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 .
*Examiner Note: Claim language is bolded. Cited References are italicized. Examiner interpretations are preceded with an asterisk *.
Continued Examination Under 37 CFR 1.114
A request for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, including the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e), was filed in this application after final rejection. Since this application is eligible for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114. Applicant's submission filed on 6/12/2026 has been entered.
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed June 12, 2026 have been fully considered but they are moot because the amendments made have presented a combination of elements directed towards newly added elements that have necessitated new grounds of rejection.
Response to Amendment
Regarding the previous rejections, the amendments made to the claims fail to overcome the prior art and have necessitated new grounds of rejection as outlined below. While the new ground of rejection may rely on some of the previous references applied in the prior rejection of record, new additional references have been added to the combination and introduced for Applicant’s consideration given the amended independent claims. The new grounds of rejection are outlined below.
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, 8 and 21 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Fadeley (US 6,234,100 B1) in view of Ito (US 4,691,659 A) and further in view of Skauen (US 2015/0246716 A1).
Regarding claim 1, Fadeley discloses a single rear marine drive (Fig. 2A, drive 12 with
reversing bucket 14 and Fig. 3A, nozzle 18 and see at least col. 4 ln. 15-20 of Fadeley which discloses “a waterjet drive 12 … Water enters the drive through inlet 8, and exits through nozzle 18. FIGS. 2A-2C are enlarged views of the waterjet drive 12, showing the reversing bucket 14“) configured to be positioned near a stern of the marine vessel (Fig. 1A, 10 and see at least col. 4 ln. 15 of Fadeley which discloses “A boat 10” and Fig. 1A illustrates the drive 12 positioned near the stern, i.e., rear, of the boat/marine vessel and see at least col. 1 ln. 7-12 of Fadeley which discloses “With a waterjet drive, seawater is drawn in through the bottom of the boat and ejected in a stream out the back. The reaction to this movement of water is the propulsive force that moves the boat. Near the back of the stream is a nozzle” and see at least claim 1 at col. 8 ln. 34-37 of Fadeley which discloses “a nozzle at the stern of the boat, the nozzle directing a flow of water generally along the longitudinal axis of the boat”); a joystick (Fig. 4, 20 and see at least col. 4 ln. 51 of Fadeley which discloses “a joystick 20”) configured to be movable by a user to provide steering demand input (see at least the abstract of Fadely which discloses “A joystick with two axes of motion may be used to control both the bucket and the nozzle. The joystick has built-in centering forces that automatically return it to a neutral position, causing both the bucket and nozzle to return to their neutral positions”. Fadeley also discloses an alternative 3 axis embodiment (see at least col. 4 ln. 50-51 of Fadeley which discloses “Operator control of the nozzle, bucket, and bowthruster is achieved using a joystick 20“). This supports the idea that a bowthruster/lateral axis function is a well known addition to the same basic bucket and nozzle joystick platform. The rejection is relying upon Fadeley’s 2 axis embodiment (see abstract of Fadeley as cited above) for the base joystick structure. The 3 axis passage is cited only as evidence supporting the motivation to combine with Skauen as discussed below). and see at least col. 7 ln. 64 of Fadeley which discloses “the boat operator steers underway using the joystick”, *Examiner interprets this as movable by a user to provide steering demand input) and see at least col. 6 ln. 50-65 of Fadely which discloses “This produces a movement of the nozzle in a direction that causes the stern of the boat to move to port (left). As the nozzle turns, the output of the tiller position signal increases until a point is reached at which the amplitude of the position sensor signal matches that of the joystick signal, at which point movement of the nozzle ceases. To avoid the nozzle hunting back and forth once it reaches a desired position, the comparison circuit 54 uses pulse width modulation to drive the autopilot pump. When the nozzle is far away from the desired position, a continuous signal is delivered to the autopilot pump. When the nozzle gets within a predetermined proximity to the desired position, the continuous signal is replaced with a pulsed signal, which has the effect of slowing down movement of the nozzle”); wherein the joystick is configured such that the joystick and shaft are movable in a forward direction (see at least col. 3 ln. 20-25 of Fadeley which discloses “forward/aft movement of the stick control member and up/down movement of the reversing bucket, and a second mode in which a non-follow-up relationship exists between forward/aft movement of the stick control member” and see at least col. 6 ln. 2-4 of Fadeley which discloses “forward or aft movement of the joystick functions as a simple up/down directional switch for movement of the bucket”) to demand a forward motion of the marine vessel and in a backward direction to demand backward motion of the marine vessel (see at least col. 1 ln. 5-6 of Fadeley which discloses “The invention relates to steering and thrust control systems for waterjet driven boats” and see at least col. 6 ln. 1-23 of Fadely which discloses “In Helm mode the reversing bucket functions in a non follow-up manner, i.e., forward or aft movement of the joystick functions as a simple up/down directional Switch for movement of the bucket. Forward movement of the joystick causes the bucket to move upward as long as the joystick is held forward of center. Conversely, aft movement causes the bucket to move downwardly for as long as the joystick is held aft of center. When the joystick is at rest, i.e., in the neutral center position, the bucket remains at its current orientation. Thus, tapping the joystick forward or aft momentarily in Helm mode causes the bucket to move incrementally upward or downward by a Small amount and then remain in that position” and see at least col. 6 ln. 30-40 of Fadely which discloses “Docking mode is the mode used for slow Speed maneuvering, e.g., in approaching a dock or slip. In this mode, both bucket and nozzle are controlled by the joystick in a follow-up manner. Thus, moving the joystick to a position (e.g., halfway forward) causes the corresponding device (e.g., the bucket) to move to a corresponding position (e.g., halfway up)”), and the joystick handle and shaft twistable (see at least col. 4 ln. 52-54 of Fadeley which disclose “The joystick 20 has three independent directions of movement: rotating or twisting movement”) to demand rotational motion of the marine vessel (see at least col. 2 ln. 62-64 of Fadeley which discloses “The joystick can be configured so that rotation (or twist) of the joystick about a generally vertical axis controls rotation of the waterjet nozzle about its axis”); and a control system (see at least col. 1 ln. 5-6 of Fadeley which discloses “control systems for waterjet drive boats” and see at least col. 6 ln. 50-65 of Fadely which discloses “This produces a movement of the nozzle in a direction that causes the stern of the boat to move to port (left). As the nozzle turns, the output of the tiller position signal increases until a point is reached at which the amplitude of the position sensor signal matches that of the joystick signal, at which point movement of the nozzle ceases. To avoid the nozzle hunting back and forth once it reaches a desired position, the comparison circuit 54 uses pulse width modulation to drive the autopilot pump. When the nozzle is far away from the desired position, a continuous signal is delivered to the autopilot pump. When the nozzle gets within a predetermined proximity to the desired position, the continuous signal is replaced with a pulsed signal, which has the effect of slowing down movement of the nozzle” *This illustrates the joystick’s steering demand is compared against a position sensor and used to drive the nozzle to the commanded position and this also corresponds to a feedback control system) configured to control steering and/or thrust of the single rear marine drive based on the steering demand input to generate the demanded forward motion, the backward motion (and see at least col. 7 ln. 5-30 of Fadeley which discloses “Bucket control in Docking mode is also done in a follow up manner. Control output MS3 controls bucket mode relay 38 so that 12 VDC is supplied not to joystick Switch 40 (as in the case of Helm mode) but to relays 70, 72, 74, which control the outputs of comparison circuit 76. The Switch function of the joystick is replaced with a forward/aft potentiometer output 78, which is compared to the output of position sensor 46 by comparison circuit 76. The comparison circuit produces three outputs, a bucket-up Signal 80, a bucket-down signal 82, and a shift-to-high-Speed signal 84. With relays 70, 72, 74 activated, these three signals are Supplied to hydraulic valve assembly 42, to control movement of the bucket. The result is that the bucket moves until the output of the position sensor 46 matches the output 78 of the joystick. If, for example, the joystick is moved forward from neutral and held in that forward position, there would initially be a large difference between the joystick output 58 and the output of the position Sensor. The comparison circuit would generate a bucket up signal causing the hydraulic valve assembly 42 to move hydraulic cylinder 14 in a direction that would move the bucket upwardly. As the bucket approached the upward position corresponding to the forward position of the joystick, the difference between the joystick and positions Sensors Signals would decrease, until finally movement of the bucket would cease”, This corresponds to generating the demanded forward and backward motion of the vessel), and the rotational motion (see at least col. 6 ln. 38-39 of Fadeley which discloses “twisting of the joystick produces rotation of the nozzle”) of the marine vessel (see at least col.6 ln. 40-58 of Fadeley which discloses “an output signal 79 that is compared by comparison circuit 54 to the output of position sensor 56, which measures the position of the nozzle. The comparison circuit produces speed and direction signals 58, 60, which control motor drive circuit 62, which, in turn, supplies a signal to autopilot pump 36. The result is that the nozzle moves until the output of position sensor 56 matches the joystick output signal. For example, if the joystick is twisted to the right from a neutral position, there is initially a large difference in voltage between the joystick output and the output of the tiller position signal. This produces a movement of the nozzle in a direction that causes the stern of the boat to move to port (left). As the nozzle turns, the output of the tiller position signal increases until a point is reached at which the amplitude of the position sensor signal matches that of the joystick signal, at which point movement of the nozzle ceases. To avoid the nozzle hunting back and forth once it reaches a desired position, the comparison circuit 54 uses pulse width modulation to drive the autopilot pump”, * Fadeley also discloses that comparison circuit 54, in conjunction with an auto pilot pump, controls the position of nozzle 18 (i.e., steering of the single rear marine drive) based on the joystick’s twist position such that nozzle movement “causes the stern of the boat to move to port (left)” until the amplitude of the position sensor signal matches that of the joystick signal”, thereby generating the demanded rotational motion of the vessel).
