DETAILED ACTION
Claims 1-21 are pending.
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 Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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 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 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.
Claim(s) 1-21 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Masters et al.,
US Patent No. 8,494,686 (hereinafter Masters).
A system for tracing and monitoring power lines of electrical networks, the system comprising: a first device configured with at least one transmitter and connected to a power line, wherein the first device transmits at least one signal associated with an amplitude, a phase, a frequency, a switching frequency and a duty cycle of current including a plurality of current signatures, wherein the plurality of current signatures include a unique first current signature associated with the first device and at least one second current signature associated with one or more load fixtures connected on the power line, wherein the at least one signal is transmitting by one or more of a plurality of metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect transistors (MOSFETs), a plurality of bipolar junction transistors (BJTs), a plurality of insulated-gate bipolar transistors (IGBTs), a plurality of relays, a plurality of triacs to modulate a load and current of the power line (Figure 2 - - energy sensing/detecting nodes responsible for both monitoring and reporting electrical energy usage/consumption data are utilized/implemented throughout the electrical system. Remote control mechanisms are implemented for powerline communication. It can be noted that the main breaker node, circuit breaker nodes, and electrical outlet nodes communicate with each other in order to perform powerline tracing. Security modules provide for authentication, authorization, and cryptographic services. Load appliances are identified via signatures and AI features);
a second device configured with at least a receiver and connected to a circuit breaker switch disposed upstream of the first device and located on an electrical panel, wherein the second device is in communication with the transmitter of the first device to receive the at least one signal transmitted therefrom; a power monitoring system in communication with the receiver of the second device, the power monitoring system comprising a processor configured to: process the at least one signal received at the second device using Fast Fourier Transform (FFT) including the plurality of current signatures for obtaining the unique first current signature of the first device and at least one second current signature associated with the one or more load fixtures; send at least one signal from the receiver to the transmitter to confirm whether the power line on which the one or more load fixtures are connected is the power line that is connected to the circuit breaker (Figure 2 - - energy sensing/detecting nodes responsible for both monitoring and reporting electrical energy usage/consumption data are utilized/implemented throughout the electrical system. Remote control mechanisms are implemented for powerline communication. It can be noted that the main breaker node, circuit breaker nodes, and electrical outlet nodes communicate with each other in order to perform powerline tracing. Security modules provide for authentication, authorization, and cryptographic services. Load appliances are identified via signatures and AI features);
determine whether total current input to the power line via the circuit breaker matches with a sum of currents to the first device and the one or more load fixtures as indicated from data contained in the at least one signal communicated by the transmitter to the receiver; and generate a user intelligible data representation of the confirmation and determination (Figure 2 - - energy sensing/detecting nodes responsible for both monitoring and reporting electrical energy usage/consumption data are utilized/implemented throughout the electrical system. Remote control mechanisms are implemented for powerline communication. It can be noted that the main breaker node, circuit breaker nodes, and electrical outlet nodes communicate with each other in order to perform powerline tracing. Security modules provide for authentication, authorization, and cryptographic services. Load appliances are identified via signatures and AI features). See Figure 2 below:
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2. The system of claim 1, wherein the first device and the second device comprise one of: at least one current transformer (CT) and at least one impedance load respectively; or at least one CT and at least one potential transformer (PT) respectively; or at least one CT and at least one CT respectively (Figure 2 - - energy sensing/detecting nodes responsible for both monitoring and reporting electrical energy usage/consumption data are utilized/implemented throughout the electrical system. Remote control mechanisms are implemented for powerline communication. It can be noted that the main breaker node, circuit breaker nodes, and electrical outlet nodes communicate with each other in order to perform powerline tracing. Security modules provide for authentication, authorization, and cryptographic services. Load appliances are identified via signatures and AI features).
