DETAILED ACTION
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)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claims 1-7, 10, 14-16 and 18-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by the publication of WO2024/056502 A1 [cited by applicant].
Regarding claim 1, the publication of WO2024/056502 A1 discloses a waveguide antenna assembly (the assembly comprises waveguides 9 and 10), a lower housing formed at least in part from a conductive material (housing 30 is part of an antenna layer); an upper housing coupled to the lower housing and formed at least in part from a conductive material (layers 6 and 8 formed part of the upper housing and formed at least in part from a conductive material, p28, lines 11-15), the upper housing and the lower housing defining a slot (fig4b shows the slot to accommodate the pcb 2 within the housing; p10, lines 6-17); a printed circuit board (PCB) 2 disposed within the slot and including a first side and a second side (fig1 shows pcb 2 includes front side 3 and back side 4), the first side facing the lower housing and including a first plurality of components arranged in a first circuit (fig1 shows pcb includes back side 4 including a plurality of components 5), the second side facing the upper housing and including a second plurality of components 34 arranged in a second circuit (fig9).
Regarding claims 2-7, 10, 14-16 and 18-20, the publication of WO2024/056502 A1 further discloses wherein the upper housing and the lower housing are configured to provide heat-sinking to the PCB (p20, lines 1-10), wherein the upper housing and the lower housing are configured to provide shielding to the PCB (upper housing and the lower housing are conductive material would provide shielding to the PCB), wherein at least one of the lower housing or the upper housing defines an opening in communication with the slot, and wherein the PCB is disposed within the opening (fig4b), wherein the slot and the opening are defined at least in part by an upper surface of the upper housing, and wherein the upper surface is planar (fig4b), wherein the waveguide antenna assembly does not include a radome (no extra housing needed), wherein the first side and the lower housing define a first waveguide channel (figs13-16) in communication with the slot, wherein the second side and the upper housing define a cavity 9,12 in communication with the slot, wherein the upper housing includes at least one radiator opening 9 (p19, lines 21-24), further comprising a dielectric material 29 disposed within the at least one radiator opening (fig4b), wherein the upper housing includes a waveguide channel 10 in fluid communication with the at least one radiator opening, further comprising a connector (fig1) coupled to the lower housing and in communication with the PCB, wherein at least one of the upper housing or the lower housing replaces a radome (fig4b) and a vehicle comprising the waveguide antenna assembly (abstract).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 8-9, 11-13 and 17 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. The patents to Mann, Wu, Hamminga, Gustafson, Samardzija and Franson are cited as of interested and illustrated a similar structure to a waveguide antenna assembly.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to THO GIA PHAN whose telephone number is (571)272-1826. The examiner can normally be reached on M-F (8-430).
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Dimary Lopez can be reached on (571) 270-7893. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/THO G PHAN/
Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2845