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 .
Drawings
The drawings are objected to under 37 CFR 1.83(a). The drawings must show every feature of the invention specified in the claims. Therefore, the “central monitoring system” must be shown or the feature(s) canceled from the claim(s). No new matter should be entered.
Corrected drawing sheets in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(d) are required in reply to the Office action to avoid abandonment of the application. Any amended replacement drawing sheet should include all of the figures appearing on the immediate prior version of the sheet, even if only one figure is being amended. The figure or figure number of an amended drawing should not be labeled as “amended.” If a drawing figure is to be canceled, the appropriate figure must be removed from the replacement sheet, and where necessary, the remaining figures must be renumbered and appropriate changes made to the brief description of the several views of the drawings for consistency. Additional replacement sheets may be necessary to show the renumbering of the remaining figures. Each drawing sheet submitted after the filing date of an application must be labeled in the top margin as either “Replacement Sheet” or “New Sheet” pursuant to 37 CFR 1.121(d). If the changes are not accepted by the examiner, the applicant will be notified and informed of any required corrective action in the next Office action. The objection to the drawings will not be held in abeyance.
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 1-4, 9, 14, 18-20, & 24 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.
With regards to claims 1-4, 9, 14, 18-20, & 24, it is not understood as to what is being referred to as “a/the central monitoring system” as the DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DISCLOSED SUBJECT MATTER fails to disclose or suggest the claimed thus rendering the claims as indefinite.
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 (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 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.
Claim(s) 1-2, 4, 6-7, 18-20, 22-24 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Bardin et al. [PG. Pub. No.: US 2015/0068318 A1].
With regards to claim 1, Bardin discloses a device configured for attachment to a cable or wire under tension (900 wire-less enable tension meter, Figs. 9A-9D, ¶0142), the device comprising one or more processors (310, one or more processors, Fig. 3, ¶0069); a tension sensor configured to measure tension in a cable or wire to which it is attached (206, measurement of the radial force and corresponding line tension (i.e., the line tension 204), Figs. 2 & 3, ¶0065); and a communications module for wireless bi-directional communication (116, wireless communication device, 0054) with a central monitoring system (Fig. 4, ¶0054-0059), wherein the one or more processors (310, one or more processors, Fig. 3, ¶0069) is configured to execute computer readable instructions to receive a tension measurement from the tension sensor (applications, routines, subroutines, programs, computer-readable instructions, computer-executable instructions, and the like, for controlling various functions of the puller system, ¶0042) and communicate the tension measurement to the central monitoring system via the communications module (an illustrative architecture 400 for the wireless communication device 116 will be described. In some embodiments, the wireless communication device 116 uses a variation of the architecture 400. As such, the illustrated embodiment of the architecture 400 of the wireless communication device 116 should not be construed as being limiting in any way. In some embodiments, the tension meter remote device 130 may use the architecture 400 or some variation thereof, Fig. 4, ¶0075-0079).
With regards to claim 2, Bardin discloses wherein the one or more processors is further configured execute computer readable instructions (applications, routines, subroutines, programs, computer-readable instructions, computer-executable instructions, and the like, for controlling various functions of the puller system, ¶0042) to determine whether the tension measurement received from the tension sensor comprises an instantaneous or long-term deviation from a desired tension in the cable the tension sensor is attached to; and communicate the instantaneous or long-term deviation to the central monitoring system (¶0075-0077).
