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 .
Specification
The title of the invention is not descriptive. A new title is required that is clearly indicative of the invention to which the claims are directed.
Claim Objections
Claim 12 is objected to because of the following informalities:
Claim 12 recites “the radi define” in line 4. This should be “the radius define”
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.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph:
The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention.
Claims 12-15 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.
The term “substantially” in claims 12-14 is a relative term which renders these claims indefinite. The term “substantial” is not defined by the claims, the specification does not provide a standard for ascertaining the requisite degree, and one of ordinary skill in the art would not be reasonably apprised of the scope of the invention.
The term “low friction” in claim 15 is a relative term which renders the claim indefinite. The term “low friction” is not defined by the claim, the specification does not provide a standard for ascertaining the requisite degree, and one of ordinary skill in the art would not be reasonably apprised of the scope of the invention.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status.
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 –
(a)(1) the claimed invention was patented, described in a printed publication, or in public use, on sale, or otherwise available to the public before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
(a)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claim(s) 1, 3-8, 11, 13, and 14 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1)/(a)(2) as being anticipated by Deng (CN108131447A, cited by Applicant).
Deng discloses:
Re claim 1. A shift actuator, comprising:
a longitudinally translatable housing (2) having at least one curved slot (unlabeled slot, See Fig. 1) in an outer surface;
a non-rotatable sleeve (housing around the motor, motor has shaft 10) located at least partially within the housing;
a motor (See 3 in Fig. 1. In Fig. 2, motor has shaft 10) at least partially located in the sleeve, the motor having a rotatable output shaft longitudinally aligned with an actuator axis;
a gear reduction assembly (components 4-9) located within the sleeve and rotationally connected to the output shaft; and
a rotary output member (portion of 1.2 going into the slot, see Fig. 1) connected to the gear reduction assembly where the rotary output member extends at least partially into the slot.
Re claim 3. The shift actuator of claim 1, wherein the outer surface of the housing (2) is curved and the slot (unlabeled slot, see Fig. 1) extends through the housing from a first longitudinal position to a second longitudinal position along the outer surface of the housing (See Fig. 1).
Re claim 4. The shift actuator of claim 2, wherein a first end portion of the sleeve (housing around the motor, motor has shaft 10) extends longitudinally out of the first end of the housing and a second end portion of the sleeve is radially covered by the second end portion of the housing and the sleeve longitudinally terminates before reaching the slot in the housing (See Figs. 1-2).
Re claim 5. The shift actuator of claim 1, wherein the gear reduction assembly comprises a first gear reduction assembly (4-6, 8) longitudinally connected to a second gear reduction assembly (7, 9).
Re claim 6. The shift actuator of claim 5, wherein the first gear reduction assembly comprises a first sun gear (8) on the motor output shaft and a plurality of planetary gears (4) meshed with the first sun gear and a ring gear (6.1) in the sleeve, wherein the planetary gears are located on a first side of a first carrier (lower portion of 5 as seen in Fig. 2 to which planet gears 4 are connected).
Re claim 7. The shift actuator of claim 6, wherein the carrier (lower portion of 5 as seen in Fig. 2) has stub-shaft extending from a second side, wherein the stub-shaft has a second sun gear (9) of the second gear reduction assembly connected thereto.
Re claim 8. The shift actuator of claim 7, wherein the second gear reduction assembly has a plurality of planetary gears (7) meshed with the second sun gear and a second ring gear (6.2), the plurality of planetary gears (7) being carried on a first side of a second carrier (upper portion of 5 as seen in Fig. 2 to which planet gears 7 are connected).
Re claim 11. The shift actuator of claim 1, wherein a shift fork (1.2) or shift collar are fixedly connected to an outside surface of the housing.
Re claim 13. The shift actuator of claim 1, wherein the at least one curved slot is a first slot and a second slot of substantially equal length to the first slot is located in the rotatable housing opposite the first slot (See Figs. 1 and 2).
Re claim 14. The shift actuator of claim 1, wherein the rotatable housing is substantially cylindrical and located at least partially in a concentric position with respect to the non-rotatable sleeve which is also substantially cylindrical and wherein the motor (3) is located at least partially in a concentric relationship with the non-rotatable sleeve (See Figs 1, 2).
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status.
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(s) 1-3, 5, 6, 11, 13, and 14 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Mills (US6,893371) in view of Reik (GB2308874).
Re claim 1
Mills discloses a shift actuator (abstract), comprising:
a longitudinally translatable housing (350; see Fig. 7; translatable relative to the gear(s) that are being shifted) having at least one curved slot in an outer surface;
a non-rotatable sleeve (340) located at least partially within the housing;
a motor (310) at least partially located in the sleeve, the motor having a rotatable output shaft (318) longitudinally aligned with an actuator axis;
a gear reduction assembly (including 324, 320) located within the sleeve and rotationally connected to the output shaft; and
Mills explicitly states “The drive mechanism of the present invention is used with particular advantage with the shift cylinders that are disclosed, e.g. in GB 2308874 […], which are hereby explicitly referenced and whose content will be expressly cited in the disclosure of the present invention.”
