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and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114.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 5/18/2026 has been entered.
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 1-2 and 7-12 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Tahara (US 2023/0275529 A1) and Nakano (US 2021/0331203 A1).
Regarding claim 1, Tahara teaches an electrostatic transducer comprising:
a first insulator sheet, formed with a material containing a thermoplastic elastomer [[0006] electrostatic transducer, including: an insulator sheet; a first electrode sheet, disposed on a first surface of the insulator sheet; a lead, including a core wire and a coating formed of a thermoplastic material; [0039] insulator sheet 11 may be formed of a thermoplastic elastomer itself, or may be formed of a crosslinked elastomer obtained by heating a thermoplastic elastomer as a material];
an electrode sheet, disposed on a first surface of the first insulator sheet [[0029] of course, the electrostatic sheet may include a pair of electrodes. In the electrostatic sheet, the electrode on a back surface side is able to function as a shield electrode.]; and
a heater-cum-shield wire [[0112] here, since the second electrode sheet 13 functions as a shield electrode, shielding performance can be improved due to low electrical resistivity], joined to a second surface of the first insulator sheet by fusion of the first insulator sheet itself [[0044] first electrode sheet 12 is fixed to the insulator sheet 11 by fusion (heat fusion) of the insulator sheet 11 itself], and serving both as a heater wire and a shield electrode wire [[0034] electrostatic sheet of the transducer may also be configured to have a function of a heater. In this case, the transducer is able to apply heat to the target in addition to detecting the state of the target and applying vibration to the target]; and
a second insulator sheet, formed with a material having lower thermal conductivity than the material of the first insulator sheet, disposed opposite to the electrode sheet with respect to the heater-cum-shield wire [note: instant fig. 1 depicts the first insulator sheet #110 and second insulator sheet #120 as being the same element], and joined to the second surface of the first insulator sheet by fusion of the first insulator sheet itself [note: instant para. 0053 explains that second insulator sheet 120 is preferably formed containing foamed resin as a material having lower thermal conductivity than the first insulator sheet 110; [0040] insulator sheet 11 may contain a rubber other than the thermoplastic elastomer and a resin].
Tahara does not explicitly teach and yet Nakano teaches wherein the material forming the second insulator sheet is different from the material forming the first insulator sheet [[0141][0143] outer coating material 114 may be formed by injection molding using resin, or may be formed using leather], and the material forming the second insulator sheet contains a foamed resin so that the second insulator sheet has lower thermal conductivity than the first insulator sheet [[0141] resin inner layer material 113 is formed of, for example, a foamed resin such as urethane foam. Moreover, the resin inner layer material 113 may also be a non-foamed resin.; [0146] resin inner layer material 113 is fixed to the heater sheet 40].
It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective filing date of the invention to combine the insulator sheet made from thermoplastic elastomer and a resin which may contain rubber as taught by Tahara, with the material made from resin or leather and the material formed from foamed resin/non-foamed resin as taught by Nakano so that the transducers may be prevented from peeling and hence the transducer unit may be easily manufactured (Nakano) [[0145-0146]].
Regarding claim 2, Tahara teaches the electrostatic transducer according to claim 1, wherein the heater-cum-shield wire comprises a conductive wire; and a conductive wire covering material, covering the conductive wire, wherein the conductive wire covering material is joined to the second surface of the first insulator sheet by fusion of the first insulator sheet itself [[0043] case where the first electrode sheet 12 is formed of a conductive cloth is described in detail. Conductive cloth is woven fabric or non-woven fabric formed of a conductive fiber. Here, the conductive fiber is formed by coating a surface of a fiber having softness with a conductive material. The conductive fiber is, for example, formed by plating a surface of a resin fiber such as polyethylene with copper or nickel].
Regarding claim 7, Tahara teaches the electrostatic transducer according to claim 1, further comprising: a lead wire, comprising a core wire [[abstract] lead … core wire], and a core wire covering material covering the core wire and formed containing a thermoplastic material [[0006] a core wire and a coating formed of a thermoplastic material and coating the core wire], and comprising a portion disposed overlapping the first surface of the first insulator sheet and a portion disposed overlapping the electrode sheet; in an electrical joining region which is a region in a plane direction of the first insulator sheet and in which the electrode sheet and the core wire of the lead wire are disposed overlapping each other, an electrical joint electrically joining the electrode sheet with the core wire of the lead wire [[0006] electrically bonding the first electrode sheet with the core wire of the lead in a first area in a plane direction of the insulator sheet, wherein the first electrode sheet and the core wire of the lead are disposed overlapping each other in the first area; and a second bonding part, bonding the insulator sheet with the coating of the lead in a second area in the plane direction of the insulator sheet that is different from the first area, wherein the insulator sheet and the coating of the lead are disposed overlapping each other in the second area.]; and in an insulating joining region which is a different region from the electrical joining region in the plane direction of the first insulator sheet and in which the first insulator sheet and the core wire covering material of the lead wire are disposed overlapping each other [[0023-0024] second bonding part in the second area bonds the insulator sheet with the coating of the lead. That is, pull-out resistance of the lead mainly functions in the second bonding part in the second area], an insulating joint joining the first insulator sheet with the core wire covering material of the lead wire [[abstract] an insulator sheet (11); a first electrode sheet (12); a lead (30); a first bonding part (61), electrically bonding the first electrode sheet (12) with a core wire (30a) of the lead (30) in a first area (Pa) where the first electrode sheet (12) and the core wire (30a) of the lead (30) are disposed overlapping each other; and a second bonding part (62), bonding the insulator sheet (11) with a coating (30b) of the lead (30) in a second area (Pb) where the insulator sheet (11) and the coating (30b) of the lead (30) are disposed overlapping each other].
