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 .
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed October 7th, 2025 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive.
Regarding Claims 1 & 16, Applicant argues “Element 258 of Dong cannot simultaneously disclose or suggest both ‘a first switch configured to be open and to switch closed upon detection of a ground fault’ and as ‘a contactor configured to be coupled between the load and the first or second connector and to clear the ground fault’” (Remarks, pgs. 9 & 10). The Examiner respectfully disagrees.
For a switch, there are at least two terminals for conducting the current between the two terminals. The two terminals of the switch form the contactor of the switch. The two terminals are a part of the switch, but are a distinct element separate from the switch.
Dong et al. teaches a switch (258) configured to be normally open, and to switch closed upon detection of a ground fault so the fault locating resistor can provide a path for a sustained level of current for locating and clearing the ground fault ([0024]-[0025]), and a contactor (contactor component of 258) configured to be coupled between the load and the first or second connecter and to clear the ground fault.
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.
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.
Claims 1-10, 12-14, 16-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Wei et al. (US 20100177452 A1) in view of Dong et al. (US 20160154046 A1).
Regarding Claim 1, Wei et al. teaches a power supply system (Fig. 1, Fig. 6) to provide power to a load (16, 32 in Fig. 1) connected between first (20) and second (22) connectors, the system comprising: a filter (24, 26, 28, [0031]) between the connectors that smooths the DC output, the filter including a midpoint configured to be connected to ground (24, [0031]).
However, Wei et al. does not teach the system comprising: a generator that produces an alternating current generator output; a rectifier that receives the alternating current generator output and converts it into a direct current output and provides the direct current (DC) output between the first and second connectors; a filter connected to the rectifier; a fault locating resistor switchably connected to the second connector by a switch configured to be normally open, and to switch closed upon detection of a ground fault so the fault locating resistor can provide a path for a sustained level of current for locating and clearing the ground fault, and a contactor configured to be coupled between the load and the first or second connecter and to clear the ground fault.
In an analogous art, Dong et al. teaches a generator that produces an alternating current generator output (122 in Fig.1, [0015]); a rectifier (124, [0015]) that receives the alternating current generator output and converts it into a direct current output and provides the direct current (DC) output between the first and second connectors; a fault locating resistor (256 in Fig. 2B) switchably connected to the second connector by a switch (258) configured to be normally open, and to switch closed upon detection of a ground fault so the fault locating resistor can provide a path for a sustained level of current for locating and clearing the ground fault ([0024]-[0025]), and a contactor (contactor component of 258) configured to be coupled between the load and the first or second connecter and to clear the ground fault.
Therefore, at the time the invention was claimed, it would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art to use the generator, rectifier, and resistor set forth by Dong et al. with the system and filter set forth by Wei et al. in order to form a DC system capable of locating and clearing ground faults.
Regarding Claim 2, Wei et al. and Dong et al. teach the invention from above, but Wei et al. does not expressly teach wherein the fault locating fault locating resistor is a positive fault locating resistor that switchably connects to the second connector for locating and clearing a positive ground fault ground fault, and further comprising: a negative fault locating resistor switchably connected to the first connector by a second switch configured to be normally open, and to switch closed upon detection of a ground fault so the negative ground fault locating resistor can provide a path for a sustained level of current for locating and clearing a negative ground fault.
In an analogous art, Dong et al. further teaches wherein the fault locating resistor is a positive fault locating resistor (256 in Figs. 2A, 2B) that switchably connects to the second connector for locating and clearing a positive ground fault ground fault ( contactor component of 258, [0023]-[0026]), and further comprising: a negative fault locating resistor (254) switchably connected to the first connector by a second switch (252) configured to be normally open, and to switch closed upon detection of a ground fault so the negative ground fault locating resistor can provide a path for a sustained level of current for locating and clearing a negative ground fault ([0023]-[0026]).
Therefore, at the time the invention was claimed, it would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art to use the positive and negative fault locating resistors set forth by Dong et al. with the system set forth by Wei et al. and Dong et. al in order to locate and clear both positive and negative ground faults in a DC system.