Fadeley may not explicitly disclose the joystick comprising a joystick handle and shaft,
wherein the shaft is connected to the joystick handle and extending into a base.
However, in the same field of endeavor, Ito (US 4,691,659A) discloses a joystick (Fig. 1, 10
and see at least col. 1 ln. 66-68 of Ito which discloses “the joystick of a ship which can give the operating inputs around three axes by the operation of a single joystick lever” and see at least col. 3 ln. 9-10 of Ito which discloses “A joystick unit 10”) comprising a joystick handle (Fig. 1, 18 and see at least col. 3 ln. 16-17 of Ito which discloses “a knob 18 at the edge of the joystick lever 12”) and shaft (Fig. 1, 12 and Fig. 2, 36 and see at least col. 3 ln. 10-11 of Ito which discloses “a joystick lever 12 which can be freely operated in the directions of three X, Y, and Z axes” and see at least col. 3 ln. 44-45 of Ito which discloses “The lever rod 36 can be operated around three axes due to such a bearing structure”), wherein the shaft (Fig. 1, 12 and Fig. 2, 36) is connected to the joystick handle (Fig. 1 illustrates shaft 12 connected to joystick handle 18 and Fig. 2 illustrates shaft 36 connected to handle 18 and see at least col. 3 ln. 32-33 of Ito which discloses “the knob 18 attached to the edge of a lever rod 36”) and extending into a base (Fig. 2, 40 with 46 and see at least col. 3 ln. 37-41 of Ito which discloses “A housing 46 of the unit is fixed to the inside of the casing 40 by screws 44. The housing 46 has a downward opening at the position where the lever rod 36 pierces. A ball shaft portion 48 is fixed to the lever rod 36 in the housing 46”).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date
of the claimed invention to modify the joystick of Fadeley to include a joystick handle and shaft, wherein the shaft is connected to the joystick handle and extending into a base, as taught in Ito with a reasonable expectation of success because Fadeley discloses the joystick’s electrical and hydraulic control functions but may not explicitly describe the mechanical structure in which an operator’s hand motion at the handle is translated into shaft displacement detected by the joystick’s internal sensors. Ito teaches this structure (a handle mounted to a shaft that pierces a fixed housing and is supported by a ball bearing arrangement which allows multi axis pivoting) so that a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention would have consulted Ito to supply the mechanical implementation required to physically achieve Fadeley’s joystick 20.
Fadeley, as modified by Ito, may not explicitly disclose wherein the joystick is configured to
restrict movement of the joystick handle only in a lateral direction such that the joystick is not movable to input a lateral motion demand while remaining twistable and movable in the forward and backward directions.
However, Skauen discloses wherein the joystick is configured to restrict movement of the
joystick handle only in a lateral direction (see at least para. [0052] of Skauen which discloses “joystick (2) comprises a side lock (23) arranged for restricting the movement of the manoeuvring stick (3) to a one dimensional movement in forward and backward directions when the manoeuvring stick (3) is in the elongated position (e), wherein the side lock (23) comprises a first side lock element (23 a) arranged on both sides of the of the manoeuvring stick (3) at a lateral distance (x2) in a lateral direction (x) from a middle lateral position (x0), wherein the first side lock element (23 a) is restricted from moving in the lateral direction (x) by the base (21)”) such that the joystick is not movable to input a lateral motion demand (see at least para. [0052] and Figures 4-5 of Skauen illustrating side lock elements 23a/23b positioned on both sides of the maneuvering stick as lateral barriers preventing lateral translation). Skauen expressly describes its side lock in terms of restricting lateral position of the maneuvering stick while leaving one dimensional forward/backward movement available (see at least para. [0044] of Skauen which discloses “The base (21) comprises one or more sensors (22) arranged for detecting a position (xy) in a two-dimensional plane relative a zero position (x0y0) of the manoeuvring stick (3). Several solutions exist for detecting the position of a joystick in two dimensions, and any of the solutions can be used for the purpose of the invention as understood by a person skilled in the art”). This portion of Skauen teaches that the joystick cannot move side-to-side, i.e., cannot move in the lateral direction; and can move only forward/backward. Therefore, the joystick cannot input a lateral motion demand, as broadly recited. In this connection, Figures 4 and 5a illustrate the side lock 23 and side lock elements 23a/23b located on both sides of the joystick that work to accomplish the lateral restriction. These elements act as lateral barriers that prevent movement in the lateral direction. Skauen discloses a joystick including a side lock (23) configured to restrict movement of the maneuvering stick to one-dimensional movement in forward and backward directions (see para. [0052]), *Because the joystick is restricted to forward and backward movement only, the joystick cannot be moved in the lateral direction and therefore cannot input a lateral motion demand) while remaining movable in the forward and backward directions (see at least para. [0052] of Skauen which discloses “joystick (2) comprises a side lock (23) arranged for restricting the movement of the manoeuvring stick (3) to a one-dimensional movement in forward and backward directions”, *The rejection relies on Fadely, rather than Skaun for the twist function. The proposed modification uses Skauen’s side lock to remove the lateral deflection degree of freedom of Fadeley’s joystick. Because Fadeley identifies twisting and fore/aft displacement as separate control operations, a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention would have recognized that a side-lock arrangement directed to lateral stick displacement could be implemented so as not to obstruct the independently sensed rotary and fore/aft operations. This would have been a predictable mechanical implementation, provided the side-lock components are positioned and shaped to engage the lateral deflection path rather than the joystick’s rotary coupling.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date
of the claimed invention to modify Fadely’s joystick, as modified by Ito, to include wherein the joystick is configured to restrict movement of the joystick handle only in a lateral direction such that the joystick is not movable to input a lateral motion demand, as taught in Skauen with a reasonable expectation of success in Fadeley’s joystick assembly when operation in the lateral joystick in put direction is not desired, in order to mechanically prevent inadvertent lateral displacement and the resulting lateral direction control input, while retaining selected fore/aft propulsion control..
