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
Acknowledgement is made of the applicant’s claim for foreign priority under 35 U.S.C. 119 (a)-(d). The certified copy has been filed in parent application No. KR 10-2023-0116528, filed on September 01, 2023.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on April 1st, 2024 has been considered by the examiner and an initialed copy of the IDS is hereby attached.
Specification
The disclosure is objected to because of the following informalities:
In Paragraph [0005], the phrase “wave (EM signal).. “ should be corrected to “wave (EM signal). “
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.
The factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness.
Claim(s) 1-3, 5-6, 10-15, and 16-18 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Svedsen et al. (US 20230417869 A1), hereinafter Svedsen, in view of Lee et al. (US 20220149958 A1), hereinafter Lee.
Regarding claim 1, Svedsen discloses [Note: What Svedsen does not disclose is strike-through].
An antenna module (Fig. 1, abstract) comprising: a printed circuit board (Paragraph 0040, “In other words, each antenna element 204 to 211 is printed on a printed circuit board (PCB)”); a first antenna group, including a first sensing antenna and a second sensing antenna disposed on a first surface of the printed circuit board (Figs. 2A and 2B depict antennas on the surface of a PCB, Paragraph 44 “ Each of the plurality of antenna elements 204 to 206, 208 to 211 may be configured to transmit electromagnetic waves”), and configured to transmit and receive a first signal (Paragraph 0042, (In some embodiments, said at least one (radar sensor) antenna element 207 may also be configurable for beamforming transmission when it is not used for radar reception.”) ; a second antenna group including a plurality of antenna elements disposed on the first surface between the first sensing antenna and the second sensing antenna (Fig. 2A, 2B, Paragraph 0042, " The plurality of antenna elements 204 to 206, 208 to 211 for beamforming transmission may form at least two subarrays 202, 203 surrounding said at least one antenna element 207 from each side." This statement allows for any number of antenna elements in the central region.); and a processor coupled to the printed circuit board, the first antenna group, and the second antenna group (Fig. 8), wherein the processor is configured to: obtain information about a distance between an external object and the antenna module, based on the first signal transmitted and received through the first antenna group (Paragraph 0089, “The computing device performs, in block 405, proximity detection based on the first and second signals. Any known (dynamic) proximity detection techniques (or proximity sensing techniques) may be employed. The first and second signals may be combined before the proximity detection or they may be analyzed separately. “);
Lee discloses,
and when the external object is within a first distance from the antenna module, transmit a second signal through the second antenna group with a first transmit power less than or equal to a first maximum power set to correspond to the first distance (Lee, Fig. 3, further Paragraph 0084 “ According to various embodiments, in operation 370, when the object (e.g., the object 209 of FIG. 2A) is positioned within the first distance (e.g., 8 cm), the electronic device 101 may determine the strength of the second millimeter wave signal (e.g., the signal 213a of FIG. 2B) as a second strength corresponding to second distance between the electronic device 101 and the object. ”).
It would have been obvious to someone with ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective filing
date of the claimed invention to incorporate the features as disclosed by Lee into the invention of
Svedsen. Both Lee and Svedsen are considered analogous arts to the claimed invention as they
disclose a device and method for the calibration of an antenna array’s transmission power relative to the proximity of a nearby object, in the context of maximum allowable exposure limits to electromagnetic radiation. Svedsen states (Paragraph 98) “The computing device adjusts, in block 504, transmit power of the radio transceiver based on results of the proximity detection”. The procedure described in Lee is not materially different than that described in the instant application, and could be readily applied to the device of Svedsen. The combination of Svedsen and Lee would be obvious with a reasonable expectation of success in order to determine object proximity as required in Svedsen.
Regarding claim 2, Svedsen discloses [Note: what Svedsen does not disclose is strike-through].
The antenna module of claim 1, wherein the processor is configured to: while the second signal is transmitted with the first transmit power, determine whether the external object is within a second distance less than the first distance from the antenna module, through the first antenna group; and (“Paragraph 0089 "The computing device performs, in block 405, proximity detection based on the first and second signals. Any known (dynamic) proximity detection techniques (or proximity sensing techniques) may be employed. The first and second signals may be combined before the proximity detection or they may be analyzed separately.”)
