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 .
Election/Restrictions
Applicant's election with traverse of Invention I, Claims 1-5 in the reply filed on 12/24/2025 is acknowledged. The traversal is on the ground(s) that the amended claims remove the basis for restriction presented in the requirement for restriction (Office Action 10/24/2025). In the light of applicant’s amendments, the traversal is found to be persuasive, and the requirement for restriction is withdrawn. Claims 1-11 have accordingly been examined.
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 1-11 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.
Claim 1 recites in step S4 “calculating a duration t required for the battery temperature to reach a target battery temperature from the current battery temperature in a natural heat dissipation or heat adsorption state to satisfy” and also recites in step S5: “in response to that t < t0, stopping heating or cooling the battery, and in response to that t ≥ t0, heating or cooling the battery.” It is unclear whether the recited “heating and cooling” of the battery applies to only artificial heating or cooling from a heating system or cooling system, or if it applies to any type of heating and cooling, including ones resulting from “natural heat dissipation or heat absorption” that is also recited in claim 1.
Claims 2-5 depend on claim 1 and are also indefinite.
Claim 6 recites in operation 4 “calculating a duration t required for the battery temperature to reach a target battery temperature from the current battery temperature in a natural heat dissipation or heat adsorption state to satisfy” and also recites in operation 5: “in response to that t < t0, stopping heating or cooling the battery, and in response to that t ≥ t0, heating or cooling the battery.” It is unclear whether the recited “heating and cooling” of the battery applies to only artificial heating or cooling from a heating system or cooling system, or if it applies to any type of heating and cooling, including ones resulting from “natural heat dissipation or heat absorption” that is also recited in claim 6.
Claims 7-10 depend on claim 6 and are also indefinite.
Claim 11 recites in operation 4 “calculating a duration t required for the battery temperature to reach a target battery temperature from the current battery temperature in a natural heat dissipation or heat adsorption state to satisfy” and also recites in operation 5: “in response to that t < t0, stopping heating or cooling the battery, and in response to that t ≥ t0, heating or cooling the battery.” It is unclear whether the recited “heating and cooling” of the battery applies to only artificial heating or cooling from a heating system or cooling system, or if it applies to any type of heating and cooling, including ones resulting from “natural heat dissipation or heat absorption” that is also recited in claim 11.
Claim 1 recites in step S4: “in response to that the predicted air temperature is within a normal working temperature section, stopping heating or cooling the battery” and also in step S5: “in response to that t<t0, stopping heating or cooling the battery,” implying that the battery was previously being heated or cooled. However, this result in unclear interpretation in the case that the current battery temperature is within the optimal working temperature section of step S1, wherein the battery would not have been heated or cooled in step S4. For the purposes of prosecution, the limitations be interpreted as “in response to that the predicted air temperature is within a normal working temperature section, stopping heating or cooling the battery if the battery is being heated or cooled” and also in step S5: “in response to that t<t0, stopping heating or cooling the battery if the battery is being heated or cooled.”
Claims 2-5 depend on claim 1 and are also indefinite.
Claim 6 recites in operation 4: “in response to that the predicted air temperature is within a normal working temperature section, stopping heating or cooling the battery” and also in operation 5: “in response to that t<t0, stopping heating or cooling the battery,” implying that the battery was previously being heated or cooled. However, this result in unclear interpretation in the case that the current battery temperature is within the optimal working temperature section of operation 1, wherein the battery would not have been heated or cooled in operation 4. For the purposes of prosecution, the limitations be interpreted as “in response to that the predicted air temperature is within a normal working temperature section, stopping heating or cooling the battery if the battery is being heated or cooled” and also in step operation 5: “in response to that t<t0, stopping heating or cooling the battery if the battery is being heated or cooled.”
Claims 7-10 depend on claim 6 and are also indefinite.
Claim 11 recites in operation 4: “in response to that the predicted air temperature is within a normal working temperature section, stopping heating or cooling the battery” and also in operation 5: “in response to that t<t0, stopping heating or cooling the battery,” implying that the battery was previously being heated or cooled. However, this result in unclear interpretation in the case that the current battery temperature is within the optimal working temperature section of operation 1, wherein the battery would not have been heated or cooled in operation 4. For the purposes of prosecution, the limitations be interpreted as “in response to that the predicted air temperature is within a normal working temperature section, stopping heating or cooling the battery if the battery is being heated or cooled” and also in step operation 5: “in response to that t<t0, stopping heating or cooling the battery if the battery is being heated or cooled.”
Claim 1 recites the limitation "calculating a duration t required for the battery temperature" in step S4. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim.
Claims 2-5 depend on claim 1 and are also indefinite.
Claim 6 recites the limitation "calculating a duration t required for the battery temperature" in operation 4. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim.
Claims 7-10 depend on claim 6 and are also indefinite.
