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 .
Continued Examination Under 37 CFR 1.114
A request for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, including the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e), was filed in this application after final rejection. Since this application is eligible for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114. Applicant's submission filed on 03/02/2026 and 03/31/2026 has been entered.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments, filed 03/02/2026, with respect to claim(s) 1-4, 6-7 and 8-16 have been considered but are moot because the new ground of rejection does not rely on any combination of reference applied in the prior rejection of record for any teaching or matter specifically challenged in the argument.
Further, on page 10-11 of the remarks, applicant argues that “Errifi does not disclose slit portions formed around a signal wiring in a conductive layer of a circuit board, does not disclose a feeding ground portion disposed between slit portions, and does not disclose the claimed ration range of 0.8 to 2”. Examiner respectfully disagrees. Firstly, regarding the assertions that “Errifi does not disclose slit portions formed around a signal wiring in a conductive layer of a circuit board, does not disclose a feeding ground portion disposed between slit portions” these limitations are already taught by Kim and Errifi is merely a teaching reference for the modifying the slit and ground ratios. Second, regarding the argument that “Errifi does not teach the claimed ration range of 0.8 to 2”, while Errifi does not teach the exact values of 0.8 to 2 for the ratio, it does teach that one would modify this ratio to improve impedance matching and antenna gain (Introduction paragraph 2 and conclusion, as well as, table 2). Furthermore, it has been held that where the general conditions of a claim are disclosed in the prior art, discovering the optimum or workable ranges involves only routine skill in the art. In re Aller, 105 USPQ 233 (CCPA 1955). The rejection of claim 5 as unpatentable over Kim in view of Errifi is, therefore, maintained.
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 and 6-16 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Kim et al. (US20230092067; hereinafter Kim).
Regarding claim 1, Kim discloses “A circuit board for an antenna, comprising: a core layer (210) having a first surface (surface facing signal wiring 220) and a second surface (surface facing 230) facing each other; a signal wiring (220) disposed on the first surface of the core layer; a conductive layer (230) disposed on the second surface of the core layer to cover the signal wiring in a plan view (see figs. 1-2), and wherein the conductive layer has a slit portion (240) formed around the signal wiring in the plan view, wherein the second surface of the core layer is exposed through the slit portion (fig. 6), wherein the slit portion comprises a pair of slit portions (multiple 240s) formed at both lateral sides of a front end portion of the signal wiring in the plan view (fig. 6), and the conductive layer comprises a feeding ground portion disposed between the pair of slit portions to cover the front end portion of the signal wiring in the plan view (in fig. 6 there is a feeding ground portion around 126 and 128 connection area covering signal wiring)”.
Regarding claim 6, Kim discloses “The circuit board for an antenna according to claim 3, wherein the conductive layer has a first portion including the slit portion (210a) and the feeding ground portion, and a second portion (210b) having a solid plate shape (fig. 6)”.
Regarding claim 7, Kim discloses “The circuit board for an antenna according to claim 6, wherein the second portion covers a rear end portion of the signal wiring in the plan view (see fig. 6)”.
Regarding claim 8, Kim discloses “The circuit board for an antenna according to claim 2, wherein a plurality of the slit portions are formed at each of both lateral sides of the front end portion of the signal wiring in the plan view (multiple 240s)”.
Regarding claim 9, Kim discloses “wherein the signal wiring comprises a plurality of signal wirings (fig. 6 multiple 220’s) arranged in a width direction, and the slit portion is formed between the plurality of signal wirings (fig. 6)”.
Regarding claim 10, Kim discloses “wherein a plurality of the slit portions are formed between a pair of adjacent signal wirings among the plurality of signal wirings (each slit 240 is made of multiple portions (thin portion and wide portion))”.
Regarding claim 11, Kim discloses “wherein the signal wiring comprises a plurality of feeding portions (multiple 220s), and the slit portion (240) is formed in each region between the feeding portions in the plan view (fig. 6)”.
The embodiment of fig. 6 of Kim does not disclose “a merging portion coupling the feeding portions to each other”
However, Kim fig. 5 discloses “a merging portion (222/224) coupling the feeding portions to each other”.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to apply the teachings of Kim fig. 5 and make Sharawi’s circuit board wherein the signal wiring comprises a plurality of feeding portions and a merging portion coupling the feeding portions to each other, and the slit portion is formed in each region between the feeding portions in the plan view, in order to split a single feed instead of using multiple feeds.
Regarding claim 12, Kim discloses “An antenna package comprising: an antenna unit (100) comprising a radiator (120) and a transmission line (124) connected to the radiator; and the circuit board for an antenna of electrically connected to the antenna unit (see fig. 6)”.
Regarding claim 13, Kim (figs. 1 and 6) discloses “wherein the antenna unit further comprises a signal pad (126) connected to an end portion of the transmission line (fig. 6), a front end portion of the signal wiring of the circuit board for an antenna is bonded to the signal pad (¶[0060]; The exposed end portion of the circuit wiring 220 may be bonded onto the signal pad 126), and the slit portion is formed around the front end portion of the signal wiring”.
Regarding claim 14, Kim (figs. 1 and 6) discloses “The antenna package according to claim 13, wherein the radiator has a mesh structure (¶[0054]; In some embodiments, the radiator 122 and the transmission line 124 may include a mesh-pattern structure to improve transmittance), and the signal pad has a solid structure (¶[0055]; The signal pad 126 and the antenna ground pad 125 may be solid patterns formed of the above-described metal or alloy in consideration of reduction of a feeding resistance, improvement of noise absorption efficiency, etc.)”.
Regarding claim 15, Kim (figs. 1 and 6) discloses “An image display device comprising: a display panel (¶[0112]; The antenna device 100 included in the above-described antenna package may be disposed toward the front face portion of the image display device 300, and may be disposed on, e.g., a display panel); an antenna unit (100) disposed on the display panel; and the circuit board for an antenna electrically connected to the antenna unit (fig. 6)”.
Regarding claim 16, Kim (figs. 1 and 6) discloses “The image display device according to claim 15, wherein a rear end portion without the slit portion of the circuit board for an antenna is bent below the display panel (¶0073]; In this case, the circuit extension portion 210b may be bent toward the rear side of the image display device to facilitate a circuit connection with the antenna driving IC chip 290)”.
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 5 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kim, further in view of Errifi et al. (Matin, Mohammad & Sayeed, A. (2010). A design rule for inset-fed rectangular microstrip patch antenna. WSEAS TRANSACTIONS on COMMUNICATIONS. 9.; hereinafter Errifi).
Regarding claim 5, Kim discloses the circuit board for an antenna according to claim 3 as previously shown.
Kim does not disclose “wherein a ratio of a width of the feeding ground portion to a width of the slit portion is from 0.8 to 2”.
However, Errifi shows an analysis of notch width for feeding lines, specifically for impedance matching (see introduction paragraph 2 and conclusion). Errifi teaches it is well known in the art to adjust slit widths to achieve proper impendence matching with the feed line.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to apply the teachings of Errifi and make Kim’s circuit board wherein a ratio of a width of the feeding ground portion to a width of the slit portion is from 0.8 to 2, in order to improve impedance matching.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claim 4 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.
Regarding claim 4, applicants’ arguments regarding Kim not disclosing or teaching the ration of 10 to 18 is persuasive. For at least this reason claim 4 is allowable.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to AUSTIN MICHAEL BACK whose telephone number is (703)756-4521. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Friday 8 AM - 5 PM ET.
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/AUSTIN M BACK/Examiner, Art Unit 2845
/DIMARY S LOPEZ CRUZ/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2845
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