DETAILED ACTION
Status of the Application
Claims 1-15 have been examined in this application. This communication is the first action on the merits. The Information Disclosure Statement (IDS), filed on May 22, 2025, has been acknowledged.
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.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 101
35 U.S.C. 101 reads as follows:
Whoever invents or discovers any new and useful process, machine, manufacture, or composition of matter, or any new and useful improvement thereof, may obtain a patent therefor, subject to the conditions and requirements of this title.
Claims 1-15 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 101 because the claimed invention is directed to an abstract idea without significantly more. The claims (claim 1, and similarly claims 2-15) recite the abstract elements of
indicate a charging status of a battery of a vehicle to one or more candidate operators of the vehicle wherein the battery is adapted to be charged by being connected to a charging unit separate from the vehicle …:
obtain a charging status of the battery of the vehicle,
determine based on the charging status, whether the charging status is sufficient for the vehicle to perform the one or more preset operations,
upon determining that the charging status is sufficient for the vehicle to perform the one or more preset operations, issue a signal … associated with one candidate operator of the one or more candidate operators.
Claims 1-15, in view of the claim limitations, are directed to the abstract idea of collecting information regarding charging status of a vehicle, evaluating the information to determine whether the charging status is enough to perform preset operations, and if the charging status is sufficient for the vehicle to perform the preset operations, outputting the results of the evaluation to an operator of the vehicle .
As a whole, in view of the claim limitations, but for the computer components and systems performing the claimed functions, the broadest reasonable interpretation of collecting first and second worker profile information and first and second worker work plan information, deriving organizational distance between the first and second worker based on the worker profile information, deriving relevance between the first and second worker based on the work plan information, generating information to present based on the organizational distance and relevance, and outputting the information could all be reasonably interpreted as a human mentally observing information regarding charging status of a vehicle, a human evaluating the information to determine whether the charging status is enough to perform preset operations, a human using judgment to decide if the charging status is sufficient for the vehicle to perform the preset operations, and a human outputting the results of the evaluation manually and/or using a pen and paper; therefore, the claims recite a mental process. Further, as a whole, each of the limitations above manage the human behavior of human operators by informing the operator when the vehicle can be operated by the operator; therefore, the claims recite a certain method of organizing human activity. In addition, with respect to the dependent claims, aside from the additional elements beyond the recited abstract idea addressed below under the second prong of Step 2A and 2B, the limitations of dependent claims 2-11 & 13-15 recite similar further abstract limitations to those discussed above that narrow the abstract idea recited in the independent claims because, aside from the computer components and systems performing the claimed functions the limitations of claims recite mental processes that can be practically performed mentally by observing, evaluating, and judging information mentally and/or with a pen and paper and recite a certain method of organizing human activity that manages human behavior. Accordingly, since the claims recite a certain method of organizing human activity and mental processes, the claims recite an abstract idea under the first prong of Step 2A.
This judicial exception is not integrated into a practical application under the second prong of Step 2A. In particular, the claims recite the additional elements beyond the recited abstract idea of “[a] computer system comprising processing circuitry configured to …, the processing circuitry is configured to,” and “one or more receiving units, each receiving unit” in claim 1, “the one or more receiving units,” “a set of receiving units,” and “each receiving unit” in claim 4, and similarly claims 5-7 & 13, “the computer system of claim 1” in claim 11, “[a] computer-implemented method … the method comprising,” “by a processing circuitry of a computer system,” and “one or more receiving units, each receiving unit” in claim 12, “[a] computer program product comprising program code for performing, when executed by the processing circuitry” in claim 14, “[a] non-transitory computer-readable storage medium comprising instructions, which when executed by the processing circuitry, cause the processing circuitry to perform” in claim 15; however, individually and when viewed as an ordered combination, and pursuant to the broadest reasonable interpretation, each of the additional elements are computing elements recited at high level of generality implementing the abstract idea on a computer (i.e. apply it), and thus, are no more than applying the abstract idea with generic computer components. In addition, these aforementioned additional elements and the additional element beyond the recited abstract idea of “[a] vehicle comprising a battery, wherein the battery is arranged to be charged by a charging unit separate from the vehicle, and wherein the vehicle further comprises and/or is controlled by the computer system” in claim 11 merely generally link the abstract idea to a technical field/environment, namely a generic computing environment. Moreover, aside from the aforementioned additional elements, the remaining elements of dependent claims 2-11 & 13-15 do not integrate the abstract idea into a practical application because these claims merely recite further limitations that provide no more than simply narrowing the recited abstract idea.
