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 1-4, 9-13 and 16 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Quintana-Sanchez et al (GB 2603137 A) in view of Schwartz et al (US 2021/0105070) and Belt et al (US 10,359,570).
1). With regard to claim 1, Quintana-Sanchez et al discloses an aircraft (10 in Figures 1-2) comprising:
an aircraft transceiver (one of the transceivers 12, 14, 16, 18, 22, or 24) configured to transfer data to and from the aircraft by free-space-optical communication (Figure 3; and [0017], “a single set of optics transmits and receives data”, “The control system may generate and receive the data transmitted and received by each of the optical transceivers”; Figures 1-3 are free-space optical communication system) when the aircraft is parked (Quintana-Sanchez does not expressly indicate that the aircraft is parked; however, Quintana-Sanchez states “the aircraft may optically communicate with a plurality of other aircraft, or a combination of other aircraft and ground and/or space stations. Such an arrangement may allow the aircraft to act as a node in a networked communication system” ([0019]), and an ground communication station can communicate with the aircraft, [0038]-[0043] etc.; then it is obvious to one skilled in the art that flight data is obtained once the aircraft is parked following a flight or completed a flight), the aircraft transceiver comprising:
a transmitter (the transmitter in the optical transceiver) configured to generate an outgoing light (Figure 3; and [0017], “a single set of optics transmits and receives data”, “The control system may generate and receive the data transmitted and received by each of the optical transceivers”), the outgoing light carrying aircraft-to-ground data (e.g., the data transmitted from the aircraft to the ground communication station 100);
a beam steering device configured to transform the outgoing light beam to generate a steered beam ([0017], “Some or all of the optical transceivers may comprise a laser, a fine pointing system, and/or adaptive optics. … Some or all of the optical transceivers may comprise one or more of an electrically steered mirror, galvanometer, or rotating prism, arranged to direct the laser beam generated by the laser.”, [0045], “Each of the optical transceivers 300, 302, has a field of regard of 90 degrees in a pan and tilt direction, as a result of the laser generator and receiver 304, 310, comprising various moveable elements, such as mirrors or prisms to direct the light generated and received as required”);
a control system configured to operate the beam steering device to adjust an angle of the steered beam ([0018], “The control system may generate and receive the data transmitted and received by each of the optical transceivers. … The control system may be arranged to track the movement of the left side front optical transceiver and, when the transition to the right side front optical transceiver is imminent, control the right side front optical transceiver to be pointing in the right direction to seamlessly pick up the data transmission”, and [0045]); and
a receiver configured to sense an incoming light (Figure 3; and [0017], “a single set of optics transmits and receives data”, “The control system may generate and receive the data transmitted and received by each of the optical transceivers”), the incoming light carrying ground-to-aircraft data (e.g., the data transmitted from the ground communication station 100 to the aircraft 10 is the ground-to-aircraft data), wherein the receiver is configured to receive the incoming light via the beam steering device (Figures 1-3; [0017]-[0018] and [0045]).
But, as stated above, Quintana-Sanchez et al does not expressly state that the aircraft is parked; and Quintana-Sanchez et al also does not expressly disclose: a lens is configured to collimate the outgoing light to generate a collimated beam; and the beam steering device configured to transform the collimated beam to generate a steered beam, wherein the receiver is configured to receive the incoming light via the beam steering device and the lens.
Regarding the parked aircraft, however, first, as discussed above, since Quintana-Sanchez discloses “the aircraft may optically communicate with a plurality of other aircraft, or a combination of other aircraft and ground and/or space stations. Such an arrangement may allow the aircraft to act as a node in a networked communication system” ([0019]), and the aircraft communicates with an ground communication station (100) ([0038]-[0043] etc.); then it is obvious to one skilled in the art that flight data is transmitted to the ground station once the aircraft is parked following a flight. Second, Schwartz et al discloses a free space optical communication system/method (Figures 1-3 etc.), in which an aircraft transceiver (140 in Figures 1-2 etc.) transfers data to and from the aircraft to a vehicle (115) by free space optical communication when the aircraft is parked (Figures 1-2, 4 and 7, “in a gate area of an airport”; [0039], “FIGS. 6 and 7 show additional embodiments of the subject invention wherein LiFi is used to download content to or from a portable drive either locally or to or from an aircraft).
