DETAILED ACTION
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 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.
Election/Restrictions
Applicant’s election without traverse of Species II, claims 2-12, 14-25, and 29-31 in the reply filed on 09/23/2025 is acknowledged.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statements (IDS) submitted on 04/13/2023, 06/14/2023, 06/28/2023, 07/14/2023, 07/31/2023, 12/06/2024, 07/02/2025, 11/12/2025, 12/02/2025 are in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statements are being considered by the examiner.
Claim Objections
Claim 25 is objected to because of the following informalities: claim 25 claims “, and configured to make and impedance” in line 9. It appears “make and” is an inadvertent typographical error intended for “make an”. Appropriate correction is required.
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 2, 3, 8, 10-12, 14-18, 23, 24, 25, 30 and 31 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Tousi (US 2017/0170785 A1).
Regarding claim 25, Tousi teaches an antenna apparatus comprising:
an antenna array (Fig. 1, [0019] device 10 ) in which a plurality of active antennas (14 and 12) each including an antenna (antenna 14) and a semiconductor structure (oscillator 12) configured to generate or detect an electromagnetic wave (terahertz signal) are arranged in an array;
a first coupling line (Fig. 1, row coupling line) configured to mutually couple two antennas respectively included in at least two active antennas among the plurality of active antennas;
a second coupling line (Fig. 1, column coupling line) bonded to at least one antenna; and
a first impedance variable device (Fig. 2, 32, [0026] a plurality of varactors 32) coupled to the first coupling line or the second coupling line, and configured to make an impedance of the first coupling line or an impedance of the second coupling line variable ([0026] phase shift tunable using varactors 32).
Regarding claim 2, all the limitations of claim 25 are taught by Tousi.
Tousi further teaches the apparatus wherein for first the coupling line (Fig. 1, row coupling 18) that couples the antennas respectively included in the at least two active antennas arranged adjacent to each other (two adjacent 14’s) in the array arrangement among the plurality of active antennas (10), a length of a path in a case where the semiconductor structures respectively included in the at least two active antennas are connected via the first coupling line is set based on an electrical length of the electromagnetic wave in the first coupling line ([0026] half-wavelength separation, [0027] the largest distance between two metal layers).
Regarding claim 3, all the limitations of claim 2 are taught by Tousi.
Tousi further teaches the apparatus wherein for the first coupling line, the length of the path is set to be the electrical length of the electromagnetic wave which is equal to an integer multiple of 2π ([0026] fundamental frequency ω0).
Regarding claim 8, all the limitations of claim 25 are taught by Tousi.
Tousi further teaches the apparatus wherein the first impedance variable device is coupled to each of the antennas respectively included in the plurality of active antennas (Fig. 1, 18).
Regarding claim 10, all the limitations of claim 25 are taught by Tousi.
Tousi further teaches the apparatus wherein the impedance variable device acts to adjust an electrical length of the electromagnetic wave in the second coupling line ([0020] variable phase shifter 18).
Regarding claim 11, all the limitations of claim 25 are taught by Tousi.
Tousi further teaches the apparatus wherein the impedance variable device includes a varactor diode ([0026] varactors 32).
Regarding claim 12, all the limitations of claim 25 are taught by Tousi.
Tousi further teaches the apparatus wherein the impedance variable device includes a transistor (Fig. 2, [0025] core device 20).
Regarding claim 14, all the limitations of claim 25 are taught by Tousi.
Tousi further teaches the apparatus further comprising a first wiring configured to connect the semiconductor structure and a bias control unit configured to supply a bias signal to the semiconductor structure, and a second wiring configured to connect the first impedance variable device and a phase control unit configured to supply a control signal to the first impedance variable device, wherein the first wiring and the second wiring are individually controlled (Fig. 2, 18, differential control, simultaneously control, independently controlled).
Regarding claim 15, all the limitations of claim 25 are taught by Tousi.
Tousi further teaches the apparatus wherein in the antenna array, the plurality of active antennas are arranged in a matrix (Fig. 1, 10).
