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 .
Status of Claims
Pending
1-20
35 U.S.C. 103
1-20
Response to Amendment
This office action is in response to applicant’s arguments and amendments filed 06/22/2026, which are in response to USPTO Office Action mailed 03/25/2026. Applicant’s arguments and amendments have been considered with the results that follow: THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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 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.
The factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness.
This application currently names joint inventors. In considering patentability of the claims the examiner presumes that the subject matter of the various claims was commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the claimed invention(s) absent any evidence to the contrary. Applicant is advised of the obligation under 37 CFR 1.56 to point out the inventor and effective filing dates of each claim that was not commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the later invention in order for the examiner to consider the applicability of 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(2)(C) for any potential 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) prior art against the later invention.
Claim(s) 1-20 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Brooks et al. US 2018/0322791 A1, “Brooks” and further in view of Gopalswamy et al. (US 20230343220 A1, “Gopalswamy”).
Regarding claim 1: Brooks teaches: A system for controlling a plurality of mobilities, ([0002], [0004]) wherein the plurality of mobilities include a driving mobility and a driven mobility, the system comprising: ([0003], [0031]-[0033]), one or more processors; and ([0035]) a storage medium storing computer-readable instructions that, when executed by the one or more processors, enable the one or more processors to: ([0035])
receive data confirming a state of the driving mobility and the driven mobility, ([0032], [0036], [0080], [0110])
determine that a connection condition is satisfied based on the data [. . .], ([0176]-[0178])
transmit a connection command to the driving mobility and the driven mobility in response to the connection condition being satisfied, ([0137], [0176]-[0178], [0183], [0246], [0248])
[. . .] control the driving mobility and the driven mobility to be mechanically connected by a mechanical coupling in response to receiving the connection command, and ([0003], [0031], [0176]-[0178], [0183], [0213]-[0215])
control the driving mobility and the driven mobility to perform an integrated mission in response to completion of the mechanical connection of the driving mobility and the driven mobility ([0031], [0044]-[0048], [0076], [0101], [0183]).
However, Brooks does not explicitly teach: [determine that a connection condition is satisfied based on the data] while the state of the driving mobility and the driven mobility is that the driving mobility and the driven mobility are mechanically separated from each other, autonomously [control the driving mobility and the driven mobility to be mechanically connected by a mechanical coupling in response to receiving the connection command].
Gopalswamy teaches: [determine that a connection condition is satisfied based on the data] while the state of the driving mobility and the driven mobility is that the driving mobility and the driven mobility are mechanically separated from each other, autonomously [control the driving mobility and the driven mobility to be mechanically connected by a mechanical coupling in response to receiving the connection command] ([0041] hard connect may comprise a self-contained device which may be quickly and conveniently connected between a pair of vehicles and which utilizes the vehicle’s own control architecture to drive autonomously via the hard connect control unit of the hard connect the follower vehicle of the pair of vehicles connected by the hard connect. The hard connect also provides a mechanical connection between the pair of vehicles that is flexible enough to permit the pair of vehicles to safely traverse a wide variety of terrain. [0045] lead connector 102 is configured to mechanically connect the hard connect 100 to a first or lead vehicle while the follower connector 110 is configured to mechanically connect the hard connect 100 to a second or follower vehicle. [0058] Vehicle platooning system generally includes a first or lead vehicle, a second or follower vehicle, and hard connect physically connecting the lead vehicle to the follower vehicle. permits the pair of vehicles to be safely driven by single driver with the remaining vehicle driven autonomously by the hard connect. [0071] systems and methods for connecting a plurality of separate vehicles together using hard connects to form a vehicle platooning system. [0101] controller was demonstrated on a two-truck-trailer formation. Using only the information generated by the embedded sensors in the smart hard connect and the DbW system, it was demonstrated that the follower vehicle pulled its own weight and travels through the leader’s path).
Brooks and Gopalswamy are analogous art to the claimed invention since they are from the similar field of platooning controls for fleet vehicles. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to modify the invention of Brooks with the aspects of Gopalswamy to create, with a reasonable expectation for success, a system for controlling a plurality of mobilities that determine that a connection condition is satisfied based on the data while the state of the driving mobility and the driven mobility is that the driving mobility and the driven mobility are mechanically separated from each other, and autonomously control the driving mobility and the driven mobility to be mechanically connected by a mechanical coupling in response to receiving the connection command. The motivation for modification would have been to improve the movement of freight across land including strategies for maximizing fuel economy, reducing road congestion, and minimizing the time required for transporting freight across land (Gopalswamy, [0003]).