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 Schwartz et al to the system/method of Quintana-Sanchez et al so that data can be transferred between the aircraft and the ground station once the aircraft is parked, and maintenance and flight data can be conveniently transmitted.
Regarding the lens and beam steering device, the combination of lens and beam steering device is well-known in the art. E.g., Belt et al discloses a free-space optical communication system/method (Figures 1-3 and 9 etc.), each communication device (e.g., airplane 110 as shown in Figure 1) has a transceiver (214/215 or 224/225 in Figure 1; or the transceiver connected to fiber connections 332/334 in Figure 3; column 7 line 44 to column 8 line 2) to transfer data to and from the communication device by free-space-optical communication, the transceiver comprising:
a transmitter configured to generate an outgoing light (column 5 line 24-45; “When functioning as transmitters, transceivers 214, 215, 224, and 225 may receive modulated electrical signals from computing devices 211 and 221, convert those electrical signals into optical beams, and output data beams 232 and 234 into an optical bus through one or more optical fibers. To accomplish this, transceivers 214, 215, 224, and 225 may include light-emitting diodes (“LEDs”) or laser diodes (e.g., fiber lasers and solid state lasers). Transceivers 214, 215, 224, and 225 may also include single-mode laser diodes that support one optical mode, or multimode laser diodes that support multiple-transverse optical modes”);
a lens (e.g., the lens in the beam expander 322, or the lens 922 in Figure 9B) configured to collimate the outgoing light to generate a collimated beam (column 9 line 49-58, “The beam column 920 includes beam collimating lens 922, which collimates light received from one or more fibers 934 and transmits it to a periscope prism 952 from which the light exits. For example, beams from the collimating lens 922 may follow a path 961, reflecting from a second face of the prism 952, a third face of the prism 952, and then exiting”, column 10 line 26-30 and claim 1);
a beam steering device (219 in Figure 1; 310 in Figure 2; 910 in Figure 9A) configured to transform the collimated beam to generate a steered beam (column 6 line 37 to column 7 line 14, and claim 1 etc.);
a control system (computing device 211 in Figure 1) configured to operate the beam steering device to adjust an angle of the steered beam (column 6 line 37 to column 7 line 14); and
a receiver configured to sense an incoming light (column 5 line 46-63, “When functioning as receivers, transceivers 214, 215, 224, and 225 may receive data beams 232 and 234, convert data beams 232 and 234 into electrical signals, and provide those electrical signals to computing devices 211 and 221. To accomplish this, transceivers 214, 215, 224, and 225 may include de-multiplexers, optical pre-amplifiers, photodiodes, photo receivers, transimpedance amplifiers, clock/phase recovery circuits, decision circuits, and/or forward error correction circuits. Transceivers 214, 215, 224, and 225 may be replaced with separate receiving and transmitting circuits that operate in much the same way. By using one transceiver (e.g., transceivers 214 and 224) to send and receive data beams with a particular wavelength (e.g., data beams 232) and using another transceiver (e.g., transceivers 215 and 225) to send and receive data beams with a different wavelength (e.g., data beams 234), communications devices 210 and 220 can form two data channels through which they can simultaneously send and receive data”), wherein the receiver is configured to receive the incoming light via the beam steering device (310/312 in Figure 3; or 922 in Figure 9B) and the lens (the lens in the beam expander 322; or the lens 922 in Figure 9B).
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 Belt et al to the system/method of Quintana-Sanchez et al and Schwartz et al so that the size (divergence) and direction (angle) can be conveniently controlled.
