DETAILED ACTION
Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status
The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
The following is a quotation of the appropriate paragraphs of 35 U.S.C. 102 that form the basis for the rejections under this section made in this Office action:
A person shall be entitled to a patent unless –
(a)(1) the claimed invention was patented, described in a printed publication, or in public use, on sale, or otherwise available to the public before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claims 1-10 and 16-21 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Min et al. CN 111 251 941.
Min discloses a bidirectional DC/DC converter (Figs 1-4 and 6), comprising:
(1) regarding Claims 1, 16 and 21:
a low-voltage port having a first voltage (V12_bat);
a high-voltage port (V48_bat);
a start circuit (includes Qsafe, Dpre, Csafe) having one end electrically connected to the low-voltage port (V12_bat), wherein the start circuit comprises at least one controllable switch (31);
an inductor (Lpre) having one end electrically connected to the other end of the start circuit; and
a switch circuit (31) having both ends electrically connected to the high-voltage port (V48_bat) and the other end of the inductor (Lpre), respectively;
wherein when the bidirectional DC/DC converter starts from the low-voltage port, a voltage of the high-voltage port is established using the first voltage, by controlling the at least one controllable switch (abstract text and the following section:
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(2) regarding Claim 2:
a first capacitor (C48) connected in parallel to the high-voltage port, and a second capacitor (C12) connected in parallel to the low-voltage port, wherein the start circuit is electrically connected between the first capacitor and the inductor (“one end of the high-voltage bus capacitor C48 is connected with the anode of the direct current bus of the new energy vehicle…the other end is connected with the negative pole of the direct current bus…one end of the capacitor C12 is connected to the other end of the inductor Lf and the common joint of one end of the inductor Lpre. The other end of the capacitor C12 connected to the negative electrode of the direct current bus.”).
(3) regarding Claim 3:
wherein, when the bidirectional DC/DC converter starts from the low-voltage port, the voltage of the high-voltage port increases from zero to the first voltage, and a slope of voltage change is controlled based on a duty ratio of the at least one controllable switch (“the duty ratio control of the switch tube Qsafe to the high-voltage bus capacitor C48 charging. Switch pipe duty ratio of Qsafe is gradually increased from 100 to 0%...the Buck circuit principle, the capacitance C12 is the obtained voltage value equal to the capacitor Csafe multiplied by the duty ratio to obtain the slowly rising voltage…a high voltage bus capacitor C48 will obtain the same slowly rises.”
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(4) regarding Claim 4:
wherein, the duty ratio of the at least one controllable switch is controlled to gradually increase, thereby gradually increasing the voltage of the high-voltage port to the first voltage (See Fig 5 and paragraph above, “switch pipe duty ratio of Qsafe is gradually increased from 100 to 0%...At this stage, the work of the switch tube time sequence as shown in Fig. 5, switch tube Ql and switch tube Ql is always in an off state, the duty ratio control of the switch tube Qsafe to the high-voltage bus capacitor C48 charging.”).
(5) regarding Claim 5:
wherein when the bidirectional DC/DC converter starts from the low-voltage port, the bidirectional DC/DC converter enters a first working stage; wherein at the first working stage, the start circuit and the inductor perform buck conversion on the first voltage to obtain the voltage of the high-voltage port; and the switch circuit works in a constant conduction mode to provide current paths between the high-voltage port and the power conversion circuit
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(6) regarding Claim 6:
wherein the bidirectional DC/DC converter enters a second working stage when the first working stage ends; wherein at the second working stage, the switchcircuit and the inductor perform boost conversion on the first voltage to obtain the voltage of the high-voltage port; and the start circuit works in the constant conduction mode to provide current paths between the low-voltage port and the second power conversion circuit (“the second stage is a boost mode stage, by a conventional boost circuit, continues to the high voltage bus capacitor C48 charging with current mode or voltage mode, until the voltage charged to the final target voltage (close to the high voltage power supply V48-output voltage of the bat…in the second stage, as shown in Fig. 6, the control capacitor C12, an inductor Lf, switch tube Ql, boost circuit composed of switch MOS tube and high voltage bus capacitor C48…the controller isused for controlling the switch tube Qsafe normally, and control capacitor C12, inductor Lf, a switch MOS tube and a high voltage bus capacitor boost circuit, to make the bidirectional DC-DC converter circuit operates in the boost mode.”)
(7) regarding Claim 7:
wherein at the first working stage, the voltage of the high-voltage port is increased from zero to the first voltage; and at the second working stage, the voltage of the high-voltage port is increased from the first voltage to a target voltage (the first stage is a buck mode stage. The output voltage of the charging power supply V12V-bat by the Buck circuit to the high voltage bus capacitor C48 is charged to a predetermined threshold, the predetermined threshold proximity charging power source V12 output voltage of the bat, the second stage is a boost mode stage…continues to the high voltage bus capacitor C48 charging…until the voltage charged to the final target voltage (close to the high voltage power supply V48-output voltage of the bat.”).
