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.
Claim(s) 1-3 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Ruddy (US 6,527,130).
With respect to claim 1, Ruddy discloses-
a lifting device (C1/L34-40: "spreader or a cargo beam"), e.g. holder, configured to hold a container 150, e.g. article;
a lifter 100 configured to raise and lower a holder; and
a control device 120, 200 configured to control a lifter, wherein a lifter comprises a rotator 134, a wound member 138 windable around and unwindable from a rotator 134, and a lifter drive motor 132 configured to rotate a rotator, a lifter configured to raise and lower a holder suspended with a wound member by winding and unwinding a wound member with rotation of a rotator, and
wherein a control device comprises:
a transmission torque detector (C3/L65-C4/L7: "torque sensor") configured to detect transmission torque transmitted from a lifter drive motor to a rotator, and
a weight estimator (FIG. 2: 112; C10/L5-40) configured to estimate a weight of an article held by a holder based on a transmission torque 212, 214 detected by a transmission torque detector.
With respect to claim 2, Ruddy discloses that a transmission torque detector detects a transmission torque or with a lifter raising or lowering a holder at a constant speed. (C10/L2026 discloses that Ruddy's system operates when the lifter is accelerating or "where the acceleration is zero, i.e., the speed of the hoist is not changing.")
With respect to claim 3, Ruddy discloses that a transmission torque detector detects a transmission torque with a holder being stationary at an uppermost position in a lift range of a holder. Ruddy's system measures torque constantly. Thus, as long as there is at lease a wound member which applies a weight greater than zero Ruddy's system measuring torque due to the weight of the wound member and/or article on the rotator.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 4-7 are objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to GREGORY W ADAMS whose telephone number is (571)272-8101. The examiner can normally be reached Mon - Fri, 8am-5pm.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Saul Rodriguez can be reached at (571)272-7097. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/GREGORY W ADAMS/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit
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