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 .
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.
(a)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claim(s) 1,3,4,6,12-14 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1)/(a)(2) as being anticipated by Coco et al.(US2020/0307776).
[claim 1] Coco teaches an apparatus for supporting at least a part of an engine(see para0026]), the apparatus comprising: an engine stand(200) configured to support at least a part of an engine(see para[0026]); an accelerometer(816, fig 8) coupled to the engine stand and configured to measure acceleration of the engine stand and generate accelerometer data; and a first processor(840) coupled to the engine stand configured to receive the accelerometer data from the accelerometer(fig 8).
[claim 3] further comprising a first memory(842), the first processor being configured to control the first memory to store the received accelerometer data(fig 8).
[claim 4] further comprising a first transmitter(see para[0039], interface 832 receives wired or wireless data from the sensors which would require a transmitter), the first processor being configured to control the first transmitter to transmit the accelerometer data.
[claim 6] further comprising a global navigation satellite system(GNSS) sensor(818) coupled to the engine stand, the global navigation satellite system sensor being configured to determine a location of the engine stand.
[claim 12] further comprising a photodetector(sensor detecting navigation marks, vision system or cameras, see para[0025]) coupled to the engine stand and configured to measure optical light at the engine stand, and generate light data.
[claim 13] further comprising a position sensor(230) coupled to the engine stand and configured to measure a parameter associated with the presence of an engine being supported by the engine stand and generate engine position data.
[claim 14] further comprising: an accessory(250) of the engine stand; and a third transmitter coupled to the accessory(see para[0039], interface 832 receives wired or wireless data from the sensors which would require a transmitter), the third transmitter being configured to transmit a signal(from 230) to indicate the presence of the accessory.
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.
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.
Claim(s) 5,7,8,9-11 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Coco et al. as applied to claim 1 above.
[claim 5] Coco teaches an apparatus as detailed above, with an interface(832) configured to receive the accelerometer date from the first transmitter, the interface being configured to perform an action in response to the measured data exceeding a threshold value(para[0039]). Coco however does not specifically state that the interface is a remote computer or that the action is specifically in response to acceleration data. First it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art as of the effective filing date to use the interface as a remote computer, as there are only two possible locations for the computer, i.e. an onboard or directly connected computer, or a remote computer, and given that Coco teaches the interface can receive wireless data(para[0039]) it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art as of the effective filing date to use a remote computer, as this would allow a user to monitor the apparatus from a different location. Further it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art as of the effective filing date to use the acceleration data to perform an action, as this would allow the computer to control either unwanted vibration or acceleration of the system.
[claim 7,8] Coco teaches an apparatus as detailed above, however Coco does not detail how the accelerometer and first processor are housed or attached to the engine stand, and does not specifically teach that the accelerometer and first processor are housed in a first housing attached with an interface plate. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art as of the effective filing date to place the accelerometer and processor in a housing, as this would provide protection to the components, and to use an interface plate to attach the housing to the engine stand as this would allow the housing to be removably connected to the stand.
[claim 9,10,11] Coco teaches an apparatus as detailed above including load sensors(230), accelerometers(816) speedometers(814) and additional sensors(812). Coco however does may not specifically teach that the additional sensors include a humidity sensor coupled to the engine stand, the humidity sensor being configured to measure humidity at the engine stand and generate humidity data, with a second transmitter and second processor configured to receive the humidity data from the sensor and control the second transmitter to transmit the humidity data, or that the additional sensors include a temperature sensor coupled to the engine stand, the temperature sensor being configured to measure temperature at the engine stand, and generate temperature data. The use of humidity and temperature sensors to measure local climate conditions is well known, as such it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art as of the effective filing date to use humidity and temperature sensors, along with associated processors and transmitters, to measure local humidity and temperature of the apparatus, as this would provide a user with data about the local climate conditions at the apparatus and would merely be using known elements for their known functions.
Claim(s) 2 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Coco et al. as applied to claim 1 above and further in view of Rossway et al.(US6298536).
[claim 2] Coco teaches an apparatus as detailed above, wherein the engine stand comprises a base frame(120) and an engine support frame(240) with the accelerometer coupled to the engine support frame. Coco however may not teach the use of a shock absorber coupled between the base frame and the engine support frame. The use of shock absorbers is well known to isolate supported loads from unwanted vibrations. Rossway teaches a similar apparatus which utilizes shock absorbers(32,38) between a base frame(16) and an engine support frame(87). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art as of the effective filing date to use shock absorbers between the base frame and engine support frame of Coco, as this would help prevent vibrations from being transferred to the supported load as taught by Rossway.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. US10920621, US20080023618, US6298536.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to BRADLEY H DUCKWORTH whose telephone number is (571)272-2304. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 9:30-6.
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, Terrell McKinnon can be reached at 5712724979. 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.
/BRADLEY DUCKWORTH/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3632