Ex Parte Hosek et al

Patent Trial and Appeal Board

Jun 1, 2017

13744900 (P.T.A.B. Jun. 1, 2017)

UNITED STATES PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE
UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
United States Patent and Trademark Office
Address: COMMISSIONER FOR PATENTS
P.O. Box 1450
Alexandria, Virginia 22313-1450
www.uspto.gov
APPLICATION NO. FILING DATE FIRST NAMED INVENTOR ATTORNEY DOCKET NO. CONFIRMATION NO.
13/744,900 01/18/2013 Martin HOSEK 101A.0002.U2(US) 6308
29683 7590 06/01/2017
HARRINGTON & SMITH
4 RESEARCH DRIVE, Suite 202
SHELTON, CT 06484-6212
EXAMINER
LEUNG, QUYEN PHAN
ART UNIT PAPER NUMBER
2834
MAIL DATE DELIVERY MODE
06/01/2017 PAPER
Please find below and/or attached an Office communication concerning this application or proceeding.
The time period for reply, if any, is set in the attached communication.
PTOL-90A (Rev. 04/07)

UNITED STATES PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE
________________

BEFORE THE PATENT TRIAL AND APPEAL BOARD
________________

Ex parte MARTIN HOSEK, TUAN HA,
and DENNIS POOLE
________________

Appeal 2016-005080
Application 13/744,900
Technology Center 2800
________________

Before TERRY J. OWENS, BEVERLY A. FRANKLIN, and
DEBRA L. DENNETT, Administrative Patent Judges.

OWENS, Administrative Patent Judge.

DECISION ON APPEAL

STATEMENT OF THE CASE
The Appellants appeal under 35 U.S.C. § 134(a) from the Examiner’s
rejection of claims 1–4 and 6–19. We have jurisdiction under
35 U.S.C. § 6(b).
The Invention
The Appellants claim an apparatus which can be part of a robot drive
(Spec. ¶ 2). Claim 1 is illustrative:
1. An apparatus comprising:
a position sensor read head;
a casing connected to the read head, where the casing is
configured to be sealingly connected to a motor assembly
housing to seal an aperture through the housing for keeping an
Appeal 2016-005080
Application 13/744,900

2
environment inside the housing separate from an environment
outside the housing at the aperture, where the casing is
configured to isolate at least a portion of the read head from the
environment inside the housing, and where the read head is
configured to sense a
reference member in the environment inside the housing; and
an adjustable connector comprising the casing, where the
adjustable connector is configured to adjustably connect the
read head to the motor assembly housing and lock a location of
the read head relative to the motor assembly housing at one of a
number of different locations, where
the adjustable connector is configured to seal the aperture
through the housing for keeping the environment inside the
housing separated from the environment outside the housing at
the aperture, where the adjustable
connector is configured to allow position of the read head on
the housing to be adjusted from outside the housing, where the
adjustable connector is configured to allow the read head to be
radially adjusted on the housing to the number of different
locations without breaking the seal with the housing at the
aperture.

The Reference
Gilchrist US 2009/0243413 A1 Oct. 1, 2009
The Rejections
The claims stand rejected over Gilchrist as follows: claims 1–4, 6–9,
11, 12, 14, 15, and 17–19 under 35 U.S.C. § 102(b) and claims 10, 13, and
16 under 35 U.S.C. § 103.

Appeal 2016-005080
Application 13/744,900

3
OPINION
We reverse the rejections. We need address only the independent
claims (1 and 12).1 Those claims require an adjustable connector configured
to allow a read head to be radially adjusted on (claim 1) or relative to
(claim 12) a housing without breaking a seal with the housing.
An examiner has the initial burden of establishing a prima facie case
of anticipation by pointing out where all of the claim limitations appear in a
single reference. See In re Spada, 911 F.2d 705, 708 (Fed. Cir. 1990); In re
King, 801 F.2d 1324, 1327 (Fed. Cir. 1986).
Gilchrist discloses a robot drive apparatus comprising a
carriage (205’) having a recess (530A) for radial insertion and removal of a
read head (411’)-containing sensor module (550A) which may be adjustable
within the recess (530A) so that the sensors are aligned with an encoder
scale (430A) (¶ 84; Fig. 12A). The read head (411’) can form a seal (570A)
between the module (550A) and the carriage (205’) to prevent any leakage
of atmosphere or the passage of contaminants into or out of a substrate
processing area (id.).
The Examiner relies upon Gilchrist’s sensor module (550A) as
corresponding to the Appellants’ adjustable connector, and finds that “the
adjustable connector [500, 550A] is configured to allow position of the read
head [411’] on the housing [205’] to be adjusted from outside the
housing [205’], where the adjustable connector [550A] is configured to
allow the read head [411’] to be radially adjusted [slid in and out of

1 In the rejections under 35 U.S.C. § 103 the Examiner does not rely upon
any obviousness rationale with respect to the limitations in the independent
claims (Final Act. 16–20).
Appeal 2016-005080
Application 13/744,900

4
recess 530A] on the housing [205’] to [a] number of locations [with 570A
still covering view ports 560A] without breaking the seal with the
housing [205’] at the aperture” (Final Act. 9).
Gilchrist’s read head (411’) forms the seal (570A) between the
module (550A) and the carriage (205’) (¶ 84; Fig. 12A). The Examiner does
not establish that sliding the module (550A), which contains the read
head (411’), out of the recess (530A) does not break that seal. Thus, the
Examiner does not establish that Gilchrist discloses each of the Appellants’
claim limitations.
Accordingly, we reverse the rejections.
DECISION/ORDER
The rejections over Gilchrist of claims 1–4, 6–9, 11, 12, 14, 15,
and 17–19 under 35 U.S.C. § 102(b) and claims 10, 13, and 16 under
35 U.S.C. § 103 are reversed.
It is ordered that the Examiner’s decision is reversed.

REVERSED