DETAILED ACTION
Claims 1-10 are currently pending and have been examined in this application. This is the first action on the merits.
The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
This communication is in response to the application filed 12/11/2024.
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.
Claim 6 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 6 claims “subdivided into a minimum charging operating temperature, a maximum charging operating temperature, a minimum charging operating temperature, and a maximum charging operating temperature.” The repetition of the terms a minimum charging operating temperature and a maximum charging operating temperature renders the claim indefinite such that it is unclear if this is intended to recite separate temperatures or if the terms are merely repeated through clerical error. The Claim will be further interpreted under the latter assumption.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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.
Claim(s) 1-10 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Dow (US20220203861) in view of Prasad (US20260025010) further in view of Matsuda (WO2024122329).
Claim 1:
Dow explicitly teaches:
A method of electric vehicle (EV) battery nominal zone-aware charging communication, executed by a supply equipment communication controller (SECC) of an electric vehicle supply equipment (EVSE), the SECC establishing a communication connection with an EV Communication Controller (EVCC) of an EV, and the SECC executing a dynamic control mode, and
(Dow) – “The present invention is applicable to communication between an electric vehicle (EV2) and an electric vehicle supply equipment (EVSE).” (Para 0031)
“An EVCC is an in-vehicle system that implements communication between an EV and a supply equipment communication controller (SECC) in order to support specific functions. These specific functions include input and output channel control, encryption, data transfer between a vehicle and an SECC, and the like…An SECC is an entity capable of communicating with one or multiple EVCCs and interacting with a secondary actor.” (Para 0038-0041)
“The EVSE 200 may be configured to include an off-board charger 210, an HMI 220, an SECC 230, and a payment unit 240.” (Para 0115)
“The off-board charger 210 exchanges commands and/or information related to the charging or discharge schedule with the SECC 230. To this end, the off-board charger 210 may be configured to further include a control chip that processes commands and/or information transmitted to the SECC 230 or received from SECC 230.” (Para 0118)
Examiner Note: Per BRI, dynamic control mode may correspond with any control.
the method of EV nominal zone-aware charging communication comprising the following steps: (a) receiving a service selection message from the EVCC to confirm that a battery of the EV is to be charged or discharged [in a DC bidirectional power transfer charge/discharge mode or in an AC bidirectional power transfer charge/discharge mode];
(Dow) – “The communicator may be a hardware element configured to transmit a message related to the charging or discharge schedule to the EVCC 150 or receive a message related to the charging or discharge schedule from the EVCC 150 on the basis of an agreed communication method, e.g., PLC.” (Para 0130)
“The EVSE 200 performs authentication processing to check whether the EV 100 is subject to charge or discharge. For example, the SECC 230 and the EVCC 150 exchange their IDs. The SECC 230 may deliver an ID (contract ID) of an EVCC associated with its own ID (EVSE ID) to the power grid operation server 300.” (Para 0175)
Examiner Note: Bracketed text not explicitly taught by primary reference, but is taught by non-primary reference later in the rejection. This notation will be used throughout the rejection unless otherwise stated.
(b) receiving from the EVCC a battery characteristics report request message for the battery containing a battery type element, a battery nominal zone boundary estimation method and a battery operating temperature, or either one of a nominal zone boundary state of charge (SOC) and a discharge curve parameter;
(Dow) – “The communicator may be a hardware element configured to transmit a message related to the charging or discharge schedule to the EVCC 150 or receive a message related to the charging or discharge schedule from the EVCC 150 on the basis of an agreed communication method, e.g., PLC.” (Para 0130)
“The EVSE 200 performs authentication processing to check whether the EV 100 is subject to charge or discharge. For example, the SECC 230 and the EVCC 150 exchange their IDs. The SECC 230 may deliver an ID (contract ID) of an EVCC associated with its own ID (EVSE ID) to the power grid operation server 300.” (Para 0175)
“When the SECC 230 delivers the ID of the EVCC 150 associated with its own ID (EVSE ID) to the power grid operation server 300, the power grid operation server 300 may participate in the authentication and authorization processing for the EV 100.” (Para 0177)
“The check of the battery status is a necessary procedure for setting up a discharge schedule. Information for the discharge schedule setup may include, for example, information related to the capacity of a battery (Bat_kWh), information related to the voltage of a battery (Bat_voltage), information related to the current SOC value of a battery (Bat_SOC), and the like.” (Para 0179)
“The state of charge (SOC) is utilized as a criterion for determining whether the vehicle battery can be currently discharged. For example, the OBC 120 determines whether the current SOC value falls within a preset dischargeable SOC range.” (Para 0244)
Examiner Note: Per BRI, a nominal zone boundary state of charge corresponds with a preset dischargeable SOC range. As written, given the recitation of alternative limitations, this corresponds with battery characteristics report request message.
(c) based on the messages received from the EVCC, [estimating a nominal zone of the battery for charging and] discharging and planning a charging schedule for EV battery nominal zone-aware charging; and
(Dow) – “The communicator may be a hardware element configured to transmit a message related to the charging or discharge schedule to the EVCC 150 or receive a message related to the charging or discharge schedule from the EVCC 150 on the basis of an agreed communication method, e.g., PLC.” (Para 0130)
“The EVSE 200 performs authentication processing to check whether the EV 100 is subject to charge or discharge. For example, the SECC 230 and the EVCC 150 exchange their IDs. The SECC 230 may deliver an ID (contract ID) of an EVCC associated with its own ID (EVSE ID) to the power grid operation server 300.” (Para 0175)
“When the SECC 230 delivers the ID of the EVCC 150 associated with its own ID (EVSE ID) to the power grid operation server 300, the power grid operation server 300 may participate in the authentication and authorization processing for the EV 100.” (Para 0177)
“The check of the battery status is a necessary procedure for setting up a discharge schedule. Information for the discharge schedule setup may include, for example, information related to the capacity of a battery (Bat_kWh), information related to the voltage of a battery (Bat_voltage), information related to the current SOC value of a battery (Bat_SOC), and the like.” (Para 0179)
“Subsequently, in operation 514, after checking the battery status, a process of setting up a charge or discharge schedule is performed.” (Para 0180)
“The charge schedule setup may be a target setting related to charging. The target setting related to the charging may be to set a time related to a charge process, the amount of energy charge, a charging method, etc. The charging method setting may be to select a quick charging method and/or the cheapest charging method.” (Para 0181)
“The discharge schedule setup may be a target setting related to discharging. The target setting related to the discharging may be to set a time related to a discharge process, the amount of energy discharge, a discharging method, etc.” (Para 0182)
(d) during the charging and discharging of the battery, the SECC receiving from the EVCC a present SOC, a present temperature, a present voltage, and a present current of the battery in order to execute the charging schedule for the EV battery nominal zone-aware charging.
