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 .
Priority
Receipt is acknowledged of certified copies of papers required by 37 CFR 1.55.
Drawings
The drawings are objected to as failing to comply with 37 CFR 1.84(p)(5) because they do not include the following reference sign mentioned in the description: “8-2” (Paragraph 98, line 7). Corrected drawing sheets in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(d) 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.
Specification
The use of the term “Wi-Fi®”, which is a trade name or a mark used in commerce, has been noted in this application (Paragraph 148, line 14). The term should be accompanied by the generic terminology; furthermore the term should be capitalized wherever it appears or, where appropriate, include a proper symbol indicating use in commerce such as ™, SM , or ® following the term.
Although the use of trade names and marks used in commerce (i.e., trademarks, service marks, certification marks, and collective marks) are permissible in patent applications, the proprietary nature of the marks should be respected and every effort made to prevent their use in any manner which might adversely affect their validity as commercial marks.
The disclosure is objected to because of the following informality: Paragraph 7 doesn’t end in a period. Appropriate correction is required.
The abstract of the disclosure is objected to because it is more than 150 words. A corrected abstract of the disclosure is required and must be presented on a separate sheet, apart from any other text. See MPEP § 608.01(b).
Applicant is reminded of the proper content of an abstract of the disclosure.
A patent abstract is a concise statement of the technical disclosure of the patent and should include that which is new in the art to which the invention pertains. The abstract should not refer to purported merits or speculative applications of the invention and should not compare the invention with the prior art.
If the patent is of a basic nature, the entire technical disclosure may be new in the art, and the abstract should be directed to the entire disclosure. If the patent is in the nature of an improvement in an old apparatus, process, product, or composition, the abstract should include the technical disclosure of the improvement. The abstract should also mention by way of example any preferred modifications or alternatives.
Where applicable, the abstract should include the following: (1) if a machine or apparatus, its organization and operation; (2) if an article, its method of making; (3) if a chemical compound, its identity and use; (4) if a mixture, its ingredients; (5) if a process, the steps.
Extensive mechanical and design details of an apparatus should not be included in the abstract. The abstract should be in narrative form and generally limited to a single paragraph within the range of 50 to 150 words in length.
See MPEP § 608.01(b) for guidelines for the preparation of patent abstracts.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b):
(b) CONCLUSION.—The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph:
The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention.
Claim 15 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention.
Claim 15 recites the limitation "the voltage" in line 11. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim. Amending the limitation to “the voltage from the power supply circuitry” is sufficient to overcome this rejection, which is how the limitation will be treated for examination purposes.
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)(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.
(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 1-14 and 16-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Kim et al. (Patent Publication Number US 2022/0337201 A1), as cited by applicant, hereafter referred to as Kim.
Regarding claim 1, Kim discloses:
An electronic device (Kim, Fig. 2) comprising: a first antenna (Fig. 2, 242) and a second antenna (Fig. 2, 244) ; power supply circuitry (Fig. 13A, see elements 1311, 1312, 1321, and 1322); a first front end module (FEM) (Fig. 2, 232, see details shown in Fig. 13A) including a switch (Fig. 13A, 1300), a power amplifier (PA) (Fig. 13A, 721) connected to the power supply circuitry through the switch to obtain a transmit (Tx) power of a first wireless signal transmitted through the first antenna based on a voltage from the power supply circuitry (Paragraph 136, lines 1-10), and control circuitry (Fig. 13A, 1300); and a second FEM (Fig. 2, 234, see details shown in Fig. 13A) including a PA (Fig. 13A, 721) connected to the power supply circuitry to obtain a Tx power of a second wireless signal transmitted through the second antenna based on the voltage from the power supply circuitry (Paragraph 136, lines 1-10), wherein the control circuitry is configured to: obtain a signal indicating whether the PA in the first FEM connected to the power supply circuitry through the switch is at least partially damaged (Paragraph 136, lines 1-10); and in response to the signal indicating that the PA in the first FEM is at least partially damaged, control the switch to disconnect the power supply circuitry from the PA in the first FEM (Paragraph 141, lines 10-18).
Regarding claim 2, Kim further discloses:
wherein the power supply circuitry is configured to be disconnected from the PA in the first FEM to maintain providing the voltage from the power supply circuitry to the PA in the second FEM (Kim, Paragraphs 135-136).
