DETAILED ACTION
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 .
Status of Claims
This is the first Office Action on the merits.
Claims 1-11 have been amended via Preliminary Amendment.
Claims 1-11 are currently pending and addressed below.
Priority
Receipt is acknowledged of certified copies of papers required by 37 CFR 1.55.
Information Disclosure Statement
The Information Disclosure Statements that were filed on 10 June 2024, 11 June 2024, and 18 September 2024 are in compliance with 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the IDSs have been considered by the Examiner.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112(b)
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.
Claim 3 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
Claim 3 recites the limitation "the relative load diagram" in line 5. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim. The claims previously recite “a load diagram”, but it is unclear if the “relative load diagram” is a different element than the previously recited load diagram. The examiner recommends amending the claims to delete the term “relative” in claim 3, if the Applicant intends the claim to be interpreted such that the load diagram that is generated is the same as the load diagram that is displayed. Alternatively, if the “load diagram” and the “relative load diagram” are intended to be two different elements, the examiner recommends amending the claims to make this distinction clear. For the purposes of compact prosecution, the examiner is interpreting the claims such that the load diagram that is generated is the same as the relative load diagram that is displayed.
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.
Claims 1-7 and 10-11 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Iotti (US 2021/0107360), hereinafter referred to as Iotti ‘360, as cited in the Applicant’s IDS filed 10 June 2024, in view of Rantala et al. (US 2018/0252921), hereinafter referred to as Rantala. Iotti ‘360 and Rantala are considered analogous to the claimed invention because they are in the same field of displaying information to an operator of a lifting machine.
Regarding claim 1, Iotti ‘360 teaches:
A multifunctional lifting vehicle ("With reference to the accompanying drawings, reference numeral 1 denotes in its entirety a self-propelled operating machine according to the invention. More in detail, the machine 1 according to the invention is preferably a telehandler and may be rotary (such as that of FIG. 1) or fixed or also of the articulated type." – see at least Iotti '360: paragraph 0011)
comprising: a base frame, a lifting assembly including at least one operating arm equipped with an attachment for mounting a tool ("The machine 1 proposed comprises a carriage or chassis movable on wheels, a driver's cabin, a telescopic lifting arm 11, which may be mounted on a rotatable platform 12 which, if present, also has the cabin 13, the arm being equipped, at its distal end, with a coupling device 110, also of the type normally in use in the telehandlers made by the Applicant, which allows replacement of the apparatus 111 and its connection to the hydraulic and electronic apparatuses of the machine 1." – see at least Iotti '360: paragraph 0012),
a drive system for activating said lifting assembly ("The arm 11 is articulated to the rotatable platform 12, so as to oscillate vertically, under the actuation of a hydraulic cylinder or similar actuator, between a lower position, substantially horizontal, and an upper position wherein the arm 11 is close to the vertical." – see at least Iotti '360: paragraph 0014),
a control system associated with said drive system ("The hydraulic actuators are subjected to an electro-hydraulic distributor, mounted on the machine 1, which is controlled by means of the commands present in the cab 13, according to known methods." – see at least Iotti '360: paragraph 0018),
wherein said control system comprises an electronic control unit operatively connected to a plurality of sensors ("The detection means may include one or more position sensors, designed to determine the relative position of the load 2 (or in any case of the apparatus 111), with respect to a reference, for example consisting of the carriage of the machine 1 or the position of the operator O in the cabin 13 or other position." – see at least Iotti '360: paragraph 0041)
arranged to acquire a plurality of vehicle stability data ("The mobile display element 3 is especially designed to display information to the operator O concerning the stability condition of the machine, with particular reference to how much the tipping moment to which the machine is subjected is, instant by instant, close to the danger threshold, beyond which there is a limitation or inhibiting of the moments of the arm." – see at least Iotti '360: paragraph 0022),