As modified, the joystick handle and shaft remain twistable about the shaft centerline and
movable in the forward and backward directions. Fadeley teaches that forward/aft movement of the stick control member controls movement of the reversing bucket (see at least col. 3 ln. 20-25 of Fadeley which discloses “The bucket position Sensor, joystick, and control circuitry may be configured to provide at least two modes of operation, a first mode in which a follow-up relationship exists between forward/aft movement of the stick control member and up/down movement of the reversing bucket, and a Second mode in which a non-follow-up relationship exists between forward/aft movement of the stick control member and up/down movement of the reversing bucket and see at least col. 6 ln. 37-50 of Fadeley which discloses “twisting of the joystick produces rotation of the nozzle. Twisting the joystick produces an output signal 79 that is compared by comparison circuit 54 to the output of position Sensor 56, which measures the position of the nozzle. The comparison circuit produces Speed and direction signals 58, 60, which control motor drive circuit 62, which, in turn, Supplies a signal to autopilot pump 36. The result is that the nozzle moves until the output of position Sensor 56 matches the joystick output Signal. For example, if the joystick is twisted to the right from a neutral position, there is initially a large difference in Voltage between the joystick output and the output of the tiller position signal”). The rejection relies on Fadeley instead of Skauen for the fore/aft and twist operations.
In the proposed combination, Skauen’s side lock is incorporated to restrict only the lateral-
deflection degree of freedom of Fadeley’s joystick. Because Fadeley describes fore/aft displacement and twisting as separate control operations, a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention would have had a reasonable expectation of success in positioning and shaping Skauen’s side-lock elements to engage the lateral deflection path while providing clearance for Fadeley’s fore/aft travel and rotary coupling. The predictable result would be a joystick that is unavailable for lateral displacement in put but remains movable forward/backward and twistable.
Regarding claim 8, the combination of Fadely, in view of Ito and Skauen discloses wherein
the single rear marine drive (Fig. 2A, drive 12 with reversing bucket 14 and Fig. 3A, nozzle 18 and see at least col. 4 ln. 15-20 of Fadeley which discloses “a waterjet drive 12 … Water enters the drive through inlet 8, and exits through nozzle 18. FIGS. 2A-2C are enlarged views of the waterjet drive 12, showing the reversing bucket 14“) is steerable (see at least col. 1 ln. 5-6 of Fadeley which discloses “The invention relates to steering and thrust control systems for waterjet driven boats”) about a steering axis to a range of steering angles (see at least col. 5 ln. 55-65 of Fadeley which discloses “the boat is steered solely by the steering wheel (in conjunction with the autopilot, if activated), and is the mode typically used underway when the boat operator prefers to steer with the wheel. Helm mode also serves as the failsafe mode in the event of a failure of the joystick or switching circuit. The steering wheel is connected hydraulically (in a conventional manner) to steering ram 30, which drives tiller arm 32, which, in turn, is mechanically coupled to the waterjet nozzle” and see at least col. 2 ln. 15-25 of Ito which discloses “joystick ship steering apparatus in which: there is provided only a pair of rotation angle detectors for detecting the rotation angles around two X and Y axes from the motion of a joystick lever adapted to be freely operated with respect to three axes; a push button switch is further provided at the edge of the joystick lever; when this push button switch is not operated, a first ship steering command (moving command) is calculated and output on the basis of the operating direction and operation amount of the joystick lever obtained from the rotation angles around the X and Y axes due to the pair of rotation angle detectors; and, on the other hand, when the push button switch was operated, a second ship steering command (turning command) is calculated and output on the basis of the operating direction and operation amount of the joystick lever derived from the rotation angle concerned with one axis by either one of the rotation angle detectors”).
Regarding claim 21, the combination of Fadely, in view of Ito and Skauen discloses wherein the joystick is configured to be movable by a user to provide steering demand input (see at least the abstract of Fadely which discloses “A joystick with two axes of motion may be used to control both the bucket and the nozzle. The joystick has built-in centering forces that automatically return it to a neutral position, causing both the bucket and nozzle to return to their neutral positions”. Fadeley also discloses an alternative 3 axis embodiment (see at least col. 4 ln. 50-51 of Fadeley which discloses “Operator control of the nozzle, bucket, and bowthruster is achieved using a joystick 20“). This supports the idea that a bowthruster/lateral axis function is a well known addition to the same basic bucket and nozzle joystick platform. The rejection is relying upon Fadeley’s 2 axis embodiment (see abstract of Fadeley as cited above) for the base joystick structure. The 3 axis passage is cited only as evidence supporting the motivation to combine with Skauen as discussed below). and see at least col. 7 ln. 64 of Fadeley which discloses “the boat operator steers underway using the joystick”, *Examiner interprets this as movable by a user to provide steering demand input) and see at least col. 6 ln. 50-65 of Fadely which discloses “This produces a movement of the nozzle in a direction that causes the stern of the boat to move to port (left). As the nozzle turns, the output of the tiller position signal increases until a point is reached at which the amplitude of the position sensor signal matches that of the joystick signal, at which point movement of the nozzle ceases. To avoid the nozzle hunting back and forth once it reaches a desired position, the comparison circuit 54 uses pulse width modulation to drive the autopilot pump. When the nozzle is far away from the desired position, a continuous signal is delivered to the autopilot pump. When the nozzle gets within a predetermined proximity to the desired position, the continuous signal is replaced with a pulsed signal, which has the effect of slowing down movement of the nozzle”) to control propulsion (see at least col. 3 ln. 8-11 of Fadeley which discloses “The automatic Zeroing of Sideward force can be combined with the automatic Zeroing of forward/reverse thrust, so that when the operator releases the joystick all propulsion forces on the boat are brought to Zero”) of only the single rear marine drive (Fig. 2A, drive 12 with reversing bucket 14 and Fig. 3A, nozzle 18 and see at least col. 4 ln. 15-20 of Fadeley which discloses “a waterjet drive 12 … Water enters the drive through inlet 8, and exits through nozzle 18. FIGS. 2A-2C are enlarged views of the waterjet drive 12, showing the reversing bucket 14“).
Claims 3-7 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Fadeley (US 6,234,100 B1) in view of Ito (US 4,691,659 A) and further in view of Skauen (US 2015/0246716 A1) and further in view of Sava (US 4,459,578 A) in view of Etoh (US 4,271,780).
Regarding claim 3, the combination of Fadely, in view of Ito and Skauen discloses wherein
the joystick (see at least para. [0043] of Skauen which discloses “joystick (2) has a base (21)”).
Fadely, as modified by Ito and Skauen may not explicitly disclose a plate inside the base and
positioned around the shaft, wherein the plate is configured to restrict lateral movement of the shaft and the joystick handle and to permit forward and backward movement of the shaft and the joystick handle and permit twist movement of the shaft and the joystick handle about a shaft axis of the shaft.