With regards to claim 4, Bardin discloses a distributed networked computer system for remote monitoring of cable systems under tension (304, network interface, ¶0068 & 900, wire-less enable tension meter, Figs. 9A-9D, ¶0142), the distributed network computer system comprising: a central monitoring system comprising one or more centralized servers configured to execute computer readable instructions to receive, collect, store and analyze data related to the remote monitoring (¶0067-0078); a plurality of devices attached to a plurality of cables or wires under tension (¶0053); each device comprising one or more processors (310, one or more processors, ¶0069); a tension sensor configured to measure tension in a cable or wire to which it is attached (900 wire-less enable tension meter, Figs. 9A-9D, ¶0045, ¶0142); and a communications module for wireless bi-directional communication (116, wireless communication device, ¶0054) with the central monitoring system (Fig. 4, ¶0054-0059), wherein the one or more processors (310, one or more processors, Fig. 3, 0069) is configured to execute computer readable instructions to receive a tension measurement from the tension sensor (applications, routines, subroutines, programs, computer-readable instructions, computer-executable instructions, and the like, for controlling various functions of the puller system, ¶0042) and communicate the tension measurement to the central monitoring system via the communications module (an illustrative architecture 400 for the wireless communication device 116 will be described. In some embodiments, the wireless communication device 116 uses a variation of the architecture 400. As such, the illustrated embodiment of the architecture 400 of the wireless communication device 116 should not be construed as being limiting in any way. In some embodiments, the tension meter remote device 130 may use the architecture 400 or some variation thereof, Fig. 4, ¶0075-0079).
With regards to claim 6, Bardin discloses wherein stored data comprises information associated with each of the plurality of devices comprising one or more of device identification code, device location, communication channel identification, device characteristics, device condition and device functionality (Fig. 4, ¶0075).
With regards to claim 7, Bardin discloses wherein the stored data further comprises tension measurements received from each of the plurality of devices linked to the information associated with each device (Fig, 3, ¶0067-0074).
With regards to claim 18, Bardin discloses a method executed by one or more computing devices for remote monitoring of cable systems under tension (304, network interface, ¶0068 & 900, wire-less enable tension meter, Figs. 9A-9D, ¶0142), the method comprising: receiving data from a plurality of devices attached to a plurality of cables or wires under tension (receiving data from the wireless-enabled tension meter via the wireless network, ¶0013-0014 & ¶0053); each device comprising one or more processors (310, one or more processors, Fig. 3, ¶0069); a tension sensor configured to measure tension in a cable or wire to which it is attached (206, sensor facilitates measurement of the radial force and corresponding line tension (i.e., the line tension 204), Figs. 2 & 3, ¶0065); and a communications module for wireless bi-directional communication (116, wireless communication device, ¶0054) with the central monitoring system (Fig. 4, ¶0054-0059), wherein the one or more processors is configured to execute computer readable instructions to receive a tension measurement from the tension sensor (applications, routines, subroutines, programs, computer-readable instructions, computer-executable instructions, and the like, for controlling various functions of the puller system, ¶0042) and communicate the tension measurement to a central monitoring system via the communications module (an illustrative architecture 400 for the wireless communication device 116 will be described. In some embodiments, the wireless communication device 116 uses a variation of the architecture 400. As such, the illustrated embodiment of the architecture 400 of the wireless communication device 116 should not be construed as being limiting in any way. In some embodiments, the tension meter remote device 130 may use the architecture 400 or some variation thereof, Fig. 4, ¶0075-0079); storing the data received from the plurality of devices (one or more processors 310, which can be operatively linked and in communication with one or more memory devices 312 via one or more data/memory busses 318, ¶0013 & ¶0069); aggregating the data received from the plurality of devices (any of the data, applications, and/or software described below can be stored within the memory device 312 and/or accessed via network connections to other data processing systems, ¶0072 & The instructions can include, for example, operating systems, firmware, drivers for peripherals, and the like. The other data 316 can include, for example, pull data and statistics, other programs or software, and the like, ¶0073); determining whether the aggregated data are predictive or indicative of a failure mode in the cable system and communicating an alert related to the failure mode to one or more human users authorized to receive the alert (a failure or temporary issue with regard to the puller system, a notification from the feeder system 110 to the puller system 114 or from the puller system 114 to the feeder system 110 may be triggered manually by an individual operating the feeder system 110 or the puller system 114 using a trigger mechanism such as a foot pad, or may be triggered based upon predefined threshold parameters programmed into the software and/or firmware components of the feeder system, ¶0044).
