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 .
This final action is in response to Applicant’s filing dated April 9, 2026. Claims 1-16 are currently pending and have been considered, as provided in more detail below.
*Examiner Note: Claim language is bolded. Cited References and Applicant’s arguments are italicized. Examiner interpretations are preceded with an asterisk *.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments filed 4/9/26 have been considered but are moot because the arguments are directed toward subject matter that has not been previously considered and has necessitated a new ground of rejection as outlined below. While the new ground of rejection may rely on some of the previous references applied in the prior rejection of record, a new additional reference has been added to the combination and introduced for Applicant’s consideration given the amended independent claims as discussed in detail below.
Response to Amendment
Regarding the rejection under 35 USC 101, Applicant has amended the claims to overcome the rejection. The rejection under 35 USC101 has been withdrawn.
Regarding the rejections under 35 USC 103, amendments made to the claims have necessitated new grounds of rejection as outlined below.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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 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.
Claims 1-2, 5-6, 8-10, 13-14 and 16 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Bacchus (US 2019/0106085 A1) in view of Stahlin (US 2011/0054716 A1) and further in view of Kline (US 2019/0322245A1).
Regarding amended claim 1, Bacchus discloses A cleaning control apparatus (Fig. 2, 200 and
see at least para, [0035] of Bacchus which discloses a “cleaning system 200”) for a vehicle (Fig. 1A, 100 and see at least para. [0034] of Bacchus which discloses “a vehicle 100 utilizing a LIDAR system … the LIDAR sensor lens cover would benefit from cleaning”), the apparatus comprising:
a driving environment determination logic unit (Fig. 2, 204 with 206 and see at least para. [0036] of Bacchus which discloses “Decision function 204 receives various sensor information inputs from vehicle sensors 206 throughout the vehicle. Non-limiting examples of such sensors include speed sensors, whether sensors, water droplets sensors, windshield wiper status sensors, gear position (e.g., forward or reverse) or other sensors providing information useful to a cleaning system in any particular embodiment. The vehicle sensors 206 provide information that aid in the decision function 204 determination”, *Such sensors provide information indicative of environmental and operating conditions of the vehicle, including weather-related and traveling-status information) configured to determine a traveling status (see at least para. [0042] of Bacchus which discloses “when the vehicle is traveling at low speeds where normal airflow caused by the vehicle moving at higher speeds is not present“) or a driving environment of the vehicle (see at least para. [0010] of Bacchus which discloses “the vehicle sensors providing the information that the processor uses to determine the contaminant type comprise one or more of the following group of vehicle sensors: weather, droplet detector, windshield wiper status, speed and washer fluid levels” and see at least para. [0019] of Bacchus which discloses “the plurality of vehicle sensors providing the respective sensor information that the processor comprise one or more of the following group of vehicle sensors: weather, droplet detector, windshield wiper status, speed and fluid levels”); and
a sensor contamination determination logic unit (Fig. 2, 208 and see at least para. [0040] of Bacchus which discloses “the contamination detectors 208 may determine the presence of water droplets on the sensor lens cover”) configured to determine a contamination status outside (see at least para. [0040] of Bacchus which discloses “the contamination detector 208 may determine the location of the contamination in reference to the affected cells. In the event the contamination cannot be removed by the application of one or more cleaning modalities, the weight value applied to the affected cells may be reduced to the point where contamination in those cells are ignored and an alert provided to the vehicle operator that the sensor lens cover requires service” and see at least para. [0041] of Bacchus which discloses “a video frame 6001 indicates the presence of a dirt particle 6021. By comparing successive video frames, it can be determined that the dirt particle 602N is present N frames later as shown by video frame 600N continuing to detect the presence of the dirt particle 602N”), wherein the cleaning control apparatus (Fig. 2, 200 and see at least para, [0035] of Bacchus which discloses a “cleaning system 200”) is configured for performing electronic cleaning according to the traveling status (see at least para. [0042] of Bacchus which discloses “various cleaning modalities may be used in tandem. For example, the actuator 704 may be activated to produce ultrasonic vibrations on the sensor lens cover 702 while the pressurized air dispenser 706 helps remove water droplets by both the vibratory actions of the actuator 704 and the pressurized air 706′. As another example, the pressurized fluid dispenser 708 may spray the cleaning fluid 708′ onto the sensor lens cover 702 followed by the activation of the pressurized air system 706 to help remove any excess cleaning fluid from the sensor lens cover 702. This operation may have an advantage depending on the camera location as when the vehicle is traveling at low speeds where normal airflow caused by the vehicle moving at higher speeds is not present”) or the driving environment of the vehicle (see at least para. [0010] of Bacchus which discloses “the vehicle sensors providing the information that the processor uses to determine the contaminant type comprise one or more of the following group of vehicle sensors: weather, droplet detector, windshield wiper status, speed and washer fluid levels” and see at least para. [0019] of Bacchus which discloses “the plurality of vehicle sensors providing the respective sensor information that the processor comprise one or more of the following group of vehicle sensors: weather, droplet detector, windshield wiper status, speed and fluid levels”), and wherein the driving environment determination logic unit (Fig. 2, 204 with 206 and see at least para. [0036] of Bacchus which discloses “Decision function 204 receives various sensor information inputs from vehicle sensors 206 throughout the vehicle. Non-limiting examples of such sensors include speed sensors, whether sensors, water droplets sensors, windshield wiper status sensors, gear position (e.g., forward or reverse) or other sensors providing information useful to a cleaning system in any particular embodiment. The vehicle sensors 206 provide information that aid in the decision function 204 determination”, *Such sensors provide information indicative of environmental and operating conditions of the vehicle, including weather-related and traveling-status information).
