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.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statements (IDS) submitted on 12/07/2022 and 05/28/2024 are in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statements are being considered by the examiner.
Response to Amendment
Acknowledgement is made of the preliminary amendments filed on 12/07/2022 and 06/05/2023 in which, at present, claims 1-21 are canceled and claims 22-48 added. Therefore, claims 22-48 are pending for examination below.
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) 22-24, 28-30, 33, 37-40, and 44-46 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kawai et al. [US 2011/0285345] in view of Tittle et al. [US 2016/0134140].
With respect to claims 22 and 38, Kawai discloses an electrical charging structure [6] comprising: a plurality of panels coupled to a frame surrounding an electricity distribution asset and a roof panel fastened to the plurality of panels, thereby substantially enclosing the electricity distribution asset [Figs 1-2 depict the charge converter device 6 comprise a box like enclosure with sides and a roof which equates to a frame with panels that enclose the electricity distribution assets such as power conversion unit 9, charge controller 32, etc.], an electronic display panel configured to present content [39]; an electrical charging device having an electrical charging cable supported upon an external surface, wherein the electrical charging device is electrically connected to an electrical distribution board of the electrical electricity distribution asset [18, Fig. 1 shows the electrical interconnections]; a computing device in electrical communication with the electronic display panel, wherein the computing device controls the electronic display panel [various controllers such as 32 control the charging operations and are at least indirectly controlling the display, see par. 0073-0078]; and a secondary power source, wherein the secondary power source is configured to power the electronic display panel and the computing device with electrical power in response to insufficient electrical power being provided by the electrical distribution board of the electricity distribution asset [par. 00109; i.e. a rechargeable battery]. However, Kawai discloses the electrical charging device separated from the charging structure 6 and therefore fails to explicitly disclose one of the panels includes an electronic display panel and supports the electrical charging device in an area substantially enclosed by the charging structure.
Therefore, the difference between the prior art and the claimed invention is additionally providing an electrical charging device at the charging structure 6. Tittle relates to a charging station for electric vehicles comprising a plurality of panels and roof and computing device and displays and secondary power sources [see figs. 2 and 6] wherein the electrical charging structure also includes an electrical charging device supported upon an area substantially enclosed by the electrical charging structure [see 206] and a display [par. 0045-0046].
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the filing date of the instant invention to modify the electrical charging structure of Kawai to include the accessed charging station with an electrical charging device as taught by Tittle for the benefit of further increasing the number of charging outlets available to recharging a vehicle while simultaneously providing an accessed area for maintenance.
With respect to claims 23 and 39, Kawai does not explicitly disclose the construction materials of the charging structure, however it is obvious to a person having ordinary skill that the frame is fastened, via mounting brackets, to a supporting frame for the electricity distribution asset so that the structure does not collapse. Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the filing date of the instant invention to modify the electrical charging structure of Kawai to include fastening the frame with mounting brackets for the benefit of increasing the structure integrity of the system against the outdoor conditions.
With respect to claims 24 and 40, Tittle as applied above further discloses wherein the plurality of panels includes one or more door pane which are hingedly connected to the frame to enable access to the electricity distribution asset substantially enclosed within the electrical charging structure [Fig. 2].
With respect to claims 28 and 44, Kawai and Tittle as applied above further disclose wherein the electrical charging structure includes an electrical equipment compartment located between the roof panel and a roof surface of the electricity distribution asset, wherein the electrical equipment compartment houses an electrical charger assembly of the electrical charging device, wherein the electrical charger assembly is electrically connected to the electrical charging cable which is supported upon an external surface of the electrical charging structure [Fig. 1 depicts all the internal charging components situated between the roof panel and surface].
With respect to claims 29 and 45, Kawai further discloses wherein the electrical charging structure comprises or is coupled to a wireless communication device, wherein the computing device is configured to receive, via the wireless communication device, the content from a remote server processing system [see at least wireless communication devices 33 and 51 which is connected to a server].
With respect to claims 30 and 46, Kawai further discloses wherein when the secondary power source is used to power the electronic display panel, the computing device is configured to control the electronic display panel to present the content indicative of a power outage currently being experienced by a portion of an electricity network which the electricity distribution asset forms a part thereof [par. 0080-0081, i.e. a charge pattern will be reflective of power being out or not, see also par. 0154-0156 of a charge rate].