Regarding Claim 3, Wei et al. and Dong et al. teach the invention from above, but Wei et al. does not expressly teach a controller operatively connected to the first and second switches and to a sensor system, wherein the controller includes machine readable instructions configured to cause the controller to: keep the first and second switches normally open; upon detection of a ground fault, close one of the first or second switches to provide a path for a limited and detectible amount of current to the ground fault after the ground fault has been detected; and determine location of the ground fault using the limited and detectable amount of current in the first and second connectors; and clear the ground fault.
In an analogous art, Dong et al. further teaches a controller ([0019]-[0020]) operatively connected to the first and second switches and to a sensor system (116 in Fig. 1, 290 in Figs. 2A, 2B, [0016], [0027]), wherein the controller includes machine readable instructions configured to cause the controller to: keep the first and second switches normally open; upon detection of a ground fault, close one of the first or second switches to provide a path for a limited and detectible amount of current to the ground fault after the ground fault has been detected; and determine location of the ground fault using the limited and detectable amount of current in the first and second connectors; and clear the ground fault ([0023]-[0027]).
Therefore, at the time the invention was claimed, it would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art to use the controller and sensor system set forth by Dong et al. with the system set forth by Wei et al. and Dong et al. to operate the sensors and switches in a manner that would detect, locate, and clear ground faults in a DC system, maintain safety and integrity of the overall system.
Regarding Claims 4 and 20, Wei et al. and Dong et al. teach the invention from above, but Wei et al. does not expressly teach wherein the machine-readable instructions are configured to cause the controller to: detect the ground fault as a shift in rail to ground voltage in the first or second connector.
In an analogous art, Dong et al. further teaches wherein the machine readable instructions are configured to cause the controller to: detect the ground fault as a shift in rail to ground voltage in the first or second connector ([0019]-[0020]).
Therefore, at the time the invention was claimed, it would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art to use the controller and instructions set forth by Dong et al. with the system set forth by Wei et al. and Dong et al. in order to detect ground faults in the system and provide feedback.
Regarding Claim 5, Wei et al. and Dong et al. teach the invention from above, but Wei et al. does not expressly teach a controller operatively connected to the first and second switches and to a sensor system, wherein the controller includes machine readable instructions configured to cause the controller to: keep the first and second switches normally open; upon detection of a ground fault, close one of the first or second switches to provide a path for a limited and detectible amount of current to the ground fault after the ground fault has been detected; and determine location of the ground fault using the limited and detectable amount of current in the first and second connectors; and clear the ground fault.
Wei et al. and Dong et al. teach the invention from above, and the sensor system (50 & 52 in Fig. 8), wherein the sensor system is configured to sense voltages (50 in Fig. 8), but Wei et al. does not expressly teach wherein the controller is configured to determine the location of the ground fault based on the controller monitoring the first and second connectors for the limited and detectable amount of current.
In an analogous art, Dong et al. further teaches wherein the controller ([0019]-[0020]) is configured to determine the location of the ground fault based on the controller monitoring the first and second connectors for the limited and detectable amount of current (116 in Fig. 1, 290 in Figs. 2A, 2B, [0016], [0027]).
Therefore, at the time the invention was claimed, it would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art to use the controller and sensor system set forth by Dong et al. with the system set forth by Wei et al. and Dong et al. to operate the sensors and switches in a manner that would detect, locate, and clear ground faults in a DC system, maintain safety and integrity of the overall system.
Regarding Claims 6 and 17, Wei et al. and Dong et al. teach the invention from above, but Wei et al. does not teach wherein the positive fault locating resistor and the negative fault locating resistor each have a resistance configured to provide the limited and detectable amount of current.
In an analogous art, Dong et al. further teaches wherein the positive fault locating resistor and the negative fault locating resistor each have a resistance configured to provide the limited and detectable amount of current ([0026]).
Therefore, at the time the invention was claimed, it would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art to use the resistors set forth by Dong et al. with the system set forth by Wei et al. and Dong et al. in order to provide a current that would be detectable by the sensors monitoring the current.
