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 .
This is the first action on the merits of application 19/172,930. Claims 1-21 are currently pending.
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.
Claims 1-21 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention.
Regarding claim 1, the limitation in lines 11-15, “wherein the elevator car comprises at least one parallel motion linkage mechanism connecting the cabin frame pivotally to the pulley frame, and arranged to allow the cabin frame to pivot up and down relative to the pulley frame, and to keep their relative angle unchanged.” renders the claim indefinite as it is unclear what components are being referred to with the word “their” and what relative angle is unchanged. If the at least one parallel motion mechanism is arranged to allow the cabin frame to pivot up and down relative to the pulley frame, how is the relative angle unchanged? Pivoting motion between two components changes the relative angle between those components. Figure 3 shows frame parts 2a, 2b, and 2c and pulley frame 1. The relative angle between the pulley frame 1 and each of 2a and 2c appears to remain unchanged during pivoting motion of the pulley frame, however, the relative angle between vertical frame beam 2b and pulley frame 1 changes as the pulley frame pivots. For examination purposes it is interpreted that the relative angle between the pulley frame and at least one part of the cabin frame is kept unchanged.
Claim 12 recites the limitation "the pivot axes" in lines 5-6 and again in line 7. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim.
Claim 13 recites the limitation "each said pivot" in line 1. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim.
Claim 14 recites the limitation "one or more of said pivots" in line 1. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim.
Claim 14 recites the limitation "the shaft pin" in lines 2-3. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim.
Claim 14 recites the limitation "the opening" in line 3. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim.
Claim 16 recites the limitation "one or more of said pivots" in line 1. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim.
Claim 16 recites the limitation "the lever" in line 3. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim.
Regarding claim 11, the phrase "preferably" renders the claim indefinite because it is unclear whether the limitations following the phrase are part of the claimed invention. See MPEP § 2173.05(d).
Regarding claim 13, the phrase "such as" renders the claim indefinite because it is unclear whether the limitations following the phrase are part of the claimed invention. See MPEP § 2173.05(d).
Regarding claim 13, the limitation in line 3 "a lever" renders the claim indefinite because it is unclear whether the lever is being claimed and, if so, where the lever fits in the invention.
Regarding claim 15, the phrase "preferably" renders the claim indefinite because it is unclear whether the limitations following the phrase are part of the claimed invention. See MPEP § 2173.05(d).
Regarding claim 15, the phrase "such as" renders the claim indefinite because it is unclear whether the limitations following the phrase are part of the claimed invention. See MPEP § 2173.05(d).
Regarding claim 21, the phrase "such as" renders the claim indefinite because it is unclear whether the limitations following the phrase are part of the claimed invention. See MPEP § 2173.05(d).
Claims 2-10 and 17-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) due to their dependence upon rejected independent claim 1.
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.
(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.
Claims 1-3, 5-6, 12-13, 15, and 17-19 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by CN 112093626 A (Liu et al.).
Regarding claim 1, Liu et al. disclose:
An elevator car (100) comprising a pulley frame (50); and
a cabin frame (base frame and brackets 10, annotated figure 1) mounted on the pulley frame; and
one or more pulleys (30) mounted on the pulley frame; and
cabin structures (walls and roof of car body 100, annotated figure 1) delimiting a cabin interior of the car, which cabin structures are mounted on the cabin frame; and
at least one elastically deformable support member (40) between the cabin frame and the pulley frame via which at least one elastically deformable support member the cabin frame rests, or at least can rest, on the pulley frame (cabin frame rests on 50 via elastic member 40),
wherein the elevator car comprises at least one parallel motion linkage mechanism (20, arranged in parallel pairs for each pulley, figure 3) connecting the cabin frame pivotally to the pulley frame (20 pivotally connects 50 to the horizontal part of the cabin frame by bracket 10), and arranged to allow the cabin frame to pivot up and down relative to the pulley frame, and to keep their relative angle unchanged (10 pivots relative to 50 while the relative angle between 50 and the cabin frame above 50 remains unchanged, page 5 of the attached machine translation, paragraph 4, lines 1-3, “because one end of the guide wheel frame 20 is rotatably mounted to the car bottom bracket 10, so the guide wheel frame 20 can rotate relative to the car bottom bracket 10, so that the other end of the guide wheel frame 20 can float up and down.”).