Lee discloses,
when the external object is within the second distance from the antenna module and the first transmit power is greater than a second maximum power set to correspond to the second distance, transmit the second signal through the second antenna group with a second transmit power less than or equal to the second maximum power (Lee Spec Paragraph 0009 : " identify whether the object is positioned within a first distance from the electronic device, based on the received first reflection signal, determine a strength of a second millimeter wave signal as a second strength corresponding to a second distance which is a distance between the electronic device and the object, in response to identifying that the object is positioned within the first distance, the second distance being smaller than the first distance, and control the communication circuit to output the second millimeter wave signal in the determined second strength to the outside of the electronic device.").
Svedsen clearly states that the transmission power is adjusted based on the proximity to the sensor, but does not provide a specific procedure for doing so. Lee provides a specific procedure for the adjustment of the transmission power based on two measured distances as is described in the instant application. Before the effective filing date, the combination of Svedsen and Lee would be obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art with a reasonable expectation of success in order to transmit a second signal with a second transmit power based upon an observed second distance.
Regarding Claim 3, Svedsen discloses [Note: what Svedsen does not disclose is strike-through]
The antenna module of claim 2, wherein the processor is configured to:
Lee discloses,
while the second signal is transmitted with the first transmit power, determine whether the external object is between the first distance and a third distance greater than the first distance from the antenna module, through the first antenna group (Lee Paragraph 0109 For example, the electronic device 101 may track the third distance of the object (e.g., the object 209 of FIG. 2A) according to the second millimeter wave signal), if so, cause the second signal to be transmitted through the second antenna group with a third transmit power greater than the first transmit power and less than a third maximum power set to correspond to the third distance (Lee Paragraph 0109 if the third distance larger than the second distance is identified to be the first distance or less, change (e.g., increase) the strength of the second millimeter wave signal).
Svedsen discloses a processor in their device, which is configured to determine an object’s proximity and perform power adjustments based upon transmitted and received signals. However, Svedsen does not disclose a specific sequence of measurements to perform this adjustment. Lee discloses an analogous sequence of power adjustments based upon observed object proximity to that disclosed in the instant application. The combination of Svedsen and Lee would be obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art with a reasonable expectation of success before the effective filing date in order to transmit a series of signals of varying power to determine appropriate power adjustments to transmitted signals based on object proximity.
Regarding Claim 5, Svedsen discloses [Note: what Svedsen does not disclose is strike-through]
The antenna module of claim 1, wherein: the first signal is transmitted to the external object through the first sensing antenna (Paragraph 0042 “at least one antenna element 207 may be configured for receiving electromagnetic waves transmitted by the plurality of antenna elements 204 to 206, 208 to 211 and subsequently reflected from an obstruction (e.g., a user of a terminal device comprising the antenna array 201) to said at least one antenna element 207. In other words, said at least one antenna element 207 is configured to provide radar receiver operation with the signals transmitted by the plurality of antenna elements 204 to 206, 208 to 211 acting as the transmitted radar signals, as mentioned above.”);
Lee discloses,
the processor receives the first signal, which is transmitted from the first sensing antenna and is reflected by the external object, through the second sensing antenna; and the processor obtains the information about the distance between the antenna module and the external object, based on the first signal received through the second sensing antenna (Lee Paragraph 0077, “According to various embodiments, the second antenna 211b may receive the reflection signals 213b, which are the signals 213a transmitted from the first antenna 211a and reflected by the object 209, through the second antenna elements 215b.", further Lee Paragraph 0009 “identify whether the object is positioned within a first distance from the electronic device, based on the received first reflection signal”).
Svedsen discloses a processor in their device which determines an object position based on a signal reflected by a first antenna. Although the device may be configured to receive with a second antenna, Svedsen does not specify that this must be the case. Lee is more explicit, and directly states that the device may be configured to have a separate transmission and receiving sensing antenna for the detection of objects. The combination of Svedsen and Lee would be obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art with a reasonable expectation of success before the effective filing date, in order determine an object’s proximity by detecting the signal from a first sensing antenna by a second sensing antenna.
