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 .
Drawings
The drawings are objected to as failing to comply with 37 CFR 1.84(p)(5) because they do not include the following reference sign(s) mentioned in the description: connecting conveyance, 69, is not shown in figure 5. Corrected drawing sheets in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(d) are required in reply to the Office action to avoid abandonment of the application. Any amended replacement drawing sheet should include all of the figures appearing on the immediate prior version of the sheet, even if only one figure is being amended. Each drawing sheet submitted after the filing date of an application must be labeled in the top margin as either “Replacement Sheet” or “New Sheet” pursuant to 37 CFR 1.121(d). If the changes are not accepted by the examiner, the applicant will be notified and informed of any required corrective action in the next Office action. The objection to the drawings will not be held in abeyance.
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) 9, 10, 13, 15 and 16 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by Yamashita et al. (US 2023/0202760).
Regarding claim 9, Yamashita et al. teaches a sorting station, 1000, where sorting work is performed on a conveyed item by an operator, 11, the sorting station comprising:
a lower buffer line, 8, including a loop-shaped first conveyance path to convey the conveyed item in one direction and including a work location, 2, where the operator is able to perform sorting work, see figure 4a and 4b, reproduced below;
an upper buffer line, 4* a, b provided above the first conveyance path and including a second conveyance path to convey the conveyed item from a first end to a second end in one direction, the first end and the second end being connected to a main conveyor, 4*c, to convey the conveyed item, see paragraphs 0049-0053; and
a lifter, 90, to convey the conveyed item in a vertical direction to allow the conveyed item to be passed between the first conveyance path and the second conveyance path, see figure 8a.
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Regarding claim 10, Yamashita et al. teaches the second conveyance path is U-shaped or substantially U-shaped in plan view viewed from the vertical direction, see figure 4a above.
Regarding claim 13, Yamashita et al. teaches an operation of conveying the conveyed item from the first conveyance path to the lifter and a conveyance operation of conveying out the conveyed item from the lifter to the first conveyance path are executed simultaneously, and an operation of conveying in the conveyed item from the second conveyance path to the lifter and an operation of conveying out the conveyed item from the lifter to the second conveyance path are executed simultaneously, see paragraphs 0061 through 0063.
Regarding claim 15, Yamahsita et al. teaches the lifter, 90, is operable to allow a plurality of the conveyed item to be conveyed simultaneously, see paragraph 0061 through 0063.
Regarding claim 16, Yamashita et al. teaches the work location in the lower buffer line is provided below a portion of the main conveyor, 40*, extending linearly in one direction, see figure 4b.
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) 11 and 14 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Yamashita et al. .
Regarding claim 11, Yamashita et al. teaches a drive of a lifter, see figure 8, but does not teach that a driver of the lifter is in an area surrounded by the loop-shaped first conveyance path. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to place the drive of the lifter in an area surrounded by the loop-shaped conveyance path since it has been held that mere rearrangement of the working parts of an invention involves only routine skill in the art. In re Japiske, 181 F.2d 1019, 86 USPQ 70 (CCPA 1950), MPEP 2144.04.
Regarding claim 14, Yamashita et al. teaches additional conveyors vertically arranged, see figures 4b and paragraph 0049. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to provide a plurality of the upper buffer lines are provided in a plurality of layers in the vertical direction in order to achieve the predictable result of increasing the capacity of the sorting station to handle more items.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claim 12 is 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.
Claim 12 claims a connecting conveyance path to connects two paths of the upper buffer line. Yamashita et al. is considered the best prior art and does not teach this connecting path. The examiner could find no motivation to modify the prior art to teach this feature as such, claim 12 is allowable subject matter.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Prior art cited on the PTO-892 and not relied upon are included to show the general state of the prior art and additional examples of sorting stations with buffer lines. These references include:
US 2024/0001536 shows stations with conveyors connected together to form buffering lines moving items through a sorting station.
US 2016/0130086 shows picking station connected to a storage area with conveyors and lifts, similar to the claimed invention.
US 2014/0039667 shows a state for preparing order with a conveyor line above the station connected using a lift to the sorting station.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to KAITLIN S JOERGER whose telephone number is (571)272-6938. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 7:30-5 (CST).
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, Ernesto Suarez can be reached at (571)270-5565. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/KAITLIN S JOERGER/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3655
16 June 2027
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