3. The system of claim 2, wherein the at least one potential transformer of the transmitter includes a load blinker (Figure 2 - - energy sensing/detecting nodes responsible for both monitoring and reporting electrical energy usage/consumption data are utilized/implemented throughout the electrical system. Remote control mechanisms are implemented for powerline communication. It can be noted that the main breaker node, circuit breaker nodes, and electrical outlet nodes communicate with each other in order to perform powerline tracing. Security modules provide for authentication, authorization, and cryptographic services. Load appliances are identified via signatures and AI features).
4. The system of claim 3, wherein the processor of the power monitoring system is configured to implement one or more machine learning (ML) algorithms to trace the power line via detection of the load blinker (Figure 2 - - energy sensing/detecting nodes responsible for both monitoring and reporting electrical energy usage/consumption data are utilized/implemented throughout the electrical system. Remote control mechanisms are implemented for powerline communication. It can be noted that the main breaker node, circuit breaker nodes, and electrical outlet nodes communicate with each other in order to perform powerline tracing. Security modules provide for authentication, authorization, and cryptographic services. Load appliances are identified via signatures and AI features).
5. The system of claim 4, wherein, on the current flowing through the power line, the processor of the power monitoring system is configured to perform at least one of: an amplitude modulation, a load impedance modulation, a phase modulation, a frequency modulation, a switching frequency modulation and a duty cycle modulation (Figure 2 - - energy sensing/detecting nodes responsible for both monitoring and reporting electrical energy usage/consumption data are utilized/implemented throughout the electrical system. Remote control mechanisms are implemented for powerline communication. It can be noted that the main breaker node, circuit breaker nodes, and electrical outlet nodes communicate with each other in order to perform powerline tracing. Security modules provide for authentication, authorization, and cryptographic services. Load appliances are identified via signatures and AI features).
6. The system of claim 5, wherein the ML model used by the processor includes at least one of a black box model, a grey box model or a white box model (Figure 2 - - energy sensing/detecting nodes responsible for both monitoring and reporting electrical energy usage/consumption data are utilized/implemented throughout the electrical system. Remote control mechanisms are implemented for powerline communication. It can be noted that the main breaker node, circuit breaker nodes, and electrical outlet nodes communicate with each other in order to perform powerline tracing. Security modules provide for authentication, authorization, and cryptographic services. Load appliances are identified via signatures and AI features).
7. The system of claim 1, wherein when the processor determines, from data contained in the at least one signal communicated by the transmitter to the receiver, that the total current input to the power line via the circuit breaker does not match with the sum of currents to the transmitter and the one or more serially or parallely connected load fixtures located downstream of the transmitter, then the processor is configured to flag an undetected load event (Figure 2 - - energy sensing/detecting nodes responsible for both monitoring and reporting electrical energy usage/consumption data are utilized/implemented throughout the electrical system. Remote control mechanisms are implemented for powerline communication. It can be noted that the main breaker node, circuit breaker nodes, and electrical outlet nodes communicate with each other in order to perform powerline tracing. Security modules provide for authentication, authorization, and cryptographic services. Load appliances are identified via signatures and AI features).
8. The system of claim 1 further comprising: a display and an alert device, each in communication with the processor of the power monitoring unit, wherein the display is configured to virtually represent to the user intelligible data pertaining to the confirmation and determination, and wherein the alert device is configured to provide at least one type of aural feedback indicative of at least one of power line traced to circuit breaker, or presence of at least one undetected load downstream (Figure 2 - - energy sensing/detecting nodes responsible for both monitoring and reporting electrical energy usage/consumption data are utilized/implemented throughout the electrical system. Remote control mechanisms are implemented for powerline communication. It can be noted that the main breaker node, circuit breaker nodes, and electrical outlet nodes communicate with each other in order to perform powerline tracing. Security modules provide for authentication, authorization, and .cryptographic services. Load appliances are identified via signatures and AI features).
