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 26, 38 and 43 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Sathyamurthy (US 20220150335 A1).
As to Claim 26, Sathyamurthy discloses:
A handheld device (mobile device 700 of Fig. 7) comprising:
a casing (housing 770);
a device package (heat-generating component 720); and
a cooling assembly (710; Par. 0096 “Cooling system 710 is analogous to cooling system(s) 100”), wherein:
the casing 770 comprises an air inlet opening 780 and an air outlet opening 782 disposed therethrough (Par. 0097 “mobile device 700 also includes vents 780 and 782. Vents 780 and 782 allow for an exchange in fluid internal to housing 770 with fluid external to device 700. Although only two vents 780 and 782 are shown, another number may be present in other embodiments. Although particular locations of vents 780 and 782 are shown, vent(s) 780 and/or 782 may be located elsewhere”);
the casing 770 also comprises a display side 872 (872 of phone 800 of Fig. 8 corresponds to 770 of Fig. 7; Par. 0102 “Mobile phone 800 is most analogous to device(s) 600 and/or 700”; “Housing 870 of mobile phone includes cover glass 872 and back cover 874. In some embodiments, cover glass 872 includes a display module”), a backside 874 opposite the display side 872, and sidewalls connecting the display side 872 and the backside 874 to collectively define a casing wall having a casing volume therewithin (housing 770 and 870 comprise sidewalls, area within 770 defined as within casing volume);
the casing volume comprises a device volume (area outside of cooling system 100 of Fig. 1, inside 770 of Fig. 7) and a cooling volume (area within 100, e.g., within 110, 174, 130);
the cooling volume (within 100) is separated from the device volume (outside 100) by a divider (surface of plate 130, 130 separates inside of 100 and outside 100/inside of 770);
the device volume (inside 770, outside 100) is fluidly connected to the air inlet opening 780 (inside 770 fluidly connected to 780, see arrows in Fig. 7);
the cooling volume (inside 100) is fluidly connected to the air outlet opening 782 (inside 100 fluidly connected to 782, see arrows from 710 to 782 in Fig. 7);
the cooling volume (area within 100) is disposed within the device volume (area outside 100 and within 770; 100 disposed within 770), the divider 130 extending about the cooling volume to separate the cooling volume from the device volume (130 encloses at least a portion of 100 within 770 and separates inside of 100 from inside of 770);
the cooling assembly 100 is disposed within the cooling volume and is in thermal contact with the divider 130 (100 includes 130 and is in thermal contact with 130, 100 comprises cooling volume);
the cooling assembly 100 comprises a vibrational membrane 120;
the device package 720 is disposed within the device volume (720 disposed outside structure of 710);
the device package (720 of Fig. 7; corresponds to 102 of Fig. 1) comprises a heat spreader 172 in thermal contact with the divider 130 (Par. 0056 “pedestal 172 may be made from thermally conductive materials”; 172 in contact with 130 and 102);
the cooling volume (inside 100) is fluidly connected to the device volume (outside 100) through at least one opening in the divider 130 (inside 100 and outside 100 are fluidly connected, airflow flows through openings in 130);
the air outlet 782 opening provides a fluid pathway out of the casing volume 770 (782 vents to outside 770); and
the cooling assembly 100 is arranged to create a cooling airflow within the casing volume 770 by drawing air through the air inlet opening 780, through the at least one opening in the divider 130 and through the air outlet opening 782, to cool the device package 720/102 (see airflow in Figs. 1 and 7).
As to Claim 38, Sathyamurthy discloses:
wherein the handheld device 700 is a handheld communications device (Par. 0096 “Mobile device 700 may be a mobile phone (e.g. a smartphone), a tablet or notebook, a laptop computer, or other mobile device”).