The claims do not include additional elements that are sufficient to amount to significantly more than the judicial exception under Step 2B. As noted above, the aforementioned additional elements beyond the recited abstract idea, as an order combination, are no more than mere instructions to implement the idea using generic computer components (i.e. apply it), and further, generally link the abstract idea to a field of use, which is not sufficient to amount to significantly more than an abstract idea; therefore, the additional elements are not sufficient to amount to significantly more than an abstract idea. Additionally, these recitations as an ordered combination, simply append the abstract idea to recitations of generic structure performing generic computer that are well-understood, routine, and conventional in the field as evinced by Applicant’s specification at [0135]-[0136] and [0146] (discussing the computer system implementing the invention comprises processing circuitry including a general purpose computer, and further discussing unless otherwise defined, all terms (including technical and scientific terms) used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this disclosure belongs) and since the specification does not describe the additional elements other than the generic computer components (such as the vehicle, the battery and the charging unit in claim 11) in a manner sufficient to support an interpretation beyond well-understood, routine, and conventional components. Furthermore, as an ordered combination, these elements amount to generic computer components performing repetitive calculations, receiving or transmitting data over a network, storing and retrieving information in memory, which, as held by the courts, are well-understood, routine, and conventional. See MPEP 2106.05(d); July 2015 Update, p. 7. Moreover, aside from the aforementioned additional elements, the remaining elements of dependent claims 2-11 & 13-15 do not transform the recited abstract idea into a patent eligible invention because these claims merely recite further limitations that provide no more than simply narrowing the recited abstract idea.
Looking at these limitations as an ordered combination adds nothing additional that is sufficient to amount to significantly more than the recited abstract idea because they simply provide instructions to use a generic arrangement of generic computer components and recitations of generic computer structure that perform well-understood, routine, and conventional computer functions that are used to “apply” the recited abstract idea. Thus, the elements of the claims, considered both individually and as an ordered combination, are not sufficient to ensure that the claims as a whole amount to significantly more than the abstract idea itself. Since there are no limitations in these claims that transform the exception into a patent eligible application such that these claims amount to significantly more than the exception itself, claims 1-15 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 101 as being directed to non-statutory subject matter.
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.
(a)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claims 1-4 & 9-15 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1), (a)(2) as being anticipated by Birek, et al. (US 20190143832 A1), hereinafter Birek.
