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 § 112
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b):
(b) CONCLUSION.—The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph:
The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention.
Claim 6-10 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention.
Claim 6 recites “a base plate having a welding surface welded to the tin soldering surface of the temperature equalization plate”. The limitations “welding”, “welded” and “soldering” render the structure of claim unclear because welding and soldering are completely different techniques of bonding that results different structures (with fused material in the joint by welding or with soldering material in the joint).
For examination purposes, “welding” and “welded” are construed as -joining- and -joined-.
Claims 7-10 dependent from claim 6 are also rejected.
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)(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.
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.
Claim(s) 1 and 4-10 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Lin (TW M441144 U1) in view of Meyer (US PGPub No. 2009/0195984) and Connors (US Patent No. 9,417,015).
Regarding claim 1, Lin (Fig. 1) discloses an integrated liquid-cooled temperature equalization module (Fig. 1), comprising:
a top cover (14) including a first flow channel (a group of channels between a first section of fins 12), a second flow channel (a group of channels between a second section of fins 12), a passage communicating with the first flow channel and the second flow channel (a channel directly above the first and second sections of fins 12), an inlet (140) communicating with the first flow channel for allowing a coolant to flow into the top cover, and an outlet (142) communicating with the second flow channel for allowing the coolant to flow out of the top cover;
a temperature equalization plate including a main body (plates 100 and 102), a first heat sink unit (the first section of fins 12, see annotated figure below), a second heat sink unit (a second section of fins 12, see annotated figure below), and an internal support structure (104), wherein the main body has a cooling zone (upper surface of the plate 100), a surface (lower surface of the plate 102), and a protrusion (a protrusion of the plate 102 defining a hollow body 10), wherein the first heat sink unit is mounted on the cooling zone of the main body and is accommodated in the first flow channel of the top cover (the first section of fins 12 is erected on the upper surface of the plate 100 and is located in the group of channels between the first section of fins 12), wherein the second heat sink unit is mounted on the cooling zone of the main body and is accommodated in the second flow channel of the top cover (the second section of fins 12 is erected on the upper surface of the plate 100 and is located in the group of channels between the second section of fins 12), wherein the first heat sink unit and the second heat sink unit correspond to the protrusion (in a top and bottom relationship or correspondence according to Fig. 1), and wherein the internal support structure (104) is accommodated in the protrusion of the main body (inside the hollow body 10) and located beneath the first heat sink unit and the second heat sink unit (beneath the first and second sections of fins 12).
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Lin fails to explicitly disclose a tin soldering surface.
Noted that “tin” in the structure “tin soldering surface” may broadly refer to any metal but not necessary the element tin. Therefore, the element “tin soldering surface” is understood as a surface with a metal soldering material.
Meyer directed to a spacer structure of a vapor chamber 30, discloses a fixing surface (flange 31 of the vapor chamber 30) to secure the vapor chamber 30 onto a stopping block 13 of a fixing seat 10.
Connors, also directed to a spacer structure of a vapor chamber 10, discloses a permanent joint having a backing plate 18 soldered or brazed onto the heat removal device 10 (col. 8, lines 12-15) for greater heat conductivity. The soldering and brazing disclosed in Connors inherently include a metal soldering or brazing material.
Therefore, Lin may be modified to include a fixing seat 10 having the stopping block 13 in Meyer that is fixed onto the flange (at the location of “102” in Fig. 1, which is a peripheral joint of the vapor chamber/hollow body 10) of Lin. The fixation may be the brazing having a metal brazing material as taught by Conner. As a result, the lower surface of the plate 102 becomes the tin soldering surface as claimed.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have provided a tin soldering surface in Lin as taught by Meyer and Connors in order to provide a brazing or soldering surface to attach the frame or fixing seat taught by Meyer so that the structure in Fig. 1 Lin may be firmly attached onto a circuit board and efficiently dissipate heat from the electrical component.
Regarding claim 4, Lin as modified further discloses wherein the first heat sink unit has a plurality of fins integrally mounted on the cooling zone of the main body, and the second heat sink unit has a plurality of fins integrally mounted on the cooling zone of the main body (both sections of the fins 12 are erected on the upper surface of the plate 100).
