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
Acknowledgment is made of applicant’s claim for foreign priority under 35 U.S.C. 119 (a)-(d). The certified copy has been filed in parent Application No. JP2021-214890, filed on 12/28/2021.
Election/Restrictions
Applicant’s election without traverse of claims 1-15 in the reply filed on 03/26/2026 is acknowledged.
Claim Objections
Claims 10-14 objected to because of the following informalities: Claim 10 recites “in plan view of an antenna” but should read “in a plan view of an antenna”. Appropriate correction is required.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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.
Claims 1-4 and 6-13 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Hara et al. (US20230291107; hereinafter Hara) in view of Nakano et al. (US7215291; hereinafter Nakano).
Regarding claim 1, Hara discloses “An antenna device comprising: a dielectric substrate (31); an antenna including a radiation plate (32) that is provided on a first main face of the dielectric substrate and that includes a radiation face radiating radio waves of a prescribed frequency band, and including a ground conductor plate (34) that is disposed on a second main face of the dielectric substrate; a connector (24, 4, 50) that is provided to a face of the ground conductor plate on an opposite side from a radiation plate side, that includes a metal member (24), that is fixed to the antenna, and that supports a transmission line (24 can work as a transmission line); and a cover member (22) that opposes a face of the ground conductor plate on the opposite side from the radiation plate side (fig. 5), wherein: a position of a feeding point (39) on the radiation plate is different from a position of a centroid of the radiation plate (fig. 5), in a front view of the antenna; and the antenna and the cover member cover a periphery of the connector when the antenna, the connector, and the cover member are viewed along a direction orthogonal to a first straight line connecting the centroid to the feeding point and orthogonal to a thickness direction of the dielectric substrate (see fig. 5/6 the connector is covered)”.
Hara does not disclose that the cover member is configured from an electrically grounded conductor.
However, Nakano teaches “a cover member is configured from an electrically grounded conductor”.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to apply the teachings of Nakano and make Hara’s antenna device with the cover member configured from an electrically grounded conductor, in order to create a cover with more desirable electromagnetic wave properties.
Regarding claim 2, Hara discloses “The antenna device of claim 1, wherein in front view of the antenna, part of the cover member is positioned at a further to an outer peripheral side than a peripheral edge portion of the radiation plate (fig. 6)”.
Regarding claim 3, Hara discloses “The antenna device of claim 1, wherein the antenna includes at least one parasitic conductor plate (33) at a different position from the centroid of the radiation plate, when viewed along the thickness direction of the dielectric substrate”.
Regarding claim 4, Hara discloses “The antenna device of claim 3, wherein: the antenna includes two of the parasitic conductor plates (33) positioned further to the radiation plate side than the ground conductor plate; and the radiation plate is positioned between the two parasitic conductor plates in front view of the antenna”.
Regarding claim 6, Hara discloses the antenna device of claim 1 as shown previously.
Hara does not disclose “wherein: the cover member includes a first location that opposes the ground conductor plate and the connector in a thickness direction of the dielectric substrate and that is parallel to the radiation plate, and includes a second location and a third location that are electrically connected to the first location and to the ground conductor plate; and the connector is positioned between the second location and the third location”.
However, Nakano teaches “wherein: the cover member includes a first location (bottom point in fig. 2/3) that opposes the ground conductor plate and the connector in a thickness direction of the dielectric substrate and that is parallel to the radiation plate, and includes a second location and a third location (side locations in fig. 2/3)) that are electrically connected to the first location and to the ground conductor plate; and the connector is positioned between the second location and the third location (101 is connected to R and all is grounded)”.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to apply the teachings of Nakano and make Hara’s antenna device wherein: the cover member includes a first location that opposes the ground conductor plate and the connector in a thickness direction of the dielectric substrate and that is parallel to the radiation plate, and includes a second location and a third location that are electrically connected to the first location and to the ground conductor plate; and the connector is positioned between the second location and the third location, in order to ground the areas surrounding the connector.
Regarding claim 7, Hara discloses the antenna device of claim 6 as shown previously.
Hara does not disclose “wherein the second location and the third location are respectively connected to each end portion of the ground conductor plate and are formed parallel to each other”.
However, Nakano teaches “wherein the second location and the third location are respectively connected to each end portion of the ground conductor plate and are formed parallel to each other (fig. 2/3)”.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to apply the teachings of Nakano and make Hara’s antenna device wherein the second location and the third location are respectively connected to each end portion of the ground conductor plate and are formed parallel to each other, in order to ground the areas surrounding the connector.
Regarding claim 8, Hara discloses the antenna device of claim 7 as shown previously.
Hara does not disclose “wherein the second location and the third location are orthogonal to the first location”.
However, Nakano teaches “wherein the second location and the third location are orthogonal to the first location (fig. 2/3)”.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to apply the teachings of Nakano and make Hara’s antenna device wherein the second location and the third location are orthogonal to the first location, in order to ground the areas surrounding the connector.
Regarding claim 9, Hara discloses the antenna device of claim 1 as shown previously.
Hara does not disclose “wherein: when the antenna, the connector, and the cover member are viewed along a direction orthogonal to the first straight line and orthogonal to the thickness direction of the dielectric substrate, the cover member exposes a space formed between the cover member and the ground conductor plate”.