Regarding Claims 7 and 18, Wei et al. and Dong et al. teach the invention from above, but Wei et al. does not expressly teach a contactor connected to the first connector that can open and close to clear the ground fault if the ground fault is on a side of the load connected to the first connector.
In an analogous art, Dong et al. further teaches a switch connected to the first connector that can open and close to clear the ground fault if the ground fault is on a side of the load connected to the first connector, wherein the switch may include a mechanical switch (252, 258 in Fig. 2B, [0024]).
Therefore, at the time the invention was claimed, it would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art to use the switch set forth by Dong et al. with the system set forth by Wei et al. and Dong et al. in order to clear a detected ground fault.
Regarding Claims 8 and 19, Wei et al. and Dong et al. teach the invention from above, but Wei et al. does not expressly teach a contactor connected to the second connector that can open and close to clear the ground fault if the ground fault is on a side of the load connected to the second connector.
In an analogous art, Dong et al. further teaches a switch connected to the second connector that can open and close to clear the ground fault if the ground fault is on a side of the load connected to the second connector, wherein the switch may include a mechanical switch (252, 258 in Fig. 2B, [0024]).
Therefore, at the time the invention was claimed, it would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art to use the switch set forth by Dong et al. with the system set forth by Wei et al. and Dong et al. in order to clear a detected ground fault.
Regarding Claim 9, Wei et al. and Dong et al. teach the invention from above, but Dong et al. does not expressly teach wherein the output filter includes two or more capacitors and the midpoint is between the two capacitors.
In an analogous art, Wei et al. further teaches wherein the output filter includes two or more capacitors (26, 28 in Fig. 1) and the midpoint (24) is between the two capacitors ([0031]).
Therefore, at the time the invention was claimed, it would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art to use the filter set forth by Wei et al. in the system set forth by Wei et al. and Dong et al. to smooth the DC output from the rectifier.
Regarding Claim 10, Wei et al. and Dong et al. teach the invention from above, but Wei et al. does not expressly teach wherein the ground is external to the generator.
In an analogous art, Dong et al. further teaches wherein the ground is external to the generator (260 in Figs. 2A, 2B, [0018]).
Therefore, at the time the invention was claimed, it would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art to use the grounding component set forth by Dong et al. with the system set forth by Wei et al. and Dong et al. to ensure safety and avoid damage.
Regarding Claim 12, Wei et al. and Dong et al. teach the invention from above, but Wei et al. does not expressly teach a method of clearing a fault in a system as recited in claim 1 comprising: keeping the switch normally open; upon detection of a ground fault, closing the switch to provide a path for a limited and detectible amount of current to the ground fault after the ground fault has been detected; determining location of the ground fault using the limited and detectable amount of current in the first and second connectors; and opening a contactor to clear the ground fault.
In an analogous art, Dong et al. further teaches a method of clearing a fault in a system as recited in claim 1 comprising: keeping the switch normally open; upon detection of a ground fault, closing the switch to provide a path for a limited and detectible amount of current to the ground fault after the ground fault has been detected; determining location of the ground fault using the limited and detectable amount of current in the first and second connectors; and opening a contactor to clear the ground fault (Fig. 5, [0007], [0028]).
Therefore, at the time the invention was claimed, it would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art to use the method set forth by Dong et al. with the system set forth by Wei et al. and Dong et al. to locate and clear any ground faults detected in a DC system.
Regarding Claim 13, Wei et al. and Dong et al. teach the invention and method from above, but Wei et al. does not expressly teach a method further comprising detecting the ground fault as a shift in rail to ground voltage in the first or second connector.
In an analogous art, Dong et al. further teaches a method further comprising detecting the ground fault as a shift in rail to ground voltage in the first or second connector (Fig. 5, [0007], [0019], [0028]).
Therefore, at the time the invention was claimed, it would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art to use the method set forth by Dong et al. with the method and system set forth by Wei et al. and Dong et al. to detect a ground fault as a shift in rail to ground voltage to assist in location and detection of ground faults in a DC system.
Regarding Claim 14, Wei et al. and Dong et al. teach the invention and method from above, but Wei et al. does not expressly teach a method wherein determining location of the ground fault is based on monitoring the limited and detectable amount of current in the first and second connectors.
