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 Status
Claims 1-10 are pending. Claims 1 and 3-10 are amended. Claim 2 is original.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to claim(s) 1, 6, 7, and 9 have been considered but are moot because the new ground of rejection does not rely on any reference applied in the prior rejection of record for any teaching or matter specifically challenged in the argument. Newly found reference KAMACHI (Pub. No.: US 2011/0309674 A1) is relied upon to teach the amended recitations of “a status confirmation signal” and “a status reply signal”. It is submitted that the combination of PARTOVI as modified by KAMACHI teaches the power supply mat and power supply system of claims 1, 6, and 9, and KAMACHI as modified by PARTOVI teaches the vehicle of claim 7. In particular, incorporating the power supply mat of PARTOVI as part of the load which receives power from the vehicle battery as disclosed in KAMACHI teaches the amended recitations within the broadest reasonable interpretation.
Applicant’s arguments with respect to claim(s) 4, 8, and 10 have been considered but are moot because the new ground of rejection does not rely on any reference applied in the prior rejection of record for any teaching or matter specifically challenged in the argument. Newly found reference MATSUBARA (Pub. No.: US 2016/0114690 A1) is relied upon to teach the amended recitations of “a restoration instruction signal” and “restoration processing”. It is submitted that combination of references, including the modification with MATSUBARA, teaches the amended recitations within the broadest reasonable interpretation.
Drawings
The drawings were received on 7/17/2026. These drawings are acceptable.
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.
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.
Claim(s) 1, 3, 6, and 9 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over PARTOVI (Pub. No.: US 2012/0256585; cited in previous office action) in view of KAMACHI (Pub. No.: US 2011/0309674 A1).
Regarding claim 1, PARTOVI discloses a power supply mat (100, Fig. 1; ¶ 0013: A portable inductive power source, power device, or unit, for use in powering or charging electrical, electronic, battery-operated, mobile, and other devices or rechargeable batteries is disclosed herein. In accordance with an embodiment the system comprises 2 parts: The first part is a pad or similar base unit that contains a primary, which creates an alternating magnetic field by means of applying an alternating current to a winding, coil, or any type of current carrying wire. The second part of the system is a receiver that comprises a means for receiving the energy from the alternating magnetic field from the pad and transferring it to a mobile or other device or rechargeable battery. The receiver may comprise coils, windings, or any wire that can sense a changing magnetic field, and rectify it to produce a direct current (DC) voltage, which is then used to charge or power the device; ¶ 0104: FIG. 1 shows a pad using multiple receiver/energizer coils in accordance with an embodiment. In its simplest format, the mobile device or battery charger or power supply preferably has a substantially flat configuration, such as the configuration of a pad 100, and comprises multiple coils or sets of wires 104) comprising:
a connecting part configured to be electrically connected via a cable (a cable is shown in Fig. 8) with a power supply having an external power supply function (¶ 0104: power supply pad can be powered by plugging into a power source such as a wall socket or itself be powered or charged inductively. The pad can also be powered by another electronic device; ¶ 0157: FIG. 8 shows a pad 220 in accordance with an embodiment that allows for modular or multiple connectivity. In this case, the user can purchase a first unit 222 that is powered by an electric outlet 224; the wall socket is the “power supply having an external power supply function”, wherein a cable is implied for connection to the wall socket);
a power transmission coil (104, Fig. 1) configured to transmit by noncontact the electric power supplied from the power supply vehicle through the connecting part to an outside power consuming device provided with a power reception coil (¶ 0104: FIG. 1 shows a pad using multiple receiver/energizer coils in accordance with an embodiment. In its simplest format, the mobile device or battery charger or power supply preferably has a substantially flat configuration, such as the configuration of a pad 100, and comprises multiple coils or sets of wires 104. These coils or wires can be the same size as or larger than the coils or wires in the mobile devices, or battery and can have similar or different shapes, including for example a spiral shape. For example, for a mobile device charger or power supply designed to charge or provide power to up to four mobile devices of similar power (up to 10 W each) such as mobile phones, MP3 players, batteries, etc., four or more of the coils or wires will ideally be present in the mobile device or battery charger; ¶ 0105: a mobile device can include a receiver that includes one or more coils or wires to receive the power from the mobile device charger or power supply);
a covering sheet configured to cover the power transmission coil (¶ 0082: in a multi-charger or power supply where multiple coils are used, such a high heat conductivity layer may be repeated around each coil or cover all areas between the multiple coils; ¶ 0094: the coils are mounted such that they can move laterally within the pad and within an area of their segments, while continuing to be connected to their driver electronics placed on the edges of the area. The floating coils and the drive circuit are sandwiched in between thin upper and lower cover layers that act to allow the coils lateral movement while limiting vertical movement); and
a control device (266, Fig. 10; ¶ 0184: the pad circuit 260 incorporates a micro control unit (MCU1) 266 that can enable or disable the FET driver 268. The MCU1 receives input from another sensor mechanism that will provide information that it can then use to decide whether a device is nearby, what voltage the device requires, and/or to authenticate the device to be charged or powered; ¶ 0237: The communicated feedback from the receiver to primary can be used by the primary to, for example, adjust the frequency, or to otherwise alter the output voltage to that receiver, using the frequency/output characteristics described above).