2). With regard to claim 2, Quintana-Sanchez et al and Schwartz et al and Belt et al disclose all of the subject matter as applied to claim 1 above. And the combination of Quintana-Sanchez et al and Schwartz et al and Belt et al further discloses wherein the control system is configured to operate the beam steering device to adjust an angle with the incoming light so that the incoming light is received by the receiver (Quintana-Sanchez: [0017]. Belt: column 6 line 37 to column 7 line 33, “Computing devices 210 and 220 can adjust the direction in which optical beams (e.g., data beams 232 and 234 and beacon beams 236) are transmitted or received by controlling beam steering mechanisms 219 and 229. Beam steering mechanisms 219 and 229 may each include a mirror and a motorized gimbal that can adjust, for example, the roll, pitch, and/or yaw of the mirror. Adjusting the direction in which the optical beams are transmitted or received can improve the reliability of the FSOC link between communications devices 210 and 220. In some implementations, computing devices 211 and 221 may control beam steering mechanisms 219 and 229 respectively through the use of a negative feedback algorithm. For example, computing devices 211 and 221 may adjust the roll, pitch, and/or yaw of the mirrors of beam steering mechanisms 219 and 229 to maximize the signal strength of one or more optical beams received over the FSOC link”).
3). With regard to claim 3, Quintana-Sanchez et al and Schwartz et al and Belt et al disclose all of the subject matter as applied to claims 1-2 above. And the combination of Quintana-Sanchez et al and Schwartz et al and Belt et al further discloses wherein the receiver comprises a quadrant photodetector image sensor (Belt: image sensor 216/226 in Figure 1; or 340 in Figure 3; column 6 lines 12-18, “Image sensors 216 and 226 may include lateral position devices, charge-coupled device (“CCD”) cameras, photodetectors, or quad-cells, to detect optical beams”) configured to receive a first part of the incoming light (the part split by the Splitter 218/228 in Figure 2; or the beam splitter 336 in Figure 6) via the beam steering device (219 or 310) and the lens (the lens in the beam expander 322, or the lens 922 in Figure 9B), and a sensor (e.g., the sensor/photodiode or photo receiver in the transceiver 214/215/224/225; column 5 line 46-63) configured to receive a second part (Figures 2-3, the second parts sent to the transceiver 214/215; or the part sent from the beam splitter 336 to the fiber connection 332/334, column 7 line 44 to column 8 line 17) of the incoming light via the beam steering device and the lens (Figures 2-3 etc.), and,
wherein the control system is configured to operate the beam steering device to adjust the angle with the incoming light so that the incoming light is centered on the quadrant photodetector (Quintana-Sanchez: [0018], “The control system may generate and receive the data transmitted and received by each of the optical transceivers. … The control system may be arranged to track the movement of the left side front optical transceiver and, when the transition to the right side front optical transceiver is imminent, control the right side front optical transceiver to be pointing in the right direction to seamlessly pick up the data transmission”, and [0045]. Belt: column 6 line 37 to column 7 line 14).
4). With regard to claim 4, Quintana-Sanchez et al and Schwartz et al and Belt et al disclose all of the subject matter as applied to claim 1 above. And the combination of Quintana-Sanchez et al and Schwartz et al and Belt et al further discloses wherein the beam steering device is configured to transform the collimated beam by reflection (e.g., Quintana-Sanchez: [0017], “steered mirror”. Belt: Figure 3, mirror 312), refraction (Quintana-Sanchez: [0017], “rotating prism”), or diffraction, to generate the steered beam.
5). With regard to claim 9, Quintana-Sanchez et al and Schwartz et al and Belt et al disclose all of the subject matter as applied to claim 1 above. And the combination of Quintana-Sanchez et al and Schwartz et al and Belt et al further discloses wherein the transmitter comprises a laser configured to generate the outgoing light (Quintana-Sanchez: [0003], [0017], [0021] and [0045], “The optical transceiver 300 comprises a laser generator and receiver 304, which is arranged to generate and send, and also receive, optical signals through an optical aperture 306. The optical aperture 306 is located within the fuselage 308 of the aircraft, and is conformant with the fuselage 308 such that airflow is not interrupted. 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.” Belt: “transceivers 214, 215, 224, and 225 may include light-emitting diodes (“LEDs”) or laser diodes (e.g., fiber lasers and solid state lasers)”).