Claim 11 recites the limitation "calculating a duration t required for the battery temperature" in operation 4. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim.
Claim 1 recites the limitation “calculating a duration t required for the battery temperature to reach a target battery temperature from the current battery temperature in a natural heat dissipation or heat absorption state to satisfy, wherein a temperature difference between the target battery temperature and the predicted air temperature being less than Th” which is unclear regarding the relationship between the two phrases separated by the comma.
Claims 2-5 depend on claim 1 and are also indefinite.
Claim 6 recites the limitation “calculating a duration t required for the battery temperature to reach a target battery temperature from the current battery temperature in a natural heat dissipation or heat absorption state to satisfy, wherein a temperature difference between the target battery temperature and the predicted air temperature being less than Th” which is unclear regarding the relationship between the two phrases separated by the comma.
Claims 7-10 depend on claim 6 and are also indefinite.
Claim 11 recites the limitation “calculating a duration t required for the battery temperature to reach a target battery temperature from the current battery temperature in a natural heat dissipation or heat absorption state to satisfy, wherein a temperature difference between the target battery temperature and the predicted air temperature being less than Th” which is unclear regarding the relationship between the two phrases separated by the comma.
Claim 11 recites the limitation “the processor is in a battery management unit in the battery box.” There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim.
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 text of those sections of Title 35, U.S. Code not included in this action can be found in a prior Office action.
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.
Claims 1-6 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Wagner et al (US 9643515 B2, published 2017-05-09) in view of Kuruma et al (US 9640845 B2, published 2017-05-02), Wang et al (CN 113067057 A, published 2021-07-02).
Evidentiary support is provided by “The theory behind heat transfer,” Alfa Laval, 2004, Yoshizawa M, “Newton’s Law of Cooling or Heating,” accessed 2026.
Regarding claims 1 and 6, Wagner teaches using a device 16 (i.e., a processor) to perform a method (Fig. 3) for thermal control of a battery arrangement 14, i.e. battery, within a motor vehicle 10 to optimize heating/cooling-related energy consumption based on inputs including anticipated (i.e., predicted) environmental conditions such as ambient air temperature, wherein the energy is supplied by an energy supply network 24 (thereby indicating energy obtained from charging of the battery) (Col 7: lines 14-33, Col 6: lines 43-67; Fig. 1). Thus, Wagner also teaches a method for thermal control of a battery after charging based on predicted air temperature prediction that is performed by a processor 1.
Wagner teaches determining the operating parameters of the motor vehicle 10 as part of an initial step 42 (Fig. 3; Col 8: lines 44-46) and describes it being used in step 48 to determine a temperature model of the battery arrangement 14 (Col 8: lines 66-67) to map the temperature progression 30 of the battery arrangement (Col 9: lines 1-5). The operating parameters of the motor vehicle are indicated as including considerations of current battery temperature; use of the current battery temperature is explicitly discussed in step 52 (Col 9: lines 23-25), and current battery temperature is implied to be incorporated into the temperature progression 30 of step 48 (see Fig. 2, wherein the temperature progression 30 includes an initial temperature which would necessarily require acquisition of a current battery temperature at an initial time on the x-axis) (Col 7: lines 34-38; Col 9: lines 3-6). Therefore, Wagner teaches the claimed step S1: acquiring a current battery temperature of claim 1, and also operation 1 of claim 6.
Wagner also teaches judging whether the battery temperature progression is within the first temperature range 32 (i.e., an optimal working temperature section) and shown in the temperature progression 30 of Fig. 2 (Col 10 lines 42-43; Col 9: lines 47-50), and in response to that the current battery temperature is not within the first temperature range 32 (i.e., the optimal working temperature section), heating the battery or cooling the battery (Col 9: lines 47-50). To heat or cool the battery would naturally require utilizing a system to heat or a cool the battery, including the heating/cooling arrangement 18 taught by Wagner, therefore the claimed limitation of “controlling a heating system to heat the battery or controlling a cooling system to cool the battery” within step S2 of claim 1 and operation 2 of claim 6 is satisfied by Wagner. However, Wagner does not explicitly claim judging the current battery temperature and heating or cooling the battery if it is not within the optimal working temperature section. In the same field of endeavor, Kuruma teaches a temperature-raising device for a vehicle battery in which a heater is configured to raise the temperature of the battery, and a controller is configured to turn ON or OFF the heater based on a result of a comparison between the battery temperature Tb (i.e., current battery temperature) acquired by the battery temperature acquisition unit and a predetermined threshold (corresponding to Ton and Toff describing the optimal working temperature section); for example, the heater is turned ON if Tb < Ton and the heater is turned OFF if Tb > Toff (Abstract; method described in Fig. 3; Col 9: lines 34-59). Therefore, Kuruma teaches that is a known configuration to utilize a method to control a heating system to heat a battery in direct response to that the current battery temperature is not within the optimal working temperature section. Kuruma also discloses the need to heat the battery if it is not within a desired temperature range, teaching that the vehicle battery can have low charging capacity at a low temperature, thus increasing the length of time that is required for charging or that the vehicle battery cannot be charged or discharged in a case where the temperature of the in-car battery decreases to the point of reaching a freezing temperature. Therefore, a person of ordinary skill in the art would have found it obvious to incorporate Kuruma’s strategy within modified Wagner’s method of controlling a heating system to heat a battery in direct response to that the current battery temperature is not within the optimal working temperature section because it is a known configuration and to avoid increasing the length of time required for charging the battery at low temperatures or a situation where the battery cannot be charged or discharged, as taught by Kuruma.
