DETAILED ACTION
This action is responsive to the following communications: Application filed on Sept. 13, 2024.
Claims 1-24 are presented for Examination. Claims 1, 12, 23, and 24 are independent.
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 the first paragraph of 35 U.S.C. 112(a):
(a) IN GENERAL.—The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor or joint inventor of carrying out the invention.
The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112:
The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor of carrying out his invention.
Claims 1-22 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(a) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, first paragraph, as failing to comply with the written description requirement.
Regarding Claims 1 and 12: The claims recite the term "substantially opposite actuation directions." The term "substantially" is a term of degree. When a term of degree is used in the claim, the specification must provide a standard for ascertaining the requisite degree. The specification lacks a clear standard for how much deviation from exactly "opposite" is permitted, rendering the metes and bounds of the claim unclear (MPEP 2173.05(b)).
Also, the claims 1 and 12 recite "a clutch that passively engages the driving member." . This is a functional description without structural definition. It is unclear if "passively" is intended to be a structural limitation of the clutch mechanism or merely an intended use/result of the motor's force.
Regarding Claims 6 and 17: The claims recite "mechanism comprising a wedge plate, or at least one cam shaped jaw, or at least one finger." The use of alternative phrasing ("or") renders the claims indefinite as it creates alternative structural limitations that are not presented in a proper Markush format, making it ambiguous which combination of elements is actually being claimed (MPEP 2173.05(h)).
Appropriate correction is requested.
Since the independent claims 1 and 12 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) and hence the dependent claims of 1 and 12 are also rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b).
.
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 of this title, 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.
Claims 1-24 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. § 103 as being unpatentable over Kornbluh et al. (2014/0277739 ;hereinafter "Kornbluh ") in view of US S.JOSTEDT et al. 2016/0279335 A1 (“SJOSTED”).
Regarding Independent Claim 1, Kornbluh teaches that an actuator system comprising:
a motor (see Fig. 6B, element 630b) operable in first and second substantially opposite actuation directions (paragraphs [0158]-[0159] describing bidirectional operation of twisted string actuators);
a driving member (cables 1232, 1233 in Fig. 12) that is driven by the motor during at least the first actuation direction (paragraph [0258]);
a clutch (electrostatic clutching mechanism in paragraph [0104]) that passively engages the driving member during the first actuation direction of the motor (paragraphs [0104]-[0106] describing electrostatic clutch engagement);
wherein a force generated by the motor in the first actuation direction maintains the clutch engaged with the driving member and the force is transferred to the driving member (paragraph [0104] stating "when voltage is applied to the electrodes, the liquid is displaced and the disc is elongated axially");
wherein the driving member is maintained in position against a back-driving force by the clutch when the motor is actuated in the first direction (paragraph [0261] stating "when the exotendons 1230, 1231 are clutched, they will generally act as a relatively non-compliant element"); and
wherein the driving member is back-drivable when the clutch is disengaged (paragraph [0261] stating "when the exotendons 1230, 1231 are unclutched, the RFTEs 1210, 1220 can rotate about each other in response to movement of the knee of the wearer 1205").
Kornbluh fails to explicitly disclose a modular multi-phase actuator configuration with specific clutch engagement mechanisms as claimed. However, SJOSTED teaches modular medical device configurations with safety interlocks (paragraphs [0025]-[0030]) that would suggest to one of ordinary skill in the art the benefits of modular actuator designs with fail-safe mechanisms.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Kornbluh's actuator system with the modular design principles taught by Smith to achieve enhanced reliability and safety in robotic applications. The motivation would be to provide a more robust actuator system that can maintain position when needed while allowing natural movement when assistance is not required, as recognized in both references.
Regarding Claims 2-7: Kornbluh further teaches:
Claim 2: The clutch is disengaged when the motor is actuated in the second direction (paragraph [0223] describing un-clutching operations).
Claim 3: The motor is electrically actuated (paragraph [0158] describing electric motors).
Claim 4: The motor comprises voice coil actuators (paragraph [0160] describing electromagnetic actuators).
Claim 5: Alternative actuator types including pneumatic and hydraulic systems (paragraphs [0165]-[0166]).
