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
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.
Claim 1-2 and 13-14 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Yamaji et al.(JP 10047306 A) hereinafter Yamaji.
Regarding Claim 1 Yamaji teaches a hydraulic control device for controlling a hydraulic circuit including a hydraulic actuator (1) , a hydraulic pump (2) that discharges hydraulic oil, and a control valve (4) that switches between a supply state and a discharge state of hydraulic oil from the hydraulic pump (2) to the hydraulic actuator (1) based on an operation amount of an operation tool (9) , the hydraulic control device comprising: a virtual bleed information output unit (controller) that outputs virtual bleed information indicating a state of hydraulic oil flowing through a virtual bleed circuit based on an operation amount of the operation tool, a discharge pressure of the hydraulic pump (2), and a preset virtual bleed characteristic (Xb) that is a characteristic of the virtual bleed circuit to which the control valve (4) and a hydraulic oil tank are assumed to be connected by a bypass line (hydraulic line connected to the tank see Fig ) (par.0012-0013); a required bleed information output unit that outputs required bleed information indicating the state of hydraulic oil flowing through the virtual bleed circuit that is required to cause the hydraulic actuator (1) to perform a desired operation based on the operation amount (flow rate Xa of bleed being output based on max. pump discharge pressure and actuator flow rate see Par.0014); a target control value determination unit that determines a target control value for the hydraulic pump (2) based on a comparison result between the virtual bleed information (xb) and the required bleed information (pump discharge pressure being calculated from a squared ratio of xa and xb see par.0014); and a pump control unit (12) that controls the hydraulic pump (2) based on the target control value (par.0014).
Regarding Claim 2 Yamaji teaches the hydraulic control device according to wherein the virtual bleed information output unit outputs a virtual bypass opening area (Ab) corresponding to the operation amount based on a preset correspondence relationship between the operation amount and the virtual bypass opening area (AB) (par.0013), the virtual bypass opening area (Ab) being an opening area of a virtual control valve provided in the virtual bleed circuit, and outputs the virtual bleed information based on the output virtual bypass opening area and the discharge pressure (Par.0013)
Regarding Claim 13 Yamaji teaches :a hydraulic actuator (1); a hydraulic pump (2) that discharges hydraulic oil; a control valve (4) that switches between a supply state and a discharge state of hydraulic oil from the hydraulic pump (2) to the hydraulic actuator (1) based on an operation amount of an operation tool (9); and the hydraulic control device according to claim 1 that controls the hydraulic pump (Fig 1).
Regarding Claim 14 Yamaji teaches a control method for controlling a hydraulic circuit including a hydraulic actuator (1), a hydraulic pump (2) that discharges hydraulic oil, and a control valve (4) that switches between a supply state and a discharge state of hydraulic oil from the hydraulic pump (2) to the hydraulic actuator (1) based on an operation amount of an operation tool (9), the control method comprising: outputting virtual bleed information indicating a state of hydraulic oil flowing through a virtual bleed circuit based on an operation amount of the operation tool (9), a discharge pressure of the hydraulic pump (2), and a preset virtual bleed characteristic (Xb) that is a characteristic of the virtual bleed circuit to which the control valve (4) and a hydraulic oil tank are assumed to be connected by a bypass line (hydraulic line connected to the tank see Fig ) (par.0012-0013); outputting required bleed information indicating the state of hydraulic oil flowing through the virtual bleed circuit that is required to cause the hydraulic actuator (1) to perform a desired operation based on the operation amount(flow rate Xa of bleed being output based on max. pump discharge pressure and actuator flow rate see Par.0014); determining a target control value for the hydraulic pump (2) based on a comparison result between the virtual bleed information and the required bleed information(pump discharge pressure being calculated from a squared ratio of xa and xb see par.0014);and controlling the hydraulic pump (2) based on the target control value (par.0014).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 3-12 are objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim but would be allowable if rewritten including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
Conclusion
Prior art made of record is pertinent to applicant’s claimed invention Hirata (US 5,394,697) and Nagura (JP 2004138197 A) both teach control arrangement for a fluid that is discharged to a hydraulic tank having a bleed characteristic that is pertinent to applicant’s claimed invention.
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/ABIY TEKA/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3745
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