Wagner also teaches acquiring the anticipated environmental conditions along the route to be travelled, such as ambient temperature (Col 6: lines 6-62), that can be collected via communication network 22 along the route to be travelled and further teaches that knowledge of the conditions enables improved assessment regarding the need for either artificial heating/cooling of the battery or heating/cooling of the battery by means of the ambient air (Col 8: lines 44-53, Col 4: lines 37-44), therefore teaching acquiring a predicted air temperature of a local area, and via a network, which corresponds to step S3 of claim 1 and operation 3 of claim 6.
The claim language of steps S1 and S3 (corresponding to operations 1 and 3) does not indicate a special result as the result of the predicted air temperature of a local area via a network being performed in a specific order relative to the acquisition of a current battery temperature that would limit the order in which steps S1 and S3 of claim 1 (also operations 1 and 3 of claim 6) are performed relative to each other. Therefore, the ordering of step S3 (and operation 3) before, after, or simultaneous with step S1 (and operation 1) is prima facie obvious.
Wagner teaches “it is not necessary to cool the battery arrangement 14 if the journey is about to terminate and the ambient temperature in the target range current” (Col 9: line 67 to Col 10: lines 1-5). A skilled artisan would have interpreted the teaching as directly suggesting “in response to that the predicted air temperature is within a normal working temperature section, stopping heating or cooling the battery” if it is being cooled, as claimed for step S4 of claim 1 and operation 4 of claim 6, wherein the taught “target range current” corresponds to a normal working temperature range.
Although Wagner does not explicitly teach thermal control steps of the battery in response to the predicted air temperature being not within the normal working temperature range as described by the step S4 of claim 1/operation 4 of claim 6 limitation “in response to that the predicted air temperature is not within the normal working temperature section, calculating a duration t required for the battery temperature to reach a target battery temperature from the current battery temperature in a natural heat dissipation or heat absorption state to satisfy a temperature difference between the target battery temperature and the predicted air temperature being less than Th”, Wagner contemplates pre-cooling the battery arrangement 14 if a high ambient temperature is expected for the next journey (directly implying a situation where the predicted air temperature is not within the normal working temperature section) and also contemplates the need to consider the most energy efficient way to pre-cool the battery arrangement 14 such as by using ambient air to the best possible extent for cooling the battery arrangement 14 and minimizing energy withdrawal (indicating selection of a cooling strategy that considers using natural heat dissipation to cool the battery to a desirable temperature preferable from an energy savings position) (Col 10: lines 11-30; Col 5: lines 30-36).
In a related field of endeavor, Wang teaches a more explicit structure for heating/cooling a battery arrangement within a vehicle in response based on ambient temperatures (i.e., predicted air temperatures) being greater, lower, or equal to pre-cooling and pre-heating threshold temperatures (machine translation: [n0072]-[n0074]).
Specifically, Wang teaches a pre-cooling threshold temperature T3 and a pre-heating threshold temperature T4 used for evaluating the ambient temperature (I.e., predicted air temperature) [n0071, n0039, n0041], wherein the pre-cooling threshold temperature is higher than the pre-heating threshold temperature ([n0074] lines 8-9); the claimed normal working temperature section of Wang thus corresponds to the range of temperatures bounded by the taught pre-cooling threshold temperature and the pre-heating threshold temperature. Wang teaches judging whether the ambient temperature is higher than a pre-cooling threshold temperature, and then initiating a first thermal management process/pre-cooling thermal management process to initiate the battery cooling process earlier ([n0033]-[n0034], [n0045]). Alternatively, Wang teaches initiating a second thermal management process/pre-heating thermal management process to initiate the battery heating process earlier when the ambient temperature is lower than a pre-heating threshold temperature ([n0033]-[n0034], [n0053]). One of ordinary skill in the art would have considered this teaching to indicate a consideration of heating or cooling the battery in “response to the predicted air temperature is not within the normal working temperature section” as claimed in step S4 of claim 1 and operation 4 of claim 6.
