DETAILED ACTION
Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status
1. The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
Notice of Amendments
2. The Examiner acknowledges the amended claims filed on 03/27/2026.
- Claims 1-2, 4-6, 9-10 and 14-15 have been amended.
- Claims 16-20 have been added.
Claim Interpretation
3. The examiner withdraws the 35 USC 112(f) claim interpretation since the claims have been amended to recite structure for the previously claimed units.
Response to Arguments
4. Applicant's arguments filed on 03/27/2026 with respect to claims 1-20 have been considered, but are moot in view of the new ground(s) of rejection as necessitated by Applicant’s amendment. The newly amended subject matter includes modifying timing limitations such as “decides/deciding, at an activation of the electronic apparatus, an operation mode” and deleting limitations such as “decides/deciding an operation mode from activation to shutdown of the electronic apparatus”, in independent claims 1, 14 and 15.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
5. 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.
6. Claims 1-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Nonaka (US Patent 6,507,195).
Regarding claim 1, Nonaka discloses an electronic apparatus (Electronic Apparatus/Battery-driven apparatus; see col. 3, lines 46-57 and col. 5, lines 34-43) comprising:
a first connector that connects an external apparatus including a plurality of batteries (Mounting and using removable batteries 1 as a drive source; see col. 3, lines 46-57 and col. 5, lines 34-43);
a second connector that receives power from the external apparatus (Mechatronic section 6; see figs. 1A-1B); and
a controller (CPU 10; see figs. 1A-1B) that obtains a parameter indicating an internal resistance of the external apparatus (Determines the internal resistance value Z of the batteries 1. At a step S2, the transistor 17 is turned on and off in accordance with predetermined timings to detect the battery voltage Vc1 during the open state and the battery voltage Vc2 during the loaded state, and a calculation is executed pursuant to the above described Equation (7), to obtain the internal resistance Z of the batteries 1; see fig. 7; col. 8, lines 22-27) and a power supply capability of a battery mounted to the external apparatus (Determine battery consumption. At a step S4, the internal resistance value Z calculated at the step S2 and the value IM of the current flowing through the mechatronic section and which has been obtained at the step S3 are used to calculate the voltage VM at the mechatronic section 6 in accordance with Equation (8), thereby determining how the batteries are consumed; see fig. 7; col. 8, lines 34-45), and decides, at an activation of the electronic apparatus (Checking battery status before photographing, see col. 7, lines 1-9), an operation mode of the electronic apparatus based on a combination of the parameter and the power supply capability (Deciding a Lock mode or a Warning mode based on the detected Internal Resistance Z and the Battery Consumption Capability VM; see fig. 7, col. 8, lines 46-67 and col. 3, lines 46-57).
Regarding claim 2, Nonaka discloses everything claimed as applied above (see claim 1). In addition, Nonaka discloses the controller starts operation by power supplied from the external apparatus via the second connector, and supplies power to the external apparatus (Detect the battery voltage Vc1 during the open state and the battery voltage Vc2 during the loaded state; see col. 8, lines 22-28).
Regarding claim 3, Nonaka discloses everything claimed as applied above (see claim 2). In addition, Nonaka discloses the external apparatus starts operation by power supplied from the electronic apparatus in response to the external apparatus supplying power to the electronic apparatus (The current IM flowing through the mechatronic section 6, that is, the current consumption of the camera is read out and obtained; see col. 8, lines 29-31).
Regarding claim 4, Nonaka discloses everything claimed as applied above (see claim 1). In addition, Nonaka discloses the operation mode is maintained from the activation of the electronic apparatus until the electronic apparatus is shut down (If the current battery check result is affirmative for the batteries for which the warning was issued during the last battery check, it is determined that the batteries only appear to be temporarily recovered and the warning is issued again (the step S9); see col. 9, lines 4-9).
Regarding claim 5, Nonaka discloses everything claimed as applied above (see claim 14). In addition, Nonaka discloses the controller decides the operation mode based on a combination of a result obtained by comparing the parameter with a threshold and the power supply capability (The internal resistance value Z calculated at the step S2 and the value IM of the current flowing through the mechatronic section and which has been obtained at the step S3 are used to calculate the voltage VM at the mechatronic section 6. The calculated voltage VM is compared with the minimum required voltage VM0 of the camera to determine that the batteries 1 are not exhausted if VM>VM0, while determining that the batteries 1 are exhausted if VM<VM0; see col. 8, lines 34-43).