including a position of the at least one operating arm with respect to the base frame ("One of these sensors may measure the angle between the arm 11 and the carriage and another the sliding or elongation of the arm 11 and both may consist of encoders, suitably connected to levers to determine the angle or to cables to determine the length, or position sensors included in the drive cylinders or yet other types of sensors." – see at least Iotti '360: paragraph 0042)
and a mass of a lifted load ("The mobile display element 3 is especially designed to display information to the operator O concerning the stability condition of the machine, with particular reference to how much the tipping moment to which the machine is subjected is, instant by instant, close to the danger threshold, beyond which there is a limitation or inhibiting of the moments of the arm." – see at least Iotti '360: paragraph 0022) (The examiner notes that one of ordinary skill in the art would recognize that the tipping moment acting on the machine taught by Iotti ‘360 is a function of the mass of the load lifted by the machine),
wherein said vehicle further comprises a smart display device ("According to an important aspect of the invention, the machine 1 includes a system for displaying information to an operator O present in the cabin 13, the system including at least one mobile display element 3." – see at least Iotti '360: paragraph 0021),
said smart display device being operationally connected to said electronic control unit, said smart display device being configured and programmed to receive said plurality of vehicle stability data from the electronic control unit, and to display a load diagram in real time during use of the vehicle ("Moreover, the display element 3 may also display to the operator O the information and the data which, in the prior art described above, are carried by the classic display, that is to say, by way of a non-limiting example, such as the load diagrams, the speed of translation, data measured by sensors distributed on the vehicle, etc." – see at least Iotti '360: paragraph 0025).
Iotti ‘360 does not explicitly disclose, but Rantala teaches:
a smart display device made in a form of smart glasses wearable by an operator who controls the vehicle ("Data relating to the use of the lifting device may be presented with smart glasses to the operator during the use of the lifting device." – see at least Rantala: paragraph 0012),
wherein said load diagram displayed by the smart display device schematically illustrates an operative work area for controlling the vehicle in safety ("showing, with the smart glasses to the operator, properties of the lifting device invisible to the naked eye, such as: restricted areas, e.g. passageways, a shelf, a machine tool, an area designated for breaks, there may be different levels of restricted areas: not allowed to drive over the restricted area/stops but the border may be overridden/just a notification of being in a special area; working borders set by the operator himself; positioning points; a safety area of the loading member or the load (e.g. 1 m in each direction from the detected shapes of the load, when the load is moving the safety area is grown in the direction of the motion), a dynamically adjusting safety area according to the weight and speed of the load; safety of an operator equipped with smart glasses may be secured by creating a safety area around the operator; other persons moving in the area may be detected with the smart glasses and a safety area or safety areas may be created around them" – see at least Rantala: paragraphs 0070-0076),
in such a way that the operator who controls the vehicle is constantly informed in real time on a state of stability of the vehicle by the display of the load diagram, without risking certain maneuvering errors from reading the load diagram on devices misaligned with respect to the operator's field of vision who observes a scenario outside the vehicle while controlling the vehicle ("Data relating to the use of the lifting device may be presented with smart glasses to the operator during the use of the lifting device. The data relating to the use of a lifting device may comprise one or several of the following: planned route of the lifting device or the load; weight of the load; functionalities of the lifting device being used, such as selection of the hoist, swaying control, slow speed; error situations and alerts, such as a notification of a diagonal pull or an emergency stop when the lifting device is moving, to decrease ways of operation wearing the lifting device" – see at least Rantala: paragraphs 0065-0069) (The examiner notes that one of ordinary skill in the art would recognize that it is a natural outcome of an operator wearing smart glasses for the operator to constantly be informed of the information displayed on the smart glasses, because the information displayed by the smart glasses is constantly in the field of view of the operator wearing the smart glasses).
