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 .
Continued Examination Under 37 CFR 1.114
A request for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, including the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e), was filed in this application on 03/06/2026 after final rejection of 11/06/2025 and advisory action of 02/24/2026. Since this application is eligible for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114. Applicant’s submission filed on 03/06/2026 has been entered. The Office action on currently pending claims 1, 3-7, 10, 12-14, and 16-19 follows.
Claim Interpretation
Regarding claim 14, the limitation “a trace” was interpreted as the combination of the “air mover trace” for the “first air mover” as recited in independent claim 10 and a second trace for the claimed second air mover (as claimed in claim 13). As claimed in claim 14, the “trace” is supposed to control both the “first air mover” and “second air mover”, but as recited in independent claim 10, the “air mover trace” that is responsible for controlling the “first air mover” is already positively recited. In light of Applicant’s disclosure (specifically Applicant’s specification and figures), it is believed that that Applicant intended for the “trace” of claim 14 to encompass a group traces that includes the “air mover trace” of claim 10 and a second air mover trace that corresponds to the second air mover of claim 13. For the reasons provided above, the limitation “a trace” of claim 14 was interpreted as a group traces that includes the “air mover trace” of claim 10 and a second air mover trace that corresponds to the second air mover of claim 13.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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 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 1, 4, 7, 10, 13, and 16-17 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Tomioka (US 20080180910) in view of Winkler (US 20080089025) in further view of Montero (US 20200088793) in further view of Heinrich (US 20230229132) and in further view of Lim (US 20210120699)1.
Regarding claim 1, Tomioka discloses (Fig.3):
An electronic device (1) comprising: a motherboard (15), wherein the motherboard (15) includes a first side (15a) and an opposite second side (15b) and lacks any fan cutouts (Fig.3: no cutouts for 21 and 22 are provided on 15); a first air mover (21) coupled to the first side (15a) of the motherboard (15); a casing (31) around a portion (See Fig.3) of the first air mover (21) and blades (Fig.3: there are a plurality of blades extending from 32 of 21) of the first air mover (21).
However, Tomioka does not explicitly disclose:
Wherein a motor of the first air mover is mounted directly on the motherboard.
Winkler however teaches (Figs.2 and 8):
Wherein a motor (18) of the air mover (See Fig.8) is mounted directly on the motherboard (17) (See Figs.2 and 8, [0013], and [0039]: “It is particularly advantageous that such a fan arrangement makes possible a very low overall height, because its bearing unit and the internal stator of its electric motor can be installed and soldered directly onto the circuit board”- internal stator 44 of motor 18 is directly mounted on 17, and thus 18 can be considered to be directly mounted to 17 since 44 is a part of 18).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the pertinent arts before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to utilize the above teaching of Winkler to modify the device of Tomioka such that the first air mover has a motor, and to place the motor of the first air mover on the motherboard such that the motor of the first air mover is mounted directly on the motherboard, as claimed, in order to provide a fan arrangement with a very low overall height and can permit an increase in air output as taught by Winkler ([0013]- providing a direct connection between the motor and the motherboard creates a lower assembly profiled, and can also allow a user to utilize taller fan wheels that can create an increase in air output if a user desires).
Finally, all claimed elements were known in the prior art and one skilled in the art could have combined/modified the elements as claimed by known methods with no change in their respective functions, and the combination / modification would have yielded predictable results to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of the invention. See KSR International Co. v. Teleflex Inc., 550 U.S._, 82 USPQ2d 1385 (2007).
However, the above combination would still fail to teach:
An air mover controller located inside the casing, wherein the air mover controller controls the first air mover through air mover trace in the motherboard.
Montero however teaches (Figs.1-2):
An air mover controller (22 and 34), wherein the air mover controller (22 and 34) controls the first air mover (26) through air mover trace ([0021]: "motherboard trace") in the motherboard (12).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the pertinent arts before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to utilize the above teaching of Montero to further modify the device of modified Tomioka such that it has an air mover controller that controls the first air mover through an air mover trace in the motherboard, as claimed, in order to provide a more efficient means of operating the first air mover due to the air mover controller providing an automated means of thermally regulating the device as taught by Montero ([0017]).