Regarding claim 2: Brooks-Gopalswamy further teach: The system of claim 1, wherein the instructions further enable the one or more processors to: select an operation mode from an operation mode set; and (Brooks: [0036], [0101]) distribute roles to the driving mobility and the driven mobility according to the selected operation mode so that the distributed roles can be performed by the driving mobility and the driven mobility (Brooks: [0037], [0039], [0076]).
Regarding claim 3: Brooks-Gopalswamy further teach: The system of claim 2, wherein the operation mode set includes: a traction mode configured to operate only with a first driving force of the driving mobility; (Brooks: [0037], [0039]) a distributed mode configured such that the driving mobility and the driven mobility distribute and process a distributed mode calculation and an operation for performing the integrated mission; and (Brooks: [0040]-[0043], [0242]) an expansion mode configured such that both the first driving force of the driving mobility and a second driving force of the driven mobility are used (Brooks: [0076]-[0077], [0242], [0225], [0176]).
Regarding claim 4: Brooks-Gopalswamy further teach: The system of claim 3, wherein the instructions further enable the one or more processors to, in the traction mode, configure the driving mobility to process a traction mode calculation for controlling the integrated mission and (Brooks: [0051]-[0053]) configure the driving mobility to control the operation of the driving mobility according to the traction mode calculation (Brooks: [0054]-[0058], [0225]).
Regarding claim 5: Brooks-Gopalswamy further teach: The system of claim 3, wherein the instructions further enable the one or more processors to, in the distributed mode, configure the driving mobility and the driven mobility to process the distributed mode calculation for controlling the integrated mission and configure the driving mobility and the driven mobility to control the operation of the driving mobility and the driven mobility according to the distributed mode calculation (Brooks: [0040]-[0043], [0242], [0197]-[0199]).
Regarding claim 6: Brooks-Gopalswamy further teach: The system of claim 3, wherein the instructions further enable the one or more processors to, in the expansion mode, configure the driving mobility to process an expansion mode calculation for controlling the integrated mission and configure the driving mobility to control the operation of the driving mobility and the driven mobility according to the expansion mode calculation (Brooks: [0076]-[0077], [0242], [0225], [0176], [0197]-[0199]).
Regarding claim 7: Brooks-Gopalswamy further teach: The system of claim 1, wherein the instructions further enable the one or more processors to configure a control server, the driving mobility, or the driven mobility to control the driving mobility and the driven mobility to be mechanically separated from each other in response to completion of the performance of the integrated mission (Brooks: [0137], [0213]-[0215], [0246], [0248]; Gopalswamy: [0041], [0045], [0058], [0071], [0101]).
Regarding claim 8: Brooks-Gopalswamy further teach: The system of claim 1, wherein the instructions further enable the one or more processors to configure a control server to transmit the state of the driven mobility or the driving mobility to the driving mobility or the driven mobility (Brooks: [0137], [0146], [0246], [0248]).
Regarding claim 9: Brooks-Gopalswamy further teach: The system of claim 8, wherein the driving mobility or the driven mobility includes a user interface, and wherein the instructions further enable the one or more processors to provide the state of the driving mobility or the driven mobility to be displayed through the user interface (Brooks: [0248], [0251]).
Regarding claim 10: Brooks-Gopalswamy further teach: The system of claim 9, wherein the instructions further enable the one or more processors to configure the driving mobility or the driven mobility to receive a driver's input through the user interface and transmit the received driver's input to the control server (Brooks: [0246], [0248], [0251]).
Regarding claim 11: Brooks-Gopalswamy further teach: The system of claim 1, further comprising a control server configured to be communicatively connected to the driving mobility and the driven mobility, wherein the one or more processors are located in the control server (Brooks: [0137], [0146]).
