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 .
Drawings
The drawings were received on 11/11/25. These drawings are acceptable.
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 and 4-6 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Tan et al. (11,251,554).
With regard to claim 1, Tan teaches, as shown in figures 3-4: “An electrical connector (shown in figure 3) configured for mating with a mating structure (shown inserted into the electrical connector in figure 4), the electrical connector comprising: a housing 1; a first type conductor 3 coupled to the housing; and a plurality of second type conductors 22, each of the plurality of second type conductors 22 comprising a contact comprising a compliant beam with a first contact portion (portion of 25 contacting 31 in figure 4) and a second contact portion (portion of 22 contacting the mating conductor in figure 5), wherein: the contact is configured such that, when the second contact portion interacts with the mating structure, the compliant beam is deflected such that the first contact portion contacts the first type conductor 3”.
With regard to claim 4, Tan teaches: “The electrical connector of claim 1”, as shown above.
Tan also teaches, as shown in figures 1-4: “comprising: a housing member 1 holding the first type conductor 3 and the plurality of second type conductors 22”.
With regard to claim 5, Tan teaches: “The electrical connector of claim 4”, as shown above.
Tan also teaches, as shown in figures 1-4: “wherein: the housing member 1 comprises a plurality of openings corresponding to the plurality of second type conductors 22 such that each opening exposes, to the first type conductor 3, the first contact portion of one of the plurality of second type conductors 22”.
With regard to claim 6, Tan teaches: “The electrical connector of claim 5”, as shown above.
Tan also teaches, as shown in figures 1-4: “wherein: for each opening, a second contact portion of one of the plurality of second type conductors 22 curves out of the opening”.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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 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 2-3 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Tan et al. (11,251,554) in view of Liu et al. (2023/0064235).
With regard to claim 2, Tan teaches: “The electrical connector of claim 1”, as shown above.
Tan does not teach: “wherein: each of the plurality of second type conductors comprises a wire coupled to the contact of the second type conductor”.
In the same field of endeavor before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, Liu teaches, as shown in figures 1-6: “wherein: each of the plurality of second type conductors 140 comprises a wire 30 and 31 coupled to the contact of the second type conductor 140”. It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the features of Liu with the invention of Tan in order to use the connector to connect wires to mating structures.
With regard to claim 3, Tan as modified by Liu teaches: “The electrical connector of claim 2”, as shown above.
Tan also teaches, as shown in figures 1-4: “wherein: the first type conductor 3 comprises a conductive pad 31 configured to contact the first contact portions of the plurality of second type conductors 22 when the compliant beams of the contacts of the plurality of second type conductors 22 are deflected”.
Claims 7 and 20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Tan et al. (11,251,554) in view of Liu et al. (2023/0064235) and Tsai (10,756,488).
With regard to claim 7, Tan teaches: “The electrical connector of claim 1”, as shown above.
Tan does not teach: “wherein: the housing comprises a base portion and a pair of walls extending from the base portion in a longitudinal direction and separated by a gap, the pair of walls each comprising first and second recesses facing the gap, the first type conductor is coupled to one of the walls and separated from the gap by the wall, and the electrical connector comprises a pair of power conductors each disposed in a first recess of a respective one of the pair of walls and comprising a plurality of contact portions curving into the gap”.
In the same field of endeavor before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, Liu teaches, as shown in figures 1-6: “wherein: the housing 110 comprises a base portion 111 and a pair of walls 121 and 122 extending from the base portion 111 in a longitudinal direction (left-to-right direction in figure 3) and separated by a gap 120, the pair of walls each comprising first and second recesses (where 131 are disposed in figure 3) facing the gap 120, the first type conductor 150 is coupled to one of the walls and separated from the gap 120 by the wall, and the electrical connector 100 comprises a pair of power conductors 130 each disposed in a first recess of a respective one of the pair of walls and comprising a plurality of contact portions 131 curving into the gap 120”. It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the features of Liu with the invention of Tan in order to use the features of Tan in different types of connectors.
Neither Tan nor Liu teach: “and a pair of sense conductors each disposed in a second recess of a respective one of the pair of walls and comprising a contact portion curving into the gap and being offset from the plurality of contact portions of a respective power conductor along the longitudinal direction”.
In the same field of endeavor before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, Tsai teaches, as shown in figures 36-43 and taught in column 29 line 57 - column 30 line 11: “and a pair of sense conductors 691 each disposed in a second recess (where 691 is exposed in 6 in figure 37) of a respective one of the pair of walls (upper wall of 65 in figure 38) and comprising a contact portion curving into the gap (space inside 65, as shown in figure 38) and being offset from the plurality of contact portions of a respective power conductor (described in column 29 line 57 - column 30 line 11) along the longitudinal direction (left-to-right direction in figure 37)”. It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art at the time of the claimed invention to combine the features of Tsai with the invention of Tan as modified by Liu in order to provide an open type detection structure (Tsai, column 29 line 57 - column 30 line 11).
With regard to claim 20, Tan teaches, as shown in figures 3-4: “An electrical system, comprising: an electrical connector (shown in figure 3) configured for mating with a mating structure (shown inserted into the electrical connector in figure 4), the electrical connector comprising: a connector housing 1; and a position identification subassembly coupled to the connector housing and comprising… a first type conductor 3 coupled to the… housing, and a plurality of second type conductors 22, each of the plurality of second type conductors 22 comprising a first contact portion (portion of 25 contacting 31 in figure 4) held by the… housing adjacent the first type conductor 3 and a second contact portion (portion of 22 contacting the mating conductor in figure 5) extending out of the… housing 1, wherein for each of the plurality of second type conductors 22, the first contact portion is configured to contact the first type conductor 3 when the second contact portion interacts with the mating structure; a printed circuit board 4”.
Tan does not teach a subassembly housing coupled to the connector housing and the first and second type conductors or “a plurality of cables comprising first ends coupled to the electrical connector and second ends opposite to the first ends; and one or more lugs connecting the second ends of the plurality of cables to the printed circuit board”.
In the same field of endeavor before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, Liu teaches, as shown in figures 1-6, a subassembly housing 121 and 122 coupled to the connector housing 110 and the first 150 and second 140 type conductors and “a plurality of cables 30 and 31 comprising first ends coupled to the electrical connector 100 and second ends opposite to the first ends; and one or more lugs 40 connecting the second ends of the plurality of cables”. to the printed circuit board. It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the features of Liu with the invention of Tan in order to use the connector to connect wires to mating structures.
Liu does not specifically teach a printed circuit board and the lugs connecting to the printed circuit board. However, Liu teaches in paragraph 15 that the second ends of the cables are connected through portion 50 to other parts of electrical equipment. It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art at the time of the claimed invention to connect the second ends of the cables to a circuit board through the portion 50 since using circuit boards in electrical equipment and connecting those circuit boards to connectors is well known in the art (see, for example, Tsai column 1 lines 22-26) and would enable the signals from the mating structure to be transmitted to the circuit board.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 8-12 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.
Claims 13-19 are allowed.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter: With regard to claim 13, the prior art of record does not anticipate or render obvious the limitations: “a plurality of second type conductors arranged in pairs… for the second type conductors in each pair, the first contact portions and the second contact portions are aligned in a row direction”, when combined with the rest of the limitations of claim 13. Claim 13 is therefore allowable.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to claims 1 and 20 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 JUSTIN M KRATT whose telephone number is (571)270-0277. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 9am-6pm.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Abdullah A Riyami can be reached at (571)270-3119. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/JUSTIN M KRATT/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2831