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 2/3/2025 is being considered by the examiner.
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.
Claims 1-5 and 8 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Schwartz et al (US 2021/0105070) in view of Ziarno (US 2015/0330869) and Olson et al (US 2011/0140910).
1). With regard to claim 1, Schwartz et al discloses a method comprising:
moving a vehicle (115 in Figure 1 etc.; [0028] and [0034]) between a plurality of parked aircraft (the vehicle is in a “gate area of an airport”, it is well known that there are a plurality of parked aircraft around a gate area of an airport, then it is obvious to one skilled in the art that the vehicle is moving between a plurality of parked aircraft. [0038], “in an area of the airport where planes are serviced and/or stored”);
at each parked aircraft (100 in Figure 1 and 2 etc.) of the plurality of parked aircraft, receiving aircraft-to-ground data from said parked aircraft at the vehicle by free-space-optical communication (between the LiFi access point 140 of the aircraft and the LiFi access point 120 of the vehicle) and storing the aircraft-to-ground data at the vehicle as stored aircraft-to-ground data ([0028] and [0039] etc., “wherein LiFi is used to download content to or from a portable drive either locally or to or from an aircraft”, it is obvious to one skilled in the art that the aircraft-to-ground data is stored in the vehicle).
But, Schwartz et al does not expressly disclose: transferring the stored aircraft-to-ground data from the vehicle, wherein stored aircraft-to-ground data from two or more of the parked aircraft accumulates at the vehicle before the stored aircraft-to-ground data is transferred from the vehicle.
However, first, to transfer collected aircraft-to-ground data from the collection device to a data center (or base) is well known in the art. E.g., Ziarno discloses that a server (32 in Figure 3) collects parameters from aircraft (e.g., 22 in Figure 3), and then sends the stored aircraft-to-ground data to a real-time analysis workstation (38) “where the engine data can be analyzed to determine the best maintenance program for an engine” ([0041]). This type of technique is similar to the widely used “AMR” (automatic meter reading) scheme, in which a vehicle is driving around to read utility meters and then bring the collected data/readings back to data collection center for analysis and/or billings etc. E.g., Olson et al discloses an AMR scheme (Figure 2), in which a “drive-by” vehicle collection system (27) with mobile receiver (26), which “through a general area, such as a neighborhood, to receive meter reading data” ([0026]); data from two or more of the meters in “neighborhood” accumulates at the vehicle before the stored data is transferred from the vehicle to a data collection center (50).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to apply the teachings of Ziarno and Olson et al to the system/method of Schwartz et al so that the aircraft-to-ground data from two or more of the parked aircraft can be collected/accumulated at the vehicle, and then the stored accumulated aircraft-to-ground data is transferred from the vehicle to a data collection center or base for analysis; and an efficient data collection is obtained.
2). With regard to claim 2, Schwartz et al and Ziarno and Olson et al disclose all of the subject matter as applied to claim 1 above. And the combination of Schwartz et al and Ziarno and Olson et al discloses the method of claim 1, further comprising:
moving the vehicle to a base after it has accumulated a full set of aircraft-to-ground data comprising the stored aircraft-to-ground data from all of the parked aircraft of the plurality of parked aircraft (refer to claim 1 rejection, Olson discloses to collect data from the plurality meters in a neighborhood, and then driving the vehicle back to a base; therefore, the combination of Schwartz et al and Ziarno and Olson et al teaches/suggests disclose: moving the vehicle to a base after it has accumulated a full set of aircraft-to-ground data comprising the stored aircraft-to-ground data from all of the parked aircraft of the plurality of parked aircraft); and
transferring the full set of aircraft-to-ground data from the vehicle at the base (Ziarno and Olson teach/suggest transferring the full set of aircraft-to-ground data from the vehicle at the base).
3). With regard to claim 3, Schwartz et al and Ziarno and Olson et al disclose all of the subject matter as applied to claims 1-2 above. But, Schwartz et al and Ziarno and Olson et al do not expressly disclose wherein the full set of aircraft-to-ground data is transferred from the vehicle at the base by free-space-optical communication.
However, as disclosed by Schwartz et al the signal/data is transmitted between the aircraft and the vehicle via free-space-optical communication, and “The signals generated by the LiFi access points are bidirectional and full duplex” (Figures 3 and 6-7 etc.), and “According to one preferred embodiment, the subject system may be adapted for aircraft to aircraft communication in a gate area, in flight or in an area of the airport where planes are serviced and/or stored. In addition, such system may be adapted to use between military aircraft for use in theaters of war and/or threats.” ([0038]); the LiFi access point (120) is fixed to the vehicle (115) for data transmission; therefore, it is obvious to one skilled in the art the same LiFi access point on the vehicle can be used to send data to the base or data collection center.
4). With regard to claim 4, Schwartz et al and Ziarno and Olson et al disclose all of the subject matter as applied to claim 1 above. But, Schwartz et al and Ziarno and Olson et al do not expressly disclose wherein at least some of the aircraft-to-ground data is stored in a memory unit and transferred from the vehicle by physically removing the memory unit from the vehicle.
