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 .
Priority
Receipt is acknowledged of certified copies of papers required by 37 CFR 1.55.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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) 1-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Grbovic US 2007/0013332) in view of Robelin et al. (US 2014/0145531).
Regarding claim 1,
Grbovic discloses (Fig. 1):
A thyristor rectifier (Fig. 1, all elements), in particular for an electric motor drive (30, M),
comprising three thyristors (K1, K2, K3) and three diodes (D1, D2, D3, ¶0020), wherein the thyristors (K1,
K2, K3) are connected to a positive rectifier output (upper side of DC Bus) and the three diodes (D1, D2,D3) are connected to a negative rectifier output (lower side of Dc Bus, ¶0026),
They do not disclose:
wherein the thyristor rectifier comprises an impedance and a capacitor electrically arranged in series to each other, wherein the capacitor and the impedance connect the positive rectifier output and the impedance connects to the negative rectifier output and wherein the impedance is a NTC-resistor.
However, Robelin teaches (Fig. 3):
wherein the thyristor rectifier (Fig. 3, 14) comprises an impedance (30) and a capacitor (28) electrically arranged in series to each other (in series to each other connected to ground, R0014), wherein the capacitor (28) and the impedance connect the positive rectifier output (connected to DC+) (30) to the negative rectifier output (RRN, through ground) and wherein the impedance is a NTC-resistor (¶0014).
Regarding claim 1, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the
effective filing date of the claimed invention to take the thyristor rectifier from Grbovic that has a partial active rectifier rectifying Ac voltage into DC voltage on a DC link (¶0020, ¶0026) and connect the NTC damper circuit from the DC link positive side to the DC link negative side in order to damp a Dc link with an NTC resistor as taught by Robelin (¶0014). This would enable the circuit to save costs using a partial active rectifier and improving reliability using the damped filter to prevent transients from destroying the system.
Regarding claim 2,
Grbovic discloses the above elements from claim 1.
Grbovic does not disclose:
wherein the impedance is directly connected to the negative rectifier output.
However, Robelin teaches (fig. 3):
wherein the impedance (Fig. 3, NTC) is directly connected to the negative rectifier output
(Negative DC rail, 14).
Regarding claim 2, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the
effective filing date of the claimed invention to take the thyristor rectifier from Grbovic that has a partial active rectifier rectifying Ac voltage into DC voltage on a DC link (¶0020, ¶0026) and connect the NTC damper circuit from the DC link positive side to the DC link negative side in order to damp a Dc link with an NTC resistor as taught by Robelin (¶0014). This would enable the circuit to save costs using a partial active rectifier and improving reliability using the damped filter to prevent transients from destroying the system.
Regarding claim 3,
Grbovic discloses the above elements from claim 1.
Grbovic does not disclose:
wherein the capacitor is directly connected to the positive rectifier output.
However, Robelin teaches (fig. 3):
wherein the capacitor (Fig. 3, 28) is directly connected to the positive rectifier output (DC+,
¶0014).
Regarding claim 3, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the
effective filing date of the claimed invention to take the thyristor rectifier from Grbovic that has a partial active rectifier rectifying Ac voltage into DC voltage on a DC link (¶0020, ¶0026) and connect the NTC damper circuit from the DC link positive side to the DC link negative side in order to damp a Dc link with an NTC resistor as taught by Robelin (¶0014). This would enable the circuit to save costs using a partial active rectifier and improving reliability using the damped filter to prevent transients from destroying the system.
Regarding claim 4,
Grbovic discloses (Fig. 1):
one circuit portion (Fig. 1, Zs) comprising at least a second impedance (Zs), said second impedance (Zs) connecting the positive rectifier output to the negative rectifier output (¶0028).
They do not disclose:
wherein a circuit portion comprising the impedance and the capacitor is arranged in parallel
However, Robelin teaches (Fig. 3):
wherein a circuit portion (Fig. 3, 28, 30, 32) comprising the impedance (30) and the capacitor
(28) is arranged in parallel (on DC bus, ¶0014)
Regarding claim 4, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the
effective filing date of the claimed invention to take the thyristor rectifier from Grbovic that has a partial active rectifier rectifying Ac voltage into DC voltage on a DC link (¶0020, ¶0026) and connect the NTC damper circuit from the DC link positive side to the DC link negative side in order to damp a Dc link with an NTC resistor as taught by Robelin (¶0014). This would enable the circuit to save costs using a partial active rectifier and improving reliability using the damped filter to prevent transients from destroying the system.