Wang also teaches an optimal working temperature section (bounded by Wang’s first cooling start threshold temperature and the second heating start threshold temperature [n0046], [n0056], [n0069]), used to assess the suitability of battery temperature, wherein a lower limit of the normal working temperature section (bounded by Wang’s pre-cooling threshold temperature and pre-heating threshold temperature and used to assess the suitability of the ambient temperature) is less than a lower limit of the optimal working temperature section. Specifically, Wang teaches “Here, the first cooling start threshold temperature T1’ is lower than the standard cooling start threshold temperature T1, and the second heating start threshold temperature T2” is higher than the standard heating start threshold temperature T2’ ” ([n0069]), and “Typically, the standard cooling start-up threshold temperature is lower than the pre-cooling threshold temperature mentioned above, and the standard heating start-up threshold temperature is higher than the pre-heating threshold temperature mentioned above” ([n0035]); together, they indicate that the first cooling start threshold temperature T1’ (an upper limit of the optimal working temperature section) is lower than the pre-cooling threshold temperature (an upper limit of the normal working temperature section) and the second heating start threshold temperature T2 (a lower limit of the optimal working temperature section) is higher than the pre-heating threshold temperature (a lower limit of the normal working temperature) mentioned. In other words, they read on the limitation “an upper limit of the normal working temperature section is greater than an upper limit of the optimal working temperature section, and a lower limit of the normal working temperature section is less than a lower limit of the optimal working temperature section” claimed in step S4 and operation 4.
Wang teaches “By utilizing the solution of the present invention, it is possible to determine whether the battery in the battery cell needs to be pre-cooled and/or pre-heated based on the ambient temperature of the battery cell, and to perform corresponding thermal management on the battery based on the determination result. This enables the battery to be cooled in advance in high-temperature environments to slow down the battery temperature rise, and to be heated in advance in low-temperature environments to accelerate the battery temperature rise. This reduces the time and possibility of the battery cell operating at relatively high or relatively low temperatures due to excessively high or low ambient temperatures. Therefore, compared to the prior art, the present invention enables more effective thermal management of batteries and related benefits” ([n0022]). A skilled artisan would have found it obvious at the time of filing to have modified Wagner’s method for thermal control of a battery to incorporate Wang’s strategy for determining pre-cooling and/or pre-heating the battery based on comparing ambient temperature of the battery cell to threshold temperatures for the advantages of reducing the time and possibility of the battery operating at relatively high or relatively low temperatures due to excessively high or low ambient temperatures, which is consistent with Wagner’s contemplation of the need to pre-condition (specifically, pre-cool) the battery arrangement in preparation for a high ambient temperature along the route to be travelled and to avoid any subsequent intensive cooling of the battery arrangement or even avoid damage to the battery arrangement (Col 5: lines 23-29).
Wagner further teaches the battery arrangement 14 is heated or cooled if the battery arrangement 14 is operated over a pre-defined period of time (corresponding to a preset time threshold value that is the claimed t0) outside the first temperature range 32 (corresponding to the claimed optimal working temperature section), indicating the heating or cooling of the battery occurs in response to a duration t needing more than t0 (i.e., t ≥ t0) to reach a target battery temperature within an optimal working temperature section in a natural heat dissipation or heat absorption state, as claimed in step S5 of claim 1 and operation 5 of claim 6 (Col 9: lines 29-42).
Based on the principle of natural heat dissipation or heat absorption, one of ordinary skill in the art would recognize that heat transfer would occur between the battery and the ambient environment until the temperature of the two are equal (“The theory behind heat transfer,” Alfa Laval, 2004: p2 para 1); therefore, the absolute value of a difference between the target battery temperature (corresponding to a “final” temperature within the optimal working temperature section) and the predicted air temperature will be less than the “initial” difference between the battery temperature and the predicted air temperature (i.e., the absolute value of a difference between the acquired current battery temperature representing an initial battery temperature and the predicted air temperature), because the ambient environment functions as a heatsink. The absolute value of a difference between the (acquired) current battery temperature and the predicted air temperature would represent a preset temperature threshold value Th, as claimed, since Th is set by the value of the acquired current battery temperature and the acquired predicted air temperature.
Wagner’s teaching above also implies that heating or cooling the battery is not initiated if its temperature is already a target battery temperature within the first temperature range 32 (Col 9: lines 10-14), which one of ordinary skill in the art would interpret as suggesting the target temperature was achieved within the pre-defined period of time, i.e. t < t0, and read on the limitation in step S5 of claim 1/operation 5 of claim 6 of in response to that t<t0, stopping heating or cooling the battery if it was being heated or cooled, or not being heated or cooled.
Wagner further teaches their method regularly checks on the progression of the predicted temperature and if it is within the first temperature range 32 (i.e., the optimal working temperature section) by continuing with first step 42 (Fig. 3; Col 9: lines 14-16, 50-52; Col 8: lines 44-46); thereby indicating the repeated execution of acquiring environmental conditions and operating parameters to assess the need to heat/cool the battery. One of ordinary skill in the art would have thus found it obvious based on Wagner’s teaching to further modify Wagner’s method to repeatedly execute the thermal management method, that is, steps S1 to S5 of claim 1 (and operations 1 to 5 of claim 6), based on the direct suggestion by Wagner.