It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Iotti ‘360 with these above aforementioned teachings from Rantala to include a smart display device made in a form of smart glasses wearable by an operator who controls the vehicle, wherein said load diagram displayed by the smart display device schematically illustrates an operative work area for controlling the vehicle in safety, in such a way that the operator who controls the vehicle is constantly informed in real time on a state of stability of the vehicle by the display of the load diagram, without risking certain maneuvering errors from reading the load diagram on devices misaligned with respect to the operator's field of vision who observes a scenario outside the vehicle while controlling the vehicle. At the time of the effective filing date of the claimed invention, one of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to incorporate Rantala’s use of smart glasses worn by an operator of a lifting machine with Iotti ‘360’s system for displaying stability information for a lifting machine in order to display information to the operator via the smart glasses (“Data relating to the use of the lifting device may be presented with smart glasses to the operator during the use of the lifting device.” – see at least Rantala: paragraph 0065). Doing so would provide the benefit of allowing the operator to see information that is not otherwise visible (“showing, with the smart glasses to the operator, properties of the lifting device invisible to the naked eye” – see at least Rantala: paragraph 0070). The examiner notes that one of ordinary skill in the art would be capable of including the load diagram taught by Iotti ‘360 in the set of data presented with smart glasses as taught by Rantala, because Iotti ‘360 teaches displaying a load diagram and Rantala teaches means of displaying data to an operator using smart glasses.
Regarding claim 2, Iotti ‘360 in view of Rantala teaches all of the elements of the current invention as stated above. Iotti ‘360 further teaches:
wherein the smart display device comprises an electronic processor operatively in communication with the electronic control unit of the vehicle ("In practice, the processing unit may consist of a single electronic device, also of the type commonly present on this type of machine, such as a control unit, suitably programmed to perform the functions described; the various modules can correspond to hardware units and/or software forming part of the programmed device." – see at least Iotti '360: paragraph 0045)
configured and programmed to process the plurality of vehicle stability data received and autonomously determine the vehicle load diagram to be displayed ("Moreover, the display element 3 may also display to the operator O the information and the data which, in the prior art described above, are carried by the classic display, that is to say, by way of a non-limiting example, such as the load diagrams, the speed of translation, data measured by sensors distributed on the vehicle, etc." – see at least Iotti '360: paragraph 0025).
Regarding claim 3, Iotti ‘360 in view of Rantala teaches all of the elements of the current invention as stated above. Iotti ‘360 further teaches:
wherein the electronic control unit is configured and programmed to preliminarily generate the load diagram ("The mobile display element 3 is especially designed to display information to the operator O concerning the stability condition of the machine, with particular reference to how much the tipping moment to which the machine is subjected is, instant by instant, close to the danger threshold, beyond which there is a limitation or inhibiting of the moments of the arm." – see at least Iotti '360: paragraph 0022),
and the smart display device is programmed to acquire a result of processing carried out by the electronic control unit, and display the relative load diagram ("Moreover, the display element 3 may also display to the operator O the information and the data which, in the prior art described above, are carried by the classic display, that is to say, by way of a non-limiting example, such as the load diagrams, the speed of translation, data measured by sensors distributed on the vehicle, etc." – see at least Iotti '360: paragraph 0025).
Regarding claim 4, Iotti ‘360 in view of Rantala teaches all of the elements of the current invention as stated above. Iotti ‘360 does not explicitly disclose, but Rantala teaches:
wherein the smart glasses comprise a frame wearable by the operator, which supports at least one lens for displaying the load diagram ("The smart glasses 130 may be means of augmented reality containing a screen and possibly also a camera 131." – see at least Rantala: paragraph 0058) (The examiner notes that one of ordinary skill in the art would recognize that a frame and at least one lens are elements of any set of conventional glasses. Fig. 1a of Rantala as shown below illustrates an operator 140 wearing smart glasses 130, which can be seen to include a frame and at least one lens).