However, the above combination would still fail to teach:
An air mover controller located inside the casing, wherein at least one component trace of the motherboard extends beneath blades of the first air mover.
Heinrich however teaches (Fig.1C):
An air mover controller (120) located inside the casing (162).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the pertinent arts before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to utilize the above teaching of Heinrich to further modify the device of modified Tomioka such that the air mover controller is located inside the casing, as claimed, in order to provide a more space efficient design (i.e., now that the air mover controller is located inside the casing, less components have to occupy the motherboard and thus optimizing the space of the motherboard while also still providing a convenient means of coupling the fans of Tomioka to the air mover controller as modified above).
However, the above combination would still fail to teach:
Wherein at least one component trace of the motherboard extends beneath blades of the first air mover.
Lim however teaches (Figs.2 and 7A-B):
Wherein at least one component trace (234a) of the motherboard (224 and 226) extends beneath blades (Fig.2: fan 200 will have a plurality of blades) of the first air mover (200) (Figs.2 and 7A-B: 218 of 200 is mounted on top of 224,226, and thus the blades of 200 will be disposed over 234a, and thus providing 234a below 200).
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It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the pertinent arts before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to utilize the above teaching of Lim to further modify the device of modified Tomioka such that the motherboard has at least one component trace that extends beneath the blades of the first air mover, as claimed, in order to provide a simple and efficient means of electrically interconnecting the components of the motherboard (i.e., providing conductive traces on the motherboard allows for a simple and space efficient means of electrically interconnecting the components of the motherboard together since the traces can be integrated within the motherboard itself, and thus providing a space efficient design to interconnect the components of the motherboard).
Regarding claim 10, Tomioka discloses (Fig.3):
A device (1) comprising: a main printed circuit board (15) for the device (1), wherein the main printed circuit board (15) includes a first side (15a) and an opposite second side (15b) and lacks any fan cutouts (Fig.3: there are no cutouts for any of 21 and 22); a central processing unit (16) for the device (1) on the main printed circuit board (15); a first air mover (21) coupled to the first side (15a) of the main printed circuit board (15); a casing (31) around a portion (See Fig.3) of the first air mover (21); and blades (Fig.3: there are a plurality of blades extending from 32 of 21) of the first air mover (21).
However Tomioka does not explicitly disclose:
Wherein a motor of the first air mover is mounted directly on the main printed circuit board.
Winkler however teaches (Figs.2 and 8):
Wherein a motor (18) of the air mover (See Fig.8) is mounted directly on the main printed circuit board (17) (See Figs.2 and 8, [0013], and [0039]: “It is particularly advantageous that such a fan arrangement makes possible a very low overall height, because its bearing unit and the internal stator of its electric motor can be installed and soldered directly onto the circuit board”- internal stator 44 of motor 18 is directly mounted on 17, and thus 18 can be considered to be directly mounted to 17 since 44 is a part of 18).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the pertinent arts before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to utilize the above teaching of Winkler to modify the device of Tomioka such that the first air mover has a motor, and to place the motor of the first air mover on the main printed circuit board such that the motor of the first air mover is mounted directly on the main printed circuit board, as claimed, in order to provide a fan arrangement with a very low overall height and can permit an increase in air output as taught by Winkler ([0013]- providing a direct connection between the motor and the main printed circuit board creates a lower assembly profiled, and can also allow a user to utilize taller fan wheels that can create an increase in air output if a user desires).
Finally, all claimed elements were known in the prior art and one skilled in the art could have combined/modified the elements as claimed by known methods with no change in their respective functions, and the combination / modification would have yielded predictable results to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of the invention. See KSR International Co. v. Teleflex Inc., 550 U.S._, 82 USPQ2d 1385 (2007).
However, the above combination would still fail to teach:
An air mover controller located inside the casing and coupled to the main printed circuit board, wherein the air mover controller is configured to control the first air mover through an air mover trace in the main circuit board.
