DETAILED ACTION
This office action is in response to Applicant Arguments and Remarks Made in an Amendment filed on 06/16/2026.
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 .
Status of Claims
This office action is in response to application number 19/003,630 filed on 12/27/2024, in which claims 1-20 are presented for examination.
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed 06/16/2026 have been fully considered and are addressed as follows:
Regarding the claim(s) rejections under 35 USC §103: Applicant’s arguments, see Pg. 12-14, with respect to claims 1-20 have been fully considered and are persuasive in view of amendments. The rejection of claim 1-20 has been withdrawn.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of 35 U.S.C. 112(a):
(a) IN GENERAL.—The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor or joint inventor of carrying out the invention.
The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112:
The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor of carrying out his invention.
Claims 1, 8, & 15 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(a) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), first paragraph, as failing to comply with the written description requirement. The claim(s) contains subject matter which was not described in the specification in such a way as to reasonably convey to one skilled in the relevant art that the inventor or a joint inventor, or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the inventor(s), at the time the application was filed, had possession of the claimed invention. Ln. 15, 17, & 19 of claim 1 (similar in subsequent independent claims) disclose “and in the additional position”, which is matter that was not described in the specification. The newly amended language states that the graphical representation of the lift assembly that is presented on the display device can visually demonstrate a position of the lift assembly, as well as additional positions at the same time, which has no support in the specification. Examiner believes applicant tried to inject elements of the newly introduced limitation into following limitations, but the claim as written changes the scope of the invention.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. See PTO-892.
Steege (US 20130302119 A1) discloses a lift arm controller for a refuse truck has a lift arm, a gripper dimensioned for gripping and holding a refuse container, a carriage on the lift arm to translate along it and a gripper mounted on the carriage. A lift actuator is operationally attached to the carriage to translate the carriage, gripper and the refuse container along the lift arm. At least one sensor is configured to sense when the carriage is entering a near end portion of the lift arm and a signal to a controller. The controller is in operative communication with the sensor and the lift actuator and is configured to signal the lift actuator to operate at a slower speed when a signal is received from the sensor. The sensor may be an inclinometer. The inclinometer may also be used to maintain the gripper in a substantially level orientation.
Maroney et al. (US 20200247609 A1) discloses operating a refuse collection vehicle to collect refuse from a refuse container includes positioning a refuse collection vehicle with respect to a refuse container to be emptied, and manually engaging a switch to initiate a dump cycle to be performed by the refuse collection vehicle on the refuse container. The dump cycle includes engaging the refuse container with a portion of the vehicle, lifting the engaged refuse container to a dump position, and moving the refuse container to release contents of the refuse container into a hopper of the refuse collection vehicle. The dump cycle continues to completion as long as the switch remains manually engaged.
Hamlik et al. (US 20220063973 A1) discloses a smart clamp load handler system configured for controlling a clamp and preventing over-clamping. The system having a first actuator coupled to a first clamp arm and a second actuator coupled to a second clamp arm, an actuator control valve configured to control flow of hydraulic fluid to the actuators, and an electrical controller configured for signaling the actuator control valve when compressing a load. In one embodiment, the electrical controller is configured for determining when to stop the closing of the clamp arms based on a series of first and second actuator position measurements, and a series of base-side and rod-side pressure measurements, then signaling the actuator control valve to stop the closing of the clamp arms.
Smith et al. (US 20220381647 A1) discloses a refuse vehicle includes a telescopic arm, a sensor, and a processor. The telescopic arm includes an outer boom defining a bore, an inner boom received in the bore of the outer boom, and a bearing pad received in the bore and located between an exterior surface of the inner boom and an interior surface of the outer boom. The sensor is configured to output data indicating a position of a load-bearing limb of the telescopic arm. The processor is configured to receive data output from the sensor and determine a wear-state of the bearing pad based on the position.
Shike et al. (US 20200399864 A1) discloses a construction system includes: a position data acquisition unit configured to acquire position data of a bottom of water; a current-terrain data generation unit configured to generate current terrain data of the bottom of water based on the position data; a target-terrain data generation unit configured to generate target terrain data of the bottom of water based on the current terrain data; and a working equipment control unit configured to control a working equipment of a work vehicle based on the target terrain data.
Ichikawa et al. (US 20250207368 A1) discloses a measurement system of a work machine, the measurement system including: a position calculation unit that calculates a position of the work machine based on detection data of a position sensor; a working equipment position calculation unit that calculates a position of working equipment provided in the work machine based on the position of the work machine; a construction data storage unit that stores a position of a point predetermined at a work site of the work machine; and a distance calculation unit that calculates a distance between the position of the point and the position of the working equipment.
Tanner et al. (US 20180168141 A1) discloses a method using a robot for an automatic treatment of a weed, the method comprises steps of capturing images of said weed with a camera on said robot; determining with said images a distance between the weed and a second vegetable organism; and selecting a treatment tool of said robot for a treatment of the weed from a group of treatment tools as function of said distance.
The invention further concerns a robotic vehicle for carrying out the method for an automatic treatment of a weed.
Smith (US 20220234505 A1) discloses a refuse collection vehicle includes a grabber that is operable to engage a refuse container, a lift arm coupled to the grabber and operable to raise and lower the grabber, a camera that is arranged to generate video data of a scene external to the refuse collection vehicle, and a semi-transparent display device configured to display the video data generated by the camera, wherein the semi-transparent display is positioned within a forward line of sight of an operator of the refuse collection vehicle.
Dodds et al. (US 20170341860 A1) discloses a container assembly includes a container, a collection arm assembly, a locking mechanism, and a controller. The container has a front wall, a rear wall, a first sidewall, and a second sidewall cooperatively defining an internal cavity. The collection arm assembly is slidably coupled to the container such that the collection arm assembly is selectively extendable laterally outward from the container. The collection arm assembly includes a retaining pocket. The locking mechanism includes a latch and an actuator. The latch is positioned to selectively engage with the retaining pocket of the collection arm assembly. The actuator is positioned to selectively reconfigure the latch between an unlocked position and a locked position. The controller is configured to engage the actuator to selectively reconfigure the latch into the locked position and thereby prevent the collection arm assembly from extending laterally outward from the container.
Wildgrube et al. (US 20190325220 A1) discloses a refuse vehicle includes a body coupled to a chassis and defining a refuse compartment configured to store refuse, a refuse collection arm configured to engage and lift a refuse container to unload refuse, and an object detection system configured to provide object detection data relating to locations of objects relative to the refuse vehicle. An actuator controls movement of the refuse collection arm. A controller is configured to use the object detection data to determine if the refuse container is present within an aligned zone relative to the chassis, the aligned zone representing a range of locations in which the refuse collection arm is capable of engaging the refuse container. In response to a determination that the refuse container is within the aligned zone, the controller is configured to provide an indication to an operator that the refuse container is within the aligned zone.
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.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Anthony G Mora whose telephone number is (571)272-2306. The examiner can normally be reached Monday thru Thursday 8am-5pm PST, Alternating Friday 8am-4pm PST.
Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Kito R Robinson can be reached at (571)270-3921. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/ANTHONY GABRIEL MORA/Examiner, Art Unit 3664
/MICHAEL V KERRIGAN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3664
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