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 .
Election/Restrictions
Claims 8-19 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b), as being drawn to a nonelected claims, there being no allowable generic or linking claim. Applicant timely traversed the restriction (election) requirement in the reply filed on 7/14/2026.
Applicant’s arguments have been fully considered but are not persuasive. Applicant argues “the claimed subject matter of Groups I, II, and III are sufficiently related such that an undue burden would not be presented to the Examiner…” This is not found persuasive for the reasons set forth in the 6/30/2026 Restriction Requirement.
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.
Claim(s) 1-3 and 7 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over King et al. US 2007/0164693.
King teaches:
1. An ultracapacitor module, comprising:
an ultracapacitor module (130 in figure 4),
an ultracapacitor cell stack containing one or more ultracapacitor
cells (p.26: " ... ultracapacitor 130 has 63 cells connected in series wherein
each cell has voltage rating of approximately 2. 7 volts and a capacitance
value that is greater than 1000 Farads per cell ...”;
a bidirectional boost/ buck DC/DC converter (120 in figure 4 and p.23: " ... bidirectional boost converter ... ', wherein the ultracapacitor cell stack and the DC/DC converter
are configured to be connected in series with a voltage supply bus (bus
between 120 and 130 in figure 4) of a vehicle (p.24: " ... FIG. 4 illustrates an
exemplary vehicle propulsion system 100 ... "; figure 4);
a voltage sensor configured to determine an operating voltage of the voltage supply bus (p.25: " ... voltage sensor 162 that are transmitted to EMS 120 and utilized by EMS 120 to monitor the respective voltage ... on the EMS high voltage side 124 ... '; and an electronic controller in electrical communication with the DC/DC converter and the voltage sensor (148 in figure 4);
an electronic controller (read on by said energy management and controls section (EMS) of said 120 and/or vehicle system controls, FIGURE 4, see @ [0029, 0034-0035]) in electrical communication with the DC/DC converter and the voltage sensor, wherein the electronic controller is configured to control the DC/DC converter such that the ultracapacitor stack operates at a lower voltage than the operating voltage of the voltage supply bus (as read on by said ultra-capacitor being on said low side as compared with the bus side).
King fails to teach wherein said lower voltage of the ultracapacitor as compared with said voltage supply bus comprises a voltage range that is 20 to 80 percent of the operating voltage Vo of the voltage supply bus.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to provide said voltage range, since it has been held that where the general conditions of a claim are disclosed in the prior art, discovering optimum or workable ranges involves only routine skill in the art, In re Aller, 105 USPQ 233.
King fails to teach:
2. The ultracapacitor module of claim 1, wherein the electronic controller is configured to control the DC/DC converter such that the ultracapacitor cell stack operates in a voltage range that is 30 to 70 percent of the operating voltage Vo of the voltage supply bus.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to provide said voltage range, since it has been held that where the general conditions of a claim are disclosed in the prior art, discovering optimum or workable ranges involves only routine skill in the art, In re Aller, 105 USPQ 233 (also see rejection of Claim 1 above).
King further teaches:
3. The ultracapacitor module of claim 1, wherein the electronic controller is configured to control a direction and a magnitude of power flow through the DC/DC converter (see power control depicted in Figures 6 and 7 and corresponding specification).
7. The ultracapacitor module in accordance with claim 1, wherein the ultracapacitor cell stack contains two or more ultracapacitor cells connected in series (see @ [0026]).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 4-6 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.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to DANIEL CAVALLARI whose telephone number is (571)272-8541. The examiner can normally be reached Mon-Fri 0900-18:30.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Rexford Barnie can be reached at (571)272-7492. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/DANIEL CAVALLARI/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2836
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