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 .
Priority
Acknowledgment is made of applicant’s claim for foreign priority under 35 U.S.C. 119 (a)-(d). The certified copy has been filed in parent Application No. KR10-2024-0089354, filed on 07/08/2024.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 11/12/2024 is in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner.
Application Status
This office action is issued in response to application filed 11/12/2024. Claims 1-20 are pending. Claims 1-20 are rejected. This action is non-final. A three-month Shortened Statutory Period for Response has been set.
Drawings
The drawings are objected to as failing to comply with 37 CFR 1.84(p)(5). Regarding Fig. 1, two distinct elements are labeled 106. Corrected drawing sheets in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(d), or amendment to the specification to add the reference character(s) in the description in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(b) are required in reply to the Office action to avoid abandonment of the application. Any amended replacement drawing sheet should include all of the figures appearing on the immediate prior version of the sheet, even if only one figure is being amended. Each drawing sheet submitted after the filing date of an application must be labeled in the top margin as either “Replacement Sheet” or “New Sheet” pursuant to 37 CFR 1.121(d). If the changes are not accepted by the examiner, the applicant will be notified and informed of any required corrective action in the next Office action. The objection to the drawings will not be held in abeyance.
Specification
The disclosure is objected to because of the following informalities:
Element 106 is defined twice in the specifications (which is also reflected in Fig. 1). In ¶[0039], 106 is a caliper; whereas in ¶[0044], 106 is defined as a “low DC-DC converter (LDC) 106”.
In ¶[0012 & 0023], the phrase “a low-voltage battery or am operation of an auxiliary load” is grammatically incorrect. The examiner suggests omitting “am”.
Appropriate correction is required.
Claim Objections
Claim 12 is objected to because of the following informality:
The phrase “a low-voltage battery or am operation of an auxiliary load” is grammatically incorrect. The examiner suggests omitting “am”.
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.
Claims 1-3, 5-7, 9-14, 16-18 and 20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. §103 as being unpatentable over the combination of Cox et al. (US 2024/0140259 A1, henceforth Cox) and Satoshi et al. (JP 2018/187964 A, henceforth Satoshi).
Regarding Claim 1, Cox teaches the limitations: a regenerative braking control device for an eco-friendly vehicle {Abstract}, the regenerative braking control device comprising: a memory storing computer-readable instructions; and one or more processors configured to access the memory and execute the instructions {¶[0003]}, wherein the instructions comprise: determining whether the eco-friendly vehicle is in a regenerative braking prohibition mode based on a state of charge (SOC) of a high-voltage battery, while a brake pedal sensor (BPS) signal is input {“FIG. 3C illustrates the battery charge rate reduces as the battery reaches the upper state of charge (SOC) limit, thus more braking power is required from the friction brakes during the 12-16 second interval. Battery charging is clipped to protect the battery at high State of Charge (SOC).”, ¶[0061]}; and performing regenerative braking, while simultaneously controlling one of a discharge from the high-voltage battery to a low-voltage battery {discharging high-voltage battery and charging low-voltage battery discussed in ¶[0071]} or an operation of an auxiliary load by the high-voltage battery according to an SOC of the low-voltage battery {off-loading excess energy to protect the battery: “detecting a regenerative braking event of the vehicle and activating a first electrical load to consume the energy from the regenerative braking event.”, ¶[0095]}.
Cox does not appear to explicitly recite the limitations: determining whether a performance of a brake pad has deteriorated when the eco-friendly vehicle is in the regenerative braking prohibition mode; and performing regenerative braking when it is determined that the performance of the brake pad has deteriorated.
However, Satoshi explicitly recites the limitations: performance of a brake pad has deteriorated when the eco-friendly vehicle is in the regenerative braking prohibition mode; and performing regenerative braking when it is determined that the performance of the brake pad has deteriorated {adding regenerative braking to mechanical braking to reduce brake wear: “That is, in a state where it is necessary to apply a friction braking force even when the brake pad 62b is in a high temperature state (a state in which the limitation of the friction braking force is prohibited), the braking system 104 performs battery discharge control (battery discharge control).) It is carried out. As a result, it is possible to switch to regenerative braking in the middle of friction braking, and the load on the friction braking device 106 is reduced, so that deterioration of commercial value can be suppressed.”, ¶[0056]; also cooperative braking discussed in ¶[0029, 0041, 0042]}.