PARTOVI fails to disclose the power supply is a power supply vehicle; and the control device is configured to: transmit, to the power supply vehicle connected to the power supply mat, a status confirmation signal for confirming whether the power supply vehicle is in a state in which power supply to the power supply mat can be permitted, receive, from the power supply vehicle, a status reply signal indicating a power supply permissible state or a power supply impermissible state determined based on a battery state of charge of the power supply vehicle, and when the status reply signal indicates the power supply permissible state, receive power from the power supply vehicle and start noncontact power supply to the power consuming device via the power transmission coil.
KAMACHI discloses the power supply is a power supply vehicle (10, Fig. 2; ¶ 0024: In a state in which power supply from the power line 40 is stopped due to a power outage or failure, such as disconnection (hereinafter referred to as emergency), as shown with a cross A in FIG. 1, no electrical equipment in the house 20 can be used. Assuming such a state in which power supply to the house 20 is cut off, the power control system of the present embodiment is configured such that the electric vehicle 10 and the house 20 are connected through the cable 30, similar to a charging time. In the power control system, two types of power are supplied to electrical equipment in the house 20 from the driving battery 11 mounted in the electric vehicle 10, as shown with an outline arrow in FIG. 1, so as to allow use of an emergency radio and an emergency lamp); and the control device (23, Fig. 2; ¶ 0029: equipment controller 23 is connected to the vehicle controller 13 mounted in the electric vehicle 10 through a communication line 50. SOC information of the driving battery 11 is transmitted from the vehicle controller 13 to the equipment controller 23 through the communication line 50. Based on the SOC information of the driving battery 11, the equipment controller 23 controls…the electrical energy discharged from the driving battery 11 in emergency) is configured to:
transmit, to the power supply vehicle connected to the power supply [system], a status confirmation signal for confirming whether the power supply vehicle is in a state in which power supply to the power supply [system] can be permitted (¶ 0049: It is then determined whether or not the SOC of the driving battery 11 is equal to or greater than a predetermined value .alpha. (Step S20). Since a battery life is generally shortened due to over-discharge, discharge is prevented if the remaining amount of the driving battery 11 is less than the predetermined value .alpha.. The predetermined value .alpha. herein may be set or changed to an appropriate value by the equipment controller 23, for example, to 20%; the predetermined value set by the equipment controller, which is implied as transmitted to the vehicle, is interpreted as the “status confirmation signal”),
receive, from the power supply vehicle, a status reply signal indicating a power supply permissible state or a power supply impermissible state determined based on a battery state of charge of the power supply vehicle (¶ 0050-0051: In Step S20, if the SOC of the driving battery 11 is equal to or greater than the predetermined value .alpha., representing that power can be supplied to the house 20, the vehicle controller 13 transmits, to the equipment controller 23 through the communication line 50, information indicating that power can be supplied (Step S30). Upon receiving the information, the equipment controller 23 transmits a command to execute power supply to the power converter 21 (Step S40). The power converter 21 then receives power supply from the driving battery 11 through the charge/discharge line 31 (Step S50), and converts the power from a direct current to an alternating current to supply the power to electrical equipment in the house 20 (Step S60). In Step S20, if the SOC of the driving battery 11 is less than the predetermined value .alpha., representing that power cannot be supplied to the house 20, the vehicle controller 13 transmits, to the equipment controller 23 through the communication line 50, information indicating that power cannot be supplied (Step S70). Upon receiving the information, the equipment controller 23 transmits a command to stop power supply to the power converter 21 (Step S80). The power converter 21 then stops the power supply from the driving battery 11 (Step S90)), and
when the status reply signal indicates the power supply permissible state, receive power from the power supply vehicle and [starting power supply] (¶ 0050-0051: see above).
Providing the power supply vehicle and control device functionality of KAMACHI to supply power to the power supply mat of PARTOVI teaches the power supply vehicle connected to the power supply mat, and starting noncontact power supply to the power consuming device via the power transmission coil when the status reply signal indicates the power supply permissible state.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to include the power supply vehicle in order to supply power to devices during power grid failure and/or to supply power to devices at a remote location.
