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 the Claims
This action is in response to the Applicant’s filing on December 1, 2025. Claims 1-11 are pending and examined below.
Response to Arguments
The previous rejections of claims 1 and 4-11 under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) are withdrawn in consideration of Applicant’s amended claims.
The previous rejections of claims 1, 3, 5-11 under 35 U.S.C. 102 are withdrawn in consideration of amended independent claims 1 and 9-11. However, new rejections of claims 1, 3, 5-11 under 35 U.S.C. 103 are set forth below.
The previous rejections of claims 2 and 4 under 35 U.S.C. 103 are withdrawn in consideration of amended independent claim 1. However, new rejections of claims 2 and 4 under 35 U.S.C. 103 are set forth below.
Claim Objections
Claim 11 objected to because of the following informalities:
Claim 11 reads in part “a watercraft control device configured to operate an actuator, the watercraft control device, the watercraft control device provided in a watercraft maneuvering system” where the inclusion of “the watercraft control device” appears to be a typographical error.
Appropriate correction is required.
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.
Claims 1, 3, 5-11 are rejected under 35 103 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over US 20200140052 by Derginer et al. (hereafter "Derginer"), in view of US 20090076671 by Mizutani (hereafter "Mizutani").
Regarding claim 1, Derginer discloses a watercraft maneuvering system comprising: an actuator having a function of generating a propulsion force of a watercraft and a function of causing the watercraft to generate a moment (Derginer ¶ [0028]: the PCMs 26a, 26b may control the engines 14a, 14b and transmissions 16a, 16b of the propulsion devices 12a, 12b, while additional thrust vector modules (TVMs) may control their orientation; Derginer ¶ [0030]: sends signals to the PCMs 26a, 26b (and/or TVMs or additional modules if provided), which in turn activate steering actuators to achieve desired orientations of the propulsion devices 12a, 12b; Derginer ¶ [0030]: sends signals to the PCMs 26a, 26b, which in turn activate electromechanical actuators in the transmissions 16a, 16b and engines 14a, 14b);
an operation unit (Derginer ¶ [0031]: A manually operable input device, such as the joystick 30, can also be used to provide signals to the controller 24. The joystick 30 can be used to allow the operator of the vessel 10 to manually maneuver the vessel 10, such as to achieve translation or rotation of the vessel 10) including a throttle operation unit that receives an input operation of generating a propulsion force of the watercraft (Derginer ¶ [0034]: The magnitude, or intensity, of movement represented by the position of the handle 44 is also provided as an output from the joystick 30. In other words, if the handle 44 is moved slightly toward one side or the other away from the neutral position (which is generally the centered and vertically upright position with respect to the base portion 42), the commanded thrust in that direction is less than if, alternatively, the handle 44 was moved by a greater magnitude away from its neutral position. Furthermore, rotation of the handle 44 about axis 48, as represented by arrow 54, provides a signal representing the intensity of desired movement. A slight rotation of the handle 44 about axis 48 would represent a command for a slight rotational thrust about a preselected point on the vessel 10. A greater magnitude rotation of the handle 44 about its axis 48 would represent a command for a higher magnitude of rotational thrust) and a steering unit that receives an input operation of causing the watercraft to generate a moment (Derginer ¶ [0034]: With continued reference to FIG. 3, it can be seen that the operator can demand a purely linear movement either toward port as represented by arrow 52 or starboard as represented by arrow 53, a purely linear movement in a forward direction as represented by arrow 50 or reverse direction as represented by arrow 51, or any combination of two of these directions. In other words, by moving the handle 44 along dashed line 56, a linear movement toward the right side and forward or toward the left side and rearward can be commanded. Similarly, a linear movement along line 58 could be commanded. It should be understood that the operator of the marine vessel can also request a combination of sideways or forward/reverse linear movement in combination with a rotation as represented by arrow 54. Any of these possibilities can be accomplished through use of the joystick 30, which communicates with the controller 24 and eventually with the PCMs 26a, 26b; Fig. 3), and receiving, as an input operation, an operation by a watercraft operator on the throttle operation unit or the steering unit (Derginer ¶ [0031]: A manually operable input device, such as the joystick 30, can also be used to provide signals to the controller 24. The joystick 30 can be used to allow the operator of the vessel 10 to manually maneuver the vessel 10, such as to achieve translation or rotation of the vessel 10), and
