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 .
Priority
Receipt is acknowledged of certified copies of papers required by 37 CFR 1.55.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 06/29/2026, 04/10/2025, 12/10/2024 & 02/26/2026 are in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner.
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) 1-3 & 9-13 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Witts et al. (U.S. 2021/0389196 A1) in view of Iijima et al. (U.S. 2010/0066353 A1).
Regarding claim 1, Witts et al. disclose in Figs. 2-4, an inductive position detector comprising: a stator having a wiring board (stator circuit board 220 supporting first and second receivers 216, 218 and an excitation coil, [0040]-[0043]); a rotor having a non-conductive component disposed in opposed relation to the stator and rotatable relative to the stator about a predetermined rotation axis (first and second rotors 208, 210 arranged opposite the stator circuit board 220 and rotatable relative thereto, with respective rotor targets coupled thereto, [0040]-[0044]); a plurality of conductor targets having the same shape and the same size and held by the non-conductive component of the rotor to be cyclically arranged circumferentially about the rotation axis, the conductor targets being movable to pass through a rotation track defined about the rotation axis as the rotor is rotated (rotor target 212 having a plurality of periodically repeated conductive target lobes 302 of corresponding angular widths, with alternating target-present and target-absent structural phases in the circumferential direction, [0046]-[0048]); and a plurality of detection coils disposed on the stator in opposed relation to the rotation track so as to have different spatial phases with respect to the conductor targets, and respectively serving as detection coils that detect a magnetic field change occurring due to the passage of the conductor targets (sine and cosine receiver windings 3, 5 arranged relative to the rotor target and generating position-dependent signals as the rotor target modifies the electromagnetic field, [0033]-[0037]).
Witts et al. do not expressly disclose that the plurality of detection coils are commercially available chip inductors surface-mounted on a major surface of the wiring board. Iijima et al. disclose a plurality of chip inductors surface-mounted on a major surface of a printed circuit board and circumferentially positioned at different angular positions around a rotating rotor to detect magnetic-flux changes corresponding to the rotational position of the rotor (chip inductors 151–154 surface-mounted on printed circuit board 130 and arranged at circumferentially different positions, [0047]-[0050]).
It would have been obvious to one skilled in the art, prior to the effective filing date, to modify Witts et al. by incorporating commercially available surface-mounted chip inductors as taught by Iijima et al. in place of the receiver coils of Witts et al., as doing so would provide compact, readily available detection coils capable of being conveniently mounted at selected spatial phases on the stator circuit board because Iijima et al. emphasizes in paragraph [0106] that mounting commercially available chip inductors on a printed circuit board simplifies assembly, eliminates complicated coil wiring, and reduces manufacturing cost, thus improving the compactness, manufacturability, and arrangement flexibility of Witts et al.’s inductive position detector.
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Regarding claim 2, Witts et al. & Iijima et al. disclose the inductive position detector according to claim 1, wherein Witts et al. further disclose the conductor targets are arranged at a predetermined conductor target pitch along the rotation track (periodically repeated target lobes 302 arranged with alternating structural phases at regular angular intervals along the circumferential measurement path, [0046]-[0048]); and wherein the chip inductors each have a coil width that is 25% to 75% of the conductor target pitch as measured along the rotation track (Witts et al. teach selecting the angular width of each target lobe relative to a receiver-structure period to obtain the desired inductive coupling and reduce interference, including making the target-lobe width approximately equal to a receiver period, [0048], while Iijima et al. teach selecting commercially available small chip inductors for circumferential placement around the rotor, [0050], [0075]).
Regarding claim 3, Witts et al. & Iijima et al. disclose the inductive position detector according to claim 1, wherein Witts et al. further disclose the conductor targets are arranged at the predetermined conductor target pitch along the rotation track (periodically repeated conductive target lobes arranged circumferentially with a recurring structural phase, [0047]); and wherein the chip inductors include at least one first-phase chip inductor, at least one second-phase chip inductor, at least one third-phase chip inductor and at least one fourth-phase chip inductor which are arranged with a phase difference of one fourth the conductor target pitch (Witts et al. disclose sine and cosine receiver coils having different spatial phases relative to the periodically repeated rotor target and expressly teach that any number of windings or coils may be used with suitable angular spacing, see [0033]-[0034]).
Regarding claim 9, Witts et al. & Iijima et al. disclose the inductive position detector according to claim 1, wherein Witts et al. further disclose the conductor targets include solid conductor patterns or loop-shaped coil conductor patterns provided on the non-conductive component (rotor targets composed of solid metal or a closed loop formed by a conductive track, [0063]); and the conductor targets are isolated from each other (a plurality of separate target lobes 302 periodically distributed about the rotor with target-absent regions between adjacent target lobes, [0046]-[0048]).
Regarding claim 10, Witts et al. & Iijima et al. disclose the inductive position detector according to claim 1, wherein Witts et al. further disclose the conductor targets are connected to each other to provide a loop-shaped coil conductor pattern extending entirely circumferentially (Witts et al. disclose a rotor target composed of a closed loop formed by a conductive track, wherein the conductive rotor target includes periodically repeated target portions extending circumferentially about the rotor, [0046]-[0048], wherein closed-loop conductive rotor-target pattern continuously around the entire circumference, as doing so would provide position-dependent inductive coupling throughout a complete rotor revolution because Witts et al. emphasizes in paragraph [0059] that periodically repeated sensing structures may extend continuously about the entire 360-degree circumference, thus enabling continuous rotational-position detection, see [0063]).
