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 .
Priority
Receipt is acknowledged of certified copies of papers required by 37 CFR 1.55.
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 – 8 and 15 - 20 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by W. Clark, U.S. 5,188,390 (“Clark”). Clark discloses a hydraulic suspension apparatus (column 1, line 25), configured to adjust a height of a vehicle body of a vehicle (column 3, line 40), comprising:
a liquid storage apparatus (14) disposed on the vehicle body and configured to store liquid; and
a reducer (42) having a reducer housing (fig. 2), a piston (fig. 2, 3), and a piston rod (fig. 3), the reducer housing connected to an axle (fig. 3, 4), the piston located in the reducer housing and dividing the reducer housing into an upper chamber (fig. 4) and a lower chamber (fig. 4, 5), an end of the piston rod (fig. 5) connected to the piston, the piston rod connected to the vehicle body (102) and comprising a liquid channel (15a), the liquid channel communicated with the lower chamber and the liquid storage apparatus to enable liquid flowable between the liquid storage apparatus and the lower chamber.
In reference to claims 2 – 8, Clark further discloses [[claim 2]] the liquid storage apparatus (14) comprises a control pump (24) and a liquid storage device (26), and the control pump is disposed between the liquid storage device and the liquid channel;
[[claim 3]] wherein an upper end of the piston rod extends out of the reducer housing, a liquid port (fig. 5, 6) is formed at the upper end of the piston rod, and the liquid port is configured to communicate the liquid channel with the liquid storage apparatus;
[[claim 4]] further comprising a liquid outlet channel (22a1) and a liquid return channel (22a2), wherein the liquid outlet channel and the liquid return channel are communicated between the liquid storage device and the liquid channel, the liquid outlet channel and the liquid return channel partially overlap (22a), and the control pump is disposed on the liquid outlet channel (22a1);
[[claim 5]] wherein the liquid outlet channel comprises a shared channel (50a) and a liquid outlet branch (22a1 towards 50a); the liquid return channel (22a2) comprises the shared channel (50a) and a liquid return branch (22a2 near 50a); a first end of the shared channel (50a near 102) is communicated with the liquid channel (50b); and the liquid outlet branch (22a1 near 50a) and the liquid return branch (22a2 near 50a) are communicated with a second end of the shared channel (50a);
[[claim 6]] wherein a one-way valve (28) and the control pump (24) are disposed on the liquid outlet branch (22a1), a first end of the one-way valve (towards 50a) is communicated with the shared channel, a second end of the one-way valve (towards 22a) is communicated with the control pump (24), and a liquid return valve (30) is disposed on the liquid return branch;
[[claim 7]] further comprising an accumulator module (column 4, line 36), wherein the liquid channel (50b) is communicated with the liquid storage apparatus through a communicating channel (50a, b), the accumulator module is communicated with the communicating channel (whether in 15a – d or 22a - d) and configured to adjust at least one of damping of the reducer (passive mode and active mode), stiffness of the reducer, and the height of the vehicle body of the vehicle (column 3, line 36);
[[claim 8]] further comprising a first control valve (one of 28, 30, 32, 34), wherein the first control valve is disposed on the communicating channel, and is configured to control communication or separation between the liquid storage apparatus and the accumulator module (when in 22a – d).
In reference to claim 15, Clark discloses a hydraulic suspension system (15), comprising a controller (12) and a hydraulic suspension apparatus (15a), the controller being configured to control a flow direction of liquid (fig. 6) between a liquid storage apparatus (14) and a reducer of the hydraulic suspension apparatus (15a) according to a status of a vehicle (column 5, line 10), to adjust a height of a vehicle body of the vehicle (column 3, line 36), wherein:
a liquid storage apparatus (14) disposed on the vehicle body and configured to store liquid; and a reducer (15a) having a reducer housing (fig. 1), a piston (fig. 1, 2), and a piston rod (fig. 2), the reducer housing connected to an axle (fig. 2, 3), the piston located in the reducer housing and dividing the reducer housing into an upper chamber (fig. 3) and a lower chamber (fig. 3, 4), an end of the piston rod connected to the piston (fig. 4), the piston rod connected to the vehicle body (102) and comprising a liquid channel (50b), the liquid channel communicated with the lower chamber and the liquid storage apparatus to enable liquid flowable between the liquid storage apparatus and the lower chamber (fig. 4, 5).