Regarding claim 6, Nonaka discloses everything claimed as applied above (see claim 14). In addition, Nonaka discloses the controller decides the operation mode according to a battery having a low power supply capability when power supply capabilities of the plurality of batteries are different (Deciding a lock mode when the batteries are exhausted; see fig. 7 and col. 8, lines 46-48. When an operation of conducting and stopping this current is repeated many times, the batteries 1 are consumed to cause voltage characteristics to vary as shown in FIGS. 3A and 3B. Furthermore, this variation varies significantly among batteries (such a variation is shown in FIGS. 3A and 3B). The battery-driven apparatus according to the present invention checks the batteries for exhaustion taking this point into account; see col. 6, lines 34-42).
Regarding claim 7, Nonaka discloses everything claimed as applied above (see claim 5). In addition, Nonaka discloses the controller selects a first operation mode in a case where the parameter is smaller than the threshold (Selecting a warning mode when VM<VM0; see col. 8, lines 34-43 and fig. 7), and selects a second operation mode in which a function of the electronic apparatus is restricted more than the first operation mode in a case where the parameter is larger than the threshold (Selecting a lock mode when VM>VM0; see col. 8, lines 34-43 and fig. 7).
Regarding claim 8, Nonaka discloses everything claimed as applied above (see claim 1). In addition, Nonaka discloses the plurality of batteries include a first battery and a second battery having the same shape (A plurality of alkaline or lithium batteries; see fig. 14 and col. 6, lines 25-29).
Regarding claim 9, Nonaka discloses everything claimed as applied above (see claim 1). In addition, Nonaka discloses the controller notifies a user of a function restricted according to the combination of the parameter and the power supply capability (At a step S9, a display showing how the batteries 1 are consumed or a warning display is displayed on the display section 5 to warn the user 51; see fig. 7 and col. 8, lines 50-53).
Regarding claim 10, Nonaka discloses everything claimed as applied above (see claim 9). In addition, Nonaka discloses the controller notifies a user that the function restricted according to the combination of the parameter and the power supply capability executable by attaching any of the plurality of batteries to the electronic apparatus (At a step S9, a display showing how the batteries 1 are consumed or a warning display is displayed on the display section 5 to warn the user 51; see fig. 7 and col. 8, lines 50-53. Displaying the warning when using removable batteries as a drive source; col. 3, lines 46-57).
Regarding claim 11, Nonaka discloses everything claimed as applied above (see claim 9). In addition, Nonaka discloses in a case where the electronic apparatus is a camera, the restricted function includes at least one of a continuous shooting speed, moving image recording (At the step S6, the camera operations are prohibited; see fig. 7 and col. 8, lines 46-48), a communication function, and a cooling fan.
Regarding claim 12, Nonaka discloses everything claimed as applied above (see claim 9). In addition, Nonaka discloses in a case where the electronic apparatus is a camera, the restricted function is a function of an accessory connected to the camera (When the characteristics of the batteries 1 are detected to find that the voltage is low or the internal resistance Z has increased, the transistor to be oscillated is switched from 31 to 30 to enable appropriate stroboscope control depending on the conditions of the batteries 1; see col. 10, lines 31-36).
Regarding claim 13, Nonaka discloses everything claimed as applied above (see claim 1). In addition, Nonaka discloses in a case where the electronic apparatus is a camera, the external apparatus is a battery grip that can be connected to and supply power to the camera (Using removable batteries 1 as a drive source; see col. 3, lines 46-57 and col. 5, lines 34-43 and figs. 5A-5C).
Regarding claim 14, Nonaka discloses a control method for an electronic apparatus, wherein the electronic apparatus (Electronic Apparatus/Battery-driven apparatus; see col. 3, lines 46-57 and col. 5, lines 34-43) includes:
a first connector that connects an external apparatus including a plurality of batteries (Mounting and using removable batteries 1 as a drive source; see col. 3, lines 46-57 and col. 5, lines 34-43), and
a second connector that receives power from the external apparatus (Mechatronic section 6; see figs. 1A-1B); and wherein the control method includes:
obtaining a parameter indicating an internal resistance of the external apparatus (Determines the internal resistance value Z of the batteries 1. At a step S2, the transistor 17 is turned on and off in accordance with predetermined timings to detect the battery voltage Vc1 during the open state and the battery voltage Vc2 during the loaded state, and a calculation is executed pursuant to the above described Equation (7), to obtain the internal resistance Z of the batteries 1; see fig. 7; col. 8, lines 22-27) and a power supply capability of a battery mounted to the external apparatus (Determine battery consumption. At a step S4, the internal resistance value Z calculated at the step S2 and the value IM of the current flowing through the mechatronic section and which has been obtained at the step S3 are used to calculate the voltage VM at the mechatronic section 6 in accordance with Equation (8), thereby determining how the batteries are consumed; see fig. 7; col. 8, lines 34-45); and deciding, at an activation of the electronic apparatus (Checking battery status before photographing, see col. 7, lines 1-9), an operation mode of the electronic apparatus based on a combination of the parameter(Deciding a Lock mode or a Warning mode based on the detected Internal Resistance Z and the Battery Consumption Capability VM; see fig. 7, col. 8, lines 46-67 and col. 3, lines 46-57).