Montero however teaches (Figs.1-2):
An air mover controller (22 and 34) coupled to the main printed circuit board (12) (Fig.1: 22 and 34 are coupled to 12 in order to control 26), wherein the air mover controller (22 and 34) is configured to control the first air mover (26) through an air mover trace ([0021]: "motherboard trace") in the main printed circuit board (12).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the pertinent arts before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to utilize the above teaching of Montero to further modify the device of modified Tomioka such that it has an air mover controller that is coupled to the main printed circuit board and configured to control the first air mover through an air mover trace in the main printed circuit board, as claimed, in order to provide a more efficient means of operating the first air mover due to the air mover controller providing an automated means of thermally regulating the device as taught by Montero ([0017]).
However, the above combination would still fail to teach:
An air mover controller located inside the casing, at least one component trace of the main printed circuit board extends beneath blades of the first air mover.
Heinrich however teaches (Fig.1C):
An air mover controller (120) located inside the casing (162).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the pertinent arts before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to utilize the above teaching of Heinrich to further modify the device of modified Tomioka such that the air mover controller is located inside the casing, as claimed, in order to provide a more space efficient design (i.e., now that the air mover controller is located inside the casing, less components have to occupy the motherboard and thus optimizing the space of the motherboard while also still providing a convenient means of coupling the fans of Tomioka to the air mover controller as modified above).
However, the above combination still fails to teach:
At least one component trace of the main printed circuit board extends beneath blades of the first air mover.
Lim however teaches (Figs.2 and 7A-B):
At least one component trace (234a) of the main printed circuit boards (224 and 226) extends beneath blades (Fig.2: fan 200 will have a plurality of blades) of the first air mover (200) (Figs.2 and 7A-B: 218 of 200 is mounted on top of 224,226, and thus the blades of 200 will be disposed over 234a, and thus providing 234a below 200).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the pertinent arts before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to utilize the above teaching of Lim to further modify the device of modified Tomioka such that the main printed circuit board has at least one component trace that extends beneath the blades of the first air mover, as claimed, in order to provide a simple and efficient means of electrically interconnecting the components of the main printed circuit board (i.e., providing conductive traces on the main printed circuit board allows for a simple and space efficient means of electrically interconnecting the components of the main printed circuit board together since the traces can be integrated within the main printed circuit board itself, and thus providing a space efficient design to interconnect the components of the main printed circuit board).
Regarding claim 16, Tomioka discloses (Fig.3):
A method comprising: coupling a first air mover (21) to a first side (15a) of a motherboard (15), which lacks any fan cutouts (Fig.3: there is no cutout on 15a made for 21); a casing (31) around a portion (See Fig.3) of the first air mover (21); and blades (Fig.3: blades extending from 32 of 21) of the first air mover (21).
However, Tomioka does not disclose:
Coupling a motor of the first air mover directly to a first portion of an air mover trace in the mother board; coupling an air mover controller to the air mover trace in the motherboard, and the air mover controller being located inside a casing around a portion of the first air mover; and routing at least one component trace of the motherboard beneath blades of the first air mover.
Winkler however teaches (Figs.2 and 8):
Coupling a motor (18) of the air mover (See Fig.8) directly to the motherboard (17) (See Figs.2 and 8, [0013], and [0039]: “It is particularly advantageous that such a fan arrangement makes possible a very low overall height, because its bearing unit and the internal stator of its electric motor can be installed and soldered directly onto the circuit board”- internal stator 44 of motor 18 is directly mounted on 17, and thus 18 can be considered to be directly mounted to 17 since 44 is a part of 18).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the pertinent arts before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to utilize the above teaching of Winkler to modify the device of Tomioka such that the first air mover has a motor that is directly coupled to the motherboard, as claimed, in order to provide a fan arrangement with a very low overall height and can permit an increase in air output as taught by Winkler ([0013]- providing a direct connection between the motor and the main printed circuit board creates a lower assembly profiled, and can also allow a user to utilize taller fan wheels that can create an increase in air output if a user desires).
However, the above combination would still fail to teach:
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Coupling a motor of the first air mover directly to a first portion of an air mover trace in the mother board; coupling an air mover controller to the air mover trace in the motherboard, the air mover controller being located inside a casing around a portion of the first air mover.
