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 .
Double Patenting
2. The nonstatutory double patenting rejection is based on a judicially created doctrine grounded in public policy (a policy reflected in the statute) so as to prevent the unjustified or improper timewise extension of the “right to exclude” granted by a patent and to prevent possible harassment by multiple assignees. A nonstatutory double patenting rejection is appropriate where the conflicting claims are not identical, but at least one examined application claim is not patentably distinct from the reference claim(s) because the examined application claim is either anticipated by, or would have been obvious over, the reference claim(s). See, e.g., In re Berg, 140 F.3d 1428, 46 USPQ2d 1226 (Fed. Cir. 1998); In re Goodman, 11 F.3d 1046, 29 USPQ2d 2010 (Fed. Cir. 1993); In re Longi, 759 F.2d 887, 225 USPQ 645 (Fed. Cir. 1985); In re Van Ornum, 686 F.2d 937, 214 USPQ 761 (CCPA 1982); In re Vogel, 422 F.2d 438, 164 USPQ 619 (CCPA 1970); In re Thorington, 418 F.2d 528, 163 USPQ 644 (CCPA 1969).
A timely filed terminal disclaimer in compliance with 37 CFR 1.321(c) or 1.321(d) may be used to overcome an actual or provisional rejection based on nonstatutory double patenting provided the reference application or patent either is shown to be commonly owned with the examined application, or claims an invention made as a result of activities undertaken within the scope of a joint research agreement. See MPEP § 717.02 for applications subject to examination under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA as explained in MPEP § 2159. See MPEP § 2146 et seq. for applications not subject to examination under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA . A terminal disclaimer must be signed in compliance with 37 CFR 1.321(b).
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Claim 1 is rejected on the ground of nonstatutory double patenting as being unpatentable over claim 1 of US-PAT No. 12,549,903. Although the claims at issue are not identical, they are not patentably distinct from each other because claim 1 of US-PAT No. 12,549,903 reads into the pending claim 1 as shown in the table 1 below. This is a nonstatutory double patenting rejection.
Table 1
Claim Under Examination (18/757464)
US-PAT No. 12,549,903
1. A micro-speaker device, comprising: a frame; a drum paper comprising a diaphragm and a surround, and the diaphragm is flexibly connected to one end of the frame via the surround, thereby forming a first suspension system; a magnetic structure comprising a main magnetic portion and a yoke covering and surrounding the main magnetic portion, wherein a magnetic gap is provided between the main magnetic portion and a folded portion of the yoke; a voice coil sleeved on an outer periphery of the main magnetic portion and penetrates into the magnetic gap, wherein one end of the voice coil is fixedly connected to the diaphragm; and a one-piece elastic member flexibly connected to a first surface of a bottom of the yoke and the bottom surface of the frame, thereby forming a second suspension system.
1. A micro-speaker, comprising: a frame; a drum paper comprising a diaphragm and a surround, wherein the diaphragm is flexibly connected to one end of the frame via the surround, thereby forming a first suspension system; a magnetic structure comprising a main magnetic portion and a yoke covering and surrounding the main magnetic portion, wherein a magnetic gap is provided between the main magnetic portion and a folded portion of the yoke; a voice coil sleeved on an outer periphery of the main magnetic portion and penetrates into the magnetic gap, wherein one end of the voice coil is fixedly connected to the diaphragm; and a one-piece elastic member flexibly connected to a first surface of a bottom of the yoke and a bottom surface of the frame, thereby forming a second suspension system.
Claim 1 of US-PAT No. 12,549,903 fails to teach that “at least one damper flexibly connecting a bottom of the voice coil and a bottom surface of the frame”.
Yonglei et al. (US-PG-PUB No. 2023/0217182) teach a rear suspension component 42 connecting a rear surface 46 of a voice coil 24 and a rear face 52 of a speaker frame 28 (Para. [0045], Lines 1-7).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the micro-speaker of Claim 1 of US-PAT No. 12,549,903 with the damper as taught by Yonglei et al. (US-PG-PUB No. 2023/0217182) where the result of the modification would allow the micro-speaker to be more stable by using the damper so as to ensure the stability of acoustic performance.
Regarding claims 2-23 are objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim 1.
This application is in condition for allowance except for the nonstatutory double patenting rejection stated above.
Conclusion
9. The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure:
Hsu et al. US-PAT No. 11,490,206, Micro-speaker And Damper For Micro-speakers, Fig. 2 shows a micro-speaker includes a frame body, a diaphragm arranged on the frame body, a magnetic structure and a voice coil arranged in the frame body. A monolithic, one-piece voice-coil balancing system is fixed under the frame body. The monolithic, one-piece voice coil balancing system is composed of two symmetrically arranged dampers connected to an integrally formed support frame..
Miura US-PG-PUB No. 2006/0266967, Electromagnetic Exciter, Fig. 1 shows a casing 6 has a cylindrical side wall 6a and a bottom 6b at the lower end of the side wall 6a. The bottom 6b is formed to serve as a suspension 9. More specifically, the suspension 9 includes a ring-shaped outer section 9a integrally formed along the bottom peripheral edge of the cylindrical side wall 6a.
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/ANGELICA M MCKINNEY/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2694