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 .
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement(s) (IDS) submitted on 08/26/2024 in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the IDSs have been considered by the Examiner.
Claim Objections
Claim(s) 10, 17 and 20 are objected to because of the following informalities:
Claim 10 recites a phrase “a respective circuit to a respective load” in lines 3-4. Examiner suggests amending the phrase to recite “a circuit to a load” to restore clarity.
Claim 10 recites a term “IED” in the last paragraph. Examiner suggests amending the term to recite “intelligent electronic device (IED)” to restore clarity.
Claim 10 recites a phrase “the energy usage” in the last paragraph. Examiner suggests amending the phrase to recite “energy usage” to restore antecedent clarity.
Claim 17 recites a phrase “each circuit breaker” in line 2. Examiner suggests amending the phase to recite “the circuit breaker” to restore antecedent clarity.
Claim 20 recites a phrase “VLC or LVC” in line 1. Examiner suggests amending the phase to recite “voltage to light converter (VLC) or light to voltage converter (LVC)” to restore clarity.
Appropriate correction is required.
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.
Claim(s) 1-20 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 pre-AIA the applicant regards as the invention. The rationale for this finding is explained below:
Regarding claim(s) 1, 10 and 19, a phrase "disposed in the" renders the claim(s) indefinite because the claim(s) include(s) elements not actually disclosed (those encompassed by "the"), thereby rendering the scope of the claim(s) unascertainable.
Claim 6 recites a term "the first wireless communication module device" in line 1 before introduction. There is insufficient antecedent basis for the term in the claim.
Claim 16 recites a term "the controller" in line 2 before introduction. There is insufficient antecedent basis for the term in the claim. Furthermore, a phrase " the controller to active …" renders the claim unclear. For examination purpose, Examiner assumes the phrase reads “the controller to activate …”.
Dependent Claim(s) 2-5, 7-9, 11-15, 17-18 and 20 not specifically addressed share the same 112(b) rejection as the rejected base Claim(s).
Appropriate correction is required.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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 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.
Claim(s) 1-2, 4-15 and 17-19 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) and 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by Lynch et al. (US 20150028848; hereinafter Lynch).
Regarding claim 1, Lynch discloses in figure(s) 2-8 an electrical supply system comprising:
a circuit breaker panel (panel 10; fig. 2), and
a plurality of individual circuit breakers (branch circuit breakers 20*) positioned in the circuit breaker panel to connect (power wires 24; para. 3 - branch circuit breakers 20 that couple to various electrical loads) a respective circuit to a respective load (abs. - hardware that can be fitted to a pre-existing circuit breaker panel to allow for the monitoring of power draws in the various circuit breaker branches, which hardware includes current transducers coupled to a wireless hub),
each circuit breaker including:
a housing (chassis 22) configured to be disposed in the circuit breaker panel (10);
at least one tripping device (20* in figs. 2-4; para. 19 - breakers 20a-20d couple to only a single AC input voltage, they are known as single-phase breakers. However, other types of breakers such as multi-phase breaker 20k may also be used) disposed in the and configured to break the respective circuit;
at least one sensor (40* in figs. 2-4) disposed in the housing and configured to sense at least one electrical parameter of the respective circuit (para. 22 - a number of current transducer (CT) output wires 38, two of which are connected to a current sensor, Each current transducer 40 is coupled to a particular one of the branch wires 30 proceeding from each of the branch circuit breakers 20) and output an analog signal indicative of the at least one electrical parameter (para. 22 - relative output of the CT 40 may be a function of the branch current I. For example, the relative output may be proportional or have some other mathematical relationship such that a value indicative of the branch current I may be ascertained; clm. 23 - each current sensor further comprises a contact for receiving an input power voltage powering the branch wire, and wherein each first microcontroller is configured to determine the phase power by further assessing a magnitude and phase of the input power voltage);
at least one analog to digital converter (A/D 54* in fig. 4; para. 28 - A given selected AC input Vi from a CT 40i is sampled at one or more Analog-to-Digital converter (A/D) circuit(s) 54 associated with one or more of the multiplexers 50, which may comprise one or more A/D input(s) of the microcontroller 52) disposed in the housing and configured to convert the analog signal to at least one digital signal; and
a wireless communication device (wireless transceiver 64 in the hub 32 wireless communications to and from the antenna 66) disposed in the housing and configured to transmit (@66/10c) the at least one digital signal wirelessly to an external device (gateway 80, webserver 100 and/or other hub(c); para. 9 - a standard circuit breaker panel is fitted with hardware to wirelessly transmit information about the power being drawn by each of the branch circuit breakers in the circuit breaker panel; figs. 4,6).