(Dow) – “An EVCC is an in-vehicle system that implements communication between an EV and a supply equipment communication controller (SECC) in order to support specific functions. These specific functions include input and output channel control, encryption, data transfer between a vehicle and an SECC, and the like…An SECC is an entity capable of communicating with one or multiple EVCCs and interacting with a secondary actor.” (Para 0038-0041)
“The check of the battery status is a necessary procedure for setting up a discharge schedule. Information for the discharge schedule setup may include, for example, information related to the capacity of a battery (Bat_kWh), information related to the voltage of a battery (Bat_voltage), information related to the current SOC value of a battery (Bat_SOC), and the like.” (Para 0179)
“Time setting related to the discharge process may be to reserve and set a discharge time. The discharge time includes a discharge start time and a discharge finish time. The setting of the amount of energy discharge may be to set a battery current, a battery voltage, the amount of battery power, etc.” (Para 0184)
“When communication setup between the EVCC 150, the SECC 230, and the PGCC 310 is completed, the entities 120, 140, 150, 210, 230, and 300 exchange messages as shown in FIG. 6.” (Para 0197)
“The messages Bat_kWh, Bat_voltage, and Bat_SOC are delivered from the BMS 160 to the HMI 140, and the HMI 140 displays and provides the messages Bat_kWh, Bat_voltage, and Bat_SOC to the vehicle user to set up the discharge schedule. Also, the messages Bat_kWh, Bat_voltage, and Bat_SOC are delivered from the BMS 160 to the OBC 120.” (Para 0236)
“The message Bat_voltage may indicate or include battery voltage information. The OBC 120 determines whether the battery voltage is abnormal using the battery voltage information, and then calculates the discharge time.” (Para 0239)
“The OBC 120 determines whether the battery voltage is abnormal at high temperature in summer using the battery voltage information, and the determination result is utilized to calculate the discharge time (the discharge start time and the discharge finish time).” (Para 0240)
“The message Bat_SOC may indicate or include information related to the current state of charge of the vehicle battery.” (Para 0242)
“The state of charge (SOC) is utilized as a criterion for determining whether the vehicle battery can be currently discharged. For example, the OBC 120 determines whether the current SOC value falls within a preset dischargeable SOC range.” (Para 0244)
Dow does not explicitly teach:
in a DC bidirectional power transfer charge/discharge mode or in an AC bidirectional power transfer charge/discharge mode… estimating a nominal zone of the battery for charging and
Prasad, in the same field of endeavor of battery charging, teaches:
in a DC bidirectional power transfer charge/discharge mode or in an AC bidirectional power transfer charge/discharge mode
(Prasad) - “DC-DC CONVERTER SYSTEM (30): the DC-DC converter system 30 shown schematically in FIG. 2 may be configured as a matched pair (or plurality/n-tuple) of isolated DC-DC converters capable of series or parallel operation. The DC-DC converter system 30 as constructed herein provides a flexible architecture based on modular “building blocks” of low-voltage unidirectional or bidirectional converters to output low-voltage or high-voltage depending on the voltages of the donor EV 12D and recipient EV 12R. For illustrative consistency, low-voltage as used in the following examples is a maximum or rated voltage about 400V and high-voltage is a maximum or rated voltage about 800V, without limiting the teachings to such nominal maximum voltages.” (Para 0044)
Therefore, it would be obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to have modified the vehicle-to-grid communication of Dow with the converter system of Prasad. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to make these modifications with a reasonable expectation of success, because “The disclosed architecture and charging strategy enables a high-voltage energy transfer to occur between the donor and recipient.” (Prasad Para 0003)
Prasad does not explicitly teach:
estimating a nominal zone of the battery for charging and
Matsuda, in the same field of endeavor of battery charging, teaches:
estimating a nominal zone of the battery for charging and
(Matsuda) – “The charging plan creation unit 17 creates a charging plan in which deterioration is suppressed compared to the charging pattern of the actual charging and discharging pattern, based on the charging time of the actual charging and discharging pattern, the ideal SOC usage range, the charging deterioration characteristic map 23, and the storage deterioration characteristic map 25. Specifically, the charging plan creation unit 17 creates a charging plan in which the deterioration amount is minimized when charging from the lower limit SOC to the upper limit SOC of the ideal SOC usage range during the charging time of the actual charging and discharging pattern. An example of creating an optimal charging plan is described below.” (Para 0039)
“The charging plan creation unit 17 sets the lower limit SOC of the ideal SOC usage range as the charging start SOC, and the upper limit SOC of the ideal SOC usage range as the charging target SOC. The charging plan creation unit 17 sets multiple nodes at a predetermined interval within the SOC interval between the charging target SOC and the charging start SOC. The charging plan creation unit 17 sets multiple nodes at a predetermined interval within the charging period of the actual charging and discharging pattern.” (Para 0040)
“When the long life mode is selected, the display SOC generation unit 111 causes the display unit 30 to display the remaining battery charge, which is obtained by normalizing the ideal SOC usage range to a predetermined numerical range. FIG. 8 is a diagram showing an example of normalization of the display SOC. The SOC range on the left indicates the SOC range corresponding to the actual capacity of the battery pack 50. In the example shown in FIG. 8, the ideal SOC usage range is set to a range of 30-80. The SOC range on the right indicates the display SOC range. In the example shown in FIG. 8, 30-80 on the actual SOC scale is normalized to a range of 0-100 to set the display SOC range. The ideal SOC usage range on the actual SOC scale may be converted to an α-β range with a margin. α may be set to 10%, for example. β may be set to 90%, for example. In this embodiment, the concept of displaying the normalized battery remaining amount also includes displaying the battery remaining amount on the display unit 30 at the upper limit of the ideal SOC usage range when the SOC corresponding to the actual capacity of the battery pack 50 exceeds the upper limit of the ideal SOC usage range, displaying the battery remaining amount on the display unit 30 at the lower limit of the ideal SOC usage range when the actual SOC falls below the lower limit of the ideal SOC usage range, and displaying the actual SOC as the battery remaining amount on the display unit 30 when the actual SOC falls between the upper and lower limits of the ideal SOC usage range.” (Para 0051)
Therefore, it would be obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to have modified the vehicle-to-grid communication of Dow with the degradation suppression system of Matsuda. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to make these modifications with a reasonable expectation of success, in order to “[calculate] a recommended SOC usage range in which deterioration is suppressed compared to the actual SOC usage range” (Matsuda Abstract)
Claim 2:
Dow in combination with the references relied upon in Claim 1 teach those respective limitations. Dow does not explicitly teach the following limitations in full. Matsuda further teaches:
wherein in step (b), when the battery nominal zone boundary estimation method is a default SOC battery nominal zone estimation method, a boundary of the battery nominal zone of the battery is further set to be a lower boundary SOC value and an upper boundary SOC value, so as to avoid the battery SOC being lower than the lower boundary SOC value or higher than the upper boundary SOC value during charging and discharging of the battery.