Regarding claim 12: Brooks-Gopalswamy further teach: The system of claim 1, further comprising a control server configured to be communicatively connected to the driving mobility and the driven mobility; (Brooks: [0137], [0176]-[0178], [0183], [0213]-[0215], [0246], [0248])
wherein the control server is configured to receive the data confirming the state of the driving mobility and the driven mobility, (Brooks: [0032], [0036], [0080], [0110], [0213]-[0215], [0246], [0248])
determine whether the connection condition is satisfied based on the data, and transmit a connection command; and (Brooks: [0137], [0176]-[0178], [0183], [0246], [0248])
wherein the driving mobility or the driven mobility is configured to autonomously control the driving mobility and the driven mobility to be mechanically connected and to control the driving mobility and the driven mobility to perform the integrated mission (Brooks: [0031], [0044]-[0048], [0076], [0101], [0183], [0213]-[0215], [0246], [0248]; Gopalswamy: [0041], [0045], [0058], [0071], [0101]).
Regarding claim 13: Brooks teaches: A method for controlling a plurality of mobilities, ([0002], [0004]) wherein the plurality of mobilities include a driving mobility and a driven mobility, and ([0003], [0031]-[0033]) wherein the driving mobility and the driven mobility can be communicatively connected to each other and communicatively connected to a control server, the method comprising: ([0137], [0146], [0213]-[0215], [0246], [0248])
determining, by the control server, that a connection condition is satisfied [. . .]; ([0176]-[0178])
[. . .] controlling, by the control server or the driving mobility, a mechanical connection of the driving mobility and the driven mobility in response to the connection condition being satisfied; and ([0003], [0031], [0176]-[0178], [0183], [0213]-[0215])
controlling, by the control server or the driving mobility, the driving mobility and the driven mobility to perform an integrated mission in response to completion of the mechanical connection of the driving mobility and the driven mobility ([0031], [0044]-[0048], [0076], [0101], [0183]).
However, Brooks does not explicitly teach: [determining, by the control server, that a connection condition is satisfied] while the driving mobility and the driven mobility are mechanically separated from each other; autonomously [controlling, by the control server or the driving mobility, a mechanical connection of the driving mobility and the driven mobility in response to the connection condition being satisfied].
Gopalswamy teaches: [determining, by the control server, that a connection condition is satisfied] while the driving mobility and the driven mobility are mechanically separated from each other; autonomously [controlling, by the control server or the driving mobility, a mechanical connection of the driving mobility and the driven mobility in response to the connection condition being satisfied] ([0041], [0045], [0058], [0071], [0101]).
Brooks and Gopalswamy are analogous art to the claimed invention since they are from the similar field of platooning controls for fleet vehicles. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to modify the invention of Brooks with the aspects of Gopalswamy to create, with a reasonable expectation for success, a system for controlling a plurality of mobilities that determine that a connection condition is satisfied based on the data while the state of the driving mobility and the driven mobility is that the driving mobility and the driven mobility are mechanically separated from each other, and autonomously control the driving mobility and the driven mobility to be mechanically connected by a mechanical coupling in response to receiving the connection command. The motivation for modification would have been to improve the movement of freight across land including strategies for maximizing fuel economy, reducing road congestion, and minimizing the time required for transporting freight across land (Gopalswamy, [0003]).
Regarding claim 14: Brooks-Gopalswamy further teach: The method of claim 13, wherein the controlling of the driving mobility and the driven mobility to perform the integrated mission comprises: selecting an operation mode from an operation mode set; (Brooks: [0036], [0101]) distributing a role to the driving mobility and the driven mobility according to the operation mode; and performing the distributed role by the driving mobility and the driven mobility (Brooks: [0037], [0039], [0076]).
Regarding claim 15: Brooks-Gopalswamy further teach: The method of claim 14, wherein the operation mode set comprises: a traction mode configured to operate only with a first driving force of the driving mobility; (Brooks: [0037], [0039]) a distributed mode configured such that the driving mobility and the driven mobility distribute and process a distributed mode calculation and an operation for performing the integrated mission; and (Brooks: [0040]-[0043], [0242]) an expansion mode configured so that both the first driving force of the driving mobility and a second driving force of the driven mobility are used (Brooks: [0076]-[0077], [0242], [0225], [0176]).
Regarding claim 16: Brooks-Gopalswamy further teach: The method of claim 15, wherein, in the traction mode, the driving mobility is configured to process a traction mode calculation for controlling the integrated mission and (Brooks: [0051]-[0053]) control the operation of the driving mobility according to the traction mode calculation (Brooks: [0054]-[0058], [0225]).