Regarding claim 5,
Grbovic discloses (Fig. 1):
wherein the thyristors (Fig. 1, K1, K2, K3) are directly connected to a positive rectifier output
(positive Dc rail) and the three diodes (D1, D2, D3) are directly connected to a negative rectifier output (negative DC rail, ¶0020).
Regarding claim 6,
Grbovic discloses (Fig. 1):
An electric motor drive (Fig. 1, 30, M) comprising a thyristor rectifier (Fig. 1, all elements, ¶0020-¶0021) according to claim 1.
Regarding claim 7,
Grbovic discloses the above elements from claim 2.
Grbovic does not disclose:
wherein the capacitor is directly connected to the positive rectifier output.
However, Robelin teaches (fig. 3):
wherein the capacitor (Fig. 3, 28) is directly connected to the positive rectifier output (DC+,
¶0014).
Regarding claim 7, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the
effective filing date of the claimed invention to take the thyristor rectifier from Grbovic that has a partial active rectifier rectifying Ac voltage into DC voltage on a DC link (¶0020, ¶0026) and connect the NTC damper circuit from the DC link positive side to the DC link negative side in order to damp a Dc link with an NTC resistor as taught by Robelin (¶0014). This would enable the circuit to save costs using a partial active rectifier and improving reliability using the damped filter to prevent transients from destroying the system.
Regarding claim 8,
Grbovic discloses (Fig. 1):
one circuit portion (Fig. 1, Zs) comprising at least a second impedance (Zs), said second impedance (Zs) connecting the positive rectifier output to the negative rectifier output (¶0028).
They do not disclose:
wherein a circuit portion comprising the impedance and the capacitor is arranged in parallel
However, Robelin teaches (Fig. 3):
wherein a circuit portion (Fig. 3, 28, 30, 32) comprising the impedance (30) and the capacitor
(28) is arranged in parallel (on DC bus, ¶0014)
Regarding claim 8, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the
effective filing date of the claimed invention to take the thyristor rectifier from Grbovic that has a partial active rectifier rectifying Ac voltage into DC voltage on a DC link (¶0020, ¶0026) and connect the NTC damper circuit from the DC link positive side to the DC link negative side in order to damp a Dc link with an NTC resistor as taught by Robelin (¶0014). This would enable the circuit to save costs using a partial active rectifier and improving reliability using the damped filter to prevent transients from destroying the system.
Regarding claim 9,
Grbovic discloses (Fig. 1):
one circuit portion (Fig. 1, Zs) comprising at least a second impedance (Zs), said second impedance (Zs) connecting the positive rectifier output to the negative rectifier output (¶0028).
They do not disclose:
wherein a circuit portion comprising the impedance and the capacitor is arranged in parallel
However, Robelin teaches (Fig. 3):
wherein a circuit portion (Fig. 3, 28, 30, 32) comprising the impedance (30) and the capacitor
(28) is arranged in parallel (on DC bus, ¶0014)
Regarding claim 9, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the
effective filing date of the claimed invention to take the thyristor rectifier from Grbovic that has a partial active rectifier rectifying Ac voltage into DC voltage on a DC link (¶0020, ¶0026) and connect the NTC damper circuit from the DC link positive side to the DC link negative side in order to damp a Dc link with an NTC resistor as taught by Robelin (¶0014). This would enable the circuit to save costs using a partial active rectifier and improving reliability using the damped filter to prevent transients from destroying the system.
Regarding claim 10,
Grbovic discloses (Fig. 1):
wherein the thyristors (Fig. 1, K1, K2, K3) are directly connected to a positive rectifier output(positive Dc rail) and the three diodes (D1, D2, D3) are directly connected to a negative rectifier output (negative DC rail, ¶0020).