Cox and Satoshi are analogous art because they both deal with regenerative braking.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, having the teachings of Cox and Satoshi before them, to modify the teachings of Cox to include the teachings of Satoshi to initiate cooperative braking, using both mechanical and regenerative braking, to reduce brake pad wear {¶[0029, 0041, 0042]}.
Regarding Claim 2, the combination of Cox and Satoshi discloses all the limitations of Claim 1, as discussed supra. In addition, Cox explicitly recites the limitation: wherein the instructions further comprise reducing a hydraulic brake amount by a regenerative braking amount generated by the regenerative braking {¶[0056], see excerpt in Claim 1}.
Regarding Claim 3, the combination of Cox and Satoshi discloses all the limitations of Claim 1, as discussed supra. In addition, Cox explicitly recites the limitation: wherein the instructions further comprise determining that the eco-friendly vehicle is in the regenerative braking prohibition mode {“applications will experience degraded regenerative braking when battery state of charge is over approximately 90%, or at high SOC (e.g., greater than 85%)”, ¶[0004]} when the SOC of the high-voltage battery is equal to or higher than a preset SOC {“detecting that the battery state of charge is above a first threshold level and activating a first electrical load prior to activation of the regenerative braking system to reduce the battery state of charge below the first threshold level…deactivating the first electrical load when the battery state of charge reaches a second threshold level, the second threshold level lower than the first threshold level. In some examples, the difference between the first and second threshold provides capacity for an expected regenerative braking event.”, ¶[0007]; “at high SOC and the regen limit could be increased to be closer to the brake light illumination threshold.”, ¶[0050]}.
Regarding Claim 5, the combination of Cox and Satoshi discloses all the limitations of Claim 1, as discussed supra. In addition, Cox explicitly recites the limitation: wherein the instructions further comprise controlling the discharge from the high-voltage battery {discharging high-voltage battery and charging low-voltage battery discussed in ¶[0071]} to the low-voltage battery {with respect to Fig. 2, activation of first electric load, 212, corresponds to reducing the transfer of energy to the primary battery} when the SOC of the low-voltage battery is equal to or less than a preset SOC {“applications will experience degraded regenerative braking when battery state of charge is over approximately 90%, or at high SOC (e.g., greater than 85%)”, ¶[0004]}.
Cox does not appear to explicitly recite the limitations: wherein the instructions further comprise controlling the discharge from the high-voltage battery to the low-voltage battery and simultaneously performing regenerative braking when the SOC of the low-voltage battery is equal to or less than a preset SOC.
However, Satoshi explicitly recites the limitations: wherein the instructions further comprise controlling the discharge from the high-voltage battery to the low-voltage battery {regenerative braking combined with energy use by “power consumption means” (¶[0027]) is described in ¶[0048]} and simultaneously performing regenerative braking {adding regenerative braking to mechanical braking to reduce brake wear: “That is, in a state where it is necessary to apply a friction braking force even when the brake pad 62b is in a high temperature state (a state in which the limitation of the friction braking force is prohibited), the braking system 104 performs battery discharge control (battery discharge control).) It is carried out. As a result, it is possible to switch to regenerative braking in the middle of friction braking, and the load on the friction braking device 106 is reduced, so that deterioration of commercial value can be suppressed.”, ¶[0056]; also cooperative braking discussed in ¶[0029, 0041, 0042]} when the SOC of the low-voltage battery is equal to or less than a preset SOC {“In step S8, the vehicle system is switched to the braking mode and battery discharge control is performed. Upon completion of the vehicle system braking mode, the process proceeds to step S 9. By performing the battery discharge control together, the battery 33 is brought into a state where it can be charged before the pad temperature becomes the first temperature or higher.”, ¶[0049] and Fig. 5}.
Regarding Claim 6, the combination of Cox and Satoshi discloses all the limitations of Claim 1, as discussed supra. In addition, Cox explicitly recites the limitation: wherein the instructions further comprise controlling the operation of the auxiliary load by the high-voltage battery {off-loading excess energy to protect the battery: “detecting a regenerative braking event of the vehicle and activating a first electrical load to consume the energy from the regenerative braking event.”, ¶[0095]} when the SOC of the low-voltage battery exceeds a preset SOC {“FIG. 3C illustrates the battery charge rate reduces as the battery reaches the upper state of charge (SOC) limit, thus more braking power is required from the friction brakes during the 12-16 second interval. Battery charging is clipped to protect the battery at high State of Charge (SOC).”, ¶[0061]}.
