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
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 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 of this title, 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.
Claims 1, 9 & 10 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Miyamoto (JP 2020134231) in view of Stroth (US 2002/0039026).
With regard to claim 1, Miyamoto teaches a plug-in discharge detection unit (paragraph 0012 teaches that the device is a discharge detection device and as seen in Fig. 15, the discharge detection unit is a plug in device), comprising two plugs (41 of Figs.3 & 15) of a cathode and an anode configured to allow insertion into respective two plug insertion holes of a plug socket (91, paragraph 0014), a discharge detection section (21) configured to allow detection of a noise of discharge superimposed on a voltage or current, and an arithmetic section configured to allow determination of whether discharge has occurred based on the noise (23, paragraph 0015), the detection unit further comprising: a ground terminal (51) electrically connected to a ground; and that the arithmetic section causes an upstream breaker to trip by either sending a signal to the breaker if determining that discharge has occurred (paragraph 0026) or by causing a pseudo electric leakage to flow via the ground terminal to break the upstream circuit breaker if determining that discharge has occurred so as to pass an artificial leakage current through the ground terminal (paragraph 0027).
Miyamoto does not teach at least one first switch electrically connected to a secondary side of the plug; and a current limiting resistor electrically connected to a secondary side of the first switch, wherein the current limiting resistor has a secondary side electrically connected to the ground terminal, and the arithmetic section changes, if determining that discharge has occurred, the first switch from an open state to a closed state to pass an artificial leakage current with a current value in accordance with a resistance value of the current limiting resistor through the ground terminal.
Stroth, in Figure 4, teaches a power line testing device wherein a pseudo electric leakage is caused to flow between a hot terminal and a ground terminal to cause a breaker to trip as similarly taught by Miyamoto (paragraphs 0083 & 0084). It is further taught that at least one first switch (Q1) electrically connected to a secondary side of a hot terminal (HOT); and a current limiting resistor (R4) electrically connected to a secondary side of the first switch (Q1), wherein the current limiting resistor has a secondary side electrically connected to ground terminal (GND), and that an arithmetic section (U1) changes, if determining that a test has occurred, the first switch (Q1) from an open state to a closed state to pass an artificial leakage current with a current value in accordance with a resistance value of the current limiting resistor through the ground terminal (paragraphs 0083 & 0084).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was effectively filed to combine the teachings of Miyamoto with Stroth, by using the switch and current limiting resistor as taught by Stroth to cause a leakage current to flow when the discharge is detected as taught by Miyamoto, for the purpose of implanting the current leakage function of Miyamoto in a cheap and simple manner as the circuitry to perform the function is not disclosed in Miyamoto and Stroth teaches how to cause this function to happen with a small number of readily available components.
With regard to claim 9, Miyamoto in view of Stroth discloses they device of claim 1, and further discloses a leakage breaker (31) configured to detect a leakage current and interrupt a circuit (paragraphs 0026 & 0027 of Miyamoto teaches that a main breaker will break if a leakage current is detected); an indoor wiring electrically connected to a secondary side of the leakage breaker; and a plug socket (91 of Fig 3 of Miyamoto) having at least two plug insertion holes of a cathode and an anode and provided with at least two female terminals of a cathode and an anode behind the respective plug insertion holes, the female terminals being electrically connected to the indoor wiring, wherein the plug-in discharge detection unit causes the two plugs to be inserted into the respective plug insertion holes to be electrically connected to the female terminals of the plug socket, the arithmetic section changes, if determining that discharge has occurred, the first switch from the open state to the closed state to pass an artificial leakage current with a current value in accordance with a resistance value of the current limiting resistor through the ground terminal, and the leakage breaker detects the artificial leakage current and interrupts the circuit (as taught in paragraph 0027 of Miyamoto).
With regard to claim 10, Miyamoto in view of Stroth discloses the device of claim 9, and further discloses two or more of the plug-in discharge detection units; two or more of the leakage breakers; two or more of the indoor wirings electrically connected to the secondary sides of the respective leakage breakers; and two or more of the plug sockets provided with at least two of the female terminals electrically connected to the respective indoor wirings, wherein a power line to supply power to a primary side of each leakage breaker has a plurality of voltage phases, the primary sides of the respective leakage breakers are electrically connected to electric circuits of the voltage phases different from each other, and each plug-in discharge detection unit causes the two plugs to be inserted into the respective plug insertion holes to be electrically connected to the female terminals of the plug socket different from each other (as seen in Fig. 7 of Miyamoto, multiple systems may be installed with the protection device to teach the language of the claim)..
Claim 2 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Miyamoto in view of Stroth as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of Simpson (US 5,946,180).
With regard to claim 2, Miyamoto in view of Stroth teaches the plug-in discharge detection unit according to claim 1, further comprising: at least one plug socket (Miyamoto, 42) having at least two plug insertion holes of a cathode and an anode (as seen in Fig. 15 of Miyamoto); at least two female terminals of a cathode and an anode provided behind the respective plug insertion holes and electrically connected to secondary sides of the respective plugs (Miyamoto, paragraph 0014 teaches that a load can be connected to plug 42 and that power to the device is provided via plug 41 and thus would have to be connected to the plugs); and at least one second switch electrically connected between the plug and at least one of the female terminals, wherein the arithmetic section changes, if determining that discharge has occurred, the second switch from a closed state to an open state to cut off power supply from the plug to the female terminals.