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It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Iotti ‘360 with these above aforementioned teachings from Rantala such that the smart glasses comprise a frame wearable by the operator, which supports at least one lens for displaying the load diagram. At the time of the effective filing date of the claimed invention, one of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to incorporate Rantala’s use of smart glasses worn by an operator of a lifting machine with Iotti ‘360’s system for displaying stability information for a lifting machine in order to display information to the operator via the smart glasses (“Data relating to the use of the lifting device may be presented with smart glasses to the operator during the use of the lifting device.” – see at least Rantala: paragraph 0065). Doing so would provide the benefit of allowing the operator to see information that is not otherwise visible (“showing, with the smart glasses to the operator, properties of the lifting device invisible to the naked eye” – see at least Rantala: paragraph 0070).
Regarding claim 5, Iotti ‘360 in view of Rantala teaches all of the elements of the current invention as stated above. Iotti ‘360 further teaches:
wherein the smart display device is configured and programmed to display one or more of the following operating parameters: ground outreach of the load; lifting angle of the at least one operating arm; height of the load from the ground; name of a mounted tool; load placement point on the load diagram with side view; and load placement point on the load diagram with plan view ("One of these sensors may measure the angle between the arm 11 and the carriage and another the sliding or elongation of the arm 11 and both may consist of encoders, suitably connected to levers to determine the angle or to cables to determine the length, or position sensors included in the drive cylinders or yet other types of sensors." – see at least Iotti '360: paragraph 0042).
Regarding claim 6, Iotti ‘360 in view of Rantala teaches all of the elements of the current invention as stated above. Iotti ‘360 does not explicitly disclose, but Rantala teaches:
wherein the information displayed by the smart display device can be set by the operator ("According to a first aspect of the disclosed embodiments there is provided a method for controlling a lifting device, the method comprising: detecting with smart glasses used by an operator a target intended by the operator; detecting a driving command given by the operator; and responsively to the detection of the driving command, steering a loading member of the lifting device, or a load, towards said target... Said target intended by the operator may be selected using preset positioning signs in the operational range of the lifting device, wherein the positioning signs are imaged with a camera included in the smart glasses and identified automatically. The positioning points corresponding to the positioning signs, or the locations of the positioning points may be stored in a memory, e.g. in the memory of the lifting device." – see at least Rantala: paragraphs 0006-0013) (The examiner notes that the selection of a target intended by the operator as taught by Rantala corresponds to the claimed setting of the information displayed by the smart display, because Rantala teaches that the information displayed by the smart glasses is modified based on the selected target, as set forth in further detail below).
It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Iotti ‘360 with these above aforementioned teachings from Rantala such that the information displayed by the smart display device can be set by the operator. At the time of the effective filing date of the claimed invention, one of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to incorporate Rantala’s method of allowing an operator to select (i.e., set) a target using smart glasses with Iotti ‘360’s system for displaying information for a lifting machine in order to allow the system to determine the operator’s target (“detecting 210 with smart glasses used by an operator a target intended by the operator” – see at least Rantala: paragraph 0060). Doing so would provide the benefit of displaying information that is specifically relevant to the operator’s selected target (“The operator may be provided with assistive data. The assistive data may comprise one or several of the following: route directions as a map; the distance and the direction to the target; route to the target drawn into a space; and highlighting of the target location. The target location may be highlighted with frames around the target. The frames may be highlighted with glow.” – see at least Rantala: paragraph 0018).