Cox does not appear to explicitly recite the limitations: wherein the instructions further comprise controlling the operation of the auxiliary load by the high-voltage battery and simultaneously performing regenerative braking when the SOC of the low-voltage battery exceeds a preset SOC.
However, Satoshi explicitly recites the limitations: wherein the instructions further comprise controlling the operation of the auxiliary load by the high-voltage battery and simultaneously performing regenerative braking {adding regenerative braking to mechanical braking to reduce brake wear: “That is, in a state where it is necessary to apply a friction braking force even when the brake pad 62b is in a high temperature state (a state in which the limitation of the friction braking force is prohibited), the braking system 104 performs battery discharge control (battery discharge control).) It is carried out. As a result, it is possible to switch to regenerative braking in the middle of friction braking, and the load on the friction braking device 106 is reduced, so that deterioration of commercial value can be suppressed.”, ¶[0056]; also cooperative braking discussed in ¶[0029, 0041, 0042]} when the SOC of the low-voltage battery exceeds a preset SOC {“In step S8, the vehicle system is switched to the braking mode and battery discharge control is performed. Upon completion of the vehicle system braking mode, the process proceeds to step S 9. By performing the battery discharge control together, the battery 33 is brought into a state where it can be charged before the pad temperature becomes the first temperature or higher.”, ¶[0049] and Fig. 5}.
Regarding Claim 7, the combination of Cox and Satoshi discloses all the limitations of Claim 1, as discussed supra. In addition, Cox explicitly recites the limitation: wherein the instructions further comprise performing regenerative braking {“FIG. 3C illustrates the battery charge rate reduces as the battery reaches the upper state of charge (SOC) limit, thus more braking power is required from the friction brakes during the 12-16 second interval. Battery charging is clipped to protect the battery at high State of Charge (SOC).”, ¶[0061]} when the SOC of the high-voltage battery is less than a preset SOC {“applications will experience degraded regenerative braking when battery state of charge is over approximately 90%, or at high SOC (e.g., greater than 85%)”, ¶[0004]}.
Regarding Claim 9, the combination of Cox and Satoshi discloses all the limitations of Claim 1, as discussed supra. In addition, Cox explicitly recites the limitation: wherein the instructions further comprise operating when the eco-friendly vehicle drives down a hill {¶[0028] and ¶[0054]}.
Regarding Claim 10, the combination of Cox and Satoshi discloses all the limitations of Claim 1, as discussed supra. In addition, Cox explicitly recites the limitation: wherein the auxiliary load includes at least one of a rear heating line, a heater, and an air-conditioner {“activating a first electrical load to consume the energy from the regenerative braking event”, Abstract}.
Regarding Claim 11, the combination of Cox and Satoshi discloses all the limitations of Claim 1, as discussed supra. In addition, Cox explicitly recites the limitation: wherein the instructions further comprise controlling an operation of the rear heating line among the auxiliary loads as a top priority and controlling the heater and air-conditioner according to an outside temperature {“activating a first electrical load to consume the energy from the regenerative braking event”, Abstract; prioritizing available energy use is well-known in the art of heating, cooling and ventilation; as is controlling heating and cooling elements based on various environmental temperatures}.
Regarding Claim 12, Cox teaches the limitations: a regenerative braking control method for an eco-friendly vehicle {Abstract}, the regenerative braking control method comprising: a first operation of determining, by a processor {¶[0003]}, whether the eco-friendly vehicle is in a regenerative braking prohibition mode based on a state of charge (SOC) of a high-voltage battery, while a brake pedal sensor (BPS) signal is input {“FIG. 3C illustrates the battery charge rate reduces as the battery reaches the upper state of charge (SOC) limit, thus more braking power is required from the friction brakes during the 12-16 second interval. Battery charging is clipped to protect the battery at high State of Charge (SOC).”, ¶[0061]}; performing regenerative braking, while simultaneously controlling one of a discharge from the high-voltage battery to a low-voltage battery {discharging high-voltage battery and charging low-voltage battery discussed in ¶[0071]} or [ by the high-voltage battery according to an SOC of the low-voltage battery {off-loading excess energy to protect the battery: “detecting a regenerative braking event of the vehicle and activating a first electrical load to consume the energy from the regenerative braking event.”, ¶[0095]}.
Cox does not appear to explicitly recite the limitations: a second operation of determining whether a performance of a brake pad has deteriorated when the eco-friendly vehicle is in the regenerative braking prohibition mode; and a third operation of performing regenerative braking when it is determined that the performance of the brake pad has deteriorated.