9. The system of claim 1, wherein the receiver and the transmitter are configured to communicate with each other using a power line communication (PLC) (Figure 2 - - energy sensing/detecting nodes responsible for both monitoring and reporting electrical energy usage/consumption data are utilized/implemented throughout the electrical system. Remote control mechanisms are implemented for powerline communication. It can be noted that the main breaker node, circuit breaker nodes, and electrical outlet nodes communicate with each other in order to perform powerline tracing. Security modules provide for authentication, authorization, and cryptographic services. Load appliances are identified via signatures and AI features).
10. The system of claim 1 further comprising a memory unit communicably coupled to the processor, the memory unit configured to store thereon: modulations performed by the processor, confirmations performed by the processor, and determinations performed by the processor (Figure 2 - - energy sensing/detecting nodes responsible for both monitoring and reporting electrical energy usage/consumption data are utilized/implemented throughout the electrical system. Remote control mechanisms are implemented for powerline communication. It can be noted that the main breaker node, circuit breaker nodes, and electrical outlet nodes communicate with each other in order to perform powerline tracing. Security modules provide for authentication, authorization, and cryptographic services. Load appliances are identified via signatures and AI features).
11. The system of claim 1, wherein the power monitoring system, further comprises: an Internet of Things (IoT) module communicably coupled to the processor; and at least one client remotely located from the processor and in wireless communication with the IoT module, wherein the the client is configured to receive the user intelligible data representations from the processor via the IoT module (Figure 2 - - energy sensing/detecting nodes responsible for both monitoring and reporting electrical energy usage/consumption data are utilized/implemented throughout the electrical system. Remote control mechanisms are implemented for powerline communication. It can be noted that the main breaker node, circuit breaker nodes, and electrical outlet nodes communicate with each other in order to perform powerline tracing. Security modules provide for authentication, authorization, and cryptographic services. Load appliances are identified via signatures and AI features).
12. The system of claim 1, wherein the least one remotely located client includes: a remote server, cloud, a computer, a laptop, a tablet, a Phablet, or another type of telecommunications device (Figure 2 - - energy sensing/detecting nodes responsible for both monitoring and reporting electrical energy usage/consumption data are utilized/implemented throughout the electrical system. Remote control mechanisms are implemented for powerline communication. It can be noted that the main breaker node, circuit breaker nodes, and electrical outlet nodes communicate with each other in order to perform powerline tracing. Security modules provide for authentication, authorization, and cryptographic services. Load appliances are identified via signatures and AI features).
13. The system of claim 1, wherein the processor is further configured to generate a plurality of timestamps, wherein the plurality of timestamps enable the processor to: differentiate and order the plurality of signals based on an time of sending and receiving the plurality of signals; synchronize an operation between the one or more load fixtures that are connected om the power line; or record an exact time associated with an image or scan capture during a load mapping process (Figure 2 - - energy sensing/detecting nodes responsible for both monitoring and reporting electrical energy usage/consumption data are utilized/implemented throughout the electrical system. Remote control mechanisms are implemented for powerline communication. It can be noted that the main breaker node, circuit breaker nodes, and electrical outlet nodes communicate with each other in order to perform powerline tracing. Security modules provide for authentication, authorization, and cryptographic services. Load appliances are identified via signatures and AI features).