Montero however teaches (Figs.1-2):
Coupling the first air mover (26- the one on the left) to a first portion of an air mover trace (Fig.1 and [0021]: "motherboard trace", the trace portion connecting the left 26 to 22 and 34 will define “first portion of air mover trace”) in the motherboard (12); coupling an air mover controller (22 and 34) to the air mover trace in the motherboard (12) (Air Mover Controller coupled to Air Mover Trace in Motherboard: [0021]: 22,34 have to be electrically coupled to the trace in 12 in order to provide communication to 26).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the pertinent arts before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to utilize the above teaching of Montero to further modify the device of modified Tomioka such that it has an air mover controller and an air mover trace so that the motor of the first air mover is directly coupled to a first portion of the air mover trace, and such that the air mover controller is coupled to the air mover trace in the motherboard, as claimed, in order to provide a more efficient means of operating the first air mover due to the air mover controller providing an automated means of thermally regulating the device as taught by Montero ([0017]).
However, the above combination would still fail to teach:
The air mover controller being located inside a casing around a portion of the first air mover.
Heinrich however teaches (Fig.1C):
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The air mover controller (120) being located inside a casing (162) around a portion (See Fig.1C) of the first air mover (160).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the pertinent arts before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to utilize the above teaching of Heinrich to further modify the device of modified Tomioka such that the air mover controller is located inside the casing around a portion of the first air mover, as claimed, in order to provide a more space efficient design (i.e., now that the air mover controller is located inside the casing, less components have to occupy the motherboard and thus optimizing the space of the motherboard while also still providing a convenient means of coupling the fans of Tomioka to the air mover controller as modified above).
However, the above combination would still fail to teach:
Routing at least one component trace of the motherboard beneath blades of the first air mover.
Lim however teaches (Figs.2 and 7A-B):
Routing at least one component trace (234a) of the motherboard (224 and 226) beneath blades (Fig.2: blades of 200) of the first air mover (200) (Figs.2 and 7A-B: 218 of 200 is mounted on top of 224,226, and thus the blades of 200 will be disposed over 234a, and thus 234a will have to be routed beneath the blades of 200).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the pertinent arts before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to utilize the above teaching of Lim to further modify the device of modified Tomioka such that the motherboard has at least one component trace that is routed beneath the blades of the first air mover, as claimed, in order to provide a simple and efficient means of electrically interconnecting the components of the main printed circuit board (i.e., providing conductive traces on the main printed circuit board allows for a simple and space efficient means of electrically interconnecting the components of the main printed circuit board together since the traces can be integrated within the main printed circuit board itself, and thus providing a space efficient design to interconnect the components of the main printed circuit board).
Regarding claims 4 and 13, Tomioka further discloses:
(Claim 4): A second air mover (22) coupled to the second side (15b) of the motherboard (15), under (See Fig.3) the first air mover (21), wherein an impeller (32- the one corresponding to 22) of the second air mover (22) is on the second side (15b) of the motherboard (15).
(Claim 13): A second air mover (22) coupled to the second side (15b) of the main printed circuit board (15), under (See Fig.3) the first air mover (21), wherein an impeller (32- the one corresponding to 22) of the second air mover (22) is on the second side (15b) of the main printed circuit board (15).
However, Tomioka does not disclose:
(Claim 4): Wherein a motor of the second air mover is on the second side of the motherboard.
(Claim 13): Wherein a motor of the second air mover is on the second side of the main printed circuit board.
However, as outlined in claims 1 and 10, Winkler teaches:
The motor (18) of the air mover (See Fig.8) is on the motherboard (17).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the pertinent arts before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to utilize the teaching of Winkler to further modify the device of modified Tomioka such that the second air mover has a motor so that the motor of the second air mover is on the second side of the motherboard/main printed circuit board, as respectively claimed in claims 4 and 13, in order to provide an efficient means of driving the second air mover (i.e., providing a fan structure in which the motor is integrally formed with the fan provides a simple and space efficient fan assembly to efficiently rotate the blades of the fan).
