DETAILED ACTION
This action is responsive to the following communications: Application filed on November 28, 2024.
Claims 1-10 are presented for Examination. Claim 1 is independent.
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 .
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of 35 U.S.C. 112(a):
(a) IN GENERAL.—The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor or joint inventor of carrying out the invention.
The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112:
The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor of carrying out his invention.
Claims 1-10 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(a) as failing to comply with the written description requirement.
Claim 1 recites “a topology circuit system of a hybrid device-based driving motor.” The term “hybrid device-based” is not defined in the specification beyond two specific embodiments disclosed at paragraphs [0011] and [0012]. In the first embodiment, the main bridge arm switches (T1, T4) are Si devices and the auxiliary bridge arm switches (T2, T3) are SiC/GaN devices. In the second embodiment, this arrangement is reversed. The specification does not disclose any other hybrid configurations, nor does it provide structural features, functional relationships, or design principles that would demonstrate possession of a broader genus of “hybrid device-based” systems. For example, there is no disclosure of mixed semiconductor types within a single bridge arm, hybrid combinations involving other wide-bandgap materials, or alternative topological arrangements that qualify as “hybrid.” The generic language therefore encompasses embodiments that were not described or possessed at the time of filing. See Regents of Univ. of Cal. v. Eli Lilly & Co., 119 F.3d 1559, 1566–68 (Fed. Cir. 1997); MPEP § 2163.I.A.
Dependent claims 2–10 inherit this deficiency through their dependency on claim 1.
Claims 2-3 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(a) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), first paragraph, as failing to comply with the enablement requirement. The claim(s) contains subject matter which was not described in the specification in such a way as to enable one skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and/or use the invention.
Claims 2 and 3 recite a resonant soft switching circuit having a fixed component topology (D1, L1, R3, C1, L2, R1, R2) applied identically to each of the four switch devices T1–T4. The specification acknowledges at paragraph [0024] that Si and SiC/GaN devices have fundamentally different electrical characteristics, including gate charge, threshold voltage, switching speed, and reverse recovery behavior. However, the specification provides no guidance regarding adaptation of the resonant circuit parameters (e.g., inductance values of L1/L2, capacitance of C1, resistance values of R1/R2/R3) to accommodate these differences. Soft-switching circuits are known to be sensitive to device parasitic and drive characteristics; a resonant network optimized for a Si IGBT may fail to achieve zero-voltage or zero-current switching when applied to a SiC MOSFET without parameter adjustment. The specification discloses current flow analysis only for
T1 (paragraph [0038]) and states summarily that T2/T3 operate “the same” (paragraph [0039]), without addressing whether identical component values can functionally achieve the claimed buffering, spike absorption, and common-mode suppression across both semiconductor types. Undue experimentation would therefore be required to practice the full scope of the claimed invention. See In re Wands, 858 F.2d 731, 737 (Fed. Cir. 1988); MPEP § 2164.01(a).
Additionally, claim 3 recites that “the second main circuit comprises the third resistor R3 and the inductor L1.” This is inconsistent with the specification, which uniformly describes inductor L1 as part of the first main circuit (connected between OUT_H and the gate terminal), while the second main circuit comprises R3 and inductor L2 (paragraphs [0007], [0026]; Figs. 1–3). Because the specification does not describe a second main circuit containing L1, the claim lacks written description support for this limitation. If applicant intended to claim the disclosed configuration, the claim contains an error that also raises indefiniteness concerns addressed below.
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.
Claim 3 is 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 pre-AIA the applicant regards as the invention.
Claim 3 recites that “the second main circuit comprises the third resistor R3 and the inductor L1.” However, the specification consistently describes inductor L1 as belonging to the first main circuit (between output terminal OUT_H and the gate of the switch device), while the second main circuit comprises resistor R3 and a different inductor, L2 (see paragraphs [0007], [0026]; Fig. 1). It is unclear whether applicant intends to claim:
(a) the second main circuit comprising R3 and L2 (as disclosed), in which case “L1” is a typographical error rendering the claim indefinite; or
(b) an alternative embodiment in which the second main circuit includes L1, in which case the claim is indefinite because no such embodiment is described or shown, and one skilled in the art cannot determine the metes and bounds of the claimed second main circuit.
Appropriate correction is requested.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 1-10 would be allowable if rewritten or amended to overcome the rejection(s) under 35 U.S.C. 112(a) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), first paragraph and claim 3 is for 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), 2nd paragraph, set forth in this Office action.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to MUHAMMAD S ISLAM whose telephone number is (571)272-8439. The examiner can normally be reached 9:30am to 6:00pm.
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/MUHAMMAD S ISLAM/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2837
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