Regarding claim 6, Svedsen discloses [Note: what Svedsen does not disclose is strike-through]
The antenna module of claim 5, wherein: the first antenna group further includes a third sensing antenna disposed adjacent to the first sensing antenna or the second sensing antenna (Paragraph 0042 “The antenna array 201 may specifically comprise a plurality of antenna elements 204 to 206, 208 to 211 for beamforming transmission (that is, at least for transmission) and at least one (radar sensor) antenna element 207 for reception."); the first signal is transmitted through at least one of the first to third sensing antennas (Paragraph 0086 “The first signal corresponds to the electromagnetic waves transmitted using the first beam and subsequently reflected from at least one obstruction towards said at least one dual-polarized antenna element.”);
Lee discloses,
and the processor is configured to receive the first signal reflected by the external object through a sensing antenna, which does not transmit the first signal, from among the first to third sensing antennas, and obtain information about an angle formed by the antenna module and the external object, based on the first signal thus received (Paragraph 0079 “As described above, when an antenna array composed of a plurality of antenna elements is utilized, information regarding the angle of arrival (AoA) and the angle of departure (AoD) may be obtained in addition to information regarding the time-of-flight (ToF), amplitude, and phase that may be obtained using a single antenna”).
Svedsen teaches a device that detects object proximity based on reflected signals. It also teaches that an arbitrary antenna array may be used to perform these operations. However, it does not teach that the information gleaned can be object angles rather than distances. Lee specifically teaches the extraction of angle data based on the reflected signal. The method taught by Lee to determine angular information could be reasonably applied to the antenna array described in Svedsen. The combination of Svedsen and Lee would be obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art with a reasonable expectation of success before the effective filing date in order obtain the relevant distance and angle information.
Regarding claim 10, Svedsen discloses [Note: what Svedsen does not disclose is strike-through].
The antenna module of claim 1, further comprising: a memory configured to store a lookup table including information about a maximum power according to the distance between the antenna module and the external, and wherein the processor identifies a maximum power set depending on the distance between the antenna module and the external object, based on the lookup table stored in the memory (Paragraph 0114 “The apparatus 801 may comprise one or more control circuitry 820, such as at least one processor, and at least one memory 830, including one or more algorithms 831, such as a computer program code (software) wherein the at least one memory and the computer program code (software) are configured, with the at least one processor, to cause the apparatus to carry out any one of the exemplified functionalities of the apparatus described above. Said at least one memory 830 may also comprise at least one database 832”).
Svedsen clearly discloses a device that require memory store a database which may be used to determine eventual transmission power based on the detected object proximity. This analogous to a lookup table.
Regarding claim 11, Svedsen discloses [Note: what Svedsen does not disclose is strike-through].
A wireless communication method using an antenna module, the method comprising: transmitting a first signal towards an external object (Paragraph 0086 “The first signal corresponds to the electromagnetic waves transmitted using the first beam and subsequently reflected from at least one obstruction towards said at least one dual-polarized antenna element.”) through a first sensing antenna or a second sensing antenna included in a first antenna group; determining whether the external object is within a first distance from the antenna module, based on the first signal reflected by the external object; and when the external object is determined to be within the first distance from the antenna module, transmitting a second signal through at least one of a plurality of antenna elements included in a second antenna group with a first transmit power less than or equal to a first maximum power set to correspond to the first distance, wherein the plurality of antenna elements are disposed between the first sensing antenna and the second sensing antenna.
Regarding the remaining limitations of claim 11, the same cited section and rationale as claim 1 is applied.
Regarding claim 12, Svedsen discloses [Note: what Svedsen does not disclose is strike-through].
The method of claim 11, further comprising: while the second signal is transmitted with the first transmit power, determining whether the external object is within a second distance less than the first distance from the antenna module, through a signal transmitted and received by the first antenna group; and when the external object is within the second distance from the antenna module and the first transmit power is greater than a second maximum power set to correspond to the second distance, transmitting the second signal through the second antenna group with a second transmit power less than or equal to the second maximum power.
Regarding the remaining limitations of claim 12, the same cited section and rationale as claim 2 is applied.
Regarding claim 13, Svedsen discloses [Note: what Svedsen does not disclose is strike-through].
13. The method of claim 11, further comprising: while the second signal is transmitted with the first transmit power, determining whether the external object is between the first distance and a third distance greater than the first distance from the antenna module, through a signal transmitted and received by the first antenna group; and when the external object is between the first distance and the third distance from the antenna module, transmitting the second signal through the second antenna group with a third transmit power greater than the first transmit power and less than a third maximum power set to correspond to the third distance.
Regarding claim 13, the same cited section and rationale as claim 3 is applied.
Regarding claim 14, Svedsen discloses [Note: what Svedsen does not disclose is strike-through].
