DETAILED ACTION
Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status
1. The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
Response to Arguments
2. Applicant's arguments filed 11/04/2025 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive.
3. Applicant argues the amended claim(s) 1, 9 and 10 is/are allowable over Nishiguchi et al. (JP-2022118575-A). Applicant continues, Nishiguchi and the other cited references do not disclose or suggest the following amended feature: “wherein the charging plan for each vehicle is set in accordance with a setting mode selected from a plurality of setting modes including: (i) a fastest charging mode, (ii) a low-voltage charging mode, and (iii) a variation suppression mode; (i) the fastest charging mode is a mode in which the charging plan is set so that all the vehicles reach the respective target SOCs in the shortest overall time; (ii) the low-voltage charging mode is a mode in which the charging plan is set so as to minimize the total instantaneous charging power at any time during the period until all the vehicles reach their respective target SOCs; and (iii) the variation suppression mode is a mode in which the charging plan is set so as to minimize the variation in remaining SOC among the vehicles at each time instant.” In addition, although Nishiguchi describes that the storage battery PCS 43 and EMS 10 monitor the power supply status of the charger during charging, Nishiguchi does not disclose or suggest the following claimed feature: “a hardware processor...receives, from each vehicle, information regarding connection with a charger, and monitors whether each vehicle is connected to the charger in accordance with the corresponding charging plan”.
4. However, in regard to the amended claim limitation of “a hardware processor...receives, from each vehicle, information regarding connection with a charger, and monitors whether each vehicle is connected to the charger in accordance with the corresponding charging plan,” Applicant has not provided any reason or rationale as why Nishiguchi does not teach this limitation and instead only provides conclusory statements. Indeed, Nishiguchi teaches the limitation above, as indicated by the Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103 section. In regard to the amended limitations of “wherein the charging plan for each vehicle is set in accordance with a setting mode selected from a plurality of setting modes including: (i) a fastest charging mode, (ii) a low-voltage charging mode, and (iii) a variation suppression mode; (i) the fastest charging mode is a mode in which the charging plan is set so that all the vehicles reach the respective target SOCs in the shortest overall time; (ii) the low-voltage charging mode is a mode in which the charging plan is set so as to minimize the total instantaneous charging power at any time during the period until all the vehicles reach their respective target SOCs; and (iii) the variation suppression mode is a mode in which the charging plan is set so as to minimize the variation in remaining SOC among the vehicles at each time instant,” indeed, Nishiguchi and the other cited references do not teach the newly amended feature(s) as recited above. As such, this amendment has necessitated additional reference Nagatochi et al. (US-20210078431-A1) and further in views of Kimura (CN-102405416-A). Applicant is referred to the Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103 section, for the rejection of these limitations.
5. As such, Nishiguchi, in view of Nagatochi and Kimura, teaches each and every limitation of these claims and this argument is unpersuasive.
6. Applicant argues dependent claim(s) is/are patentable by the virtue of their dependency on one of the independent claims and the additional features recited in the dependent claims.
7. This argument is unpersuasive as each independent claim and dependent claim has been fully rejected and for the reasons given above.
Claim Objections
8. Claim 1, and 9-10 objected to because of the following informalities:
“based on the obtained information” should read “based on the obtained operation plan information”.
9. Appropriate correction is required.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
10. 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.
11. Claim(s) 1, 4-5, 7 and 9-10
is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Nishiguchi et al. (JP-2022118575-A) in view of Nagatochi et al. (US-20210078431-A1) and further in views of Kimura (CN-102405416-A).
In regards to claim 1
, Nishiguchi teaches a management apparatus of a charging system that controls charging of a plurality of vehicles that deliver packages, the management apparatus comprising a hardware processor that (Figs. 1, 9 and, [0011] A charging system 1 is a system capable of charging vehicles 5-1 to 5-n where the vehicle 5 is a bus to a truck. Examiner notes, the charging system 1 is the management apparatus and vehicles 5-1 to 5-n are the plurality of vehicles. Furthermore, as mentioned above, the vehicles are trucks (i.e., vehicles that deliver packages). [0070] A control unit 101 is a CPU (Central Processing Unit). The CPU is the hardware processor.)
