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 .
Response to Amendment/Argument
Applicant’s amendments to the claims have overcome some of the objections and rejections previously set forth in the Non-Final Office Action mailed January 23rd, 2026. Applicant’s amendments to claims 35-49, as described on pages 7-14 have been deemed sufficient to overcome the previous 35 USC § 102 and 35 USC § 103 art rejections through the addition of the “determining that the object is associated with a stock keeping unit that is new; conveying the object while collecting dynamic responsive information relating to at least one of a size, a shape, and a weight of the object; analyzing an image of the object to estimate a volumetric size of the object; searching an object information database for a known stock keeping unit associated with other different objects having physical characteristics most similar to the dynamic responsive information and the volumetric size of the object; determining a similarity rank of the known stock keeping unit relative to a next closest object; and routing programmable motion device handling parameters associated with the known stock keeping unit to the programmable motion device to handle the object associated with the new stock keeping unit in response to the similarity rank exceeding a threshold.” However, after consulting the specification it does not appear support for the amendments as currently presented are found. As such, rejections are found below.
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 35-54 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(a) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), first paragraph, as failing to comply with the written description requirement. The claims contains subject matter which was not described in the specification in such a way as to reasonably convey to one skilled in the relevant art that the inventor or a joint inventor, or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the inventors, at the time the application was filed, had possession of the claimed invention.
For example, claim 35 recites the limitation “and routing programmable motion device handling parameters associated with the known stock keeping unit to the programmable motion device to handle the object associated with the new stock keeping unit in response to the similarity rank exceeding a threshold.” The applicant’s specification paragraph [0086] discloses “The system may then employ x-ray analysis of edges (step 1086), x-ray scattering (step 1088), and apply x-ray detection analysis (step 1090) to characterize any scattering or transmission detection to further characterize the object. The system may also (and with reference to Figure 25H), may make contact with electrodes (step 1092) then employ electrostatic induction analysis (step 1094) to determine a triboelectric response (step 1096) to the application of (or absence of) electrons on the surface of the material. The system may then estimate any of the object’s density (step 1098), viscosity (step 1100), molecular mass (step 1102) and material composition (step 1104). With reference again to Figure 25A, the system may then associate the object with a similar or most similar SKU based on rank factors (step 1006), and determine whether a similarity rank to a next closest object is sufficiently high (step 1008) to process the new SKU. If the similarity ranking is too low, the system will divert the object an exceptions bin (step 1012). If the object is to be processed, the system will determine whether any special handling needs to occur (step 1010). If so, the object is processed with special handling (step 1014), and if not the object is processed with a general programmable motion device (step 1016).” Here, the specification discloses that the reference for the SKU is analyzed based on similarity being sufficiently high or on the contrary being too low. Being “sufficiently high” or “too low” is a broader standard than a specific threshold value as it is unclear what “sufficiently high” would entail. Because the claim limitation is more narrowly described than what the specification supports, it is determined to be new matter.
Claims 43 and 49 are rejected for similar reasons as those found above.
All dependent claims of these claims are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(a) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), first paragraph, by virtue of their dependency.
Conclusion
Applicant's amendment necessitated the new grounds of rejection presented in this Office action. Accordingly, THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. See MPEP § 706.07(a). Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action.
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
US 2020/0134830 A1 discloses a system for determining edges of objects and locations that would allow an object to be placed using sensor information
CN 120602579 A discloses a system for identifying and labeling data associated with an object, and determining if the score of the object is related to a new object while stocking shelves
US 2015/0278601 A1 discloses an estimation state for an apparatus based on observation data of an object, labeling objects based on the observations and likelihood of the objects being new
US 2018/0127219 A1 discloses a system for processing objects based on the identified objects and observations of the objects
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/KYLE T JOHNSON/Examiner, Art Unit 3656
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