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 .
Election/Restrictions
Applicant’s election without traverse of Group I, claims 1-18, in the reply filed on 07 April 2026 is acknowledged.
Claims 19-24 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to a nonelected invention(s), there being no allowable generic or linking claim. Election was made without traverse in the reply filed on 07 April 2026.
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 1-18 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 applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention.
Regarding claim 1, the recitation of “accommodation part” is vague and indefinite because it is unclear what Applicant intends. It is unclear what structure is being recited by such feature, as such language is not art-recognized terminology for washing machine components. The original disclosure as filed clearly shows rotatable drum 20, and such structural language should be recited in the claim. Applicant is reminded that claims directed to apparatus must be distinguished from the prior art in terms of structure rather than function (In re Danly, 263 F.2d 844, 847, 120 USPQ 528, 531 (CCPA 1959)) and that “apparatus claims cover what a device is, not what a device does” (Hewlett-Packard Co. v. Bausch & Lomb Inc., 909 F.2d 1464, 1469, 15 USPQ2d 1525, 1528 (Fed. Cir. 1990) (emphasis in original)).
Further regarding claim 1, it is unclear what is meant by “configured to determine… a personalized course”. How is the personalized course being “determined”? Is this based on sensed/detected data? Or through the use of a neural network? Applicant is reminded that “configured to” language is insufficient for reciting structure without clear and concise functional language.
Claims 4 and 16 recite the limitation "the course". There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim. While there are multiple courses recited, such as “a plurality of courses”, “a personalized course” and “a default course”, the antecedent basis is unclear for the broader recitation “the course”. Which course is being referenced by “the course”?
Regarding claim 10, the recitation of “the terminal or server determines the personalized course based on the information” is vague and indefinite as it is unclear how the personalized course is “determined”. Applicant should more clearly and particularly point out how the personalized course is determined using functional language, as no particular configuration is recited in the apparatus claim.
Similarly regarding claims 8, 9, 11, 14, 16, it is unclear how the external device “determines” or “redetermines” the personalized course. What is meant by “determine”? How is the personalized course being determined or redetermined? Additional functional language is required to particularly point out and distinctly recite the function of the structural configuration claimed.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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 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.
(a)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claim(s) 1-18 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a) as being anticipated by US 2020/0190721 to Kim et al (“Kim”).
Regarding claim 1, Kim discloses a laundry treating system comprising:
a laundry treating apparatus (100 or 300) comprising an accommodation part (washing unit 190 or 330) configured to rotate while accommodating laundry, the laundry treating apparatus being configured to perform a course for treatment of the laundry through rotation of the accommodation part (see Figs. 1a, 3, and associated text); and
an external device (servers 700 or 1310) provided outside the laundry treating apparatus and configured to determine, among a plurality of courses, a personalized course (a recommended laundry course determined via a reinforcement learning model) based on information provided by a user (including user laundry patterns, voice inputs, and context data acquired via a first data acquirer 310 and a second data acquirer 320; see Figs. 3, 10, 13, and associated text),
wherein the laundry treating apparatus stores the personalized course transmitted from the external device (communication units 130 or 340 receive the determined course setting information and the controller 150 or processor 360 store it in the local memory 350; see Figs. 1a, 3, and associated text) and provides the personalized course to the user to allow the user to select the personalized course (via a graphical user interface 180 or a laundry course selection dial list 1410 or voice guidance through the speech guidance unit 120, enabling the user to confirm and execute the personalized operation; see Figs. 1a, 2a, 14, and associated text),
wherein the laundry treating apparatus receives the personalized course from the external device and stores the personalized course during initial communication with the external device after installation thereof (the server, which provides the recommended laundry course above, transmits the courses to the washing machine 100; see ¶ [0085]-[0088]),
wherein a default course among the plurality of courses is pre-stored in the laundry treating apparatus, and wherein the laundry treating apparatus provides the default course and the personalized course to the user to allow the user to select the default course and the personalized course (see storing standard washing courses and providing a recommended, AI-determined personalized course, allowing the user to select either via the display; see ¶ [0182], [0252], Fig. 14),
wherein the default course is pre-stored in the laundry treating apparatus before the laundry treating apparatus is installed so as to perform the course (implicit/inherent, as standard washing courses are factory-installed programs pre-stored in the memory before the machine is installed by user),
