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 .
Priority
Acknowledgment is made of applicant's claim for foreign priority based on an application filed in China on 09/08/2023. It is noted, however, that applicant has not filed a certified copy of the CN2023112025600 application as required by 37 CFR 1.55.
Drawings
The drawings are objected to under 37 CFR 1.83(a). The drawings must show every feature of the invention specified in the claims. Therefore, the “power interface”, “audible alert module” must be shown or the feature(s) canceled from the claim(s). No new matter should be entered.
Corrected drawing sheets in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(d) are required in reply to the Office action to avoid abandonment of the application. Any amended replacement drawing sheet should include all of the figures appearing on the immediate prior version of the sheet, even if only one figure is being amended. The figure or figure number of an amended drawing should not be labeled as “amended.” If a drawing figure is to be canceled, the appropriate figure must be removed from the replacement sheet, and where necessary, the remaining figures must be renumbered and appropriate changes made to the brief description of the several views of the drawings for consistency. Additional replacement sheets may be necessary to show the renumbering of the remaining figures. Each drawing sheet submitted after the filing date of an application must be labeled in the top margin as either “Replacement Sheet” or “New Sheet” pursuant to 37 CFR 1.121(d). If the changes are not accepted by the examiner, the applicant will be notified and informed of any required corrective action in the next Office action. The objection to the drawings will not be held in abeyance.
Claim Objections
Claims 8-10 are objected to because of the following informalities:
In claim 8, line 1, delete “claim7” and replace with “claim 7”
Appropriate correction is required.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b):
(b) CONCLUSION.—The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph:
The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention.
Claims 6-10 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention.
Regarding claim 6, line 11, the phrase "it" renders the claim indefinite because one skilled in the art would not determine the metes and bounds of the claimed limitations. Appropriate correction is required.
Regarding claim 9, lines 6, 8, the phrase "it" renders the claim indefinite because one skilled in the art would not determine the metes and bounds of the claimed limitations. Appropriate correction is required.
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.
Claim(s) 1-3 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Nook et al. US Patent 9,007,015 (hereinafter Nook).
Regarding claim 1, Nook discloses a smart clamp system for automobile emergency starting (Abstract, col. 7, lines 54-56; a handheld device for jump starting a vehicle engine), comprising
a smart clamp (fig. 4, elements 403a and 403b and col.7, lines 54-59), configured for electrically connecting an emergency start power supply (Abstract; a handheld device for jump starting a vehicle engine includes a rechargeable lithium-ion battery pack) to a power terminal of an automobile engine (Col. 6, lines 2-3; for jumpstarting the car engine) via electrodes for an automobile battery (Col. 3, lines 23-26; a reverse polarity sensor connected in circuit with said positive and negative polarity outputs, configured to detect polarity of a vehicle battery connected between said positive and negative polarity outputs); and
the smart clamp comprises a power interface (fig. 4, element 401), a first clamping end (403a) and a second clamping end (403b);
the power interface (fig. 4, element 401) being electrically connected to the emergency start power supply (col. 7, lines 47-49; device 400 has a plug 401 configured to plug into 12 volt output port 303 of the handheld device 300), the first clamping end and the second clamping end being configured to electrically connect to the power interface and the electrodes for the automobile battery (Claim 1; a vehicle battery isolation sensor connected in circuit with said positive and negative polarity outputs, configured to detect presence of a vehicle battery connected between said positive and negative polarity outputs);
a control board (microcontroller unit 1) configured to automatically obtain polar signals of the first clamping end (403a) and the second clamping end (403b) after the first clamping end and the second clamping end being electrically connected to the electrodes for the automobile battery (Col. 3, lines 19-26; vehicle battery isolation sensor connected in circuit with said positive and negative polarity 20 outputs, configured to detect presence of a vehicle battery connected between said positive and negative polarity outputs; a reverse polarity sensor connected in circuit with said positive and negative polarity outputs, configured to detect polarity of a vehicle battery connected between said positive and negative polarity outputs);
determine polarities of the electrodes for the automobile battery based on the polar signals of the first clamping end and the second clamping ends (Col. 5, lines 31-41); and
transmit an electrical signal matching positive and negative polarities of the automobile battery to the electrodes for the automobile battery based on an obtained polarities of the electrodes for the automobile battery by defemination, to provide an emergency start signal for the power terminal of the automobile engine (Abstract, claim 18 and Col. 5, line 67 to Col. 6, line 3; the microcontroller software controls the connection of the internal lithium battery pack 32 to the vehicle battery 72 for jumpstarting the car engine).
