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 .
Drawings
The drawings are objected to as failing to comply with 37 CFR 1.84(p)(5) because they include the following reference character(s) not mentioned in the description: reference character 214. Corrected drawing sheets in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(d), or amendment to the specification to add the reference character(s) in the description in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(b) are required in reply to the Office action to avoid abandonment of the application. Any amended replacement drawing sheet should include all of the figures appearing on the immediate prior version of the sheet, even if only one figure is being amended. Each drawing sheet submitted after the filing date of an application must be labeled in the top margin as either “Replacement Sheet” or “New Sheet” pursuant to 37 CFR 1.121(d). If the changes are not accepted by the examiner, the applicant will be notified and informed of any required corrective action in the next Office action. The objection to the drawings will not be held in abeyance.
Claim Objections
Claim 5 is objected to because of the following informalities: claim 5 should depend upon claim 2 instead of claim 1, because the limitation “the relay control PCA” of claim 5 is found in claim 2 as “a relay control PCA”. Appropriate correction is required.
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)(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 1-5 | 7-8 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by Prasad et al. US 20230361771 A1 [Prasad].
Regarding claim 1, Prasad teaches A relay assembly [FIG. 1], comprising: a polymeric housing [The switch assembly 100 is packaged in a housing 60 including cover 64 that is configured to retain and encapsulate the hardware, and may be wholly or partly made of an electrically insulating and rigid material, such as a rigid polymeric material, PARAGRAPH 42]; a relay switch printed circuit board (PCB) assembly (PCA) [202/20] within the housing [60/64]; a thermal substrate [80]; and a film of isolation material [10], comprising a thermally conductive and electrically isolating potting compound [the base plate 10 may be wholly or partly made of copper, aluminum, molybdenum or alloys thereof, or metal matrix composites such as AlSiC or copper graphite foam, PARAGRAPH 43], between the thermal substrate [80] and the relay switch PCA [202/20].
Regarding claim 2, Prasad teaches The relay assembly of claim 1, further comprising a relay control PCA [50/40/200] within the housing [60/64].
Regarding claim 3, Prasad teaches The relay assembly of claim 1, wherein the polymeric housing comprises injection molded polymer [INHERENT FEATURE] selected from: an injection molded thermoplastic polymer and an injection molded thermoset polymer [polymeric materials may include mylar, Kapton, etc., PARAGRAPH 44].
Regarding claim 4, Prasad teaches The relay assembly of claim 1, further comprising one or more flying lead connections [PARAGRAPH [0047] teaches that The power transistor circuit 202 of substrate/circuit layer 20 is implemented as an arrangement of solid-state power transistors 204 that can be controlled to manage and control electric power flow between the first terminal 11 and the second terminal 12. A plurality of connector pins 23, PARAGRAPH 44] to the relay switch PCA [202/20].
Regarding claim 5, Prasad teaches The relay assembly of claim 1, wherein the relay control PCA [50/40/200] comprises a metal clad PCA [INHERENT FEATURE].
Regarding claims 7-8, Prasad teaches The relay assembly of claim 1, wherein the polymeric housing [60/64] includes one or more standoff features configured to define a gap [see 60, where the isolation material 10 is mounted] of a predetermined dimensions between the thermal substrate [80] and the relay switch PCA [202/20], wherein the gap determines a thickness of the isolation material [10].
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.
Claims 9-10 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Prasad et al. US 20230361771 A1 [Prasad].
Regarding claim 9, Prasad discloses the claimed invention except for the isolation material has a thickness of approximately 0.050 inches.
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was filed to consider the isolation material has a thickness of approximately 0.050 inches for a proper sizing of the whole assembly, and since it has been held that discovering an optimum value of a result effective variable involves only routine skill in the art. In re Boesch, 617 F.2d 272, 205 USPQ 215 (CCPA 1980).
Regarding claim 10, Prasad discloses the claimed invention except for the isolation material has a thermal conductivity of 0.1-3 W/m-K.
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was filed to have a thermal conductivity of 0.1-3 W/m-K for a proper performance, and since it has been held that where the general conditions of a claim are disclosed in the prior art, discovering the optimum or workable range involves only routine skill in the art. In re Aller, 105 USPQ 233.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claim 6 is 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. See (PTO-892).
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to MOHAMAD A MUSLEH whose telephone number is ((571)272-9086. The examiner can normally be reached on Monday-Friday 10 am - 7 pm.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Shawki S. Ismail can be reached on 571 272 3985. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is (571) 273-8300.
Information regarding the status of an application may be obtained from the Patent Application Information Retrieval (PAIR) system. Status information for published applications may be obtained from either Private PAIR or Public PAIR. Status information for unpublished applications is available through Private PAIR only. For more information about the PAIR system, see http://pair-direct.uspto.gov. Should you have questions on access to the Private PAIR system, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative or access to the automated information system, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000.
/Mohamad A Musleh/
Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2837