(Matsuda) – “The charging plan creation unit 17 creates a charging plan in which deterioration is suppressed compared to the charging pattern of the actual charging and discharging pattern, based on the charging time of the actual charging and discharging pattern, the ideal SOC usage range, the charging deterioration characteristic map 23, and the storage deterioration characteristic map 25. Specifically, the charging plan creation unit 17 creates a charging plan in which the deterioration amount is minimized when charging from the lower limit SOC to the upper limit SOC of the ideal SOC usage range during the charging time of the actual charging and discharging pattern. An example of creating an optimal charging plan is described below.” (Para 0039)
“The charging plan creation unit 17 sets the lower limit SOC of the ideal SOC usage range as the charging start SOC, and the upper limit SOC of the ideal SOC usage range as the charging target SOC. The charging plan creation unit 17 sets multiple nodes at a predetermined interval within the SOC interval between the charging target SOC and the charging start SOC. The charging plan creation unit 17 sets multiple nodes at a predetermined interval within the charging period of the actual charging and discharging pattern.” (Para 0040)
“When the long life mode is selected, the display SOC generation unit 111 causes the display unit 30 to display the remaining battery charge, which is obtained by normalizing the ideal SOC usage range to a predetermined numerical range. FIG. 8 is a diagram showing an example of normalization of the display SOC. The SOC range on the left indicates the SOC range corresponding to the actual capacity of the battery pack 50. In the example shown in FIG. 8, the ideal SOC usage range is set to a range of 30-80. The SOC range on the right indicates the display SOC range. In the example shown in FIG. 8, 30-80 on the actual SOC scale is normalized to a range of 0-100 to set the display SOC range. The ideal SOC usage range on the actual SOC scale may be converted to an α-β range with a margin. α may be set to 10%, for example. β may be set to 90%, for example. In this embodiment, the concept of displaying the normalized battery remaining amount also includes displaying the battery remaining amount on the display unit 30 at the upper limit of the ideal SOC usage range when the SOC corresponding to the actual capacity of the battery pack 50 exceeds the upper limit of the ideal SOC usage range, displaying the battery remaining amount on the display unit 30 at the lower limit of the ideal SOC usage range when the actual SOC falls below the lower limit of the ideal SOC usage range, and displaying the actual SOC as the battery remaining amount on the display unit 30 when the actual SOC falls between the upper and lower limits of the ideal SOC usage range.” (Para 0051)
Therefore, it would be obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to have modified the vehicle-to-grid communication of Dow with the degradation suppression system of Matsuda. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to make these modifications with a reasonable expectation of success, in order to “[calculate] a recommended SOC usage range in which deterioration is suppressed compared to the actual SOC usage range” (Matsuda Abstract)
Claim 3:
Dow in combination with the references relied upon in Claim 1 teach those respective limitations. Dow further teaches:
wherein in step (b), [when the battery nominal zone boundary estimation method is a reported SOC nominal zone boundary estimation method], SOC values of a boundary of the battery nominal zone of the battery are further obtained from a battery characteristics report request message sent by the EVCC for calculating the battery nominal zone of the battery, so as to avoid a charging/discharging profile of the battery exceeding the boundary of the battery nominal zone of the battery during charging/discharging the battery.
(Dow) – “The communicator may be a hardware element configured to transmit a message related to the charging or discharge schedule to the EVCC 150 or receive a message related to the charging or discharge schedule from the EVCC 150 on the basis of an agreed communication method, e.g., PLC.” (Para 0130)
“The EVSE 200 performs authentication processing to check whether the EV 100 is subject to charge or discharge. For example, the SECC 230 and the EVCC 150 exchange their IDs. The SECC 230 may deliver an ID (contract ID) of an EVCC associated with its own ID (EVSE ID) to the power grid operation server 300.” (Para 0175)
“When the SECC 230 delivers the ID of the EVCC 150 associated with its own ID (EVSE ID) to the power grid operation server 300, the power grid operation server 300 may participate in the authentication and authorization processing for the EV 100.” (Para 0177)
“The check of the battery status is a necessary procedure for setting up a discharge schedule. Information for the discharge schedule setup may include, for example, information related to the capacity of a battery (Bat_kWh), information related to the voltage of a battery (Bat_voltage), information related to the current SOC value of a battery (Bat_SOC), and the like.” (Para 0179)
“The state of charge (SOC) is utilized as a criterion for determining whether the vehicle battery can be currently discharged. For example, the OBC 120 determines whether the current SOC value falls within a preset dischargeable SOC range.” (Para 0244)
Dow does not explicitly teach:
when the battery nominal zone boundary estimation method is a reported SOC nominal zone boundary estimation method
Matsuda, in the same field of endeavor of battery charging, teaches:
when the battery nominal zone boundary estimation method is a reported SOC nominal zone boundary estimation method
(Matsuda) – “The charging plan creation unit 17 creates a charging plan in which deterioration is suppressed compared to the charging pattern of the actual charging and discharging pattern, based on the charging time of the actual charging and discharging pattern, the ideal SOC usage range, the charging deterioration characteristic map 23, and the storage deterioration characteristic map 25. Specifically, the charging plan creation unit 17 creates a charging plan in which the deterioration amount is minimized when charging from the lower limit SOC to the upper limit SOC of the ideal SOC usage range during the charging time of the actual charging and discharging pattern. An example of creating an optimal charging plan is described below.” (Para 0039)
“The charging plan creation unit 17 sets the lower limit SOC of the ideal SOC usage range as the charging start SOC, and the upper limit SOC of the ideal SOC usage range as the charging target SOC. The charging plan creation unit 17 sets multiple nodes at a predetermined interval within the SOC interval between the charging target SOC and the charging start SOC. The charging plan creation unit 17 sets multiple nodes at a predetermined interval within the charging period of the actual charging and discharging pattern.” (Para 0040)
“When the long life mode is selected, the display SOC generation unit 111 causes the display unit 30 to display the remaining battery charge, which is obtained by normalizing the ideal SOC usage range to a predetermined numerical range. FIG. 8 is a diagram showing an example of normalization of the display SOC. The SOC range on the left indicates the SOC range corresponding to the actual capacity of the battery pack 50. In the example shown in FIG. 8, the ideal SOC usage range is set to a range of 30-80. The SOC range on the right indicates the display SOC range. In the example shown in FIG. 8, 30-80 on the actual SOC scale is normalized to a range of 0-100 to set the display SOC range. The ideal SOC usage range on the actual SOC scale may be converted to an α-β range with a margin. α may be set to 10%, for example. β may be set to 90%, for example. In this embodiment, the concept of displaying the normalized battery remaining amount also includes displaying the battery remaining amount on the display unit 30 at the upper limit of the ideal SOC usage range when the SOC corresponding to the actual capacity of the battery pack 50 exceeds the upper limit of the ideal SOC usage range, displaying the battery remaining amount on the display unit 30 at the lower limit of the ideal SOC usage range when the actual SOC falls below the lower limit of the ideal SOC usage range, and displaying the actual SOC as the battery remaining amount on the display unit 30 when the actual SOC falls between the upper and lower limits of the ideal SOC usage range.” (Para 0051)
Therefore, it would be obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to have modified the vehicle-to-grid communication of Dow with the degradation suppression system of Matsuda. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to make these modifications with a reasonable expectation of success, in order to “[calculate] a recommended SOC usage range in which deterioration is suppressed compared to the actual SOC usage range” (Matsuda Abstract)
Claim 4:
Dow in combination with the references relied upon in Claim 1 teach those respective limitations. Dow further teaches:
wherein in step (b), [when the battery nominal zone boundary estimation method is a discharge curve nominal zone boundary estimation method], the SECC [adopts a battery discharge curve model in estimating a boundary of the battery nominal zone of the battery to] calculate a present discharge profile, and [estimates a nominal charge/discharge zone for the battery based on the present discharge profile].
