The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
DETAILED ACTION
Continued Examination Under 37 CFR 1.114
A request for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114 was filed in this application after a decision by the Patent Trial and Appeal Board, but before the filing of a Notice of Appeal to the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit or the commencement of a civil action. Since this application is eligible for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114 and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the appeal has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114 and prosecution in this application has been reopened pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114. Applicant’s submission filed on 6/23/2026 has been entered. Upon entering amendment, claims 1 and 11 have been amended. Claims 1-12 remain pending.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to amended claim(s) 1 have been considered. Applicant has amended claim 11 to recite the features of base claim 1 and intervening claim 9 and therefore independent claim 11 is allowable. With respect to amended claim 1, the limitations of “power-up mode” and “operating mode” are each defined by the state of the first and second bidirectional switches. That is, a “power-up mode” is defined to correspond to the first bidirectional switch to be ON and the second bidirectional switch to be OFF while the “operating mode” is defined to correspond to the second bidirectional switch to be turned ON and the first bidirectional switch to be turned OFF. The examiner notes that Winick et al. (2002/0135235 A1), Fig.1, pars [31-32] teaches a power-up mode read on by “system startup” and “power up process” in which the first bidirectional switch (124) is turned ON and the second bidirectional switch (174) is turned OFF and an operating mode after the power-up mode (pars [31-32, 34-35]; operating mode read on by “full functionality mode” after switching out of a system startup/power-up mode that includes standby mode) in which the second bidirectional switch (174) is turned ON and the first bidirectional switch (124) is turned OFF (pars [34-35]). Alternatively, Lim et al. (2017/0279284 A1), Figs.1A-1B, par [17] and related discussion teaches the state of the switches that would correspond to the “power-up mode” and “operating mode”. That is, Lim teaches in par [17] “voltage or current output…can also be coupled to the output terminal, Vsys 116c… if the first control signal, CTRL1, is applied…” and “the second battery charger 112c can be utilized to deliver a regulated voltage and current to charge the battery stack or cells 108c, and/or deliver a regulated supply at the output terminal, VSYS 116c.” The word “if” is conditional/an option/not required to happen. In the instance in which CTRL1 signal is not applied to the second switch 106 to turn it on (for the purpose of this office action, CTRL1 is never applied), the option of turning on the first bidirectional switch 106 is never implemented, and consequently path 124 never happens. In this instance, the auxiliary load 108 receives power from the auxiliary DC-DC converter 112 via a turned on first switch 110 and does not receive power from the main DC-DC converter 102 as second switch 106 is OFF, and the main load 116 does not receive power from the auxiliary DC-DC converter 112 because second switch 106 is OFF/CTRL1 is not applied (first switch 110 ON, second switch 106 OFF corresponds to the claimed “power-up mode”). Further, Lim teaches the state of second switch 106 ON and first switch 110 OFF (see Fig.1B) that corresponds to the claimed states of the switches of an “operating mode”. Lim does not teach the order of “operating mode after the power-up mode”; however, choosing the order would have been obvious and well-within the level of ordinary skill in the art, especially in light of Winick’s teachings that the power-up mode comes first and then the operating mode after (Winick, pars [31-32, 34-35]. Thus, the examiner believes Winick in view of Lim, or in the alternative Lim in view of Winick would teach the limitations as currently presented (see rejections below for further analysis of the claims).
In order to further expedite prosecution, the examiner encourages the applicant to further amend claim 1 to define the switch connections of Q1 and Q2; namely, that the drain of each switch is connected to each other and that an anode of Q1’s diode is connected to Q1’s drain and the cathode of Q2’s diode is connected to the drain of Q2.
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) 1-3, 5-10 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Winick et al. (2002/0135235 A1) in view of Lim et al. (2017/0279284 A1) or in the alternative Lim et al. (2017/0279284 A1) in view of Winick et al. (2002/0135235 A1).
