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
This Office Action is in response to the Applicant’s amendment filed 18 May 2026 wherein Claims 1, 4, 7, 8, and 14 are amended, Claim 2 is a cancelled, and no claims are newly added. Therefore Claims 1 and 3 – 20 are currently pending within the Application.
The Applicant’s amendment to the Claims has overcome each Claim Objection set forth in the Non-Final Rejection dated 20 February 2026 (hereinafter referred to as the “Non-Final Rejection”). Therefore, each Claim Objection set forth in the Non-Final Rejection is withdrawn.
The Applicant’s amendment to the Claims has overcome some of the Claim Rejections set forth under 35 U.S.C. § 112(b) within the Non-Final Rejection. The Examiner has reiterated the outstanding 35 U.S.C. § 112(b) rejection below.
The Applicant’s amendments to the Specification has overcome each Specification Objection set forth in the Non-Final Rejection. Therefore each Specification Objection set forth in the Non-Final Rejection is withdrawn.
The Applicant’s amendments to the Drawings have overcome some of the Drawing Objections set forth in the Non-Final Rejection. The outstanding Drawing Objections are reiterated below.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments, see pages 17 – 21, filed 18 May 2026, with respect to 35 U.S.C. § 102 rejection have been fully considered and are persuasive. The 35 U.S.C. § 102(a)(1) of claim 1 and its dependent claims has been withdrawn.
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:
101b.
211.
322.
4221.
423.
523.
3107.
4107.
1318.
1319.
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.
The drawings are objected to as failing to comply with 37 CFR 1.84(p)(5) because they include the following reference character(s) not mentioned in the description:
201 as shown in Fig. 13a.
202 as shown in Fig. 13a.
514 as shown in Fig. 14d.
3122 as shown in Fig. 16.
Corrected drawing sheets in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(d), or amendment to the specification to add the reference character(s) in the description in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(b) 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.
The drawings are objected to as failing to comply with 37 CFR 1.84(p)(4) because of the following:
reference character “140” has been used to designate “electrical contact region” and “crease groove.”
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 Objections
Claim 1 is objected to because of the following informalities:
Claim 1 recites “an unlocking hole is disposed of in an inner side of the block.” The Examiner finds the claim language of “disposed of in an inner side” to be confusing. The Examiner suggests amending this language to clarify the grammar (e.g., “disposed of [[in]] an inner side of the block”).
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.
Claim(s) 1 and 3 – 20 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 electrodes are electrically connected to the electrically connective regions of the input end respectively…”. The claim limitation “the electrically connective regions” lacks antecedent basis because it cannot be determined if these “electrically connective regions” are referring to the “plurality of electrically connective regions” previously recited within Claim 1 or are referring to other electrically connective regions. Therefore, Claim 1 is rejected as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention. The Examiner suggests amending this limitation to recite “the electrodes are electrically connected to the plurality of electrically connective regions of the input end respectively…” to provide the requisite antecedent basis.
Claims 3 – 20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. § 112(b) based on their dependency of Claim 1.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claim(s) 1 and 3 – 20 would be allowable if rewritten or amended 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.
Conclusion
THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. 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 ROBERT F ALLEN whose telephone number is (571)272-6232. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 8:00 AM - 4:30 PM ET.
Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Chelsea Stinson can be reached at (571)270-1744. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000.
/ROBERT F ALLEN/Examiner, Art Unit 3783
/WILLIAM R CARPENTER/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3783
07/31/2026
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