DETAILED ACTION
1. Claims 1-20 of application 19/072,431, filed on 6-March-2025, are presented for examination.
The present application, filed on or after 16-March-2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
Claim Objections
2. Claim 7 is objected to under 37 CFR 1.75(d)(1), wherein --
The claim or claims must conform to the invention as set forth in the remainder of the specification and the terms and phrases used in the claims must find clear support or antecedent basis in the description so that the meaning of the terms in the claims may be ascertainable by reference to the description. (See 1.58(a))
The following is a list of the specific objections:
The word “oof” [ln. 6] is understood as and should be changed to “of”.
Claim Rejections under 35 U.S.C. § 102(a)(2)
3.1 The following is a quotation of the appropriate paragraphs of 35 U.S.C. § 102 that form the basis for the rejections under this section made in this Office action:
(a)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an
application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or
application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the
effective filing date of the claimed invention.
3.2 Claims 1-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. § 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by Thompson et al, USP Publication 2024/0368855.
3.3 Thompson discloses:
Claims 1 and 17: A power machine comprising:
a house including an operator station that is rotatably coupled to an undercarriage having tractive elements [¶0018 (The base body 2 supports a revolving frame 3 that is slewably attached to the base body 2, and the revolving frame 3 being up to 360 degrees rotatable relative to an axis of base body 2. The base body 2 is supported on a crawler-type lower traveling body 4); Fig. 1];
a lift arm structure coupled to the house and including a boom, an arm pivotally coupled to the boom and a work implement pivotally coupled to the arm, wherein the work implement is configured to grip material [0020 (The linkage system includes a boom 10, an arm 11 that is pivotably attached to the distal end of the boom 10, and an implement 12 that is pivotably attached to the distal end of the arm 11. The implement 12 is able to dig or hold a predetermined held object, such as earthen material.); Fig. 1];
a work implement actuator configured to pivot the work implement relative to the arm [0020 (The position of the boom 10, arm 11, and implement 12 is controlled by a motor and hydraulic system 13, which includes the motor 7 and any hydraulic actuators, cylinders, and additional hydraulic motors (not shown) attached to the revolving frame 3, boom 10, arm 11, and implement 12…and raise and lower the implement 12 that is pivotably attached to the arm 11); 0027 (The thumb 54 is rotatable relative to the arm 11 in the directions towards the arm 11 and towards the bucket 52. The position of the thumb 54 is controlled by a cylinder 58, or hydraulic cylinder, of the hydraulic system 13, which itself is controlled by the controller 14.); 0028-0030];
at least one sensor configured to provide a measurement for calculating a position angle of the work implement relative to the arm [0021 (The position sensors 15 create sensor data 16 that may include position information for determining the position of the work machine 1, linkage system 9, work tool 8, revolving frame 3, or base body 2); 0022 (Rotation angles, inclination angles, and positioning relative to the revolving frame 3 and base body 2 of the boom 10, arm 11, and implement 12 (and relative to each other) are measured by the position sensors located in the boom 10, arm 11, and implement 12 respectfully.); 0026 (A thumb position sensor 30 is used to measure the articulation angle 0 , or opening angle, between the thumb 24 and the bucket 23.); 0027 (The thumb position sensor 30 is located at the pivot attachment point 56, but in other embodiments, is located on the arm 11 or the work tool 8. In one exemplary embodiment, the thumb position sensor 30 measures the opening angle of the thumb relative to an axis of a top surface 25 of the bucket 23, which is depicted as longitudinal axis A in the FIG. 3)]; and
a controller configured to maintain a pressure on the work implement actuator based on the position angle of the work implement and a characteristic of the material related to a weight of the material [0020 (The linkage system includes a boom 10, an arm 11 that is pivotably attached to the distal end of the boom 10, and an implement 12 that is pivotably attached to the distal end of the arm 11. The implement 12 is able to dig or hold a predetermined held object, such as earthen material.); 0024 (the bucket 23 may be arranged to cooperate with the thumb 24 to grip an object, such as a tree trunk, …the bucket 23 and the thumb 24 may both move towards one another to suitably or firmly grip an object between them, or may rotate together away, or towards, the arm 11 of the work machine 1.); 0026; 0040 (The thumb position sensor 30 further enables soft closing thumb 24 as the thumb 24 is moved to its fully closed position. The thumb position sensor 30 may continuously measure the opening angle, and as the thumb 24 approaches its fully closed position when rotated, the controller 4 may slow down, or decrease, the rotation speed of the thumb 24 to prevent the thumb 24 from closing too fast or with too much force against the bucket 23.); 0042 (The thumb position sensor 30 also enables pressure monitoring and variability in the hydraulic system 13, and specifically the hydraulics that control the rotation of the thumb 24…The hydraulic cylinder 38, or hydraulic system 13, contains a hydraulic pressure sensor 72 that measures the pressure of the hydraulic fluids in the hydraulic cylinder 38 during the rotation of the thumb 24. This measurement is sent to the controller 14, and during rotation of the thumb 24, the controller 14 adjusts the pressure supplied to the hydraulic cylinder 38 to provide an even closing, or opening, force of the thumb 24 to prevent variability of the forces applied by the thumb 24. In one exemplary embodiments, the pressure measurements supplied by the hydraulic pressure sensor 72 to the controller 14 are utilized by the controller 14 to calculate the clamping forces of the thumb 24, and the controller 14 adjusting the hydraulic fluid supplied to the hydraulic cylinder 38 to minimize variability in these forces.)].
