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 .
Priority
Acknowledgment is made of applicant's claim for foreign priority based on an application filed in China on 12/28/2017 and 8/6/2018. It is noted, however, that applicant has not filed a certified copy of the CN 201711457168 or CN 201810885961 applications as required by 37 CFR 1.55.
Claim Objections
Claims 9-10 and 12 are objected to because of the following informalities:
Claim 9, line 3 recites “introducing the electric energy output by the battery pack”, should read -- introducing an electric energy output by the battery pack --.
Claim 10, lines 1 and 3 each recite “at least one battery compartment”, should read – at least one first battery compartment – due to claim 1 reciting first battery compartment in line 11.
Claim 12 is dependent off of claim 1, but reads as if dependent on claim 11 due to mention of the cover set forth in claim 11.
Appropriate correction is required.
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.
Claim 8 is 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.
Claim 8, line 2 recites “the two second motors”, however the claim is dependent on claim 1, line 7 that sets forth “comprising a second motor”. It is unclear how many second motors are being claimed and therefore the claim is rejected.
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) 1-2, 4-5, 8-12, 15-16, and 18-19 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Uemura et al. (US 10334777 B2) in view of Fillman et al. (US 6571542 B1).
Regarding claim 1, Uemura et al. teaches a riding lawn mower (see Fig. 1), comprising:
a seat [5];
a main frame [7] configured to support the seat;
a power output assembly (assembly of cutter blade [17] driven by motor [18]) comprising a mowing element [17] to realize a mowing function and a first motor ([18], see Col. 5, lines 57-60) for driving the mowing element;
a walking assembly (assembly of wheels [1 and 2], rear wheel [2] is driven by motor [10]) configured to at least drive the riding lawn mower to travel on a ground and comprising a second motor ([10], see Col. 5, lines 18-30); and
a power supply device (battery pack [48] within battery compartment [21, 22, and 23], see Figs. 1-2) comprising at least one battery pack [48] to power the mower (inherently provides power to the mower through connecting terminal [48a], see Col. 7, lines 59-64);
wherein the at least one battery pack is disposed on a rear side of the seat (see Figs. 1-2), the power supply device comprises at least one first battery compartment ([21, 22, and 23], see Figs. 3 and 7-8) for mounting the at least one battery pack, and the at least one battery pack is configured to be detachably mounted (see Figs. 7-8) to the at least one first battery compartment along a straight line direction (see below) obliquely intersecting with a front-rear direction (see below) of the riding lawn mower (battery is inserted into the first battery compartment in an oblique direction in order for roller [37] to rest within the guide rails [24 and 25], therefore is mounted into the first battery compartment in an oblique direction to the front-rear direction, see Fig. 8).
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But Uemura et al. fails to explicitly disclose the battery pack powers both the first motor and the second motor.
Fillman et al. discloses a similar electric lawn mower [10] including a power device [24] comprising at least one battery pack [26] powering both the first motor ([111], see Col. 5, lines 29-31) and the second motor (see Col. 5, lines 59-63).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention for the battery pack of Uemura et al. to power both the first and second motors as taught by Fillman et al. in order for the battery pack to supply electrical energy to every electrical motor for powering the lawn mower to move and cut vegetation (see Fillman et al. Col. 5, lines 29-31 and 59-63).
Regarding claims 2 and 16, Uemura et al., of the above resultant combination, further discloses wherein each of the at least one battery pack [48] comprises a first battery pack housing (box body of the battery, see Col. 7, lines 59-62) and a plurality of battery cells (see Col. 7, lines 59-62) disposed therein, and the plurality of battery cells are lithium batteries (see Col. 7, lines 59-62).
Regarding claims 4 and 18, Uemura et al., of the above resultant combination, further discloses wherein the main frame [7] extends at least partially in a first straight line direction (see Fig. 1) parallel to the front-rear direction (see above), and the straight line direction (see above) obliquely intersects with the first straight line direction (straight line direction obliquely intersects with the front-rear direction, see above, and therefore obliquely intersects with the first straight line direction).
Regarding claims 5 and 19, Uemura et al., of the above resultant combination, further discloses wherein the at least one first battery compartment [21, 22, and 23] is formed with a locking structure (guide rails [24 and 25] retain the battery pack while inserted, preventing movement until acted upon by the user, see Col. 9, lines 5-35; therefore, locking the battery pack on the first battery compartment) for locking the at least one battery pack [48] on the at least one first battery compartment.
Regarding claim 8, Uemura et al., of the above resultant combination, further discloses wherein the walking assembly (assembly of wheels [1 and 2], rear wheel [2] is driven by motor [10]) comprises two first travelling wheels [1] and two second travelling wheels [2], the two first travelling wheels are universal wheels (see Col. 5, lines 18-21), and the two second motors [10] drive the two second travelling wheels respectively (see Col. 5, lines 21-30) (please see 112(b) rejection above).
