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 .
Information Disclosure Statement
One document is crossed out on the IDS filed 04/28/2025, the Eurasian Office Action issued February 24, 2025. The document is indicated as having 4 pages, and the examiner was only able to view one page. Although it was not listed on any IDS, the Examiner notes that Eurasian Patent Office, in a document dated 08.08.2024 refers to a “Notification of 31.01.2024,” which has not been provided to the Office, and the Examiner has not been able to find it independently.
Claim Objections
Claim 7 is objected to because of the following informalities:
In claim 7 at line 6, “an output” should be corrected to –the output--.
In claim 7 at line 8, “an output” should be corrected to –the output--.
Appropriate correction is required.
Claim Interpretation
No claim limitations are interpreted under 112(f).
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.
Claim 9-10 and 13-20 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 pre-AIA the applicant regards as the invention.
Claim 9 at line 6 recites “in the vicinity of.” The metes and bounds are unclear. For the purpose of examination, the limitation has been interpreted as and may be corrected to –adjacent to--.
Claim 9 at line 8 recites “in the vicinity of.” The metes and bounds are unclear. For the purpose of examination, the limitation has been interpreted as and may be corrected to –adjacent to--.
Claim 13 recites “further comprising: a case forming a surface of the power supply apparatus and control circuitry configured to control supply of power from the power supply to the heater.” Such a “case forming a surface of the power supply apparatus and control circuitry configured to control supply of power from the power supply to the heater” was previously introduced in claim 11, upon which claim 13 depends. It is not clear whether claim 13 refers to the same case and control circuity or requires an additional case and control circuitry, rendering the claim indefinite.
Claim 15 recites “the first sensor… the second sensor” in the second to last clause. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim, rendering the claim indefinite. For the purpose of examination, the limitation has been interpreted as and may be corrected to –the first thermistor… the case thermistor--.
Claim 15 recites “the output value of the second thermistor” in the last clause. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim, rendering the claim indefinite. For the purpose of examination, the limitation has been interpreted as and may be corrected to –the output value of the case thermistor--. This correction relies on the suggested correction in the previous paragraph of this action.
Claim 16 recites “the output value of the second thermistor” in the last clause. This should be corrected corresponding to the previous corrections. For the purpose of examination, the limitation has been interpreted as and may be corrected to –the output value of the case thermistor--.
The remaining rejected claims are rejected for their dependence on an indefinite claim.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(d):
(d) REFERENCE IN DEPENDENT FORMS.—Subject to subsection (e), a claim in dependent form shall contain a reference to a claim previously set forth and then specify a further limitation of the subject matter claimed. A claim in dependent form shall be construed to incorporate by reference all the limitations of the claim to which it refers.
Claim 13 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(d) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, 4th paragraph, as being of improper dependent form for failing to further limit the subject matter of the claim upon which it depends, or for failing to include all the limitations of the claim upon which it depends.
Claim 11 recites: “the first sensor is disposed adjacent to the power supply and configured to output a value related to a temperature of the power supply”
Claim 13 recites: “the first sensor is disposed adjacent to power supply and configured to output a value related to a temperature of the heater”
These limitations appear to be incompatible.
Applicant may cancel the claim(s), amend the claim(s) to place the claim(s) in proper dependent form, rewrite the claim(s) in independent form, or present a sufficient showing that the dependent claim(s) complies with the statutory requirements.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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.
Claims 1, 2, and 4 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Leadley (US 2019/0190088).
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Regarding claim 1, Leadley (US 2019/0190088) discloses:
A power supply apparatus unit of an aerosol generation device (¶2), comprising:
a power supply (battery 210, see Fig 10);
an electric connector (¶34 “The heater 365 is powered through lines 366 and 367, which are in turn connected to opposing polarities (positive and negative, or vice versa) of the battery 210 via connector 25A”) to which a heater (heater 365, ¶61) configured to heat an aerosol source (¶61 “cartomizer”) by consuming power supplied from the power supply is connected (by connector 25B, ¶62);
a first sensor (1006) disposed adjacent to the heater or adjacent to the power supply (¶67 “The temperature sensor 1006 is in thermal contact with the battery 210”) and configured to output a value related to a temperature of the heater or a value related to a temperature of the power supply (¶68 “the tip charge PCB 1002 monitors the temperature of the battery 210 using information generated by the temperature sensor 1006”), respectively; and
a second sensor (¶80 “additional temperature sensor”) provided at a position separated from the first sensor and configured to output a value related to a temperature at the position (¶80, “if the temperature of the e-cigarette 10 is too hot or too cold” not specific to the battery), wherein when at least one of the output value of the first sensor and the output value of the second sensor is abnormal (¶68 “If the temperature gets too hot (that is, above a predetermined upper threshold) or too cold (that is, below a predetermined lower threshold), the tip charge PCB 1002 cuts off the current supply to the battery 210 from the connector 900. This reduces the chance of damage to the e-cigarette 10 or pack 100 or of injury to the user due to the battery 210 overheating,” ¶80 “PCB may cut off power… if the temperature of the e-cigarette 10 is too hot or too cold”), at least one or both of charging of the power supply and discharging from the power supply to the heater are temporarily prohibited (¶68 “cuts off the current supply,” ¶80 “cut off power”).
