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 .
Claim 1 is pending.
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 1 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 1 recites “controlling at least one setting of one or more devices at a site” at the preamble and “setting of a plurality of devices at a site” at the body. First, “a site” is recited twice, it is unclear whether both of the “site” referring to the same site or different sites. Second, preamble requires “one or more devices” but the body requires “a plurality of devices”, it is unclear the plurality is the same devices, partially devices, additional devices, or different devices. Third, the claim recites “a sensor data base configured to store sensor data” and “using sensor data retrieved from the sensor data base”, the term “sensor data” appears twice and the second one without using “the”, it is unclear whether the second “sensor data” is the stored data “communicated from a virtual sensor and from one or more data sources” or other data. Since the database contains both data from a virtual sensor and from one or more data sources, it is unclear whether the control step must use the virtual sensor data, predict future sensor data, or the data from one or more data sources. Appropriate correction is required.
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 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Mohan et al. (hereinafter “Mohan”) (US 20160356633 A1) in view of Bahl et al. (hereinafter “Bahl”) (US 20130159223 A1).
As to claim 1, Mohan teaches an apparatus for controlling at least one setting of one or more devices at a site, comprising one or more controllers having circuitry [Figs. 4-5] [0018-0019, 0083-0084, 0086], which one or more controllers are configured to:
(a) operatively obtain sensor data communicated from a virtual sensor and from one or more data sources, which virtual sensor is configured to predict future sensor data ([0004, 0018-0020, 0028, 0030, 0034, 0040, 0043, 0045] The sensor network includes a plurality of sensors of a built environment and a controller. Each sensor is operative to generate a sense signal. The controller is operative to collect sense values that represent sense signals of the plurality of sensors… based on a timing of the sense value, and based on other available information of the built environment, predict a future state of each of the plurality of sensors… and communicate the future state… the collected sense values are classified based on a type of space of the built environment associated with a corresponding one of the plurality of sensors that generated the sense value. That is, the plurality of sensors is distributed within the built environment 100… the other available information of the built environment includes sensed values of a group of sensors of a neighborhood group… and wherein the group of sensors of the neighboring group have past sensed values that are correlated with past predicted future states of the sub-plurality of sensors… the other available information of the built environment includes sensed values of a group of sensors of a influencing group… determining that the group of sensors of the influencing group have past sensed values that are correlated with past predicted future states of the sub-plurality of sensors by more than a threshold comprises identifying that a predicted state based on the sensed values of the influencing group is observed to be accurate greater than a threshold percent of time… a future state of each of the plurality of sensors is predicted based at least in part on the classifications of each of the sense values, and the future state is communicated… the adaptive weighting is adaptively updated over time based on observations of an accuracy of past-predicted future states. That is, after a predicted state is determined using present weighting, the predicted state is compared to what the actual state is determined to be. For example, based on the comparison, the weighting can be adjusted to provide better future estimates… the adaptive weighting is updated over time based on a plurality of the other available information of a plurality of the other available information of the built environment is used to predict the future state… predicting the future state of each of the plurality of sensors based at least in part on the classifications of each of the sense values includes an analysis of the type of space associated with the sensor, an identifier of the sensor, a present time, and a predicted time); and
(b) control, or direct control of, setting of a plurality of devices at a site using sensor data retrieved from the sensor data base ([predicting and providing a future sensor data to control a plurality of devices at the site based on detected sensor data, past sensed data, past predicted future data] [0053, 0060-0063] the predicted states are utilized in an in HVAC (heating, ventilation and air conditioning) system… predicted occupied state in the future can result in chiller/heater management in efficient modes to prepare the space for future occupancy. For at least some embodiments, the predicted lack of occupancy in future can result in switching off the chiller/heater to let the temperature drift provided the temperature is within the allowed range during the period of current occupancy. In addition, for a VAV space with multiple sensors, predicted level of occupancy (low/med/high) can be used for efficiently running the chiller/heater system).
Mohan teaches predicting a future state of a built environment with a sensor network and providing future sensor data to control a plurality of devices at the site based on detected sensor data, past sensed data, past predicted future data [0004, 0018-0020, 0028, 0030, 0034, 0040, 0043, 0045, 0060-0063]. Mohan does not explicitly teach a sensor data base configured to store data from physical sensor and virtual sensor.
However, Bahl teaches system and device for developing a virtual sensor, wherein the system comprises a sensor database configured to store data from physical sensor and virtual sensor [Fig. 1 shows data store 108 for storing both virtual sensor data and physical sensor data] [0027].
It would have been obvious to an ordinary person skilled in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to incorporate the teachings of Bahl with the teachings of Mohan for the purpose of using a known virtual sensor data store architecture to implement sensor data processing and future state prediction to control a plurality of devices at the site.
Conclusion
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/ZHIPENG WANG/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2115
