Appeal No. 95-0744
Application 07/758,460
operating properly. High current values would have
indicated mechanical restriction of the motor. . . . The
reference as a whole suggests that an abnormal load could
produce higher than normal currents flowing in the
electric motor.
Actually, Yabe determines whether the power steering system
(not just the electric motor itself) is operating properly
based on the magnitude of the monitored current. Yabe also
appears to work contrary to the examiner's understanding of
the reference. Yabe determines whether the steering system
produces sufficient load to assist the steering, as determined
by measuring the current through the electric motor (col. 4,
lines 5-31) or the oil pressure (col. 4, lines 46-58) or the
strain produced in the steering mechanism by the motor
(col. 5, lines 3-18; figure 5). For example, a high current
value in the electric motor indicates that the system is
working properly since the test current and the alarm light
are turned off if the motor current is larger than a set limit
of 5 A (figure 3, step 107): high current does not indicate a
mechanical restriction in the motor as stated by the examiner.
Perhaps the larger current indicates that the electric motor
is working normally to pump oil, whereas a low current would
indicate that the electric motor is doing less work because of
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Last modified: November 3, 2007