Reik (GB2308874) teaches the longitudinally translatable housing (820 in Reik) having at least one curved slot (825; see Fig. 14a) in the outer surface, and a rotary output member (827) connected to the gear reduction assembly where the rotary output member extends at least partially into the slot, for the purpose of shifting the transmission into a selected gear (page 49, last paragraph).
It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art at the time of the invention to modify the device of Mills such that the longitudinally translatable housing has at least one curved slot in the outer surface, and a rotary output member connected to the gear reduction assembly where the rotary output member extends at least partially into the slot as taught by Reik, for the purpose of cooperatively connecting to a shift fork.
Mills as modified above further suggests:
Re claim 2. The shift actuator of claim 1, wherein the housing (350 in Mills, 820 in Reik) is tubular (See Fig. 7 in Mills and Fig. 14a in Reik) having a first end, a first end portion, a second end and a second end portion and a body portion located between the ends, wherein the slot (825 in Reik) is located in the second end portion (slot can be considered partially located in both end portions), wherein a sensor and sensor target (C7/L26-28 - position sensor 256, target is shift cylinder) are located adjacent the first end portion.
Re claim 3. The shift actuator of claim 1, wherein the outer surface of the housing is curved and the slot (825 in Reik) extends through the housing from a first longitudinal position to a second longitudinal position along the outer surface of the housing.
Re claim 5. The shift actuator of claim 1, wherein the gear reduction assembly comprises a first gear reduction assembly (including 320) longitudinally connected to a second gear reduction assembly (including 334).
Re claim 6. The shift actuator of claim 5, wherein the first gear reduction assembly comprises a first sun (320 in Mills) gear on the motor output shaft and a plurality of planetary gears (324 in Mills) meshed with the first sun gear (320) and a ring gear (330) in the sleeve, wherein the planetary gears are located on a first side of a first carrier (322).
Re claim 11. The shift actuator of claim 1, wherein a shift fork or shift collar (portion of 827 in Reik to which the portion of 827 that contacts slot 825 is connected) are fixedly connected to an outside surface of the housing.
Re claim 13. The shift actuator of claim 1, wherein the at least one curved slot (825 in Reik) is a first slot and a second slot (see other slot in Fig. 14a in Reik) of substantially equal length to the first slot is located in the rotatable housing opposite the first slot (See Fig. 14a).
Re claim 14. The shift actuator of claim 1, wherein the rotatable housing (350 in Mills, 820 in Reik) is substantially cylindrical and located at least partially in a concentric position with respect to the non-rotatable sleeve (340 in Mills) which is also substantially cylindrical and wherein the motor (310 in Mills) is located at least partially in a concentric relationship with the non-rotatable sleeve (See Fig. 7 in Mills).
Claim(s) 12 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Mills (US6,893371) in view of Reik (GB2308874), and further in view of Pritchett (US2007/0093324).
Re claim 12
Mills as modified above further suggests wherein the housing (324 in Mills) has an inner surface with a complementary shape to the outer surface, wherein the inner surface has a first radius and the outer surface has a second radius larger than the first radius, wherein the radi [sic] define a substantially constant thickness between them, but does not disclose the slot extends entirely through the thickness.
Pritchett teaches the slot (16c) extends entirely through the thickness (of 16; See Fig. 7), for the purpose of reducing weight.
It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art at the time of filing/invention to further modify the device of Mills such that the slot extends entirely through the thickness, as taught by Pritchett, with a reasonable expectation of success, for the purpose of reducing material used and thus saving on material cost.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 9 and 10 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.
Claim 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.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter:
The closest prior art is Deng (CN108131447A, relied upon above).
In regards to dependent claim 9, Deng does not disclose wherein the second carrier has a stub shaft extending from a second side, wherein the rotary output member is connected to the stub shaft for rotation therewith, in combination with all other claim limitations. Rather, in Deng the rotary output member is outside of the housing (2) and so is not directly connected or connectable to the second carrier or a stub shaft of the second carrier.
Claims 10 and 15 depend upon claim 9.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure:
Nilsson (US2018/0170168) discloses a shift actuator where the slot (36) goes through the thickness of the housing (33). While Nilsson does disclose planetary gearing (e.g. 23, 26; para. [0034]), the planetary gearing is disclosed as part of the transmission that is shifted rather than part of the shift actuator.
Maki (US2018/0135751) discloses a shift actuator where the slot (210c) goes through the thickness of the housing (210, 224). Maki does not disclose planetary gearing, and does not disclose many claimed details as to the specific structure of the shift actuator (such as the position of the motor, etc.).
Janson (US5,740,695) discloses a shift actuator where the slot (36) goes through the thickness of the housing (30). While Janson does briefly disclose planetary gearing (C4/L25-30), the planetary gearing is disclosed as part of the transmission of the prior art that is shifted rather than part of the shift actuator.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to GREGORY T PRATHER whose telephone number is (571)270-5412. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Thursday 9 AM - 5 PM.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Minnah Seoh can be reached at 571-270-7778. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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GREGORY T PRATHER/
Examiner, Art Unit 3618
/MINNAH L SEOH/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3618
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