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 .
Continued Examination Under 37 CFR 1.114
A request for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, including the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e), was filed in this application after final rejection. 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and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114. Applicant's submission filed on 11/26/2025 has been entered.
Claim Status
Claims 1-33 are pending. Claims 8-9, 14-15, and 22-23 are withdrawn from consideration. Claims 1, 3-6, and 25 are amended. Claims 2, 7, 10-13, 16-21, 24, and 26-33 are original.
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed 11/26/2025 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive.
In response to arguments on pages 12-13 of the remarks that primary reference KAWASHIMA “does not disclose a guideline that is used to guide an electric vehicle to the GTA as claimed” and does not disclose the vehicle is “guided with respect to a guideline to the GTA as claimed”, it is respectfully submitted that the claims do not require sensing the guidance signal on the guideline directly. Claim 1 recites the guidance signal is transmitted “over the first guideline for detection by the electric vehicle”, but does not specify the guidance signal is detected at the first guideline or directly from the guideline. The rejection has been modified such that, in KAWASHIMA, in Figure 3, each induction coil 304 (corresponding to the claimed GTA) has a line connecting it to the transmitter 336, said line is now being interpreted as the “guideline”. The cited portions of KAWASHIMA disclose the “guideline” transmits signals to the induction coil 304, said signals detected by the vehicle for alignment of the vehicle pad 405 (corresponding to the claimed VTA) with the induction coil 304. Since the guideline transmits the guidance signal and is thus used for alignment, and the vehicle at least partially travels towards and/or over the guideline as shown in Figures 1 and 4A, the vehicle is guided “with respect to the first guideline” within the broadest reasonable interpretation. It is noted that KAWASHIMA discloses determining an amplitude of a detected guidance signal, but does not disclose detecting a phase of the detected guidance signal. Secondary reference BOYS is relied upon to teach detecting a phase of the detected guidance signal as described in the rejection. It is submitted that KAWASHIMA as modified by BOYS teaches the ground transceiver station as applied to independent claim 1; and KAWASHIMA as modified by BOYS and UYEKI teaches the method of charging an electric vehicle as applied to independent claim 25.
Drawings
The drawings were received on 8/26/2025. These drawings are acceptable.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b):
(b) CONCLUSION.—The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph:
The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention.
Claims 1-7, 10-13, 16-21, and 24 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention.
Regarding claim 1, in the clause “a first guideline extending in a first direction from at least one of the GTAs a predetermined distance”, the lack of a preposition or punctuation clarifying the relationship between the final phrase, "a predetermined distance," and the preceding recitations renders the claim indefinite.
The remaining claims are dependent from claim 1 and are therefore rejected for the same reasons as independent claim 1.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status.
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.
The factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness.
This application currently names joint inventors. In considering patentability of the claims the examiner presumes that the subject matter of the various claims was commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the claimed invention(s) absent any evidence to the contrary. Applicant is advised of the obligation under 37 CFR 1.56 to point out the inventor and effective filing dates of each claim that was not commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the later invention in order for the examiner to consider the applicability of 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(2)(C) for any potential 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) prior art against the later invention.
Claim(s) 1 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over KAWASHIMA (US PG Pub No. 2015/0094887; cited on IDS; cited in previous office action) in view of Applicant Admitted Prior Art (see Figures 3A, 3B, and 3C, and paragraphs 0099-0104 of the specification as originally filed; hereinafter referred to as AAPA).
Regarding claim 1, KAWASHIMA discloses a ground transceiver station (GTS) (400, Fig. 4A) comprising at least two ground transceiver assemblies (GTAs) (induction coil 204, Fig. 2; induction coil 304, Fig. 3; each of the wireless power transmitter devices 402 shown in Fig. 4A contain an induction coil ; ¶ 0042: As shown in FIG. 2, the wireless power transfer system 200 may include a base system transmit circuit 206 including a base system induction coil 204 having an inductance L1; ¶ 0066: the wireless power transfer transmitter devices 402 can include any of the base wireless power charging systems 102a (FIG. 1), 202 (FIG. 2), and 302 (FIG. 3), etc.) adapted to charge an electric vehicle (406, Fig. 4A) via one or more vehicle transceiver assemblies (VTAs) of the electric vehicle (405, Fig. 4A; ¶ 0066: transmitter devices 402 are suitable for charging a wireless power transfer receiver device 405 associated with an electric vehicle 406), comprising:
a pair of side-by-side GTAs, each GTA adapted to align with a VTA of the electric vehicle (there are a plurality of wireless power transmitter devices 402 shown in Fig. 4A; ¶ 0066: the wireless power transfer transmitter devices 402 can include any of the base wireless power charging systems 102a (FIG. 1), 202 (FIG. 2), and 302 (FIG. 3), etc.; ¶ 0067).
KAWASHIMA fails to disclose a first guideline extending in a first direction from at least one of the GTAs a predetermined distance; and a transmitter adapted to transmit at least one guidance signal over the first guideline for detection by the electric vehicle, wherein the electric vehicle determines an amplitude and phase of a detected guidance signal for use in guiding the electric vehicle with respect to the first guideline to the at least one of the GTAs for alignment of at least one VTA of the electric vehicle with the at least one of the GTAs.