a watercraft control device configured to operate the actuator (Derginer ¶ [0030]: The controller 24, in turn, sends signals to the PCMs 26a, 26b (and/or TVMs or additional modules if provided), which in turn activate steering actuators to achieve desired orientations of the propulsion devices 12a, 12b. The propulsion devices 12a, 12b are independently steerable about their steering axes; Derginer ¶ [0030]: The controller 24, in turn, sends signals to the PCMs 26a, 26b, which in turn activate electromechanical actuators in the transmissions 16a, 16b and engines 14a, 14b),
when the throttle operation unit or the steering unit has received an input operation for stopping an operation of the actuator while the watercraft control device is operating the actuator (Derginer ¶ [0050]: the command model 72 may be a map of positions of the joystick to inertial velocity values, such as associating each possible position of the joystick to a target surge velocity, a target sway velocity, and/or a target yaw velocity. For example, the neutral, or centered, position in the joystick is associated with a zero inertial velocity),
the watercraft control device operates the actuator without any need for the operation unit to receive any additional input operation for causing the actuator to generate the propulsion force in an opposite direction to a direction of an inertial force occurring in the watercraft or causing the watercraft to generate the moment in an opposite direction to a direction of a moment of inertia occurring in the watercraft (Derginer ¶ [0050]: Accordingly, when the position of the joystick is equal to the neutral, or centered, position, the steering command and the engine command are determined so as to maintain the marine vessel at its current position, including to counteract momentum of the marine vessel and/or the effects of any wind or current. Thus, during joystick mode the marine vessel 10 only moves in response to and in accordance with user input via the joystick). The examiner interprets an input for stopping an operation of the actuator to be setting the joystick to a neutral position following a time when the joystick was in a position that generates a propulsive force and/or a moment. Further, when the joystick is set to a neutral position the counteraction of momentum of the marine vessel includes opposing or neutralizing linear and/or angular velocities caused by a previously applied propulsive force and/or moment.
It is noted Derginer discloses a joystick or similar operation unit that includes a throttle operation unit and steering unit but fails to particularly disclose wherein the steering unit includes either a steering wheel or a steering handle.
However, Mizutani, in the same field of endeavor, teaches wherein the steering unit includes either a steering wheel or a steering handle (Mizutani ¶ [0036]: The operation devices 30a-30dof the watercraft 10 include direction controlling systems operated to adjust a traveling direction of the watercraft 10, such as the steering wheel 30a and the joystick 30b, and speed controlling systems, such as the accelerator 30c, arranged to adjust a traveling speed of the watercraft 10).
Further, Mizutani teaches determining a target movement change including speed, acceleration, angular speed, angular acceleration, attitude, moment, etc. of the watercraft, which may be a deviation between a traveling plan and a present traveling state (Mizutani ¶ [0052]). The target movement change is associated with a traveling state that is based on the positions of operation devices 30a-30d (Mizutani: Stop traveling state in Table 2). The stop state is determined by a closed accelerator position, neutral shift device, neutral steering wheel position, and neutral joystick position. When the system of Mizutani is in a non-stop traveling state the speed, acceleration, angular speed, angular acceleration, attitude, and/or moment of the watercraft would be greater than zero. Thus, when the traveling state transitions from a non-stop state to a stop state the target movement change would apply forces that counteract the speed, acceleration, angular speed, angular acceleration, attitude, and/or moment of the watercraft associated with the previous travel state.
Therefore, given the teachings as whole, it would have been prima facie obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the system and method for controlling low-speed propulsion of a marine vessel of Derginer to include the accelerator and steering wheel including the closed and neutral positions for determining a stopped travel state of Mizutani with a reasonable expectation of success. One of ordinary skill in the art could have replaced the joystick operations of Derginer with the accelerator and steering wheel operations of Mizutani with the predicted result of a system that counteracts the motion of a watercraft based on operations received from an accelerator and steering wheel instead of joystick operations. A person of ordinary skill in the art would be motivated to make this modification in order to make operation of watercraft more comfortable when precisely achieving a desired travel plan (Mizutani ¶ [0009]).
