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 .
Claim Objections
Claims 7, 10, and 12 are objected to because of the following informalities: “actually” which appear to refer to “actual”. Appropriate correction is required.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
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 7 – 12 are 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 pre-AIA the applicant regards as the invention.
Claim 7 includes the limitation ascertaining a power difference between the maximum allowable power requirement determined for the at least one module and the actually current power requirement of the at least one module;. There is no antecedent for “the maximum allowable power requirement determined for the at least one module” and it is unclear what maximum allowable power requirement is referenced since the “maximum allowable power requirements for the modules” is provided as a constrictor for dividing minimum available total power “in accordance with” previously in claim 7. The limitation is interpreted as “a power difference between the maximum allowable power requirement specified for the at least one module and the actual current power requirement for the at least on module” for purposes of examination.
Claims 8 – 11 are rejected because of dependency upon claim 7, since the claims inherit the deficiencies thereof.
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.
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 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.
Claims 7 – 9, 11, and 12 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Arntson, Pre-Grant Publication No. US 2012/0091913 (“Arntson”).
Regarding claim 7, Arntson teaches:
A method for controlling energy consumption of a field device of automation technology, comprising: determining a minimum available total power for the field device; (Arntson, paragraph 0013, fig. 1, “[0013] According to one embodiment, FIG. 1 is a diagram of process instrument 10 including a second control amplifier for driving a secondary load. Transducer 12 is connected to transmitter electronics 14. Transmitter electronics 14 may include components such as A/D converter 16 and isolation 18 to condition the output of transducer 12 to be read by microprocessor 20. Microprocessor 20 determines the necessary total loop current based on the process variable measured by transducer 12 and provides a signal to digital-to-analog converter (DAC) 22 correlated with the appropriate total loop current. For a 4-20 mA loop current, typical DAC output values are 1-3V. [determining a minimum available total power for the field device;] The output of DAC 22 is connected through feedback circuitry 23 to control amplifier 24.”).
dividing the minimum available total power among individual modules of the field device (Arntson, paragraph 0017, fig. 1, “[0017] Pursuant to this embodiment, secondary load 38 is connected to the output of DAC 22. Switch 40 is included in some embodiments to allow microprocessor 20 to enable or disable secondary load 38 as necessary. DAC 22 is connected to a voltage divider comprising resistors 42 and 44. The voltage divider is connected to control amplifier 46 which is connected to control transistor 48. Control amplifier 46 and control transistor 48 form a secondary power control circuit for adjusting power consumed by a secondary load. [dividing the minimum available total power among individual modules of the field device] Alternatively, this secondary power control circuit may be a number of other analog control circuits understood by those skilled in the art.”).
in accordance with maximum allowable power requirements for the modules, (Arntson, paragraph 0022, fig. 1, “[0022] The described architecture allows a design time decision to route a pre-determined portion of the loop current that would otherwise be discharged in shunt resistor 28 to the secondary load. For example, assume a LED current of 1-6 mA is desired for a loop current of 4-20 mA. [in accordance with maximum allowable power requirements for the modules,] A resistance of 5 ohms is selected for resistor 52 yielding an input voltage range for control amplifier 46 of 5-30 mV. The output of DAC 22 for a 4-20 mA loop current is 1-3V. Values for resistors 42 and 44 may be 95 k ohms and 5 k ohms, respectively, to yield the desired LED current.”; Arntson teaches determining voltages for an upper bound for a 20mA loop current (i.e. maximum allowable power requirements)).
wherein a sum of the individual maximum allowable power requirements of the modules does not exceed the minimum available total power; (Arntson, paragraphs 0013 and 0022, cf. paragraph 0017; fig. 1, “[0013] According to one embodiment, FIG. 1 is a diagram of process instrument 10 including a second control amplifier for driving a secondary load. Transducer 12 is connected to transmitter electronics 14. Transmitter electronics 14 may include components such as A/D converter 16 and isolation 18 to condition the output of transducer 12 to be read by microprocessor 20. Microprocessor 20 determines the necessary total loop current [wherein a sum of the individual maximum allowable power requirements of the modules] based on the process variable measured by transducer 12 and provides a signal to digital-to-analog converter (DAC) 22 correlated with the appropriate total loop current. For a 4-20 mA loop current, typical DAC output values are 1-3V. The output of DAC 22 is connected through feedback circuitry 23 to control amplifier 24. [0022] The described architecture allows a design time decision to route a pre-determined portion of the loop current that would otherwise be discharged in shunt resistor 28 to the secondary load. For example, assume a LED current of 1-6 mA is desired for a loop current of 4-20 mA. A resistance of 5 ohms is selected for resistor 52 yielding an input voltage range for control amplifier 46 of 5-30 mV. [does not exceed the minimum available total power;] The output of DAC 22 for a 4-20 mA loop current is 1-3V. Values for resistors 42 and 44 may be 95 k ohms and 5 k ohms, respectively, to yield the desired LED current.”).