Regarding claims 2 and 7, the combination above teaches the method of claims 1 and 6. There is a period of time associated with executing steps S1 to S5 of claim 1 (and operations 1 to 5 of claim 6), and the combination teaches repeatedly executing steps S1 to S5 of claim 1 (and operations 1 to 5 of claim 6), therefore the combination teaches wherein the step S6 of claim 1 (and operation 6 of claim 6), the steps S1 to S5 of claim 1 (and operations 1 to 5 of claim 6) are repeatedly executed after waiting for a certain time interval.
Regarding claims 3 and 8, the combination above teaches the method of claims 2 and 7. As previously pointed out in addressing the limitations of step S4 in claim 1 (and operation 4 of claim 6), Wagner teaches the battery arrangement 14 is heated or cooled if the battery arrangement 14 is operated over a pre-defined period of time (corresponding to a preset time threshold value that is the claimed t0) outside the first temperature range 32 (corresponding to the claimed optimal working temperature section) (Col 9: lines 29-42), indicating the heating or cooling of the battery occurs in response to a duration t needing more than t0 (i.e., t ≥ t0) to reach a target battery temperature within an optimal working temperature section in a natural heat dissipation or heat absorption state. A person of ordinary skill in the art would have found it obvious to thus contemplate the pre-defined period of time cited by Wagner, which corresponds to t0, as the waiting time interval.
Regarding claims 4 and 9, the combination teaches the method of claims 1 and 6, and claims 4 and 9 claim a formula to describe the variable t. As taught by the combination in addressing claim 1 and claim 6, the time t is governed by the process of natural heat dissipation or heat absorption between the battery and the ambient environment of temperatures represented by the predicted air temperature, and the manner of heat transfer would follow Newton’s law of cooling or heating. According to evidentiary reference Yoshizawa (p1 of Yoshizawa’s “Newton’s Law of Cooling or Heating), the claimed relationships would follow.
Claims 5 and 10 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Wagner et al (US 9643515 B2, published 2017-05-09) in view of Kuruma et al (US 9640845 B2, published 2017-05-02), Wang et al (CN 113067057 A, published 2021-07-02), as applied to claims 1 and 6, and further in view of Bernhardt et al “A Comparison of Daily Temperature-Averaging Methods: Spatial Variability and Recent Change for the CONUS,” American Meteorological Society, 2018.
Evidentiary support is provided by “Washington Reagan National Airport, VA US,” NCEI: Past Weather, accessed 2026.
Regarding claims 5 and 10, the combination teaches the method of claims 1 and 6, and Wagner further teaches acquiring ambient temperature along the route to be traveled by the motor vehicle with the aid of the communication network 22 (Col 5: lines 10-14, Col 6: 55-62) to determine possible heating or cooling requirements of the vehicle battery, thereby directly suggesting the acquisition via the network of air temperature prediction data in the future N hours (corresponding to time to be traveled along the route). Wagner does not teach calculating an average value of the air temperature prediction data.
The U.S. National Centers for Environmental Information provides average temperatures for locations in the U.S., thereby teaching that predicted air temperature can be provided as an average value of the air temperature prediction data (see the evidentiary reference NCEI: Past Weather, “Washington Reagan National Airport, VA US,” p3 for a time series of average temperature), therefore the providing of ambient air temperature as an average value is known. Bernhardt et al teaches that the temperature of a location can be influenced by the time of measurement (p981 left col para 3) and discusses the more precise and representative estimate of a given day’s temperature based on use of specific average-calculating methods (Abstract). A person of ordinary skill in the art would have found it obvious to have modified modified Wagner’s method to obtain the predicted air temperature by calculating an average value of the air temperature prediction value, given that NCEI teaches it is a known configuration, and for the advantage of more precise and representative estimates of a given day’s temperature, i.e. improved predictability, as taught by Bernhardt.
Claim 11 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Wagner et al (US 9643515 B2, published 2017-05-09) in view of Eftekhari et al (US 20210399268 A1, published 2021-12-23), Kuruma et al (US 9640845 B2, published 2017-05-02), Wang et al (CN 113067057 A, published 2021-07-02).
Evidentiary support is provided by “The theory behind heat transfer,” Alfa Laval, 2004, Yoshizawa M, “Newton’s Law of Cooling or Heating,” accessed 2026.
Regarding claim 11, Wagner teaches a battery management system for an electric vehicle comprising: a device 16 (i.e., a processor), a battery arrangement 14, a cooling system and a heating system 18, and a mobile communication module (Wagner teaches using a radio connection to communicate with an external communication network 22, which would be considered a form of mobile communication in that it allows wireless communication between mobile users such as moving vehicles (Col 6: lines 37-39)).
