DETAILED ACTION
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)(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 13-15 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by the publication of CN 112271420 A.
Regarding claim 1, the publication of CN 112271420 A discloses a phase shifter, comprising: a first plate 11; and a second plate 22 slidable relative to the first plate (figs1-2, abstract), wherein two parallel microstrip lines 12,13 are provided on a first surface of the first plate and a means 21 electrically coupled to the two parallel microstrip lines is provided on a second surface of the second plate that faces to the first surface of the first plate, the means defining a signal transmission path (abstract, electrically coupled via 21 and 12,13) which couples the two parallel microstrip lines and introducing an infinite impedance at two coupling points (plate 22 of feeder line 21 sliding along coupling points A-B and C-D resulting an infinite impedance, figs5-6) on the two parallel microstrip lines where the signal transmission path is coupled to the two parallel microstrip lines.
Regarding claims 13-15, the publication of CN 112271420 A further discloses a layer of insulating film is provided on the second surface of the second plate (p3) and covers the means and comprising an antenna unit (p9).
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 2 and 6 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103(a) as being unpatentable over the publication of CN 112271420 A.
The publication of CN 112271420 A had been discussed but fail to teach the means introduces an infinite impedance at two first points on the second plate and a distance between each of the two coupling points and a corresponding first point is an integral multiple of half-wavelength; the means introduces an infinitely small impedance at a second point on each of the two parallel microstrip lines of the first plate and a distance between each of the two coupling points and a corresponding second point is an odd multiple of a quarter-wavelength. It would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to a person having ordinary skilled in the art at the time the invention was made to have the means introduces an infinite impedance at two first points on the second plate and a distance between each of the two coupling points and a corresponding first point is an integral multiple of half-wavelength; the means introduces an infinitely small impedance at a second point on each of the two parallel microstrip lines of the first plate and a distance between each of the two coupling points and a corresponding second point is an odd multiple of a quarter-wavelength, since it has been held to be within the general skill of a worker in the art to select a known dimension of the elements be varied for the intended use as a matter of obvious design choice.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 3-5 and 7-12 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.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. The patents to Lai, Heiniger, Kitamori, Moon, Timofeev, Chan and Baril are cited as of interested and illustrated a similar structure to a phase shifter.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to THO GIA PHAN whose telephone number is (571)272-1826. The examiner can normally be reached on M-F (8-430).
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Dimary Lopez can be reached on (571) 270-7893. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/THO G PHAN/
Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2845
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