DETAILED ACTION
1. The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
2. This Non-Final office action is in response to application 18/448,376, application filed on 08/11/2023. Claims 1-20 are currently pending in this application.
Information Disclosure Statement
3. The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 10/15/2024 is/are in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
4. 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.
(a)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
5. Claim(s) 1-2, 5-6, 8-9, 12-13, 15-16 and 19 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) and 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by Takamatsu et al. (US PG Pub No. 2021/0091585).
6. With respect to independent claims 1, 8 and 15, Takamatsu teaches:
coupling a charging station to an electric motor of the electric vehicle (see battery of vehicle connected to charger, para 47; see Fig 1, charging device connected to vehicle),
wherein the electric motor is coupled to the battery by a capacitor-clamped multi-level inverter (see neutral-point claim three-level inverter between charger and vehicle battery system, para 33) that includes
a first leg having a first set of switches and a first alternating current (AC) terminal coupled to the electric motor (see first arm having switching elements cojupled to electric motor from AC terminal, para 5-6; 31-35),
a second leg having a second set of switches (see second arm having switching elements, para 5-6, 31-35), and
a second AC terminal coupled to the electric motor and a third leg having a third set of switches and a third AC terminal coupled to the electric motor (see second terminal connected to motor and third arm having switches coupled to motor, para 5-6, 31-35, 40-43);
connecting one of the third AC terminal of the third leg of the capacitor-clamped multi-level inverter and a neutral point of the electric motor to the charging station (see third arm of capacitor-clamped inverter and neutral point of motor to charger, para 31-35, 40-45); and
controlling at least one of the first set of switches to control a first current through the first AC terminal of the first leg and the second set of switches to control a second current through the second AC terminal of the second leg to charge the battery via the charging station through the electric motor (controlling opening and closing of first and second switching elements of first and second arm of inverter to electric motor or charging battery of vehicle, Abstract, para 5-6, 31-35, 41-44).
7. With respect to claims 2, 9 and 16, Takamatsu teaches:
wherein controlling the first current further comprises controlling a first switching cycle for the first set of switches of the first leg and controlling the second current further comprises controlling a second switching cycle for the second set of switches of the second leg (controlling opening and closing of first and second switching elements of first and second arm of inverter to electric motor or charging battery of vehicle, Abstract, para 5-6, 31-35, 41-44).
8. With respect to claims 5 and 12, Takamatsu teaches:
wherein the third AC terminal is connected to the charging station, further comprising placing each switch of the third set of switches in an open state (opening and closing switches of first and second switching elements of first and second arm of neutral-point claim three-level inverter).
9. With respect to claims 6, 13 and 19, Takamatsu teaches:
wherein the third AC terminal is connected to the charging station and the third set of switches includes four switches in series, further comprising placing a first switch and a third switch of the third leg in a closed state and placing a second switch and a fourth switch of the third leg in an open state to connect a clamping capacitor of the third leg across the charging station (see four states of the arm, para 66, 130; opening and closing switches of first and second switching elements of first and second arm of neutral-point claim three-level inverter; controlling opening and closing of first and second switching elements of first and second arm of inverter to electric motor or charging battery of vehicle, Abstract, para 5-6, 31-35, 41-44).
Allowable Subject Matter
10. Claims 3-4, 7, 10-11, 14, 17-18 and 20 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.
11. With respect to claims 3, 10 and 17, the prior art made of record fails to teach the combination of steps recited in independent claim 3, including the following particular combination of steps as recited in claim 3 and similarly recited in claims 10 and 17, as follows:
wherein the first leg includes a switch pair and switches of the switch pair receive inputs that are out of phase by 180 degrees.
12. With respect to claims 4, 11 and 18, the prior art made of record fails to teach the combination of steps recited in independent claim 4, including the following particular combination of steps as recited in claim 4 and similarly recited in claims 11 and 18, as follows:
controlling a first magnitude of the first current and a second magnitude of the second current to generate a net zero torque at the electric motor for any angular location of a rotor of the electric motor.
13. With respect to claims 7, 14 and 20, the prior art made of record fails to teach the combination of steps recited in independent claim 7, including the following particular combination of steps as recited in claim 7 and similarly recited in claims 14 and 20, as follows:
wherein the neutral point of the electric motor is connected to the charging station, further comprising operating the first set of switches, the second set of switches and the third set of switches out of phase with each other by 120 degrees.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to SUCHIN PARIHAR whose telephone number is (703)756-1970. The examiner can normally be reached on M-F 8am-5pm.
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/SUCHIN PARIHAR/
Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2851
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