However, Nakano teaches “wherein: when the antenna, the connector, and the cover member are viewed along a direction orthogonal to the first straight line and orthogonal to the thickness direction of the dielectric substrate, the cover member exposes a space formed between the cover member and the ground conductor plate (hole 101A exposes the space)”.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to apply the teachings of Nakano and make Hara’s antenna device wherein: when the antenna, the connector, and the cover member are viewed along a direction orthogonal to the first straight line and orthogonal to the thickness direction of the dielectric substrate, the cover member exposes a space formed between the cover member and the ground conductor plate, in order to allow access to the inner space.
Regarding claim 10, Hara discloses “The antenna device of claim 9, wherein the metal member is disposed parallel to a second straight line orthogonal to the first straight line and passing through the centroid in a plan view of the antenna (fig. 5, 50 is a metal line down line D1)”.
Regarding claim 11, Hara discloses the antenna device of claim 10 as shown previously.
Hara does not disclose “wherein a pair of the metal members are provided to the connector as fixing members fixed to the ground conductor plate, and the pair of fixing members are formed so as to have line symmetry to each other with respect to the second straight line”.
However, Nakano teaches “wherein a pair of the metal members are provided to the connector as fixing members fixed to the ground conductor plate, and the pair of fixing members are formed so as to have line symmetry to each other with respect to the second straight line (116-118)”.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to apply the teachings of Nakano and make Hara’s antenna device wherein a pair of the metal members are provided to the connector as fixing members fixed to the ground conductor plate, and the pair of fixing members are formed so as to have line symmetry to each other with respect to the second straight line, in order to allow more connective lines for the antenna.
Regarding claim 12, Hara discloses “The antenna device of claim 10, wherein the transmission line is connected to the connector such that at least part of the transmission line is formed parallel to the second straight line and overlapping with the second straight line (see fig. 5, 50 and 24)”.
Regarding claim 13, Hara discloses “The antenna device of claim 12, wherein a signal contact of the transmission line extends overlapping with the second straight line (see fig. 5, 50 and 24)”.
Regarding claim 14, Hara discloses the antenna device of claim 13 as shown previously.
Hara does not disclose “wherein a pair of ground contacts of the transmission line are formed so as to have line symmetry to each other with respect to the second straight line”.
However, Nakano teaches “wherein a pair of ground contacts of the transmission line are formed so as to have line symmetry to each other with respect to the second straight line (116-118 are connectors with parallel ground contacts)”.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to apply the teachings of Nakano and make Hara’s antenna device wherein a pair of ground contacts of the transmission line are formed so as to have line symmetry to each other with respect to the second straight line, in order to allow more connective lines for the antenna.
Claim 5 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Hara in view of Nanako, further in view of Sampo et al. (US20210091480; hereinafter Sampo).
Regarding claim 5, Hara discloses the antenna device of claim 4 as shown previously.
Hara does not disclose “wherein the two parasitic conductor plates are reciprocally further outside than the ground conductor plate in front view of the antenna”.
However, Nakano teaches “wherein the two parasitic conductor plates are reciprocally further outside than the ground conductor plate in front view of the antenna (see fig. 11 and ¶[0033]; “FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating a modification in which a pair of parasitic elements is provided to outside a peripheral edge of a radiating element”)”.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to apply the teachings of Sampo and make Hara’s antenna device wherein the two parasitic conductor plates are reciprocally further outside than the ground conductor plate in front view of the antenna, in order to have the parasitic elements modify the electromagnetic wave properly.
Claim 15 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Hara in view of Nanako, further in view of Sampo et al. (US11476565; hereinafter Sampo’565) and Gaucher et al. (US20090009399; hereinafter Goucher).
Regarding claim 15, Hara discloses the antenna device of claim 1 as shown previously.
Hara does not disclose “wherein: the antenna includes a planar shaped conductor line positioned on a flat plane where the radiation face is positioned; the planar shaped conductor line includes a first end portion that is connected to the feeding point, and a second end portion that is positioned on a second straight line orthogonal to the first straight line and passing through the centroid; and the first end portion is electrically connected to a signal line of the transmission line”.
However, Sampo’565 teaches “wherein: the antenna includes a planar shaped conductor line positioned on a flat plane where the radiation face is positioned; the planar shaped conductor line includes a first end portion that is connected to the feeding point; and the first end portion is electrically connected to a signal line of the transmission line (see patch with planar line attached at a feed point on the edge of the patch away from the centroid)”.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to apply the teachings of Sampo’565 and make Hara’s antenna device wherein: the antenna includes a planar shaped conductor line positioned on a flat plane where the radiation face is positioned; the planar shaped conductor line includes a first end portion that is connected to the feeding point; and the first end portion is electrically connected to a signal line of the transmission line, in order to have the antenna produce the desired waveform.
The modified Hara does not disclose “a second end portion that is positioned on a second straight line orthogonal to the first straight line and passing through the centroid”.
However, Gaucher teaches “a second end portion that is positioned on a second straight line orthogonal to the first straight line and passing through the centroid (fig. 2A)”.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to apply the teachings of Gaucher and make Hara’s antenna device with a second end portion that is positioned on a second straight line orthogonal to the first straight line and passing through the centroid, in order to have the antenna produce the desired waveform.
Conclusion
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/AUSTIN M BACK/Examiner, Art Unit 2845
/DIMARY S LOPEZ CRUZ/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2845
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