Regarding claim 9, Uemura et al., of the above resultant combination, further discloses wherein each of the at least one first battery compartment [21, 22, and 23] is further provided with an input terminal (see Col. 9, lines 36-39) to electrically connect to the at least one battery pack [48], and the input terminal is for introducing the electric energy output by the battery pack to the riding lawn mower (introduces it to control unit [15], powering the second motor [10], see Col. 9, lines 36-39).
Regarding claim 10, Uemura et al., of the above resultant combination, further discloses wherein each of the at least one battery compartment [21, 22, and 23] is provided with a guiding structure (roller [26], see Col. 8, lines 50-57) for guiding each of the at least one battery pack [48] into the each of the at least one battery compartment in the straight line (see above; roller guides the battery in the oblique direction until roller [37] slides within the rails [24 and 25], therefore, mounting the battery pack in the straight line, see Fig. 8).
Regarding claim 11, Uemura et al., of the above resultant combination, further discloses wherein the power supply device (battery pack [48] within battery compartment [21, 22, and 23], see Figs. 1-2) comprises a battery compartment housing ([8 and 27]; houses the walls of the battery compartment, see Fig. 3) comprising the at least one first battery compartment [21, 22, and 23] and a cover ([27a], see Figs. 1-3) that is pivotally coupled (pivots about [P1] to close and open the top of the battery compartment, see Col. 6, lines 44-53) to the at least one first battery compartment.
Regarding claim 12, Uemura et al., of the above resultant combination, further discloses wherein the cover [27a] has an open state (see Fig. 3) and a closed state (see Figs. 1-2), and the at least one battery pack [48] is capable of being detachably inserted (see Figs. 7-12) into the at least one first battery compartment [21, 22, and 23] when the cover is in the open state.
Regarding claim 15, Uemura et al. teaches a riding lawn mower (see Fig. 1), comprising:
a main frame [7];
a power output assembly (assembly of cutter blade [17] driven by motor [18]) comprising a mowing element [17] to realize a mowing function and a first motor for driving the mowing element ([18], see Col. 5, lines 57-60);
a walking assembly (assembly of wheels [1 and 2], rear wheel [2] is driven by motor [10]) configured to at least drive the riding lawn mower to travel on a ground and comprising a second motor ([10], see Col. 5, lines 18-30); and
a power supply device (battery pack [48] within battery compartment [21, 22, and 23], see Figs. 1-2) comprising at least one battery pack [48] to power the mower (inherently provides power to the mower through connecting terminal [48a], see Col. 7, lines 59-64);
wherein the power supply device comprises at least one first battery compartment ([21, 22, and 23], see Figs. 3 and 7-8) for mounting the at least one battery pack, and the at least one battery pack is configured to be detachably mounted (see Figs. 7-8) to the at least one first battery compartment along a straight line direction (see below) obliquely relative to a front-rear direction (see below) of the riding lawn mower (battery is inserted into the first battery compartment in an oblique direction in order for roller [37] to rest within the guide rails [24 and 25], therefore is mounted into the first battery compartment in an oblique direction to the front-rear direction, see Fig. 8).
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But Uemura et al. fails to explicitly disclose the battery pack powers both the first motor and the second motor.
Fillman et al. discloses a similar electric lawn mower [10] including a power device [24] comprising at least one battery pack [26] powering both the first motor ([111], see Col. 5, lines 29-31) and the second motor (see Col. 5, lines 59-63).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention for the battery pack of Uemura et al. to power both the first and second motors as taught by Fillman et al. in order for the battery pack to supply electrical energy to every electrical motor for powering the lawn mower to move and cut vegetation (see Fillman et al. Col. 5, lines 29-31 and 59-63).
Claim(s) 3, 6-7, 13-14, 17, and 20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Uemura et al. (US 10334777 B2) and Fillman et al. (US 6571542 B1) as applied to claims 1-2, 4-5, 8-12, 15-16, and 18-19 above, and further in view of Pjevach (US 11592819 B2).
Regarding claims 3 and 17, the above combination discloses the electric lawn mower as applied, but fails to explicitly disclose wherein the power supply device comprises a plurality of the battery packs and a plurality of the first battery compartments, and each of the plurality of the battery packs is respectively mounted to each of the plurality of the first battery compartments.
Pjevach discloses a similar electric lawn mower [100] wherein the power supply device [200] comprises a plurality of the battery packs ([201], see Fig. 15) and a plurality of the first battery compartments [203], and each of the plurality of the battery packs is respectively mounted to each of the plurality of the first battery compartments (see Fig. 15).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filling date of the claimed invention to substitute the battery pack and first battery compartment of Uemura et al. and Fillman et al. with the plurality of battery packs and plurality of first battery compartments of Pjevach since both are a battery pack within a battery compartment used for driving electric motors for moving the wheels and the cutting blades within the lawn mower, yielding the same predictable result; as well as, in order for a user to modify the total energy capacity available to the mower by adding or removing battery packs, changing the battery capacity needed for the size of lawn (see Pjevach Col. 4, lines 18-33).
