ALLISON TRANSMISSION, INC. GRANTED PATENT FOR POWER TRAIN CONTROLLER AND ASSOCIATED MEMORY DEVICE.

Allison Transmission, Inc. offers marketable vehicle parts. The Company produces and develops automatic transmissions for medium and heavy-duty marketable vehicles and electric hybrid propulsion systems, as well as offers fluid, tools, filter calculators, and other parts and services. Allison Transmission serves customers worldwide.

In India, the mechanical business of Allison Transmission, Inc. focuses on Axle assembly, Hybrid systems, Systems and methods for high voltage cable detection in hybrid vehicles, and a Variator lockout valve system.

Allison Transmission, Inc. filed a patent application numbered 5987/DELNP/2011 that is titled POWER TRAIN CONTROLLER AND ASSOCIATED MEMORY DEVICE. The patent has been filed in the field of Mechanical Engineering. This Patent Application has been granted as Patent Number 356999. This invention relates to a power train subsystem for a motorized vehicle and methods of programming such as power train controllers of the power train subsystem are disclosed. The power train subsystem may include a power train component, a controller, and a memory device. The controller may be coupled to the power train component to control the operation of the power train component. The memory device may include boot code, application software, standard calibration parameters, and custom calibration parameters. The boot code provides an environment upon which the application software executes per the standard calibration parameters and custom calibration parameters. The standard calibration provides parameters that configure the controller for a range of vehicular applications. The custom calibration parameters provide parameters that configure the controller for a particular vehicular application in the range of vehicular applications.

During the patent examination, the Patent Examiner raised objections under Section 3(k) of the Indian Patent Act, 1970. The claims of the invention claimed power subsystem of the vehicle having controller and memory device which comprises boot code, application software, etc. Further, certain claims claimed a method to customizing transmission of a vehicle which includes programming to the transmission control module. Thus subject matter of said claim also falls u/s 3(k).

As a response, the Applicant submitted that the pending claims were deleted. Further, the Applicant submits that the invention as claimed in amended and renumbered claims is not excluded as software/computer program per se or computer-based algorithmic steps under Section 3(k) of the Act.

Advocate Rahul Dev is a Patent Attorney & International Business Lawyer practicing Technology, Intellectual Property & Corporate Laws. He is reachable at rd (at) patentbusinesslawyer (dot) com & @rdpatentlawyer on Twitter.

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