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 .
Examiner’s Note
For applicant’s benefit, portions of the cited reference(s) have been cited to aid in the review of the rejection(s). While every attempt has been made to be thorough and consistent within the rejection it is noted that the PRIOR ART MUST BE CONSIDERED IN ITS ENTIRETY, including disclosures that teach away from the claims. See MPEP 2141.02 VI.
“The use of patents as references is not limited to what the patentees describe as their own inventions or to the problems with which they are concerned. They are part of the literature of the art, relevant for all they contain.” In re Heck, 699 F.2d 1331, 1332-33, 216 USPQ 1038, 1039 (Fed. Cir. 1983) (quoting In re Lemelson, 397 F.2d 1006, 1009, 158 USPQ 275, 277 (CCPA 1968)). A reference may be relied upon for all that it would have reasonably suggested to one having ordinary skill in the art, including non-preferred embodiments. Merck & Co. v.Biocraft Laboratories, 874 F.2d 804, 10 USPQ2d 1843 (Fed. Cir.), cert. denied, 493 U.S. 975 (1989). See also Upsher-Smith Labs. v. Pamlab, LLC, 412 F.3d 1319, 1323, 75 USPQ2d 1213, 1215 (Fed. Cir. 2005) See MPEP 2123.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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 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) 1-3, 7, 12-14, and 16-17 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Winstead (US 2016/0223665 A1 cited in Applicant’s IDS “WINSTEAD”), in view of Tan et al. (US 2011/0078355 A1 “TAN”), and further in view of Ranney et al. (US 2021/0263132 A1 “RANNEY”).
Regarding claim 1, WINSTEAD discloses (Examiner’s note: What WINSTEAD does not disclose is ) a method comprising:
generating an output radio frequency (RF) signal (the radar system 300 includes a system timing and control controller 314, a transmitter 302 to transmit radar signals (such as signals 106) [0029])
communicating the output RF signal to an antenna module (the radar system 300 includes a system timing and control controller 314, a transmitter 302 to transmit radar signals (such as signals 106) [0029])
receiving a receiver 304 to receive return signals (such as signals 108) [0029]); (a digitizer 320 coupled to the receiver 304 provides for analog to digital conversion. The receiver 304 converts signals from their transmitted frequency down to an intermediate frequency (IF) [0029]),
and analyzing one or more values of the data representing the return RF signal to generate an altitude indication for a vehicle, a ground speed indication for the vehicle, or a combination thereof (provide information for the calculation of a velocity estimate by the radar altimeter system 300 [0032]); (the PMC 378 maintains the return signal received at receiver 304 at a sufficient signal strength by controlling the power level of the transmitted signal from the transmitter 302 such that velocity and altitude can be computed reliably [0041])
In a same or similar field of endeavor, TAN teaches that an array of input bits of a digital sample is received as a bit stream for processing [0077]. The physical layer may further include a serializer and deserializer [0136].
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system of WINSTEAD to include the teachings of TAN, because doing so would provide system robustness and support precise synchronization. In addition, both of the prior art references, WINSTEAD and TAN, teach features that are directed to analogous art and they are directed to the same field of endeavor, that is, radio frequency (RF) reception and transmission.
WINSTEAD, as modified by TAN, discloses the invention as set forth above, but does not disclose
In a same or similar field of endeavor, RANNEY teaches that the RF data includes both the direct-path RF signal transmitted from the transmitter and a reflected RF signal when the transmitted RF signal is reflected from the target. The RF data may be generally assumed to be the sum of the direct-path transmitted RF signal from the transmitter and the reflected RF signal from target [0036].
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system of WINSTEAD to include the teachings of RANNEY, because doing so would provide improvement for coherent processing and synchronization, as recognized by RANNEY. In addition, both of the prior art references, WINSTEAD and RANNEY, teach features that are directed to analogous art and they are directed to the same field of endeavor, that is, radio frequency system for object detection.
Regarding claim 2, WINSTEAD/ TAN/ RANNEY discloses the method of claim 1, wherein the altitude indication is based on a delay between the output RF signal and the return RF signal (the altitude adjustment serves to account for biases in the Doppler beam sharpened radar altimeter 300 that would result in incorrect altitude measurements. Values that can be adjusted to be compensated for include delays inherent to the receiver 304 or transmitter 302 (such as filter delays, pulse rise times, and the like) [WINSTEAD 0040]).
Regarding claim 3, WINSTEAD/ TAN/ RANNEY discloses the method of claim 1, wherein the ground speed indication is based on a Doppler shift between the output RF signal and the return RF signal (the maximum observed Doppler shift may then be used to compute a coarse estimate of velocity [WINSTEAD 0051]).