Regarding claim 3, Kim further discloses:
wherein the first FEM further includes a comparator (Kim, Fig. 15, 1513) configured to provide, to the control circuitry, the signal indicating whether a difference value between the voltage from the power supply circuitry and a voltage of a source of a transistor included in the PA in the first FEM is less than a reference value (Paragraph 147, lines 14-19), and wherein the control circuitry is configured to obtain, from the comparator, the signal indicating that the PA in the first FEM is at least partially damaged based on indicating that the difference value is less than the reference value (Paragraph 149, lines 9-16).
Regarding claim 4, Kim further discloses:
wherein the control circuitry is further configured to: obtain, from the comparator, the signal indicating that the PA in the first FEM is not damaged based on indicating that the difference value is greater than or equal to the reference value; and maintain, based on the signal indicating that the PA in the first FEM is not damaged, a connection between the power supply circuitry and the PA in the first FEM (Kim, Paragraph 149, lines 24-29).
Regarding claim 5, Kim further discloses:
further comprising: at least one processor (Kim, Fig. 2, Elements 120, 212, and 214), comprising processing circuitry (Fig. 2, Elements 120, 212, and 214); a third antenna (Fig. 2, 248); and a third FEM (Fig. 2, 226) for the third antenna (Fig. 2, see connection between 226 and 248), wherein the control circuitry is configured to: obtain, from the comparator, the signal indicating that the PA in the first FEM is at least partially damaged (Paragraph 149, lines 9-16); and in response to the signal indicating that the PA in the first FEM is at least partially damaged, provide, to the processor, data indicating that the PA in the first FEM is at least partially damaged (Paragraph 149, lines 9-16), wherein the at least one processor, individually and/or collectively, is configured to cease providing the first wireless signal to the first FEM and provide the first wireless signal to the third FEM supporting a frequency band of the first wireless signal (Paragraph 141, lines 10-18), and wherein the third FEM is configured to transmit the first wireless signal, through the third antenna (Fig. 2, consider antenna 248 as output of module 226).
Regarding claim 6, Kim further discloses:
further comprising: another power supply circuitry, wherein the third FEM includes a PA connected to the another power supply circuitry (Kim, Fig. 13A, see connection between 721 and 1321/1322), wherein the third FEM is configured to transmit the first wireless signal with a Tx power obtained using the PA in the third FEM through the third antenna, based on a voltage from the another power supply circuitry (Paragraph 136, lines 1-10), based on the PA in the first FEM being at least partially damaged (Paragraph 141, lines 10-18).
Regarding claim 7, Kim further discloses:
further comprising: another power supply circuitry (Kim, Fig. 13A, 1321/1322), wherein the switch includes a first terminal connected to the power supply circuitry (Fig. 13A see connection between 1300 and 1322), a second terminal connected to the another power supply circuitry (Paragraph 136, lines 9-10), and a third terminal connected to the PA in the first FEM (Fig. 13A, see connection between 1300 and 721), and wherein the control circuitry is configured to: in response to the signal indicating that the PA in the first FEM is at least partially damaged, disconnect the power supply circuitry from the PA in the first FEM by disconnecting the third terminal from the first terminal and disconnect the another power supply circuitry from the PA in the first FEM by disconnecting the third terminal from the second terminal (Paragraph 141, lines 10-18).
Regarding claim 8, Kim further discloses:
further comprising: a third antenna (Kim, Fig. 2, 248); and a third FEM (Fig. 2, 226), including a PA connected to the another power supply circuitry (Fig. 13A, see connection between 721 and 1321/1322), for the third antenna, wherein the other power supply circuitry is disconnected from the PA in the first FEM to maintain providing, to the PA in the third FEM, the voltage from the other power supply circuitry (Paragraph 141, lines 10-18).
Regarding claim 9, Kim further discloses:
wherein a first state connecting the third terminal to the first terminal and a second state connecting the third terminal to the second terminal from among the first state, the second state, and a third state disconnecting the third terminal from both the first terminal and the second terminal are disabled in response to the signal indicating that the PA in the first FEM is at least partially damaged (Kim, Paragraph 141, lines 6-18).
Regarding claim 10, Kim further discloses:
wherein the switch is in the first state or the second state, based on the signal indicating that the PA in the first FEM is not damaged being obtained (Kim, Paragraph 149, lines 24-29).
