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 (IDS) submitted on 07/02/2024. The submission is in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner.
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.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
3. 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.
Claims 1-18 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Chow (U.S. Publication 20140350877) in view of Mensah-Brown (U.S. Publication 20150251542).
Regarding claim 1, Chow teaches a method of determining a state of health (SOH) of at least one battery, the at least one battery having a battery voltage (Vb) and an internal series resistance (Rb) (fig. 5 equivalent battery circuit including internal resistance R0 and RC battery model [0035-37]), with a first switch between the at least one battery and circuits to be supplied with the battery voltage (Vb),
comparing a measured delta Vs (Vs2 -Vs1) to a delta Vs that defines a stored historical voltage value of a healthy battery (fig. 16A-21 comparison of nominal and degraded battery resistance/capacitance values [0026-31]), and identifying a change in Vb and/or Rb when there is a difference between the measured delta Vs and the stored delta Vs and thus identifying a SOH of the at least one battery as degraded (fig. 16A-21 degraded battery determination and SOC estimation [0026-31]).
Chow does not teach with a first switch between the at least one battery and circuits to be supplied with the battery voltage (Vb), the method comprising the steps of: electrically connecting a sensing circuit between the at least one battery and the first switch, the sensing circuit comprising: a first resistor having a value measured in Ω, and an associated second switch for controlling current through the first resistor, a second resistor having a value measured Ω so as to be less than that of the first resistor, and an associated third switch for controlling current through the second resistor, a capacitor selectively electrically connectable between the first and second resistors via the first and second switches, respectively, a voltage node, and a voltage divider circuit configured to reduce voltage of the capacitor prior to reaching the voltage node, ensuring that the first switch and third switch are open, and that the second switch is closed to define a pre-charging stage of the capacitor to charge the capacitor to a voltage substantially near the battery voltage Vb, while controlling inrush current, at the end of the pre-charging stage, obtaining voltage value Vs1 associated with the voltage node, after the pre-charging stage, ensuring that the first switch and second switch are open, and that the third switch is closed to define second charging stage where the capacitor is charged completely, after a fixed time interval during the second charging stage, obtaining voltage value Vs2 associated with the voltage node.
However Mensah-Brown in a relevant art teaches a first switch between the at least one battery and circuits to be supplied with the battery voltage (Vb) (fig. 1 (12, 13 between battery 11 and DC bus circuitry [0018-19])),
the method comprising the steps of: electrically connecting a sensing circuit between the at least one battery and the first switch (fig. 1 22 connected between 11 and 12, 13. Fig. 3 sensing circuitry associated with capacitor charging [0018-22]),
the sensing circuit comprising: a first resistor having a value measured in Ω , and an associated second switch for controlling current through the first resistor (switch and a resistor in series between the DC supply and the link capacitor, wherein turning on the switch allows the link capacitor to be charged through the resistor [0005]),
a second resistor having a value measured Ω, so as to be less than that of the first resistor, and an associated third switch for controlling current through the second resistor (fig. 1 17 and switched charging arrangement using 12, 13 together with precharge circuit 22 [0018-19]),
a capacitor selectively electrically connectable between the first and second resistors via the first and second switches, respectively (fig. 1 link capacitor 16 selectively charged through 22 and 12, 13 [0018-19]),
a voltage node (fig. 3 VL measured by A/D convertor 32 [0022]),
and a voltage divider circuit configured to reduce voltage of the capacitor prior to reaching the voltage node, ensuring that the first switch and third switch are open, and that the second switch is closed to define a pre-charging stage of the capacitor to charge the capacitor to a voltage substantially near the battery voltage Vb, while controlling inrush current (contactors initially open and charging through a resistor to limit inrush current before closing contactors [0005], charging link capacitor predetermined voltage before switching contactor closed abstract),
at the end of the pre-charging stage, obtaining voltage value Vs1 associated with the voltage node (fig. 3 A/D convertor 32 providing capacitor voltage measurement VL during pre charging [0022]),
after the pre-charging stage, ensuring that the first switch and second switch are open, and that the third switch is closed to define second charging stage where the capacitor is charged completely (fig. 8 step 104 “Turn off precharge and close conductors”),
after a fixed time interval during the second charging stage, obtaining voltage value Vs2 associated with the voltage node (fig. 8 step 102 “detect voltage rise and start timer” and step 105 “identify delta and V”).
It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the battery SOH estimation system of Chow with Mensah-Brown switched capacitor precharge arrangement, resistor/switch charging arrangement, voltage node sensing arrangement, voltage divider arrangement, timed voltage acquisition arrangement, and inrush current limiting arrangement to improve controlled capacitor charging and transient response voltage measurement ability during SOH estimation yielding predictable and reliable battery degradation detection.