Regarding claim 1, Birek discloses a computer system comprising processing circuitry configured to indicate a charging status of a battery of a vehicle to one or more candidate operators of the vehicle wherein the battery is adapted to be charged by being connected to a charging unit separate from the vehicle, the processing circuitry is configured to ([0046], [0055]-[0056], [0086]):
obtain a charging status of the battery of the vehicle ([0047]-[0048], vehicle system 330 comprises a plurality of subsystems and monitors coupled with the controller 210 implemented as control logic within the controller 210, wherein monitors include: a state of charge monitor 260, for providing data indicative of a current state of charge of the battery 11, [0058]-[0059], the method 30 comprises, at block 31, determining a routine of use of charge of the battery 11, comprising collecting data indicative of a current state of charge (SoC) of the battery 11),
determine based on the charging status, whether the charging status is sufficient for the vehicle to perform the one or more preset operations ([0074]-[0075], [0077]-[0079], at block 33, the method comprises predicting a reduction in the state of charge of the battery 11 associated with the user requirement, how much charge 11 will be consumed by the time the time period and/or distance of future driving has been completed, at block 35, the method comprises determining a minimum SoC for the battery 11 for enabling the user requirement to be satisfied, and determining whether the resulting SoC is below a threshold defining a charge-depleted state of the battery 11, [0068]-[0069], at block 32, the method 30 comprises determining a user requirement for future driving of the vehicle, e.g., the user requirement may define a time period and/or distance of future driving of the vehicle 10 for which the energy storage means 11 must not be in a charge-depleted state, and this represents a constraint forbidding the battery 11 from reaching its charge-depleted state during a defined time period and/or distance of future driving of the vehicle),
upon determining that the charging status is sufficient for the vehicle to perform the one or more preset operations, issue a signal to one or more receiving units, each receiving unit being associated with one candidate operator of the one or more candidate operators ([0084], at block 37, the method 30 comprises providing an output to the user indicative of a time requirement for increasing the state of charge of the energy storage means to a value at (optionally above) the minimum state of charge, including transmitting information to the output device 300 to cause, at least in part, the presentation of the above-mentioned output to the user, [0096]-[0095], the output of block 37 can be a post-charging message indicating that the SoC of the battery 11 is at the value/ the minimum state of charge, i.e. i.e. the battery 11 now has the minimum SoC for achieving the user requirement for future driving of the vehicle 10, the output 37 in the form of a post-charging message could represent a prompt for the user to return to their vehicle which is now ready to drive).
Regarding claim 2, Birek discloses the computer system of claim 1 (as above), wherein obtaining the charging status comprises obtaining one or more values indicative of any one or more of a State of Charge, SoC, of the battery, a remaining time and/or charge until the battery is fully charged or until charged with at least a predefined charge, an expected time until charged with the at least a predefined charge, and a percentage of charge in the battery ([0047]-[0048], example subsystems and monitors, illustrated in FIG. 2, include: a state of charge monitor 260, for providing data indicative of a current state of charge of the battery 11, [0059], determining a routine at block 31 comprises collecting data indicative of a current state of charge (SoC) of the battery 11).
Regarding claim 3, Birek discloses the computer system of claim 1 (as above), wherein determining that the charging status is sufficient for the vehicle to perform the one or more preset operations comprises determining that the charging status is associated with a minimal charge needed to perform the one or more preset operations, which minimal charge is less than a maximum capacity of the battery ([0008], the method includes determining a user requirement for future driving of the vehicle, predicting a reduction in the state of charge of the energy storage means associated with the user requirement, determining a minimum state of charge for the energy storage means for enabling the user requirement to be satisfied in dependence on the predicted reduction, [0078]-[0079], at block 35, the method comprises determining a minimum SoC for the battery 11 for enabling the user requirement to be satisfied in dependence on the predicted reduction of block 33 comprises determining a current SoC, subtracting from the current SoC the delta determined at block 33 to determine the resulting SoC, and determining whether the resulting SoC is below a threshold defining a charge-depleted state of the battery 1).
Regarding claim 4, Birek discloses the computer system of claim 1 (as above), wherein the processing circuitry is configured to select the one or more receiving units from a set of receiving units, each receiving unit being associated with a respective operator, and optionally wherein the processing circuitry is configured to select the one or more receiving units based on a predefined assignment of operators allowed to operate the vehicle, and/or wherein the processing circuitry is configured to select the one or more receiving units based on a predefined assignment of operators allowed to perform the one or more preset operations ([0084], at block 37, the method 30 comprises providing an output to the user indicative of a time requirement for increasing the state of charge of the energy storage means to a value at (optionally above) the minimum state of charge consisting of transmitting information to the output device 300 to cause, at least in part, the presentation of the above-mentioned output to the user, [0096], the post-charging message is transmitted via a local and/or wide area network to a portable user device of the user, so that the user can feel free to leave their vehicle 10 during charging and still be able to finish charging at the earliest possible time, due to the prompt, [0052], the output device 300 is configured to present an output to a user of the vehicle 10, the output device 300 may be an audio and/or visual output device, in other examples, the output device 300 may not be part of the vehicle system 330 and may instead be a portable user device such as a mobile telephone, a so-called ‘smart’ watch, or similar portable media devices, able to communicate with the controller 210 of the vehicle 10, and this enables a portable user device to present the output to the user, even if the user is remote from the vehicle 10).