Claim 6: Clutch mechanisms including cam-shaped jaws (Fig. 18A-18B showing cam-shaped jaws 1860a, 1860b).
Claim 7: Modular topology with multiple actuators (paragraph [0008] describing "multiple actuators that can be arranged in various configurations").
Regarding Claims 8-14: Kornbluh teaches an actuator system comprising multiple actuators (Fig. 11A-11I), controllers (controllers 910, 965 in Fig. 9), and the ability to recruit individual actuators to control speed and power output (paragraphs [0220]-[0221] describing controlled tension application).
Claims 15-22: Kornbluh further teaches system-level features including frequency control (paragraph [0221]), timing adjustments (paragraph [0223]), and series/parallel configurations (paragraph [0008]) that would render these claims obvious for the same reasons as above.
Regarding Independent Claim 23: Kornbluh teaches a controller for an actuator system comprising multiple actuators (see Fig. 9 showing controller(s) 910, 965 and Fig. 19 showing controller 1910 with applications), the controller comprising:
a processor (paragraph [0317] states "The flexible exosuit 1900 additionally includes a controller 1910 configured to operate the actuators 1920 and sensors 1930 by using hardware interface electronics 1940. The hardware electronics interface 1940 includes electronics configured to interface signals from and to the controller 1910 with signals used to operate the actuators 1920 and sensors 1930");
Non-transitory computer-readable storage media containing stored instructions executable by the processor (paragraph [0354] states "Controllers, models, transformations, filters, reference functions, and other elements and processes described above could be implemented as computer-readable programs. The computer-readable programs could be part of an operating system of a flexible exosuit (e.g., 1912) or could be... other computer-readable programs are anticipated");
wherein the stored instructions direct the processor to perform calculations to generate output control signals to the two or more actuators (paragraph [0340] states "In some examples, the use of a model-based controller could enable control of a flexible exosuit based on continuously changing properties of the flexible exosuit. That is, the control of the exosuit could continuously adapt to changes in properties of elements of the flexible exosuit"); and
wherein the control signals include signals that initiate actuation of the two or more actuators according to phase control including recruitment of the two or more actuators and/or a timing function to control timing of signals for the recruited two or more actuators (paragraph [0279] states "The ankle state machine controller 1510 transitions from the third 1515 to the first 1511 states when the foot 1310a first makes contact with the ground; this transition results in the clutching of exotendon 1520e. The knee state machine controller 1520 transitions from the first 1521 to the second 1523 states when the foot 1310a first leaves contact with the ground; this transition results in the clutching of exotendon 1520b").
wherein the controller implements a feedback loop wherein the actuator system output is sensed by one or more of a force sensor, position sensor, velocity sensor, accelerometer, and inertial measurement unit (paragraph [0345] states "In some examples, transforming the detected state could include using the detected state to determine gait information. For example, the detected state could be used to determine a gait cycle percent (i.e., how far, as a percent, ratio or fraction, through a locomotor cycle a wearer of the flexible exosuit is at a current point in time) or a gait phase (e.g., stance, swing, heel strike, toe off). The sensors could include accelerometers and/or gyroscopes configured such that the accelerometers and/or gyroscopes could detect motion and acceleration of parts of a wearer's body" and paragraph [0221] states "Further, the motor controller(s) 965 could be configured to perform closed-loop control of TSA(s) 960");
and one or more sensed values are compared to target value and a result of the comparison is used as input (paragraph [0348] states "The output values corresponding to the cells of the look-up table could be based on a model of some element or function of a flexible exosuit. The contents and organization of the cells of the look-up table and the transformation used to determine which cell of the look-up table to access for a given detected state could be based on recorded data from a wearer of the flexible exosuit and/or a population of wearers of flexible exosuits and/or other humans"); and
the timing function determines the timing of the control signals to achieve the target values (paragraph [0276] states "The specified compliances and timings of actuation 1420a-g of respective exotendons 1320a-g are specified using an optimization process to maximize correspondence between the simulated joint torques 1411, 1413 and recorded joint torques, to simulated energy used by the force transducers 1330a-c, or according to some other cost function, combination of cost functions, or some other constraints and/or considerations").
