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 statement (IDS) submitted on 04/12/2023, 12/08/2023, 12/08/2023, 05/02/2024 and 05/20/2024 are in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner.
Claim Objections
Claim 15 is objected to because of the following informalities:
In claim 15, line 3, delete “state of health (SOH) SOH” and replace with “state of health (SOH)”
Appropriate correction is required.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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 the appropriate paragraphs of 35 U.S.C. 102 that form the basis for the rejections under this section made in this Office action:
A person shall be entitled to a patent unless –
(a)(1) the claimed invention was patented, described in a printed publication, or in public use, on sale, or otherwise available to the public before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claim(s) 1-15 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Kinjo et al. US 2012/0223670 (hereinafter Kinjo).
Regarding claims 1 and 13, Kinjo teaches a power distribution method (fig. 14) in an energy storage system including a plurality of battery racks (fig. 12-13, elements 107a to 107n) and a plurality of direct current/direct current (DC/DC) converters (fig. 3, element 302; DC/DC conversion unit and ¶¶ 0074, 0076; the current control unit 310 has a DC/DC conversion unit 302) connected to each corresponding battery rack (the battery rack further includes power storage battery 304 in fig. 3), the method comprising:
collecting information about each battery rack and information about each DC/DC converter (¶¶ 0064-0065, 0076, 0081, 0138 and fig. 3; the cooperative ECU 105 detects the state of deterioration of a storage battery by acquiring the voltage, temperature… The power storage device 107 detects the voltage and temperature of the storage battery, and outputs the voltage and temperature to the cooperative ECU 105);
PNG
media_image1.png
790
984
media_image1.png
Greyscale
setting a power command for each battery rack according to a type and a state of each battery rack (¶¶ 0064, 0072; the designated value informing unit 203 determines a designated current value ISB which corresponds to the power to be charged or discharged to or from the power storage device 107 based on the voltage value acquired by the acquisition unit 201, the SOC determined by the determination unit 202, and the power PSB); and
performing charge/discharge control for each battery rack according to the set power command for each battery rack (¶ 0065; the power storage device 107 controls charging and discharging current in accordance with the designated current value ISB).
Regarding claims 2, 8, Kinjo teaches wherein the collecting information about each battery rack and information about each DC/DC converter includes:
collecting information about a type, a state (¶ 0043; the power control device can calculate SOC which indicates the charge state of a storage battery and SOH which indicates the state of deterioration of a storage battery based on values measured from the storage battery), and a power limit of each battery rack (¶ 0048; the determination unit can determine an upper limit of power to be outputted by each of the storage batteries, in accordance with a state of deterioration of storage battery with a highest temperature among the storage batteries); and
collecting information about a power limit and a state of each DC/DC converter through a switching hub (fig. 12, element 105A) connected to the plurality of DC/DC converters (¶¶ 0064, 0085, 0091, 0199-0201; the DC/DC conversion unit detect the voltage value by the voltage detection unit. The DC/DC conversion unit receives the PWM switching signal transmitted form the ECU, and outputs the power corresponding to the operating point of the maximum power in the voltage and the current characteristic of the solar cell).
Regarding claims 3, 9, 14, Kinjo teaches wherein the setting a power command for each battery rack includes:
for battery racks of the same type and having a similar state of health (SOH) range (¶ 0216; the ECU 105 can control the balance in the charge amounts among the power storage devices 107…Therefore, deterioration [SOH] of the entire power storage devices can be reduced),
calculating a charge power or a discharge power for each battery rack based on an output power requested by the energy storage system, a sum of states of charge (SOC) of battery racks in operation, and a SOC of each battery rack (claim 15; the determination unit calculates a value corresponding to SOC of each storage battery from the acquired voltage value of the storage battery…the power being determined by said determination unit, and the storage battery corresponding to the calculated current value).