Regarding claim 7, WINSTEAD/ TAN/ RANNEY discloses the method of claim 1, further comprising generating a beamforming signal for transmission to the antenna module, wherein the beamforming signal comprises data indicative of a beamforming pattern, a beamforming sequence location, or a combination thereof (the Doppler beam sharpened radar altimeter system 300 shows a system for forming two separate Doppler beams. However, more Doppler beams may be formed from the received information [WINSTEAD 0029]); (the receiver 200 dynamically controls different Doppler beams to desired positions in frequency where it is expected that the reflected signals at those Doppler frequencies will support sufficiently accurate velocity estimation [WINSTEAD 0028]).
Regarding claim 12, WINSTEAD discloses a system comprising: one or more processors configured to:
generate an output radio frequency (RF) signal (the radar system 300 includes a system timing and control controller 314, a transmitter 302 to transmit radar signals (such as signals 106) [0029])
communicate the output RF signal to an antenna module (the radar system 300 includes a system timing and control controller 314, a transmitter 302 to transmit radar signals (such as signals 106) [0029])
receive a receiver 304 to receive return signals (such as signals 108) [0029]),
and analyze one or more values of the data representing the return RF signal to generate an altitude indication for a vehicle, a ground speed indication for the vehicle, or a combination thereof (provide information for the calculation of a velocity estimate by the radar altimeter system 300 [0032]); (the PMC 378 maintains the return signal received at receiver 304 at a sufficient signal strength by controlling the power level of the transmitted signal from the transmitter 302 such that velocity and altitude can be computed reliably [0041])
In a same or similar field of endeavor, TAN teaches that an array of input bits of a digital sample is received as a bit stream for processing [0077]. The physical layer may further include a serializer and deserializer [0136].
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system of WINSTEAD to include the teachings of TAN, because doing so would provide system robustness and support precise synchronization.
WINSTEAD, as modified by TAN, discloses the invention as set forth above, but does not disclose
In a same or similar field of endeavor, RANNEY teaches that the RF data includes both the direct-path RF signal transmitted from the transmitter and a reflected RF signal when the transmitted RF signal is reflected from the target. The RF data may be generally assumed to be the sum of the direct-path transmitted RF signal from the transmitter and the reflected RF signal from target [0036].
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system of WINSTEAD to include the teachings of RANNEY, because doing so would provide improvement for coherent processing and synchronization, as recognized by RANNEY.
Regarding claim 13, WINSTEAD/ TAN/ RANNEY discloses the system of claim 12, wherein the altitude indication is based on a delay between the output RF signal and the return RF signal (the altitude adjustment serves to account for biases in the Doppler beam sharpened radar altimeter 300 that would result in incorrect altitude measurements. Values that can be adjusted to be compensated for include delays inherent to the receiver 304 or transmitter 302 (such as filter delays, pulse rise times, and the like) [WINSTEAD 0040]).
Regarding claim 14, WINSTEAD/ TAN/ RANNEY discloses the system of claim 12, wherein the ground speed indication is based on a Doppler shift between the output RF signal and the return RF signal (the maximum observed Doppler shift may then be used to compute a coarse estimate of velocity [WINSTEAD 0051]).
Regarding claim 16, WINSTEAD/ TAN/ RANNEY discloses the system of claim 12, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to generate a beamforming signal for transmission to the antenna module, and wherein the beamforming signal comprises data indicative of a beamforming pattern, a beamforming sequence location, or a combination thereof (the Doppler beam sharpened radar altimeter system 300 shows a system for forming two separate Doppler beams. However, more Doppler beams may be formed from the received information [WINSTEAD 0029]); (the receiver 200 dynamically controls different Doppler beams to desired positions in frequency where it is expected that the reflected signals at those Doppler frequencies will support sufficiently accurate velocity estimation [WINSTEAD 0028]).
Regarding claim 17, WINSTEAD discloses a non-transitory, computer-readable medium comprising instructions that, when executed by one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to perform operations (the processors 376 and 378 [0036]) including:
generating an output radio frequency (RF) signal (the radar system 300 includes a system timing and control controller 314, a transmitter 302 to transmit radar signals (such as signals 106) [0029])
communicating the output RF signal to an antenna module (the radar system 300 includes a system timing and control controller 314, a transmitter 302 to transmit radar signals (such as signals 106) [0029])
receiving a receiver 304 to receive return signals (such as signals 108) [0029]),
and analyzing one or more values of the data representing the return RF signal to generate an altitude indication for a vehicle, a ground speed indication for the vehicle, or a combination thereof (provide information for the calculation of a velocity estimate by the radar altimeter system 300 [0032]); (the PMC 378 maintains the return signal received at receiver 304 at a sufficient signal strength by controlling the power level of the transmitted signal from the transmitter 302 such that velocity and altitude can be computed reliably [0041])
In a same or similar field of endeavor, TAN teaches that an array of input bits of a digital sample is received as a bit stream for processing [0077]. The physical layer may further include a serializer and deserializer [0136].
