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 .
DETAILED ACTION
Status of Application
This Office Action is a response to Applicant’s communication (or preliminary’s amendment) filed on 07/08/2024. In virtue of this communication, claims 1-10 are currently presented in the instant application.
Priority
Acknowledgement is made of applicant’s claim for foreign priority under 35 U.S.C. 119(a)-(d). A certified copy of the priority documents received on 07/31/2024.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement(s) (IDS) submitted on 07/08/2024 and 12/05/2025 in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is considered by the examiner.
If applicant is aware of any prior art or any other co-pending application not already of record, he/she is reminded of his/her duty under 37 CFR 1.97 to disclose the same.
Drawing Objection(s)
The drawings submitted on 07/08/2024 are objected to under 37 CFR 1.83(a). The drawings must show every feature of the invention specified in the claims. Therefore, the feature “the central axis” of the invention specified in claim 1 must be shown or the feature canceled from the claim. No new matter should be entered.
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. The figure or figure number of an amended drawing should not be labeled as “amended.” If a drawing figure is to be canceled, the appropriate figure must be removed from the replacement sheet, and where necessary, the remaining figures must be renumbered and appropriate changes made to the brief description of the several views of the drawings for consistency.
Additional replacement sheets may be necessary to show the renumbering of the remaining figures. 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.
Claim Objection(s)
Claim 9 is objected to because of the following informalities:
Regarding claim 9,
The recitation “both sides” in line 4 would be “both sides of each balun”. Appropriate correction is required.
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.
Claims 1-10 are 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 pre-AIA the applicant regards as the invention.
Regarding claim 1,
The recitation “the central axis” in line 4 is considered indefinite because it does not have an antecedent basis. Clarification is required.
Regarding claim 6,
The recitation “the width of the filtering branches” in line 1 is considered indefinite because it does not have an antecedent basis. Clarification 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, 6-8 and 10, as best understood, are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Wu et al (US 20220336964), hereinafter Wu.
Regarding claim 1,
Wu discloses a vibrator antenna unit (a dual-polarized radiating element 100, Fig 2B), comprises:
a support base (a support stalk 120, Fig 2B);
a plurality of vibrator arms (a radiator unit 140 includes a plurality of arms 154-1, 154-2, 154-3 and 154-4, Fig 3A) disposed on the support base, the vibrator arms extending outward from the central axis of the vibrator antenna unit and being spaced apart from each other (Fig 3A; “The slots 152 may divide the conductive patch 150 into four arms 154-1 through 154-4” paragraph [0087])), each of the vibrator arms comprising a conductive layer (a conductive patch 150, Fig 3A), the conductive layer being hollowed out to form a plurality of filtering branches (a plurality of stubs 168-1, 168-2, 168-3 and 168-4, Fig 3A); and
a leading member (a director 194, Fig 2B) disposed on the support base and located at the top of the vibrator antenna unit (Fig 2B), the leading member having a spacing from the vibrator arms (Fig 2B).
Wu does not teach each of the arms 154 (the vibrator arms) comprises a solder resist layer.
However, Wu teaches a radiator unit (a radiator unit 940, Fig 12B) includes a plurality of arms 954-1, 954-2, 954-3 and 954-4 (Fig 12B), each of the arms comprising a conductive layer (a conductive patch 950, Fig 12B) and a solder resist layer (“a ring-shaped (annular) solder mask 951 may be formed on the conductive patch 950 as shown in FIG. 12B”; paragraph [0112]).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to use each of vibrator arms comprising a conductive layer and a solder resist layer in Wu, in order provide compact wideband dual-polarized radiator units.
[AltContent: arrow][AltContent: textbox (F120)][AltContent: arrow][AltContent: textbox (TH140)][AltContent: arrow][AltContent: textbox (F120)][AltContent: textbox (TH140)][AltContent: arrow][AltContent: arrow][AltContent: textbox (TH140)][AltContent: arrow][AltContent: textbox (TH140)][AltContent: textbox (Wu (US 20220336964))]
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Regarding claim 6,
Wu as modified discloses the claimed invention, as discussed in claim 1.
Wu does not explicitly teach the width of the filtering branches is 0.06 millimeters to 0.1 millimeters.
However, Wu teaches the stubs 168 is a quarter wavelength stub. This teaching is result effect in order to cause the conductive patch 150 to radiate RF energy having +/-45° polarizations (paragraph [0090]).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to use quarter wavelength stubs having a width of 0.06 millimeters to 0.1 millimeters in Wu as modified, in order provide compact wideband dual-polarized radiator units.
Regarding claim 7,
Wu as modified discloses the claimed invention, as discussed in claim 1.
Wu teaches each of the vibrator arms is provided with a through hole (a through hole TH140, Fig 2B); the support base passes through the through hole to fix the vibrator arm (Fig 2B).
Regarding claim 8,
Wu as modified discloses the claimed invention, as discussed in claim 1.
Wu teaches a plurality of first fasteners (a plurality of fasteners F120, Fig 2B) fixed on the support base, each of the first fasteners provided with a first gap to fix one of the vibrator arms in the first gap (Fig 2B).
Regarding claim 10,
Wu as modified discloses the claimed invention, as discussed in claim 1.
Wu teaches an antenna (an antenna assembly 20, Fig 1B), comprises: the vibrator antenna unit according to claim 1; wherein the vibrator antenna unit comprises a feed base (a feed network 160, Fig 3A), which is provided with ports for connecting coaxial cables (Fig 2B; paragraph [0081]).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 2-5 and 9 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.
Regarding claim 2, prior art of record or most closely prior art fails to disclose, “the filtering branches comprise: at least two first filtering branches, the length of which being ⅛ of a high-frequency wavelength; and at least one second filtering branch, the length of which being 1/16 of the high-frequency wavelength”.
Dependent claims 3-5 are considered to be allowable by virtue of its/their dependency/dependencies on claim 2.
Regarding claim 9, prior art of record or most closely prior art fails to disclose, “a feed base with feed lines; a balun assembly, comprising a plurality of baluns, each of the baluns has two of the vibrator arms fixed on both sides, the baluns are electrically connected to the feed lines and the corresponding vibrator arms; and a second fastener fixed on the support base and provided with a plurality of second gaps to fix the balun assembly and the corresponding vibrator arms in the second gaps”.
Conclusion
The Examiner has pointed out particular references contained in the prior art of record within the body of this action for the convenience of the Applicant. Although the specified citations are representative of the teachings in the art and are applied to the specific limitations within the individual claim, other passages and figures may apply.
Applicant, in preparing the response, should consider fully the entire reference aspotentially teaching all or part of the claimed invention, as well as the context of thepassage as taught by the prior art or disclosed by the Examiner.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Hai Tran whose telephone number is (571) 270-7650. The examiner can normally be reached on Monday-Friday 8:00 am-5:00 pm.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Dimary Lopez can be reached on (571) 270-7893. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/HAI V TRAN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2845