Wagner teaches the processor 16 connects with the battery arrangement 14, the cooling system and the heating system, and the mobile communication module (Col 6: lines 30-39). According to the teaching, the processor 16 manages the cooling and/or heating of the battery arrangement 14 and thus is in “a battery management unit” as claimed. Additionally, the exterior of motor vehicle broadly reads on a “battery box” because one would expect a vehicle to comprises an exterior casing (i.e. a box), which would contain the battery.
Wagner does not explicitly teach the battery arrangement is a battery array nor teaches the processor is configured to execute a computer program instruction set stored on a memory to perform the claimed operations.
Eftekhari et al teaches in the same field of endeavor that a traction battery for a motor vehicle can include a plurality of battery cell assemblies arranged in one or more battery arrays with an enclosure (i.e., a battery box) ([0002]), thus teaching that the combination of battery cells into battery arrays for traction batteries used in vehicles is known in the prior art. A person of ordinary skill in the art at the time of filing would have found it obvious to have modified the battery management system of Wagner to include a battery arrangement 14 comprised of battery array(s) as Eftekhari teaches it is a known configuration, and the person of ordinary skill in the art would have recognized that providing the combination of elements in combination would merely provide the predictable result of similar function as performed separately with expectation of success and thus would have been obvious; see KSR International Co. v. Teleflex Inc., 550 U.S. 398, 415-421, 82 USPQ2d 1385, 1395-97 (2007) (see MPEP §2143, A).
In the same field of endeavor, Wang teaches a processor configured to execute computer instructions to perform some or all of the steps of a method for thermal management of a battery, and that the method can be stored in memory (machine translation [n0081], [n0085]), thus teaching that using a processor to execute a computer program instruction set stored on a memory to perform operations of thermal management of a battery is known in the prior art. A person of ordinary skill in the art at the time of filing would have found it obvious to have modified the battery management system of Wagner to use a processor to execute a computer program instruction set stored on a memory to perform operations of thermal management of a battery as Wang teaches it is a known configuration, and the person of ordinary skill in the art would have recognized that providing the combination of elements in combination would merely provide the predictable result of similar function as performed separately with expectation of success and thus would have been obvious; see KSR International Co. v. Teleflex Inc., 550 U.S. 398, 415-421, 82 USPQ2d 1385, 1395-97 (2007) (see MPEP §2143, A).
Wagner teaches determining the operating parameters of the motor vehicle 10 as part of an initial step 42 (Fig. 3; Col 8: lines 44-46) and describes it being used in step 48 to determine a temperature model of the battery arrangement 14 (Col 8: lines 66-67) to map the temperature progression 30 of the battery arrangement (Col 9: lines 1-5). The operating parameters of the motor vehicle are indicated as including considerations of current battery temperature; use of the current battery temperature is explicitly discussed in step 52 (Col 9: lines 23-25), and current battery temperature is implied to be incorporated into the temperature progression 30 of step 48 (see Fig. 2, wherein the temperature progression 30 includes an initial temperature which would necessarily require acquisition of a current battery temperature at an initial time on the x-axis) (Col 7: lines 34-38; Col 9: lines 3-6). Therefore, Wagner teaches the claimed operation 1.
Wagner also teaches judging whether the battery temperature progression is within the first temperature range 32 (i.e., an optimal working temperature section) and shown in the temperature progression 30 of Fig. 2 (Col 10 lines 42-43; Col 9: lines 47-50), and in response to that the current battery temperature is not within the first temperature range 32 (i.e., the optimal working temperature section), heating the battery or cooling the battery (Col 9: lines 47-50). To heat or cool the battery would naturally require utilizing a system to heat or a cool the battery, including the heating/cooling arrangement 18 taught by Wagner, therefore the claimed limitation of “controlling a heating system to heat the battery or controlling a cooling system to cool the battery” within operation 2 is satisfied by Wagner. However, Wagner does not explicitly claim judging the current battery temperature and heating or cooling the battery if it is not within the optimal working temperature section. In the same field of endeavor, Kuruma teaches a temperature-raising device for a vehicle battery in which a heater is configured to raise the temperature of the battery, and a controller is configured to turn ON or OFF the heater based on a result of a comparison between the battery temperature Tb (i.e., current battery temperature) acquired by the battery temperature acquisition unit and a predetermined threshold (corresponding to Ton and Toff describing the optimal working temperature section); for example, the heater is turned ON if Tb < Ton and the heater is turned OFF if Tb > Toff (Abstract; method described in Fig. 3; Col 9: lines 34-59). Therefore, Kuruma teaches that is a known configuration to utilize a method to control a heating system to heat a battery in direct response to that the current battery temperature is not within the optimal working temperature section. Kuruma also discloses the need to heat the battery if it is not within a desired temperature range, teaching that the vehicle battery can have low charging capacity at a low temperature, thus increasing the length of time that is required for charging or that the vehicle battery cannot be charged or discharged in a case where the temperature of the in-car battery decreases to the point of reaching a freezing temperature. Therefore, a person of ordinary skill in the art would have found it obvious to incorporate Kuruma’s strategy within modified Wagner’s method of controlling a heating system to heat a battery in direct response to that the current battery temperature is not within the optimal working temperature section because it is a known configuration and to avoid increasing the length of time required for charging the battery at low temperatures or a situation where the battery cannot be charged or discharged, as taught by Kuruma.
