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 § 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 1-5, 8-18 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Rasbornig et al. (US 2022/0326002) in view of Moller et al. (US 2018/0202835).
Regarding claim 1, Rasbornig discloses a signal processing unit for an inductive position sensor, wherein the inductive position sensor provides a first position signal and a second phase-shifted position signal, the signal processing unit (abstract) comprising: a first input for the first position signal and a second input for the second position signal (page 1, [0004]); an output for providing an AC excitation signal to the inductive position sensor (page 1, [0001]); an oscillator (rotor 180) connected to the output for generating the AC excitation signal (fig. 1-fig. 2; page 2, [0015-0017]).
Rasbornig discloses all the limitations set forth above but fails to explicitly disclose a signal processor for calculating the position of a moving target of the position sensor from the first position signal and the second position signal; wherein: the signal processing unit comprises at least onc integrator for integrating an integer number of periods of the first position signal respectively an integer number of periods of the second position signal; and wherein the signal processor calculates the position of the moving target of the position sensor from the integrated first position signal and the integrated second position signal.
However, Moller discloses a signal processor for calculating the position of a moving target of the position sensor from the first position signal and the second position signal (page 1, [0011]); wherein: the signal processing unit comprises at least onc integrator for integrating an integer number of periods of the first position signal respectively an integer number of periods of the second position signal (page 1, [0004]); and wherein the signal processor calculates the position of the moving target of the position sensor from the integrated first position signal and the integrated second position signal (page 1, [0011]).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was so first filed to incorporate the features of Moller within the system of Rasbornig in order to determine the position of a moving body thereby increasing the reliability of the system.
Regarding claim 2, Rasbornig discloses wherein the first position signal and the second phase-shifted position signal are analog signals; and the signal processing unit comprises an analog-to-digital converter for converting the first position signal and the second position signal to a corresponding first digital position signal and to a corresponding second phase-shifted digital position signal (page 3, [0024]).
Regarding claim 3, Rasbornig discloses an oscillator controller for keeping the amplitude of the AC excitation signal in a predefined range (page 1, [0001]).
Regarding claim 4, Rasbornig discloses wherein the inductive position sensor comprises
at least one transmitter coil receiving the AC excitation signal, a first receiver coil providing the
first position signal and a second receiver coil providing the second position signal (page 1, [0001-0002]).
Regarding claim 5, Rasbornig discloses wherein the oscillator comprises an LC-oscillator (rotor in page 1, [0001]).
Regarding claim 8, Rasbornig discloses wherein the signal processing unit provides low-pass filtering and calibration (measurement in page 1, [0004]).
Regarding claim 9, Rasbornig discloses wherein the first input and the second input are
connected to a first multiplexer (page 1, [0004]).
Regarding claim 10, Rasbornig discloses wherein the first input and the second input
are connected to an amplifier and/or rectifier (page 1, [0001]).
Regarding claim 11, Rasbornig discloses wherein an output of the first multiplexer is
connected to an amplifier and/or rectifier (page 1, [0001]).
Regarding claim 12, Rasbornig discloses wherein the signal processing unit comprises
a test signal generation unit for providing a test signal to the first multiplexer, wherein the test
signal can have a variety of scaling factors (page 1, [0004]).
Regarding claim 13, Rasbornig discloses wherein the first multiplexer provides a non-
inverted signal and an inverted signal for each input (page 1, [0004]).
Regarding claim 14, Rasbornig discloses wherein the signal processor applies a pseudo-
synchronized interleafed sampling method to the multiplexed and integrated first position signal
and second phase-shifted position signal (fig. 1-fig. 2).
Regarding claim 15, Rasbornig discloses a peak detector for detecting the amplitude of the AC excitation signal provided to the output and a second multiplexer prior to the signal processor, wherein the AC excitation signal provided to the output is additionally provided to the first multiplexer and the signal processor compares the amplitude of the processed AC excitation signal provided to the first multiplexer with the detected amplitude of the peak detector provided to the second multiplexer (fig. 1-fig. 2).
Regarding claim 16, Rasbornig discloses wherein the peak detector comprises an
operational amplifier, a diode and an RC low-pass filter (page 1, [0004]).
Regarding claim 17, Rasbornig discloses wherein the first position signal comprises a sine position signal and the second phase-shifted position signal comprises a cosine position signal (page 1, [0004]).
Regarding claim 18, Rasbornig discloses wherein the oscillator comprises a current-driven or current-limited cross-coupled inverter circuitry (fig. 1-fig. 2).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 6-7 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.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter: In combination with all the limitations in the claims, the prior arts fail to teach or make obvious: wherein the signal processor detects an offset in the integrated first position signal and/or an offset in the integrated second phase-shifted position signal and/or a gain mismatch between the integrated first position signal and the integrated second phase-shifted position signal; and the signal processor provides a corresponding negative compensation signal to the integrator for compensating the detected offset and/or a gain calibration signal for compensating the gain mismatch.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Fiori, Jr. (US 9,995,778) discloses sensor apparatus.
Tupper et al. (US 2013/0181688) discloses system……..dc power.
Kataoka (US 2013/0257223) discloses controlling device……….type actuator.
Gluck (US 5,738,625) discloses method ….neural cells.
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DP
January 20, 2026
/DANIEL PREVIL/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2685