DETAILED ACTION
This Office action is in response to the application filed on January 09, 2025.
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 .
In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status.
Inventorship
This application currently names joint inventors. In considering patentability of the claims the examiner presumes that the subject matter of the various claims was commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the claimed invention(s) absent any evidence to the contrary. Applicant is advised of the obligation under 37 CFR 1.56 to point out the inventor and effective filing dates of each claim that was not commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the later invention in order for the examiner to consider the applicability of 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(2)(C) for any potential 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) prior art against the later invention.
Priority
Receipt is acknowledged of certified copies of papers required by 37 CFR 1.55.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on January 09, 2025 is in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner.
Drawings
The drawings were filed on January 09, 2025. These drawings are accepted by the Examiner.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status.
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 1-3 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Shinozaki et al. (U.S. Pub. 2021/0376621 A1).
In re claim 1, Shinozaki discloses (Fig. 1) a converter system (1), comprising:
a first power supply path (supply path between 6 and 3) connecting a power supply (6) and a load (3);
a converter (4) provided on the first power supply path;
a contactor (8) provided between the converter and the load in the first power supply path, the contactor including a normally open movable contact for selectively establishing/interrupting the first power supply path and an electromagnetic coil (coil in 8) for driving the movable contact (Para. 0012-0019);
a contactor driving circuit (5b) electrically connected to the electromagnetic coil to drive the contactor (Para. 0012-0019);
a current sensor for detecting a contactor drive current flowing from the contactor driving circuit to the electromagnetic coil (Para. 0012-0019); and
a controller (5a) configured to control the converter and to control the contactor driving circuit so as to supply electric power to the electromagnetic coil to close the contactor when the converter is in operation and so as to stop the electric power supply to the electromagnetic coil to open the contactor when the converter is stopped (Para. 0012-0019),
wherein the controller is configured to stop operation of the converter in a case where the contactor drive current becomes undetected by the current sensor during operation of the converter (Para. 0012-0019).
In re claim 2, Shinozaki discloses wherein the contactor comprises a first contactor (first contactor 8) provided on a positive power line of the first power supply path and a second contactor (second contactor 8) provided on a negative power line of the first power supply path, the contactor driving circuit comprises a first contactor driving circuit for driving the first contactor and a second contactor driving circuit for driving the second contactor, and the current sensor comprises a first current sensor for detecting a contactor drive current flowing from the first contactor driving circuit to the electromagnetic coil of the first contactor and a second current sensor for detecting a contactor drive current flowing from the second contactor driving circuit to the electromagnetic coil of the second contactor (Para. 0012-0019).
In re claim 3, Shinozaki discloses (Fig. 1) a converter (1) driving method in a converter system, wherein the converter system comprises:
a first power supply path (supply path between 6 and 3) connecting a power supply (6) and a load (3);
a converter (4) provided on the first power supply path;
a contactor (8) provided between the converter and the load in the first power supply path, the contactor including a normally open movable contact for selectively establishing/interrupting the first power supply path and an electromagnetic coil for driving the movable contact (Para. 0012-0019);
a contactor driving circuit (5b) electrically connected to the electromagnetic coil to drive the contactor (Para. 0012-0019); and
a current sensor for detecting a contactor drive current flowing from the contactor driving circuit to the electromagnetic coil (Para. 0012-0019), the converter driving method comprising:
controlling (5a) the contactor driving circuit so as to supply electric power to the electromagnetic coil to close the contactor when the converter is in operation and so as to stop the electric power supply to the electromagnetic coil to open the contactor when the converter is stopped (Para. 0012-0019); and
stopping operation of the converter in a case where the contactor drive current becomes undetected by the current sensor during operation of the converter (Para. 0012-0019).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to RAFAEL O. DE LEÓN DOMENECH whose telephone number is (571)270-0517. The examiner can normally be reached 8:00 a.m. -5:00 p.m..
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, Hammond Crystal can be reached at (571) 270-1682. 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.
/RAFAEL O DE LEON DOMENECH/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2838
Prosecution Insights