Wagner also teaches acquiring the anticipated environmental conditions along the route to be travelled, such as ambient temperature (Col 6: lines 6-62), that can be collected via communication network 22 along the route to be travelled and further teaches that knowledge of the conditions enables improved assessment regarding the need for either artificial heating/cooling of the battery or heating/cooling of the battery by means of the ambient air (Col 8: lines 44-53, Col 4: lines 37-44), therefore teaching acquiring a predicted air temperature of a local area, and via a network, which corresponds to operation 3.
The claim language of operations 1 and 3 does not indicate a special result as the result of the predicted air temperature of a local area via a network being performed in a specific order relative to the acquisition of a current battery temperature that would limit the order in which operations 1 and 3 are performed relative to each other. Therefore, the ordering of operation 3 before, after, or simultaneous with operation 1 is prima facie obvious.
Wagner teaches “it is not necessary to cool the battery arrangement 14 if the journey is about to terminate and the ambient temperature in the target range current” (Col 9: line 67 to Col 10: lines 1-5). A skilled artisan would have interpreted the teaching as directly suggesting “in response to that the predicted air temperature is within a normal working temperature section, stopping heating or cooling the battery” if it is being cooled, as claimed for operation 4, wherein the taught “target range current” corresponds to a normal working temperature range.
Although Wagner does not explicitly teach thermal control steps of the battery in response to the predicted air temperature being not within the normal working temperature range as described by operation 4 limitation “in response to that the predicted air temperature is not within the normal working temperature section, calculating a duration t required for the battery temperature to reach a target battery temperature from the current battery temperature in a natural heat dissipation or heat absorption state to satisfy a temperature difference between the target battery temperature and the predicted air temperature being less than Th”, Wagner contemplates pre-cooling the battery arrangement 14 if a high ambient temperature is expected for the next journey (directly implying a situation where the predicted air temperature is not within the normal working temperature section) and also contemplates the need to consider the most energy efficient way to pre-cool the battery arrangement 14 such as by using ambient air to the best possible extent for cooling the battery arrangement 14 and minimizing energy withdrawal (indicating selection of a cooling strategy that considers using natural heat dissipation to cool the battery to a desirable temperature preferable from an energy savings position) (Col 10: lines 11-30; Col 5: lines 30-36).
In a related field of endeavor, Wang teaches a more explicit structure for heating/cooling a battery arrangement within a vehicle in response based on ambient temperatures (i.e., predicted air temperatures) being greater, lower, or equal to pre-cooling and pre-heating threshold temperatures (machine translation: [n0072]-[n0074]).
Specifically, Wang teaches a pre-cooling threshold temperature T3 and a pre-heating threshold temperature T4 used for evaluating the ambient temperature (I.e., predicted air temperature) [n0071, n0039, n0041], wherein the pre-cooling threshold temperature is higher than the pre-heating threshold temperature ([n0074] lines 8-9); the claimed normal working temperature section of Wang thus corresponds to the range of temperatures bounded by the taught pre-cooling threshold temperature and the pre-heating threshold temperature. Wang teaches judging whether the ambient temperature is higher than a pre-cooling threshold temperature, and then initiating a first thermal management process/pre-cooling thermal management process to initiate the battery cooling process earlier ([n0033]-[n0034], [n0045]). Alternatively, Wang teaches initiating a second thermal management process/pre-heating thermal management process to initiate the battery heating process earlier when the ambient temperature is lower than a pre-heating threshold temperature ([n0033]-[n0034], [n0053]). One of ordinary skill in the art would have considered this teaching to indicate a consideration of heating or cooling the battery in “response to the predicted air temperature is not within the normal working temperature section” as claimed in operation 4.