Regarding claim 11,
Grbovic discloses (Fig. 1):
wherein the thyristors (Fig. 1, K1, K2, K3) are directly connected to a positive rectifier output (positive Dc rail) and the three diodes (D1, D2, D3) are directly connected to a negative rectifier output (negative DC rail, ¶0020).
Regarding claim 12,
Grbovic discloses (Fig. 1):
wherein the thyristors (Fig. 1, K1, K2, K3) are directly connected to a positive rectifier output (positive Dc rail) and the three diodes (D1, D2, D3) are directly connected to a negative rectifier output (negative DC rail, ¶0020).
Regarding claim 13,
Grbovic discloses (Fig. 1):
An electric motor drive (Fig. 1, 30, M) comprising a thyristor rectifier (Fig. 1, all elements, ¶0020-
¶0021) according to claim 2.
Regarding claim 14,
Grbovic discloses (Fig. 1):
An electric motor drive (Fig. 1, 30, M) comprising a thyristor rectifier (Fig. 1, all elements, ¶0020-
¶0021) according to claim 3.
Regarding claim 15,
An electric motor drive (Fig. 1, 30, M) comprising a thyristor rectifier (Fig. 1, all elements, ¶0020-
¶0021) according to claim 4.
Regarding claim 16,
Grbovic discloses (Fig. 1):
An electric motor drive (Fig. 1, 30, M) comprising a thyristor rectifier (Fig. 1, all elements, ¶0020-
¶0021) according to claim 5.
Regarding claim 17,
Grbovic discloses (Fig. 1):
A thyristor rectifier (Fig. 1, all elements), in particular for an electric motor drive (30, M),
comprising three thyristors (K1, K2, K3) and three diodes (D1, D2, D3, ¶0020), wherein the thyristors (K1, K2, K3) are connected to a positive rectifier output (upper side of DC Bus) and the three diodes (D1, D2, D3) are connected to a negative rectifier output (lower side of Dc Bus, ¶0026),
They do not disclose:
wherein the thyristor rectifier comprises an impedance and a capacitor electrically arranged in wherein the thyristor rectifier comprises an impedance and a capacitor electrically arranged in series to each other, wherein the capacitor and the impedance connect the positive rectifier output and the impedance connects to the negative rectifier output and wherein the impedance is a NTC-resistor, and wherein the impedance and the capacitor arranged in series to each other are configured to protect the thyristors from damage due to current surges
However, Robelin teaches (Fig. 3):
wherein the thyristor rectifier (Fig. 3, 14) comprises an impedance (30) and a capacitor (28) electrically arranged in series to each other (in series to each other connected to ground, R0014), wherein the capacitor (28) and the impedance connect the positive rectifier output (connected to DC+) (30) to the negative rectifier output (RRN, through ground) and wherein the impedance is a NTC-resistor (¶0014),
and wherein the impedance (30) and the capacitor (28) arranged in series to each other are configured to protect the thyristors from damage due to current surges (¶0012-¶0014, used to damp and suppress current).
Regarding claim 17, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the
effective filing date of the claimed invention to take the thyristor rectifier from Grbovic that has a partial active rectifier rectifying Ac voltage into DC voltage on a DC link (¶0020, ¶0026) and connect the NTC damper circuit from the DC link positive side to the DC link negative side in order to damp a Dc link with an NTC resistor as taught by Robelin (¶0014). This would enable the circuit to save costs using a partial active rectifier and improving reliability using the damped filter to prevent transients from destroying the system.
Regarding claim 18,
Grbovic discloses the above elements from claim 17.
Grbovic does not disclose:
wherein the impedance is directly connected to the negative rectifier output.
However, Robelin teaches (fig. 3):
wherein the impedance (Fig. 3, NTC) is directly connected to the negative rectifier output
(Negative DC rail, 14).
Regarding claim 18, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the
effective filing date of the claimed invention to take the thyristor rectifier from Grbovic that has a partial active rectifier rectifying Ac voltage into DC voltage on a DC link (¶0020, ¶0026) and connect the NTC damper circuit from the DC link positive side to the DC link negative side in order to damp a Dc link with an NTC resistor as taught by Robelin (¶0014). This would enable the circuit to save costs using a partial active rectifier and improving reliability using the damped filter to prevent transients from destroying the system.
