DETAILED ACTION
The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
The Art Unit location of your application in the PTO has changed. To aid in correlating any papers for this application, all further correspondence regarding this application should be directed to Group Art Unit 2691.
This communication is responsive to the claims filed 08/13/2024.
Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status
In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status.
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 1-4 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by McCuller et al. (U. S. Pat. No. - 5,821,471).
Regarding claim 1, McCuller et al. disclose an electronic device (10) comprising a first speaker (14) and a sound guiding component (18, 40-51), wherein: the first speaker is in communication with the sound guiding component (Fig. 2); the sound guiding component is configured to receive a sound wave generated by a vibration of the first speaker (Fig. 2), form a sound signal based on the sound wave, and then output the sound signal to a user end (20) to improve a frequency response capability of the first speaker (Fig. 5-6).
Regarding claim 2, McCuller et al. further disclose the electronic device comprising: a chamber body (12) including a first opening (80) and a second opening (20); wherein: the sound guiding component includes a first end (58) and a second end (20); the first speaker is in communication with the chamber body based on the first opening (Fig. 2); the first end is in communication with the chamber body based on the second opening and is configured to receive the sound wave generated by the vibration of the first speaker; and the second end is configured to output the sound signal (Fig. 2).
Regarding claim 3, McCuller et al. further disclose the electronic device, comprising: a first housing (23) including a sound output hole (20) configured to transmit the sound signal to the user end (Fig. 2); wherein the position of the sound output hole at the first housing corresponds to a position of the second end in an extension direction of the sound guiding component (Figs. 2 and 41-45).
Regarding claim 4, McCuller et al. further disclose the electronic device, wherein the sound guiding component includes: a sound-guiding tube including: a plurality of first tubes; and a plurality of bending members, a bending member being configured to connect two neighboring first tubes (Figs 2 and 41-45).
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 103(a) 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.
This application currently names joint inventors. In considering patentability of the claims under 35 U.S.C. 103 (a), the examiner presumes that the subject matter of the various claims was commonly owned at the time any inventions covered therein were made absent any evidence to the contrary. Applicant is advised of the obligation under 37 CFR 1.56 to point out the inventor and invention dates of each claim that was not commonly owned at the time a later invention was made in order for the examiner to consider the applicability of 35 U.S.C. 103(c) and potential 35 U.S.C. 102(e), (f) or (g) prior art under 35 U.S.C. 103(a).
Claim 10 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103(a) as being unpatentable over McCuller et al. (U. S. Pat. No. - 5,821,471).
Regarding claim 10, McCuller et al. may not specially teach an audio processing assembly as claimed. Since McCuller et al. et al. do teach for utilize the structural elements of the electronic device in many applications (Figs. 24-140) and providing suitable audio processing means for an acoustic electronic device is very well known in the art (Official Notice), it therefore would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to be motivated to provide suitable audio processing means, specially well-known and commercial available audio processing means, for the electronic device taught by McCuller et al., in order to provide efficient and effective acoustic signal processing for the electronic device.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 5-9 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.
Conclusion
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/SUHAN NI/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2691