However, in the same field of endeavor, Sava discloses a plate inside a base and positioned
around the joystick shaft (see at least claim 1 of Sava which discloses “a first plate in said housing having an oblong aperture through which said joystick shaft is inserted, the major axis of said aperture being in the direction of said second axis”, *Examiner interprets Sava discloses a joystick having a housing, which corresponds to the claimed base and a first plate located in the housing. Sava further discloses that the first plate has an oblong aperture (see at least col. 4 ln. 25-27 of Sava which discloses “Joystick shaft 402 is fed through an oblong aperture 410 of a plate 412”) through which the joystick shaft is inserted. The oblong aperture has a major axis in the direction of Sava’s second axis. When oriented with the major axis along the forward/reverse direction of the Fadeley joystick, the aperture allows fore/aft displacement along its elongated dimension and blocks or limits transverse/lateral displacement by is narrower dimension. Therefore, Sava teaches a plate inside the joystick base and positioned around the joystick shaft).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date
of the claimed invention to modify the joystick of Fadely, in view of Ito and Skauen to include a plate positioned inside the base 40/46 and around the shaft, as taught by Sava, with a reasonable expectation of success, because Sava discloses a known joystick arrangement in which an internal plate located in a housing has an aperture through which a joystick shaft extends and incorporating such a plate into the base of Fadely, in view of Ito and Skauen would have predictably provided an internal structural element positioned around the shaft while retaining the joystick’s user-manipulated input function.
Fadely, as modified by Ito and Skauen and Sava, may not explicitly disclose wherein the
plate is configured to restrict lateral movement of the shaft and the joystick handle and to permit forward and backward movement of the shaft and the joystick handle about a shaft axis of the shaft.
However, Etoh discloses wherein the plate (Fig. 2, 43 and see at least col. 5 ln. 7-9 of Etoh
which discloses “a slotted arcuate indication 43 is disposed on the rotation frame 2. The indication 43 provides marks M2 which show thrusting directions“ and see at least col. 6 ln. 65-66 of Etoh which discloses “Inclination implies up and down movement of the handle 9 in a slot of the arcuate board 43 shown in FIG. 2”, *Examiner interprets arcuate board 43 to be a plate like guide positioned within the control housing. Its opposed AHEAD-ASTERN slots receive and guide maneuvering handle 9. The slots permit handle 9 to include along the forward/backward path while the sidewalls of the slots prevent lateral handle inclination transverse to that path. Etoh teaches a ship-maneuvering control having an arcuate indication/board 43 with a slot receiving maneuvering handle 9. Etoh teaches that inclination of handle 9 entails “up and down movement of the handle 9 in a slot of the arcuate board 43” and Figure 2 illustrates the respective AHEAD and ASTERN positions. Therefore, Etoh teaches a plate-like slotted guide that permits maneuvering handle movement along a forward/backward path and restricts transvers lateral movement outside that path) is configured to restrict lateral movement of the shaft and the joystick handle (Fig. 1, 9 and see at least col. 4 ln. 24-25 of Etoh which discloses “the maneuvering handle 9”) and to permit forward and backward movement of the shaft and the joystick handle (see at least col. 3 ln. 59-68 of Etoh which discloses “the maneuvering handle 9 is pivoted about the rotation shaft 8 via the attaching member 10 within the limited range defined gy the arcuate groove 17. However, the pivotal movement of the handle 9 is subject to a resistive force because of the friction caused by the surface engagement between the supporting frame 7 and the rotation resistant member 13. The handle is latched with suitable force upon engagement between the notch 19 and the ball 21 when the handle is positioned vertically relative to the indication board 42”, *Etoh teaches a marine maneuvering handle 9 constrained to pivot about rotation shaft 8 through a limited angular range defined by arcuate groove 17. Etoh further teaches that inclination of handle 9 entails up-and-down movement in a slot of the arcuate board 43. Figure 2 illustrates the respective AHEAD and ASTERN guide positions. Therefore, Etoh teaches a mechanically guided, forward and backward marine control input path having physical limits against movement outside the selective path) permit twist movement of the shaft and the joystick handle about a shaft axis of the shaft (see at least col. 4 ln. 24-25 of Etoh which discloses “pivotal movement of the maneuvering handle 9 rotates the rotation shaft 8 about its axis” and see at least col. 3 ln. 45-58 of Etoh which discloses “The rotation restrictor disc 14 is formed with an arcuate groove 17 whose imaginary center is the axis of the rotation shaft 8. The arcuate groove 17 receives a tip end of a stopper 18 threadingly engaged with the rotation frame 2, so that the rotation of the shaft 8 about its axis is restricted upon abutment between the stopper end and the end surfaces of the arcuate groove 17. The disc 14 is also formed with a notch 19 at an outer peripheral surface thereof adapted to receive a ball 21 upwardly urged by the biasing force of a spring 20. The notch position is determined to receive the ball 21 therein when the maneuvering handle 9 is vertically positioned with respect to an indication plate 42 disposed on the stationary frame 1”).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date
of the claimed invention to modify the plate within the base of Fadely, as modified by Ito and Skauen and Sava, with a slotted AHEAD/ASTERN (the slotted arcuate-guide arrangement) as taught by Etoh with a reasonable expectation of success in order to effectively guide the shaft 36 of Ito and its supported handle 18 along the forward/backward path and prevent lateral movement transverse to that path. Samples additionally teaches that handle 18 may be rotated about. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to dimension/configure the slotted guide plate to accommodate the known rotational handle input taught by Fadely, as modified by Ito and Skauen and Sava, such that the guide plate permits the recited twist movement about an axis. The modification merely preservers an existing marine-joystick input function while adding Etoh’s known marine-control directional guidance.
Regarding claim 4, Fadely, as modified by Ito and Skauen and Sava and Etoh disclose
wherein the plate (Fig. 2, 43 and see at least col. 5 ln. 7-9 of Etoh which discloses “a slotted arcuate indication 43 is disposed on the rotation frame 2. The indication 43 provides marks M2 which show thrusting directions“ and see at least col. 6 ln. 65-66 of Etoh which discloses “Inclination implies up and down movement of the handle 9 in a slot of the arcuate board 43 shown in FIG. 2”, *Examiner interprets arcuate board 43 to be a plate like guide positioned within the control housing) prevents lateral movement of the shaft and the joystick handle (see at least para. [0052] of Skauen which discloses “wherein the first side lock element (23 a) is restricted from moving in the lateral direction (x) by the base (21)”, *Examiner interprets that since plate 23a is prevented from moving in the lateral direction, then so is the shaft and the joystick handle because they are controlled by the plate 23) so as to only permit the forward, backward (see at least para. [0052] of Skauen which discloses “restricting the movement of the manoeuvring stick (3) to a one dimensional movement in forward and backward directions” and see at least col. 3 ln. 59-68 of Etoh which discloses “the maneuvering handle 9 is pivoted about the rotation shaft 8 via the attaching member 10 within the limited range defined gy the arcuate groove 17. However, the pivotal movement of the handle 9 is subject to a resistive force because of the friction caused by the surface engagement between the supporting frame 7 and the rotation resistant member 13. The handle is latched with suitable force upon engagement between the notch 19 and the ball 21 when the handle is positioned vertically relative to the indication board 42”, *Etoh teaches a marine maneuvering handle 9 constrained to pivot about rotation shaft 8 through a limited angular range defined by arcuate groove 17. Etoh further teaches that inclination of handle 9 entails up-and-down movement in a slot of the arcuate board 43. Figure 2 illustrates the respective AHEAD and ASTERN guide positions. Therefore, Etoh teaches a mechanically guided, forward and backward marine control input path having physical limits against movement outside the selective path), and twist movements of the shaft and the joystick handle ((see at least col. 4 ln. 24-25 of Etoh which discloses “pivotal movement of the maneuvering handle 9 rotates the rotation shaft 8 about its axis” and see at least col. 3 ln. 45-58 of Etoh which discloses “The rotation restrictor disc 14 is formed with an arcuate groove 17 whose imaginary center is the axis of the rotation shaft 8. The arcuate groove 17 receives a tip end of a stopper 18 threadingly engaged with the rotation frame 2, so that the rotation of the shaft 8 about its axis is restricted upon abutment between the stopper end and the end surfaces of the arcuate groove 17. The disc 14 is also formed with a notch 19 at an outer peripheral surface thereof adapted to receive a ball 21 upwardly urged by the biasing force of a spring 20. The notch position is determined to receive the ball 21 therein when the maneuvering handle 9 is vertically positioned with respect to an indication plate 42 disposed on the stationary frame 1”) and Fig. 1 of Skauen illustrates a twist movement of the shaft 3 around an axis and see at least para. [0042] of Skauen which discloses “The manoeuvring joystick (2) can operate in a spherical plane about the pivot point, however, for the purposes of this invention, the operation in a two-dimensional (xy) plane”, *Examiner interprets the xy plane to be the shaft axis about which shaft 3 and joystick handle 2 twist and see Fig. 1 illustrates a base 21 below the joystick handle 33 and see at least para. [0045] of Skauen which discloses “a second bidirectional control knob (33)”, *Examiner interprets knob 33 to be a joystick handle)).
