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 .
DETAILED ACTION
1. Claim 1-12 are presented for examination.
Claim Objections
2. Claims 1 and 11 are objected to because of the following informalities:
As per Claim 1, it recites the limitation “a series connection formed a supply line” in line 21 which would be better as “a series connection formed of a supply line”.
As per Claim 1, it recites the limitation “the supply line resistance” in line 33 which would be better as “a supply line resistance”.
As claim 2, it recites the limitation “it” in line 2 which is unclear what the limitation refers. As per Claim 11, it recites the limitation “the method according to one claim 1” in line 2-3 which would be better as “the method according to claim 1”.
Appropriate correction is required.
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.
3. Claims 1-12 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.
As per Claim 1, it recites the limitation " the electromotive counter voltage" in line 22-23. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim. Further claim 1 recites the limitation “the simulation is stabilized” in line 31 which is a relative term of degree for which the claim provides no objective standard.
As per Claim 2, it recites the limitation “the reciprocal of the eigenvalue for the supply line current in the conductive state of the inverter” in line 2-3 which lacks antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim.
As per Claim 4, it recites the limitation “the reciprocal of the eigenvalue for the supply line current in the conductive state of the inverter” in line 8 which lacks antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim.
As per Claim 5, the limitations “a high lock-out value” and “behaves practically independently of the inverter voltage source” are indefinite because “high” and “practically independently” are relative terms of degree for which the claim provides no objective standard. Further it recites the limitation “the lock-out value for an open semiconductor switch” in line 5 which lacks antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim.
As per Claims 5, 9 and 10, they recite the limitation “motor sub model”. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim. Further, Claim 1 introduces “an inverter subcircuit and a motor subcircuit” but never an “inverter sub model” leaving unclear whether the “sub model” and the “subcircuit” denote the same element.
As per Claim 8, it recites the limitations “small in relation to the value for the capacitance of the load branch capacitor in the open state” and “in the range of 1 µF” are indefinite because “small in relation to” and “in the range of” are terms of degree for which the claim sets no definite boundary or range; further, the limitation “the conductive and open state of the load branch capacitor” in line 4-5 is ambiguous because the load branch capacitor is not elsewhere recited as having conductive or open states.
As per Claim 9, it recites the limitations “inverter sub model”. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim. Further Claim 1 introduces “an inverter subcircuit and a motor subcircuit” but never a “motor sub model,” leaving unclear whether the “sub model” and the “subcircuit” denote the same element.
As per Claim 9, it recites the limitation “the motor input voltage” in line 2 which lacks proper antecedent basis on its first recitation.
Allowable Subject Matter
4. Claim 1-12 would be allowable if rewritten or amended to overcome the rejection(s) under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), 2nd paragraph, set forth in this Office action.
5. The following is an examiner’s statement of reasons for allowance:
While Guo (“Hardware in the Loop Real-time Simulation for the Associated Discrete Circuit Modeling Optimization Method of Power Converters”) teaches a computer implemented method to simulate an electric drive via at least one processing unit of a hardware-in-the-loop simulator, wherein a model of the electric drive comprises an inverter powered by a DC voltage source with at least one half-bridge having at least two semiconductor switches and an electric motor having an electrical winding resistance and a winding inductance (Fig. 3, “Equivalent circuit of the three-phase inverter”: real-time hardware-in-the-loop simulation of a DC-fed three-phase inverter built from semiconductor switches) including connecting a center tap having a center tap voltage of the half-bridge via a supply line having a supply line current to a motor connection of the electric motor (§2, equivalent circuit; Fig. 2, “Three-phase inverter with LC filter”: the half-bridge legs connected through the line/filter to the load (motor) terminals), and wherein actuating the semiconductor switches such that the motor connection is either connectable to an electrical potential of the DC voltage source in a conductive state of the inverter with an open semiconductor switch or the motor connection is activatable in an open state of the inverter with at least two semiconductor switches open (§2.1, “The ADC switch model is shown in Figure 1, the switch is modeled as an inductance L or capacitance C depending on its ON/OFF status”: actuation of the switches between conductive and open (ON/OFF) states governing the inverter topology);
separating the model of the electric drive into an inverter subcircuit and a motor subcircuit, which are numerically coupled to each other only via electrical coupling variables, the center tap voltage or the supply line current, the semiconductor switches of the inverter subcircuit being represented by ohmic resistors whose resistance values depend on the switching state of the semiconductor switches (§2.1, switch admittance parameter Gs, ON/OFF: representing the switches by a state-dependent companion admittance — the conductance analog of the claimed ohmic resistor);
wherein the inverter subcircuit and the motor subcircuit are simulated separately, each using an implicit numerical integration method (§2.1, “… discretizing all circuit devices using the backward Euler method (BEM)”: implicit (backward-Euler) integration on a fixed admittance matrix),
Jiang (“Real-Time FPGA/CPU-Based Simulation of a Full-Electric Vehicle Integrated with a High-Fidelity Electric Drive Model”) teaches a computer implemented method to simulate an electric drive via at least one processing unit of a hardware-in-the-loop simulator, wherein a model of the electric drive comprises an inverter powered by a DC voltage source with at least one half-bridge having at least two semiconductor switches and an electric motor having an electrical winding resistance and a winding inductance (§2, “Two permanent magnet synchronous machines (PMSM) and insulated-gate bipolar transistor (IGBT) inverters are modeled”: the electric motor having winding resistance and inductance — a PMSM modeled by its stator phase resistance, d/q-axis inductances, and magnet flux linkage) including wherein the motor subcircuit comprises a series connection formed a supply line resistor for mapping the supply line, the winding inductance and the winding resistance of the motor, as well as an EMF voltage source on an output side to take into account the electromotive counter voltage induced in the motor and an inverter voltage source to adjust the center tap voltage on an input side (§2, “Rs … the stator phase resistance”; “the apparent inductances, magnet flux linkage”: the motor subcircuit as a machine modeled by its stator (winding) resistance and inductances together with a back-EMF source),