However, Satoshi explicitly recites the limitations: a second operation of determining whether a performance of a brake pad has deteriorated when the eco-friendly vehicle is in the regenerative braking prohibition mode; and a third operation of performing regenerative braking when it is determined that the performance of the brake pad has deteriorated {adding regenerative braking to mechanical braking to reduce brake wear: “That is, in a state where it is necessary to apply a friction braking force even when the brake pad 62b is in a high temperature state (a state in which the limitation of the friction braking force is prohibited), the braking system 104 performs battery discharge control (battery discharge control).) It is carried out. As a result, it is possible to switch to regenerative braking in the middle of friction braking, and the load on the friction braking device 106 is reduced, so that deterioration of commercial value can be suppressed.”, ¶[0056]; also cooperative braking discussed in ¶[0029, 0041, 0042]}.
Regarding Claim 13, the combination of Cox and Satoshi discloses all the limitations of Claim 12, as discussed supra. In addition, Cox explicitly recites the limitation: further comprising a fourth operation of reducing a hydraulic brake amount by a regenerative braking amount generated by the regenerative braking {¶[0056], see excerpt in Claim 1}.
Regarding Claim 14, the combination of Cox and Satoshi discloses all the limitations of Claim 12, as discussed supra. In addition, Cox explicitly recites the limitation: wherein, in the first operation, it is determined that the eco-friendly vehicle is in the regenerative braking prohibition mode {“applications will experience degraded regenerative braking when battery state of charge is over approximately 90%, or at high SOC (e.g., greater than 85%)”, ¶[0004]} when the SOC of the high-voltage battery is equal to or higher than a preset SOC {“detecting that the battery state of charge is above a first threshold level and activating a first electrical load prior to activation of the regenerative braking system to reduce the battery state of charge below the first threshold level…deactivating the first electrical load when the battery state of charge reaches a second threshold level, the second threshold level lower than the first threshold level. In some examples, the difference between the first and second threshold provides capacity for an expected regenerative braking event.”, ¶[0007]; “at high SOC and the regen limit could be increased to be closer to the brake light illumination threshold.”, ¶[0050]}.
Regarding Claim 16, the combination of Cox and Satoshi discloses all the limitations of Claim 12, as discussed supra. In addition, Cox explicitly recites the limitation: wherein the third operation includes controlling the discharge from the high-voltage battery {discharging high-voltage battery and charging low-voltage battery discussed in ¶[0071]} to the low-voltage battery {with respect to Fig. 2, activation of first electric load, 212, corresponds to reducing the transfer of energy to the primary battery}, when the SOC of the low-voltage battery is equal to or less than a preset SOC {“applications will experience degraded regenerative braking when battery state of charge is over approximately 90%, or at high SOC (e.g., greater than 85%)”, ¶[0004]}.
Cox does not appear to explicitly recite the limitations: wherein the third operation includes controlling the discharge from the high-voltage battery to the low-voltage battery and simultaneously performing regenerative braking, when the SOC of the low-voltage battery is equal to or less than a preset SOC.
However, Satoshi explicitly recites the limitations: wherein the third operation includes controlling the discharge from the high-voltage battery to the low-voltage battery {regenerative braking combined with energy use by “power consumption means” (¶[0027]) is described in ¶[0048]} simultaneously performing regenerative braking {adding regenerative braking to mechanical braking to reduce brake wear: “That is, in a state where it is necessary to apply a friction braking force even when the brake pad 62b is in a high temperature state (a state in which the limitation of the friction braking force is prohibited), the braking system 104 performs battery discharge control (battery discharge control).) It is carried out. As a result, it is possible to switch to regenerative braking in the middle of friction braking, and the load on the friction braking device 106 is reduced, so that deterioration of commercial value can be suppressed.”, ¶[0056]; also cooperative braking discussed in ¶[0029, 0041, 0042]}, when the SOC of the low-voltage battery is equal to or less than a preset SOC {“In step S8, the vehicle system is switched to the braking mode and battery discharge control is performed. Upon completion of the vehicle system braking mode, the process proceeds to step S 9. By performing the battery discharge control together, the battery 33 is brought into a state where it can be charged before the pad temperature becomes the first temperature or higher.”, ¶[0049] and Fig. 5}.
