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 .
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
The following is a quotation of the appropriate paragraphs of 35 U.S.C. 102 that form the basis for the rejections under this section made in this Office action:
A person shall be entitled to a patent unless –
(a)(1) the claimed invention was patented, described in a printed publication, or in public use, on sale, or otherwise available to the public before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claims 1, 4 and 11 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Benedict (US PUB 2007/0065258 A1).
Regarding claim 1, Benedict teaches, a conveyance system comprising:
a shelf provided (40) with a guide rail (43) extending in a vertical direction;
a mounting table (32) that is engageable with the guide rail;
a lifting part (96) configured to lift the mounting table up and down;
an engagement detection sensor (149) configured to detect engagement between the guide rail and the mounting table ([0101] – sensor detects whether wheels are engaged with rails);
and a safety control unit (83) configured to stop an operation of the lifting part when a first condition including that the guide rail is not engaged with the mounting table is satisfied ([0101] – movement and release of pinion gears is stopped unless mounting table wheels are engaged with guide rail).
Regarding claim 4, Benedict teaches, the conveyance system according to claim 1,
wherein an extendable arm (201) configured to extend and contract in a horizontal direction is provided in the mounting table (fig. 24),
and the safety control unit stops an operation of the extendable arm when the first condition is satisfied (It is understood that the extendable arm is inoperable if lifting portion is inoperable or the placing table is not in contact with rails at a predetermined height).
Regarding claim 11, Benedict teaches, a conveyance method comprising:
detecting engagement between a guide rail and a mounting table ([0101] – detecting engagement between mounting table and platform segments (rails),
the guide rail extending in a vertical direction (43) and being provided in a shelf (40),
and the mounting table (32) being engageable with the guide rail (fig. 5);
and stopping, when a first condition including that the guide rail is not engaged with the mounting table is satisfied, an operation of a lifting part configured to lift the mounting table up and down ([0101] – stopping of movement of pinion gears for lifting when there is no engagement between wheels and rail).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 2, 3 and 5 - 10 are objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to the applicant’s disclosure.
Kawano (US PUB 20140212249 A1) – discloses a moveable robot with a placing table and a shelf provided with vertical guide rails
Dupuy (US PUB 20060051191 A1) – discloses a safety unit with sensors that prevent operation of a lift mechanism
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JUAN SALVADOR MOSCOSO whose telephone number is (571)272-8604. The examiner can normally be reached 7:30-5:00.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Saul Rodriguez can be reached at (571) 272-7097. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/SAUL RODRIGUEZ/ Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3652
/JUAN S MOSCOSO/ Examiner, Art Unit 3652