However, Kornbluh does not teach:
Signals that specifically "initiate priming and power strokes" of the actuatorsusing the result of the comparison specifically "to determine a number of actuators to be recruited from the two or more actuators"
SJOSTED teaches a control system for a medical device that implements priming operations before power strokes (paragraphs [0025]-[0030] teaching safety interlocks and priming functions before operation) and recruitment of different functional modules based on sensed feedback (Fig.17; 3; display based on sensor 35).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Kornbluh's controller system with SJOSTED 's priming and power stroke control concepts and recruitment strategies to achieve enhanced safety and reliability in actuator systems. The motivation would be to prevent accidental operation, ensure proper sequencing of actuator functions, and optimize system performance by dynamically adjusting the number of active actuators based on real-time feedback.
Regarding independent Claim 24: Kornbluh teaches a non-transitory computer-readable storage media containing stored instructions executable by a processor (paragraph [0354] states "Controllers, models, transformations, filters, reference functions, and other elements and processes described above could be implemented as computer-readable programs"), wherein the stored instructions direct the processor to perform calculations to generate output control signals to control two or more actuators in an actuator system (paragraph [0321]; [0336] states "In some examples, the operating system 1912 and/or hardware interface electronics 1940 could detect information about the flexible exosuit 1900, the wearer, and/or the environment of the wearer. The controllers could include state machines, feedback loops, feed-forward controllers, look-up tables (LUTs), proportional-integral-derivative (PID) controllers, parametric controllers, model-based controllers, inverse kinematic model-based controllers, state-space controllers, bang-bang controllers, linear-quadratic-Gaussian (LQG) controllers, other controllers and/or combinations thereof")
wherein the control signals include signals that initiate actuation of the two or more actuators according to phase control including recruitment of the two or more actuators and/or a timing function to control timing of signals for the recruited two or more actuators (paragraph [0351] states "Multiple controllers and/or reference functions could be used to determine output(s) based on detected states of an exosuit. For example, a first controller could be used to determine outputs during a first period of time and a second controller could be used to determine outputs during a second period of time. Additionally, or alternatively, a first controller could be used to determine outputs corresponding to a first set of reference inputs, and a second controller could be used to determine outputs corresponding to a second set of reference inputs");
wherein the controller implements a feedback loop wherein the actuator system output is sensed by one or more of a force sensor, position sensor, velocity sensor, accelerometer, and inertial measurement unit (paragraph [0345] states "In some examples, transforming the detected state could include applying the detected state to a classifier. For example, one or more variables of the detected state could be applied to a support vector machine, a k-nearest-neighbors classifier, or some other classifier of pattern matching algorithm to transform the one or more variables of the detected state into one of a finite number of output classes"); and
and one or more sensed values are compared to target value and a result of the comparison is used as input (paragraph [0348] states "Determining an output based on the detected state using a controller 2020a could include performing calculations on the detected state, calibration information, information about past detected states, controller parameters, or other information to determine one or more output commands. The calculations could implement one of a variety of different controllers, according to an application"); and
the timing function determines the timing of the control signals to achieve the target values (paragraph [0276] states "The specified compliances and timings of actuation 1420a-g of respective exotendons 1320a-g are specified using an optimization process to maximize correspondence between the simulated joint torques 1411, 1413 and recorded joint torques, to simulated energy used by the force transducers 1330a-c, or according to some other cost function, combination of cost functions, or some other constraints and/or considerations").
Signals that specifically "initiate priming and power strokes" of the actuatorsusing the result of the comparison specifically "to determine a number of actuators to be recruited from the two or more actuators"
SJOSTED teaches a control system for a medical device that implements priming operations before power strokes (paragraphs [0025]-[0030] teaching safety interlocks and priming functions before operation) and recruitment of different functional modules based on sensed feedback (Fig.17; 3; display based on sensor 35).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Kornbluh's controller system with SJOSTED 's priming and power stroke control concepts and recruitment strategies to achieve enhanced safety and reliability in actuator systems. The motivation would be to prevent accidental operation, ensure proper sequencing of actuator functions, and optimize system performance by dynamically adjusting the number of active actuators based on real-time feedback.
Conclusion
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/MUHAMMAD S ISLAM/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2837
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