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 .
Double Patenting
The nonstatutory double patenting rejection is based on a judicially created doctrine grounded in public policy (a policy reflected in the statute) so as to prevent the unjustified or improper timewise extension of the “right to exclude” granted by a patent and to prevent possible harassment by multiple assignees. A nonstatutory double patenting rejection is appropriate where the conflicting claims are not identical, but at least one examined application claim is not patentably distinct from the reference claim(s) because the examined application claim is either anticipated by, or would have been obvious over, the reference claim(s). See, e.g., In re Berg, 140 F.3d 1428, 46 USPQ2d 1226 (Fed. Cir. 1998); In re Goodman, 11 F.3d 1046, 29 USPQ2d 2010 (Fed. Cir. 1993); In re Longi, 759 F.2d 887, 225 USPQ 645 (Fed. Cir. 1985); In re Van Ornum, 686 F.2d 937, 214 USPQ 761 (CCPA 1982); In re Vogel, 422 F.2d 438, 164 USPQ 619 (CCPA 1970); In re Thorington, 418 F.2d 528, 163 USPQ 644 (CCPA 1969).
A timely filed terminal disclaimer in compliance with 37 CFR 1.321(c) or 1.321(d) may be used to overcome an actual or provisional rejection based on nonstatutory double patenting provided the reference application or patent either is shown to be commonly owned with the examined application, or claims an invention made as a result of activities undertaken within the scope of a joint research agreement. See MPEP § 717.02 for applications subject to examination under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA as explained in MPEP § 2159. See MPEP § 2146 et seq. for applications not subject to examination under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA . A terminal disclaimer must be signed in compliance with 37 CFR 1.321(b).
The filing of a terminal disclaimer by itself is not a complete reply to a nonstatutory double patenting (NSDP) rejection. A complete reply requires that the terminal disclaimer be accompanied by a reply requesting reconsideration of the prior Office action. Even where the NSDP rejection is provisional the reply must be complete. See MPEP § 804, subsection I.B.1. For a reply to a non-final Office action, see 37 CFR 1.111(a). For a reply to final Office action, see 37 CFR 1.113(c). A request for reconsideration while not provided for in 37 CFR 1.113(c) may be filed after final for consideration. See MPEP §§ 706.07(e) and 714.13.
The USPTO Internet website contains terminal disclaimer forms which may be used. Please visit www.uspto.gov/patent/patents-forms. The actual filing date of the application in which the form is filed determines what form (e.g., PTO/SB/25, PTO/SB/26, PTO/AIA /25, or PTO/AIA /26) should be used. A web-based eTerminal Disclaimer may be filled out completely online using web-screens. An eTerminal Disclaimer that meets all requirements is auto-processed and approved immediately upon submission. For more information about eTerminal Disclaimers, refer to www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/applying-online/eterminal-disclaimer.
Claims 1-12, and 14-21 rejected on the ground of nonstatutory double patenting as being unpatentable over claims 1-19 of U.S. Patent No. 12,196,873. Although the claims at issue are not identical, they are not patentably distinct from each other because while the patented claims disclose a first and second subset of agents, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary ability in the art at the time of filling to have a dynamic agent without sensors based on the plurality of agents without sensors of the patented claims.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 1-21 would be allowable if a timely filed terminal disclaimer in compliance with 37 CFR 1.321(c) or 1.321(d) is received or if the claims are rewritten or amended to overcome the rejection(s) under Double Patenting set forth in this Office action
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter: The closest prior art appears to be Metzler (US Patent Publication 2014/0163775) and Toutov et. al. (US Patent Publication 2021/0396542). Metzler discloses a geodetic marking system, Toutov discloses a method for operating magnetic navigation devices. The prior art, however, fails to disclose or render obvious “receiving anomaly data from the at least one anomaly sensor subsystem of one of the plurality of agents; …transmitting, based on the global pose data of the plurality of agents, a respective friendly spoofed GPS signal from one or more of the plurality of agents to a dynamic agent, wherein the dynamic agent does not have an anomaly sensor subsystem; causing at least one of the plurality of agents to traverse at least one anomaly-rich region by providing instruction to the at least one of the plurality of agents; and causing the dynamic agent to conduct a non-anomaly sensing task by providing instruction to the dynamic agent.”
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to ALAN D HUTCHINSON whose telephone number is (571)272-8413. The examiner can normally be reached 7-5 Mon-Thur.
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/ALAN D HUTCHINSON/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3669