determining an actual current power requirement for at least one module of the modules of the field device, (Arntson, paragraph 0017, fig. 1, cf. paragraph 0003, “[0003] The microprocessor makes the sensor measurement and determines the necessary current value. It uses a digital to analog converter (DAC) to control a control amplifier and control transistor to consume current through a shunt resistor such that the total current draw of the electronics and the shunt resistor is the proper value. A feedback loop is completed using a high precision sense resistor that measures the total current usage of the process instrument to be sure an accurate value is reported. [0017] Pursuant to this embodiment, secondary load 38 is connected to the output of DAC 22. Switch 40 is included in some embodiments to allow microprocessor 20 to enable or disable secondary load 38 as necessary. DAC 22 is connected to a voltage divider comprising resistors 42 and 44. The voltage divider is connected to control amplifier 46 which is connected to control transistor 48. Control amplifier 46 and control transistor 48 form a secondary power control circuit for adjusting power consumed by a secondary load. [determining an actual current power requirement for at least one module] Alternatively, this secondary power control circuit may be a number of other analog control circuits understood by those skilled in the art.”).
wherein the actual current power requirement includes a power uptakes of all power receivers with the exception of at least one control component of the at least one module; (Arntson, paragraphs 0018 - 0020, fig. 1, “[0018] In this embodiment, the secondary load is one or more LEDs 50 (for simplicity only one LED is drawn). [wherein the actual current power requirement includes a power uptakes of all power receivers] Control transistor 48 is connected to the positive voltage rail (4V in some embodiments) through LEDs 50 and to ground through resistor 52. LEDs 50 can be used as a backlight for a display on the process instrument and are one example of a secondary load. [0019] In a minimum power scenario, process instrument 10 requires a base current requirement of 1.5-2.7 mA to operate transducer 12 and microprocessor 20. This means that as little as 0.8-2 mA of additional current must either be discharged through shunt resistor 24 or used for a secondary load such as LEDs 50. In a maximum power situation, this increases to as much as 19 mA. [0020] Secondary load 38 allows the control of the current through LEDs 50 to be regulated independently. Secondary load 38 accepts the primary analog control signal from DAC 22 to allow independent control of the current through LED 50s. This allows LEDs 50 to be operated with a controlled intensity for minimizing flickering. LEDs 50 can also be selectively turned on and off based on measured conditions, [with the exception of at least one control component of the at least one module;] a fault condition, available power, or a command from a user interface on the process instrument.”).
ascertaining a power difference between the maximum allowable power requirement determined for the at least one module and the actually current power requirement of the at least one module; and (Arntson, paragraph 0017, cf. paragraph 0003; fig. 1, “[0017] Pursuant to this embodiment, secondary load 38 is connected to the output of DAC 22. Switch 40 is included in some embodiments to allow microprocessor 20 to enable or disable secondary load 38 as necessary. DAC 22 is connected to a voltage divider comprising resistors 42 and 44. The voltage divider is connected to control amplifier 46 which is connected to control transistor 48. Control amplifier 46 and control transistor 48 form a secondary power control circuit for adjusting power consumed by a secondary load. Alternatively, this secondary power control circuit may be a number of other analog control circuits understood by those skilled in the art. [0003] The microprocessor makes the sensor measurement and determines the necessary current value. It uses a digital to analog converter (DAC) to control a control amplifier and control transistor to consume current through a shunt resistor such that the total current draw of the electronics and the shunt resistor is the proper value. A feedback loop is completed using a high precision sense resistor that measures the total current usage of the process instrument to be sure an accurate value is reported.”).
controlling at least one control component of the at least one module as a function of the ascertained power difference so that the power difference is minimized and the at least one module utilizes the maximum allowable power requirement for the at least one module. (Arntson, paragraphs 0023 - 0024, fig. 1, “[0023] This approach offers many benefits. LEDs 50 can be turned on and off selectively. In some embodiments, LEDs 50 may be enabled only at certain loop currents. Intensity can be controlled using pulse width modulation of switch 40. Switch 40 can also be used to flash LEDs 50 to indicate an error condition. [0024] While a process instrument may have a range of 4-20 mA, the process variable will often be in the middle of its range. Previous designs have focused on providing functionality which could only be accomplished at minimum loop currents. Here, the secondary system can be selectively enabled at typical higher operating currents and disabled at lower loop currents. This allows process instrument 10 to selectively invoke additional functionality when it is possible to support those tasks.”).