(Dow) – “The communicator may be a hardware element configured to transmit a message related to the charging or discharge schedule to the EVCC 150 or receive a message related to the charging or discharge schedule from the EVCC 150 on the basis of an agreed communication method, e.g., PLC.” (Para 0130)
“The EVSE 200 performs authentication processing to check whether the EV 100 is subject to charge or discharge. For example, the SECC 230 and the EVCC 150 exchange their IDs. The SECC 230 may deliver an ID (contract ID) of an EVCC associated with its own ID (EVSE ID) to the power grid operation server 300.” (Para 0175)
“When the SECC 230 delivers the ID of the EVCC 150 associated with its own ID (EVSE ID) to the power grid operation server 300, the power grid operation server 300 may participate in the authentication and authorization processing for the EV 100.” (Para 0177)
“The check of the battery status is a necessary procedure for setting up a discharge schedule. Information for the discharge schedule setup may include, for example, information related to the capacity of a battery (Bat_kWh), information related to the voltage of a battery (Bat_voltage), information related to the current SOC value of a battery (Bat_SOC), and the like.” (Para 0179)
“The state of charge (SOC) is utilized as a criterion for determining whether the vehicle battery can be currently discharged. For example, the OBC 120 determines whether the current SOC value falls within a preset dischargeable SOC range.” (Para 0244)
Dow does not explicitly teach:
when the battery nominal zone boundary estimation method is a discharge curve nominal zone boundary estimation method…adopts a battery discharge curve model in estimating a boundary of the battery nominal zone of the battery to…estimates a nominal charge/discharge zone for the battery based on the present discharge profile
Matsuda, in the same field of endeavor of battery charging, teaches:
when the battery nominal zone boundary estimation method is a discharge curve nominal zone boundary estimation method…adopts a battery discharge curve model in estimating a boundary of the battery nominal zone of the battery to…estimates a nominal charge/discharge zone for the battery based on the present discharge profile
(Matsuda) – “The SOC estimation unit 12 estimates the SOC by combining the OCV (Open Circuit Voltage) method and the current integration method. The OCV method is a method for estimating the SOC based on the OCV of each cell or each parallel cell block measured by the voltage sensor 51 and the SOC-OCV curve of the cell. The SOC-OCV curve of the cell is created in advance based on characteristics tests by the battery manufacturer and is registered in the ROM of the control unit 10 at the time of shipment.” (Para 0020)
“The charging plan creation unit 17 creates a charging plan in which deterioration is suppressed compared to the charging pattern of the actual charging and discharging pattern, based on the charging time of the actual charging and discharging pattern, the ideal SOC usage range, the charging deterioration characteristic map 23, and the storage deterioration characteristic map 25. Specifically, the charging plan creation unit 17 creates a charging plan in which the deterioration amount is minimized when charging from the lower limit SOC to the upper limit SOC of the ideal SOC usage range during the charging time of the actual charging and discharging pattern. An example of creating an optimal charging plan is described below.” (Para 0039)
“The charging plan creation unit 17 sets the lower limit SOC of the ideal SOC usage range as the charging start SOC, and the upper limit SOC of the ideal SOC usage range as the charging target SOC. The charging plan creation unit 17 sets multiple nodes at a predetermined interval within the SOC interval between the charging target SOC and the charging start SOC. The charging plan creation unit 17 sets multiple nodes at a predetermined interval within the charging period of the actual charging and discharging pattern.” (Para 0040)
“When the long life mode is selected, the display SOC generation unit 111 causes the display unit 30 to display the remaining battery charge, which is obtained by normalizing the ideal SOC usage range to a predetermined numerical range. FIG. 8 is a diagram showing an example of normalization of the display SOC. The SOC range on the left indicates the SOC range corresponding to the actual capacity of the battery pack 50. In the example shown in FIG. 8, the ideal SOC usage range is set to a range of 30-80. The SOC range on the right indicates the display SOC range. In the example shown in FIG. 8, 30-80 on the actual SOC scale is normalized to a range of 0-100 to set the display SOC range. The ideal SOC usage range on the actual SOC scale may be converted to an α-β range with a margin. α may be set to 10%, for example. β may be set to 90%, for example. In this embodiment, the concept of displaying the normalized battery remaining amount also includes displaying the battery remaining amount on the display unit 30 at the upper limit of the ideal SOC usage range when the SOC corresponding to the actual capacity of the battery pack 50 exceeds the upper limit of the ideal SOC usage range, displaying the battery remaining amount on the display unit 30 at the lower limit of the ideal SOC usage range when the actual SOC falls below the lower limit of the ideal SOC usage range, and displaying the actual SOC as the battery remaining amount on the display unit 30 when the actual SOC falls between the upper and lower limits of the ideal SOC usage range.” (Para 0051)
Therefore, it would be obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to have modified the vehicle-to-grid communication of Dow with the degradation suppression system of Matsuda. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to make these modifications with a reasonable expectation of success, in order to “[calculate] a recommended SOC usage range in which deterioration is suppressed compared to the actual SOC usage range” (Matsuda Abstract)
Claim 5:
Dow in combination with the references relied upon in Claim 1 teach those respective limitations. Dow further teaches:
in step (a), [the battery discharge curve model further taking into account a battery type of the battery, number of charging cycles, temperature, and charging and discharging currents for] the SECC to calculate the present discharge profile with parameters of temperature and charging/discharging current.
(Dow) – “An EVCC is an in-vehicle system that implements communication between an EV and a supply equipment communication controller (SECC) in order to support specific functions. These specific functions include input and output channel control, encryption, data transfer between a vehicle and an SECC, and the like…An SECC is an entity capable of communicating with one or multiple EVCCs and interacting with a secondary actor.” (Para 0038-0041)
“The communicator may be a hardware element configured to transmit a message related to the charging or discharge schedule to the EVCC 150 or receive a message related to the charging or discharge schedule from the EVCC 150 on the basis of an agreed communication method, e.g., PLC.” (Para 0130)
“The EVSE 200 performs authentication processing to check whether the EV 100 is subject to charge or discharge. For example, the SECC 230 and the EVCC 150 exchange their IDs. The SECC 230 may deliver an ID (contract ID) of an EVCC associated with its own ID (EVSE ID) to the power grid operation server 300.” (Para 0175)
“When the SECC 230 delivers the ID of the EVCC 150 associated with its own ID (EVSE ID) to the power grid operation server 300, the power grid operation server 300 may participate in the authentication and authorization processing for the EV 100.” (Para 0177)
“The check of the battery status is a necessary procedure for setting up a discharge schedule. Information for the discharge schedule setup may include, for example, information related to the capacity of a battery (Bat_kWh), information related to the voltage of a battery (Bat_voltage), information related to the current SOC value of a battery (Bat_SOC), and the like.” (Para 0179)
