DETAILED ACTION
The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
An amendment was filed by applicant on 12/17/2025.
Claims 1, 3, 9, 11 and 15 are amended.
Claim 21 is new.
5. Claims 1-21 are remaining in the application.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
6. 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.
7. As best understood by the examiner, claims 9 and 11 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by D1: US 10611447 B2 (Gasparoni et al.). Regarding claim 9, D1 discloses: an underwater vehicle [102] comprising: a vehicle body extending between a proximal end and a distal end; an interior defined in the vehicle body; a power distribution system housed in the interior of the vehicle body; and a power system [312] of the power distribution system, the power system disposed in a pressure vessel [309] in the interior. A power source (battery or energy reserve) [312] is housed in payload bays (one or more watertight containers) [309] of the interior (see col. 7, lines 15-16). For claim 11, the power distribution system provides power to a propulsion system [302, 310].
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
8. 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.
As best understood by the examiner, claims 1-21 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over D1: US 10611447 B2 (Gasparoni et al.). D1 discloses: An underwater vehicle [102] comprising: a vehicle body enclosed by a fairing (hull), the vehicle body extending between a proximal end and a distal end and defining an interior; a power distribution system housed in the interior of the vehicle body; a first power system [312] of the power distribution system, the first power system [312] disposed in a first pressure vessel in the interior; and a second power system [312] of the power distribution system, the second power system [312] disposed in a second pressure vessel in the interior. First and second power systems are energy reserves (which can be more than one battery) [312] which can be housed in one or more watertight containers [309] preferably made of titanium and capable of tolerating high pressures (see col. 7, lines 15-18); therefore, more than one energy reserves (battery [312]) can be provided in more than one pressure vessel [309] including at least one energy reserve [312] in each of more than one pressure vessel [309], as would have been recognized by one of ordinary skill in the art. A power source (battery or energy reserve) [312] is housed in payload bays (one or more watertight containers) [309] of the interior (see col. 7, lines 15-16). Each pressure vessel of multiple pressure vessels would have been considered isolated (separated) from each other, as would have been recognized by one of ordinary skill in the art. The particular location chosen for each pressure vessel, and first and second power systems, would have been a matter of preference to facilitate balance and equipment arrangement, as would have been recognized by one of ordinary skill in the art. The power distribution system provides power to a propulsion system [302, 310]. The particular assignment of the power distribution system to any of a plurality of energy source would have been a matter of preference to suit powering needs, as would have been recognized by one of ordinary skill in the art. Using a known electrical distribution bus, or busbar, to distribute electrical power to multiple circuits and devices for the underwater vehicle for any of the first and second power system would have been a matter of preference to facilitate distribution of power, as would have been recognized by one of ordinary skill in the art. The particular voltage assigned to each power system would have been considered a matter of preference to effectively power selected systems, as would have been recognized by one of ordinary skill in the art. D1 does not explicitly disclose a frame; however, providing a frame or similar structure to support internal components and the fairing (hull) would have been considered obvious to facilitate positioning and arrangement of equipment and components withing the underwater vehicle, as would have been recognized by one of ordinary skill in the art. Therefore, it would have been considered obvious 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 to provide such features to facilitate sufficient and redundant power and energy reserves for the vehicle as desired with a reasonable expectation of success, as would have been recognized by one of ordinary skill in the art. The rejection combines known features to achieve expected results; no unknown features or unexpected results are achieved for the claimed subject matter.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to claim(s) have been fully considered but are essentially moot due to applicant’s amended claims and the resulting new and/or modified grounds of rejection presented in this Final Office Action. Nevertheless, applicant’s specific comments are considered addressed in the body of the modified rejections presented herewith.
Conclusion
11. THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. 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.
12. Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to DANIEL V VENNE whose telephone number is (571) 272-7947. The examiner can normally be reached between M-F, 7am-3:30pm Flex. If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Samuel J. Morano can be reached on (571) 272-6684. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300. Information regarding the status of an application may be obtained from the Patent Application Information Retrieval (PAIR) system. Status information for published applications may be obtained from either Private PAIR or Public PAIR. Status information for unpublished applications is available through Private PAIR only. For more information about the PAIR system, see http://pair-direct.uspto.gov. Should you have questions on access to the Private PAIR system, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free).
13. If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative or access to the automated information system, call 800-786-9199 (USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000.
/Daniel V Venne/
Senior Examiner, Art Unit 3615
01/06/2026