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 .
Response to Amendment
Acknowledgement is made of amendment filed on 05/10/2026 in which claims 1-7,10-16,18-20 and 22 have been amended while claims 8-9,17,21 and 23 have been canceled.
By this amendment, claims 1-7,10-16,18-20 and 22 are still pending in the application.
Drawings
The drawings were received on 05/10/2026. These drawings are acceptable.
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed 05/10/2026 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive. Regarding claim 14, applicant’s representative argues that:
Smolenaers and Tseng nowhere mention the features of amended claim 1. Therefore, the amended claim 1 stands novel over the cited arts.
Examiner concur due to the fact that limitations of allowable dependent claims 8 and 9 are herewith incorporated into claim 1 and thus the art rejection has been withdrawn which makes the arguments supra moot.
Applicant’s representative further argues that:
Similar amendments have been made to claim 14 and hence, Claim 14 also stands novel over the cited prior arts.
Examiner respectfully disagrees and submits that the limitations of claim 9 is not present into currently amended claim 14 and furthermore, Smolenaers further discloses that there are more than two control signals with one directed to having the charging station(5) enabling a power transfer and a second signal as a control pilot signal which is used to take over from the wireless communicate once an electrical connection is established. (see [0122],[0125],[0189]-[0191]). Smolenaers further discloses that station 5 is controlled by a master control unit, or a station module such as module 121 or other controller. In some embodiments, this master control unit is connected to one or more networks or communication modules including the internet, and is able to communicate(thus is able to receive from a data network connected to the charging pole(charging station)) with, for example; one or more electric vehicles including their locations and state of charge, a public transport operator or fleet manager for vehicle timetables or schedules, a weather forecast provider for prediction of renewable energy generation such as solar or wind and for predicting loads such as air-conditioning requirements, and the electricity network for spot and wholesale pricing and demand response cues(see [0208]).
Therefore rejections of claims 14-16,18-20 and 22 have been maintained where arguments were found not persuasive.
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 1-7,10-13 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 the bold faced limitations of: “-receiving a second control command and/or second information, from which a second control command is generated, from the data network;-executing the second control command and/or the control command generated from the second information for termination of the feed-in of electrical energy from the charging pole into a power grid; where the charging pole is suitable and intended for charging batteries of electric vehicles, where the receipt of the second control command and/or the second information and the termination of the feed-in of electrical energy from the charging pole into a power grid are causally related” are indefinite since a power grid was recited previously in line 2 of claim 1 and it is unclear as to which “a power grid” these bold limitations are referring back to.
Claims 2-7,10-13 depend either directly or indirectly from claim 1 and thus are also rejected for the same reasons since they inherit the same deficiencies.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
The following is a quotation of the appropriate paragraphs of 35 U.S.C. 102 that form the basis for the rejections under this section made in this Office action:
A person shall be entitled to a patent unless –
(a)(1) the claimed invention was patented, described in a printed publication, or in public use, on sale, or otherwise available to the public before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claim(s) 14-16,19-20 and 22 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being anticipated by Smolenaers US 2020/0062138 A1(also cited by Applicants)
Regarding claim 14: Smolenaers at least discloses and shows in Figs. 3-5: Charging pole (construed as being part of charging station 5) suitable and intended for charging batteries(3) of electric vehicles(1)(see Figs. 3-4 and 6), wherein the charging pole (construed as being part of charging station 5) comprises:
a first connection(plug 81)(see Figs. 3-4 and [0103],[0105]) suitable and intended for delivering electrical energy to an electric vehicle(1);
a second connection(see connection to grid 77 via AC/DC converter 83; see Fig. 3) suitable and intended for delivering electrical energy to a power grid(77) connected to the charging pole (construed as being part of charging station 5);
characterised in that
the charging pole (construed as being part of charging station 5)comprises communication means(communication module 122)(see Figs. 6-7 and [0105])(see [0026],[0090],[0092],[0094] [0134],[0138] and [0145]) suitable and intended for receiving a first control command(as onboard module 20 which is fitted to vehicle 1; see [0105],[0122],[0134],[0139],[0145] and [0191]) and/or a first information from which a control command is generated, and a second control command(construed as control pilot signal; see [0122],[0125],[0189]-[0191]) and/or a second information from which a second control command is generated(see [0090],[0092],[0122],[0125],[0146] and [0274])(note-there is a power connection signal and a control pilot signal(construed as a second control command) which is used to take over from the wireless communicate once an electrical connection is established).