Bacchus discloses determining the presence and location of external contamination relative
to a vehicle mounted optical or LIDAR sensor by analyzing data from successive frames or sensor output (see at least para. [0040] – [0041] of Bacchus), so Bacchus thus discloses determining contamination external to a vehicle mounted optical or LIDAR sensor through the sensor. Bacchus may not explicitly disclose an advanced driver assistance system (ADAS) sensor.
However, in the same field of endeavor, Stahlin discloses an advanced driver assistance
system (ADAS) (Fig. 2, 11 with 16 and see at least para. [0052] of Stahlin which discloses “The vehicle system 11 comprises a navigation unit 12, a provider unit 13, sensors 14, a satellite signal sensor 15, and a driver assistance system 16 (ADAS=Advanced Driver Assistance System)”) sensor (Fig. 2, 14 and see at least para. [0090] of Stalin which discloses “supplying an ADAS horizon even if no digital map and/or navigation satellite signal is/are available, either temporarily or permanently. In this case, the map matching module 29 is designed to supply the input parameters required to produce the ADAS horizon using the sensors 14” and para. [0092] of Stalin which discloses “This data detected by the sensors 14 are then used as input parameters to produce an ADAS horizon on the basis of this data”, *Stahlin discloses a vehicle system configured for navigation and/or driver assistance, including the use of vehicle surrounding sensors and traffic lane information form a camera to provide a driver assistance horizon (see abstract). Therefore, the vehicle surrounding sensors described in Stahlin which include cameras and the like are vehicle mounted perception sensors used for driver assistance).
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 cleaning control apparatus of Bacchus which already uses vehicle perception sensors of the type used in driver assistance systems as taught in Stahlin with a reasonable expectation of success since both references relate to vehicle perception system and improving the reliability of sensor data used together with driver assistance functionality. See para. [0090] and [0092] of Stahlin for motivation.
Bacchus, as modified by Stahlin, may not explicitly disclose the newly added limitation that
the driving environment determination logic unit performs a first-stage determination prior to the sensor contamination determination logic unit, and wherein the sensor contamination determination logic unit performs a second-stage determination of the contamination status only when the first-stage determination indicates that cleaning is not required based on the traveling status or the driving environment.
However, in the same field of endeavor, Kline discloses the driving environment
determination logic unit performs a first-stage determination prior to the sensor contamination determination logic unit (see at least para. [0018] of Kline which discloses “The start-up parameter set and/or decision tree for the present invention is able to determine cleaning parameters based on operating parameters associated with operation of the vehicle, an external environment, or stored preferences. For instance, the vehicle sensor cleaning system utilizes available data from the vehicle and other sources to clean sensors at operative times in an appropriate way”, *This corresponds to determining sensor-cleaning parameters based on vehicle operating parameters and environmental information and Examiner interprets the start-up parameter to be the first stage determination), and wherein the sensor contamination determination logic unit performs a second-stage determination of the contamination status only when the first-stage determination indicates that cleaning is not required based on the traveling status or the driving environment (see at least para. [0064] of Kline which discloses “ If yes, then system 100 returns to monitoring the obstruction levels of the one or more sensor obstruction levels (see item 1016). If no, then system 100 repeats droplet management for an increased duration a second time at item 1078. After this second droplet management step at item 1078, query 1080 once again determines whether or not the one or more sensors 130 of system 100 dried to a needed threshold. If the answer to this query is no a second time, decision tree 1000 proceeds to item 1054 and loops back through the various steps of decision tree 1000 as previously described until the one or more sensors in question are cleaned in accordance with system 100 and decision tree 1000”, *Kline discloses a decision tree that first determine cleaning parameter based on operating/environmental inputs and then, after droplet management, re-e valuates whether the sensors have dried to the needed threshold, repeating the process until the sensors are clean).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date
of the claimed invention to further modify the cleaning control apparatus of Bacchus, as modified by Stahlin, to perform a first-stage determination prior to the sensor contamination determination logic unit, and wherein the sensor contamination determination logic unit performs a second-stage determination of the contamination status only when the first-stage determination indicates that cleaning is not required based on the traveling status or the driving environment, as taught in Kline with a reasonable expectation of success in order to reduce unnecessary contamination checks and optimize cleaning operations by first evaluating vehicle operating conditions and environmental conditions, thereby deciding when cleaning is warranted before incurring the additional processing associated with contamination detection.
Regarding claim 2, Bacchus, as modified by Stahlin and Kline, discloses further including a
cleaning operation mode setting logic unit (see at least para. [0037] of Bacchus which discloses “an intensity and duration recommendation 304 for cleaning operation to remove the contaminant”) operatively connected to the driving environment determination logic unit (Fig. 2, 204 with 206 and see at least para. [0036] of Bacchus which discloses “Decision function 204 receives various sensor information inputs from vehicle sensors 206 throughout the vehicle. Non-limiting examples of such sensors include speed sensors, whether sensors, water droplets sensors, windshield wiper status sensors, gear position (e.g., forward or reverse) or other sensors providing information useful to a cleaning system in any particular embodiment. The vehicle sensors 206 provide information that aid in the decision function 204 determination”, *Such sensors provide information indicative of environmental and operating conditions of the vehicle, including weather-related and traveling-status information) and the sensor contamination determination logic unit (Fig. 2, 208 and see at least para. [0040] of Bacchus which discloses “the contamination detectors 208 may determine the presence of water droplets on the sensor lens cover”) and configured to set a cleaning operation mode according to the driving environment of the vehicle and the contamination status of the ADAS sensor (see at least para. [0042] of Bacchus which discloses “the pressurized fluid dispenser 708 may spray the cleaning fluid 708′ onto the sensor lens cover 702 followed by the activation of the pressurized air system 706 to help remove any excess cleaning fluid from the sensor lens cover 702. This operation may have an advantage depending on the camera location as when the vehicle is traveling at low speeds where normal airflow caused by the vehicle moving at higher speeds is not present”).