Regarding claim 3, PARTOVI as modified by KAMACHI teaches the control device is configured to not receive the supply of power from the power supply vehicle when the battery state of charge of the power supply vehicle is less than a predetermined state of charge (KAMACHI, ¶ 0050-0051).
Regarding claim 6, PARTOVI discloses a power supply mat (100, Fig. 1; ¶ 0013: A portable inductive power source, power device, or unit, for use in powering or charging electrical, electronic, battery-operated, mobile, and other devices or rechargeable batteries is disclosed herein. In accordance with an embodiment the system comprises 2 parts: The first part is a pad or similar base unit that contains a primary, which creates an alternating magnetic field by means of applying an alternating current to a winding, coil, or any type of current carrying wire. The second part of the system is a receiver that comprises a means for receiving the energy from the alternating magnetic field from the pad and transferring it to a mobile or other device or rechargeable battery. The receiver may comprise coils, windings, or any wire that can sense a changing magnetic field, and rectify it to produce a direct current (DC) voltage, which is then used to charge or power the device; ¶ 0104: FIG. 1 shows a pad using multiple receiver/energizer coils in accordance with an embodiment. In its simplest format, the mobile device or battery charger or power supply preferably has a substantially flat configuration, such as the configuration of a pad 100, and comprises multiple coils or sets of wires 104) which has (“which has” is interpreted as an open-ended transitional phrase) a power transmission coil (104, Fig. 1) covered by a covering sheet (¶ 0082: in a multi-charger or power supply where multiple coils are used, such a high heat conductivity layer may be repeated around each coil or cover all areas between the multiple coils; ¶ 0094: the coils are mounted such that they can move laterally within the pad and within an area of their segments, while continuing to be connected to their driver electronics placed on the edges of the area. The floating coils and the drive circuit are sandwiched in between thin upper and lower cover layers that act to allow the coils lateral movement while limiting vertical movement), wherein
the power supply mat is configured to be able to receive power supply from a power supply having an external power supply function (¶ 0104: power supply pad can be powered by plugging into a power source such as a wall socket or itself be powered or charged inductively. The pad can also be powered by another electronic device; the wall socket is “a power supply having an external power supply function”) and to supply power by noncontact to an outside power consuming device arranged on the mat and provided with a power reception coil (¶ 0104: FIG. 1 shows a pad using multiple receiver/energizer coils in accordance with an embodiment. In its simplest format, the mobile device or battery charger or power supply preferably has a substantially flat configuration, such as the configuration of a pad 100, and comprises multiple coils or sets of wires 104. These coils or wires can be the same size as or larger than the coils or wires in the mobile devices, or battery and can have similar or different shapes, including for example a spiral shape. For example, for a mobile device charger or power supply designed to charge or provide power to up to four mobile devices of similar power (up to 10 W each) such as mobile phones, MP3 players, batteries, etc., four or more of the coils or wires will ideally be present in the mobile device or battery charger; ¶ 0105: a mobile device can include a receiver that includes one or more coils or wires to receive the power from the mobile device charger or power supply),
the power supply mat comprising a control device (266, Fig. 10; ¶ 0184: the pad circuit 260 incorporates a micro control unit (MCU1) 266 that can enable or disable the FET driver 268. The MCU1 receives input from another sensor mechanism that will provide information that it can then use to decide whether a device is nearby, what voltage the device requires, and/or to authenticate the device to be charged or powered; ¶ 0237: The communicated feedback from the receiver to primary can be used by the primary to, for example, adjust the frequency, or to otherwise alter the output voltage to that receiver, using the frequency/output characteristics described above).
PARTOVI fails to disclose the power supply is a power supply vehicle, and the control device is configured to: transmit, to the power supply vehicle, a status confirmation signal for confirming whether the power supply vehicle is in a state in which power supply to the power supply mat can be permitted, receive, from the power supply vehicle, a status reply signal indicating a power supply permissible state or a power supply impermissible state determined based on a battery state of charge of the power supply vehicle, and when the status reply signal indicates the power supply permissible state, receive power from the power supply vehicle and start noncontact power supply to the power consuming device.