Regarding claim 5, Fadely, as modified by Ito and Skauen and Sava and Etoh disclose
wherein the plate comprises an elongated hole (see at least claim 1 of Sava which discloses “a first plate in said housing having an oblong aperture through which said joystick shaft is inserted, the major axis of said aperture being in the direction of said second axis”, *Examiner interprets Sava discloses a joystick having a housing, which corresponds to the claimed base and a first plate located in the housing. Sava further discloses that the first plate has an oblong aperture (see at least col. 4 ln. 25-27 of Sava which discloses “Joystick shaft 402 is fed through an oblong aperture 410 of a plate 412”) configured to restrict the lateral movement of the shaft (see at least col. 3 ln. 59-68 of Etoh which discloses “the maneuvering handle 9 is pivoted about the rotation shaft 8 via the attaching member 10 within the limited range defined gy the arcuate groove 17. However, the pivotal movement of the handle 9 is subject to a resistive force because of the friction caused by the surface engagement between the supporting frame 7 and the rotation resistant member 13. The handle is latched with suitable force upon engagement between the notch 19 and the ball 21 when the handle is positioned vertically relative to the indication board 42”, *Etoh teaches a marine maneuvering handle 9 constrained to pivot about rotation shaft 8 through a limited angular range defined by arcuate groove 17. Etoh further teaches that inclination of handle 9 entails up-and-down movement in a slot of the arcuate board 43. Figure 2 illustrates the respective AHEAD and ASTERN guide positions. Therefore, Etoh teaches a mechanically guided, forward and backward marine control input path having physical limits against movement outside the selective path).
Regarding claim 6, Fadely, as modified by Ito and Skauen and Sava and Etoh disclose
wherein the elongated hole (Fig. 4, 406 of Sava and see Skauen’s 5a, 27 and see at least para. [0097] of Skauen which discloses “the first side lock element (23 a) encompasses the manoeuvring stick (3) and has an opening (27)”, *Examiner interprets the opening 27 of Skauen to be an elongated hole and the elongated aperture 406 of Sava to be an elongated hole) has a width that is slightly larger than a diameter of the shaft and a length that is substantially larger than the diameter of the shaft ((Fig. 4 of Sava illustrates the width of 406 to be larger than the diameter of shaft 402 of Sava and see hole 27 of Skauen is larger than the diameter of the shaft 3 and Fig. 4 of Sava illustrates the hole is larger than the diameter of the shaft).
Regarding claim 7, Fadely, as modified by Ito and Skauen and Sava and Etoh discloses
wherein the elongated hole (Fig. 5a, 27 of Skauen and see at least para. [0097] of Skauen which discloses “the first side lock element (23 a) encompasses the manoeuvring stick (3) and has an opening (27)”, *Examiner interprets the opening 27 to be an elongated hole) is centered around the shaft when the shaft (See at least Fig. 1, 3 of Skauen and see at least para. [0050] of Skauen which discloses “a manoeuvring stick (3) comprising an outer shaft element (3 a) and an inner shaft element (3 b) telescopically arranged relative each other, wherein the manoeuvring stick (3) is arranged to expand telescopically from a collapsed position (c) to an extended position (e) when the outer shaft element (3 a) is lifted relative the base (21)”) is in a neutral position (see at least para. [0050] of Skauen which discloses “the boat manoeuvring joystick (2) according to any of the embodiments described above further comprises a manoeuvring stick (3) comprising an outer shaft element (3 a) and an inner shaft element (3 b) telescopically arranged relative each other, wherein the manoeuvring stick (3) is arranged to expand telescopically from a collapsed position (c) to an extended position (e) when the outer shaft element (3 a) is lifted relative the base (21), and to collapse telescopically from the extended position (e) to the collapsed position (c) when the outer shaft element (3 a) is lowered relative the base (21”).
Claim 9 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Fadeley (US 6,234,100 B1) in view of Ito (US 4,691,659 A) and further in view of Skauen (US 2015/0246716 A1).
Regarding claim 9, Fadeley, as modified by Ito and Skauen discloses the claimed invention
including steering angles (see at least col. 2 ln. 15-30 of Ito which discloses “a pair of rotation angle detectors for detecting the rotation angles around two X and Y axes from the motion of a joystick lever adapted to be freely operated with respect to three axes; a push button switch is further provided at the edge of the joystick lever; when this push button switch is not operated, a first ship steering command (moving command) is calculated and output on the basis of the operating direction and operation amount of the joystick lever obtained from the rotation angles around the X and Y axes due to the pair of rotation angle detectors”)
Fadeley, as modified by Ito and Skauen, may not explicitly disclose wherein the range of
steering angles is no greater than between +45 degrees and -45 degrees of a centered steering position.
However, Section 2144.04 of the MPEP sets forth the case where the only difference
between the prior art and the claims was a recitation of relative dimensions of the claimed device and a device having the claimed relative dimensions would not perform differently than the prior art device, the claimed device was not patentably distinct from the prior art device. See Gardner v. TEC Syst., Inc., 725 F.2d 1338, 220 USPQ 777 (Fed. Cir. 1984), cert. denied, 469 U.S. 830, 225 USPQ 232 (1984).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date
of the claimed invention to maneuver the single rear marine drive to be steerable about the steering axis to a range of steering angles that is no greater than between +45 degrees and -45 degrees of a centered steering position with a reasonable expectation of success, since it has been held that “where the only difference between the prior art and the claims was a recitation of relative dimensions of the claimed device and a device having the claimed relative dimensions would not perform differently than the prior art device, the claimed device was not patentably distinct from the prior art device” Gardner v. TEC Syst., Inc., 725 F.2d 1338, 220 USPQ 777 (Fed. Cir. 1984), cert. denied, 469 U.S. 830, 225 SPQ 232 (1984). In the instant case, the motivation for this maneuver within this range of angels would be to improve a wider range of steering of the marine drive for better control and vessel propulsion.
Claims 10-15 and 19 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Samples (US 8,807,059 B1) in view of Sava (US 4,459,578 A) in view of Etoh (US 4,271,780 A).