Regarding claim 8, Tahara teaches the electrostatic transducer according to claim 7, wherein the insulating joint comprises a portion of the first insulator sheet [[abstract] a second bonding part (62), bonding the insulator sheet (11) with a coating (30b) of the lead (30) in a second area (Pb)].
Regarding claim 9, Tahara teaches the electrostatic transducer according to claim 7, further comprising: in the electrical joining region, a joining restricting layer disposed between the first insulator sheet and the electrode sheet and restricting joining between the first insulator sheet and the electrode sheet [[prior art claim 8] electrostatic transducer according to claim 1, further comprising: a bonding restricting layer, disposed between the insulator sheet and the first electrode sheet in the first area and restricting bonding between the insulator sheet and the first electrode sheet.].
Regarding claim 10, Tahara teaches the electrostatic transducer according to claim 9, wherein a portion of the joining restricting layer is disposed between the first insulator sheet and the core wire covering material of the lead wire in the insulating joining region; and the insulating joint comprises a portion of the joining restricting layer, a portion of the first insulator sheet, and a portion of the core wire covering material of the lead wire [[prior art claim 9] electrostatic transducer according to claim 8, wherein in the second area a part of the bonding restricting layer is disposed between the insulator sheet and the coating of the lead; and the second bonding part is composed of the part of the bonding restricting layer, a part of the insulator sheet, and a part of the coating of the lead.].
Regarding claim 11, Tahara teaches the electrostatic transducer according to claim 9, wherein the joining restricting layer comprises a material having a softening point higher than that of the first insulator sheet [[prior art claim 12] the electrostatic transducer according to claim 8, wherein the bonding restricting layer is formed of a material having a softening point higher than a softening point of the insulator sheet.].
Regarding claim 12, Tahara teaches the electrostatic transducer according to claim 11, wherein the joining restricting layer is a resin sheet formed containing a thermoplastic material [[prior art claim 13] the electrostatic transducer according to claim 12, wherein the bonding restricting layer is a resin sheet formed of a thermoplastic material.].
Claim 4 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Tahara (US 2023/0275529 A1) and Nakano (US 2021/0331203 A1) as applied to claim 3 above, and further in view of Hesegawa (US 2020/0307992 A1; ids).
Regarding claim 4, Tahara does not explicitly teach and yet Hesegawa teaches the electrostatic transducer according to claim 3, wherein a portion of the heater-cum-shield wire is embedded in the second insulator sheet [[prior art claim 2] wherein at least a part of each of the plurality of first electrode sheets is embedded in the insulator sheet; [0044] insulator sheet 11 includes inter-electrode insulating layers 11 a and 11]; and another portion of the heater-cum-shield wire is in contact with or embedded in the first insulator sheet [[0047] at least a part of each of the first electrode sheets 12, 13, and 14 can be made into a state of being further deeply embedded in the insulator sheet 11. For example, when the front surfaces of the first electrode sheets 12, 13, and 14 are formed into an uneven shape, the concave portion of the front surface is in a state of being further deeply embedded in the insulator sheet 11].
It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective filing date of the invention to modify the electrode sheets as taught by Tahara, with the embedded insulator sheets as taught by Hesegawa so that when the electrode sheets are formed into an uneven shape they may still be covered by the insulator (Hesegawa) [[0047]].
Claim 6 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Tahara (US 2023/0275529 A1) and Nakano (US 2021/0331203 A1) as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of Hesegawa (US 2020/0213772 A1; ids).
Regarding claim 6, Tahara does not explicitly teach and yet Hesegawa teaches the electrostatic transducer according to claim 1, wherein, in the second insulator sheet, a surface on the first insulator sheet side is formed in an open-cell state in which cells of the foamed resin are opened [[0093] first fusion restriction layer 22 is formed of a resin sheet, a heat-resistant paper, or the like; [0229] dielectric layer 11 is formed of a non-thermoplastic material and has holes communicating in the lamination direction (thickness direction). For example, the foam material of a non-thermoplastic elastomer is used in the dielectric layer 11]; and the second insulator sheet is joined to the first insulator sheet by partial impregnation of the first insulator sheet [[0101] first connection protective layer 24 can also use, in addition to the thermoplastic material, an insulating sheet made of resin which has an adhesive layer or a bonding layer; [0151] dielectric layer 11 formed of a thermoplastic elastomer is melted].
It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective filing date of the invention to modify the electrode sheets as taught by Tahara, with the embedded insulator sheets as taught by Hesegawa so that when the electrode sheets are formed into an uneven shape they may still be covered by the insulator (Hesegawa) [[0047]].
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments, see pgs. 5-7, filed 5/18/2026, with respect to the rejection(s) of claim(s) 1 under 35 U.S.C. 102 have been fully considered and are persuasive. Therefore, the rejection has been withdrawn. However, upon further consideration, a new ground(s) of rejection is made in view of Nakano (US 2021/0331203 A1).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JONATHAN D ARMSTRONG whose telephone number is (571)270-7339. The examiner can normally be reached M - F 9am-5pm.
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/JONATHAN D ARMSTRONG/ Examiner, Art Unit 3645
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