Regarding claims 4, 10, 15, Kinjo teaches wherein the setting power command for each battery rack includes:
for battery racks of different types or for battery racks having different state of health (SOH) ranges (¶ 0216; the ECU 105 can control the balance in the charge amounts among the power storage devices 107..deterioration of the entire power storage devices can be reduced), calculating the power command for each battery rack based on an output power requested by the energy storage system, a nominal capacity of each battery rack, a SOH of each battery rack, and a state of charge (SOC) of each battery rack (claim 15; informing unit calculates the current value for each of the storage batteries based on the power to be outputted by the storage battery and distribution ratio calculated by said power distribution ratio calculation unit, and informs storage battery of the calculated current value, the power being determined by the determination unit, and the storage battery corresponding to the calculated current value).
Regarding claims 5, 11, Kinjo teaches the power distribution method further comprising, upon the calculated power command for each battery rack exceeding a power limit of a corresponding battery rack or a power limit of a corresponding DC/DC converter, recalculating the power command for each battery rack (¶¶ 0051, 0064; the determination unit can update a charge amount of the storage battery and a state of deterioration of the storage battery each time the determination unit acquires the deterioration information. The cooperative ECU 105 then informs the power storage device 107 of power PSB to be charged or discharged to or form the power storage device 107, based on the state of deterioration of the storage battery).
Regarding claims 6, 12, Kinjo teaches wherein the recalculating the power command for each battery rack includes recalculating power commands for other racks (¶¶ 0098 and claim 18) except for the battery racks among the plurality of battery racks of which the calculated power command exceeds the power limit of the battery rack or the power limit of the corresponding DC/DC converter (¶¶ 0091, 0136, 0215; the power storage device performs the process in steps 902 to 905 until the stop command has been received).
Regarding claim 7, Kinjo teaches an energy storage system comprising:
a battery management device (BMS) (105; cooperative ECU) configured to manage a state of a battery rack (¶ 0064; controls the amount of current to be charged or discharged to or form the power storage device 107);
a plurality of DC/DC converters (fig. 3, element 302; DC/DC conversion unit and ¶¶ 0074, 0076; the current control unit 310 has a DC/DC conversion unit 302) respectively connected to corresponding battery racks (the battery rack further includes power storage battery 304 in fig. 3); and
a battery system controller, in connection with the battery management device and the plurality of DC/DC converters, configured to collect information about each battery rack and information about each DC/DC converter (¶¶ 0064-0065, 0076, 0081, 0138 and fig. 3; the cooperative ECU 105 detects the state of deterioration of a storage battery by acquiring the voltage, temperature… The power storage device 107 detects the voltage and temperature of the storage battery, and outputs the voltage and temperature to the cooperative ECU 105),
PNG
media_image1.png
790
984
media_image1.png
Greyscale
to set a power command for each battery rack according to a type and a state of each battery rack (¶¶ 0064, 0072; the designated value informing unit 203 determines a designated current value ISB which corresponds to the power to be charged or discharged to or from the power storage device 107 based on the voltage value acquired by the acquisition unit 201, the SOC determined by the determination unit 202, and the power PSB) and to perform charge/discharge control for each battery rack according to the set power command for each battery rack (¶ 0065; the power storage device 107 controls charging and discharging current in accordance with the designated current value ISB),
wherein the DC/DC converter controls an output of each battery rack according to the power command for each battery rack received from the battery system controller (¶¶ 0076, 0077, 0081; the current control calculation unit 301 repeats the feedback control unit the amount of current to be charged or discharged to or from the storage battery 304 is matched with the designated current value ISB…and generates a switching pulse signal for driving the DC/DC conversion unit 302).
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Jeon et al.
US 2016/0118830
KIM
US 2022/0185148
PARK et al.
US 2017/0093187
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to ZIXUAN ZHOU whose telephone number is (571)272-6739. The examiner can normally be reached 9:00 am to 5:00 pm.
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, Taelor Kim can be reached at 571-270-7166. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000.
/ZIXUAN ZHOU/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2859 01/21/2026