Regarding claim 9, Birek discloses the computer system of claim 1 (as above), wherein the one or more preset operations comprises an operation of transporting a set payload along to along a set route ([0010], the user requirement defines a time period and/or distance of future driving of the vehicle for which the energy storage means must not be in a charge-depleted state, a location (e.g. destination); a distance; and a time period, [0065], determining the routine at block 31 further comprises determining a routine of distance travelled by the vehicle 10, in dependence on continual monitoring of distance travelled by the vehicle 10.).
Regarding claim 10, Birek discloses the computer system of claim 1 (as above), wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to obtain the one or more preset operations as input, preferably as a user input ([0010], the user requirement defines a time period and/or distance of future driving of the vehicle for which the energy storage means must not be in a charge-depleted state, a location (e.g. destination); a distance; and a time period), and optionally wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to, in response to obtaining the one or more preset operations, determine a required State of Charge, SoC, of the battery ([0059], determining a routine at block 31 comprises collecting data indicative of a current state of charge (SoC) of the battery 11 to determine a history of SoC, [0068], block 32, the method 30 comprises determining a user requirement for future driving of the vehicle) and wherein determining whether the charging status is sufficient for the vehicle to perform the one or more preset operations comprises determining whether or not a current SoC of the battery meets the required SoC of the battery ([0074]-[0075], [0077]-[0079], at block 33, the method comprises predicting a reduction in the state of charge of the battery 11 associated with the user requirement, how much charge 11 will be consumed by the time the time period and/or distance of future driving has been completed, assuming the vehicle is driven according to the determined routine throughout the defined time period and/or distance of future driving, this could be regarded as a change in SoC, or a ‘delta,’ at block 35, the method comprises determining a minimum SoC for the battery 11 for enabling the user requirement to be satisfied, and determining whether the resulting SoC is below a threshold defining a charge-depleted state of the battery 11).
Regarding claim 11, Birek discloses a vehicle comprising a battery, wherein the battery is arranged to be charged by a charging unit separate from the vehicle ([0086], block 37 or blocks 32 to 37, may be performed while the vehicle 10 is plugged in or otherwise coupled to a charging station, for example in response to detection of the vehicle 10 being plugged in or otherwise coupled to a charging station, [0015], a vehicle battery, or other energy storage means, may be charged or recharged by being electrically coupled to a charging station), and wherein the vehicle further comprises and/or is controlled by ([0044], [0046]-[0052]) the computer system of claim 1 (as above).
