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 .
1. This communication in response to application filed 05/17/2024.
Information Disclosure Statement
2. The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted is in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the Examiner.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
3. 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.
This application currently names joint inventors. In considering patentability of the claims the examiner presumes that the subject matter of the various claims was commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the claimed invention(s) absent any evidence to the contrary. Applicant is advised of the obligation under 37 CFR 1.56 to point out the inventor and effective filing dates of each claim that was not commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the later invention in order for the examiner to consider the applicability of 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(2)(C) for any potential 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) prior art against the later invention.
Claim(s) 1-20 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Berkhoff et al. (US PAT # 6,959,092 B1) in view Swinbanks (US PAT # 4,044,203).
Regarding claims 1, 14 and 18, Berkhoff teaches an active acoustic control system and method for controlling an acoustic signal propagating along a propagation path, the system comprising an active control unit (see col. 6, lines 19-33) configured to:
receive information from a sensor arrangement, the information related to the acoustic signal (propagating along the propagation path see col. 1, lines 13-16); and
the acoustic signal based on the information from the sensor arrangement (reads on detection sensors provide time-advanced information of the primary noise p.sub.p to a distribution network 10. The distribution network 10 produces detection signals v.sub.det (i) for the controllers 5a(i). Both the distribution network 10 and the controllers 5a(i) and 5b(i) may be controlled by the supervising controller 6, see col. 5, lines 1-9), by being arranged to control a first control source arrangement comprising a finite two-dimensional (2D) array of first control sources (see col. 9, line 56 through col. 10, line 14) for generating a control signal (see col. 4, lines 11-23).
Berkhoff features addressed in the above rejection. Berkhoff does not specifically teach “generating a control signal for controlling a component of the acoustic signal”.
However, Swinbanks teaches generating a control signal to control a specific component of an acoustic signal (reads on signal m2(t) controls the transmitted components of the propagating acoustic signal, thus a first component of the acoustics signals. See col. 1, lines 30-34, col.4, line 68 through col. 5, line 15, col.5, line 61 through col. 6, line 10, col. 6, line 55 through col.7, line 27 and col. 9, lines 1-30).
Thus, it would have been obvious to one of an ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate the component-based control teachings, as taught by Swinbanks, into the active control system of Berkhoff, because both references relate to acoustic control using feedback, and Swinbanks provides a well-known technique for directing a control signal towards a particular acoustic component. Combining Swinbanks component-targeted control with the multi-source ANC system of the Berkhoff would have been predictable modification yielding an expected improvement in the specificity of the acoustic control.
Regarding claims 2, the combination of Berkhoff and Swinbanks teaches wherein the component is a transmitted component of the acoustic signal (see Berkhoff, col. 4, lines 11-35 and lines 42-43 with Figs. 1b and 1c).
Regarding claims 3, the combination of Berkhoff and Swinbanks teaches wherein the control signal is used to control the component of the acoustic signal thereby to minimize the component of the acoustic signal (see Swinbanks col. 4, lines 67 through col. 5, line 15, col. 6, line 55 through col. 7, line 28. Also, Berkhoff col. 5, lines 37-50).
Regarding claims 4, the combination of Berkhoff and Swinbanks teaches wherein the control source arrangement comprises a 2D array of monopole control sources (see Swinbanks col. 3, lines 22-30 and Berkhoff col.4, lines 50-52).
Claims 5 and 15 recite “the combination of Berkhoff and Swinbanks teaches wherein the sensor arrangement is a first sensor arrangement, the control source arrangement is a first control source arrangement, the control sources are first control sources, the control signal is a first control signal, the component is a first component, and the active control unit is configured to:
receive information from a second sensor arrangement, the information related to the acoustic signal propagating along the propagation path;
the acoustic signal based on the information from the second sensor arrangement, by being arranged to control a second control source arrangement comprising a finite 2D array of second control sources for generating a second control signal for controlling a second component of the acoustic signal”.
