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 Objections
Claims 14, 26, 28 and 29 are objected to because of the following informalities:
Claims 14, lines 3-4 and line 6, “conductive material” appears to be “a conductive material” for both occurrences for first and second conductive members. In line 4, “disposed therein” appears to be “disposed therein,”.
Claim 26, “claim 25” appears to be “claim 25,”.
Claim 28, “the first portion” appears to be “the first connecting portion”.
Claim 29, “the second portion” appears to be “the second connecting portion”.
Appropriate correction is required.
Remarks
The Office has cited particular columns, line numbers, paragraph numbers, references, or figures in the references applied to the claims below for the convenience of the applicant. Although the specified citations are representative of the teachings of the art and are applied to specific limitations within the individual claim, other passages and figures may apply as well. It is respectfully requested from the applicant in preparing responses to fully consider the reference in entirety, as potentially teaching all or part of the claimed invention. See MPEP § 2141.02 and § 2123.
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.
Claim(s) 14-19, 22-24, and 27-29 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Jang et al. (US 20130249744 A1, hereinafter referred to as Jang) in view of Kim et al. (US 20160254588 Al, hereinafter referred to as Kim).
Regarding claim 14, Jang discloses an electronic device (100, Fig. 1) comprising:
a housing including a side member forming at least a side surface of the electronic device, the side member including a first conductive member, comprising conductive material, disposed therein formed as a conductive portion of the side member and configured to operate as a first antenna radiator ("The second antenna radiator 120 is a wire type radiator in the illustrated embodiment, is disposed on the case frame 110" and "The second radiator 120 is formed in a predetermined pattern and fixed to an internal surface 111 of the housing 110" where the case frame/housing provides the side surface and the wire is a conductive portion of that side member operating as radiator (paras [0029], [0032]; FIGS. 1-2);
a second conductive member, comprising conductive material, disposed inside the housing and configured to operate as a second antenna radiator ("the first antenna radiator 20 is embodied as a PEP antenna radiator 20 which is formed as a metal pattern on a printed circuit board (PCB) 10" inside the housing and operates as the second radiator (para [0029]; FIG. 2); and
a conductive connection member (130, Fig. 2), comprising conductive material, disposed adjacent to the first conductive member and the second conductive member, the conductive connection member including a first connecting portion (132, Fig. 2) in contact with the first conductive member.
Jang does not disclose a second connecting portion spaced apart by a gap from a region of the second conductive member such that coupling-feeding to the second conductive member is enabled.
Kim discloses “the second antenna member 520 and the connection rib 512 may be connected through an electromagnetic coupling that is induced when the radiation pattern 523 within the second antenna member 520 and the connection rib 512 overlap, or are close to each other, e.g., within a predetermined distance" (para [0109]; FIG. 5).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the C-clip conductive connection member of Jang to include a second connecting portion (connection rib) spaced apart by a gap from the internal second conductive member (PEP radiator) of Jang so that coupling-feeding is enabled. One of ordinary skill would have been motivated to do so because Jang already recognizes multi-band interference issues with direct feeding of both radiators (para [0016]), and US20160254588Al explicitly teaches that electromagnetic coupling via a spaced (non-contact) connecting rib provides flexible multi-radiator operation, bandwidth extension, and isolation without requiring additional direct contacts, while still using the same C-clip-style connector structure already present in Jang.
Regarding claim 15, Jang discloses the electronic device of claim 14, wherein at least part of the first connecting portion of the conductive connection member is elastic (“The elastic portion 135 of the C-clip 130 holds contact by elastic power while coming in contact with the terminal portion 125….”, para 0049).
Regarding claim 16, Jang discloses the electronic device of claim 15, wherein at least part of the first connecting portion of the conductive connection member is curved (see curved C-clip 130, Fig. 2).
Regarding claim 17, Jang discloses the electronic device of claim 14, wherein the first connecting portion (132, Fig. 2) substantially faces at least part of the first conductive member (13, Fig. 2) and not the second conductive member, and the second connecting portion (135, Fig. 2) substantially faces at least part of the second conductive member (125, Fig. 2) and not the first conductive member.
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Regarding claim 18, Jang discloses the electronic device of claim 17, wherein the second connecting portion (135, see annotated Fig. 4 above) is substantially parallel (“Parallel”, see annotated Fig. 4 above) with the first connecting portion (132, see annotated Fig. 4 above).
Regarding claim 19, Jang discloses the electronic device of claim 17, wherein the second connecting portion (135, Fig. 2) is substantially perpendicular (“Perpendicular”, see annotated Fig. 4 above) to the first connecting portion (132, Fig. 2).
Regarding claim 22, Jang discloses the electronic device of claim 14, wherein the second conductive member (120, Figs. 2, 4) is part of an antenna carrier (115, Fig. 4) disposed inside the housing.
Regarding claim 23, Jang discloses the electronic device of claim 14, further comprising: a wireless communication circuit (15, Fig. 3, para 0029, 0045) configured to transmit a first signal via the first conductive member (20, Fig. 3) based on direct-feeding to the first connecting portion (132, Fig. 4), and a second signal via the second conductive member (120, Fig. 2, 4) based on coupled-feeding (via 130) to the second connecting portion (135, Fig. 4).
Regarding claim 24, Jang discloses the electronic device of claim 23, wherein the wireless communication circuit is configured to: perform the transmitting such that the first signal and the second signal correspond to a first frequency band and a second frequency band at least partially different from the first frequency band, respectively (para 0050).
Regarding claim 27, Jang discloses the electronic device of claim 14, further comprising a wireless communication circuit disposed on a printed circuit board and electrically connected to the conductive connection member ("electrically connected with a power feeding portion 13 of a PCB 10 by a suitable electric connection means" and the wireless circuit feeds through the PCB (paras [0032], [0050]; FIG. 2).
Regarding claim 28, Jang discloses the electronic device of claim 14, wherein the conductive connection member further comprises an elastic member configured to maintain the first portion in contact with the first conductive member "The C-clip 130 used as the electric connection means is bent at its center by a curved shape and has elasticity to realize a spring loaded electrical connection on opposite sides" and "the elastic portion 135 of the C-clip 130 holds contact by elastic power while coming in contact with the terminal portion 125" (paras [0041], [0049]; FIGS. 2, 4).
Regarding claim 29, the modified Jang discloses the electronic device of claim 14, wherein the second portion comprises a portion of the conductive connection member facing a region of the second conductive member across the gap ("the radiation pattern 523 within the second antenna member 520 and the connection rib 512 overlap, or are close to each other, e.g., within a predetermined distance" where the connection rib (second portion) faces the second member across the gap (para [0109]; FIG. 5 of Kim).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 20, 21, 25, and 26 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.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to claim(s) 14-29 have been considered but are moot because the new ground of rejection does not rely on any reference applied in the prior rejection of record for any teaching or matter specifically challenged in the argument.
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 DANIEL D CHANG whose telephone number is (571)272-1801. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 8-5 EST.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Alexander Taningco can be reached at 5712728048. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/DANIEL D CHANG/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2844