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 .
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 30 October 2023 was filed prior to the mailing date of this office correspondence. The submission is in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner.
Specification
The disclosure is objected to because of the following informalities:
Specification para. [0029], “In the configuration shown in FIG. 7,” should read:
-- In the configuration shown in FIG. 7B, --
Appropriate correction is required.
Claim Objections
Claim 1 is objected to because of the following informalities:
In claim 1, line 1: “An electronic device assembly apparatus for inserting insert a leading end” should read:-- An electronic device assembly apparatus for inserting a leading end --
Appropriate correction is required.
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.
Claim(s) 1 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Takeshi (JP 2019025596).
Regarding claim 1, Takeshi teaches, an electronic device assembly apparatus (electronic assembly apparatus 1, Fig. 1) for inserting [[insert]] a leading end of a flat and flexible cable (see cable 14 and connector 16, Figs. 3, 4 and Figs. 21 to 24, in which it is obvious that the cable 14 is a flat flexible cable) into a connector (connector 16) on a circuit board (an electronic device assembly method for assembling an electronic device by inserting a cable into a connector, Figs. 3 and 4, para. [0008]), the electronic device assembly apparatus comprising:
[AltContent: arrow][AltContent: textbox (second cylinder)][AltContent: textbox (first cylinder)][AltContent: arrow][AltContent: textbox (first gripping mechanism)][AltContent: textbox (second gripping mechanism)][AltContent: arrow][AltContent: arrow]
PNG
media_image1.png
283
375
media_image1.png
Greyscale
Annotated Fig. 13, Takeshi.
a gripping device (head unit 26 and the cable holding portion 41, Figs. 5, 14) that holds the cable (head unit 26 includes a cable holding unit 41, Fig. 5); and
a robot arm (robot unit 25, Fig. 5) that moves the gripping device (a robot unit 25 and a head unit 26 whose posture is changed by the robot unit 25, para. [0018]), wherein the gripping device includes:
a first gripping mechanism (one of the chuck members 54, see annotated Fig. 13) that includes a pair of claws (chuck jaws 54T) that hold, in a thickness direction, one lateral side of the cable (cable 14 is gripped from the side edge by the two chuck jaws 54T, and both side edges of the cable 14 are supported from below by the two hook-shaped portions 54K provided on the two chuck members 54, para. [0040]);
a second gripping mechanism (other chuck member 54, see annotated Fig. 13) that includes a pair of claws that hold, in the thickness direction, the other lateral side of the cable (see Fig. 13, para. [0040]); and
a width direction open/close mechanism (opening / closing mechanism 52, Figs. 7a and 7b) that opens/closes the first gripping mechanism and the second gripping mechanism in a cable width direction (the opening and closing mechanism 52 opens and closes the two opening and closing blocks 53 in the horizontal direction, which causes the two chuck members 54 to open and close, para. [0027]), the width direction open/close mechanism includes:
a first cylinder (drive cylinder 55, see annotated Fig. 13, cable holding section 41 comprises a bracket section 51, an opening /closing mechanism 52, two opening/closing blocks 53, two chuck members 54, a drive cylinder 55, a pressing block 56, two pressing members 57, and a bar member 58, para. [0024]) that causes at least one of the first gripping mechanism and the second gripping mechanism to perform a gripping movement for gripping and releasing, in a direction of advancing and retracting with respect to the lateral sides of the cable (the opening /closing mechanism 52 is provided on the bracket portion 51 and opens and closes the two opening/closing blocks 53 in the horizontal direction, para. [0024-0027, 0031]); and
a second cylinder (the other drive cylinder 55, opposite of first cylinder, see annotated Fig. 13, para. [0024-0027, 0031]) that causes at least the first gripping mechanism and the second gripping mechanism to perform a width adjustment movement for aligning a stroke range of the gripping movement with a difference in cable width, in the same direction as the first cylinder, and
the second cylinder has a lock function for fixing the second cylinder at a predetermined position (control of the positioning operation of the electronic device 2 by the work stage 22, the movement and posture change operation of the head unit 26 by the robot unit 25, and the rotation operation of the rotating base 34 (i.e., the cable holding unit 41) by the swivel drive motor 35 are all performed by the control unit 60 of the electronic device assembly apparatus 1, para. 0036]).
Though, Takeshi does not explicitly teach, the second cylinder has a lock function, or performing a width adjustment movement for aligning a stroke range of the gripping movement, from the teachings of Takeshi, para. [0036-0038], one of ordinary skill in the art would have known that, the swivel drive motor 35 controlled by the control unit 60 locks the cylinder 55 to a desired position that enables holding and opening the chuck jaws 54T at a desired position, depending on the width of the cable. Therefore, in view of the teachings of Takeshi, it would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to modify the electronic device assembly apparatus of Takeshi and to include a lock function so that it enables to the two chuck members 54 to stay in a desired position depending on the width of the cable.
Conclusion
Prior art Kobayashi (US 20180183200) teaches, an electronic device assembly apparatus for inserting a leading end of a flat and flexible cable into a connector on a circuit board including a gripping device; and a robot arm that moves the gripping device, wherein the gripping device includes: a first gripping mechanism that includes a pair of claws; a second gripping mechanism that includes a pair of claws; and a width direction open/close mechanism that opens/closes the first gripping mechanism and the second gripping mechanism in a cable width direction, includes: a first cylinder that causes at least one of the first gripping mechanism and the second gripping mechanism to perform a gripping movement for gripping and releasing, in a direction of advancing and retracting with respect to the lateral sides of the cable; and a second cylinder that causes at least the first gripping mechanism and the second gripping mechanism to perform a width adjustment movement for aligning a stroke range of the gripping movement with a difference in cable width, in the same direction as the first cylinder.
Prior art Kimura (US 20200413581) teaches, an electronic device assembly apparatus including and a robot arm that moves the gripping device, wherein the gripping device includes: a first gripping mechanism that includes a pair of claws; a second gripping mechanism that includes a pair of claws; and a width direction open/close mechanism that opens/closes the first gripping mechanism and the second gripping mechanism in a cable width direction, includes: a first cylinder that causes at least one of the first gripping mechanism and the second gripping mechanism to perform a gripping movement for gripping and releasing of the cable; and a second cylinder that causes at least the first gripping mechanism and the second gripping mechanism to perform a width adjustment movement.
Prior art Dai (US 20190039238) teaches, an electronic device assembly apparatus including and a robot arm that moves the gripping device, including, a first gripping mechanism that includes a pair of claws; a second gripping mechanism that includes a pair of claws; and a width direction open/close mechanism that opens/closes the first gripping mechanism and the second gripping mechanism; a first cylinder that causes at least one of the first gripping mechanism and the second gripping mechanism to perform a gripping movement for gripping and releasing of the cable; and a second cylinder that causes at least the first gripping mechanism and the second gripping mechanism to perform a width adjustment movement.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JOSE K. ABRAHAM whose telephone number is (571)270-1087. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 8:30-4:30 EST.
Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, THOMAS J. HONG can be reached at (571) 272-0993. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000.
/JOSE K ABRAHAM/Examiner, Art Unit 3729
Prosecution Insights