Regarding claim 3, Derginer discloses wherein the watercraft control device sets a period in which the actuator is operated for the at least one function of the actuator generating the propulsion force in the opposite direction to the direction of the inertial force occurring in the watercraft and causing the watercraft to generate the moment in the opposite direction to the direction of the moment of inertia occurring in the watercraft on the basis of a speed or an angular speed of the watercraft (Derginer ¶ [0048]: FIG. 7 is a flowchart schematically depicting one embodiment of a control method for controlling low-speed propulsion of a marine vessel, such as in joysticking mode. In the depicted embodiment, the control strategy is a closed-loop algorithm utilizing the vessel dynamics model to both calculate feed-forward commands and design a feedback controller that compares the desired inertial velocity to an actual measured velocity of the marine vessel in order to provide accurate control that accounts for situational factors in the marine environment—e.g. wind and current—and any inaccuracies or uncertainties in the model. An affine control mixing strategy is utilized to convert surge (fore/aft) velocity commands and yaw velocity commands into values that can be used to control the propulsion devices, including engine command values (e.g. engine speed or throttle control values) and steering commands (e.g. angular steering position); Derginer ¶ [0029]: In one example, the IMU 36 is an inertial navigation system (INS) consists of a MEMS gyroscope, or a MEMS angular rate sensor, a MEMS accelerometer, and a magnetometer, which are used together to calculate velocity and heading of the marine vessel relative to magnetic north. In other embodiments, the motion and angular position (including pitch and roll) may be sensed by a different INS configuration or an attitude heading reference system (AHRS) that provides 3D orientation of the marine vessel 10 by integrating gyroscopic measurements, accelerometer data, and magnetometer data. Signals from the GPS receiver 40 and/or the IMU (or INS) 36 are provided to the controller 24.). The examiner interprets the control strategy that determines velocity commands used to control the propulsion devices to be based on sensor feedback including those described in ¶ [0029] for calculating velocity and heading. When the joystick or other input devices are set to a neutral position, the desired inertial velocity is set to zero and the control strategy works for a period of time, based on sensor feedback, to oppose or neutralize linear and angular velocities caused by a previously applied propulsive force and/or moment.
Regarding claim 5, Derginer discloses wherein, when the throttle operation unit has received an input operation for stopping the generation of the propulsion force for moving the watercraft forward or backward while the actuator is generating the propulsion force for moving the watercraft forward or backward (Derginer ¶ [0037]: FIG. 4 illustrates a thrust orientation that is used when it is desired to move the vessel 10 in a forward direction represented by arrow 61, with no movement in either a right or left direction and no rotation about its COR 60; Derginer ¶ [0050]: the command model 72 may be a map of positions of the joystick to inertial velocity values, such as associating each possible position of the joystick to a target surge velocity, a target sway velocity, and/or a target yaw velocity. For example, the neutral, or centered, position in the joystick is associated with a zero inertial velocity),
the watercraft control device operates the actuator without any need for the operation unit to receive any additional input operation so that the actuator generates the propulsion force in the opposite direction to the direction of the inertial force occurring in the watercraft (Derginer ¶ [0050]: Accordingly, when the position of the joystick is equal to the neutral, or centered, position, the steering command and the engine command are determined so as to maintain the marine vessel at its current position, including to counteract momentum of the marine vessel and/or the effects of any wind or current. Thus, during joystick mode the marine vessel 10 only moves in response to and in accordance with user input via the joystick). The examiner interprets an input for stopping an operation of the actuator to be setting the joystick to a neutral position following a time when the joystick was in a position that generates a forward or backward propulsive force. Further, when the joystick is set to a neutral position the counteraction of momentum of the marine vessel includes opposing or neutralizing linear velocities caused by a previously applied forward or backward propulsive force.
Regarding claim 6, Derginer discloses wherein, when the throttle operation unit or the steering unit has received an input operation for stopping generation of a moment for turning the watercraft in place while the actuator is generating the moment for turning the watercraft in place (Derginer ¶ [0041]: Turning to FIG. 6, a moment (represented by arrow 70) can also be imposed on the vessel 10 to cause it to rotate about its COR 60—i.e., to effectuate yaw velocity. The moment 70 can be imposed in either rotational direction: clockwise (CW) or counterclockwise (CCW). The rotating force resulting from the moment 70 can be applied either in combination with a linear force on the vessel 10 or alone; Derginer ¶ [0050]: the command model 72 may be a map of positions of the joystick to inertial velocity values, such as associating each possible position of the joystick to a target surge velocity, a target sway velocity, and/or a target yaw velocity. For example, the neutral, or centered, position in the joystick is associated with a zero inertial velocity),
the watercraft control device operates the actuator without any need for the operation unit to receive any additional input operation so that the actuator causes the watercraft to generate the moment in the opposite direction to the direction of the moment of inertia occurring in the watercraft (Derginer ¶ [0050]: Accordingly, when the position of the joystick is equal to the neutral, or centered, position, the steering command and the engine command are determined so as to maintain the marine vessel at its current position, including to counteract momentum of the marine vessel and/or the effects of any wind or current. Thus, during joystick mode the marine vessel 10 only moves in response to and in accordance with user input via the joystick). The examiner interprets an input for stopping an operation of the actuator to be setting the joystick to a neutral position following a time when the joystick was in a position that generates a clockwise or counterclockwise moment. Further, when the joystick is set to a neutral position the counteraction of momentum of the marine vessel includes opposing or neutralizing angular velocities caused by a previously applied clockwise or counterclockwise moment.
