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 .
DETAILED ACTION
1. This office action is in response to an amendment received on 2/12/26 for patent application 18/983,851.
2. Claims 1-2 are amended.
3. Claims 1-2 are pending.
RESPONSE TO ARUGMENTS
Applicant argues#1
The Examiner has taken the position that the vehicle identification unit, the charging
control unit, the billing process unit, and the vehicle controlling portion are interpreted under 35 U.S.C. §112(f). However, the claims have been amended to replace these elements with a processor that performs the functions thereof. Applicant respectfully submits that a processor comprises sufficient structure to not invoke 35 U.S.C. §112(f). Withdrawal of the invocation is respectfully requested.
Examiner Response
The claims are no longer being interpreted under 35 USC 112(f), the claim interpretation section is hereby withdrawn.
Applicant argues#2
Applicant respectfully submits that the cited references fail to teach or reasonably suggest the features of amended independent claim 1. In particular, the cited references fail to teach or reasonably suggest the features regarding "de-authenticate the charging plug of the charging device to prevent electric vehicle charging after a predetermined time has elapsed without receiving a plug connection signal from the charging device since the identification that the vehicle has parked in the parking space".
However, Turner 2 does not teach preventing charging after a predetermined time has elapsed without receiving a plug connection signal from the charging
device, as recited in amended independent claim 1. Therefore, Applicant respectfully submits that the cited references fail to teach the features of amended independent claim 1.
Based on the foregoing, Applicant respectfully submits that independent claim 1, and all claims that depend thereon, can no longer be rejected as unpatentable over any combination of the cited references. Withdrawal of the rejections and a timely notice of allowance are respectfully requested.
Examiner Response
Based on the amendment to the claims, a new ground of rejection is provided, see the section 103 rejection below.
Note: The English translation of the originally filed foreign patent application has not been received as of yet, therefore foreign priority has not been perfected.
Priority
1. Per 35 USC 119(b) (3):
(3) The Director may require a certified copy of the original foreign application, specification, and drawings upon which it is based, a translation if not in the English language, and such other information as the Director considers necessary. Any such certification shall be made by the foreign intellectual property authority in which the foreign application was filed and show the date of the application and of the filing of the specification and other papers.
There is no English translation of the originally filed foreign application in the file wrapper.
Therefore, foreign priority has not been perfected.
Claim Rejections- 35 U.S.C § 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.
2. Claim 1-2 are being rejected under 35 U.S.C 103(a) as being unpatentable over US 2011/0213656 to Turner2 in view of WO 2016/207437 to Sychov and further in view
of WO 2018/037261 to Chan et al, herein Chan.
Regarding claim 1, Turner2 discloses
A charging control device for an electric vehicle, the charging control device being capable of accessing a memory in which user information is registered, wherein, in the user information, a registration number of an electric vehicle and information indicating a billing address of an owner of the electric vehicle are associated with each other, the charging control device comprising a processor configured to: (At least: [0055], [0057], [0065]);
[0055] The EVCS/EVSE computing hardware environment 100 includes software 102, which comprises computer-executable instructions stored on non-transitory computer-readable media (e.g., any one or more of the non-transitory computer-readable media described above). When executed, the software can be used to implement the functionality of the EVCS/EVSE, which is described in more detail below. The EVCS/EVSE computing hardware environment 100 further comprises an EVCS/EVSE processor 114 for executing the software 102. Suitable processors and associated parts can be obtained, for example, from Parvus Corporation. In the illustrated embodiment, the EVCS/EVSE processor 114 is interconnected to an electric current control board 118. Suitable electric current control boards and associated parts can be obtained, for example, from Texas Instruments, Riley Corp, and National Control Devices. In certain exemplary embodiments, the EVCS/EVSE software 102 is used to implement a process in which