Regarding claim 2, Leadley discloses:
control circuitry (ASIC, ¶30) configured to control supply of power from the power supply to the heater (¶30 “the ASIC provides power from the battery or cell 210 to a heater,” ¶44 “The operations of the CPU 550 and other electronic components, such as the pressure sensor 562, are generally controlled at least in part by software programs running on the CPU 550”), wherein when the output value of the first sensor is abnormal, a first protection control for prohibiting one or both of the charging and the discharging is executed without using the control circuitry (¶78 “A further possibility is that the tip charge and over-current protection PCBs 1002, 1000 are integrated together into a single device which is separate from the microcontroller 555.” See connection of temperature sensor 1006 to PCB 1002 in Fig 10. ¶80 describes connection of temperature sensor to PCB 1000), and when the output value of the second sensor is abnormal, a second protection control for prohibiting one or both of the charging and the discharging is executed without using the control circuitry (¶78, as above).
Regarding claim 4, Leadley discloses:
the power supply apparatus is operable in a plurality of modes (charging in the pack by connector 900, ¶68 and charging externally by connector 25B, ¶80), and
in a mode in which one of the first protection control and the second protection control is not executable among the plurality of modes (the PCB 1002 will not be effective when charging from a different connector than connector 900), the other of the first protection control and the second protection control is executable (when charging from connector 25B, PCB 1000 controls the connection).
Claims 1, 7, and 8 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Lee (WO 2020256341).
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Regarding claim 1, Lee discloses
A power supply apparatus unit of an aerosol generation device (¶1, according to the numbers in brackets on the original document), comprising:
a power supply (battery 920, see Fig 9, ¶113);
an electric connector to which a heater (heater 910, ¶115) configured to heat an aerosol source (¶75-¶78, the heaters heat an aerosol generating article) by consuming power supplied from the power supply is connected (¶116);
a first sensor (930, ¶119 or 960) disposed adjacent to the heater (910, ¶122) or adjacent to the power supply (¶119) and configured to output a value related to a temperature of the heater or a value related to a temperature of the power supply (¶119, “The aerosol generating device 900 may measure a temperature of the portion most affecting the damage or explosion of the battery 920 by using the first thermistor 930,” ¶122 “The temperature sensor 960 may be arranged adjacent to the heater 910 to directly or indirectly measure a temperature of the heater 910.”), respectively; and
a second sensor (970 “may have a similar temperature to an external housing constituting an exterior of the aerosol generating device 900,” ¶123) provided at a position separated from the first sensor and configured to output a value related to a temperature at the position (¶123 “to measure temperature or humidity”), wherein when at least one of the output value of the first sensor and the output value of the second sensor is abnormal (¶124 “The PCB 950 may determine whether or not the aerosol generating device 900 is overheated, on the basis of temperatures measured by at least two of the first thermistor 930, the second thermistor 940, the temperature sensor 960, and the temperature and humidity sensor 970”), at least one or both of charging of the power supply and discharging from the power supply to the heater are temporarily prohibited (¶121 “The PCB 950 may determine whether or not the aerosol generating device 900 is overheated, on the basis of temperatures measured by the first thermistor 930 and the second thermistor 940. When the aerosol generating device 900 is determined as being overheated, the PCB 950 stand by until overheating is released, and then automatically perform a heating operation using the heater 910.” ¶124 “The PCB 950 may determine whether or not the aerosol generating device 900 is overheated, on the basis of temperatures measured by at least two of the first thermistor 930, the second thermistor 940, the temperature sensor 960, and the temperature and humidity sensor 970”).
