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 § 112
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b):
(b) CONCLUSION.—The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph:
The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention.
Claims 2-15 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention. In particular, the dependent claims are introduced with “a method” or “a…device” in referring back to previously described limitations. Thus, the claims lack appropriate antecedent basis.
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.
(a)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claims 1-3, 7-10, and 13 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) and 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by U.S. Patent No. 5,294,909 (“Frazier”).
Claim 1
Frazier discloses a wind turbine cable connector monitoring method for monitoring a connector attached to a cable, the method comprising the steps of: sensing a measured temperature at a position on the cable a known distance along the cable from the connector while the connector is in use (col. 4, lns 37-48, cable 35 is a sensing cable with current measuring temperature fault along length; col. 9, lns 42-58; method of fault location detection); and identifying a potential fault condition in the connector based on the measured temperature and the position (col. 5, lns 17-42, fault condition identified by resistance indicating position; col. 5 lns 59-67, predetermined temperature breakdown).
Claim 2
Frazier discloses a method according to claim 1, further comprising the step of generating an alert in response to the identification of the potential fault condition (col. 5, lns 17-42, signal related to failure recorded).
Claim 3
Frazier discloses a method according to claim 1, wherein the potential fault condition comprises one or more of: the connector's temperature exceeding a first threshold, and the connector's temperature exceeding a second threshold for a predetermined duration (col. 5 lns 59-67, predetermined temperature breakdown, exceeding predetermined temperature).
Claim 7
Frazier discloses a method according to claim 1, wherein the step of identifying a potential fault condition comprises identifying a difference in a change of the measured temperature compared to a concurrent change in measured temperature associated with another connector (col. 4, ln 64 – col. 5, ln 4; differential current sensing indicates short locations).
Claim 8
Frazier discloses a wind turbine cable connector monitoring device for monitoring a connector attached to a cable, the device comprising: a temperature sensor for sensing a measured temperature at a position a known distance along the cable from the connector (col. 4, lns 37-48, cable 35 is a sensing cable with current measuring temperature fault along length; col. 9, lns 42-58; method of fault location detection); a controller for recording the measured temperature from the temperature sensor while the connector is in use, and for identifying a potential fault condition in the connector based on the measured temperature and the position (controller 20).
Claim 9
Frazier discloses a wind turbine cable connector monitoring device according to claim 8, wherein the controller is further configured to generate an alert in response to identifying the potential fault condition (col. 5, lns 17-42, signal related to failure recorded).
Claim 10
Frazier discloses a wind turbine cable connector monitoring device according to claim 9, wherein the potential fault condition comprises one or more of: the connector's temperature exceeding a first threshold, and the connector's temperature exceeding a second threshold for a predetermined duration (col. 5 lns 59-67, predetermined temperature breakdown, exceeding predetermined temperature).
Claim 13
Frazier discloses a wind turbine cable connector monitoring device according to claim 8, further comprising a cable mount for mounting the temperature sensor to an outer sheath of the cable (sheath 40).
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.
Claims 4-6, 11-12, and 14-15 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over U.S. Patent No. 5,294,909 (“Frazier”) in view of U.S. Patent Pub. 2023/0160939 (“Wang”).
Claim 4
Frazier discloses a method according to claim 1.
Frazier does not appear to explicitly disclose wherein the step of identifying a potential fault condition comprises the step of estimating the connector temperature using the measured temperature and the position.
Wang discloses conductor temperature modeling to estimate temperature point and spike (paragraph [0130]).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have incorporated conductor temperature modeling, as disclosed by Wang, into the method of Frazier, such that the method includes the step of estimating the connector temperature using the measured temperature and the position, for the purpose of basing fault more accurately using strain and temperature data (Wang, paragraph [0130]).
Claim 5
Frazier discloses a method according to claim 1.
Frazier does not appear to explicitly disclose wherein the step of estimating the estimated connector temperature comprises translating the measured temperature to the estimated connector temperature using a model.
Wang discloses conductor temperature modeling to estimate temperature point and spike (paragraph [0130]).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have incorporated conductor temperature modeling, as disclosed by Wang, into the method of Frazier, such that the method includes the step of estimating the estimated connector temperature comprises translating the measured temperature to the estimated connector temperature using a model, for the purpose of basing fault more accurately using strain and temperature data (Wang, paragraph [0130]).
Claim 6
Frazier in view of Wang discloses a method according to claim 5, wherein the model accounts for one or more of the heat propagation properties of the cable, the heat properties of the cable material, ambient temperature conditions, and a detected rate of change in measured temperature (Wang, paragraph [0130], temperature data).
Claim 11
Frazier discloses a wind turbine cable connector monitoring device according to claim 8.
Frazier does not appear to explicitly disclose wherein the controller is configured to identify a potential fault condition by estimating the connector temperature using the measured temperature and the position.
Wang discloses conductor temperature modeling to estimate temperature point and spike (paragraph [0130]).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have incorporated conductor temperature modeling, as disclosed by Wang, into the device of Frazier, such that the controller is configured to identify a potential fault condition by estimating the connector temperature using the measured temperature and the position., for the purpose of basing fault more accurately using strain and temperature data (Wang, paragraph [0130]).
Claim 12
Frazier in view of Wang discloses a wind turbine cable connector monitoring device according to claim 11.
Frazier in view of Wang does not appear to explicitly disclose wherein the controller is configured to calculate the estimated connector temperature by translating the measured temperature to the estimated connector temperature using a model.
Wang discloses conductor temperature modeling to estimate temperature point and spike (paragraph [0130]).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have incorporated conductor temperature modeling, as disclosed by Wang, into the device of Frazier, such that the controller is configured to calculate the estimated connector temperature by translating the measured temperature to the estimated connector temperature using a model, for the purpose of basing fault more accurately using strain and temperature data (Wang, paragraph [0130]).
Claim 14
Frazier discloses a wind turbine cable connector monitoring device according to claim 8.
Frazier does not appear to explicitly disclose wherein the device comprises a plurality of temperature sensors for mounting to a respective plurality of cables at positions known distances along their respective cables from their respective connectors, and for sensing respective measured temperatures at those positions; and wherein the controller is for recording the measured temperatures from the plurality of temperature sensors while the connectors are in use, and for identifying a potential fault condition in one or more of the connectors based on the measured temperatures and the positions of the respective temperature sensor on their respective cable.
Wang discloses conductor temperature modeling to estimate temperature point and spike (paragraph [0130]).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have incorporated conductor temperature modeling, as disclosed by Wang, into the device of Frazier, such that wherein the device comprises a plurality of temperature sensors for mounting to a respective plurality of cables at positions known distances along their respective cables from their respective connectors, and for sensing respective measured temperatures at those positions; and wherein the controller is for recording the measured temperatures from the plurality of temperature sensors while the connectors are in use, and for identifying a potential fault condition in one or more of the connectors based on the measured temperatures and the positions of the respective temperature sensor on their respective cable, for the purpose of basing fault more accurately using strain and temperature data (Wang, paragraph [0130]).
Claim 15
Frazier in view of Wang discloses a wind turbine cable connector monitoring device according to claim 14, wherein the controller is configured to identify a potential fault condition based on identifying a difference in concurrent changes of the measured temperatures for two or more of the plurality of temperature sensor (Wang, col. 4, ln 64 – col. 5, ln 4; differential current sensing indicates short locations).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to ERICA S Y LIN whose telephone number is (571)270-7911. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 8-4, TW M,W.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Douglas X Rodriguez can be reached at (571) 431-0716. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/ERICA S LIN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2853
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