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 .
Status of Claims
This action is in reply to the communication filed on . The disposition of claims is as follows:
Pending:
Rejected:
Objected to: 2-6, 8, and 11-16
Canceled:
Continued Examination Under 37 CFR 1.114
A request for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, including the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e), was filed in this application after final rejection. Since this application is eligible for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114. Applicant's submission filed on has been entered.
Response to Arguments and Amendments
Applicant's arguments filed have been fully considered. The Examiner proceeds below with a response.
Regarding Claims rejected under 35 U.S.C. § :
Applicant's arguments have been fully considered and are persuasive. Therefore, the rejections under 35 U.S.C. § for Claim have been withdrawn in response to Applicant’s claim amendments.
Claim Interpretation - Dictionary Definition
The Examiner has relied on dictionary definitions to interpret claim terms according to their plain and ordinary meaning, applying the broadest reasonable interpretation consistent with the specification as it would be interpreted by one of ordinary skill in the art. See MPEP §§ 2111, 2111.01. The dictionary definitions and sources are as follows:
:
”” [ [Def. ]. (n.d.).
Retrieved , from .]
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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 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 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 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102 as being by (), hereinafter “”.
Regarding Claim ,
discloses:
A steer-by-wire steering system for a vehicle having a front axle and at least one wheel, the steering system See at least Abstract, ¶¶ comprising:
a driver-operable control element () for steering angle input; See at least ¶¶0032,
an actuating mechanism () for setting a wheel setting angle for the at least one wheel (); See at least ¶¶ and
a control unit () which is configured, based on a steering angle of the control element () and a vehicle speed, to output a map for a setpoint of a position of the actuating mechanism () and control a position of the front axle and/or the wheel setting angle based on the setpoint, See at least ¶¶0030, 0034-0037, 0039, 0042-0052; Fig. 2
wherein a wheel setting angle, able to be set by the actuating mechanism (), depends on a set steering angle and on a vehicle speed, and wherein a maximum settable wheel setting angle and/or a maximum settable steering angle is limited depending on the vehicle speed. See at least ¶¶0030, 0034-0037, 0039, 0042-0052; Fig. 2
Regarding Claim ,
discloses:
wherein at least two travel speed support points are stored in the control unit, wherein the control unit is configured to calculate, for the travel speed support points, a curve of a ratio between a deflection of the control element and the wheel setting angle set by the actuating mechanism via the steering angle. See at least ¶¶0030, 0034-0037, 0039, 0042-0052; Fig. 2
Regarding Claim ,
discloses:
wherein the actuating mechanism comprises a toothed rack or at least one electromotorized actuator. See at least ¶¶0006, 0016-0017, 0036
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 2-6, 8, and 11-16 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.
Special Definitions for Claim Language - MPEP § 2111.01(III)-(IV)
No special definitions are seen as present in the specification regarding the language used in the claims. Consequently, the words and phrases of the claims are given the plain meaning to a person of ordinary skill in the art. (See MPEP §§ 2173.01, 2173.05(a), and 2111.01).
If special definitions are present, Applicant should bring them to the attention of the Examiner and the prosecution history in the next response.
To date, Applicant has provided no indication of special definitions.
Terminology
The Examiner notes that the following terms are utilized in Applicant’s specification as follows:
:
See Instant PgPub: ¶0030
:
See Instant PgPub: ¶0040
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to SCOTT A REINBOLD whose telephone number is (313)446-6607. The examiner can normally be reached on MON - FRI: 8AM - 5PM EST.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Logan Kraft, can be reached on (571)270-5065. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant may call Examiner Reinbold directly at (313)446-6607 (preferred) or use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice.
/SCOTT A REINBOLD/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3747
Prosecution Insights