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.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 04/08/2024 was filed. The submission is in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner.
Drawings
The drawings are objected to under 37 CFR 1.83(a). The drawings must show every feature of the invention specified in the claims. Therefore, the "at least one work device" and "at least one external supply unit" both being arranged on "the powered carriage" must be shown or the feature(s) canceled from the claim(s). No new matter should be entered.
Corrected drawing sheets in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(d) are required in reply to the Office action to avoid abandonment of the application. Any amended replacement drawing sheet should include all of the figures appearing on the immediate prior version of the sheet, even if only one figure is being amended. The figure or figure number of an amended drawing should not be labeled as “amended.” If a drawing figure is to be canceled, the appropriate figure must be removed from the replacement sheet, and where necessary, the remaining figures must be renumbered and appropriate changes made to the brief description of the several views of the drawings for consistency. Additional replacement sheets may be necessary to show the renumbering of the remaining figures. Each drawing sheet submitted after the filing date of an application must be labeled in the top margin as either “Replacement Sheet” or “New Sheet” pursuant to 37 CFR 1.121(d). If the changes are not accepted by the examiner, the applicant will be notified and informed of any required corrective action in the next Office action. The objection to the drawings will not be held in abeyance.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of 35 U.S.C. 112(a):
(a) IN GENERAL.—The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor or joint inventor of carrying out the invention.
The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112:
The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor of carrying out his invention.
Claims 1, 9 and 16 rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(a) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), first paragraph, as failing to comply with the written description requirement. The claim(s) contains subject matter which was not described in the specification in such a way as to reasonably convey to one skilled in the relevant art that the inventor or a joint inventor, or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the inventor(s), at the time the application was filed, had possession of the claimed invention. The claims state the "at least one work device" and "at .
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b):
(b) CONCLUSION.—The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph:
The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention.
Claims 1, 9 and 16 rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention.
Claims 1, 9 and 16 rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being incomplete for omitting essential elements, such omission amounting to a gap between the elements. See MPEP § 2172.01. The omitted elements are: The claims, specification and drawings fail to teach how the relative movement between the at least one work device and the at least one external supply unit are controlled. It appears that if the two elements are attached to the same carriage, then there would be no movement without a device to move one of the elements.
Claim 16 recites the limitation "the at least one work device", "the at least one external supply unit", "the at least one branched or unbranched connection" in the second and third paragraphs. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(d):
(d) REFERENCE IN DEPENDENT FORMS.—Subject to subsection (e), a claim in dependent form shall contain a reference to a claim previously set forth and then specify a further limitation of the subject matter claimed. A claim in dependent form shall be construed to incorporate by reference all the limitations of the claim to which it refers.
The following is a quotation of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, fourth paragraph:
Subject to the following paragraph [i.e., the fifth paragraph of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112], a claim in dependent form shall contain a reference to a claim previously set forth and then specify a further limitation of the subject matter claimed. A claim in dependent form shall be construed to incorporate by reference all the limitations of the claim to which it refers.
Claim 11 rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(d) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, 4th paragraph, as being of improper dependent form for failing to further limit the subject matter of the claim upon which it depends, or for failing to include all the limitations of the claim upon which it depends. Claim 9 states that the "at least one work device" and the "at least one external supply unit" are arranged on the powered carriage. Claim 11 fails to further limit the method according to claim 9. Applicant may cancel the claim(s), amend the claim(s) to place the claim(s) in proper dependent form, rewrite the claim(s) in independent form, or present a sufficient showing that the dependent claim(s) complies with the statutory requirements.
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 and 6-16 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Neander (US 2017/0163073 A1) in view of Sopko (US 2022/0024324 A1).
Regarding Claim 1, Neander teaches a mining or construction equipment comprising at least one work device arranged on a powered carriage (see Neander fig 2 element 4, 14, 32, para 72-73, the wheels 14 and the attachment mechanism 32 can be considered work devices as these devices perform work), and at least one external supply unit arranged on the powered carriage (see Neander fig 1-2 elements 12, para 65, 72), wherein said at least one external supply unit that comprises the following components: at least one electrical energy storage device that is configured to supply energy to the at least one work device (see Neander fig 1-2 element 12, para 68-69, 71), at least one branched or unbranched connection that is configured to connect at least one of the components arranged on the at least one external supply unit to the at least one work device (see Neander fig 1, and para 67-69), wherein the at least one external supply unit comprises at least one control unit configured to control a relative movement between the external supply unit and the work device (see Neander fig 1 element 10, para 67-70).
Neander is silent on teaching at least one converter that is configured to convert electrical energy from an external electricity supply to electrical energy for the at least one work device, and to supply the energy to the at least one work device.