Regarding claim 10, Samples discloses A joystick (Fig. 3, 22 and see at least col. 7 ln. 53 of
Samples which discloses “the joystick 22”) for controlling propulsion (see at least col. 7 ln. 51-66 of Samples which discloses “Movement of the joystick 22 out of its vertical position effectively engages a “joystick mode” wherein the control circuit 14 controls operation and positioning of the marine propulsion devices 16a, 16b, 16c based upon movement of the joystick 22”) of a marine vessel (Fig. 1, 12 and see at least col. 3 ln. 53 of Samples which discloses “a marine vessel 12”), the joystick comprising: a joystick handle (Fig. 3, 42 and see at least col. 6 ln. 41 of Samples which discloses “the joystick 22 in which the handle 42”) configured to be manipulated (see at least col. 6 ln. 42-46 of Samples which discloses “The handle 42 can be manually manipulated in a forward F, reverse R, port P or starboard S direction or a combination of these to provide actual movement commands into F. R. P. S directions or any other direction therebetween”) by a user to steer a marine vessel (Fig. 2, 12 and see at least col. 6 ln. 10-13 of Samples which discloses “The marine vessel 12 also includes a helm 19 (see FIG. 6) where a user can input commands for maneuvering the marine vessel 12 via one or more input devices”); a base (Fig. 3, 38 and see at least col. 6 ln. 30 of Samples which discloses “a base 38”) below the joystick handle (see Fig. 3 which illustrates the base 38 is below the joystick handle 42); a shaft (Fig. 3, 40 and see at least col. 6 ln. 30 of Samples which discloses “a shaft 40 extending vertically upwardly”) connected to the joystick handle and extending into the base (Fig. 3 illustrates joystick handle 40 extending into the base 38), wherein the shaft is configured to move (see at least col. 6 ln. 32-40 of Samples which discloses “The shaft 40 is movable, as represented by dashed-line arrow 44 in numerous directions relative to the base 38. FIG. 4 illustrates the shaft 40 and handle 42 in three different positions which vary by the magnitude of angular movement. Arrows 46 and 48 show different magnitudes of movement. The degree and direction of movement away from the generally vertical position shown in FIG. 3 represents an analogous magnitude and direction of an actual movement command selected by a user“) when the user manipulates the joystick handle (see at least col. 6 ln. 37-53 of Samples which discloses “The degree and direction of movement away from the generally vertical position shown in FIG. 3 represents an analogous magnitude and direction of an actual movement command selected by a user. FIG. 5 is a top view of the joystick 22 in which the handle 42 is in a central, vertical, or neutral position. The handle 42 can be manually manipulated in a forward F, reverse R, port P or starboard S direction or a combination of these to provide actual movement commands into F. R. P. S directions or any other direction therebetween. In addition, the handle 42 can be rotated about the centerline 50 of the shaft 40 as represented by arrow 52 to request rotational movement or yaw of the vessel 12 about the center of turn 29“), and permit twist movement of the shaft and the joystick handle about a shaft axis of the shaft (see at least col. 6 ln. 30-50 of Samples which discloses “The joystick 22 includes …a handle 42 located on top of the shaft 40. The shaft 40 is movable, as represented by dashed-line arrow 44 in numerous directions relative to the base 38. … In addition, the handle 42 can be rotated about the centerline 50 of the shaft 40 as represented by arrow 52 to request rotational movement or yaw of the vessel 12 about the center of turn 29. Clockwise rotation of the handle 42 requests clockwise rotation of the marine vessel 12 about the center of turn 29”, *Therefore, Samples teaches permitting twist movement of the joystick handle about centerline 50, which is a shaft axis of shaft 40).
Samples may not explicitly disclose a plate inside the base and positioned around the shaft.
However, in the same field of endeavor, Sava discloses a plate inside a base and positioned
around the joystick shaft (see at least claim 1 of Sava which discloses “a first plate in said housing having an oblong aperture through which said joystick shaft is inserted, the major axis of said aperture being in the direction of said second axis”, *Examiner interprets Sava discloses a joystick having a housing, which corresponds to the claimed base and a first plate located in the housing. Sava further discloses that the first plate has an oblong aperture (see at least col. 4 ln. 25-27 of Sava which discloses “Joystick shaft 402 is fed through an oblong aperture 410 of a plate 412”) through which the joystick shaft is inserted. The oblong aperture has a major axis in the direction of Sava’s second axis. When oriented with the major axis along the forward/reverse direction of the Samples joystick, the aperture allows fore/aft displacement along its elongated dimension and blocks or limits transverse/lateral displacement by is narrower dimension. Therefore, Sava teaches a plate inside the joystick base and positioned around the joystick shaft).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date
of the claimed invention to modify the joystick of Samples to include a plate positioned inside the base 38 and around the shaft, as taught by Sava, with a reasonable expectation of success, because Sava discloses a known joystick arrangement in which an internal plate located in a housing has an aperture through which a joystick shaft extends and incorporating such a plate into the base of Samples would have predictably provided an internal structural element positioned around the shaft while retaining the joystick’s user-manipulated input function.
Samples, as modified by Sava, may not explicitly disclose wherein the plate is configured to
prevent lateral movement of the shaft 40 and the joystick handle 42 and to permit forward and backward movement of the shaft 40 and the joystick handle 42.
However, Etoh discloses wherein the plate (Fig. 2, 43 and see at least col. 5 ln. 7-9 of Etoh
which discloses “a slotted arcuate indication 43 is disposed on the rotation frame 2. The indication 43 provides marks M2 which show thrusting directions“ and see at least col. 6 ln. 65-66 of Etoh which discloses “Inclination implies up and down movement of the handle 9 in a slot of the arcuate board 43 shown in FIG. 2”, *Examiner interprets arcuate board 43 to be a plate like guide positioned within the control housing. Its opposed AHEAD-ASTERN slots receive and guide maneuvering handle 9. The slots permit handle 9 to include along the forward/backward path while the sidewalls of the slots prevent lateral handle inclination transverse to that path. Etoh teaches a ship-maneuvering control having an arcuate indication/board 43 with a slot receiving maneuvering handle 9. Etoh teaches that inclination of handle 9 entails “up and down movement of the handle 9 in a slot of the arcuate board 43” and Figure 2 illustrates the respective AHEAD and ASTERN positions. Therefore, Etoh teaches a plate-like slotted guide that permits maneuvering handle movement along a forward/backward path and restricts transvers lateral movement outside that path) is configured to prevent lateral movement of the shaft and the joystick handle (Fig. 1, 9 and see at least col. 4 ln. 24-25 of Etoh which discloses “the maneuvering handle 9”) and to permit forward and backward movement of the shaft and the joystick handle (see at least col. 3 ln. 59-68 of Etoh which discloses “the maneuvering handle 9 is pivoted about the rotation shaft 8 via the attaching member 10 within the limited range defined gy the arcuate groove 17. However, the pivotal movement of the handle 9 is subject to a resistive force because of the friction caused by the surface engagement between the supporting frame 7 and the rotation resistant member 13. The handle is latched with suitable force upon engagement between the notch 19 and the ball 21 when the handle is positioned vertically relative to the indication board 42”, *Etoh teaches a marine maneuvering handle 9 constrained to pivot about rotation shaft 8 through a limited angular range defined by arcuate groove 17. Etoh further teaches that inclination of handle 9 entails up-and-down movement in a slot of the arcuate board 43. Figure 2 illustrates the respective AHEAD and ASTERN guide positions. Therefore, Etoh teaches a mechanically guided, forward and backward marine control input path having physical limits against movement outside the selective path) permit twist movement of the shaft and the joystick handle about a shaft axis of the shaft (see at least col. 4 ln. 24-25 of Etoh which discloses “pivotal movement of the maneuvering handle 9 rotates the rotation shaft 8 about its axis” and see at least col. 3 ln. 45-58 of Etoh which discloses “The rotation restrictor disc 14 is formed with an arcuate groove 17 whose imaginary center is the axis of the rotation shaft 8. The arcuate groove 17 receives a tip end of a stopper 18 threadingly engaged with the rotation frame 2, so that the rotation of the shaft 8 about its axis is restricted upon abutment between the stopper end and the end surfaces of the arcuate groove 17. The disc 14 is also formed with a notch 19 at an outer peripheral surface thereof adapted to receive a ball 21 upwardly urged by the biasing force of a spring 20. The notch position is determined to receive the ball 21 therein when the maneuvering handle 9 is vertically positioned with respect to an indication plate 42 disposed on the stationary frame 1”).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date
of the claimed invention to modify the plate with in the base 38 of Samples, as modified by Sava, with a slotted AHEAD/ASTERN (the slotted arcuate-guide arrangement) as taught by Etoh with a reasonable expectation of success in order to effectively guide the shaft 40 of Samples and its supported handle 42 along the forward/backward path and prevent lateral movement transverse to that path. Samples additionally teaches that handle 42 may be rotated about centerline 50 of shaft 40. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to dimension/configure the slotted guide plate to accommodate the known rotational handle input taught by Samples, such that the guide plate permits the recited twist movement about centerline 50. The modification merely preservers an existing marine-joystick input function while adding Etoh’s known marine-control directional guidance.