6). With regard to claim 10, Quintana-Sanchez et al and Schwartz et al and Belt et al disclose all of the subject matter as applied to claim 1 above. And the combination of Quintana-Sanchez et al and Schwartz et al and Belt et al further discloses the aircraft according to claim 1, further comprising:
a fuselage (Quintana-Sanchez: aircraft fuselage 20 in Figures 1-2, and [0045] fuselage 308 in Figure 3);
wings attached to the fuselage (Figures 1-2 of Quintana-Sanchez); and
a window in the fuselage (Quintana-Sanchez: [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”), wherein the aircraft transceiver is housed inside the fuselage (20, 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”), the transmitter configured to transmit the outgoing light through the window (Figures 1-2; and 306/312 in Figure 3), and the receiver configured to receive the incoming light through the window (Figures 1-2; and 306/312 in Figure 3).
7). With regard to claim 11, Quintana-Sanchez et al and Schwartz et al and Belt et al disclose all of the subject matter as applied to claim 1 above. And the combination of Quintana-Sanchez et al and Schwartz et al and Belt et al further discloses wherein the control system is configured to operate the beam steering device to steer the incoming light onto the receive (Quintana-Sanchez: [0017]. Belt: column 6 line 37 to column 7 line 33, “Computing devices 210 and 220 can adjust the direction in which optical beams (e.g., data beams 232 and 234 and beacon beams 236) are transmitted or received by controlling beam steering mechanisms 219 and 229. Beam steering mechanisms 219 and 229 may each include a mirror and a motorized gimbal that can adjust, for example, the roll, pitch, and/or yaw of the mirror. Adjusting the direction in which the optical beams are transmitted or received can improve the reliability of the FSOC link between communications devices 210 and 220. In some implementations, computing devices 211 and 221 may control beam steering mechanisms 219 and 229 respectively through the use of a negative feedback algorithm. For example, computing devices 211 and 221 may adjust the roll, pitch, and/or yaw of the mirrors of beam steering mechanisms 219 and 229 to maximize the signal strength of one or more optical beams received over the FSOC link”).
8). With regard to claim 12, Quintana-Sanchez et al and Schwartz et al and Belt et al disclose all of the subject matter as applied to claim 1 above. And the combination of Quintana-Sanchez et al and Schwartz et al and Belt et al further discloses wherein the aircraft transceiver further comprises a beacon (Belt: Title and Abstract; 350 in Figure 3; Figures 5 and 7-8).
9). With regard to claim 13, Quintana-Sanchez et al discloses a vehicle (100 in Figure 1; [0039], “The ground communication station 100 may be fixed, such as a communications tower, or mobile, for example being vehicle mounted) comprising:
a vehicle transceiver configured to transfer data to and from a parked aircraft by free-space-optical communication ([0040]-[0043]. Quintana-Sanchez does not expressly indicate that the aircraft is parked; however, Quintana-Sanchez states “the aircraft may optically communicate with a plurality of other aircraft, or a combination of other aircraft and ground and/or space stations. Such an arrangement may allow the aircraft to act as a node in a networked communication system”, [0019], and an ground communication station can communicate with the aircraft, [0038]-[0043] etc.; then it is obvious to one skilled in the art that flight data is obtained once the aircraft is parked following a flight or completed a flight), the vehicle transceiver comprising:
a transmitter (the transmitter in the transceiver on the ground communication station 100) configured to generate an outgoing light (the light sent from the ground communication station 100 to the aircraft 20. [0017], “a single set of optics transmits and receives data”, “The control system may generate and receive the data transmitted and received by each of the optical transceivers”), the outgoing light carrying ground-to-aircraft data (e.g., the data transmitted from the ground communication station 100 to the aircraft);
a beam steering device configured to transform the outgoing beam to generate a steered beam ([0017], “Some or all of the optical transceivers may comprise a laser, a fine pointing system, and/or adaptive optics. … Some or all of the optical transceivers may comprise one or more of an electrically steered mirror, galvanometer, or rotating prism, arranged to direct the laser beam generated by the laser.”, [0045], “Each of the optical transceivers 300, 302, has a field of regard of 90 degrees in a pan and tilt direction, as a result of the laser generator and receiver 304, 310, comprising various moveable elements, such as mirrors or prisms to direct the light generated and received as required”);
a control system configured to operate the beam steering device to adjust an angle of the steered beam ([0018], “The control system may generate and receive the data transmitted and received by each of the optical transceivers. … The control system may be arranged to track the movement of the left side front optical transceiver and, when the transition to the right side front optical transceiver is imminent, control the right side front optical transceiver to be pointing in the right direction to seamlessly pick up the data transmission”, and [0045]); and
a receiver (the receiver in the transceiver on the ground communication station 100) configured to sense an incoming light ([0040]-[0043]), the incoming light carrying aircraft-to-ground data (e.g., the data transmitted from the aircraft 10 to the ground communication station 100 is the aircraft-to-ground data), wherein the receiver is configured to receive the incoming light via the beam steering device (Figures 1-3; [0017]-[0018] and [0045]).