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Regarding claims 2, 12, Chow does not explicitly teach the first switch and the sensing system are disposed on a vehicle, and wherein the pre-charging stage and the second charging stage are performed upon startup of the vehicle.
However, Mensah-Brown in a relevant art teaches the first switch and the sensing system are disposed on a vehicle (an electric drive system for an electric vehicle abstract, fig. 1 contractors 12, 13, precharge circuit 22, sensing circuitry and capacitor disposed within electric vehicle drive system 10 [0018-19]), and wherein the pre-charging stage and the second charging stage are performed upon startup of the vehicle (fig. 8 step 100 “detect startup conditions”, startup charging of link capacitor before operation of electric drive system [0019], precharging process before contactors are closed during setup [0005]).
It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the battery SOH estimation system of Chow with Mensah-Brown resistor/switch charging arrangement, voltage node sensing arrangement, voltage divider arrangement to improve controlled capacitor charging and transient response voltage measurement ability during SOH estimation yielding predictable and reliable battery degradation detection.
Regarding claim 3, Chow does not explicitly teach after the second charging stage, ensuring that the first switch, second and third switch are each open to define a capacitor discharging stage.
However, Mensah-Brown in a relevant art teaches after the second charging stage, ensuring that the first switch, second and third switch are each open to define a capacitor discharging stage (fig. 8 step 104 “turn off precharge and close contactors” [0005] describing opening the precharge switch so that the precharge resistor is disconnected after precharging [0006] describing bleed resistor 17 discharging the link capacitor during shutdown of the electric drive).
It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate Mensah-Brown capacitor discharge arrangement into Chow’s battery SOH estimation method in order to safely discharge the capacitor after completion of the charging and measurement stages, yielding predictable protection of circuit components and controlled shutdown behavior.
Regarding claim 4, Chow does not explicitly teach after the comparing step, ensuring that the first switch is closed, the second and third switch are each open, to disable the sensing circuit and thus permit the battery to supply voltage (V.sub.b) to the circuits to which it is connected
However, Mensah-Brown in a relevant art teaches after the comparing step, ensuring that the first switch is closed, the second and third switch are each open (opening the precharge switch after precharging while the main contactors are closed [0005]), to disable the sensing circuit (the pecharge switch can be opened so that the precharge resistor is disconnected after pre charging) and
thus permit the battery to supply voltage (V.sub.b) to the circuits to which it is connected (fig. 1 11 supply power through 12m, 13 to main DC bus 15, invertor load 20 and electric motor 21 after precharge completion [0018-19]).
It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate Mensah-Brown post precharge switch configuration into Chow’s battery SOH estimation method in order to safely discharge the capacitor after completion of the charging and measurement stages, yielding predictable protection of circuit components and controlled shutdown behavior.
Regarding claims 5, 14, Chow does not explicitly teach wherein the voltage divider circuit is provided as two divider resistors in series.
However, Mensah-Brown in a relevant art teaches wherein the voltage divider circuit is provided as two divider resistors in series (fig. 6 resistor divider arrangement associated with voltage sensing circuitry including series connected resistors reducing sensed capacitor voltage prior to measurement at the voltage sensing node).
It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate Mensah-Brown post resistor divider arrangement into Chow’s battery SOH estimation method in order to safely discharge the capacitor after completion of the charging and measurement stages, yielding predictable protection of circuit components and controlled shutdown behavior.
Regarding claim 6, Chow does not explicitly teach an analog-to-digital converter (ADC) electrically connected to the voltage node, the method including reading the voltages Vs2 and Vs1 by the ADC.
However, Mensah-Brown in a relevant art teaches an analog-to-digital converter (ADC) electrically connected to the voltage node (fig. 3 voltage sensor comprised A/D 32 providing link capacitor voltage measurement VL [0022]), the method including reading the voltages Vs2 and Vs1 by the ADC (fig. 3 32 measuring capacitor voltage during charging operation [0022], fig. 8 step 102 “detect voltage rise and start time” and step 105 “identify delta t and V” values during charging intervals).
It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate Mensah-Brown post resistor divider arrangement into Chow’s battery SOH estimation method in order to safely discharge the capacitor after completion of the charging and measurement stages, yielding predictable protection of circuit components and controlled shutdown behavior.
Regarding claims 7-8, 15-16 Chow does not explicitly teach wherein the battery voltage (V.sub.b) is 12 V and the internal series resistance (R.sub.b) is 5 mΩ, and wherein the resistance of the first resistor is provided as 2.4Ω, a resistance of the second resistor is provided as 50 mΩ, and the capacitance of the capacitor is provided as 33 nF.