Swinbanks teaches the arrangements of acoustic sensors in figure 7, (6); figure 10, (12,12a,b), (15),(15a,b); figure 11, (23,23',23") have several sub-sets, or sub-arrays of sensors hence also "a second sensor arrangement" from which the control unit receives information related to the propagating acoustic signal, further the system of Swinbanks comprises a second control source arrangement (figure 7, (4), (m1(t)), where the sources in the set m1 are arranged on a planar ring section, representing thus a finite 2D array) for generating a second control signal to control a second component of the acoustic signal (the signal to m1(t) controls the reflected component of the propagating acoustic signal, as seen in col. 1, lines 35-37 and col.4, lines 61-67).
Also, Berkhoff teaches at least a second control sub- unit (5b(i)) and (5a(i)), which is configured to receive acoustic signal information only from a second subset, hence a second sensor arrangement, of the whole array of sensors 2(m) (as disclosed in figures 1b, 1c, (2(m)), see also col.4, lines 28-32, lines 50-54 and col.5, lines 44-48). Further there is a second 2D sub-array arrangement of K sources 3(n) that is controlled by said second control sub-unit (5b(i)) and (5a(i)) (as disclosed in col.5, lines 33-39, lines 45-49) to control a component of the transmitted sound wave (4) that is "based on sensor signals local to that controller" hence a second component that is local to said second control sub-unit and corresponding K sources and represents thus a second component of the acoustic signal (as disclosed in col.5, lines 37-39).
Regarding claim 6, the combination of Berkhoff and Swinbanks teaches wherein the second component is a reflected component of the acoustic signal (see Swinbanks, col. 1, lines 35-37 and col.4, lines 61-67).
Regarding claims 7 and 20, the combination of Berkhoff and Swinbanks teaches wherein the first control signal is used to control the first component thereby to minimize the first component of the acoustic signal, and the second control signal is used to control the second component thereby to minimize the second component of the acoustic signal (see Swinbanks col. 4, lines 67 through col. 5, line 15, col. 6, line 55 through col. 7, line 28. Also, Berkhoff col. 5, lines 37-50).
Regarding claim 8, the combination of Berkhoff and Swinbanks teaches wherein the first control source arrangement and second control source arrangement are correspondingly arranged to provide pairs of control sources comprising one control source from the first control source arrangement and one control source from the second control source arrangement (Note that Swinbanks teaches for each source in the 2D ring arrangement of m2 there is a corresponding source in the 2D ring of m1, see col. 3, line through col.4, line 65).
Claim 9 recites “wherein the active control unit comprises: a first controller arranged to control the first control source arrangement; and a second controller arranged to control the second control source arrangement”. Berkhoff teaches each of the first and second 2D sub-array arrangement of sources 3(n) is controlled by its corresponding control sub-unit (5b(i)) and (5a(i))(see col. 10, lines 32-49).
Regarding claims 10 and 16, the combination of Berkhoff and Swinbanks teaches wherein the first control source arrangement and second control source arrangement comprise one or more loudspeakers and/or one or more actuators (see Berkhoff col. 1, lines 10-12).
Regarding claims 11 and 17, the combination of Berkhoff and Swinbanks teaches wherein the first sensor arrangement or first sensor arrangement and second sensor arrangement comprises comprise one or more pressure sensors and/or one or more accelerometers (see Berkhoff col. 4, lines 50-54 and Swinbanks col. 12, lines 1-3).
Regarding claim 12, the combination of Berkhoff and Swinbanks teaches comprising an acoustic guide defining the propagation path (see Swinbanks Fig. 7).
Regarding claim 13, the combination of Berkhoff and Swinbanks teaches a vehicle and/or a vehicle component, comprising the active acoustic control system according to claim 1 (see Swinbanks col. 11, line 60 through 12 line 30.).
Independent claim 19 is rejected for the same reasons addressed in in independent claims 5, 9 and 15 respectively.
Conclusion
4. Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Rasha S. AL-Aubaidi whose telephone number is (571) 272-7481. The examiner can normally be reached on Monday-Friday from 8:30 am to 5:30 pm.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner's supervisor, Ahmad Matar, can be reached on (571) 272-7488.
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/RASHA S AL AUBAIDI/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2693