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)(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.
Claims 1-4, 6, 11-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Henry (US 2019/0280435).
Regarding claim 1: Henry teaches a wafer assembly (see Fig. 2) for an electrical connector 102 (see Fig. 1), the wafer assembly comprising: a leadframe 200 having signal contacts 216 extending between mating ends and terminating ends (see Figs. 1-5), the signal contacts 216 having main bodies between the mating ends and the terminating ends (see Fig. 4); cables 106 rearward of the leadframe (see Figs. 1-2), each cable 106 including first and second signal conductors 290 (Para. 0031) arranged as a signal pair (see Figs. 2-4 and Para. 0031), the first and second signal conductors being terminated to the terminating ends of the corresponding signal contacts 216 at a cable termination region of the wafer assembly (see Figs. 4-5 and Para. 0016), each cable includes a cable shield 296 surrounding the conductors to provide shielding for the signal pair and being separated from the conductors by a dielectric insulator 298 (see Fig. 4 and Para. 0031); a wafer body 300 holding the main bodies of the signal contacts (Fig. 4), wherein the mating ends of the signal contacts extend forward of the wafer body and the terminating ends of the signal contacts extend rearward of the wafer body (see Figs. 4-5); a ground frame 230 attached to the wafer body to provide electrical shielding for the leadframe (see Fig. 2 and Para. 0024); and shield bridges 220 extending across the space between the cable shields 296 and the ground frame 230 to provide shielding for the signal pairs and the terminating ends of the corresponding signal contacts (see Figs. 4-5 and Para. 0034), the shield bridges 220 being formed in place in the cable termination region to electrically connect the ground frame and the cable shields (Para. 0034).
Regarding claim 2: Henry teaches all the limitations of claim 1 and further teaches wherein the shield bridges 220 provide shielding between the signal pairs (see Figs. 4-5).
Regarding claim 3: Henry teaches all the limitations of claim 1 and further teaches wherein the shield bridges 220 fill spaces between the cable shields 296 (see Figs. 4-5).
Regarding claim 4: Henry teaches all the limitations of claim 1 and further teaches further comprising nonconductive conductor supports 262 surrounding the corresponding signal conductors and signal contacts in the cable termination region (see Figs. 2-5), the shield bridges 220 extending between the nonconductive conductor supports (see Fig. 2).
Regarding claim 6: Henry teaches all the limitations of claim 1 and further teaches wherein the shield bridges 220 form a direct electrical path between the cable shields and the ground frame (see Fig. 4).
Regarding claim 11: Henry teaches all the limitations of claim 1 and further teaches
11. The wafer assembly of claim 1, wherein each shield bridge 220 completely surrounds the cable shield of the corresponding cable on all four sides of the cable with direct physical contact with the cable shield (see Fig. 4).
Regarding claim 12: Henry teaches all the limitations of claim 1 and further teaches wherein each shield bridge 220 has a curved profile following a curvature of the corresponding cable shield (see Figs. 4-5).
Regarding claim 13: Henry teaches all the limitations of claim 1 and further teaches wherein the ground frame 230 is electrically connected to all of the shield bridges to electrically common each of the shield bridges and the cable shields (see Fig. 2).
Regarding claim 14: Henry teaches all the limitations of claim 1 and further teaches further comprising connecting portions 236 integral with each of the shield bridges 220 to electrically common each of the shield bridges, the connecting portions being manufactured from the same material as the shield bridges (see Fig. 6).