Claims 2 and 11: wherein the characteristic of the material is related to a weight of the material [0020 (The implement 12 is able to dig or hold a predetermined held object, such as earthen material.); 0024 (the bucket 23 may be arranged to cooperate with the thumb 24 to grip an object, such as a tree trunk, …the bucket 23 and the thumb 24 may both move towards one another to suitably or firmly grip an object between them); 0026; 0040; 0042].
Claims 3 and 10: wherein the controller receives the characteristic of the material from an operator input [0018 (The operator controls 6 further may contain any of the controls for controlling the implements (discussed below), frame, linkages, or any of the movements of any part of the work machine 1)].
Claims 4, 12, 13 and 19: wherein the at least one sensor comprises a first sensor coupled to the arm and a second sensor coupled to the work implement, wherein the position angle of the work implement relative to the arm is calculated from the first sensor and the second sensor [0021; 0022; 0026; 0027].
Claim 5: wherein the work implement comprises a first work implement, the work implement actuator comprises a first work implement actuator and the controller is enabled to maintain an optimal pressure on the first work implement actuator when a second work implement operated by a second work implement actuator moves toward the first work implement and the material is pinched between the first work implement and the second work implement causing pressure to build in first work implement actuator to a trigger point [0020; 0024; 0026; 0027; 0040; 0042].
Claim 6: wherein the controller is enabled to maintain an optimal pressure on the work implement actuator when an operator uses an operator input to move the work implement to contact the material and in turn pressure builds in the work implement actuator to a trigger point [0024 (the bucket 23 may be arranged to cooperate with the thumb 24 to grip an object, such as a tree trunk, …the bucket 23 and the thumb 24 may both move towards one another to suitably or firmly grip an object between them); 0026; 0040; 0042].
Claims 7 and 20: wherein the work implement comprises a clamp implement, the work implement actuator comprises a clamp implement actuator and the controller is configured to maintain the optimal pressure on the clamp implement actuator when a bucket implement moves the clamp implement, wherein upon an operator moving the bucket implement in this configuration the bucket implement is moved under a limited speed and the clamp implement is configured to follow the limited speed oof the bucket implement to maintain the optimal pressure on the clamp implement actuator [0018; 0020; 0024; 0026-0030; 0040; 0042].
Claim 8: wherein the optimal pressure on the work implement actuator is at a minimum when the position angle of the work implement is perpendicular to the to the arm [0040 (the thumb 24 may be in a first position, such as a working position or fully open position, and is rotated by the
controller 14 towards the bucket 23 at a first rate. After the thumb 24 reaches a second position having a smaller opening angle than the first position, the controller 14 rotating the thumb 24 at a second rate that is less than the first rate. In an even further exemplary embodiment, as the thumb 24 approaches the bucket 23 it reaches a third position, and the controller 14 rotates the thumb 24 at a third rate that is less than the second rate.); 0042 (The thumb position sensor 30 also enables pressure monitoring and variability in the hydraulic system 13, and specifically the hydraulics that control the rotation of the thumb 24.)].
Claim 9: A method of automatically controlling the force provided to a work implement actuator comprising:
calculating a position angle of a work implement relative to an arm of a lift arm structure,
wherein the work implement is pivotally coupled to the arm [0021; 0022; 0026; 0027];
determining an optimal pressure based on an input indicative of a characteristic of the material and the position angle of the work implement relative to the arm [0020; 0024; 0026; 0027; 0040; 0042]; and
increasing a pressure applied to the work implement actuator to the optimal pressure when the pressure being applied is less than the optimal pressure and decreasing the pressure applied to the work implement actuator to the optimal pressure when the pressure being applied is greater than the optimal pressure [0020; 0024; 0040; 0042].
Claim 14: wherein the steps of calculating the position angle [0021; 0022; 0026; 0027], determining the optimal pressure and increasing or decreasing the pressure applied to the base end of the work implement actuator [0020; 0024; 0026; 0027; 0040; 0042] are repeated throughout a work implement operation of gripping, lifting, moving and placing the material [0020 (The linkage system includes a boom 10, an arm 11 that is pivotably attached to the distal end of the boom 10, and an implement 12 that is pivotably attached to the distal end of the arm 11. The implement 12 is able to dig or hold a predetermined held object, such as earthen material.); 0024 (the bucket 23 may be arranged to cooperate with the thumb 24 to grip an object, such as a tree trunk, …the bucket 23 and the thumb 24 may both move towards one another to suitably or firmly grip an object between them, or may rotate together away, or towards, the arm 11 of the work machine 1.)].