obtains operation plan information including a scheduled departure time of each vehicle ([0022] The operation plan is information indicating the time when each vehicle 5 is operated, and is received by the EMS 10 from another device via the communication unit 11, or is input by the user. In the operation plan a route, a departure time, and an arrival time are stored for each piece of identification information indicating a vehicle 5.), and a target state of charge (SOC) of a battery of each vehicle, the remaining SOC of the battery of each vehicle (Fig. 4, [0032] Among the SOC data shown in FIG. 4, the capacity indicates the capacity of the storage battery of each vehicle 5, and is input in advance by the user, or is a capacity acquired from the vehicle 5, i.e., a value that reflects deterioration from the rated value. The plan creation unit 13 calculates the amount of power usage for the next day, i.e., the amount of usage for the next day, based on the operation plan, and stores the calculated amount in the SOC data. The plan creation unit 13 sets the SOC at the time of return on the next day, and stores this value in the SOC data. Then, the plan creation unit 13 calculates the remaining charge of the storage battery for each vehicle 5 using the "SOC at the time of return on that day" of the SOC data and the capacity. Furthermore, the plan creation unit 13 uses the calculated remaining charge to calculate the amount of charging required for the next day so that the SOC when the remaining charge of the storage battery of the vehicle 5 on the next day has decreased by the predicted value of the power usage on the next day becomes the set value of "SOC at the time of return on the next day." For example, in the example shown in FIG. 4, the condition to be satisfied by the SOC at the end of the next day's driving is set to be 30% or more and less than 90%. In the example shown in FIG. 4, the "SOC at the time of returning home the next day" is set to 40% taking into consideration an error so that the SOC at the end of the next day's driving satisfies this condition, and this value is used to calculate the amount of charge required for the next day. Note that the above example using the "usage amount for the next day" and the "amount of charge required for the next day" is one example of a method for calculating the amount of charge required for each vehicle 5. The amount of charge required for each vehicle 5 acts as the target state of charge for each of a plurality of vehicles. [0079] The actual charging power value obtained from the charger 42. The actual charging power is a charging parameter related to chargers.), and charging parameters related to chargers (According to the relevant paragraph [0044] of Applicant’s disclosure, “the charging parameters include an available charging start time, charging equipment information, and contracted power.” [0045] The plan creation unit 13 assigns a charger 42 and a charging time to each vehicle 5 using the return time of the vehicle 5 on that day and the operation plan for the next day.);
sets, based on the obtained information, a charging plan including a charging start time and a charging end time such that charging of each vehicle is completed by the corresponding scheduled departure time; ([0025] Then, the plan creation unit 13 determines the charge amount of the storage battery during the plan creation period using the operation plan of the vehicle 5, and creates a charging plan using the charge amount and the maximum charging power set by the maximum power setting unit 14. [0045] The plan creation unit 13 assigns a charger 42 and a charging time to each vehicle 5 using the return time of the vehicle 5 on that day and the operation plan for the next day. At this time, the plan creation unit 13 assigns a charging time to each vehicle 5 so that each vehicle 5 is charged between the return time and the time when the vehicle 5 is in time for its first operation on the following day. The time when the vehicle 5 is in time for its first operation on the following day is the scheduled departure time.)
performs charging of each vehicle in accordance with the charging plan; and ([0045] The plan creation unit 13 assigns a charger 42 and a charging time to each vehicle 5 using the return time of the vehicle 5 on that day and the operation plan for the next day. At this time, the plan creation unit 13 assigns a charging time to each vehicle 5 so that each vehicle 5 is charged between the return time and the time when the vehicle 5 is in time for its first operation on the following day. For example, suppose there are two chargers 42, vehicle #5 is scheduled to return in the 8 p.m. hour, vehicles #2 and #4 in the 9 p.m. hour, and vehicles #1, #3, and #6 in the 10 p.m. hour. In this case, the plan creation unit 13 allocates a charging time to vehicle #5 so that the vehicle is charged for one hour from 9 p.m. using one of the two vehicles. That is performing charging of each vehicle in accordance with the charging plan.)
receives, from each vehicle, information regarding connection with a charger ([0033] When charging vehicle 5, charger 42 receives information from vehicle 5 indicating the current and voltage used to charge vehicle 5 and performs charging based on this information, so that the actual charging power is limited to less than the maximum power. Examiner notes, information from vehicle 5 indicating the current and voltage used to charge vehicle is information regarding connection with a charger.), and monitors whether each vehicle is connected to the charger in accordance with the corresponding charging plan ([0012] The charging system 1 includes an energy management system (hereinafter abbreviated as EMS) 10, a converter 41, chargers 42-1 to 42-n, connection units 45-1 to 45-n, a storage battery 20, a storage battery power conditioning system (hereinafter abbreviated as PCS) 43, and a solar power generation facility 21. [0018] The storage battery PCS 43 is a control device that charges and discharges the storage battery 20 . The storage battery PCS 43 charges and discharges the storage battery 20 based on a charge/discharge command received from the EMS 10. When the storage battery 20 is discharging, the storage battery PCS 43 supplies the DC power output from the storage battery 20 to the DC bus 40 . In addition, the storage battery PCS 43 charges the storage battery 20 using DC power supplied from the DC bus 40 . That is, the storage battery 20 stores electricity using electricity generated by the solar power generation equipment 21 or electricity supplied from the power grid 2 via the transformer 3 and the converter 41, and can supply the stored electricity to the chargers 42-1 to 42-n by discharging the stored electricity. For the EMS to be able to send charge/discharge command to the PCS, the power supply state of a charger (State of charge of the storage battery 20), must be monitored. That is, whether each vehicle is connected to the charger in accordance with the corresponding charging plan.):
Nishiguchi does not teach wherein the charging plan for each vehicle is set in accordance with a setting mode selected from a plurality of setting modes including: (i) a fastest charging mode, (ii) a low-voltage charging mode, and (iii) a variation suppression mode:
(i) the fastest charging mode is a mode in which the charging plan is set so that all the vehicles reach the respective target SOCs in the shortest overall time;
(ii) the low-voltage charging mode is a mode in which the charging plan is set so as to minimize the total instantaneous charging power at any time during the period until all the vehicles reach their respective target SOCs: and
(iii) the variation suppression mode is a mode in which the charging plan is set so as to minimize the variation in remaining SOC among the vehicles at each time instant.