AAPA discloses a first guideline (301, Fig. 3A) extending in a first direction from at least one of the GTAs (301, Fig. 3A) a predetermined distance (¶ 0100: In FIG. 3A, the GTA 301, in addition to housing the power transfer coil and associated electronics 302, is designed to support a single antenna cable for guidance purposes (a “guideline”) by inclusion of a radio transmitter 303 that transmits a guidance signal. This radio transmitter 303 is used for generation of a guidance signal which is emitted on the connected guidance antenna 304. The connected guidance antenna 304 is designed to be fastened to the surface of the pavement or embedded within the pavement with a radio permeable covering in each case); and
a transmitter (303, Fig. 3A) adapted to transmit at least one guidance signal over the first guideline (¶ 0100: see above) for detection by the electric vehicle (¶ 0101: A suitably-equipped electric vehicle (EV) or hybrid electric vehicle (not shown) makes use of two or more induction antennas (e.g. inductive loop antennas, flat panel antennas, chip antennas) that receive the signal from the guidance antenna 304 and processes it as described in FIGS. 2A and 2B. Guidance is provided by the received signal, having an amplitude and phase, that is detected using one or more pairs of receiver antennas to align the vehicle left-right in the parking slot, lane, or designated charging area when the vehicle is approaching the GTA 301),
wherein the electric vehicle determines an amplitude and phase of a detected guidance signal for use in guiding the electric vehicle with respect to the first guideline to the at least one of the GTAs for alignment of at least one VTA of the electric vehicle with the at least one of the GTAs (¶ 0101: see above; it is noted that claim 1 is drawn to a “ground transceiver station” and it is not clear if the recitations of the “electric vehicle” further limit the claim).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention was made to incorporate the guideline, transmitter, and the electric vehicle determining an amplitude and phase of a detected guidance signal of AAPA into the ground transceiver station of KAWASHIMA to produce an expected result of a ground transceiver station with a modified alignment system. The modification would be obvious because one of ordinary skill in the art would be motivated to provide an improved alignment system for the ground transceiver station of KAWASHIMA.
Claim(s) 1-3, 5, 10-11, and 24 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over KAWASHIMA (US PG Pub No. 2015/0094887; cited on IDS; cited in previous office action) in view of BOYS (US 2013/0270921; cited on IDS with date 1/3/2022).
Regarding claim 1, KAWASHIMA discloses a ground transceiver station (GTS) (400, Fig. 4A) comprising at least two ground transceiver assemblies (GTAs) (induction coil 204, Fig. 2; induction coil 304, Fig. 3; each of the wireless power transmitter devices 402 shown in Fig. 4A contain an induction coil ; ¶ 0042: As shown in FIG. 2, the wireless power transfer system 200 may include a base system transmit circuit 206 including a base system induction coil 204 having an inductance L1; ¶ 0066: the wireless power transfer transmitter devices 402 can include any of the base wireless power charging systems 102a (FIG. 1), 202 (FIG. 2), and 302 (FIG. 3), etc.) adapted to charge an electric vehicle (406, Fig. 4A) via one or more vehicle transceiver assemblies (VTAs) of the electric vehicle (405, Fig. 4A; ¶ 0066: transmitter devices 402 are suitable for charging a wireless power transfer receiver device 405 associated with an electric vehicle 406), comprising:
a pair of side-by-side GTAs, each GTA adapted to align with a VTA of the electric vehicle (there are a plurality of wireless power transmitter devices 402 shown in Fig. 4A; ¶ 0066: the wireless power transfer transmitter devices 402 can include any of the base wireless power charging systems 102a (FIG. 1), 202 (FIG. 2), and 302 (FIG. 3), etc.; ¶ 0067);
a first guideline extending in a first direction from at least one of the GTAs a predetermined distance (as shown in Fig. 2, each GTA 204 has a “guideline” connecting it to the element 236; as shown in Fig. 3, each GTA 304 has a “guideline” connecting it to the element 336); and
a transmitter (236, Fig. 2; 336, Fig. 3) adapted to transmit at least one guidance signal over the first guideline (¶ 0045: base wireless power charging system 202 includes a base charging system power converter 236. The base charging system power converter 236 may include circuitry such as an AC/DC converter configured to convert power from standard mains AC to DC power at a suitable voltage level, and a DC/low frequency (LF) converter configured to convert DC power to power at an operating frequency suitable for wireless high power transfer; ¶ 0064: To enable wireless high power transfer, some embodiments can be configured to transfer power at a frequency in the range from 10-60 kHz) for detection by the electric vehicle (¶ 0067: an alignment system such as the alignment system 352 (FIG. 3) or 354 (FIG. 3) can receive a scalar alignment rating or alignment parameter ("AP"), as shown in FIG. 4A. For example, the scalar alignment rating can indicate a distance from the induction coil 116 (FIG. 1) of the vehicle pad 405 to the base pad 402. In some embodiments, the scalar alignment rating can be based at least in part on a induced voltage across one or more induction coils 116. As shown in FIG. 4A, the alignment rating for the electric vehicle 406A increases as the electric vehicle 406A approaches the base pad 402, plateaus as the electric vehicle 406A passes over the base pad 402, and decreases as the electric vehicle 406A moves away from the base pad 402; ¶ 0077: an electric vehicle 406F is substantially situated to a right side of a center line 410 of the base pad 402. Accordingly, a higher voltage is induced at the left coil than the right coil. The alignment system 352 can receive the measured voltages at the left and right coils and determine that the electric vehicle 406F is situated to the right of the base pad 402I; ¶ 0089: the electric vehicle 112 determines a lateral position of a receiver relative to a transmitter based on characteristics of the first and second inductive elements. For example the electric vehicle alignment system 354 can determine a position of the electric vehicle 112 based on measured voltages across the left coil DL and the right coil DR according to Equations 1-4, discussed above with respect to FIG. 6. Particularly, the electric vehicle alignment system 354 can receive output from the left and right voltage sensors 650 (FIG. 6) and 660 (FIG. 6); ¶ 0091: the electric vehicle 112 can include an automatic alignment system configured to align the electric vehicle 112 with respect to the base wireless power charging system 102a based on the determined lateral position),
wherein the electric vehicle determines an amplitude of a detected guidance signal (¶ 0067, 0077: see above; it is noted that claim 1 is drawn to a “ground transceiver station” and it is not clear if the recitations of the “electric vehicle” further limit the claim) for use in guiding the electric vehicle with respect to the first guideline (as shown in Figs. 2 & 3, each GTA 204/304 has a “guideline” connecting it to the transmitter 236/336, and the vehicle travels towards the “guideline” and at least partially travels over the “guideline”, which is contained in 402, as shown in Figures 1 and 4A, therefore the vehicle is guided “with respect to the first guideline” within the broadest reasonable interpretation) to the at least one of the GTAs for alignment of at least one VTA of the electric vehicle with the at least one of the GTAs (¶ 0066: transmitter devices 402 are suitable for charging a wireless power transfer receiver device 405 associated with an electric vehicle 406, for example, by the electric vehicle 406A driving into one of the parking spaces 401 to align the inductors of the transmitter and receiver devices such that power can be transferred by inductive power transfer; ¶ 0067, 0077, 0089, 0091: see above).
