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 .
Priority
Receipt is acknowledged of certified copies of papers required by 37 CFR 1.55.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 3/13/2025 and 4/1/2025 were filed. The submission is in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b):
(b) CONCLUSION.—The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph:
The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention.
Claim 6 recites the limitation "each extended Kalman filter of the plurality of extended Kalman filters.. the kinematic regime modelled by the extended Kalman filter" in lines 1-3. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim. Claim 2, which claim 6 depended upon, does not claim any plurality of extended Kalman filters.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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 35 U.S.C. 103 which forms the basis for all obviousness rejections set forth in this Office action:
A patent for a claimed invention may not be obtained, notwithstanding that the claimed invention is not identically disclosed as set forth in section 102, if the differences between the claimed invention and the prior art are such that the claimed invention as a whole would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to a person having ordinary skill in the art to which the claimed invention pertains. Patentability shall not be negated by the manner in which the invention was made.
The factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness.
This application currently names joint inventors. In considering patentability of the claims the examiner presumes that the subject matter of the various claims was commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the claimed invention(s) absent any evidence to the contrary. Applicant is advised of the obligation under 37 CFR 1.56 to point out the inventor and effective filing dates of each claim that was not commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the later invention in order for the examiner to consider the applicability of 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(2)(C) for any potential 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) prior art against the later invention.
Claim(s) 1-4 and 7-9 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Molander (US 2011/0210872 A1) and Bonkoski et al. (US 2018/0165974 A1).
For claims 1 and 7-9, Molander discloses a method for controlling an aircraft comprising at least one camera and a guidance system configured to indicate a trajectory to the aircraft (Fig. 1, 2), the method being computer-implemented and comprising:
acquiring a distance between the aircraft and an obstacle on the trajectory of the aircraft and a time-to-collision of the aircraft with the obstacle from images of the obstacle obtained by the camera (Para. 0007-0015, 0042, where the relative distance and time to collision between the obstacle and the aircraft is determined from images from the cameras),
estimating at least one radial speed of the obstacle using a filter taking as an input said distance and said time-to-collision of the aircraft with the obstacle (Para. 0012-0014, 0050, 0054, 0055, where the relative speed of the obstacle is estimated based on the tracking filter from time to collision and distance parameters),
modifying the trajectory of the aircraft by the guidance system, as a function of the radial speed value estimated of the obstacle and the distance between the aircraft and the obstacle so as to avoid collision of the aircraft with the obstacle (Fig. 9, abstract, para. 0007, 0015-0019, where collision avoidance maneuver is performed based on the guidance system, modifying the trajectory of the aircraft).
Molander does not specifically disclose the radial speed is estimated using an extended Kalman filter to the parameters. Bonkoski in the same field of the art discloses estimating at least one radial speed of the obstacle using number of known methods and filters including extended Kalman filter to the parameters (Para. 0088, 0094, 0095, 0099, 0103, 0106). It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the present claimed invention to modify the invention of Molander to estimate the radial speed of the obstacle using extended Kalman filter to the input parameters, as taught by Bonkoski to improve the estimation of the movements and trajectories of the obstacle.
For claim 2, Molander, as modified, discloses the method according to claim 1, wherein the extended Kalman filter comprises a measurement vector and a state vector, the measurement vector comprising the distance between the aircraft and the obstacle and the inverse of the time-to-collision of the aircraft with the obstacle and the state vector comprising the distance between the aircraft and the obstacle and the radial speed of the obstacle relative to the aircraft (Bonkoski - Para. 0088, 0091, 0095, 0111, 0115, where the measurement and state vectors are determined associate with extended Kalman filter).
For claim 3, Molander, as modified, the method according to claim 1, wherein the distance of the aircraft from the obstacle is obtained by an automatic learning method based on image analysis, the images having been obtained by a camera on board the aircraft (Para. 0004, 0010, 0011, 0014, 0015, where image analysis is performed on images obtained by camera on board the aircraft, Applicant admitted prior art – para. 0028 of the specification where the automatic learning method is known in the prior art).
For claim 4, Molander, as modified, the method according to claim 1, wherein the time-to-collision of the aircraft with the obstacle is obtained by an automatic learning method based on image analysis, the images having been obtained by a camera on board the aircraft (Para. 0004, 0010, 0011, 0014, 0015, where image analysis is performed on images obtained by camera on board the aircraft, Applicant admitted prior art – para. 0028 of the specification where the automatic learning method is known in the prior art).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claim 5 is objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
For claim 5, the prior arts on record do not teach, describe and/or suggest all the limitations as presented in the claim including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims as a whole and specifically using a plurality of extended Kalman filters, each extended Kalman filter of the plurality of extended Kalman filters modelling one kinematic regime of the obstacle relative to the aircraft from a plurality of kinematic regimes of the obstacle relative to the aircraft, the kinematic regime modelled by each extended Kalman filter of the plurality of extended Kalman filters being different from the kinematic regime modelled by the other extended Kalman filters of the plurality of extended Kalman filters.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
(Vision-based control of near-obstacle flight, 21 August 2009, Springer, Auton Robot (2009), 27, pp. 201-219) Beyeler et al. discloses a vision based flight control avoiding collision with obstacles.
(Collision Avoidance Radar for UAV, 2006, IEEE, pp. 1-4) Kwag et al. discloses UAV avoiding collision with obstacle using radar.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Sze-Hon Kong whose telephone number is (571)270-1503. The examiner can normally be reached 9 AM-5 PM Mon-Fri.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Abby Lin can be reached at (571) 270-3976. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/SZE-HON KONG/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3657