Regarding claim 5, Bacchus, as modified by Stahlin and Kline, discloses further including a
vehicle internal communication unit configured to support communication (see at least para. [0039] of Bacchus which discloses “decision function 204 processes the inputs receives from the vehicle sensors and contaminant detectors and will make a determination whether the sensor lens cover needs cleaning”) between controllers (see at least para. [0036] of Bacchus which discloses “controller 202 that receives cleaning decision from a decision function or algorithm 204”) in the vehicle.
Regarding claim 6, Bacchus, as modified by Stahlin and Kline, discloses further including a
piezo (see at least para. [0042] of Bacchus which discloses “a piezoelectric vibrating element”) and cover glass that is attached to a sensor cover and performs the electronic cleaning (see at least para. [0042] of Bacchus which discloses “The sensor lens cover 702 is mounted to an actuator 704, that in some embodiments, may be a piezoelectric vibrating element to produce ultrasonic vibrations of the sensor lens cover 702. Such a cleaning modality is effective at removing fluid contamination present on the sensor lens cover 702”).
Regarding claim 8, Bacchus, as modified by Stahlin and Kline, discloses wherein the cleaning
control apparatus (Fig. 2, 200 and see at least para, [0035] of Bacchus which discloses a “cleaning system 200”) is configured for performing electronic cleaning (see at least para. [0042] of Bacchus which discloses “The sensor lens cover 702 is mounted to an actuator 704, that in some embodiments, may be a piezoelectric vibrating element to produce ultrasonic vibrations of the sensor lens cover 702. Such a cleaning modality is effective at removing fluid contamination present on the sensor lens cover 702”), in response that cleaning is not required based on the traveling status or the driving environment of the vehicle (see at least para. [0010] of Bacchus which discloses “the vehicle sensors providing the information that the processor uses to determine the contaminant type comprise one or more of the following group of vehicle sensors: weather, droplet detector, windshield wiper status, speed and washer fluid levels” and see at least para. [0019] of Bacchus which discloses “the plurality of vehicle sensors providing the respective sensor information that the processor comprise one or more of the following group of vehicle sensors: weather, droplet detector, windshield wiper status, speed and fluid levels”) and in response that a foreign substance( see at least para. [0022] of Bacchus which discloses “The system also includes one or more contaminant detectors providing contaminant information to the processor enabling the processor to detect presence of a contaminant”) is detected (see at least para. [0039] of Bacchus which discloses “decision function 204 processes the inputs receives from the vehicle sensors and contaminant detectors and will make a determination whether the sensor lens cover needs cleaning”) based on the contamination status (see at least para. [0035] of Bacchus which discloses “If one or more cells cannot be effectively cleaned of the contaminant, a weight value assigned to that cell is reduced so that continued detection of contaminant in that cell does not re-trigger the cleaning system 200. This operates to both save cleaning resources and to keep the optical sensor in service as much as possible”).
Regarding claim 9, Bacchus discloses A cleaning control method (see at least para, [0035] of
Bacchus which discloses a “cleaning system 200” and see at least para. [0036] of Bacchus which discloses “the automated optical sensor lens cleaning system 200 is controlled by a processor or controller 202 that receives cleaning decision from a decision function or algorithm 204”) for a vehicle (Fig. 1A, 100 and see at least para. [0034] of Bacchus which discloses “a vehicle 100 utilizing a LIDAR system … the LIDAR sensor lens cover would benefit from cleaning”), the method comprising: determining a traveling status (see at least para. [0042] of Bacchus which discloses “when the vehicle is traveling at low speeds where normal airflow caused by the vehicle moving at higher speeds is not present“) or a driving environment of the vehicle (see at least para. [0036] of Bacchus which discloses “Decision function 204 receives various sensor information inputs from vehicle sensors 206 throughout the vehicle. Non-limiting examples of such sensors include speed sensors, whether sensors, water droplets sensors, windshield wiper status sensors, gear position (e.g., forward or reverse) or other sensors providing information useful to a cleaning system in any particular embodiment. The vehicle sensors 206 provide information that aid in the decision function 204 determination”, * Such sensors provide information indicative of environmental and operating conditions of the vehicle, including weather-related and traveling-status information); and determining a contamination status (Fig. 2, 208 and see at least para. [0040] of Bacchus which discloses “the contamination detectors 208 may determine the presence of water droplets on the sensor lens cover” and see at least para. [0040] of Bacchus which discloses “the contamination detector 208 may determine the location of the contamination in reference to the affected cells. In the event the contamination cannot be removed by the application of one or more cleaning modalities, the weight value applied to the affected cells may be reduced to the point where contamination in those cells are ignored and an alert provided to the vehicle operator that the sensor lens cover requires service” and see at least para. [0041] of Bacchus which discloses “a video frame 6001 indicates the presence of a dirt particle 6021. By comparing successive video frames, it can be determined that the dirt particle 602N is present N frames later as shown by video frame 600N continuing to detect the presence of the dirt particle 602N”); and performing electronic cleaning (Fig. 2, 200 and see at least para, [0035] of Bacchus which discloses a “cleaning system 200”) according to the traveling status (see at least para. [0042] of Bacchus which discloses “various cleaning modalities may be used in tandem. For example, the actuator 704 may be activated to produce ultrasonic vibrations on the sensor lens cover 702 while the pressurized air dispenser 706 helps remove water droplets by both the vibratory actions of the actuator 704 and the pressurized air 706′. As another example, the pressurized fluid dispenser 708 may spray the cleaning fluid 708′ onto the sensor lens cover 702 followed by the activation of the pressurized air system 706 to help remove any excess cleaning fluid from the sensor lens cover 702. This operation may have an advantage depending on the camera location as when the vehicle is traveling at low speeds where normal airflow caused by the