However, Nagatochi teaches a charge control unit 200 which controls the charging of the battery 20. The charge control unit 200 controls fast charging of the battery 20. The charge control unit 200 controls the converter 80 to thereby control the power supplied from the charging device 8 to the battery 20 (Figs. 1-2, [0033]). The charging ECU 40 appropriately switches between the charging power map and the charging current map depending on the state of the battery 20 to perform charging. Thus, the charging is controlled such that the time required for fast charging of the battery 20 is shortened while suppressing the deterioration of the cells 22 ([0040]). The selection unit 220 selects the charging current map as the information for use in the charging of the battery 20 when the voltage of the battery 20 reaches the switching voltage associated with the temperature of the battery 20 by the map-selection map. This makes it possible to control charging such that in the low-voltage range where the cell 22 does not deteriorate much due to charging, the battery can be charged by a larger current as its voltage becomes lower, and also to control charging such that in the high-voltage range where the cell 22 is apt to deteriorate due to charging, the charging by a large current can be suppressed. Thus, the total charging time can be shortened while suppressing the deterioration of the cells 22 ([0037]). When fast charging is performed by a CCCV charging method, the end-of-charge voltage is reached at an early stage because of the constant current charging with a large amount of current, and then the charging is quickly switched to the constant voltage charging, whereby it takes longer to reach the time t2′ when the constant voltage charging ends. In addition, since the state where the temperature of the battery is high and the cell voltage is close to the specified charging voltage continues for a long time, the deterioration of the cells may be promoted ([0055]). As such, Nagatochi teaches the fastest charging mode and the low-voltage charging mode.
Kimura teaches control unit 20 is connected via a control line 18 with the charging device side circuit 200, with function control charging device side circuit 200. Here, the control unit 20 in the function, especially to the following functions: plug-in charging while estimating the SOC using the external commercial power supply-side to charge the storage device 102 SOC becomes a predetermined value (e.g., 80%) mode, setting the variation suppression coefficient to inhibit external commercial power of power variation for the estimation of the SOC is reduced which is the variation suppression mode.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the application to modify a charging plan creation device, a charging system, a charging plan creation method, and a charging plan creation program of Nishiguchi, by incorporating the teachings of Nagatochi and Kimura, such that the charging device supports fast-charging, low-voltage charging and variation suppression mode by setting the target SOC to a predetermined value.
The motivation to modify is, as acknowledged by Nagatochi, less deterioration of the battery due to the charging ([0069]) which one of ordinary skill would have recognized allows the life span of the battery to increase.
The motivation to modify is, as acknowledged by Kimura, further improving the estimation accuracy of the SOC of the secondary battery ([0007]) which one of ordinary skill would have recognized allows the battery to be charged more accurately.
In regards to claim 4
, Nishiguchi, as modified by Nagatochi and Kimura, teaches The management apparatus of the charging system according to Claim 1,
wherein the hardware processor detects that a total power supplied to the plurality of vehicles in unit time exceeds a threshold. ([0033] After calculating the required charging amount for each vehicle 5, the plan creation unit 13 calculates the time required to charge each vehicle 5 by dividing the required charging amount by the charging power. At this time, the rated value of the charger 42 or the vehicle 5 is generally used as the charging power. On the other hand, in order to maintain the vehicle 5 and extend the life of the storage battery, the maximum chargeable power is limited in the vehicle 5, and this maximum chargeable power varies depending on the state of the storage battery. When charging vehicle 5, charger 42 receives information from vehicle 5 indicating the current and voltage used to charge vehicle 5 and performs charging based on this information, so that the actual charging power is limited to less than the maximum power mentioned above. Therefore, when creating a plan, if the charging time is calculated using rated values, the charging time is longer than planned, which results in problems such as not making it in time for the vehicle 5 to depart on time or the total charging power used by the charger 42 exceeding the upper limit of the contracted power or the request from the power company. Even if you plan to keep your electricity bills low, you may end up having to charge during a time period when electricity rates are higher if the charging time is longer than planned. For this reason, a charging plan for vehicle 5 is created taking into consideration such changes in the maximum charging power of vehicle 5 that depend on the state of the storage battery. This makes it possible to create a charging plan for the vehicle 5 with high accuracy, and to reduce the discrepancy between the planned charging time and the actual charging time. As mentioned above, the charging plan is created to ensure that the total charging power used by the charger 42 does not exceed the upper limit of the contracted power which encompasses detecting the total power supplied to the plurality of vehicles. The upper limit of the contracted power is the threshold. [0070] The control unit 101 executes a charging plan creation program. That is, the charging plan creation is executed by a hardware processor.)
In regards to claim 5
, Nishiguchi, as modified by Nagatochi and Kimura, teaches The management apparatus of the charging system according to Claim 1,
wherein the hardware processor obtains a time for preparation work for each vehicle and sets the charging plan such that the preparation work for each vehicle is completed by the corresponding scheduled departure time. (Applicants’ specification has no provided a concise definition for definition for preparation work. In the relevant paragraph [0181], the specification mentions: “In addition, in charging system CS according to the present embodiment, the setting section obtains a time for preparation work for each of the plurality of vehicles and sets a charging plan such that the preparation work for the plurality of vehicles is completed by scheduled departure times of the plurality of vehicles. As a result, since the work time is a major component of operation plan information, a charging plan can be accurately set on the basis of the work time.” As such, the preparation work is considered to be the time that is required for assigning a charger and the charging time of the vehicle. [0044]-[0045] The plan creation unit 13 assigns a charger 42 and a charging time to each vehicle 5 so that the charging time of each vehicle 5 is not concentrated in one time slot. The plan creation unit 13 assigns a charger 42 and a charging time to each vehicle 5 using the return time of the vehicle 5 on that day and the operation plan for the next day. At this time, the plan creation unit 13 assigns a charging time to each vehicle 5 so that each vehicle 5 is charged between the return time and the time when the vehicle 5 is in time for its first operation on the following day. The operation plan for the next day is the scheduled departure time. As mentioned above, the vehicles are charged before its first operation on the following day. That is, the preparation work for the plurality of vehicles is completed by the scheduled departure time.)