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Figure 1 of Liu et al. annotated by the Examiner
Regarding claim 2, Liu et al. further disclose:
wherein each said elastically deformable support member (40) is placed in a gap (space between 50 and 100), which is in vertical direction between the pulley frame and the cabin frame (see figure 1).
Regarding claim 3, Liu et al. further disclose:
wherein the gap is enlarged when the cabin frame pivots up relative to the pulley frame (when 10 pivots up relative to 50, 40 is expanded and the gap between 50 and the base frame is enlarged) and narrowed when the cabin frame pivots down relative to the pulley frame (when 10 pivots down relative to 50, 40 is compressed and the gap between 50 and the base frame is narrowed).
Regarding claim 5, Liu et al. further disclose:
wherein the cabin structures delimiting a cabin interior of the car comprise one or more of: a floor panel, wall panels, a ceiling panel, a door (the cabin structures are shown as wall panels and at least one ceiling panel).
Regarding claim 6, Liu et al. further disclose:
wherein said one or more pulleys comprises a first and second pulley (left and right pulleys 30, figure 1), which are arranged to rotate on the same rotation plane around parallel horizontal axes (pulleys 30 rotate around parallel axes at center of shafts 31, figure 3).
Regarding claim 12, Liu et al. further disclose:
wherein the pulley frame (50) is mounted on the cabin frame by two parallel motion linkage mechanisms (left and right 20, figure 2), in particular a first parallel motion linkage mechanism (left 20) and a second parallel motion linkage mechanism (right 20), which two parallel motion linkage mechanisms are horizontally displaced from each other (shown in figure 3), the pivot axes of the first parallel motion linkage mechanism being arranged to coincide with the pivot axes of the second parallel motion linkage mechanism (left 20 and right 20 pivot axes are coincident).
Regarding claim 13, Liu et al. further disclose:
wherein each said pivot comprises a shaft pin (pivot for pulleys 30 comprises shaft 31), such as a bolt member, arranged to pass through an opening, such as a hole, of a lever (31 passes through holes in lever parts 20, figure 2).
Regarding claim 15, Liu et al. further disclose:
wherein the elastically deformable support member is preferably an elastically deformable pad, such as a block made of elastic material such as elastomer or rubber (claim 6, “wherein the elastic piece (40) is a rubber elastic piece”).
Regarding claim 17, Liu et al. further disclose:
An elevator (including car 100 and roping 200 and connected elevator system, not shown) comprising an elevator car according to claim 1.
Regarding claim 18, Liu et al. further disclose:
wherein the elevator comprises a hoisting roping (200) arranged to suspend the elevator car via the one or more pulleys of the car (figure 1).
Regarding claim 19, Liu et al. further disclose:
wherein the elevator comprises a hoisting roping (200) arranged to pass around the one or more pulleys of the car (figure 1).
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 and 20-21 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over CN 112093626 A (Liu et al.) in view of US 6715587 B2 (Sittler et al.).
Regarding claim 4, Liu et al. teach:
An elevator car according to claim 1.
Liu et al. are silent to guide members and guide rails for guiding movement of the car.
However, Sittler et al. teach:
An elevator car with pulleys movably connected to the car frame, and
wherein the elevator car (1) comprises one or more guide members (3) for guiding movement of the car along one or more guide rails (2), which one or more guide members are mounted on the cabin frame (lower guides 3 are mounted on frame 4, figure 1).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to connect guide members to the car frame of Liu et al. for movement along guide rails as taught by Sittler et al. to support the car and prevent lateral movement. Underslung elevator cars such as the car taught by Liu et al. must be guided along guide rails so that the car remains within the travel path of the elevator shaft and does not contact shaft walls or other components.
Regarding claim 20, Liu et al. teach:
An elevator according to claim 17.
Liu et al. does not teach:
wherein the elevator comprises one or more guide rails for guiding movement of the car, the car comprising guide members mounted on the cabin frame, which are arranged to move by sliding or rolling along the one or more guide rails.
However, Sittler et al. teach:
wherein the elevator comprises one or more guide rails (2) for guiding movement of the car (1), the car comprising guide members (3) mounted on the cabin frame (lower guides 3 are mounted on frame 4, figure 1), which are arranged to move by sliding or rolling along the one or more guide rails (“slide or roller guide shoes” col. 3, line 31).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to connect guide members to the car frame of Liu et al. for movement along guide rails as taught by Sittler et al. to support the car and prevent lateral movement. Underslung elevator cars such as the car taught by Liu et al. must be guided along guide rails so that the car remains within the travel path of the elevator shaft and does not contact shaft walls or other components.
