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 .
Status of Claims
This Office Action is in response to the application filed on 11/7/2024. Claims 1-13 are presently pending and are presented for examination.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) was submitted on 11/7/2024. The submission is in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner.
Priority
Receipt is acknowledged of certified copies of papers required by 37 CFR 1.55.
Claim Objections
Claims 5 and 12 are objected to because of the following informalities. Appropriate correction is required.
Claim 5 recites a collar. The meaning of collar is unclear. For purposes of further examination, Examiner will interpret collar as referring to an edge onto which something can be attached.
Claim 12 recites an end face of the electrical housing is concavely curved. [0056], [0067], and Figs. 6-7 refer to “end face 30” which is concave and has curvature. Figs 6-7 show that “end face 30” possesses no curvature and its face is flat, excepting a hole. For purposes of further examination, Examiner will interpret the end face of the electrical housing is concavely curved to refer to any protruding electrical interface with a concave shape or hole.
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.
The factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness.
Claims 1-3 are rejected under 35 USC 103 as being obvious over CN 112813543 A, hereinafter “Qiu”, DE 19654375 A1, hereinafter “Schwalm”, US 20170217429 A1, hereinafter “Schioe”, and NPL document “The Inner Workings of Amazon Fulfillment Centers – Part 1”, hereinafter “Roser”.
Qiu renders obvious
A driverless transport device (See Abstract, the device transports a cylinder and is autonomous i.e. driverless) comprising:
a self-driving vehicle for transporting a receiving container for a fibre sliver over an underlying surface between sliver-delivering and sliver-fed textile machines (See Abstract, the device transports a cylinder and is autonomous i.e. driverless. See page 3 paragraph 3 the machine has its cylinder loaded with a fiber strip, i.e. has a sliver delivered from a machine. See Fig. 1 and page 6 paragraph 11-page 7 paragraph 2, the cylinder loaded with the fiber strip, i.e. the sliver, is removed from the device and places in position for use with the sliver-fed textile machine.), wherein the vehicle comprises:
an undercarriage with a plurality of wheels (See Fig. 1 and page 5 paragraph 10, the vehicle has an undercarriage with a plurality of wheels.)
a vehicle body supported by the undercarriage and including a transport surface (See Fig. 3 and page 7 paragraph 4, the vehicle has a body supported by the undercarriage with a transport surface for the cylinder. The cylinder is attached to the trip cylinder rotating disc. The fiber strip, i.e. the sliver, is put inside the round strip cylinder. The round strip cylinder is the receiving container.);
Qiu does not explicitly disclose for the receiving containe, on-board electrical system arranged on the vehicle body and including an electrical energy storage means, an electrical drive unit and a control unit wherein the electrical system is arranged on the vehicle body, a safety device for impact detection arranged on the vehicle, the safety device being in signaling communication with a control unit and generating a switching signal on impact with an obstacle, or wherein the vehicle is dimensioned so that in an installed state, in which the receiving container is in contact with the transport surface and is fastened to the vehicle body, the receiving container entirely covers the undercarriage, the electrical drive unit and the electrical energy storage means.
Schwalm renders obvious for the receiving containe(See Fig. 2 and page 3 paragraph 5, the centerings secure the position of the cans during transport.) and
on-board electrical system arranged on the vehicle body and including an electrical energy storage means, an electrical drive unit and a control unit wherein the electrical system is arranged on the vehicle body (See Fig. 2 and page 3 paragraph 5-9, specifically paragraph 8. The driving and control of the vehicle can take with its own energy supply using electrical energy. This indicates the system comprises an on-board electrical system, storage means, and drive and control unit. Fig. 2 shows that the electrical system is on the vehicle body.)
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the system for sliver transport disclosed by Qiu to include the elements for securing the can during transport and electrical system of Schwalm. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to make this modification in order to secure the slivers during transport, as suggested by Schwalm at page 3 paragraph 5, and allow the vehicle to be driven by its own electric energy, as suggested by Schwalm at page 3 paragraph 8.
Qiu combined with Schwalm does not explicitly disclose, a safety device for impact detection arranged on the vehicle, the safety device being in signaling communication with a control unit and generating a switching signal on impact with an obstacle, or wherein the vehicle is dimensioned so that in an installed state, in which the receiving container is in contact with the transport surface and is fastened to the vehicle body, the receiving container entirely covers the undercarriage, the electrical drive unit and the electrical energy storage means.
Schioe renders obvious a safety device for impact detection arranged on the vehicle, the safety device being in signaling communication with a control unit and generating a switching signal on impact with an obstacle (See [0006], the control apparatus detects whether a collision has occurred between a vehicle and an object and stops the vehicle if the collision has occurred. See [0028]-[0029], the system changes the destination and stops immediately in a safe place, i.e. generates a switching signal.).
