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 .
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.
Claim(s) 1, 12 and 18 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Guttmann (US 2019/0294999).
As per claim 1, Guttmann discloses a system (figures 1) comprising:
a sensor module (200a, 200b, figure 1, paragraph 0050) comprising a plurality of
sensors (250, 260, 265, 270 and 275) paragraph 0054) configured to produce
measurements of discrete characteristics of an environment in which the sensor module
is located (paragraphs 0057-0064), and wherein the sensor module includes an audio
indicator (paragraphs 0071-0072) and a module processor (220, figure 2B); and
wherein the module processor (220) configured to receive a set of sensor data produced by the plurality of sensors and being configured to:
in response to the set of sensor data produced by the plurality of sensors
over a period of time, perform a local analysis of the set of sensor data to
determine whether an emergency scenario exists prior to or in parallel with
providing the set of sensor data to the one or more processors (paragraphs
0058-0062); and
where the emergency scenario exists based on the local analysis, provide
a local emergency notification via the audio indicator (paragraphs 0071-0072).
As per claim 12, The method of claim 12 is essentially the same in scope as
system claim 1 above and is rejected similarly.
As per claim 18, refer to claim 1 above.
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.
Claim(s) 19 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Guttmann in view of Morehead (US 10,403,126).
As per claim 19, Guttmann further discloses a power source (240, figure 2B) but
fails to disclose the power source being selected from a group consisting of replaceable
batteries, rechargeable batteries, solar power sources, or a combination thereof.
Morehead discloses a security alarm system (10, figure 1) being operated under
electrical power which can come from a standard plug being supplied AC (i.e., 110 V, 60 Hz; 220 V, 50 Hz, among others). Morehead further disclose the system may be
powered by a battery or may include a standby batter that can supply power to the
system in the event that AC power has been disrupted. In other embodiments, the
battery may be the only source, wherein the battery is recharged through any number of
different means, including, but not limited to generators, wind towers and solar cells,
among others (col 6, lines 47-63). Therefore, it would have been obvious before the
effective filing date of the claimed invention to a person having ordinary skill in the art to
utilize the rechargeable or solar batteries as taught by Morehead in a system as
disclosed by Guttmann for the purpose of providing alternative power to the sensor
module in order to minimize successful sabotage.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 2-11 and 13-17 are objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed April 15, 2026 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive.
Applicant argues that Guttmann fails to disclose “the module processor configured to receive the set of sensor data”. Examiner does not agree. Guttmann clearly disclose the processor (220) receive sensor data from the audio sensor (250), the image sensor (260), the motion sensor (270) and the position sensor (275, paragraphs 0056-0058).
Conclusion
THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to TAI T. NGUYEN whose telephone number is (571)272-2961. The examiner can normally be reached Mon-Fri: 9am-6pm.
Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Quan-Zhen Wang can be reached at 571-272-3114. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000.
/TAI T NGUYEN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2685 May 21, 2026