Wang also teaches an optimal working temperature section (bounded by Wang’s first cooling start threshold temperature and the second heating start threshold temperature [n0046], [n0056], [n0069]), used to assess the suitability of battery temperature, wherein a lower limit of the normal working temperature section (bounded by Wang’s pre-cooling threshold temperature and pre-heating threshold temperature and used to assess the suitability of the ambient temperature) is less than a lower limit of the optimal working temperature section. Specifically, Wang teaches “Here, the first cooling start threshold temperature T1’ is lower than the standard cooling start threshold temperature T1, and the second heating start threshold temperature T2” is higher than the standard heating start threshold temperature T2’ ” ([n0069]), and “Typically, the standard cooling start-up threshold temperature is lower than the pre-cooling threshold temperature mentioned above, and the standard heating start-up threshold temperature is higher than the pre-heating threshold temperature mentioned above” ([n0035]); together, they indicate that the first cooling start threshold temperature T1’ (an upper limit of the optimal working temperature section) is lower than the pre-cooling threshold temperature (an upper limit of the normal working temperature section) and the second heating start threshold temperature T2 (a lower limit of the optimal working temperature section) is higher than the pre-heating threshold temperature (a lower limit of the normal working temperature) mentioned. In other words, they read on the limitation “an upper limit of the normal working temperature section is greater than an upper limit of the optimal working temperature section, and a lower limit of the normal working temperature section is less than a lower limit of the optimal working temperature section” claimed in operation 4.
Wang teaches “By utilizing the solution of the present invention, it is possible to determine whether the battery in the battery cell needs to be pre-cooled and/or pre-heated based on the ambient temperature of the battery cell, and to perform corresponding thermal management on the battery based on the determination result. This enables the battery to be cooled in advance in high-temperature environments to slow down the battery temperature rise, and to be heated in advance in low-temperature environments to accelerate the battery temperature rise. This reduces the time and possibility of the battery cell operating at relatively high or relatively low temperatures due to excessively high or low ambient temperatures. Therefore, compared to the prior art, the present invention enables more effective thermal management of batteries and related benefits” ([n0022]). A skilled artisan would have found it obvious at the time of filing to have modified Wagner’s method for thermal control of a battery to incorporate Wang’s strategy for determining pre-cooling and/or pre-heating the battery based on comparing ambient temperature of the battery cell to threshold temperatures for the advantages of reducing the time and possibility of the battery operating at relatively high or relatively low temperatures due to excessively high or low ambient temperatures, which is consistent with Wagner’s contemplation of the need to pre-condition (specifically, pre-cool) the battery arrangement in preparation for a high ambient temperature along the route to be travelled and to avoid any subsequent intensive cooling of the battery arrangement or even avoid damage to the battery arrangement (Col 5: lines 23-29).
Wagner further teaches the battery arrangement 14 is heated or cooled if the battery arrangement 14 is operated over a pre-defined period of time (corresponding to a preset time threshold value that is the claimed t0) outside the first temperature range 32 (corresponding to the claimed optimal working temperature section), indicating the heating or cooling of the battery occurs in response to a duration t needing more than t0 (i.e., t ≥ t0) to reach a target battery temperature within an optimal working temperature section in a natural heat dissipation or heat absorption state, as claimed in operation 5 (Col 9: lines 29-42).
Based on the principle of natural heat dissipation or heat absorption, one of ordinary skill in the art would recognize that heat transfer would occur between the battery and the ambient environment until the temperature of the two are equal (“The theory behind heat transfer,” Alfa Laval, 2004: p2 para 1); therefore, the absolute value of a difference between the target battery temperature (corresponding to a “final” temperature within the optimal working temperature section) and the predicted air temperature will be less than the “initial” difference between the battery temperature and the predicted air temperature (i.e., the absolute value of a difference between the acquired current battery temperature representing an initial battery temperature and the predicted air temperature), because the ambient environment functions as a heatsink. The absolute value of a difference between the (acquired) current battery temperature and the predicted air temperature would represent a preset temperature threshold value Th, as claimed, since Th is set by the value of the acquired current battery temperature and the acquired predicted air temperature.
Wagner’s teaching above also implies that heating or cooling the battery is not initiated if its temperature is already a target battery temperature within the first temperature range 32 (Col 9: lines 10-14), which one of ordinary skill in the art would interpret as suggesting the target temperature was achieved within the pre-defined period of time, i.e. t < t0, and read on the limitation in operation 5 in response to that t<t0, stopping heating or cooling the battery if it was being heated or cooled, or not being heated or cooled.
Wagner further teaches their method regularly checks on the progression of the predicted temperature and if it is within the first temperature range 32 (i.e., the optimal working temperature section) by continuing with first step 42 (Fig. 3; Col 9: lines 14-16, 50-52; Col 8: lines 44-46); thereby indicating the repeated execution of acquiring environmental conditions and operating parameters to assess the need to heat/cool the battery. One of ordinary skill in the art would have thus found it obvious based on Wagner’s teaching to further modify Wagner’s method to repeatedly execute the thermal management method, that is, operations 1 to 5, based on the direct suggestion by Wagner.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to GIGI LIN whose telephone number is (571)272-2017. The examiner can normally be reached Mon - Fri 8:30 - 6.
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, Jeffrey T Barton can be reached at (571) 272-1307. 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.
/G.L.L./Examiner, Art Unit 1726
/JEFFREY T BARTON/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 1726 30 March 2026