Miyamoto in view of Stroth does not teach at least one second switch electrically connected between the plug and at least one of the female terminals, wherein the arithmetic section changes, if determining that discharge has occurred, the second switch from a closed state to an open state to cut off power supply from the plug to the female terminals.
Simpson, in Figures 6 & 9, teaches a plug in protection system that is similar to Miyamoto. As seen in Fig. 9 of Simpson, the device can have plugs (156 & 148) on a first side to engage with a socket and two female plug insertion holes (18) on the opposite side. It is further taught that the device can contain control circuitry which detects a fault condition and disconnects the female terminals from the plug (column 12 lines 48-52 & column 15 lines 15-50). As such Simpson teaches at least one plug socket (18) having at least two plug insertion holes of a cathode and an anode; at least two female terminals of a cathode and an anode provided behind the respective plug insertion holes and electrically connected to secondary sides of the respective plugs (148 of Fig. 9 as well as 36 & 38 of Fig 6); and at least one second switch (42 of Fig. 6) electrically connected between the plug and at least one of the female terminals, wherein an arithmetic section (40 of Fig. 4) changes, if determining that a fault has occurred, the second switch from a closed state to an open state to cut off power supply from the plug to the female terminals.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was effectively filed to combine the teachings of Miyamoto in view of Stroth with Simpson, by disconnecting power to the outlet (42) of Miyamoto by a second disconnect switch when a fault is detected as taught by Simpson, for the purpose of protecting a load coupled to the outlet from the detected fault.
Claim 8 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Miyamoto in view of Simpson.
With regard to claim 8, Miyamoto teaches a plug-in discharge detection unit, comprising two plugs (41) of a cathode and an anode configured to allow insertion into respective two plug insertion holes of a plug socket (91), a discharge detection section (21) configured to allow detection of a noise of discharge superimposed on a voltage or current, and an arithmetic section configured to allow determination of whether discharge has occurred based on the noise (23, paragraph 0015).
Miyamoto does not teach the detection unit further comprising: at least one plug socket having at least two plug insertion holes of a cathode and an anode; at least two female terminals of a cathode and an anode provided behind the respective plug insertion holes and electrically connected to secondary sides of the respective plugs; and at least one second switch electrically connected between the plug and at least one of the female terminals, wherein the arithmetic section changes, if determining that discharge has occurred, the second switch from a closed state to an open state to cut off power supply from the plug to the female terminals.
Simpson, in Figures 6 & 9, teaches a plug in protection system that is similar to Miyamoto. As seen in Fig. 9 of Simpson, the device can have plugs (156 & 148) on a first side to engage with a socket and two female plug insertion holes (18) on the opposite side. It is further taught that the device can contain control circuitry which detects a fault condition and disconnects the female terminals from the plug (column 12 lines 48-52 & column 15 lines 15-50). As such Simpson teaches at least one plug socket (18) having at least two plug insertion holes of a cathode and an anode; at least two female terminals of a cathode and an anode provided behind the respective plug insertion holes and electrically connected to secondary sides of the respective plugs (148 of Fig. 9 as well as 36 & 38 of Fig 6); and at least one second switch (42 of Fig. 6) electrically connected between the plug and at least one of the female terminals, wherein an arithmetic section (40 of Fig. 4) changes, if determining that a fault has occurred, the second switch from a closed state to an open state to cut off power supply from the plug to the female terminals.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was effectively filed to combine the teachings of Miyamoto with Simpson, by disconnecting power to the outlet (42) of Miyamoto by a second disconnect switch when a fault is detected as taught by Simpson, for the purpose of protecting a load coupled to the outlet from the detected fault.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 3-7 would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
Claim 3 would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims because the prior art of record does not teach or fairly suggest a plug-in discharge detection unit comprising all the features as recited in the claims and in combination with the arithmetic section executing, if determining that discharge has occurred, a process of changing the second switch from the closed state to the open state and later, if again determining that discharge has occurred, executes a process of changing the first switch from the open state to the closed state.
Claim 4 would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims because it depends on claim 3 which would also be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
Claim 5 would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims because the prior art of record does not teach or fairly suggest a plug-in discharge detection unit comprising all the features as recited in the claims and in combination with two or more plug sockets having at least two plug insertion holes of a cathode and an anode; four or more female terminals of cathodes and anodes provided behind the respective plug insertion holes and electrically connected to secondary sides of the respective plugs; and four or more second switches electrically connected between the respective female terminals and the plugs, wherein the arithmetic section changes, if determining that discharge has occurred, two of the second switches corresponding to at least one of the plug sockets or all the second switches from a closed state to an open state to cut off power supply from the plugs to the two female terminals or all the female terminals.
Claim 6 would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims because the prior art of record does not teach or fairly suggest a plug-in discharge detection unit comprising all the features as recited in the claims and in combination with a communication section configured to allow wireless communication with a computer terminal registered in advance, wherein the arithmetic section executes, if determining that discharge has occurred, a process of changing the first switch from the open state to the closed state and/or a process of changing the second switch from the closed state to the open state based on an instruction from the computer terminal received by the communication section.
Claim 7 would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims because it depends on claim 6 which would also be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
Conclusion
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/Scott Bauer/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2838