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 .
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) 3-5, 7-13 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Akabori et al. (US 2013/0090871) in view of Shiraishi (US 2017/0254856).
Regarding to claims 3, 7-9:
Akabori et al. discloses an energy storage apparatus comprising:
an energy storage cell or the assembled battery (FIG. 1, element 2);
a correction device (FIG. 1, element 16) to correct a measured value of a current of the energy storage cell or the assembled battery (FIG. 1, element 2);
a current measurement unit (FIG. 1, element 11) that measures the current of the energy storage cell or the assembled battery; and
an SOC estimation unit that estimates a first SOC of the energy storage cell or the assembled battery based on an integrated value of measured values of the current after correction of the energy storage cell or the assembled battery (Abstract), wherein
the correction device (FIG. 1, element 16) is configured to calculate a correction value of the measured value of the current based on an SOC difference between a first SOC of the energy storage cell or the assembled battery estimated based on an integrated value of the measured values of the current (FIG. 1: The first estimating section 14 is based on the measured current from the current sensor 11. Abstract: The first estimating section calculates a remaining capacity of the battery based on an accumulated value of the current measured by the current sensor) and a second SOC of the energy storage cell or the assembled battery estimated based on a voltage of the energy storage cell or the assembled battery (FIG. 1: The second estimating section 15 is based on the measured voltage from the voltage sensor 12. Abstract: The second estimating section calculates the remaining capacity of the battery based on the voltage detected by the voltage sensor), and is configured to correct the measured value of the current based on the calculated correction value (Abstract: The difference between the first estimate value and the second estimate value is calculated to correct the accumulated value of the current values. FIG. 2, step ST5: Calculate difference ΔSOC between second estimate value SOCocv and first estimate value SOCI obtained by current-accumulation method).
Akabori et al. however does not teach wherein the correction device corrects the measured value of the current using the correction value calculated based on a change amount of the SOC difference per unit time.
Shiraishi discloses a monitoring method for an energy storage device comprising calculating the SOC difference (ΔSOC) between an estimate value SOCocv and an estimate value SOCI obtained by current-accumulation method (FIG. 10, steps S120 and S130), and correcting a measured value of the current based on a change amount of the SOC difference per unit time as of the integration time (paragraphs [0111], [0122]: The error amount of the estimated value of the current Ic is calculated based the ratio of ΔSOC/T).
Therefore, it would have been obvious for one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Akabori’s estimation to calculate the error amount of the estimated value of the current based the ratio of ΔSOC/T as disclosed by Shiraishi to gain the estimation accuracy (paragraph [0029]).
Regarding to claim 4: wherein the correction device corrects the measured value of the current in a case where the SOC difference exceeds a threshold (Akabori et al.: FIG. 2, step ST6).
Regarding to claim 5: wherein the correction device corrects the measured value of the current when a change amount of the SOC difference per unit time exceeds a predetermined threshold (Shiraishi: paragraph [0123]).
Regarding to claims 10-11: wherein the SOC estimation unit estimates the first SOC by integrating the measured values of the current over time using a current integration method and updating the first SOC based on the integrated value, and wherein the correction device calculates an SOC estimation error based on an integrated value of a measurement error of the current (Shiraishi: FIG. 6, steps S30, S60).
Regarding to claims 12-13: wherein the correction device compares the SOC estimation error with a threshold value corresponding to a required estimation accuracy of the first SOC, wherein when the SOC estimation error exceeds the threshold value, the correction device initiates charging of the energy storage cell or the assembled battery (Akabori et al.: FIG. 6B shows the battery is charged when the corrected value is above the correction limit).
Claim(s) 2 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Akabori et al. (US 2013/0090871) in view of Shiraishi (US 2017/0254856), and further in view of Fukushima (US 2020/0094707).
Akabori et al., as modified, discloses the claimed invention as discussed above except wherein the processing of estimating the second SOC is processing of estimating an SOC by charging the energy storage cell or the assembled battery to full charging.
Fukushima discloses a method for estimating the SOC of an energy storage device comprising a full charge detection for obtaining high SOC estimation accuracy (paragraph [0068]).
Therefore, it would have been obvious for one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Akabori’s estimation., as modified, to perform the SOC estimation in the full charge mode to obtain high estimation accuracy as taught by Fukushima (paragraph [0068]).
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to the claim(s) have been considered but are moot because the new ground of rejection does not rely on any reference applied in the prior rejection of record for any teaching or matter specifically challenged in the argument.
Conclusion
Applicant's amendment necessitated the new ground(s) of rejection presented in this Office action. Accordingly, THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. See MPEP § 706.07(a). Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to LAM S NGUYEN whose telephone number is (571)272-2151.
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/LAM S NGUYEN/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2853
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