KAWASHIMA fails to disclose the electric vehicle determines a phase of the detected guidance signal for use in guiding the electric vehicle.
BOYS discloses the electric vehicle determines a phase of the detected guidance signal for use in guiding the electric vehicle (¶ 0148: magnetic structures described herein can also be used to sense the presence and alignment of one structure with another, using a transmission structure and/or a receiving structure. In one example, for a parallel tuned receiver the extent of alignment (or misalignment) is detected by sensing the magnitude and/or phase difference of the short circuit current in one of coils 17 with respect to the other, or of coils 17 with respect to coil 22 . . . . For example in a parking situation with an electric vehicle a lot of power is not required so the receiving pick-up coils 17, 22 may be short-circuited at regular intervals and the short circuit currents in the coils 17 and 22, allowing for the phase of those currents, will give a good indication of the position of the coils with respect to the transmitter pad and thereby allow the position of the vehicle to be known so that the parking may be more precise… Similarly, in a series tuned receiver the extent of alignment (or misalignment) is detected by sensing the magnitude and/or phase difference of the open circuit voltage in one of coils 17 with respect to the other, or of coils 17 with respect to coil 22).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention was made to incorporate the electric vehicle determines a phase of the detected guidance signal of BOYS into the ground transceiver station of KAWASHIMA to produce an expected result of a ground transceiver station with a modified alignment system. The modification would be obvious because one of ordinary skill in the art would be motivated to improve the alignment of the vehicle by improving the detection of the direction of misalignment.
Regarding claim 2, KAWASHIMA discloses a second guideline, wherein the pair of side-by-side GTAs are oriented perpendicular to the first direction, a first GTA is connected to the first guideline, the first guideline extending in the first direction, and a second GTA is connected to the second guideline in parallel to the first guideline (as shown in Fig. 4A, there are a plurality of based pads 402 in the ground transceiver station 400, wherein each base pad 402 has a “guideline” that would be in parallel with the others).
Regarding claim 3, KAWASHIMA discloses the transmitter selectively transmits the at least one guidance signal over at least one of the first guideline or the second guideline for detection by the receiver antennas where the receiver antennas are mounted on the electric vehicle (Figs. 4C-6: left and right coils) and disposed on opposite sides of the first guideline and the second guideline as the electric vehicle approaches the at least one of the GTAs (¶ 0077-0085).
Regarding claim 5, KAWASHIMA discloses a second pair of side-by-side GTAs oriented perpendicular to the first direction, wherein the at least one guidance signal is detected by the receiver antennas to guide at least one VTA of the electric vehicle with respect to the first guideline or the second guideline to at least one GTA of the pair of side-by-side GTAs or the second pair of side-by-side GTAs (Figures 4A and 4C show two pairs of base pads 402 in the ground transceiver station 400, wherein each base pad 402 has a “guideline”).
Regarding claim 10, KAWASHIMA discloses the pair of side-by-side GTAs are oriented in parallel to the first direction, wherein a first GTA is connected to the first guideline, the first guideline extending in the first direction (Figures 4A and 4C show two pairs of base pads 402 in the ground transceiver station 400, wherein each base pad 402 has a “guideline”).
Regarding claim 11, KAWASHIMA discloses an inductive communications system that enables the side-by-side GTAs to communicate with corresponding VTAs of the electric vehicle as the electric vehicle approaches the at least one GTA (¶ 0063).
Regarding claim 24, KAWASHIMA as modified by BOYS teaches the GTS as applied to claim 1, and KAWASHIMA further discloses a communications interface connecting the pair of side-by-side GTAs to the transmitter (¶ 0036).
KAWASHIMA fails to disclose an enclosure for housing the pair of side-by-side GTAs, and a separate enclosure for housing the transmitter.
However, KAWASHIMA discloses an enclosure for the GTA and the transmitter (as shown in Fig. 1A and disclosed in ¶ 0029, base pad 102A implies an enclosure). Providing separate enclosures for the GTAs and the transmitter would not provide new or unexpected results, and constitutes an obvious rearrangement of parts.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention was made to incorporate the separate enclosures into the ground transceiver station of KAWASHIMA to produce an expected result of a ground transceiver station with a modified housing. The modification would be obvious because one of ordinary skill in the art would be motivated to improve thermal management and/or provide a modular design allowing for easier and faster maintenance, as a matter of practical engineering.
Claim(s) 4 and 6-7 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over KAWASHIMA in view of BOYS as applied to claims 1-3, 5, 10-11, and 24 above, and further in view of SIEBER (US PG Pub No. 2018/0375390; cited in previous office action).