However, Mensah-Brown in a relevant art teaches wherein the battery voltage (V.sub.b) is 12 V and the internal series resistance (R.sub.b) is 5 mΩ, and wherein the resistance of the first resistor is provided as 2.4Ω, a resistance of the second resistor is provided as 50 mΩ, and the capacitance of the capacitor is provided as 33 nF (resistance, capacitance values selected for capacitor charging, RC trimming and inrush current limiting in electric vehicle systems [0005-0007], describing resistor/capacitor sizing relationship and RC charging characteristic for precharge operation).
It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to select the battery voltage is as required with resistance and capacitor value as result effective variable for implementing the combined Chow and Mensah-Brown battery SOH estimation and capacitor precharge arrangement because selecting resistance, capacitance and operating voltages for desired charging time constraints, high voltage operation, and inrush current performance would have been a routine optimization yielding predictable results.
One of the ordinary skills in the art would have been motivated to make this modification such that appropriate resistance, capacitance and voltage parameters are selected based on the design choice (Please see MPEP 2144 .04 VI.C.).
Regarding claim 9, Chow does not explicitly teach wherein the fixed time interval is 4 ns.
However, Mensah-Brown in a relevant art teaches wherein the fixed time interval is 4 ns (timed voltage measurement during capacitor charging operations (fig. 8 step 102 “detect voltage rise and start time” and step 105 “identify delta t and V”) charging interval and RC timing relationships associated with capacitor precharge circuitry [0005-0007]).
It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to select as required time interval for implementing the combined Chow and Mensah-Brown battery SOH estimation and capacitor precharge arrangement because selecting a particular time interval for voltage acquisition during RC charging operation would have been a routine optimization based on desired measurement sensitivity, charging response characteristics, and circuit operating speed yielding predictable results.
One of the ordinary skills in the art would have been motivated to make this modification such that appropriate time intervals are selected based on the design choice (Please see MPEP 2144 .04 VI.C.).
Regarding claim 10, Chow as modified further teach wherein a plurality of batteries are provided in a battery pack and the method includes separately identifying the SOH of each battery in the battery pack (determining battery parameters, SOC, and SOH for battery systems using battery parameter estimation technique [0004-09] “equivalent circuits, systems, and methods are disclosed herein for modeling the dynamics of batteries” [0035]).
Regarding claim 11, the structure recited is intrinsic to the method recited in claim 1, as disclosed by Chow (U.S. Publication 20140350877) in view of Mensah-Brown (U.S. Publication 20150251542) as the recited structure will be used during the normal operation of the method, as discussed above with regard to claim 1. Mensah-Brown further teaches an analog-to-digital converter (ADC) electrically connected to the voltage node (fig. 3 voltage sensor comprised of A/D convertor 32 providing link capacitor voltage measurement VL [0022]), and a microprocessor circuit, including memory, electrically connected with the sensing circuit and the ADC (fig. 3 battery energy control module BECK 31 connected to 32 and precharge circuitry [0022]).
It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the battery SOH estimation system of Chow with Mensah-Brown switched capacitor precharge arrangement, resistor/switch charging arrangement, voltage node sensing arrangement, voltage divider arrangement, timed voltage acquisition arrangement, and inrush current limiting arrangement to improve controlled capacitor charging and transient response voltage measurement ability during SOH estimation yielding predictable and reliable battery degradation detection.
Regarding claim 13, Chow as modified further teach wherein the at least one battery is a battery pack including a plurality of batteries (“Plug-In Hybrid Electric Vehicles (PHEV) and Plug-In Electric Vehicles (PEV)” [0005] inherently contains multiple batteries).
Regarding claim 17, the structure recited is intrinsic to the method recited in claim 11, as disclosed by Chow (U.S. Publication 20140350877) in view of Mensah-Brown (U.S. Publication 20150251542) as the recited structure will be used during the normal operation, as discussed above with regard to claim 11.
Regarding claim 18, Chow as modified further teach wherein the system is a stand-alone system configured to be removably electrically connected with the at least one battery (fig. 7 lithium battery cell in removable).
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Balakumar discloses (US20140244225) Battery state of charge tracking, equivalent circuit selection and benchmarking
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to TAQI R NASIR whose telephone number is (571)270-1425. The examiner can normally be reached 9AM-5PM EST M-F.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Lee Rodak can be reached at (571) 270-5628. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/TAQI R NASIR/Examiner, Art Unit 2858
/LEE E RODAK/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2858
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