In regards to claim 7
, Nishiguchi, as modified by Nagatochi and Kimura, teaches A terminal apparatus connectable to the charging system according to Claim 1, the terminal apparatus comprising: (Fig. 1, [0016] The chargers 42-1 to 42-n charges the storage battery of the vehicle 5 by supplying the converted DC power to the vehicle 5 at a power value specified by the EMS 10 via the corresponding connection units 45-1 to 45-n. EMS 10 acts as the management terminal.)
a terminal-side hardware processor that receives input of the operation plan information from a user and transmits the operation plan information to the management apparatus. (Applicants’ specification has no provided a concise definition for definition for preparation work. In the relevant paragraph [0181], the specification mentions: “In addition, in charging system CS according to the present embodiment, the setting section obtains a time for preparation work for each of the plurality of vehicles and sets a charging plan such that the preparation work for the plurality of vehicles is completed by scheduled departure times of the plurality of vehicles. As a result, since the work time is a major component of operation plan information, a charging plan can be accurately set on the basis of the work time.” As such, the preparation work is considered to be the time that is required for assigning a charger and the charging time of the vehicle. [0022] The operation plan is information indicating the time when each vehicle 5 is operated, and is received by the EMS 10 from another device via the communication unit 11, or may be input by the user. [0044]-[0045] The plan creation unit 13 assigns a charger 42 and a charging time to each vehicle 5 so that the charging time of each vehicle 5 is not concentrated in one time slot. The plan creation unit 13 assigns a charger 42 and a charging time to each vehicle 5 using the return time of the vehicle 5 on that day and the operation plan for the next day. At this time, the plan creation unit 13 assigns a charging time to each vehicle 5 so that each vehicle 5 is charged between the return time and the time when the vehicle 5 is in time for its first operation on the following day. That is, a time for preparation work for at least one of the plurality of vehicles to the charging system.)
In regards to claim 9
, Nishiguchi teaches A charging method that controls charging of a plurality of vehicles that deliver packages, the charging method comprising: (Fig. 1, [0010]-[0011] A charging plan creation device, a charging system, a charging plan creation method, and charging plan creation program are described. A charging system 1 is a system capable of charging vehicles 5-1 to 5-n where the vehicle 5 is a bus to a truck. Examiner notes, the charging system 1 is the management apparatus and vehicles 5-1 to 5-n are the plurality of vehicles. Furthermore, as mentioned above, the vehicles are trucks (i.e., vehicles that deliver packages).)
obtaining operation plan information including a scheduled departure time of each vehicle ([0022] The operation plan is information indicating the time when each vehicle 5 is operated, and is received by the EMS 10 from another device via the communication unit 11, or is input by the user. In the operation plan a route, a departure time, and an arrival time are stored for each piece of identification information indicating a vehicle 5.) and a target state of charge (SOC) of a battery of each vehicle, the remaining SOC of the battery of each vehicle (Fig. 4, [0032] Among the SOC data shown in FIG. 4, the capacity indicates the capacity of the storage battery of each vehicle 5, and is input in advance by the user, or is a capacity acquired from the vehicle 5, i.e., a value that reflects deterioration from the rated value. The plan creation unit 13 calculates the amount of power usage for the next day, i.e., the amount of usage for the next day, based on the operation plan, and stores the calculated amount in the SOC data. The plan creation unit 13 sets the SOC at the time of return on the next day, and stores this value in the SOC data. Then, the plan creation unit 13 calculates the remaining charge of the storage battery for each vehicle 5 using the "SOC at the time of return on that day" of the SOC data and the capacity. Furthermore, the plan creation unit 13 uses the calculated remaining charge to calculate the amount of charging required for the next day so that the SOC when the remaining charge of the storage battery of the vehicle 5 on the next day has decreased by the predicted value of the power usage on the next day becomes the set value of "SOC at the time of return on the next day." For example, in the example shown in FIG. 4, the condition to be satisfied by the SOC at the end of the next day's driving is set to be 30% or more and less than 90%. In the example shown in FIG. 4, the "SOC at the time of returning home the next day" is set to 40% taking into consideration an error so that the SOC at the end of the next day's driving satisfies this condition, and this value is used to calculate the amount of charge required for the next day. Note that the above example using the "usage amount for the next day" and the "amount of charge required for the next day" is one example of a method for calculating the amount of charge required for each vehicle 5. The amount of charge required for each vehicle 5 acts as the target state of charge for each of a plurality of vehicles. [0079] The actual charging power value obtained from the charger 42. The actual charging power is a charging parameter related to chargers.), and charging parameters related to chargers (According to the relevant paragraph [0044] of Applicant’s disclosure, “the charging parameters include an available charging start time, charging equipment information, and contracted power.” [0045] The plan creation unit 13 assigns a charger 42 and a charging time to each vehicle 5 using the return time of the vehicle 5 on that day and the operation plan for the next day.);