In reference to claims 16 – 19, Clark further discloses [[claim 16]] wherein the liquid storage apparatus (14) comprises a control pump (24) and a liquid storage device (26), and the control pump is disposed between the liquid storage device and the liquid channel (50b);
[[claim 17]] wherein an upper end of the piston rod (fig. 5) extends out of the reducer housing, a liquid port (fig. 5, 6) is formed at the upper end of the piston rod, and the liquid port is configured to communicate the liquid channel (50b) with the liquid storage apparatus (14);
[[claim 18]] further comprising a liquid outlet channel (22a1) and a liquid return channel (22a2), wherein the liquid outlet channel and the liquid return channel are communicated between the liquid storage device (26) and the liquid channel (50b), the liquid outlet channel and the liquid return channel partially overlap (22a), and the control pump is disposed on the liquid outlet channel (22a1);
[[claim 19]] wherein the liquid outlet channel comprises a shared channel (50a) and a liquid outlet branch (22a1); the liquid return channel comprises the shared channel (50a) and a liquid return branch (22a2); a first end of the shared channel (50a) is communicated with the liquid channel (50b); and the liquid outlet branch (22a1) and the liquid return branch (22a2) are communicated with a second end of the shared channel (50a).
In reference to claim 20, Clark discloses a vehicle (abstract), comprising a hydraulic suspension system (15), the hydraulic suspension system comprising a controller (12) and a hydraulic suspension apparatus (15a), the controller being configured to control a flow direction of liquid (column 1, line 60) between a liquid storage apparatus (14) and a reducer of the hydraulic suspension apparatus (42) according to a status of the vehicle (column 5, line 10), to adjust a height of a vehicle body of the vehicle (column 3, line 38), wherein:
a liquid storage apparatus (14) disposed on the vehicle body and configured to store liquid; and a reducer (42) having a reducer housing (fig. 6), a piston (fig. 1), and a piston rod (fig. 1, 2), the reducer housing (42) connected to an axle (fig. 2), the piston located in the reducer housing and dividing the reducer housing into an upper chamber (fig. 2, 3) and a lower chamber (fig. 3), an end of the piston rod (fig. 3, 4) connected to the piston, the piston rod connected to the vehicle body and comprising a liquid channel (50b), the liquid channel communicated with the lower chamber and the liquid storage apparatus to enable liquid flowable between the liquid storage apparatus and the lower chamber.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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.
Claim(s) 9 - 14 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Clark in view of Kanetani et al. JP 2005 088766 (“Kanetani”). Clark does not disclose details of the accumulator module. Kanetani teaches [[claim 9]] an accumulator module (abstract) comprising a first accumulator (one of 40, 42, 44, 46) and an openness-adjustment valve (respective 60, 62, 64, 66), the first accumulator is communicated with the communicating channel (50a, b of Clark, when placed in combination) at a first communicating point (within 15a-d, in this case because the accumulators are at the suspension units 10, 12, 14, 16), the openness-adjustment valve is disposed between the first communicating point and the liquid channel, the openness-adjustment valve is configured to adjust a flow between the liquid channel and the first communicating point to adjust the damping of the reducer, and the openness-adjustment valve is configured to turn off the flow between the liquid channel and the first communicating point to adjust the stiffness of the reducer. One of ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective filing date of the claimed invention would find modifying Clark such that it comprised the accumulator module in view of the teachings of Kanetani obvious so as to retain fluid at a relatively constant pressure (Clark, column 4, line 36) and allow for a volume change to increase or lower the height (Kanetani, abstract).
Clark in view of Kanetani further discloses [[claim 10]] wherein the accumulator module comprises a second accumulator (another of 92, 94) and a stiffness-adjustment valve (respective 94), the second accumulator is communicated with the communicating channel at a second communicating point (as modified), the stiffness-adjustment valve is disposed between the second accumulator and the second communicating point, and configured to enable communication or separation between the communicating channel and the second accumulator to adjust the stiffness of the reducer;
[[claim 11]] further comprising a second control valve (28, 104, 106, 108, 110) disposed between the second communicating point and the liquid channel (Clark 50b equivalent to Kanetani 30, 32, 34, 36);
[[claim 12]] wherein the accumulator module comprises a first accumulator (one of 40, 42, 44, 46, 74, 92) and a second accumulator (another of 40, 42, 44, 46, 74, 92), the first accumulator is communicated with the communicating channel at a first communicating point, and the second accumulator is communicated with the communicating channel at a second communicating point;
[[claim 13]] wherein the first communicating point is located between the liquid channel (of Clark 50b) and the second communicating point;
[[claim 14]] further comprising a second control valve (respective 50, 52, 54, 56, 94, 104, 106, 108, 110) disposed between the first communicating point and the second communicating point. One of ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective filing date of the claimed invention would find modifying Clark such that it comprised the accumulator module in view of the teachings of Kanetani obvious so as to retain fluid at a relatively constant pressure (Clark, column 4, line 36) and allow for a volume change to increase or lower the height (Kanetani, abstract).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to KAREN BECK whose telephone number is (571)272-6212. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Thursday from 8:30AM - 4:00PM.
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KAREN BECK
Primary Examiner
Art Unit 3614
/KAREN BECK/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3614
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