Regarding claim 7, Derginer discloses wherein, when the throttle operation unit or the steering unit have received an input operation for stopping the generation of the propulsion force for moving the watercraft forward and a moment for turning the watercraft while the actuator is generating the propulsion force for moving the watercraft forward and is causing the watercraft to generate the moment for turning the watercraft (Derginer ¶ [0041]: Turning to FIG. 6, a moment (represented by arrow 70) can also be imposed on the vessel 10 to cause it to rotate about its COR 60—i.e., to effectuate yaw velocity. The moment 70 can be imposed in either rotational direction: clockwise (CW) or counterclockwise (CCW). The rotating force resulting from the moment 70 can be applied either in combination with a linear force on the vessel 10 or alone; Derginer ¶ [0043]: With continued reference to FIG. 3, it can be seen that the operator can demand a purely linear movement either toward port as represented by arrow 52 or starboard as represented by arrow 53, a purely linear movement in a forward direction as represented by arrow 50 or reverse direction as represented by arrow 51, or any combination of two of these directions; Derginer ¶ [0050]: the command model 72 may be a map of positions of the joystick to inertial velocity values, such as associating each possible position of the joystick to a target surge velocity, a target sway velocity, and/or a target yaw velocity. For example, the neutral, or centered, position in the joystick is associated with a zero inertial velocity),
the watercraft control device operates the actuator without any need for the operation unit to receive any additional input operation so that the actuator generates the propulsion force in the opposite direction to the direction of the inertial force occurring in the watercraft and causes the watercraft to generate the moment in the opposite direction to the direction of the moment of inertia occurring in the watercraft (Derginer ¶ [0050]: Accordingly, when the position of the joystick is equal to the neutral, or centered, position, the steering command and the engine command are determined so as to maintain the marine vessel at its current position, including to counteract momentum of the marine vessel and/or the effects of any wind or current. Thus, during joystick mode the marine vessel 10 only moves in response to and in accordance with user input via the joystick). The examiner interprets an input for stopping an operation of the actuator to be setting the joystick to a neutral position following a time when the joystick was in a position that generates a forward propulsive force and a moment. Further, when the joystick is set to a neutral position the counteraction of momentum of the marine vessel includes opposing or neutralizing linear and angular velocities caused by a previously applied forward propulsive force and moment.
Regarding claim 8, Derginer discloses wherein, when the throttle operation unit or the steering unit have received an input operation for stopping the generation of the propulsion force for moving the watercraft forward and a moment for turning the watercraft while the actuator is generating the propulsion force for moving the watercraft backward and is causing the watercraft to generate the moment for turning the watercraft (Derginer ¶ [0041]: Turning to FIG. 6, a moment (represented by arrow 70) can also be imposed on the vessel 10 to cause it to rotate about its COR 60—i.e., to effectuate yaw velocity. The moment 70 can be imposed in either rotational direction: clockwise (CW) or counterclockwise (CCW). The rotating force resulting from the moment 70 can be applied either in combination with a linear force on the vessel 10 or alone; Derginer ¶ [0043]: With continued reference to FIG. 3, it can be seen that the operator can demand a purely linear movement either toward port as represented by arrow 52 or starboard as represented by arrow 53, a purely linear movement in a forward direction as represented by arrow 50 or reverse direction as represented by arrow 51, or any combination of two of these directions; Derginer ¶ [0050]: the command model 72 may be a map of positions of the joystick to inertial velocity values, such as associating each possible position of the joystick to a target surge velocity, a target sway velocity, and/or a target yaw velocity. For example, the neutral, or centered, position in the joystick is associated with a zero inertial velocity),
the watercraft control device operates the actuator without any need for the operation unit to receive any additional input operation so that the actuator generates the propulsion force in the opposite direction to the direction of the inertial force occurring in the watercraft and causes the watercraft to generate the moment in the opposite direction to the direction of the moment of inertia occurring in the watercraft (Derginer ¶ [0050]: Accordingly, when the position of the joystick is equal to the neutral, or centered, position, the steering command and the engine command are determined so as to maintain the marine vessel at its current position, including to counteract momentum of the marine vessel and/or the effects of any wind or current. Thus, during joystick mode the marine vessel 10 only moves in response to and in accordance with user input via the joystick). The examiner interprets an input for stopping an operation of the actuator to be setting the joystick to a neutral position following a time when the joystick was in a position that generates a backward propulsive force and a moment. Further, when the joystick is set to a neutral position the counteraction of momentum of the marine vessel includes opposing or neutralizing linear and angular velocities caused by a previously applied backward propulsive force and moment.