commands and data are exchanged to control the flow of electrical current between one or more electric vehicles plugged into one or more respective ports of the EVCS/EVSE (e.g., the EVCS/EVSE 240 shown in FIG. 2) and the power grid (e.g., the power grid 270 shown in FIG. 2). The ports of the EVCS/EVSE can comprise, for example, 120 V AC receptacles, 240 V AC receptacles, SAE J1772.TM. vehicle charging connectors, IEC 62196 electrical connectors, or combinations thereof. The EVCS/EVSE computing hardware environment 100 can also include a wireless mesh radio 104, a cellular radio 106 and/or an Ethernet card 108 to provide the environment 100 with a number of wired and wireless interface capabilities for exchanging data with, for example, an EVCS/EVSE back office server 160. Suitable wireless mesh radios and associated parts can be obtained, for example, from Digi International. Suitable cellular radios and associated parts can be obtained, for example, from Telit. In the illustrated embodiment, the EVCS/EVSE processor 114 includes Ethernet functionality. The EVCS/EVSE computing hardware environment 100 also includes an access control device 110, such as a magnetic card reader or radio frequency identity ("RFID") reader, and a display apparatus 112, such as an LCD, LED, or plasma screen with a touch screen interface 116. Another option to facilitate user interaction is using a display apparatus without a touch screen interface but with a set of user entry buttons or a keypad 120. Suitable magnetic card readers and associated parts can be obtained, for example, from ID Tech. Suitable display apparatus and touch screen interfaces can be obtained, for example, from Logic Supply. As shown in FIG. 1, the EVCS/EVSE computing hardware environment 100 is coupled to the EVCS/EVSE back office server environment 160 via a network 130 (e.g., the Internet, a wide-area network, a local-area network, a client-server network, a wireless mesh network, or other such network or any combination thereof).
[0057] The back office server environment 160 can be implemented using a wide variety of commercially available computers and/or servers. In FIG. 1, the back office server environment 160 includes back office server software 164, which can comprise computer-executable instructions stored on non-transitory computer-readable media (e.g., any one or more of the non-transitory computer-readable media described above). When executed, the software can be used to implement the functionality of the back office server, which is described in more detail below. The EVCS/EVSE back office server 160 further comprises a back office server processor 162 for executing software 164. Also shown in FIG. 1 is EVSC/EVSE user data 170. The EVSC/EVSE user data 170 can comprise data stored on non-transitory computer-readable media that is related to users of the EVCS/EVSE. For example, the data can include data about a user's identification, address, account, usage history, vehicle, and/or other such user data. In the illustrated embodiment, the EVCS/EVSE back office server 160 further includes parking management data 168. Parking management data 168 can comprise one or more of an identifier for each parking space (e.g. parking space #1), the geographic location of parking spaces served by the EVCS/EVSEs, or the payment status of these parking spaces (e.g. not paid for parking or paid for parking until 03:32 pm on today's date). Furthermore, the EVCS/EVSE back office server 160 includes web page data 166. The web page data 166 can comprise data stored on non-transitory computer-readable media that is used to render one or more web pages for display to parking enforcement personnel (e.g., parking enforcement 200 shown in FIG. 2) via a web site (e.g., web site 210 shown in FIG. 2). The web page data 166 can include other data used to implement the web site. The parking enforcement web site can allow parking enforcement personnel to view the current payment status of one or more parking spaces served by the EVCS/EVSEs. The parking management web site and its associated web pages can be displayed, for example, using a suitable Internet browser or media player implemented at a computer operated by parking enforcement personnel and coupled to the back office server 120 via a network (e.g., the Internet, a wide-area network, a local-area network, a client-server network, a wireless mesh network, or other such network or any combination thereof). The web page data 166 can be in any format or language suitable for implementing web pages (e.g., HTML, Flash, Java, and the like). In other embodiments, the data to be displayed to the parking enforcement personnel is not stored as web page data, but as data usable via a non-web-based user interface.