Regarding claim 12, Birek discloses a computer-implemented method for indicating a charging status of a battery of a vehicle to one or more candidate operators of the vehicle, wherein the battery is adapted to be charged by being connected to a charging unit separate from the vehicle, the method comprising (Abstract, [0046], [0055]-[0056]):
by a processing circuitry of a computer system ([0046], [0055]-[0056]), obtaining a charging status of the battery of the vehicle ([0047]-[0048], vehicle system 330 comprises a plurality of subsystems and monitors coupled with the controller 210 implemented as control logic within the controller 210, wherein monitors include: a state of charge monitor 260, for providing data indicative of a current state of charge of the battery 11, [0058]-[0059], the method 30 comprises, at block 31, determining a routine of use of charge of the battery 11, comprising collecting data indicative of a current state of charge (SoC) of the battery 11),
by the processing circuitry, determining based on the charging status, whether the charging status is sufficient for the vehicle to perform the one or more preset operations ([0074]-[0075], [0077]-[0079], at block 33, the method comprises predicting a reduction in the state of charge of the battery 11 associated with the user requirement, how much charge 11 will be consumed by the time the time period and/or distance of future driving has been completed, at block 35, the method comprises determining a minimum SoC for the battery 11 for enabling the user requirement to be satisfied, and determining whether the resulting SoC is below a threshold defining a charge-depleted state of the battery 11, [0068]-[0069], at block 32, the method 30 comprises determining a user requirement for future driving of the vehicle, e.g., the user requirement may define a time period and/or distance of future driving of the vehicle 10 for which the energy storage means 11 must not be in a charge-depleted state, and this represents a constraint forbidding the battery 11 from reaching its charge-depleted state during a defined time period and/or distance of future driving of the vehicle),
by the processing circuitry, upon determining that the charging status is sufficient for the vehicle to perform the one or more preset operations, issuing a signal to one or more receiving units, each receiving unit being associated with one candidate operator of the one or more candidate operators ([0084], at block 37, the method 30 comprises providing an output to the user indicative of a time requirement for increasing the state of charge of the energy storage means to a value at (optionally above) the minimum state of charge, including transmitting information to the output device 300 to cause, at least in part, the presentation of the above-mentioned output to the user, [0096]-[0095], the output of block 37 can be a post-charging message indicating that the SoC of the battery 11 is at the value/ the minimum state of charge, i.e. i.e. the battery 11 now has the minimum SoC for achieving the user requirement for future driving of the vehicle 10, the output 37 in the form of a post-charging message could represent a prompt for the user to return to their vehicle which is now ready to drive).
Regarding claim 13, Birek discloses the method of claim 12 (as above), further comprising any one or more of:
by the processing circuitry ([0046], [0055]-[0056]), obtaining the one or more preset operations as input, preferably as a user input ([0010], the user requirement defines a time period and/or distance of future driving of the vehicle for which the energy storage means must not be in a charge-depleted state, a location (e.g. destination); a distance; and a time period, [0045], a human-machine interface output may provide several user-selectable options for enabling manual inputting of a requirement for future driving, the options may include: 1) enough change for ‘n’ typical days of driving, 2) charge to travel ‘x’ typical units of distance (e.g. miles) in their vehicle, 3) charge to reach a user-selected location (e.g. destination), 4) charging the battery 11 to ‘y’ % state of charge (SoC), and the feature determines a user's requirement based on user selection of an option), and,
in response to obtaining the one or more preset operations, determining a required State of Charge, SoC, of the battery ([0059], determining a routine at block 31 comprises collecting data indicative of a current state of charge (SoC) of the battery 11 to determine a history of SoC, [0068], block 32, the method 30 comprises determining a user requirement for future driving of the vehicle) and wherein determining whether the charging status is sufficient for the vehicle to perform the one or more preset operations comprises determining whether or not a current SoC of the battery meets the required SoC of the battery battery ([0074]-[0075], [0077]-[0079], at block 33, the method comprises predicting a reduction in the state of charge of the battery 11 associated with the user requirement, how much charge 11 will be consumed by the time the time period and/or distance of future driving has been completed, assuming the vehicle is driven according to the determined routine throughout the defined time period and/or distance of future driving, this could be regarded as a change in SoC, or a ‘delta,’ at block 35, the method comprises determining a minimum SoC for the battery 11 for enabling the user requirement to be satisfied, and determining whether the resulting SoC is below a threshold defining a charge-depleted state of the battery 11),
