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 § 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.
The factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness.
Claim(s) 1-7 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Yang (US 10,626,981) in view of Nakanishi (US 10,508,732).
Regarding Claim 1, Yang discloses a shift device (see Fig. 1) comprising:
A shift body (3) having an operation rod (see Fig. 1) that can rotate with respect to a rotation axis (Ax).
A sensor substrate (620) disposed at one side, in a rotating direction of the operation rod, with respect to the rotation axis (see Fig. 3), and having a sensor (620) that detects a rotational position of the operation rod.
Yang does not disclose a sensor substrate for the sensor. However, Nakanishi discloses in a similar shift device (see Fig. 2) having a sensor substrate (38) having a sensor (see Col. 6 Lines 11-23, disclosing sensors disposed on the printed wiring board 38).
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to provide the shift device disclosed in Yang with a sensor substrate for the sensor as taught in Nakanishi to provide for mounting of the sensor to a medium that can process the signal for use in the shift device.
Regarding Claim 2, the Combination further suggests the shift device of Claim 1, wherein the sensor substrate is disposed further toward an inner side than an outer side portion of the shift body, in an axial direction of the rotation axis (see Yang Fig. 4, showing the sensor is located at this location, and accordingly the sensor substrate would likewise be located at the claimed location).
Regarding Claim 3, the Combination further suggests the shift device of Claim 1, wherein at least a portion of the sensor substrate is disposed in a concave portion, which is recessed in an axial direction of the rotation axis, of the shift body (see Fig. 4).
Regarding Claim 4, Yang further discloses the shift device of Claim 1, comprising a rotating body (610) connected to the shift body by a gear (110).
Wherein the sensor is disposed at a position at which the sensor can detect a rotational position of the rotating body (see Fig. 4).
Regarding Claim 5, Yang further discloses the shift device of Claim 1, wherein the sensor substrate is disposed so as to avoid a rotation range of the operation rod as seen from an axial direction of the rotation axis (see Fig. 4).
Regarding Claim 6, the Combination further suggests the shift device of Claim 5, wherein:
The sensor substrate is formed in a shape of a plate that extends in the rotating direction (see Nakanishi Fig. 2; Yang Fig. 4), with the axial direction of the rotation axis being a plate thickness direction of the sensor substrate as seen from the axial direction of the rotation axis (see Nakanishi Fig. 2), the sensor substrate is disposed so as to avoid the rotation range of the operation rod due to at least one notch being formed in a portion, which is at a rotation axis side, of the sensor substrate (see Nakanishi Fig. 1).
Regarding Claim 7, the Combination further suggests the shift device of Claim 5, wherein:
The sensor substrate is formed in a shape of a plate that extends in the rotating direction, with the axial direction of the rotation axis being a plate thickness direction of the sensor substrate (see Nakanishi Fig. 2).
As seen from the axial direction of the rotation axis, the sensor substrate is disposed so as to avoid the rotation range of the operation rod due to a portion, which is at a rotation axis side, of the sensor substrate being formed in a tapered shape that is inclined with respect to the rotation axis (see Nakanishi Fig. 1).
Conclusion
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/GREGORY ROBERT WEBER/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3618
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