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 .
Priority
Acknowledgment is made of applicant’s claim for foreign priority under 35 U.S.C. 119 (a)-(d). The certified copy has been filed in parent Application No. 202311054651.4, filed on 10/10/2023 in China.
Information Disclosure Statement
The IDS filed on 08/19/2024 has been considered and made of record.
Oath/Declaration
The oath/declaration filed on 08/19/2024 is acceptable.
Drawings
The drawings are objected to as failing to comply with 37 CFR 1.84(p)(4) because reference character “12” has been used to designate both “a plurality of terminals, as shown in figures 2-3” and “a pivotal axis of the lever 30, as shown in figures 6 and 8”. 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. 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 Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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 (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) 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.
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.
Claim 16 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Liao et al. [CN220776140].
Regarding claim 16, Liao et al., disclose a card edge connector (110, figures 1-6) adapted for an insertion of an electronic card (10, figures 1D-1G), comprising:
a connector base (110, figures 1A-1F) having a card slot (112, figures 1A-1F) and plural terminals (no label, a plurality of terminals disposed within the card slot, figures 1B-1D and 1F-1G);
a latch (122, figures 1B-1C and 1E-1G) located at a first end (114, figures 1A-1G) of the connector base for locking the electronic card inserted into the card slot (122, figures 1E and 1F); and
a releasing member (120, figures 1A-1G);
wherein the releasing member comprises a lever (135, figures 1B-1G) and a moving member (131, figures 1B-1G), the lever is connected with the latch at a first end (114, figures 1B-1G) thereof and coupled to the moving member at an opposite second end (116, figures 1B-1G) thereof, the lever further has a spring portion (142, figures 1B-1G), the spring portion keeps the lever in a preliminary position to keep the latch in an opening state (figures 1D-1G), and the spring portion is able to push the lever to restore the latch back to the opening state when the electronic card is pulled out (figure 1G).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 1-11 and 12-15 are allowed.
The following is an examiner’s statement of reasons for allowance: Hu [US 2003/0232521] is as the closest prior art.
Hu discloses a card edge connector (1, figures 1-5) adapted for an insertion of an electronic card (34, figure 4), comprising a connector base (21 & 211, figures 1-4) having a card slot (a cavity of the card edge connector, figures 2 and 4) and plural terminals (a plurality of terminals disposed within the connector base 211, figures 1-2 and 4) located at opposite sides of the card slot; a latch (4, figures 1-4) located at one end of the connector base for locking the electronic card inserted into the card slot; and a releasing member (23, figures 1-4) comprises a lever (213, figures 1-4) and a moving member (a sliding portion disposed within the releasing member 23, figures 1-2 and 4); the lever are disposed at outsides of the card slot and are connected with the connector base in a pivoting manner (a pivotal member extended from the connector base 211, figures 1-2 and 4). However, Hu alone or in combination with other prior arts does not teach or disclose the releasing member comprises two levers and the two levers disposed at out sides of the card slot, and a first end of the lever is connected with the latch, and the moving member drives the second ends of the levers to move downward, resulting in the first ends of the lever moving upwards to push the latch to lock with the electronic card, as claimed in the claims 1-11.
Hu discloses a card edge connector (1, figures 1-5) comprising: a longitudinal connector base (21 & 211, figures 1-4) having two longitudinal walls, a card slot (a cavity of the card edge connector, figures 2 and 4) between the two longitudinal walls, a pivoting shaft (a pivotal member extended from the connector base 211, figures 1-2 and 4) protruding outward from one side of the longitudinal wall(s); a latch (4, figures 1-4) being located at the first end of the connector base and pivotable towards or away from the card slot; and a releasing member (23, figures 1-4) comprises a lever (213, figures 1-4) and a moving member (a sliding portion disposed within the releasing member 23, figures 1-2 and 4); the lever are attached to the longitudinal wall(s) and the lever has a pivoting hole (figures 1 and 4) assembled with the pivoting shaft of the connector base. However, Hu alone or in combination with other prior arts does not teach or disclose the releasing member comprises two levers and the two levers are attached to the longitudinal walls; the moving member is received in the card slot; and a spring portion extends slantwise from the lever downward toward the pivoting hole, and the spring portion presses against a lower portion of the connector base or a printed circuit board where the connector base is mounted, as claimed in the claims 12-15.
Any comments considered necessary by applicant must be submitted no later than the payment of the issue fee and, to avoid processing delays, should preferably accompany the issue fee. Such submissions should be clearly labeled “Comments on Statement of Reasons for Allowance.”
Claim 17 is 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.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter: The claim 17 discloses the combination features of “wherein the spring portion extends slantwise from the second end of the lever and presses against a lower portion of the connector base or a printed circuit board where the connector base is mounted.” These features, in conjunction with other features, as claimed in the claim 16, were neither found to be disclosed, nor suggested by the prior art of records.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Hu [US 2003/0232521] discloses stacked electrical card connector assembly.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Hung S. Bui whose telephone number is (571)272-2102. The examiner can normally be reached on M-F: 8am-5pm.
Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Allen L. Parker can be reached on (303) 297-4722. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov.
Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center.
for more information about Patent Center and
https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format.
For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000.
/HUNG S. BUI/
Primary Examiner
Art Unit 2841
/HUNG S. BUI/ Primary Examiner, 2841/2800
Prosecution Insights