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 .
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 06/20/2024 and 10/06/2025 in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status.
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.
Claim(s) 1-8 and 10 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by Yemelong et al. (US 2019/0363448 A1).
Regarding claim 1, Yemelong et al. disclose a method of enhancing non-line-of-sight (NLOS) signal for wireless communications (figures 10A and 10B, communication between base station 470 and mobile users 490, paragraph [0092]), the method comprising: providing a plurality of passive reflectarrays including a first reflectarray and a second reflectarray (400a and 400d, paragraphs [0045], [0052], [0061], [0063] and [0073]), at least one of the reflectarrays comprising a pattern of repeating unit cells of resonating elements configured to reflect an incident radiofrequency (RF) electromagnetic wave at a wavelength λ in a range from about 1.0 mm to about 10.0 cm (60 GHz, wavelength of 5mm, paragraph [0062]), the first reflectarray having a first phase gradient along a first longitudinal direction thereof (figures 1A, 5 and 7, reflectarrays where the cells have a phase gradient), the second reflectarray having a second phase gradient along a second longitudinal direction thereof (figures 1A, 5 and 7, reflectarrays where the cells have a phase gradient), and positioning at least one of the first and second passive reflectarrays to face to the incident RF electromagnetic wave such that the incident RF electromagnetic wave is reflected by the first and second passive reflectarrays with a signal improvement of at least 3dB (figures 4A and 6, reflectarray can provide a non-specular reflection beam with a gain well over 20 dB. This additional 20 dB gain can improve the signal at the receivers in figures 10A and 10B with at least 3 dB).
Regarding claim 2, Yemelong et al. disclose wherein at least one of the first reflectarray and the second reflectarray delivers a non-linear steering performance (figures 4B, 8 and 9, non-linear relationship between the input angle (angle of incidence) and output angle (angle of reflection))
Regarding claim 3, Yemelong et al. disclose wherein at least one of the first reflectarray and the second reflectarray delivers an angular-spatial separation (figures 4A and 6, the incident energy is split into two beams can be considered as angular-spatial separation).
Regarding claim 4, Yemelong et al. disclose wherein the at least one of the first reflectarray and the second reflectarray delivers a beam splitting performance (figures 4A and 6, the incident energy is split into two beams).
Regarding claim 5, Yemelong et al. disclose wherein at least one of the plurality of passive reflectarrays is positioned on a ceiling or a floor at a T-, L-, or four-way junction (see figures 10A and 10B).
Regarding claim 6, Yemelong et al. disclose wherein the at least one of the plurality of passive reflectarrays delivers an off-plane of incidence steering (figure 7, a reflectarray with phase gradient in two dimensions with implies off-plane of incidence steering, see paragraphs [0087]-[0090]).
Regarding claim 7, Yemelong et al. disclose wherein the incident RF electromagnetic wave is from a network featuring adaptive beamforming on a transmitting or receiving end (figures 10a and 10B, transmitter 470, paragraph [0094]).
Regarding claim 8, Yemelong et al. disclose a system of enhancing non-line-of-sight (NLOS) signal for wireless communications (figures 10A and 10B, communication between base station 470 and mobile users 490, paragraph [0092]), the system comprising: one or more passive reflectarrays (400a and 400d, paragraphs [0045], [0052], [0061], [0063] and [0073]), at least one of the reflectarrays comprising a pattern of repeating unit cells of resonating elements configured to reflect an incident radiofrequency (RF) electromagnetic wave at a wavelength , in a range from about 1.0 mm to about 10.0 cm (60 GHz, wavelength of 5mm, paragraph [0062]), wherein the one or more passive reflectarrays comprise at least one of a first reflectarray configured to split an incident beam and a second reflectarray configured to steer the incident beam with an off-plane of incidence (figure 10B, 400a splits the beam into two directions 441a and 441b. The use off-plane of incidence array for at least one of the remaining arrays is considered disclosed because figure 7 explicitly discloses such an array - see the phase gradient in two dimensions and paragraphs [0087]-[0090].The choice of the array of Fig. 7 for the remaining non-beam-splitting reflectarrays of Fig. 10B is regarded as a choice from a single list (1D reflectarrays of figures 1A and 5, and 2D reflectarrays of figure 7).
