DETAILED ACTION
This Office Action is in response to the Amendment filed on 05/14/2026
THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments, see page 7 of remarks, filed 05/14/2026, with respect to rejections under 35 U.S.C. §112(a) & 35 U.S.C. §112(b) have been fully considered and are persuasive. The rejections under 35 U.S.C. §112(a) & 35 U.S.C. §112(b) of claims 1-9 has been withdrawn in view of the amendment and arguments.
Applicant’s arguments, see page 8, filed 05/14/2026, with respect to the rejection(s) of claim(s) 1-4 and 10 under 35 U.S.C. §102(a)(l) have been fully considered and are persuasive. Therefore, the rejection has been withdrawn. However, upon further consideration, a new ground(s) of rejection is made in view of Janku (US20180154789A1) in view of Zhang (US20230234234A1).
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.
Claim(s) 5 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Janku (US20180154789A1) in view of Zhang (US20230234234A1)
Regarding claim 1,
Janku teaches, A battery replacement apparatus for replacing a first battery attached to an electric vehicle with a second battery, the battery replacement apparatus comprising:
…detects at least one of position and orientation of the first battery…(¶0112 teaches, The battery lift 4 may be equipped with a position sensor 4 c and a device 4 d for communication with the control unit 5. The position sensor 4 c may include a source of infrared beam and a detector able to detect reflection of the infrared beam by the mirror 1 c of the battery block 1. ¶0124 teaches Data from position sensors are sent to the control unit 5 and when the position sensors 4 c and 1 c are directly above each other the control unit 5 sends an order to the battery lift 4 to stop)
a battery mount where the first battery that is removed from the electric vehicle is placed, the battery mount being driven below the electric vehicle; and (¶0056 teaches, a battery lift 4 for removing a discharged battery block 1 from the battery dock)
a controller that controls driving of the battery mount, wherein the controller controls at least one of position and orientation of the battery mount based on at least one of the position and the orientation of the first battery ….., and (¶0123 teaches, control unit 5 then sends a signal to the battery lift 4 (more particularly to one of the battery lifts of the battery exchange station 6) with a charged battery block 1 to move under the vehicle V, i.e. under opening 31. ¶0124 teaches, Data from position sensors are sent to the control unit 5 and when the position sensors 4 c and 1 c are directly above each other the control unit 5 sends an order to the battery lift 4 to stop)
performs control of removing the first battery from the electric vehicle, in a state where at least one of the position and the orientation of the battery mount is controlled. (¶0125 teaches, After stopping, based on instructions of the control unit 5, the second lift assembly 4 b′ extends vertically upward the second platform 4 b and pushes the discharged battery 1 deeper upward into the battery dock 2 to activate the pressure sensor 2 d. Based on a signal received from sensor 2 d, the control unit 5 sends a signal to remove the locks 2 a from the battery holes 1 a, which releases the discharged battery block 1 from the battery case 2)
Janku doesn’t teach, a camera that detects a plurality of markers on a bottom surface of the first battery, and detects at least one of position and orientation of the first battery based on a positional relationship of the plurality of markers; (Janku doesn’t teach, a camera being used in detecting at least one of position and orientation of the first battery. Zhang in ¶0140 teaches, the first visual sensor 501 obtains a first image of the target apparatus in the direction indicated by the arrow, the first image including a first position A on the target apparatus. ¶0157 teaches, Taking a battery bracket of an electric vehicle as a target apparatus. ¶0140 also teaches, The visual positioning system of this embodiment obtains the image of the target apparatus based on the visual sensor, obtains the position information of the target apparatus based on the image processing algorithm )
…position and the orientation of the first battery detected by the camera…. (Janku doesn’t teach, controlling driving of the battery mount based on at least one of the position and the orientation of the first battery detected by the camera. Zhang in ¶0334-¶0338 teaches, obtaining a position adjustment amount based on the position information of the battery bracket, and controlling the adjustment of the position of the battery swapping device to complete the positioning with the unlocking member on the battery bracket according to the position adjustment amount)
Zhang is an art in the area of interest as it relates to a battery swapping device and a battery swapping control method (see ¶0002). A combination of Zhang with Janku would allow using a camera to detect at least one of position and orientation of the first battery. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to combine the teaching of Janku with Srivastava. One would have been motivated to do so because doing so would allow positioning the unlocking mechanism accurately by the visual positioning system, so that the unlocking mechanism is located at an accurate unlocking position, so that the unlocking mechanism can effectively unlock the battery pack of the electric vehicle, thereby ensuring the efficiency, success and safety of the battery swap, as taught by Zhang in ¶0041.