Regarding claim 15: Henry teaches a wafer assembly for an electrical connector (see Figs. 1-2), the wafer assembly comprising: a leadframe 102 having signal contacts 216 extending between mating ends and terminating ends, the signal contacts having main bodies between the mating ends and the terminating ends (see Figs. 2-5); cables 106 rearward of the leadframe, each cable including first and second signal conductors arranged as a signal pair (Para. 0031), the first and second signal conductors being terminated to the terminating ends of the corresponding signal contacts at a cable termination region of the wafer assembly (Figs. 4-5), each cable includes a cable shield 296 surrounding the conductors to provide shielding for the signal pair and being separated from the conductors by a dielectric insulator 298 (Para. 0031); a wafer body 300 holding the main bodies of the signal contacts (Fig. 4), the wafer body having a front, a rear, a first side between the front and the rear, and a second side between the front and the rear (see Figs. 2-4), the cables located rearward of the rear of the wafer body, wherein the wafer body supports the main bodies of the signal contacts, the mating ends extending forward of the front of the wafer body, the terminating ends extending rearward of the rear of the wafer body (see Figs. 1-5); a first ground frame 230 attached to the first side of the wafer body to provide electrical shielding for the leadframe (see Fig. 2), the first ground frame including first ground shields 220 providing shielding for the mating ends of the corresponding signal contacts (Figs. 4-5), the first ground frame being spaced apart from the cable shields (see Figs. 2-5); a second ground frame attached to the second side of the wafer body to provide electrical shielding for the leadframe, the second ground frame being spaced apart from the cable shields; and shield bridges extending across the space between the cable shields and the first and second ground frames to provide shielding for the signal pairs and the terminating ends of the corresponding signal contacts (see Figs. 1-7), the shield bridges being formed in place in the cable termination region (Figs. 4-5), the shield bridges conforming to and surrounding the cable shields at the ends of the corresponding cables, the shield bridges being electrically connected to the first and second ground frames to electrically connect the first and second ground frames and the cable shields (see Figs. 1-7).
Regarding claim 16: Henry teaches all the limitations of claim 15 and further teaches wherein the shield bridges 220 provide shielding between the signal pairs (Fig. 4).
Regarding claim 17: Henry teaches all the limitations of claim 15 and further teaches wherein the shield bridges 220 fill spaces between the cable shields (see Figs. 4-5).
Regarding claim 18: Henry teaches all the limitations of claim 15 and further teaches further comprising nonconductive conductor supports 262 aligned with the wafer body between the first and second ground frames, the nonconductive conductor supports surround the corresponding signal conductors and signal contacts in the cable termination region, the shield bridges extending between the nonconductive conductor supports (see Figs. 2-5).
Regarding claim 19: Henry teaches an electrical connector assembly comprising: a housing 102 having a mating interface configured to be mated with a mating electrical connector assembly 104 (see Fig. 1), the housing having a cavity 128; and wafer assemblies received in the cavity and coupled to the housing (see Figs. 1-2), the wafer assemblies arranged in a wafer stack (Fig. 2), each wafer assembly including a leadframe (at 102; Fig. 2), a wafer body 120 holding the leadframe, cables 106 coupled to the leadframe at a cable termination region, a ground frame 300 coupled to the wafer body to provide electrical shielding for the leadframe (Figs. 1-5), and shield bridges 220 extending across the space between the cable shields and the ground frame to provide shielding in the cable termination region (Figs. 4-5), the shield bridges being formed in place in the cable termination region to electrically connect the ground frame and the cable shields (Figs. 4-5).
Regarding claim 20: Henry teaches all the limitations of claim 19 and further teaches wherein the shield bridges 220 provide shielding between contacts 216 of the leadframe (Fig. 4).
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 5 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Henry (US 2019/0280435), in view of Long (US 9,240,656).
Regarding claim 5: Henry teaches all the limitations of claim 1.
Henry does not explicitly teach wherein the shield bridges are one of a conductive acrylic, a conductive hot melt, or a conductive room temperature vulcanization silicone.
Long teaches shield bridges are one of a conductive acrylic, a conductive hot melt (Col. 10, lines 22-27), or a conductive room temperature vulcanization silicone.
Therefore it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to be able to modify the invention with the shield bridges are a conductive hot melt as taught by Long into the wafer assembly of Henry in order to achieve the advantage of mechanically and electrically securing elements together.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 7-10 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.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Please see PTO-892 for pertinent prior art, the following references being of closest relevance:
Streckewald (US 12,381,360) teaches a wafer assembly comprising multiple leadframes, contacts, wires and shield components;
Trout (US 2023/0411910) teaches a wafer assembly comprising multiple leadframes, contacts, wires and shield components;
Tanigawa (US 2026/0045728) teaches a connector comprising a housing, cables, contacts and conductive shells separating pairs of contacts;
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to OSCAR C JIMENEZ whose telephone number is (571)270-0272. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 8am-5pm.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Renee Luebke can be reached at (571) 272-2009. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/OSCAR C JIMENEZ/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2831
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