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 .
In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status.
Claim Objections
Claims 8-14 are objected to under 37 CFR 1.75 as being a substantial duplicate of Claims 1-7. When two claims in an application are duplicates or else are so close in content that they both cover the same thing, despite a slight difference in wording, it is proper after allowing one claim to object to the other as being a substantial duplicate of the allowed claim. See MPEP § 608.01(m).
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 1-20 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.
Regarding Claim 1 & 8, the applicant recites “wherein the first cable contact pad and the first terminal contact pad are disposed at different locations on the PCB, as measured along a Y axis, and the second cable contact pad and the second terminal contact pad are disposed at different locations on the PCB, as measured along the Y axis”. A Y-axis represents a forward-backward or north-south direction reference in a 3D space. Moreover, in order to have “a y axis location”, a x axis is also necessary. The applicant does not recite any origin or reference point of the PCB to locate any axis, including the y axis. Therefore, it is unclear what are the recited “different locations on the PCB, as measured along the Y axis”.
Claims 2-7 & 9-14 are rejected based on the dependency from Claim 1 or 8.
Regarding Claim 3 & 10, the applicant recites “z axis”. The recited “z axis is similarly unclear as for the recited “x axis” as in claim 1 & 8.
Regarding Claim 15, the applicant similar recitations for a “x axis”. The same rejection applies as in Claim 1 & 8.
Regarding Claim 16, the applicant recites “wherein each terminal of the plurality of terminals makes solderless contact with a base circuit board contact”. Claim 16 is a dependent from claim 15. Claim 15 recites several “terminals” – a terminal, a terminal PCB end, terminal contact pad. Therefore, it is unclear what the recited “each terminal & the plurality of terminals” in claim 16, the applicant is referring to.
Claim 17 is rejected based on the dependency from Claim 16.
Regarding Claim 17, the applicant recites “wherein the base circuit board contacts are disposed on a base circuit board, and the base circuit board is disposed below, as measured along a Z axis, the cable assembly”. The limitation "the contact board contacts". There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim. Moreover, the applicant’s “the base circuit board contacts, a base circuit board, and the base circuit board” are unclear if they are different or not. Finally, the recited “Z axis” is rejected similarly as the “x-axis in Claim 1 or 8.
Regarding Claim 18, the applicant recites “wherein the first terminal contact pad and the first cable contact pad are in electrical communication via a first trace and wherein the second terminal contact pad and the second cable contact pad are in electrical communication via a second trace”. The limitation " the first terminal contact pad ", “the first cable contact pad”, “the second terminal contact pad” & “the second cable contact pad”. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitations in the claim.
Regarding Claim 20, the limitation “the cable contact ends” & “the terminal PCB contact ends”. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitations in the claim.
Claims 16-20 are rejected based on the dependency from Claim 15.
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.
Claims 15-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Schumacher (US 2015/0214666).
Regarding Claim 15, Schumacher discloses a cable assembly [100] (FIG. 3, ¶ [0037-0038]), comprising:
a cable [109] (FIG. 3, ¶ [0038]; the patch cord 100 includes a cable 109);
a cable contact end [111-114] defined at one end of the cable [109] (FIG. 5; ¶ [0038]; The insulated conductors 101-108 may be arranged as four twisted pairs of conductors 111-114);
a terminal [141-148] (FIG. 4-7; a printed circuit board 150 of the plug 116 of FIG. 4 that illustrate how the conductors 101-108 of the patch cord 100 connect to the plug blades 141-148 that are mounted on the printed circuit board 150);
a terminal PCB contact end [131-138] defined at one end of the terminal [141-148] (FIG. 6-7; ¶ [0044]; Each plug blade 141-148 also includes a base column (not shown) that extends from a bottom surface of the plug blade and is soldered or press fit within a respective one of eight metal-plated vias 131-138 that are arranged in two rows along the front edge of the printed circuit board 150 to mount the plug blades 141-148 on the printed circuit board 150);
a printed circuit board (PCB) [150] (FIG. 5-7; ¶ [0043]);
a cable contact pad [151-152, 154-155] defined on the PCB [150] (FIG. 5-7; ¶ [0043]; the printed circuit board 150 includes four metal pads 151-152, 154-155 on a top surface thereof and an additional four metal pads 153, 156-158); and
a terminal contact pad [FIG. 6 shows “pads” from 181-188 – also refer to para 0071] defined on the PCB [150] (FIG. 7, ¶ [0071]; Pursuant to further embodiments of the present invention, methods of manufacturing a printed circuit board for a communications connector are provided in which a plurality of input terminals, a plurality of output terminals and a plurality of conductive paths are formed on a planar dielectric substrate. The planar dielectric substrate may comprise, for example, FR-4, which has a dielectric constant of about 4.0. The planar dielectric substrate may be formed from a single piece of material or may comprise multiple dielectric substrates that are laminated together to form a unitary structure. The input terminals may comprise, for example, conductive vias that have jackwire contacts mounted therein. The output terminals may comprise, for example, conductive vias that have IDCs mounted therein or conductive pads that the conductors of a communications cable are soldered to),
the terminal contact pad [181-188] and the cable contact pad [151-152, 154-155] being in electrical communication with one another [through 161-162, 164-165] (FIG. 5-7, [0045]; Each conductive path 161-168 may comprise, for example, one or more conductive traces on the printed circuit board 150 and, with respect to some of the conductive paths 161-168, metal-plated or metal-filled through holes (or other layer-transferring structures) that electrically connect conductive traces on different layers of the printed circuit board 150),
the cable contact end [111-114] is in electrical communication [through 161-165 – refer to para 0045] with the cable contact pad [151-152, 154-155] and the terminal PCB contact end [131-138] is in electrical communication [through 161-165] with the terminal contact pad [181-188] (FIG. 4-7 – refer to para 0045);
wherein the terminal contact pad [181-188] and the cable contact pad [151-152, 154] are disposed at different locations on the PCB [150], as measured along a Y axis [all of 181-188 & 151-152, 154-154 are “along a Y axis” of 150 as shown in FIG. 5] (FIG. 4-7).