KAMACHI discloses the power supply is a power supply vehicle (10, Fig. 2; ¶ 0024: In a state in which power supply from the power line 40 is stopped due to a power outage or failure, such as disconnection (hereinafter referred to as emergency), as shown with a cross A in FIG. 1, no electrical equipment in the house 20 can be used. Assuming such a state in which power supply to the house 20 is cut off, the power control system of the present embodiment is configured such that the electric vehicle 10 and the house 20 are connected through the cable 30, similar to a charging time. In the power control system, two types of power are supplied to electrical equipment in the house 20 from the driving battery 11 mounted in the electric vehicle 10, as shown with an outline arrow in FIG. 1, so as to allow use of an emergency radio and an emergency lamp), and the control device (23, Fig. 2; ¶ 0029: equipment controller 23 is connected to the vehicle controller 13 mounted in the electric vehicle 10 through a communication line 50. SOC information of the driving battery 11 is transmitted from the vehicle controller 13 to the equipment controller 23 through the communication line 50. Based on the SOC information of the driving battery 11, the equipment controller 23 controls…the electrical energy discharged from the driving battery 11 in emergency) is configured to:
transmit, to the power supply vehicle, a status confirmation signal for confirming whether the power supply vehicle is in a state in which power supply to the power supply [system] can be permitted (¶ 0049: It is then determined whether or not the SOC of the driving battery 11 is equal to or greater than a predetermined value .alpha. (Step S20). Since a battery life is generally shortened due to over-discharge, discharge is prevented if the remaining amount of the driving battery 11 is less than the predetermined value .alpha.. The predetermined value .alpha. herein may be set or changed to an appropriate value by the equipment controller 23, for example, to 20%; the predetermined value set by the equipment controller, which is implied as transmitted to the vehicle, is interpreted as the “status confirmation signal”),
receive, from the power supply vehicle, a status reply signal indicating a power supply permissible state or a power supply impermissible state determined based on a battery state of charge of the power supply vehicle (¶ 0050-0051: In Step S20, if the SOC of the driving battery 11 is equal to or greater than the predetermined value .alpha., representing that power can be supplied to the house 20, the vehicle controller 13 transmits, to the equipment controller 23 through the communication line 50, information indicating that power can be supplied (Step S30). Upon receiving the information, the equipment controller 23 transmits a command to execute power supply to the power converter 21 (Step S40). The power converter 21 then receives power supply from the driving battery 11 through the charge/discharge line 31 (Step S50), and converts the power from a direct current to an alternating current to supply the power to electrical equipment in the house 20 (Step S60). In Step S20, if the SOC of the driving battery 11 is less than the predetermined value .alpha., representing that power cannot be supplied to the house 20, the vehicle controller 13 transmits, to the equipment controller 23 through the communication line 50, information indicating that power cannot be supplied (Step S70). Upon receiving the information, the equipment controller 23 transmits a command to stop power supply to the power converter 21 (Step S80). The power converter 21 then stops the power supply from the driving battery 11 (Step S90)), and
when the status reply signal indicates the power supply permissible state, receive power from the power supply vehicle and [starting power supply] (¶ 0050-0051: see above).
Providing the power supply vehicle and control device functionality of KAMACHI to supply power to the power supply mat of PARTOVI teaches the power supply vehicle connected to the power supply mat, and starting noncontact power supply to the power consuming device when the status reply signal indicates the power supply permissible state.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to include the power supply vehicle in order to supply power to devices during power grid failure and/or to supply power to devices at a remote location.
Regarding claim 9, PARTOVI discloses a power supply system (¶ 0013: A portable inductive power source, power device, or unit, for use in powering or charging electrical, electronic, battery-operated, mobile, and other devices or rechargeable batteries is disclosed herein. In accordance with an embodiment the system comprises 2 parts: The first part is a pad or similar base unit that contains a primary, which creates an alternating magnetic field by means of applying an alternating current to a winding, coil, or any type of current carrying wire. The second part of the system is a receiver that comprises a means for receiving the energy from the alternating magnetic field from the pad and transferring it to a mobile or other device or rechargeable battery. The receiver may comprise coils, windings, or any wire that can sense a changing magnetic field, and rectify it to produce a direct current (DC) voltage, which is then used to charge or power the device) comprising:
a power supply having an external power supply function (¶ 0104: power supply pad can be powered by plugging into a power source such as a wall socket or itself be powered or charged inductively. The pad can also be powered by another electronic device; the wall socket reads on this recitation),
a power supply mat (100, Fig. 1; ¶ 0104: FIG. 1 shows a pad using multiple receiver/energizer coils in accordance with an embodiment. In its simplest format, the mobile device or battery charger or power supply preferably has a substantially flat configuration, such as the configuration of a pad 100, and comprises multiple coils or sets of wires 104) configured to be electrically connected via a cable with the power supply (¶ 0104: see above; ¶ 0157: FIG. 8 shows a pad 220 in accordance with an embodiment that allows for modular or multiple connectivity. In this case, the user can purchase a first unit 222 that is powered by an electric outlet 224; a cable is shown in Fig. 8) and supply power by noncontact to an outside power consuming device provided with a power reception coil (¶ 0104: FIG. 1 shows a pad using multiple receiver/energizer coils in accordance with an embodiment. In its simplest format, the mobile device or battery charger or power supply preferably has a substantially flat configuration, such as the configuration of a pad 100, and comprises multiple coils or sets of wires 104. These coils or wires can be the same size as or larger than the coils or wires in the mobile devices, or battery and can have similar or different shapes, including for example a spiral shape. For example, for a mobile device charger or power supply designed to charge or provide power to up to four mobile devices of similar power (up to 10 W each) such as mobile phones, MP3 players, batteries, etc., four or more of the coils or wires will ideally be present in the mobile device or battery charger; ¶ 0105: a mobile device can include a receiver that includes one or more coils or wires to receive the power from the mobile device charger or power supply), and
a control device (266, Fig. 10) configured to control the electric power supplied from the power supply to the power supply mat (¶ 0184: the pad circuit 260 incorporates a micro control unit (MCU1) 266 that can enable or disable the FET driver 268. The MCU1 receives input from another sensor mechanism that will provide information that it can then use to decide whether a device is nearby, what voltage the device requires, and/or to authenticate the device to be charged or powered; ¶ 0237: The communicated feedback from the receiver to primary can be used by the primary to, for example, adjust the frequency, or to otherwise alter the output voltage to that receiver, using the frequency/output characteristics described above), wherein
the control device is configured to supply power by noncontact to the power consuming device (¶ 0104-0105, 0184, 0237: see above) if the power supply and power supply mat are electrically connected via the cable (¶ 0104: see above).
