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 .
DETAILED ACTION
The following NON-FINAL Office Action is in response to application 18/446,793 filed on 06/10/2026. This communication is the first action on the merits.
Response to Arguments
35 USC§ 103
Applicant argues that neither Gale nor Shahana teaches or suggests (i) set a virtual inclination angle change of the sensor that is an amount that the vehicle body sinks on a flat surface during riding of a rider or (ii) calibrate an initial setting value of the sensor in absence of the riding of the rider based on the virtual inclination angle change, the initial setting value related to an inclination of the vehicle body on the flat surface when the rider is not riding the human-powered vehicle.
The Examiner respectfully disagrees.
Applicant’s arguments focus primary on Gale individually. However, the rejection based on the combined teachings of Shahana, Gale, and Akimoto, rather than on Gale alone. Obviousness is determined based upon the collective teachings of the prior art as a whole, and not whether each individual reference independently discloses every claimed limitation.
As discussed in the rejection, Gale teaches processing and compensating inclination related information during operation of the vehicle, while Akimoto teaches differentiating inclination related control parameters between loaded and non-loaded operating conditions to account for changes in vehicle attitude resulting from rider or load conditions. One of ordinary skill in the art would have recognized that integrating Akimoto’s loaded/non-loaded calibration technique into the control system of Shahana as modified by Gale would have improved initialization and calibration of the inclination control parameters by accounting for the presence or absence of the rider.
Accordingly, for the reasons set forth in the rejection, the combination of Shahana, Gale, and Akimoto teaches or at least suggests the limitations of amended claim 1. Therefore, the rejection under 35 U.S.C. 103 is maintained.
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.
Claims 1-9 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over US 20210214040 A1, Shahana et al. (hereinafter Shahana), in view of US 20130179016 A1, Gale et al. (hereinafter Gale), in further view of US 8527154 B2, Akimoto et al. (hereinafter Akimoto).
Regarding Claim 1, Shahana discloses a control device for a human-powered vehicle including a vehicle body and a sensor mounted on the human-powered vehicle (Shahana, [0005] a suspension control system is provided in which an operating state of a suspension of a human-powered vehicle is adjusted based on either an indirect detection of a pedaling state or a fluctuation of a running condition of the human-powered vehicle in a predetermined time interval) for detecting at least one of acceleration or inclination (Shahana, [0126] the controller 54 adjusts the suspension settings of the rear shock absorber RS and/or the front fork FF based on at least one terrain condition for when it is determined that a pedaling state exists. As used herein, the term “terrain condition” includes inclination of the traveling surface, roughness of the traveling surface, obstacles on the traveling surface, or other conditions of the traveling surface that affect the human-powered vehicle A), the control device comprising:
load information on a load acting on the human-powered vehcle (Shahana, [0012] the suspension control system according to the second or third aspect is configured so that the fluctuation relates to at least one of a tire air pressure, a vehicle acceleration, a handlebar load, a saddle load, an assist power output, a rider's movement, a chain state change and a precise speed).
Shahana does not disclose an electronic controller configured to: (i) set a virtual inclination angle change of the sensor that is an amount that the vehicle body sinks on a flat surface during riding of a rider based on at least one of vehicle body information on the vehicle body of the human-powered vehicle or load information on a load acting on the human-powered vehicle; and (ii) calibrate an initial setting value of the sensor in absence of the riding of the rider based on the virtual inclination angle change, the initial setting value related to an inclination of the vehicle body on the flat surface when the rider is not riding the human-powered vehicle.
However, Gale teaches an electronic controller configured to set a virtual inclination angle change (Gale, [0013] Preferably the control system includes a method for compensating the effects of physical acceleration, from the MEMS accelerometer used to detect the angle of inclination) of the sensor that is an amount that the vehicle body sinks on a flat surface during riding of a rider (Gale , [0039] The augmented acceleration sensor is therefore able to determine the inclination of the bicycle in a tore and aft direction to thereby sense whether the bicycle is climbing an incline, travelling with no inclination on level ground, or moving down an incline and the degree of said inclination) based on at least one of vehicle body information (Gale, [0013] Preferably the control system includes means for filtering and processing the output signal's from the sensor to remove vibration signals due to rough terrain or the rider's body movement. Preferably the output from the filtering and processing means comprising the filtered and processed output signal/s from the sensor is scaled to provide a measurement of the power required to be applied, by the motor which is in proportion to the incline or slope upon which the vehicle is travelling) on the vehicle body of the human-powered vehicle (Gale, [0013] the constant gain term may be varied depending upon the average weight of the vehicle and/or the average weight of the rider of the vehicle).
Before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, it would have been
obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to combine Shahana and Gale’s teaching because Gale provided a method of adjusting or compensating sensor output data based on the inclination angle calculations to improve detection accuracy and control for human powered vehicles under various terrain conditions. Shahana did disclose a suspension control system that is responsive to various conditions but did not account for sensor compensation based on the inclination sensor. Therefore, one of ordinary skill in the art would incorporate Gale’s inclination correction technique into Shahana’s system to enhance performance and accuracy when encountering changes in slope or rider dynamics.
