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 .
Election/Restrictions
Claims 23, 24, and 26 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to a nonelected Species, there being no allowable generic or linking claim. Election was made without traverse in the reply filed on 05/08/24. Examiner notes that claim 26 recites an electro-magnetic lens which is clearly a feature of non-elected species III illustrated in Figure 3.
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.
Claim(s) 21, 22, 25, 27, 30, 38, and 39 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by HARAGUCHI (Publication No.: US 2022/0094459 A1).
Regarding claim 21, HARAGUCHI teaches An apparatus for radio frequency (RF) signal processing, comprising: an optical source (reference numeral 20 in Figure 1) configured to emit a single wavelength optical signal (e.g. as illustrated in Figure 2A where a plurality of single wavelength optical signals are emitted), the optical signal having a wavelength and a phase; the single wavelength being tunable (e.g. tunable in the sense that only selected wavelengths can be emitted), a wavelength division multiplexer (WDM) (reference numeral 22 in Figure 1) coupled to the optical source, the WDM having an input port and at least two output ports (e.g. as illustrated in Figure 1), the WDM being configured to receive the optical signal at the input port and direct the optical signal to one of the at least two output ports based on the wavelength of the optical signal; at least two RF-to-optical antennas (ROAs) (reference numeral 10, 30 in Figure 1) each coupled to one of the at least two output ports of the WDM, each of the at least two ROAs being a phase modulator (reference numeral 31-N in Figure 1) that is configured to: (i) receive an RF signal (e.g. “Wa” “Wb” as illustrated in Figure 1); (ii) produce a phase-modulated optical signal by modulating the phase of the optical signal with the RF signal (e.g. “MLN” as illustrated in Figure 1); and (iii) output the phase-modulated optical signal (e.g. “MLN” as illustrated in Figure 1); and a signal processing unit (reference numeral 40, 50 in Figure 1) configured to receive the phase-modulated optical signal from one of the at least two ROAs and retrieve the RF signal from the phase-modulated optical signal (e.g. “RSM” as illustrated in Figure 1).
Regarding claim 22, HARAGUCHI teaches The apparatus of claim 21, further comprising an additional WDM (reference numeral 33 in Figure 1) having at least two input ports and an output port, each of the at least two input ports of the additional WDM being coupled to one of the at least two ROAs (reference numeral 10, 30 in Figure 1), each of the at least two ROAs receive an RF signal in a frequency band being different from a frequency band of another POA (e.g. “Wa” “Wb” as illustrated in Figure 1) , the additional WDM being configured to receive the phase-modulated optical signal at one of the at least two input ports and direct the phase-modulated optical signal to the output port, and the signal processing unit (reference numeral 40, 50 in Figure 1) being coupled to the output port of the additional WDM.
Regarding claim 25, HARAGUCHI teaches The apparatus of claim 21, wherein the WDM and the at least two ROAs are implemented in a single photonic integrated circuit (PIC) (reference numeral 30 in Figure 1 and/or e.g. “an optical integrated circuit” as in paragraph [0038]).
Regarding claim 27, HARAGUCHI teaches The apparatus of claim 21, wherein the signal processing unit comprises: a down-conversion subunit configured to down-convert the phase-modulated optical signal (e.g. inherent in elements 40A, 50 where a “high frequency band (for example, a microwave band) lower than an optical frequency band” is modulated onto an optical signal said optical signal then down-converted back to the high frequency band lower than an optical frequency to allow reception of the RF signals as in paragraph [0020]); and an optical-to-electrical (O/E) conversion subunit (reference numeral 51M in Figure 1) configured to retrieve the RF signal from the down-converted phase-modulated optical signal by using an O/E conversion.
Regarding claim 30, HARAGUCHI teaches The apparatus of claim 22, wherein the at least two output ports of the WDM (reference numeral 22 in Figure 1) comprises a first output port and a second output port (e.g. as illustrated in Figure 1), the at least two input ports of the additional WDM (reference numeral 33 in Figure 1) comprises a first input port and a second input port, and the at least two ROAs comprise a first ROA (reference numeral 111, 311 in Figure 1) coupled to the first output port of the WDM and a second ROA (reference numeral 112, 312 in Figure 1) coupled to the second output port of the WDM; wherein the optical source is further configured to emit an additional optical signal (e.g. “SLN” within “SL”as illustrated in Figure 1), the additional optical signal having a wavelength and a phase; wherein the WDM (reference numeral 22 in Figure 1) is configured to receive the optical signal and the additional optical signal at the input port and direct the optical signal to the first output port and the additional optical signal to the second output port based on the wavelength of each of the optical signal and the additional optical signal (e.g. as illustrated in Figure 1); wherein the first ROA (reference numeral 111, 311 in Figure 1) is configured to produce a first phase-modulated optical signal by modulating the phase of the optical signal with a first RF signal, and the second ROA (reference numeral 11N, 31N in Figure 1) is configured to produce a second phase-modulated optical signal by modulating the phase of the additional optical signal with a second RF signal; wherein the additional WDM (reference numeral 33 in Figure 1) is configured to: (i) receive the first phase-modulated optical signal at the first input port and the second phase-modulated optical signal at the second input port; (ii) combine the first phase-modulated optical signal and the second phase-modulated optical signal into a combined phase-modulated optical signal; and (iii) direct the combined phase-modulated optical signal to the output port (e.g. “collectively multiplexes” as in paragraph [0029]); and wherein the signal processing unit is configured to receive the combined phase-modulated optical signal from the output port of the additional WDM and retrieve the first RF signal and the second RF signal from the combined phase-modulated optical signal (e.g. “RS1” “RSM” as illustrated in Figure 1).
Regarding claim 38, HARAGUCHI teaches The apparatus of claim 21, wherein each of the at least two ROAs is configured to operate in a different range of operational RF frequencies (e.g. “Wa” “Wb” as illustrated in Figure 1).
Regarding claim 39, there being no claimed structural difference between the apparatus of HARAGUCHI and that of the claimed invention, HARAGUCHI teaches The apparatus of claim 21, wherein each of the at least two ROAs is sensitive to a different polarization type of RF signals.
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed 09/30/25 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive. Examiner maintains HARAGUCHI meets all the limitations of the claimed invention as noted in the amended rejection of claim 21. Examiner further notes Applicant’s claim and arguments to a single wavelength light source are not part of the elected species illustrated in Figure 2. In fact, Applicant’s Figure 2 clearly illustrates a multi-wavelength light source 100 with a structure similar to that taught by HARAGUCHI. As such, Examiner takes that the position that if Applicant’s light source 100 in Figure 2 is now considered a single wavelength tunable light source, then HARAGUCHI’s light source is considered the same.
Conclusion
THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. 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 AGUSTIN BELLO whose telephone number is (571)272-3026. The examiner can normally be reached Monday through Friday, 9 AM - 5 PM.
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/AGUSTIN BELLO/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2635