Prosecution Insights
Last updated: August 06, 2026
Application No. 18/749,832

CONNECTOR ASSEMBLY WITH HEAT DISSIPATION PLATE

Non-Final OA §102
Filed
Jun 21, 2024
Priority
Jan 18, 2024 — CN 202410073017.3
Examiner
ALHAWAMDEH, NADER J
Art Unit
Tech Center
Assignee
Dongguan Luxshare Technologies Co., Ltd.
OA Round
1 (Non-Final)
92%
Grant Probability
Favorable
1-2
OA Rounds
0m
Est. Remaining
99%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 92% — above average
92%
Career Allowance Rate
585 granted / 638 resolved
+31.7% vs TC avg
Moderate +10% lift
Without
With
+10.1%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Fast prosecutor
1y 11m
Avg Prosecution
19 currently pending
Career history
650
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
0.6%
-39.4% vs TC avg
§103
40.5%
+0.5% vs TC avg
§102
50.8%
+10.8% vs TC avg
§112
2.7%
-37.3% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 638 resolved cases

Office Action

§102
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 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)(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. Claims 15 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Sharf (US. 2022/0216632 A1). In Regards Claim 15: Sharf teaches a connector assembly (Fig. 1), comprising: a metal shielding cage (110), the metal shielding cage (110) defining a receiving cavity (118) configured to receive a mating connector (106) along a third direction; the metal shielding cage (110) being configured to be mounted on a circuit board (102) along the third direction; the third direction being perpendicular to the circuit board (102); and a liquid cooling plate (144), the liquid cooling plate (144) comprising a side surface at least partially exposed in the receiving cavity (118); the side surface being configured to at least contact a mating connector (106) so as to dissipate heat from the mating connector (106) via the liquid cooling plate (144). Allowable Subject Matter Claims 16-20 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. Claims 1-14 are allowed. REASONS FOR ALLOWANCE The following is an examiner’s statement of reasons for allowance with regard to claim 1 Sharf (US. 2022/0216632 A1) teaches “A connector assembly, comprising: a metal shielding cage, the metal shielding cage comprising a first shell portion, a second shell portion and a receiving groove located between the first shell portion and the second shell portion along a first direction; the first shell portion comprising a first wall portion, a first side wall portion connected to the first wall portion, a second side wall portion connected to the first wall portion, and a first receiving cavity surrounded by at least the first wall portion, the first side wall portion and the second side wall portion; the first receiving cavity being configured to receive a first mating connector; the first side wall portion and the second side wall portion being spaced apart along a second direction; the second shell portion comprising a second wall portion, a third side wall portion connected to the second wall portion, a fourth side wall portion connected to the second wall portion, and a second receiving cavity surrounded by at least the second wall portion, the third side wall portion and the fourth side wall portion; the second receiving cavity being configured to receive a second mating connector; the third side wall portion and the fourth side wall portion being spaced apart along the second direction; the first receiving cavity comprising a first opening opened to the receiving groove; the second receiving cavity comprising a second opening opened to the receiving groove; the first opening and the second opening being disposed facing to each other; The first shell portion and the second shell portion being configured to be installed on a circuit board along a third direction; the third direction being perpendicular to the circuit board; each two of the first direction, the second direction and the third direction are perpendicular to each other.” (Connector Assembly Fig. 1, metal shield cage 110, mating connector 106, and receiving cavity 118) Sharf (US. 2022/0216632 A1) does not teach “a heat dissipation plate, the heat dissipation plate being inserted into the receiving groove along the third direction; the heat dissipation plate comprising a first side surface and a second side surface opposite to the first side surface; the first side surface being at least partially exposed to the first opening; the second side surface being at least partially exposed to the second opening; the heat dissipation plate being configured to perform heat exchange with at least the first mating connector and the second mating connector to dissipate heat from the first mating connector and the second mating connector.” The prior art of record fails to teach or fairly suggest these limitation as substantially described in claim 1, these limitations, in combination with remaining limitations of claim 1, are neither taught nor suggested by the prior art of record, therefore claim 1 is allowable. Claims 2-14 are dependent on claim 1 and are therefore allowable for the same reasons. Conclusion Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to NADER J ALHAWAMDEH whose telephone number is (571)270-0571. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 9Am - 6Pm EST. Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice. If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Abdullah A Riyami can be reached at (571)270-3119. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300. Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000. /NADER J ALHAWAMDEH/Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2831 /ABDULLAH A RIYAMI/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2831
Read full office action

Prosecution Timeline

Jun 21, 2024
Application Filed
Jul 15, 2026
Non-Final Rejection mailed — §102 (current)

Precedent Cases

Applications granted by this same examiner with similar technology

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Patent 12689166
POWER ADAPTER
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Study what changed to get past this examiner. Based on 5 most recent grants.

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Prosecution Projections

1-2
Expected OA Rounds
92%
Grant Probability
99%
With Interview (+10.1%)
1y 11m (~0m remaining)
Median Time to Grant
Low
PTA Risk
Based on 638 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allowance rate.

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