Regarding claim 2, Lynch discloses in figure(s) 2-8 the system of claim 1, wherein each of the circuit breakers further comprises at least one processor (microcontroller 52) configured to receive at least one communication signal from the external device (10(c)) via the wireless communication device (66), the at least one processor configured to perform at least one action based on the at least one communication signal (para. 28 - microcontroller 52 can produce 16-bit values indicative of the magnitude of Vi for each CT 40i. Thereafter, the digitized inputs Vi are sampled at one or more sampling circuits 56 over several cycles and scaled to determine the maximum current (|Ii|) (i.e., |Ii|=k*|Vi|) and its phase (.theta.i) relative to a time reference).
Regarding claim 4, Lynch discloses in figure(s) 2-8 the system of claim 2, wherein the at least one action includes instructing the tripping device to break the circuit according to a load shedding function (para. 26 - demand signaling device 98 generates demand signal 96 and transmits demand signal 96 to processor 82. Demand signal 96 may include generic instructions instructing processor 82 to shed a load. Processor 82 may include a memory 100 preprogrammed with an order in which loads, for example, loads 40, 42, and 44, are to be shed; fig. 9).
Regarding claim 5, Lynch discloses in figure(s) 2-8 the system of claim 2, wherein the at least one processor is configured to calculate energy consumed by the load (clm. 9 - microcontroller is configured to determine the power value for each of the circuit breakers by assessing a magnitude and phase of the outputs of the branch wires serviced by each circuit breaker, and a magnitude and phase of the one or more input power voltages powering each circuit breaker) based on the at least one electrical parameter sensed by the at least one sensor.
Regarding claim 6, Lynch discloses in figure(s) 2-8 the system of claim 1, wherein the first wireless communication module operates in accordance with at least one of WiFi protocols (para. 44 - one or more WiFi antennas, the transceivers in the hub 32 or 132 can also be made compliant with such standards) or Bluetooth protocols.
Regarding claim 7, Lynch discloses in figure(s) 2-8 the system of claim 1, wherein the at least one tripping device includes a switch (para. 4 - breaker will "trip," i.e., it will automatically switch to the "off" state to prevent current from flowing in that branch, which current might damage the HVAC unit …a user can flip the breaker 20 back to the "on" state to attempt to provide power to the branch again).
Regarding claim 8, Lynch discloses in figure(s) 2-8 the system of claim 1, wherein the at least one electrical parameter is any one of current (clm. 12 - current sensors comprise coils for producing the outputs as voltages using magnetic fields generated by the branch currents), voltage, energy, power, and/or temperature.
Regarding claim 9, Lynch discloses in figure(s) 2-8 the system of claim 1, wherein the wireless communication device operates in accordance with a WiFi protocol (para. 44 - one or more WiFi antennas, the transceivers in the hub 32 or 132 can also be made compliant with such standards).
