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 .
This office action is a response to the restriction requirement filed on 5/6/2026.
Election/Restrictions
Applicant's election with traverse of invention I, claims 1-8, in the reply filed on 5/6/2026 is acknowledged. The traversal is on the ground(s) that there is no serious burden of search and examination of the above alleged inventions I, II and III. In fact, the Office Action has never stated that there is a serious burden of search and examination of the above alleged. This is not found persuasive because inventions I, II and III are distinct and have acquired a separate status in the art as shown by their different classification and require a different field of search. In addition, inventions I and II are related as product and apparatus of use and invention II such that invention II as claimed can be used in a materially different apparatus of using that product such as a printed circuit board (PCB) laminate including a core and embedded power planes and ground planes positioned adjacent to the core and one or more heat-generating components affixed to a top surface of the PCB laminate. Also, inventions I and III are related as process and apparatus for its practice such that invention I as claimed can be used to practice another and materially different process such as without an etching one or more lateral surfaces of a printed circuit board (PCB) laminate, and applying a protective coating to the exposed power and ground planes. Inventions I and III are also distinct and have acquired a separate status in the art as shown by their different classification and require a different field of search.
The requirement is still deemed proper and is therefore made FINAL.
Claims 9-20 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b), as being drawn to a nonelected invention, there being no allowable generic or linking claim. Applicant timely traversed the restriction (election) requirement in the reply filed on 5/6/2026.
Drawings
The drawings are objected to as failing to comply with 37 CFR 1.84(p)(5) because they do not include the following reference sign(s) mentioned in the description: The references “1004” and “1006” in paragraph [0066] are not in the drawing. Corrected drawing sheets in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(d) are required in reply to the Office action to avoid abandonment of the application. Any amended replacement drawing sheet should include all of the figures appearing on the immediate prior version of the sheet, even if only one figure is being amended. Each drawing sheet submitted after the filing date of an application must be labeled in the top margin as either “Replacement Sheet” or “New Sheet” pursuant to 37 CFR 1.121(d). If the changes are not accepted by the examiner, the applicant will be notified and informed of any required corrective action in the next Office action. The objection to the drawings will not be held in abeyance.
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.
Claims 1-3, 5 and 7 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Frisch (PGPub 2005/0105277 A1) in view of Paurus et al. (US PAT. 5,162,977).
Frisch teaches an apparatus comprising: a printed circuit board (PCB, 102, Fig. 1) laminate; one or more heat-generating components (106, Fig. 1) affixed to a top surface of the PCB laminate (paragraph [0017]); and a heat spreader (114, Figs. 2-3) attached in thermal contact with at least one of the one or more heat- generating components and one or more lateral surfaces of the PCB laminate (paragraph [0018]); wherein the heat spreader comprises flanged edges (an area of the reference 114 in Fig. 2) in thermal contact with the one or more lateral surfaces of the PCB laminate (paragraphs [0018]-[0019] and [0022]).
However, Frisch fails to teach the printed circuit board (PCB) laminate including a core and embedded power planes and ground planes positioned adjacent to the core. Paurus et al. teach a printed circuit board (PCB) laminate including a core (150) and embedded power planes (160) and ground planes (170) positioned adjacent to the core as shown in Fig. 1 (col. 2, line 65 to col. 3, line 2 and col. 3, lines 19-36). Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, at the time of the effective filing date of the claimed invention was made, to a person having ordinary skill in the art to modify the apparatus of Frisch by the printed circuit board (PCB) laminate including a core and embedded power planes and ground planes positioned adjacent to the core as taught by Paurus et al. in order to provide a desired signal path between externally mounted components.
Re. claim 2: Frisch, modified by Paurus et al., teaches a thermal interface material in thermal contact with and positioned between the flanged edges and the one or more PCB laminate lateral surfaces as shown in Fig. 3 (paragraph [0022]).
Re. claim 3: Frisch, modified by Paurus et al., teaches a protrusion extending into the thermal interface material adjacent the core as shown in Fig. 3.
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Re. claim 5: Even though Frisch, modified by Paurus et al., fails to show that one or more of the embedded power planes and ground planes are exposed at the one or more PCB laminate lateral surfaces. Since it has been held that where the general conditions of a claim are disclosed in the prior art, discovering the optimum or workable rangers involves only routine skill in the art. MPEP 2144.04 (il-A). The applicant has not disclosed any criticality for the claimed limitations. Therefore, since such a modification would have been an obvious design consideration that is within the purview of one having ordinary skill in the art to provide the well-known benefit of obtaining a desirable PCB laminate.
Re. claim 7: Frisch, modified by Paurus et al., teaches thermal vias (108) extending from the top surface to the core of the PCB laminate as shown in Fig. 3 (paragraph [0017]).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 4, 6 and 8 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.
The Prior Art
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Ozard (US PAT. 10,600,718) are cited to further show the state of the art with respect to a system having a hear sink package.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to PAUL D KIM whose telephone number is (571)272-4565. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday: 6:00 AM-2:00 PM.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Thomas Hong can be reached at 571-272-0993. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/PAUL D KIM/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3729
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