(8) regarding Claim 8:
wherein, the start circuit comprises a main switching tube electrically connected between a first end of the low-voltage port and the inductor, and an auxiliary switching tube having one end electrically connected to a connection point of the main switching tube and the inductor, and the other end electrically connected to a second end of the low-voltage port (“a switching tube Qsafe of the first conduction end is connected with the charging power supply V12-the anode of the bat is connected with the cathode end of the frewheeling element Gpre connected with the common contact points on the other end of the inductor Lpre connected with the second end of the switch tube Qsafe.”).
(9) regarding Claim 9:
wherein, the start circuit further comprises a short-circuit switch electrically connected in parallel to the main switching tube, wherein when the main switching tube is conducted constantly, the short-circuit switch is closed (“the controller isused for controlling the switch tube Qsafe normally, and control capacitor C12, inductor Lf, a switch MOS tube and a high voltage bus capacitor boost circuit, to make the bidirectional DC-DC converter circuit operates in the boost mode.”).
(10) regarding Claim 10:
wherein, at the first working stage, a duty ratio of the main switching tube is controlled to gradually increase, and the voltage of the high-voltage port is gradually established to the first voltage; and at the second working stage, the main switching tube is controlled to conduct constantly (“at this stage, the work of the switch tube time sequence as shown in Fig 5, switch tube Ql and switch tube Ql is always in an off state, the duty ratio control of the switch tube Qsafe to the high-voltage bus capacitor C48 charging. Switch pipe duty ratio of Qsafe is gradually increased from 100 to 0%...the controller is used for controlling the switch tube Qsafe normally, and control capacitor C12, inductor Lf, a swtich MOS tube and a high voltage bus capacitor boost circuit, to make the bidirectional DC-DC converter circuit operates in the boost mode.”).
(11) regarding Claim 17:
wherein the energy storage device is electrically connected to a power supply system, and when the power supply system loses power, the energy storage units output power to the at least one bidirectional DC/DC converter and establish a bus voltage through the at least one bidirectional DC/DC converter (“when the power supply system loses power, the energy storage units output power to the at least one bidirectional DC/DC converter and establish a bus voltage through the at least one bidirectional DC/DC converter.”).
(12) regarding Claim 18:
wherein when the at least one bidirectional DC/DC converter starts from the low-voltage port, the voltage of the high- voltage port increases from zero to the first voltage, and a slope of voltage change is controlled based on a duty ratio of the at least one controllable switch (“the duty ratio control of the switch tube Qsafe to the high-voltage bus capacitor C48 charging. Switch pipe duty ratio of Qsafe is gradually increased from 100 to 0%...the Buck circuit principle, the capacitance C12 is the obtained voltage value equal to the capacitor Csafe multiplied by the duty ratio to obtain the slowly rising voltage…a high voltage bus capacitor C48 will obtain the same slowly rises.”).
(13) regarding Claim 19:
wherein when the at least one bidirectional DC/DC converter starts from the low-voltage port, the start circuit and the inductor perform buck conversion on the first voltage and establish the voltage of the high- voltage port to the first voltage; and the switch circuit and the inductor perform boost conversion on the first voltage and establish the voltage of the high-voltage port from the first voltage to the second voltage (the first stage is a buck mode stage. The output voltage of the charging power supply V12V-bat by the Buck circuit to the high voltage bus capacitor C48 is charged to a predetermined threshold, the predetermined threshold proximity charging power source V12 output voltage of the bat, the second stage is a boost mode stage…continues to the high voltage bus capacitor C48 charging…until the voltage charged to the final target voltage (close to the high voltage power supply V48-output voltage of the bat.”).
(14) regarding Claim 20:
wherein, when the start circuit and the inductor perform buck conversion, the switch circuit works in a constant conduction mode to provide current paths between the high-voltage port and the start circuit; and when the switch circuit and the inductor performs boost conversion, the start circuit works in the constant conduction mode to provide current paths between the low-voltage port and the switch circuit (the first stage is a buck mode stage. The output voltage of the charging power supply V12V-bat by the Buck circuit to the high voltage bus capacitor C48 is charged to a predetermined threshold, the predetermined threshold proximity charging power source V12 output voltage of the bat, the second stage is a boost mode stage…continues to the high voltage bus capacitor C48 charging…until the voltage charged to the final target voltage (close to the high voltage power supply V48-output voltage of the bat.”).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 11-15 are objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter: Prior art of record does not disclose four switching tubes in series with a flying capacitor connected between the middle two tubes as required by Claim 11. Prior art of record does not disclose a three-level flying capacitor start circuit with eight switching tubes and four resistors.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to CRYSTAL L HAMMOND whose telephone number is (571)270-1682. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 12pm-4pm Alt Fridays.
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/CRYSTAL L HAMMOND/Supervisory Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2838
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