DETAILED ACTION
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 10/15/2024 is in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner.
Response to Amendment
The Preliminary Amendment, filed 10/15/2024 has been entered. Claim 10 has been canceled. Claims 11-13 have been added. Claims 1-9 and 11-13 are pending in the Application.
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 1-9, and 11-13 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Carpenter et al US 20110126005.
Regarding claim 1, Carpenter teaches a control board configured to be mounted in a vehicle (see figure 4, host 400, see para 0137, connection of a host mobile phone to an accessory car dock e.g. mounted in a vehicle) and capable of rewriting a circuit configuration (see the abstract, The host device can select connector functions to be enabled for connecting to the accessory device connector), the control board comprising:
a connector to which is connected a second end of a cable having a first end connected to a component mounted in the vehicle, the second end being located opposite to the first end (see figure 4, connector 420, also see figure 2 and para 0043, FIG. 2 is a block diagram of an exemplary host 200 connected to an exemplary accessory 250 via a cable); and
a control unit configured to perform control of the component (controller 410), wherein
the control unit is configured to obtain, based on component information transmitted from the component via the cable, wiring data relating to an arrangement of a plurality of pins included in the connector, and a control program for controlling the component (see para 0081, the accessory device can send accessory device information e.g. component information to the host device that includes information in addition to the functions supported by the accessory connector e.g. wiring data, also see para 0083, The accessory device information can also include application information e.g. control program).
Regarding claim 2, Carpenter further teaches the component information includes the control program and the wiring data (see para 0081, the accessory device can send accessory device information e.g. component information to the host device that includes information in addition to the functions supported by the accessory connector e.g. wiring data, also see para 0083, The accessory device information can also include application information e.g. control program).
Regarding claim 3, Carpenter further teaches the component information includes identification information for identifying the component (see para 0108, The accessory device information can further include the authentication version, an accessory device unique identifier (e.g., the accessory device globally unique identifier), and accessory device class and sub-class), and
the control unit is configured to:
transmit, via a network, the component information to an external device installed outside the vehicle (see para 0100, The host and accessory devices can each have access to a resource that can determine whether a received certificate is associated with an approved device. This resource can be a certificate database stored locally at the host or accessory device or accessible remotely via a network connection. The resource can be an algorithm that takes the received certificate as input and produces an indication of whether the certificate is associated with an approved or genuine device); and
obtain, based on the identification information, the control program transmitted from the external device (see para 0139, firmware or software upgrades are available for download over the network, also see para 0050, after configuring the host device connector pins, the host device can load the necessary drivers to support the enabled connector functions. The drivers can be downloaded from a remote resource).
Regarding claim 4, Carpenter further teaches the control unit is configured to obtain, based on the identification information, the wiring data transmitted from the external device (see para 0048, Information regarding the accessory connector functions can be received from the accessory or another source, and can be stored at the host device).
Regarding claim 5, Carpenter further teaches the control unit is configured to rewrite, based on the wiring data, the arrangement of the plurality of pins to an arrangement for controlling the component (see para 0066, an indication of one or more functions supported by the second accessory connector can be received from the second accessory… the host device can reconfigure the pins of the host connection to support the selected second functions), and thereafter perform control of the component based on the control program (see para 0050, after configuring the host device connector pins, the host device can load the necessary drivers to support the enabled connector functions. The drivers can be loaded from the host device store 230, or downloaded from a remote resource connected to the host device over a network).
Regarding claim 6, Carpenter further teaches the control unit is configured to, when the first end is removed from the component, or when the second end is removed from the connector, return the arrangement of the plurality of pins to a state that existed prior to execution of the rewriting based on the wiring data (see para 0067, placing the host connector in an unconfigured or a previously configured state in response to detecting the first accessory device being detached from the host device).
Regarding claim 7, Carpenter further teaches the control unit is configured to, when the first end is removed from the component, or when the second end is removed from the connector, delete the control program from the control board (see para 0113, After initiation of the removal process, the Remove Accessory scenario can perform the following. The host device can issue appropriate notifications to host device applications communicating with the accessory device. Once these host device applications have completed executing, the host can stop the software device drivers and corresponding bus protocol stacks, the Examiner further submits that program such as driver can be deleted when no longer needed).
Regarding claim 8, Carpenter further teaches a control system (see figure 2) comprising:
the control board according to claim 1 (host 200);
the cable (cable M, N); and
the component (accessory 250).
Regarding claim 9, Carpenter teaches a control method of a control board configured to be mounted in a vehicle (see figure 4, host 400, see para 0137, connection of a host mobile phone to an accessory car dock e.g. mounted in a vehicle) and capable of rewriting a circuit configuration (see the abstract, The host device can select connector functions to be enabled for connecting to the accessory device connector), the method comprising the steps of:
receiving, when a component mounted in the vehicle and the control board are connected to each other using a cable, component information transmitted to the control board from the component via the cable (see para 0081, the accessory device can send accessory device information e.g. component information to the host device); and
obtaining, based on the component information, wiring data relating to an arrangement of a plurality of pins that are included in the control board and are connected to the cable, and a control program for controlling the component (see para 0081, the accessory device can send accessory device information e.g. component information to the host device that includes information in addition to the functions supported by the accessory connector e.g. wiring data, also see para 0083, The accessory device information can also include application information e.g. control program).
Regarding claims 11-13, please refer to the rejection of claim 5 since the claimed subject matter is substantially similar.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Lovegrove US 20220129404 discloses updating a connector’s pins arrangement
Akamine et al US 20080178134 discloses receiving circuit information/layout data and extracting network parameters from the received information
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to PHONG H DANG whose telephone number is (571)272-0470. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 9:30AM - 6:00PM.
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/PHONG H DANG/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2184
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