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 .
Response to Amendment
The Examiner acknowledges the receipt of the Applicant’s amendment filed on 07/08/2026. Claim 4 has been canceled. Claim 10 was previously canceled. Claim 22 has been added. Claims 1-3, 5-9, and 11-22 are currently pending in the present application.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments, see Applicant Arguments/Remarks, filed 07/08/2026, with respect to the rejection(s) of claim(s) 1-3, 5-9, and 11-22 have been fully considered and are persuasive. Therefore, the rejection has been withdrawn. However, upon further consideration, a new ground(s) of rejection is made in view of Tanikawa et al. (US 2016/0004894 A1 herein Tanikawa).
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.
Claims 1-3, 5-9, 11-22 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Tanikawa et al. (US 2016/0004894 A1 herein Tanikawa).
Regarding claim 1, Tanikawa teaches a near field communication (NFC) reader (read as reader 300 for an RFID tag for near-field wireless communication) (Tanikawa – Figure 1, [0035], [0043]), comprising:
a plurality of transmit antennas (read as plurality of coil antennae; each coil antenna is arranged with a spread within a predetermined range and has a communication range within which it can communicate with an RFID tag) (Tanikawa – [0044], [0048]);
a transmitter coupled to the plurality of transmit antennas (read as the transmission and reception unit 306 includes a plurality of coil antennae) (Tanikawa – Figure 2, [0044]);
at least one receive antenna (read as the transmission and reception unit 306 includes an antenna 308) (Tanikawa – Figure 2, [0041]); and
circuitry coupled to the at least one receive antenna and configured to analyze at least one signal received by the at least one receive antenna from an antenna circuit of a remote NFC device inductively coupled to the at least one receive antenna (read as one or more RFID tags 400 for near-field wireless communication; RFID tag 400 includes a demodulation part 404, a tag antenna 408, a modulation part 418, an arithmetic operation unit 420, a transmission power acquisition unit 422 and a touch sensor 424) (Tanikawa – Figure 1, Figure 8, [0035], [0037], [0076]-[0078]), the circuitry configured to determine a location of the remote NFC device from the at least one receive antenna based on the at least one signal (read as the antenna 308 which can detect an RFID tag in 64 regions using a combination of totaling 40 antennae; by embedding, when the sheet for exclusive use is placed on top plate 340, the RFID tag 400 for identifying the sheet at a location of the top plate 340 corresponding to the general-purpose placement area 344, it can be detected whether or not the information processing apparatus 200 is covered with a suitable sheet) (Tanikawa – Figure 12, [0104], [0133]) and to select a transmit antenna from the plurality of transmit antennas to communicate with the remote NFC device based on the determined location (read as the antenna changeover controlling part 312 controls changeover of the antenna to be selected by the antenna selection switch 310; the antenna selection switch 310 can be implemented using a high frequency switching device) (Tanikawa – [0049]).
Regarding claim 2 as applied to claim 1, Tanikawa further teaches further comprises a multiplexer connected between the transmitter and the plurality of transmit antennas (read as an antenna selection switch 310 for selecting, from among a plurality of coil antennae which the antenna 308 has, one antenna to be used for transmission and reception of data to and from the RFID tag reader) (Tanikawa – Figure 2, [0041], [0049]-[0050]).
Regarding claim 3 as applied to claim 2, Tanikawa further teaches wherein the circuitry is configured to control the multiplexer such that the selected transmit antenna from the plurality of transmit antennas receives carrier signals from the transmitter (read as antenna changeover controlling part 312 controls changeover of the antenna to be selected by the antenna selection switch 310) (Tanikawa – [0040], [0049]-[0050]).
