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 .
Claim Objections
Claims 8 and 15 are objected to because of the following informalities:
In claim 8, line 5, the examiner suggests replacing the language “”and the delay influence factor value …” with “and a value of the delay influence factor value …” for improved clarity.
In claim 15, line 7 “the function generator” should be “the at least one function generator”.
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.
Claims 1-15 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.
In claim 1, lines 8-9 regarding the language “performing signal feature reconstruction on an extracted change feature of the signal”, the examiner presumes that “an extracted change feature” refers to the previously recited “extracting a change feature of a signal input externally”. In this case, “performing signal feature reconstruction on an extracted change feature of the signal” in lines 8-9 should be “performing signal feature reconstruction on the extracted change feature of the signal”. Clarification is required so that the scope of the claim is clear. The analogous issue is present in claim 15, line 10. Claims 2-14 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) by virtue of their dependence from claim 1.
In claim 4, lines 1-3 regarding the language “wherein the microcontroller unit is connected to the vehicle communication interface and extracts the change feature of a signal input externally through the vehicle communication interface”, the examiner presumes that “a signal” refers to the previously recited “extracting a change feature of a signal input externally” in claim 1. In this case, “wherein the microcontroller unit is connected to the vehicle communication interface and extracts the change feature of a signal input externally through the vehicle communication interface” in lines 8-9 should be “wherein the microcontroller unit is connected to the vehicle communication interface and extracts the change feature of the signal input externally through the vehicle communication interface”. Clarification is required so that the scope of the claim is clear. Claims 5-6 and 13 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) by virtue of their dependence from claim 4.
In claim 5, lines 3-5 regarding the language “wherein in the preset sequence pair, if part of the signal may continuously change according to a certain law within a certain time of a period, the part of the signal may be represented by a function, and the function is nested in the preset sequence pair”, the use of the term “may” introduces ambiguity, particularly in the phrase “the part of the signal may be represented by a function”. In this phrase, it is unclear whether the language following “may” is required or merely optional. The examiner suggests using the term “is” instead of “may” to resolve this ambiguity. Clarification is required so that the scope of the claim is clear. Claims 6 and 13 is are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) by virtue of their dependence from claim 5.
In claim 10, lines 4-5, the examiner presumes that the language “if the delay influence factor of the task is high” means that the delay influence factor of the task is the high delay influence factor. In claim 10, lines 7-8, the examiner presumes that the language “if the delay influence factor of a task is medium or low” means that the delay influence factor is the medium delay influence factor or the low delay influence factor. Clarification is required so that the scope of the claim is clear.
Examiner Comment
CN102215261A to Xu et al. (Xu) and TCAN4550 Automotive Control Area Network Flexible Data Rate (CAN FD) Controller with Integrated Transceiver, Texas Instruments, 2020 (TCAN4550) are presently considered to be the closest prior art of record to the invention of claim 1. Xu relates to an electric automobile intelligent interactive charge network cluster system. Xu discloses in connection with Fig. 3, for example, a second microprocessor 101 in communication with a battery management system via a CAN communication module 109, with the second microprocessor 101 connected to the CAN communication module 109 via a SPI interface (Xu, e.g., paragraph 18). One of ordinary skill in the art would understand that Xu’s CAN communication module 109 functions as a SPI-CAN converter for converting between the SPI and CAN communication protocols, and that Xu’s battery management system includes, or is coupled to, a battery pack. Xu does not appear to disclose the particular structures constituting the CAN communication module 109.
TCAN4550 relates to a controller for providing an interface between the CAN
bus and the system processor through serial peripheral interface (SPI) (TCAN4550, e.g., page 1). As shown in the block diagram at page 21, the TCAN4550 controller includes, inter alia, a SPI slave system controller, a TX/RX data buffer, a TX/RX CAN-FD Controller and a CAN-FD transceiver.
