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.
Claim 41 is 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.
Claim 41 recites the limitation "its associated orientation device" in Claim 39. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim. Orientation devices are first mentioned in Claim 28, on which Claim 41 is not dependent.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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 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 25-27, 39, 42-44 and 48 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being unpatentable by Nguyen (US 20220227580 A1).
Regarding Claim 25, Nguyen teaches a package delivery and transport system comprising:
an endless guide (carousel 430 comprising loop 450 shown in Figure 5);
and a plurality of container carriers connected to the endless guide (storage containers 470 which carry packages as described in paragraph 0013),
wherein the plurality of container carriers are individually movable along the endless guide between a container handling position, in which a container is loaded onto and/or unloaded from one of the container carriers, and buffering positions, in which the containers are temporarily stored on their respective container carrier (wherein the handling position occurs at robotic assemblies 485 for loading/unloading and the buffering positions would be positions in between when the storage containers move along the loop while temporarily storing packages).
Regarding Claim 26, Nguyen further teaches wherein the endless guide is oriented in a vertical plane (shown in Figure 5).
Regarding Claim 27, Nguyen further teaches wherein the endless guide comprises a first guide member and a second guide member spaced apart from the first guide member, wherein the plurality of container carriers are connected between the first guide member and the second guide member (shown in Figure 5, wherein two loop rails hold storage containers in between them).
Regarding Claim 39, Nguyen further teaches an access station for presentation of a storage container from the automated storage and retrieval system to an operator at the access station, wherein the access station comprises: the buffer system according to claim 25; wherein the plurality of container carriers are individually movable along the endless guide to a presentation position, in which one of the storage containers stored on its respective container carrier is presented to the operator (wherein the access station can be at either robotic assemblies 485, and presentation position would entail positioning a storage container to an open slot in front of a small door as described in paragraph 0015).
Regarding Claim 42, Nguyen further teaches wherein the endless guide comprises a first guide member and a second guide member, wherein a section of the first guide member is located at a first height, wherein a section of the second guide member is located at a second height, wherein the container carriers moving along the sections are in their presentation position and wherein the first height is larger than the second height (paragraph 0008 and Figure 6 teaches an embodiment wherein the carousels can be stacked, in which case there would be a first and second member that each have a section, the curved parts located at each robotic assembly that are at different heights and would be at presentation positions for their respective robotic assemblies).
Regarding Claim 43, Nguyen further teaches wherein an axle is pivotably connected to a first runner and a second runner (Figure 7 shows shaft 500 connected between belts 439, 439b via gears 437b, 438).
Regarding Claim 44, Nguyen further teaches wherein the access station comprises more than one presentation position (any place along a curved section by a robotic assembly that a storage container can be accessible via door 490 is a presentation position).
Regarding Claim 48, Nguyen further teaches a method for package transport comprising:
moving one of a plurality of container carriers connected to an endless guide to a container handling position (described in paragraph 0008);
loading a storage container onto the one container carrier while the one container carrier is in the container handling position (described in paragraph 0008 wherein the container handling position would include a loading position);
moving the container carrier along the endless guide to one of a plurality of buffering positions (described in paragraph 0008 wherein storage positions would be any position along the guide in between robotic assemblies);
moving other container carriers individually along the endless guide between the container handling position and the buffering positions (described in paragraph 0008);
moving the one container carrier to the container handling position again; and unloading the storage container from the one container carrier while the one container carrier is in the container handling position (described in paragraph 0008 wherein the new container handling position would be a different robotic assembly designated for unloading).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 28-38 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. The closest prior art: the transport system of Nguyen (US 20220227580 A1) does not teach a powered wheel for moving the main body along the endless guide; and an orientation device for orienting the supporting surface during movement of the container carrier along the endless guide.
Claim 40 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. The closest prior art: the transport system of Nguyen (US 20220227580 A1) does not teach wherein the endless guide is substantially L-shaped, wherein the container handling position is located in an upper part of a vertical projection of the L-shaped endless guide and the presentation position is located along a horizontal projection of the L-shaped endless guide.
Claim 41 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. The closest prior art: the transport system of Nguyen (US 20220227580 A1) does not teach a carrier control system of each container carrier is configured to control its associated orientation device to keep a supporting surface in an inclined orientation relative to a horizontal plane in the presentation position.
Claim 45-47 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. The closest prior art: the transport system of Nguyen (US 20220227580 A1) does not teach wherein the automated storage and retrieval system comprises container handling vehicles moving on the rail system; wherein the automated storage and retrieval system comprises the buffer system according to claim 25 or an access station according to claim 39; wherein the container handling vehicles are configured to load a storage container onto the container carrier or unload a storage container from the container carrier being in the container handling position.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure: Garcia (US 20190375591 A1) for a vertical rail system for carrying containers and Kawada (JP 6892307 B2) for a goods transport device using a looped rail.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to MIRAJ T PATEL whose telephone number is (571)272-9330. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 8:00-5:00.
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, Jacob Scott, can be reached on 571-270-3415. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000.
/M.T.P./Examiner, Art Unit 3655
/JACOB S. SCOTT/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3655
Prosecution Insights