Regarding claim 11, Samples, as modified by Sava and Etoh, discloses wherein the joystick
(Fig. 3, 22 and see at least col. 7 ln. 53 of Samples which discloses “the joystick 22”) is configured to be installed on a marine vessel (Fig. 1, 12 and see at least col. 3 ln. 53 of Samples which discloses “a marine vessel 12”) to control steering (see at least col. 4 ln. 2-3 of Samples which discloses “steering control sections 21a, 21b, 21c associated with steering actuators 23a, 23b, 23c for steering each marine propulsion device 16a, 16b, 16c” and/or thrust (see at least col. 5 ln. 11-15 of Samples which discloses “thrust in both forward and reverse directions”) of a single rear marine drive on the marine vessel (see at least col. 4 ln. 46-50 of Samples which discloses “an inboard drive, outboard drive, inboard/ outboard drive, stern drive, and/or the like. The propulsion devices can include any different type of propulsor Such as propellers, impellers, pod drives and/or the like”).
Regarding claim 12, Samples, as modified by Sava and Eto, discloses wherein the plate is
mounted within the base such that it is centered around the shaft when the shaft is in a neutral position and configured to symmetrically restrict the lateral movement of the shaft in right and left lateral directions ((Fig. 2, 43 and see at least col. 5 ln. 7-9 of Etoh
which discloses “a slotted arcuate indication 43 is disposed on the rotation frame 2. The indication 43 provides marks M2 which show thrusting directions“ and see at least col. 6 ln. 65-66 of Etoh which discloses “Inclination implies up and down movement of the handle 9 in a slot of the arcuate board 43 shown in FIG. 2”, *Examiner interprets arcuate board 43 to be a plate like guide positioned within the control housing. Its opposed AHEAD-ASTERN slots receive and guide maneuvering handle 9. The slots permit handle 9 to include along the forward/backward path while the sidewalls of the slots prevent lateral handle inclination transverse to that path. Etoh teaches a ship-maneuvering control having an arcuate indication/board 43 with a slot receiving maneuvering handle 9. Etoh teaches that inclination of handle 9 entails “up and down movement of the handle 9 in a slot of the arcuate board 43” and Figure 2 illustrates the respective AHEAD and ASTERN positions. Therefore, Etoh teaches a plate-like slotted guide that permits maneuvering handle movement along a forward/backward path and restricts transvers lateral movement outside that path)).
Regarding claim 13, Samples, as modified by Sava and Eto, discloses wherein the plate
prevents lateral movement (Fig. 2, 43 and see at least col. 5 ln. 7-9 of Etoh which discloses “a slotted arcuate indication 43 is disposed on the rotation frame 2. The indication 43 provides marks M2 which show thrusting directions“ and see at least col. 6 ln. 65-66 of Etoh which discloses “Inclination implies up and down movement of the handle 9 in a slot of the arcuate board 43 shown in FIG. 2”, *Examiner interprets arcuate board 43 to be a plate like guide positioned within the control housing. Its opposed AHEAD-ASTERN slots receive and guide maneuvering handle 9. The slots permit handle 9 to include along the forward/backward path while the sidewalls of the slots prevent lateral handle inclination transverse to that path. Etoh teaches a ship-maneuvering control having an arcuate indication/board 43 with a slot receiving maneuvering handle 9. Etoh teaches that inclination of handle 9 entails “up and down movement of the handle 9 in a slot of the arcuate board 43” and Figure 2 illustrates the respective AHEAD and ASTERN positions. Therefore, Etoh teaches a plate-like slotted guide that permits maneuvering handle movement along a forward/backward path and restricts transvers lateral movement outside that path) of the shaft and the joystick handle so as to only permit the forward, backward (see at least col. 3 ln. 59-68 of Etoh which discloses “the maneuvering handle 9 is pivoted about the rotation shaft 8 via the attaching member 10 within the limited range defined gy the arcuate groove 17. However, the pivotal movement of the handle 9 is subject to a resistive force because of the friction caused by the surface engagement between the supporting frame 7 and the rotation resistant member 13. The handle is latched with suitable force upon engagement between the notch 19 and the ball 21 when the handle is positioned vertically relative to the indication board 42”, *Etoh teaches a marine maneuvering handle 9 constrained to pivot about rotation shaft 8 through a limited angular range defined by arcuate groove 17. Etoh further teaches that inclination of handle 9 entails up-and-down movement in a slot of the arcuate board 43. Figure 2 illustrates the respective AHEAD and ASTERN guide positions. Therefore, Etoh teaches a mechanically guided, forward and backward marine control input path having physical limits against movement outside the selective path), and twist movements of the shaft and the joystick handle (see at least col. 4 ln. 24-25 of Etoh which discloses “pivotal movement of the maneuvering handle 9 rotates the rotation shaft 8 about its axis” and see at least col. 3 ln. 45-58 of Etoh which discloses “The rotation restrictor disc 14 is formed with an arcuate groove 17 whose imaginary center is the axis of the rotation shaft 8. The arcuate groove 17 receives a tip end of a stopper 18 threadingly engaged with the rotation frame 2, so that the rotation of the shaft 8 about its axis is restricted upon abutment between the stopper end and the end surfaces of the arcuate groove 17. The disc 14 is also formed with a notch 19 at an outer peripheral surface thereof adapted to receive a ball 21 upwardly urged by the biasing force of a spring 20. The notch position is determined to receive the ball 21 therein when the maneuvering handle 9 is vertically positioned with respect to an indication plate 42 disposed on the stationary frame 1”).
Regarding claim 14, Samples, as modified by Sava and Eto, discloses wherein the plate
comprises an elongated hole configured to restrict the lateral movement of the shaft (see at least claim 1 of Sava which discloses “a first plate in said housing having an oblong aperture through which said joystick shaft is inserted, the major axis of said aperture being in the direction of said second axis”, *Examiner interprets Sava discloses a joystick having a housing, which corresponds to the claimed base and a first plate located in the housing. Sava further discloses that the first plate has an oblong aperture (see at least col. 4 ln. 25-27 of Sava which discloses “Joystick shaft 402 is fed through an oblong aperture 410 of a plate 412”) through which the joystick shaft is inserted. The oblong aperture has a major axis in the direction of Sava’s second axis. When oriented with the major axis along the forward/reverse direction of the Samples joystick, the aperture allows fore/aft displacement along its elongated dimension and blocks or limits transverse/lateral displacement by is narrower dimension. Therefore, Sava teaches a plate inside the joystick base and positioned around the joystick shaft).
Regarding claim 15, Samples, as modified by Sava and Etoh, discloses wherein the
elongated hole (see at least col. 4 ln. 25-30 of Sava which discloses “Joystick shaft 402 is fed through an oblong aperture 410 of a plate 412”) has a width that is slightly larger than a diameter of the shaft and a length that is substantially larger than the diameter of the shaft (Fig. 4 of Sava illustrates the width of 406 to be larger than the diameter of shaft 402 of Sava).
