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 § 112
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b):
(b) CONCLUSION.—The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph:
The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention.
Claims 1-8 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention.
In claim 1, each of “a second biasing member” (fifth to last line), “a second drive unit” (second to last line), and “a second drive member” (last line) is indefinite because it is not clear how many of each element is being claimed. One of each element is indicated by “a”, there being no biasing member, drive unit, or drive member previously claimed, yet two of each element is indicated by “second”.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status.
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) 1-5, as best understood, is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Swinger, U. S. Patent Application Publication 2021/0172506 in view of Yudell et al., U. S. Patent 11,098,794.
Swinger shows differential disconnect assembly for a vehicle in figures 1 and 2.
The assembly comprises a stationary housing 19.
A rotatable ring gear 12 is rotatably supported by the stationary housing 19 through bearings 18.
A pinion gear assembly 21 comprises a plurality of pinion gears 22 drivingly connectable to the ring gear 12.
A plurality of side gears 20 are rotatably disposed within the stationary housing 19 and meshed with the pinion gears 22 such that the side gears 20 and the pinion gears 22 rotate together.
A differential housing 14 and a differential cover 16 are rotatably supported on the stationary housing 19 through bearings 18. The ring gear 12 rotates together with at least one of the differential housing 14 and the cover 16. Disconnection of the ring gear 12 from the pinion gear assembly 21 allows the ring gear 12, the differential housing 14, and the differential cover 16 to stop spinning while the side gears 22 are spinning ([0029], the wheels spinning with shafts 23 and side gears 20 as described in [0027]).
A differential disconnect assembly 10 is operatively connected between respective surfaces (“complementary connector formations on the inside surface of the ring gear 12” [0030], “locking formations 43 on the outer surface of the gear nest 24” [0031]) of the ring gear 12 and the pinion gear assembly 21 such that the ring gear 12, the pinion gears 22, and the side gears 20 when connected rotate together ([0024] lines 1-6, [0022] last 13 lines), the differential disconnect assembly 10 being actuatable to operatively disconnect the ring gear 12 from the pinion gear assembly 21 to disconnect torque transmission between the ring gear 12 and the pinion gears 22 and prevent driving rotation of the ring gear 12 by the pinion gears 22 during wheel rotation ([0029]).
(claim 1)
The differential housing 14 and the differential cover 16 are supported on the stationary housing 19 by respective bearings 18, the bearings 18 also being allowed to stop spinning while the side gears 20 are spinning ([0029] last two lines).
(claim 2)
The pinion gear assembly 21 includes a gear nest 24 ([0028] lines 8-9) supported radially and axially by the differential housing 14 and the differential cover 16 ([0023] lines 5-7).
The gear nest 24 can spin freely relative to both the differential housing 14 and the differential cover 16 ([0023] lines 5-8).
The differential disconnect assembly 10 connects the ring gear 12 to and disconnects the ring gear 12 from the gear nest 24 when actuated to connect and disconnect the torque transmission ([0031]).
(claim 3)
The differential disconnect assembly 10 includes a spline ring 26 which is movable into and out of engagement with one or more of the ring gear 12 and the gear nest 24 to respectively connect and disconnect the torque transmission ([0031]).
(claim 4)
The spline ring 26 is slidably engaged with the ring gear 12 and movable between a connected position and a disconnected position.
The spline ring 26 engages with the pinion gear assembly 21, specifically clutch teeth 43 on gear nest 24, when in the connected position (fig. 2) and disengages from the pinion gear assembly 21 when in the disconnected position (fig. 1).
(claim 5)
Swinger does not disclose a differential locker slidably coupled to one or more of the differential housing and the differential cover and operatively connected to one of the side gears, with a collar movable by a locker actuator opposite to the bias of a biasing member.