However, Sopko teaches a construction vehicle which uses a power inverter or power converter to convert the DC voltage from the batteries to the power requirements of a drive motor (see Sopko fig 2 element 210, 220, fig 6 elements 220 and 624 and para 29, 32-33).
It would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the teachings of Neander to include the power conversion components from Sopko to provide the correct voltage to the work devices.
Regarding Claim 2, the combination of Neander and Sopko teaches the mining or construction equipment according to claim 1, wherein the at least one electrical energy storage device comprises at least one of: a battery, a re-chargeable battery, a fuel cell, a capacitor (see Neander para 66-67).
Regarding Claim 3, the combination of Neander and Sopko teaches the mining or construction equipment according to claim 1, wherein the at least one external supply unit also comprises at least one electric and/or hydraulic and/or pneumatic and/or mechanical component, such as at least one of: an electric motor, an electric generator, a compressor, a pump, one or more valves, cooling system, a transformer, an electronic filter, an electric or electronic circuit, a sensor (see Neander fig 2 element 8, para 70, the navigation device 8 which is stated being a camera, ultrasound, infrared or a laser navigation system are forms of sensors), a GPS monitor, a cable or pipe reel winder, a junction box, mechanical connection means (see Neander fig 2 element 24, para 73).
Regarding Claim 6, the combination of Neander and Sopko teaches the mining or construction equipment according to claim 1, wherein the at least one work device comprises at least one re-chargeable on- board energy storage device (see Neander fig 1 element 18, and para 67, the propulsion system may have an onboard battery used to move the wheels), But Neander is silent on teaching the at least one component that is arranged on the at least one external supply unit is configured to supply energy to the at least one re- chargeable on-board energy storage device to recharge it.
However, Sopko teaches the use of a DC/DC converter to supply power to the DC batteries (see Sopko para 51, 53).
It would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the teachings of Neander to include the use of a DC/DC converter from Sopko to charge the on board batteries, thus allowing the batteries to be charged from different sources.
Regarding Claim 7, the combination of Neander and Sopko teaches the mining or construction equipment according to claim 1, comprises the at least one control unit configured to monitor and/or control at least one of: an extension or location of the at least one branched or unbranched connection, a supply of energy to the at least one work device and/or the at least one external supply unit, an amount of electrical energy stored in the at least one electrical energy storage device arranged on the at least one external supply unit (see Neander para 68, “The control unit 10 is configured to communicate with the energy storage unit 12 in order to obtain a level of energy of the energy storage unit 12.”), an amount of energy stored in the at least one re-chargeable on-board energy storage device of the at least one work device, and at least one work task performed by the at least one work device (see Neander para 70 “The control unit 10 is further arranged to control and steer the propulsion system 6 so that the energy storage robot 1 can drive and move autonomously”, The control unit 10 controls the work being performed by the wheels).
Regarding Claim 8, the combination of Neander and Sopko teaches the mining or construction equipment according to claim 1, wherein the at least one work device comprises at least one of: a rock drilling, cutting, loading or hauling device, a drill rig, such as a face, surface, or well drill rig, an oil and gas drill rig, a rotary blasthole drill rig, an underground ventilation system device, an excavator, and a materials handling device (see Neander para 74-75, “Alternatively the means 34 for lifting and attaching the battery robot 1′ to the electric underground equipment 7 may be used to lift tools and spare parts into and out of the container.”).
Regarding Claim 9, Neander teaches a method for supplying energy to mining or construction equipment comprising at least one work device arranged on a powered carriage (see Neander fig 2 element 4, 14, 32, para 72-73, the wheels 14 and the attachment mechanism 32 can be considered work devices as these devices perform work) and at least one external supply unit arranged on the powered carriage (see Neander fig 1-2 elements 12, para 65, 72), the method comprises: providing at least one external supply unit comprising the following components: at least one electrical energy storage device, such as at least one of: a battery, a re- chargeable battery, a fuel cell (see Neander para 66-67), that is configured to supply energy to the at least one work device (see Neander fig 1-2 element 12, para 68-69, 71), providing at least one branched or unbranched connection and connecting at least one of the components to the at least one work device(see Neander fig 1, and para 67-69), wherein the at least one external supply unit comprises at least one control unit configured to control a relative movement between the external supply unit and the work device (see Neander fig 1 element 10, para 67-70).
Neander is silent on teaching at least one converter that is configured to convert electrical energy from an external electricity supply to electrical energy for the at least one work device, and to supply the energy to the at least one work device.
However, Sopko teaches a construction vehicle which uses a power inverter or power converter to convert the DC voltage from the batteries to the power requirements of a drive motor (see Sopko fig 2 element 210, 220, fig 6 elements 220 and 624 and para 29, 32-33).