vehicle moving at higher speeds is not present”) or the driving environment of the vehicle (see at least para. [0010] of Bacchus which discloses “the vehicle sensors providing the information that the processor uses to determine the contaminant type comprise one or more of the following group of vehicle sensors: weather, droplet detector, windshield wiper status, speed and washer fluid levels” and see at least para. [0019] of Bacchus which discloses “the plurality of vehicle sensors providing the respective sensor information that the processor comprise one or more of the following group of vehicle sensors: weather, droplet detector, windshield wiper status, speed and fluid levels”), wherein the step of determining the traveling status or the driving environment is performed (Fig. 2, 204 with 206 and see at least para. [0036] of Bacchus which discloses “Decision function 204 receives various sensor information inputs from vehicle sensors 206 throughout the vehicle. Non-limiting examples of such sensors include speed sensors, whether sensors, water droplets sensors, windshield wiper status sensors, gear position (e.g., forward or reverse) or other sensors providing information useful to a cleaning system in any particular embodiment. The vehicle sensors 206 provide information that aid in the decision function 204 determination”, *Such sensors provide information indicative of environmental and operating conditions of the vehicle, including weather-related and traveling-status information).
Bacchus discloses determining the presence and location of external contamination relative
to a vehicle mounted optical or LIDAR sensor by analyzing data from successive frames or sensor output (see at least para. [0040] – [0041] of Bacchus), so Bacchus thus discloses determining contamination external to a vehicle mounted optical or LIDAR sensor through the sensor. Bacchus may not explicitly disclose outside an advanced driver assistance system (ADAS) sensor.
However, in the same field of endeavor, Stahlin discloses outside an advanced driver
assistance system (ADAS) (Fig. 2, 11 with 16 and see at least para. [0052] of Stahlin which discloses “The vehicle system 11 comprises a navigation unit 12, a provider unit 13, sensors 14, a satellite signal sensor 15, and a driver assistance system 16 (ADAS=Advanced Driver Assistance System)”) sensor (Fig. 2, 14 and see at least para. [0090] of Stalin which discloses “supplying an ADAS horizon even if no digital map and/or navigation satellite signal is/are available, either temporarily or permanently. In this case, the map matching module 29 is designed to supply the input parameters required to produce the ADAS horizon using the sensors 14” and para. [0092] of Stalin which discloses “This data detected by the sensors 14 are then used as input parameters to produce an ADAS horizon on the basis of this data”, *Stahlin discloses a vehicle system configured for navigation and/or driver assistance, including the use of vehicle surrounding sensors and traffic lane information form a camera to provide a driver assistance horizon (see abstract). Therefore, the vehicle surrounding sensors described in Stahlin which include cameras and the like are vehicle mounted perception sensors used for driver assistance).
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 cleaning control method of Bacchus which already uses vehicle perception sensors of the type used in driver assistance systems as taught in Stahlin with a reasonable expectation of success since both references relate to vehicle perception system and improving the reliability of sensor data used together with driver assistance functionality. See para. [0090] and [0092] of Stahlin for motivation.
Bacchus, as modified by Stahlin, may not explicitly disclose the newly added limitation of a
first determination step preceding the step of determining the contamination status, and the step of determining the contamination status is performed only when the first determination step indicates that cleaning is not required based on the traveling status or the driving environment.
However, in the same field of endeavor, Kline discloses a first determination step preceding
the step of determining the contamination status (see at least para. [0018] of Kline which discloses “The start-up parameter set and/or decision tree for the present invention is able to determine cleaning parameters based on operating parameters associated with operation of the vehicle, an external environment, or stored preferences. For instance, the vehicle sensor cleaning system utilizes available data from the vehicle and other sources to clean sensors at operative times in an appropriate way”, *This corresponds to determining sensor-cleaning parameters based on vehicle operating parameters and environmental information and Examiner interprets the start-up parameter to be the first stage determination), and the step of determining the contamination status is performed only when the first determination step indicates that cleaning is not required based on the traveling status or the driving environment (see at least para. [0064] of Kline which discloses “ If yes, then system 100 returns to monitoring the obstruction levels of the one or more sensor obstruction levels (see item 1016). If no, then system 100 repeats droplet management for an increased duration a second time at item 1078. After this second droplet management step at item 1078, query 1080 once again determines whether or not the one or more sensors 130 of system 100 dried to a needed threshold. If the answer to this query is no a second time, decision tree 1000 proceeds to item 1054 and loops back through the various steps of decision tree 1000 as previously described until the one or more sensors in question are cleaned in accordance with system 100 and decision tree 1000”, *Kline discloses a decision tree that first determine cleaning parameter based on operating/environmental inputs and then, after droplet management, re-e valuates whether the sensors have dried to the needed threshold, repeating the process until the sensors are clean).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date
of the claimed invention to further modify the cleaning control apparatus of Bacchus, as modified by Stahlin, to include a first determination step preceding the step of determining the contamination status and the step of determining the contamination status is performed only when the first determination step indicates that cleaning is not required based on the traveling status or the driving environment, as taught in Kline with a reasonable expectation of success in order to reduce unnecessary contamination checks and optimize cleaning operations by first evaluating vehicle operating conditions and environmental conditions, thereby deciding when cleaning is warranted before incurring the additional processing associated with contamination detection.