Regarding claim 16, all the limitations of claim 25 are taught by Tousi.
Tousi further teaches the apparatus wherein in the antenna array, the plurality of active antennas are arranged at an interval not larger than a wavelength of the electromagnetic wave ([0026] half-wavelength separation).
Regarding claim 17, all the limitations of claim 25 are taught by Tousi.
Tousi further teaches the apparatus wherein in the antenna array, the plurality of active antennas are arranged at an interval not larger than a wavelength of the electromagnetic wave ([0024]).
Regarding claim 18, all the limitations of claim 25 are taught by Tousi.
Tousi further teaches the apparatus wherein the antenna is a patch antenna ([0027] patch antenna 14).
Regarding claim 22, all the limitations of claim 25 are taught by Tousi.
Tousi further teaches the apparatus wherein the second coupling line is capacitively coupled to the antenna (Fig. 2, 32).
Regarding claim 23, all the limitations of claim 25 are taught by Tousi.
Tousi further teaches the apparatus wherein the second coupling line is directly coupled to the antenna (Fig. 2).
Regarding claim 24, all the limitations of claim 25 are taught by Tousi.
Tousi further teaches the apparatus wherein the electromagnetic wave is an electromagnetic wave in a terahertz band ([0019]).
Regarding claim 30, all the limitations of claim 25 are taught by Tousi.
Tousi further teaches the apparatus wherein the first impedance variable device is coupled to the second coupling line and configured to make the impedance of the second coupling line variable (Fig. 2, two 18’s are joining together).
Regarding claim 31, all the limitations of claim 30 are taught by Tousi.
Tousi further teaches the apparatus further comprising a second impedance variable device coupled to the first coupling line and configured to make the impedance of the first coupling line variable (Fig. 2, two 18’s are joining together).
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 19 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Tousi (US 2017/0170785 A1) in view of Suzuki (US 2017/0155361 A1).
Regarding claim 19, all the limitations of claim 25 are taught by Tousi.
Tousi does not teach the apparatus wherein the antenna is a slot antenna.
Suzuki teaches an apparatus wherein an antenna is a slot antenna (Fig. 1, [0005] a slot antenna 2).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of claimed invention to apply the slot antenna of Suzuki to the teaching of Tousi in place for the patch antenna since it is conventional for a terahertz oscillator having a resonant tunneling diode and a slot antenna (Suzuki, [0004]).
Claims 20 and 21 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Tousi (US 2017/0170785 A1) in view of Koyama (US 2021/0091722 A1).
Regarding claim 20, all the limitations of claim 25 are taught by Tousi.
Tousi does not teach the apparatus wherein the semiconductor structure includes a negative resistance element.
Koyama teaches an apparatus wherein a semiconductor structure includes a negative resistance element ([0034]).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of claimed invention to apply resonant tunneling diodes as taught by Koyama to the teachings of Tousi as an oscillator as it is typically known semiconductor having electromagnetic gain at the terahertz frequency bands (Koyama, [0034]) so that one can provide efficient generation or detection of terahertz wave antenna arrays (Koyama, [0085]).
Regarding claim 21, all the limitations of claim 20 are taught by Tousi in view of Koyama.
Koyama further teaches the apparatus, wherein the negative resistance element is a resonant tunneling diode ([0034]).
Claims 27 and 29 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kandori (US 2021/0067094 A1) in view of Tousi (US 2017/0170785 A1).
Regarding claim 27, Kandori teaches a communication apparatus comprising:
a transmission unit configured to emit an electromagnetic wave (Fig. 13A, [0099], 801); and
a reception unit configured to detect the electromagnetic wave (802).
Kandori does not explicitly teach an antenna apparatus that comprises an antenna array in which a plurality of active antennas each including an antenna and a semiconductor structure configured to generate or detect an electromagnetic wave are arranged in an array, a first coupling line configured to mutually couple two antennas respectively included in at least two active antennas among the plurality of active antennas, a second coupling line bonded to at least one antenna, and a first impedance variable device coupled to the first coupling line or the second coupling line: and configured to make an impedance of the first coupling line or an impedance of the second coupling line variable.
