 4, assuming a fixed delay time α of 0:03 seconds, packets (1) through (4) are read from their buffers and output to the relay node 907 at a time obtained by adding 00:03 seconds to the input time stored in the header of each packet (1) through (4).").
None of Iwashita, Itoh, or Shimamura appear to explicitly teach “wherein the local controller is configured to sequentially acquire a plurality of feedback data sets including an operation result based on the plurality of command data sets,” However, Hosokawa does teach this claim limitation (Hosokawa teaches that a normal finish notification or abnormal finish notification may be received from the apparatus 30 with respect to control success i.e. feedback data including an operation result in Hosokawa [0078-0079] "The control results management unit 22 stores “normal finish (control success)” in the volatile region 24 as the control results information 24A in a case where a normal finish notification is received for all of the series of controls (controls A-1 to A-n) to the apparatus 30, which are obtained through the conversion by the apparatus 20. In contrast, in a case where the normal finish notification is not obtained for all of the series of controls, the control results management unit 22 stores “abnormal finish (control failure)” as the control results information 24A in the volatile region 24. The control results management unit 22 sends the normal finish notification to the response results management unit 23 in a case where all of the series of controls finish normally for the apparatus 30. In contrast, in a case where the series of controls finish abnormally, the apparatus 20 stops the control for the apparatus 30. In this case, the control results management unit 22 sends the abnormal finish notification to the response results management unit 23, sends the R-CMD application notification for the R-CMD management unit 34, and sends the timer discard notification to the timer management unit 35.").
Iwashita, Itoh, Shimamura, and Hosokawa are analogous art because they are from the same field of endeavor of data transmission. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, having teachings of Iwashita, Itoh, Shimamura, and Hosokawa before him/her, to modify the teachings of a Delay fluctuation absorption method of Iwashita modified to include the determination of a missing packet using time stamps of Itoh further modified to include the controller that receives commands and sequentially executes them of Shimamura to include the normal or abnormal finish notification of Hosokawa because adding the System and method for restoring a status of an apparatus controlled by multiple commands of Hosokawa would allow for stopping control in the case of abnormal results, which a person having ordinary skill in the art would recognize as an improvement possibly stopping damage to the machine or objects as described in Hosokawa [0079] “The control results management unit 22 sends the normal finish notification to the response results management unit 23 in a case where all of the series of controls finish normally for the apparatus 30. In contrast, in a case where the series of controls finish abnormally, the apparatus 20 stops the control for the apparatus 30. In this case, the control results management unit 22 sends the abnormal finish notification to the response results management unit 23, sends the R-CMD application notification for the R-CMD management unit 34, and sends the timer discard notification to the timer management unit 35.”
Claim 19:
Iwashita in view of Itoh, further in view of Shimamura, further in view of Hosokawa teaches “The control system of claim 18, wherein the controller is configured to sequentially generate the plurality of command data sets based on the second ordered data sets sequentially read by the first communication device.” (Hosokawa teaches that when the apparatus 10 receives the confirmation of a normal finish, apparatus 10 transmits reception verification i.e. it generates command data based on the second ordered data set in Hosokawa [0139-0140] "When it is determined that the response (normal finish) is received and both of the controls A-1 and A-2 finish, the control results management unit 22 stores the control results information 24A indicating the normal finish in the volatile region 24. The control results management unit 22 sends the normal finish notification to the response results management unit 23 which transmits the response indicating a normal finish of the control A to the apparatus 10 (<13> in FIG. 17). At this time, the response results management unit 23 sets the timer for standby and awaits the reception verification from the apparatus 10. When the response is received normally by the apparatus 10, the apparatus 10 transmits the reception verification to the apparatus 20. When the reception verification is received before the expiration of the timer, the response results management unit 23 verifies that the control results information 24A indicates a normal finish of the control A. Then, the response results management unit 23 sends the R-CMD discard notification and the timer discard notification to the apparatus 30 (<14> in FIG. 17).").
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 8 and 22 are 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.
Claim 24 is allowed.
Conclusion
Applicant's amendment necessitated the new ground(s) of rejection presented in this Office action. Accordingly, THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. See MPEP § 706.07(a). Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Zachary A Cain whose telephone number is (571)272-4503. The examiner can normally be reached Mon-Fri 7:00-3:30 CST.
Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Kenneth M Lo can be reached at (571) 272-9774. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000.
/Z.A.C./Examiner, Art Unit 2116
/CHAD G ERDMAN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2116