setting, based on the obtained information, a charging plan including a charging start time and a charging end time such that charging of each vehicle is completed by the corresponding scheduled departure time ([0025] Then, the plan creation unit 13 determines the charge amount of the storage battery during the plan creation period using the operation plan of the vehicle 5, and creates a charging plan using the charge amount and the maximum charging power set by the maximum power setting unit 14. [0045] The plan creation unit 13 assigns a charger 42 and a charging time to each vehicle 5 using the return time of the vehicle 5 on that day and the operation plan for the next day. At this time, the plan creation unit 13 assigns a charging time to each vehicle 5 so that each vehicle 5 is charged between the return time and the time when the vehicle 5 is in time for its first operation on the following day. The time when the vehicle 5 is in time for its first operation on the following day is the scheduled departure time.);
performing charging of each vehicle in accordance with the charging plan; and ([0045] The plan creation unit 13 assigns a charger 42 and a charging time to each vehicle 5 using the return time of the vehicle 5 on that day and the operation plan for the next day. At this time, the plan creation unit 13 assigns a charging time to each vehicle 5 so that each vehicle 5 is charged between the return time and the time when the vehicle 5 is in time for its first operation on the following day. For example, suppose there are two chargers 42, vehicle #5 is scheduled to return in the 8 p.m. hour, vehicles #2 and #4 in the 9 p.m. hour, and vehicles #1, #3, and #6 in the 10 p.m. hour. In this case, the plan creation unit 13 allocates a charging time to vehicle #5 so that the vehicle is charged for one hour from 9 p.m. using one of the two vehicles. That is performing charging of each vehicle in accordance with the charging plan.)
receiving, from each vehicle, information regarding connection with a charger ([0033] When charging vehicle 5, charger 42 receives information from vehicle 5 indicating the current and voltage used to charge vehicle 5 and performs charging based on this information, so that the actual charging power is limited to less than the maximum power. Examiner notes, information from vehicle 5 indicating the current and voltage used to charge vehicle is information regarding connection with a charger.), and monitoring whether each vehicle is connected to the charger in accordance with the charging plan ([0012] The charging system 1 includes an energy management system (hereinafter abbreviated as EMS) 10, a converter 41, chargers 42-1 to 42-n, connection units 45-1 to 45-n, a storage battery 20, a storage battery power conditioning system (hereinafter abbreviated as PCS) 43, and a solar power generation facility 21. [0018] The storage battery PCS 43 is a control device that charges and discharges the storage battery 20 . The storage battery PCS 43 charges and discharges the storage battery 20 based on a charge/discharge command received from the EMS 10. When the storage battery 20 is discharging, the storage battery PCS 43 supplies the DC power output from the storage battery 20 to the DC bus 40 . In addition, the storage battery PCS 43 charges the storage battery 20 using DC power supplied from the DC bus 40 . That is, the storage battery 20 stores electricity using electricity generated by the solar power generation equipment 21 or electricity supplied from the power grid 2 via the transformer 3 and the converter 41, and can supply the stored electricity to the chargers 42-1 to 42-n by discharging the stored electricity. For the EMS to be able to send charge/discharge command to the PCS, the power supply state of a charger (State of charge of the storage battery 20), must be monitored. That is, whether each vehicle is connected to the charger in accordance with the corresponding charging plan.);
Nishiguchi does not teach wherein the charging plan for each vehicle is set in accordance with a setting mode selected from a plurality of setting modes including:
(i) a fastest charging mode, (ii) a low-voltage charging mode, and (iii) a variation suppression mode;
(i) the fastest charging mode is a mode in which the charging plan is set so that all the vehicles reach their respective target SOCs in the shortest overall time;
(ii) the low-voltage charging mode is a mode in which the charging plan is set so as to minimize the total instantaneous charging power at any time during the period until all the vehicles reach their respective target SOCs; and
(iii) the variation suppression mode is a mode in which the charging plan is set so as to minimize the variation in remaining SOC among the vehicles at each time instant.
However, Nagatochi teaches a charge control unit 200 which controls the charging of the battery 20. The charge control unit 200 controls fast charging of the battery 20. The charge control unit 200 controls the converter 80 to thereby control the power supplied from the charging device 8 to the battery 20 (Figs. 1-2, [0033]). The charging ECU 40 appropriately switches between the charging power map and the charging current map depending on the state of the battery 20 to perform charging. Thus, the charging is controlled such that the time required for fast charging of the battery 20 is shortened while suppressing the deterioration of the cells 22 ([0040]). The selection unit 220 selects the charging current map as the information for use in the charging of the battery 20 when the voltage of the battery 20 reaches the switching voltage associated with the temperature of the battery 20 by the map-selection map. This makes it possible to control charging such that in the low-voltage range where the cell 22 does not deteriorate much due to charging, the battery can be charged by a larger current as its voltage becomes lower, and also to control charging such that in the high-voltage range where the cell 22 is apt to deteriorate due to charging, the charging by a large current can be suppressed. Thus, the total charging time can be shortened while suppressing the deterioration of the cells 22 ([0037]). When fast charging is performed by a CCCV charging method, the end-of-charge voltage is reached at an early stage because of the constant current charging with a large amount of current, and then the charging is quickly switched to the constant voltage charging, whereby it takes longer to reach the time t2′ when the constant voltage charging ends. In addition, since the state where the temperature of the battery is high and the cell voltage is close to the specified charging voltage continues for a long time, the deterioration of the cells may be promoted ([0055]). As such, Nagatochi teaches the fastest charging mode and the low-voltage charging mode.