However, first, Schwartz discloses “The gate LiFi access point 200 preferably includes a removable server 205. Following boarding of the aircraft or even at intervals during boarding, the removable server 205 may be removed from the gate LiFi access point 200 and brought into the aircraft by a member of the flight crew, the gate staff and/or the maintenance crew for uploading and/or downloading updated content and/or passenger data ultimately to the onboard entertainment server 240”, it is obvious to one skilled in the art that a removable memory or storage unit are associated with the LiFi access point. Second, a removable or portable storage unit or flash drive are well known in the art, and widely used to plug into a computer and used to data transfer from one computer to another computer. Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to use a portable/removable memory in the vehicle of the system/method of Schwartz et al and Ziarno and Olson et al so that the collected data can be directly transferred from the memory to the base or data collect center with a high speed.
5). With regard to claim 5, Schwartz et al and Ziarno and Olson et al disclose all of the subject matter as applied to claim 1 above. But, Schwartz et al and Ziarno and Olson et al do not expressly disclose wherein the stored aircraft-to-ground data is transferred from the vehicle simultaneously with the vehicle moving between the parked aircraft.
However, as shown in Figures 3-4, Ziarno discloses that the airport server (32 in Figure 3) or the ground subsystem (200 in Figure 4) can transmit data to/from “engine service provider or other similar processor” (38) or remote engine data control center (200) via a wireless communication ([0041], “a cellular infrastructure” 34; or [0046], “cellular, Internet, or other wireless communications can be used” 230). Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to use a common wireless communication in the system/method of Schwartz et al and Ziarno and Olson et al so that the vehicle can sends the collected data to the base or data connect center while the vehicle is moving between the parked aircraft so to save time and relax the requirement to the memory.
6). With regard to claim 8, Schwartz et al and Ziarno and Olson et al disclose all of the subject matter as applied to claim 1 above. And the combination of Schwartz et al and Ziarno and Olson et al further discloses the method of claim 1, further comprising:
at each parked aircraft of the plurality of parked aircraft, transmitting ground-to-aircraft data from the vehicle to the parked aircraft by free-space-optical communication and storing the ground-to-aircraft data at the parked aircraft (Schwartz: [0023]-[0026], “The detector 125 preferably converts the light-intensity variations of the optical transmitter 130 into an electric signal, which is then converted back into a data stream that is transferred to an onboard entertainment server 160”, “to send and receive updated data between the aircraft 100 and the gate 110 with increased frequency, preferably as much as every turn of the aircraft 100”; [0034], “The transmission link between the vehicle LiFi access point and the onboard server thereby transfers updated data to the onboard server”).
Claims 6-7 and 12-13 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Schwartz et al and Ziarno and Olson et al as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of Quintana-Sanchez et al (GB 2603137 A).
1). With regard to claim 6, Schwartz et al and Ziarno and Olson et al disclose all of the subject matter as applied to claim 1 above. And, the combination of Schwartz et al and Ziarno and Olson et al discloses wherein each parked aircraft of the plurality of parked aircraft comprises an aircraft fuselage (Schwartz: Figures 1-2) comprising:
a window (Schwartz: the window on the fuselage, Figures 1-2); and
an aircraft transceiver (Schwartz: 140 in Figures 1-2) on the fuselage, the aircraft transceiver comprising a transmitter (Schwartz: [0029] and Figure 3, “As shown in FIG. 3, a plurality of LEDs may comprise the optical transmitter 130 of the LiFi access points 120, 140.”); and wherein at each parked aircraft of the plurality of parked aircraft the transmitter generates an outgoing light and transmits the outgoing light (Schwartz: Figures 1-2 etc., outgoing light is transmitted from the LiFi access point to the access point on the vehicle 115), the outgoing light carrying the aircraft-to-ground data (Schwartz: [0039] etc.).
But, Schwartz et al and Ziarno and Olson et al do not expressly disclose that the aircraft transceiver is housed inside the fuselage, and the transmitter transmits the outgoing light through a window.