But, as stated above, Quintana-Sanchez et al does not expressly state that the aircraft is parked; and Quintana-Sanchez et al also does not expressly disclose: a lens configured to collimate the outgoing light to generate a collimated beam; and the beam steering device configured to transform the collimated beam to generate a steered beam; wherein the receiver is configured to receive the incoming light via the beam steering device and the lens.
Regarding the parked aircraft, however, first, as discussed above, since Quintana-Sanchez discloses “the aircraft may optically communicate with a plurality of other aircraft, or a combination of other aircraft and ground and/or space stations. Such an arrangement may allow the aircraft to act as a node in a networked communication system” ([0019]), and the aircraft communicates with an ground communication station (100) ([0038]-[0043] etc.); then it is obvious to one skilled in the art that flight data is transmitted to the ground station once the aircraft is parked following a flight. Second, Schwartz et al discloses a free space optical communication system/method (Figures 1-3 etc.), in which an aircraft transceiver (140 in Figures 1-2 etc.) transfers data to and from the aircraft to a vehicle (115) by free space optical communication when the aircraft is parked (Figures 1-2, 4 and 7, “in a gate area of an airport”; [0039], “FIGS. 6 and 7 show additional embodiments of the subject invention wherein LiFi is used to download content to or from a portable drive either locally or to or from an aircraft).
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 Schwartz et al to the system/method of Quintana-Sanchez et al so that data can be transferred between the aircraft and the ground station once the aircraft is parked, and maintenance and flight data can be conveniently transmitted.
Regarding the lens and beam steering device, the combination of lens and beam steering device is well-known in the art. E.g., Belt et al discloses a free-space optical communication system/method (Figures 1-3 and 9 etc.), each communication device (e.g., 130, 140 and 150 etc. as shown in Figure 1) has a transceiver (214/215 or 224/225 in Figure 1; or the transceiver connected to fiber connections 332/334 in Figure 3; column 7 line 44 to column 8 line 2) to transfer data to and from the communication device by free-space-optical communication, the transceiver comprising:
a transmitter configured to generate an outgoing light (column 5 line 24-45; “When functioning as transmitters, transceivers 214, 215, 224, and 225 may receive modulated electrical signals from computing devices 211 and 221, convert those electrical signals into optical beams, and output data beams 232 and 234 into an optical bus through one or more optical fibers. To accomplish this, transceivers 214, 215, 224, and 225 may include light-emitting diodes (“LEDs”) or laser diodes (e.g., fiber lasers and solid state lasers). Transceivers 214, 215, 224, and 225 may also include single-mode laser diodes that support one optical mode, or multimode laser diodes that support multiple-transverse optical modes”);
a lens (e.g., the lens in the beam expander 322, or the lens 922 in Figure 9B) configured to collimate the outgoing light to generate a collimated beam (column 9 line 49-58, “The beam column 920 includes beam collimating lens 922, which collimates light received from one or more fibers 934 and transmits it to a periscope prism 952 from which the light exits. For example, beams from the collimating lens 922 may follow a path 961, reflecting from a second face of the prism 952, a third face of the prism 952, and then exiting”, column 10 line 26-30 and claim 1);
a beam steering device (219 in Figure 1; 310 in Figure 2; 910 in Figure 9A) configured to transform the collimated beam to generate a steered beam (column 6 line 37 to column 7 line 14, and claim 1 etc.);
a control system (computing device 211 in Figure 1) configured to operate the beam steering device to adjust an angle of the steered beam (column 6 line 37 to column 7 line 14); and
