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 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 –
Claims 1-8 and 10-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by TSE US 2022/0410977.
Regarding claim 1, TSE discloses an autonomous vehicle comprising: a body (chassis, see FIG. 1); at least one releasable component (pod, see FIG. 3); a decoupling mechanism configured to decouple the at least one releasable component from the body (cushions 3 and 4); and processing circuitry (see paragraph [0093]) comprising one or more processors and memory storing computer-executable instructions that, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to perform operations comprising: detecting a triggering event (see paragraph [0085]); and responsive to detecting the triggering event, causing the decoupling mechanism to decouple the at least one releasable component from the body. See FIG. 2, 4, and 5, claim 1, and paragraphs [0072]-[0082].
Regarding claim 2, TSE discloses wherein decoupling the at least one releasable component from the body comprises decoupling the at least one releasable component from the body according to a set of decoupling parameters defined by the triggering event. See paragraphs [0059]-[0067].
Regarding claim 3, TSE discloses wherein the set of decoupling parameters comprise at least one of a timing of the detected triggering event or a velocity of the vehicle with respect to a second object identified with the triggering event. See paragraphs [0059]-[0067].
Regarding claim 4, TSE discloses wherein the decoupling mechanism comprises at least one of a passive decoupling mechanism or an active decoupling mechanism. See paragraphs [0024]-[0034].
Regarding claim 5, TSE discloses wherein the decoupling mechanism comprises at least one of a pyrotechnic separation bolt, an electric actuating mechanism, a magnetic actuating mechanism, a gas actuating mechanism, or a thermal actuating mechanism. See paragraphs [0024] and [0046]-[0048].
Regarding claim 6, TSE discloses wherein the triggering event comprises at least one of an impact, a potential impact, a collision, a loss of traction, or a loss of contact between a tire of the vehicle and a support surface. See paragraphs [0059]-[0067].
Regarding claim 7, TSE discloses wherein causing the decoupling mechanism to decouple the at least one releasable component from the body occurs prior to the triggering event. See paragraphs [0059]-[0067].
Regarding claim 8, TSE discloses a method comprising: detecting, by computing hardware (see paragraph [0093]), a triggering event for an autonomous vehicle, the autonomous vehicle comprising a body (chassis, see FIG. 1), a set of components (see FIG. 1), and a set of component coupling mechanisms (See FIG. 4 and paragraphs [0046]-[0048]), wherein each component in the set of components is coupled to the body via at least one respective component coupling mechanism of the set of component coupling mechanisms (See FIG. 4 and paragraphs [0046]-[0048]); responsive to the triggering event, causing, by the computing hardware, a reduction in a mass of the autonomous vehicle by: selecting a subset of the set of components based on the triggering event; identifying the at least one respective component coupling mechanism for each component in the subset of the set of components; determining, for each respective component coupling mechanism, a release process; and initiating, for each respective component coupling mechanism, the release process. See FIG. 2, 4, and 5, claim 1, and paragraphs [0046]-[0048] and [0072]-[0082].
Regarding claim 10, TSE discloses wherein initiating the release process comprises initiating the release process prior to the triggering event. See claim 1 and paragraphs [0059]-[0067].
Regarding claim 11, TSE discloses wherein the triggering event comprises at least one of an impact, a potential impact, a collision, a loss of traction, or a loss of contact between a tire of the vehicle and a support surface. See paragraphs [0059]-[0067].
Regarding claim 12, TSE discloses wherein each respective component coupling mechanism comprises at least one a pyrotechnic separation bolt, an electric actuating mechanism, a magnetic actuating mechanism, a gas actuating mechanism, or a thermal actuating mechanism. See paragraphs [0024] and [0046]-[0048].
Regarding claim 13, TSE discloses wherein at least one component in the set of components is coupled to the body via at the least one respective component coupling mechanism via at least one biasing mechanism. See paragraphs [0024] and [0046]-[0048].
Regarding claim 14, TSE discloses wherein initiating the release process comprises initiating the release process for at least a first component coupling mechanism prior to the triggering event and initiating the release process for at least a second component coupling mechanism after the triggering event. See FIG. 2, 4, and 5, claim 1, and paragraphs [0046]-[0048] and [0072]-[0082].
Regarding claim 15, TSE discloses an autonomous vehicle comprising: a body (chassis, see FIG. 1); a mass reduction mechanism ; and processing circuitry (see paragraph [0093]) comprising one or more processors (see paragraph [0093]) and memory storing computer-executable instructions that, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to perform operations comprising: detecting a triggering event (see claim 1); and responsive to detecting the triggering event, causing the mass reduction mechanism to reduce a mass of the body. See FIG. 2, 4, and 5, claim 1, and paragraphs [0046]-[0048] and [0072]-[0082].
Regarding claim 16, TSE discloses wherein reducing the mass of the body comprises causing the mass reduction mechanism to passively release at least one component coupled to the body. See paragraphs [0024] and [0046]-[0048].
Regarding claim 17, TSE discloses wherein reducing the mass of the body comprises causing the mass reduction mechanism to actively release at least one component coupled to the body. See paragraphs [0024] and [0046]-[0048].
Regarding claim 18, TSE discloses wherein the triggering event comprises at least one of an impact, a potential impact, a collision, a loss of traction, or a loss of contact between a tire of the vehicle and a support surface. See paragraphs [0059]-[0067].
Regarding claim 19, TSE discloses wherein the mass reduction mechanism comprises at least one of a pyrotechnic separation bolt, an electric actuating mechanism, a magnetic actuating mechanism, a gas actuating mechanism, or a thermal actuating mechanism. See paragraphs [0024] and [0046]-[0048].
Regarding claim 20, TSE discloses wherein the mass reduction mechanism comprises a set of decoupling mechanisms, each decoupling mechanism in the set of decoupling mechanisms being configured to decouple a respective vehicle component from the body. See FIG. 2, 4, and 5, claim 1, and paragraphs [0046]-[0048] and [0072]-[0082].
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.
Claim 9 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over TSE, as applied above, in view of Wassmur US 2023/0158877.
Regarding claim 9, TSE fails to explicitly disclose, but Wassmur discloses wherein at least one component in the set of components comprises a vehicle battery. See Abstract and paragraphs [0004]-[0005].
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective filing date of the claimed invention to include the teachings of Wassmur in the system of TSE for safety purposes.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JOSEPH J DALLO whose telephone number is (313)446-4844. The examiner can normally be reached 7am-7pm ET M-Th.
Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Logan Kraft can be reached at 571-270-5065. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000.
/JOSEPH J DALLO/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3747
Prosecution Insights