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the system for sliver transport disclosed by Qiu and Schwalm to include the stopping the vehicle on impact in a safe place of Schioe. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to make this modification so that the results of the impact can be sorted out by the navigation system, as suggested by Schioe at [0028]-[0029].
Qiu combined with Schwalm and Schio does not explicitly disclose wherein the vehicle is dimensioned so that in an installed state, in which the receiving container is in contact with the transport surface and is fastened to the vehicle body, the receiving container entirely covers the undercarriage, the electrical drive unit and the electrical energy storage means.
Roser renders obvious wherein the vehicle is dimensioned so that in an installed state, in which the receiving container is in contact with the transport surface and is fastened to the vehicle body, the receiving container entirely covers the undercarriage, the electrical drive unit and the electrical energy storage means (See page 2 paragraph 6 and the image immediately below, the transport robot is entirely covered by the shelf it transports.).
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the system for sliver transport disclosed by Qiu, Schwalm, and Schioe to include sizing the transport robot to be smaller than the transport container of Roser. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to make this modification to improve maneuverability of the loaded transport robot, as suggested by Roser at page 2 paragraph 6 and the image immediately below.
Regarding claim 2, Qiu combined with Schwalm, Schioe, and Roser renders obvious the limitations of claim 1. Roser renders obvious the transport surface defines a support plane, and the vehicle has no components outside the transport surface that project beyond the support plane (See page 2 paragraph 6 and the image immediately below, the transport robot is entirely covered by the support plane of the shelf it transports.).
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the system for sliver transport disclosed by Qiu, Schwalm, and Schioe to include sizing the transport robot to be smaller than the transport container of Roser. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to make this modification to improve maneuverability of the loaded transport robot, as suggested by Roser at page 2 paragraph 6 and the image immediately below.
Regarding claim 3, Qiu combined with Schwalm, Schioe, and Roser renders obvious the limitations of claim 1. Roser renders obvious wherein the transport device comprises the receiving container which is mounted on the transport surface of the vehicle and is fastened to the vehicle body so that the receiving container entirely covers the undercarriage, the electrical drive unit and the electrical energy storage means (28) (See page 2 paragraph 6 and the image immediately below, the transport robot is entirely covered by shelf it transports, i.e. the receiving container, which is mounted on the transport surface of the robot.).
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the system for sliver transport disclosed by Qiu, Schwalm, and Schioe to include sizing the transport robot to be smaller than the transport container of Roser. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to make this modification to improve maneuverability of the loaded transport robot, as suggested by Roser at page 2 paragraph 6 and the image immediately below.
Claims 4-5 are rejected under 35 USC 103 as being obvious over Qiu, Schwalm, Schioe, and Roser in view of NPL document (YouTube video) “"Bert" carries items across an Amazon warehouse” hereinafter “Bert”.
Regarding claim 4, Qiu combined with Schwalm, Schioe, and Roser renders obvious the limitations of claim 3. Qiu combined with Schwalm, Schioe, and Roser does not explicitly disclose the transport device comprises a bumper which projects, facing outwards, beyond the receiving container, wherein the bumper is fastened to the receiving container.
Bert renders obvious the transport device comprises a bumper which projects, facing outwards, beyond the receiving container, wherein the bumper is fastened to the receiving container (See 11 seconds, the robot comprises a receiving container comprising shelves. The bumper attached to the receiving container near the bottom shelf extends beyond the receiving container.)
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the system for sliver transport disclosed by Qiu, Schwalm, Schioe, and Roser to include adding a bumper to the transport container of Bert. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to make this modification to improve stability of the receiving container in the event of collision and allow the attachment of structural support elements, as suggested by Bert at 11 seconds.
Regarding claim 5, Qiu combined with Schwalm, Schioe, and Roser renders obvious the limitations of claim 1. Bert renders obvious wherein the vehicle has a collar and the transport device comprises a bumper which is fastened to the collar of the vehicle (See 11 seconds, the bumper is attached to the edges of the upper part of the vehicle, i.e. on the collar.).
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the system for sliver transport disclosed by Qiu, Schwalm, Schioe, and Roser to include adding a bumper to the transport container of Bert. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to make this modification to improve stability of the receiving container in the event of collision and allow the attachment of structural support elements, as suggested by Bert at 11 seconds.
Claims 6-8 are rejected under 35 USC 103 as being obvious over Qiu, Schwalm, Schioe, Roser, and Bert in view of US 4951985 A, hereinafter “Pong”.