Although Nook does not disclose the control board arranged in an interior of the smart clamp, Nook does disclose a microcontroller arranged in an interior of the handheld device. Changing the location of the microcontroller from the location shown by Nook to a location in the smart clamp, absent any criticality, is only considered to be an obvious modification of the Nook device that a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention would be able to provide using routine experimentation in order to protect the microcontroller from physical damage since the courts have held that there is no invention in shifting the position if the operation of the device would not be thereby modified. See In re Japikse, 86 USPQ 70 (CCPA 1950) and MPEP 2144.04 VI.
Regarding claim 2, Nook discloses wherein further comprises a physical start switch (Col. 7, lines 31-33; power on switch); and
the control board is configured to obtain polar signals of the first clamping end and the second clamping end (403a, 403b) based on a pressing signal of the physical start switch (the handheld device can start to jump-start a car when the power on switch is on) after the first clamping end and the second clamping end being electrically connected to the electrodes for the automobile battery (vehicle battery 72 includes a positive terminal and a negative terminal);
determine the polarities of the electrodes for the automobile battery based on the polar signals of the first clamping end and the second clamping (Col. 3, lines 19-26).
Nook further disclose the system is configured to transmit the electrical signal matching the positive and negative polarities of the automobile battery to the electrodes for the automobile battery based on the obtained polarities of the electrodes for the automobile battery by determination, to provide the emergency start signal for the power terminal of the automobile engine (claims 1, 18; a reverse polarity sensor connected in circuit with said positive and negative polarity outputs, configured to detect polarity of a vehicle battery connected between said positive and negative polarity outputs and to provide an output signal indicating whether positive and negative terminals of said vehicle battery are properly connected with said positive and negative polarity outputs of said output port; the jump start boost power status of power supplied to said output port).
Although Nook does not disclose the physical start switch arranged on one side of the smart clamp, Nook does disclose a power on switch arranged on the handheld device. Changing the location of the physical start switch from the location shown by Nook to a location on the smart clamp, absent any criticality, is only considered to be an obvious modification of the Nook device that a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention would be able to provide using routine experimentation in order to increase utility of the whole system since the courts have held that there is no invention in shifting the position if the operation of the device would not be thereby modified. See In re Japikse, 86 USPQ 70 (CCPA 1950) and MPEP 2144.04 VI.
Regarding claim 3, Nook discloses wherein the physical start switch comprises a transparent cover that configured with an LED light module below the translucent cover (claim 18; visual indicators configured to display the power on status of
the apparatus), and the LED light module is electrically connected to the control board (fig. 2A-1, element on-off switch and fig. 2A-2, element 1; MCU); and
the control board is configured to control the LED light module to emit light to illuminate the transparent cover after the first clamping end (403a) and the second clamping end (403b) being electrically connected to the electrodes for the automobile battery (claims 1 and 18; then turning on the power on switch).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 4-5 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.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter:
Regarding claim 4, the prior art fails to teach or suggest further inclusion of discloses wherein after the first clamping end and the second clamping end being electrically connected to the electrodes for the automobile battery and a first preset delay time being elapsed, in response to the automobile engine does not start, the control board is configured to control the LED light module to blink, and alert a user to press the physical start switch to obtain the pressing signal of the physical start switch.
Claim 6 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.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Zhu et al.
US 2024/0154411 Al
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/ZIXUAN ZHOU/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2859 06/23/2026
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