Kimura teaches control unit 20 is connected via a control line 18 with the charging device side circuit 200, with function control charging device side circuit 200. Here, the control unit 20 in the function, especially to the following functions: plug-in charging while estimating the SOC using the external commercial power supply-side to charge the storage device 102 SOC becomes a predetermined value (e.g., 80%) mode, setting the variation suppression coefficient to inhibit external commercial power of power variation for the estimation of the SOC is reduced which is the variation suppression mode.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the application to modify a charging plan creation device, a charging system, a charging plan creation method, and a charging plan creation program of Nishiguchi, by incorporating the teachings of Nagatochi and Kimura, such that the charging device supports fast-charging, low-voltage charging and variation suppression mode by setting the target SOC to a predetermined value.
The motivation to modify is, as acknowledged by Nagatochi, less deterioration of the battery due to the charging ([0069]) which one of ordinary skill would have recognized allows the life span of the battery to increase.
The motivation to modify is, as acknowledged by Kimura, further improving the estimation accuracy of the SOC of the secondary battery ([0007]) which one of ordinary skill would have recognized allows the battery to be charged more accurately.
In regards to claim 10
, Nishiguchi teaches A non-transitory computer-readable recording medium storing therein a program causing a computer to perform a process that controls charging of a plurality of vehicles that deliver packages, the process comprising (Fig. 1, [0010]-[0011] A charging plan creation device, a charging system, a charging plan creation method, and charging plan creation program are described. A charging system 1 is a system capable of charging vehicles 5-1 to 5-n. Fig. 9, [0070] The control unit 101 executes a charging plan creation program. The storage unit 103 includes various types of memory such as a RAM (Random Access Memory) and a ROM (Read Only Memory) and a storage device such as a hard disk, and stores the programs to be executed by the control unit 101, necessary data obtained during the processing, etc. The storage unit is the non-transitory computer readable media.):
obtaining operation plan information including a scheduled departure time of each vehicle ([0022] The operation plan is information indicating the time when each vehicle 5 is operated, and is received by the EMS 10 from another device via the communication unit 11, or is input by the user. In the operation plan a route, a departure time, and an arrival time are stored for each piece of identification information indicating a vehicle 5.) and a target state of charge (SOC) of a battery of each vehicle, the remaining SOC of the battery of each vehicle (Fig. 4, [0032] Among the SOC data shown in FIG. 4, the capacity indicates the capacity of the storage battery of each vehicle 5, and is input in advance by the user, or is a capacity acquired from the vehicle 5, i.e., a value that reflects deterioration from the rated value. The plan creation unit 13 calculates the amount of power usage for the next day, i.e., the amount of usage for the next day, based on the operation plan, and stores the calculated amount in the SOC data. The plan creation unit 13 sets the SOC at the time of return on the next day, and stores this value in the SOC data. Then, the plan creation unit 13 calculates the remaining charge of the storage battery for each vehicle 5 using the "SOC at the time of return on that day" of the SOC data and the capacity. Furthermore, the plan creation unit 13 uses the calculated remaining charge to calculate the amount of charging required for the next day so that the SOC when the remaining charge of the storage battery of the vehicle 5 on the next day has decreased by the predicted value of the power usage on the next day becomes the set value of "SOC at the time of return on the next day." For example, in the example shown in FIG. 4, the condition to be satisfied by the SOC at the end of the next day's driving is set to be 30% or more and less than 90%. In the example shown in FIG. 4, the "SOC at the time of returning home the next day" is set to 40% taking into consideration an error so that the SOC at the end of the next day's driving satisfies this condition, and this value is used to calculate the amount of charge required for the next day. Note that the above example using the "usage amount for the next day" and the "amount of charge required for the next day" is one example of a method for calculating the amount of charge required for each vehicle 5. The amount of charge required for each vehicle 5 acts as the target state of charge for each of a plurality of vehicles. [0079] The actual charging power value obtained from the charger 42. The actual charging power is a charging parameter related to chargers.), and charging parameters related to chargers (According to the relevant paragraph [0044] of Applicant’s disclosure, “the charging parameters include an available charging start time, charging equipment information, and contracted power.” [0045] The plan creation unit 13 assigns a charger 42 and a charging time to each vehicle 5 using the return time of the vehicle 5 on that day and the operation plan for the next day.);
setting, based on the obtained information, a charging plan including a charging start time and a charging end time such that charging of each vehicle is completed by the corresponding scheduled departure time; ([0025] Then, the plan creation unit 13 determines the charge amount of the storage battery during the plan creation period using the operation plan of the vehicle 5, and creates a charging plan using the charge amount and the maximum charging power set by the maximum power setting unit 14. [0045] The plan creation unit 13 assigns a charger 42 and a charging time to each vehicle 5 using the return time of the vehicle 5 on that day and the operation plan for the next day. At this time, the plan creation unit 13 assigns a charging time to each vehicle 5 so that each vehicle 5 is charged between the return time and the time when the vehicle 5 is in time for its first operation on the following day. The time when the vehicle 5 is in time for its first operation on the following day is the scheduled departure time.)