Claim 15: wherein the work implement comprises a first work implement, the work implement actuator comprises a first work implement actuator and the steps of calculating the position angle, determining the optimal pressure and increasing or decreasing the pressure applied to the work implement actuator are enabled when a second work implement operated by a second work implement actuator moves toward the first work implement and the material is pinched between the first work implement and the second work implement causing pressure to build in fist work implement actuator to a trigger point [0020; 0024; 0026-0030; 0040; 0042].
Claim 16: wherein the steps of calculating the position angle [0021; 0022; 0026; 0027], determining the optimal pressure and increasing or decreasing the pressure applied to the work implement actuator are enabled when an operator uses an operator input [0018] to move the work implement to contact the material and in turn pressure builds in the work implement actuator to a trigger point [0020; 0024; 0026; 0027; 0040; 0042].
Claim 18: the limitations of this claim were discussed in the rejection of claims 2 and 3, and are therefore considered rejected for the reasons as set forth above.
Prior Art
4. The following prior art, discovered in an updated search and herein made of record, is considered pertinent to Applicant’s disclosure, and consists of documents A-B2 on the attached PTO-892 Notice of References Cited:
Documents A-D define documents of particular relevance, wherein the claimed invention cannot be considered novel or cannot be considered to involve an inventive step when the document is taken alone.
Documents E-F define documents of particular relevance, wherein the claimed invention cannot be considered to involve an inventive step when the document is combined with one or more other such documents, such combination being obvious to a person skilled in the art.
Documents G-B2 define the general state of the art which is not considered to be of particular relevance.
Prior Art of Record
5. The Examiner has cited particular paragraphs or columns and line numbers in the references applied to the claims above for the convenience of the applicant. Although the specified citations are representative of the teachings of the art and are applied to specific limitations within the individual claim, other passages and figures may apply as well. It is respectfully requested of the applicant in preparing responses, to fully consider the references in their entirety as potentially teaching all or part of the claimed invention, as well as the context of the passage as taught by the prior art or disclosed by the Examiner. The prompt development of a clear issue requires that the replies of the Applicant meet the objections to and rejections of the claims. Applicant should also specifically point out the support for any amendments made to the disclosure (see MPEP §2163.06). Applicant is reminded that the Examiner is entitled to give the Broadest Reasonable Interpretation (BRI) of the language of the claims. Furthermore, the Examiner is not limited to Applicant’s definition which is not specifically set forth in the claims. [SEE MPEP 2141.02 [R-07.2015] VI. PRIOR ART MUST BE CONSIDERED IN ITS ENTIRETY, INCLUDING DISCLOSURES THAT TEACH AWAY FROM THE CLAIMS: A prior art reference must be considered in its entirety, i.e., as a whole, including portions that would lead away from the claimed invention. W.L. Gore & Associates, Inc. v. Garlock, Inc., 721 F.2d 1540, 220 USPQ 303 (Fed. Cir. 1983), cert, denied, 469 U.S. 851 (1984). See also MPEP §2123].
In addition, disclosures in a reference must be evaluated for what they would fairly teach one of ordinary skill in the art [See In re Snow, 471 F.2d 1400, 176 USPQ 328 (CCPA 1973) and In re Boe, 355 F.2d 961, 148 USPQ 507 (CCPA 1966)]. Specifically, in considering the teachings of a reference, it is proper to take into account not only the specific teachings of the reference, but also the inferences that one skilled in the art would reasonably have been expected to draw from the reference [See In re Freda, 401 F.2d 825, 159 USPQ 342 (CCPA 1968) and In re Shepard, 319 F.2d 194, 138 USPQ 148 (CCPA 1963)]. Likewise, it is proper to take into consideration not only the teachings of the prior art, but also the level of ordinary skill in the art [See In re Luck, 476 F.2d 650, 177 USPQ 523 (CCPA 1973)]. Specifically, those of ordinary skill in the art are presumed to have some knowledge of the art apart from what is expressly disclosed in the references [See In re Jacoby, 309 F.2d 513, 135 USPQ 317 (CCPA 1962)].
Response Guidelines
6.1 A shortened statutory period for response to this non-final action is set to expire 3 (three) months and 0 (zero) days from the date of this letter. Unless the applicant is notified in writing that a reply is required in less than six months (see the shortened response period previously noted), a maximum period of six months is allowed, if a petition for an extension of time and the fee set in § 1.17(a) are filed [see MPEP 710 and 35 U.S.C. 133]. Failure to respond within the required period for response will cause the application to become abandoned [see MPEP 710.02, 710.02(b)].
6.2 Any response to the Examiner in regard to this non-final action should be
directed to: Russell Frejd, telephone number (571) 272-3779, Monday-Friday from 0730 to
1600 ET. If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful,
please contact the examiner’s supervisor, Peter Nolan, who can be reached at
(571) 270-7016.
mailed to: Commissioner of Patents and Trademarks
P.O. Box 1450, Alexandria, VA 22313-1450
faxed to: (571) 273-8300
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/RUSSELL FREJD/
Primary Examiner AU 3661
Prosecution Insights