The method of claim 11, further comprising: transmitting the first signal to the external object through the first sensing antenna; receiving the first signal, which is transmitted from the first sensing antenna and is reflected by the external object, through the second sensing antenna; and determining whether the external object is within the first distance from the antenna module, based on the first signal received through the second sensing antenna.
Regarding claim 13, the same cited section and rationale as claim 5 is applied.
Regarding claim 15, Svedsen discloses [Note: what Svedsen does not disclose is strike-through].
The method of claim 11, wherein the first antenna group further includes: a third sensing antenna disposed adjacent to the first sensing antenna or the second sensing antenna, and wherein the method further comprises: transmitting the first signal through at least one of the first to third sensing antennas; receiving the first signal reflected by the external object through a sensing antenna, which does not transmit the first signal, from among the first to third sensing antennas; and obtaining information about an angle formed by the antenna module and the external object, based on the first signal thus received.
Regarding claim 15, the same cited section and rationale as claim 6 is applied.
Regarding claim 16, Svedsen discloses [Note: what Svedsen does not disclose is strike-through].
An electronic device comprising: a housing forming at least a portion of an exterior of the electronic device; an antenna module formed inside the housing (The enclosure of electronic devices in a housing for protection against external perturbations such as moisture or impact is obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art); and a processor, wherein the antenna module includes: a printed circuit board; a first antenna group including a first sensing antenna and a second sensing antenna disposed on a first surface of the printed circuit board, and configured to transmit and receive a first signal; and a second antenna group including a plurality of antenna elements disposed on the first surface between the first sensing antenna and the second sensing antenna, wherein the processor is configured to: obtain information about a distance between an external object and the antenna module, based on the first signal transmitted and received through the first antenna group; and when the external object is within a first distance from the antenna module, cause a second signal to be transmitted through the second antenna group with a first transmit power less than or equal to a first maximum power set to correspond to the first distance.
Regarding claim 16, the same cited section and rationale as claim 1 is applied, with the exception of the housing limitation as stated above.
Regarding claim 17, Svedsen discloses [Note: what Svedsen does not disclose is strike-through].
17. The electronic device of claim 16, wherein the processor is configured to: while the second signal is transmitted with the first transmit power, determine whether the external object is within a second distance less than the first distance from the antenna module, through the first antenna group; and when the external object is within the second distance from the antenna module and the first transmit power is greater than a second maximum power set to correspond to the second distance, cause the second signal to be transmitted through the second antenna group with a second transmit power less than or equal to the second maximum power.
Regarding claim 17, the same cited section and rationale as claim 2 is applied.
Regarding claim 18, Svedsen discloses [Note: what Svedsen does not disclose is strike-through].
18. The electronic device of claim 16, wherein the processor is configured to: while the second signal is transmitted with the first transmit power, determine whether the external object is between the first distance and a third distance greater than the first distance from the antenna module, through analysis of a signal transmitted and received by the first antenna group (Paragraph 0089 “The computing device performs, in block 405, proximity detection based on the first and second signals. Any known (dynamic) proximity detection techniques (or proximity sensing techniques) may be employed.”); and when the external object is between the first distance and the third distance from the antenna module, cause the second signal to be transmitted through the second antenna group with a third transmit power greater than the first transmit power and less than a third maximum power set to correspond to the third distance.
Regarding the remaining limitations of claim 18, the same cited section and rationale as claim 3 is applied.
Claim 4 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Svedsen in view of Ueda et al. (US 20220173530 A1), hereinafter Ueda.
Regarding claim 4, Svedsen discloses [Note: what Svedsen does not disclose is strike-through].
The antenna module of claim 1, wherein: the first signal is transmitted and received within a first frequency band (Paragraph 0041: "Each antenna element 204 to 211 may be configured to operate at least one frequency band"); the plurality of antenna elements of the second antenna group comprises at least three antenna elements disposed between the first sensing antenna and the second sensing antenna at given intervals therebetween (Fig. 2A and Paragraph 40 : "Referring to FIG. 2A, the antenna array 201 comprises multiple antenna elements 204 to 211. In this embodiment, all antenna elements in the antenna array 201 have equal geometry, dimensions and orientation. Spacings between adjacent antenna elements in the antenna array 201 are equal."); and the second signal is
Ueda discloses,
transmitted in a second frequency band distinguished from the first frequency band through the plurality of antenna elements of the second antenna group (Paragraph 0034 : " and at least one second radiating element arranged in the second region and configured to perform at least one of transmission and reception of a radio wave of a second frequency higher than the first frequency").