Finally, all claimed elements were known in the prior art and one skilled in the art could have combined/modified the elements as claimed by known methods with no change in their respective functions, and the combination / modification would have yielded predictable results to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of the invention. See KSR International Co. v. Teleflex Inc., 550 U.S._, 82 USPQ2d 1385 (2007).
Regarding claim 7, modified Tomioka does not teach:
Wherein one or more of a height, a length, and a width of the first air mover is different than a height, a length, and a width of the second air mover.
However, modifying the size of the first air mover or the second air mover such that it has a desired size, including as claimed (i.e., one or more of a height, a length, and a width of the first air mover is different than a height, a length, and a width of the second air mover), would have been an obvious modification that one of ordinary skill in the pertinent arts before the effective filing date of the claimed invention would do in order to further optimize the cooling efficiency (i.e., providing different sized fans can better address the event in which one side of the motherboard generates more heat than the other side of the motherboard since larger fans will have higher cooling capacities) since a change in size is generally recognized as being within the level of ordinary skill in the art. In re Rose, 105 USPQ 237 (CCPA 1955).
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Finally, all claimed elements were known in the prior art and one skilled in the art could have combined/modified the elements as claimed by known methods with no change in their respective functions, and the combination / modification would have yielded predictable results to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of the invention. See KSR International Co. v. Teleflex Inc., 550 U.S._, 82 USPQ2d 1385 (2007).
Regarding claim 17, Tomioka further discloses:
Coupling a second air mover (22) to a second side (15b) of the motherboard (15), wherein the second side (15b) of the motherboard (15) is opposite the first side (15a) of the motherboard (15).
However, Tomioka does not disclose:
Coupling the second air mover to a second portion of the air mover trace in the motherboard.
Montero however further teaches:
Coupling the second air mover (26- the right one, not depicted, but goes inside of 28) to a second portion of the air mover trace (Fig.1 and [0021]: "motherboard trace", the trace portion connecting the right 26, not depicted, but inserts inside of 28, to 22 and 34 will define “second portion of the air mover trace”) in the motherboard (12).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the pertinent arts before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to further utilize the above teaching of Montero to further modify the device of modified Tomioka such that the second air mover on the second side of the motherboard is coupled to a second portion of the air mover trace in the motherboard, as claimed, in order to provide a simple and efficient means of electrically coupling the second air mover to the motherboard.
Claims 3, 12, and 19 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Tomioka (US 20080180910), Winkler (US 20080089025), Montero (US 20200088793), Heinrich (US 20230229132), and Lim (US 20210120699) as applied to claims 1, 10, and 16 above, and further in view of Subramonian (US 20220151117)2.
Regarding claims 3 and 12, modified Tomioka does not teach:
(Claim 3): Input/output ports located on the second side of the motherboard, under the first air mover.
(Claim 12): Input/output ports located on the second side of the main printed circuit board, under the first air mover.
Subramonian however teaches (Fig.1):
Input/output ports ([0081]: "input/output interface devices") located on the second side (119) of the motherboard/main printed circuit board (104).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the pertinent arts before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to utilize the above teaching of Subramonian to further modify the device of modified Tomioka such that it has input/output ports located on the second side of the motherboard/main printed circuit board and placed under the first air mover, as respectively claimed in claims 3 and 12, in order to further optimize the performance of the motherboard (i.e., the motherboard can now communicate with external devices due to the input/output ports, and thus allowing the motherboard to perform more functions).
Regarding claim 19, modified Tomioka does not teach:
Wherein input/output ports are located on a second side of the motherboard, under the first air mover, wherein the second side of the motherboard is opposite the first side of the motherboard.
However, Subramonian teaches (Fig.1):
Wherein input/output ports ([0081]: "input/output interface devices") are located on a second side (119) of the motherboard (104), wherein the second side (119) of the motherboard (104) is opposite the first side (118) of the motherboard (104).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the pertinent arts before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to utilize the above teaching of Subramonian to further modify the device of modified Tomioka such that it has input/output ports on a second side of the motherboard that is opposite the first side of the motherboard and under the first air mover, as claimed, in order to further optimize the performance of the motherboard (i.e., the motherboard can now communicate with external devices due to the input/output ports, and thus allowing the motherboard to perform more functions).
