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 .
Continued Examination Under 37 CFR 1.114
A request for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, including the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e), was filed in this application after final rejection. Since this application is eligible for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114. Applicant's submission filed on 5/4/2026 has been entered.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
The text of those sections of Title 35, U.S. Code not included in this action can be found in a prior Office action.
Claim(s) 1-3, 5, 7, and 8 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by US 2021/0376174 to Shibasaki.
Regarding claims 1-3, 5, 7 and 8, Shibasaki teaches a solar panel comprising
A substrate 13 having a first side (facing up in Fig. 7A) and a second side (facing down in Fig. 7A) opposite the first side and being made of a material capable of allowing light to travel through the substrate (light must be capable of passing through 13 to reach solar panel 20, ¶0039, 0040)
A first solar cell (see Marked-up Fig. 7A below) having a first orientation (the sequence of P1, P2, P3 proceeds from left to right) disposed on the first side of the substrate 13
A second solar cell (see Marked-up Fig. 7A) having a second orientation (the sequence of P1, P2, P3 proceeds from right to left) disposed on the first side of the substrate, wherein the second orientation is different from the first orientation (Figs. 3, 4, ¶0032-0034, 0042)
An electrical conductor (central portion 14 upon which 12 sits) connecting the first solar cell and the second solar cell
Wherein a gap (denoted by double headed arrow in Marked-up Fig. 7A) is provided between the first solar cell and the second solar cell to allow light to travel through the gap between the first and second solar cells.
[AltContent: textbox (First solar cell)][AltContent: textbox (gap)][AltContent: textbox (Second solar cell)]
[AltContent: connector][AltContent: arrow]
PNG
media_image1.png
324
592
media_image1.png
Greyscale
Per claim 2, a diode is electrically connected to the first cell (the cell to the left of the first cell comprises a pn junction, and is therefore a diode, ¶0048).
Per claim 3, an electrical lead 12 is electrically connected to the first solar cell (¶0037, 0038).
Per claim 5, the first solar cell is connected in parallel with the second solar cell (Figs. 3, 4, 6, ¶0042).
Per claim 7, the second orientation is rotated 180o from the first orientation.
Per claim 8, the term “inverse reflection” is not specifically expounded upon in the instant disclosure. The identified first and second solar cells are rotated 180o to face each other as in a mirror reflection, i.e. about a plane that goes through the center of element 12. Additionally, a skilled artisan would understand from Marked-up Fig. 6 below that a cell such as the first and second solar cells are symmetric about a plane that extends parallel to the “SECOND DIRECTION” through the center of the substrate drawn in the “FIRST DIRECTION”. Therefore, within the broadest reasonable interpretation, a skilled artisan would understand the second orientation to be an inverse reflection of the first orientation.
[AltContent: textbox (Plane extends into/out of the page)][AltContent: textbox (Plane extends into/out of the page)][AltContent: textbox (Inversion similar to translating upper left point of arrow to lower right point)]
PNG
media_image2.png
532
378
media_image2.png
Greyscale
Claim(s) 1-4, 7, and 8 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by US 2009/0308427 to Baba.
Regarding claims 1-4, 7, and 8, Baba teaches a solar panel (Figs. 4-6) comprising
A substrate 30 having a first side (facing top of page in Fig. 6) and a second side opposite the first side and being made of a material capable of allowing light to travel through the substrate (¶0058)
A first solar cell (not labeled in Fig. 6, similar to left unit 20 in Fig. 2, ¶0047) having a first orientation (positive side “up”) disposed on the first side of the substrate 30
A second solar cell (similar to right unit 20 in Fig. 3) having a second orientation (negative side up) disposed on the first side of the substrate 30, wherein the second orientation is different from the first orientation (the left and right cells of Fig. 3 are flipped 1800 from each other, so that opposite polarity sides are facing the same direction, ¶0042; also see ¶0035-0041)
An electrical conductor (Ag paste of ¶0044; specifically see embodiment of shape of paste shown in Fig. 18, ¶0080-0082) connecting the first solar cell and the second solar cell
Wherein a gap is provided between the first solar cell and the second solar cell (Fig. 2, MPEP §2125) to allow light to travel through the gap between the first and second solar cells (as the substrate 30 is formed specifically to be light transmissive, a gap between the cells of “UNIT B” will necessarily transmit light).
Per claim 2, a diode is electrically connected to the first solar cell (in the panel embodiment of Figs. 4-6, the first solar cell, such as the one in the lower left of Fig. 4, is electrically connected to other solar cells, which are diodes because of their junctions, ¶0037).
Per claim 3, an electrical lead is electrically connected to the first solar cell (the lower left cell of Fig. 4 is analogous to the first solar cell and is connected to a connector 10, ¶0053).
Per claim 4, the first solar cell is connected in series with the second solar cell (¶0057).
Per claim 7, the second orientation is rotated 180o from the first orientation (the positive and negative sides of a solar cell are formed on opposite sides, so the first solar cell on the right in “UNIT B” is flipped 180o from the second solar cell on the left).
Per claim 8, the term “inverse reflection” is not specifically expounded upon in the instant disclosure. The identified first and second solar cells, shown best in Fig. 2, are rotated 180o to face each other as in a mirror reflection, i.e. about a plane that extends out of the page and is parallel to the gap between the cells. Additionally, a skilled artisan would understand from Fig. 2 and ¶0035-0040 of the reference that the cells are symmetric about element 15, and therefore the rotation translates the positive side of the left cell, facing out of page in Fig. 2, so that the positive side of the right cell faces into the page. Therefore, within the broadest reasonable interpretation, a skilled artisan would understand the second orientation to be an inverse reflection of the first orientation.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to claim(s) 1-5, 7, and 8 have been considered but are moot because the new ground of rejection does not rely on any reference applied in the prior rejection of record for any teaching or matter specifically challenged in the argument.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Ryan S Cannon whose telephone number is (571)270-7186. The examiner can normally be reached M-F, 8:30am-5:30pm PST.
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, Jeffrey Barton can be reached at (571) 272-1307. 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.
Ryan S. Cannon
Primary Examiner
Art Unit 1726
/RYAN S CANNON/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1726
Prosecution Insights