With respect to claim 33, Tittle as applied above further discloses wherein the roof panel includes one or more hoist points to allow the electrical charging structure to be lifted from surrounding the electricity distribution asset [as depicted in Fig. 2 the doors open to expose the charging structure].
With respect to claim 37, Tittle as applied above further discloses wherein the electrical charging device includes a cable retraction mechanism to retract the electrical charging cable after use [as depicted at 206 of Fig. 2].
Claim(s) 25, 32, 41, and 48 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kawai et al. [US 2011/0285345] and Tittle et al. [US 2016/0134140] as applied above, and further in view of Dombrowski et al. [US 2017/0027079].
With respect to claims 25, 32, 41, and 48, Kawai as applied above is silent regarding at least some of the panels include a plurality of ventilation holes. However, such a concept is well-known in the art. For example, Dombrowski relates to a enclosure with heat generating equipment and storage panels and teaches including a plurality of ventilation holes [par. 0092]. The placement of the holes on a roof or side would be obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art as a matter of design and suitability, i.e. heat rises, and therefore it would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the filing date of the instant invention to modify the electrical charging structure of Kawai to include the ventilation holes for the benefit of allowing heat to escape and preventing the internal circuitry from overheating.
Claim(s) 26-27 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kawai et al. [US 2011/0285345] and Tittle et al. [US 2016/0134140] as applied above, and further in view of Ranga et al. [US 2017/0027079].
With respect to claims 26-27 and 42-43, Kawai and Tittle as applied above fails to explicitly disclose wherein the panel supporting the electrical charging cable has an externally facing front wall and side wall, wherein the electrical charging cable is supported upon the front wall of the respective panel, and wherein the side wall of the respective panel is located adjacent to the electronic display panel.
Ranga relates to a charging station for an electrical vehicle and teaches a panel supporting the electrical charging cable has an externally facing front wall and side wall, wherein the electrical charging cable is supported upon the front wall of the respective panel, and wherein the side wall of the respective panel is located adjacent to the electronic display panel [Fig. 2], further the sum of the widths being the same equates to a rectangle shaped as depicted by Ranga in figure 2 and therefore equates to the same.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the filing date of the instant invention to modify the electrical charging structure of Kawai to include the electrical charging cable with an externally facing front/side walls of the claimed widths for the benefit of providing easy/quick access of the charging cord to the user of the electrical vehicle (i.e. as opposed to being on a ceiling as depicted by Tittle).
Claim(s) 31 and 47 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kawai et al. [US 2011/0285345] and Tittle et al. [US 2016/0134140] as applied above, and further in view of Haas [US 2017/0237944].
With respect to claims 31 and 47, Kawai fails to disclose a camera device projecting outwardly from the electrical charging structure, wherein footage captured by the camera device is received by the computing device and stored in memory. However, such a concept is well-known in the art. For example, Haas relates to an electric vehicle charger and teaches a camera to capture footage for security monitoring [par. 0009]. The additional feature of storing the footage is implicit in the operation.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the filing date of the instant invention to modify Kawai to include a camera for the benefit of providing a security monitoring feature as stated by Haas.
Claim(s) 34-36 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kawai et al. [US 2011/0285345] and Tittle et al. [US 2016/0134140] as applied above, and further in view of Vollebregt [US 5,809,701].
With respect to claims 34-36, Kawai fails to disclose features of the roof panel that promote run-off. However, such a concept is well-known in the art. For example, Vollebregt relates to a drainage system for a roof and teaches wherein a roof panel includes one or more inclined surfaces to promote run-off of debris and/or water via one or more conduits forming part of the frame, wherein the one or more inclined surfaces include a pair of main inclined surfaces to promote run-off of water and/or debris, each main inclined section extending between a central portion of the roof panel toward one or more holes in the roof panel, and wherein the one or more inclined surfaces include a pair of upturned end surfaces, each upturned end surface being adjacent to a respective main inclined surface and having an opposing inclination to the respective adjacent main inclined surface [depicted in figures 1, 4, and 5; i.e. a roof panel with inclined pairs of surfaces having a central portion and being upturned].
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the filing date of the instant invention to modify Kawai to have an inclined roofing system as taught by Vollebregt for the benefit of protecting the surrounding structure of the charger from runoff erosion and also allowing for the collection of water resources as stated by Vollebregt.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to NATHANIEL R PELTON whose telephone number is (571)270-1761. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 9am to 5pm.
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/NATHANIEL R PELTON/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2859