Regarding claim 11, Witts et al. & Iijima et al. disclose the inductive position detector according to claim 1, wherein Witts et al. further disclose the chip inductors are multilayer chip inductors each having a pair of connection electrodes provided on opposite ends thereof (Witts et al. disclose conductive receiver coils formed as conductive windings having opposite ends electrically coupled to respective terminals of processing circuitry, [0033]-[0035]; wherein inductive receiver coils as multilayer chip inductors having opposite-end connection electrodes, as doing so would provide compact standardized inductive receiver elements that can be electrically connected to the processing circuitry because Witts et al. emphasizes in paragraph [0035] that each receiver winding is electrically coupled at its opposite ends to respective circuitry terminals, thus facilitating implementation of the receiver coils using compact terminalized inductive components).
Regarding claim 12, Witts et al. & Iijima et al. disclose the inductive position detector according to claim 1, wherein Witts et al. further disclose an excitation coil provided in the wiring board of the stator to generate a magnetic field to induce voltages in the chip inductors (excitation winding 1 formed on the same stator-side member as the receiver windings and energized by an alternating signal to induce electromotive forces in the receiver coils, [0033]-[0037]); and configured in a loop shape such that the chip inductors are located inward of the excitation coil as seen along the rotation axis (excitation winding 1 arranged as a conductive coil about the receiver measurement region to electromagnetically couple with the receiver windings and conductive rotor target, [0033]-[0037], wherein surface-mount chip inductors provide a smaller and simpler detector configuration with reduced assembly and wiring requirements, thus improving the compactness and manufacturability of Witts et al.’s inductive detector, see [0106]).
Regarding claim 13, Witts et al. & Iijima et al. disclose the inductive position detector according to claim 1, wherein Witts et al. further disclose the chip inductors are connected together to configure an AC bridge circuit having a pair of AC voltage application terminals and a pair of signal detection terminals (Witts et al. disclose an alternating-current excitation circuit including a transmission drive stage connected to an excitation winding and separate inductive receiver branches producing sine and cosine detection signals at respective processing-circuit terminals, [0035]-[0039], also see AC sensing network constitutes an AC impedance network having AC excitation terminals associated with the excitation winding and signal-detection terminals associated with the sine and cosine receiver windings. The receiver windings provide separate position-dependent inductive signal branches whose relative outputs are processed to determine rotor position ([0037]-[0039]).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 4-8 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.
In terms of claim 4, the prior art of record does not teach alone or in combination of “the chip inductors include 4N chip inductors (wherein N is a natural number) arranged equidistantly along the rotation track entirely circumferentially of the rotation track, wherein a number Y of the conductor targets (wherein Y is a natural number) satisfies the following expression: Y = 4NM±N (wherein M is a natural number)” in combination with all other elements in claim 1.
In terms of claim 5, the prior art of record does not teach alone or in combination of “a first set of the chip inductors and the conductor targets employ a first rotation track as the rotation track, a second set of the chip inductors and the conductor targets employ a second rotation track different from the first rotation track as the rotation track, and the first set and the second set are provided so as to share the stator and the rotor, wherein a number Yi (wherein Yi is a natural number) of the conductor targets of the first set and a number Y2 (wherein Y2 is a natural number) of the conductor targets of the second set are different from each other” in combination with all other elements in claim 1.
Claims 6-8 variously depending from claim 5 are allowable for the same above reasons.
Any comments considered necessary by applicant must be submitted no later than the payment of the issue fee and, to avoid processing delays, should preferably accompany the issue fee. Such submissions should be clearly labeled "Comments on Statement of Reasons for Allowance."
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
U.S. 2022/0128381 A1 to Pichler et al. disclose a position sensor system, particularly inductive position sensor system, comprising at least two receiver coil sets, at least one transmitter coil and a signal conditioning and processing unit, wherein in each receiver coil set comprises at least two separate receiver coils, particularly a sine receiver coil and a cosine receiver coil, which is characterized in that the signal conditioning and processing unit is contained in a single integrated circuit and that the at least two receiver coil sets, the at least one transmitter coil and the integrated circuit containing the signal conditioning and processing unit are located on a single printed circuit board.
U.S. 2022/0373360 A1 to Holmes et al. disclose in Fig. 1 an opto-magnetic rotary position encoder includes a polarization optical encoder and a magnetic encoder, both configured for on-axis placement and operation with respect to a rotational axis of a rotating component. A polarization sensor digital control block and a magnetic sensor digital control block are configured and operative to combine polarizer channel position data and magnetic channel position data in a manner providing for one or more of (1) redundancy, (2) calibration, (3) monitoring performance of one channel in relation to the other channel, or (4) compensation or correction of one channel based on the other channel.
U.S. 2020/0088548 A1 to Bund et al. discloses a position detection system for detecting a movement of a machine includes a first and a second position sensor and an evaluation device. The first position sensor is configured to detect a change in a first magnetic field generated by the movement of the machine. The second position sensor is configured to detect a change in a second magnetic field, which differs from the first magnetic field and is generated by the movement of the machine. A detection result from the second position sensor has a lower resolution of a position of an element of the machine to be determined than a detection result from the first position sensor. The evaluation device is configured to evaluate the detection result from the first position sensor and/or the detection result from the second position sensor to determine the position of the element of the machine.
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Examiner: /Trung Q. Nguyen/- Art 2858
/HUY Q PHAN/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2858
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