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 § 112
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b):
(b) CONCLUSION.—The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph:
The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention.
Claims 1-10 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention.
Regarding claims 1 and 5, the claims 1 and 5 recite the claim limitation “in both the enabled state and the disabled state the sensor will cause itself to periodically transmit via the transmitter a heartbeat signal, and, in the disabled state, the transmitter is one of powered off, disconnected from the processor, and operated with a reduced transmission power relative to when the transmitter is used to transmit the heartbeat signal.” The claim limitation requires that, in the disabled state, the transmitter is powered off while simultaneously claiming that the sensor will transmit a heartbeat signal. While the transmitter is powered off, the transmitter cannot transmit the heartbeat signal.
Furthermore, the claims 1 and 5 recite the claim limitation “in both the enabled state and the disabled state the sensor will cause itself to periodically transmit via the transmitter a heartbeat signal, and, in the disabled state, the transmitter is one of powered off, disconnected from the processor, and operated with a reduced transmission power relative to when the transmitter is used to transmit the heartbeat signal.” In the disabled state, the transmitter transmits the heartbeat signal while the transmitter operates with a reduced power relative to when the transmitter is used to transmit the heartbeat signal. Then, the heartbeat signal cannot be transmitted since the transmitter does not operate with power required to transmit the signal.
Regarding claims 2-4, 6-9, the claims 2-4, 6-9 inherit the deficiency of the independent claims 1 and 5, as discussed above.
Regarding claim 10, the claim 10 recites the limitation “while the receiver is operating with the normal duty cycle periodically transmitting via the transmitter a heartbeat signal and, in between transmissions of the heartbeat signal, causing the transmitter to be one of powered off, disconnected from the processor, and operated with a reduced transmission power relative to when the transmitter is used to transmit the heartbeat signal.” There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim. Furthermore, the claim recites the claim limitation “subsequently operating the receiver at a normal duty cycle in response to receiving a second predetermined signal via the receiver.” For the purpose of the examination, examiner interprets the limitation “while the receiver is operating with the normal duty cycle periodically transmitting via the transmitter a heartbeat signal” as “while the receiver is operating with the reduced duty cycle periodically transmitting via the transmitter a heartbeat signal.”
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Husted et al. (United States Patent Application Publication US 2012/0124444) teaches a wireless device to determine a number of keep alive transmission to transmit to the slave device in sleep mode.
KIUCHI et al. (United States Patent Application Publication US 2018/0063793) teaches a camera that changes to a sleep mode or a sniff mode in the Bluetooth system.
CHUNG WEON GOOK; YOUN YOUNG SIK (KR 101624591 B1) teaches a loss prevention device periodically waking up to check a signal to check transmitted signal from a guardian terminal.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to HYUN SOO KIM whose telephone number is (571)270-1768. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Friday 8:30 am - 5:30 pm.
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/HYUN SOO KIM/Examiner, Art Unit 2176
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