PARTOVI fails to disclose the power supply is a power supply vehicle; the control device is configured to not supply power to the power supply mat even if the power supply vehicle and power supply mat are electrically connected when a battery state of charge of the power supply vehicle is less than a predetermined state of charge; the control device is configured to transmit a status confirmation signal to the power supply vehicle in response to connection between the power supply vehicle and the power supply mat, the power supply vehicle is configured to determine, based on the battery state of charge, whether the power supply vehicle is in a power supply permissible state or a power supply impermissible state, and to transmit to the power supply mat a status reply signal indicating a result of the determination, the control device is configured to receive the status reply signal, when the status reply signal indicates the power supply permissible state, the control device is configured to cause power to be supplied from the power supply vehicle to the power supply mat and to start noncontact power supply to the power consuming device, and when the status reply signal indicates the power supply impermissible state, the control device is configured to prevent power from being supplied from the power supply vehicle to the power supply mat.
KAMACHI discloses the power supply is a power supply vehicle (¶ 0024: In a state in which power supply from the power line 40 is stopped due to a power outage or failure, such as disconnection (hereinafter referred to as emergency), as shown with a cross A in FIG. 1, no electrical equipment in the house 20 can be used. Assuming such a state in which power supply to the house 20 is cut off, the power control system of the present embodiment is configured such that the electric vehicle 10 and the house 20 are connected through the cable 30, similar to a charging time. In the power control system, two types of power are supplied to electrical equipment in the house 20 from the driving battery 11 mounted in the electric vehicle 10, as shown with an outline arrow in FIG. 1, so as to allow use of an emergency radio and an emergency lamp);
the control device (23, Fig. 2; ¶ 0029: equipment controller 23 is connected to the vehicle controller 13 mounted in the electric vehicle 10 through a communication line 50. SOC information of the driving battery 11 is transmitted from the vehicle controller 13 to the equipment controller 23 through the communication line 50. Based on the SOC information of the driving battery 11, the equipment controller 23 controls…the electrical energy discharged from the driving battery 11 in emergency) is configured to not supply power to the power supply [system] even if the power supply vehicle and power supply [system] are electrically connected when a battery state of charge of the power supply vehicle is less than a predetermined state of charge (¶ 0051: In Step S20, if the SOC of the driving battery 11 is less than the predetermined value .alpha., representing that power cannot be supplied to the house 20, the vehicle controller 13 transmits, to the equipment controller 23 through the communication line 50, information indicating that power cannot be supplied (Step S70). Upon receiving the information, the equipment controller 23 transmits a command to stop power supply to the power converter 21 (Step S80). The power converter 21 then stops the power supply from the driving battery 11 (Step S90)),
the control device is configured to transmit a status confirmation signal to the power supply vehicle in response to connection between the power supply vehicle and the power supply [system] (¶ 0049: It is then determined whether or not the SOC of the driving battery 11 is equal to or greater than a predetermined value .alpha. (Step S20). Since a battery life is generally shortened due to over-discharge, discharge is prevented if the remaining amount of the driving battery 11 is less than the predetermined value .alpha.. The predetermined value .alpha. herein may be set or changed to an appropriate value by the equipment controller 23, for example, to 20%; the predetermined value set by the equipment controller, which is implied as transmitted to the vehicle, is interpreted as the “status confirmation signal”),
the power supply vehicle is configured to determine, based on the battery state of charge, whether the power supply vehicle is in a power supply permissible state or a power supply impermissible state, and to transmit to the power supply [system] a status reply signal indicating a result of the determination (¶ 0050-0051: In Step S20, if the SOC of the driving battery 11 is equal to or greater than the predetermined value .alpha., representing that power can be supplied to the house 20, the vehicle controller 13 transmits, to the equipment controller 23 through the communication line 50, information indicating that power can be supplied (Step S30). Upon receiving the information, the equipment controller 23 transmits a command to execute power supply to the power converter 21 (Step S40). The power converter 21 then receives power supply from the driving battery 11 through the charge/discharge line 31 (Step S50), and converts the power from a direct current to an alternating current to supply the power to electrical equipment in the house 20 (Step S60). In Step S20, if the SOC of the driving battery 11 is less than the predetermined value .alpha., representing that power cannot be supplied to the house 20, the vehicle controller 13 transmits, to the equipment controller 23 through the communication line 50, information indicating that power cannot be supplied (Step S70). Upon receiving the information, the equipment controller 23 transmits a command to stop power supply to the power converter 21 (Step S80). The power converter 21 then stops the power supply from the driving battery 11 (Step S90)),