Tousi teaches an antenna apparatus comprising:
an antenna array (Fig. 1, [0019] device 10 ) in which a plurality of active antennas (14 and 12) each including an antenna (antenna 14) and a semiconductor structure (oscillator 12) configured to generate or detect an electromagnetic wave (terahertz signal) are arranged in an array;
a first coupling line (Fig. 1, row coupling line) configured to mutually couple two antennas respectively included in at least two active antennas among the plurality of active antennas;
a second coupling line (Fig. 1, column coupling line) bonded to at least one antenna; and
a first impedance variable device (Fig. 2, 32, [0026] a plurality of varactors 32) coupled to the first coupling line or the second coupling line, and configured to make an impedance of the first coupling line or an impedance of the second coupling line variable ([0026] phase shift tunable using 32).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of claimed invention to apply the antenna of Tousi to the communication apparatus of Kandori in order to provide beam steering at any desired direction (Tousi, [0007]).
Regarding claim 29, Kandori teaches an image capturing system comprising: a transmission unit configured to emit an electromagnetic wave (Fig. 13A, [0099], 801) to an object (800); and
a detection unit configured to detect the electromagnetic wave (802) reflected by the object (800).
Kandori does not explicitly teach an antenna apparatus that comprises an antenna array in which a plurality of active antennas each including an antenna and a semiconductor structure configured to generate or detect an electromagnetic wave are arranged in an array, a first coupling line configured to mutually couple two antennas respectively included in at least two active antennas among the plurality of active antennas, a second coupling line bonded to at least one antenna, and a first impedance variable device coupled to the first coupling line or the second coupling line: and configured to make an impedance of the first coupling line or an impedance of the second coupling line variable.
Tousi teaches an antenna apparatus comprising:
an antenna array (Fig. 1, [0019] device 10 ) in which a plurality of active antennas (14 and 12) each including an antenna (antenna 14) and a semiconductor structure (oscillator 12) configured to generate or detect an electromagnetic wave (terahertz signal) are arranged in an array;
a first coupling line (Fig. 1, row coupling line) configured to mutually couple two antennas respectively included in at least two active antennas among the plurality of active antennas;
a second coupling line (Fig. 1, column coupling line) bonded to at least one antenna; and
a first impedance variable device (Fig. 2, 32, [0026] a plurality of varactors 32) coupled to the first coupling line or the second coupling line, and configured to make an impedance of the first coupling line or an impedance of the second coupling line variable ([0026] phase shift tunable using 32).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of claimed invention to apply the antenna of Tousi to the image capturing system of Kandori in order to provide beam steering at any desired direction (Tousi, [0007]).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 4-7 and 9 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.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter:
Regarding claim 4, the prior arts fail to teach or reasonably suggest an apparatus wherein the second impedance variable device is coupled to a position that is not an end portion of the first coupling line, in combination with the other limitations of the claim.
Regarding claims 5-7, the claims 5-7 are objected to due to their dependencies to claim 4 above.
Regarding claim 9, the prior arts fail to teach or reasonably suggest an apparatus wherein the second coupling line includes one end portion coupled to the antenna included in one active antenna among the plurality of active antennas and another end portion with an open end not coupled to any of the antennas of the active antennas, wherein the first impedance variable device is coupled to the open end of the second coupling line, in combination with the other limitations of the claim.
Any comments considered necessary by applicant must be submitted no later than the payment of the issue fee and, to avoid processing delays, should preferably accompany the issue fee. Such submissions should be clearly labeled “Comments on Statement of Reasons for Allowance.”
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to SEOKJIN KIM whose telephone number is (571)272-1487. The examiner can normally be reached M-F: 8:30am-5:00pm.
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/SEOKJIN KIM/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2844