Regarding claim 19, Samples, as modified by Sava and Etoh, discloses wherein the
elongated hole (see at least col. 4 ln. 25-30 of Sava which discloses “Joystick shaft 402 is fed through an oblong aperture 410 of a plate 412”) is centered around the shaft when the shaft is in a neutral position (see at least col. 3 ln. 34-35 of Sava which discloses “a neutral position”).
Claims 16-17 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Samples (US 8,807,059 B1) in view of Sava (US 4,459,578 A) and further in view of Etoh (US 4,271,780 A).
Regarding claims 16-17, Samples, as modified by Sava and Etoh disclose the claimed
invention including the elongated hole (see at least claim 1 of Sava which discloses “a first plate in said housing having an oblong aperture through which said joystick shaft is inserted, the major axis of said aperture being in the direction of said second axis”, *Examiner interprets Sava discloses a joystick having a housing, which corresponds to the claimed base and a first plate located in the housing. Sava further discloses that the first plate has an oblong aperture (see at least col. 4 ln. 25-27 of Sava which discloses “Joystick shaft 402 is fed through an oblong aperture 410 of a plate 412”, *Examiner interprets the aperture 410 to be an elongated hole).
Samples, as modified by Sava and Etoh, may not explicitly disclose wherein the width of the
elongated hole is between 1.01 and 1.2 times the diameter of the shaft of claim 16 or wherein the length of the elongated hole is between 1.5 and 2.5 times the diameter of the shaft of claim 17.
However, Section 2144.04 of the MPEP sets forth the case where the only difference
between the prior art and the claims was a recitation of relative dimensions of the claimed device and a device having the claimed relative dimensions would not perform differently than the prior art device, the claimed device was not patentably distinct from the prior art device. See Gardner v. TEC Syst., Inc., 725 F.2d 1338, 220 USPQ 777 (Fed. Cir. 1984), cert. denied, 469 U.S. 830, 225 USPQ 232 (1984).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date
of the claimed invention to modify the width of the elongated hole and the length of the elongated hole to be between 1.01 and 1.2 times the diameter of the shaft and between 1.5 and 2.5 times the diameter of the shaft, respectively with a reasonable expectation of success, since it has been held that “where the only difference between the prior art and the claims was a recitation of relative dimensions of the claimed device and a device having the claimed relative dimensions would not perform differently than the prior art device, the claimed device was not patentably distinct from the prior art device” Gardner v. TEC Syst., Inc., 725 F.2d 1338, 220 USPQ 777 (Fed. Cir. 1984), cert. denied, 469 U.S. 830, 225 SPQ 232 (1984). In the instant case, the motivation for this modification would be to effectively facilitate the restriction of the lateral movement of the shaft based on the plate of the marine vessel.
Claim 18 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Samples (US 8,807,059 B1) in view of Sava (US 4,459,578 A) in view of Etoh (US 4,271,780 A) and further in view of King (US 2012/0197303A1).
Regarding claim 18, Samples as modified by Sava and Etoh discloses the elongated hole (see
at least claim 1 of Sava which discloses “a first plate in said housing having an oblong aperture through which said joystick shaft is inserted, the major axis of said aperture being in the direction of said second axis”, *Examiner interprets Sava discloses a joystick having a housing, which corresponds to the claimed base and a first plate located in the housing. Sava further discloses that the first plate has an oblong aperture (see at least col. 4 ln. 25-27 of Sava which discloses “Joystick shaft 402 is fed through an oblong aperture 410 of a plate 412”).
Samples as modified by Sava and Etoh may not explicitly disclose wherein the elongated
hole is arc-shaped at each end, wherein a radius of the arc is slightly larger than a radius of the shaft.
However, King discloses a plate (Fig. 3, 10 and see at least para. [0037] of King which
discloses a “plate assembly 10”) with an elongated hole (Fig. 3, 36 and see at least para. [0039] of King which discloses “an elongated hole 36” that is arc-shaped at each end (see at least para. [0039] of King which discloses “an elongated hole 36 that resembles a slot with round corners or an oval racetrack. One embodiment of the elongate hole has substantially semi-circular edges and a portion between the circular edges that has straight or parallel walls”, *Examiner interprets the edges to be arc-shaped at each end), wherein a radius of the arc is slightly larger than a radius of the shaft (Fig. 3 of King illustrates an arc radius that is larger than the radius of the shaft 40 of Samples that rests on the platform that is capable of being partially covered by the plate of King).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to modify the plate of Samples
to include an elongated hole that is arc-shaped at each end, wherein a radius of the arc is slightly larger than a radius of the shaft, as taught in King with a reasonable expectation of success in order to facilitate effective movement of the shaft and joystick handle in desired directions.
Claim 20 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Samples (US 8,807,059 B1) in view of Sava (US 4,459,578 A) in view of Etoh (US 4,271,780 A) and further in view of Okabe (US 5,804,781A).
Regarding claim 20, Samples as modified by Sava and Etoh discloses the plate (see at least
claim 1 of Sava which discloses “a first plate in said housing having an oblong aperture through which said joystick shaft is inserted, the major axis of said aperture being in the direction of said second axis”, *Examiner interprets Sava discloses a joystick having a housing, which corresponds to the claimed base and a first plate located in the housing. Sava further discloses that the first plate has an oblong aperture (see at least col. 4 ln. 25-27 of Sava which discloses “Joystick shaft 402 is fed through an oblong aperture 410 of a plate 412”) through which the joystick shaft is inserted. The oblong aperture has a major axis in the direction of Sava’s second axis. When oriented with the major axis along the forward/reverse direction of the Samples joystick, the aperture allows fore/aft displacement along its elongated dimension and blocks or limits transverse/lateral displacement by is narrower dimension. Therefore, Sava teaches a plate inside the joystick base and positioned around the joystick shaft).
Samples, as modified by Sava and Etoh may not explicitly disclose wherein the plate is
comprised of metal.
However, Okabe discloses a control plate for a joystick wherein the plate is comprised of
metal (see at least col. 4 ln. 36-40 of Okabe which discloses “a control plate of the invention 36 with octagon shaped aperture 35. This control plate can be easily fabricated, molded, or stamped from metal, plastic, or any suitable manufacturing process and material”).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to modify the plate of Samples,
as modified by Sava and Etoh to be comprised of metal as taught in Okabe with a reasonable expectation of results in order to produce a plate that is considered to be more durable and stronger to withstand heaver loads and resist breaking or deforming and to facilitate easy movement of the joystick. See col. 1 ln. 65 – col. 2 ln. 10 of Okabe for motivation.
Additional Prior Art
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Arvidsson (US 2022/0234708 A1) discloses a marine drive unit arranged to be mounted to a transom on a marine vessel. The drive unit comprises a drive housing that is configured to be rigidly mounted at or on the transom, and is preferably, but not necessarily, submerged during operation. That the drive housing is rigidly mounted to the transom means that it is stationary in relation to the transom during operation, i.e. in contrast to a conventional stern drive where the housing is arranged to pivot (together with a propelling unit) about a vertical axis at the transom for at least steering. White (US 7,614,926 B2) discloses a waterborne vessel comprising a hull structure, the propulsion system comprising, a pod housing having front and rear ends, a propeller and a propeller shaft, the propeller being disposed externally of the pod and being rotatable about a longitudinal axis of the propeller shaft, the propeller shaft being drivingly connected to drive means, the drive means comprising a transmission unit and a power unit, the power unit being disposed within the hull structure and the transmission unit being disposed at least partially outside the hull structure, the hull being formed with a port through which an interface unit between the transmission unit and the power unit may extend.
Conclusion
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/DANA D IVEY/Examiner, Art Unit 3662
/D.D.I/September 26, 2026
/JELANI A SMITH/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3662