Regarding claim 15, Nonaka discloses a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing a program for causing a computer to execute a control method for an electronic apparatus (The CPU 10 executes this calculation in accordance with a program stored in a ROM; see col. 7, lines 34-40), wherein the electronic apparatus (Electronic Apparatus/Battery-driven apparatus; see col. 3, lines 46-57 and col. 5, lines 34-43) includes:
a first connector that connects an external apparatus including a plurality of batteries (Mounting and using removable batteries 1 as a drive source; see col. 3, lines 46-57 and col. 5, lines 34-43), and
a second connector that receives power from the external apparatus (Mechatronic section 6; see figs. 1A-1B); and wherein the control method includes:
obtaining a parameter indicating an internal resistance of the external apparatus (Determines the internal resistance value Z of the batteries 1. At a step S2, the transistor 17 is turned on and off in accordance with predetermined timings to detect the battery voltage Vc1 during the open state and the battery voltage Vc2 during the loaded state, and a calculation is executed pursuant to the above described Equation (7), to obtain the internal resistance Z of the batteries 1; see fig. 7; col. 8, lines 22-27) and a power supply capability of a battery mounted to the external apparatus (Determine battery consumption. At a step S4, the internal resistance value Z calculated at the step S2 and the value IM of the current flowing through the mechatronic section and which has been obtained at the step S3 are used to calculate the voltage VM at the mechatronic section 6 in accordance with Equation (8), thereby determining how the batteries are consumed; see fig. 7; col. 8, lines 34-45); and deciding, at an activation of the electronic apparatus (Checking battery status before photographing, see col. 7, lines 1-9), an operation mode of the electronic apparatus based on a combination of the parameter and the power supply capability (Deciding a Lock mode or a Warning mode based on the detected Internal Resistance Z and the Battery Consumption Capability VM; see fig. 7, col. 8, lines 46-67 and col. 3, lines 46-57).
Regarding claim 16, Nonaka discloses everything claimed as applied above (see claim 1). In addition, Nonaka discloses the controller obtains the parameter and the power supply capability by communicating with the external apparatus via the first connector (Obtaining internal resistance Z and battery voltage VM through the connection to batteries 1; see figs. 1A-1B).
Regarding claim 17, Nonaka discloses everything claimed as applied above (see claim 16). In addition, Nonaka discloses the controller obtains the parameter and the power supply capability after the controller supplies power to the external apparatus (The current IM flowing through the mechatronic section 6, that is, the current consumption of the camera is read out and obtained; see col. 8, lines 29-31).
Regarding claim 18, Nonaka discloses everything claimed as applied above (see claim 1). In addition, Nonaka discloses the parameter indicates an internal resistance of the external apparatus related to power loss due to wiring resistance and other internal resistances of the external apparatus (Detect the battery voltage Vc1 during the open state and the battery voltage Vc2 during the loaded state, and a calculation is executed pursuant to the above-described Equation (7), to obtain the internal resistance Z of the batteries 1. The internal resistance value Z calculated at the step S2 and the value IM of the current flowing through the mechatronic section and which has been obtained at the step S3 are used to calculate the voltage VM at the mechatronic section 6 in accordance with Equation (8), thereby determining how the batteries are consumed; see fig. 7; col. 8; lines 22-45).
Regarding claim 19, Nonaka discloses everything claimed as applied above (see claim 1). In addition, Nonaka discloses the parameter is determined according to at least one of a thickness and a length of a power source line of the external apparatus (At a step S5, if it is determined at the step S4 that the batteries 1 are exhausted; see fig. 7 and col. 8, lines 46-53).
Regarding claim 20, Nonaka discloses everything claimed as applied above (see claim 1). In addition, Nonaka discloses the parameter indicates one of a plurality of internal-resistance levels of the external apparatus (Determines the internal resistance value Z of the batteries 1 and the current consumption of the mechatronic section to issue, for consumed batteries that do not achieve a predetermined performance, a warning indicating battery exhaustion, while simultaneously prohibiting camera operations; see col. 8, lines 9-14).
Conclusion
7. 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.
8. Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to CYNTHIA CALDERON whose telephone number is (571)270-3580. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 9:00 AM-5:00 PM.
Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, TWYLER HASKINS can be reached at (571)272-7406. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/CYNTHIA CALDERON/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2639 04/07/2026