Bogdanovic (“Non-Intrusive Delay-Based Model Partitioning for Distributed Real-Time Simulation” teaches real-time simulation including separating the model of the electric drive into an inverter subcircuit and a motor subcircuit, which are numerically coupled to each other only via electrical coupling variables, the center tap voltage or the supply line current, the semiconductor switches of the inverter subcircuit being represented by ohmic resistors whose resistance values depend on the switching state of the semiconductor switches (§3.1, “The simulation decoupling point is where the monolithic system partitioning is made, and delays occur when interface variables are exchanged”: separating a monolithic model into subcircuits coupled only via the exchanged coupling variables);
mapping the supply line current with a supply power source at the center tap of the half-bridge to the motor subcircuit (§3.1, “the ideal transformer model (ITM) … is assumed to be used as an interface algorithm”: a controlled-source (ITM) interface injecting the exchanged variable into the receiving subcircuit);
wherein the inverter subcircuit and the motor subcircuit are simulated separately, each using an implicit numerical integration method (§3.1, “Both subsystems are simulated with the same time step”: solving the decoupled subsystems separately);
wherein an algebraic loop between the inverter subcircuit and the motor subcircuit is resolved by inserting a dead time to the extent of at least one calculation step size of the numerical integration method (§2, “… distributed real-time power system simulations where at least one time step delay should be considered”; §3.1, “The interface variable is sampled and delayed before being applied to the receiving subsystem”: resolving the coupling by a one-time-step interface delay),
Hao (“Real-time simulation method of MVDC integrated power system based on heuristic partitioning method and terminal resistance decoupling interface”) teaches Real-time simulation method of MVDC integrated power system including loading the center tap of the half-bridge with a load branch having at least one load branch resistance to adjust the center tap voltage (§3.2.1, “On the basis of ITM method, the controlled current source is paralleled with an additional constant resistance R and reversely paralleled with a new controlled current source”: adding, at the decoupling node, a resistance branch to condition the interface);
mapping the supply line current with a supply power source at the center tap of the half-bridge to the motor subcircuit (§3.2.1, “The input of the anti-parallel controlled current source is the current Ip flowing through the constant resistance R”: the controlled current source mapping the interface current), and
Dufour (US 9665672 B2) teaches a method to simulate an electric drive via at least one processing unit of a hardware-in-the-loop simulator, wherein a model of the electric drive comprises an inverter powered by a DC voltage source with at least one half-bridge having at least two semiconductor switches and an electric motor having an electrical winding resistance and a winding inductance including actuating the semiconductor switches such that the motor connection is either connectable to an electrical potential of the DC voltage source in a conductive state of the inverter or in an open state of the inverter with at least two semiconductor switches open, separating the model of the electric drive into an inverter subcircuit and a motor subcircuit, which are numerically coupled to each other only via electrical coupling variables, the semiconductor switches, being represented by ohmic resistors whose resistance values depend on the switching state, and wherein the inverter subcircuit and the motor subcircuit are simulated separately, each using an implicit numerical integration method,
none of the references of record alone or in combination disclose or suggest a method computer implemented method to simulate an electric drive including “the simulation is stabilized when switching between the conductive and the open state of the inverter by parameter switching of the values for the load branch resistance of the load branch in the inverter subcircuit and for the supply line resistance in the motor subcircuit at runtime of the simulation”.
Conclusion
6. The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Wasynczuk (US 20020183990 A1) teaches circuit simulation including actuating the semiconductor switches such that the motor connection is either connectable to an electrical potential of the DC voltage source in a conductive state of the inverter or in an open state of the inverter with at least two semiconductor switches open, separating the model of the electric drive into an inverter subcircuit and a motor subcircuit, which are numerically coupled to each other only via electrical coupling variables, the semiconductor switches, being represented by ohmic resistors whose resistance values depend on the switching state, and wherein the inverter subcircuit and the motor subcircuit are simulated separately, each using an implicit numerical integration method.
Maguire (“Predicting Switch ON/OFF Statuses in Real Time Electromagnetic Transients Simulations with Voltage Source Converters”) teaches Power converters in system-level real-time simulations including wherein actuating the semiconductor switches such that the motor connection is either connectable to an electrical potential of the DC voltage source in a conductive state of the inverter with an open semiconductor switch or the motor connection is activatable in an open state of the inverter with at least two semiconductor switches open, and separating the model of the electric drive into an inverter subcircuit and a motor subcircuit, which are numerically coupled to each other only via electrical coupling variables, the center tap voltage or the supply line current, the semiconductor switches of the inverter subcircuit being represented by ohmic resistors whose resistance values depend on the switching state of the semiconductor switches.
Gu; Wei (US 11449653 B2); Yao;
Shujun (US 12475289 B2)
Plude; Curtis J (US 7880460 B2);
Ha; Quang (US 10620265 B2)
Monti; Antonello (US 20080312855 A1)
7. Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to EUNHEE KIM whose telephone number is (571)272-2164. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 9am-5pm ET.
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EUNHEE KIM
Primary Examiner
Art Unit 2188
/EUNHEE KIM/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2188
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