[0065] Returning to the illustrated embodiment, if the current session is a park-and-charge session for an electric vehicle, or after the non-electric vehicle parker has specified the time they wish to park, the EVCS/EVSE will display a screen to request payment authorization (process block 330). Payment can be authorized by a number of methods such as (but not limited to) using a credit/debit card or other magnetic card (such as a card issued by the operator of the EVCS/EVSE system) that can be swiped on a magnetic card reader or smart card reader integrated into the EVCS/EVSE, or using an RFID card which can be read by an RFID reader integrated into the EVCS/EVSE. FIG. 8 shows an example of a suitable access type selection screen 800 to allow the user to select between two potential payment methods. The EVCS/EVSE will read and store the payment method data to be used to pay for this session (process block 332 and data 334) and transmit the payment method data to the appropriate remote server (which may be the EVCS/EVSE back office server or may be a credit/debit card merchant services server depending upon the payment method used) using the EVCS/EVSE communication channel (process block 336). The payment method data can include user identification data, indicative of an identity of the user (e.g., a credit card number associated with the user or a membership number indicated the user's membership in a network of authorized users). An indication of whether the payment method data is associated with a parking only session or a park-and-charge session can also be transmitted to the back office server. If a communications failure is detected when attempting to transmit the payment method data (process block 338), the EVCS/EVSE will execute the process of displaying the communications failed screen and shutting down (process blocks 316, 318). Otherwise, the EVCS/EVSE will wait to receive authorization data in response to the payment method data that was transmitted and once this authorization data is received, store the payment method data on the EVCS/EVSE (process block 342 and data 344). If the payment method data that was transmitted resulted in an unsuccessful authorization, a payment denied screen is displayed and the EVCS/EVSE will again display the screen to request input of payment authorization data (process blocks 346, 348, 330). If the payment was authorized, the EVCS/EVSE will display a payment authorized screen (process blocks 346, 350). FIG. 9 shows an example of a payment authorized screen 900.
Identify that a vehicle has parked in a parking space and the registration number of the vehicle based on a captured image, capturing an image of the parking space (AT least: Fig 4: 402,408; [0071]; Fig 6: 600 and associated text);
[0071] When the back office server receives payment method data from an EVCS/EVSE (process block 400), the back office server will access a customer database 404 (process block 402) and determine if there is a customer or user in the customer database corresponding to the received payment method data (process block 406). An indication of whether the payment method data is associated with a parking only session or a park-and-charge session can also be received from the EVCS/EVSE. If a corresponding customer or user is not found, a code is transmitted to the EVCS/EVSE indicating that the card is not authorized (process block 408). If a corresponding customer is found in the database, the back office server will use this customer's data to determine if the customer is allowed access to this EVCS/EVSE (process block 410). This determination could be based on a financial analysis (e.g., an analysis to determine whether there are sufficient funds in the customer's account), a membership analysis (e.g., an analysis to determine whether the customer is a member of an authorized group of members who can use this station), or some other criteria or combination thereof. If the customer is authorized to use the EVCS/EVSE, a code is sent to the EVCS/EVSE stating that the user is authorized (process block 412). The back office server can also updated the customer database 404 to record the parking fees charged for this session if it is a parking only session (e.g., for a non-electric vehicle) (process block 414). In certain implementations, if the session is a park-and-charge session, a start time of the charging session is recorded in the customer database 404 (process block 414), although in other implementations, the start time is not recorded. If this transaction was for parking only, the transaction is complete (process block 415). Otherwise, the back office server can then wait to receive a message from the
Turner2 discloses the image of the vehicle parked in a specific parking spot (AT least: Fig 10).
Turner2 does not specifically disclose, Sychov in the same field of endeavor discloses:
identify that a vehicle has parked in a parking space and the registration number of the vehicle, based on a captured image obtained from a camera capturing an image of the parking space (At least page 15: lines 30-33; page 16: lines 1-15);
Page 15: lines 30-33; page 16: lines 1-15:
If a registered vehicle is parked on the parking space 501, the camera unit 507 monitors the vehicle during the parking process in order to ensure a safe parking process. For this
purpose, the projector unit 504 and the speaker unit 510 are controlled as a function of the picture information recorded by the camera unit 507. In particular, a warning signal is displayed by the projector unit 504 and a warning 5 sound is output by the speaker unit 510, in case the vehicle comes close to an obstacle (such as a wall, a pillar or a different vehicle) during the parking process. Furthermore, the camera unit 507 monitors the car after the 10 parking process in order to protect the vehicle against theft. In particular, the camera unit 507 captures picture information of the area around the parking space 501, if an approach of a person is detected by the motion detector 508. The captured picture information is sent to a mobile 15 device of the user via the data connection unit 509
Therefore it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the effective filing date of the invention to modify Turner2’s invention to include identify that a vehicle has parked in a parking space and the registration number of the vehicle, based on a captured image obtained from a camera capturing an image of the parking space in order to ensure that the entire parking process is safely carried out by the camera unit monitoring the vehicle during the parking process (Sychov: page 15, lines 30-33).