Regarding Claim 1,
Winick (Fig.1) teaches a power supply circuit comprising:
an auxiliary direct-current to direct-current (DC-DC) converter circuit (112, par [25]; DC-DC converter as the first power supply 112. Note: “auxiliary” is nomenclature/a label and does not impart structure and/or functionality into the claim) connected to an auxiliary load (110, par [25]; “auxiliary” as previously noted is nomenclature/a label for a load) via a first bidirectional switch (124);
a main power supply (114) connected, via a second bidirectional switch (174), to the auxiliary load (108, see fig.1);
a control circuit (items “VCC”, 155, 156, 164, 196, 156 without or without 116, 118; Note: the transistors 156 and 196 and their respective resistors 164, 156 match applicant’s fig.1’s control circuit QA, R1, QB, R2 and thus read on “control circuit”) to turn ON and turn OFF the first bidirectional switch (124) and the second bidirectional switch (174) in a complementary manner (pars [30-32, 34-35] and related discussion; both switches 124, 174 “will not be turned on at the same time” and so when one switch is turned on, the other is turned off- this reads on “complementary manner”) so that:
during a power-up mode (pars [31-32]; i.e., “system startup” and “power up process”) in which the first bidirectional switch (124) is turned ON and the second bidirectional switch (174) is turned OFF (pars [31-32]; first bidirectional switch 124 is turned ON and second bidirectional switch 174 is turned OFF), the auxiliary load (108) receives power from the auxiliary DC-DC converter (112) and does not receive power from the main power supply (114, pars [25, 31-33]; the auxiliary load 110 receives power from the auxiliary DC-DC converter 112 and does not receive power from the main power supply 114 isolated from 110); and
during an operating mode after the power-up mode (pars [31-32, 34-35]; i.e., operating mode read on by “full functionality mode” after switching out of a system startup/power-up mode that includes standby mode) in which the second bidirectional switch (174) is turned ON and the first bidirectional switch (124) is turned OFF (pars [34-35]; second bidirectional switch 174 is turned ON and the first bidirectional switch 124 is turned OFF during operating mode/full functionality mode), the auxiliary load (110) receives power from the main power supply (114) and does not receive power from the auxiliary DC-DC converter circuit (112, pars [34-35]; 110 does not receive power from the auxiliary DC-DC converter circuit 112 as it is isolated from load 110 via switch 124 being turned OFF).
Winick does not explicitly disclose a main DC-DC converter circuit directly connected to a main load and that the main load does not receive power from the auxiliary DC-DC converter circuit in the power-up mode and the operating mode.
Lim (Figs.1A-1B), however, similar to Winick teaches it is known in the art to have a main DC-DC converter circuit (102, par [12]) directly connected to a main load (116, see Fig.1A) and connected via, a second bidirectional switch (106), to the auxiliary load (108, figs.1A-1B). Lim further teaches an auxiliary DC-DC converter circuit (112, par [14]) connected to an auxiliary load (108) via a first bidirectional switch (110), and when the first bidirectional switch (110) is turned ON and the second bidirectional switch (106) is turned OFF (i.e., the claimed switch states correspond to a power-up mode as defined in the claim), the auxiliary load (108) receives power from the auxiliary DC-DC converter (112) and does not receive power from the main DC-DC converter circuit (102), and the main load (116) does not receive power from the auxiliary DC-DC converter (112, par [17]; Lim states “voltage or current output…can also be coupled to the output terminal, Vsys 116c… if the first control signal, CTRL1, is applied…” and “the second battery charger 112c can be utilized to deliver a regulated voltage and current to charge the battery stack or cells 108c, and/or deliver a regulated supply at the output terminal, VSYS 116c.” The word “if” is conditional/an option/not required to happen. In the instance in which CTRL1 signal is not applied to the second switch 106 to turn it on (for the purpose of this office action, CTRL1 is never applied), the option of turning on the first bidirectional switch 106 is never implemented, and consequently path 124 never happens. In this instance, the auxiliary load 108 receives power from the auxiliary DC-DC converter 112 via a turned on first switch 110 and does not receive power from the main DC-DC converter 102 as second switch 106 is OFF, and the main load 116 does not receive power from the auxiliary DC-DC converter 112 because second switch 106 is OFF/CTRL1 is not applied); and Lim teaches when the second bidirectional switch (106) is turned ON and the first bidirectional switch (110) is turned OFF (see Fig.1B; Lim teaches the claimed switch states that would correspond to “an operating mode” as defined in the claim), the auxiliary load (108) receives power from the main DC-DC converter (102, see Fig.1B) and does not receive power from the auxiliary DC-DC converter (112, see Fig.1B, first switch 110 is OFF and the aux load 108 does not receive power from 112), and the main load (116) does not receive power from the auxiliary DC-DC converter circuit (112, see Fig.1B, pars [16-17]; 116 does not receive power from the aux converter 112).