by the processing circuitry, selecting the one or more receiving units from a set of receiving units, each receiving unit being associated with a respective operator ([0084], at block 37, the method 30 comprises providing an output to the user indicative of a time requirement for increasing the state of charge of the energy storage means to a value at (optionally above) the minimum state of charge consisting of transmitting information to the output device 300 to cause, at least in part, the presentation of the above-mentioned output to the user, [0096], the post-charging message is transmitted via a local and/or wide area network to a portable user device of the user, so that the user can feel free to leave their vehicle 10 during charging and still be able to finish charging at the earliest possible time, due to the prompt, [0052], the output device 300 is configured to present an output to a user of the vehicle 10, the output device 300 may be an audio and/or visual output device, in other examples, the output device 300 may not be part of the vehicle system 330 and may instead be a portable user device such as a mobile telephone, a so-called ‘smart’ watch, or similar portable media devices, able to communicate with the controller 210 of the vehicle 10, and this enables a portable user device to present the output to the user, even if the user is remote from the vehicle 10), and/or by the processing circuitry, upon determining that the charging status is not sufficient for the vehicle to perform the one or more preset operations, predicting a time when the charging status will be sufficient for the vehicle to perform the one or more preset operations ([0023], the method for determining a minimum charge for an electric or hybrid electric vehicle comprises predicting expected electrical discharge for driving the vehicle under electric power for reaching the destination from a current location of the vehicle in dependence on the routine, and while the vehicle has insufficient charge to reach the destination, causing, at least in part, an output to be provided to the user dependent upon a minimum charge for enabling the vehicle to be provided with enough charge to reach the destination assuming the predicted expected electrical discharge, [0086]-[0087], block 37 or blocks 32 to 37, is performed in response to a determination that the current SoC is insufficient, e.g., block 37 or blocks 32 to 37, may be performed while the vehicle 10 is plugged in or otherwise coupled to a charging station, and the output time requirement indicates a time at which or how long until the state of charge of the energy storage means 11 is expected to be at the value, e.g., how long the vehicle will need to be plugged in or otherwise coupled to an energy source and charging for the current SoC to transition to the minimum SoC), the prediction being based on an availability of respective operators associated with the receiving units, and/or based on a time schedule of the respective operators associated with the receiving units, and selecting the one or more receiving units based on the predicted time and the time schedule of the respective operators.
Regarding claim 14, Birek discloses a computer program product comprising program code for performing, when executed by the processing circuitry ([0046], [0055]-[0056]), the method of claim 12 (as above).
Regarding claim 15, Birek discloses a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium comprising instructions, which when executed by the processing circuitry, cause the processing circuitry to perform ([0046], [0055]-[0056]) the method of claim 12 (as above).
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.
Claims 5, 6, & 8 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Birek, et al. (US 20190143832 A1), hereinafter Birek, in view of Magazinik, et al. (US 20210209542 A1), hereinafter Magazinik.
Regarding claim 5, Birek discloses the computer system of claim 4 (as above). Further, while Birek discloses all of the above and wherein the processing circuitry is configured to select the one or more receiving units … of respective operators associated with the receiving units ([0084], at block 37, the method 30 comprises providing an output to the user indicative of a time requirement for increasing the state of charge of the energy storage means to a value at (optionally above) the minimum state of charge consisting of transmitting information to the output device 300 to cause, at least in part, the presentation of the above-mentioned output to the user, [0096], the post-charging message is transmitted via a local and/or wide area network to a portable user device of the user, so that the user can feel free to leave their vehicle 10 during charging and still be able to finish charging at the earliest possible time, due to the prompt, [0052], the output device 300 is configured to present an output to a user of the vehicle 10, the output device 300 may be an audio and/or visual output device, in other examples, the output device 300 may not be part of the vehicle system 330 and may instead be a portable user device such as a mobile telephone, a so-called ‘smart’ watch, or similar portable media devices, able to communicate with the controller 210 of the vehicle 10, and this enables a portable user device to present the output to the user, even if the user is remote from the vehicle 10), Birek does not necessarily appear to expressly disclose the following remaining elements, which however, are taught by further teachings in Magazinik.
