DETAILED ACTION
1. This is the first action on the merits relating to U.S. Application Serial No. 18/516,694 filed on November 21, 2023. Currently claims 1-19 remain in the examination.
Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status
2. The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
Priority
3. Receipt is acknowledged of papers submitted under 35 U.S.C. 119(a)-(d), which papers have been placed of record in the file.
Drawings
4. Drawings originally filed on November 21, 2013 are approved.
Claim Objections
5. Claim 13 is objected to because of the following informalities:
Regarding claim 13, line 1: please replace “claim 1” with the actual text of claim1, which would place claim 13, an independent claim in a batter form.
Appropriate correction is required.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
6. 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.
7. 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.
8. Claims 1, 13, and 14 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by US 2022/0396167 A1 to Sharifipour et al. (hereinafter “Sharifipour”).
Regarding claims 1 and 14, Sharifipour discloses an energy conversion apparatus 100 (see figure 1 and paragraph 0031) comprising an energy storage module 111, a voltage transformation module 106/107; a fist switch module 117-S, and a second switch module 130-S, a control moule 119; the voltage transformation module 106107 connected to the battery 111 through the first switch 117-S and the second switch 130-S; and the first switch and the second switch connected to the controller 119.
Regarding claim 13, Sharifipour discloses an electric vehicle comprising the energy conversion apparatus 100 (see abstract, figure 1 and paragraph 0031).
Allowable Subject Matter
9. Claim 7-12 are allowed.
10. Claims 2-6 and 15-19 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. The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter: Claims are directed an energy conversion apparatus and energy conversion method used in a vehicle.
Claim are directed at a charging method for an energy conversion apparatus, comprising:
obtaining, by the energy conversion apparatus when being connected to an external power supply module and in a charging mode, a maximum output voltage of the external power supply module;
when the maximum output voltage of the external power supply module is not greater than a preset voltage, controlling a first switch module to be broken and a second switch module to be closed, to enable the external power supply module to perform boost charging on a power battery through the second switch module;
and when the maximum output voltage of the external power supply module is greater than the preset voltage, controlling the first switch module to be closed and the second switch module to be broken, to enable the external power supply module to perform direct-current charging on the power battery through the first switch module.
The charging method comprising an energy conversion apparatus comprising all the elements of the apparatus and closing the first switch and opening the second switch when the maximum output voltage of the external power supply module is not greater than a preset voltage is neither disclosed nor suggested by the cited references. The limitations in the objected dependent claims for the energy conversion apparatus are also allowable.
Conclusion
The pertinent prior arts made of record but not relied are listed in the attached form PTO-892. These are considered pertinent to Applicant's disclosure. Applicant is respectfully suggested to carefully review these references.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Ahshik Kim whose telephone number is (571)272-2393. The examiner can normally be reached between the hours of 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM Monday thru Friday. Examiner’s fax phone number is (571)273-2393.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner's supervisor, Thomas Pham, can be reached on (571)272-3689. The fax phone number for this Group is (571)273-8300.
Communications via Internet e-mail regarding this application, other than those under 35 U.S.C. 132 or which otherwise require a signature, may be used by the applicant and should be addressed to [ahshik.kim@uspto.gov].
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/AHSHIK KIM/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2876
August 5, 2026
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