performing charging of each vehicle in accordance with the charging plan; and ([0045] The plan creation unit 13 assigns a charger 42 and a charging time to each vehicle 5 using the return time of the vehicle 5 on that day and the operation plan for the next day. At this time, the plan creation unit 13 assigns a charging time to each vehicle 5 so that each vehicle 5 is charged between the return time and the time when the vehicle 5 is in time for its first operation on the following day. For example, suppose there are two chargers 42, vehicle #5 is scheduled to return in the 8 p.m. hour, vehicles #2 and #4 in the 9 p.m. hour, and vehicles #1, #3, and #6 in the 10 p.m. hour. In this case, the plan creation unit 13 allocates a charging time to vehicle #5 so that the vehicle is charged for one hour from 9 p.m. using one of the two vehicles. That is performing charging of each vehicle in accordance with the charging plan.)
receiving, from each vehicle, information regarding connection with a charger ([0033] When charging vehicle 5, charger 42 receives information from vehicle 5 indicating the current and voltage used to charge vehicle 5 and performs charging based on this information, so that the actual charging power is limited to less than the maximum power. Examiner notes, information from vehicle 5 indicating the current and voltage used to charge vehicle is information regarding connection with a charger.), and monitoring whether each vehicle is connected to the charger in accordance with the charging plan([0012] The charging system 1 includes an energy management system (hereinafter abbreviated as EMS) 10, a converter 41, chargers 42-1 to 42-n, connection units 45-1 to 45-n, a storage battery 20, a storage battery power conditioning system (hereinafter abbreviated as PCS) 43, and a solar power generation facility 21. [0018] The storage battery PCS 43 is a control device that charges and discharges the storage battery 20 . The storage battery PCS 43 charges and discharges the storage battery 20 based on a charge/discharge command received from the EMS 10. When the storage battery 20 is discharging, the storage battery PCS 43 supplies the DC power output from the storage battery 20 to the DC bus 40 . In addition, the storage battery PCS 43 charges the storage battery 20 using DC power supplied from the DC bus 40 . That is, the storage battery 20 stores electricity using electricity generated by the solar power generation equipment 21 or electricity supplied from the power grid 2 via the transformer 3 and the converter 41, and can supply the stored electricity to the chargers 42-1 to 42-n by discharging the stored electricity. For the EMS to be able to send charge/discharge command to the PCS, the power supply state of a charger (State of charge of the storage battery 20), must be monitored. That is, whether each vehicle is connected to the charger in accordance with the corresponding charging plan.);
Nishiguchi does not teach wherein the charging plan for each vehicle is set in accordance with a setting mode selected from a plurality of setting modes including: (i) a fastest charging mode, (ii) a low-voltage charging mode, and (iii) a variation suppression mode:
(i) the fastest charging mode is a mode in which the charging plan is set so that all the vehicles reach their respective target SOCs in the shortest overall time:
(ii) the low-voltage charging mode is a mode in which the charging plan is set so as to minimize the total instantaneous charging power at any time during the period until all the vehicles reach their respective target SOCs; and
(iii) the variation suppression mode is a mode in which the charging plan is set so as to minimize the variation in remaining SOC among the vehicles at each time instant.
However, Nagatochi teaches a charge control unit 200 which controls the charging of the battery 20. The charge control unit 200 controls fast charging of the battery 20. The charge control unit 200 controls the converter 80 to thereby control the power supplied from the charging device 8 to the battery 20 (Figs. 1-2, [0033]). The charging ECU 40 appropriately switches between the charging power map and the charging current map depending on the state of the battery 20 to perform charging. Thus, the charging is controlled such that the time required for fast charging of the battery 20 is shortened while suppressing the deterioration of the cells 22 ([0040]). The selection unit 220 selects the charging current map as the information for use in the charging of the battery 20 when the voltage of the battery 20 reaches the switching voltage associated with the temperature of the battery 20 by the map-selection map. This makes it possible to control charging such that in the low-voltage range where the cell 22 does not deteriorate much due to charging, the battery can be charged by a larger current as its voltage becomes lower, and also to control charging such that in the high-voltage range where the cell 22 is apt to deteriorate due to charging, the charging by a large current can be suppressed. Thus, the total charging time can be shortened while suppressing the deterioration of the cells 22 ([0037]). When fast charging is performed by a CCCV charging method, the end-of-charge voltage is reached at an early stage because of the constant current charging with a large amount of current, and then the charging is quickly switched to the constant voltage charging, whereby it takes longer to reach the time t2′ when the constant voltage charging ends. In addition, since the state where the temperature of the battery is high and the cell voltage is close to the specified charging voltage continues for a long time, the deterioration of the cells may be promoted ([0055]). As such, Nagatochi teaches the fastest charging mode and the low-voltage charging mode.
Kimura teaches control unit 20 is connected via a control line 18 with the charging device side circuit 200, with function control charging device side circuit 200. Here, the control unit 20 in the function, especially to the following functions: plug-in charging while estimating the SOC using the external commercial power supply-side to charge the storage device 102 SOC becomes a predetermined value (e.g., 80%) mode, setting the variation suppression coefficient to inhibit external commercial power of power variation for the estimation of the SOC is reduced which is the variation suppression mode.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the application to modify a charging plan creation device, a charging system, a charging plan creation method, and a charging plan creation program of Nishiguchi, by incorporating the teachings of Nagatochi and Kimura, such that the charging device supports fast-charging, low-voltage charging and variation suppression mode by setting the target SOC to a predetermined value.
