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 .
Priority
Receipt is acknowledged of certified copies of papers required by 37 CFR 1.55.
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.
Claim 6 is 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.
Claim 6 states “wherein a connection portion between the first path and the second path is apart in the first direction from the receiving port than the first passing port is from the receiving port.” This phrase is indefinite, as it is not clear whether the connection portion is further or closer to the receiving port than the first passing port is from the receiving port.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
The following is a quotation of the appropriate paragraphs of 35 U.S.C. 102 that form the basis for the rejections under this section made in this Office action:
A person shall be entitled to a patent unless –
(a)(1) the claimed invention was patented, described in a printed publication, or in public use, on sale, or otherwise available to the public before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claim(s) 1-6 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Cha (US-20130020172-A1).
Regarding claim 1, Cha discloses
A sheet handling device comprising:
a receiving port (100) that receives a sheet into a housing;
a transport mechanism (200) that transports the sheet received into the housing through the receiving port; and
a recognition circuit (500) that has a first passing port (top of 500) and a second passing port (bottom of 500) through which the sheet transported by the transport mechanism passes and recognizes the sheet passing the first passing port and the second passing port,
wherein the first passing port of the recognition circuit is positioned apart from the receiving port in a first direction (horizontal direction, figure 1),
the transport mechanism has a first path (A1, See annotated figure 1 below) which is part of a transport path connecting the receiving port and the first passing port to each other, and
the first path is inclined (A1, See annotated figure 1 below), with respect to a first reference line (horizontal direction, figure 1) extending in the first direction, apart from the first passing port while extending from the receiving port to the first passing port.
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Regarding claim 2, Cha discloses
The sheet handling device of claim 1, wherein
the first direction (horizontal direction, claim 1) is a horizontal direction, and
the first path (A1, See annotated figure 1 above) is inclined upward (A1, See annotated figure 1 above).
Regarding claim 3, Cha discloses
The sheet handling device of claim 2, wherein
the first passing port (top of 500) is positioned lower than the receiving port (100).
Regarding claim 4, Cha discloses
The sheet handling device of claim 1, wherein
the transport mechanism (200) has a second path (A3, See annotated figure 1 above) extending continuously to the first path (A1, See annotated figure 1 above) and extending in a second direction (vertical direction, figure 1) perpendicular to the first direction, and
the first passing port (top of 500) is connected to the second path (A3, See annotated figure 1 above).
Regarding claim 5, Cha discloses
The sheet handling device of claim 4, wherein
the second path is inclined (A3, See annotated figure 1 above), with respect to a second reference (vertical direction, figure 1) line extending in the second direction, apart from the receiving port (100) while extending from the first passing port (top of 500) to the receiving port.
Regarding claim 6, Cha discloses
The sheet handling device of claim 4, wherein
a connection portion (A2, See annotated figure 1 above) between the first path (A1, See annotated figure 1 above) and the second path (A3, See annotated figure 1 above) is apart in the first direction (horizontal direction, figure 1) from the receiving port (100) than the first passing port (top of 500) is from the receiving port.
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) 7 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Cha (US-20130020172-A1) in view of Aoji (US-20130140133-A1).
Regarding claim 7, Cha discloses
The sheet handling device of claim 1, further comprising:
a storage (700) that is connected to the second passing port (bottom of 500) of the recognition circuit (500) and stores a sheet,
wherein the transport mechanism (200) has a first drive system that transports a sheet on the transport path connecting the receiving port and the first passing port to each other
Regarding claim 7, Cha does not disclose, however Aoji discloses a second drive system (10a “each component including the conveying paths is provided with a driving motor,” Paragraph 56 lines 1-2) that is provided independently of the first drive system (Cha, 200) and transports a sheet between the recognition circuit (30) and the storage (71).
Regarding claim 7, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective filing date of the invention to add the second drive system taught by Aoji to the transport path taught by Cha. One of ordinary skill in the art would choose to add a second drive system to convey the bill from the storage to the recognition circuit in order to independently operate storage and acceptance operations, allowing for continuous operation of the second unit while the first unit is not in operation.