Regarding claim 5 as applied to claim 1, Tanikawa further teaches wherein the circuitry is configured to determine a transmit antenna of the plurality of transmit antennas closest to the remote NFC device based on the determined location (read as the arithmetic operation unit 303 includes a detection part 314 and an antenna changeover controlling part 312; the antenna 308 can detect an RFID tag in 64 regions using a combination of totaling 40 antennae) (Tanikawa – Figure 2, Figure 12, [0040], [0104]) and to select the closest transmit antenna of the plurality of transmit antennas to communicate with the remote NFC device (read as by control of the antenna selection switch 310 by the antenna changeover controlling part 312, the communication range with an RFID tag 400 can be expanded; it is possible to detect at which position within the communication range an RFID tag exists, then it becomes possible to utilize the information by application software executed by the information processing apparatus or the like; the detection part 314 acquires, when a carrier wave transmitted from an RFID tag 400 is received by one of a plurality of coil antennae, information representative of the coil antenna selected by the antenna selection switch 310 under the control of the antenna changeover controlling part 312) (Tanikawa – [0053]-[0054]).
Regarding claim 6 as applied to claim 1, Tanikawa further teaches wherein the circuitry is configured to determine a change in location of the remote NFC device from the at least one receive antenna based on the at least one signal and to select a transmit antenna of the plurality of transmit antennas based on the determined change in location of the remote NFC device (read as the user would move an RFID tag 400, if the user picks up an RFID tag 400 and moves the RFID tag 400 to the outside of the communication range of the coil antenna, then the software 206 can determine from a change of the position information of the RFID tag 400 which one of the RFID tags 400 the user wants to move) (Tanikawa – [0074]).
Regarding claim 7 as applied to claim 1, Tanikawa further teaches wherein the plurality of transmit antennas are positioned at different locations of the NFC reader (read as the plurality of coil antennae are arranged such that at least part of them overlap with at least one or more ones of the coil antennae; at least part of the communication ranges of the plurality of coil antennae overlap with at least part of the communication range of one or more other antennae) (Tanikawa – Figure 9, [0090]-[0091]).
Regarding claim 8 as applied to claim 7, Tanikawa further teaches wherein at least one transmit antenna of the plurality of transmit antennas overlaps another transmit antenna of the plurality of transmit antennas (read as the plurality of coil antennae are arranged such that at least part of them overlap with at least one or more ones of the coil antennae; at least part of the communication ranges of the plurality of coil antennae overlap with at least part of the communication range of one or more other antennae) (Tanikawa – Figure 9, Figure 12, [0090]-[0091], [0103]-[0104]).
Regarding claim 9 as applied to claim 1, Tanikawa further teaches wherein the circuitry is configured to determine a transmit antenna of the plurality of transmit antennas that provides a strongest wireless carrier signal to the remote NFC device (read as the arithmetic operation unit 303 includes a detection part 314 and an antenna changeover controlling part 312; the antenna 308 can detect an RFID tag in 64 regions using a combination of totaling 40 antennae) (Tanikawa – Figure 2, Figure 12, [0040], [0104]) and to select the transmit antenna providing the strongest wireless carrier signal to communicate with the remote NFC device (read as by control of the antenna selection switch 310 by the antenna changeover controlling part 312, the communication range with an RFID tag 400 can be expanded; it is possible to detect at which position within the communication range an RFID tag exists, then it becomes possible to utilize the information by application software executed by the information processing apparatus or the like; the detection part 314 acquires, when a carrier wave transmitted from an RFID tag 400 is received by one of a plurality of coil antennae, information representative of the coil antenna selected by the antenna selection switch 310 under the control of the antenna changeover controlling part 312) (Tanikawa – [0053]-[0054], [0114]-[0115]).
