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 .
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 1-7, 10-16, 19-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Trout (US 6,945,788).
Regarding claim 1: Trout teaches an apparatus for a socket (Fig. 38), the apparatus comprising: a pin arrangement (Fig. 38) including a plurality of segmented pin patterns 508 that are separated from each other by an axis disposed therebetween (see Fig. 38), each pin pattern having a plurality of pins 110, each pin including main body having a lateral asymmetric cross-section that has a same shape as other pins (see Figs. 27-40), the pin patterns being symmetrical around the axis (see Fig. 38 for pin patters being symmetrical).
Regarding claim 2: Trout teaches all the limitations of claim 1 and further teaches wherein the pin arrangement comprises pin patterns arranged in a square (Fig. 38).
Regarding claim 3: Trout teaches all the limitations of claim 2 and further teaches wherein each pin pattern 508 is mirrored from adjacent pin patterns by one of multiple orthogonal axes that separate the pin pattern from the adjacent pin patterns (see Fig. 38).
Regarding claim 4: Trout teaches all the limitations of claim 1 and further teaches wherein each pin further includes: a first connector extending from one end of the main body and configured to make electrical contact to an electronic circuit, and a second connector extending from an opposing end of the main body and configured to contact a contact pad (see Figs. 5-43 and Col. 5, lines 47-54).
Regarding claim 5: Trout teaches all the limitations of claim 4 and further teaches wherein the second connector includes an arm extending from the main body and a hook configured to contact the contact pad (see Figs. 42-43).
Regarding claim 6: Trout teaches all the limitations of claim 4 and further teaches wherein the main body comprises perpendicular sides, the first connector extending from one of the perpendicular sides and the second connector extending from another of the perpendicular sides (see Figs. 42-43).
Regarding claim 7: Trout teaches all the limitations of claim 1 and further teaches wherein the pins in each arrangement are formed in rows of pins, each row of pins includes multiple horizontal lines of pins, and each horizontal line includes four pins (see Figs. 38-40).
Regarding claim 10: Trout teaches all the limitations of claim 1 and further teaches wherein the main body has a substantially “L” shape (see Figs. 13-40).
Regarding claim 11: Trout teaches all the limitations of claim 1 and further teaches wherein the pins are landing grid array (LGA) pins (Fig. 38).
Regarding claim 12: Trout teaches an apparatus for a printed circuit board (PCB), the apparatus comprising: a central processing unit (CPU) pin arrangement configured to be coupled to a CPU (see Figs. 5-43 and Col. 5, lines 47-54), the CPU pin arrangement including a plurality of segmented pin patterns that are separated from each other by an axis disposed therebetween (see Figs. 38-40), each pin pattern having a plurality of pins 110, each pin including: a main body having a lateral asymmetric cross-section (see Figs. 38-43), the pin patterns being mirrored around the axis (Fig. 38), a first connector extending from one end of the main body and coupled to the PCB through solder, and a second connector extending from an opposing end of the main body and configured to contact a contact pad of the CPU (see Figs. 5-43 and Col. 5, lines 47-54).
Regarding claim 13: Trout teaches all the limitations of claim 12 and further teaches wherein: the CPU pin arrangement comprises multiple pin patterns arranged in a square (see Figs. 20-38), and each pin pattern is mirrored from adjacent pin patterns by one of multiple orthogonal axes that separate the pin pattern from the adjacent pin patterns (Figs. 20-38).
Regarding claim 14: Trout teaches all the limitations of claim 12 and further teaches wherein the main body comprises perpendicular sides, the first connector extending from one of the perpendicular sides and the second connector extending from another of the perpendicular sides (see Figs. 27-40).
Regarding claim 15: Trout teaches all the limitations of claim 14 and further teaches wherein the main body has a substantially “L” shape (Figs. 13-40).
Regarding claim 16: Trout teaches all the limitations of claim 12 and further teaches wherein the pins in each pin pattern are formed in rows of pins, each row of pins includes multiple horizontal lines of pins, and each horizontal line includes at least four pins (see Figs. 38-40).
Regarding claim 19: Trout teaches a method of fabricating a server socket, the method comprising: attaching a first set of pins in first diametrically opposed pin patterns of a central processing unit (CPU) pin arrangement of a server motherboard (see Figs. 5-43 and Col. 5, lines 47-54), the first set of pins in one of the first diametrically opposed pin patterns being rotated 180 degrees from another of the first diametrically opposed pin patterns (see Fig. 38); and attaching a second set of pins in second diametrically opposed pin patterns of the CPU pin arrangement, the second set of pins in one of the second diametrically opposed pin patterns being rotated 180 degrees from another of the second diametrically opposed pin pattern, the first and second set of pins being mirrored (see Fig. 38).
Regarding claim 20: Trout teaches all the limitations of claim 19 and further teaches wherein: each pin includes: a main body having a lateral asymmetric cross-section (see Figs. 14-40), a first connector extending from one end of the main body, and a second connector extending from an opposing end of the main body (Figs. 40-43), the first connector terminating in a hook; and the method further comprises: soldering the first connectors to the motherboard; and making electrical contact between the second connectors and a CPU (see Figs. 40-43).
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 8-9, 17-18 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Trout (US 6,945,788), in view of Rangan (US 9,504,156).
Regarding claim 8: Trout teaches all the limitations of claim 7.
Trout does not explicitly teach wherein a first and second pin of the four pins of a particular horizontal line form a first differential pair, a third of the pins of the particular horizontal line forms a second differential pair with a pin of a horizontal line above the particular horizontal line, and a fourth of the pins of the particular horizontal line forms a third differential pair with a pin of a horizontal line below the particular horizontal line.
Rangan teaches a first and second pin of four pins of a particular horizontal line form a first differential pair, a third of the pins of the particular horizontal line forms a second differential pair with a pin of a horizontal line above the particular horizontal line, and a fourth of the pins of the particular horizontal line forms a third differential pair with a pin of a horizontal line below the particular horizontal line (see Figs. 7-8).
Therefore it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to be able to modify the invention with a first and second pin of the four pins of a particular horizontal line form a first differential pair, a third of the pins of the particular horizontal line forms a second differential pair with a pin of a horizontal line above the particular horizontal line, and a fourth of the pins of the particular horizontal line forms a third differential pair with a pin of a horizontal line below the particular horizontal line as taught by Rangan into the apparatus of Trout in order to achieve the advantage of minimizing signal integrity issues, reduce ground bounce and provide control over impedance.
Regarding claim 9: Trout, in view of Rangan, teaches all the limitations of claim 8 and further teaches wherein a first distance between the second and fourth pin is about equal to a second distance between the second pin and the pin of the horizontal line below the particular horizontal line, the second and fourth pin being adjacent (see Figs. 7-8 of Rangan).
Regarding claims 17-18: Rejected for substantially the same reasons as claims 8-9, respectively.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Please see PTO-892 for pertinent prior art, the following references being of closest relevance:
Ho (US 2024/0063579) teaches an electrical connector comprising a plurality of terminals positioned in a symmetrical pattern;
Buck (US 6,608,510) teaches an electrical power connector comprising overlapping differential signal pairs with contacts in a different row/column;
Trout (US 7,867,032) teaches a connector comprising a plurality of terminals positioned in different patterns;
Mulfinger (US 8,033,835) teaches an electrical connector comprising a plurality of terminals positioned in a symmetrical pattern;
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to OSCAR C JIMENEZ whose telephone number is (571)270-0272. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 8am-5pm.
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/OSCAR C JIMENEZ/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2831