14. A method for tracing and monitoring power lines of electrical networks, the method comprising: connecting a first device configured with at least a transmitter to a power line, wherein the first device transmits at least one signal is associated with an amplitude, a phase, a frequency, a switching frequency and a duty cycle of current including a plurality of current signatures, wherein the plurality of current signatures include a unique first current signature associated with the first device and at least one second current signature associated with one or more load fixtures connected on the power line, wherein the at least one signal is transmitting by one or more of a plurality of metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect transistors (MOSFETs), a plurality of bipolar junction transistors (BJTs), a plurality of insulated-gate bipolar transistors (IGBTs), a plurality of relays, a plurality of triacs to modulate a load and current of the power line; connecting a second device configured with at least a receiver and connected to a circuit breaker switch disposed upstream of the first device and located on an electrical panel (Figure 2 - - energy sensing/detecting nodes responsible for both monitoring and reporting electrical energy usage/consumption data are utilized/implemented throughout the electrical system. Remote control mechanisms are implemented for powerline communication. It can be noted that the main breaker node, circuit breaker nodes, and electrical outlet nodes communicate with each other in order to perform powerline tracing. Security modules provide for authentication, authorization, and cryptographic services. Load appliances are identified via signatures and AI features),
wherein the second device is in communication with the transmitter of the first device to receive the at least one signal transmitted therefrom; providing a power monitoring system, comprising a processor, in communication with the receiver, processing, by the processor, the at least one signal received at the receiver using Fast Fourier Transform (FFT) including the plurality of current signatures for obtaining the combined unique current signature for obtaining a first unique current signature of the transmitter and the at least one second current signature associated with the one or more load fixtures (Figure 2 - - energy sensing/detecting nodes responsible for both monitoring and reporting electrical energy usage/consumption data are utilized/implemented throughout the electrical system. Remote control mechanisms are implemented for powerline communication. It can be noted that the main breaker node, circuit breaker nodes, and electrical outlet nodes communicate with each other in order to perform powerline tracing. Security modules provide for authentication, authorization, and cryptographic services. Load appliances are identified via signatures and AI features); sending, by the processor, at least one signal from the receiver to the transmitter to confirm whether the power line on which the one or more load fixtures are connected is the power line that is connected to the circuit breaker; determining, by the processor, whether total current input to the power line via the circuit breaker matches with a sum of currents to the first device and the one or more load fixtures as indicated from data contained in the at least one signal communicated by the transmitter to the receiver; and generating, by the processor, user intelligible data representation of the confirmation and determination (Figure 2 - - energy sensing/detecting nodes responsible for both monitoring and reporting electrical energy usage/consumption data are utilized/implemented throughout the electrical system. Remote control mechanisms are implemented for powerline communication. It can be noted that the main breaker node, circuit breaker nodes, and electrical outlet nodes communicate with each other in order to perform powerline tracing. Security modules provide for authentication, authorization, and cryptographic services. Load appliances are identified via signatures and AI features). See Figure 2 below:
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15. The method of claim 14 further comprising providing the receiver and the transmitter with at least one of: at least one current transformer (CT) and at least one impedance load respectively; or at least one CT and at least one potential transformer (PT) respectively; or at least one CT and at least one CT respectively (Figure 2 - - energy sensing/detecting nodes responsible for both monitoring and reporting electrical energy usage/consumption data are utilized/implemented throughout the electrical system. Remote control mechanisms are implemented for powerline communication. It can be noted that the main breaker node, circuit breaker nodes, and electrical outlet nodes communicate with each other in order to perform powerline tracing. Security modules provide for authentication, authorization, and cryptographic services. Load appliances are identified via signatures and AI features).
16. The method of claim 16, wherein providing the at least one potential transformer (PT) to the transmitter includes providing the transmitter with a load blinker (Figure 2 - - energy sensing/detecting nodes responsible for both monitoring and reporting electrical energy usage/consumption data are utilized/implemented throughout the electrical system. Remote control mechanisms are implemented for powerline communication. It can be noted that the main breaker node, circuit breaker nodes, and electrical outlet nodes communicate with each other in order to perform powerline tracing. Security modules provide for authentication, authorization, and cryptographic services. Load appliances are identified via signatures and AI features).
17. The method of claim 14, wherein the processor of the power monitoring system is configured to implement one or more machine learning (ML) algorithms to trace the power line via detection of the load blinker (Figure 2 - - energy sensing/detecting nodes responsible for both monitoring and reporting electrical energy usage/consumption data are utilized/implemented throughout the electrical system. Remote control mechanisms are implemented for powerline communication. It can be noted that the main breaker node, circuit breaker nodes, and electrical outlet nodes communicate with each other in order to perform powerline tracing. Security modules provide for authentication, authorization, and cryptographic services. Load appliances are identified via signatures and AI features).
