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 § 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 1 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Ou (US 10,736,232) in view of Huang (US 2012/0155013)Re claim 1: Ou discloses A heat dissipation fan (10 in fig. 1) with expandability comprising: a frame (11 in fig. 1); a driving unit (12 in fig. 1) provided on the frame; a fan blade (fan blades in fig. 1) driven by the driving unit to rotate relative to the frame (the motor is controlled by the driving unit in fig. 2); a plurality of connectors (14, 15 in fig. 1) exposed on multiple sides of the frame; and a multiplex management unit (17 and 18 in fig. 2) provided on the frame and electrically connected to the plurality of connectors and the driving unit (fig. 2), the multiplex management unit enabling each of the plurality of connectors to implement as a first role and a second role simultaneously , the first role being either a power inputter or a power outputter (17 controls power in fig. 2), the second role being either a signal inputter or a signal outputter (18 controls signals in fig. 2); wherein each of the plurality of connectors is capable of being connected to an expansion device (fig. 3), the heat dissipation fan can be in either a series configuration (fig. 3) or a tree-like configuration, and the heat dissipation fan and at least one expansion device are independently controlled (fig. 5 shows independent control). Ou does not explicitly disclose wherein the connectors are universal serial buses. Huang discloses wherein the connector is a universal serial bus (4 in fig. 2). Thus it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the heat dissipation fan of Ou wherein the connector is a universal serial bus as taught by Huang, in order to have compatibility with many other electronic devices.Re claim 2: Ou discloses wherein the frame comprises four side walls (fig. 1), and at least two of the four side walls are respectively provided with at least one of the plurality of connectors (fig. 1). Ou does not explicitly disclose wherein the connectors are universal serial buses. Huang discloses wherein the connector is a universal serial bus (4 in fig. 2).Re claim 3: Ou discloses wherein the driving unit comprises a circuit board (121 in fig. 6; col. 5, lines 38-43) provided on the frame (fig. 6), a control circuit (122 in fig. 2) provided on the circuit board, and a motor (123 in fig. 2) connected to the control circuit, the control circuit is electrically connected to the multiplex management unit (fig. 2). Re claim 4: Ou discloses wherein the heat dissipation fan comprises a visual display unit provided on the frame (col. 6), and the visual display unit is connected to the driving unit (col. 6). Re claim 5: Ou discloses wherein the driving unit comprises a thermal sensor (col. 5) connected to the control circuit.Re claim 6: Ou does not explicitly disclose wherein the driving unit comprises a device address. However, it would obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the heat dissipation fan of Ou wherein the driving unit comprises a device address so it functions properly as part of a smart fan, since applicant has not disclosed that this change solves any stated problem or is for any particular purpose and it appears that the invention would perform equally well with this change.
Re claim 7: Ou does not explicitly disclose wherein the multiplex management unit is a USB hub module. Huang discloses wherein the multiplex management unit is a USB hub module (para. 0010).
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure:
US 7,038,909 – is considered pertinent because this reference describes a contractible and extentable laptop computer external cooler pad.
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/ZHENGFU J FENG/
Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2835 February 21, 2026