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 Objections
Claim 5 is objected to because of the following informalities:
Line 2 recites “expose one ends”. The limitation is grammatically incorrect.
Appropriate correction is required.
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.
Claims 13-14 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.
Claim 13 recites “a labyrinth structure”. Claim 12 previously recited a labyrinth structure. It is unclear if these are the same elements or if they are separate, independent elements.
Claim 14 recites “a labyrinth structure”. Claim 12 previously recited a labyrinth structure. It is unclear if these are the same elements or if they are separate, independent elements.
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 1-5 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kaneko U.S. 2010/0209031 in view of Takahashi JP 2003-013948.
Re clm 1, Kaneko discloses a vehicle wheel bearing (Fig. 1) for rotatably mounting and supporting a vehicle wheel to a vehicle body, comprising: a wheel hub (2) provided with a wheel-mounting flange (2f); an inner ring (2b) mounted on an outer circumferential surface of the wheel hub; an outer ring (1) provided with a vehicle body-side mounting flange (1f); a plurality of rolling elements (31 and 32) for rotatably supporting the wheel hub and the inner ring relative to the outer ring; a target ring (6, Fig. 3) mounted on one side of the inner ring and rotating together with the inner ring; and a sensor assembly (8) that detects information about operating state(s) of a vehicle, wherein the sensor assembly comprises a first sensing portion (82).
Kaneko does not disclose a second sensing portion that detect the information about the operating state of the vehicle, and wherein a sensor provided in the second sensing portion is configured to be located further outward in an axial direction than an inner axial end of the wheel hub.
Takahashi teaches a sensor assembly comprising a first sensing portion (46, Fig. 3) and a second sensing portion (47) that detect the information about the operating state of the vehicle, and wherein a sensor provided in the second sensing portion is configured to be located further outward in an axial direction than an inner axial end of the wheel hub (as shown in Fig. 3) for the purpose of providing an acceleration sensor making it possible to detect an abnormality in the bearing (page 13: the last paragraph).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to modify Kaneko and provide a second sensing portion that detect the information about the operating state of the vehicle, and wherein a sensor provided in the second sensing portion is configured to be located further outward in an axial direction than an inner axial end of the wheel hub for the purpose of providing an acceleration sensor making it possible to detect an abnormality in the bearing.
Re clm 2, Kaneko further discloses the first sensing portion is formed as a wheel speed sensing portion that detects a change in a magnetic field generated by a sensor target of the target ring that rotates together with the vehicle wheel and measures a rotational speed of a wheel.
The improvement of Takahashi further discloses the second sensing portion is formed as an acceleration sensing portion (page 8: last paragraph; page 13: last paragraph) that detects acceleration information of the vehicle, and wherein an acceleration sensor provided in the second sensing portion is configured to be positioned further outward in the axial direction than the inner axial end of the wheel hub (as shown in Fig. 3).
Re clm 3, Kaneko further discloses a press-fit ring (7, Fig. 3) mounted on an outer circumferential surface or an inner circumferential surface of the outer ring (at 71).
Kaneko in view of Takahashi further discloses the acceleration sensor (47, Fig. 1 and 3 of Takahashi) is configured to be positioned outward in a radial direction from a vehicle body-side end of the outer ring on which the press-fit ring is mounted.
Re clm 4, Kaneko further discloses the press-fit ring (7) comprises a mounting portion (71) that is press-fitted to the outer circumferential surface or the inner circumferential surface of the outer ring.
Kaneko in view of Takahashi further discloses and wherein the acceleration sensor (47, Fig. 3 of Takahashi) is configured to be positioned outward in the radial direction from the mounting portion of the press-fit ring (since Kaneko shows a radial reduction (14) at the press-fit area and Takahashi shows the sensor 47 being radially outward of the outer circumference at the radial location of the entire raceway of the bearing elements).
Re clm 5, Kaneko further disclose a connector portion (one of either wire 84 or portion where wire 84 meets sensor main body 83) configured to expose one ends of the first sensing portion and the second sensing portion to the outside (via wired connection) is provided on one side of the sensor assembly, and wherein at least a part of the connector portion is configured to be positioned outward in the radial direction from an axial inner end of the outer ring (shown in Fig. 1) on which the press-fit ring is mounted.
Claim 5 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kaneko U.S. 2010/0209031 in view of Takahashi JP 2003-013948 as applied to claim 4 above, and further in view of Ida U.S. 5,004,980.
Kaneko in view of Takahashi discloses all the claimed subject matter as described above.
Assuming the connector portion must be a disconnectable connection:
Re clm 5, Kaneko does not disclose a connector portion configured to expose one ends of the first sensing portion and the second sensing portion to the outside is provided on one side of the sensor assembly, and wherein at least a part of the connector portion is configured to be positioned outward in the radial direction from an axial inner end of the outer ring on which the press-fit ring is mounted.
Ida teaches a sensor body (at 15) comprising a connector portion (at 24) configured to expose one ends of the first sensing portion and the second sensing portion to the outside is provided on one side of the sensor assembly, and wherein at least a part of the connector portion is configured to be positioned outward in the radial direction from an axial inner end of the outer ring for the purpose of easily connecting and disconnecting the sensor from the rest of the vehicle.
Since both Kaneko and Ida disclose sensor arrangements, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to substitute the directly connected wired arrangement of Kaneko with the connector portion arrangement of Ida configured to expose one ends of the first sensing portion and the second sensing portion to the outside is provided on one side of the sensor assembly, and wherein at least a part of the connector portion is configured to be positioned outward in the radial direction from an axial inner end of the outer ring for the purpose of easily connecting and disconnecting the sensor from the rest of the vehicle during assembly or disassembly.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 6-12 are 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.
Claims 13-15 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.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to ALAN B WAITS whose telephone number is (571)270-3664. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Thursday from 6-4 EST.
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/ALAN B WAITS/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3617
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