Thus, in the combination, Winick is modified to include a “main” DC-DC converter at the input to 114 and to be directly connected to a main load upstream the second bidirectional switch as discussed within Lim. The modification then would further teach that during the power-up mode when modified Winick’s second switch 174 is turned OFF, the main load upstream switch 174 does not receive power from the auxiliary DC-DC converter 112 and during the operating mode when the first switch 124 is turned OFF (and the second switch 174 is ON), the main load upstream 174 does not receive power from the auxiliary DC-DC converter 112.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the teachings of Winick to that of Lim. The motivation would have been because one skilled in the art would have readily recognized that DC-DC converters were routinely used to convert an available input voltage to a regulated voltage required by downstream circuitry and would have enabled the main power supply to operate from a wider range of input voltages while supplying the voltage required by the load. Adding a conversion step (structure) does not change the actual device or its functionality. The motivation for adding a main load is because Lim teaches it is well-known and well-desired to connect a main load upstream the second switch and to further give the main DC-DC converter capability to supply power to more than just the auxiliary load.
Alternatively, Lim (Figs.1A-1B) teaches an auxiliary DC-DC converter circuit (112, par [14]) connected to an auxiliary load (108) via a first bidirectional switch (110);
a main DC-DC converter circuit (102, par [12]) directly connected to a main load (116, see Fig.1A) and connected via, a second bidirectional switch (106), to the auxiliary load (108, figs.1A-1B);
a control circuit (pars [13, 15]; “CTRL1”, “CTRL2” are control signals and the circuitry associated with generating the control signals is read on by “a control circuit”) to turn ON and turn OFF the first bidirectional switch (110) and the second bidirectional switch (106) in a complementary manner (pars [16-17]; in Fig.1B, CTRL 1 turns ON second bidirectional switch 106 and CTRL 2 turns off first bidirectional switch 110 and see par [17], discussion above, CTRL 1 is not applied, 106 is OFF and 110 is ON- thus the switches are controlled in a complementary manner) so that:
during a power-up mode in which the first bidirectional switch (110) is turned ON and the second bidirectional switch (106) is turned OFF (Note: “power-up mode” is nomenclature/a label and it is defined by the state of the first switch 110 being turned on and the second switch 106 being turned OFF. The state of switch 110 being ON and switch 106 being OFF is taught by Lim’s par [17] as further discussed below), the auxiliary load (108) receives power from the auxiliary DC-DC converter (112) and does not receive power from the main DC-DC converter circuit (102), and the main load (116) does not receive power from the auxiliary DC-DC converter (112, par [17]; Lim states “voltage or current output…can also be coupled to the output terminal, Vsys 116c… if the first control signal, CTRL1, is applied…” and “the second battery charger 112c can be utilized to deliver a regulated voltage and current to charge the battery stack or cells 108c, and/or deliver a regulated supply at the output terminal, VSYS 116c.” The word “if” is conditional/an option/not required to happen. In the instance in which CTRL1 signal is not applied to the second switch 106 to turn it on (for the purpose of this office action, CTRL1 is never applied), the option of turning on the first bidirectional switch 106 is never implemented, and consequently path 124 never happens. In this instance, the auxiliary load 108 receives power from the auxiliary DC-DC converter 112 via a turned on first switch 110 and does not receive power from the main DC-DC converter 102 as second switch 106 is OFF, and the main load 116 does not receive power from the auxiliary DC-DC converter 112 because second switch 106 is OFF/CTRL1 is not applied); and