With regards to claim 19, Bardin discloses the one or more computing devices are instantiated in a distributed networked computer system comprising: a central monitoring system comprising one or more centralized servers configured to execute computer readable instructions to receive, collect, store and analyze data related to the remote monitoring; and the plurality of devices attached to the plurality of cables or wires under tension (data logging commands 706 allow a user to log pull data, export pull data, generate statistics from pull data, calculate values such as maximum tension, minimum tension, average tension, maximum speed, minimum speed, average speed, pull distance, pull midpoint, and others, tag logs based on location using location information obtained, export commands may be used to email logs and/or reports generated from logs, send logs and/or reports to one or more web servers, and/or send logs and/or reports to external storage, ¶0131).
With regards to claim 20, Bardin discloses the one or more human users comprise operators of the central monitoring system, personnel associated with the owner or operator of the cable system, personnel associated with emergency response services, or combinations thereof (¶0044).
With regards to claim 22, Bardin discloses at least one non-transitory computer-readable medium storing computer-readable instructions for remote monitoring of cable systems under tension, when executed by one or more computing devices of a distributed networked computer system (applications, routines, subroutines, programs, computer-readable instructions, computer-executable instructions, and the like, for controlling various functions of the puller system, ¶0040-0042), cause at least one of the one or more computing devices to: receive data from a plurality of devices attached to a plurality of cables or wires under tension (the wireless-enabled tension meter 102 is designed to be suspended on the guiding member 108. In some other embodiments, the wireless-enabled tension meter 102 is tied to or otherwise attached to an object or a plurality of objects, the ground, or the puller system, ¶0053); each device comprising one or more processors (¶ 0054); a tension sensor configured to measure tension in a cable or wire to which it is attached ((206, sensor facilitates measurement of the radial force and corresponding line tension (i.e., the line tension 204), Figs. 2 & 3, ¶0065); and a communications module for wireless bi-directional communication (116, wireless communication device, ¶0054) with the central monitoring system (Fig. 4, ¶0054-0059), wherein the one or more processors is configured to execute computer readable instructions to receive a tension measurement from the tension sensor (applications, routines, subroutines, programs, computer-readable instructions, computer-executable instructions, and the like, for controlling various functions of the puller system, ¶0042) and communicate the tension measurement to a central monitoring system via the communications module ((an illustrative architecture 400 for the wireless communication device 116 will be described. In some embodiments, the wireless communication device 116 uses a variation of the architecture 400. As such, the illustrated embodiment of the architecture 400 of the wireless communication device 116 should not be construed as being limiting in any way. In some embodiments, the tension meter remote device 130 may use the architecture 400 or some variation thereof, Fig. 4, ¶0075-0079); store the data received from the plurality of devices (one or more processors 310, which can be operatively linked and in communication with one or more memory devices 312 via one or more data/memory busses 318, ¶0013 & ¶0069); aggregate the data received from the plurality of devices (any of the data, applications, and/or software described below can be stored within the memory device 312 and/or accessed via network connections to other data processing systems, ¶0072 & The instructions can include, for example, operating systems, firmware, drivers for peripherals, and the like. The other data 316 can include, for example, pull data and statistics, other programs or software, and the like, ¶0073); determine whether the aggregated data are predictive or indicative of a failure mode in the cable system (a failure or temporary issue with regard to the puller system, a notification from the feeder system 110 to the puller system 114 or from the puller system 114 to the feeder system 110 may be triggered manually by an individual operating the feeder system 110 or the puller system 114 using a trigger mechanism such as a foot pad, or may be triggered based upon predefined threshold parameters programmed into the software and/or firmware components of the feeder system, ¶0044); and communicate an alert related to the failure mode to one or more human users authorized to receive the alert (puller system 114 to the feeder system 110 may be triggered manually by an individual operating the feeder system 110 or the puller system 114 using a trigger mechanism such as a foot pad, or may be triggered based upon predefined threshold parameters programmed into the software and/or firmware components of the feeder system, ¶0044).