Regarding claim 11, Tanikawa teaches a near field communication (NFC) method, comprising:
transmitting a wireless carrier signal generated by a transmitter from an NFC reader (read as reader 300 for an RFID tag for near-field wireless communication; read as a carrier wave to be used for communication with an RFID tag 400 with the acquired data) (Tanikawa – Figure 1, [0035], [0042]-[0043]);
receiving at least one signal from an inductively coupled remote NFC device with at least one receive antenna of the NFC reader (read as communication standards for NFC utilizing electromagnetic induction) (Tanikawa – [0043]), the at least one signal formed by load modulation of the wireless carrier signal by an antenna circuit of the remote NFC device (read as transmission and reception unit includes a modulation part which generates a carrier wave modulated with data to be transmitted to the RFID tag) (Tanikawa – [0007], [0041]-[0042]);
analyzing the at least one signal received by the at least one receive antenna from the antenna circuit of the remote NFC device (read as one or more RFID tags 400 for near-field wireless communication; RFID tag 400 includes a demodulation part 404, a tag antenna 408, a modulation part 418, an arithmetic operation unit 420, a transmission power acquisition unit 422 and a touch sensor 424) (Tanikawa – Figure 1, Figure 8, [0035], [0037], [0076]-[0078]);
determining a location of the remote NFC device from the at least one receive antenna based on analyzing the at least one signal (read as the antenna 308 which can detect an RFID tag in 64 regions using a combination of totaling 40 antennae; by embedding, when the sheet for exclusive use is placed on top plate 340, the RFID tag 400 for identifying the sheet at a location of the top plate 340 corresponding to the general-purpose placement area 344, it can be detected whether or not the information processing apparatus 200 is covered with a suitable sheet) (Tanikawa – Figure 12, [0104], [0133]); and
selecting a transmit antenna from a plurality of transmit antennas to transmit the wireless carrier signal from the transmitter to the remote NFC device based on the determined location (read as the antenna changeover controlling part 312 controls changeover of the antenna to be selected by the antenna selection switch 310; the antenna selection switch 310 can be implemented using a high frequency switching device) (Tanikawa – [0049]).
Regarding claim 12 as applied to claim 11, Tanikawa further teaches further comprises controlling a multiplexer connected between the transmitter and the plurality of transmit antennas such that the selected transmit antenna receives the wireless carrier signal from the transmitter (read as an antenna selection switch 310 for selecting, from among a plurality of coil antennae which the antenna 308 has, one antenna to be used for transmission and reception of data to and from the RFID tag reader) (Tanikawa – Figure 2, [0041], [0049]-[0050]).
Regarding claim 13 as applied to claim 12, Tanikawa further teaches further comprises controlling the multiplexer such that non-selected transmit antennas from the plurality of transmit antennas are prevented from receiving carrier signals from the transmitter (read as antenna changeover controlling part 312 controls changeover of the antenna to be selected by the antenna selection switch 310; the coupling to the antenna selection switch is performed such that within a loop configured from the current path from a terminal coupled by the first switch circuit 330 to a terminal coupled by the second switch circuit 332, no any other coil antenna is included; it is possible to exclude other coil antenna from within the loops formed from the wiring lines, and it can be suppressed for those wiring lines) (Tanikawa – [0040], [0049]-[0050], [0115], [0118]).
Regarding claim 14 as applied to claim 11, Tanikawa further teaches wherein selecting the transmit antenna from the plurality of transmit antennas includes determining the transmit antenna of the plurality of transmit antennas closest to the remote NFC device (read as the arithmetic operation unit 303 includes a detection part 314 and an antenna changeover controlling part 312; the antenna 308 can detect an RFID tag in 64 regions using a combination of totaling 40 antennae) (Tanikawa – Figure 2, Figure 12, [0040], [0104]) based on the determined location (read as by control of the antenna selection switch 310 by the antenna changeover controlling part 312, the communication range with an RFID tag 400 can be expanded; it is possible to detect at which position within the communication range an RFID tag exists, then it becomes possible to utilize the information by application software executed by the information processing apparatus or the like; the detection part 314 acquires, when a carrier wave transmitted from an RFID tag 400 is received by one of a plurality of coil antennae, information representative of the coil antenna selected by the antenna selection switch 310 under the control of the antenna changeover controlling part 312) (Tanikawa – [0053]-[0054]).
