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 Objections
Claim 15 is objected to because of the following informalities: the term “an Wide Band Gab (WBG)”, recited in line 2, has a typo error and should be changed to “a Wide Band Gab (WBG)”. Appropriate correction is required.
Claim 13 is objected to because of the following informalities: the term “a resistance capacitor”, recited in line 2, has a typo error (or lacks antecedent from specification) and should be changed to “a resonance capacitor”. Appropriate correction is required.
NOTE: For purpose of examination, it is presumed the term “a resistance capacitor” read as “a resonance capacitor”.
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) 1-2 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over KR10-2019-0113072A in view of JP10-134952A both cited by applicant. Regarding claim 1, KR10-2019-0113072A discloses a top glass configured to receive a cooking vessel (par. 0039); a working coil configured to generate a magnetic field that heats the cooking vessel (claim 8); and an inverter including: at least one switching element configured to be driven to provide a current to the working coil, and a driving circuit configured to drive the at least one switching element (claim 8). However, KR10-2019-0113072A does not disclose a composite impedance of the driving circuit is variable. JP10-134952A discloses a coupling coil to be coupled to a heating coil included in an inverter circuit; and an induction heating cooker which configures a first resistor connected to the coupling coil and a cathode of a diode as a variable resistor (17, par. 0006, claims 1-2; Figure 3). It would have been obvious to one ordinary skill in the art before the effective filling date of the invention was made to utilize in KR10-2019-0113072A a coupling coil to be coupled to a heating coil included in an inverter circuit; and an induction heating cooker which configures a first resistor connected to the coupling coil and a cathode of a diode as a variable resistor as taught by JP10-134952A in order to adjust an output power by changing a frequency. Regarding claim 2, KR10-2019-0113072A discloses the feature of configuring the first resistor connected to the coupling coil and the cathode of a diode as a variable resistor to change a frequency (par. 0006, claims 1-2).
Claim(s) 3-13 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over KR10-2019-0113072A in view of JP10-134952A, and further in view of KR 10-2018-0088483A all cited by applicant. Regarding claims 3-6, KR10-2019-0113072A/ JP10-134952A discloses substantially all features of the claimed invention except the driving circuit includes a first impedance forming circuit, a second impedance forming circuit, and a third impedance forming circuit that adjust the composite impedance of the driving circuit. KR 10-2018-0088483A discloses a variable impedance element formed in a frequency control network (claim 1); and a predetermined variable reactor structure (24-24’, 24a-24a’, 25-25’) within an impedance adjusting and frequency control network (see paragraph 0047 and Figures 6-7). It would have been obvious to one ordinary skill in the art before the effective filling date of the invention was made to utilize in KR10-2019-0113072A/ JP10-134952A a variable impedance element formed in a frequency control network; and a predetermined variable reactor structure within an impedance adjusting and frequency control network as taught by KR 10-2018-0088483A in order to suit user specific application. Regarding claims 7-8, JP10-134952A discloses the first resistor connected to the coupling coil and the cathode of a diode as a variable resistor to change a frequency (par. 0006 and claims 1-2), and the structure disclosed in KR 10-2018-0088483A which has one or more inverter control outputs to a plurality of bridge switching devices and one or more variable impedance control outputs to one or more variable impedance elements in the inverter output impedance adjusting and frequency control network (claim 1). Regarding claims 9-10, KR 10-2018-0088483A discloses technical matters that could be derived through a simple design change to the structure which includes a pulse width modulated variable switching control of the plurality of bridge switching devices (claim 19). Regarding claims 11-13, KR 10-2018-0088483A discloses a power supply (3-phase) that provides an alternating current (AC) voltage (Figure 8a); and a rectifier (11) that converts the AC voltage into a direct current (DC) voltage, wherein the inverter (31) switches the DC voltage to the working coil to generate the magnetic field (Figure 8a); a capacitor (28) coupled to the rectifier to buffer the DC voltage provided to the inverter (Figure 7); further comprising: a resonance capacitor (27a) coupled to the working coil (30, Figure 8a).
Claim(s) 14-16 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over KR10-2019-0113072A in view of JP10-134952A both cited by applicant, and further in view of Otsu et al (US 2018/0358874). Regarding claims 14-16, KR10-2019-0113072A/ JP10-134952A discloses substantially all features of the claimed invention except the at least one switch includes an Insulated Gate Bipolar Transistor (IGBT) or a Wide Band Gab (WBG) device, wherein the at least one switch includes a Wide Band Gab (WBG) device made of SiC (Silicon Carbide) or GaN (Gallium Nitride), and wherein the inverter includes a switching mode power supply (AMPS). Otsu discloses at least one switch includes an Insulated Gate Bipolar Transistor (IGBT) or a Wide Band Gab (WBG) device (par. 0036), wherein the at least one switch includes a Wide Band Gab (WBG) device made of SiC (Silicon Carbide) or GaN (Gallium Nitride) (par. 0039), and wherein the inverter (63, Figure 5) includes a switching mode power supply (AMPS). It would have been obvious to one ordinary skill in the art before the effective filling date of the invention was made to utilize in KR10-2019-0113072A/ JP10-134952A the at least one switch includes an Insulated Gate Bipolar Transistor (IGBT) or a Wide Band Gab (WBG) device, wherein the at least one switch includes a Wide Band Gab (WBG) device made of SiC (Silicon Carbide) or GaN (Gallium Nitride), and wherein the inverter includes a switching mode power supply (AMPS) as taught by Otsu in order to provide and control the power supply to heat the object.
Claim(s) 17-19 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over KR10-2019-0113072A in view of JP10-134952A both cited by applicant, and further in view of Moon et al (US 11,133,710). Regarding claim 17, KR10-2019-0113072A/ JP10-134952A discloses substantially all features of the claimed invention except a ferrite core provided below the working coil. Moon discloses a ferrite core provided below the working coil (col. 12, lines 39-40). It would have been obvious to one ordinary skill in the art before the effective filling date of the invention was made to utilize in KR10-2019-0113072A/ JP10-134952A the ferrite core provided below the working coil as taught by Moon in order to increase magnetic flux and make the coil more efficient. Regarding claim 18, Moon discloses the inverter has an operating frequency of 20kHz to 75kHz (col. 34, line 44). Regarding claim 19, Moon discloses the inverter is a half-bridge type inverter including two of the switching elements (col. 34, line 41).
Claim(s) 18-20 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over KR10-2019-0113072A in view of JP10-134952A both cited by applicant, and further in view of EP 1122983B1. Regarding claim 18, KR10-2019-0113072A/ JP10-134952A discloses substantially all features of the claimed invention except the inverter has an operating frequency of 20kHz to 75 kHz. EP 1122983B1 discloses an inverter has an operating frequency of 20kHz to 75 kHz (description translation). It would have been obvious to one ordinary skill in the art before the effective filling date of the invention was made to utilize in KR10-2019-0113072A/ JP10-134952A inverter has an operating frequency of 20kHz to 75 kHz as taught by EP 1122983B1 in order to suit user specific application. Regarding claims 19-20, EP 1122983B1 discloses the inverter is a half-bridge type inverter including two of the switching elements and the inverter is a full-bridge type inverter including four of the switching elements (see description translation).
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/QUANG T VAN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3761 July 22, 2026
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