Regarding Claim 16, Schumacher discloses the cable assembly of claim 15 [see rejected Claim 15],
Schumacher discloses wherein each terminal [141-148] of the plurality of terminals [141-148] makes solderless contact with a base circuit board contact [base column] (FIG. 5-7, ¶ [0044]; Each plug blade 141-148 also includes a base column (not shown) that extends from a bottom surface of the plug blade and is soldered or press fit within a respective one of eight metal-plated vias 131-138 that are arranged in two rows along the front edge of the printed circuit board 150).
Regarding Claim 17, Schumacher discloses the cable assembly of claim 16 [see rejected Claim 16],
Schumacher discloses wherein the base circuit board contacts [base column on each 141-141] are disposed on a base circuit board [base column], and the base circuit board [130] is disposed below, as measured along a Z axis, the cable assembly (FIG. 4-7).
Regarding Claim 18, Schumacher discloses the cable assembly of claim 15 [see rejected Claim 15],
Schumacher discloses wherein the first terminal contact pad [one of 181-188] and the first cable contact pad [one of 151-152, 154-155] are in electrical communication via a first trace and wherein the second terminal contact pad [second of 181-188] and the second cable contact pad [second of 151-152, 154-155] are in electrical communication via a second trace (FIG. 3-7, ¶ [0045]; a plurality of conductive paths 161-168 are provided on the top and bottom surfaces of the printed circuit board 150 that each electrically connect one of the metal pads 151-158 to a respective one of the metal-plated vias 131-138).
Regarding Claim 19, Schumacher discloses the cable assembly of claim 15 [see rejected Claim 15],
Schumacher discloses wherein the PCB [150] includes one or more materials selected from the group consisting of silicon, gold, copper, and carbon (¶ [0061]; The jack contacts 260 may comprise, for example, conventional cantilevered jackwire contacts formed of a resilient metal such as beryllium copper or phosphor bronze, or may be non-conventional jackwire contacts such as non-resilient metal contacts, contacts formed using traces or pads on a flexible printed circuit board).
Regarding Claim 20, Schumacher discloses the cable assembly of claim 15 [see rejected Claim 15],
Schumacher discloses wherein the PCB [150], the cable contact ends [111-114], and the terminal PCB contact ends [131-138] are at least partially surrounded by an overmold [122] (FIG. 4).
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 1-14 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Schumacher (US 2015/0214666) in view of Qiao (US 10,535,939).
