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 .
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 03/07/2025, 04/17/2025 and 12/03/2025 are being considered by the examiner.
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.
This application currently names joint inventors. In considering patentability of the claims the examiner presumes that the subject matter of the various claims was commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the claimed invention(s) absent any evidence to the contrary. Applicant is advised of the obligation under 37 CFR 1.56 to point out the inventor and effective filing dates of each claim that was not commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the later invention in order for the examiner to consider the applicability of 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(2)(C) for any potential 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) prior art against the later invention.
Claim(s) 1, 6 and 10-16 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Maar et al. (US. Pub. No. 2017/0176185, hereinafter “Maar”).
As to claim 1, (Original) Maar discloses a surveying pole [figures 2a-b, surveying pole 1] comprising:
a pole arrangement extending along a longitudinal axis (A) between a first end and a
second end [figures 6a-b, a pole arrangement extending along a longitudinal axis between a first end (close to 13) and a second end (close to 11)],
a target [figures 6a-b, target 19 internally arranged in the pole arrangement at a predetermined distance from the first end] internally arranged in said pole arrangement at a predetermined distance from said first end,
a top unit [figures 6a-b, top unit 11’ mounted on the pole arrangement at the second end] mounted on said pole arrangement at said second end and extending along said longitudinal axis (A), said top unit comprising:
a positioning device [figures 6a-b, 18, 21, 22],
an electronic distance measurement (EDM) unit [figures 6a-b, EDM unit 18] being configured to determine a distance to said target, wherein said EDM unit is arranged offset with respect to said longitudinal axis (A) such that at least a portion of a light path between said EDM unit and said target does not coincide with said longitudinal axis (A) within said top unit [paragraph 10, a height measuring system for indicating the distance of the position giving means relative to the terrain point, wherein the height measuring system comprises an electronic distance measuring unit, in the following called EDM unit, and a target, the EDM unit and the target being placed inside of the pole in such a way that the EDM unit being adapted to emit a light beam towards the target and to detect the light backscattered by the target, the light beam following a path inside of the pole, the EDM unit and the target further being mounted to the at least two pole sections so that a correlation between the height adjustment of the pole and the separation of the EDM unit and the target is provided, and an evaluation unit for deriving the height of the position giving means based on the detected light of the EDM unit], and
a processor configured to determine a length of the pole arrangement based on the
distance determined by the EDM unit [paragraph 21, The pole may also comprise a controller unit for controlling, feeding and reading the wireless communication means, storing the height information, particularly in combination with tilting information and/or position information, and making said information retrievable, the controller unit (8) particularly comprising a display unit (9) for providing output of said information, paragraph 23, as a result initiating a new height measurement by the EDM unit, in particular wherein the new height information is automatically transmitted to a receiving device, the receiving device particularly being a handheld controller of a geodetic instrument].
Maar doesn’t expressly disclose in the above embodiment that an optical arrangement arranged between said EDM unit and said second end of said pole arrangement, which optical arrangement is adapted to redirect said light path such that it is parallel with said longitudinal axis within said pole arrangement.
However, Maar discloses in another embodiment that an optical arrangement arranged between an EDM unit and an end of a pole arrangement, which optical arrangement is adapted to redirect a light path such that it is parallel with a longitudinal axis within the pole arrangement [figure 8, an optical arrangement 23 arranged between an EDM 505 and an end of a pole, 23 is adapted to redirect a light path such that it is parallel with a longitudinal axis within the pole arrangement, paragraph 45, the EDM unit 18 is supported by a triangulation means 23, comprising imaging optics laid out according to the Scheimpflug principle 23′ and a line sensor 23″. This setup is particularly useful for embodiments where the distance between the EDM unit 18 and the target 19 might become too short for a phase measurement or a pulse time-of-flight determinatio].
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to have modified the surveying pole of one embodiment of Maar with another embodiment to include an optical arrangement arranged between an EDM unit and an end of a pole arrangement, which optical arrangement is adapted to redirect a light path such that it is parallel with a longitudinal axis within the pole arrangement, in order to accurately perform phase measurement (paragraph 45).
As to claim 6, (Currently Amended) Maar discloses the surveying pole according to claim 1, wherein said EDM unit is displaceable to enable adjustment of the light path in said pole arrangement [figures 5a-b, 6a-b, EDM unit is displaceable at different locations].
As to claim 10, (Currently Amended) Maar discloses the surveying pole according to claim 1, wherein said top unit is detachably mounted on said pole arrangement [paragraph 42, the target is placed inside the pointing tip 13, which can be detached (see FIG. 7) for extending the measurable height range of the surveying pole].
As to claim 11, (Currently Amended) Maar discloses the surveying pole according to claim 1, wherein said top unit comprises a battery for powering said positioning device and said EDM unit [paragraph 18, Electric power supply means, particularly a battery unit, can be attached to the pole or placed inside the pole, in particular wherein the electric power supply means is exchangeable and/or rechargeable].
As to claim 12, (Currently Amended) Maar discloses the surveying pole according to claim 1, wherein said pole arrangement comprises at least a first pole section and a second pole section telescopically arranged to provide length adjustment of said surveying pole [figures 6a-b, a first pole section 11 and a second pole section 11’ telescopically arranged to provide length adjustment].
As to claim 13, see the above discussion of claim 1.
As to claim 14, see the above discussion of claim 12.
As to claim 15, see the above discussion of claim 1.
As to claim 16, (New) see the above discussion of claim 10.
Claim(s) 5 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Maar in view of Nordenfelt et al. (US. Pub. No. 2016/0131745, hereinafter “Nordenfelt”).
As to claim 5, (Currently Amended) Maar discloses the surveying pole according to claim 1.
Maar doesn’t disclose wherein
Nordenfelt teaches light is emitted along a light path by a laser of an EDM unit [figure 5, a light path by a laser of EDM 505, paragraph 89, The EDM 505 may comprise a transmitter or laser source 506 for transmission of an optical radiation along the transmit path 501].
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to have modified the surveying pole of Maar to have light emitted along a light path by a laser of an EDM unit, as taught by Nordenfelt, in order to perform distance measurement with deflection of optical radiation (Nordenfelt, paragraph 1).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 2-4, 7-9 and 17-20 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.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter: None of the prior art, made of record, singularly or in combination, teaches or fairly suggests the features presented in the combination limitations of dependent claims 2, 7-8 and 17-20, such as “wherein said optical arrangement comprises or a light guideclaim 2; “wherein said optical arrangement comprises at least one displaceable element to enable adjustment of the light path in said pole arrangement”, recited by claim 7; “wherein said optical arrangement comprises at least one fixed prism having one surface which, when said top unit is mounted on said pole arrangement, faces the interior of said pole arrangement”, recited by claim 8; “wherein said optical arrangement comprises a prism”, recited by claim 17; “wherein said optical arrangement comprises two prisms, two mirrors, or one prism and one mirror”, recited by claim 18; “wherein said EDM unit is displaceable to enable adjustment of the light path in said pole arrangement”, recited by claim 19; and “wherein said optical arrangement comprises at least one displaceable element to enable adjustment of the light path in said pole arrangement”, recited by claim 20.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Vogel et al. (US. Pub. No. 2010/0174507) is considered as pertinent art to claims 1, 13 and 15 regarding surveying pole with EDM as seen in figure 1A.
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/NAN-YING YANG/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2629