Regarding Claim 17, the combination of Cox and Satoshi discloses all the limitations of Claim 12, as discussed supra. In addition, Cox explicitly recites the limitation: wherein the third operation includes controlling the operation of the auxiliary load by the high-voltage battery {off-loading excess energy to protect the battery: “detecting a regenerative braking event of the vehicle and activating a first electrical load to consume the energy from the regenerative braking event.”, ¶[0095]} when the SOC of the low-voltage battery exceeds a preset SOC. {“applications will experience degraded regenerative braking when battery state of charge is over approximately 90%, or at high SOC (e.g., greater than 85%)”, ¶[0004]}.
Cox does not appear to explicitly recite the limitations: wherein the third operation includes controlling the operation of the auxiliary load by the high-voltage battery and simultaneously performing regenerative braking when the SOC of the low-voltage battery exceeds a preset SOC.
However, Satoshi explicitly recites the limitations: wherein the third operation includes controlling the operation of the auxiliary load by the high-voltage battery and simultaneously performing regenerative braking {adding regenerative braking to mechanical braking to reduce brake wear: “That is, in a state where it is necessary to apply a friction braking force even when the brake pad 62b is in a high temperature state (a state in which the limitation of the friction braking force is prohibited), the braking system 104 performs battery discharge control (battery discharge control).) It is carried out. As a result, it is possible to switch to regenerative braking in the middle of friction braking, and the load on the friction braking device 106 is reduced, so that deterioration of commercial value can be suppressed.”, ¶[0056]; also cooperative braking discussed in ¶[0029, 0041, 0042]} when the SOC of the low-voltage battery exceeds a preset SOC {“In step S8, the vehicle system is switched to the braking mode and battery discharge control is performed. Upon completion of the vehicle system braking mode, the process proceeds to step S 9. By performing the battery discharge control together, the battery 33 is brought into a state where it can be charged before the pad temperature becomes the first temperature or higher.”, ¶[0049] and Fig. 5}.
Regarding Claim 18, the combination of Cox and Satoshi discloses all the limitations of Claim 12, as discussed supra. In addition, Cox explicitly recites the limitation: wherein the first operation further includes performing regenerative braking {“FIG. 3C illustrates the battery charge rate reduces as the battery reaches the upper state of charge (SOC) limit, thus more braking power is required from the friction brakes during the 12-16 second interval. Battery charging is clipped to protect the battery at high State of Charge (SOC).”, ¶[0061]} when the SOC of the high-voltage battery is less than a preset SOC {“applications will experience degraded regenerative braking when battery state of charge is over approximately 90%, or at high SOC (e.g., greater than 85%)”, ¶[0004]}.
Regarding Claim 20, the combination of Cox and Satoshi discloses all the limitations of Claim 12, as discussed supra. In addition, Cox explicitly recites the limitation: wherein the regenerative braking control method of the eco-friendly vehicle is applied when driving downhill {¶[0028] and ¶[0054]}.
Claims 4, 8, 15 and 19 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. §103 as being unpatentable over the combination of Cox, Satoshi and Gaither et al. (US 2018/0134161 A1, henceforth Gaither).
Regarding Claim 4, the combination of Cox and Satoshi discloses all the limitations of Claim 1, as discussed supra. The combination of Cox and Satoshi does not appear to explicitly recite the limitation: wherein the instructions further comprise determining that the performance of the brake pad has deteriorated when an accumulated hydraulic brake amount (AHBA) is equal to or greater than a preset hydraulic brake amount (PHBA) based on a point in time at which the BPS signal is input.
However, Gaither explicitly recites the limitation: wherein the instructions further comprise determining that the performance of the brake pad has deteriorated when an accumulated hydraulic brake amount (AHBA) is equal to or greater than a preset hydraulic brake amount (PHBA) based on a point in time at which the BPS signal is input {“The memory stores a brake wear module including instructions that when executed by the one or more processors cause the one or more processors to identify whether brake wear of at least one of the friction brakes satisfies a threshold for modifying a deceleration pattern of the vehicle.”, ¶[0006], and “the vehicle may be equipped with sensors to measure wear of the brake pads, a monitoring component to track use of the friction brakes, acceleration sensors that identify an amount of braking force in relation to brake pedal stroke, and/or other means of assessing an amount of brake wear of the friction brakes. The adaptive control system uses the information about the brake wear to adjust activation of the regenerative brakes to compensate for the brake wear”, ¶[0018]}.