Regarding claim 4, KAWASHIMA as modified by BOYS teaches the GTS as applied to claim 3 but fails to disclose the first guideline radiates a first guidance signal at a first frequency and the second guideline radiates a second guidance signal at a second frequency for detection of at least one of the first guidance signal or the second guidance signal by the receiver antennas to guide the electric vehicle as the electric vehicle approaches the at least one of the GTAs.
SIEBER discloses the first guideline radiates a first guidance signal at a first frequency and the second guideline radiates a second guidance signal at a second frequency for detection of at least one of the first guidance signal or the second guidance signal by the receiver antennas to guide the electric vehicle as the electric vehicle approaches the at least one of the GTAs (¶ 0060, 0069).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention was made to incorporate the first and second guidance signals of SIEBER into the ground transceiver station of KAWASHIMA as modified by BOYS to produce an expected result of a ground transceiver station with a modified alignment system. The modification would be obvious because one of ordinary skill in the art would be motivated to facilitate distinguishing between the first and second signal (SIEBER, ¶ 0069).
Regarding claim 6, KAWASHIMA discloses a second pair of side-by-side GTAs oriented perpendicular to the first direction, wherein at least one of the first guidance signal or the second guidance signal is detected by the receiver antennas to guide at least one VTA of the electric vehicle with respect to the first guideline or the second guideline to at least one GTA of the pair of side-by- side GTAs or the second pair of side-by-side GTAs (Figures 4A and 4C show two pairs of base pads 402 in the ground transceiver station 400, wherein each base pad 402 has a “guideline”).
Regarding claim 7, KAWASHIMA discloses the transmitter transmits a GTS beacon from the at least one GTA of the pair of side-by-side GTAs or the second pair of side-by-side GTAs over the first guideline or the second guideline for detection by the receiver antennas to guide at least one VTA of the electric vehicle to the at least one GTA of the pair of side-by-side GTAs or the second pair of side-by-side GTAs depending on whether the first guideline or the second guideline is used to transmit the GTS beacon (¶ 0077-0085).
Claim(s) 12 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over KAWASHIMA in view of BOYS as applied to claims 1-3, 5, 10-11, and 24 above, and further in view of SHRIVASTAVA (US PG Pub No. 2018/0090992; cited in previous office action).
Regarding claim 12, KAWASHIMA as modified by BOYS teaches the GTS as applied to claim 2 but fails to disclose the first guideline is a dipole guideline comprising first and second guideline antenna spans and the second guideline is a dipole guideline comprising third and fourth guideline antenna spans, and wherein the first guideline and the second guideline extend one-quarter wavelength of a first guidance signal transmitted over at least one of the first guideline or the second guideline.
SHRIVASTAVA discloses the first guideline is a dipole guideline comprising first and second guideline antenna spans and the second guideline is a dipole guideline comprising third and fourth guideline antenna spans, and wherein the first guideline and the second guideline extend one-quarter wavelength of a first guidance signal transmitted over at least one of the first guideline or the second guideline (¶ 0022, 0205).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention was made to incorporate the dipole guideline of SHRIVASTAVA into the ground transceiver station of KAWASHIMA as modified by BOYS to produce an expected result of a ground transceiver station with a modified alignment system. The modification would be obvious because one of ordinary skill in the art would be motivated to provide improved signal transmission and reception.
Claim(s) 13 and 16-17 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over KAWASHIMA in view of BOYS and SHIRAVASTAVA as applied to claim 12 above, and further in view of TRIPATHI (US PG Pub 2014/0035526).
Regarding claim 13, KAWASHIMA as modified by BOYS and SHIRAVASTAVA teaches the GTS as applied to claim 12, and KAWASHIMA further discloses a third guideline that radiates a second guidance signal that is discernable from the first guidance signal by a separation in frequency, time, or signal coding (as shown in Figs. 4A and 4C, there are a plurality of based pads 402 in the ground transceiver station 400, wherein each base pad 402 has a “guideline”; ¶ 0067-0071: the GTAs are independent and are at least separated by time).
KAWASHIMA fails to disclose the third guideline is longer than the first guideline and the second guideline.
TRIPATHI discloses the length of a guideline may be longer or shorter (¶ 0079, 0081, 0090), and it would be obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to provide the third guideline of KAWASHIMA having a longer configuration as disclosed in TRIPATHI, such that the third guideline would be longer than the first guideline and the second guideline.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention was made to incorporate the longer guideline of TRIPATHI into the ground transceiver station of KAWASHIMA as modified by BOYS and SHIRAVASTAVA to produce an expected result of a ground transceiver station having a modified alignment system. The modification would be obvious because one of ordinary skill in the art would be motivated to satisfy physical placement and installation requirements.
Regarding claim 16, KAWASHIMA as modified by BOYS, SHIRAVASTAVA, and TRIPATHI teaches the third guideline provides approach guidance to the electric vehicle over a first distance and the first guideline and second guideline provide approach guidance to the electric vehicle over a second distance shorter than the first distance (providing the longer guideline as disclosed in TRIPATHI for the third guideline of KAWASHIMA would provide the second distance shorter than the first distance).
Regarding claim 17, KAWASHIMA discloses the third guideline radiates a first beacon signal and at least one of the first guideline or the second guideline radiates a second beacon signal (¶ 0067-0071: the GTAs are independent and would each radiate different signals).
Claim(s) 25 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over KAWASHIMA (US PG Pub No. 2015/0094887; cited on IDS; cited in previous office action) in view of Applicant Admitted Prior Art (see Figures 3A, 3B, and 3C, and paragraphs 0099-0104 of the specification as originally filed; hereinafter referred to as AAPA) and UYEKI (US PG Pub No. 2012/0123670; cited in previous office action).
