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 .
DETAILED ACTION
Receipt of preliminary amendment filed on 02/01/2021 is acknowledged. Claims 1-2 have been amended. Claims 5-6 are newly added. Thus, claims 1-6 are pending in the instant application.
Priority
Receipt is acknowledged of certified copies of papers submitted under 35 U.S.C. 119(a)-(d), which papers have been placed of record in the file.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statements (IDSs) submitted on 05/23/2025 is in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statements have been considered by the examiner.
Drawings
The drawings are objected to under 37 CFR 1.83(a). The drawings must show every feature of the invention specified in the claims. Therefore, the limitation recites “wherein the processor is configured to: when the door is opened, turn on the interior light; when the door is closed, turn off the interior light after a first time period has elapsed; and, when the door is closed where the door is opened before a predetermined time period elapses after previous closing of the door with ignition of the vehicle being stopped, turn off the interior light after a second time period has elapsed, the second time period being shorter than the first time period” in claims 1 and 5-6 must be shown or the feature(s) canceled from the claim(s). No new matter should be entered.
Corrected drawing sheets in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(d) are required in reply to the Office action to avoid abandonment of the application. Any amended replacement drawing sheet should include all of the figures appearing on the immediate prior version of the sheet, even if only one figure is being amended. The figure or figure number of an amended drawing should not be labeled as “amended.” If a drawing figure is to be canceled, the appropriate figure must be removed from the replacement sheet, and where necessary, the remaining figures must be renumbered and appropriate changes made to the brief description of the several views of the drawings for consistency. Additional replacement sheets may be necessary to show the renumbering of the remaining figures. Each drawing sheet submitted after the filing date of an application must be labeled in the top margin as either “Replacement Sheet” or “New Sheet” pursuant to 37 CFR 1.121(d). If the changes are not accepted by the examiner, the applicant will be notified and informed of any required corrective action in the next Office action. The objection to the drawings will not be held in abeyance.
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 1-6 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Alten (U.S Patent No. 5047688 A) in view of Yoshikawa et al. (JP 2007090984 A, with English translation attached).
Regarding claim 1, Alten discloses an interior light control system configured to be applied to a vehicle (which is an automobile interior light control system, see fig. 1-2), the interior light control system comprising:
an interior light (which is an automobile interior light 16) configured to light an interior of the vehicle (see fig. 2); and
a processor (which is a signal generating circuit12 via a control circuit 10) configured to control turning on and off of the interior light (16), based on opening and closing of a door of the vehicle (see abstract, col. 3, lines 15-22, and col. 4, lines 34-37), wherein the processor is configured to:
when the door is opened, turn on the interior light (see col. 4, lines 49-52);
when the door is closed, turn off the interior light after a first time period has elapsed (see col. 4, lines 52-55).
Alten does not explicitly disclose when the door is closed where the door is opened before a predetermined time period elapses after previous closing of the door with ignition of the vehicle being turned off, turn off the interior light after a second time period has elapsed, the second time period being shorter than the first time period.
Yoshikawa, on the other hand, discloses a vehicle interior light control device, and is configured to reduce the delay time when the interior lights are automatically turned off after the ignition key is switched from onto off and the doors are opened or closed (see paragraph [0001]). Yoshikawa discloses a door opening/closing detection means capable of detecting the opening/closing state of a vehicle door, and a light-off control means that controls the interior light to turn off after a predetermined delay time has elapsed when the door opening/closing detection means detects that the door has been operated from open to closed, wherein the light-off control means is further characterized in that when the door opening/closing operation is detected by the door opening/closing detection means after the ignition key has been operated from onto off, the light-off control means turns off the interior light while limiting the predetermined delay time to the shorter side (see fig. 1, paragraph [0007] and [0023]). Furthermore, another vehicle interior light control device of the present invention includes a door open/close detection means capable of detecting the open/closed state of the vehicle door, and a light-off control means that controls the interior light to turn off after a predetermined delay time has elapsed when the door open/close operation is detected by the door open/close detection means. This light-off control means includes a delay time control means that, when the ignition key is operated from on to off after the door open/close detection means detects the door open and then the door closed, the predetermined delay time is shortened and the interior light is turned off (see paragraph [0024]).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective date of the invention was made to modify the control circuit in the automobile interior light control system as taught by Alten with the vehicle interior light control device as taught by Yoshikawa in order to turn off the interior light after a second time period has elapsed, and the second time period being shorter than the first time period, and configured to reduce the delay time when the interior lights are automatically turned off after the ignition key is switched from onto off and the doors are opened or closed (see paragraph [0001] by Yoshikawa).