But, Schwartz et al discloses “the optical transmitter 130 of the aircraft LiFi access point 140 may be positioned on or within a radome of the aircraft 100”. Then, it is obvious to one skilled in the art that the optical transceiver can be implemented inside the fuselage. Another prior art, Quintana-Sanchez et al, discloses a free space optical communication between aircraft and a ground station (Figures 1-2), or between aircraft and aircraft (Figures 1-2); the aircraft fuselage comprises a window ([0044] “Each of the first to sixth optical transceivers is disposed within the fuselage 20, with an optical aperture through which optical signals may be transmitted. The optical aperture is conformant with the surrounding fuselage, in a similar way to the side windows of a passenger aircraft, such that a smooth and uninterrupted external surface is presented when the aircraft is flying”; [0045], “The optical transceiver 302 similarly comprises a laser generator and receiver 310, which is arranged to generate and send, and also receive, optical signals through an optical aperture 312. The optical aperture 312 is located within the fuselage 314 of the aircraft, and is conformant with the fuselage 314 so that airflow is not interrupted”), and light transceivers (12/14/16/18/22/24) are located inside the fuselage (24, Figures 1-2, and [0017], “All of the moveable mechanical components of the optical transceivers are housed within the aircraft fuselage, such that a smooth, uninterrupted external surface is presented to airflow across the aircraft fuselage”; [0022], “When installed within the fuselage of an aircraft, the optical transceiver conforms to the fuselage, such that there is no, or no significant, increase in drag during flight. A plurality of optical transceivers may be installed within the fuselage of an aircraft, positioned to provide greater coverage than a single optical transceiver”; [0044] “Each of the first to sixth optical transceivers is disposed within the fuselage 20, with an optical aperture through which optical signals may be transmitted”); and the transmitter generates an outgoing light and transmits the outgoing light through a window (32).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to apply the teachings of Quintana-Sanchez et al to the system/method of Schwartz et al and Ziarno and Olson et al so that the optical components of the transceiver are protected by the fuselage, and optical signals are transmitted through a window of the aircraft, and “a smooth and uninterrupted external surface is presented when the aircraft is flying. By providing skin conformant optical transceivers, the aerodynamic performance of the aircraft remains unchanged”.
2). With regard to claim 7, Schwartz et al and Ziarno and Olson et al and Quintana-Sanchez et al disclose all of the subject matter as applied to claims 1 and 6 above. And, the combination of Schwartz et al and Ziarno and Olson et al and Quintana-Sanchez et al discloses wherein each parked aircraft of the plurality of parked aircraft further comprises a port wing attached to the fuselage at a port wing root (Figures 1-2 of Schwartz; and Figures 1-2 of Quintana-Sanchez); and a starboard wing attached to the fuselage at a starboard wing root (Figures 1-2 of Schwartz; and Figures 1-2 of Quintana-Sanchez), wherein the window is on a port side of the fuselage (e.g., Quintana-Sanchez: the window for transceiver 12 is on a port side of the fuselage) and aft of the port wing root (e.g., Quintana-Sanchez: the window for transceiver 16 is aft of the port wing root), or the window is on a starboard side of the fuselage (e.g., Quintana-Sanchez: the window for transceiver 14 is on a starboard side of the fuselage) and aft of the starboard wing root (e.g., Quintana-Sanchez: the window for transceiver 18 is aft of the starboard wing root).
3). With regard to claim 12, Schwartz et al and Ziarno and Olson et al disclose all of the subject matter as applied to claims 1 and 8 above. And, the combination of Schwartz et al and Ziarno and Olson et al discloses wherein each parked aircraft of the plurality of parked aircraft comprises an aircraft fuselage (Schwartz: Figures 1-2) comprising:
a window (Schwartz: the window on the fuselage, Figures 1-2); and
an aircraft transceiver (Schwartz: 140 in Figures 1-2) on the fuselage, the aircraft transceiver comprising a receiver (Schwartz: [0023] and Figure 3, “a LiFi access point 120, 140 preferably includes both a detector 125 and an optical transmitter 130 (light source). The detector 125 is preferably capable of accepting signals from an optical transmitter 130 in a corresponding LiFi access point 140, 120. The optical transmitter 130 preferably comprises one or more LED bulbs. The detector 125 preferably converts the light-intensity variations of the optical transmitter 130 into an electric signal, which is then converted back into a data stream that is transferred to an onboard entertainment server 160”); and wherein at each parked aircraft of the plurality of parked aircraft the receiver receives incoming light and senses the incoming light (Schwartz: [0023]-0026], [0029] and [0034]), the incoming light carrying the ground-to-aircraft data (Schwartz: [0023]-0026], [0029], [0034] and [0039] etc.).
But, Schwartz et al and Ziarno and Olson et al do not expressly disclose that the aircraft transceiver is housed inside the fuselage, and the receiver receives the incoming light through the window.