It would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the teachings of Neander to include the power conversion components from Sopko to provide the correct voltage to the work devices, thus allowing the system to accept power from different power sources.
Regarding Claim 10, the combination of Neander and Sopko teaches the method according to claim 9, wherein the method comprises the step of providing the at least one external supply unit with at least one electric and/or hydraulic and/or pneumatic and/or mechanical component, such as at least one of: an electric motor, an electric generator, a compressor, a pump, one or more valves, cooling system, a transformer, an electronic filter, an electric or electronic circuit, a sensor (see Neander fig 2 element 8, para 70, the navigation device 8 which is stated being a camera, ultrasound, infrared or a laser navigation system are forms of sensors), a GPS monitor, a cable or pipe reel winder, a junction box, mechanical connection means (see Neander fig 2 element 24, para 73).
Regarding Claim 11, the combination of Neander and Sopko teaches the method according to claim 9, wherein the method comprises the step of arranging the at least one work device and/or the at least one external supply unit on at least one powered or unpowered carriage (see Neander fig 1-2 elements 12, 14, 32-37, and para 65, 72-73).
Regarding Claim 12, the combination of Neander and Sopko teaches the method according to claim 11, wherein the method comprises the step of mechanically, magnetically, or electromagnetically connecting the at least one external supply unit to the at least one work device (see Neander fig 1-2, and para 65, 69, 72-75, the energy storage unit 12 is mechanically mounted on the main body 4 along with the propulsion system 6.).
Regarding Claim 13, the combination of Neander and Sopko teaches the method according to claim 9, wherein the method comprises the step of providing the at least one work device with at least one re- chargeable on-board energy storage device (see Neander fig 1-2 element 18, and para 67, the propulsion system 6 may comprise a battery 18 that is used to power the components of the robot 1.), and supplying energy from the at least one component arranged on the at least one external supply unit to the at least one re- chargeable on-board energy storage device to recharge it.
Neander is silent on teaching at least one converter that is configured to convert electrical energy from an external electricity supply to electrical energy for the at least one work device, and to supply the energy to the at least one work device.
However, Sopko teaches a construction vehicle which uses a power inverter or power converter to convert the DC voltage from the batteries to the power requirements of a drive motor (see Sopko fig 2 element 210, 220, fig 6 elements 220 and 624 and para 29, 32-33).
It would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the teachings of Neander to include the power conversion components from Sopko to provide the correct voltage to the work devices.
Regarding Claim 14, the combination of Neander and Sopko teaches the method according to claim 13, wherein the method comprises the step of recharging the at least one re-chargeable on-board energy storage device before and/or during and/or after the use of the at least one work device (see Neander para 43, 51, when the batteries are low on energy the battery robot navigates to charging station to charge its batteries.).
Regarding Claim 15, the combination of Neander and Sopko teaches the method according to claim 9, wherein the method comprises the step of providing the at least one control unit and monitoring and/or controlling at least one of: an amount of energy stored in the at least one electrical energy storage device that is arranged on the at least one external supply unit (see Neander para 68, “The control unit 10 is configured to communicate with the energy storage unit 12 in order to obtain a level of energy of the energy storage unit 12.”), at least one work task performed by the at least one work device (see Neander para 70).
Regarding Claim 16, Neander teaches a robotic battery vehicle which uses a control unit 10 to monitor and/or control at least one of: a relative movement between the at least one work device arranged on a powered carriage (see Neander fig 2 element 4, 14, 32, para 72-73, the wheels 14 and the attachment mechanism 32 can be considered work devices as these devices perform work), and the at least one external supply unit arranged on the powered carriage (see Neander fig 1-2 elements 12, para 65, 72), an amount of energy stored in the at least one electrical energy storage device that is arranged on the at least one external supply unit (see Neander para 68), at least one work task performed by the at least one work device.
But, Neander is silent on teaching a non-transitory computer readable medium storing thereon a computer program for mining or construction equipment, the computer program comprises computer program code arranged to cause a computer or a processor.
However, Sopko teaches a construction vehicle which a non-transitory computer readable medium storing thereon a computer program for mining or construction equipment, the computer program comprises computer program code arranged to cause a computer or a processor to perform desired tasks (see Sopko para 69,77).
It would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the teachings of Neander to include the teachings from Sopko to teach the use of computer programming to control the components connected to the controller, thus allowing the instructions to be modified or update with a change of the computer code.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JOSHUA J SWEET whose telephone number is (571)272-6776. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 7:30 - 4:30.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Rexford Barnie can be reached at (571) 272-7492. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/JOSHUA JAMES SWEET/Examiner, Art Unit 2836
/REXFORD N BARNIE/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2836