Regarding claim 10, Bacchus, as modified by Stahlin, discloses further including setting a
cleaning operation mode (see at least para. [0037] of Bacchus which discloses “an intensity and duration recommendation 304 for cleaning operation to remove the contaminant”) according to the traveling status (see at least para. [0042] of Bacchus which discloses “when the vehicle is traveling at low speeds where normal airflow caused by the vehicle moving at higher speeds is not present“) of the vehicle, the driving environment of the vehicle (see at least para. [0010] of Bacchus which discloses “the vehicle sensors providing the information that the processor uses to determine the contaminant type comprise one or more of the following group of vehicle sensors: weather, droplet detector, windshield wiper status, speed and washer fluid levels” and see at least para. [0019] of Bacchus which discloses “the plurality of vehicle sensors providing the respective sensor information that the processor comprise one or more of the following group of vehicle sensors: weather, droplet detector, windshield wiper status, speed and fluid levels”), or the contamination status (see at least para. [0040] of Bacchus which discloses “the contamination detector 208 may determine the location of the contamination in reference to the affected cells. In the event the contamination cannot be removed by the application of one or more cleaning modalities, the weight value applied to the affected cells may be reduced to the point where contamination in those cells are ignored and an alert provided to the vehicle operator that the sensor lens cover requires service” and see at least para. [0041] of Bacchus which discloses “a video frame 6001 indicates the presence of a dirt particle 6021. By comparing successive video frames, it can be determined that the dirt particle 602N is present N frames later as shown by video frame 600N continuing to detect the presence of the dirt particle 602N”).
Regarding claim 13, Bacchus, as modified by Stahlin, discloses further including supporting
Communication (see at least para. [0039] of Bacchus which discloses “decision function 204 processes the inputs receives from the vehicle sensors and contaminant detectors and will make a determination whether the sensor lens cover needs cleaning”) between controllers (see at least para. [0036] of Bacchus which discloses “controller 202 that receives cleaning decision from a decision function or algorithm 204”) in the vehicle.
Regarding claim 14, Bacchus, as modified by Stahlin, discloses further including performing
electronic cleaning (see at least para. [0042] of Bacchus which discloses “The sensor lens cover 702 is mounted to an actuator 704, that in some embodiments, may be a piezoelectric vibrating element to produce ultrasonic vibrations of the sensor lens cover 702. Such a cleaning modality is effective at removing fluid contamination present on the sensor lens cover 702”).
Regarding claim 16, Bacchus, as modified by Stahlin, discloses further including performing
electronic cleaning (Fig. 2, 200 and see at least para, [0035] of Bacchus which discloses a “cleaning system 200” and see at least para. [0042] of Bacchus which discloses “The sensor lens cover 702 is mounted to an actuator 704, that in some embodiments, may be a piezoelectric vibrating element to produce ultrasonic vibrations of the sensor lens cover 702. Such a cleaning modality is effective at removing fluid contamination present on the sensor lens cover 702”), in response that cleaning is not required based on the traveling status or the driving environment of the vehicle (see at least para. [0010] of Bacchus which discloses “the vehicle sensors providing the information that the processor uses to determine the contaminant type comprise one or more of the following group of vehicle sensors: weather, droplet detector, windshield wiper status, speed and washer fluid levels” and see at least para. [0019] of Bacchus which discloses “the plurality of vehicle sensors providing the respective sensor information that the processor comprise one or more of the following group of vehicle sensors: weather, droplet detector, windshield wiper status, speed and fluid levels”) and in response that a foreign substance( see at least para. [0022] of Bacchus which discloses “The system also includes one or more contaminant detectors providing contaminant information to the processor enabling the processor to detect presence of a contaminant”) is detected (see at least para. [0039] of Bacchus which discloses “decision function 204 processes the inputs receives from the vehicle sensors and contaminant detectors and will make a determination whether the sensor lens cover needs cleaning”) based on the contamination status (see at least para. [0035] of Bacchus which discloses “If one or more cells cannot be effectively cleaned of the contaminant, a weight value assigned to that cell is reduced so that continued detection of contaminant in that cell does not re-trigger the cleaning system 200. This operates to both save cleaning resources and to keep the optical sensor in service as much as possible”).
Claims 3-4, 7, 11-12 and 15 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Bacchus (US 2019/0106085 A1) in view of Stahlin (US 2011/0054716 A1) in view of Kline (US 2019/0322245A1) and further in view of Yoshidome (US 2003/0094133 A1).
Regarding claim 3, Bacchus, as modified by Stahlin and Kline, discloses an operative
connection to the driving environment determination logic unit (Fig. 2, 204 with 206 and see at least para. [0036] of Bacchus which discloses “Decision function 204 receives various sensor information inputs from vehicle sensors 206 throughout the vehicle. Non-limiting examples of such sensors include speed sensors, whether sensors, water droplets sensors, windshield wiper status sensors, gear position (e.g., forward or reverse) or other sensors providing information useful to a cleaning system in any particular embodiment. The vehicle sensors 206 provide information that aid in the decision function 204 determination”, *Such sensors provide information indicative of environmental and operating conditions of the vehicle, including weather-related and traveling-status information) and the sensor contamination determination logic unit (Fig. 2, 208 and see at least para. [0040] of Bacchus which discloses “the contamination detectors 208 may determine the presence of water droplets on the sensor lens cover”) and the cleaning operation mode setting logic unit (see at least para. [0037] of Bacchus which discloses “an intensity and duration recommendation 304 for cleaning operation to remove the contaminant”).