Turner2 further discloses:
determine whether the registration number of the identified vehicle is registered in the user information (AT least: [0057]:
[0057] The back office server environment 160 can be implemented using a wide variety of commercially available computers and/or servers. In FIG. 1, the back office server environment 160 includes back office server software 164, which can comprise computer-executable instructions stored on non-transitory computer-readable media (e.g., any one or more of the non-transitory computer-readable media described above). When executed, the software can be used to implement the functionality of the back office server, which is described in more detail below. The EVCS/EVSE back office server 160 further comprises a back office server processor 162 for executing software 164. Also shown in FIG. 1 is EVSC/EVSE user data 170. The EVSC/EVSE user data 170 can comprise data stored on non-transitory computer-readable media that is related to users of the EVCS/EVSE. For example, the data can include data about a user's identification, address, account, usage history, vehicle, and/or other such user data. In the illustrated embodiment, the EVCS/EVSE back office server 160 further includes parking management data 168. Parking management data 168 can comprise one or more of an identifier for each parking space (e.g. parking space #1), the geographic location of parking spaces served by the EVCS/EVSEs, or the payment status of these parking spaces (e.g. not paid for parking or paid for parking until 03:32 pm on today's date). Furthermore, the EVCS/EVSE back office server 160 includes web page data 166. The web page data 166 can comprise data stored on non-transitory computer-readable media that is used to render one or more web pages for display to parking enforcement personnel (e.g., parking enforcement 200 shown in FIG. 2) via a web site (e.g., web site 210 shown in FIG. 2). The web page data 166 can include other data used to implement the web site. The parking enforcement web site can allow parking enforcement personnel to view the current payment status of one or more parking spaces served by the EVCS/EVSEs. The parking management web site and its associated web pages can be displayed, for example, using a suitable Internet browser or media player implemented at a computer operated by parking enforcement personnel and coupled to the back office server 120 via a network (e.g., the Internet, a wide-area network, a local-area network, a client-server network, a wireless mesh network, or other such network or any combination thereof). The web page data 166 can be in any format or language suitable for implementing web pages (e.g., HTML, Flash, Java, and the like). In other embodiments, the data to be displayed to the parking enforcement personnel is not stored as web page data, but as data usable via a non-web-based user interface.
upon determination that the identified registration number of the vehicle identification is registered in the user information, authenticate a charging port of the charging device to allow for electric vehicle charging (At least: [0007], [0066]:
[0007] The parking authorization can be done using a variety of methods. For example, the EVCS/EVSE display apparatus can be used to display a graphical user interface that allows drivers of electric vehicles using the EVCS/EVSE to replenish their vehicle's battery and to pay for parking at the same time as they complete the process of authenticating their authorization to use the EVCS/EVSE. Drivers of non-electric vehicles who wish to park in the area served by the EVCS/EVSE with parking authorization functionality can also use this graphical user interface to pay for parking. The EVCS/EVSE can be equipped with a printer to print paper receipts which can be affixed to the vehicle window or placed on the vehicle dash so that they can be viewed by parking enforcement personnel. For an EVCS/EVSE not equipped with a printer, parking enforcement personnel can use the graphical user interface to view the current status of all parking spaces served by the EVCS/EVSE to determine which vehicles are currently authorized to park.