Regarding claim 2,
Janku and Zhang teaches, The battery replacement apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the battery mount is movable in a horizontal direction below the electric vehicle, (Janku in ¶0111 teaches, The battery lift 4 is thus able to transport battery blocks 1 from the charging storage to a place underneath the vehicle (a horizontal movement perpendicular to the axis of the vehicle))
the camera detects a position of the first battery in the horizontal direction, and (Janku in ¶0112 teaches, The battery lift 4 may be equipped with a position sensor 4 c and a device 4 d for communication with the control unit 5. The position sensor 4 c may include a source of infrared beam and a detector able to detect reflection of the infrared beam by the mirror 1 c of the battery block 1. Zhang in ¶0144 teaches, the position obtaining unit 503 obtains the horizontal displacement amount based on the first image and the first reference image.)
the controller controls a position of the battery mount in the horizontal direction based on the position of the first battery in the horizontal direction detected by the camera, (Janku in ¶0124 teaches, Data from position sensors are sent to the control unit 5 and when the position sensors 4 c and 1 c are directly above each other the control unit 5 sends an order to the battery lift 4 to stop. Zhang in ¶0158 teaches, position adjustment mechanism is used for adjusting the position of the unlocking mechanism 802 according to at least one of the horizontal displacement amount)
and performs control of removing the first battery from the electric vehicle, in a state where the position of the battery mount in the horizontal direction is controlled. (Janku in ¶0125 teaches, After stopping, based on instructions of the control unit 5, the second lift assembly 4 b′ extends vertically upward the second platform 4 b and pushes the discharged battery 1 deeper upward into the battery dock 2 to activate the pressure sensor 2 d. Based on a signal received from sensor 2 d, the control unit 5 sends a signal to remove the locks 2 a from the battery holes 1 a, which releases the discharged battery block 1 from the battery case 2)
Regarding claim 3,
Janku and Zhang teaches, The battery replacement apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the camera detects, in addition to the position of the first battery in the horizontal direction, at least one of a tilt of the first battery relative to the horizontal direction, the orientation of the first battery in plan view, and a position of the first battery in an up- down direction. (Zhang in ¶0149-¶0150 teaches detecting a vertical displacement amount)
Regarding claim 4,
Janku and Zhang teaches, The battery replacement apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a vehicle holding unit that holds the electric vehicle in a state parallel to a horizontal direction, (Janku in ¶0095-¶0096 teaches a raised ramp 30 with one or two front wheel blocking device(s) 3 a for blocking the front wheels W of the electric vehicle when battery dock 2 is in register with opening 31)
wherein the camera detects at least one of the position and the orientation of the first battery attached to the electric vehicle that is held by the vehicle holding unit. (Zhang in ¶0140 teaches, the first visual sensor 501 obtains a first image of the target apparatus in the direction indicated by the arrow, the first image including a first position A on the target apparatus. ¶0140 also teaches, The visual positioning system of this embodiment obtains the image of the target apparatus based on the visual sensor, obtains the position information of the target apparatus based on the image processing algorithm)
Regarding claim 6,
Janku and Zhang teaches, The battery replacement apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the camera includes an image capturing unit that captures a marking portion including at least one of a marker and a hole provided on the first battery, and (Zhang in ¶0140 teaches, the first visual sensor 501 obtains a first image of the target apparatus in the direction indicated by the arrow, the first image including a first position A on the target apparatus.)