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system of WINSTEAD to include the teachings of TAN, because doing so would provide system robustness and support precise synchronization.
WINSTEAD, as modified by TAN, discloses the invention as set forth above, but does not disclose
In a same or similar field of endeavor, RANNEY teaches that the RF data includes both the direct-path RF signal transmitted from the transmitter and a reflected RF signal when the transmitted RF signal is reflected from the target. The RF data may be generally assumed to be the sum of the direct-path transmitted RF signal from the transmitter and the reflected RF signal from target [0036].
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system of WINSTEAD to include the teachings of RANNEY, because doing so would provide improvement for coherent processing and synchronization, as recognized by RANNEY.
Claim(s) 4 and 15 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over WINSTEAD, in view of TAN and RANNEY, and further in view of Andersson (US 2011/0006940 A1 “ANDERSSON”).
Regarding claim 4, WINSTEAD/ TAN/ RANNEY discloses the method of claim 1,
In a same or similar field of endeavor, ANDERSSON teaches that the transmitted radar signal is compared with the received reflected radar signal, or in other words, the structure/appearance of the transmitted code sequence is compared with the structure/appearance of the interpretation of the received reflected radar signal [0033]. A correlator comprised in the detection device 1 compares all bits of the transmitted code sequence with the corresponding parts of the interpretation of the received reflected radar signal, and reports in a correlation result how many bits that are in agreement [0034].
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system of WINSTEAD to include the teachings of ANDERSSON, because doing so would improve object detection and enable monitoring of the object, as recognized by ANDERSSON. In addition, both of the prior art references, WINSTEAD and ANDERSSON, teach features that are directed to analogous art and they are directed to the same field of endeavor, that is, radio frequency system for object detection.
Regarding claim 15, WINSTEAD/ TAN/ RANNEY discloses the system of claim 12,
In a same or similar field of endeavor, ANDERSSON teaches that the transmitted radar signal is compared with the received reflected radar signal, or in other words, the structure/appearance of the transmitted code sequence is compared with the structure/appearance of the interpretation of the received reflected radar signal [0033]. A correlator comprised in the detection device 1 compares all bits of the transmitted code sequence with the corresponding parts of the interpretation of the received reflected radar signal, and reports in a correlation result how many bits that are in agreement [0034].
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system of WINSTEAD to include the teachings of ANDERSSON, because doing so would improve object detection and enable monitoring of the object, as recognized by ANDERSSON.
Claim(s) 5, 8-11, and 19 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over WINSTEAD, in view of TAN and RANNEY, and further in view of Corman et al. (US 2010/0259446 A1 “CORMAN”).
Regarding claim 5, WINSTEAD/ TAN/ RANNEY discloses the method of claim 1,
In a same or similar field of endeavor, CORMAN teaches that the antenna system is applicable to all frequency bands, including X, K, Ku, Ka, and Q bands. In an exemplary embodiment, the antenna system operates over specific frequency ranges, such as 2-20 GHz, 20-40 GHz, or 30-45 GHz [0050].
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system of WINSTEAD to include the teachings of CORMAN, because doing so would increase bandwidth, as recognized by CORMAN. Furthermore, doing so would enable precise altitude determination and provide better object separation. In addition, both of the prior art references, WINSTEAD and CORMAN, teach features that are directed to analogous art and they are directed to the same field of endeavor, that is, radio frequency beamforming.
Regarding claim 8, WINSTEAD/ TAN/ RANNEY discloses the method of claim 7,
In a same or similar field of endeavor, CORMAN teaches that a Butler matrix is a type of fixed beam forming network, in which each RF input into the matrix is connected to a unique beam output which is fixed in space [0027].
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system of WINSTEAD to include the teachings of CORMAN because doing so would enable transmitting signals from different frequency bands simultaneously, as recognized by CORMAN.
Regarding claim 9, WINSTEAD/ TAN/ RANNEY/ CORMAN discloses the method of claim 8, wherein the preconfigured beamforming network configuration is established according to a two-dimensional Butler matrix (a Butler matrix is a type of fixed beam forming network, in which each RF input into the matrix is connected to a unique beam output which is fixed in space [CORMAN 0027], cited and incorporated in the rejection of claim 8).
Regarding claim 10, WINSTEAD/ TAN/ RANNEY discloses the method of claim 7,
In a same or similar field of endeavor, CORMAN teaches that a Butler matrix is a type of fixed beam forming network, in which each RF input into the matrix is connected to a unique beam output which is fixed in space. An active Butler matrix comprises multiple vector generators and multiple active hybrids [0027].
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system of WINSTEAD to include the teachings of CORMAN because doing so would enable transmitting signals from different frequency bands simultaneously, as recognized by CORMAN.