But, Schwartz et al discloses “the optical transmitter 130 of the aircraft LiFi access point 140 may be positioned on or within a radome of the aircraft 100”. Then, it is obvious to one skilled in the art that the optical transceiver can be implemented inside the fuselage. Another prior art, Quintana-Sanchez et al, discloses a free space optical communication between aircraft and a ground station (Figures 1-2), or between aircraft and aircraft (Figures 1-2); the aircraft fuselage comprises a window ([0044] “Each of the first to sixth optical transceivers is disposed within the fuselage 20, with an optical aperture through which optical signals may be transmitted. The optical aperture is conformant with the surrounding fuselage, in a similar way to the side windows of a passenger aircraft, such that a smooth and uninterrupted external surface is presented when the aircraft is flying”; [0045], “The optical transceiver 302 similarly comprises a laser generator and receiver 310, which is arranged to generate and send, and also receive, optical signals through an optical aperture 312. The optical aperture 312 is located within the fuselage 314 of the aircraft, and is conformant with the fuselage 314 so that airflow is not interrupted”), and light transceivers (12/14/16/18/22/24) are located inside the fuselage (24, Figures 1-2, and [0017], “All of the moveable mechanical components of the optical transceivers are housed within the aircraft fuselage, such that a smooth, uninterrupted external surface is presented to airflow across the aircraft fuselage”; [0022], “When installed within the fuselage of an aircraft, the optical transceiver conforms to the fuselage, such that there is no, or no significant, increase in drag during flight. A plurality of optical transceivers may be installed within the fuselage of an aircraft, positioned to provide greater coverage than a single optical transceiver”; [0044] “Each of the first to sixth optical transceivers is disposed within the fuselage 20, with an optical aperture through which optical signals may be transmitted”); and the receiver receives the incoming light through the window (32).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to apply the teachings of Quintana-Sanchez et al to the system/method of Schwartz et al and Ziarno and Olson et al so that the optical components of the transceiver are protected by the fuselage, and optical signals are transmitted through a window of the aircraft, and “a smooth and uninterrupted external surface is presented when the aircraft is flying. By providing skin conformant optical transceivers, the aerodynamic performance of the aircraft remains unchanged”.
4). With regard to claim 13, Schwartz et al and Ziarno and Olson et al and Quintana-Sanchez et al disclose all of the subject matter as applied to claims 1, 8 and 12 above. And, the combination of Schwartz et al and Ziarno and Olson et al and Quintana-Sanchez et al discloses wherein each parked aircraft of the plurality of parked aircraft further comprises a port wing attached to the fuselage at a port wing root (Figures 1-2 of Schwartz; and Figures 1-2 of Quintana-Sanchez); and a starboard wing attached to the fuselage at a starboard wing root (Figures 1-2 of Schwartz; and Figures 1-2 of Quintana-Sanchez), wherein the window is on a port side of the fuselage (e.g., Quintana-Sanchez: the window for transceiver 12 is on a port side of the fuselage) and aft of the port wing root (e.g., Quintana-Sanchez: the window for transceiver 16 is aft of the port wing root), or the window is on a starboard side of the fuselage (e.g., Quintana-Sanchez: the window for transceiver 14 is on a starboard side of the fuselage) and aft of the starboard wing root (e.g., Quintana-Sanchez: the window for transceiver 18 is aft of the starboard wing root).
Claim 9 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Schwartz et al and Ziarno and Olson et al as applied to claims 1 and 8 above, and further in view of Jeganathan et al (US 2002/0131121) and Andreu-von Euw (US 2004/0141752).
Schwartz et al and Ziarno and Olson et al disclose all of the subject matter as applied to claims 1 and 8 above. But, Schwartz et al and Ziarno and Olson et al do not expressly disclose wherein the aircraft-to-ground data is received at the vehicle via an incoming steered beam; the ground-to-aircraft data is transmitted from the vehicle via an outgoing steered beam; and the method further comprises: at each parked aircraft of the plurality of parked aircraft, adjusting an angle of each steered beam so that the incoming steered beams and the outgoing steered beams are substantially aligned with each other.
However, in free space optical communication it is a common practice to steer a light beam and to adjust an angle of the steered beam so that the incoming steered beams and the outgoing steered beams are substantially aligned with each other. E.g., Jeganathan et al discloses a free space optical communication system (Figures 1 and 6-7 etc.), in which at each optical transceiver (12a or 12b), both the outgoing beam and incoming beam are steered beams ([0020], by the steering mechanism 28, controlled by the controller 40); at each transceiver, adjusting an angle of each steered beam so that the incoming steered beams and the outgoing steered beams are substantially aligned with each other ([0025] etc., “the mechanism 28 provided inside the optical assembly 14a combined with the common optical path for transmitting and receiving communication signals and receiving beacon signals eliminate the requirement for a controllable gimbal apparatus or an actuator to mechanically move and align the entire transceiver apparatus. Because only a small mirror is steered as opposed to the whole transceiver or optical assembly, the bandwidth of the tracking can be significantly higher (greater than 100 Hz). Typically, building sway, wind and temperature effects are rather slow (less than several Hz). The tilt induced by the atmosphere (angle of arrival fluctuations), however, can be much faster (tens of Hz). The higher bandwidth, thus, allows correction of atmospheric induced tilt”). Another prior art, Andreu-von Euw, discloses a similar free space optical communication system (Figures 1-3 and 6-8 etc.), at one of the link head (220 or 222 in Figures 5-8) incoming data is received at the link head via an incoming steered beam (e.g., 232; angle or direction is adjusted, [0010], [0019], [0029] and [0032]-[0036] and Figure 9 etc.); the outgoing data is transmitted from the link head via an outgoing steered beam (e.g., 230); and the method further comprises: at each link head, adjusting an angle of steered beam so that the incoming steered beams and the outgoing steered beams are substantially aligned with each other (Figures 5-9).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to apply the teachings of Jeganathan et al and Andreu-von Euw to the system/method of Schwartz et al and Ziarno and Olson et al so that the transceiver of the vehicle and the transceiver of the aircraft are well aligned, and the signal intensity can be improved, and data rate can be increased.