Regarding claim 7, Iotti ‘360 in view of Rantala teaches all of the elements of the current invention as stated above. Iotti ‘360 further teaches:
wherein said plurality of sensors comprise a load sensor configured for providing an indication of an intensity of the load applied to the at least one operating arm ("The mobile display element 3 is especially designed to display information to the operator O concerning the stability condition of the machine, with particular reference to how much the tipping moment to which the machine is subjected is, instant by instant, close to the danger threshold, beyond which there is a limitation or inhibiting of the moments of the arm." – see at least Iotti '360: paragraph 0022) (The examiner notes that one of ordinary skill in the art would recognize that the tipping moment acting on the machine taught by Iotti is a function of the intensity of the load applied to the at least one operating arm),
and further sensors respectively detecting an inclination angle of the at least one operating arm ("One of these sensors may measure the angle between the arm 11 and the carriage and another the sliding or elongation of the arm 11 and both may consist of encoders, suitably connected to levers to determine the angle or to cables to determine the length, or position sensors included in the drive cylinders or yet other types of sensors." – see at least Iotti '360: paragraph 0042)
and an extension length (L) of a telescopic portion of the at least one operating arm ("The detection means may include one or more position sensors, designed to determine the relative position of the load 2 (or in any case of the apparatus 111), with respect to a reference, for example consisting of the carriage of the machine 1 or the position of the operator O in the cabin 13 or other position." – see at least Iotti '360: paragraph 0041).
Regarding claim 10, Iotti ‘360 in view of Rantala teaches all of the elements of the current invention as stated above. Iotti ‘360 further teaches:
A method for displaying data relating to stability of a multifunctional lifting vehicle comprising: providing a lifting vehicle according to claim 1 ("With reference to the accompanying drawings, reference numeral 1 denotes in its entirety a self-propelled operating machine according to the invention. More in detail, the machine 1 according to the invention is preferably a telehandler and may be rotary (such as that of FIG. 1) or fixed or also of the articulated type." – see at least Iotti '360: paragraph 0011)
connecting the smart display device to the electronic control unit of the vehicle,… displaying the load diagram of the vehicle by means of said smart display device, in real time during controlling of the vehicle ("Moreover, the display element 3 may also display to the operator O the information and the data which, in the prior art described above, are carried by the classic display, that is to say, by way of a non-limiting example, such as the load diagrams, the speed of translation, data measured by sensors distributed on the vehicle, etc." – see at least Iotti '360: paragraph 0025),
Iotti ‘360 does not explicitly disclose, but Rantala teaches:
placing the smart display device on a head of an operator who controls the vehicle ("Data relating to the use of the lifting device may be presented with smart glasses to the operator during the use of the lifting device." – see at least Rantala: paragraph 0065),
in such a way that the operator who controls the vehicle is constantly informed in real time on the state of stability of the vehicle by the display of the load diagram, without risking certain maneuvering errors from reading the load diagram on devices misaligned with respect to the operator's field of vision who observes the scenario outside the vehicle while controlling the vehicle ("Data relating to the use of the lifting device may be presented with smart glasses to the operator during the use of the lifting device. The data relating to the use of a lifting device may comprise one or several of the following: planned route of the lifting device or the load; weight of the load; functionalities of the lifting device being used, such as selection of the hoist, swaying control, slow speed; error situations and alerts, such as a notification of a diagonal pull or an emergency stop when the lifting device is moving, to decrease ways of operation wearing the lifting device" – see at least Rantala: paragraphs 0065-0069) (The examiner notes that one of ordinary skill in the art would recognize that it is a natural outcome of an operator wearing smart glasses for the operator to constantly be informed of the information displayed on the smart glasses, because the information displayed by the smart glasses is constantly in the field of view of the operator wearing the smart glasses).
It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Iotti ‘360 with these above aforementioned teachings from Rantala to include placing the smart display device on a head of an operator who controls the vehicle, in such a way that the operator who controls the vehicle is constantly informed in real time on the state of stability of the vehicle by the display of the load diagram, without risking certain maneuvering errors from reading the load diagram on devices misaligned with respect to the operator's field of vision who observes the scenario outside the vehicle while controlling the vehicle. At the time of the effective filing date of the claimed invention, one of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to incorporate Rantala’s use of smart glasses worn by an operator of a lifting machine with Iotti ‘360’s system for displaying stability information for a lifting machine in order to display information to the operator via the smart glasses (“Data relating to the use of the lifting device may be presented with smart glasses to the operator during the use of the lifting device.” – see at least Rantala: paragraph 0065). Doing so would provide the benefit of allowing the operator to see information that is not otherwise visible (“showing, with the smart glasses to the operator, properties of the lifting device invisible to the naked eye” – see at least Rantala: paragraph 0070). The examiner notes that one of ordinary skill in the art would be capable of including the load diagram taught by Iotti ‘360 in the set of data presented with smart glasses as taught by Rantala, because Iotti ‘360 teaches displaying a load diagram and Rantala teaches means of displaying data to an operator using smart glasses.