Regarding claim 25, KAWASHIMA discloses a method of charging an electric vehicle (406, Fig. 4A) via at least one vehicle transceiver assembly (VTA) of the electric vehicle (405, Fig. 4A) using a ground transceiver station (GTS) (400, Fig. 4A) comprising a pair of side-by-side ground transceiver assemblies (GTAs) (induction coil 204, Fig. 2; induction coil 304, Fig. 3; each of the wireless power transmitter devices 402 shown in Fig. 4A contain an induction coil ; ¶ 0042: As shown in FIG. 2, the wireless power transfer system 200 may include a base system transmit circuit 206 including a base system induction coil 204 having an inductance L1; ¶ 0066: the wireless power transfer transmitter devices 402 can include any of the base wireless power charging systems 102a (FIG. 1), 202 (FIG. 2), and 302 (FIG. 3), etc.), each GTA adapted to align with a VTA of the electric vehicle (405, Fig. 4A; ¶ 0037: In some embodiments, the electric vehicle induction coil 116 may be aligned with the base system induction coil 104a), comprising:
guiding the electric vehicle for alignment of at least one VTA of the electric vehicle with at least one of the GTAs (¶ 0067: an alignment system such as the alignment system 352 (FIG. 3) or 354 (FIG. 3) can receive a scalar alignment rating or alignment parameter ("AP"), as shown in FIG. 4A. For example, the scalar alignment rating can indicate a distance from the induction coil 116 (FIG. 1) of the vehicle pad 405 to the base pad 402. In some embodiments, the scalar alignment rating can be based at least in part on a induced voltage across one or more induction coils 116. As shown in FIG. 4A, the alignment rating for the electric vehicle 406A increases as the electric vehicle 406A approaches the base pad 402, plateaus as the electric vehicle 406A passes over the base pad 402, and decreases as the electric vehicle 406A moves away from the base pad 402; ¶ 0077: an electric vehicle 406F is substantially situated to a right side of a center line 410 of the base pad 402. Accordingly, a higher voltage is induced at the left coil than the right coil. The alignment system 352 can receive the measured voltages at the left and right coils and determine that the electric vehicle 406F is situated to the right of the base pad 402; ¶ 0089: the electric vehicle 112 determines a lateral position of a receiver relative to a transmitter based on characteristics of the first and second inductive elements. For example the electric vehicle alignment system 354 can determine a position of the electric vehicle 112 based on measured voltages across the left coil DL and the right coil DR according to Equations 1-4, discussed above with respect to FIG. 6. Particularly, the electric vehicle alignment system 354 can receive output from the left and right voltage sensors 650 (FIG. 6) and 660 (FIG. 6); ¶ 0091: the electric vehicle 112 can include an automatic alignment system configured to align the electric vehicle 112 with respect to the base wireless power charging system 102a based on the determined lateral position);
aligning the at least one VTA of the electric vehicle and the at least one of the GTAs (¶ 0066-0067, 0077-0078, 0089-0091); and
initiating wireless charging of the at least one VTA of the electric vehicle upon verification of alignment of the at least one VTA of the electric vehicle and the at least one of the GTAs, wherein each aligned VTA operates independently of each other VTA, and each aligned GTA, paired with a VTA, operates independently from each other GTA (¶ 0028, 0031-0032, 0066).
KAWASHIMA fails to disclose a first guideline extending in a first direction from at least one of the GTAs a predetermined distance, and guiding the electric vehicle with respect to the first guideline for alignment of at least one VTA of the electric vehicle with at least one of the GTAs in response to at least one guidance signal radiated by the first guideline for detection by the electric vehicle, wherein the electric vehicle determines an amplitude and phase of a detected guidance signal for use in guiding the electric vehicle with respect to the first guideline to the at least one of the GTAs.
AAPA discloses a first guideline (301, Fig. 3A) extending in a first direction from at least one of the GTAs (301, Fig. 3A) a predetermined distance (¶ 0100: In FIG. 3A, the GTA 301, in addition to housing the power transfer coil and associated electronics 302, is designed to support a single antenna cable for guidance purposes (a “guideline”) by inclusion of a radio transmitter 303 that transmits a guidance signal. This radio transmitter 303 is used for generation of a guidance signal which is emitted on the connected guidance antenna 304. The connected guidance antenna 304 is designed to be fastened to the surface of the pavement or embedded within the pavement with a radio permeable covering in each case), and guiding the electric vehicle with respect to the first guideline for alignment of at least one VTA of the electric vehicle with at least one of the GTAs in response to at least one guidance signal radiated by the first guideline (¶ 0100: see above) for detection by the electric vehicle (¶ 0101: A suitably-equipped electric vehicle (EV) or hybrid electric vehicle (not shown) makes use of two or more induction antennas (e.g. inductive loop antennas, flat panel antennas, chip antennas) that receive the signal from the guidance antenna 304 and processes it as described in FIGS. 2A and 2B. Guidance is provided by the received signal, having an amplitude and phase, that is detected using one or more pairs of receiver antennas to align the vehicle left-right in the parking slot, lane, or designated charging area when the vehicle is approaching the GTA 301), wherein the electric vehicle determines an amplitude and phase of a detected guidance signal for use in guiding the electric vehicle with respect to the first guideline to the at least one of the GTAs (¶ 0101: see above).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention was made to incorporate the first guideline and the electric vehicle determining an amplitude and phase of a detected guidance signal of AAPA into the method of charging an electric vehicle of KAWASHIMA to produce an expected result of a method of charging an electric vehicle with a modified alignment system. The modification would be obvious because one of ordinary skill in the art would be motivated to provide an improved alignment system for the ground transceiver station of KAWASHIMA.