wherein the default course is a course set to be undeletable by the user from the laundry treating apparatus (implicit/inherent; note the pre-stored default courses are stored on the server, and while capable of being personalized/modified, still remain default courses),
wherein the laundry treating apparatus provides the default course, except for the personalized course, to allow the user to select the default course before communicating with the external device after installation thereof (manifestly, the default courses are provided before additional data entry for modifying into a personalized course),
wherein the laundry treating apparatus receives the default course and the personalized course from the external device and stores the default course and the personalized course (see above, note use of default laundry course and recommended laundry course),
wherein the external device determines the personalized course from among remaining courses except for the default course among the plurality of courses, and wherein the laundry treating apparatus receives the personalized course from the external device and stores the personalized course (note above and use of a cloud server 1310 and mobile terminal (smartphone) where user input is received to determine the personalized course for the washing machine (see Fig. 13 and associated text; particularly ¶ [0040], [0283], [0302]-[0303]),
wherein the external device determines a plurality of personalized courses, and wherein the laundry treating apparatus receives and stores remaining personalized courses except for the default course among the plurality of personalized courses (note ¶ [0069]-[0070], [0177]-[0181], [0185]-[0186]),
wherein the external device comprises: a terminal configured to receive the information input by the user; and a server configured to communicate with the terminal, and wherein the terminal or the server determines the personalized course based on the information (note graphical interface elements on the display or terminal where user selects specific options, collecting this data as reinforcement feedback (see Fig. 14 and associated text, ¶ [0252]-[0254], [0255]-[0257]),
wherein the external device receives a plurality of pieces of information from the user through multiple input processes in which the user inputs the information, and determines at least one personalized course based on the plurality of pieces of information (see ¶ [0231], [0258], [0297]-[0298]),
wherein, in an input process in which a plurality of selection objects is provided to the user so as to be selected by the user, the external device collects the information through an object selected by the user from among the plurality of selection objects (see Fig. 12 and associated text, ¶ [0290]-[0294]),
wherein the information comprises at least one of a number of family members of the user, presence or absence of a pet, presence or absence of a baby, or a main type of laundry (note ¶ [0293] where user is capable of setting various elements as desired),
wherein, if the information is provided again by the user after the personalized course is determined, the external device re-determines the personalized course (see above regarding personalized course, note ¶ [0294] wherein personalized course is updated based on user input),
wherein, after determining the personalized course, the external device changes the personalized course to a course designated by the user among the plurality of courses (see above regarding personalized course, note ¶ [0294] wherein personalized course is updated based on user input),
wherein the external device determines the personalized course before the laundry treating apparatus is installed so as to perform the course (see above, note reinforcement learning algorithm repeatedly selecting a specific setting updates the neural network based on frequency, establishing the frequently-used setting as the new recommend default),
wherein a group of the plurality of courses comprises a user course allowing the user to determine a default set value of an option through the external device (see above regarding external device used to input a user course),
wherein a default set value of an option of each course belonging to a group of the plurality of courses is stored in the laundry treating apparatus, and wherein, with respect to one course among the plurality of courses, if a number of times the user has changed the default set value to a predetermined set value exceeds a reference number, the laundry treating apparatus stores the predetermined set value as the default set value for the one course (see above regarding plural default courses in the washing machine and recommended laundry courses updated to the washing machine by machine learning to set the programmed washing course of the washing machine).
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure:
US 2014/0156081 to Ha, which discloses a washing machine connected to an external device for external user operation.
US 2008/0235613 to Ricklefs et al, which discloses a washing machine with multi-user interface for customized user operations.
US 2002/0095483 to Lee et al, which discloses a washing machine connected to an external device for applying various customized washing course programs.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JOSEPH L PERRIN whose telephone number is (571)272-1305. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 7:30-4:00.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Michael E. Barr can be reached at 571-272-1414. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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Joseph L. Perrin, Ph.D.
Primary Examiner
Art Unit 1711
/Joseph L. Perrin/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1711
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