Regarding claim 19,
Grbovic discloses the above elements from claim 17.
Grbovic does not disclose:
wherein the capacitor is directly connected to the positive rectifier output.
However, Robelin teaches (fig. 3):
wherein the capacitor (Fig. 3, 28) is directly connected to the positive rectifier output (DC+,
¶0014).
Regarding claim 19, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the
effective filing date of the claimed invention to take the thyristor rectifier from Grbovic that has a partial active rectifier rectifying Ac voltage into DC voltage on a DC link (¶0020, ¶0026) and connect the NTC damper circuit from the DC link positive side to the DC link negative side in order to damp a Dc link with an NTC resistor as taught by Robelin (¶0014). This would enable the circuit to save costs using a partial active rectifier and improving reliability using the damped filter to prevent transients from destroying the system.
Regarding claim 20,
Grbovic discloses (Fig. 1):
one circuit portion (Fig. 1, Zs) comprising at least a second impedance (Zs), said second impedance (Zs) connecting the positive rectifier output to the negative rectifier output (¶0028).
They do not disclose:
wherein a circuit portion comprising the impedance and the capacitor is arranged in parallel
However, Robelin teaches (Fig. 3):
wherein a circuit portion (Fig. 3, 28, 30, 32) comprising the impedance (30) and the capacitor (28) is arranged in parallel (on DC bus, ¶0014)
Regarding claim 20, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the
effective filing date of the claimed invention to take the thyristor rectifier from Grbovic that has a partial active rectifier rectifying Ac voltage into DC voltage on a DC link (¶0020, ¶0026) and connect the NTC damper circuit from the DC link positive side to the DC link negative side in order to damp a Dc link with an NTC resistor as taught by Robelin (¶0014). This would enable the circuit to save costs using a partial active rectifier and improving reliability using the damped filter to prevent transients from destroying the system.
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed 3/25/26 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive.
Regarding applicant’s arguments pertaining to claims 1-20, applicant argues that In response to applicant's argument that the examiner's conclusion of obviousness is based upon improper hindsight reasoning, it must be recognized that any judgment on obviousness is in a sense necessarily a reconstruction based upon hindsight reasoning. But so long as it takes into account only knowledge which was within the level of ordinary skill at the time the claimed invention was made, and does not include knowledge gleaned only from the applicant's disclosure, such a reconstruction is proper. See In re McLaughlin, 443 F.2d 1392, 170 USPQ 209 (CCPA 1971).
Additionally, Robelin et al. clearly teaches in ¶0014, how the series capacitor 28 and NTC resistor 30 can be installed on either of the DC rails as shown in figures 2 and 3. As such, the examiner has presented sufficient evidence that the location of the RC circuit as taught by Robelin would have yielded similar results if installed on Grbovic circuit on a different DC rail. The examiner further states that the combination of Grbovic and Robelin to be proper as they both teach similar inventions in which RC circuits are used to suppress transient voltages by filtering unwanted resonance like noise currents while the placement of the RC circuit in either DC rail does not affect its function. The substitution of a regular resistor in Grbovic to a NTC resistor by Robelin also carries some advantages, while a regular resistor works with the capacitor to dissipate the stored energy as heat, preventing the capacitor from becoming overloaded, an NTC resistor would add a temperature dependent resistance that although not stable as a regular resistor, would protect the capacitor faster in the event a predictable temperature is sense when an inrush current increases, therefore slowing the charging of the capacitor until the NTC resistor heats up and its resistance decreases, thereby preventing the capacitor from becoming overloaded.
Applicant further argues in the affidavit dated 3/25/26, applicant argues that the NTC resistor is for thyristor overcurrent protection and for EMC filtering, however, Applicant's arguments fail to comply with 37 CFR 1.111(b) because they amount to a general allegation that the claims define a patentable invention without specifically pointing out how the language of the claims patentably distinguishes them from the references.
As such, examiner is maintaining the rejections of claims 1-20.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Benn (US 2007/0013332) – inrush limiter
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to CHARLES S LAUGHLIN whose telephone number is (571)270-7244. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Friday.
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/C.S.L./ Examiner, Art Unit 2837 /KAWING CHAN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2837
