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 .
Acknowledgment is made of the amendment filed on 3/4/2026, where:
Claims 16 and 24 have been amended;
Claims 16-34 pending in this Office Action.
Applicant’s arguments, see pages 7 and 8, filed 4 March 2026, with respect to Claim 16, as currently amended, have been fully considered and are persuasive. The 35 USC 102 rejection of Claims 16-32 as being anticipated by U.S. Patent Publication No. 2019/0356012 issued to Hermann has been withdrawn.
No arguments were received addressing the 35 USC 103 rejection of Claims 33-34 as rejection under 35 USC 103 as being unpatentable over U.S. Patent Publication No. 2019/0356012 issued to Hermann are found in the response.
Claim Objections
Claim 34 objected to under 37 CFR 1.75(c) as being in improper form because a multiple dependent claim should refer to other claims in the alternative only—Claim 34 improper refers to Claim 33 “The method of Claim 33” and Claim 16 “the device of Claim 16”. See MPEP § 608.01(n).
Accordingly, the Claim 34 not been further treated on the merits.
The examiner suggests replacing “the device of Claim 16” with a recitation of the structure from Claim 16 that Applicant is attempting to claim.
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.
Claim(s) 33 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over U.S. Patent Publication No. 2019/0356012 issued to Hermann.
Regarding Claim 33, Hermann teaches in Figures 1-22 and paragraphs [0072-0095] a method for operating a device for driving a motor vehicle (see at least paragraph [0004 and 0046]) comprising an electric drive unit (22), a first electric energy storage (10) comprising a first desired operating temperature (25-80-degrees Celsius—see at least paragraph [0078]) and connected to the electric drive unit (22) for supplying electric energy, and a second electric energy storage (12) comprising a second desired operating temperature (-30 to 60-degrees Celsius—see at least paragraph [0078]) lower than the first desired operating temperature and connected to the electric drive unit (22) for supplying electric energy, the method comprising: transferring waste heat from the electric drive unit and/or the second electric energy storage to the first electric energy storage (see at least paragraphs [0077-0078] where the secondary electrical storage delivers energy to heat the first electrical storage).
Hermann does not explicitly state that the energy delivered to the first electrical storage is waste heat. However, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was filed to transfer use waste heat as the most efficient form of energy to warm the first electrical storage from the secondary battery. Such a modification would be advantageous to increase the efficiency of vehicle by warming the first electrical storage with a waste heat without needing to convert electrical energy to heat by a secondary device, such as a resistive heater.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 16-32 allowed.
The following is an examiner’s statement of reasons for allowance: the primary reason for the allowance of the claims in this case is the inclusion of device for a driving a motor vehicle with an electric drive, where a first and second energy storage device are provided, where the second energy storage device operates at a second desired operating temperature that is lower than a first desired operating temperature for the first energy storage device, where a heat transfer device is provided for coupling the first and second electrical energy storage devices, where a first and second energy storage working fluid circuits are provided, in combination with the other elements recited, not found in the prior art of record.
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.”
THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to BRIAN L SWENSON whose telephone number is (571)270-5572. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Friday (9-5).
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, Allen Shriver can be reached at (303) 297-4337. 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.
BRIAN SWENSON
Primary Examiner
Art Unit 3618
/BRIAN L SWENSON/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3613