Regarding claim 10, Yemelong et al. disclose wherein the resonating elements of the first reflectarray rows are arranged in a checkerboard pattern (figure 7, an array with periods of 4 elements in the horizontal direction and 6 elements in the vertical direction, but one can consider that the 4x6 unit cells actually form a 2x2 checker board pattern where the adjacent cells of the 2x2 arrangement have identical phase progression except that they differ by 180°, i.e. a multiplication by -1).
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status.
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.
This application currently names joint inventors. In considering patentability of the claims the examiner presumes that the subject matter of the various claims was commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the claimed invention(s) absent any evidence to the contrary. Applicant is advised of the obligation under 37 CFR 1.56 to point out the inventor and effective filing dates of each claim that was not commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the later invention in order for the examiner to consider the applicability of 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(2)(C) for any potential 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) prior art against the later invention.
Claim(s) 9 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Yemelong et al. in view of Kim et al. (US 2021/0058137 A1).
Regarding claim 9, Yemelong et al. disclose the system of claim8 above. Yemelong et al. do not explicitly disclose wherein the resonating elements of the first reflectarray rows are arranged with alternating row directions. However, Kim et al. (figure 1) disclose reflactarray with interlaced rows of elements 102a and 102b (these elements are for respective reflection angles (see paragraph [0048]) wherein in view of paragraphs [0035]-[0045] that the phase gradient of each row controls the respectively reflection angle of each beam. Deriving that the directions of the phase gradients need to be reversed to provide two beams into opposing directions is a straightforward mathematical result when the respective reflection angles are used in the equations). Therefore, it would have been obvious for one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to adapt the interlaced array of Kim et al. to the system of Yemelong et al. for providing an improved reflectarray with independent beams.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Pritchard (US 8,680,450 B2) discloses a reflector includes a mirrored surface and a frequency selective surface; the frequency selective surface is arranged to reflect radiation of a first frequency band and allow radiation of a second frequency band to pass; the mirrored surface is arranged to reflect radiation of the second frequency band.
Georgiadis et al. (US 9,048,544 B2) teach a reflectarray includes a plurality of cells integrated in a PCB and externally illuminated by an input signal from a feeding source at a frequency fi, and an output signal is reflected, where each cell of the reflectarray is an AIA formed by a passive radiating element connected to an active circuit, which can be either an oscillator, or a push-push oscillator or a SOM, where the passive radiating circuit is placed on a reflective surface forming a side of the reflectarray and the active circuit is placed on the reverse side, the active circuit producing an output signal with a frequency related to the input frequency fi and the oscillation frequency fosc of said active circuit; this phase relationship is determined by an output phase variation, which is controlled by electronic means integrated in the reflectarray system, which allows an output phase variation interval even higher than 180o.
Miyazaki et al. (US 2024/0145929 A1) disclose a frequency selective reflector including a reflecting member reflecting the electromagnetic waves; and a dielectric layer that: is disposed at an incident side of the electromagnetic waves with respect to the reflecting member; includes a concave and convex structure in which a plurality of a unit structure including a thickness distribution of increasing thickness in a predetermined direction is arranged; and transmits the electromagnetic waves, wherein the unit structure of the dielectric layer includes a plurality of cell regions of which thickness differs from one another; the dielectric layer includes, as the unit structure, at least a first unit structure including three or more of the cell regions of which thickness differs from one another; and a reflection direction of the electromagnetic waves is controlled by controlling a relative reflection phase distribution of the electromagnetic waves by the thickness distribution of the dielectric layer.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to QUOCHIEN B VUONG whose telephone number is (571)272-7902. The examiner can normally be reached 10:00-06:00PM M-F.
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/QUOCHIEN B VUONG/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2645
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