“Time setting related to the discharge process may be to reserve and set a discharge time. The discharge time includes a discharge start time and a discharge finish time. The setting of the amount of energy discharge may be to set a battery current, a battery voltage, the amount of battery power, etc.” (Para 0184)
“When communication setup between the EVCC 150, the SECC 230, and the PGCC 310 is completed, the entities 120, 140, 150, 210, 230, and 300 exchange messages as shown in FIG. 6.” (Para 0197)
“The messages Bat_kWh, Bat_voltage, and Bat_SOC are delivered from the BMS 160 to the HMI 140, and the HMI 140 displays and provides the messages Bat_kWh, Bat_voltage, and Bat_SOC to the vehicle user to set up the discharge schedule. Also, the messages Bat_kWh, Bat_voltage, and Bat_SOC are delivered from the BMS 160 to the OBC 120.” (Para 0236)
“The message Bat_voltage may indicate or include battery voltage information. The OBC 120 determines whether the battery voltage is abnormal using the battery voltage information, and then calculates the discharge time.” (Para 0239)
“The OBC 120 determines whether the battery voltage is abnormal at high temperature in summer using the battery voltage information, and the determination result is utilized to calculate the discharge time (the discharge start time and the discharge finish time).” (Para 0240)
“The message Bat_SOC may indicate or include information related to the current state of charge of the vehicle battery.” (Para 0242)
“The state of charge (SOC) is utilized as a criterion for determining whether the vehicle battery can be currently discharged. For example, the OBC 120 determines whether the current SOC value falls within a preset dischargeable SOC range.” (Para 0244)
Dow does not explicitly teach:
the battery discharge curve model further taking into account a battery type of the battery, number of charging cycles, temperature, and charging and discharging currents for
Matsuda, in the same field of endeavor of battery charging, teaches:
the battery discharge curve model further taking into account a battery type of the battery, number of charging cycles, temperature, and charging and discharging currents for
(Matsuda) – “The SOC estimation unit 12 estimates the SOC by combining the OCV (Open Circuit Voltage) method and the current integration method. The OCV method is a method for estimating the SOC based on the OCV of each cell or each parallel cell block measured by the voltage sensor 51 and the SOC-OCV curve of the cell. The SOC-OCV curve of the cell is created in advance based on characteristics tests by the battery manufacturer and is registered in the ROM of the control unit 10 at the time of shipment.” (Para 0020)
“Charge-discharge deterioration progresses as the number of charge-discharge cycles increases. It mainly occurs due to cracks or peeling caused by the expansion or contraction of the active material. Charge-discharge deterioration depends on the current rate, the SOC range used, and the temperature. In general, the higher the current rate, the wider the SOC range used, and the higher the temperature, the faster the charge-discharge deterioration rate.” (Para 0033)
“Figure 4A shows a schematic example of a storage degradation characteristic map. The X-axis shows SOC [%], the Y-axis shows temperature [°C], and the Z-axis shows storage degradation rate [%/√h]. In general, storage degradation progresses approximately linearly with respect to the value calculated by 0.5 power law (square root) of the elapsed time (h). Depending on the type of cell, it may progress approximately linearly with respect to the value calculated by 0.4 power law or 0.6 power law of the elapsed time (h). As shown in Figure 4A, the higher the SOC, the faster the storage degradation rate.” (Para 0034)
“Figure 4B shows a schematic example of a charge degradation characteristic map. The X-axis shows the SOC usage range [%], the Y-axis shows the current rate [C], and the Z-axis shows the charge degradation rate [%/√Ah]. Figure 4C shows a schematic example of a discharge degradation characteristic map. The X-axis shows the SOC usage range [%], the Y-axis shows the current rate [C], and the Z-axis shows the discharge degradation rate [%/√Ah]. In general, charge/discharge degradation progresses approximately linearly with respect to the value calculated by multiplying the total charge amount or total discharge amount (Ah) by the 0.5 power law (square root). Depending on the type of cell, it may also progress approximately linearly with respect to the value calculated by multiplying the total charge amount or total discharge amount (Ah) by the 0.4 power law or the 0.6 power law.” (Para 0035)
“The charging plan creation unit 17 creates a charging plan in which deterioration is suppressed compared to the charging pattern of the actual charging and discharging pattern, based on the charging time of the actual charging and discharging pattern, the ideal SOC usage range, the charging deterioration characteristic map 23, and the storage deterioration characteristic map 25. Specifically, the charging plan creation unit 17 creates a charging plan in which the deterioration amount is minimized when charging from the lower limit SOC to the upper limit SOC of the ideal SOC usage range during the charging time of the actual charging and discharging pattern. An example of creating an optimal charging plan is described below.” (Para 0039)
“The charging plan creation unit 17 sets the lower limit SOC of the ideal SOC usage range as the charging start SOC, and the upper limit SOC of the ideal SOC usage range as the charging target SOC. The charging plan creation unit 17 sets multiple nodes at a predetermined interval within the SOC interval between the charging target SOC and the charging start SOC. The charging plan creation unit 17 sets multiple nodes at a predetermined interval within the charging period of the actual charging and discharging pattern.” (Para 0040)
“When the long life mode is selected, the display SOC generation unit 111 causes the display unit 30 to display the remaining battery charge, which is obtained by normalizing the ideal SOC usage range to a predetermined numerical range. FIG. 8 is a diagram showing an example of normalization of the display SOC. The SOC range on the left indicates the SOC range corresponding to the actual capacity of the battery pack 50. In the example shown in FIG. 8, the ideal SOC usage range is set to a range of 30-80. The SOC range on the right indicates the display SOC range. In the example shown in FIG. 8, 30-80 on the actual SOC scale is normalized to a range of 0-100 to set the display SOC range. The ideal SOC usage range on the actual SOC scale may be converted to an α-β range with a margin. α may be set to 10%, for example. β may be set to 90%, for example. In this embodiment, the concept of displaying the normalized battery remaining amount also includes displaying the battery remaining amount on the display unit 30 at the upper limit of the ideal SOC usage range when the SOC corresponding to the actual capacity of the battery pack 50 exceeds the upper limit of the ideal SOC usage range, displaying the battery remaining amount on the display unit 30 at the lower limit of the ideal SOC usage range when the actual SOC falls below the lower limit of the ideal SOC usage range, and displaying the actual SOC as the battery remaining amount on the display unit 30 when the actual SOC falls between the upper and lower limits of the ideal SOC usage range.” (Para 0051)
Therefore, it would be obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to have modified the vehicle-to-grid communication of Dow with the degradation suppression system of Matsuda. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to make these modifications with a reasonable expectation of success, in order to “[calculate] a recommended SOC usage range in which deterioration is suppressed compared to the actual SOC usage range” (Matsuda Abstract)
Claim 6:
Dow in combination with the references relied upon in Claim 1 teach those respective limitations. Dow does not explicitly teach the following limitations in full. Matsuda further teaches:
wherein in step (b), the battery operating temperature is further subdivided into a minimum charging operating temperature, a maximum charging operating temperature, a minimum charging operating temperature, and a maximum charging operating temperature.