It 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 to modify Xu such that Xu’s CAN communication module 109 is implemented using the TCAN4550 controller for providing an interface between Xu’s battery management system the second microprocessor 101 in view of TCAN4550’s disclosure that the TCAN4550 controller is suitable for providing conversion between the SPI and CAN communication protocols. Xu modified in view of TCAN4550 in this manner discloses a battery pack detection connection apparatus, comprising: a microcontroller unit (TCAN4550, e.g., page 21, functional block diagram, TX/RX CAN-FD Controller), at least one function generator (TCAN4550, e.g., page 21, functional block diagram, CAN-FD transceiver), and a communication module (TCAN4550, e.g., page 21, functional block diagram, SPI slave system controller). Xu in view of TCAN4550 further discloses wherein: the communication module is used for communicating with a vehicle communication interface and a battery pack by using a preset bus (in the combination of Xu in view of TCAN4550, SPI and/or CAN bus). Xu in view of TCAN4550 further discloses the microcontroller unit is respectively communicatively connected to the vehicle communication interface, the function generator (in the combination of Xu in view of TCAN4550, note that TCAN4550’s TX/RX CAN-FD Controller will be coupled to Xu’s second microprocessor 101, which constitutes a vehicle communication interface, and to TCAN4550’s CAN-FD transceiver). Xu in view of TCAN4550 further discloses that the microcontroller (i.e., TCAN4550’s TX/RX CAN-FD Controller) is used for extracting a change feature of a signal input externally via the vehicle communication interface, performing signal feature reconstruction on an extracted change feature of the signal, transmitting the reconstructed signal feature to the function generator (in the combination of Xu in view of TCAN4550, TCAN4550’s TX/RX CAN-FD Controller converts data in the SPI communication protocol to data in the CAN protocol, which implicitly requires extracting a change feature of a SPI signal input externally via the Xu’s second microprocessor 101, performing signal feature reconstruction on an extracted change feature of the signal, and transmitting the reconstructed signal feature to TCAN4550’s CAN-FD transceiver).
Xu in view of TCAN4550 is not relied upon to teach or suggest that the battery pack detection connection apparatus includes a signal module, that the microcontroller unit is communicatively connected to the signal module via the communication module, that the microcontroller is used for transmitting the reconstructed signal feature to the function generator or the signal module according to an attribute of the reconstructed signal feature, and controlling the function generator or the signal module to output a reconstructed signal waveform according to the reconstructed signal feature, and that the function generator is used for outputting a first-type waveform signal exchanged between a vehicle and the battery pack according to the reconstructed signal feature transmitted by the microcontroller unit; and the signal module is used for outputting a second-type waveform signal exchanged between a vehicle and the battery pack according to the reconstructed signal feature transmitted by the microcontroller unit.
Claim 15 is distinguishable over Xu in view of TCAN4550 for reasons analogous to those discussed above in connection with claim 1.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 1-15 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.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
CN102202058A to Zhang et al. relates to a protocol conversion controller between a multi-channel UART bus and a CAN bus, which comprises a UART module, a CAN module, a management unit for coordinating communication control signals and data between the UART module and the CAN module, and a logic control unit of bidirectional transmission
CN205005067U to Zhu et al. relates to a SPI protocol gateway in communication with the CANopen protocol; see, e.g., Fig. 2.
KR20190010003A to Park relates to a sensing chip, a battery management system including the sensing chip, and a method of operating the same; see, e.g., Fig. 1. In Fig. 1, the transceiver 500 may be coupled to the sensing chip 100 via a first communication protocol and to the MICOM 600 via a second communication protocol. In an embodiment, the second communication protocol may be a serial communication protocol different from the first communication protocol. For example, the second communication protocol may be an inter-integrated circuit (I2C) interface, a serial peripheral interface (SPI), RS-232, RS-422, RS-485, Ethernet, rate, LIN (local interconnect network), FlexRay, DeviceNet, Fieldbus, ieee1394 (firewire), USB (universal serial bus).
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to DANIEL R MILLER whose telephone number is (571) 270-1964. The examiner can normally be reached 10AM-6PM EST M-F.
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/DANIEL R MILLER/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2863