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 .
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)(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.
Claim(s) 1-3, 5-6, 10, 13, and 15-16 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by WO 2018/189720 to Fabian et al. (from hereinafter “Fabian”).
The applied reference has a common assignee with the instant application. Based upon the earlier effectively filed date of the reference, it constitutes prior art under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2). This rejection under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) might be overcome by: (1) a showing under 37 CFR 1.130(a) that the subject matter disclosed in the reference was obtained directly or indirectly from the inventor or a joint inventor of this application and is thus not prior art in accordance with 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(2)(A); (2) a showing under 37 CFR 1.130(b) of a prior public disclosure under 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(2)(B) if the same invention is not being claimed; or (3) a statement pursuant to 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(2)(C) establishing that, not later than the effective filing date of the claimed invention, the subject matter disclosed in the reference and the claimed invention were either owned by the same person or subject to an obligation of assignment to the same person or subject to a joint research agreement.
Regarding claim 1, Fabian teaches a backplane connector for mating with a daughter-card connector assembly, said backplane connector having a front and rear orientation and comprising a retainer block (105) configured for attachment to a backplane and defining a plurality of ferrule slots (105a, 105b), each slot configured to receive a ferrule; a plurality of ferrules (at least two ferrules) disposed in said ferrule slots; a plurality of ferrule springs (spring 401) to urge said plurality of ferrules forwardly; and a plurality of ferrule spring retainers for retaining said ferrule springs and being mounted rearward on said retainer block, wherein each ferrule spring retainer retains springs for two or more ferrules. Further regarding claim 5, Fabian teaches that each ferrule spring retainer defines at least one channel through which optical cable passes, and claim 6, that the channel defines a beveled portion at the point the optical cable exits the ferrule spring retainer. Regarding claims 10 and 13, said retainer block comprises a bracket and a floating block, as well as the ferrule slots being configured to align with a leading edge of an opto-electric card (see Figures 1-4, paragraphs 6, 16-27).
Regarding claim 2, Fabian teaches that said ferrule slots are arranged as a linear array, and wherein said each ferrule spring retainer retains springs of two adjacent ferrules (see Figures 1-2).
Regarding claim 3, Fabian teaches wherein two of said a plurality of ferrule springs correspond to each ferrule, and wherein said each ferrule spring retainer retains four springs (see Figure 4, at least 4 springs are utilized).
Regarding claim 15, Fabian teaches that the plurality of ferrules comprise guide pins (accessways 107) for alignment when it is taught that the ferrule retainer 105 is depicted in its unassembled state in Fig. 1, and in its assembled state in Fig. 2. As with a conventional ferrule retainer, ferrule retainer 105 in its assembled state defines a number of periphery ferrule retainer openings 106a, and accessways 107 from the periphery 110 of the ferrule retainer 105 to all the periphery ferrule retainer openings 106a. As mentioned above, such accessways are needed to slide the ferrule assembly fibers into the openings 106 from the side. (If the distal ends of the fibers are terminated or the fibers are long, it would otherwise be difficult or impossible to thread the fibers through the openings 106.) (See Figure 2, paragraph 19)
Regarding claim 16, Fabian teaches wherein said plurality of ferrules comprise MT type ferrules (see paragraph 2).
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, 7-9, and 14 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Fabian.
Regarding claims 4, 7-9, and 14, although Fabian does not specifically teach certain particulars of the backplane connector. For example, in claim 4, that the ferrule spring retainer is fastened with no more than two fasteners, and that for claims 7-9 the cable is a ribbon cable and that the retainer block is made of metal, further for claim 14 that the ferrules are expanded beam ferrules. Fabian does disclose a well-known in the art optical connector (retainer block 105) wherein the specifics of these limitations are well known in the art.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to utilize these notoriously well-known specifications for a complete and efficient system.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 11-12 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.
Fabian fails to specifically teach the certain arrangement of the parts in figures 11-12. Fabian fails to teach, for example, wherein said bracket is configured for fastening to said backplane such that said floating block is sandwiched between said bracket and said backplane but not fastened to the backplane, thereby allowing said floating block to move relative to said backplane.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure: US Patent No. 5155784 to Knott and US Patent No. 5121454 to Iwano et al.
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/LISA M CAPUTO/Primary Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2874