Claim 10 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Schwartz et al (US 2021/0105070) in view of Olson et al (US 2011/0140910).
Schwartz et al discloses a method comprising:
moving a vehicle (115 in Figure 1 etc.; [0028] and [0034]) between a plurality of parked aircraft (the vehicle is in a “gate area of an airport”, it is well known that there are a plurality of parked aircrafts around a gate area of an airport, then it is obvious to one skilled in the art that the vehicle is moving between a plurality of parked aircraft. [0038], “in an area of the airport where planes are serviced and/or stored”);
at each parked aircraft (100 in Figure 1 and 2 etc.) of the plurality of parked aircraft, transmitting ground-to-aircraft data from the vehicle to the parked aircraft of the plurality of parked aircraft ([0023]-[0026], “The detector 125 preferably converts the light-intensity variations of the optical transmitter 130 into an electric signal, which is then converted back into a data stream that is transferred to an onboard entertainment server 160”, “to send and receive updated data between the aircraft 100 and the gate 110 with increased frequency, preferably as much as every turn of the aircraft 100”; [0034], “The transmission link between the vehicle LiFi access point and the onboard server thereby transfers updated data to the onboard server”; and, [0028] and [0039] etc., “wherein LiFi is used to download content to or from a portable drive either locally or to or from an aircraft”) by free-space-optical communication (between the LiFi access point 140 of the aircraft and the LiFi access point 120 of the vehicle 115); and
storing the ground-to-aircraft data at the parked aircraft ([0023]-[0028] and [0039], e.g., stored in “an onboard entertainment server”).
As indicated above, Schwartz et al does not expressly state: moving a vehicle between a plurality of parked aircraft, and at each parked aircraft, transmitting ground-to-aircraft data.
However, first, as discussed above, the vehicle is in a “gate area of an airport” ([0038], “in an area of the airport where planes are serviced and/or stored), it is well known that there are a plurality of parked aircrafts around a gate area of an airport, then it is obvious to one skilled in the art that the vehicle is moving between a plurality of parked aircraft. Second, when the vehicle can upload the ground-to-aircraft data to one aircraft, it is obvious to one skilled in the art that the vehicle also can transmit ground-to-aircraft data to each parked aircraft of the plurality of parked aircraft, as long as each parked aircraft equips a similar optical transceiver.
Second, to transmit data or update program to multiple unit, one-by-one, by a vehicle is known in the art. E.g., Olson et al discloses an automatic meter reading (AMR) scheme (Figure 2), in which a “drive-by” vehicle collection system (27) with mobile receiver (26), which “through a general area, such as a neighborhood, to receive meter reading data” ([0026]); data from two or more of the meters in “neighborhood” can be collected, and also the vehicle can send “commands and configuration data” to the meter/transceiver assembly ([0028], “Radio signals can also be received through antenna 66 from the receivers or gateways 30 and these signals are demodulated by a demodulation section 65 to extract data for processing by the CPU 60. This data can include commands and configuration data for operation of the transceiver assembly 12, 15”) in the neighborhood; that is, Olson et al teaches/suggests to drive a vehicle to collect data from a plurality units and transmit data from the vehicle to the plurality units.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to apply the teachings of Olson et al to the system/method of Schwartz et al so that one moving vehicle can transmit data to a plurality of parked aircrafts efficiently.
Claim 11 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Schwartz et al and Olson et al as applied to claim 10 above, and further in view of Lee et al (US 2016/0301481).
Schwartz et al and Ziarno and Olson et al disclose all of the subject matter as applied to claim 1 above. But, Schwartz et al and Ziarno and Olson et al do not expressly disclose wherein at each parked aircraft of the plurality of parked aircraft, more than 10 terabytes of ground-to-aircraft data are transmitted to the parked aircraft by the free-space-optical communication.
However, how many bytes of data can be transmitted from the vehicle to the aircraft depends on the speed of the optical transmitter and time used to transmit the data, as well as the capacity of the memory (storage unit) in the aircraft. For a specific speed of an optical transmitter, as long as enough times is used, a desired bytes of data can be transmitted. E.g., for a common free space optical transmitter with data rate of 5 Gbps, the optical transmitter can transmit around 10 terabytes of data within 4 minutes. Lee et al discloses a scheme to transfer data between a ground station and aircraft, and “Engine monitoring data includes, for example, compression ratios, rotations per minute, temperature, vibration, and other engine operational data. In-flight entertainment systems also can involve significant data, e.g., terabytes of data for a suite of movies” ([0003]), and “For example, with respect to a movie for the in-flight entertainment system, one or more movies may require a transfer of over a terabyte of data and the aircraft may only be at the gate for about twenty minutes” ([0006]). It is common that the data rate of an optical transceiver can reach more than 100 Gbps over short distance (< 1 km). Therefore, it is obvious to one skilled in the art that at each parked aircraft of the plurality of parked aircraft within the normal parking (turnaround) time at the gate, more than 10 terabytes of ground-to-aircraft data can be transmitted to the parked aircraft by the free-space-optical communication.
