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 .
This action is in response to amendment filed on July 2, 2025.
Drawings
The drawings are objected to under 37 CFR 1.83(a). The drawings must show every feature of the invention specified in the claims. Therefore, “one or more electrical conduits electrically coupled to one or more of the plurality of pads,” as recited in claim 1, and “wherein the circuit is electrically coupled to the one or more pads only via one or more surface layers of the circuit board,” as recited in claim 3, must be shown or the feature(s) canceled from the claim(s). No new matter should be entered.
Corrected drawing sheets in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(d) are required in reply to the Office action to avoid abandonment of the application. Any amended replacement drawing sheet should include all of the figures appearing on the immediate prior version of the sheet, even if only one figure is being amended. The figure or figure number of an amended drawing should not be labeled as “amended.” If a drawing figure is to be canceled, the appropriate figure must be removed from the replacement sheet, and where necessary, the remaining figures must be renumbered and appropriate changes made to the brief description of the several views of the drawings for consistency. Additional replacement sheets may be necessary to show the renumbering of the remaining figures. Each drawing sheet submitted after the filing date of an application must be labeled in the top margin as either “Replacement Sheet” or “New Sheet” pursuant to 37 CFR 1.121(d). If the changes are not accepted by the examiner, the applicant will be notified and informed of any required corrective action in the next Office action. The objection to the drawings will not be held in abeyance.
Claim Objections
Claims 3, and 16 are objected to because of the following informalities:
Regarding claim 3, “the circuit,” line 1 of the claim, lacks proper antecedent basis.
Regarding claim 16, the claim ends with (;), instead of full stop. It is not clear if some more limitations are there in the claim, or is just a typographical mistake.
Appropriate correction is required.
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 (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) 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.
Claim(s) 1, 3, 5, and 13-16 are is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102 (a) (1) as being anticipated by Mendolia (US 5,798,638).
Regarding claim 1, Mendolia, figure 3, discloses a circuit board, comprising: a pad board portion (portion outside the printed board 310A) and a module board (310A) portion within the pad board portion (see figure); a plurality of pads (pads of via 327, 350) positioned within the pad board portion proximal to a border (near the separating cut out line, see figure) separating the pad board portion from the module board portion; one or more electrical conduits (via 327, pads 350, and trace 330) electrically coupled to one or more of the plurality of pads (see figure); wherein the circuit board defines two separation guide voids (see figure) wherein each separation guide void is positioned to indicate two perpendicular edges of the border between the pad board portion and the module board portion (see figure).
Regarding claim 3, Mendolia further discloses wherein the circuit is electrically coupled to the one or more pads only via one or more surface layers of the circuit board (see figure).
Regarding claim 5, Mendolia further discloses wherein the feature indicative of a border between the pad board portion and the module board portion includes a linear edge and wherein the linear edge is collinear with an edge of the border (see figure).
Regarding claim 13, Mendolia further discloses wherein the circuit board includes a plurality of layers and wherein each of the one or more separation guides comprises an opening formed through each of the plurality of layers (column 3, line 1-10. Also, see figure, including figure 4).
Regarding claim 14, Mendolia further discloses wherein the circuit board includes a plurality of layers and wherein each of the one or more separation guides comprises an opening formed through each of the plurality of layers (see figure, the opening is through the board to be able to separate the board).
Regarding claim 15, Mendolia further discloses wherein the one or more electrical conduits include at least one of: one or more traces; and one or more vias (see figure, via 327, and trace 330).
Regarding claim 16, Mendolia further discloses one or more electronic components electrically coupled to one or more of the plurality of pads, wherein the one or more electronic components include at least one of: one or more surface-mounted circuit devices; and one or more integrated circuit packages (column 3, line 48-65).
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to claim(s) have been considered but are moot because the new ground of rejection does not rely on any reference applied in the prior rejection of record for any teaching or matter specifically challenged in the argument.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Kim (US 6246,0150), figure 1b, discloses a circuit board with a pad board portion (portion around the separation line 19’), and module board portion (portion within the separation line 19’), including pads (21, 20) in the pad board portion.
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 ISHWARBHAI B PATEL whose telephone number is (571)272-1933. The examiner can normally be reached M-F: 8:30 AM-5:00 PM.
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, Timothy J Thompson can be reached at 571 272 2342. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/ISHWARBHAI B PATEL/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2847
IBP / October 22, 2025