[0066] If the current session is an electric vehicle charge and park session and the payment is authorized, charging can then begin at the selected port (process block 353). During charging, the selected port is continuously monitored for an unplug or a battery fully charged event (process blocks 354, 356, 358). In some embodiments, the energy usage at the selected port is also continuously monitored. If an unplug or battery fully charged event is detected, the EVCS/EVSE will terminate the charging on the selected port (process block 360). When an unplug event is detected, the appropriate parking fees based on the amount of time that the vehicle was plugged in for charging and the total energy used is computed (process block 362). The total energy used and parking fees are then transmitted to the back office server (process block 364) so that the charging session can be closed out. Charging statistics and the appropriate parking fees can then be temporarily displayed on the screen (process block 366). In some embodiments, the charging session fees are computed directly by the EVCS/EVSE and transmitted with the parking fees (in which case the total energy used may not be transmitted). Furthermore, a total fee can be computed from the parking fees and the charging fees and transmitted. In still further embodiments, one or more of a charge start time, a charge stop time, or a disconnect time are transmitted (in which case the appropriate fees are computed by the back office server). In embodiments in which EV drivers select a specific parking period (at process block 326), charging can be discontinued after the selected period has expired. Furthermore, in some embodiments, if the vehicle remains connected after this period expires, additional parking fees (e.g., at the same or higher rate) can be charged to the user or a signal can be sent to the back office server or to parking enforcement personnel. In some embodiments, and as more fully explained below, the parking fees and/or any charging fees are provided at a reduced rate (or even for free) because of the revenue generated by advertising displayed on the EVCS/EVSE. The screen will eventually revert to the welcome screen and the EVCS/EVSE will wait for a new parker (process block 370, 301) and the process shown in FIG. 3A can be repeated.
perform a charging process to charge an electric vehicle to which a charging plug is connected, when the charging plug of the charging device installed corresponding to the parking space is connected to the electric vehicle and the charging plug is authenticated (AT least: [0061], [0064]; Fig 6; Fig 10).
[0061] FIG. 10 shows an example of a welcome screen 1000 in which one electric vehicle is already connected to the EVCS/EVSE at parking space 1 and charging, and one non-electric vehicle is paid for parking in space number 5 until 2:32 pm (as shown by icon 1020). In other embodiments, the screen 1000 which shows the remaining time paid for in parking spaces is available only to authorized parking enforcement personnel (e.g., who authenticate themselves by swiping an identification card at the EVCS/EVSE or input an authorization code). It should be understood that the graphical depictions and icons shown in FIG. 6 and in FIG. 10 are by way of example only, and a variety of other depictions and icons can be used to show information about the available spaces.
[0064] Once the EVCS/EVSE determines the correct parking rate to use, it will determine if this is a park-and-charge session for an electric vehicle or just parking of a non-electric vehicle (process block 322). This determination can be done by determining that a parking space selected by the driver (using the EVCS/EVSE display apparatus) is a space associated with a charging port, or by detecting that an electric vehicle is plugged in to a port associated with the selected space, or by using the EVCS/EVSE display apparatus to ask the parker if it is a parking only session and processing the vehicle parker's response. If the session is for parking only, the EVCS/EVSE will display the correct parking rate (process block 324), prompt the parker to enter the period of time for which they will park their vehicle in the selected space and process the parker's response as the parker interacts with the EVCS/EVSE via the touch screen display and/or the buttons/keypad (process block 326). FIG. 7 shows an example of a screen 700 allowing the parker to enter the time they wish to pay for parking in the selected space. In other embodiments, both park-and-charge sessions and parking only sessions include process blocks 324, 326. For example, a driver of an electric vehicle can select the specific amount of time for which they desire to park and have their vehicle charged. If that time expires, charging can be discontinued at the selected charging port.
perform a billing process to charge the owner of the electric vehicle with the identified registration number a charging fee for the charging process, based on the user information (At least: [0072], [0081], claim 11);
[0072] EVCS/EVSE indicating completion of the park-and-charge session. This indication can include the total energy usage from the current charging session and the associated parking fees (process blocks 416, 418). Once the total energy usage message is received, the back office server can update the customer's data stored in the customer database 404 accordingly for the energy used and parking fees incurred (process block 422). In other embodiments, the information received from the EVCS/EVSE includes parking fees and charging fees (e.g., the charging fees are computed by the EVCS/EVSE itself). In still other embodiments, the information from the EVCS/EVSE includes a charging stop time and/or a disconnect time, from which the total parking fees and charging fees can be computed.
[0081] In another example, the identity of the current viewer is identified when the viewer plugs in their electric vehicle or is identified based on the means the EVCS/EVSE uses to determine access for billing purposes (e.g., based on the user's credit card or other card used to activate the EVCS/EVSE). In this example, specific advertising can be displayed to the viewer based on criteria specific to this viewer (e.g., based on demographic information about the user).