Regarding claim 15 as applied to claim 11, Tanikawa further teaches further comprising: determining a change in location of the remote NFC device from the at least one receive antenna based on the at least one signal (read as the user would move an RFID tag 400, if the user picks up an RFID tag 400 and moves the RFID tag 400 to the outside of the communication range of the coil antenna, then the software 206 can determine from a change of the position information of the RFID tag 400 which one of the RFID tags 400 the user wants to move) (Tanikawa – [0074]); and selecting a transmit antenna of the plurality of transmit antennas based on the determined change in location of the remote NFC device (read as by control of the antenna selection switch 310 by the antenna changeover controlling part 312, the communication range with an RFID tag 400 can be expanded; it is possible to detect at which position within the communication range an RFID tag exists, then it becomes possible to utilize the information by application software executed by the information processing apparatus or the like; the detection part 314 acquires, when a carrier wave transmitted from an RFID tag 400 is received by one of a plurality of coil antennae, information representative of the coil antenna selected by the antenna selection switch 310 under the control of the antenna changeover controlling part 312) (Tanikawa – [0053]-[0054]).
Regarding claim 16 as applied to claim 11, Tanikawa further teaches wherein selecting a transmit antenna from a plurality of transmit antennas includes determining the transmit antenna of the plurality of transmit antennas that provides a strongest wireless carrier signal to the remote NFC device (read as by control of the antenna selection switch 310 by the antenna changeover controlling part 312, the communication range with an RFID tag 400 can be expanded; it is possible to detect at which position within the communication range an RFID tag exists, then it becomes possible to utilize the information by application software executed by the information processing apparatus or the like; the detection part 314 acquires, when a carrier wave transmitted from an RFID tag 400 is received by one of a plurality of coil antennae, information representative of the coil antenna selected by the antenna selection switch 310 under the control of the antenna changeover controlling part 312) (Tanikawa – [0053]-[0054]).
Regarding claim 17 as applied to claim 11, Tanikawa further teaches wherein selecting a transmit antenna from a plurality of transmit antennas includes enabling the selected transmit antenna from the plurality of transmit antennas to receive carrier signals from a transmitter (read as by control of the antenna selection switch 310 by the antenna changeover controlling part 312, the communication range with an RFID tag 400 can be expanded; it is possible to detect at which position within the communication range an RFID tag exists, then it becomes possible to utilize the information by application software executed by the information processing apparatus or the like; the detection part 314 acquires, when a carrier wave transmitted from an RFID tag 400 is received by one of a plurality of coil antennae, information representative of the coil antenna selected by the antenna selection switch 310 under the control of the antenna changeover controlling part 312) (Tanikawa – [0053]-[0054]) and preventing non-selected transmit antennas from the plurality of transmit antennas from receiving carrier signals from the transmitter (read as the antenna of the plurality of antennas that are not selected by the antenna selection switch 310) (Tanikawa – [0050], [0054]-[0055]).
Regarding claim 18, Tanikawa teaches a payment system, comprising:
a payment reader configured to communicate via near field communication (NFC) with a payment device having an antenna circuit (read as reader 300 for an RFID tag for near-field wireless communication) (Tanikawa – Figure 1, [0035], [0043]), the payment reader configured to receive payment information from the payment device and to process a payment transaction based on the received payment information (read as contactless information communication used in ticket gates of railway stations, settlement in stores such as payment and so forth) (Tanikawa – [0002]), the payment reader comprising:
a plurality of transmit antennas (read as plurality of coil antennae; each coil antenna is arranged with a spread within a predetermined range and has a communication range within which it can communicate with an RFID tag) (Tanikawa – [0044], [0048]);
a transmitter coupled to the plurality of transmit antennas (read as the transmission and reception unit 306 includes a plurality of coil antennae) (Tanikawa – Figure 2, [0044]);
at least one receive antenna for receiving at least one signal transmitted to the payment reader by the antenna circuit of the payment device (read as the transmission and reception unit 306 includes an antenna 308) (Tanikawa – Figure 2, [0041]); and
circuitry coupled to the at least one receive antenna and configured to analyze the at least one signal received from the antenna circuit of the payment device (read as one or more RFID tags 400 for near-field wireless communication; RFID tag 400 includes a demodulation part 404, a tag antenna 408, a modulation part 418, an arithmetic operation unit 420, a transmission power acquisition unit 422 and a touch sensor 424) (Tanikawa – Figure 1, Figure 8, [0035], [0037], [0076]-[0078]), the circuitry configured to determine a location of the payment device from the at least one receive antenna (read as the antenna 308 which can detect an RFID tag in 64 regions using a combination of totaling 40 antennae) (Tanikawa – Figure 12, [0103]-[0104]) based on the at least one signal and to select a transmit antenna from the plurality of transmit antennas to communicate with the payment device based on the determined location (read as the antenna changeover controlling part 312 controls changeover of the antenna to be selected by the antenna selection switch 310; the antenna selection switch 310 can be implemented using a high frequency switching device) (Tanikawa – [0049]).
