CTNF 18/588,934 CTNF 81017 DETAILED ACTION Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status 07-03-aia AIA 15-10-aia The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA. Claims 1-20 are pending. Priority 02-26 AIA Receipt is acknowledged of certified copies of papers required by 37 CFR 1.55. Information Disclosure Statement The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on February 27, 2024 and May 27, 2025 have been considered by the examiner. Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102 07-07-aia AIA 07-07 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 – 07-08-aia AIA (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. 07-15 AIA Claim (s) 1-3, 5, 7-10, 14-18 and 20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102( a)(1 ) as being anticipated by Japanese Patent No. JP2018163415 to Ishikawa (A machine translation is enclosed with this action referred to herein) . Regarding claims 1, 14 and 20, the Ishikawa patent teaches method and a control system that controls a conveyance system including a transfer robot 101 capable of autonomously moving and capable of conveying an article to be conveyed, the control system comprising: an acquisition unit 109 configured to acquire conveyance destination information from a wagon 201 capable of accommodating the article, the conveyance destination information indicating a destination of conveyance of the article 204; and a controller configured to cause the transfer robot to autonomously move such that the transfer robot conveys the wagon to the destination of conveyance indicated by the conveyance destination information 115. See pages 4 and 5 of the translation and the end of page 7 that states the vehicle is autonomous and Figs. 2-8. Regarding claims 2 and 15, the wagon includes a label 204 on which the conveyance destination information is printed; and the acquisition unit includes a first sensor 109 configured to detect the conveyance destination information from the label. See translation pages 4 and 5 and Fig. 2. Regarding claim 3 and 16, the wagon includes a label on which the conveyance destination information is printed; and the acquisition unit includes a first camera 109 configured to obtain image data by capturing an image on the label. See translation pages 4 and 5 and Fig. 2. Regarding claim 5, a two-dimensional code or a one-dimensional code, indicating the destination of conveyance, is printed on the label. See end of page 4 of translation that is a QR code or colors. Regarding claim 7, the label is a label on which a character indicating the destination of conveyance is printed or a label in a color indicating the destination of conveyance. See end of page 4 of translation that is a QR code or colors. Regarding claim 8, the wagon includes a label attachment portion that allows the label to be attached in a replaceable state. See page 5 of translation that states label 204 is replaceable. Regarding claims 9 and 17, the wagon includes a display device 204 showing the conveyance destination information; and the acquisition unit 109 includes a first sensor configured to detect the conveyance destination information from the display. See pages 4 and 5 of the translation and Figs. 2-8. Regarding claims 10 and 18, the wagon includes a display device 204 showing the conveyance destination information; the acquisition unit includes a first camera 109 configured to obtain image data by capturing an image on the display device. See pages 4 and 5 of translation and Figs. 2-8 . Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103 07-20-aia AIA 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. 07-21-aia AIA Claim (s) 11 and 19 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Japanese Patent No. JP2018163415 to Ishikawa in view of European Patent No. WO2022/044561 to Ikawa et al. (Machine translations are enclosed with this action and referred to herein . Regarding claims 11 and 19, the Ishikawa patent teaches all the elements of the claim except for the explicit teaching of using a radio frequency identification (RFID) tag on which the conveyance destination information is recorded; and the acquisition unit includes a first RFID reader configured to read the conveyance destination information from the RFID. The Ikawa patent teaches a robot 110 that moves packages 130a that have rfid tags on them and a reader 140 on the robot. See Fig.1 and page 1 of the translation. It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the subject invention to modify the Ishikawa patent to have the rfid tags and reader as taught by the Ikawa patent as it would have been substituting one known prior art element for another to provide the predictable result of having a way of conveying information without needing good lighting a rfid tags will work without a camera needing a good image to see a QR code . 07-21-aia AIA Claim (s) 13 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Japanese Patent No. JP2018163415 to Ishikawa in view of European Patent No. WO2019/109644 to Li et al. (Machine translations are enclosed with this action and referred to herein . Regarding claim 13, the Ishikawa patent teaches a wagon with a storage portion 201 that accommodates the article and a supporting portion (the floor of the wagon 201) that supports the storage portion in a state where a space (underneath created by wheels 205) for allowing at least part of a chassis of the transfer robot to enter is provided under the storage portion. See Fig. 2. However, the Ishikawa patent lacks a specific teaching of the transfer robot includes a lifting and lowering mechanism that loads and unloads the wagon to and from a top surface side of the at least part of the chassis. The Li patent teaches a transfer robot 1003 includes a lifting and lowering mechanism 1102 that loads and unloads the wagon 1004 to and from a top surface side of the at least part of the chassis. See Figs 11-13. It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the subject invention to modify the Ishikawa patent to have the robot with the lifting and lowering mechanism as taught by Li as it would have been substituting one known prior art element for another to provide the predictable result of taking of less floor space when moving the wagon so that it is not pulled behind the robot but is on top of the robot . Allowable Subject Matter 12-151-08 AIA 07-43 12-51-08 Claim s 4, 6 and 12 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. Conclusion 07-96 AIA The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. U.S. Publication No. 2021/0155410 to Takai et al. teaches a robot conveyance system, but lacks the teaching of a label with the destination on the wagon. Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JUSTIN HOLMES whose telephone number is (571)272-3448. The examiner can normally be reached 10AM-6PM EST M-F. 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, Jacob S Scott can be reached at 571-270-3415. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300. 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If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000. /JUSTIN HOLMES/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3655 Application/Control Number: 18/588,934 Page 2 Art Unit: 3655 Application/Control Number: 18/588,934 Page 3 Art Unit: 3655 Application/Control Number: 18/588,934 Page 4 Art Unit: 3655 Application/Control Number: 18/588,934 Page 5 Art Unit: 3655 Application/Control Number: 18/588,934 Page 6 Art Unit: 3655 Application/Control Number: 18/588,934 Page 7 Art Unit: 3655 Application/Control Number: 18/588,934 Page 8 Art Unit: 3655
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