Regarding claim 11, Iotti ‘360 in view of Rantala teaches all of the elements of the current invention as stated above. Iotti ‘360 does not explicitly disclose, but Rantala teaches:
wherein said vehicle is arranged to be remotely controlled by the operator positioned outside a control cab of the vehicle ("The lifting device further comprises a control device 117, which in FIG. 1 is a wireless control device." – see at least Rantala: paragraph 0057),
and comprising the step of remotely controlling the vehicle continuing to check in real time the load diagram displayed by the smart display device ("Data relating to the use of the lifting device may be presented with smart glasses to the operator during the use of the lifting device. The data relating to the use of a lifting device may comprise one or several of the following: planned route of the lifting device or the load; weight of the load; functionalities of the lifting device being used, such as selection of the hoist, swaying control, slow speed; error situations and alerts, such as a notification of a diagonal pull or an emergency stop when the lifting device is moving, to decrease ways of operation wearing the lifting device" – see at least Rantala: paragraphs 0065-0069) (The examiner notes that Fig. 1a of Rantala as shown below illustrates an operator 140 wearing smart glasses 130 and using control device 117 to remotely control a lifting machine).
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It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Iotti ‘360 with these above aforementioned teachings from Rantala such that said vehicle is arranged to be remotely controlled by the operator positioned outside a control cab of the vehicle, and comprising the step of remotely controlling the vehicle continuing to check in real time the load diagram displayed by the smart display device. At the time of the effective filing date of the claimed invention, one of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to incorporate Rantala’s use of smart glasses worn by an operator of a lifting machine with Iotti ‘360’s system for displaying stability information for a lifting machine in order to display information to the operator via the smart glasses (“Data relating to the use of the lifting device may be presented with smart glasses to the operator during the use of the lifting device.” – see at least Rantala: paragraph 0065). Doing so would provide the benefit of allowing the operator to see information that is not otherwise visible while operating the machine (“showing, with the smart glasses to the operator, properties of the lifting device invisible to the naked eye” – see at least Rantala: paragraph 0070).
Claim 8 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Iotti ‘360 in view of Rantala, further in view of Biggerstaff (US 2010/0204891), hereinafter referred to as Biggerstaff. Biggerstaff is considered analogous to the claimed invention because they are in the same field of determining stability of a lifting machine.
Regarding claim 8, Iotti ‘360 in view of Rantala teaches all of the elements of the current invention as stated above. Iotti ‘360 further teaches:
wherein said base frame comprises front and rear support means ("The machine 1 proposed comprises a carriage or chassis movable on wheels" – see at least Iotti '360: paragraph 0012) (The examiner notes that the wheels as taught by Iotti ‘360 correspond to the claimed support means, wherein Fig. 1 of Iotti ‘360 as shown below illustrates an embodiment in which wheels are positioned on both the front end and the rear end of the vehicle).
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Iotti ‘360 does not explicitly disclose, but Biggerstaff teaches:
said plurality of sensors comprising an additional sensor to detect the load on said support means ("In another embodiment, the static center of gravity SCG may be determined by measuring the weight on each tire or the weight on the front axle and the rear axle in combination with the incline or relative position of the vehicle, the loader arm position, the weight of the vehicle and the weight of the load." – see at least Biggerstaff: paragraph 0054).