The modification provides a vehicle interior light control device that can shorten the illumination time of the interior lights even when the door lock operation is not performed after exiting the vehicle (see paragraph [0006] by Yoshikawa).
Regarding claim 2, Alten in view of Yoshikawa discloses the interior light control system according to claim 1, wherein the processor is configured to, when the door is closed where the door is opened and closed for a first time after ignition of the vehicle is turned off, turn off the interior light after the second time period has elapsed (see paragraph [0024] by Yoshikawa).
Regarding claim 3, Alten in view of Yoshikawa discloses the interior light control system according to claim 1, wherein the processor is configured to when the door is opened after the predetermined time period has elapsed after previous closing of the door, determine whether the door that has been opened corresponds to a driver's seat of the vehicle, and, when: the door is opened after the predetermined time period has elapsed after previous closing of the door; and the door is closed where the door is determined not to correspond to the driver's seat, turn off the interior light after the second time period has elapsed (see paragraph [0004], [0008], [0016]-[0017] and [0018] by Yoshikawa).
Regarding claim 4, Alten in view of Yoshikawa discloses the interior light control system according to claim 2, wherein the processor is configured to when the door is opened after the predetermined time period has elapsed after previous closing of the door, determine whether the door that has been opened corresponds to a driver's seat of the vehicle, and, when: the door is opened after the predetermined time period has elapsed after previous closing of the door; and the door is closed where the door is determined not to correspond to the driver's seat, turn off the interior light after the second time period has elapsed (see paragraph [0004], [0008], [0016]-[0017] and [0018] by Yoshikawa).
Regarding claims 5 and 6, Alten discloses a vehicle (which is an automobile) and a method of controlling an interior light system of a vehicle (see fig. 1-2) comprising:
an interior light control system configured to be applied to the vehicle (which is an automobile interior light control system, see fig. 1-2), the interior light control system including:
an interior light (which is an automobile interior light 16) configured to light an interior of the vehicle (see fig. 2); and
a processor (which is a signal generating circuit12 via a control circuit 10) configured to control turning on and off of the interior light (16), based on opening and closing of a door of the vehicle (see abstract, col. 3, lines 15-22, and col. 4, lines 34-37), wherein the processor is configured to:
when the door is opened, turn on the interior light (see col. 4, lines 49-52);
when the door is closed, turn off the interior light after a first time period has elapsed (see col. 4, lines 52-55).
Alten does not explicitly disclose when the door is closed where the door is opened before a predetermined time period elapses after previous closing of the door with ignition of the vehicle being stopped, turn off the interior light after a second time period has elapsed, the second time period being shorter than the first time period.
Yoshikawa, on the other hand, discloses a vehicle interior light control device, and is configured to reduce the delay time when the interior lights are automatically turned off after the ignition key is switched from onto off and the doors are opened or closed (see paragraph [0001]). Yoshikawa discloses a door opening/closing detection means capable of detecting the opening/closing state of a vehicle door, and a light-off control means that controls the interior light to turn off after a predetermined delay time has elapsed when the door opening/closing detection means detects that the door has been operated from open to closed, wherein the light-off control means is further characterized in that when the door opening/closing operation is detected by the door opening/closing detection means after the ignition key has been operated from onto off, the light-off control means turns off the interior light while limiting the predetermined delay time to the shorter side (see fig. 1 and 2, paragraph [0007] and [0023]). Furthermore, another vehicle interior light control device of the present invention includes a door open/close detection means capable of detecting the open/closed state of the vehicle door, and a light-off control means that controls the interior light to turn off after a predetermined delay time has elapsed when the door open/close operation is detected by the door open/close detection means. This light-off control means includes a delay time control means that, when the ignition key is operated from on to off after the door open/close detection means detects the door open and then the door closed, the predetermined delay time is shortened and the interior light is turned off (see paragraph [0024]).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective date of the invention was made to modify the control circuit in the automobile interior light control system as taught by Alten with the vehicle interior light control device as taught by Yoshikawa in order to turn off the interior light after a second time period has elapsed, and the second time period being shorter than the first time period, and configured to reduce the delay time when the interior lights are automatically turned off after the ignition key is switched from onto off and the doors are opened or closed (see paragraph [0001] by Yoshikawa).
The modification provides a vehicle interior light control device that can shorten the illumination time of the interior lights even when the door lock operation is not performed after exiting the vehicle (see paragraph [0006] by Yoshikawa).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to THAI N PHAM whose telephone number is (571)270-5518. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 9:00 am-5:00 pm.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Alexander Taningco can be reached at 571-272-8048. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/Thai Pham/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2845 07/20/2026
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