It would have been obvious to someone with ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate the features as disclosed by Ueda into the invention of Svedsen. Both Ueda and Svedsen are considered analogous arts to the claimed invention as they disclose planar antenna array devices for the transmission and reception of radar signals .Svedsen teaches the transmission of a second signal from a second group of antennas, as well as the ability of the antennas to operate in a broad band of frequencies, but does not specify that the second signal must be of a different frequency. Ueda makes this clearer, by clearly teaching a set of antenna arrays which are arranged to emit with distinct frequencies. The combination of Svedsen and Ueda would be obvious with a reasonable expectation of success in order to transmit a second signal with a second frequency.
Claim(s) 7-9, 19-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Svedsen in view of Ueda, further in view of Lim et al. (US 20190326672 A1), hereinafter Lim.
Regarding claim 9, Svedsen discloses [Note: what Svedsen does not disclose is strike-through].
The antenna module of claim 1, further comprising
Ueda discloses [Note: what Ueda does not disclose is strike-through],
a radio frequency integrated circuit (RFIC) disposed (Ueda Paragraph 0054 “The first transmission/reception circuit 33 includes a baseband integrated circuit element (BBIC) 110 and a high-frequency integrated circuit element (RFIC)”) (Ueda Fig. 3).
Further, Lim discloses,
on a second surface of the printed circuit board, which is parallel to the first surface (Lim Fig. 2A, 2B. Lim shows several elements printed on a PCB several surfaces in parallel to the first surface).
It would have been obvious to someone with ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective filing
date of the claimed invention to incorporate the features as disclosed by Lim and Ueda into the invention of Svedsen. Lim, Svedsen, and Ueda are considered analogous arts to the claimed invention as Svedsen and Lee teaches the automatic adjustment of the transmission power of an antenna array based on object proximity and Lee teaches a detailed antenna array structure on a printed circuit board. While Svedsen does teach the use of a PCB and control circuitry for an antenna apparatus (Svedsen Paragraph 0014, “The apparatus 801 may comprise one or more control circuitry 820”), it does not specifically teach the use of an RFIC on a parallel surface. Ueda teaches the use of an RFIC, which is connected to a first and second antenna group. Ueda does not specifically teach the location of the RFIC chip with respect to the antenna elements on the first surface of the PCB. Lim details a layered antenna structure, where control circuitry and separate antenna arrays are separated by grounding planes as in the instant application. To one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date, the combination of Svedsen, Lim, and Ueda would be obvious with a reasonable expectation of success in order to incorporate an RFIC into the design of Svedsen on the rear side of the PCB.
Regarding claim 7, Svedsen discloses [Note: what Svedsen does not disclose is strike-through].
The antenna module of claim 1, wherein the printed circuit board includes: a ground plane spaced from the first surface by a first height (Paragraph 0040 “ In other words, each antenna element 204 to 211 is printed on a printed circuit board (PCB) comprising a conductive ground plane (not shown in FIG. 2A), a non-conductive substrate and a patterned conductive layer forming said plurality of antenna elements 204 to 211.”),
Ueda discloses [Note: what Ueda does not disclose is strike-through],
and configured to reflect signal energy to/from the plurality of antenna elements (Ueda Paragraph 0060 “The ground layer 125 may be disposed to secure a spaced distance H4 from the patch antenna pattern 110 to have reflector characteristics.”), and wherein the first sensing antenna is connected to a first conductive pad within an opening in the ground plane through a first conductive via (Ueda Paragraph 0022 “, The antenna module may include patch antenna feed lines disposed on an opposite side of the ground layer from the patch antenna patterns and electrically connected to the feed vias; an integrated circuit (IC) disposed on an opposite side of the patch antenna feed lines from the patch antenna patterns; and wiring vias to electrically connect the patch antenna feed lines to the IC. “)
Further, Lim discloses,
and the second sensing antenna is connected to a second conductive pad within an opening in the ground plane through a second conductive via (Lim Paragraph 0050 “The connection member 200 may provide an electrical ground to the antenna apparatus 100 and the antenna module and the IC, and may include at least portions of a ground layer 125, a second ground layer 202, a third ground layer 203, a fourth ground layer 204, a fifth ground layer 205, and a shielding via 245.”, further Figs. 2A-2F, Fig. 1).