Claim 14 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Schwartz et al and Ziarno and Olson et al as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of Cunningham et al (US 2011/0274434).
Schwartz et al and Ziarno and Olson et al disclose all of the subject matter as applied to claim 1 above. But, Schwartz et al and Ziarno and Olson et al do not expressly disclose wherein the aircraft-to-ground data is received at the vehicle via an incoming beam with a divergence less than 10 mrad, or wherein the ground-to-aircraft data is transmitted from the vehicle via an outgoing beam with a divergence less than 10 mrad, or both.
However, to make the beam width less than 10 mrad in free space optical transmission is common. E.g., Cunningham et al discloses a free space optical communication system/method for aircrafts etc. ([0001] and Figures 1-4), and teaches “the data laser beam may have a fraction of the beamwidth of the narrow beacon laser beam, e.g., on the order of 0.15 to 0.35 milliradians” ([0013]), “the narrow beacon signal can have a beamwidth that is about an order of magnitude narrower than the wide beacon signal, with a divergence of less than a milliradian, yielding about a 20 dB increase in the SNR of the narrow beacon signal at the position detector at the far-end terminal” ([0015]), and “The signal transmitted along the wide beacon signal path impinges on a diverging lens 350 that produces the wide beacon signal with, for example, a 10 milliradian beamwidth” ([0027])
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to apply the teachings of Cunningham et al to the system/method of Schwartz et al and Ziarno and Olson et al so that a narrow beamwidth is used to increase the SNR, and reduce the energy loss.
Claim 15 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Schwartz et al (US 2021/0105070) in view of Bakken et al (US 2008/0218378) and Thompson (US 2002/0033946).
Schwartz et al discloses a vehicle (115 in Figure 1 etc.; [0028] and [0034]) for communicating with a parked aircraft (100 in Figure 1 and 2 etc.) by free-space-optical communication (between the LiFi access point 140 of the aircraft and the LiFi access point 120 of the vehicle), the vehicle comprising:
a transmitter configured to generate an outgoing light ([0023] and Figure 3, “a LiFi access point 120, 140 preferably includes both a detector 125 and an optical transmitter 130 (light source). The detector 125 is preferably capable of accepting signals from an optical transmitter 130 in a corresponding LiFi access point 140, 120. The optical transmitter 130 preferably comprises one or more LED bulbs. The detector 125 preferably converts the light-intensity variations of the optical transmitter 130 into an electric signal, which is then converted back into a data stream that is transferred to an onboard entertainment server 160”; [0028], “the gate LiFi access point 120 may be fixed to a piece of moveable equipment, such as an aircraft service vehicle 115, as shown in FIG. 1, such as a luggage vehicle, a food service vehicle, an aircraft service vehicle and/or any other suitable portable service equipment”; the transmitter 130 of the LiFi access point 120 on the vehicle 115 generates an outgoing light), the outgoing light carrying ground-to-aircraft data (Schwartz: [0023]-0026], [0029], [0034] and [0039] etc., “The detector 125 preferably converts the light-intensity variations of the optical transmitter 130 into an electric signal, which is then converted back into a data stream that is transferred to an onboard entertainment server 160”, “to send and receive updated data between the aircraft 100 and the gate 110 with increased frequency, preferably as much as every turn of the aircraft 100”; [0034], “The transmission link between the vehicle LiFi access point and the onboard server thereby transfers updated data to the onboard server”);
a receiver configured to receive an incoming light and sense the incoming light ([0023] and Figure 3, “a LiFi access point 120, 140 preferably includes both a detector 125 and an optical transmitter 130 (light source). The detector 125 is preferably capable of accepting signals from an optical transmitter 130 in a corresponding LiFi access point 140, 120”; the receiver 125 of the LiFi access point 120 on the vehicle 115 receives an incoming light from the aircraft and sense the incoming light), the incoming light carrying aircraft-to-ground data ([0028] and [0039] etc., “wherein LiFi is used to download content to or from a portable drive either locally or to or from an aircraft”); and
memory for storing the ground-to-aircraft data and the aircraft-to-ground data (since data is transmitted between the LiFi access point 120 on the vehicle 115 and the LiFi access point 140 of the aircraft, it is obvious to one skilled in the art that memory is used in the vehicle to store the ground-to-aircraft data and the aircraft-to-ground data, so that the outgoing data can be sent from the vehicle and the incoming data can be stored in the vehicle).