Regarding claim 11, Kim further discloses:
wherein the third state is disabled, based on the signal indicating that the PA in the first FEM is not damaged being obtained (Kim, Paragraph 149, lines 24-29).
Regarding claim 12, Kim further discloses:
wherein the second FEM includes: a switch (Kim, Fig. 13A, 1300); and control circuitry (Fig. 13A, 1300), wherein the PA in the second FEM is connected through the switch in the second FEM to the power supply circuitry (Fig. 13A, see connection between 721 and 1321/1322 via 1300), and wherein the control circuitry in the second FEM is configured to: obtain a signal indicating whether the PA in the second FEM connected to the power supply circuitry through the switch in the second FEM is at least partially damaged (Paragraph 136, lines 1-10); and in response to the signal indicating that the PA in the second FEM is at least partially damaged, disconnect the power supply circuitry from the PA in the second FEM (Paragraph 141, lines 10-18).
Regarding claim 13, Kim further discloses:
wherein the control circuitry in the second FEM is further configured to maintain, through the switch in the second FEM, a connection between the PA in the second FEM and the power supply circuitry, based on the signal indicating that the PA in the second FEM is not damaged (Kim, Paragraph 149, lines 24-29).
Regarding claim 14, Kim further discloses:
wherein the control circuitry is further configured to maintain a connection between the PA in the first FEM and the power supply circuitry, based on the signal indicating that the PA in the first FEM is not damaged (Kim, Paragraph 149, lines 24-29).
Regarding claim 16, Kim discloses:
An electronic device (Kim, Fig. 2) comprising: at least one processor (Kim, Fig. 2, Elements 120, 212, and 214), comprising processing circuitry (Kim, Fig. 2, Elements 120, 212, and 214); a first antenna (Fig. 2, 242) and a second antenna (Fig. 2, 244); power supply circuitry (Fig. 13A, see elements 1311, 1312, 1321, and 1322); a first front end module (FEM) (Fig. 2, 232, see details shown in Fig. 13A) including a switch (Fig. 13A, 1300), a power amplifier (PA) (Fig. 13A, 721) connected to the power supply circuitry through the switch to obtain a transmit (Tx) power of a first wireless signal transmitted through the first antenna based on a voltage from the power supply circuitry (Paragraph 136, lines 1-10), and control circuitry (Fig. 13A, 1300), wherein the first wireless signal is obtained from the at least one processor (Fig. 2, see connection between 212 and 232); and a second FEM (Fig. 2, 234, see details shown in Fig. 13A) including a PA (Fig. 13A, 721) connected to the power supply circuitry to obtain a Tx power of a second wireless signal transmitted through the second antenna based on the voltage from the power supply circuitry (Paragraph 136, lines 1-10), wherein the second wireless signal is obtained from the at least one processor (Fig. 2, see connection between 212/214 and 234), and wherein the control circuitry is configured to: obtain, from the at least one processor, a signal indicating that the PA in the first FEM connected to the power supply circuitry through the switch is at least partially damaged (Paragraph 136, lines 1-10); and in response to the signal, control the switch to disconnect the power supply circuitry from the PA in the first FEM (Paragraph 141, lines 10-18).
Regarding claim 17, Kim further discloses:
wherein the first FEM further includes a comparator (Kim, Fig. 15, 1513) configured to provide, to the at least one processor, another signal indicating that a difference value between the voltage from the power supply circuitry and a voltage of a source of a transistor included in the PA in the first FEM is less than a reference value (Paragraph 147, lines 14-19), and wherein the at least one processor, individually and/or collectively, is configured to provide the signal to the control circuitry in response to the another signal indicating that the difference value is less than the reference value (Fig. 2, see connection between 212 and 232).