In an analogous art, Dong et al. further teaches a method wherein determining location of the ground fault is based on monitoring the limited and detectable amount of current in the first and second connectors (Fig. 5, [0007], [0019]-[0020], [0024]-[0026], [0028]).
Therefore, at the time the invention was claimed, it would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art to use the method set forth by Dong et al. with the method and system set forth by Wei et al. and Dong et al. to assist in the location and detection of ground faults in a DC system.
Regarding Claim 16, Wei et al. teaches an apparatus configured to be coupled to first and second connectors (20, 22 in Fig. 1) that provide a direct current (DC) output to a load (16, 32 in Fig. 1).
However, Wei et al. does not teach a first fault locating resistor configured to be switchably connected to the second connector by a first switch, the first switch configured to be open and to switch closed upon detection of a ground fault, the first fault locating resistor configured to provide a path for a sustained level of current for locating and clearing the ground fault; a second fault locating resistor configured to be switchably connected to the second connector by a second switch; a first contactor configured to be coupled between the load and the first connector and a second contactor configured to be coupled between the load and the second connector, the first and second contactors configured to clear the ground fault; and a controller configured to cause the apparatus to: keep the first and second switches open; upon detection of the ground fault, close one of the switches to provide a path for a limited and detectible amount of current to the ground fault after the ground fault has been detected; determine a location of the ground fault using the limited and detectable amount of current in the first and second connectors; open one of the contactors to clear the ground fault; and once the ground fault is cleared, open the closed one of the switches.
In an analogous art, Dong et al. teaches a first fault locating resistor (256 in Fig. 2B) configured to be switchably connected to the second connector by a first switch (258), the first switch configured to be open and to switch closed upon detection of a ground fault, the first fault locating resistor configured to provide a path for a sustained level of current for locating and clearing the ground fault ([0024]-[0025]); a second fault locating resistor (254) configured to be switchably connected to the second connector by a second switch (252); a first contactor configured to be coupled between the load and the first connector and a second contactor configured to be coupled between the load and the second connector, the first and second contactors configured to clear the ground fault (252, contactor component of 258 in Fig. 2B, [0024]); and a controller ([0019]-[0020]) configured to cause the apparatus to: keep the first and second switches open; upon detection of the ground fault, close one of the switches to provide a path for a limited and detectible amount of current to the ground fault after the ground fault has been detected; determine a location of the ground fault using the limited and detectable amount of current in the first and second connectors; open one of the contactors to clear the ground fault; and once the ground fault is cleared, open the closed one of the switches ([0023]-[0027]).
Claim 11 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Wei et al. (US 20100177452 A1) in view of Dong et al. (US 20160154046 A1), in further view of Legatti (US 6525914 B1).
Regarding Claim 11, Wei et al. and Dong et al. teach the invention from above, but do not expressly teach wherein the ground is an airframe ground.
In an analogous art, Legatti teaches wherein the ground is an airframe ground (col. 4, lines 6-24).
Therefore, at the time the invention was claimed, it would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art to use the ground set forth by Legatti with the system set forth by Wei et al. and Dong et al. in order to ensure safety and help prevent hazards.
Claim 15 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Wei et al. (US 20100177452 A1) in view of Dong et al. (US 20160154046 A1), in further view of Gao et al. (US 20160315460 A1).
Regarding Claim 15, Wei et al. and Dong et al. teach the invention and method from above, but do not expressly teach closing the switch during initial generator power-up to determine if a ground fault exists in the generator, the rectifier, or the filter.
In an analogous art, Gao et al. teaches the use of fault detection methods during the initial stage of power-on ([0007]-[0009], [0019]-[0021], [0051], [0065]).
Therefore, at the time the invention was claimed, it would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art to use the method set forth by Gao et al. with the system and method set forth by Wei et al. and Dong et al. to detect ground faults in a system during the initial power-up phase.
Conclusion
THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action.
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/MONICA LEWIS/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2838
/JARED RAYMOND HAUSMAN/Examiner, Art Unit 2838
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