Claim(s) 8-14 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Cha (US-20130020172-A1) in view of Aoji (US-20130140133-A1) and further in view of Fukuda (US-20190172292-A1).
Regarding claim 8, Cha in view of Aoji teaches
The sheet handling device of claim 7, wherein
the storage (Aoji, 71) feeds out a stored sheet in a case where an inventory amount is uncertain,
the second drive system (Aoji 50a and 10a) transports the sheet fed out from the storage to the second passing port (Aoji, right of 30), and the recognition circuit (Aoji, 30) recognizes the sheet,
Regarding claim 8, Cha in view of Aoji does not teach, however Fukuda teaches the first drive system (4) stops the sheet having passed the first passing port (right of 24) in a middle of the transport path (taught by solid and dashes arrows, figure 25) between the recognition circuit (24) and the receiving port (21) until the recognition circuit outputs a recognition result (Fukuda, “result of the recognition,” paragraph 92 lines 1-4).
Regarding claim 8, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective filing date of the invention to add the conveyance stopping function taught by Fukuda with the sheet handling device taught by Cha in view of Aoji. One of ordinary skill in the art would identify that pausing conveyance during a recognition process would allow sheets to be stored on the conveyor itself, rather than an independent temporary storage. This reduces the overall distance traveled by the sheet.
Regarding claim 9, Cha in view of Aoji and Fukuda teaches
The sheet handling device of claim 8, wherein
the first drive system (Fukuda, 4) transports the sheet to the first passing port (Fukuda, right of 24) after the recognition circuit (24) has output the recognition result (Fukuda, “result of the recognition,” paragraph 92 lines 1-4), and
the second drive system (Aoji 50a and 10a) transports the sheet having passed the second passing port (Aoji, right of 30) to the storage (Aoji, 71).
Regarding claim 9, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective filing date of the invention to combine the transportation based on a recognition result taught by Fukuda with the transportation of the sheet between the second passing port and storage taught by Aoji. One of ordinary skill in the art would identify that the sheet would need to be moved back into the storage after passing the second passing port.
Regarding claim 10, Cha in view of Aoji and Fukuda teaches
The sheet handling device of claim 9, further comprising:
a second storage (Aoji, 60) that is connected to the second passing port (Aoji, right of 30), stores a sheet, and does not feed out the stored sheet,
wherein the storage (Aoji, 71) performs first feeding of the stored sheet in a case where the inventory amount is uncertain, and
the second drive system (Aoji 10a, 50a, and 50b) transports the sheet related to the first feeding to the second storage after the recognition circuit (Fukuda, 24) has output a recognition result (Fukuda, “result of the recognition,” paragraph 92 lines 1-4) of the sheet related to the first feeding.
Regarding claim 10, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective filing date of the invention to incorporate the second storage taught by Aoji with the conveyance based on a recognition result taught by Fukuda. One of ordinary skill in the art would identify that storing sheets of an uncertain amount to a separate, second storage would isolate these uncertain sheets from the other sheets, reducing errors in dispensed bills.
Regarding claim 11, Cha in view of Aoji and Fukuda teaches
The sheet handling device of claim 7, further comprising:
a dispensing port (Aoji, 20) that is connected to the second passing port (Aoji, right of 30) and dispenses a sheet to an outside of the housing,
wherein the storage (Aoji, 71) feeds out the stored sheet in a case where the sheet is dispensed to the dispensing port (Aoji, 20),
the second drive system (Aoji, 10a and 50a) transports the sheet fed out from the storage to the second passing port, and the recognition circuit (Aoji, 30) recognizes the sheet, and
the first drive system (Fukuda, 4) stops the sheet having passed the first passing port in a middle of the transport path (taught by solid and dashes arrows, figure 25) between the recognition circuit (Fukuda, 24) and the receiving port (Fukuda, 21) until the recognition circuit outputs a recognition result (Fukuda, “result of the recognition,” paragraph 92 lines 1-4).
Regarding claim 11, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective filing date of the invention to combine the dispenser taught by Aoji with the sheet feeding system taught by Fukuda. One of ordinary skill in the art would identify a dispensing operation/port as an obvious addition to a sheet handling device. Further, a dispensing port connected to the second passing port would allow bills having been identified by the recognition unit to be moved directly to the dispensing port.