Regarding claim 17: Brooks-Gopalswamy further teach: The method of claim 15, wherein, in the distributed mode, the driving mobility and the driven mobility are configured to process the distributed mode calculation for controlling the integrated mission and control the operation of the driving mobility and the driven mobility according to the distributed mode calculation (Brooks: [0040]-[0043], [0242], [0197]-[0199]).
Regarding claim 18: Brooks-Gopalswamy further teach: The method of claim 15, wherein, in the expansion mode, a processor of the driving mobility is configured to process an expansion mode calculation for controlling the integrated mission and control the operation of the driving mobility and the driven mobility according to the expansion mode calculation (Brooks: [0076]-[0077], [0242], [0225], [0176], [0197]-[0199]).
Regarding claim 19: Brooks-Gopalswamy further teach: The method of claim 13, further comprising controlling the driving mobility and the driven mobility so that the driving mobility and the driven mobility are mechanically separated from each other in response to completion of the performance of the integrated mission by the control server, the driving mobility, or the driven mobility (Brooks: [0137], [0146], [0213]-[0215], [0246], [0248]; Gopalswamy: [0041], [0045], [0058], [0071], [0101]).
Regarding claim 20: Brooks teaches: A method for controlling a plurality of mobilities, ([0002], [0004]) wherein the plurality of mobilities include a driving mobility and a driven mobility, the method comprising: ([0003], [0031]-[0033])
determining whether a connection condition is satisfied [. . .]; ([0176]-[0178])
[. . .] controlling a mechanical connection of the driving mobility and the driven mobility in response to the connection condition being satisfied; and ([0003], [0031], [0137], [0176]-[0178], [0183], [0213]-[0215])
controlling the driving mobility and the driven mobility to perform an integrated mission in response to completion of the mechanical connection of the driving mobility and the driven mobility, ([0031], [0044]-[0048], [0076], [0101], [0183])
wherein the controlling of the driving mobility and the driven mobility to perform the integrated mission includes: ([0031], [0044]-[0048], [0076], [0101], [0183])
selecting an operation mode from an operation mode set, wherein the operation mode set includes: ([0036], [0101])
a traction mode configured to operate only with a first driving force of the driving mobility, ([0037], [0039]) a distributed mode configured such that the driving mobility and the driven mobility distribute and process a distributed mode calculation and an operation for performing the integrated mission, and ([0040]-[0043], [0242]) an expansion mode configured so that both the first driving force of the driving mobility and a second driving force of the driven mobility are used, ([0076]-[0077], [0242], [0225], [0176])
distributing roles to the driving mobility and the driven mobility according to the selected operation mode, and ([0037], [0039], [0076]) performing the distributed roles by the driving mobility and the driven mobility ([0031], [0044]-[0048], [0076], [0101], [0183]).
However, Brooks does not explicitly teach: [determining whether a connection condition is satisfied] while the driving mobility and the driven mobility are mechanically separated from each other; autonomously [controlling a mechanical connection of the driving mobility and the driven mobility in response to the connection condition being satisfied].
Gopalswamy teaches: [determining whether a connection condition is satisfied] while the driving mobility and the driven mobility are mechanically separated from each other; autonomously [controlling a mechanical connection of the driving mobility and the driven mobility in response to the connection condition being satisfied] ([0041], [0045], [0058], [0071], [0101]).
Brooks and Gopalswamy are analogous art to the claimed invention since they are from the similar field of platooning controls for fleet vehicles. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to modify the invention of Brooks with the aspects of Gopalswamy to create, with a reasonable expectation for success, a system for controlling a plurality of mobilities that determine that a connection condition is satisfied based on the data while the state of the driving mobility and the driven mobility is that the driving mobility and the driven mobility are mechanically separated from each other, and autonomously control the driving mobility and the driven mobility to be mechanically connected by a mechanical coupling in response to receiving the connection command. The motivation for modification would have been to improve the movement of freight across land including strategies for maximizing fuel economy, reducing road congestion, and minimizing the time required for transporting freight across land (Gopalswamy, [0003]).
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to claim(s) 1-20 have been considered but are moot because the new ground of rejection does not rely on any reference applied in the prior rejection of record for any teaching or matter specifically challenged in the argument.
Conclusion
Applicant's amendment necessitated the new ground(s) 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.
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/MADISON B EMMETT/Examiner, Art Unit 3658
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