Claims 5-6, 14, and 18 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Tomioka (US 20080180910), Winkler (US 20080089025), Montero (US 20200088793), Heinrich (US 20230229132), and Lim (US 20210120699) as applied to claims 4, 13, and 17 above, and further in view of Helberg (US 20160034007)3.
Regarding claim 5, modified Tomioka does not teach:
Wherein the first air mover and the second air mover are independently controlled by the air mover controller.
Helberg however teaches (Fig.3):
Wherein the first air mover (320) and the second air mover (330) are independently controlled ([0024]) by the air mover controller (310).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the pertinent arts before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to utilize the above teaching of Helberg to further modify the device of modified Tomioka such that the first air mover and the second air mover are independently controlled by the air mover controller, as claimed, in order to provide a more energy efficient operating means for the first and second air movers as taught by Helberg ([0024]).
Regarding claim 6, Tomioka further discloses:
Wherein exhaust air (Fig.3: the air leaving 31b of 21) from the first air mover (21) travels away from electronic components (16 and 17) in the electronic device (1) and exhaust air (Fig.3: the air leaving 31b of 22) from the second air mover (22).
However, modified Tomioka does not teach:
Exhaust air from the second air mover travels towards the electronic components in the electronic device.
Helberg however teaches (Fig.1):
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Exhaust air (air leaving from 120 and flowing towards 140, 145, 150 will define “exhaust air”) from the second air mover (120) travels towards the electronic components (140, 145, and 150) in the electronic device (100).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the pertinent arts before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to utilize the above teaching of Helberg to further modify the device of modified Tomioka such that that the exhaust air from the second air mover travels towards the electronic components, as claimed, in order to further improve the cooling efficiency (i.e., by changing the location of the second air mover 22 of Tomioka such that it is an inlet air mover will provide an improved means of channeling ambient air into the device and force the air through the electronic components on the second side of the motherboard).
Furthermore, the above modification would only require a rearrangement of parts in order to achieve the improved cooling efficiency as discussed above, and it has been held that rearranging parts of an invention involves only routine skill in the art. In re Japikse, 86 USPQ 70.
Finally, all claimed elements were known in the prior art and one skilled in the art could have combined/modified the elements as claimed by known methods with no change in their respective functions, and the combination / modification would have yielded predictable results to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of the invention. See KSR International Co. v. Teleflex Inc., 550 U.S._, 82 USPQ2d 1385 (2007).
Regarding claim 14, Montero further teaches:
Wherein the first air mover (26- the one on the left) and the second air mover (26- not depicted, but the one on the right that fits into 28) are controlled by the air mover controller (22 and 34) using a trace ([0021]: "motherboard trace"- the traces, in combination, connected to the first and second air mover) in the main printed circuit board (12).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the pertinent arts before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to utilize the above teaching of Montero to further modify the device of modified Tomioka such that the main circuit board further includes another air mover trace that works together with the air mover trace such that the two air mover traces in combination define the claimed “trace” to electrically couple the first air mover and the second air mover to the air mover controller so that the air mover controller controls the first air mover and second air mover using the trace in the main printed circuit board in order to provide the efficient operation the air movers as outlined in claim 10 above.
However, the above combination would still fail to teach:
Wherein the first air mover and the second air mover are independently controlled by the air mover controller using trace in the main printed circuit board.
Helberg however teaches (Fig.3):
Wherein the first air mover (320) and the second air mover (330) are independently controlled ([0024]) by the air mover controller (310).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the pertinent arts before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to utilize the above teaching of Helberg to further modify the device of modified Tomioka such that the first air mover and the second air mover are independently controlled by the air mover controller using the trace in the main printed circuit board, as claimed, in order to provide a more energy efficient operating means for the first and second air movers as taught by Helberg ([0024]).
