Appeal 2007-1535
Application 10/626,969
report its status to the siren unit’s CPU via the control packet (Boreham, col.
7, ll. 52-56; Fig. 8).
Boreham does not expressly state that the vehicle security control unit
communicates with the vehicle’s instrument panel and ignition line via the
serial data bus. Nevertheless, the collective teachings of Boreham strongly
suggest that this is the case given the stated ability to address multiple
devices using the bus, or, at the very least, a viable alternative to point-to-
point wiring.
In any event, the fact that four data bits are provided in the control
packet for addressing various vehicle devices suggests that 16 different
devices can be addressed.12 The skilled artisan would have reasonably
inferred that addressing 16 different devices on a vehicle on a single serial
bus would reasonably involve extending the bus throughout the vehicle to
facilitate such communication. Even assuming that these 16 devices could
be within the same general vicinity in the vehicle, the clear import of
Boreham is that such devices could likewise be installed at various locations
throughout the vehicle, particularly in view of Boreham’s specific references
to communicating with the instrument panel and the ignition line.
In short, nothing precludes extending the serial data bus throughout
the vehicle to facilitate data communication with various vehicle devices
using the bus. In any event, Nykerk teaches extending a wire harness 30
substantially the entire length of the vehicle with various components (e.g.,
headlights, taillights, horn, sensors, etc.) connected thereto as shown in
Figure 1 (Nykerk, Fig. 1; col. 7, l. 64 - col. 8, l. 23). In view of this
12 Since there are four bits in the Address Field, 24 (or 16) unique addresses
can be accommodated in this field.
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