the control device is configured to receive the status reply signal (¶ 0050-0051: see above),
when the status reply signal indicates the power supply permissible state, the control device is configured to cause power to be supplied from the power supply vehicle to the power supply [system] and to start power supply to the power consuming device (¶ 0050-0051: see above), and
when the status reply signal indicates the power supply impermissible state, the control device is configured to prevent power from being supplied from the power supply vehicle to the power supply [system] (¶ 0050-0051: see above).
Providing the power supply vehicle and control device functionality of KAMACHI to supply power to the power supply mat of PARTOVI teaches the control device configured to not supply power to the power supply mat; and starting noncontact power supply to the power consuming device when the status reply signal indicates the power supply permissible state.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to include the power supply vehicle in order to supply power to devices during power grid failure and/or to supply power to devices at a remote location.
Claim(s) 2 and 5 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over PARTOVI in view of KAMACHI as applied to claims 1, 3, 6, and 9 above, and further in view of SUMIMURA (Pub. No.: US 2017/0334305; cited on IDS with date 5/9/2025; cited in previous office action).
Regarding claim 2, PARTOVI as modified by KAMACHI teaches the power supply mat as applied to claim 1, but fails to disclose the connecting part is configured to be able to connect with a plurality of power supply vehicles.
SUMIMURA discloses the connecting part is configured to be able to connect with a plurality of power supply vehicles (¶ 0021-0023).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to include the connecting part connecting with a plurality of power supply vehicles in order to provide a power supply device capable of switching power sources and thereby continuously supply electricity (SUMIMURA, ¶ 0005).
Regarding claim 5, PARTOVI as modified by KAMACHI and SUMIMURA teaches the power supply mat as applied to claim 2, but fails to teach the control device configured to switch a source of the supply of power from one power supply vehicle among the plurality of power supply vehicles to another power supply vehicle among the plurality of power supply vehicles when receiving the supply of power from one power supply vehicle and a battery state of charge of that one power supply vehicle becomes less than a predetermined state of charge.
SUMIMURA further discloses the control device configured to switch a source of the supply of power from one power supply vehicle among the plurality of power supply vehicles to another power supply vehicle among the plurality of power supply vehicles when receiving the supply of power from one power supply vehicle and a battery state of charge of that one power supply vehicle becomes less than a predetermined state of charge (¶ 0028, 0031, 0048, 0051, 0055, 0075).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to include switching a source of the supply of power in order to provide a power supply device capable of switching power sources and thereby continuously supply electricity (SUMIMURA, ¶ 0005).
Claim(s) 4 and 10 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over PARTOVI in view of KAMACHI as applied to claims 1, 3, 6, and 9 above, and further in view of MATSUBARA (Pub. No.: US 2016/0114690 A1).
Regarding claim 4, PARTOVI as modified by KAMACHI teaches the power supply mat as applied to claim 1, and but fails to disclose the control device is configured to, when the status reply signal received from the power supply vehicle indicates the power supply impermissible state, transmit a restoration instruction signal to the power supply vehicle, the restoration instruction signal being a signal for causing the power supply vehicle to perform restoration processing for raising the battery state of charge to a predetermined state of charge.
MATSUBARA discloses [when the power supply vehicle indicates the power supply impermissible state, producing a restoration instruction signal], the restoration instruction signal being a signal for causing the power supply vehicle to perform restoration processing for raising the battery state of charge to a predetermined state of charge (¶ 0009, 0034, 0044, 0057-0059, 0069, 0077).