Regarding claim 21, Liu et al. teach:
An elevator according to claim 17.
Liu et al. does not teach:
wherein the elevator comprises a motor and a drive wheel rotatable by the motor, and an elevator control system configured to control movement of the car in response to signals received from one or more user interfaces, such as user interfaces located at one or more landings and/or a user interface located inside the car, in particular by controlling rotation of the motor.
However, Sittler et al. teach:
wherein the elevator comprises a motor (13) and a drive wheel (12) rotatable by the motor, and an elevator control system (“control” col. 1, line 20) configured to control movement of the car in response to signals (“call commands by elevator users” col. 1, lines 22-23) received from one or more user interfaces (one or more user interfaces are necessary to transmit the call command from the users), such as user interfaces located at one or more landings and/or a user interface located inside the car, in particular by controlling rotation of the motor (drive machine 13 must rotate to transmit driving force to the cable 10).
While Liu et al. is silent to the components of the elevator system outside of the car and roping, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention for the elevator system of Liu et al. to have a motor and drive wheel controlled by an elevator control system that is operated by calls from a user, as taught by Sittler et al., as necessary components of a functional elevator system. The roping of Liu et al. must be driven by a motor, and it would be obvious for the motor to be controlled by a control system that responds to input from a user as taught by Sittler et al. so the car is capable of normal operation.
Claims 14 and 16 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over CN 112093626 A (Liu et al.) in view of WO 2021165329 A1 (Gainche et al.).
Regarding claim 14, Liu et al. teach:
An elevator car according to claim 1.
Liu et al. do not teach bushings.
However, Gainche et al. teach:
An elevator car with a drive system connected to the car, and
wherein one or more of said pivots comprises a bushing made of plastic or elastomer or rubber around the shaft pin in the opening (“At the point of connection between the cabin 100 and the support 10 as described in any of the embodiments, a rubber bushing can optionally be added” page 10, lines 15-16).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to use rubber bushings at the pivot connections in the elevator car of Liu et al., as taught by Gainche et al., to reduce vibrations. As noted by Gainche et al. “a rubber bushing can optionally be added to aid in vibration absorption.” page 10, line 16.
Regarding claim 16, Liu et al. teach:
An elevator car according to claim 1.
Liu et al. do not teach bushings.
However, Gainche et al. teach:
An elevator car with a drive system connected to the car, and
wherein one or more of said pivots comprises a bushing made of plastic or elastomer or rubber via which the lever is supported axially in place (“At the point of connection between the cabin 100 and the support 10 as described in any of the embodiments, a rubber bushing can optionally be added” page 10, lines 15-16).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to use rubber bushings at the pivot connections in the elevator car of Liu et al., as taught by Gainche et al., to reduce vibrations. As noted by Gainche et al. “a rubber bushing can optionally be added to aid in vibration absorption.” page 10, line 16.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 7-11 would be allowable if rewritten to overcome the rejection(s) under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), 2nd paragraph, set forth in this Office action and to include all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims. Regarding claim 7, the prior art of record fails to disclose or render obvious all of the limitations of the claim. Liu et al. teach the elevator car according to claim 1 and each parallel motion linkage mechanism comprising first and second levers (20) connected to the cabin frame via pivots. Liu et al. do not teach the first and second levers being connected to the pulley frame via first and third respective pivots. The levers of Liu et al. are connected at a top end to the pulley frame to bias the frame vertically toward and away from the bottom of the elevator car. The levers are pivotally connected to the car frame and to the pulley itself and there is no structure between the pulley frame and the levers that may be considered a pivot. Neither Sittler et al. nor Gainche et al. teach the limitations in claim 7 that are missing from Liu et al..
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. CN-103086237-A is cited to show an elevator car with pulleys that are linearly movable relative to the elevator car. US-6443266-B1, US-12344506-B2, US-12509330-B2, WO-9933743-A1, WO-2019121219-A1, WO-2011155109-A1, US-7410032-B2, and US-8857571-B2 are cited to show elevator car construction with connection means between the pulleys and the elevator car.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to MICHELLE M MUDWILDER whose telephone number is (571)272-6068. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 11:00 am - 7:30 pm.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, ROBERT HODGE can be reached at (571)272-2097. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/M.M.M./Examiner, Art Unit 3654
/ROBERT W HODGE/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3654