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 Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to claim(s) have been considered but are moot because the new ground of objections.
Claim Objections
Claims 1-4, 9 and 10 are objected to because of the following informalities:
Claim 1 recites the limitation "the one side" in line 9. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim.
Claim 1 recites the limitation "the other side" in line 12. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim.
Claims 2-4 inherit the same from claim 1.
Claim 9 recites the limitation "the other side" in line 12. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim. The applicant did not actually claim “the other side”. Maybe the applicant should use a first side and a second side or something similar.
Claim 10 inherits the same from claim 9. Appropriate correction is required.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b):
(b) CONCLUSION.—The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph:
The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention.
Claims 1-4 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention.
Claim 1 recites the limitations "by being folded" inline 6, "the folded wiring portion" in line 9, "then is folded" in line 10, and "after folding in the folded wiring portion". It is unclear folds there are. It is really confusing as to what is folded and where it’s folded and how many times it’s folded.
Claim 1 recites the limitation "extends toward the one side" in line 9. It is unclear what the one side is. Extending towards the one side of what?
Claim 1 recites the limitation "extends toward the other side" in line 9. It is unclear what the other side is. Extending towards the other side of what?
Claim 1 recites the limitation "to be connected…at an end" in line 11. It is unclear what the one side is. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim. Line 7 recited an as well. Are these the same ends or different ends?
Claims 2-4 inherit the same from claim 1.
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.
Claim(s) 1, 2, 5-8 and 11 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102a2 as being anticipated by Kentaro et al.
Claim 1; Kentaro et al. disclose a power converter (fig. 2) comprising: a capacitor (1) having a first electrode and a second electrode (e.g. see figure 12: 25); and a specific busbar (e.g. fig 1: 20-21-22-30) connected to a specific electrode (25) which is one or each of both of the first electrode and the second electrode, wherein the specific busbar (30) has a folded wiring portion (e.g. 20/22/30) having an opposing portion (30) and an opposed portion (20) opposing each other by being folded, the opposing portion (30) and the opposed portion (20) being located at one of the first electrode (-) and the second electrode (+), and an end (25) of the folded wiring portion (20/22/30) is connected to the one of the first electrode (-) and the second electrode (+). wherein the folded wiring portion extends toward the one side in a first direction (up/down) from a body part of the specific busbar, and then is folded (e.g. the fold) and extends toward another side in the first direction (up/down), to be connected to one of the first electrode and the second electrode at an end (e.g. the folded end) on the other side in the first direction after folding in the folded wiring portion (see both illustrations below.
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Claims 2 and 8; the specific busbar has an additional wiring portion (portion of 30 between 22 & 51) located at the specific electrode (+/-), and an end of the additional wiring portion (at 51) is connected to the specific electrode (51, +/-), the additional wiring portion has the opposing portion (30) opposing the opposed portion (20) which is a part of the folded wiring portion, and a current direction of the opposing portion (30) of the additional wiring portion and a current direction of the opposed portion (20) of the folded wiring portion are opposite to each other. Claim 8; point 25.
Claim 11 switching circuit (2), capacitor (1), DC voltage (10), wide bandgap inverter switches (2).
Claim 5; a power converter comprising: a capacitor (1) having a first electrode (-) and a second electrode (+); and a specific busbar (20-22-30) connected to a specific electrode (+/-) which is one or each of both of the first electrode and the second electrode, wherein the specific busbar has a folded wiring portion (20/22, 22/30) having parts opposing each other (20 & 30) in a first direction by being folded, the folding wiring portion being on the specific electrode in a second direction perpendicular to the first direction, and an end (51) of the folded wiring portion being connected to the specific electrode, wherein where a wiring width (at 21) of the folded wiring portion is denoted by a1 and a wiring opposing part (30) interval of the folded wiring portion is denoted by b1, b1 <= a1 is satisfied (that is, b1 is less than a1 at 21 and b1 is even equal to a1 measured at 20 as well).
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Claim 6; where a wiring width of (30) at the additional wiring portion (at 25/51) is denoted by a2 and a wiring opposing part interval (of 20 opposing 30) of the additional wiring portion are equal and denoted by b2, b2= a2.
Claim 7; the folded portion is connected at the end point 25.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claim 3 and 4 would be allowable if rewritten to overcome the rejection(s) under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), 2nd paragraph, set forth in this Office action and to include all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
Claims 9 and 10 would be allowable if rewritten or amended to overcome the objection(s) set forth in this Office action.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter: the reasons are the same as stated in the previous office action dated 10/10/2025.
Conclusion
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 GARY L LAXTON whose telephone number is (571)272-2079. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday, 8 am-4 pm.
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/GARY L LAXTON/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2838 2/26/2026