DETAILED ACTION
This office action is in response to claims filed on 03/19/2024. Claims 1-20 are pending.
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 .
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statements (IDS) submitted on 03/22/2024 and 06/27/2025 were filed after the filing date of the application. The submissions are in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statements are being considered by the examiner.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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.
Claims 1-5, 8-12, and 15-16 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Ota et al US 20130025893 A1 (Hereinafter “Ota”).
Regarding Claim 1, Ota teaches a power management system (1,100) comprising:
a battery pack powered tool (Fig. 1, 50a & 50b);
one or more battery packs (Fig. 1, 10) coupled to the battery pack powered tool;
a first voltage regulator (Fig. 3, 140) providing a first output voltage;
a second voltage regulator (Fig. 2, 140) providing a second output voltage;
a trigger (Detailed Figs. 2 & 23 below, Trigger) configured to receive the first output voltage and the second output voltage;
PNG
media_image1.png
547
840
media_image1.png
Greyscale
PNG
media_image2.png
689
609
media_image2.png
Greyscale
and one or more control lines (Fig. 3, A & C) configured to enable or disable one or more of the first voltage regulator and the second voltage regulator ([0073]-[0074]).
Regarding Claim 2, Ota teaches the system of claim 1, wherein the one or more battery packs include a first battery pack and a second battery pack (Figs. 17, 18, & 23: 10).
Regarding Claim 3, Ota teaches the system of claim 1, further comprising:
a processing unit (Fig. 3, 132) configured to control at least one of the one or more control lines to enable or disable the one or more of the first voltage regulator and the second voltage regulator ([0073]-[0074]).
Regarding Claim 4, Ota teaches the system of claim 1, further comprising:
a switch (Fig. 4, 136) configured to control at least one of the one or more control lines to enable or disable the one or more of the first voltage regulator and the second voltage regulator ([0073]-[0074]).
Regarding Claim 5, Ota teaches the system of claim 4, wherein the switch (Fig. 3, 132) is configured to control at least one of the one or more control lines to enable or disable each of the first voltage regulator and the second voltage regulator ([0073]-[0074]).
Regarding Claim 8, Ota teaches a battery pack powered tool (Fig. 1, 50a & 50b) for managing power consumption, the battery pack powered tool comprising:
one or more battery pack interfaces (Fig. 3, 112) configured to receive one or more battery packs (Fig. 1, 10);
a first voltage regulator (Fig. 3, 140) providing a first output voltage;
a second voltage regulator (Fig. 3, 140) providing a second output voltage;
a trigger (Detailed Figs. 2 & 23 above, Trigger) configured to receive the first output voltage and the second output voltage; and
a controller (Fig. 3, 130) including a processor (Fig. 3, 132) and a memory, the controller configured to:
control, by enabling or disabling one or more of the first voltage regulator and the second voltage regulator using one or more control lines, an amount of power consumed by the battery pack powered tool ([0073]-[0074]).
Regarding Claim 9, Ota teaches the battery pack powered tool of claim 8, wherein the one or more battery packs include a first battery pack and a second battery pack (Figs. 17, 18, & 23: 10).
Regarding Claim 10, Ota teaches the battery pack powered tool of claim 8, wherein the controller (Fig. 3, 130) includes a processing unit (Fig. 3, 132) configured to control at least one of the one or more control lines to enable or disable the one or more of the first voltage regulator and the second voltage regulator.
Regarding Claim 11, Ota teaches the battery pack powered tool of claim 8, further comprising:
a switch (Fig. 4, 136) configured to control at least one of the one or more control lines to enable or disable the one or more of the first voltage regulator and the second voltage regulator.
Regarding Claim 12, Ota teaches the battery pack powered tool of claim 11, wherein the switch (Fig. 4, 136) is configured to control at least one of the one or more control lines to enable or disable each of the first voltage regulator and the second voltage regulator.
Regarding Claim 15, Ota teaches a method for managing power consumption of a battery pack powered tool (Fig. 1, 50a & 50b), the method comprising:
receiving power from one or more battery packs (Fig. 1, 10) coupled to the battery pack powered tool;
providing the power to at least one of a first voltage regulator (Fig. 3, 140) and a second voltage regulator (Fig. 3, 140) of the battery pack powered tool, the first voltage regulator configured to provide a first output voltage and the second voltage regulator configured to provide a second output voltage;
providing the first output voltage and the second output voltage to a trigger (Detailed Figs. 2 & 23 above, Trigger) of the battery pack powered tool; and
controlling, with a controller, operation of the battery pack powered tool to enable or disable the at least one of the first voltage regulator and the second voltage regulator using one or more control lines ([0073]-[0074]).
Regarding Claim 16, Ota teaches the method of claim 15, further comprising:
controlling (Fig. 3, 130 & 132), with the controller, at least one of the one or more control lines to disable each of the first voltage regulator and the second voltage regulator ([0073]-[0074]).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 6-7, 13-14, and 17-20 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.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Mao US 20190052077 A1 teaches power supply regulator 234 may include one or more voltage regulators to step down the power supply to a voltage level compatible for operating the controller 230 and/or the gate driver 232.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to CORTEZ M COOK whose telephone number is (571)270-7954. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Thursday 7:30-5pm.
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.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Eduardo Colon-Santana can be reached at 571-272-2060. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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.
/CORTEZ M COOK/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2846