DETAILED ACTION
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
This rejection is withdrawn due to the amendments made to the claims.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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) 1-10, 12-20 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102a1 as being anticipated by Zhang (U.S. Pat. No. 12,157,399).
Regarding claim 1, Zhang discloses an energy recovery control method for a vehicle (title), comprising:
obtaining a current gear of the vehicle when an accelerator pedal of the vehicle is not pressed (col. 7, lines 37-42);
determining coasting energy recovery torque based on the gear (col. 7, line 65 – col. 8, line 15), wherein the coasting energy recovery torque is determined to be smaller at a low gear than at a high gear;
obtaining a brake pedal opening degree of the vehicle (col. 7, lines 37-42 “brake pedal”), and obtaining braking energy recovery torque according to the brake pedal opening degree and the gear, wherein given a same brake pedal opening degree, the braking energy recovery torque is determined to be greater at a low gear than at a high gear under a same given brake pedal opening degree (S102 determines energy recovery for braking and coasting); and
Note: the determinations of the energy in both states is being made. The idea of the energy from a high or low gear is a result of the vehicle system and would also be true of other vehicle systems.
controlling the vehicle to perform energy recovery according to the coasting energy recovery torque and the braking energy recovery torque (s103 disclosed in col. 8, lines 15-20).
Regarding claim 2, 7, 13 and 18 which depends from claim 1, 6, 12 and 17 respectively, Zhang discloses wherein said obtaining the brake pedal opening degree of the vehicle and obtaining the braking energy recovery torque according to the brake pedal opening degree and the gear comprises:
determining whether the brake pedal is pressed; obtaining the braking energy recovery torque as zero when the brake pedal is not pressed (col. 9, lines 10-14 discloses without brake pedal depression there is no braking energy mode as per fig. 4); and
obtaining the brake pedal opening degree when the brake pedal is pressed, and obtaining the braking energy recovery torque according to the brake pedal opening degree and the gear, wherein the braking energy recovery torque is proportional to the brake pedal opening degree, and the braking energy recovery torque is dependent on the gear (col. 8, lines 44-47 discloses the two modes are combined).
Regarding claim 3, 8, 14 and 19 which depends from claim 1, 6, 12 and 17 respectively, Zhang discloses wherein said controlling the vehicle to perform the energy recovery according to the coasting energy recovery torque and the braking energy recovery torque comprises:
obtaining energy recovery torque according to the coasting energy recovery torque and the braking energy recovery torque, wherein the energy recovery torque is a sum of the coasting energy recovery torque and the braking energy recovery torque; and controlling the vehicle to perform the energy recovery according to the braking energy recovery torque (col. 9, lines 10-14 discloses braking energy recovery is performed when braking is requested with col. 8 discussing how both are calculated).
Regarding claim 4, 9, 15 and 20 which depends from claim 3, 8, 14 and 19 respectively, Zhang discloses wherein said controlling the vehicle to perform the energy recovery according to the braking energy recovery torque comprises:
controlling, when the brake pedal is not pressed, the vehicle to perform coasting energy recovery according to the braking energy recovery torque (col. 9, lines 10-12);
or controlling, when the brake pedal is pressed, the vehicle to perform braking energy recovery while performing coasting energy recovery according to the braking energy recovery torque (col. 9, lines 12-14).
Regarding claim 5, 10 and 16 which depends from claim 1, 6 and 12 respectively, Zhang discloses further comprising, prior to determining the coasting energy recovery torque based on the gear:
determining whether a coasting energy recovery mode is enabled (col. 9, lines 10-14 determines which mode will be performed); performing, when the coasting energy recovery mode is enabled, the step of determining the coasting energy recovery torque based on the gear; obtaining, when the coasting energy recovery mode is not enabled and when the brake pedal is pressed, the braking energy recovery torque based on the brake pedal opening degree and the gear (col. 9, lines 15-21), and controlling the vehicle to perform braking energy recovery according to the braking energy recovery torque.
Regarding claim 6 and 12, Zhang discloses an energy recovery control system for a vehicle, comprising: a memory having a program instruction stored thereon; and a processor configured to, when executing the program instruction (col. 17, lines 19-28 discloses the computer), perform operations of: obtaining a current gear of the vehicle when an accelerator pedal of the vehicle is not pressed; determining coasting energy recovery torque based on the gear, wherein the coasting energy recovery torque is determined to be smaller at a low gear than at a high gear; obtaining a brake pedal opening degree of the vehicle, and obtaining braking energy recovery torque according to the brake pedal opening degree and the gear, wherein given a same brake pedal opening degree, the braking energy recovery torque is determined to be greater at a low gear than at a high gear under a same given brake pedal opening degree; and controlling the vehicle to perform energy recovery according to the coasting energy recovery torque and the braking energy recovery torque (addressed in claim 1 above).
Regarding claim 17 which depends from claim 1, Zhang discloses a computer program product, having a computer program stored thereon, the program, when executed by a processor, implements the energy recovery control method for the vehicle according to claim 1 (col. 17, lines 19-28 discloses the computer).
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed 05/06/26 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive. Applicant argues on pages 9 and 10 for the technical feature of energy recovery based on gears. Where the claims do clearly state an energy recovery determination and that determination results in discovery of energy based on low or high gear this determination is not then used for energy recovery. The final line of the independent claim states “controlling the vehicle to perform energy recovery according to the coasting energy recovery torque and the braking energy recovery torque” which doesn’t require using a higher or lower gear or to attain the values previously determined only that calculations were made and now control is performed. As a result Zhang is very much performing these calculations and determining these values and then performing this control. Where arguments are made to the claims requiring multiple gears of a forward direction that is not found in the claim language. Zhang does monitor the gear position of which there is more than one and understands that gear position for the energy that has been calculated.
Conclusion
Applicant's amendment necessitated the new ground(s) of rejection presented in this Office action. Accordingly, THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. See MPEP § 706.07(a). Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action.
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GONZALO LAGUARDA
Primary Examiner
Art Unit 3747 email: gonzalo.laguarda@uspto.gov
/GONZALO LAGUARDA/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3747
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