Regarding claims 6 and 20, Uemura et al., of the above resultant combination, further discloses the battery pack [48] being detached (see Figs. 7-12) from the main frame [7], and can be usable in other electric work vehicles (see Col. 11, lines 13-16), but fails to disclose wherein the at least one battery pack is further configured to power a hand-push power tool when the at least one battery pack is detached from the main frame.
Pjevach discloses a similar electric lawn mower [100] wherein the at least one battery pack [201] is further configured to power a hand-push power tool (vacuum or string trimmer, see Col. 5, lines 15-17) when the at least one battery pack is detached (see Figs. 15-16) from the main frame [107].
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filling date of the claimed invention to substitute the battery pack and first battery compartment of Uemura et al. and Fillman et al. with the plurality of battery packs and plurality of first battery compartments of Pjevach since both are a battery pack within a battery compartment used for driving electric motors for moving the wheels and the cutting blades within the lawn mower, yielding the same predictable result; therefore, when the plurality of battery packs and first battery compartments of Pjevach are applied to the electric lawn mower of Uemura et al. and Fillman et al., the battery packs can be removed to power other tools such as a vacuum or string trimmer (see Pjevach Col. 5, lines 15-17).
Regarding claim 7, Uemura et al., of the above resultant combination, further discloses the battery pack [48] being detached (see Figs. 7-12) from the main frame [7], and can be usable in other electric work vehicles (see Col. 11, lines 13-16), but fails to disclose wherein the at least one battery pack is further configured to power a hand-held power tool when the at least one battery pack is detached from the main frame.
Pjevach discloses a similar electric lawn mower [100] wherein the at least one battery pack [201] is further configured to power a hand-held power tool (leaf blower or small chainsaw, see Col. 5, lines 15-17) when the at least one battery pack is detached (see Figs. 15-16) from the main frame [107].
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filling date of the claimed invention to substitute the battery pack and first battery compartment of Uemura et al. and Fillman et al. with the plurality of battery packs and plurality of first battery compartments of Pjevach since both are a battery pack within a battery compartment used for driving electric motors for moving the wheels and the cutting blades within the lawn mower, yielding the same predictable result; therefore, when the plurality of battery packs and first battery compartments of Pjevach are applied to the electric lawn mower of Uemura et al. and Fillman et al., the battery packs can be removed to power other tools such as a leaf blower or chainsaw (see Pjevach Col. 5, lines 15-17).
Regarding claim 13, the above combination discloses the electric lawn mower as applied, but fails to explicitly disclose wherein a capacity of each of the at least one battery pack is greater than or equal to 130 Wh.
Pjevach discloses a similar electric lawn mower [100] wherein a capacity of each of the at least one battery pack [201] is greater than or equal to 130 Wh (has a capacity of 2 or 4 amp-hours at 82 volts equivalent to 164 Wh or 328 Wh and therefore is greater than 130 Wh, see Col. 5, lines 64-65).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the battery pack of Uemura et al. and Fillman et al. to have the capacity as taught by Pjevach in order for the battery pack to store more energy for running the electric lawn mower for a longer period of time (see Pjevach Col. 5, lines 50-65).
Regarding claim 14, the above combination discloses the electric lawn mower as applied, but fails to disclose wherein the weight of a single one of the at least one battery pack is greater than or equal to 0.1 kg and less than or equal to 4 kg.
Pjevach discloses a similar electric lawn mower [100] wherein the weight of a single one of the at least one battery pack is light enough for a user to carry (see Col. 6, lines 13-20).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filling date of the claimed invention to substitute the battery pack and first battery compartment of Uemura et al. and Fillman et al. with the plurality of battery packs and plurality of first battery compartments of Pjevach since both are a battery pack within a battery compartment used for driving electric motors for moving the wheels and the cutting blades within the lawn mower; therefore, yielding the same predictable result.
But Pjevach fails to explicitly disclose the weight is greater than or equal to 0.1 kg and less than or equal to 4 kg.
However, Pjevach discloses the weight of the battery pack is small and light enough for a user to carry in order to facilitate manual portability by the user (see Col. 6, lines 13-20); therefore, the weight of the battery pack is a result effective variable.
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filling date of the claimed invention to modify the weight of the battery pack to be greater than or equal to 0.1 kg and less than or equal to 4 kg in order to for a user to be able to lift, carry, install, and remove the battery from the electric lawn mower. It is noted that such a modification would merely constitute routine optimization of a result effective variable and it has been held that “where the general conditions of a claim are disclosed in the prior art, it is not invention to discover the optimum or workable ranges by routine experimentation.” In re Aller, 220 F.2d 454, 456, 105 USPQ 233, 235 (CCPA 1955).
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Please see attached PTO-892 for the full list of references.
EP 2556739 A1 discloses a similar electric mower [1] comprising of a battery pack [50] detachably mounted in an oblique direction relative to a front-rear direction (see Figs. 10-12).
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to SUNNY WEBB whose telephone number is (571)272-3830. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Friday 8:30 to 5:30 E.T..
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Christopher Sebesta can be reached at 571-272-0547. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/SUNNY D WEBB/Examiner, Art Unit 3671
/CHRISTOPHER J SEBESTA/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3671
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