Regarding claim 18, Kim discloses:
An electronic device (Kim, Fig. 2) comprising: at least one processor (Kim, Fig. 2, Elements 120, 212, and 214), comprising processing circuitry (Kim, Fig. 2, Elements 120, 212, and 214); a first antenna (Fig. 2, 242) and a second antenna (Fig. 2, 244); power supply circuitry (Fig. 13A, see elements 1311, 1312, 1321, and 1322); a first front end module (FEM) (Fig. 2, 232, see details shown in Fig. 13A) including a switch (Fig. 13A, 1300), a power amplifier (PA) (Fig. 13A, 721) connected to the power supply circuitry through the switch to obtain a transmit (Tx) power of a first wireless signal transmitted through the first antenna based on a voltage from the power supply circuitry (Paragraph 136, lines 1-10), and control circuitry (Fig. 13A, 1300), wherein the first wireless signal is obtained from the at least one processor (Fig. 2, see connection between 212 and 232); and a second FEM (Fig. 2, 234, see details shown in Fig. 13A) including a PA (Fig. 13A, 721) connected to the power supply circuitry to obtain a Tx power of a second wireless signal transmitted through the second antenna based on the voltage from the power supply circuitry (Paragraph 136, lines 1-10), wherein the second wireless signal is obtained from the at least one processor (Fig. 2, see connection between 212/214 and 234), and wherein the control circuitry is configured to: identify that the PA in the first FEM is at least partially damaged by identifying a state of the switch disconnecting the power supply circuitry from the PA in the first FEM (Paragraph 136, lines 1-10 and Paragraph 141, lines 10-18); and in response to the identification, provide data indicating that the PA in first FEM is at least partially damaged to the at least one processor (Paragraph 136, lines 1-10).
Regarding claim 19, Kim further discloses:
wherein the first FEM further includes a comparator (Kim, Fig. 15, 1513) configured to provide, to the switch, a signal indicating whether a difference value between the voltage from the power supply circuitry and a voltage of a source of a transistor included in the PA in the first FEM is less than a reference value (Paragraph 147, lines 14-19), and wherein the switch is configured to disconnect the power supply circuitry from the PA in the first FEM, in response to the signal indicating that the difference value is less than the reference value (Fig. 2, see connection between 212 and 232).
Regarding claim 20, Kim further discloses:
further comprising: a third antenna (Kim, Fig. 2, 248); and a third FEM (Fig. 2, 226) for the third antenna (Fig. 2, see connection between 226 and 248), wherein the at least one processor, individually and/or collectively, is configured to, in response to the data, cease providing the first wireless signal to the first FEM (Paragraph 141, lines 10-18) and provide the first wireless signal to the third FEM supporting a frequency band of the first wireless signal (Paragraph 141, lines 10-18), and wherein the third FEM is configured to transmit the first wireless signal, through the third antenna (Fig. 2, consider antenna 248 as output of module 226).
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.
Claim 15 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kim as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of Zhang et al. (Patent Publication Number CN 114,583,846 A), hereafter referred to as Zhang.
Regarding claim 15, Kim further discloses:
wherein the first FEM further includes a comparator (Kim, Fig. 15, 1513), wherein the PA in the first FEM includes: first matching circuitry (Fig. 13, 340) connected to the switch (Fig. 13, see connection between 340 and 1300 via 721); and wherein the control circuitry is configured to obtain, from the comparator, the signal indicating whether the PA in the first FEM is at least partially damaged based on a difference value between the voltage and a voltage of the source is less than a reference value (Paragraph 149, lines 9-16), but fails to disclose second matching circuitry; and a transistor including a drain connected to the switch through the first matching circuitry, a source connected to a ground, and a gate configured to obtain the first wireless signal through the second matching circuitry.
However, Zhang teaches second matching circuitry (Zhang, Fig. 3, see matching circuit formed by C1 and TL1-3); and a transistor (Fig. 3, M1) including a drain (Fig. 3, see drain of M1) connected to the switch through the first matching circuitry (Fig. 3, see connection between drain of M1 and matching circuit formed by C’1 and TL’1-3), a source connected to a ground (Fig. 3, see connection between source of M1 and ground), and a gate configured to obtain the first wireless signal through the second matching circuitry (Fig. 3, see connection between gate of M1 and Vs via C1 and TL1-3).
Kim and Zhang are both considered to be analogous to the claimed invention because they are in the same field of improving power amplifiers used in radio frequency communications. Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of filing to have modified Kim to incorporate the teachings of Zhang to include the matching circuit and FET transistor of Zhang in the circuit of Kim, which would have the effect of providing appropriate impedance matching for the circuit of Kim (Zhang, Page 2, Paragraph 3, lines 1-5).
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Bonebright et al. (Patent Number US 9,853,599 B2) discloses (Fig. 5) a power amplifier system with a controller to selectively control activation.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Lance T Bartol whose telephone number is (703)756-1267. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Thursday 6:30 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. CT, Alternating Fridays 6:30 - 3:00.
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/LANCE TORBJORN BARTOL/Examiner, Art Unit 2843
/ANDREA LINDGREN BALTZELL/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2843
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