Claim 9 recites analogous limitations to claim 1, above, and is therefore rejected on the same premise.
Claim 10 recites analogous limitations to claim 1, above, and is therefore rejected on the same premise.
Regarding claim 11, Derginer discloses a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing a program for causing a computer (Derginer ¶ [0027]: Each of the controller 24 and the PCMs 26a, 26b may include a memory 25a and a programmable processor 25b. As is conventional, the processor 25b is communicatively connected to the memory 25a comprising a computer-readable medium that includes volatile or nonvolatile memory upon which computer readable code is stored), which is mounted in a watercraft control device configured to operate an actuator (Derginer ¶ [0030]: The controller 24, in turn, sends signals to the PCMs 26a, 26b (and/or TVMs or additional modules if provided), which in turn activate steering actuators to achieve desired orientations of the propulsion devices 12a, 12b. The propulsion devices 12a, 12b are independently steerable about their steering axes; Derginer ¶ [0030]: The controller 24, in turn, sends signals to the PCMs 26a, 26b, which in turn activate electromechanical actuators in the transmissions 16a, 16b and engines 14a, 14b), the watercraft control device, the watercraft control device provided in a watercraft maneuvering system that comprises an actuator having a function of generating a propulsion force of a watercraft and a function of causing the watercraft to generate a moment (Derginer ¶ [0028]: the PCMs 26a, 26b may control the engines 14a, 14b and transmissions 16a, 16b of the propulsion devices 12a, 12b, while additional thrust vector modules (TVMs) may control their orientation; Derginer ¶ [0030]: sends signals to the PCMs 26a, 26b (and/or TVMs or additional modules if provided), which in turn activate steering actuators to achieve desired orientations of the propulsion devices 12a, 12b; Derginer ¶ [0030]: sends signals to the PCMs 26a, 26b, which in turn activate electromechanical actuators in the transmissions 16a, 16b and engines 14a, 14b) and an operation unit (Derginer ¶ [0031]: A manually operable input device, such as the joystick 30, can also be used to provide signals to the controller 24. The joystick 30 can be used to allow the operator of the vessel 10 to manually maneuver the vessel 10, such as to achieve translation or rotation of the vessel 10; Fig. 3) including a throttle operation unit that receives an input operation of generating a propulsion force of the watercraft (Derginer ¶ [0034]: The magnitude, or intensity, of movement represented by the position of the handle 44 is also provided as an output from the joystick 30. In other words, if the handle 44 is moved slightly toward one side or the other away from the neutral position (which is generally the centered and vertically upright position with respect to the base portion 42), the commanded thrust in that direction is less than if, alternatively, the handle 44 was moved by a greater magnitude away from its neutral position. Furthermore, rotation of the handle 44 about axis 48, as represented by arrow 54, provides a signal representing the intensity of desired movement. A slight rotation of the handle 44 about axis 48 would represent a command for a slight rotational thrust about a preselected point on the vessel 10. A greater magnitude rotation of the handle 44 about its axis 48 would represent a command for a higher magnitude of rotational thrust) and a steering unit that receives an input operation of causing the watercraft to generate a moment (Derginer ¶ [0034]: With continued reference to FIG. 3, it can be seen that the operator can demand a purely linear movement either toward port as represented by arrow 52 or starboard as represented by arrow 53, a purely linear movement in a forward direction as represented by arrow 50 or reverse direction as represented by arrow 51, or any combination of two of these directions. In other words, by moving the handle 44 along dashed line 56, a linear movement toward the right side and forward or toward the left side and rearward can be commanded. Similarly, a linear movement along line 58 could be commanded. It should be understood that the operator of the marine vessel can also request a combination of sideways or forward/reverse linear movement in combination with a rotation as represented by arrow 54. Any of these possibilities can be accomplished through use of the joystick 30, which communicates with the controller 24 and eventually with the PCMs 26a, 26b; Fig. 3), and receiving, as an input operation, an operation by a watercraft operator on the throttle operation unit or the steering unit (Derginer ¶ [0031]: A manually operable input device, such as the joystick 30, can also be used to provide signals to the controller 24. The joystick 30 can be used to allow the operator of the vessel 10 to manually maneuver the vessel 10, such as to achieve translation or rotation of the vessel 10), to execute:
operating the actuator in accordance with an input operation received by the throttle operation unit or steering unit (Derginer ¶ [0050]: the command model 72 may be a map of positions of the joystick to inertial velocity values, such as associating each possible position of the joystick to a target surge velocity, a target sway velocity, and/or a target yaw velocity. For example, the neutral, or centered, position in the joystick is associated with a zero inertial velocity); and
operating the actuator without any need for the operation unit to receive any additional input operation for causing the actuator to generate the propulsion force in an opposite direction to a direction of an inertial force occurring in the watercraft or causing the watercraft to generate the moment in an opposite direction to a direction of a moment of inertia occurring in the watercraft when the throttle operation unit or steering unit has received an input operation for stopping an operation of the actuator while the watercraft control device is operating the actuator (Derginer ¶ [0050]: Accordingly, when the position of the joystick is equal to the neutral, or centered, position, the steering command and the engine command are determined so as to maintain the marine vessel at its current position, including to counteract momentum of the marine vessel and/or the effects of any wind or current. Thus, during joystick mode the marine vessel 10 only moves in response to and in accordance with user input via the joystick). The examiner interprets an input for stopping an operation of the actuator to be setting the joystick to a neutral position following a time when the joystick was in a position that generates a propulsive force and/or a moment. Further, when the joystick is set to a neutral position the counteraction of momentum of the marine vessel includes opposing or neutralizing linear and/or angular velocities caused by a previously applied propulsive force and/or moment.
It is noted Derginer discloses a joystick or similar operation unit that includes a throttle operation unit and steering unit but fails to particularly disclose the steering unit including either a steering wheel or a steering handle.
However, Mizutani, in the same field of endeavor, teaches the steering unit including either a steering wheel or a steering handle (Mizutani ¶ [0036]: The operation devices 30a-30dof the watercraft 10 include direction controlling systems operated to adjust a traveling direction of the watercraft 10, such as the steering wheel 30a and the joystick 30b, and speed controlling systems, such as the accelerator 30c, arranged to adjust a traveling speed of the watercraft 10).
Further, Mizutani teaches determining a target movement change including speed, acceleration, angular speed, angular acceleration, attitude, moment, etc. of the watercraft, which may be a deviation between a traveling plan and a present traveling state (Mizutani ¶ [0052]). The target movement change is associated with a traveling state that is based on the positions of operation devices 30a-30d (Mizutani: Stop traveling state in Table 2). The stop state is determined by a closed accelerator position, neutral shift device, neutral steering wheel position, and neutral joystick position. When the system of Mizutani is in a non-stop traveling state the speed, acceleration, angular speed, angular acceleration, attitude, and/or moment of the watercraft would be greater than zero. Thus, when the traveling state transitions from a non-stop state to a stop state the target movement change would apply forces that counteract the speed, acceleration, angular speed, angular acceleration, attitude, and/or moment of the watercraft associated with the previous travel state.
Therefore, given the teachings as whole, it would have been prima facie obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the system and method for controlling low-speed propulsion of a marine vessel of Derginer to include the accelerator and steering wheel including the closed and neutral positions for determining a stopped travel state of Mizutani with a reasonable expectation of success. One of ordinary skill in the art could have replaced the joystick operations of Derginer with the accelerator and steering wheel operations of Mizutani with the predicted result of a system that counteracts the motion of a watercraft based on operations received from an accelerator and steering wheel instead of joystick operations. A person of ordinary skill in the art would be motivated to make this modification in order to make operation of watercraft more comfortable when precisely achieving a desired travel plan (Mizutani ¶ [0009])
Claim 2 is rejected under 35 103 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over US 20200140052 by Derginer et al. (hereafter "Derginer"), in view of US 20090076671 by Mizutani (hereafter "Mizutani"), further in view of US 20210166568 by Kersulec et al. (hereafter "Kersulec").
