DETAILED ACTION
This Office action is in response to the application filed on 25 November 2024 and Applicant’s species election filed on 08 June 2026.
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 based on an application filed in Japan on 13 December 2023. It is noted, however, that applicant has not filed a certified copy of the JP2023-210242 application as required by 37 CFR 1.55. It is noted that Applicant has requested, in the Application Data Sheet filed with this application, to have the certified copy of the foreign priority document retrieved by the Office through the priority document exchange (PDX). However, notices were sent on 13 May 2025, 08 June 2026 and 19 June 2026 indicating that the PDX retrieval was unsuccessful. It is further noted that Applicant bears the ultimate responsibility for ensuring that a copy of the foreign priority application is filed within the time period specified in 37 CFR 1.55(g)(1).
Election/Restrictions
Applicant’s election without traverse of species A in the reply filed on 08 June 2026 is acknowledged.
Claim 5 is withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to the nonelected species, there being no allowable generic or linking claim.
Claim Objections
Claims 3-4 are objected to because of the following informalities:
In claim 3, see p. 3 at line 17 and again at line 19, “AC” should be changed to “DC” because the first mode, as defined in claim 2, is one in which DC power is input and output by the semiconductor module.
In claim 4, see p. 4 at line 3, “second mode” should be changed to “fourth mode”.
In claim 4, see p. 4 at line 13, “shortened” should be changed to “shorted” or “short-circuited”.
Appropriate correction is required.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b):
(b) CONCLUSION.—The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph:
The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention.
Claims 2-4 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention.
Claim 2 recites, see p. 3, lines 3-5, “in the driving state, one of a plurality of modes is operated, and the plurality of modes includes ...”. It is noted that the transition term “includes” is interpreted as open-ended, such that the group of possible modes from which one mode is to be operated is interpreted to comprise any number of further modes than those listed at the end of the claim. Thus, the claim is understood to be stating that one of a plurality of modes is operated, which mode may be one of the specific four modes listed at the end of the claim, or which mode might be another mode that is not listed. As such, the claim is indefinite because it is not clear how to determine which possible modes of operation may or may not be included within the scope of the invention.
This will be interpreted to mean that the plurality of modes consist of the first through fourth modes that are expressly defined in claim 2. In applying the prior art, a prior art embodiment which operates in at least one of the four modes listed in the claim will be understood to anticipate the claim language.
To overcome the rejection, it is suggested that Applicant amend “includes” at line 5 of p. 3 to instead read “consist of”.
Claims 3-4 depend from claim 2 and thus inherit the above deficiency.
Claim Interpretation
The following is noted regarding the interpretation of claims 3 and 4:
Claim 3 recites, “wherein in the first mode ...” and goes on to define operation within the first mode from claim 2.
This will be interpreted such that under a condition in which the semiconductor is operated in a mode that is not the first mode, the limitations recited in claim 3 become inapplicable to the invention. In other words, when applying prior art to claim 3, below in this Office action, where an embodiment of the prior art is shown to anticipate claim 2 by teaching operation in one of the second through fourth modes, said prior art will be understood to anticipate claim 3 because the limitations therein do not apply to operation in any of the second through fourth modes.
Similarly, claim 4 recites “wherein in any of the second mode, the third mode, and the fourth mode ...” and goes on to define operation within such modes.
This will be interpreted in the manner stated above with respect to claim 3, mutatis mutandis.
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) 1-4 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) and 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by Zhou et al. (US 2022/0416660; hereinafter “Zhou”).
