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 .
Status of Claims
This office action is in response to continued examination filed on 07/06/2026. Claims 1-17 are pending; claim 1 has been amended; claim 4, 8-10 are withdrawn; claims 1-3, 5-7, 11-17 will be examined.
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and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114.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 07/06/2026 has been entered.
Drawings
The drawings are objected to because applicant does not have drawing that depicts an embodiment that include “the continuously variable torque distribution arrangement comprising a main shaft directly connected to the first electric machine and to the at least one rear wheel axle, a primary planetary gear set comprising a primary sun gear, a primary ring gear and a primary planet carrier carrying a set of planet gear units, wherein the planet gear units are in meshing engagement with the primary sun gear and the primary ring gear, wherein the main shaft and the primary carrier are in clutch-free connection with the at least one rear wheel axle, a second electric machine directly connected to the primary sun gear, and a gear stage comprising a first gear wheel directly connected to the primary ring gear, and a second gear wheel connectable to the front wheel axle, the first gear wheel being in meshing engagement with the second gear wheel, wherein the primary planet carrier is directly connected to the main shaft.” as recited in claim 1.
Corrected drawing sheets in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(d) are required in reply to the Office action to avoid abandonment of the application. Any amended replacement drawing sheet should include all of the figures appearing on the immediate prior version of the sheet, even if only one figure is being amended. The figure or figure number of an amended drawing should not be labeled as “amended.” If a drawing figure is to be canceled, the appropriate figure must be removed from the replacement sheet, and where necessary, the remaining figures must be renumbered and appropriate changes made to the brief description of the several views of the drawings for consistency. Additional replacement sheets may be necessary to show the renumbering of the remaining figures. Each drawing sheet submitted after the filing date of an application must be labeled in the top margin as either “Replacement Sheet” or “New Sheet” pursuant to 37 CFR 1.121(d). If the changes are not accepted by the examiner, the applicant will be notified and informed of any required corrective action in the next Office action. The objection to the drawings will not be held in abeyance.
Claim Objections
Claim 17 is objected to because of the following informalities:
Claim 17, line 1 recites “a front wheel axle” should read – the front wheel axle-- as the limitation previously recited in claim 1, line 5.
Appropriate correction is required.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of 35 U.S.C. 112(a):
(a) IN GENERAL.—The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor or joint inventor of carrying out the invention.
The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112:
The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor of carrying out his invention.
Claim 1-3, 5-7, 11-17 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(a) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), first paragraph, as failing to comply with the written description requirement. The claim(s) contains subject matter which was not described in the specification in such a way as to reasonably convey to one skilled in the relevant art that the inventor or a joint inventor, or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the inventor(s), at the time the application was filed, had possession of the claimed invention.
Claim 1 recites “a second electric machine directly connected to the primary sun gear” line 13. The elected embodiment, Fig.5-6, 9-10, does not show or describe second motor 118 is directly connected to primary sun gear 110 as amended. Instead, the elected embodiment, specifically, Fig.5 depicts that additional planetary gearset between the second motor and primary planetary gearset; thereof, this is not “directly connected” as claimed. Thus, the amendment constitutes new matter because there is no explicit support for the added limitation.
The dependent claims are also rejected due to their dependency from claim 1.
Claims 1-3, 5-7, 11-17 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(a) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), first paragraph, because the specification, while being enabling for “the second electric machine is connected to the primary sun gear”, does not reasonably provide enablement for “a second electric machine directly connected to the primary sun gear”. The specification does not enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the invention commensurate in scope with these claims.
Claim 1 recites “a second electric machine directly connected to the primary sun gear”. The recitation lacks corresponding enabling disclosure in view of Wands factors: 1- Amount of direction provided by the inventor: the specification discloses “torque is transmitted from the second electric machine 118 to the primary sun gear 110 via the additional planetary gear set 300” in paragraph 64. The specification does not provide any guidance on how to achieve “direct connection” between second motor and primary sun gear; 2- Existence of working examples: the specification contains no working examples of second motor being “directly connect” to primary sun gear. The elected embodiment, specifically, Figs.5-6, shows the additional planetary gearset is between second motor and primary sun gear; thereof, the connection is not the “directly connect”. 3-quantity of experimentation needed to make or use the invention: one of ordinary skill in the art would need to determine how to remove the additional planetary gearset without changing the torque and speed characteristic; recalculate gear ratio and torque distribution and power flow. This would require significant experimentations.
Prior Art
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure:
Kim (US 20080041647) discloses two motors with planetary gearset PG1.
Steinberger (US 20210140517 A1) discloses motor 50 directly connect to sun gear; however, it does not disclose main shaft directly connect to first motor and rear wheel axle.
Li (US 20130130856) discloses motor directly connect to planetary gearset but does not disclose main shaft directly connect to first motor and rear wheel axle.
Naik (US 8083016) discloses motor directly connect to sun gear but does not disclose main shaft directly connect to first motor and rear wheel axle.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Lillian T Nguyen whose telephone number is (571)270-5404. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday, 8:30am-5pm.
Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Ernesto Suarez can be reached at (571)270-5565. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/LILLIAN T NGUYEN/Examiner, Art Unit 3655a
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