Regarding claim 18, Montero further teaches:
Wherein the air mover controller (22 and 34) controls the first air mover (26- the one on the left) through the first portion of the air mover trace (Fig.1 and [0021]: "motherboard trace", the trace portion connecting the left 26 to 22 and 34 will define “first portion of air mover trace”) in the motherboard (12) and the second air mover (26- the right one, not depicted, but goes inside of 28) through the second portion of the air mover trace (Fig.1 and [0021]: "motherboard trace", the trace portion connecting the right 26, not depicted, but inserts inside of 28, to 22 and 34 will define “second portion of air mover trace”) in the motherboard (12) (Figs.1-2 and [0021]: the traces that couple 26 to 22,34 and defines the “first portion of the air mover trace” and “second portion of air mover trace” have to control the two 26).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the pertinent arts before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to utilize the above teaching of Montero to further modify the device of modified Tomioka such that the air mover controller controls the first air mover through the first portion of the air mover trace and the second air mover through the second portion of air mover trace in the motherboard in order to provide a simple and efficient means of electrically coupling the air movers to the air mover controller, and thus also achieve a more efficient means of operating the air movers due to the air mover controller providing an automated means of thermally regulating the device as taught by Montero ([0017]).
However, the above combination fails to teach:
Wherein the air mover controller independently controls the first air mover through the first portion of the air mover trace in the motherboard and the second air mover through the second portion of the air mover trace in the motherboard. (emphasis added)
Helberg however teaches (Fig.3):
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Wherein the air mover controller (310) independently controls ([0024]) the first air mover (320) and the second air mover (330).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the pertinent arts before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to utilize the above teaching of Helberg to further modify the device of modified Tomioka such that the air mover controller independently controls the first air mover through the first portion of the air mover trace in the motherboard and the second air mover through the second portion of the air mover trace in the motherboard, as claimed, in order to provide a more energy efficient operating means for the first and second air movers as taught by Helberg ([0024]).
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments of 03/06/2026 have been fully considered, but notes that Applicant's arguments are directed to the claims as amended, and are thus moot since the rejection has been modified to meet the limitations of the amended claims.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure:
US 20230121655: teaches a rotational speed controller inside of a fan housing.
US 20220329040: teaches how it is known in the art for a circuit board to have any desired conductive trace patterning.
US 20210051801: teaches how it is known to couple electronic components on a printed circuit board using a conductive trace, and the conductive trace having a desired patterning.
US 20140098481: teaches a fan controller that is provided inside a fan housing.
US 20140160657: teaches a fan controller that is provided on a fan housing.
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/STEPHEN S SUL/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2835
1 Examiner’s Note: regarding method claims 16-17, since there are no specific method steps being claimed, just a general process of assembling the device (i.e., providing each element, forming, joining, inserting, connecting, etc.), the fact that the structure of the device of the present invention is obvious over Tomioka in view of Winkler, Montero, Heinrich, and Lim, means that the general method for providing such a structure is also obvious in view of the same references. The method steps recited in the claims are obviously necessitated by the structure of the device of Tomioka in view of Winkler, Montero, Heinrich, and Lim.
2 Examiner’s Note: regarding method claim 19, since there are no specific method steps being claimed, just a general process of assembling the device (i.e., providing each element, forming, joining, inserting, connecting, etc.), the fact that the structure of the device of the present invention is obvious over Tomioka in view of Winkler, Montero, Heinrich, Lim, and Subramonian, means that the general method for providing such a structure is also obvious in view of the same references. The method steps recited in the claims are obviously necessitated by the structure of the device of Tomioka in view of Winkler, Montero, Heinrich, Lim, and Subramonian.
3 Examiner’s Note: regarding method claim 18, since there are no specific method steps being claimed, just a general process of assembling the device (i.e., providing each element, forming, joining, inserting, connecting, etc.), the fact that the structure of the device of the present invention is obvious over Tomioka in view of Winkler, Montero, Heinrich, Lim, and Helberg, means that the general method for providing such a structure is also obvious in view of the same references. The method steps recited in the claims are obviously necessitated by the structure of the device of Tomioka in view of Winkler, Montero, Heinrich, Lim, and Helberg.