(Matsuda) – “Charge-discharge deterioration progresses as the number of charge-discharge cycles increases. It mainly occurs due to cracks or peeling caused by the expansion or contraction of the active material. Charge-discharge deterioration depends on the current rate, the SOC range used, and the temperature. In general, the higher the current rate, the wider the SOC range used, and the higher the temperature, the faster the charge-discharge deterioration rate.” (Para 0033)
“Figure 4A shows a schematic example of a storage degradation characteristic map. The X-axis shows SOC [%], the Y-axis shows temperature [°C], and the Z-axis shows storage degradation rate [%/√h]. In general, storage degradation progresses approximately linearly with respect to the value calculated by 0.5 power law (square root) of the elapsed time (h). Depending on the type of cell, it may progress approximately linearly with respect to the value calculated by 0.4 power law or 0.6 power law of the elapsed time (h). As shown in Figure 4A, the higher the SOC, the faster the storage degradation rate.” (Para 0034)
“Note that the charge/discharge degradation characteristics are also affected by temperature, although this influence is not as great as that of the current rate. Therefore, to improve the accuracy of estimating the charge/discharge degradation rate, it is preferable to prepare charge/discharge degradation characteristics that specify the relationship between the SOC usage range and the charge/discharge degradation rate for each two-dimensional combination of multiple current rates and multiple temperatures.” (Para 0037)
“The charging plan creation unit 17 sets the lower limit SOC of the ideal SOC usage range as the charging start SOC, and the upper limit SOC of the ideal SOC usage range as the charging target SOC. The charging plan creation unit 17 sets multiple nodes at a predetermined interval within the SOC interval between the charging target SOC and the charging start SOC. The charging plan creation unit 17 sets multiple nodes at a predetermined interval within the charging period of the actual charging and discharging pattern.” (Para 0040)
“When the long life mode is selected, the display SOC generation unit 111 causes the display unit 30 to display the remaining battery charge, which is obtained by normalizing the ideal SOC usage range to a predetermined numerical range. FIG. 8 is a diagram showing an example of normalization of the display SOC. The SOC range on the left indicates the SOC range corresponding to the actual capacity of the battery pack 50. In the example shown in FIG. 8, the ideal SOC usage range is set to a range of 30-80. The SOC range on the right indicates the display SOC range. In the example shown in FIG. 8, 30-80 on the actual SOC scale is normalized to a range of 0-100 to set the display SOC range. The ideal SOC usage range on the actual SOC scale may be converted to an α-β range with a margin. α may be set to 10%, for example. β may be set to 90%, for example. In this embodiment, the concept of displaying the normalized battery remaining amount also includes displaying the battery remaining amount on the display unit 30 at the upper limit of the ideal SOC usage range when the SOC corresponding to the actual capacity of the battery pack 50 exceeds the upper limit of the ideal SOC usage range, displaying the battery remaining amount on the display unit 30 at the lower limit of the ideal SOC usage range when the actual SOC falls below the lower limit of the ideal SOC usage range, and displaying the actual SOC as the battery remaining amount on the display unit 30 when the actual SOC falls between the upper and lower limits of the ideal SOC usage range.” (Para 0051)
Therefore, it would be obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to have modified the vehicle-to-grid communication of Dow with the degradation suppression system of Matsuda. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to make these modifications with a reasonable expectation of success, in order to “[calculate] a recommended SOC usage range in which deterioration is suppressed compared to the actual SOC usage range” (Matsuda Abstract)
Claim 7:
Dow in combination with the references relied upon in Claim 1 teach those respective limitations. Dow further teaches:
wherein [when the battery nominal zone boundary estimation method is a reported SOC nominal zone boundary estimation method], the EVCC provides SOC values of a boundary of the battery nominal zone of the battery to the SECC; and [when the battery nominal zone boundary estimation method is a discharge curve nominal zone boundary estimation method], the EVCC provides [the battery discharge curve model] parameters to the SECC.
(Dow) – “An EVCC is an in-vehicle system that implements communication between an EV and a supply equipment communication controller (SECC) in order to support specific functions. These specific functions include input and output channel control, encryption, data transfer between a vehicle and an SECC, and the like…An SECC is an entity capable of communicating with one or multiple EVCCs and interacting with a secondary actor.” (Para 0038-0041)
“The communicator may be a hardware element configured to transmit a message related to the charging or discharge schedule to the EVCC 150 or receive a message related to the charging or discharge schedule from the EVCC 150 on the basis of an agreed communication method, e.g., PLC.” (Para 0130)
“The EVSE 200 performs authentication processing to check whether the EV 100 is subject to charge or discharge. For example, the SECC 230 and the EVCC 150 exchange their IDs. The SECC 230 may deliver an ID (contract ID) of an EVCC associated with its own ID (EVSE ID) to the power grid operation server 300.” (Para 0175)
“When the SECC 230 delivers the ID of the EVCC 150 associated with its own ID (EVSE ID) to the power grid operation server 300, the power grid operation server 300 may participate in the authentication and authorization processing for the EV 100.” (Para 0177)
“The check of the battery status is a necessary procedure for setting up a discharge schedule. Information for the discharge schedule setup may include, for example, information related to the capacity of a battery (Bat_kWh), information related to the voltage of a battery (Bat_voltage), information related to the current SOC value of a battery (Bat_SOC), and the like.” (Para 0179)
“Time setting related to the discharge process may be to reserve and set a discharge time. The discharge time includes a discharge start time and a discharge finish time. The setting of the amount of energy discharge may be to set a battery current, a battery voltage, the amount of battery power, etc.” (Para 0184)
“When communication setup between the EVCC 150, the SECC 230, and the PGCC 310 is completed, the entities 120, 140, 150, 210, 230, and 300 exchange messages as shown in FIG. 6.” (Para 0197)
“The messages Bat_kWh, Bat_voltage, and Bat_SOC are delivered from the BMS 160 to the HMI 140, and the HMI 140 displays and provides the messages Bat_kWh, Bat_voltage, and Bat_SOC to the vehicle user to set up the discharge schedule. Also, the messages Bat_kWh, Bat_voltage, and Bat_SOC are delivered from the BMS 160 to the OBC 120.” (Para 0236)
“The message Bat_voltage may indicate or include battery voltage information. The OBC 120 determines whether the battery voltage is abnormal using the battery voltage information, and then calculates the discharge time.” (Para 0239)
“The OBC 120 determines whether the battery voltage is abnormal at high temperature in summer using the battery voltage information, and the determination result is utilized to calculate the discharge time (the discharge start time and the discharge finish time).” (Para 0240)
“The message Bat_SOC may indicate or include information related to the current state of charge of the vehicle battery.” (Para 0242)
“The state of charge (SOC) is utilized as a criterion for determining whether the vehicle battery can be currently discharged. For example, the OBC 120 determines whether the current SOC value falls within a preset dischargeable SOC range.” (Para 0244)
Dow does not explicitly teach:
when the battery nominal zone boundary estimation method is a reported SOC nominal zone boundary estimation method…when the battery nominal zone boundary estimation method is a discharge curve nominal zone boundary estimation method…the battery discharge curve model
Matsuda, in the same field of endeavor of battery charging, teaches:
when the battery nominal zone boundary estimation method is a reported SOC nominal zone boundary estimation method…when the battery nominal zone boundary estimation method is a discharge curve nominal zone boundary estimation method…the battery discharge curve model
(Matsuda) – “The SOC estimation unit 12 estimates the SOC by combining the OCV (Open Circuit Voltage) method and the current integration method. The OCV method is a method for estimating the SOC based on the OCV of each cell or each parallel cell block measured by the voltage sensor 51 and the SOC-OCV curve of the cell. The SOC-OCV curve of the cell is created in advance based on characteristics tests by the battery manufacturer and is registered in the ROM of the control unit 10 at the time of shipment.” (Para 0020)
“Charge-discharge deterioration progresses as the number of charge-discharge cycles increases. It mainly occurs due to cracks or peeling caused by the expansion or contraction of the active material. Charge-discharge deterioration depends on the current rate, the SOC range used, and the temperature. In general, the higher the current rate, the wider the SOC range used, and the higher the temperature, the faster the charge-discharge deterioration rate.” (Para 0033)