a receiver configured to sense an incoming light (column 5 line 46-63, “When functioning as receivers, transceivers 214, 215, 224, and 225 may receive data beams 232 and 234, convert data beams 232 and 234 into electrical signals, and provide those electrical signals to computing devices 211 and 221. To accomplish this, transceivers 214, 215, 224, and 225 may include de-multiplexers, optical pre-amplifiers, photodiodes, photo receivers, transimpedance amplifiers, clock/phase recovery circuits, decision circuits, and/or forward error correction circuits. Transceivers 214, 215, 224, and 225 may be replaced with separate receiving and transmitting circuits that operate in much the same way. By using one transceiver (e.g., transceivers 214 and 224) to send and receive data beams with a particular wavelength (e.g., data beams 232) and using another transceiver (e.g., transceivers 215 and 225) to send and receive data beams with a different wavelength (e.g., data beams 234), communications devices 210 and 220 can form two data channels through which they can simultaneously send and receive data”), wherein the receiver is configured to receive the incoming light via the beam steering device (310/312 in Figure 3; or 922 in Figure 9B) and the lens (the lens in the beam expander 322; or the lens 922 in Figure 9B).
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 Belt et al to the system/method of Quintana-Sanchez et al and Schwartz et al so that the size (divergence) and direction (angle) can be conveniently controlled.
10). With regard to claim 16, Quintana-Sanchez et al and Schwartz et al and Belt et al disclose all of the subject matter as applied to claim 13 above. And the combination of Quintana-Sanchez et al and Schwartz et al and Belt et al further discloses wherein the vehicle is a ground-based vehicle (Quintana-Sanchez: ground-based vehicle 100; Schwartz: ground-based vehicle 115) or an airborne vehicle (Quintana-Sanchez: airborne vehicle 200).
Claim 5 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Quintana-Sanchez et al and Schwartz et al and Belt et al as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of Dickson et al (US 2017/0288776) and Mitchell et al (US 11,476,933).
Quintana-Sanchez et al and Schwartz et al and Belt et al disclose all of the subject matter as applied to claim 1 above. But, Quintana-Sanchez et al and Schwartz et al and Belt et al do not expressly disclose wherein the beam steering device comprises a diffractive optical element configured to diffract the collimated beam to generate the steered beam.
However, to use a diffractive optical element as a steering unit is known in the art. E.g., Dickson et al discloses a free space optical communication (FSO) system/method (Figures 2-3 etc.) having a beam steering unit (18 in Figure 2), and teaches “a combination of beam steering optics including, but not limited to, beam splitters, prisms, mirrors, lenses, diffraction gratings, and any combination thereof, may be used to align the received beam with the transmit beam through a common aperture” ([0018]). And another prior art, Mitchell et al, discloses a similar FSO system/method (Figures 1-2 etc.), and a diffractive optical element (e.g., 400 in Figures 4-6) is used to change the direction/angle of the light beam (Figures 5-6 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 diffractive optical element as taught by Disckson et al and Mitchell et al to the system/method of Quintana-Sanchez et al and Schwartz et al and Belt et al so that the directions/angles of the optical beams can be conveniently controlled/adjusted by simply rotating the diffractive optical element.
Claim 6 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Quintana-Sanchez et al and Schwartz et al and Belt et al as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of Tempone et al (US 2020/0366371).
Quintana-Sanchez et al and Schwartz et al and Belt et al disclose all of the subject matter as applied to claim 1 above. But, Quintana-Sanchez et al and Schwartz et al and Belt et al do not expressly disclose wherein the aircraft transceiver is configured to transmit, or receive, or transmit and receive data at a bit rate higher than 0.5 terabits per second.