Regarding claim 6, Qiu combined with Schwalm, Schioe, Roser, and Bert renders obvious the limitations of claim 5. Pong renders obvious wherein the safety device has a contact sensor accommodated in the bumper (See Paragraph 1 of section Detailed Description of the Preferred Embodiment, the bumper comprises an electrically conductive member that conducts in a compressed state, i.e. a contact sensor.).
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the system for sliver transport disclosed by Qiu, Schwalm, Schioe, Roser, and Bert to include a contact sensor in the bumper of Pong. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to make this modification to collect impact information from a single bumper sensor unit, as suggested by Pong at column 1 paragraph 6-column 2 paragraph 4.
Regarding claim 7, Qiu combined with Schwalm, Schioe, Roser, Bert, and Pong renders obvious the limitations of claim 6. Pong renders obvious the bumper includes a damping element made of a flexible material, wherein the damping element extends in the circumferential direction around a vertical axis of the vehicle, and the contact sensor is arranged in the damping element (See Abstract, the electrically conductive member and insulator, i.e. the contact sensor, are sandwiched within compressible material, i.e. a damping element. This material must be flexible in order to allow the compressibility. See Fig. 1 and column 2 paragraph 6, the bumper extends circumferentially around its vertical axis.).
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the system for sliver transport disclosed by Qiu, Schwalm, Schioe, Roser, and Bert to include a contact sensor in the bumper of Pong. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to make this modification to collect impact information from a single bumper sensor unit, as suggested by Pong at column 1 paragraph 6-column 2 paragraph 4.
Regarding claim 8, Qiu combined Qiu combined with Schwalm, Schioe, Roser, Bert, and Pong renders obvious the limitations of claim 6. Pong renders obvious the contact sensor comprises a normally open contact (See Abstract, the insulator prevents contact between electrically conductive members in the non-compressed state, i.e. is normally open, and provides conduction, i.e. closes contact, when the material is in the compressed state.).
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the system for sliver transport disclosed by Qiu, Schwalm, Schioe, Roser, and Bert to include a contact sensor in the bumper of Pong. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to make this modification to collect impact information from a single bumper sensor unit, as suggested by Pong at column 1 paragraph 6-column 2 paragraph 4.
Claim 9 is rejected under 35 USC 103 as being obvious over Qiu, Schwalm, Schioe, Roser, Bert, and Pong in view of NPL document hereinafter “Stainless Steel Ultimatic Robotic Collision Sensor”, hereinafter “RAD”.
Regarding claim 9, Qiu combined Qiu combined with Schwalm, Schioe, Roser, Bert, and Pong renders obvious the limitations of claim 6. Qiu combined with Schwalm, Schioe, Roser, Bert, and Pong does not explicitly disclose generating a switching signal the contact sensor comprises a normally closed contact configured to open a contact in the event of collision with the obstacle.
RAD renders obvious generating a switching signal the contact sensor comprises a normally closed contact configured to open a contact in the event of collision with the obstacle (See page 2 paragraph 4, the external forces on the sensor open a normally closed switch which sends a signal to the robot controller.).
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the system for sliver transport disclosed by Qiu, Schwalm, Schioe, Roser, Bert, and Pong to include normally closed collision sensors of RAD. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to make this modification to quickly stop the robot in order to prevent damage, as suggested by RAD at page 2 paragraph 3.
Claim 9 is rejected under 35 USC 103 as being obvious over Qiu, Schwalm, Schioe, Roser, and Bert in view of DE 202017104980 U1, hereinafter “Vorwerk”.
Regarding claim 10, Qiu combined with Schwalm, Schioe, Roser, and Bert renders obvious the limitations of claim 4. Qiu combined with Schwalm, Schioe, Roser, and Bert does not explicitly disclose the wheels define a wheel contact plane (E24), and the bumper is arranged at a spacing of at least 10 millimetres and at most 40 millimetres above the wheel contact plane.
Vorwerk renders obvious the wheels define a wheel contact plane (E24), and the bumper is arranged at a spacing of at least 10 millimetres and at most 40 millimetres above the wheel contact plane (See page 3 paragraph 4, the vehicle moves autonomously around an environment and use the bumper to identify collisions with obstacles in the environment. The bumper height is adjusted so that the bumper height is low enough to collide with obstacles without the obstacles entering beneath the bumper but high enough to have clearance over e.g. carpet. See page 4 paragraphs 3-7, the housing clearance is set to 20mm to allow travel over carpet and door sills while ensuring the autonomous vehicle does not drive over other obstacles, such as a rocking chair foot.).
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the system for sliver transport disclosed by Qiu, Schwalm, Schioe, Roser, and Bert to include a bumper clearance of 20mm of Vorwerk. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to make this modification to allow the robot to move over small obstacles like carpet and door sills while not rolling over larger obstacles, as suggested by Vorwerk at page 4 paragraphs 3-7.