Svedsen teaches a device with multiple sensing antennas disposed on a PCB with a grounding layer. Svedsen does not teach the connection of the antenna arrays to a conducting pad through a via in the ground plate, nor does it teach a second ground plane or a second conductive via. Additionally, although it is understood by one of ordinary skill in the art that this is the case, Svedsen does not explicitly teach that the ground layer is used to direct the radiation emitted by the antenna array. Ueda teaches the use of multiple ground planes in a printed circuit board, as well as the use of ground planes for the purpose to reflecting transceiver signals. However, Ueda does not explicitly teach the connection of the second sensing antenna to via a different second conducting via to a second ground plane. Lee teaches the use of conductive vias to connect antenna elements to several different grounding planes, for the purpose of the isolation of noise between elements. To one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the application, it would have been obvious to combine the teachings of Svedsen, Lee, and Ueda to achieve the antenna structure and both grounding layers, as well as the conductive vias, with a reasonable expectation of success.
Regarding claim 8, Svedsen discloses [Note: what Svedsen does not disclose is strike-through].
The antenna module of claim 7, wherein the printed circuit board includes
Ueda discloses [Note: what Ueda does not disclose is strike-through],
a first local ground plane spaced from the first surface by a second height less than the first height (Ueda Fig. 1B) (Ueda Paragraph 0060 “The ground layer 125 may be disposed to secure a spaced distance H4 from the patch antenna pattern 110 to have reflector characteristics.”)(Same citation as previous limitation).
Further, Lim discloses,
and surrounding the first conductive via (Lim Fig. 1, multiple ground planes surrounding conductive vias are shown) … and a second local ground plane spaced from the first surface by the second height and surrounding the second conductive via, the second local ground plane (Lim Fig. 1, Figs. 2A-2J, Paragraph 0150 “Kim Specification Paragraph 0150: " The second ground layer 202a, the third ground layer 203a, and the fourth ground layer 204a may have a depressed shape to provide a cavity.").
Svedsen discloses an antenna module on a printed circuit board with a ground plane. Svedsen does not disclose specific heights of the ground plane, its configuration to reflect signals, or a second ground plane at a second height which is attached to a second sensing element through a second conductive via. Ueda does teach a local ground plane separated from antenna elements, where the ground plane is configured to reflect signals from the antenna array. However, Ueda also does not teach a second ground plane spaced by a second height from the PCB surface. Lim teaches the existence of several grounding planes separated by multiple conducting vias, all at different heights. Additionally, Lim teaches the use of multiple grounding planes for the purpose of electrical isolation between circuit elements (Lim Paragraph 0140 “Since a first ground layer of the connection member 200 is disposed between the IC ground layer and the wiring, the IF signal or the base band signal and the RF signal may be electrically isolated within the antenna module.”). For one of ordinary skill in the art before the filing date of the application, it would have been obvious to combine the teachings of Svedsen, Ueda, and Lim to produce the particular grounding plane configuration in the instant application with a reasonable expectation of success.
Regarding claim 19, Svedsen discloses [Note: what Svedsen does not disclose is strike-through].
The electronic device of claim 16, wherein the printed circuit board includes: a ground plane spaced from the first surface by a first distance and configured to reflect signal energy to/from the plurality of antenna elements, wherein the first sensing antenna is connected to a first conductive pad within an opening in the ground plane through a first conductive via, and the second sensing antenna is connected to a second conductive pad within an opening in the ground plane through a second conductive via.
Regarding the remaining limitations of claim 19, the same cited section and rationale as claim 7 is applied.
Regarding claim 20, Svedsen discloses [Note: what Svedsen does not disclose is strike-through].
The electronic device of claim 19, wherein the printed circuit board includes: a first local ground plane spaced from the first surface by a second distance less than the first distance and surrounding the first conductive via; and a second local ground plane spaced from the first surface by the second distance and surrounding the second conductive via.
Regarding the remaining limitations of claim 19, the same cited section and rationale as claim 8 is applied.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to THOMAS JAMES HALLORAN whose telephone number is (571)272-8643. The examiner can normally be reached Mon-Fri. 7:30am-5pm.
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/T.J.H./Examiner, Art Unit 3648
/William Kelleher/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3648