Although MATSUBARA discloses when the power supply vehicle indicates the power supply impermissible state, providing the signal for causing the power supply vehicle to perform restoration processing as an internal signal, and not a restoration instruction signal transmitted by the (external) control device, it is submitted that providing the signal from the control device would not produce new or unexpected results, and would be an obvious rearrangement to one of ordinary skill in the art. In other words, it would be obvious to modify the prior art to include the recitations “the control device is configured to, when the status reply signal received from the power supply vehicle indicates the power supply impermissible state, transmit a restoration instruction signal to the power supply vehicle”.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to include instructing the power supply vehicle to perform restoration processing in order to ensure a sufficient charge level of the battery.
Regarding claim 10, PARTOVI as modified by KAMACHI teaches the power supply system as applied to claim 9, but fails to disclose when the control device receives a status reply signal indicating the power supply impermissible state, the control device is configured to transmit a restoration instruction signal to the power supply vehicle, and the power supply vehicle is configured to perform restoration processing for raising the battery state of charge in response to the restoration instruction signal.
MATSUBARA discloses the power supply vehicle is configured to perform restoration processing for raising the battery state of charge in response to [a] restoration instruction signal (¶ 0009, 0034, 0044, 0057-0059, 0069, 0077).
Although MATSUBARA discloses providing the restoration instruction signal for causing the power supply vehicle to perform restoration processing as an internal signal, and not a restoration instruction signal transmitted by the (external) control device, it is submitted that providing the signal from the control device would not produce new or unexpected results, and would be an obvious rearrangement to one of ordinary skill in the art. In other words, it would be obvious to modify the prior art to include the recitations “when the control device receives a status reply signal indicating the power supply impermissible state, the control device is configured to transmit a restoration instruction signal to the power supply vehicle”.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to include instructing the power supply vehicle to perform restoration processing in order to ensure a sufficient charge level of the battery.
Claim(s) 7 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over KAMACHI (Pub. No.: US 2011/0309674 A1) in view of PARTOVI (Pub. No.: US 2012/0256585; cited in previous office action).
Regarding claim 7, KAMACHI discloses a power supply vehicle (10, Fig. 2; ¶ 0024: In a state in which power supply from the power line 40 is stopped due to a power outage or failure, such as disconnection (hereinafter referred to as emergency), as shown with a cross A in FIG. 1, no electrical equipment in the house 20 can be used. Assuming such a state in which power supply to the house 20 is cut off, the power control system of the present embodiment is configured such that the electric vehicle 10 and the house 20 are connected through the cable 30, similar to a charging time. In the power control system, two types of power are supplied to electrical equipment in the house 20 from the driving battery 11 mounted in the electric vehicle 10, as shown with an outline arrow in FIG. 1, so as to allow use of an emergency radio and an emergency lamp) having (“having” is interpreted as an open-ended transitional phrase) an external power supply function (¶ 0024: see above), the power supply vehicle comprising:
a battery (11, Fig. 2; ¶ 0026: driving battery 11 is a main power source of a driving motor, which is a driving source of the electric vehicle 10);
a communication device (part of controller 13, Fig. 2) configured to communicate with a power supply [system] (located within house 20 and including controller 23, converter 21, and outlets 28 as shown in Fig. 2; ¶ 0029: equipment controller 23 is connected to the vehicle controller 13 mounted in the electric vehicle 10 through a communication line 50); and
a control device (13, Fig. 2; ¶ 0025: driving battery 11 and the auxiliary battery 12 are controlled by a vehicle controller (second controller) 13),
wherein the power supply vehicle is configured to supply power to the outside if electrically connected to the power supply [system] (¶ 0028: Power is supplied to a variety of electrical equipment and outlets 28 through the distribution board. To charge or discharge the driving battery 11 of the electric vehicle 10, the house 20 is provided with a power converter 21 and an equipment controller (first controller) 23) and is configured to not supply power to the outside when a battery state of charge of the power supply vehicle is less than a predetermined state of charge even if electrically connected to the power supply [system] (¶ 0051: In Step S20, if the SOC of the driving battery 11 is less than the predetermined value .alpha., representing that power cannot be supplied to the house 20, the vehicle controller 13 transmits, to the equipment controller 23 through the communication line 50, information indicating that power cannot be supplied (Step S70). Upon receiving the information, the equipment controller 23 transmits a command to stop power supply to the power converter 21 (Step S80). The power converter 21 then stops the power supply from the driving battery 11 (Step S90)), and
wherein, when a status confirmation signal is received from the power supply [system] via the communication device (¶ 0049: It is then determined whether or not the SOC of the driving battery 11 is equal to or greater than a predetermined value .alpha. (Step S20). Since a battery life is generally shortened due to over-discharge, discharge is prevented if the remaining amount of the driving battery 11 is less than the predetermined value .alpha.. The predetermined value .alpha. herein may be set or changed to an appropriate value by the equipment controller 23, for example, to 20%; the predetermined value set by the equipment controller, which is implied as transmitted to the vehicle, is interpreted as the “status confirmation signal”), the control device is configured to determine, based on the battery state of charge, whether the power supply vehicle is in a power supply permissible state or a power supply impermissible state, and the communication device is configured to transmit, to the power supply [system], a status reply signal indicating a result of the determination (¶ 0050-0051: In Step S20, if the SOC of the driving battery 11 is equal to or greater than the predetermined value .alpha., representing that power can be supplied to the house 20, the vehicle controller 13 transmits, to the equipment controller 23 through the communication line 50, information indicating that power can be supplied (Step S30). Upon receiving the information, the equipment controller 23 transmits a command to execute power supply to the power converter 21 (Step S40). The power converter 21 then receives power supply from the driving battery 11 through the charge/discharge line 31 (Step S50), and converts the power from a direct current to an alternating current to supply the power to electrical equipment in the house 20 (Step S60). In Step S20, if the SOC of the driving battery 11 is less than the predetermined value .alpha., representing that power cannot be supplied to the house 20, the vehicle controller 13 transmits, to the equipment controller 23 through the communication line 50, information indicating that power cannot be supplied (Step S70). Upon receiving the information, the equipment controller 23 transmits a command to stop power supply to the power converter 21 (Step S80). The power converter 21 then stops the power supply from the driving battery 11 (Step S90)).