The combination of Cox and Satoshi along with Gaither are analogous art because they deal with regenerative braking systems.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, having the teachings of Cox, Satoshi and Gaither before them, to modify the teachings of the combination of Cox and Satoshi to include the teachings of Gaither to identify the degree of brake wear and use this information to compensate for brake wear in a dual regenerative and mechanical braking system {¶[0006] and ¶[0018]}.
Regarding Claim 8, the combination of Cox and Satoshi discloses all the limitations of Claim 1, as discussed supra. The combination of Cox and Satoshi does not appear to explicitly recite the limitations: wherein the instructions further comprise performing braking using only hydraulic brake force when an AHBA is less than a PHBA based on a point in time at which the BPS signal is input.
However, Gaither explicitly recites the limitation: wherein the instructions further comprise performing braking using only hydraulic brake force when an AHBA is less than a PHBA based on a point in time at which the BPS signal is input {“The memory stores a brake wear module including instructions that when executed by the one or more processors cause the one or more processors to identify whether brake wear of at least one of the friction brakes satisfies a threshold for modifying a deceleration pattern of the vehicle.”, ¶[0006], and “the vehicle may be equipped with sensors to measure wear of the brake pads, a monitoring component to track use of the friction brakes, acceleration sensors that identify an amount of braking force in relation to brake pedal stroke, and/or other means of assessing an amount of brake wear of the friction brakes. The adaptive control system uses the information about the brake wear to adjust activation of the regenerative brakes to compensate for the brake wear”, ¶[0018]}.
Regarding Claim 15, the combination of Cox and Satoshi discloses all the limitations of Claim 12, as discussed supra. The combination of Cox and Satoshi does not appear to explicitly recite the limitation: wherein, in the second operation, it is determined that the performance of the brake pad has deteriorated when an accumulated hydraulic brake amount (AHBA) is equal to or greater than a preset hydraulic brake amount (PHBA) based on a point in time at which the BPS signal is input.
However, Gaither explicitly recites the limitation: wherein, in the second operation, it is determined that the performance of the brake pad has deteriorated when an accumulated hydraulic brake amount (AHBA) is equal to or greater than a preset hydraulic brake amount (PHBA) based on a point in time at which the BPS signal is input {“The memory stores a brake wear module including instructions that when executed by the one or more processors cause the one or more processors to identify whether brake wear of at least one of the friction brakes satisfies a threshold for modifying a deceleration pattern of the vehicle.”, ¶[0006], and “the vehicle may be equipped with sensors to measure wear of the brake pads, a monitoring component to track use of the friction brakes, acceleration sensors that identify an amount of braking force in relation to brake pedal stroke, and/or other means of assessing an amount of brake wear of the friction brakes. The adaptive control system uses the information about the brake wear to adjust activation of the regenerative brakes to compensate for the brake wear”, ¶[0018]}.
Regarding Claim 19, the combination of Cox and Satoshi discloses all the limitations of Claim 12, as discussed supra. The combination of Cox and Satoshi does not appear to explicitly recite the limitations: wherein the second operation further includes performing braking using only hydraulic brake force when an AHBA is less than a PHBA based on a point in time at which the BPS signal is input.
However, Gaither explicitly recites the limitation: wherein the second operation further includes performing braking using only hydraulic brake force when an AHBA is less than a PHBA based on a point in time at which the BPS signal is input {“The memory stores a brake wear module including instructions that when executed by the one or more processors cause the one or more processors to identify whether brake wear of at least one of the friction brakes satisfies a threshold for modifying a deceleration pattern of the vehicle.”, ¶[0006], and “the vehicle may be equipped with sensors to measure wear of the brake pads, a monitoring component to track use of the friction brakes, acceleration sensors that identify an amount of braking force in relation to brake pedal stroke, and/or other means of assessing an amount of brake wear of the friction brakes. The adaptive control system uses the information about the brake wear to adjust activation of the regenerative brakes to compensate for the brake wear”, ¶[0018]}.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure:
US 2018/0134161 A1 – Adaptive control system for a two-pedal regenerative braking system that includes brake wear data supplied to a brake wear module, which is used to determine a suitable deceleration profile. The deceleration profile determines when a period of combined regenerative and mechanical braking begins, and when fully mechanical braking is initiated.
JP 2004225742 A – A regenerative braking system that takes into account brake wear in determining the timing and level of regenerative braking to apply.
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/R.E.G./Examiner, Art Unit 3665
/CHRISTIAN CHACE/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3665