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
This action is in response to an application filed July 23, 2025. Claims 1-19 are pending in this application.
Priority
Acknowledgment is made of applicant's claim for foreign priority based on an application filed in Japan on August 23, 2024. It is noted, however, that applicant has not filed a certified copy of the 2024-143313 application as required by 37 CFR 1.55.
Double Patenting
The nonstatutory obviousness double patenting rejection is based on a judicially created doctrine grounded in public policy (a policy reflected in the statute) so as to prevent the unjustified or improper timewise extension of the “right to exclude” granted by a patent and to prevent possible harassment by multiple assignees. A nonstatutory double patenting rejection is appropriate where the claims at issue are not identical, but at least one examined application claim is not patentably distinct from the reference claim(s) because the examined application claim is either anticipated by, or would have been obvious over, the reference claim(s). See, e.g., In re Berg, 140 F.3d 1428, 46 USPQ2d 1226 (Fed. Cir. 1998); In re Goodman, 11 F.3d 1046, 29 USPQ2d 2010 (Fed. Cir. 1993); In re Longi, 759 F.2d 887, 225 USPQ 645 (Fed. Cir. 1985); In re Van Ornum, 686 F.2d 937, 214 USPQ 761 (CCPA 1982); In re Vogel, 422 F.2d 438, 164 USPQ 619 (CCPA 1970); and In re Thorington, 418 F.2d 528, 163 USPQ 644 (CCPA 1969).
A timely filed terminal disclaimer in compliance with 37 CFR 1.321(c) or 1.321(d) may be used to overcome an actual or provisional rejection based on a nonstatutory double patenting ground provided the reference application or patent either is shown to be commonly owned with this application, or claims an invention made as a result of activities undertaken within the scope of a joint research agreement. A terminal disclaimer must be signed in compliance with 37 CFR 1.321(b).
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Claims 1-19 are rejected on the ground of nonstatutory obviousness double patenting as being unpatentable over claims 1-5 of patent document no. US 12,677,121 B2. Although the claims at issue are not identical, they are not patentably distinct from each other because the claims are directed to the same subject matter of determining a failure of a device when periodic messages from the device is stopped. A side-by-side analysis of the first independent claim(s) of the instant application and the copending application(s) has been included below. The bolded portions are portions which are almost identical to one another. The non-bolded portions are related to subject matter which are obvious, and do not further define over the subject matter of one another. Therefore, the subject matter of both claim sets are not distinct from one another and yields an obviousness-type double patenting rejection. This is NOT a provisional double patenting rejection since patent document (US 12,677,121 B2) has been issued while the instant application is pending.
Here is the following side-by-side analysis of the first independent claim in each application:
Instant Application ‘222
1. An electronic controller that is included in an in-vehicle network system and has a network management function, wherein the network management function includes (i) during a period in which communication with a communication peer is needed, periodically electronically transmitting an activation notification toward the communication peer, the activation notification being a message requesting activation, (ii) when electronically receiving the activation notification from a communication peer, switching from a standby state in which communication is not performed to an active state in which communication is performable, and (iii) continuing to be in the active state while periodically electronically receiving the activation notification, the in-vehicle network system includes
a first device having the network management function and configured to
transmit a periodic message, the periodic message being periodically transmitted,
a second device having the network management function and configured to execute a failure determination that determines that the first device has a failure when reception of the periodic message from the first device is stopped,
a third device having the network management function and a partial network function such that when receiving the activation notification and a destination of the activation notification differs from the third device, the third device does not switch from the standby state to the active state,
a first communication bus connected to the first device,
a second communication bus connected to the second device and the third device, and
a relay device connected to the first communication bus and the second communication bus and configured to electronically relay a message among communication buses,
the electronic controller is the second device, and
the electronic controller is configured to stop the failure determination when stopping transmission of the activation notification.
Patent No. ‘121
1. An in-vehicle network system comprising:
as electronic control units having a network management function for shifting from a standby state in which communication is not performed to an operation state in which the communication is possible when an operation notification that is a message for requesting operation is received,
a first device configured to transmit a periodic message that is a periodically transmitted message,
a second device configured to perform failure determination for determining that the first device has failed when reception of the periodic message from the first device is interrupted, and
a third device having a partial network function in which the standby state is not shifted to the operation state when the operation notification is received and is not addressed to the third device;
a first communication bus connected to the first device;
a second communication bus connected to the second device and the third device; and
a relay device connected to the first communication bus and the second communication bus and configured to relay messages exchanged between a plurality of communication buses, wherein
the first device is configured to, when the operation state is shifted to the standby state, transmit a standby notification that is a message indicating shifting to the standby state toward the second device, and
the second device is configured to stop the failure determination on the first device when the standby notification is received from the first device.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 1-19 are allowed over available prior art references and/or combination(s) of available prior art references but are rejected under Double Patenting.
As allowable subject matter has been indicated, applicant's reply must either comply with all formal requirements or specifically traverse each requirement not complied with. See 37 CFR 1.111(b) and MPEP § 707.07(a).
REASONS FOR ALLOWANCE
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter: The Examiner has not found any reasonable prior art(s) nor combination of prior art(s) which teach the feature of ‘a third device having the network management function and a partial network function such that when receiving the activation notification and a destination of the activation notification differs from the third device, the third device does not switch from the standby state to the active state and the electronic controller is configured to stop the failure determination when stopping transmission of the activation notification’.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to ESTHER B. HENDERSON whose telephone number is (571)270-3807. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 6a-2p ET.
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/ESTHER B. HENDERSON/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2458 September 18, 2026
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