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 Objections
1. Claim 14 is objected to because of the following informalities:
Claim 14, line 5, the phrase “configured to a second temperature of the fuse” is incomplete and should be changed to “configured to obtain a second temperature of the fuse”. 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 (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) 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.
2. Claims 1 and 15 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102 (a)(2) as being anticipated by Hibbard et al (USPN 2023/0395876).
Regarding claim 1, Hibbard discloses a control system (200) for a power battery comprising
a battery pack (a battery pack 280) and a bus bar (a bus bar 282, 284);
the control system comprising: a switch circuit (a switching circuit 202, 204), connected between the battery pack (208) and the bus bar (282, 284) and configured to obtain and output a temperature of the switch circuit (a temperature of the switch circuit 202, 204 is obtained and outputted from a temperature detector 222, see par. 0049);
a sampling circuit (a shunt resistor 208), connected between the battery pack (280) and the bus bar (284) and configured to sample a current of the battery pack (a sampled current flows through the shunt resistor 208); and
a control circuit (a controller 223), connected to the switch circuit (202, 204) and the sampling circuit (208) and configured to determine a state of the power battery (280) (an overcurrent state of the battery 280) and control performing (such as turning off the switch 202) a corresponding operation according to the state of the power battery (e.g. see par. 0046-0047).
Regarding claim 15, Hibbard discloses a power battery (200, shown in figure 2), comprising:
a battery pack (280);
a bus bar (282, 284); and
a control system (201), connected between the battery pack and the bus bar and comprising: a switch circuit (202, 204), connected between the battery pack (280) and the bus bar (282, 284) and configured to obtain and output a temperature of the switch circuit (a temperature of the switch circuit 202, 204 is obtained and outputted from a temperature detector 222, see par. 0049);
a sampling circuit (a shunt resistor 208), connected between the battery pack (280) and the bus bar (284) and configured to sample a current of the battery pack (a sampled current flows through the shunt resistor 208); and
a control circuit (a controller 223), connected to the switch circuit (202, 204) and the sampling circuit (208) and configured to determine a state of the power battery (280) (an overcurrent state of the battery 280) and control performing (such as turning off the switch 202) a corresponding operation according to the state of the power battery (e.g. see par. 0046-0047).
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 (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) 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, 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.
3. Claims 1-2, 9, 16, 17 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Wada et al (USPN 2020/0343598) in view of Hibbard et al (USPN 2023/0395876).
Regarding claim 1, Wada discloses a control system (a system shown in figure 1) for a power battery comprising
a battery pack (a battery pack 30) and a bus bar (a bus bar 35);
the control system comprising: a switch circuit (a switching circuit 37, see par. 0056), connected between the battery pack (30) and the bus bar (35);
a sampling circuit (a current sensor 41), connected between the battery pack (30) and the bus bar (35) and configured to sample a current of the battery pack (a sampled current flows through the current sensor 41, e.g. see par. 0054); and
a control circuit (a controller 50), connected to the switch circuit (37) and the sampling circuit (41) and configured to determine a state of the power battery (280) (an overload and short circuit of the battery 30, see par. 0029, 0037) and control performing (such as reducing a load power and turning off the switch 37) a corresponding operation according to the state of the power battery (see par, 0035, 0089, 0069).
Wada does not explicitly disclose the switch circuit as claimed.
Hibbard discloses a control system (200) for a power battery comprising
a switch circuit (a switching circuit 202, 204), connected between the battery pack (208) and the bus bar (282, 284) and configured to obtain and output a temperature of the switch circuit (a temperature of the switch circuit 202, 204 is obtained and outputted from a temperature detector 222, see par. 0049).
It 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 to have modified the switching circuit of Wada to incorporate a temperature sensing circuit as disclosed by Hibbard in order to protect the switching circuit from damage due to an overheating condition.
Regarding claim 2, Wada discloses wherein the state of the power battery comprises a short-circuit state, an overload state (an overload and short circuit of the battery 30, see par. 0029, 0037), and a normal operation state (a drive mode, see par, 0061), an operation corresponding to the short-circuit state is controlling the switch circuit to be disconnected (see par. 0069, 0089), and an operation corresponding to the overload state is adjusting an operation parameter of the power battery to make the power battery be in the normal operation state (such as reducing output power, see par, 0035).
Regarding claim 9, Wada discloses wherein the adjusting the operation parameter of the power battery comprises: reducing a load power of the power battery (such as reducing output power, see par, 0035).
Regarding claim 16, Wada discloses a control method for a power battery (20, see figures 2, 4), the power battery comprising
a battery pack (a battery 30),
a bus bar (a bus bar 35), and
a control system (50) connected between the battery pack (30) and the bus bar (35) and comprising: a switch circuit (37), connected between the battery pack (30) and the bus bar;
a sampling circuit (a current sensor 41), connected between the battery pack (30) and the bus bar (35) and configured to sample a current of the battery pack (a sampled current flows through the current sensor 41, e.g. see par. 0054); and
a control circuit (a controller 50), connected to the switch circuit (37) and the sampling circuit (41) and configured to determine a state of the power battery (280) (an overload and short circuit of the battery 30, see par. 0029, 0037) and control performing (such as reducing a load power and turning off the switch 37) a corresponding operation according to the state of the power battery (see par, 0035, 0089, 0069); the control method comprising:
obtaining, by the control circuit (50), a current of the battery pack sampled by the sampling circuit (41); and
determining, by the control circuit (50), a state of the power battery (an overload and short circuit of the battery 30, see par. 0029, 0037)
and control performing a corresponding operation according to the state of the power (such as reducing a load power and turning off the switch 37, (see par, 0035, 0089, 0069);
Wada does not explicitly disclose obtaining a temperature as claimed.
Hibbard discloses a control system (200) for a power battery comprising
a switch circuit (a switching circuit 202, 204), connected between the battery pack (208) and the bus bar (282, 284) and configured to obtain and output a temperature of the switch circuit (a temperature of the switch circuit 202, 204 is obtained and outputted from a temperature detector 222, see par. 0049), and obtaining, by a controller (223), a temperature of the switch circuit (202, 204).
It 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 to have modified the switching circuit of Wada to incorporate a temperature sensing circuit as disclosed by Hibbard in order to protect the switching circuit from damage due to an overheating condition.
Regarding claim 17, Wada discloses wherein the state of the power battery comprises a short-circuit state, an overload state (an overload and short circuit of the battery 30, see par. 0029, 0037), and a normal operation state (a drive mode, see par, 0061), an operation corresponding to the short-circuit state is controlling the switch circuit to be disconnected (see par. 0069, 0089), and an operation corresponding to the overload state is adjusting an operation parameter of the power battery to make the power battery be in the normal operation state (such as reducing output power, see par, 0035).
Allowable Subject Matter
4. Claims 3-8, 10-14, 18-20 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
5. Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to DANNY NGUYEN whose telephone number is (571)272-2054. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 8:00AM-4:30PM.
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/DANNY NGUYEN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2838