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 .
Note: claims 12, 14, 18, 19, 20 are withdrawn as being drawn to a previously restricted invention within the parent application. Claims 5 and 7 are rejoined with their associated independent, allowed claim 1. See below.
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) 8-11, 13, 15-17 are is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Gentry et al. US 9525605.
Gentry discloses a landing system for a UAV 105 having an associated landing platform 115. The landing system further includes a landing channel, 510 and cameras, paras. 21, 52, structured as in applicant’s claims (9, 10) and (11, 13, 16, 17), respectively. Further, Gentry discloses a vacuum system as a means to secure the UAV to the platform during operations, para. 38., but does not disclose the details thereof. Inasmuch as said details are omitted, it remains that the structure necessary to create a vacuum is well known, a pump, chamber and opening, for example. So, even though Gentry does not reveal the details of his pump system, it is obvious that these necessary devices would have been utilized in the making of said system. Therefore, the Examiner takes Official Notice and these features do not patentably distinguish the claimed invention.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 1-7, with claims 5 and 7 being rejoined, are allowed because the prior art does not make evident or obvious the perforations formed within the landing platform as a means to completely secure the UAV thereto via an increased and more efficient suction effect.
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/CHRISTOPHER P ELLIS/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3644