Regarding claim 2, the combination of Derginer and Mizutani fails to particularly disclose wherein the watercraft control device sets a period in which the actuator is operated for the at least one function of the actuator generating the propulsion force in the opposite direction to the direction of the inertial force occurring in the watercraft and causing the watercraft to generate the moment in the opposite direction to the direction of the moment of inertia occurring in the watercraft on the basis of an elapsed time from the time when the operation unit receives the input operation for stopping the operation of the actuator.
However, Kersulec, in the same field of endeavor, teaches wherein the watercraft control device sets a period in which the actuator is operated for the at least one function of the actuator generating the propulsion force in the opposite direction to the direction of the inertial force occurring in the watercraft and causing the watercraft to generate the moment in the opposite direction to the direction of the moment of inertia occurring in the watercraft on the basis of an elapsed time from the time when the throttle operation unit or the steering unit receives the input operation for stopping the operation of the actuator (Kersulec ¶ [0104]: By converting the thrust controller into a velocity controller, as described herein, embodiments allow a user to hover or halt mobile structure 101 simply by letting go of the joystick. In some embodiments, controller 130 may be configured to limit a linear and/or angular velocity generated by docking assist system 100 to a value that can be sufficiently counteracted to hover mobile structure 101 within a predefined period of time (e.g., 2-3 seconds)). The examiner interprets the predefined period of time to counteract a linear and/or angular velocity caused by a previously applied propulsive force and/or moment to be associated with an elapsed time since the operator let go of the joystick.
Therefore, given the teachings as whole, it would have been prima facie obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the system and method for controlling low-speed propulsion of a marine vessel of Derginer modified by the accelerator and steering wheel including the closed and neutral positions for determining a stopped travel state of Mizutani to further include the actuator operation for a set time period of Kersulec with a reasonable expectation of success. A person of ordinary skill in the art would be motivated to make this modification in order to more reliably and accurately provide assisted and/or full automated docking and/or directional control for mobile structures to improve collision avoidance and/or docking assistance (Kersulec ¶ [0019]).
Claim 4 is rejected under 35 103 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over US 20200140052 by Derginer et al. (hereafter "Derginer"), in view of US 20090076671 by Mizutani (hereafter "Mizutani"), further in view of US 10082788 by Dengel et al. (hereafter "Dengel").
Regarding claim 4, Derginer discloses wherein the watercraft maneuvering system includes the watercraft (Derginer: marine vessel 10 in Fig. 1),
wherein the watercraft includes the actuator (Derginer ¶ [0028]: the PCMs 26a, 26b may control the engines 14a, 14b and transmissions 16a, 16b of the propulsion devices 12a, 12b, while additional thrust vector modules (TVMs) may control their orientation; Derginer ¶ [0030]: sends signals to the PCMs 26a, 26b (and/or TVMs or additional modules if provided), which in turn activate steering actuators to achieve desired orientations of the propulsion devices 12a, 12b; Derginer ¶ [0030]: sends signals to the PCMs 26a, 26b, which in turn activate electromechanical actuators in the transmissions 16a, 16b and engines 14a, 14b) and the watercraft control device (Derginer ¶ [0030]: The controller 24, in turn, sends signals to the PCMs 26a, 26b (and/or TVMs or additional modules if provided), which in turn activate steering actuators to achieve desired orientations of the propulsion devices 12a, 12b. The propulsion devices 12a, 12b are independently steerable about their steering axes; Derginer ¶ [0030]: The controller 24, in turn, sends signals to the PCMs 26a, 26b, which in turn activate electromechanical actuators in the transmissions 16a, 16b and engines 14a, 14b),
wherein the input device includes the operation unit (Derginer ¶ [0031]: A manually operable input device, such as the joystick 30, can also be used to provide signals to the controller 24. The joystick 30 can be used to allow the operator of the vessel 10 to manually maneuver the vessel 10, such as to achieve translation or rotation of the vessel 10) that receives an input operation for moving the watercraft forward, an input operation for moving the watercraft backward, an input operation for turning the watercraft in place, an input operation for moving the watercraft forward and turning the watercraft, and an input operation for moving the watercraft backward and turning the watercraft (Derginer ¶ [0034]: With continued reference to FIG. 3, it can be seen that the operator can demand a purely linear movement either toward port as represented by arrow 52 or starboard as represented by arrow 53, a purely linear movement in a forward direction as represented by arrow 50 or reverse direction as represented by arrow 51, or any combination of two of these directions. In other words, by moving the handle 44 along dashed line 56, a linear movement toward the right side and forward or toward the left side and rearward can be commanded. Similarly, a linear movement along line 58 could be commanded. It should be understood that the operator of the marine vessel can also request a combination of sideways or forward/reverse linear movement in combination with a rotation as represented by arrow 54. Any of these possibilities can be accomplished through use of the joystick 30, which communicates with the controller 24 and eventually with the PCMs 26a, 26b; Fig. 3), and