Bacchus as modified by Stahlin and Kline may not explicitly disclose a variable voltage signal
generation unit operatively connected to the driving environment determination logic unit and the sensor contamination determination logic unit and configured to operate by at least one of a voltage magnitude, a cycle, and an operation time set through the cleaning operation mode setting logic unit.
However, in the same field of endeavor, Yoshidome discloses a variable voltage signal
generation unit (Fig. 9, 900 and see at least para. [0046] of Yoshidome which discloses “a drive signal 900 produced by a controller (not shown) that controls the operation of the injector/vaporizer 122. The drive signal 900 represents a voltage or current delivered to the one or more piezoelectric grids 405. When the drive signal 900 is at a first level 902, the arrays of stripes 502, 504 are fully expanded to shut-off the flow of liquid material”, *The controller producing the drive signal in Yoshidome is the variable voltage signal generation unit, as claimed) wherein a voltage magnitude (see at least para. [0036] of Yoshidome which discloses “A voltage is applied to each of the arrays of stripes 502, 504 through contacts 506, 508. The amount of expansion for each stripe depends on the composition of the piezoelectric material as well as the magnitude of the applied voltage. As such, varying the voltage applied to the stripes 502, 504 adjusts the size of the opening between adjacent stripes, thereby affecting the flow rate of liquid material into the vaporizer chamber 232” and see at least para. [0044] of Yoshidome which discloses “The stripes 502, 504 may be contracted by varying the applied voltage provided through contacts 506, 508”), a cycle, and an operation time (Yoshidome discloses a controller configured to generate a drive signal representing a voltage, wherein the drive signal alternates between different voltage levels for defined time intervals to establish a cycle and is applied for an overall operation time, thereby constituting a variable voltage signal generation unit configured to operate by at least one of a voltage magnitude, a cycle and an operation time, as recited) set through the cleaning operation mode setting logic unit (*The parameters of Yoshidome’s drive signal are set in accordance with the cleaning operation mode determined by Bacchus. The controller producing the drive signal in Yoshidome constitutes the claimed variable voltage signal generation unit, which is operatively connected as modified by Bacchus’ control structure, and whose voltage magnitude, cycle and/or operation time are set in accordance with the cleaning operation mode determined by Bacchus).
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 cleaning operation mode determined of Bacchus to use a variable voltage signal generation unit with at least one of a voltage magnitude, a cycle, and an operation time techniques as disclosed in Yoshidome with a reasonable expectation of success in order to improve electrical control of intensity and duration. See para. [0036] and [0046] of Yoshidome for motivation.
Regarding claim 4, Bacchus, as modified by Stahlin and Kline and Yoshidome, discloses
further including: a piezo (see at least para. [0042] of Bacchus which discloses “a piezoelectric vibrating element”), wherein the piezo is electrically connected to the variable voltage signal generation unit and performs electronic cleaning (see at least para. [0042] of Bacchus which discloses “The sensor lens cover 702 is mounted to an actuator 704, that in some embodiments, may be a piezoelectric vibrating element to produce ultrasonic vibrations of the sensor lens cover 702. Such a cleaning modality is effective at removing fluid contamination present on the sensor lens cover 702”) according to voltage input from the variable voltage signal generation unit, according to the determining of the traveling status or the driving environment and the contamination status (Bacchus further discloses a piezoelectric actuator mounted to a sensor lens cover, wherein the piezoelectric element produces ultrasonic vibrations to electronically clean the sensor lens cover in response to contamination as discussed in para. [0042]. Therefore, this teaches a piezo electrically driven to perform electronic cleaning according to operating and contamination conditions).
Regarding claim 7, Bacchus, as modified by Stahlin and Kline, discloses an operative
connection to the driving environment determination logic unit (Fig. 2, 204 with 206 and see at least para. [0036] of Bacchus which discloses “Decision function 204 receives various sensor information inputs from vehicle sensors 206 throughout the vehicle. Non-limiting examples of such sensors include speed sensors, whether sensors, water droplets sensors, windshield wiper status sensors, gear position (e.g., forward or reverse) or other sensors providing information useful to a cleaning system in any particular embodiment. The vehicle sensors 206 provide information that aid in the decision function 204 determination”, *Such sensors provide information indicative of environmental and operating conditions of the vehicle, including weather-related and traveling-status information) and the sensor contamination determination logic unit (Fig. 2, 208 and see at least para. [0040] of Bacchus which discloses “the contamination detectors 208 may determine the presence of water droplets on the sensor lens cover”) and the cleaning operation mode setting logic unit (see at least para. [0037] of Bacchus which discloses “an intensity and duration recommendation 304 for cleaning operation to remove the contaminant”), a piezo (see at least para. [0042] of Bacchus which discloses “a piezoelectric vibrating element”) electrically connected and performs electronic cleaning (see at least para. [0042] of Bacchus which discloses “The sensor lens cover 702 is mounted to an actuator 704, that in some embodiments, may be a piezoelectric vibrating element to produce ultrasonic vibrations of the sensor lens cover 702. Such a cleaning modality is effective at removing fluid contamination present on the sensor lens cover 702”, *Bacchus further discloses a piezoelectric actuator mounted to a sensor lens cover, wherein the piezoelectric element produces ultrasonic vibrations to electronically clean the sensor lens cover in response to contamination as discussed in para. [0042]. Therefore, this teaches a piezo electrically driven to perform electronic cleaning according to operating and contamination conditions) in response that cleaning is required based on the traveling status (see at least para. [0042] of Bacchus which discloses “when the vehicle is traveling at low speeds where normal airflow caused by the vehicle moving at higher speeds is not present“) or the driving environment of the vehicle (see at least para. [0010] of Bacchus which discloses “the vehicle sensors providing the information that the processor uses to determine the contaminant type comprise one or more of the following group of vehicle sensors: weather, droplet detector, windshield wiper status, speed and washer fluid levels” and see at least para. [0019] of Bacchus which discloses “the plurality of vehicle sensors providing the respective sensor information that the processor comprise one or more of the following group of vehicle sensors: weather, droplet detector, windshield wiper status, speed and fluid levels”).