during an operating mode (see Fig.1B, Note: “operating mode” is nomenclature/a label defined by the state of the second switch 106 being ON and the first switch 110 being OFF, which is shown in Lim’s Fig.1B) in which the second bidirectional switch (106) is turned ON and the first bidirectional switch (110) is turned OFF (see Fig.1B; Lim teaches the claimed switch states that would correspond to “an operating mode” as defined in the claim), the auxiliary load (108) receives power from the main DC-DC converter (102, see Fig.1B) and does not receive power from the auxiliary DC-DC converter (112, see Fig.1B, first switch 110 is OFF and the aux load 108 does not receive power from 112), and the main load (116) does not receive power from the auxiliary DC-DC converter circuit (112, see Fig.1B, pars [16-17]; 116 does not receive power from the aux converter 112).
Lim teaches the claimed defined states of the switches corresponding to a “power-up mode” and an “operating mode”. Lim does not explicitly disclose the operating mode after the power-up mode.
Winick, however, teaches an operating mode (pars [34-35]; i.e., operating mode read on by “full functionality mode” in which the second bidirectional switch 174 is turned ON and the first bidirectional 124 switch is turned OFF) after the power-up mode (pars [31-32, 34-35]; after switching out of a system startup/power-up mode that includes standby mode in which the first bidirectional switch 124 is turned ON and the second bidirectional switch 174 is turned OFF).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the teachings of Lim to that of Winick’s order of modes (i.e., an operating mode after the power-up mode). The motivation would have been because there are a limited number of options for which mode comes first and it would have been obvious to choose the power-up mode in which the first switch is turned ON and the second switch is turned OFF first and then after switch out to the operating mode in which the second switch is turned ON and the first switch is turned OFF as discussed within Winick.
Regarding Claim 2,
The combination teaches the claimed subject matter in claim 1 and the combination further teaches
wherein the first and second bidirectional switches are metal-oxide-semiconductor field effect
transistors (Winick, pars [22, 24], Lim, pars [13, 15]).
Regarding Claim 3,
The combination teaches the claimed subject matter in claim 1 and the combination further teaches
wherein a drain of the first bidirectional switch (Winick, fig.1, “D” of 124) is connected to a drain
of the second bidirectional switch (Winick, fig.1, “D” of 174).
Regarding Claim 5,
The combination teaches the claimed subject matter in claim 1 and the combination further teaches a
protection circuit (Winick, 161, 162 or 162, par [28]) to output a shutdown signal (Winick, “shutdown” signal output on line 165, pars [28-29, 31]; Note: “shutdown signal” is a label given to a signal. The
claim does not recite where the protection circuit, which component is it connected, etc.)
Regarding Claim 6,
The combination teaches the claimed subject matter in claim 5 and the combination further teaches wherein the shutdown signal turns ON the first bidirectional switch (Winick, 124, par [31]; shutdown signal on line 165 causes 124 to be turned on) and turns OFF the second bidirectional switch (Winick, 174, par [31]; and turns OFF 174).
Regarding Claim 7,
The combination teaches the claimed subject matter in claim 1 and the combination further teaches a microcontroller (Winick, 162, par [28]) to output a control signal (Winick, fig.1, par [29]; control signal on line 165) to the control circuit (Winick, pars [29-31, 34-35]; control signal applied to the transistor 156 of the control circuit).
Regarding Claim 8,
The combination teaches the claimed subject matter in claim 7 and the combination further teaches wherein the control signal turns OFF the first bidirectional switch (Winick, 124) and turns ON the second bidirectional switch (Winick, 174, pars [34-35]).