an image processing unit that detects at least one of the position and the orientation of the first battery based on an image captured by the image capturing unit. (Zhang in ¶0140 also teaches, The visual positioning system of this embodiment obtains the image of the target apparatus based on the visual sensor, obtains the position information of the target apparatus based on the image processing algorithm)
Regarding claim 7,
Janku and Zhang teaches, The battery replacement apparatus according to claim 6, further comprising a communication unit that communicates with the electric vehicle, wherein the communication unit acquires, from the electric vehicle, before removal of the first battery, marking portion information including at least one of position information of the marking portion, information about a shape of the marking portion, and information about a model of the marking portion, and (Zhang in ¶0144 teaches, The first reference image G1 is pre-stored in the position obtaining unit 503)
the detector detects the marking portion based on the marking portion information acquired by the communication unit. (Zhang in ¶0146 teaches, the position obtaining unit obtains the horizontal displacement amount based on the first image and the first reference image)
Regarding claim 10,
Janku teaches, A battery replacement method for replacing a battery of an electric vehicle by using a battery replacement apparatus including a battery mount, the battery replacement method comprising: (¶0120-¶0133 teaches Battery Exchange Process for an electric vehicle using battery exchange station 6)
detecting….. at least one of position and orientation of the battery…; (¶0112 teaches, The battery lift 4 may be equipped with a position sensor 4 c and a device 4 d for communication with the control unit 5. The position sensor 4 c may include a source of infrared beam and a detector able to detect reflection of the infrared beam by the mirror 1 c of the battery block 1. ¶0124 teaches Data from position sensors are sent to the control unit 5 and when the position sensors 4 c and 1 c are directly above each other the control unit 5 sends an order to the battery lift 4 to stop)
controlling at least one of position and orientation of the battery mount based on at least one of the position and the orientation of the battery detected; and (¶0123 teaches, control unit 5 then sends a signal to the battery lift 4 (more particularly to one of the battery lifts of the battery exchange station 6) with a charged battery block 1 to move under the vehicle V, i.e. under opening 31. ¶0124 teaches, Data from position sensors are sent to the control unit 5 and when the position sensors 4 c and 1 c are directly above each other the control unit 5 sends an order to the battery lift 4 to stop)
removing the battery from the electric vehicle and placing the battery on the battery mount in a state where at least one of the position and the orientation of the battery mount is controlled. (¶0125 teaches, After stopping, based on instructions of the control unit 5, the second lift assembly 4 b′ extends vertically upward the second platform 4 b and pushes the discharged battery 1 deeper upward into the battery dock 2 to activate the pressure sensor 2 d. Based on a signal received from sensor 2 d, the control unit 5 sends a signal to remove the locks 2 a from the battery holes 1 a, which releases the discharged battery block 1 from the battery case 2)
Janku doesn’t teach, detecting a plurality of markers on a bottom surface of the battery, and detects at least one of position and orientation of the battery based on a positional relationship of the plurality of markers; (Zhang in ¶0140 teaches, the first visual sensor 501 obtains a first image of the target apparatus in the direction indicated by the arrow, the first image including a first position A on the target apparatus. ¶0157 teaches, Taking a battery bracket of an electric vehicle as a target apparatus. ¶0140 also teaches, The visual positioning system of this embodiment obtains the image of the target apparatus based on the visual sensor, obtains the position information of the target apparatus based on the image processing algorithm )
Zhang is an art in the area of interest as it relates to a battery swapping device and a battery swapping control method (see ¶0002). A combination of Zhang with Janku would allow using a camera to detect at least one of position and orientation of the first battery. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to combine the teaching of Janku with Srivastava. One would have been motivated to do so because doing so would allow positioning the unlocking mechanism accurately by the visual positioning system, so that the unlocking mechanism is located at an accurate unlocking position, so that the unlocking mechanism can effectively unlock the battery pack of the electric vehicle, thereby ensuring the efficiency, success and safety of the battery swap, as taught by Zhang in ¶0041.
Claim(s) 5 is/are rejected under35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Janku (US20180154789A1) in view of Zhang (US20230234234A1) and further in view of Hassounah (US20160368464A1)
Regarding claim 5,
Janku and Zhang doesn’t teach, The battery replacement apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the camera includes a radar that emits a radio wave to the first battery, and that detects a distance to the first battery based on a reflected wave from the first battery. (Hassounah in ¶0086-0089 teaches a position tracker 930 which includes a radar and camera. Also teaches the position tracker generate electromagnetic radio signals that can be detected by the robot 920, which can communicate the detection information (or calculations made therefrom) back to position tracker 930 to determine the relative positions of the vehicle 910 and the robot 920)
Hassounah is an art in the area of interest as it teaches, a robot programmed to interchange battery packs and modules (¶0002). A combination of Hassounah with Janku and Zhang would allow the system to send a radio wave to the battery and detect distance to the battery based on the reflected wave from the battery. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to combine the teaching of Hassounah with Janku and Zhang. One would have been motivated to do so because doing so would allow the system to navigate to the vehicle 910 and to the target battery/battery module/battery tray in the vehicle 910, as taught by Hassounah in Abstract.
Claim(s) 8 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Janku (US20180154789A1) in view of Zhang (US20230234234A1) and further in view of Li (CN-112881029-A (machine translation being cited in rejection))
Regarding claim 8,
Janku and Zhang doesn’t teach, The battery replacement apparatus according to claim 6, further comprising a cleaning unit that cleans the marking portion, wherein the controller performs control of cleaning the marking portion by the cleaning unit, before detection of the marking portion by the camera is performed. (Li in page 3 teaches, calculating the dust thickness of the bottom plate position corresponding to the mark point; when the thickness of the dust is greater than the preset thickness, driving the cleaning mechanism in the robot module to flush the position of the chassis corresponding to the marking point.)
