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 .
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 3, 4, 15, and 19-20 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.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
The text of those sections of Title 35, U.S. Code not included in this action can be found in a prior Office action.
Claims 1, 7, 9, 12, and 16 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Hough et al. (US Pub No. 2018/0096554) and Douer (US Pub No. 2019/0166874).
Regarding claim 1, Hough teaches a connected frozen beverage machine, comprising:
At least one sensor adapted to produce a signal including at least a power signal (See [0027]) and low product signal when a product in the hopper is below a specified level ([0053]);
a receiver for the signal and a communication component for sending the signal to a central system (See Fig. 1, -150, [0012] and [0017]).
Hough does not teach a beverage dispenser comprising at least one hopper and a cooling system, cooling signal when the cooling system is running, and a power signal.
Douer teaches a frozen beverage dispenser (See abstract) comprising at least one hopper and a cooling system ([0111] and [0050]), cooling signal when the cooling system is running ([0119]), and a power signal (abstract and [0087]).
One of ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was filed would have been motivated to modify Hough’s machine to include Douer’s to provide an easy and economical solution for repairing the machine. Therefore, the invention as a whole would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was made.
Regarding claim 7, Hough teaches at least one of the plurality of signals is used to estimate the amount of a product being dispensed by the beverage dispenser (See [0037]).
Regarding claim 12, Hough does not teach a beverage dispenser comprising at least one hopper and a cooling system.
Douer teaches a frozen beverage dispenser (See abstract) comprising at least one hopper and a cooling system ([0111] and [0050]).
Regarding claims 9 and 16, Hough teaches a food service equipment remote monitoring system (See abstract), comprising:
food service equipment products, comprising a plurality of sensors adapted to produce a plurality of signals (See [0019] and [0053]); and
a receiver for the of signal (See Fig. 1 -150, [0011], and [0017]);
a communication component for sending the signal to a central system (See [0030], [0037], [0062], and [0071]);
wherein the central system is adapted and configured to receive the plurality of signals
and generate alerts based on the signals (See [0053]).
Douer teaches a plurality of food service products (See abstract).
Claim 10 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Hough as applied to claim 9 above, and further in view of Taylor (US pub No. 2018/0007453).
Regarding claim 10, Hough does not teach calculating throughput.
Taylor teaches calculating throughput for a product (See [0032]).
One of ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was filed would have been motivated to modify Hough’s system to include Taylor’s calculation to provide data that allows for more placement of products which the consumer prefers and to ensure freshness of products. Therefore, the invention as a whole would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was made.
Claims 2, 13, 14, 17, and 18 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Hough as applied to claim 9 above, and further in view of Weldy (US Pub No. 2017/0049127).
Regarding claims 2, 13, and 17, Hough does not teach a cooling system sensor.
Weldy teaches a cooling system sensor that activates when the cooling system is running (See [0021]).
One of ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was filed would have been motivated to modify Hough’s system to include Weldy’s temperature sensor in order to reduce waste. Therefore, the invention as a whole would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was made.
Regarding claims 14 and 18, Hough does not teach a cooling system sensor.
Weldy teaches a sensor placed on a cooling system component (See [0021]).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to THOMAS S MCCORMACK whose telephone number is (571)272-0841. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Friday 8:30 AM - 5:00 PM.
Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Brian Zimmerman can be reached at (571) 272-3059. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000.
/THOMAS S MCCORMACK/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2686