Regarding claim 12, Cha in view of Aoji and Fukuda teaches
The sheet handling device of claim 11, wherein
the first drive system (Fukuda, 4) transports the sheet to the first passing port (Fukuda, right of 24) after the recognition circuit (24) has output the recognition result (Fukuda, “result of the recognition,” paragraph 92 lines 1-4), and
the second drive system (Aoji, 10a and 10b) transports the sheet having passed through the second passing port (Aoji, right of 30) to the dispensing port (Aoji, 20).
Regarding claim 12, It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective filing date of the invention to combine the conveyance based on a recognition result taught by Fukuda with the transfer between the second passing port and dispensing port taught by Aoji. One of ordinary skill in the art would identify that moving the bill directly from the recognition circuit to the dispensing port, after receiving a recognition result, would eliminate the need to convey the bill back to storage, just to move it from that storage to the dispensing port. This would reduce the overall distance and complexity of the path traveled by a bill.
Regarding claim 13, Cha in view of Aoji and Fukuda teaches
The sheet handling device of claim 12, further comprising:
a second storage (Aoji, 60) that is connected to the second passing port (Aoji, right of 30), stores a sheet, and does not feed out the stored sheet,
wherein the second drive system (Aoji, 10a and 50a) transports a sheet indicated as being not able to be dispensed by the recognition result (Fukuda, “result of the recognition,” paragraph 92 lines 1-4) to the second storage after the sheet has passed the second passing port.
Regarding claim 13, it would have been obvious to combine the conveyance based on a recognition result taught by Fukuda with the second storage taught by Aoji. One of ordinary skill in the art would identify that transporting bills to a second storage after receiving an uncertain recognition result would allow separation of uncertain bills from the correctly identified ones.
Regarding claim 14, Cha in view of Aoji and Fukuda teaches
The sheet handling device of claim 11, wherein
the second drive system (Aoji, 10a) transports a sheet recognized by the recognition circuit (Aoji, 30) to the dispensing port (Aoji, 20) in a first mode, and
the second drive system transports a sheet fed out from the storage to the dispensing port without transporting the sheet to the recognition circuit in a second mode (Aoji, 50a and 10b)
Regarding claim 14, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to combine the multiple transport modes taught by Aoji with the conveyance based on recognition result taught by Fukuda. One of ordinary skill in the art would identify that two separate transportation modes would allow for bills that are not uncertain to be conveyed directly to the dispensing port, rather than unnecessarily going through the recognition circuit. This would reduce the time and distance travelled by a bill that is not uncertain.
Claim(s) 15 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Fukuda (US-20190172292-A1)..
Regarding claim 15, Fukada teaches
A sheet handling method comprising:
feeding out (“feeding of the money from the first storage,” Paragraph 81, lines 1-4), by a storage (31) that stores a sheet, the sheet from the storage;
transporting, by a transport mechanism (4), the sheet fed out from the storage to a recognition circuit (24);
recognizing the sheet by the recognition circuit; stopping (taught by solid and dashes arrows, figure 25), by the transport mechanism, the sheet at a position after the sheet has passed the recognition circuit until the recognition circuit outputs a recognition result (“result of the recognition,” paragraph 92 lines 1-4); and
transporting, by the transport mechanism, the sheet in a reverse direction (dotted arrows on 4111, figure 25) such that the sheet passes the recognition circuit after the recognition circuit has output the recognition result.
While Fukuda does not expressly teach the sheet passing the recognition circuit after the recognition circuit has output the recognition result, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective filing date to transport the sheet in the reverse direction through the recognition circuit after receiving a recognition result. One of ordinary skill in the art would identify that conveying the bill in a reverse direction (as shown by dashed arrow, figure 25) would reduce the distance and time needed to convey a bill back into a storage.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JONATHAN R UEBERSCHAER whose telephone number is (571)270-5553. The examiner can normally be reached Mon-Fri 8:30am-5:00pm.
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/J.R.U./ Examiner, Art Unit 3653
/MICHAEL MCCULLOUGH/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3653
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