KAWASHIMA fails to disclose selecting the GTS for charging the electric vehicle using information provided by the GTS based on an active GTA configuration of the GTS and a VTA configuration of the electric vehicle.
UYEKI discloses selecting the GTS for charging the electric vehicle using information provided by the GTS based on an active GTA configuration of the GTS and a VTA configuration of the electric vehicle (¶ 0029, 0033, 0037-0038: selection/reservation based in part on location; ¶ 0042-0043: information provided by GTS; ¶ 0029, 0039-0040, 0043-0044: matching configurations for compatibility).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention was made to incorporate the selecting of the GTS of UYEKI into the method of charging an electric vehicle of KAWASHIMA to produce an expected result of a method of charging an electric vehicle including selection of the GTS. The modification would be obvious because one of ordinary skill in the art would be motivated to prevent exhaustion of the vehicle power supply before reaching a proper charging station (UYEKI, ¶ 0035).
Claim(s) 25-30 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over KAWASHIMA (US PG Pub No. 2015/0094887; cited on IDS; cited in previous office action) in view of BOYS (US 2013/0270921; cited on IDS with date 1/3/2022) and UYEKI (US PG Pub No. 2012/0123670; cited in previous office action).
Regarding claim 25, KAWASHIMA discloses a method of charging an electric vehicle (406, Fig. 4A) via at least one vehicle transceiver assembly (VTA) of the electric vehicle (405, Fig. 4A) using a ground transceiver station (GTS) (400, Fig. 4A) comprising a pair of side-by-side ground transceiver assemblies (GTAs) (induction coil 204, Fig. 2; induction coil 304, Fig. 3; each of the wireless power transmitter devices 402 shown in Fig. 4A contain an induction coil ; ¶ 0042: As shown in FIG. 2, the wireless power transfer system 200 may include a base system transmit circuit 206 including a base system induction coil 204 having an inductance L1; ¶ 0066: the wireless power transfer transmitter devices 402 can include any of the base wireless power charging systems 102a (FIG. 1), 202 (FIG. 2), and 302 (FIG. 3), etc.), each GTA adapted to align with a VTA of the electric vehicle (405, Fig. 4A; ¶ 0037: In some embodiments, the electric vehicle induction coil 116 may be aligned with the base system induction coil 104a), and a first guideline extending in a first direction from at least one of the GTAs a predetermined distance (as shown in Fig. 2, each GTA 204 has a “guideline” connecting it to the element 236; as shown in Fig. 3, each GTA 304 has a “guideline” connecting it to the element 336), comprising:
guiding the electric vehicle with respect to the first guideline for alignment of at least one VTA of the electric vehicle with at least one of the GTAs in response to at least one guidance signal radiated by the first guideline (¶ 0045: base wireless power charging system 202 includes a base charging system power converter 236. The base charging system power converter 236 may include circuitry such as an AC/DC converter configured to convert power from standard mains AC to DC power at a suitable voltage level, and a DC/low frequency (LF) converter configured to convert DC power to power at an operating frequency suitable for wireless high power transfer; ¶ 0064: To enable wireless high power transfer, some embodiments can be configured to transfer power at a frequency in the range from 10-60 kHz) for detection by the electric vehicle (¶ 0067: an alignment system such as the alignment system 352 (FIG. 3) or 354 (FIG. 3) can receive a scalar alignment rating or alignment parameter ("AP"), as shown in FIG. 4A. For example, the scalar alignment rating can indicate a distance from the induction coil 116 (FIG. 1) of the vehicle pad 405 to the base pad 402. In some embodiments, the scalar alignment rating can be based at least in part on a induced voltage across one or more induction coils 116. As shown in FIG. 4A, the alignment rating for the electric vehicle 406A increases as the electric vehicle 406A approaches the base pad 402, plateaus as the electric vehicle 406A passes over the base pad 402, and decreases as the electric vehicle 406A moves away from the base pad 402; ¶ 0077: an electric vehicle 406F is substantially situated to a right side of a center line 410 of the base pad 402. Accordingly, a higher voltage is induced at the left coil than the right coil. The alignment system 352 can receive the measured voltages at the left and right coils and determine that the electric vehicle 406F is situated to the right of the base pad 402; ¶ 0089: the electric vehicle 112 determines a lateral position of a receiver relative to a transmitter based on characteristics of the first and second inductive elements. For example the electric vehicle alignment system 354 can determine a position of the electric vehicle 112 based on measured voltages across the left coil DL and the right coil DR according to Equations 1-4, discussed above with respect to FIG. 6. Particularly, the electric vehicle alignment system 354 can receive output from the left and right voltage sensors 650 (FIG. 6) and 660 (FIG. 6); ¶ 0091: the electric vehicle 112 can include an automatic alignment system configured to align the electric vehicle 112 with respect to the base wireless power charging system 102a based on the determined lateral position), wherein the electric vehicle determines an amplitude of a detected guidance signal (¶ 0067, 0077: see above) for use in guiding the electric vehicle with respect to the first guideline (as shown in Figs. 2 & 3, each GTA 204/304 has a “guideline” connecting it to the transmitter 236/336, and the vehicle travels towards the “guideline” and at least partially travels over the “guideline”, which is contained in 402, as shown in Figures 1 and 4A, therefore the vehicle is guided “with respect to the first guideline” within the broadest reasonable interpretation) to the at least one of the GTAs (¶ 0066: transmitter devices 402 are suitable for charging a wireless power transfer receiver device 405 associated with an electric vehicle 406, for example, by the electric vehicle 406A driving into one of the parking spaces 401 to align the inductors of the transmitter and receiver devices such that power can be transferred by inductive power transfer; ¶ 0067, 0077, 0089, 0091: see above);
aligning the at least one VTA of the electric vehicle and the at least one of the GTAs (¶ 0066-0067, 0077-0078, 0089-0091); and
initiating wireless charging of the at least one VTA of the electric vehicle upon verification of alignment of the at least one VTA of the electric vehicle and the at least one of the GTAs, wherein each aligned VTA operates independently of each other VTA, and each aligned GTA, paired with a VTA, operates independently from each other GTA (¶ 0028, 0031-0032, 0066).