Regarding claim 5, Lin as modified further discloses wherein the protrusion of the temperature equalization plate has a heat source contact surface (According to the context of the translation, an electronic component is affixed onto the first temperature equalizing plate, which is the plate/hollow body 10 or the protrusion as claimed. Hence, the location on the plate/hollow body 10 where the electronic component is affixed is the “heat source contact surface” as claimed).
Regarding claim 6, Lin as modified further discloses a base plate (the fixing seat 10 of Meyer in modified claim 1) having a welding surface (a joining surface of the stopping block 13 to the flange of the vapor chamber) welded (joined, as best understood) to the tin soldering surface of the temperature equalization plate (to the flange or bottom surface of the plate 102 in Lin).
Regarding claim 7, Lin as modified further discloses wherein the base plate has a through hole for accommodating the protrusion of the temperature equalization plate (the fixing seat 10 of Meyer has an opening 11 to house the vapor chamber 30, Fig. 1 of Meyer).
Regarding claim 8, Lin as modified further discloses wherein the protrusion of the temperature equalization plate has a heat source contact surface (According to the context of the translation of Lin, an electronic component is affixed onto the first temperature equalizing plate, which is the plate/hollow body 10 or the protrusion as claimed. Hence, the location on the plate/hollow body 10 where the electronic component is affixed is the “heat source contact surface” as claimed; or at the location of “30” in Fig. 4 of Meyer), and the base plate (10 of Meyer) has a locking surface (a surface at the location of “10” in Fig. 4 of Meyer) substantially coplanar with the heat source contact surface of the temperature equalization plate (coplanar with the surface of the vapor chamber 30 at the location of “30” in Fig. 4 of Meyer).
Regarding claim 9, Lin as modified further discloses wherein the base plate has a plurality of positioning pillars located around the through hole (the modified fixing seat 10 has fasteners 40 in column shape around the opening 11).
Regarding claim 10, Lin as modified further discloses wherein the base plate has a plurality of screw holes located around the through hole (the modified fixing seat 10 has holes 12 for fasteners 40 around the opening 11).
Claim(s) 2 and 3 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Lin (TW M441144 U1) in view of Meyer (US PGPub No. 2009/0195984) and Connors (US Patent No. 9,417,015) as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of Gotou (US PGPub No. 2013/0153186).
Regarding claim 2, Lin further discloses wherein the top cover includes an upper part (at the location of “14” in Fig. 1), a surrounding part located around the upper part (side walls of the top cover 14 surrounding the upper part).
Lin fails to disclose a separating part disposed on the upper part and located within the surrounding part, wherein the passage is located between the separating part and the surrounding part, and wherein the surrounding part and the separating part define the first flow channel and the second flow channel.
Gotou discloses a separating part (38, Figs. 2 and 3) disposed on the upper part (cover 26) and located within the surrounding part (within a frame 20), wherein the passage (42, Fig. 2) is located between the separating part and the surrounding part (see Fig. 2), and wherein the surrounding part and the separating part define the first flow channel and the second flow channel (the separating part 38 and frame 20 define the passages within fins 16 and a fluid flow within the fins 16).
Noted that the separating part 38, frame 20 and cover 26 in Gotou described above may replace the cover 14, and the fins 16 of Gotou may replace the fins 12 on the plate 10 of Lin. The water cooling channel structure of Gotou appears to force the water to flow through the fins 16 (see Fig. 4). In contrast, the channel directly above the fins 12 of Lin appears to bypass the fins 12. Therefore, it is expected that the modification of Lin in view of Gotou increases heat exchange efficiency than the disclosure of Lin alone.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have provided a separating part disposed on the upper part and located within the surrounding part, wherein the passage is located between the separating part and the surrounding part, and wherein the surrounding part and the separating part define the first flow channel and the second flow channel in Lin as taught by Gotou in order to increase heat exchange efficiency.
Regarding claim 3, Lin as modified further discloses wherein each of the first heat sink unit (fins 16 in a first pass of the water flow in Gotou) and the second heat sink unit (fins 16 in a second pass of the water flow in Gotou) has a plurality of fins (the fins 16 in the water passes) and each fin is arranged parallel to the separating part (see Fig. 2 of Gotou).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to FOR K LING whose telephone number is (571)272-8752. The examiner can normally be reached Monday through Friday, 8:30 am to 5 pm.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Jianying Atkisson can be reached at 571-270-7740. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/JIANYING C ATKISSON/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3763
/F.K.L/Examiner, Art Unit 3763