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 Objections
Applicant is advised that should claim 13 be found allowable, claim 14 will be objected to under 37 CFR 1.75 as being a substantial duplicate thereof. When two claims in an application are duplicates or else are so close in content that they both cover the same thing, despite a slight difference in wording, it is proper after allowing one claim to object to the other as being a substantial duplicate of the allowed claim. See MPEP § 608.01(m).
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
The following is a quotation of the appropriate paragraphs of pre-AIA 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(s) 1, 2, 13, 14 and 17 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1)as being anticipated by Gaudio et al US Patent 3,737,812.
Gaudio discloses a broadband waveguide to coaxial line transition comprising a mode converter ( impedance transformation 11 ) coupling a rectangular waveguide section in which microwave energy propagates in a first mode (TE) to coaxial line section in which microwave energy propagates in a second mode (TEM), the waveguide section, the mode converter and the transmission line section being cooperatively configured and arranged along a common propagation axis such that microwave energy can propagate in a linear direction through the microwave transmission structure while undergoing a mode conversion at the mode converter. (per claims 1 and 2) The method steps to the above apparatus are inherent. (per claim 17)
At the waveguide end of the transition the similar dispersion characteristics of the rectangular waveguide and the ridge waveguide due to the step construction tend to minimize any junction reactance. At the coaxial end, the ridge loading is such that a quasi-TEM or microstrip mode is set up. Most of the electric field is confined to the region of the ridge and a smooth transition to the coaxial line is accomplished.(column 3; lines 20-27)
With regard to claims 13 and 14, the waveguide section, the mode converter and the transmission line section collectively define a common conductive outer surface of the waveguide to coaxial transition.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 16 and 19 are allowed.
Claims 3-12, 15, and 18 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.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter: With regard to claim 3-12 and 18, the prior art does not disclose or fairly teach at least one aperture lens extending there through, wherein the aperture lens enables a TE mode component of the microwave energy to propagate between the waveguide section and an interior of the mode converter.
With regard to claims 16 and 19 the prior art does not disclose or fairly teach a microwave reactor system comprising a plurality of reactors, each of the reactors being coupled to a respective microwave transmission structure for receiving microwave energy.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to KIMBERLY E GLENN whose telephone number is (571)272-1761. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 8:00 AM-5:00 PM.
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October 3, 2025
/K.E.G/Examiner, Art Unit 2843
/ANDREA LINDGREN BALTZELL/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2843