It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Iotti ‘360 with these above aforementioned teachings from Biggerstaff such that said plurality of sensors comprising an additional sensor to detect the load on said support means. At the time of the effective filing date of the claimed invention, one of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to incorporate Biggerstaff’s weight measurement for each wheel with Iotti ‘360’s system for displaying stability information for a lifting machine in order to determine a center of gravity for the lifting machine (“The static center of gravity SCG may then be calculated as known in the art." – see at least Biggerstaff: paragraph 0054). Doing so would provide the benefit of allowing the system to calculate a vehicle acceleration which would lead to an unstable condition (“In block 704, controller 602 dynamically calculates the static center of gravity SCG. In block 706, controller 602 dynamically calculates the acceleration necessary to cause the dynamic center of gravity DCG of the combined vehicle and load to extend exterior of the stability polygon SP for the vehicle.” – see at least Biggerstaff: paragraph 0057).
Claim 9 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Iotti ‘360 in view of Rantala, further in view of Iotti (US 2021/0300741), hereinafter referred to as Iotti ‘741. Iotti ‘741is considered analogous to the claimed invention because they are in the same field of operating a lifting machine.
Regarding claim 9, Iotti ‘360 in view of Rantala teaches all of the elements of the current invention as stated above. Iotti ‘360 does not explicitly disclose, but Iotti ‘741 teaches:
wherein said plurality of vehicle stability data includes a piece of information relating to a type of tool mounted on said attachment ("In effect, on the basis of the accessory mounted on the attachment device at the end of the arm 12, there is a variation in the load diagram to be applied, the maximum speed of the movements of the arm and the maximum capacity; the collection of the diagrams, speed and capacity corresponding to the various accessories can be recorded on a memory module (not illustrated) of the processing means 2, which may be connected, amongst others, to the above-mentioned calculation module 24." – see at least Iotti '741: paragraph 0048),
the control system comprising a recognition unit configured for recognizing the type of tool and sending relative information to the electronic control unit ("For this reason, the first functional parameter which the simulator must acquire is an identifier of the accessory selected by the operator which is entered/selected in the processing means 2, for example by an interface, or which is detected automatically, preferably by a sensor located on the removable attachment device 121 (for example, a RFID reader or the like), connected to the processing means 2; in the second case, the operator attaches the accessory to the attachment device 121 and, by automatic recognition, the acquisition by the simulator of the parameter of the accessory is obtained." – see at least Iotti '741: paragraph 0051).
It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Iotti '360 with these above aforementioned teachings from Iotti '741 such that said plurality of vehicle stability data includes a piece of information relating to a type of tool mounted on said attachment, the control system comprising a recognition unit configured for recognizing the type of tool and sending relative information to the electronic control unit. At the time of the effective filing date of the claimed invention, one of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to incorporate Iotti ‘741’s sensor for detecting an accessory attached to a lifting machine with Iotti ‘360’s system for displaying stability information for a lifting machine in order to determine which accessory (i.e., tool) is being used by the operator to perform a task (“A first step, shared by the various operating modes, is the choice of the accessory 122 to be used to perform the task which the operator sets.” – see at least Iotti ‘741: paragraph 0047). Doing so would provide the benefit of allowing the system to determine parameters and operating limits of the lifting machine based on the type of tool that is used ("In effect, on the basis of the accessory mounted on the attachment device at the end of the arm 12, there is a variation in the load diagram to be applied, the maximum speed of the movements of the arm and the maximum capacity; the collection of the diagrams, speed and capacity corresponding to the various accessories can be recorded on a memory module (not illustrated) of the processing means 2, which may be connected, amongst others, to the above-mentioned calculation module 24." – see at least Iotti '741: paragraph 0048).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to DOMINICK ANTHONY MULDER whose telephone number is (571)272-3610. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Friday 7:30am - 5:00pm.
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/D.M./Examiner, Art Unit 3667
/TUAN C TO/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3667