18. The method of claim 13 further comprising: flagging an undetected load event, wherein the undetected load event is flagged when the processor determines that the total current input to the power line via the circuit breaker does not match with the sum of currents to the transmitter and the one or more serially or parallely connected load fixtures located downstream of the transmitter (Figure 2 - - energy sensing/detecting nodes responsible for both monitoring and reporting electrical energy usage/consumption data are utilized/implemented throughout the electrical system. Remote control mechanisms are implemented for powerline communication. It can be noted that the main breaker node, circuit breaker nodes, and electrical outlet nodes communicate with each other in order to perform powerline tracing. Security modules provide for authentication, authorization, and cryptographic services. Load appliances are identified via signatures and AI features).
19. The method of claim 14 further comprising: providing: a display and an alert device, each in communication with the processor of the power monitoring unit, wherein the display is configured to virtually represent to the user intelligible data pertaining to the confirmation and determination, and wherein the alert device is configured to provide at least one type of aural feedback indicative of at least one of power line traced to circuit breaker, or presence of at least one undetected load downstream (Figure 2 - - energy sensing/detecting nodes responsible for both monitoring and reporting electrical energy usage/consumption data are utilized/implemented throughout the electrical system. Remote control mechanisms are implemented for powerline communication. It can be noted that the main breaker node, circuit breaker nodes, and electrical outlet nodes communicate with each other in order to perform powerline tracing. Security modules provide for authentication, authorization, and cryptographic services. Load appliances are identified via signatures and AI features).
20. The method of claim 14 further comprising providing a memory unit in communication with the processor, the memory unit configured to store thereon: modulations performed by the processor, confirmations performed by the processor, and determinations performed by the processor (Figure 2 - - energy sensing/detecting nodes responsible for both monitoring and reporting electrical energy usage/consumption data are utilized/implemented throughout the electrical system. Remote control mechanisms are implemented for powerline communication. It can be noted that the main breaker node, circuit breaker nodes, and electrical outlet nodes communicate with each other in order to perform powerline tracing. Security modules provide for authentication, authorization, and cryptographic services. Load appliances are identified via signatures and AI features).
21. The method of claim 14, wherein the power monitoring unit, further comprises providing: an Internet of Things (IoT) module communicably coupled to the processor; and at least one remotely located client disposed in wireless communication with the IoT module such that the client is configured to receive user intelligible data representations from the processor via the IoT module (Figure 2 - - energy sensing/detecting nodes responsible for both monitoring and reporting electrical energy usage/consumption data are utilized/implemented throughout the electrical system. Remote control mechanisms are implemented for powerline communication. It can be noted that the main breaker node, circuit breaker nodes, and electrical outlet nodes communicate with each other in order to perform powerline tracing. Security modules provide for authentication, authorization, and cryptographic services. Load appliances are identified via signatures and AI features).
Citation of Pertinent Prior Art
The following prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure:
US-6496342-B1, Horvath; Vincent Victor – relates to distribution monitoring.
US-20150028848-A1, Lynch; Matthew – relates to wirelessly monitoring power draw.
US-10330704-B2, Hase; Karl E. – relates to electrical fixtures with integral current monitoring.
AR, Deebika Devi, and S. Sivaraju. "Transformer Load Management by Internet of Things (IOT)." (2019)
Fei, Wanghao, and Paul Moses. "Fault current tracing and identification via machine learning considering distributed energy resources in distribution networks." Energies 12.22 (2019): 4333.
Wei, Xiangxiang, et al. "Faulty feeder detection based on fundamental component shift and multiple-transient-feature fusion in distribution networks." IEEE Transactions on Smart Grid 12.2 (2020): 1699-1711.
Zaro, Fouad, Ali Tamimi, and Anas Barakat. "Smart home automation system." International Journal of Engineering and Innovative Research 3.1 (2021): 66-88.
Conclusion
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/CARLOS R ORTIZ RODRIGUEZ/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2119