Regarding claim 8, Arntson teaches The method as claimed in claim 7, wherein the determining of the actual, current power requirement for the at least one module is performed by determining an electrical current present in the module. (Arntson, paragraphs 0018 and 0022, “[0018] In this embodiment, the secondary load is one or more LEDs 50 (for simplicity only one LED is drawn). Control transistor 48 is connected to the positive voltage rail (4V in some embodiments) through LEDs 50 and to ground through resistor 52. LEDs 50 can be used as a backlight for a display on the process instrument and are one example of a secondary load. [0022] The described architecture allows a design time decision to route a pre-determined portion of the loop current that would otherwise be discharged in shunt resistor 28 to the secondary load. For example, assume a LED current of 1-6 mA is desired for a loop current of 4-20 mA. A resistance of 5 ohms is selected for resistor 52 yielding an input voltage range for control amplifier 46 of 5-30 mV. The output of DAC 22 for a 4-20 mA loop current is 1-3V. Values for resistors 42 and 44 may be 95 k ohms and 5 k ohms, respectively, to yield the desired LED current.”).
Regarding claim 9, Arntson teaches The method as claimed in claim 7, wherein the at least one control component comprises at least one light emitting diode for backlighting a display and is adjusted by controlling an electrical current for the at least one light emitting diode. (Arntson, paragraph 0026, fig. 1, “[0026] A typical use for an LED is as a backlight on a display attached to process instrument 10. This architecture allows for the LED to be added as an optional display module without altering the remainder of the circuitry. Excess power is typically dissipated in shunt resistor 28. Modifying the shunt traces and resistor element to accommodate an accessory module causes intrinsic safety (IS) issues that require significant design, validation, and certification effort. This construction avoids that problem by retaining the existing shunt circuit designs and does not require the shunt traces to be routed into the display module to allow for the accessory lighting.”).
Regarding claim 11, Arntson teaches The method as claimed in claim 7, wherein the dividing of the minimum available total power among the individual modules of the field device is performed using mapping information. (Arntson, paragraph 0022, fig. 1, “[0022] The described architecture allows a design time decision to route a pre-determined portion of the loop current that would otherwise be discharged in shunt resistor 28 to the secondary load. For example, assume a LED current of 1-6 mA is desired for a loop current of 4-20 mA. A resistance of 5 ohms is selected for resistor 52 yielding an input voltage range for control amplifier 46 of 5-30 mV. The output of DAC 22 for a 4-20 mA loop current is 1-3V. Values for resistors 42 and 44 may be 95 k ohms and 5 k ohms, respectively, to yield the desired LED current.”).
Regarding claim 12, Arntson teaches:
A field device of automation technology, comprising: a main electronic module with two input terminals to which a two-conductor line may be connected; (Arntson, paragraph 0015, fig. 1 items 34a and 34b, “[0015] The output of control amplifier 24 is connected to control transistor 26. Control transistor 26 is connected to shunt resistor 28. Shunt resistor 28 shares ground contact 30 with sense resistor 32. Sense resistor 32 is connected back to resistor 23b and capacitor 23d to complete the feedback loop for controlling the loop current (IL). Terminals 34a and 34b are connected to control transistor 26 and sense resistor 32 respectively. Power subsystem 36 is also connected to terminal 34a and provides the necessary circuitry to regulate and provide the power supply rails used by process instrument 10 (for example 10-15V, 4V, 3V, etc).”).
an electrical current control unit for setting an electrical current value; (Arntson, paragraph 0013, fig. 1 item 22, “[0013] According to one embodiment, FIG. 1 is a diagram of process instrument 10 including a second control amplifier for driving a secondary load. Transducer 12 is connected to transmitter electronics 14. Transmitter electronics 14 may include components such as A/D converter 16 and isolation 18 to condition the output of transducer 12 to be read by microprocessor 20. Microprocessor 20 determines the necessary total loop current based on the process variable measured by transducer 12 and provides a signal to digital-to-analog converter (DAC) 22 correlated with the appropriate total loop current. For a 4-20 mA loop current, typical DAC output values are 1-3V. The output of DAC 22 is connected through feedback circuitry 23 to control amplifier 24.”; the Examiner notes that electrical current is set by DAC 22).
a voltage measuring unit for registering a terminal voltage at the two input terminals; (Arntson, paragraph 0015, fig. 1 items 34a and 34b, “[0015] The output of control amplifier 24 is connected to control transistor 26. Control transistor 26 is connected to shunt resistor 28. Shunt resistor 28 shares ground contact 30 with sense resistor 32. Sense resistor 32 is connected back to resistor 23b and capacitor 23d to complete the feedback loop for controlling the loop current (IL). Terminals 34a and 34b are connected to control transistor 26 and sense resistor 32 [a voltage measuring unit for registering a terminal voltage at the two input terminals;] respectively. Power subsystem 36 is also connected to terminal 34a and provides the necessary circuitry to regulate and provide the power supply rails used by process instrument 10 (for example 10-15V, 4V, 3V, etc).”).