Regarding claim 11, WINSTEAD/ TAN/ RANNEY/ CORMAN discloses the method of claim 10, wherein the beamforming pattern is based on an altitude of the vehicle, a speed of the vehicle, an attitude of the vehicle, a global positioning system denied (GPS-denied) status of the vehicle, or a combination thereof (Doppler beams may be formed from the received information [WINSTEAD 0029]); (the radar altimeter may adjust the characteristics such as center frequency and bandwidth of the different Doppler filters based on the calculated velocity provided by the measurements of the different Doppler beams [WINSTEAD 0068]); (the Doppler filters 206 adjust the filters that are used to form the different Doppler beams [WINSTEAD 0027]).
Regarding claim 19, WINSTEAD/ TAN/ RANNEY discloses the non-transitory, computer-readable medium of claim 17,
In a same or similar field of endeavor, CORMAN teaches that the antenna system is applicable to all frequency bands, including X, K, Ku, Ka, and Q bands. In an exemplary embodiment, the antenna system operates over specific frequency ranges, such as 2-20 GHz, 20-40 GHz, or 30-45 GHz [0050].
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system of WINSTEAD to include the teachings of CORMAN, because doing so would increase bandwidth, as recognized by CORMAN. Furthermore, doing so would enable precise altitude determination and provide better object separation.
Claim(s) 6 and 20 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over WINSTEAD, in view of TAN and RANNEYY, and further in view of Longstaff (US 2011/0279669 A1 “LONGSTAFF”).
Regarding claim 6, WINSTEAD/ TAN/ RANNEY discloses the method of claim 1,
In a same or similar field of endeavor, LONGSTAFF teaches transmitting from each element in turn (time division multiplexing), or by simultaneously transmitting separable code sequences from each element (code division multiplexing), or by simultaneously transmitting differing frequency sequences (for instance orthogonal frequency division multiplexing). The code sequences required for signal separability can also serve the need for pulse compression [0034]. The plurality of coded signals are transmitted in accordance with a frequency division multiplexing (FDM) scheme, including OFDM [claim 7].
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system of WINSTEAD to include the teachings of LONGSTAFF, because doing so would achieve formation of multiple beams under MIMO processing where each receiver element is able to separate the return signals in order to match them to the corresponding signals transmitted from each transmitter element, as recognized by LONGSTAFF. In addition, both of the prior art references, WINSTEAD and LONGSTAFF, teach features that are directed to analogous art and they are directed to the same field of endeavor, that is, radio frequency system utilized for target object detection.
Regarding claim 20, WINSTEAD/ TAN/ RANNEY discloses the non-transitory, computer-readable medium of claim 17,
In a same or similar field of endeavor, LONGSTAFF teaches transmitting from each element in turn (time division multiplexing), or by simultaneously transmitting separable code sequences from each element (code division multiplexing), or by simultaneously transmitting differing frequency sequences (for instance orthogonal frequency division multiplexing). The code sequences required for signal separability can also serve the need for pulse compression [0034]. The plurality of coded signals are transmitted in accordance with a frequency division multiplexing (FDM) scheme, including OFDM [claim 7].
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system of WINSTEAD to include the teachings of LONGSTAFF, because doing so would achieve formation of multiple beams under MIMO processing where each receiver element is able to separate the return signals in order to match them to the corresponding signals transmitted from each transmitter element, as recognized by LONGSTAFF.
Claim(s) 18 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over WINSTEAD, in view of TAN and RANNEY, and further in view of Ferry (US 2003/0189974 A1 “FERRY”).
Regarding claim 18, WINSTEAD/ RANNEY/ TAN discloses the non-transitory, computer-readable medium of claim 17, (the physical layer may further include a serializer and deserializer [TAN 0136], cited and incorporated in the rejection of claim 17).
In a same or similar field of endeavor, FERRY teaches that along the receive path, modems 110A, 110B are configured to demodulate signals processed by transceivers 115A, 115B into baseband data signals [0024].
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system of WINSTEAD to include the teachings of FERRY, because doing so would enable accurate signal reconstruction and improve precise signal processing. In addition, both of the prior art references, WINSTEAD and FERRY, teach features that are directed to analogous art and they are directed to the same field of endeavor, that is, system that transmits/receives within radio-frequency band.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Capraro et al. (US 2018/0074185A1) is considered pertinent art for the disclosure of systems and methods for radar detection, and specifically the details of radar system including an RF assembly configured to convert incident RF signals reflected from an operating environment into a plurality of digital signals.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to HAILEY R LE whose telephone number is (571)272-4910. The examiner can normally be reached 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM EST.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, WILLIAM J KELLEHER can be reached at (571) 272-7753. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/Hailey R Le/Examiner, Art Unit 3648 April 20, 2026