As to Claim 43, Sathyamurthy discloses:
A handheld device (mobile device 700 of Fig. 7) comprising:
a casing (housing 770);
a device package (heat-generating component 720; corresponding to 103 of Fig. 1A);
a thermal interface material 172 in thermal contact with the device package (Par. 0056 “pedestal 172 may be made from thermally conductive materials”; 172 in thermal contact with 130 and 103);
a heatsink 102 attached to and in thermal contact with the thermal interface material 172 (Par. 0024 “Support structure is thermally coupled to heat-generating structure 102 via pedestal 172”; Par. 0027 “heat generating structure 102 is a heat spreader or vapor chamber thermally connected to integrated circuit 103”); and
a cooling assembly (710; Par. 0096 “Cooling system 710 is analogous to cooling system(s) 100”), wherein:
the casing 770 comprises an air inlet opening 780 and an air outlet opening 782 disposed therethrough (Par. 0097 “mobile device 700 also includes vents 780 and 782. Vents 780 and 782 allow for an exchange in fluid internal to housing 770 with fluid external to device 700. Although only two vents 780 and 782 are shown, another number may be present in other embodiments. Although particular locations of vents 780 and 782 are shown, vent(s) 780 and/or 782 may be located elsewhere”);
the casing 770 also comprises a display side 872 (872 of phone 800 of Fig. 8 corresponds to 770 of Fig. 7; Par. 0102 “Mobile phone 800 is most analogous to device(s) 600 and/or 700”; “Housing 870 of mobile phone includes cover glass 872 and back cover 874. In some embodiments, cover glass 872 includes a display module”), a backside 874 opposite the display side 872, and sidewalls connecting the display side 872 and the backside 874 to collectively define a casing wall having a casing volume therewithin (housing 770 and 870 comprise sidewalls, area within 770 defined as within casing volume);
the device package 720/103 and the cooling assembly 710 are disposed within the casing volume 770 (710 and 720 disposed within 770);
the cooling assembly (710 of Fig. 7/100 of Fig. 1) is attached to the casing wall (710 indirectly attached to housing 770) and disposed within the casing volume (components disposed within 100);
the cooling assembly 100 comprises a vibrational membrane 120 arranged to create a cooling airflow within the casing volume (inside 100) by drawing air through the air inlet opening 780 (Par. 0025 “Regions of cooling element 120 closer to and including portions of the cooling element's perimeter (e.g. tip 123) vibrate when actuated”; Par. 0026 “For in-phase operation, cooling element 120 is driven to vibrate between positions shown in FIGS. 1B and 1C. This vibrational motion draws fluid (e.g. air) into vent 112, through chambers 140 and 150 and out orifices 132 at high speed and/or flow rates”); and
the heatsink 102 is in thermal contact with the cooling airflow (102 thermally connected to airflow within 770; Par. 0026 “For example, the speed at which the fluid impinges on heat-generating structure 102 may be at least thirty meters per second. In some embodiments, the fluid is driven by cooling element 120 toward heat-generating structure 102 at a speed of at least forty-five meters per second. In some embodiments, the fluid is driven toward heat-generating structure 102 by cooling element 120 at speeds of at least sixty meters per second”).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 1-12, 14, 17, 21 and 48-49 allowed.
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed 08/03/2026 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive.
In regard to claim 26, Applicant suggests “Because Sathyamurthy's fluid exits the cooling system into the alleged device volume before reaching the outlet vents, the cooling volume is only indirectly fluidly connected to the air outlet opening. The intervening alleged device volume interrupts any direct fluid communication. Accordingly, Sathyamurthy cannot teach or render obvious a cooling volume disposed within a device volume, wherein the cooling volume is directly fluidly connected to an air outlet opening.” (Remarks, Pg. 9).
In response, Examiner notes that claim 26 only requires the cooling volume to be fluidly connected to the air outlet opening. The claims do not prohibit the fluid communication between the cooling volume and the device volume.
In regard to claim 43, the amended claim limitations are fully addressed in the rejection above.
Conclusion
Applicant's amendment necessitated the new ground(s) of rejection presented in this Office action. Accordingly, THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. See MPEP § 706.07(a). Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to MATTHEW S MUIR whose telephone number is (571)270-1329. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Friday 8 am - 5 pm.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Jayprakash Gandhi can be reached at 571-272-3740. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/MATTHEW SINCLAIR MUIR/ Examiner, Art Unit 2841
/Jayprakash N Gandhi/ Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2841