Bacchus as modified by Stahlin and Kline may not explicitly disclose a variable voltage signal
generation unit operatively connected to the driving environment determination logic unit, the sensor contamination determination logic unit and the cleaning operation mode setting logic unit operating by at least one of a voltage magnitude, a cycle, and an operation time set through the cleaning operation mode setting logic unit; and transmits the variable voltage signal to the piezo.
However, in the same field of endeavor, Yoshidome discloses a variable voltage signal
generation unit (Fig. 9, 900 and see at least para. [0046] of Yoshidome which discloses “a drive signal 900 produced by a controller (not shown) that controls the operation of the injector/vaporizer 122. The drive signal 900 represents a voltage or current delivered to the one or more piezoelectric grids 405. When the drive signal 900 is at a first level 902, the arrays of stripes 502, 504 are fully expanded to shut-off the flow of liquid material”, *The controller producing the drive signal in Yoshidome is the variable voltage signal generation unit, as claimed) wherein a voltage magnitude (see at least para. [0036] of Yoshidome which discloses “A voltage is applied to each of the arrays of stripes 502, 504 through contacts 506, 508. The amount of expansion for each stripe depends on the composition of the piezoelectric material as well as the magnitude of the applied voltage. As such, varying the voltage applied to the stripes 502, 504 adjusts the size of the opening between adjacent stripes, thereby affecting the flow rate of liquid material into the vaporizer chamber 232” and see at least para. [0044] of Yoshidome which discloses “The stripes 502, 504 may be contracted by varying the applied voltage provided through contacts 506, 508”), a cycle, and an operation time (Yoshidome discloses a controller configured to generate a drive signal representing a voltage, wherein the drive signal alternates between different voltage levels for defined time intervals to establish a cycle and is applied for an overall operation time, thereby constituting a variable voltage signal generation unit configured to operate by at least one of a voltage magnitude, a cycle and an operation time, as recited) set through the cleaning operation mode setting logic unit (*The parameters of Yoshidome’s drive signal are set in accordance with the cleaning operation mode determined by Bacchus. The controller producing the drive signal in Yoshidome constitutes the claimed variable voltage signal generation unit, which is operatively connected as modified by Bacchus’ control structure, and whose voltage magnitude, cycle and/or operation time are set in accordance with the cleaning operation mode determined by Bacchus), and transmits the variable voltage signal to the piezo (see at least para. [0046] of Yoshidome which discloses “The drive signal 900 represents a voltage or current delivered to the one or more piezoelectric grids 405”).
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 cleaning operation mode determined of Bacchus to use a variable voltage signal generation unit with at least one of a voltage magnitude, a cycle, and an operation time techniques while transmitting the variable voltage signal to the piezo as disclosed in Yoshidome with a reasonable expectation of success in order to improve electrical control of intensity and duration. See para. [0036] and [0046] of Yoshidome for motivation.
Regarding claim 11, Bacchus, as modified by Stahlin and Kline, discloses further including
the setting of the cleaning operation mode (see at least para. [0037] of Bacchus which discloses “an intensity and duration recommendation 304 for cleaning operation to remove the contaminant”).
Bacchus, as modified by Stahlin, may not explicitly disclose generating a variable voltage
signal by operating by at least one of a voltage magnitude, a cycle, and an operation time according to the setting of the cleaning operation mode.
However, in the same field of endeavor, Yoshidome discloses generating a variable voltage
signal (Fig. 9, 900 and see at least para. [0046] of Yoshidome which discloses “a drive signal 900 produced by a controller (not shown) that controls the operation of the injector/vaporizer 122. The drive signal 900 represents a voltage or current delivered to the one or more piezoelectric grids 405. When the drive signal 900 is at a first level 902, the arrays of stripes 502, 504 are fully expanded to shut-off the flow of liquid material”, *The controller producing the drive signal in Yoshidome is the variable voltage signal generation unit, as claimed) by operating by at least one of a voltage magnitude (see at least para. [0036] of Yoshidome which discloses “A voltage is applied to each of the arrays of stripes 502, 504 through contacts 506, 508. The amount of expansion for each stripe depends on the composition of the piezoelectric material as well as the magnitude of the applied voltage. As such, varying the voltage applied to the stripes 502, 504 adjusts the size of the opening between adjacent stripes, thereby affecting the flow rate of liquid material into the vaporizer chamber 232” and see at least para. [0044] of Yoshidome which discloses “The stripes 502, 504 may be contracted by varying the applied voltage provided through contacts 506, 508”), a cycle, and an operation time (Yoshidome discloses a controller configured to generate a drive signal representing a voltage, wherein the drive signal alternates between different voltage levels for defined time intervals to establish a cycle and is applied for an overall operation time, thereby constituting a variable voltage signal generation unit configured to operate by at least one of a voltage magnitude, a cycle and an operation time, as recited) according to the setting of the cleaning operation mode (*The parameters of Yoshidome’s drive signal are set in accordance with the cleaning operation mode determined by Bacchus. The controller producing the drive signal in Yoshidome constitutes the claimed variable voltage signal generation unit, which is operatively connected as modified by Bacchus’ control structure, and whose voltage magnitude, cycle and/or operation time are set in accordance with the cleaning operation mode determined by Bacchus).
