DETAILED ACTION
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 § 101
35 U.S.C. 101 reads as follows:
Whoever invents or discovers any new and useful process, machine, manufacture, or composition of matter, or any new and useful improvement thereof, may obtain a patent therefor, subject to the conditions and requirements of this title.
Claim(s) 11, 12 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 101 because the claimed invention is directed to non-statutory subject matter. The claim(s) does/do not fall within at least one of the four categories of patent eligible subject matter because the claim(s) are directed towards “Computer software”; “Computer-readable non-transient recording medium on which a software is registered”.
The claim(s) should be amended to read
‘A non-transitory computer readable media having instructions stored thereon that, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to: …’.
Allowable Subject Matter (over prior art)
Claim(s) 1-10 is/are allowed.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter over prior art:
Examiner’s closest prior art to the claimed subject matter:
HASLER teaches ‘systems and methods to for providing stable and programmable voltage and current reference devices. An exemplary embodiment of the present invention provides a voltage reference device having a first floating-gate transistor with a first source, a first drain, and a first gate. The first gate is provided coupled to a first programming capacitor and a first input capacitor. Furthermore, the voltage reference device includes a second floating-gate transistor having a second source, a second drain, and a second gate. The second gate is provided coupled to a second programming capacitor and a second input capacitor. Additionally, the charge difference between the first floating-gate transistor and the second floating-gate transistor is a reference voltage’.
None of the cited prior art alone or in combination provides motivation to explicitly teach:
A measurement method
of
a flatband voltage of a power semiconductor module
comprising
at least one semiconductor element among a Metal-Oxide-Semiconductor element
and
a Metal-Insulator Semiconductor element during operational service,
said method comprising:
applying a bias voltage to said module such that said module switches from an off-state to an on-state, or from an on-state to an off-state;
triggering a gate current Ig injection from a current source to a gate of the module when an initial gate-emitter/source voltage is equal to a flatband voltage Vfb,h of the module within +/-5V;
measuring the voltage Vig across the current source;
extracting of a flatband voltage Vfb,h+1 from the said measured voltage Vig across the current source
stopping said gate current Ig injection
when the absolute difference between the gate emitter/source voltage and the flatband voltage Vfb,h becomes superior to a predefined limit;
or
when the gate current Ig injection duration tinj exceeds a predetermined duration tmax;
saving the extracted flatband voltage Vfb,h+1 value
of claim(s) 1 (including dependent claim(s)).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to RAYMOND NIMOX whose telephone number is (469)295-9226. The examiner can normally be reached Mon-Thu 10am-8pm CT.
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RAYMOND NIMOX
Primary Examiner
Art Unit 2857
/RAYMOND L NIMOX/Primary Examiner, Art Unit
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