Magazinik teaches wherein the processing circuitry is configured to select the one or more receiving units based on an availability of respective operators associated with the receiving units, and/or based on a time schedule of the respective operators associated with the receiving units, and optionally wherein the time schedule of the respective operators indicates when the respective operators have idle time and/or are scheduled to have a break ([0018]-[0020], [0048]-[0049], a driver application runs on driver computing devices 108, the application may allow a driver to specify his availability and other information used by backend system 116 to select drivers for transportation requests specifying time durations, including a shift start time, a shift end time, a lunch or other break, or one or more appointments, and when a driver is selected to provide (or identified as a suitable candidate for) a ride, backend system 116 may send a notification to the driver application, [0072], backend server 302 may select one or more drivers for the transportation request based upon information associated with drivers, such as shift start time, shift end time, scheduled appointments or breaks, [0066]-[0067], backend server 302 is in communication with each driver computing device 108 that is utilizing the transportation service at a particular time, and backend server 302 may access driver availability data 322 to determine one or more drivers that would be suitable to fulfill the request from the passenger, backend server 302 selects a particular driver, backend server 302 may select a plurality of drivers that may fulfill a transportation request, and notify each driver of the transportation request, [0062], driver availability data 322 used by the backend system 116 in determining which driver(s) to assign to a transportation request include appointments of a driver, shift start and end times, or other suitable information).
Birek and Magazinik are analogous fields of invention because both address the problem of notifying drivers when to use a vehicle. At the time the invention was effectively filed, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to include in the system of Birek the ability to select receiving units based on an availability of operators based on a time schedule of the operators indicating when the operators have idle time and/or are scheduled to have a break, as taught by Magazinik, since the claimed invention is merely a combination of old elements, and in the combination each element merely would have performed the same function as it did separately, and one of ordinary skill in the art would have recognized that the combination would produce the predictable results of selecting receiving units based on an availability of operators based on a time schedule of the operators indicating when the operators have idle time and/or are scheduled to have a break, as claimed. Further, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to have modified Birek with the aforementioned teachings of Magazinik in order to produce the added benefit of helping with the request to assign requests to the most suitable driver. [0067], [0073].
Regarding claim 6, the combined teachings of Birek and Magazinik teach the computer system of claim 5 (as above). Further, while Birek discloses all of the above and wherein the processing circuitry further is configured to: upon determining that the charging status is not sufficient for the vehicle to perform the one or more preset operations, predict a time when the charging status will be sufficient for the vehicle to perform the one or more preset operations ([0023], the method for determining a minimum charge for an electric or hybrid electric vehicle comprises predicting expected electrical discharge for driving the vehicle under electric power for reaching the destination from a current location of the vehicle in dependence on the routine, and while the vehicle has insufficient charge to reach the destination, causing, at least in part, an output to be provided to the user dependent upon a minimum charge for enabling the vehicle to be provided with enough charge to reach the destination assuming the predicted expected electrical discharge, [0086]-[0087], block 37 or blocks 32 to 37, is performed in response to a determination that the current SoC is insufficient, e.g., block 37 or blocks 32 to 37, may be performed while the vehicle 10 is plugged in or otherwise coupled to a charging station, and the output time requirement indicates a time at which or how long until the state of charge of the energy storage means 11 is expected to be at the value, e.g., how long the vehicle will need to be plugged in or otherwise coupled to an energy source and charging for the current SoC to transition to the minimum SoC); and select the one or more receiving units based on the predicted time ([0084], at block 37, the method 30 comprises providing an output to the user indicative of a time requirement for increasing the state of charge of the energy storage means to a value at (optionally above) the minimum state of charge consisting of transmitting information to the output device 300 to cause, at least in part, the presentation of the above-mentioned output to the user, [0052], the output device 300 is configured to present an output to a user of the vehicle 10, the output device 300 may be an audio and/or visual output device, in other examples, the output device 300 may not be part of the vehicle system 330 and may instead be a portable user device such as a mobile telephone, a so-called ‘smart’ watch, or similar portable media devices, able to communicate with the controller 210 of the vehicle 10, and this enables a portable user device to present the output to the user, even if the user is remote from the vehicle 10), Birek does not necessarily appear to expressly disclose the following remaining elements, which however, are taught by further teachings in Magazinik.