With regards to claim 23, Bardin discloses the one or more computing devices are instantiated in a distributed networked computer system comprising: a central monitoring system comprising one or more centralized servers configured to execute computer readable instructions to receive, collect, store and analyze data related to the remote monitoring; and the plurality of devices attached to the plurality of cables or wires under tension (data logging commands 706 allow a user to log pull data, export pull data, generate statistics from pull data, calculate values such as maximum tension, minimum tension, average tension, maximum speed, minimum speed, average speed, pull distance, pull midpoint, and others, tag logs based on location using location information obtained, export commands may be used to email logs and/or reports generated from logs, send logs and/or reports to one or more web servers, and/or send logs and/or reports to external storage, ¶0131).
With regards to claim 24, Bardin discloses the one or more human users comprise operators of the central monitoring system, personnel associated with the owner or operator of the cable system, personnel associated with emergency response services, or combinations thereof (¶0044).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 3, 5, 8-17, 21, & 25 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.
With regards to claim 3, the prior art does not disclose or suggest the claimed “at least one additional sensor selected from a voltage sensor, an amperage sensor or a tension load sensor, wherein the one or more processors is configured to execute computer readable instructions to receive a measurement from the at least one additional sensor and communicate the measurement to the central monitoring system” in combination with the remaining claimed elements of claim 3 and from which it depends therefrom.
With regards to claim 5, the prior art does not disclose or suggest the claimed “devices are attached to guywires stabilizing the towers, the high voltage transmission lines or a combination of guys wires and high voltage transmission lines” in combination with the remaining claimed elements of claim 4 and from which it depends therefrom.
With regards to claim 8, the prior art does not disclose or suggest the claimed “one or more processors in the one or more servers is further configured to execute computer readable instructions to determine whether the tension measurement received from the tension sensor of each of the plurality of devices comprises an instantaneous or long-term deviation from a desired tension in the cable the tension sensor is attached to” in combination with the remaining claimed elements of claim 4 and from which it depends therefrom.
With regards to claim 9, the prior art does not disclose or suggest the claimed “a plurality of local access nodes associated with the plurality of devices, one or more concentrator servers, or a combination of local access nodes and one or more concentrator servers configured to provide secure communications links among the plurality of devices and the central monitoring system” in combination with the remaining claimed elements of claim 4 and from which it depends therefrom.
With regards to claim 10, the prior art does not disclose or suggest the claimed “secure communication links to a plurality of devices associated with a plurality of authorized human users of the distributed networked computer system” in combination with the remaining claimed elements of claim 4 and from which it depends therefrom.
With regards to claim 11, the prior art does not disclose or suggest the claimed secure communication links between the plurality of devices associated with a plurality of authorized human users of the distributed networked computer system and the plurality of devices attached to the plurality of cables or wires under tension” in combination with the remaining claimed elements of claim 4 and from which it depends therefrom.
With regards to claim 13, the prior art does not disclose or suggest the claimed “store the data received from the plurality of devices; aggregate the data received from the plurality of devices; determine whether the aggregated data are predictive or indicative of a failure mode in the cable system; and communicate an alert related to the failure mode to one or more human users authorized to receive the alert” in combination with the remaining claimed elements of claim 4 and from which it depends therefrom. Claim 14 depends on claim 13.
With regards to claim 15, the prior art does not disclose or suggest the claimed “compare data received from a set of the devices over one or more variables selected from time, location, tension, tension load, torsion and video image progression to detect variations among the set of devices” in combination with the remaining claimed elements of claim 4 and from which it depends therefrom.
With regards to claim 16, the prior art does not disclose or suggest the claimed “execute computer readable instructions to track trends in the data from a single device for comparative analyses” in combination with the remaining claimed elements of claim 4 and from which it depends therefrom.
With regards to claim 17, the prior art does not disclose or suggest the claimed “communicate instructions to one or more processors on the given device to supply auxiliary power to a peripheral connected to the given device” in combination with the remaining claimed elements of claim 4 and from which it depends therefrom.
With regards to claims 12, 21, & 25, the prior art does not disclose or suggest the claimed “wherein communications comprise a self-organizing network” in combination with the remaining claimed elements from which it depends therefrom.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to FRANCIS C GRAY whose telephone number is (571)270-3348. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 7am-5pm.
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/FRANCIS C GRAY/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2852