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
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 1-3 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Mizuguchi et al. US publication no.: US 2021/0028733 A1 in view of Patel et al. US publication no.: US 2011/0084638 A1
Regarding claim 1, Mizuguchi et al. teach, A controller (see control device 100, figure 1) for a battery-powered PMSM (permanent magnet synchronous motor) (Motor 80, figure 1), the controller comprising: a first controller (see current vector control unit 13 with an Vd* output, figure 1) configured to generate a flux generating voltage reference for the PMSM; a second controller (see current vector control unit 13 with an Vq* output, figure 1 configured to generate a torque generating voltage reference for the PMSM; and a battery capacity adjustment factor (voltage compensation processing unit 2, figure 1) configured to adjust the flux generating voltage reference and the torque generating voltage reference, based on capacity of the battery (see paragraphs 26-32 and 124, where it can be seen that the vd* and vq* are adjusted based on the battery).
Mizuguchi et al. is silent on specifically teaching: the controller comprising: a sensorless PLL (phase lock loop) observer/estimator configured to estimate a plurality of internal variables of the battery-powered PMSM, including rotor electrical speed and rotor electrical angle, without directly measuring the variables
However, Patel et al. is in the same field of art and teach: the controller comprising: a sensorless PLL (phase lock loop) observer/estimator configured to estimate a plurality of internal variables of the battery-powered PMSM, including rotor electrical speed and rotor electrical angle, without directly measuring the variables (see position and speed estimator 112; figure 1).
In view of Patel et al.’s teachings, it would’ve been obvious to one with the ordinary skills in the art, before the effective filing date of the invention, with the apparatus as taught by Mizuguchi et al. to include; the controller comprising: a sensorless PLL (phase lock loop) observer/estimator configured to estimate a plurality of internal variables of the battery-powered PMSM, including rotor electrical speed and rotor electrical angle, without directly measuring the variables, for the purpose of improving the control of the drive system.
Regarding claim 2, Mizuguchi et al. teach, the controller of claim 1, wherein the battery capacity adjustment factor is calculated as a measured voltage of the battery divided by a nominal voltage of the battery (see equations 1 and 2, paragraphs 26-28).
Regarding claim 3, Mizuguchi et al. teach, the controller of claim 1, wherein the flux generating voltage reference is multiplied by the battery capacity adjustment factor to adjust the flux generating voltage reference, and wherein the torque generating voltage reference is multiplied by the battery capacity adjustment factor to adjust the torque generating voltage reference (see equations 1 and 2, paragraphs 26-28).
Claims 4-7 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Mizuguchi et al. US publication no.: US 2021/0028733 A1 in view of Patel et al. US publication no.: US 2011/0084638 A1 and further in view of Wu et al. US publication no.: US 2015/0288306 A1.
Regarding claim 4, Mizuguchi et al. as modified teach rotation speed calculation unit but utilizes a position sensor and thus is silent on specifically teaching, the controller of claim 1, further comprising: a rotor position estimator configured to estimate a rotor electrical angle and a rotor electrical speed of the PMSM, based on the adjusted flux generating voltage reference, the adjusted torque generating voltage reference, a flux generating current feedback for the PMSM, and a torque generating current feedback for the PMSM.
However, Wu et al. is in the same field of art and teach: a rotor position estimator configured to estimate a rotor electrical angle and a rotor electrical speed of the PMSM (see position and speed estimator 170, figure 1), based on the flux generating voltage reference (vd*, figure 1), the torque generating voltage reference (vq* ,figure 1), a flux generating current feedback for the PMSM, and a torque generating current feedback for the PMSM (id, iq, figure 1).
Examiner notes that * - the position estimator would be applied to the “adjusted” voltage of the Mizuguchi et al.
In view of Wu et al.’s teachings, it would’ve been obvious to one with the ordinary skills in the art, before the effective filing date of the invention, with the apparatus as taught by Mizuguchi et al. as modified to include; a rotor position estimator configured to estimate a rotor electrical angle and a rotor electrical speed of the PMSM, based on the adjusted flux generating voltage reference, the adjusted torque generating voltage reference, a flux generating current feedback for the PMSM, and a torque generating current feedback for the PMSM, for the purpose of increasing the cost by reducing the number of parts.
Regarding claim 5, Wu et al. teach, The controller of claim 4, wherein the rotor position estimator comprises a speed feedforward term (see figure 2 the output of 220).
Regarding claim 6, Wu et al. teach, The controller of claim 5, wherein the speed feedforward term includes a weighting factor that is in a range of zero to less than one (see weighting factor, paragraphs 118-119).
Regarding claim 7, Wu et al. teach, The controller of claim 6, wherein the weighting factor is user configurable (see paragraph 119, where the weighting factor is adjustable).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 8-10 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
Claims 11-13, 15, 18-23 are allowed.
Conclusion
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/ZOHEB S IMTIAZ/Primary Examiner , Art Unit 2846
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