Claim 10 is rejected under 35 USC 103 as being obvious over Qiu, Schwalm, Schioe, Roser, and Bert in view of EP 2887494 A1, hereinafter “Ko”.
Regarding claim 11, Regarding claim 10, Qiu combined with Schwalm, Schioe, Roser, and Bert renders obvious the limitations of claim 4. Qiu combined with Schwalm, Schioe, Roser, and Bert does not explicitly disclose the bumper has a c-shaped open ring shape having two ring ends, wherein a charging interface for charging the energy storage means is arranged between the ring ends.
Ko renders obvious the bumper has a c-shaped open ring shape having two ring ends, wherein a charging interface for charging the energy storage means is arranged between the ring ends (See Figs. 1 and 3, [0018], and [0022]-[0030], the autonomous vacuum cleaner comprises charging terminals, i.e. charging ports, on the outside of the vehicle. See Fig. 3, there is a recessed area of the front of the vehicle, i.e. a c-shaped ring shape having ends at the midpoint of the robot, where the charging interfaces are positioned.).
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the system for sliver transport disclosed by Qiu, Schwalm, Schioe, Roser, and Bert to include a charging interface on the outside of the robot, i.e. the bumper or within a recess of the bumper, as suggested by Ko. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to make this modification so that the robot can dock itself to the power supply, as suggested by Ko at [0006]-[0010].
Claim 12 is rejected under 35 USC 103 as being obvious over Qiu, Schwalm, Schioe, Roser, Bert, and Ko in view of US 20220255258 A1, hereinafter “Kakuda”.
Regarding claim 12, Qiu combined with Schwalm, Schioe, Roser, Bert, and Ko renders obvious the limitations of claim 11. Ko renders obvious charging interface projects laterally beyond the bumper and is arranged in a dimensionally stable electrical housing (See Figs. 1 and 3, [0018], and [0022]-[0030], the autonomous vacuum cleaner comprises charging terminals, i.e. charging ports, on the outside of the vehicle. The terminals project laterally beyond the robot’s surface. See again Fig. 3, the robot’s charging terminal mates with the charging apparatus. Examiner asserts that the terminal and its corresponding outer layer, i.e. housing, is therefore dimensionally stable, otherwise the charging terminal would deform upon being pressed by the vehicle into the charger.).
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the system for sliver transport disclosed by Qiu, Schwalm, Schioe, Roser, and Bert to include a charging interface on the outside of the robot, i.e. the bumper or within a recess of the bumper, as suggested by Ko. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to make this modification so that the robot can dock itself to the power supply, as suggested by Ko at [0006]-[0010].
Qiu combined with Schwalm, Schioe, Roser, Bert, and Ko does not explicitly disclose wherein an end face of the electrical housing is concavely curved.
Kakuda renders obvious wherein an end face of the electrical housing is concavely curved (See Fig. 6 and [0067]-[0072], the terminal connecting portion comprises a tubular connection portion, i.e. an extending portion with a concave cavity.).
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the system for sliver transport disclosed by Qiu, Schwalm, Schioe, Roser, Bert, and Ko to include a charging interface with concave opening in the tube for charging, as suggested by Kakuda. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to make this modification to reduce manufacturing cost, as suggested by Kakuda at [0007].
Claim 13 is rejected under 35 USC 103 as being obvious over Qiu, Schwalm, Schioe, Roser, and Bert in view of JP 2017093093 A, hereinafter “Kitagawa”.
Regarding claim 13, Qiu combined with Schwalm, Schioe, and Roser renders obvious the limitations of claim 1. Qiu combined with Schwalm, Schioe, and Roser does not explicitly disclose the control unit is configured to monitor a power consumption of the drive unit and to stop the drive unit if a defined threshold value is exceeded.
Kitagawa renders obvious the control unit is configured to monitor a power consumption of the drive unit and to stop the drive unit if a defined threshold value is exceeded (See Abstract, the invention is directed towards stopping voltage to a motor in overcurrent situations, i.e. if current exceeds a threshold. See page 3 paragraph 5, the overcurrent determination value is a specific value for the motor, i.e. a threshold.).
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the system for sliver transport disclosed by Qiu, Schwalm, Schioe, and Roser to include shutting down the motor in overcurrent situations, as suggested by Kitagawa. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to make this modification to protect the motor, as suggested by Kitagawa at page 1 paragraph 3-4.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. US 20170181591 A1 which relates to an impact detecting bumper as part of an autonomous vacuum cleaner.
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/AUSTIN ROBERT CHENNAULT/ Examiner, Art Unit 3667
/Hitesh Patel/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3667
5/14/26
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