Claim 11:
11. The method of claim 1, wherein the controlling the charging operation comprises: receiving account information from the user; detecting an unplug event at the parking space; determining a time of the unplug event; computing a cost for parking and charging at the parking space based at least in part on the time of the unplug event; and transmitting the cost for parking and charging at the parking space and at least a portion of the account information to a remote server.
Turner2 does not disclose, Chan in the same field of endeavor discloses:
de-authenticate the charging plug of the charging device to prevent electric vehicle charging after a predetermined time has elapsed without receiving a plug connection signal from the charging device since the identification that the vehicle has parked in the parking space (At least: [0113], [0110]; Fig 13 and associated text:
[0110]When charging is detected to be completed at step 1118, the respective relay of
the electric vehicle charger may be disabled by power controller or PCS in order to not
allow the electric vehicle charger be used by another electric vehicle or by another
user. This ensures that the user will be billed correctly by the amount of electricity
being used. In one variant, rather than disabling the relay after charging, the amount
of current allowed being drawn may be reset to the level that no electric vehicle is
being charged.
[113]At step 1109b, server 1005 determines whether the charging has begun. Server
1005 may perform a query on power controller 201 whether electricity has been
provided to load 102b. If there is no electricity being provided, this indicates that the
charging process has not yet begun and probably the user has not arrived at the
charging parking space. If after a first time limit, such as two to ten minutes and there
is still no electricity being provided to load 102b, server 1005 sends an alert at step
1111 to the user to remind him/her of the delay about initiating the charging process.
Server 1005 may also remind the user about the location of the electric vehicle
charger and the amount of time left before he has to commence the charging process.
The amount of time left is preferred in the range from one minute to fifteen minutes
in order to utilize the electric vehicle charging facility more efficiently while not
causing much stress on the user. Once the amount of time left has expired and the
charging process has still not commenced at step 1112, server 1005 will cancel the
reservation at step 1113. The user will not be able to use any non-scheduled electric
vehicle charger at the electric vehicle parking facility until another reservation is made
only then an electric vehicle charger will be scheduled for him.
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Therefore it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the effective filing date of the invention to modify Turner2’s invention to include de-authenticate the charging plug of the charging device to prevent electric vehicle charging after a predetermined time has elapsed without receiving a plug connection signal from the charging device since the identification that the vehicle has parked in the parking space in order to ensure that is not allowed for the electric vehicle charger to be used by another electric vehicle or by another, further ensuring that the user will be billed correctly by the amount of electricity being used (Chan: [0110]).
Regarding claim 2, Turner2 and Sychov and Chan disclose the charging control device for electric vehicle according to claim 1. Turner2 discloses an authentication unit which authenticates an owner of an electric vehicle, wherein the charging control unit causes the charging device to perform the charging process (At least: [0007]).
Turner2 does not disclose, Chan discloses in the same field of endeavor discloses the charging control unit causes the charging device to perform the charging process in response to a request from the owner authenticated by the authentication unit after de-authentication of the charging plug of the charging device (At least: [0113]);
[0113] Once the amount of time left has expired and the charging process has still not commenced at step 1112, server 1005 will cancel the reservation at step 1113. The user will not be able to use any non-scheduled electric vehicle charger at the electric vehicle parking facility until another reservation is made only then an electric vehicle charger will be scheduled for him.
Therefore it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the effective filing date of the invention to modify Turner2’s invention to include the charging control unit causes the charging device to perform the charging process in response to a request from the owner authenticated by the authentication unit after de-authentication of the charging plug of the charging device in order to ensure that is not allowed for the electric vehicle charger to be used by another electric vehicle or by another, further ensuring that the user will be billed correctly by the amount of electricity being used (Chan: [0110]).
CONCLUSION
Applicant's amendment necessitated the new ground(s) of rejection presented in this Office action. Accordingly, THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. See MPEP § 706.07(a). Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to MOHAMMAD Z SHAIKH whose telephone number is (571)270-3444. The examiner can normally be reached M-T, 9-600; Fri, 8-11, 3-5.
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, BENNETT SIGMOND can be reached at 303-297-4411. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/MOHAMMAD Z SHAIKH/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3694 5/16/2026
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