KAWASHIMA fails to disclose the electric vehicle determines a phase of the detected guidance signal for use in guiding the electric vehicle.
BOYS discloses the electric vehicle determines a phase of the detected guidance signal for use in guiding the electric vehicle (¶ 0148: magnetic structures described herein can also be used to sense the presence and alignment of one structure with another, using a transmission structure and/or a receiving structure. In one example, for a parallel tuned receiver the extent of alignment (or misalignment) is detected by sensing the magnitude and/or phase difference of the short circuit current in one of coils 17 with respect to the other, or of coils 17 with respect to coil 22 . . . . For example in a parking situation with an electric vehicle a lot of power is not required so the receiving pick-up coils 17, 22 may be short-circuited at regular intervals and the short circuit currents in the coils 17 and 22, allowing for the phase of those currents, will give a good indication of the position of the coils with respect to the transmitter pad and thereby allow the position of the vehicle to be known so that the parking may be more precise… Similarly, in a series tuned receiver the extent of alignment (or misalignment) is detected by sensing the magnitude and/or phase difference of the open circuit voltage in one of coils 17 with respect to the other, or of coils 17 with respect to coil 22).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention was made to incorporate determining a phase of the detected guidance signal of BOYS into the method of charging an electric vehicle of KAWASHIMA to produce an expected result of a method of charging an electric vehicle including a modified alignment process. The modification would be obvious because one of ordinary skill in the art would be motivated to improve the alignment of the vehicle by improving the detection of the direction of misalignment.
KAWASHIMA fails to disclose selecting the GTS for charging the electric vehicle using information provided by the GTS based on an active GTA configuration of the GTS and a VTA configuration of the electric vehicle.
UYEKI discloses selecting the GTS for charging the electric vehicle using information provided by the GTS based on an active GTA configuration of the GTS and a VTA configuration of the electric vehicle (¶ 0029, 0033, 0037-0038: selection/reservation based in part on location; ¶ 0042-0043: information provided by GTS; ¶ 0029, 0039-0040, 0043-0044: matching configurations for compatibility).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention was made to incorporate the selecting of the GTS of UYEKI into the method of charging an electric vehicle of KAWASHIMA to produce an expected result of a method of charging an electric vehicle including selection of the GTS. The modification would be obvious because one of ordinary skill in the art would be motivated to prevent exhaustion of the vehicle power supply before reaching a proper charging station (UYEKI, ¶ 0035).
Regarding claim 26, KAWASHIMA as modified by BOYS and UYEKI teaches the method as applied to claim 25 but fails to disclose selecting the GTS for charging the electric vehicle comprises reserving the GTS, where the GTS has a GTA configuration that is compatible with a VTA configuration of the electric vehicle.
UYEKI further discloses selecting the GTS for charging the electric vehicle comprises reserving the GTS, where the GTS has a GTA configuration that is compatible with a VTA configuration of the electric vehicle (¶ 0029, 0033, 0037-0040, 0042-0044).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention was made to incorporate the selecting the GTS comprises reserving the GTS of UYEKI into the method of charging an electric vehicle of KAWASHIMA to produce an expected result of a method of charging an electric vehicle including reserving of the GTS. The modification would be obvious because one of ordinary skill in the art would be motivated to prevent exhaustion of the vehicle power supply before reaching a proper charging station (UYEKI, ¶ 0035).
Regarding claim 27, KAWASHIMA as modified by BOYS and UYEKI teaches the method as applied to claim 26 but fails to disclose updating location or estimated arrival time to a reservation system as the electric vehicle approaches the selected GTS.
UYEKI further discloses updating location or estimated arrival time to a reservation system as the electric vehicle approaches the selected GTS (¶ 0016, 0029, 0036, 0038).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention was made to incorporate updating location or estimated arrival time to a reservation system of UYEKI into the method of charging an electric vehicle of KAWASHIMA to produce an expected result of a method of charging an electric vehicle including updating location or estimated arrival time to a reservation system. The modification would be obvious because one of ordinary skill in the art would be motivated to prevent exhaustion of the vehicle power supply before reaching a proper charging station (UYEKI, ¶ 0035).
Regarding claim 28, KAWASHIMA as modified by BOYS and UYEKI teaches the method as applied to claim 25 but fails to disclose selecting the GTS for charging the electric vehicle comprises querying the at least one VTA for vehicle information including at least one of battery voltage and State of Charge (SoC) or desired SoC.
UYEKI further discloses selecting the GTS for charging the electric vehicle comprises querying the at least one VTA for vehicle information including at least one of battery voltage and State of Charge (SoC) or desired SoC (¶ 0040, 0043-0044, 0049).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention was made to incorporate the querying for vehicle information of UYEKI into the method of charging an electric vehicle of KAWASHIMA to produce an expected result of a method of charging an electric vehicle including querying for vehicle information. The modification would be obvious because one of ordinary skill in the art would be motivated to prevent exhaustion of the vehicle power supply before reaching a proper charging station (UYEKI, ¶ 0035).
Regarding claim 29, KAWASHIMA as modified by BOYS and UYEKI teaches the method as applied to claim 25 but fails to disclose selecting the GTS for charging the electric vehicle comprises optimizing at least one of matching a VTA configuration of the at least one VTA of the electric vehicle and a GTA configuration of the at least one of the GTAs, time-required-to-charge, next available compatible GTS, or next available GTS irrespective of a number of GTAs.