“Figure 4A shows a schematic example of a storage degradation characteristic map. The X-axis shows SOC [%], the Y-axis shows temperature [°C], and the Z-axis shows storage degradation rate [%/√h]. In general, storage degradation progresses approximately linearly with respect to the value calculated by 0.5 power law (square root) of the elapsed time (h). Depending on the type of cell, it may progress approximately linearly with respect to the value calculated by 0.4 power law or 0.6 power law of the elapsed time (h). As shown in Figure 4A, the higher the SOC, the faster the storage degradation rate.” (Para 0034)
“Figure 4B shows a schematic example of a charge degradation characteristic map. The X-axis shows the SOC usage range [%], the Y-axis shows the current rate [C], and the Z-axis shows the charge degradation rate [%/√Ah]. Figure 4C shows a schematic example of a discharge degradation characteristic map. The X-axis shows the SOC usage range [%], the Y-axis shows the current rate [C], and the Z-axis shows the discharge degradation rate [%/√Ah]. In general, charge/discharge degradation progresses approximately linearly with respect to the value calculated by multiplying the total charge amount or total discharge amount (Ah) by the 0.5 power law (square root). Depending on the type of cell, it may also progress approximately linearly with respect to the value calculated by multiplying the total charge amount or total discharge amount (Ah) by the 0.4 power law or the 0.6 power law.” (Para 0035)
“The charging plan creation unit 17 creates a charging plan in which deterioration is suppressed compared to the charging pattern of the actual charging and discharging pattern, based on the charging time of the actual charging and discharging pattern, the ideal SOC usage range, the charging deterioration characteristic map 23, and the storage deterioration characteristic map 25. Specifically, the charging plan creation unit 17 creates a charging plan in which the deterioration amount is minimized when charging from the lower limit SOC to the upper limit SOC of the ideal SOC usage range during the charging time of the actual charging and discharging pattern. An example of creating an optimal charging plan is described below.” (Para 0039)
“The charging plan creation unit 17 sets the lower limit SOC of the ideal SOC usage range as the charging start SOC, and the upper limit SOC of the ideal SOC usage range as the charging target SOC. The charging plan creation unit 17 sets multiple nodes at a predetermined interval within the SOC interval between the charging target SOC and the charging start SOC. The charging plan creation unit 17 sets multiple nodes at a predetermined interval within the charging period of the actual charging and discharging pattern.” (Para 0040)
“When the long life mode is selected, the display SOC generation unit 111 causes the display unit 30 to display the remaining battery charge, which is obtained by normalizing the ideal SOC usage range to a predetermined numerical range. FIG. 8 is a diagram showing an example of normalization of the display SOC. The SOC range on the left indicates the SOC range corresponding to the actual capacity of the battery pack 50. In the example shown in FIG. 8, the ideal SOC usage range is set to a range of 30-80. The SOC range on the right indicates the display SOC range. In the example shown in FIG. 8, 30-80 on the actual SOC scale is normalized to a range of 0-100 to set the display SOC range. The ideal SOC usage range on the actual SOC scale may be converted to an α-β range with a margin. α may be set to 10%, for example. β may be set to 90%, for example. In this embodiment, the concept of displaying the normalized battery remaining amount also includes displaying the battery remaining amount on the display unit 30 at the upper limit of the ideal SOC usage range when the SOC corresponding to the actual capacity of the battery pack 50 exceeds the upper limit of the ideal SOC usage range, displaying the battery remaining amount on the display unit 30 at the lower limit of the ideal SOC usage range when the actual SOC falls below the lower limit of the ideal SOC usage range, and displaying the actual SOC as the battery remaining amount on the display unit 30 when the actual SOC falls between the upper and lower limits of the ideal SOC usage range.” (Para 0051)
Therefore, it would be obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to have modified the vehicle-to-grid communication of Dow with the degradation suppression system of Matsuda. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to make these modifications with a reasonable expectation of success, in order to “[calculate] a recommended SOC usage range in which deterioration is suppressed compared to the actual SOC usage range” (Matsuda Abstract)
Claim 8:
Dow in combination with the references relied upon in Claim 1 teach those respective limitations. Dow further teaches:
wherein when charging/ discharging the battery of the EV [in the DC bidirectional power transfer charge/discharge mode], in step (d) during the charging and discharging of the battery, the SECC provides a present EVSE voltage and a present EVSE current to the EVCC.
(Dow) – “An EVCC is an in-vehicle system that implements communication between an EV and a supply equipment communication controller (SECC) in order to support specific functions. These specific functions include input and output channel control, encryption, data transfer between a vehicle and an SECC, and the like…An SECC is an entity capable of communicating with one or multiple EVCCs and interacting with a secondary actor.” (Para 0038-0041)
“The check of the battery status is a necessary procedure for setting up a discharge schedule. Information for the discharge schedule setup may include, for example, information related to the capacity of a battery (Bat_kWh), information related to the voltage of a battery (Bat_voltage), information related to the current SOC value of a battery (Bat_SOC), and the like.” (Para 0179)
“Time setting related to the discharge process may be to reserve and set a discharge time. The discharge time includes a discharge start time and a discharge finish time. The setting of the amount of energy discharge may be to set a battery current, a battery voltage, the amount of battery power, etc.” (Para 0184)
“When communication setup between the EVCC 150, the SECC 230, and the PGCC 310 is completed, the entities 120, 140, 150, 210, 230, and 300 exchange messages as shown in FIG. 6.” (Para 0197)
“The messages Bat_kWh, Bat_voltage, and Bat_SOC are delivered from the BMS 160 to the HMI 140, and the HMI 140 displays and provides the messages Bat_kWh, Bat_voltage, and Bat_SOC to the vehicle user to set up the discharge schedule. Also, the messages Bat_kWh, Bat_voltage, and Bat_SOC are delivered from the BMS 160 to the OBC 120.” (Para 0236)
“The message Bat_voltage may indicate or include battery voltage information. The OBC 120 determines whether the battery voltage is abnormal using the battery voltage information, and then calculates the discharge time.” (Para 0239)
“The OBC 120 determines whether the battery voltage is abnormal at high temperature in summer using the battery voltage information, and the determination result is utilized to calculate the discharge time (the discharge start time and the discharge finish time).” (Para 0240)
“The message Bat_SOC may indicate or include information related to the current state of charge of the vehicle battery.” (Para 0242)
“The state of charge (SOC) is utilized as a criterion for determining whether the vehicle battery can be currently discharged. For example, the OBC 120 determines whether the current SOC value falls within a preset dischargeable SOC range.” (Para 0244)
Dow does not explicitly teach:
in the DC bidirectional power transfer charge/discharge mode
Prasad, in the same field of endeavor of battery charging, teaches:
in the DC bidirectional power transfer charge/discharge mode
(Prasad) - “DC-DC CONVERTER SYSTEM (30): the DC-DC converter system 30 shown schematically in FIG. 2 may be configured as a matched pair (or plurality/n-tuple) of isolated DC-DC converters capable of series or parallel operation. The DC-DC converter system 30 as constructed herein provides a flexible architecture based on modular “building blocks” of low-voltage unidirectional or bidirectional converters to output low-voltage or high-voltage depending on the voltages of the donor EV 12D and recipient EV 12R. For illustrative consistency, low-voltage as used in the following examples is a maximum or rated voltage about 400V and high-voltage is a maximum or rated voltage about 800V, without limiting the teachings to such nominal maximum voltages.” (Para 0044)
Therefore, it would be obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to have modified the vehicle-to-grid communication of Dow with the converter system of Prasad. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to make these modifications with a reasonable expectation of success, because “The disclosed architecture and charging strategy enables a high-voltage energy transfer to occur between the donor and recipient.” (Prasad Para 0003)
Claim 9:
Dow in combination with the references relied upon in Claim 1 teach those respective limitations. Dow further teaches:
wherein when charging/ discharging the battery of the EV [in the AC bidirectional power transfer charge/discharge mode], in step (d) during the charging and discharging of the battery, the SECC provides the EVCC with a present active power of the EVSE.