Regarding Claim 9,
The combination teaches the claimed subject matter in claim 1 and Winick further teaches the control circuit includes: a power supply voltage (fig.1, “VCC”); a first transistor (156) connected between the power supply voltage (VCC) and ground (see fig.1); and a second transistor (196) connected between the power supply voltage (VCC) and ground (see fig.1); a drain (“D”) of the first transistor (156), a gate (“G”) of the second transistor (196), and a gate (“G”) of the first bidirectional switch (124) are connected to each other and to the power supply voltage (VCC, see fig.1); a drain (“D”) of the second transistor (196) and a gate (“G”) of the second bidirectional switch (174) are connected to each other and to the power supply voltage (VCC, see fig.1); and the first transistor (156) is turned ON and OFF (pars [31, 34-35]) such that the first and second bidirectional switches (124, 174) are turned ON and OFF in the complementary manner (pars [31, 34-35]).
Regarding Claim 10,
The combination teaches the claimed subject matter in claim 9 and Winick further teaches comprising a microcontroller (162, par [28]) to output a control signal (fig.1, par [29]; control signal on line 165) to turn ON and OFF the first transistor (156, pars [31, 34-35]).
Claim(s) 4 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Winick et al. (2002/0135235 A1) in view of Lim et al. (2017/0279284 A1) or in the alternative Lim et al. (2017/0279284 A1) in view of Winick et al. (2002/0135235 A1) as applied to claim 1 and in further view of Chen et al. (2010/0109433 A1).
Regarding Claim 4,
The combination teaches the claimed subject matter in claim 1 and Winick further teaches wherein the control circuit includes two transistors (fig.1, 156 and 196).
The combination does not explicitly disclose the control circuit includes four transistors.
Chen (fig.4), however, teaches it is known in the art for the control circuit (208, par [16]) to include four transistors (Q2, Q3, Q4, Q5).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the teachings of the combination to that of Chen of realizing a control circuit with four transistors. The motivation would have been to allow more complex configurations, and increased control precision. Additionally, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to utilize four transistors as taught within Chen, since it has been held that the mere duplication of essential working parts of a device (i.e., the two transistors 156, 196 in Winick’s control circuit) involves only routine skill in the art. St. Regis. Paper Co. v. Bemis Co., 193 USPQ 8. This is especially true given the fact that claim 4 broadly recites “four transistors” without reciting if/how they are connected to each other. The prior art clearly shows the obviousness of the control circuit including two transistors or four transistors and selecting four transistors would have been well within the level of ordinary skill in the art according to the intended design.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 11-12 are allowed.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter:
With respect to independent claim 11, the prior art of record, taken alone or in combination, does not teach “the control circuit includes: a power supply voltage; a first transistor connected between the power supply voltage and ground; a second transistor connected between the power supply voltage and ground; and third and fourth transistors; a drain of the first transistor, a gate of the second transistor, and a gate of the first bidirectional switch are connected to each other and to the power supply voltage; a drain of the second transistor and a gate of the second bidirectional switch are connected to each other and to the power supply voltage; the first transistor is turned ON and OFF such that the first and second bidirectional switches are turned ON and OFF in the complementary manner; gates of the third and fourth transistors are connected together; a drain of the third transistor is connected to a gate of the first transistor; a drain of the fourth transistor is connected to the drain of the second transistor; and the third and fourth transistors are turned ON and OFF together such that the first and second bidirectional switches are turned ON and OFF in the complementary manner.” The aforementioned limitations in combination with the rest of the limitations in claim 11 renders the claim non-obvious over the prior art of record.
Claim 12 depends on claim 11 and is therefore indicated as allowable for similar reasons.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to RASEM MOURAD whose telephone number is (571)270-7770. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 9:00-6.
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/RASEM MOURAD/Examiner, Art Unit 2836
/REXFORD N BARNIE/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2836
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