a computing unit for control and/or evaluation; and (Arntson, paragraph 0013, fig. 1 item 20, “[0013] According to one embodiment, FIG. 1 is a diagram of process instrument 10 including a second control amplifier for driving a secondary load. Transducer 12 is connected to transmitter electronics 14. Transmitter electronics 14 may include components such as A/D converter 16 and isolation 18 to condition the output of transducer 12 to be read by microprocessor 20. Microprocessor 20 determines the necessary total loop current based on the process variable measured by transducer 12 and provides a signal to digital-to-analog converter (DAC) 22 correlated with the appropriate total loop current. For a 4-20 mA loop current, typical DAC output values are 1-3V. The output of DAC 22 is connected through feedback circuitry 23 to control amplifier 24.”).
a sensor module for registering a physical variable, (Arntson, claim 15, “15. The method of claim 14 wherein determining a desired total power consumption comprises: measuring an process variable using a sensor attached to the process instrument; and determining a desired total power consumption based on the measured process variable.”).
wherein the computing unit is configured to: determine a minimum available total power for the field device, divide the minimum available total power among individual modules of the field device in accordance with maximum allowable power requirements for the modules, wherein a sum of the individual maximum allowable power requirements of the modules does not exceed the minimum available total power, determine an actual current power requirement for at least one module of the modules of the field device, wherein the actual current power requirement includes a power uptakes of all power receivers with the exception of at least one control component of the at least one module, ascertain a power difference between the maximum allowable power requirement determined for the at least one module and the actually current power requirement of the at least one module, and control at least one control component of the at least one module as a function of the ascertained power difference so that the power difference is minimized and the at least one module utilizes the maximum allowable power requirement for the at least one module. (see claim 7; the remainder of claim 12 is rejected under rationale similar to that for claim 7).
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.
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 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.
Claim 10 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Arntson in view of an alternate embodiment of Arntson (“Arntson (Alternate)”).
Arntson teaches the method as claimed in claim 7.
Arntson does not explicitly teach:
further comprising: performing a smoothing for the actually current power requirement,
wherein the smoothed, current power requirement is used for ascertaining the power difference..
Arntson (Alternate) teaches:
further comprising: performing a smoothing for the actually current power requirement, (Arntson (Alternate), paragraph 0020, fig. 1, “[0020] Secondary load 38 allows the control of the current through LEDs 50 to be regulated independently. Secondary load 38 accepts the primary analog control signal from DAC 22 to allow independent control of the current through LED 50s. This allows LEDs 50 to be operated with a controlled intensity for minimizing flickering. [performing a smoothing for the actually current power requirement] LEDs 50 can also be selectively turned on and off based on measured conditions, a fault condition, available power, or a command from a user interface on the process instrument.”).
wherein the smoothed, current power requirement is used for ascertaining the power difference. (Arntson (Alternate), paragraph 0017, cf. paragraph 0005; fig. 1, “[0017] Pursuant to this embodiment, secondary load 38 is connected to the output of DAC 22. Switch 40 is included in some embodiments to allow microprocessor 20 to enable or disable secondary load 38 as necessary. DAC 22 is connected to a voltage divider comprising resistors 42 and 44. The voltage divider is connected to control amplifier 46 which is connected to control transistor 48. Control amplifier 46 and control transistor 48 form a secondary power control circuit for adjusting power consumed by a secondary load. Alternatively, this secondary power control circuit may be a number of other analog control circuits understood by those skilled in the art.”).
In view of the teachings of Arntson (Alternate) it would have been obvious for a person of ordinary skill in the art to apply the teachings of Arntson (Alternate) to Arntson before the effective filing date of the claimed invention in order to minimize power usage by providing a dimmer backlight that does not flicker (cf. paragraph 0006 “[0006] One use for this current is to provide LED backlighting for the process control instrument. A past approach to provide this feature was to replace the shunt resistor with an LED. While this does provide for backlighting, there is no control of the intensity of the backlight. At 4 mA, the backlighting is dim, while at 20 mA, it can be overly bright.” and cited paragraphs).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to MICHAEL J. HUNTLEY whose telephone number is (303) 297-4307 and email address is michael.huntley@uspto.gov. The examiner can normally be reached on Monday – Friday, 8:00 am – 5:00 pm MT.
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/MICHAEL J HUNTLEY/
Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2129
Prosecution Insights