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 .
Priority
Receipt is acknowledged of certified copies of papers required by 37 CFR 1.55.
Information Disclosure Statement
The prior art documents submitted by applicant in the Information Disclosure Statement filed on February 28, 2024 have all been considered and made of record (note the attached copy of form PTO-1449).
Drawings
Six (6) sheets of drawings were filed on February 5, 2024 and have been accepted.
Specification
Applicant’s cooperation is requested in correcting any errors of which applicant may become aware in the specification.
Inventorship
This application currently names joint inventors. In considering patentability of the claims the examiner presumes that the subject matter of the various claims was commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the claimed invention(s) absent any evidence to the contrary. Applicant is advised of the obligation under 37 CFR 1.56 to point out the inventor and effective filing dates of each claim that was not commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the later invention in order for the examiner to consider the applicability of 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(2)(C) for any potential 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) prior art against the later invention.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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.
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 1-3, 5-7, 10-13, and 15-18 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Pescod et al. (GB 2 247 089 A), hereafter Pescod.
Regarding claims 1-3, 5-7, 10-13, and 15-18; Pescod discloses an optical switch assembly and corresponding manufacturing method of providing, positioning and coupling the elements of the optical switch assembly (see Figures 1 and 2), the optical switch assembly comprising:
a first switch member (first part F1) configured to support (the structure of the first part F1 inherently supports the fibers 9 and lenses 10) a first plurality of optical fibers (optical fibres 9), wherein the first switch member (F1) defines a first longitudinal axis (1st longitudinal axis; see annotated Figure 2 below); and
a second switch member (second part S2) configured to support (the structure of the second part S2 inherently supports the fibers 12 and lenses 11) a second plurality of optical fibers (optical fibres 12), wherein the second switch member (S2) defines a second longitudinal axis (2nd longitudinal axis; see annotated Figure 2 below), and wherein the second longitudinal axis is aligned with the first longitudinal axis (see Figure 2);
wherein the first switch member (F1) is configured to selectively rotate about the first longitudinal axis,
wherein, in a first position of the first switch member (F1), a first subset of the first plurality of optical fibers (9) is aligned with a first subset of the second plurality of optical fibers (12) for transmitting optical signals therebetween, and
wherein the first switch member (F1) is configured to rotate to a second position, wherein, in the second position of the first switch member (F1), a second subset of the first plurality of optical fibers (9) is aligned with a second subset of the second plurality of optical fibers (12) for transmitting optical signals therebetween;
wherein the first subset of the first plurality of optical fibers (9) is the same as the second subset of the first plurality of optical fibers (9; a first subset of fibers 9 in a first position will be the same as a first subset of fibers 9 in the second position when the switch member F1 is rotated);
wherein the first subset of the second plurality of optical fibers (12) is the same as the second subset of the second plurality of optical fibers (12; when the second switch member S2 is not rotated and the first switch member F1 is rotated the second plurality of optical fibers remain the same);
wherein the second switch member (S2) is fixed about the second longitudinal axis (see Figure 2);
wherein the first switch member (F1) comprises N inputs and the second switch member (S2) comprises M outputs, wherein the optical switch assembly is configured to provide N x M input-output permutations (see Figures 1 and 2),
wherein N is equal to M;
wherein the first plurality of optical fibers (9) and the second plurality of optical fibers (12) comprise lensed optical fibers (lenses 10 or 11 are provided to the optical fibers to formed lensed optical fibers);
wherein at least one of the first switch member (F1) or the second switch member (S2) comprises at least one lens (10 or 11) configured to direct the optical signal between an optical fiber (9) of the first switch member (F1) and a corresponding optical fiber (12) of the second switch member (S2); and
wherein the second switch member (S2) is configured to selectively rotate about the second longitudinal axis (second longitudinal axis; see annotated Figure 2 below; see the abstract); and
wherein a method of manufacturing comprises providing the various elements taught by Pescod and discussed, coupling the elements (see Figure 2 of Prescod).
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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 4 and 14 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Pescod et al. (GB 2 247 089 A), hereafter Pescod, in view of Kohda et al. (US 6,711,322 B1).
Regarding claims 4 and 14; Pescod discloses the optical switch assembly of claim 1 and method of claim 13 as discussed above, but fails to disclose that each of the first switch member and the second switch member comprises a cylindrical fiber assembly defining a plurality of grooves configured to receive optical fibers therein. Kohda discloses an optical-fiber-arraying-member for use in optical switching arrangements (see the title; see Figures 19-21) that comprises a cylindrical member (41) defining a plurality of grooves (1a) configured to receive optical fibers (2) therein. Before the effective filing date of the present invention, a person of ordinary skill in the art would have found it obvious to incorporate cylindrical fiber assemblies defining a plurality of grooves configured to receive the optical fibers (9 or 12) in the first switch member (F1) and the second switch member (S2) in the invention of Pescod for the purpose of securely locating the optical fibers (9 or 12) within the switch members (F1 and S2) to provide support and protection to the optical fibers with a known fiber assembly arrangement, since one of ordinary skill could have combined the elements by known coupling methods with no change in their respective functions to yield predictable results. KSR International Co. v. Teleflex Inc., 550 U.S. 398, 82 USPQ2d 1385 (2007).
Claims 8, 9, 19, and 20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Pescod et al. (GB 2 247 089 A), hereafter Pescod,
Regarding claims 8 and 19; Pescod discloses the optical switch assembly of claim 1 and method of claim 13 as discussed above, but fails to disclose an actuator. Pescod does teach that the switch members (F1 and S2) are rotatable with respect to each other (see the abstract). Before the effective filing date of the present invention, a person of ordinary skill in the art would have found it obvious to provide an actuator coupled to the first switch member (F1), wherein the actuator is configured to selectively rotate the first switch member (F1) about the first longitudinal axis for the purpose of aligning desired optical fibers of the two switch members (F1 and S2) to transmit signals to and from desired locations, since an actuator must inherently be present to enable rotation and selective operation is understood to be desirable for transmission of information.
Regarding claims 9 and 20; Pescod discloses the optical switch assembly of claim 1 and method of claim 13, wherein the first switch member (F1) is configured to rotate about the first longitudinal axis (see Figure 2 annotated above), but does not disclose that the rotation is based at least in part on a triggering event. The examiner notes that rotating based at least in part on a triggering event is an intended use of the optical switch assembly. It has been held that “apparatus claims cover what a device is, not what a device does” (Hewlett-Packard Co. v. Bausch & Lomb Inc. 909 F.2d 1464, 1469, 15 USPQ2d 1525, 1528 (Fed. Cir. 1990)); that a claim containing a “recitation with respect to the manner in which a claimed apparatus is intended to be employed does not differentiate the claimed apparatus from a prior art apparatus" if the prior art apparatus teaches all of the structural limitations of the claim (Ex parte Masham, 2 USPQ 2d 1647 (Bd. Pat. App. & Inter. 1987)); and that if a prior art structure is capable of performing the intended use as recited in the preamble, then it meets the claim (In re Schreiber, 128 F.3d 1473, 1477, 44 USPQ2d 1429, 1431 (Fed. Cir. 1997)). See MPEP § 2111.02, II and MPEP § 2114, II. Additionally, before the effective filing date of the present invention, a person of ordinary skill in the art would have found it obvious to rotate the optical switch when it to switch data in response to a user’s or system’s signal to do so, wherein generation of the signal may be considered a triggering event.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to MICHELLE R CONNELLY whose telephone number is (571)272-2345. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday, 9 AM to 5 PM.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Uyen-Chau Le can be reached at 571-272-2397. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/MICHELLE R CONNELLY/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2874