Regarding Claim 1 & 8, Schumacher discloses a cable assembly [100] (FIG. 3), comprising:
a cable [109] (FIG. 3, also refer to element “a” from rejected claim 15 above);
a cable contact end [111-114] defined at one end of each of the cable [109] (FIG. 5; also refer to element “b” from rejected claim 15 above);
a plurality of terminals [141-148] (FIG. 7; also refer to element “c” from rejected claim 15 above);
a terminal PCB contact end [131-138] defined at one end of each of the terminals [141] (FIG. 7, also refer to element “d” from rejected claim 15 above);
a printed circuit board (PCB) [150] (FIG. 5-7; also refer to element “e” from rejected claim 15 above);
a plurality of cable contact pads [151-152, 154-155] defined on the PCB [150] (FIG. 5); and
a plurality of terminal contact pads [181-188] defined on the PCB [150], wherein a first terminal contact pad [181] of the plurality of terminal contact pads [181-188] and a first cable contact pad [151] of the plurality of cable contact pads [151-152, 154-155] are in electrical communication [through 161-162, 164-165] with one another and a second terminal contact pad [182] of the plurality of terminal contact pads [181-188] and a second cable contact pad [152] of the plurality of cable contact pads [151-152, 154-155] are in electrical communication with one another [through 161-162, 164-165] (FIG. 5-6, ¶ [0045], also refer to rejected Claim 15 above),
wherein a first cable contact end [111] of the plurality of cable contact ends [111-114] is in electrical communication [through 161-162, 164-165] with the first cable contact pad [151] and a second cable contact end [112] of the plurality of cable contact ends [111-114] is in electrical communication [through 161-162, 164-165] with the second cable contact pad [152] (FIG. 5-6, ¶ [0045], also refer to rejected Claim 15 above),
wherein a first terminal PCB contact end [131] of the plurality of terminal PCB contact ends [131-138] is in electrical communication [through 161-162, 164-165] with the first terminal contact pad [181] and a second terminal PCB contact end [132] of the plurality of terminal PCB contact ends [131-138] is in electrical communication [through 161-162, 164-165] with the second terminal contact pad [182] (FIG. 4-7), and
wherein the first cable contact pad [151] and the first terminal contact pad [181] are disposed at different locations on the PCB [150], as measured along a Y axis [FIG. 5 shows 151-155 & 181-188 in an “Y axis”], and the second cable contact pad [152] and the second terminal contact pad [182] are disposed at different locations on the PCB [150], as measured along the Y axis [FIG. 5 shows 151-155 & 181-188 in an “Y axis”].
Schumacher is not explicit to disclose “a plurality of cables”.
Qiao teaches A) a plurality of cables [40, 50] (FIG. 2A-2B).
Schumacher also discloses “In order to counteract such noise sources, the information signals in the above-described communications systems are typically transmitted between devices over a pair of conductors (hereinafter a “differential pair” or simply a “pair”) rather than over a single conductor. The two conductors of each differential pair are twisted tightly together in the communications cables”.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skilled in the art before the effective filling date of the claimed invention to incorporate Qiao’s plurality of cables (refer to “A” above) into Schumacher’s cable (refer to “a” above). One would be motivated to do so to counteract noise sources commonly in information signals transmitted through conductors from a single cable.
Regarding Claim 2 & 9, Schumacher in view Qiao disclose the cable assembly of claim 1 [see rejected Claim 1 & 8],
Schumacher discloses wherein each terminal of the plurality of terminals [141-148] makes solderless contact with a base circuit board contact (Similarly rejected as in rejected Claim 16 above).
Regarding Claim 3 & 10, Schumacher in view Qiao disclose the cable assembly of claim 2 [see rejected Claim 2 & 9],
Schumacher discloses wherein the base circuit board contacts are disposed on a base circuit board, and the base circuit board is disposed below, as measured along a Z axis, the cable assembly (Similarly rejected as in rejected Claim 16 above).
Regarding Claim 4 & 11, Schumacher in view Qiao disclose the cable assembly of claim 1 [see rejected Claim 1 & 8],
Schumacher discloses wherein the first terminal contact pad [181] and the first cable contact pad [151] are in electrical communication [through 161-162, 164-165] via a first trace and wherein the second terminal contact pad [182] and the second cable contact pad [152] are in electrical communication [through 161-162, 164-165] via a second trace (FIG. 3-7, ¶ [0045]; a plurality of conductive paths 161-168 are provided on the top and bottom surfaces of the printed circuit board 150 that each electrically connect one of the metal pads 151-158 to a respective one of the metal-plated vias 131-138).
Regarding Claim 5 & 12, Schumacher in view Qiao disclose the cable assembly of claim 1 [see rejected Claim 1 & 8],
Schumacher discloses wherein the PCB includes one or more materials selected from the group consisting of silicon, gold, copper, and carbon (¶ [0061]; The jack contacts 260 may comprise, for example, conventional cantilevered jackwire contacts formed of a resilient metal such as beryllium copper or phosphor bronze, or may be non-conventional jackwire contacts such as non-resilient metal contacts, contacts formed using traces or pads on a flexible printed circuit board).
Regarding Claim 6 & 13, Schumacher in view Qiao disclose the cable assembly of claim 1 [see rejected Claim 1 & 8],
Schumacher discloses wherein the PCB [150], the cable contact ends [111-114], and the terminal PCB contact ends [131-138] are at least partially surrounded by an overmold [122] (FIG. 4).
Regarding Claim 7 & 14, Schumacher in view Qiao disclose the 7. The cable assembly of claim 1 [see rejected Claim 1 & 8],
Schumacher discloses wherein the cable assembly includes a ground plate disposed proximate the PCB [150] ([0048]; The image planes 196, whether or not they are electrically grounded, may act as shielding structures that reduce coupling between the portions of conductive traces 161-168 that are on the top side of the printed circuit board 150).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JOSEPH ORTEGA whose telephone number is (469)295-9083. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 8 AM - 5 PM.
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/JOSEPH ORTEGA/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2834