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 cleaning operation mode determined of Bacchus to use a variable voltage signal generation unit with at least one of a voltage magnitude, a cycle, and an operation time techniques as disclosed in Yoshidome with a reasonable expectation of success in order to improve electrical control of intensity and duration. See para. [0036] and [0046] of Yoshidome for motivation.
Regarding claim 12, Bacchus, as modified by Stahlin and Kline and Yoshidome discloses
further including performing electronic cleaning (see at least para. [0042] of Bacchus which discloses “The sensor lens cover 702 is mounted to an actuator 704, that in some embodiments, may be a piezoelectric vibrating element to produce ultrasonic vibrations of the sensor lens cover 702. Such a cleaning modality is effective at removing fluid contamination present on the sensor lens cover 702”) by a piezo (see at least para. [0042] of Bacchus which discloses “a piezoelectric vibrating element”) according to the variable voltage signal (Bacchus further discloses a piezoelectric actuator mounted to a sensor lens cover, wherein the piezoelectric element produces ultrasonic vibrations to electronically clean the sensor lens cover in response to contamination as discussed in para. [0042]. Therefore, this teaches a piezo electrically driven to perform electronic cleaning according to operating and contamination conditions).
Regarding claim 15, Bacchus, as modified by Stahlin and Kline, discloses setting of cleaning
operation mode, in response that cleaning is required based on the traveling status or the driving environment of the vehicle.
Bacchus, as modified by Stahlin and Kline, may not explicitly disclose further including:
generating a variable voltage signal by operating by at least one of a voltage magnitude, a cycle, and an operation time according to setting of cleaning operation mode, in response that cleaning is required based on the traveling status or the driving environment of the vehicle.
However, in the same field of endeavor, Yoshidome discloses generating a variable voltage
signal (Fig. 9, 900 and see at least para. [0046] of Yoshidome which discloses “a drive signal 900 produced by a controller (not shown) that controls the operation of the injector/vaporizer 122. The drive signal 900 represents a voltage or current delivered to the one or more piezoelectric grids 405. When the drive signal 900 is at a first level 902, the arrays of stripes 502, 504 are fully expanded to shut-off the flow of liquid material”, *The controller producing the drive signal in Yoshidome is the variable voltage signal generation unit, as claimed) by operating by at least one of a voltage magnitude (see at least para. [0036] of Yoshidome which discloses “A voltage is applied to each of the arrays of stripes 502, 504 through contacts 506, 508. The amount of expansion for each stripe depends on the composition of the piezoelectric material as well as the magnitude of the applied voltage. As such, varying the voltage applied to the stripes 502, 504 adjusts the size of the opening between adjacent stripes, thereby affecting the flow rate of liquid material into the vaporizer chamber 232” and see at least para. [0044] of Yoshidome which discloses “The stripes 502, 504 may be contracted by varying the applied voltage provided through contacts 506, 508”), a cycle, and an operation time (Yoshidome discloses a controller configured to generate a drive signal representing a voltage, wherein the drive signal alternates between different voltage levels for defined time intervals to establish a cycle and is applied for an overall operation time, thereby constituting a variable voltage signal generation unit configured to operate by at least one of a voltage magnitude, a cycle and an operation time, as recited) according to setting of cleaning operation mode, in response that cleaning is required based on the traveling status or the driving environment of the vehicle (*The parameters of Yoshidome’s drive signal are set in accordance with the cleaning operation mode determined by Bacchus. The controller producing the drive signal in Yoshidome constitutes the claimed variable voltage signal generation unit, which is operatively connected as modified by Bacchus’ control structure, and whose voltage magnitude, cycle and/or operation time are set in accordance with the cleaning operation mode determined by Bacchus).
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 cleaning operation mode determined of Bacchus to use generating a variable voltage signal with at least one of a voltage magnitude, a cycle, and an operation time techniques as disclosed in Yoshidome with a reasonable expectation of success in order to improve electrical control of intensity and duration. See para. [0036] and [0046] of Yoshidome for motivation.
Additional Prior Art
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Green (US 2019/0359179A1) discloses a sensor cleaning system that can remove debris from the sensor housing is implemented via a vehicle computer having a memory and a processor programmed to execute instructions stored in the memory. The instructions include determining a vehicle speed, selecting at least one actuator to vibrate a sensor housing based on the vehicle speed, and commanding the at least one actuator to vibrate the sensor housing in accordance with the vehicle speed to remove debris from the sensor housing. May (US 2014/0232869 A1) discloses a vision system that is operable to detect light and dark spots in captured image data and is operable to determine when such spots are indicative of dirt or water droplets or the like at the lens of the camera. The vision system determines such dirt spots via processing multiple frames of video image data. Optionally, the vision system may process image data captured by two cameras at the vehicle with overlapping fields of view, and responsive to detection of one or more spots (at the overlapping regions) in one of the camera's image data and not in the other camera's image data, the vision system determines that the detected spot or spots are indicative of dirt at the lens of the one camera.
Conclusion
Applicant's amendment necessitated the new ground(s) of rejection presented in this Office action. Accordingly, THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. See MPEP § 706.07(a). Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action.
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/DANA D IVEY/Examiner, Art Unit 3662
/D.D.I/June 26, 2026
/JELANI A SMITH/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3662
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