KAMACHI fails to disclose the power supply system is a power supply mat, the power supply mat including a transmission coil covered by a covering sheet.
PARTOVI discloses the power supply system is a power supply mat (100, Fig. 1; ¶ 0013: A portable inductive power source, power device, or unit, for use in powering or charging electrical, electronic, battery-operated, mobile, and other devices or rechargeable batteries is disclosed herein. In accordance with an embodiment the system comprises 2 parts: The first part is a pad or similar base unit that contains a primary, which creates an alternating magnetic field by means of applying an alternating current to a winding, coil, or any type of current carrying wire. The second part of the system is a receiver that comprises a means for receiving the energy from the alternating magnetic field from the pad and transferring it to a mobile or other device or rechargeable battery. The receiver may comprise coils, windings, or any wire that can sense a changing magnetic field, and rectify it to produce a direct current (DC) voltage, which is then used to charge or power the device; ¶ 0104: FIG. 1 shows a pad using multiple receiver/energizer coils in accordance with an embodiment. In its simplest format, the mobile device or battery charger or power supply preferably has a substantially flat configuration, such as the configuration of a pad 100, and comprises multiple coils or sets of wires 104), the power supply mat including a transmission coil (104, Fig. 1) covered by a covering sheet (¶ 0082: in a multi-charger or power supply where multiple coils are used, such a high heat conductivity layer may be repeated around each coil or cover all areas between the multiple coils; ¶ 0094: the coils are mounted such that they can move laterally within the pad and within an area of their segments, while continuing to be connected to their driver electronics placed on the edges of the area. The floating coils and the drive circuit are sandwiched in between thin upper and lower cover layers that act to allow the coils lateral movement while limiting vertical movement).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to include the power supply mat in order to increase the utility of the power supply vehicle by allowing power transfer to devices which utilize noncontact charging.
Claim(s) 8 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over KAMACHI in view of PARTOVI as applied to claim 7 above, and further in view of MATSUBARA (Pub. No.: US 2016/0114690 A1).
Regarding claim 8, KAMACHI as modified by PARTOVI teaches the power supply vehicle as applied to claim 7, but fails to disclose when the power supply vehicle is in the power supply impermissible state, the communication device is configured to receive a restoration instruction signal from the power supply mat, and the control device is configured to perform restoration processing for raising the battery state of charge in response to the restoration instruction signal.
MATSUBARA discloses the control device is configured to perform restoration processing for raising the battery state of charge in response to [a] restoration instruction signal (¶ 0009, 0034, 0044, 0057-0059, 0069, 0077).
Although MATSUBARA discloses providing the restoration instruction signal for causing the power supply vehicle to perform restoration processing as an internal signal, and not a restoration instruction signal transmitted by the (external) power supply mat, it is submitted that providing the signal from the power supply mat would not produce new or unexpected results, and would be an obvious rearrangement to one of ordinary skill in the art. In other words, it would be obvious to modify the prior art to include the recitations “when the power supply vehicle is in the power supply impermissible state, the communication device is configured to receive a restoration instruction signal from the power supply mat”.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to include instructing the power supply vehicle to perform restoration processing in order to ensure a sufficient charge level of the battery.
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 MANUEL HERNANDEZ whose telephone number is (571)270-7916. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 9a-5p ET.
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/Manuel Hernandez/Examiner, Art Unit 2859 10/6/2026
/DREW A DUNN/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2859
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