However, Schwartz et al discloses “LiFi technology modulates the light at very high rates”. And, another prior art, Tempone et al, discloses that the bit rate of a transceiver in free-space optical communication can be higher that 0.5 terabits per second ([0007], “The rate of data transmission may be, for example, at least 0.1 gigabit per second (Gbps), at least 1 Gbps, at least 100 Gbps, at least 200 Gbps, at least 500 Gbps, at least 1 terabit per second (Tbps), or more”). 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 similar optical transmitter/receiver as taught by Tempone et al and to the system/method of Quintana-Sanchez et al and Schwartz et al and Belt et al so that so that a FSO system/method with data rate higher than 0.5 Tbps can be obtained, and data can be transferred in very high speed.
Claims 7-8 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Quintana-Sanchez et al and Schwartz et al and Belt et al as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of Wang et al (US 11060906 B1).
Quintana-Sanchez et al and Schwartz et al and Belt et al disclose all of the subject matter as applied to claim 1 above. But, Quintana-Sanchez et al and Schwartz et al and Belt et al do not expressly disclose wherein the steered beam has a beam divergence less than 10 mrad (claim 7); and/or wherein the steered beam has a beam divergence greater than 0.5 mrad (claim 8).
However, to make the beam width greater that 0.5 mrad and less than 10 mrad in free space optical transmission is common. E.g., Wang et al discloses a free space optical communication system/method that can be used for signal transmission between an aircraft (240 in Figure 1) and a ground station (200A), wherein the steered beam has a beam divergence less than 10 mrad, and the steered beam has a beam divergence greater than 0.5 mrad (column 6 lines 25 to column 7 line 12, “during signal tracking, optical beam 300 (e.g., beam 300 in FIG. 3) may have a divergence angle Θ of approximately 0.5 to 10 milliradians (or, approximately 0.0290 to 0.57°). Although this disclosure describes and illustrates particular optical beams having particular divergence angles, this disclosure contemplates any suitable optical beams having any suitable divergence angles”).
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 Wang et al to the system/method of Quintana-Sanchez et al and Schwartz et al and Belt et al so that a narrow beamwidth is used to increase the SNR, and reduce the energy loss.
Claim 14 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Quintana-Sanchez et al and Schwartz et al and Belt et al as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of Bakken et al (US 2008/0218378) and Thompson (US 2002/0033946).
Quintana-Sanchez et al and Schwartz et al and Belt et al disclose all of the subject matter as applied to claim 13 above. But, Quintana-Sanchez et al and Schwartz et al and Belt et al do not expressly disclose the vehicle according to claim 13, further comprising: memory for storing the ground-to-aircraft data and the aircraft-to-ground data.
However, first, as discussed above, Quintana-Sanchez et al and Schwartz et al disclose that data is transmitted between the vehicle and the aircraft, then, 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 15 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Quintana-Sanchez et al and Schwartz et al and Belt et al and Bakken et al and Thompson as applied to claims 13-14 above, and further in view of Demange et al (US 2019/0356713).
Quintana-Sanchez et al and Schwartz et al and Belt et al and Bakken et al and Thompson disclose all of the subject matter as applied to claims 13-14 above. But, Quintana-Sanchez et al and Schwartz et al and Belt et al and Bakken et al and Thompson do not expressly disclose wherein the memory has a capacity of more than 30 terabytes.
However, a memory of capacity of more than 30 terabytes is available in the market; and how many bytes of memory is needed depends on the number of bytes of data needed to be transferred between the vehicle and the aircraft. Demange et al discloses a media content transfer and management scheme (Figures 1 and 5-6), and indicates “In some embodiments, the content library 602 comprises data storage providing one terabyte or more of data storage, such as up to 30 terabytes or more. In some implementations, content items may be transferred upon request for a passenger, and maintained in the content library thereafter indefinitely and activated and deactivated as desired remotely” ([0088]). Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine Demange et al with Quintana-Sanchez et al and Schwartz et al and Belt et al and Bakken et al and Thompson so to use a memory of capacity of more than 30 terabytes in the vehicle, and the memory have enough capacity to store the aircraft-to-ground data and the ground-to-aircraft data.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
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/LI LIU/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2634 August 18, 2026
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