As stated above, Schwartz et al does not expressly disclose memory for storing the ground-to-aircraft data and the aircraft-to-ground data. However, first, as discussed above, data is transmitted between the vehicle and the aircraft, it is obvious to one skilled in the art that memory is used in the vehicle to store the ground-to-aircraft data and the aircraft-to-ground data, so that the outgoing data can be sent from the vehicle and the incoming data can be stored in the vehicle for further analysis etc. Second, Bakken et al discloses an automatic meter reading (AMR) system (Figure 1 etc.), in which a “drive-by” vehicle (27) as a “data collector” with memory ([0027]), which can stores the data to be sent to the utility meters and data from the utility meters ([0027], “When an item of meter reading data is received, the basic program in the data collection computer 14 stores the reading and marks the meter associated with that transmitter identification number as having been read”). Another prior art, Thompson discloses a system/method for “obtaining, recording, displaying, storing, transmitting and receiving maintenance and other information” (Figures 2-3 etc.), and “maintenance apparatus 20 that receives real-time or current data 22a concerning the condition of one or more objects 24” ([0038]), and “The maintenance apparatus 20 may store the data (labeled as 22b in FIG. 1) locally (e.g., in a storage medium of the apparatus 20) or remotely (e.g., at a central maintenance facility). The local storage medium may be internal or external to the apparatus 20 (e.g., in a separate housing carrying/storage case (not shown)), thereby providing a record that may stay with the apparatus 20 for further reference” ([0039]), and the object can be a aircraft (Figure 2, and [0005], [0035] and [0045]-[0046] etc.); and “the apparatus 20 may communicate with a remote facility through a suitable communications link (shown as 56 in FIG. 2). Link 56 can be any suitable communication medium, including wireless communication. The remote facility may include a computer 57 storing a database (not shown) capable of storing any of the above mentioned information concerning the object being inspected. Technicians at the remote facility may be able to remotely obtain and analyze the information obtained by the apparatus 20 to provide guidance to the inspector 50 regarding any action necessary” ([0047]), that is, the stored data in the maintenance apparatus 20 can be sent to another process unit (data base 57) for analysis; and Thompson also discloses that the maintenance apparatus 20 can communicate with components of the aircraft over wireless connect including “infrared communication” ([0049] and [0055] etc.).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to use a memory, as taught by Bakken et al and Thompson, in the vehicle of the system/method of Schwartz et al so that the outgoing data can be initially stored and conveniently transferred to the aircraft, and incoming collected data can be stored in the vehicle further analysis etc.
Claim 16-17 and 20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Schwartz et al and Bakken et al and Thompson as applied to claim 15 above, and further in view of Jeganathan et al (US 2002/0131121).
1). With regard to claim 16, Schwartz et al and Bakken et al and Thompson disclose all of the subject matter as applied to claim 15 above. But, Schwartz et al and Bakken et al and Thompson do not expressly disclose the vehicle of claim 15, further comprising: a lens configured to collimate the outgoing light to generate a collimated beam.
However, it is a common practice in the art to use a lens to generate a collimated beam so to limit the divergence of an optical beam. E.g., Jeganathan et al discloses a free space optical communication system (Figures 1 and 6-7 etc.), in which at each optical transceiver (12a or 12b), both the outgoing beam and incoming beam are steered beams ([0020], by the steering mechanism 28, controlled by the controller 40), and a lens (29 and/or 20a in Figure 6) is used to generate a collimated beam ([0020], “lens 29 images the aperture 20a on to the steering mechanism 28 and also collimates the incoming light”).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to apply the teachings of Jeganathan et al to the system/method of Schwartz et al and Bakken et al and Thompson so that the beams from the transceiver of the vehicle and the transceiver of the aircraft are well collimated, and the optical beam can be concentrated, signal intensity can be improved, and data rate can be increased.
2). With regard to claim 17, Schwartz et al and Bakken et al and Thompson and Jeganathan et al disclose all of the subject matter as applied to claims 15 and 16 above. And the combination of Schwartz et al and Bakken et al and Thompson and Jeganathan et al further discloses wherein the receiver is configured to receive the incoming light via the lens (e.g., Jeganathan: receiver 38 receives the incoming light via the lens 29/20a).
3). With regard to claim 20, Schwartz et al and Bakken et al and Thompson disclose all of the subject matter as applied to claim 15 above. But, Schwartz et al and Bakken et al and Thompson do not expressly disclose the vehicle of claim 15, further comprising: a lens configured to collimate the outgoing light to generate a collimated beam; a beam steering device configured to transform the collimated beam to generate a steered beam; and a control system configured to operate the beam steering device to adjust an angle of the steered beam, wherein the receiver is configured to receive the incoming light via the beam steering device and the lens.