Regarding claim 10, Lynch discloses in figure(s) 2-8 an electrical supply system comprising:
a circuit breaker panel (panel 10; fig. 2),
a circuit breaker (branch circuit breakers 20*) positioned in the circuit breaker panel to connect (power wires 24; para. 3 - branch circuit breakers 20 that couple to various electrical loads) a respective circuit to a respective load (abs. - hardware that can be fitted to a pre-existing circuit breaker panel to allow for the monitoring of power draws in the various circuit breaker branches, which hardware includes current transducers coupled to a wireless hub),
each circuit breaker including:
a housing (chassis 22) configured to be disposed in the circuit breaker panel (10);
at least one tripping device (20* in figs. 2-4; para. 19 - breakers 20a-20d couple to only a single AC input voltage, they are known as single-phase breakers. However, other types of breakers such as multi-phase breaker 20k may also be used) disposed in the and configured to break the respective circuit;
at least one sensor (40* in figs. 2-4) disposed in the housing and configured to sense at least one electrical parameter of the respective circuit (para. 22 - a number of current transducer (CT) output wires 38, two of which are connected to a current sensor, Each current transducer 40 is coupled to a particular one of the branch wires 30 proceeding from each of the branch circuit breakers 20) and output an analog signal indicative of the at least one electrical parameter (para. 22 - relative output of the CT 40 may be a function of the branch current I. For example, the relative output may be proportional or have some other mathematical relationship such that a value indicative of the branch current I may be ascertained; clm. 23 - each current sensor further comprises a contact for receiving an input power voltage powering the branch wire, and wherein each first microcontroller is configured to determine the phase power by further assessing a magnitude and phase of the input power voltage);
at least one analog to digital converter (A/D 54* in fig. 4; para. 28 - A given selected AC input Vi from a CT 40i is sampled at one or more Analog-to-Digital converter (A/D) circuit(s) 54 associated with one or more of the multiplexers 50, which may comprise one or more A/D input(s) of the microcontroller 52) disposed in the housing and configured to convert the analog signal to at least one digital signal; and
an IED (µc 52, webserver 100 internet 90; figs. 4,6,8) in communication with the circuit breaker and configured to receive signals from the circuit breaker (para. 45 - web server 100 can provide a web portal 110 for enabling authorized users to view the reported circuit breaker powers for a particular location, or reports 120 or analysis (130) generated from some reported powers), the IED including at least one processor (52, 100; clm. 9 - microcontroller is configured to determine the power value for each of the circuit breakers; clm. 10 - microprocessor is configured to determine the input power voltages powering each of the circuit breakers using a table) configured to execute a billing component, the billing component configured to generate a bill based on the energy usage of the circuit breaker (para. 50 - analysis module 130 can decide which rooms have drawn lower amounts of power than average, and thus indicate which patrons in the hotel should be entitled to a discount on their bills).
Regarding claim 11, Lynch discloses in figure(s) 2-8 the system of claim 10, wherein the IED is in wireless communication with the circuit breaker (para. 2 - wireless monitoring of power draws from branch circuit breakers in a circuit breaker panel).
Regarding claim 12, Lynch discloses in figure(s) 2-8 the system of claim 11, wherein the circuit breaker includes a wireless communication device (wireless transceiver 64 in the hub 32 wireless communications to and from the antenna 66) positioned in the housing.
Regarding claim 13, Lynch discloses in figure(s) 2-8 the system of claim 10, wherein the billing component is stored in memory in the IED (para. 34 - circuit breaker powers P are sequentially stored in a memory 62, which may be internal or external to the microcontroller 52).
Regarding claim 14, Lynch discloses in figure(s) 2-8 the system of claim 10, wherein the billing component is configurable by a user input (para. 45 - web server 100 can provide a web portal 110 for enabling authorized users to view the reported circuit breaker powers).
Regarding claim 15, Lynch discloses in figure(s) 2-8 the system of claim 10, wherein the IED is configured to generate at least one web page accessible by at least one external device (100), the at least one web page (web portal figs. 7) enabling at least one of monitoring the circuit breaker (20a, 20b) or adjusting at least one setting of the circuit breaker.
Regarding claim 17, Lynch discloses in figure(s) 2-8 the system of claim 10, wherein the billing component is configured to transmit energy usage information associated with each circuit breaker (para. 50 - analysis module 130 can be used to provide discounts or incentives … on their bills).
Regarding claim 18, Lynch discloses in figure(s) 2-8 the system of claim 10, wherein the IED is configured to transmit billing information to a server (100).