wherein, when the operation unit of the input device has received the input operation for stopping the operation of the actuator while the watercraft control device is operating the actuator (Derginer ¶ [0050]: the command model 72 may be a map of positions of the joystick to inertial velocity values, such as associating each possible position of the joystick to a target surge velocity, a target sway velocity, and/or a target yaw velocity. For example, the neutral, or centered, position in the joystick is associated with a zero inertial velocity),
the watercraft control device operates the actuator without any need for the operation unit of the input device to receive any additional input operation for causing the actuator to generate the propulsion force in the opposite direction to the direction of the inertial force occurring in the watercraft or causing the watercraft to generate the moment in the opposite direction to the direction of the moment of inertia occurring in the watercraft (Derginer ¶ [0050]: Accordingly, when the position of the joystick is equal to the neutral, or centered, position, the steering command and the engine command are determined so as to maintain the marine vessel at its current position, including to counteract momentum of the marine vessel and/or the effects of any wind or current. Thus, during joystick mode the marine vessel 10 only moves in response to and in accordance with user input via the joystick). The examiner interprets an input for stopping an operation of the actuator to be setting the joystick to a neutral position following a time when the joystick was in a position that generates a propulsive force and/or a moment. Further, when the joystick is set to a neutral position the counteraction of momentum of the marine vessel includes opposing or neutralizing linear and/or angular velocities caused by a previously applied propulsive force and/or moment.
It is noted Derginer fails to particularly disclose an input device provided separately from the watercraft.
However, Dengel, in the same field of endeavor, teaches wherein the watercraft maneuvering system includes the watercraft (Dengel: marine vessel 82 in Fig. 6) and
an input device provided separately from the watercraft (Dengel col. 4 line 65 – col. 5 line 3: FIG. 2 illustrates one example of the joystick assembly 20 of the present disclosure. The joystick assembly 20 includes a docking station 32 configured to be coupled to a helm 80 of a marine vessel 82 (see FIG. 6). The joystick assembly 20 also includes a detachable base 34 configured to couple with the docking station 32),
wherein the watercraft includes the watercraft control device (Dengel col. 3 lines 20 - 22: The system 10 also includes a control module 14 in signal communication with the marine propulsion devices 12a, 12b),
wherein the input device includes the operation unit (Dengel col. 5 lines 3 - 7: A handle 36 is supported by the detachable base 34 and is movable with respect to the detachable base 34 to generate input signals, which the control module 14 uses to control steering and thrust of the propulsion devices 12a, 12b).
Therefore, given the teachings as whole, it would have been prima facie obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the system and method for controlling low-speed propulsion of a marine vessel of Derginer modified by the accelerator and steering wheel including the closed and neutral positions for determining a stopped travel state of Mizutani to further include the remote input device with operation unit of Dengel with a reasonable expectation of success. A person of ordinary skill in the art would be motivated to make this modification in order to allow a joystick for input control to be carried by the operator and issue commands while away from the helm (Dengel col. 6 lines 22 - 26).
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to the applicant’s disclosure:
US 20070089660 by Bradley et al. discloses a marine vessel positioning system with a station keeping function and joystick for maneuvering. The station keeping maintains the position of the marine vessel when the operator stops maneuvering with the joystick (Bradley ¶ [0080]).
Applicant's amendment necessitated the new ground(s) of rejection presented in this Office action. Accordingly, THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. See MPEP § 706.07(a). Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to NICHOLAS P LANGHORNE whose telephone number is (571)272-5670. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 8:30-5:30.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Anne Antonucci can be reached at (313) 446-6519. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/N.P.L./Examiner, Art Unit 3666
/ANNE MARIE ANTONUCCI/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3666