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 .
Response to Amendment
Applicant has cancelled claims 4 and 14, rendering the objection to the drawings in the previous action moot.
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 1-3, 5-13 and 16-20 rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) and 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being unpatentable over Meixner (US 2020/0373698 A1).
Regarding claim 1: Meixner (See marked version of figure 8 below) teaches a terminal for electrical connection to a device and a substrate, wherein the terminal comprises:
a connecting end (i.e. CO) configured to be received in a housing and to be electrically coupled with the device; a midsection (i.e. M) extending from the connecting end; and a crimping end (i.e. C) extending from the midsection opposite the connecting end, wherein the crimping end is configured to at least one of crimp or pinch the substrate (i.e. C is configured to pinch a substrate), wherein at least two of the connecting end, the midsection, and the crimping end are conductive and formed together as a single, unitary component (i.e. as in the figure below).
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Regarding claim 2: Meixner (Figure above) teaches the terminal of claim 1, wherein the connecting end, the midsection, and the crimping end are devoid of a stranded wire to provide a conductive pathway between the housing and the substrate (i.e. CO, M, and C do not comprise a stranded wire).
Regarding claim 3: Meixner (Figure above) teaches the terminal of claim 1, wherein the connecting end, the midsection, and the crimping end are conductive and formed together as the single, unitary component (i.e. as in the figure above).
Regarding claim 5: Meixner (Figure above) teaches the terminal of claim 1, wherein the connecting end of the terminal comprises a plurality of connecting ends (i.e. 7) configured to be received in a plurality of corresponding channels (i.e. as 7 is configured to be received in) of the housing.
Regarding claim 6: Meixner (Figure above) teaches the terminal of claim 1, wherein the midsection of the terminal is a rigid electrical conductor (i.e. as in the figure above).
Regarding claim 7: Meixner (Figure above) teaches the terminal of claim 1, wherein the midsection of the terminal is firmly fixed to the connecting end and the crimping end (i.e. as in the figure above).
Regarding claim 8: Meixner (Figure above) teaches the terminal of claim 1, wherein the midsection of the terminal is substantially a half-cylindrical shape (i.e. as in the figure above).
Regarding claim 9: Meixner (Figure above) teaches the terminal of claim 1, wherein the crimping end comprises one or more piercing tines (i.e. 7) to secure the terminal to the substrate.
Regarding claim 10: Meixner (Figure above) teaches the terminal of claim 1, wherein the connecting end comprises a male end or a female end (i.e. CO configured to be received in a female end of a housing) configured to be connected to a female end or a male end of the housing, respectively.
Regarding claim 11: Meixner (Figure above) teaches a circuit assembly (i.e. assembly of figure 1), comprising: a terminal (i.e. 30) comprising a connecting end (i.e. CO), a midsection (i.e. M), and a crimping end (i.e. C), wherein the crimping end is disposed opposite the connecting end relative to the midsection, wherein the midsection is adapted to prevent damage to the terminal (i.e. as M is adapted), wherein the connecting end is configured to be received in a housing (i.e. as CO is configured), and wherein the crimping end is configured to at least one of crimp or pinch (i.e. as C is configured) a substrate, wherein at least two of the connecting end, the midsection, and the crimping end are conductive and formed together as a single, unitary component (i.e. as in the figure above).
Regarding claim 12: Meixner (Figure above) teaches the circuit assembly of claim 11, wherein the connecting end, the midsection, and the crimping end are devoid of a stranded wire (i.e. CO, M, and C do not comprise a stranded wire) to provide a conductive pathway between the housing and the substrate.
Regarding claim 13: Meixner (Figure above) teaches the circuit assembly of claim 11, wherein the connecting end, the midsection, and the crimping end are conductive and formed together as the single, unitary component (i.e. as in the figure above).
Regarding claim 16: Meixner (Figure above) teaches the circuit assembly of claim 11, wherein the midsection of the terminal is a rigid electrical conductor (i.e. as in the figure above).
Regarding claim 17: Meixner (Figure above) teaches the circuit assembly of claim 11, wherein the midsection of the terminal is firmly fixed to the connecting end and the crimping end (i.e. as in the figure above).
Regarding claim 18: Meixner (Figure above) teaches the circuit assembly of claim 11, wherein the midsection of the terminal is substantially a half-cylindrical shape (i.e. as in the figure above).
Regarding claim 19: Meixner (Figure above) teaches the circuit assembly of claim 11, wherein the crimping end comprises one or more piercing tines (i.e. 7) to secure the terminal to the substrate.
Regarding claim 20: Meixner (Figure above) teaches the circuit assembly of claim 11, wherein the connecting end comprises a male end or a female end (i.e. CO configured to be received in a female end of a housing) configured to be connected to a female and or a male end of the housing, respectively.
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.
Claim 15 rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Meixner in view of Zhixiong (CN2615891Y).
Regarding claim 15: Meixner teaches the circuit assembly of claim 11, but does not specifically teach wherein the connecting end of the terminal comprises a plurality of connecting ends configured to be received in a plurality of corresponding channels of the housing.
However, Zhixiong (Figure 3) teaches wherein the connecting end of the terminal comprises a plurality of connecting ends (i.e. plurality of 3) configured to be received in a plurality of corresponding channels of the housing (i.e. as 3 are configured).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to modify the connecting end taught by Meixner to comprise a plurality of connecting ends as taught by Zhixiong so as to configure the terminal to be able to connect to the desired number of housing channels.
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments have been fully considered but they are not persuasive. Applicant argues that Meixner is silent regarding a connecting end configured to be received in a housing, a midsection, and a crimping end as claimed in claims 1 and 11.
Claim 1 only positively recites a terminal and claim 11 only positively recites a circuit assembly, the circuit assembly comprising only a terminal. In neither claim 1 nor claim 11 is the housing positively recited. Therefore, to anticipate the claims, the prior art need only teach a connecting end inherently receivable in a housing. Meixner indeed teaches a connecting end inherently receivable in a housing. A terminal which is taught to be received on a battery unit is inherently receivable in a housing. In addition, the prior art is saturated with analogous terminals having connecting ends received or configured to be received in housings. See at least Favero (US 2019/0288417 A1), Fan (US 2017/0256875 A1), Leibig (US 2021/0091510 A1), Nagasaka (US 2020/0083624 A1), and Olsson (US 3696319), who all teach a connecting end of a terminal implicitly or explicitly receivable in a housing.
Furthermore, as described in MPEP 2125, drawings in a design patent can anticipate or make obvious the claimed invention as can drawings in utility patents. When the reference is a utility patent, it does not matter that the feature shown is unintended or unexplained in the specification. The drawings must be evaluated for what they reasonably disclose and suggest to one of ordinary skill in the art. In re Aslanian, 590 F.2d 911, 200 USPQ 500 (CCPA 1979).
Therefore, Meixner need not specifically describe the CO or M portions of the terminal in the specification for the features to be apparent in the figures.
Conclusion
THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
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/GREGORY L MANGOT/Examiner, Art Unit 2834
/CHRISTOPHER M KOEHLER/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2834
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