Regarding claim 7, Lee discloses
control circuitry (PCB 950) configured to control supply of power from the power supply to the heater, wherein the control circuitry is configured to: when an output value of the first sensor is abnormal, execute a third protection control for prohibiting one or both of the charging and the discharging; and when an output value of the second sensor is abnormal, execute a fourth protection control for prohibiting one or both of the charging and the discharging (¶121 “The PCB 950 may determine whether or not the aerosol generating device 900 is overheated, on the basis of temperatures measured by the first thermistor 930 and the second thermistor 940. When the aerosol generating device 900 is determined as being overheated, the PCB 950 stand by until overheating is released, and then automatically perform a heating operation using the heater 910.” ¶124 “The PCB 950 may determine whether or not the aerosol generating device 900 is overheated, on the basis of temperatures measured by at least two of the first thermistor 930, the second thermistor 940, the temperature sensor 960, and the temperature and humidity sensor 970”).
Regarding claim 8, Lee discloses
the control circuitry is configured to: when the output value of the first sensor is normal, terminate the third protection control (¶124 “the PCB 950 stand by until overheating is released, and then automatically perform a heating operation using the heater 910.”); and when the output value of the second sensor is normal, terminate the fourth protection control (¶124 “the PCB 950 stand by until overheating is released, and then automatically perform a heating operation using the heater 910.”).
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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.
Claims 5, 15, and 16 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Leadley (US 2019/0190088) in view of Yasutake (JP 2007166500).
Regarding claim 15, Leadley discloses:
A power supply apparatus of an aerosol generation device (¶2), comprising:
a battery (battery 210, see Fig 10);
an electric connector (¶34 “The heater 365 is powered through lines 366 and 367, which are in turn connected to opposing polarities (positive and negative, or vice versa) of the battery 210 via connector 25A”) to which a heater (heater 365, ¶61) configured to heat an aerosol source (¶61 “cartomizer”) by consuming power supplied from the battery is connected;
a first [temperature sensor] disposed adjacent to the heater or in direct contact with the battery (¶67 “The temperature sensor 1006 is in thermal contact with the battery 210”) and configured to output a value related to a temperature of the heater or a value related to the temperature of the battery (¶68 “the tip charge PCB 1002 monitors the temperature of the battery 210 using information generated by the temperature sensor 1006”), respectively; and
Leadley does not disclose:
[the first temperature sensor is] a thermistor
a case thermistor fixed to chassis inside a case forming a surface of the power supply apparatus and separated from the first sensor, wherein the second sensor is configured to output a value related to a temperature of the case, wherein when at least one of the output value of the first thermistor and the output value of the second thermistor is abnormal, at least one or both of charging of the battery and discharging from the battery to the heater are temporarily prohibited.
In the process of charging the battery from the pack (see Fig 7) via connector 900, Leadley aims to avoid “injury to the user” in the event the battery “gets too hot” (¶68). In the case of charging in the pack, the device is separated from the user by the pack (see Fig 7).
In the process of charging the battery from an external power supply by connector 25B, Leadley discloses “an additional temperature sensor” associated with PCB 1000 to determine “if the temperature of the e-cigarette 10 is too hot or too cold” (¶80). Leadley does not specify the location of the sensor. In the case of charging from an external power supply, the device may be in direct contact with the user, thus the requirements to keep the user safe from injury may be different than when charging in the pack.
Yasutake teaches:
a system to prevent burns to a user due to high temperatures of a mobile phone battery (¶3). The surface temperature of the casing is detected by a thermistor installed inside the device, and charging is prevented when high temperatures are detected (¶42). A thermistor is suitable for detecting temperature (¶28).
COMBINATION
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the power supply of Leadley to have the temperature sensors formed as thermistors because Yasutake teaches that a thermistor is a suitable temperature sensor for the interior of a mobile device, and to mount Leadley’s “additional temperature sensor,” i.e. the second thermistor inside the device and configured to output a value related to a temperature of the case, as taught by Yasutake, since this is where the user can interact with the device and potentially be exposed to high temperatures when the power supply is not in the pack and charging by an external device at connector 25B.
Regarding claim 16, Leadley as modified by the thermistor and case monitoring of Yasutake teaches:
a microcontroller (“microcontroller,” ¶30) configured to control supply of power from the battery to the heater (¶30 “the ASIC [or microcontroller] provides power from the battery or cell 210 to a heater”), wherein when the output value of the first thermistor is abnormal, a first protection control for prohibiting one or both of the charging and the discharging is executed without using the microcontroller (¶78 “A further possibility is that the tip charge and over-current protection PCBs 1002, 1000 are integrated together into a single device which is separate from the microcontroller 555.” See connection of temperature sensor 1006 to PCB 1002 in Fig 10. ¶80describes connection of temperature sensor to PCB 1000), and when the output value of the second thermistor is abnormal, a second protection control for prohibiting one or both of the charging and the discharging is executed without using the microcontroller (¶78, as above).