(Dow) – “An EVCC is an in-vehicle system that implements communication between an EV and a supply equipment communication controller (SECC) in order to support specific functions. These specific functions include input and output channel control, encryption, data transfer between a vehicle and an SECC, and the like…An SECC is an entity capable of communicating with one or multiple EVCCs and interacting with a secondary actor.” (Para 0038-0041)
“The check of the battery status is a necessary procedure for setting up a discharge schedule. Information for the discharge schedule setup may include, for example, information related to the capacity of a battery (Bat_kWh), information related to the voltage of a battery (Bat_voltage), information related to the current SOC value of a battery (Bat_SOC), and the like.” (Para 0179)
“Time setting related to the discharge process may be to reserve and set a discharge time. The discharge time includes a discharge start time and a discharge finish time. The setting of the amount of energy discharge may be to set a battery current, a battery voltage, the amount of battery power, etc.” (Para 0184)
“When communication setup between the EVCC 150, the SECC 230, and the PGCC 310 is completed, the entities 120, 140, 150, 210, 230, and 300 exchange messages as shown in FIG. 6.” (Para 0197)
“The messages Bat_kWh, Bat_voltage, and Bat_SOC are delivered from the BMS 160 to the HMI 140, and the HMI 140 displays and provides the messages Bat_kWh, Bat_voltage, and Bat_SOC to the vehicle user to set up the discharge schedule. Also, the messages Bat_kWh, Bat_voltage, and Bat_SOC are delivered from the BMS 160 to the OBC 120.” (Para 0236)
“The message Bat_voltage may indicate or include battery voltage information. The OBC 120 determines whether the battery voltage is abnormal using the battery voltage information, and then calculates the discharge time.” (Para 0239)
“The OBC 120 determines whether the battery voltage is abnormal at high temperature in summer using the battery voltage information, and the determination result is utilized to calculate the discharge time (the discharge start time and the discharge finish time).” (Para 0240)
“The message Bat_SOC may indicate or include information related to the current state of charge of the vehicle battery.” (Para 0242)
“The state of charge (SOC) is utilized as a criterion for determining whether the vehicle battery can be currently discharged. For example, the OBC 120 determines whether the current SOC value falls within a preset dischargeable SOC range.” (Para 0244)
Dow does not explicitly teach:
in the AC bidirectional power transfer charge/discharge mode
Prasad, in the same field of endeavor of battery charging, teaches:
in the DC bidirectional power transfer charge/discharge mode
(Prasad) – “The optional LV energy storage device 45 when used is also electrically connected to the DC-DC converter system 30 to provide low-voltage (e.g., nominal 12-15V) power suitable for opening/closing HV disconnect devices 47 and 147, and for powering voltage or current sensors and associated circuit and diagnostic components. The connection of the LV energy storage device 45 and the HV-LV converter 43 also enables the HV-LV converter 43 to selectively charge the LV energy storage device 45 during the V2V charging process 10. The optional LV energy storage device 45 may also be recharged via AC grid power in some configurations, e.g., by plugging the housing 41 into an available wall socket via a corresponding charging outlet (not shown) arranged thereon.” (Para 0037)
“DC-DC CONVERTER SYSTEM (30): the DC-DC converter system 30 shown schematically in FIG. 2 may be configured as a matched pair (or plurality/n-tuple) of isolated DC-DC converters capable of series or parallel operation. The DC-DC converter system 30 as constructed herein provides a flexible architecture based on modular “building blocks” of low-voltage unidirectional or bidirectional converters to output low-voltage or high-voltage depending on the voltages of the donor EV 12D and recipient EV 12R. For illustrative consistency, low-voltage as used in the following examples is a maximum or rated voltage about 400V and high-voltage is a maximum or rated voltage about 800V, without limiting the teachings to such nominal maximum voltages.” (Para 0044)
Therefore, it would be obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to have modified the vehicle-to-grid communication of Dow with the converter system of Prasad. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to make these modifications with a reasonable expectation of success, because “The disclosed architecture and charging strategy enables a high-voltage energy transfer to occur between the donor and recipient.” (Prasad Para 0003)
Claim 10:
Dow in combination with the references relied upon in Claim 2 teach those respective limitations. Dow further teaches:
wherein the lower boundary SOC value is 15% and the upper boundary SOC value is 85%.
(Matsuda) – “The charging plan creation unit 17 creates a charging plan in which deterioration is suppressed compared to the charging pattern of the actual charging and discharging pattern, based on the charging time of the actual charging and discharging pattern, the ideal SOC usage range, the charging deterioration characteristic map 23, and the storage deterioration characteristic map 25. Specifically, the charging plan creation unit 17 creates a charging plan in which the deterioration amount is minimized when charging from the lower limit SOC to the upper limit SOC of the ideal SOC usage range during the charging time of the actual charging and discharging pattern. An example of creating an optimal charging plan is described below.” (Para 0039)
“The charging plan creation unit 17 sets the lower limit SOC of the ideal SOC usage range as the charging start SOC, and the upper limit SOC of the ideal SOC usage range as the charging target SOC. The charging plan creation unit 17 sets multiple nodes at a predetermined interval within the SOC interval between the charging target SOC and the charging start SOC. The charging plan creation unit 17 sets multiple nodes at a predetermined interval within the charging period of the actual charging and discharging pattern.” (Para 0040)
“When the long life mode is selected, the display SOC generation unit 111 causes the display unit 30 to display the remaining battery charge, which is obtained by normalizing the ideal SOC usage range to a predetermined numerical range. FIG. 8 is a diagram showing an example of normalization of the display SOC. The SOC range on the left indicates the SOC range corresponding to the actual capacity of the battery pack 50. In the example shown in FIG. 8, the ideal SOC usage range is set to a range of 30-80. The SOC range on the right indicates the display SOC range. In the example shown in FIG. 8, 30-80 on the actual SOC scale is normalized to a range of 0-100 to set the display SOC range. The ideal SOC usage range on the actual SOC scale may be converted to an α-β range with a margin. α may be set to 10%, for example. β may be set to 90%, for example. In this embodiment, the concept of displaying the normalized battery remaining amount also includes displaying the battery remaining amount on the display unit 30 at the upper limit of the ideal SOC usage range when the SOC corresponding to the actual capacity of the battery pack 50 exceeds the upper limit of the ideal SOC usage range, displaying the battery remaining amount on the display unit 30 at the lower limit of the ideal SOC usage range when the actual SOC falls below the lower limit of the ideal SOC usage range, and displaying the actual SOC as the battery remaining amount on the display unit 30 when the actual SOC falls between the upper and lower limits of the ideal SOC usage range.” (Para 0051)
Examiner Note: Matsuda teaches that the upper and lower limits of the ideal SOC usage range may be described as a percentage. Examples are given with 10% and 30% as lower limits and 80% and 90% as upper limits. It is clear these limits may be set at any percentage including 15-85%.
Therefore, it would be obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to have modified the vehicle-to-grid communication of Dow with the degradation suppression system of Matsuda. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to make these modifications with a reasonable expectation of success, in order to “[calculate] a recommended SOC usage range in which deterioration is suppressed compared to the actual SOC usage range” (Matsuda Abstract)
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Yang (US20210379999) teaches a vehicle power supply system that generate setting information of a secondary battery mounted on an electric vehicle.
Dow (US20220097551) teaches a similar battery system.
Gadh (US20130179061) teaches infrastructure modifications and additions to provide capabilities for charging many EVs over a power supply grid.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to DAVID RUBEN PEDERSEN whose telephone number is (571)272-9696. The examiner can normally be reached M-Th: 07:00 -16:00 Eastern.
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, Ramon Mercado can be reached at (571) 270-5744. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000.
/DAVID RUBEN PEDERSEN/Examiner, Art Unit 3658
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