Regarding claim 19 as applied to claim 18, Tanikawa further teaches wherein the circuitry is configured to enable the selected transmit antenna from the plurality of transmit antennas to receive carrier signals from the transmitter and to prevent non-selected transmit antennas from the plurality of transmit antennas from receiving carrier signals from the transmitter (read as antenna changeover controlling part 312 controls changeover of the antenna to be selected by the antenna selection switch 310; the coupling to the antenna selection switch is performed such that within a loop configured from the current path from a terminal coupled by the first switch circuit 330 to a terminal coupled by the second switch circuit 332, no any other coil antenna is included; it is possible to exclude other coil antenna from within the loops formed from the wiring lines, and it can be suppressed for those wiring lines) (Tanikawa – [0040], [0049]-[0050], [0115], [0118]).
Regarding claim 20 as applied to claim 18, Tanikawa further teaches wherein the plurality of transmit antennas are positioned at different locations of the NFC reader and at least one transmit antenna of the plurality of transmit antennas overlaps another transmit antenna of the plurality of transmit antennas (read as the plurality of coil antennae are arranged such that at least part of them overlap with at least one or more ones of the coil antennae; at least part of the communication ranges of the plurality of coil antennae overlap with at least part of the communication range of one or more other antennae) (Tanikawa – Figure 9, Figure 12, [0090]-[0091], [0103]-[0104]).
Regarding claim 21 as applied to claim 1, Tanikawa further teaches wherein the circuitry is further configured to disable at least one of the plurality of antennas not selected for communication with the NFC device (read as antenna changeover controlling part 312 controls changeover of the antenna to be selected by the antenna selection switch 310; the coupling to the antenna selection switch is performed such that within a loop configured from the current path from a terminal coupled by the first switch circuit 330 to a terminal coupled by the second switch circuit 332, no any other coil antenna is included; it is possible to exclude other coil antenna from within the loops formed from the wiring lines, and it can be suppressed for those wiring lines) (Tanikawa – [0040], [0049]-[0050], [0115], [0118]).
Regarding claim 22 as applied to claim 1, Tanikawa further teaches further comprising a multiplexer connected between the transmitter and the plurality of transmit antennas, wherein the circuitry is further configured to control the multiplexer to couple the transmitter to the selected transmit antenna and to decouple the transmitter from each non-selected transmit antenna of the plurality of transmit antennas (read as antenna changeover controlling part 312 controls changeover of the antenna to be selected by the antenna selection switch 310; the coupling to the antenna selection switch is performed such that within a loop configured from the current path from a terminal coupled by the first switch circuit 330 to a terminal coupled by the second switch circuit 332, no any other coil antenna is included; it is possible to exclude other coil antenna from within the loops formed from the wiring lines, and it can be suppressed for those wiring lines) (Tanikawa – [0040], [0049]-[0050], [0115], [0118]).
Conclusion
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/APRIL G GONZALES/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2648