Regarding claim 18, Leadley as modified by the thermistor and case monitoring of Yasutake teaches:
the power supply apparatus is operable in a plurality of modes (charging in the pack by connector 900, ¶68 and charging externally by connector 25B, ¶80), and
in a mode in which one of the first protection control and the second protection control is not executable among the plurality of modes (the PCB 1002 will not be effective when charging from a different connector than connector 900), the other of the first protection control and the second protection control is executable (when charging from connector 25B, PCB 1000 controls the connection).
Regarding claim 19, Leadley as modified by the thermistor and case monitoring of Yasutake teaches:
the first thermistor (1006) is disposed adjacent to the battery and configured to output a value related to a temperature of the battery (¶68 “the tip charge PCB 1002 monitors the temperature of the battery 210 using information generated by the temperature sensor 1006.”), the case thermistor is fixed to the chassis of the case (“additional temperature sensor” of Leadley as modified by the case monitoring of Yasutake) and configured to output a value related to the temperature of the case, and in a mode (charging in the pack by connector 900) in which the second protection control is not executable (PCB 1000 does not affect charging when connected by 900) among the plurality of modes, the first protection control is executable (¶68).
Regarding claim 5, Leadley modified by the thermistor and case monitoring of Yasutake as described above with reference to claim 15, and for the same reasons teaches:
a case (outer case of 10 in Fig 1, which corresponds to 10 in Fig 10) forming a surface of the power supply apparatus, wherein the first sensor is disposed adjacent the power supply and configured to output a value related to a temperature of the power supply (¶68 “the tip charge PCB 1002 monitors the temperature of the battery 210 using information generated by the temperature sensor 1006.”), the second sensor is disposed adjacent to the case and configured to output a value related to a temperature of the case (“additional temperature sensor” of Leadley as modified by the case monitoring of Yasutake), and in a mode (charging in the pack by connector 900) in which the second protection control is not executable (PCB 1000 does not affect charging when connected by 900) among the plurality of modes, the first protection control is executable (¶68).
Claims 9-10 and 20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Lee (WO 2020256341).
Regarding claim 9, Lee discloses
a case (outer case of 900) forming a surface of the power supply apparatus; and control circuitry (PCB, ¶121) configured to control supply of power from the power supply to the heater (¶121 “The PCB 950 may determine whether or not the aerosol generating device 900 is overheated, on the basis of temperatures measured by the first thermistor 930 and the second thermistor 940. When the aerosol generating device 900 is determined as being overheated, the PCB 950 stand by until overheating is released, and then automatically perform a heating operation using the heater 910.”),
wherein the first sensor (930) is disposed in the vicinity of the power supply (920) and configured to output a value related to a temperature of the power supply (¶119, “The aerosol generating device 900 may measure a temperature of the portion most affecting the damage or explosion of the battery 920 by using the first thermistor 930,”) the second sensor (970) is disposed in the vicinity of the case (¶123 “may have a similar temperature to an external housing constituting an exterior of the aerosol generating device 900”) and configured to output a value related to a temperature of the case, the control circuitry is configured to: acquire the temperature of the power supply based on the output value of the first sensor (¶119); acquire the temperature of the case based on the output value of the second sensor (¶123); when the temperature of the power supply is equal to or higher than a first threshold, determine that the output value of the first sensor is abnormal, and execute a third protection control for prohibiting one or both of the charging and the discharging; and when the temperature of the case is equal to or higher than a second threshold, determine that the output value of the second sensor is abnormal, and execute a fourth protection control for prohibiting one or both of the charging and the discharging (¶124 “The PCB 950 may determine whether or not the aerosol generating device 900 is overheated, on the basis of temperatures measured by at least two of the first thermistor 930, the second thermistor 940, the temperature sensor 960, and the temperature and humidity sensor 970”),
Lee does not explicitly disclose:
the first threshold is different from the second threshold.
MODIFICATION
It is evident that the acceptable temperature of the outer case and the acceptable temperature of the battery is different. Although Lee does not disclose the particular thresholds, the temperature requirement for user safety is different than the requirement for battery material safety, and it would be obvious to set the temperature thresholds accordingly.
