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 .
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.
The factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness.
Claims 1, 10, 11, 18-19, 26 27 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Patel (Pub. No.: US (2021/0175589A1) and further in view of Ngai (Pub. No.: US 2020/0091605 A1).
With respect to claim 1:
Patel discloses a millimeter wave (mmW) communication system located on a millimeter wave integrated circuit (MMW-IC), comprising: a phase shifter selectively connected to a receive path by a first electromagnetic (EM) element (fig. 3-2 with phase shifter 130-2 connected to receive path 310-2) and selectively connected to a transmit path by a second EM element (fig. 3-2 with phase shift 130-2 connected to transmit part 310-1); the first EM element configured to receive a transmit signal and configured to receive a receive signal from a low noise amplifier (LNA) (fig. fig. 3-1 with antenna 301-1 transmit and receive signals); and wherein the second EM element is configured to selectively provide the phase shifted transmit signal to a power amplifier on the mmW-IC (fig. 3-2 item 302 which is the same as fig. 3-1 antenna 122 using phase shift 130) and the phase shifted receive signal to receive signal processing circuitry located off of the mmW-IC (fig. 3-1 with phase shift 130 received at other component 308).
Patel does not explicitly disclose the second EM element configured to receive a phase shifted transmit signal and a phase shifted receive signal from the phase shifter.
Ngai discloses the second EM element configured to receive a phase shifted transmit signal and a phase shifted receive signal from the phase shifter (fig. 2, fig. 3 and parag. 0027-0030). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filling date of the claimed invention to utilize the teaching of Ngai into the teaching of Patel in order to improve spatial coverage or to support multiple frequency bands.
With respect to claims 10, 18:
Patel discloses a method for phase shifting signals, comprising: selectively applying a transmit signal or a receive signal to a shared phase shifter (fig. 3-2 with transmit/receive sharing phase shifter 13-02); selectively applying the phase shifted transmit signal to a power amplifier or selectively applying the phase shifted receive signal to a phased array output (fig. 3-2 with 334-2 which is bi-directional phase signal to the amplifier 310-1 and back as in parag. 0071);
Patel does not explicitly disclose phase shifting the transmit signal and the receive signal;
Ngai discloses phase shifting the transmit signal and the receive signal (fig. 2, fig. 3 and parag. 0027-0030).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filling date of the claimed invention to utilize the teaching of Ngai into the teaching of Patel in order to improve spatial coverage or to support multiple frequency bands.
With respect to claims 11, 19:
Patel discloses the method of claim 10, wherein selectively applying the transmit signal or the receive signal to a shared phase shifter comprises impedance matching (parag. 0150).
With respect to claim 26:
Patel discloses a phased array element, comprising: receive circuitry (fig. 3-2 with item 310-2); transmit circuitry fig. 3-2 with item 310-1); a first electromagnetic (EM) element coupled to the receive circuitry (fig. 2, item 122 which is an antenna array coupled to receive circuitry 126); a second EM element coupled to the transmit circuitry (fig. 2, item 122 which is an antenna array coupled to transmit circuitry 126);; and a phase shifter coupled between the first EM element and the second EM element, wherein the phased array element is configured such that the phase shifter is shared by the receive circuitry and the transmit circuitry (fig. 3-2 which phase shift 130-2 shared between 310-1 and 310-2);
Patel does not explicitly disclose transmit signals and receive signals are routed through the phase shifter in a same direction.
Ngai discloses transmit signals and receive signals are routed through the phase shifter in a same direction (fig. 2, fig. 3 and parag. 0027-0030).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filling date of the claimed invention to utilize the teaching of Ngai into the teaching of Patel in order to improve spatial coverage or to support multiple frequency bands.
With respect to claim 27:
Patel discloses the phased array element of claim 26, wherein the phased array element is configured such that transmit signals and receive signals follow a same path through the phase shifter (fig. 3-2).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 2-9, 12-17, 20-25 28-30 are objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to claims 1, 10, 18 and 26 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
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 AJIBOLA A AKINYEMI whose telephone number is (571)270-1846. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 8:00am-5:00pm, EST.
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/AJIBOLA A AKINYEMI/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2649
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