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 § 112
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b):
(b) CONCLUSION.—The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph:
The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention.
Claims 12-16 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention.
-Claim 12 recites the limitation “The method of claim 1”. In the limitation, “the method” is lack of antecedent basis, and it is unclear on which “method” of claim 1 the claim 12 refers to. It appears and suggests that the limitation should be changed to -The method of claim 11--.
-Claims, depended on claim 12, are therefore also rejected.
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, 11, 18 and 20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Sankabathula et al (7,656,970).
-Regarding claim 1, Sankabathula et a teaches a device (500) (see figure 2), comprising:
an analog-to-digital converter (ADC) (524) configured to: receive a first analog signal (outputted from (514)) (referred to “packet of waveform 608”, col. 6, line 21, and (608) of figure 3A); receive a first clock signal (548) (referred to “sampling clock 548”, col. 4, line 30); and generate a first set of digital values (outputted from (524)) corresponding to the first analog signal (during a time interval between (600) and( 602) shown in figure 3A) based on the first clock signal at a low sampling rate (referred to (618, Low) of figure 3A); and
a control circuit (530, 534) coupled to the ADC and configured to: determine, via (534), that a change (being a change of energy detected in the output of the ADC at the time (602) from a low level (624) to a high level (626) (see (616) of figure 3A)) in the first set of digital values satisfies a first threshold value (being the high level) wherein the satisfactory is determined when the detected energy in the output of the ADC reaches the high level) ; and increase the first clock signal from a first frequency (being the low sampling rate) to a second frequency (being a high sampling rate (referred to ((618, High) of figure 3A) in response to determining that the change in the first set of digital values satisfies the first threshold value (see col. 4, lines 7-37 and col. 5, lines 1-21).
-Regarding claim 11, Sankabathula et a teaches method, performed by a device ((500), figure 2), the method (see figure 2) comprising:
receiving, via an analog-to-digital converter (ADC) (524), a first analog signal (outputted from (514));
receiving, via the ADC, a first clock signal (548) (referred to “sampling clock 548”, col. 4, line 30);
generating, via the ADC, a first set of digital values (outputted from (524)) corresponding to the first analog signal (during a time interval between (600) and( 602) shown in figure 3A) based on the first clock signal at a low sampling rate (referred to (618, Low) of figure 3A);
determining, via a control circuit (530, 534), that a change (being a change of energy detected in the output of the ADC at the time (602) from a low level (624) to a high level (626) (see (616) of figure 3A)) in the first set of digital values satisfies a first threshold value (being the high level) wherein the satisfactory is determined when the detected energy in the output of the ADC reaches the high level); and increasing the first clock signal from a first frequency (being the low sampling rate) to a second frequency (being a high sampling rate (referred to ((618, High) of figure 3A) in response to determining that the change in the first set of digital values satisfies the first threshold value (see col. 4, lines 7-37 and col. 5, lines 1-21).
-Regarding claim 18, Sankabathula et a teaches a system (500) (see figure 2), comprising:
a sensor as a wireless sensor (504, 502);
an analog-to-digital converter (ADC) (524) coupled to the sensor and configured to: receive a first analog signal (outputted from (514)) (referred to “packet of waveform 608”, col. 6, line 21, and (608) of figure 3A); receive a first clock signal (548) (referred to “sampling clock 548”, col. 4, line 30); and generate a first set of digital values (outputted from (524)) corresponding to the first analog signal (during a time interval between (600) and( 602) shown in figure 3A) based on the first clock signal at a low sampling rate (referred to (618, Low) of figure 3A); and
a control circuit coupled to the ADC and configured to: determine, via (534), that a change (being a change of energy detected in the output of the ADC at the time (602) from a low level (624) to a high level (626) (see (616) of figure 3A)) in the first set of digital values satisfies a first threshold value (being the high level) wherein the satisfactory is determined when the detected energy in the output of the ADC reaches the high level) ; and increase the first clock signal from a first frequency (being the low sampling rate) to a second frequency (being a high sampling rate (referred to ((618, High) of figure 3A) in response to determining that the change in the first set of digital values satisfies the first threshold value (see col. 4, lines 7-37 and col. 5, lines 1-21).
-Regarding claim 20, Sankabathula et a teaches that the sensor includes an antenna (504) as an electrical signal sensor, or namely a voltage/current sensor (see figure 2).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 2-10, 17 and 19 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.
Claims 12-16 would be allowable if rewritten, as suggested, to overcome the rejection(s) under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), 2nd paragraph, set forth in this Office action and to include all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to PHUONG M PHU whose telephone number is (571)272-3009. The examiner can normally be reached 8:00-16:00.
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/PHUONG PHU/
Primary Examiner
Art Unit 2632