DETAILED ACTION
Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status
The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status.
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 person shall be entitled to a patent unless –
(a)(1) the claimed invention was patented, described in a printed publication, or in public use, on sale, or otherwise available to the public before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claims 1-3 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Doll et al. (“Doll”; US 2007/0268001).
Regarding claim 1: Doll discloses a power supply device (Fig. 4) that drives an electronic circuit (B1… BN),
an input voltage of the electronic circuit being determined in a first voltage range (inherent),
the power supply device comprising:
a first circuit (2, 4, 5) that converts an alternating-current voltage (via 1) from a generator (1) into a first direct-current (DC) voltage and outputs the first DC voltage (provided to 5, paragraph 0020, paragraph 0027: reference numerals in Fig. 4 are the same as Fig. 1); and
a second circuit (7) that outputs, to the electronic circuit, a second DC voltage obtained by adjusting the first DC voltage to a voltage in the first voltage range (paragraph 0027, based on the requirements of the output), wherein
an input voltage of the second circuit is determined in a second voltage range (paragraph 0020: the voltage is adjusted to the ‘appropriate voltage’), and
the first circuit converts the AC voltage into the first DC voltage adjusted to a voltage in the second voltage range (paragraph 0020, as the first circuit comprises a rectifier).
Regarding claim 2: Doll discloses wherein the first circuit includes a limiting circuit (4), and
the limiting circuit is configured to adjust a DC voltage input to the limiting circuit to the first DC voltage in the second voltage range (paragraph 0020: the limiting circuit 4 absorbs the excess AC voltage generated by the generator).
Regarding claim 3: Doll discloses the first circuit includes a voltage doubler rectifier circuit (2) that converts the AC voltage into a DC voltage boosted, and
outputs the DC voltage (paragraph 0020).
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 4-5 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Doll.
Regarding claim 4: Doll discloses the first circuit includes a step-down circuit (5) that steps down the DC voltage output from the voltage doubler rectifier circuit (paragraph 0020) and the step-down circuit is configured to step down the DC voltage output from the voltage doubler rectifier circuit more as the DC voltage is larger (inherent as it must meet the required output, if the deviation is greater, the step down will be greater).
Doll does not explicitly disclose the step-down circuit outputs the DC voltage to the limiting circuit (Doll discloses the limiting circuit outputs to the step-down circuit).
However, it would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the invention to modify the order of the components in the circuit of Doll with a reasonable expectation of success as DC voltage is still passing through the same the linear circuit.
Regarding claim 5: Doll discloses the second voltage range, but does not explicitly disclose the second voltage range is greater than or equal to 15 V and less than or equal to 20 V.
However, it has been held that where the general conditions of a claim are discovered in the prior art, discovering the optimum or workable ranges involves only routine skill in the art. In re Aller, 105 USPQ 233, 235 (CCPA 1955).
Therefore, it would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the invention to modify the second voltage to be in the claimed range in order to meet system parameters.
Claims 6-7 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Doll, in view of Takahashi et al. (“Takahashi”; US 2003/0234578).
Regarding claim 6: Doll discloses the power supply device according to claim 1, but does not explicitly disclose a bearing device comprising: the power supply device; a rotating member; and the generator that generates an AC voltage according to rotation of the rotating member.
However, Takahashi discloses a bearing device (Fig. 2) comprising:
the power supply device (24);
a rotating member (18); and
the generator that generates an AC voltage according to rotation of the rotating member (paragraph 0076).
Therefore, it would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the invention to modify the power supply device of Doll to be in the bearing device of Takahashi in order to increase the applications.
Regarding claim 7: Doll modified by Takahasi disclose the bearing device of claim 6, Takahashi further discloses a bearing (33);
a sensor (23) that monitors a state of the bearing; and
a communication circuit (5A) that wirelessly transmits a detection value of the sensor to an external device (5B),
wherein the electronic circuit includes the sensor and the communication circuit (paragraph 0076).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to SEAN GUGGER whose telephone number is (571)272-5343. The examiner can normally be reached M-Th 9:00am - 5:00pm EST.
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/SEAN GUGGER/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2834