However, it is a common practice in the art to use a lens to generate a collimated beam so to limit the divergence of an optical beam. E.g., Jeganathan et al discloses a free space optical communication system (Figures 1 and 6-7 etc.), in which at each optical transceiver (12a or 12b), and
a lens (29 and/or 20a in Figure 6) is used to collimate the outgoing light to generate a collimated beam ([0020], “lens 29 images the aperture 20a on to the steering mechanism 28 and also collimates the incoming light”),
a beam steering device (the steering mechanism 28, controlled by the controller 40) transforms the collimated beam to generate a steered beam; and a control system (controller 40) configured to operate the beam steering device to adjust an angle of the steered beam ([0025] etc., “the mechanism 28 provided inside the optical assembly 14a combined with the common optical path for transmitting and receiving communication signals and receiving beacon signals eliminate the requirement for a controllable gimbal apparatus or an actuator to mechanically move and align the entire transceiver apparatus. Because only a small mirror is steered as opposed to the whole transceiver or optical assembly, the bandwidth of the tracking can be significantly higher (greater than 100 Hz). Typically, building sway, wind and temperature effects are rather slow (less than several Hz). The tilt induced by the atmosphere (angle of arrival fluctuations), however, can be much faster (tens of Hz). The higher bandwidth, thus, allows correction of atmospheric induced tilt”), wherein the receiver is configured to receive the incoming light via the beam steering device and the lens (e.g., Jeganathan: receiver 38 receives the incoming light via the beam steering device 28 and the lens the lens 29/20a).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to apply the teachings of Jeganathan et al to the system/method of Schwartz et al and Bakken et al and Thompson so that the beams from the transceiver of the vehicle and the transceiver of the aircraft are well collimated by the lens and aligned with the beam steering device, and the optical beam can be concentrated, signal intensity can be improved, and data rate can be increased.
Claim 18-19 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Schwartz et al and Bakken et al and Thompson as applied to claim 15 above, and further in view of Jeganathan et al (US 2002/0131121) and Andreu-von Euw (US 2004/0141752).
1). With regard to claim 18, Schwartz et al and Bakken et al and Thompson disclose all of the subject matter as applied to claim 15 above. But, Schwartz et al and Bakken et al and Thompson do not expressly disclose the vehicle of claim 15, further comprising: a beam steering device configured to transform the outgoing light to generate a steered beam; and a control system configured to operate the beam steering device to adjust an angle of the steered beam.
However, in free space optical communication it is a common practice to use a beam steering device to steer a light beam and to adjust an angle of the steered beam by a controller so that the incoming steered beams and the outgoing steered beams are substantially aligned with each other. E.g., Jeganathan et al discloses a free space optical communication system (Figures 1 and 6-7 etc.), in which at each optical transceiver (12a or 12b), a steering mechanism 28 transform the outgoing light to generate a steered beam ([0020], controlled by the controller 40); a control system (controller 40) operates the beam steering device to adjust an angle of the steered beam ([0025] etc., “the mechanism 28 provided inside the optical assembly 14a combined with the common optical path for transmitting and receiving communication signals and receiving beacon signals eliminate the requirement for a controllable gimbal apparatus or an actuator to mechanically move and align the entire transceiver apparatus. Because only a small mirror is steered as opposed to the whole transceiver or optical assembly, the bandwidth of the tracking can be significantly higher (greater than 100 Hz). Typically, building sway, wind and temperature effects are rather slow (less than several Hz). The tilt induced by the atmosphere (angle of arrival fluctuations), however, can be much faster (tens of Hz). The higher bandwidth, thus, allows correction of atmospheric induced tilt”). Another prior art, Andreu-von Euw, discloses a similar free space optical communication system (Figures 1-3 and 6-8 etc.), a beam steering device transforms the outgoing light to generate a steered beam (e.g., 232; angle or direction is adjusted, [0010], [0019], [0029] and [0032]-[0036] and Figure 9 etc.); and a control system (Abstract etc., “a controller configured to determine an angle of reception of the receive beam and to control a direction of transmission of the transmit beam such that the angle is minimized”) operates the beam steering device to adjust an angle of the steered beam (Figures 5-9).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to apply the teachings of Jeganathan et al and Andreu-von Euw to the system/method of Schwartz et al and Bakken et al and Thompson so that the transceiver of the vehicle and the transceiver of the aircraft are well aligned, and the signal intensity can be improved, and data rate can be increased.
2). With regard to claim 19, Schwartz et al and Bakken et al and Thompson and Jeganathan et al and Andreu-von Euw disclose all of the subject matter as applied to claims 15 and 18 above. And, the combination of Schwartz et al and Bakken et al and Thompson and Jeganathan et al and Andreu-von Euw further discloses wherein the receiver is configured to receive the incoming light via the beam steering device (e.g., Jeganathan: Figure 6, receiver 38 receives the incoming light via the beam steering device 28).
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
US 2011/0069958 A1
US 2015/0349882 A1
US 20050249502 A1
US 20030067657 A1
US 10727941 B1
US 6775480 B1
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/LI LIU/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2634 August 14, 2026
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