Yudell et al. discloses a differential disconnect assembly 120 for a vehicle similar to that of Swinger in that the assembly, shown in figure 3A, includes a rotatable ring gear 102, a relatively rotatable pinion gear assembly 104/160/162a/162b, and a differential disconnect assembly 120 operatively connected between respective surfaces 103, 107 of the ring gear 102 and 104 of the pinion gear assembly such that the ring gear 102, pinion gears 162a and 162b, and side gears 170a and 170b when connected rotate together (figs. 3B and 3C), the differential disconnect assembly 120 being actuatable to operatively disconnect the ring gear 102 from the pinion gear assembly 104/160/162a/162b to disconnect torque transmission between the ring gear 102 and the pinion gears 162a and 162b and prevent driving rotation of the ring gear 102 by the pinion gears 162a and 162b during wheel rotation (fig. 3A).
A differential locker 106/108 is slidably coupled to one or more of the differential housing 104 and the differential cover and operatively connected to one of the side gears 170b such that the one or more of the differential housing 104 and the differential cover and the one of the side gear 170b when connected rotate together (fig. 3C; col. 7, lines 63-66), the differential locker 106/108 being actuatable to operatively disconnect the one or more of the differential housing 104 and the differential cover from the one of the side gears 170b allowing the one of the side gears 170b to rotate relative to the one or more of the differential housing 104 and the differential cover (figs. 3A and 3B; col. 7, lines 1-2, 20-25).
The differential locker 106/108 includes a shift collar 106 (fig. 2) slidably coupled to one of the differential housing 104 and he differential cover and movable into (fig. 3C) and out (figs. 3A, 3B) of engagement with one of the side gears 170b to respectively lock or unlock the side gear 170b with one or more of the differential housing 104 and the differential cover.
The shift collar 106 is movable by a locker actuator 150 (fig. 1C).
The differential locker 106/108 includes a (second) biasing member 112 to normally bias the shift collar 106 to one of a locked position and an unlocked position.
The locker actuator 150, including shift rod 140 and first spring 122, moves the shift collar 106 to the other of the locked position and the unlocked position. Column 7, line 66 to column 8, line 4 describes the second biasing member 112 as biasing the shift collar 106, with shift fork 108, in the unlocked position, and the actuator overcoming the bias to move the shift collar 106 to the locked position.
The locker actuator 150 includes a (second) drive unit (“actuating device that can move the shift rod 140 including, but not limited to, an electric actuator, a hydraulic actuator” col. 6, lines 41-43) stationarily supported on the stationary housing and a (second) drive member 140 displaceable axially to move the shift collar 106.
(claim 1, as best understood, considering “a second” to be claiming a single element)
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to include a differential locker with a shift collar moved by an actuator against a biasing member in the assembly of Swinger in view of Yudell et al. to selectively use the vehicle in a four wheel drive locked (4WDL) configuration for “terrain that may require one hundred percent torque delivery to either the left or right front wheel. This configuration is used in extreme terrain such as terrain that includes rocks, mud or snow.” (col. 8, lines 7-12) without requiring energy being applied for an unlocked condition.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 6-8 would be allowable if rewritten to overcome the rejection(s) under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), 2nd paragraph, set forth in this Office action and to include all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims. Claim 6 claims a second actuator in addition to the actuator already claimed in claim 1. Neither Swinger nor Yudell et al. discloses two actuators.
Claims 13-25 are allowed.
Response to Remarks
The Applicant remarks that claim 12 and all intervening claims have been incorporated into claim 1, as claim 12 was indicated by the Examiner as being allowable if rewritten in independent form, including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims. However, original claim 1, the base claim, and the intervening claims did not claim a first drive unit and a first drive member for claim 12 to be claiming two drive units and two drive members, as originally believed. With amended claim 1 including “a locker actuator”, claim 6 is deemed as including allowable subject matter in claiming an additional “an actuator” that moves the disconnect assembly spline ring. Though Swinger discloses a disconnect actuator and Yudell et al. discloses a locker actuator, neither discloses a separate actuator for each of the disconnect and the locker, Yudell et al. even explicitly stating “all three configurations of the locking differential are accomplished with one actuator 150”, the three configurations being combinations of disconnect and locker conditions.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to SHERRY LYNN ESTREMSKY whose telephone number is (571)272-7090. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 8:30am-4:30pm.
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SLE
/SHERRY L ESTREMSKY/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3655