However, Shahana in view of Gale does not disclose calibrate an initial setting value of the sensor in absence of the riding of the rider based on the virtual inclination angle change, the initial setting value related to an inclination of the vehicle body on the flat surface when the rider is not riding the human-powered vehicle.
In addition, Akimoto teaches calibrate an initial setting value of the sensor in absence of the riding of the rider based on the virtual inclination angle change (Akimoto, [Col. 2 Line 32-35] it is necessary, or preferable, to generally differ the values of each parameter for control in the non-loaded state and the loaded state, [Col. 2 Line 22-32] , in the non-loaded state and the loaded state, the position of the vehicle overall center-of-gravity point (more specifically, the overall center-of-gravity point of the part capable of tilting uniformly with the loading part) generally differs, so that there are many cases where it is necessary for a desired tilt angle of the loading part as a tilt angle of the loading part in the state where the center-of-gravity point is positioned right above a tilt fulcrum of the loading part to differ in the non-loaded state and the loaded state)), the initial setting value related to an inclination of the vehicle body on the flat surface when the rider is not riding the human-powered vehicle (Akimoto, [Col. 2 Line 36-40] it is necessary to change the value of the parameter for control such as the above-mentioned gain and the desired tilt angle, during transition from the non-loaded state to the loaded state or during transition from the loaded state to the non-loaded state).
Before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, it would have been
obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to combine Shahana in view of Gale’s and Akimoto teaching because Akimoto teaches differentiating and adjusting inclination related control parameters between a loaded state and a non-loaded state, including modifying the desired tilt angle and associated control parameters based on whether a rider/load is present. A person of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated that integrating Akimoto’s loaded/non-loaded calibration technique into the suspension control system of Shahana, as modified by Gale’s virtual inclination angle processing, would permit initialization and calibration of the inclination sensor settings while the rider is absent and subsequent compensation when the rider is present.
Regarding Claim 2, Shahana in view of Gale in further view of Akimoto teaches the control device according to claim 1, further comprising a communicator configured to receive the at least one of the vehicle body information (Shahana, [0091] the suspension control system 50 uses at least one of a tire air pressure, a forward acceleration, a load on the handlebar/cockpit, a saddle load on the saddle S, an assist power output, a rider's movement (visual), a changing state of the chain 24, and a high performance/precise speed sensor as parameter to identify the pedaling state efficiently) and the load information from an external control device (Shahana, [0096] the handlebar load detector 52D is configured detect to detect a force/load/pressure on the handlebar H. The handlebar load detector 52D wirelessly communicates with the controller 54, or can communicate with the controller 54 via a communication wire).
Regarding Claim 3, Shahana in view of Gale in further view of Akimoto teaches the control device according to claim 1, wherein
the vehicle body information includes at least one of an air pressure of a tire of the human-powered vehicle (Shahana, [0012] the suspension control system according to the second or third aspect is configured so that the fluctuation relates to at least one of a tire air pressure, a vehicle acceleration, a handlebar load, a saddle load, an assist power output, a rider's movement, a chain state change and a precise speed), a geometry of a frame of the human-powered vehicle (Shahana, [0026] a bicycle comprises the suspension control system according to any one of the first to tenth aspects, and the bicycle further comprises a bicycle frame, a front wheel, a rear wheel and at least one of a front suspension and a rear suspension), a lockout state of a suspension of the human-powered vehicle (Shahana, [0017] With the suspension control system according to the sixth aspect, it is possible to adjust different operating state of the suspension such as at least one of a suspension stroke, a spring preload, a damping, and a lockout), a model of the suspension (Shahana, [0026] In accordance with an eleventh aspect of the present disclosure, a bicycle comprises the suspension control system according to any one of the first to tenth aspects, and the bicycle further comprises a bicycle frame, a front wheel, a rear wheel and at least one of a front suspension and a rear suspension), an attenuation rate of the suspension (Shahana, [0089] Referring now to FIG. 2, the front suspension (the front fork FF) of the human-powered vehicle A includes a lock-out state actuator 41, a stroke adjustment actuator 42, a damping force adjustment actuator 43 and a spring force adjustment actuator 44), or presence or absence of a rear suspension of the suspension (Shahana, [0024] the suspension control system according to any one of the first to ninth aspects is configured so that the control signal includes at least one of a front suspension adjustment signal and a rear suspension adjustment signal).
Regarding Claim 4, Shahana in view of Gale in further view of Akimoto teaches the control device according to claim 1, wherein
the load information includes at least one of a weight, a height, a riding posture, or a gender of the rider (Shahana, [0018] the suspension control system according to any one of the first to sixth aspects further comprises an additional detector configured to detect additional information relating to at least one of a riding posture of rider riding the human-powered vehicle and a terrain condition).
