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 .
Drawings
The drawings are objected to under 37 CFR 1.83(a). The drawings must show every feature of the invention specified in the claims. Therefore, the “timer” must be shown or the feature(s) canceled from the claim(s). No new matter should be entered.
Corrected drawing sheets in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(d) are required in reply to the Office action to avoid abandonment of the application. Any amended replacement drawing sheet should include all of the figures appearing on the immediate prior version of the sheet, even if only one figure is being amended. The figure or figure number of an amended drawing should not be labeled as “amended.” If a drawing figure is to be canceled, the appropriate figure must be removed from the replacement sheet, and where necessary, the remaining figures must be renumbered and appropriate changes made to the brief description of the several views of the drawings for consistency. Additional replacement sheets may be necessary to show the renumbering of the remaining figures. Each drawing sheet submitted after the filing date of an application must be labeled in the top margin as either “Replacement Sheet” or “New Sheet” pursuant to 37 CFR 1.121(d). If the changes are not accepted by the examiner, the applicant will be notified and informed of any required corrective action in the next Office action. The objection to the drawings will not be held in abeyance.
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 15-20 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 15 recites “a transformer sensor configured to detect an electrical load flowing through the current transformer, wherein the electrical load flowing through the current transformer is transmitted.—” in lines 3-5. A current transformer usually incorporates current senser to sense current flow through the current transformer. Thus, it is not clear how the transformer sensor senses the electrical load flowing as recited in the claim. For examination
purpose the limitation is considered as ‘”electrical current flowing through the current transformer”. Appropriate correction is required.
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.
Claims 15 and 20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Liptak (US 2016/0075246) in view of Chen et al. (US 2022/0131396), hereinafter Chen.
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As to claim 15, Liptak discloses in figure 1, a method of interrupting an electric circuit, the method comprising [see the apparatus above];
receiving, by a control circuit of an electrical system [adjustment module (151) operates as controller and output signals to interrupt current to the vehicle; see ¶0015 and ¶0027], an electrical input from a current transformer [the current sensor (132) is also current transformer. Current transformer implicitly comprises current sensor; sends signals to the controller/charging adjustment module (151) via the communication interface (150); ¶0013] , the current transformer being electrically coupled to a transformer sensor [noted that the current transformer implicitly contains current sensor and detects current flow a conductor] configured to detect an electrical load flowing through the current transformer [the current flow to the load (120) is sensed by the current transformer/current sensor (132)], wherein the electrical load flowing through the current transformer is transmitted, via a conductor and based on an electrical device being activated, to the electrical device [the load (120) receives current passes through the current transformer/sensor (132) via an electrical wire/conductor; see figure above]; and transmitting, by the control circuit, an electrical signal from the control [noted that the controller module (151) sends signals to the Electrical Vehicle Charging circuit to interrupt or disable vehicle charging; ¶0027];
Liptak does not disclose explicitly, transmitting, by the control circuit, an electrical signal from the control circuit to a contactor, the contactor including separable contacts having a closed default position and configured to open based on receiving the electrical signal, wherein the opening of the separable contacts interrupts current flow to an electric vehicle charger.
Chen discloses in figures 1-2, transmitting, by the control circuit [the off-board charger controller (11))], an electrical signal from the control circuit to a contactor [contactor K0] , the contactor including separable contacts having a closed default position [during charging K0 is at closed position which is considered as a default condition] and configured to open based on receiving the electrical signal [see ¶0069], wherein the opening of the separable contacts interrupts current flow to an electric vehicle charger [current flow is interrupted by K0 when the controller sends signal to K0].
It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was made to use contactor switch such as relay in Liptak’s apparatus as taught by Chen in order to interrupt charging switch completely and avoid leakage current.
As to claim 20, Liptak discloses in figure 1, disrupting facilitates [controller is considered as disrupting ] by the control circuit [controller or adjusting means (151)] and based on the electrical device being deactivated, transmission of the electrical signal to the contactor [when the device is not coupled the monitoring device increase charging current to the vehicle charging station (EVSE)].
Liptak does not disclose explicitly, separating and returning the separable contacts to the closed default position. and wherein the disrupting facilitates returning the separable contacts to the closed default position thereby causing the current flow to propagate through the contactor to the electric vehicle charge.
Chen discloses in figures 1-2, separating and returning the separable contacts to the closed default position. and wherein the disrupting facilitates returning the separable contacts to the closed default position thereby causing the current flow to propagate through the contactor to the electric vehicle charge [Chen discloses a controller closing and opening the relay switch K0 of the charging circuit to charge the electrical vehicle and to disable charging current; see ¶0069].
It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was made to control the relay switch or contactor of Liptak’s to allow and disallow charging current flow to the vehicle battery as taught by Chen in order to effectively charging the vehicle battery and also to prevent leakage currents.
As to Claims 15 and 20 the method merely recites the steps of using the elements of the device as disclosed above. Thus, the method steps will be met during the normal operation of the apparatus described above.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 1-12 are allowed.
The following is an examiner’s statement of reasons for allowance:
For claim 1:-primarily, the prior art of record does not disclose or suggest in the claimed combination: the electrical control switch, a power distribution block, a first compact circuit protector, a current transformer, and the electrical device, that are electrically coupled via a conductor, wherein the conductor feeds back to the electrical control switch from the current transformer to complete the first circuit; wherein the power distribution block is configured to split the electric current received from the electrical control switch to the first compact circuit protector, a second compact circuit protector and a third compact circuit protector; and a second circuit electrically coupling the second compact circuit protector to a contactor and the electric vehicle charger, wherein the second circuit is configured to transmit, via the contactor, the electric current received by the power distribution block to the electric vehicle charger, wherein the contactor has a default position that is closed to complete the second circuit; wherein the third compact circuit protector includes a control circuit configured to receive, via a third circuit and based on the current transformer detecting a current draw flowing therethrough, an electrical input from the current transformer, and based thereon propagate a signal to the contactor to switch open, thereby interrupting the electric current to the electric vehicle charger.
Claim
For claim 12:-primarily, the prior art of record does not disclose or suggest in the claimed combination: a first electrical circuit configured to transmit an electric current from an electrical control switch to a power distribution block, wherein the power distribution block is configured to split the electric current to, in part, a current transformer via a first compact circuit protector, wherein the current transformer is configured to further transmit the electric current to an electrical device; and a second electrical circuit configured to further transmit the electric current that is split from the power distribution block, wherein the electric current is split, via a second compact circuit protector, to a contactor that has a default position that is closed to further transmit the electric current to an electric vehicle charger.
Claims 16-19 would be allowable if rewritten 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 and to include all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
Any comments considered necessary by applicant must be submitted no later than the payment of the issue fee and, to avoid processing delays, should preferably accompany the issue fee. Such submissions should be clearly labeled “Comments on Statement of Reasons for Allowance.”
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to SAMUEL BERHANU whose telephone number is (571)272-8430. The examiner can normally be reached M_F.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Julian A. Huffman can be reached at Julian.Huffman@uspto.gov. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/SAMUEL BERHANU/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2859