Li is an art in the area of interest as it relates to vehicle chassis detection. A combination of Li with Janku and Zhang would allow the system to clean marking portion before detection of marking portion is performed. Wu already teaches, detecting the marking portion. The difference between the claimed subject matter and Janku and Wu is cleaning the marking portion before detecting the mark. Li teaches cleaning the marking point of a vehicle. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to combine the teaching of Li with Janku and Zhang. One would have been motivated to do so because doing so would allow the system to scan the clear number or marking as taught by Li in page 11. This would allow an accurate reading of the marking portion and correct determination of battery orientation.
Claim(s) 9 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Janku (US20180154789A1) in view of Zhang (US20230234234A1) in view of Hozumi (US20120233850A1)
Regarding claim 9,
Janku and Zhang doesn’t teach, The battery replacement apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a storage unit that stores at least one of the position and the orientation of the battery mount when the first battery is removed from the electric vehicle, (Hozumi in ¶0041 teaches, the laser range finders 37 a, 37 b detect the distance to the spent battery unit 42 on the battery platform 25. The detected data is stored in the memory of the controller 38.)
wherein the controller causes the battery mount to be moved based on at least one of the position and the orientation of the battery mount stored in the storage unit, and performs control of placing the second battery on the battery mount after movement. (Hozumi in ¶0042 teaches, In order to attach the new battery unit 42 to the battery support portion 43, the position of the new battery unit 42 placed on the battery platform 25 needs to be adjusted. Thus, the position of the battery platform 25 is adjusted by referring to the data of the spent battery unit 42, which was stored in the memory when the spent battery unit 42 was removed. As a result, the new battery unit 42 is rotated from the reference position in the horizontal plane, as indicated by a solid line in FIG. 5B. If the battery mount portion 13 is lifted after the rotation of the battery unit 42, the battery support portion 43 can support the battery unit 42.)
Hozumi is an art in the area of interest as it relates to a vehicle battery replacing apparatus. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to combine the teaching of Hozumi with Janku and Zhang. One would have been motivated to do so because doing so would allow the battery support portion 43 to support the new battery unit 42 even if the electric vehicle 41 is stopped in an oblique state relative to the predetermined position, as taught by Hozumi in ¶0053.
Claim(s) 11-12 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Janku (US20180154789A1) in view of Zhang (US20230234234A1) in view of Sten (US20130104361A1).
Regarding claim 11,
Janku and Zhang doesn’t teach, The battery replacement apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a conveyor unit conveying the second battery to the battery mount from one side in a predetermined direction with respect to the battery mount, wherein (Sten in ¶0021 and Fig. 4 teaches, The robot 1 is caused to transport by means of the said transporters a charged battery from a store of charged batteries to the said transport plane 6.)
the camera is mounted on an edge portion of the battery mount on the other side in the predetermined direction. (Sten in ¶0014-¶0016 and Fig. 1 teaches, The robot is thereafter caused to determine the position of the battery 2 in the said compartment 4 by means of an optical means. The said optical means 15 may be a video camera with its associated image processing software. Fig. 1 shows optical means 15 is mounted on an edge portion)
Sten is an art in the area of interest as it relates to exchanging batteries in battery-powered vehicles (¶0001). A combination of Sten with Janku and Zhang would allow the system to convey the second battery to the battery mount from one side in a predetermined direction and camera is mounted on an edge portion of the battery mount on the other side in the predetermined direction. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to combine the teaching of Sten with Janku and Zhang. One would have been motivated to do so because doing so would allow transporting a charged battery from a store of charged batteries to the said transport plane 6 and to determine the position of the battery 2 in the said compartment 4 by means of an optical means, as taught by Sten in ¶0021 and ¶0014.
Regarding claim 12,
Janku and Zhang doesn’t teach, The method according to claim 10, further comprising conveying, by a conveyor unit, the second battery to the battery mount from one side in a predetermined direction with respect to the battery mount, (Sten in ¶0021 and Fig. 4 teaches, The robot 1 is caused to transport by means of the said transporters a charged battery from a store of charged batteries to the said transport plane 6.)
wherein the plurality of markers are detected by a camera mounted on an edge portion of the battery mount on the other side in the predetermined direction. (Sten in ¶0014-¶0016 and Fig. 1 teaches, The robot is thereafter caused to determine the position of the battery 2 in the said compartment 4 by means of an optical means. The said optical means 15 may be a video camera with its associated image processing software)
Sten is an art in the area of interest as it relates to exchanging batteries in battery-powered vehicles (¶0001). A combination of Sten with Janku and Zhang would allow the system to convey the second battery to the battery mount from one side in a predetermined direction and camera is mounted on an edge portion of the battery mount on the other side in the predetermined direction. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to combine the teaching of Sten with Janku and Zhang. One would have been motivated to do so because doing so would allow transporting a charged battery from a store of charged batteries to the said transport plane 6 and to determine the position of the battery 2 in the said compartment 4 by means of an optical means, as taught by Sten in ¶0021 and ¶0014.