Regarding claim 15, Smolenaers discloses all the claimed invention as set forth and discussed above in claim 14. Smolenaers further discloses, wherein the charging pole(construed as being part of charging station 5) comprises a controller(120) suitable and intended for executing the first control command and/or the control command generated from the first information([0121]-[0132],[0138] and [0145]).
Regarding claim 16, Smolenaers discloses all the claimed invention as set forth and discussed above in claim 15. Smolenaers further discloses, wherein the controller (120) controls a feed-in device(see cable and plug 81 and coupler 126 and/or 127)(Figs. 3-4 and 8), wherein the feeding device comprises a switching device(124,128,129 which are part or a subset of control unit 120)(see Fig. 8 and [0180]) suitable and intended for starting and/or terminating feeding operations([0084],[0097] and [0103]-[0104]).
Regarding claim 19, Smolenaers discloses all the claimed invention as set forth and discussed above in claim 14. Smolenaers further discloses, wherein the first connection (plug 81) is structurally different from the second connection (connection to the grid 77 as shown in Figs. 3-5)(see [0106]-[0108],[0115]-[0116]).
Regarding 20, Smolenaers discloses all the claimed invention as set forth and discussed above in claim 14. Smolenaers further discloses, wherein the charging pole has a device(83) for energy conversion, wherein the energy conversion device is suitable and intended for converting a gaseous and/or liquid energy carrier into electric energy(see [0073], [0100], [0101]).
Regarding 22, Smolenaers discloses all the claimed invention as set forth and discussed above in claim 14. Smolenaers further discloses, wherein the charging pole has an energy storage device (80)([0100])(see Figs. 3-5).
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 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.
Claim(s) 18 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Smolenaers US 2020/0062138 A1(also cited by Applicants) in view of Tseng US 2019/0366868 A1 (cited by Applicants)
Regarding claim 18, Smolenaers discloses all the claimed invention as set forth and discussed above in claim 15. While Smolenaers discusses(see [0194]) the use the banks (80) being able to be charged overnight and discharged behind-the-meter to provide some or all of the onsite demand for the micro-grid during day whilst vehicles are operating but not drawing charging current from the stations, he fails to expressly disclose the limitations of, “the charging pole comprises a measuring device suitable for and intended to measure the amount of energy delivered to the power grid connected to the charging pole during a feed-in operation”.
In the same field of endeavor, namely electric vehicle supply system, Tseng discloses and shows in Fig. 6, factual evidence of, the charging pole comprises a measuring device (131) suitable for and intended to measure the amount of energy delivered to the power grid connected to the charging pole during a feed-in operation([0031],[0078]).
Therefore it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing of the claimed invention to modify Smolenaers with the teachings of Tseng by including a measuring device suitable for and intended to measure the amount of energy delivered to the power grid connected to the charging pole during a feed-in operation, as recited, in order that the return-back power output from the output power conversion device can be sold through the intelligent electric meter back to the commercial power supply, as per the teachings of Tseng ([0078]).
Accordingly claim 18 would have been obvious.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 1-7,10-13 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.
Regarding claim 1, patentability exists at least in part with the claimed limitations of, “receiving a second control command and/or second information, from which a second control command is generated, from the data network;-executing the second control command and/or the control command generated from the second information for termination of the feed-in of electrical energy from the charging pole into a power grid; where the charging pole is suitable and intended for charging batteries of electric vehicles, where the receipt of the second control command and/or the second information and the termination of the feed-in of electrical energy from the charging pole into a power grid are causally related.”.
Claims 2-7,10-13 depend either directly or indirectly from claim 1 and thus are also allowable for the same reasons and subjected to the same conditions.
Conclusion
Applicant's amendment necessitated the new ground(s) of rejection presented in this Office action. Accordingly, THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. See MPEP § 706.07(a). 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.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to M'BAYE DIAO whose telephone number is (571)272-6127. The examiner can normally be reached M-F; 10:00AM-6:30PM and OFF most of the time Friday when working IFP.
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M'BAYE DIAO
Primary Examiner
Art Unit 2859
/M BAYE DIAO/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2859 June 8, 2026
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