Regarding claim 19, Lynch discloses in figure(s) 2-8 an electrical supply system comprising:
a circuit breaker panel (panel 10; fig. 2), and
a plurality of individual circuit breakers (branch circuit breakers 20*) positioned in the circuit breaker panel to connect (power wires 24; para. 3 - branch circuit breakers 20 that couple to various electrical loads) a respective circuit to a respective load (abs. - hardware that can be fitted to a pre-existing circuit breaker panel to allow for the monitoring of power draws in the various circuit breaker branches, which hardware includes current transducers coupled to a wireless hub),
each circuit breaker including:
a housing (chassis 22) configured to be disposed in the circuit breaker panel (10);
at least one tripping device (20* in figs. 2-4; para. 19 - breakers 20a-20d couple to only a single AC input voltage, they are known as single-phase breakers. However, other types of breakers such as multi-phase breaker 20k may also be used) disposed in the and configured to break the respective circuit;
at least one sensor (40* in figs. 2-4) disposed in the housing and configured to sense at least one electrical parameter of the respective circuit (para. 22 - a number of current transducer (CT) output wires 38, two of which are connected to a current sensor, Each current transducer 40 is coupled to a particular one of the branch wires 30 proceeding from each of the branch circuit breakers 20) and output an analog signal indicative of the at least one electrical parameter (para. 22 - relative output of the CT 40 may be a function of the branch current I. For example, the relative output may be proportional or have some other mathematical relationship such that a value indicative of the branch current I may be ascertained; clm. 23 - each current sensor further comprises a contact for receiving an input power voltage powering the branch wire, and wherein each first microcontroller is configured to determine the phase power by further assessing a magnitude and phase of the input power voltage);
at least one analog to digital converter (A/D 54* in fig. 4; para. 28 - A given selected AC input Vi from a CT 40i is sampled at one or more Analog-to-Digital converter (A/D) circuit(s) 54 associated with one or more of the multiplexers 50, which may comprise one or more A/D input(s) of the microcontroller 52) disposed in the housing and configured to convert the analog signal to at least one digital signal; and
a communication port (port of wireless transceiver 64 in the hub 32 wireless communications to and from the antenna 66) disposed in the housing and configured to bi-directional communication (64 transmit and receive) between the circuit breaker and an external device (gateway 80, webserver 100 and/or other hub(c); para. 9 - a standard circuit breaker panel is fitted with hardware to wirelessly transmit information about the power being drawn by each of the branch circuit breakers in the circuit breaker panel; figs. 4,6).
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 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.
Claim 3 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Lynch in view of Kucinskas et al. (US 20120089265).
Regarding claim 3, Lynch teaches in figure(s) 2-8 the system of claim 2,
Lynch does not teach explicitly wherein the at least one action includes instructing the tripping device to break the circuit.
However, Kucinskas teaches in figure(s) 1-9 wherein the at least one action includes instructing the tripping device to break the circuit (Load shedding system 80 facilitates controlling operation of an electrical load center that includes at least one circuit breaker, for example, electrical panel 46; figs. 1-2).
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the teachings of Lynch by having wherein the at least one action includes instructing the tripping device to break the circuit as taught by Kucinskas in order to provide "load shedding apparatus is further configured to be operatively coupled to the at least one circuit breaker and configured to actuate the at least one circuit breaker in response to the load shedding signal" (abstract).
Claim 16 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Lynch in view of Oda et al. (US 20150318739).
Regarding claim 16, Lynch teaches in figure(s) 2-8 the system of claim 10,
Lynch does not teach explicitly wherein the IED is configured to transmit a signal to the circuit breaker to instruct the controller to active the tripping device to break the circuit.
However, Oda teaches in figure(s) 1 wherein the IED (20*; fig. 1) is configured to transmit a signal to the circuit breaker (6*) to instruct the controller to active the tripping device to break the circuit (7,8).
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the teachings of <p2nam_1> by having wherein the IED is configured to transmit a signal to the circuit breaker to instruct the controller to active the tripping device to break the circuit as taught by Oda in order to provide "IED is configured to be capable of transmitting a trip instruction to the merging unit using both the process bus and a station bus." (abstract).
Claim 20 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Lynch in view of Spanier et al. (US 20060086893).
Regarding claim 20, Lynch teaches in figure(s) 2-8 the system of claim 19,
Lynch does not teach explicitly wherein the communication port includes VLC or LVC circuitry.
However, Spanier teaches in figure(s) 1-4 wherein the communication port includes VLC or LVC circuitry (202,206; fig. 2).
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the teachings of <p2nam_1> by having wherein the communication port includes VLC or LVC circuitry as taught by Spanier in order to provide "method for communicating between serially connected electrical devices of a network is provided. The network includes a series of electrical devices, and fiber optic connectors between electrical devices" (abstract).
Prior Art
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
See the List of References cited in the US PT0-892.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to AKM ZAKARIA whose telephone number is (571)270-0664. The examiner can normally be reached on 8-5 PM (PST).
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Judy Nguyen can be reached on (571) 272-2258. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/AKM ZAKARIA/
Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2858