Claim(s) 13-14 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Janku (US20180154789A1) in view of Zhang (US20230234234A1) in view of Corfitsen (US20160221543A1)
Regarding claim 13,
Janku and Zhang doesn’t teach, The battery replacement apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising an adjustment section (Corfitsen in Fig. 2a and ¶0034 teaches, The pushers 170, 171) and a conveyor unit (Corfitsen in ¶0042 and Fig. 2a teaches logistics device 120) conveying the second battery to the battery mount, (Corfitsen in Fig. 2a and ¶0042 teaches, logistic device brings charged batteries to pushing device 140) the
adjustment section includes:
a stopper section, (Corfitsen in ¶0036 and Fig. 3 teaches, pusher 170) and
a movable section on which the stoper section is provided, (Corfitsen in ¶0034 and Fig. 1b teaches pushing device 150 on which pushers 170 is provided)
the movable section is movable independently of the battery mount, (Corfitsen in ¶0020 teaches pushing device 150 can move independently of pushing device 140)
the stopper section:
stops the second battery conveyed to the battery mount by the conveyor, and (Corfitsen in ¶0033: “ According to a preferred embodiment, the transporting device 110 further comprises pushers 170, 171, arranged to push the second battery 160 from a position adjacent the storage space 103,”)
pre-fixes a position, in a horizontal direction, of a comer portion of the second battery placed on the battery mount, (Corfitsen in ¶0033 and Fig. 1a teaches pushers 170 and 171 fixed on a horizontal direction of a corner portion of the second battery )
the controller moves the movable section in such a way that at least one of the position and the orientation of the second battery placed on the battery mount become the same as at least one of the position and the orientation of the first battery in the horizontal direction. (Corfitsen in ¶0024 teaches, a control device 112 is arranged to control the various actuators in the device 110 as required. ¶0033 teaches, the second battery is supported by the second pushing device 150, to a position wherein the second battery instead is supported by the vehicle 100, such as by a device connected to the storage space 103, 106, such as a door 102, 105 to storage space 103, 106. The battery 160 is preferably arranged to be able to slide over a top surface of the second pushing device 150, such as via a ball transfer surface or a material with low surface friction)
Corfitsen is an art in the area of interest as it relates to device for battery replacement in a vehicle (see Abstract). A combination of Corfitsen with Janku and Zhang would allow the system to include the claimed adjustment section and conveyor unit. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to combine the teaching of Corfitsen with Janku and Zhang. One would have been motivated to do so because doing so would allow the system to automatically and reliably replace batteries in a vehicle, and employ a better way to compensate for an inaccurate location of the vehicle in relation to the system, as taught by Corfitsen in ¶0005.
Regarding claim 14,
Janku, Zhang and Corfitsen teaches, The battery replacement apparatus according to claim 12, wherein the stopper section has an L-shape. (Corfitsen in figure 3 shows the stopper (pushers 170 and 171) that is shaped like an L-bracket. )
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Georgeson (US20220212638A1) in ¶0065 and Fig. 8 teaches, a method 100 for automated in-situ swapping of batteries, the first battery is placed on a battery seat on a frame of a BDV (step 104). The BDV then moves to a rendezvous place at which the BDV is underneath the EV (step 106). Then the BDV moves relative to the EV until the first battery is vertically aligned with a first battery holder of the EV (step 108). While vertically aligned, the BDV and the EV are mechanically coupled to move in tandem (step 110). During concurrent vertical alignment and mechanical coupling, the first battery is raised into the battery bay of the EV (step 112). When the first battery is in proper position, the first battery holder is activated to hold the first battery (step 114)
Applicant's amendment necessitated the new ground(s) of rejection presented in this Office action. Accordingly, THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. See MPEP § 706.07(a). Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to ISTIAQUE AHMED whose telephone number is (571)272-7087. The examiner can normally be reached Monday to Thursday 10AM -6PM and alternate Fridays.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Kenneth M Lo can be reached at (571) 272-9774. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/ISTIAQUE AHMED/Examiner, Art Unit 2116
/CHAD G ERDMAN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2116
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