Regarding claim 10, Lee does not explicitly disclose:
the first threshold is higher than the second threshold.
The battery temperature (firth threshold) depends on the capability of the battery materials, whereas the exterior temperature (second threshold) depends on the safety and comfort of the user. It is obvious to adjust the thresholds according to the material capability and user comfort level to arrive at a higher threshold for the battery temperature than the case temperature.
Regarding claim 20, Lee discloses:
A power supply apparatus of an aerosol generation device (¶1), comprising:
a power supply (battery 920, see Fig 9, ¶113);
an electric connector to which a heater (heater 910, ¶115) configured to heat an aerosol source (¶75-¶78, the heaters heat an aerosol generating article) by consuming power supplied from the power supply is connected (¶116);
a heater [temperature sensor] (960, ¶122 “temperature of the heater 910 measured by the temperature sensor 960”) disposed adjacent to the heater and configured to output a value related to a temperature of the heater
a power supply thermistor (930, ¶119) disposed adjacent to the power supply and configured to output a value related to a temperature of the power supply (¶119, “The aerosol generating device 900 may measure a temperature of the portion most affecting the damage or explosion of the battery 920 by using the first thermistor 930”); and
a case [temperature sensor] (970 “may have a similar temperature to an external housing constituting an exterior of the aerosol generating device 900,” ¶123) fixed to a chassis of a case forming a surface of the power supply and provided at a position separated from the heater thermistor and the power supply thermistor (see Fig 1), wherein the case thermistor is configured to output a value related to a temperature at the position,
wherein when at least one of the output value of the heater thermistor or the power supply thermistor and the output value of the case thermistor is abnormal, at least one or both of charging of the power supply and discharging from the power supply to the heater are temporarily prohibited (¶121 “The PCB 950 may determine whether or not the aerosol generating device 900 is overheated, on the basis of temperatures measured by the first thermistor 930 and the second thermistor 940. When the aerosol generating device 900 is determined as being overheated, the PCB 950 stand by until overheating is released, and then automatically perform a heating operation using the heater 910.” ¶124 “The PCB 950 may determine whether or not the aerosol generating device 900 is overheated, on the basis of temperatures measured by at least two of the first thermistor 930, the second thermistor 940, the temperature sensor 960, and the temperature and humidity sensor 970”).
Lee does not disclose:
[the heater temperature sensor is a] thermistor
[the case temperature sensor is a] thermistor
Lee is silent as to the specific type of these temperature sensors, but does teach that a thermistor is appropriate sensing temperature of various components.
MODIFICATION
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the device of Lee by having the heater temperature sensor and the case temperature sensor formed as thermistors, because Lee teaches that thermistors are appropriate for temperature sensors in a power supply device.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 3 and 6 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.
Claims 11-12, 14, and 17 would be allowable if rewritten 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 and to include all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
Claim 13 would be allowable if rewritten to overcome the rejection(s) under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) and 35 U.S.C. 112(d), set forth in this Office action and to include all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
The nearest prior art is present in the 102 and 103 rejections above. Regarding claims 3 and 17, the prior art is missing restart of the control circuitry/MCU is necessary for termination of a protection control, when the protection control is executed without using the control circuitry/MCU. Regarding claim 6, the prior art does not disclose “the first protection control is executable in all the modes” in conjunction with the other claim limitations because, in Leadley, it only functions during charging in the pack. Regarding claim 11, the prior art does not disclose “a value obtained by subtracting the second threshold from the first threshold is different from a value obtained by subtracting the fourth threshold from the third threshold” in conjunction with he other claim limitations.
Pertinent Prior Art
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Ono (JP 6831031 B1), which has a US equivalent (US 20220014097) not available as prior art, teaches a charging integrated circuit 55 separate from the MCU 50 (see Fig 4). “The charging IC 55 is an integrated circuit (IC) that controls charging of the power supply 12 with power input from the charge terminal 43 and supplies the power of the power supply 12 to the electronic components of the circuit board 60 and the like” (¶31). The charging IC detects the temperature of a resistor R7 (¶104). The temperature of the power supply is detected and sent to the MCU (¶121, ¶161)
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to TOPAZ L ELLIOTT whose telephone number is (571)270-5851. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 9 a.m. - 4 p.m. EST.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Ibrahime Abraham can be reached on (571) 270-5569. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/TOPAZ L. ELLIOTT/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3761
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