Magazinik teaches select the one or more receiving units based on the [requested] time and the time schedule of the respective operators ([0018]-[0020], [0048]-[0050], a driver application runs on driver computing devices 108, the application may allow a driver to specify his availability and other information used by backend system 116 to select drivers for transportation requests specifying time durations, including a shift start time, a shift end time, a lunch or other break, or one or more appointments, and when a driver is selected to provide (or identified as a suitable candidate for) a ride, backend system 116 may send a notification to the driver application, and the driver application logic 220 may receive and display a notification from backend system 116 that the driver has been selected for a transportation request specifying a time duration [0072], backend server 302 may select one or more drivers for the transportation request based upon the start time, end time associated with the request and information associated with drivers, such as shift start time, shift end time, scheduled appointments or breaks, [0066]-[0067], backend server 302 is in communication with each driver computing device 108 that is utilizing the transportation service at a particular time, and backend server 302 may access driver availability data 322 to determine one or more drivers that would be suitable to fulfill the request from the passenger, backend server 302 selects a particular driver, backend server 302 may select a plurality of drivers that may fulfill a transportation request, and notify each driver of the transportation request, [0062], driver availability data 322 used by the backend system 116 in determining which driver(s) to assign to a transportation request include appointments of a driver, shift start and end times, or other suitable information).
Birek and Magazinik are analogous fields of invention because both address the problem of notifying drivers when to use a vehicle. At the time the invention was effectively filed, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to include in the system of Birek the ability to select the one or more receiving units based on a time and the time schedule of the respective operators, as taught by Magazinik, since the claimed invention is merely a combination of old elements, and in the combination each element merely would have performed the same function as it did separately, and one of ordinary skill in the art would have recognized that the combination would produce the predictable results of selecting select the one or more receiving units based on the predicted time and the time schedule of the respective operators, as claimed. Further, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to have modified Birek with the aforementioned teachings of Magazinik in order to produce the added benefit of helping with the request to assign requests to the most suitable driver. [0067], [0073].
Regarding claim 8, the combined teachings of Birek and Magazinik teach the computer system of claim 6 (as above). Further, Birek discloses wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to issue a signal to one or more receiving units indicative of the time when the charging status will be sufficient ([0023], the method for determining a minimum charge for an electric or hybrid electric vehicle comprises predicting expected electrical discharge for driving the vehicle under electric power for reaching the destination from a current location of the vehicle in dependence on the routine, and while the vehicle has insufficient charge to reach the destination, causing, at least in part, an output to be provided to the user dependent upon a minimum charge for enabling the vehicle to be provided with enough charge to reach the destination assuming the predicted expected electrical discharge, [0086]-[0087], block 37 or blocks 32 to 37, is performed in response to a determination that the current SoC is insufficient, e.g., block 37 or blocks 32 to 37, may be performed while the vehicle 10 is plugged in or otherwise coupled to a charging station, and the output time requirement indicates a time at which or how long until the state of charge of the energy storage means 11 is expected to be at the value, e.g., how long the vehicle will need to be plugged in or otherwise coupled to an energy source and charging for the current SoC to transition to the minimum SoC, [0096]-[0095], the output of block 37 can be a post-charging message indicating that the SoC of the battery 11 is at the value/ the minimum state of charge, i.e. i.e. the battery 11 now has the minimum SoC for achieving the user requirement for future driving of the vehicle 10, the output 37 in the form of a post-charging message could represent a prompt for the user to return to their vehicle which is now ready to drive).
Conclusion
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CHARLES GUILIANO
Primary Examiner
Art Unit 3623
/CHARLES GUILIANO/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3623
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