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 .
DETAILED ACTION
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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.
Claim(s) 1, 3, 6 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102a1 as being anticipated by Aoki US20050216231.
Aoki discloses for claim 1, “A magnetic field generation module (third embodiment 0214; figs 32-40C) comprising:
a main core (top position and posture detecting substrate 60; fig 36; 0215, 0251-0258 describes the mobility of the movable arm);
at least one auxiliary core (bottom position and posture detecting substrate 60; fig 36) located at a periphery of the main core; and
an auxiliary core driving part (0253 describes motors for moving the movable arm 190; fig 36) for moving the auxiliary core along a circumference of the main core about a center axis of the main core (0251 describes the multiple degree of freedom of the movable arm, which includes a circumferential movement of one core about the other)”.
Aoki discloses for claim 3, “The magnetic field generation module of claim 1, further comprising: a core support part having a predetermined length, and having one end connected to the auxiliary core and an opposite end connected to the main core, wherein the auxiliary core driving part rotates the main core about the center axis of the main core (0251 describes the multiple degree of freedom of the movable arm, which includes a circumferential movement of one core about the other)”.
Aoki discloses for claim 6, “The magnetic field generation module of claim 1, further comprising: a main coil (0252 describes coils as part of the substrates 60) wound around the main core; an auxiliary coil wound around the auxiliary core (0252 describes coils as part of the substrates 60); and a power supply unit for applying a current to the main coil and the auxiliary coil (0252 describes exciting coils, i.e. supplying power)”.
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.
Claim(s) 7-10 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Aoki as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of Harel US20040138552.
Aoki does not disclose for claim 7, “The magnetic field generation module of claim 1, wherein each of the main core and the auxiliary core is formed of a hard magnetic material”. Harel teaches in the same field of endeavor, that magnets can optionally be made of any hard or soft material (0046). Since Aoki fails to disclose the nature of the magnetic material, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have used any suitable material known in the art, including the one taught by Harel, to achieve the predictable result of cores made of hard magnetic material.
Aoki does not disclose for claim 8, “The magnetic field generation module of claim 1, wherein one of the main core and the auxiliary core is formed of a hard magnetic material, and the remaining one of the main core and the auxiliary core is formed of a soft magnetic material”. Harel teaches in the same field of endeavor, that magnets can optionally be made of any hard or soft material (0046). Since Aoki fails to disclose the nature of the magnetic material, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have used any suitable material known in the art, including the one taught by Harel, to achieve the predictable result of cores made of hard magnetic material.
Aoki discloses for claim 9, “The magnetic field generation module of claim 1, further comprising: a main coil (0252 describes coils as part of the substrates 60) wound around the main core; and a power supply unit for applying a current to the main coil (0252 describes exciting coils, i.e. supplying power)”.
Aoki does not disclose “wherein the auxiliary core is formed of a hard magnetic material or a soft magnetic material”. Harel teaches in the same field of endeavor, that magnets can optionally be made of any hard or soft material (0046). Since Aoki fails to disclose the nature of the magnetic material, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have used any suitable material known in the art, including the one taught by Harel, to achieve the predictable result of cores made of hard magnetic material.
Aoki discloses for claim 10, “The magnetic field generation module of claim 1, further comprising: an auxiliary coil (0252 describes coils as part of the substrates 60) wound around the auxiliary coil; and a power supply unit for applying a current to the auxiliary coil (0252 describes exciting coils, i.e. supplying power)”
Aoki does not disclose “wherein the main core is formed of a hard magnetic material or a soft magnetic material”. Harel teaches in the same field of endeavor, that magnets can optionally be made of any hard or soft material (0046). Since Aoki fails to disclose the nature of the magnetic material, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have used any suitable material known in the art, including the one taught by Harel, to achieve the predictable result of cores made of hard magnetic material.
Claim(s) 11 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Aoki as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of Kawano US20110009697.
Aoki discloses for claim 11, “The magnetic field generation module of claim 1, wherein the auxiliary core includes: a first auxiliary core located on one side of the main core (0253 describes motors for moving the movable arm 190; fig 36)”.
Aoki does not disclose “a second auxiliary core located on an opposite side of the main core, and the auxiliary core driving part individually moves the first auxiliary core and the second auxiliary core about the center axis of the main core”. Kawano teaches in the same field of endeavor, providing a magnetic control configuration where three cores are in line (fig 12). It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate the modification of Kawano into the invention of Aoki in order to configure the module e.g. as claimed because it allows for precise three axis control and generation of the magnetic field.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 2, 4, and 5 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.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. See PTO892.
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/Jae Woo/Examiner, Art Unit 3795
/ANH TUAN T NGUYEN/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3795
12/22/2025