The motivation to modify is, as acknowledged by Nagatochi, less deterioration of the battery due to the charging ([0069]) which one of ordinary skill would have recognized allows the life span of the battery to increase.
The motivation to modify is, as acknowledged by Kimura, further improving the estimation accuracy of the SOC of the secondary battery ([0007]) which one of ordinary skill would have recognized allows the battery to be charged more accurately.
12. Claim(s) 6
is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Nishiguchi et al. (JP-2022118575-A) in view of Nagatochi et al. (US-20210078431-A1) and further in views of Kimura (CN-102405416-A) and further in view of Kim et al. (US-20180170202-A1).
In regards to claim 6
, Nishiguchi, as modified by Nagatochi and Kimura, teaches The management apparatus of the charging system according to Claim 1.
Nishiguchi, as modified by Nagatochi and Kimura, does not teach wherein the hardware processor sets the charging plan in accordance with a number, weight, or type of a package or packages, a skill level of a driver, a type of house in a delivery area, or the presence or absence of a fixture.
However, Kim teaches the electric vehicle further includes an air conditioner configured to be operated upon receiving power from the battery; and the server determines whether the air conditioner needs to operate in advance on the basis of the event information, calculate the amount of additional power used in the air conditioner, and change the charging start time on the basis of the power amount ([0022]). Air conditioner is a fixture and the a vehicle that includes an air conditioner satisfies the limitation of the presence of a fixture.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the application to modify a charging plan creation device, a charging system, a charging plan creation method, and a charging plan creation program of Nishiguchi, as already modified by Nagatochi and Kimura, by incorporating the teachings of Kim, such that the charging time of the vehicle is set based on the presence of a fixture, such as an air conditioner.
The motivation to modify is that, as acknowledged by Kim, to efficiently use electricity by changing a time needed for battery charging, and drive an air conditioner of the vehicle in preparation for a weather situation such as intense cold or intense heat, thereby increasing user convenience and safety of a vehicle driver who rides in the vehicle ([0008]) which one of ordinary skill would have recognized allows the vehicle to be ready on time while ensuring there is enough charge for operating the air conditioner.
13. Claim(s) 8
is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Nishiguchi et al. (JP-2022118575-A) in view of Nagatochi et al. (US-20210078431-A1) and further in views of Kimura (CN-102405416-A) and further in view of Seo et al. (KR-20140118364-A).
In regards to claim 8
, Nishiguchi, as modified by Nagatochi and Kimura, teaches A vehicle connectable to the charging system according to Claim 1, the vehicle comprising: (Fig. 1, [0011] A charging system 1 is a system capable of charging vehicles 5-1 to 5-n. The vehicles 5-1 to 5-n act as the vehicle connectable to the charging system.)
a display ([0070] The display unit 104 is configured with an LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) or the like, and displays various screens to the user of the computer system. The display unit 104 acts as the display section.)
Nishiguchi, as modified by Nagatochi and Kimura, does not teach that displays a percentage of a charge amount with respect to a full charge or a percentage of the charge amount with respect to the corresponding target SOC.
However, Seo teaches an apparatus and method for managing a charge of an electric vehicle, and more particularly, a display apparatus provided with a display installed adjacent to a charging port of an electric vehicle (Page 2). The battery remaining amount information represented by the percentage of full charge is enlarged and displayed in an appropriate area such as the left side of the display 110, and an appropriate area such as the right side of the display 110 (Page 4, Figs. 1, 2(a) and 2(b)) which is a percentage of a charge amount with respect to a full charge.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the application to modify a charging plan creation device, a charging system, a charging plan creation method, and a charging plan creation program of Nishiguchi, as already modified by Nagatochi and Kimura,, by incorporating the teachings of Seo, such that the battery remaining amount information represented by the percentage of full charge is displayed on the display section.
The motivation to modify is, as acknowledged by Seo, controlling charging operation of the electric vehicle according to a charging condition input by a user (Page 2) which one of ordinary skill would have recognized allows the user to be have an overview of the charging operation and plan accordingly.
Conclusion
14. The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
King et al. (US-20140277869-A1) teaches a method and a system for controlling an electric vehicle while connected to an external power source.
Kobayashi et al. (US-20120161692-A1) teaches a charging control system.
Kogo (US-20230229979-A1) teaches a charging reservation system.
Fukubayashi et al. (US-20210184479-A1) teaches a vehicle charging system and vehicle charging method.
Yumita et al. (US-20240190284-A1) teaches a management apparatus that manages charging of electrified vehicles with at least one charger.
Birek et al. (US-20190143831-A1) teaches a method for determining a charging requirement for an energy storage .
Shimoo et al. (WO-2015064155-A1) teaches a charging management device of a charging system.
Paul et al. (WO-2015049969-A1) teaches an operation management device including vehicle information unit, charging equipment information unit, bus schedule unit, route information unit, and operation planning unit.
15. 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).
16. 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.
17. Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Preston J Miller whose telephone number is (703)756-1582. The examiner can normally be reached Monday through Friday 7:30 AM - 4:30 PM EST.
18. Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice.
19. If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Ramya P Burgess can be reached at (571) 272-6011. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
20. Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000.
/P.J.M./
Examiner, Art Unit 3661
/RAMYA P BURGESS/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3661
Prosecution Insights