UYEKI further discloses selecting the GTS for charging the electric vehicle comprises optimizing at least one of matching a VTA configuration of the at least one VTA of the electric vehicle and a GTA configuration of the at least one of the GTAs, time- required-to-charge, next available compatible GTS, or next available GTS irrespective of a number of GTAs (¶ 0029, 0039-0040, 0043-0044).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention was made to incorporate the selecting the GTS of UYEKI into the method of charging an electric vehicle of KAWASHIMA to produce an expected result of a method of charging an electric vehicle including selecting the GTS. The modification would be obvious because one of ordinary skill in the art would be motivated to prevent exhaustion of the vehicle power supply before reaching a proper charging station (UYEKI, ¶ 0035).
Regarding claim 30, KAWASHIMA as modified by BOYS and UYEKI teaches the method as applied to claim 26 but fails to disclose prioritizing a GTS for selection based on at least one of customer affinity of the electric vehicle, whether the electric vehicle has a reservation, whether the electric vehicle is part of a fleet, or availability of a GTS having a GTA configuration that is compatible with a VTA configuration of the electric vehicle.
UYEKI further discloses prioritizing a GTS for selection based on at least one of customer affinity of the electric vehicle, whether the electric vehicle has a reservation, whether the electric vehicle is part of a fleet, or availability of a GTS having a GTA configuration that is compatible with a VTA configuration of the electric vehicle (¶ 0029, 0037-0044, 0043-0044, 0049).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention was made to incorporate the prioritizing a GTS for selection of UYEKI into the method of charging an electric vehicle of KAWASHIMA to produce an expected result of a method of charging an electric vehicle including prioritizing a GTS for selection. The modification would be obvious because one of ordinary skill in the art would be motivated to prevent exhaustion of the vehicle power supply before reaching a proper charging station (UYEKI, ¶ 0035).
Claim(s) 31 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over KAWASHIMA in view of BOYS and UYEKI as applied to claims 25-30 above, and further in view of SCHLAUDRAFF (US PG Pub No. 2018/0354382; cited in previous office action).
Regarding claim 31, KAWASHIMA as modified by BOYS and UYEKI teaches the method as applied to claim 30 but fails to disclose prioritizing an emergency vehicle over other electric vehicles for charging by a particular GTS.
SCHLAUDRAFF discloses prioritizing an emergency vehicle over other electric vehicles for charging by a particular GTS (¶ 0050).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention was made to incorporate the prioritization of emergency vehicle charging of SCHLAUDRAFF into the method of charging an electric vehicle of KAWASHIMA as modified by BOYS and UYEKI to produce an expected result of a method of charging an electric vehicle including prioritizing emergency vehicle charging. The modification would be obvious because one of ordinary skill in the art would be motivated to provide increased public safety.
Claim(s) 32 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over KAWASHIMA in view of BOYS and UYEKI as applied to claims 25-30 above, and further in view of NAGATA (US PG Pub No. 2020/0094697; cited in previous office action).
Regarding claim 32, KAWASHIMA as modified by BOYS and UYEKI teaches the method as applied to claim 25 but fails to disclose detecting foreign or live objects prior to initiating wireless charging and during wireless charging.
NAGATA discloses detecting foreign or live objects prior to initiating wireless charging and during wireless charging (¶ 0014, 0124).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention was made to incorporate the foreign object detection of NAGATA into the method of charging an electric vehicle of KAWASHIMA as modified by BOYS and UYEKI to produce an expected result of a method of charging an electric vehicle including foreign object detection. The modification would be obvious because one of ordinary skill in the art would be motivated to improve safety, improve efficiency, and/or provide increased device protection.
Claim(s) 33 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over KAWASHIMA in view of BOYS and UYEKI as applied to claims 25-30 above, and further in view of EIDE (US PG Pub No. 2022/0134899; cited in previous office action).
Regarding claim 33, KAWASHIMA as modified by BOYS and UYEKI teaches the method as applied to claim 25 but fails to disclose maintaining continuous full-duplex inductive communication between each active GTA and each active VTA during wireless charging for monitoring at least one of charging equipment status, detecting changes in position of the electric vehicle during charging, or changes to a state of the electric vehicle.
EIDE discloses maintaining continuous full- duplex inductive communication between each active GTA and each active VTA during wireless charging for monitoring at least one of charging equipment status, detecting changes in position of the electric vehicle during charging, or changes to a state of the electric vehicle (¶ 0046-0047, 0069).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to include the full- duplex inductive communication in order to provide faster communication speeds and reduced latency.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention was made to incorporate the full- duplex inductive communication of EIDE into the method of charging an electric vehicle of KAWASHIMA as modified by BOYS and UYEKI to produce an expected result of a method of charging an electric vehicle including full- duplex inductive communication. The modification would be obvious because one of ordinary skill in the art would be motivated to provide faster communication speeds and reduced latency.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 18-21 are objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter:
Regarding claim 18, the prior art teaches the ground transceiver station (GTS) as applied to claim 13 but fails to disclose “an end-of-line short range transmitter at an end of the third guideline, the end-of-line short range transmitter receiving data from at least one of the GTAs via the third guideline and broadcasting a location of the at least one GTA and capabilities of the GTS”. It would not have been obvious to modify the prior art to arrive at the claimed invention.
Claims 19-21 are dependent from claim 18 and are therefore allowable for the same reasons as independent claim 18.
Conclusion
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/Manuel Hernandez/Examiner, Art Unit 2859 1/6/2026
/TAELOR KIM/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2859