In re claim 1, Zhou discloses a semiconductor module (Figs. 3A-3B) comprising:
an external connection terminal (see citations for first through fourth connection terminal pairs, below);
a wiring connected to the external connection terminal (see various wirings shown connecting circuit nodes/terminals in Figs. 3A-3B); and
a full bridge circuit including a plurality of switching elements (S1-S4 forming a full-bridge based on connection terminals as explained below), wherein
the external connection terminal includes
a first connection terminal pair including a first terminal and a second terminal (Figs. 3A-3B: terminals An, Bn form a first connection terminal pair),
a second connection terminal pair including a third terminal and a fourth terminal (see current-routing junction (CRJ) 380.S.1: terminals N10, N25 form a second connection terminal pair),
a third connection terminal pair including a fifth terminal and a sixth terminal (see current flow control (CFC) 375.3: terminals N20, N19 form a third connection terminal pair), and
a fourth connection terminal pair including a seventh terminal and an eighth terminal (see CRJ 380A.2: terminals N6, N16 form a fourth connection terminal pair),
the wiring includes
a first wiring connecting the first terminal and the third terminal (Figs. 3A-3B: first terminal An is connected to third terminal N10 through wiring that, e.g., includes switch SW15, and nodes N1, N3),
a second wiring for connecting the second terminal and the eighth terminal (second terminal Bn is connected to eight terminal N16 through wiring that includes switch SW2 and nodes N13, N14, N26),
a third wiring for connecting the fourth terminal and the seventh terminal (fourth terminal N25 is connected to seventh terminal N6 through direct wiring),
a fourth wiring connected to the fifth terminal (fifth terminal N20 is connected to wiring including, e.g., switches SW5, SW7, SW16), and
a fifth wiring connected to the sixth terminal (sixth terminal N19 is connected to wiring including, e.g., switches SW4, SW6, SW16),
the full bridge circuit includes
a first vertical arm for connecting between the first wiring and the second wiring (Figs. 3A-3B: vertical arm including S1 and S2 connects between first wiring at N10 and second wiring at N12/N13), and
a second vertical arm connecting between the third wiring and the second wiring (vertical arm including S3 and S4 connects between third wiring at N6 and second wiring at N16),
the fourth wiring connects between a connecting point between an upper arm and a lower arm of the first vertical arm and the fifth terminal (Figs. 3A-3B: fourth wiring connects the connecting point N11 between first vertical arm S1/S2 and the fifth terminal N20), and
the fifth wiring connects between a connecting point between an upper arm and a lower arm of the second vertical arm and the sixth terminal (fifth wiring connects the connecting point N15 of second vertical arm S3/S4 and sixth terminal N19).
In re claim 2, Zhou discloses wherein the semiconductor module is set in a driving state, in which when the second connection terminal pair is short-circuited or electrically open (see Fig. 3C: column 392, conversion modes CM1, CM2, CM4, CM5, CM6 have switch SW1 closed, thus short-circuiting the second connection terminal pair N10/N25; conversion mode CM3 has switch SW1 open), and any two of the connection terminal pairs selected from among a group consisting of the first connection terminal pair, the third connection terminal pair, and the fourth connection terminal pair are connected to respective connecting destinations, which are different from each other, power input from one of the connecting destinations is output from another of the connecting destinations (See Fig. 3C: column 397, listing the terminal pairs connected to respective, different connecting destinations (i.e., input or outpout destination)), and
in the driving state, one of a plurality of modes is operated (Fig. 3C: column 392), and
the plurality of modes includes
a first mode, in which input DC power is converted into and output as a predetermined voltage (Fig. 3C: column 392, CM1-CM3 convert DC input power/voltage to DC output power/voltage),
a second mode, in which input DC power is converted into and output as AC power (Fig. 3C: column 392, CM4 converts DC input to AC output),
a third mode, in which input AC power is converted into and output as DC power (id. and [0025]: the conversion is bidirectional, thus CM4 may also convert AC input to DC output), and
one of a plurality modes is operated).
In re claim 3, on one hand, when Zhou’s module is operating in the second mode or third mode, claim 3 is anticipated by default because the limitations as to the first mode are inapplicable to such embodiments. However, Zhou additionally discloses that in the first mode, the connection destination of a first
In re claim 4, on one hand, when Zhou’s module is operating in the first mode, claim 4 is anticipated by default because the limitations as to the first mode are inapplicable to such embodiment. However, Zhou additionally discloses that in both the second mode and the third mode (Fig. 3C: CM4 is both second and third modes depending on which connection destination (AC or DC) is considered the input or the output), the connection destination on AC side is connected to the third connection terminal pair (Fig. 3C: in CM4, the third connection terminal pair N20, N19 is connected to AC input/output at Xn, Yn by way of the closed switches SW7, SW6), the connection destination on DC side is connected to one of the first connection terminal pair and the fourth connection terminal pair (Fig. 3C: in CM4, the first connection terminal pair An, Bn is connected to DC input/output), one of the first connection terminal pair and the fourth connection terminal pair is electrically opened (CM4: both first connection terminal pair An, Bn and fourth connection terminal pair N6, N16 are considered open because no switches directly connect either of these pairs of terminals), and the second connection terminal pair is shortened (CM4: switch SW1 is closed, shorting second connection terminal pair N10, N25).
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure:
WO 2023/147179 discloses an INTEGRATED POWER BLOCK capable of universal conversion between any combination of DC and AC powers.
US 2025/0233510 is the US national stage publication of the above WIPO document.
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/FRED E FINCH III/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2838
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