Regarding Claim 5, Shahana in view of Gale in further view of Akimoto teaches the control device according to claim 3, wherein
the electronic controller is further configured to set the virtual inclination angle change based on identical information, the change being different between in case that the suspension does not have the rear suspension and has a front suspension and in case that the suspension has the rear suspension and the front suspension (Shahana, [0165] The steps S50, S60 or S70 are subroutines that use traveling surface inclination and riding posture of the rider for determining the suspension settings of the rear shock absorber RS and/or the front fork FF).
Regarding Claim 6, Shahana in view of Gale in further view of Akimoto teaches the control device according to claim 1, wherein
the electronic controller is further configured to increase or decrease the initial setting value of the sensor related to an inclination angle in the setting of the virtual inclination angle change (Gale, [0013] a method for compensating the effects of physical acceleration, from the MEMS accelerometer used to detect the angle of inclination. Preferably the control system includes means for filtering and processing the output signal's from the sensor to remove vibration signals due to rough terrain or the rider's body movement).
Before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, it would have been
obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to combine Shahana in view of Gale in further view of Akimoto teaching because Gale provides disclosure of adjusting the initial setting value of the inclination sensor to set the virtual inclination angle. Shahana does disclose attaining inclination sensor data but does not teach any modification of the data. Gale teaches using filtering and processing on raw inclination data to be able to adjust for body movement or terrain. One of ordinary skill in the art would have recognized that applying Gale’s method of postprocessing and filtering data from inclination sensors into Shahana’s human powered vehicle system would allow the human-powered vehicle to be more calibrated and generate accurate responses in situations where the inclination is altered.
Regarding Claim 7, Shahana in view of Gale in further view of Akimoto teaches the control device according to claim 1, wherein
the electronic controller is further configured to increase or decrease a detection value of the sensor in the setting of the virtual inclination angle change (Gale, [0013] Finally the gain term may be adjusted according to the riders desire to limit the amount of assistance he or she wishes to receive).
Before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, it would have been
obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to combine Shahana in view of Gale in further view of Akimoto teaching because Gale provides disclosure of adjusting sensor detection values based on calculated inclination angles to improve control accuracy and correct responsiveness under various terrain conditions. One of ordinary skill in the art would have recognized that applying Gale’s method of modifying detection values from the inclination sensors into Shahana’s human powered vehicle system would enable the suspension and control device for a more correct and precise response in situations where the slope is changed.
Regarding Claim 8, Shahana in view of Gale in further view of Akimoto teaches the control device according to claim 1, wherein
the electronic controller is further configured to set processing data corresponding to an angle (Gale, [0013] a method for compensating the effects of physical acceleration, from the MEMS accelerometer used to detect the angle of inclination. Preferably the control system includes means for filtering and processing the output signal's from the sensor to remove vibration signals due to rough terrain or the rider's body movement) in which the virtual inclination angle change is reflected on a detection value (Gale, [0073] The angle of inclination sensed by the inclination sensor 16 may be an angle in opposite directions depending upon whether the bicycle 10 Is travelling up a bill or slope or down a hill or on a down slope. The control system 14 interprets a downhill slope as a negative inclination and no inclination as a zero and accordingly causes the motor controller 20 to reduce power to the motor 13 to zero or to a low level where an offset is used as above) of the sensor in the setting of the virtual inclination angle change (Gale, [0040] The augmented sensor 16 provides an output in the form of analogue or digital signals which describe or define the direction and magnitude of the gravitational force applied to the sensor 16 and thus inclination, assuming the bicycle is not accelerating. Preferably the sensor 16 is a two- or three-axis device to achieve the accuracy required and to allow a software zero calibration rather than a hardware adjustment).
Before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, it would have been
obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to combine Shahana in view of Gale in further view of Akimoto teaching because Gale teaches processing inclination sensor data to determine and adjust control parameters corresponding to an angle of travel. One of ordinary skill in the art would have recognized that applying Gale’s processing method to Shahana’s control system would enable the system to more accurately interpret the sensor output due to inclination data adjustments. This combination improve control precision and performance for Shahana’s model.
Regarding Claim 9, Shahana in view of Gale in further view of Akimoto teaches the control device according to claim 2, wherein
the communicator is configured to wirelessly communicate with an electronic device of the external control device (Shahana, [0108] the controller 54 includes a communicator 64. However, the communicator 64 can be a separate element that is connected to the controller 54. In any case, the communicator 64 is a hardware device capable of transmitting an analog or digital signal over a communication wire, and/or wirelessly).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to IBRAHIM NAGI SHOHATEE whose telephone number is (571)272-6612. The examiner can normally be reached 8am-5pm.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Shelby Turner can be reached at (571) 272-6334. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/IBRAHIM NAGI SHOHATEE/Examiner, Art Unit 2857
/SHELBY A TURNER/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2857
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