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 .
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on September 12, 2023 was filed before the mailing of a first Office action on the merits. The submission is in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner.
Drawings
The drawings are objected to under 37 CFR 1.83(a). The drawings must show every feature of the invention specified in the claims. Therefore, “a heat pipe,” recited in claim 5 on page 5 line 9 must be shown or the feature(s) canceled from the claim(s). No new matter should be entered.
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. The figure or figure number of an amended drawing should not be labeled as “amended.” If a drawing figure is to be canceled, the appropriate figure must be removed from the replacement sheet, and where necessary, the remaining figures must be renumbered and appropriate changes made to the brief description of the several views of the drawings for consistency. Additional replacement sheets may be necessary to show the renumbering of the remaining figures. 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.
Specification
The abstract of the disclosure is objected to because the content of the abstract is a nearly word for word repeat of independent claim 1. A corrected abstract of the disclosure is required and must be presented on a separate sheet, apart from any other text. See MPEP § 608.01(b).
Applicant is reminded of the proper content of an abstract of the disclosure.
A patent abstract is a concise statement of the technical disclosure of the patent and should include that which is new in the art to which the invention pertains. The abstract should not refer to purported merits or speculative applications of the invention and should not compare the invention with the prior art.
If the patent is of a basic nature, the entire technical disclosure may be new in the art, and the abstract should be directed to the entire disclosure. If the patent is in the nature of an improvement in an old apparatus, process, product, or composition, the abstract should include the technical disclosure of the improvement. The abstract should also mention by way of example any preferred modifications or alternatives.
Where applicable, the abstract should include the following: (1) if a machine or apparatus, its organization and operation; (2) if an article, its method of making; (3) if a chemical compound, its identity and use; (4) if a mixture, its ingredients; (5) if a process, the steps.
Extensive mechanical and design details of an apparatus should not be included in the abstract. The abstract should be in narrative form and generally limited to a single paragraph within the range of 50 to 150 words in length.
See MPEP § 608.01(b) for guidelines for the preparation of patent abstracts.
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 2-3 and 5 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 2 recites the limitation “each filled via included in the via array,” in page 4 line 23. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim. The examiner notes that claim 2 depends from independent claim 1 and that neither independent claim 1 nor dependent claim 2 recite the vias in the via array are filled vias.
Claim 3 is also rejected for containing the same limitation because claim 3 depends from claim 2.
Claim 5 recites the limitation “the heat-dissipating member uses a heat pipe,” on page 5 line 9, this limitation renders the claim indefinite because the limitation recites the act of using a heat pipe in an apparatus claim. When both an apparatus and a method are claimed in the same claim it is unclear whether infringement occurs when the apparatus is constructed or when the apparatus is used. Therefore, the scope of the claim is indefinite. See MPEP 2173.05(p).
Claim 5 recites the limitation “the heat-dissipating member uses a heat pipe,” on page 5 line 9, this limitation renders the claim indefinite because it is unclear what would constitute use of a heat pipe and further what structure of the heat-dissipating member is being defined by the use of a heat pipe. For examination purposes, this limitation will be treated as the heat-dissipating member including a heat pipe.
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 1-5 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Nakada et al. (JP 2014170834 A) in view of Otowa (JP 2007242964 A). The examiner notes that the citations to paragraphs of Nakada and Otowa refer to paragraphs of the attached translations of Nakada and Otowa.
Regarding Claim 1:
Nakada discloses a heat-dissipating structure for an electronic device comprising:
a substrate (multi-layer substrate, See fig. 6, ref. no. 2B and paragraph 30);
a heat-generating component (power FET, See fig. 6, ref. no. 1 and paragraph 30) mounted on the substrate;
a case (housing of an audio device, See fig. 6, ref. no. 3A, paragraphs 22 and 27) being attached to the substrate (the housing of the audio device is secured to the multi-layer substrate by heat conductive rubbers, See fig. 6, ref. nos. 5a, 5b, paragraphs 15, 20, and 26) having a shape at least partially covering the heat-generating component (the housing of the audio device is shown at least partially covering the power FET, See fig. 6, ref. nos. 1 and 3A);
wherein a via array (plurality of thermal vias, See fig. 6, ref. no. 7, paragraph 28 and 30) is provided in the substrate,
the via array is placed across a first region (region under the power FET, See figs. 5a, 6, ref. nos. 1, 7) including a region in which the heat-generating component is in contact with the substrate (the power FET is in thermal contact with the multi-layer substrate, See fig. 6, ref. no. 1, 2B and paragraph 30), a second region (region under the heat conductive rubbers and the sidewalls of the housing of the audio device, See fig. 6, ref. nos. 3A, 5a, 5b, and 7) including a region in which the case is in contact with the substrate (the housing of the audio device is in thermal contact with the multi-layer substrate through the heat conductive rubbers, See fig. 6, ref. nos. 3A, 5a, 5b, and paragraph 30), and a third region (region between the power FET and the sidewalls of the housing of the audio device, See fig. 6, ref. nos. 1, 3A, and 7) including a region between the first region and the second region, and
a heat-dissipating path (heat flows from the power FET through the multi-layer substrate including the plurality of vias and the heat conductive rubbers to the housing for the audio device, See fig. 6, ref. nos. 1, 2B, 5a, 5b, 7, and paragraph 30 and 33) from the heat-generating component to the case is formed by the via array.
Nakada does not disclose a heat-dissipating member (heat dissipation fin and screw member having a heat pipe that is screwed into the housing, See fig. 2, ref. nos. 10, 13, 14, 16, and paragraphs 17-20) thermally connected to the case.
Otowa discloses a heat-dissipating member thermally connected to the case.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the heat-dissipating structure for an electronic device of Nakada to include a heat-dissipating member thermally connected to the case as taught by Otowa in order to achieve highly efficient heat control. (See Otowa paragraph 6.)
Regarding Claim 2:
Nakada discloses wherein the substrate is a multilayer substrate (multi-layer substrate, See fig. 6, ref. no. 2B and paragraph 30), and each filled via (via are filled with a heat transfer material, See paragraph 28) included in the via array penetrates a plurality of layers in the multilayer substrate (the vias of the third embodiment penetrate the substrate, See figs. 5a, 5b, 6, ref. no. 2A, 2B, 7, paragraphs 28 and 30)
Regarding Claim 3:
Nakada discloses wherein the each filled via penetrates every layer inside the multilayer substrate (the vias of the third embodiment penetrate the substrate, See figs. 5a, 5b, 6, ref. no. 2A, 2B, 7, paragraphs 28 and 30).
Regarding Claim 5:
Otowa discloses wherein the heat-dissipating member uses a heat pipe (heat dissipation fin and screw member having a heat pipe, See fig. 2, ref. nos. 10, 13, 14, and paragraphs 17-20).
Regarding Claim 4:
The above stated combination of Nakada and Otowa discloses the heat-dissipating structure for an electronic device.
The above stated combination of Nakada and Otowa does not disclose wherein the case has a shape covering the entire heat-generating component.
Otowa discloses wherein the case has a shape covering the entire heat-generating component (an electronic component such as a CPU is mounted on a printed circuit board housed with the housing, See paragraph 19).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the heat-dissipating structure for an electronic device of the above stated combination Nakada and Otowa to include the case having a shape covering the entire heat-generating component in order to protect the power FET from damage.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. KR100373936B1 to Cho discloses a heat discharging structure for a power module.
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/B.S./Examiner, Art Unit 2899 /DALE E PAGE/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2899