DETAILED ACTION
1. This is the first action on the merits relating to U.S. Application Serial No. 18/290,991 filed on January 22, 2024. Currently claims 1-20 remain in the examination.
Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status
2. The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
Drawings
3. Drawings originally filed on January 22, 2024 are approved.
4. Applicant’s claiming benefit of US provisional application is acknowledged.
Claim Objections
5. Claims 1 and 9 are objected to because of the following informalities:
Regarding claim 1, line 5: please replace “(“DC”)” with “(DC)”.
Regarding claim 9, line 4: please replace “(“DC”)” with “(DC)”.
Regarding claim 9, line 8: please replace “it being determined” with “said determination.” Generally, use of pronoun is discouraged in order to avoid potential ambiguities of the claim.
Appropriate correction is required.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
6. 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.
7. Claims 12 and 19 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.
Regarding claim 12: it is unclear what Applicant meant by “configured determine a safe to handle state of the power tool device.” It appears that something may be missing after “safe.”
Regarding claim 19: it is unclear what Applicant meant by “determining a safe to handle state of the power tool device.” It appears that something may be missing after “safe.”
Appropriate correction/clarification is required.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
8. 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.
9. 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.
10. This application currently names joint inventors. In considering patentability of the claims the examiner presumes that the subject matter of the various claims was commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the claimed invention(s) absent any evidence to the contrary. Applicant is advised of the obligation under 37 CFR 1.56 to point out the inventor and effective filing dates of each claim that was not commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the later invention in order for the examiner to consider the applicability of 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(2)(C) for any potential 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) prior art against the later invention.
11. Claims 13, 16, and 20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over US 2018/0152043 A1 to Gene (hereinafter “Geng”).
Regarding claim 13, Geng discloses a method for controlling a power tool device (see abstract) comprising a first battery receptacle and a second battery receptacle; and two switches are closed (see S100 in figure 5 and paragraph 0087 and thereafter). When a voltage change is greater than a preterminal value – N of S200, then switch is still closed; and the voltage change of the second battery pack is greater than a predetermined value then both switches are closed (S 402). It is Examiner’s position that the predetermined value in S300 and S400 can be set by the user. Accordingly, the second condition can be set that value can be set to zero.
Regarding claim 16, although not explicitly stated, it can be inferred that the volage of the first battery is greater than ΔU1 and the volage of the second battery is greater than ΔU2.
Regarding claim 20, the fist battery is received in the first receptable and the second battery is received in the second receptacle (see paragraph 0098).
Allowable Subject Matter
12. Claims 2-8, 10, and 11 are allowed.
13. Claims 14, 15, 17, and 18 are objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
14. The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter: Claims are directed at a power tool device comprising:
a housing;
a battery pack interface configured to receive at least one battery pack;
a first battery pack terminal and a second battery pack terminal;
a low quiescent current direct current (DC) link bus discharge circuit including a DC link bus capacitance, a first DC link bus switch, and a second DC link bus switch; and
a controller configured to:
monitor a voltage of the first battery pack terminal,
monitor a voltage of the second battery pack terminal, activate the first DC link bus switch and the second DC link bus switch when the voltage of the first battery pack terminal is greater than a first threshold value and the voltage of the second battery pack terminal is zero volts.
A power tool device comprising the elements above and particularly a low quiescent current direct current (DC) link bus discharge circuit including a DC link bus capacitance, a first DC link bus switch, and a second DC link bus switch; and a controller monitoring a voltage of the second battery pack terminal, activate the first DC link bus switch and the second DC link bus switch when the voltage of the first battery pack terminal is greater than a first threshold value and the voltage of the second battery pack terminal is zero volts is neither disclosed nor suggested by the cited references. The limitations in other objected claims are also allowable.
Conclusion
The pertinent prior arts made of record but not relied are listed in the attached form PTO-892. These are considered pertinent to Applicant's disclosure. Applicant is respectfully suggested to carefully review these references.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Ahshik Kim whose telephone number is (571)272-2393. The examiner can normally be reached between the hours of 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM Monday thru Friday. Examiner’s fax phone number is (571)273-2393.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner's supervisor, Thomas Pham, can be reached on (571)272-3689. The fax phone number for this Group is (571)273-8300.
Communications via Internet e-mail regarding this application, other than those under 35 U.S.C. 132 or which otherwise require a signature, may be used by the applicant and should be addressed to [ahshik.kim@uspto.gov].
PTO employees do not engage in Internet communications where there exists a possibility that sensitive information could be identified or exchanged unless the record includes a properly signed express waiver of the confidentiality requirements of 35 U.S.C. 122. This is more clearly set forth in the Interim Internet Usage Policy published in the Official Gazette of the Patent and Trademark on February 25, 1997 at 1195 OG 89.
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/AHSHIK KIM/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2876
August 7, 2026
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