NON-FINAL OFFICE ACTION
This Office Action is a Non-Fianl office action of Reissue continuation of U.S. Application No. 17/541,072 now abandon which is a reissue of 16/414,610 now abandon which is also a reissue of 14/428,269 now U.S. Patent No. 9,655,279 issued on May 16, 2017 to Pelletier et al. (the ‘279 patent).
The status of the claims amended on 5/21/2021 is as follows;
Claims 20-33 are new and pending.
Claims 1-19 are cancelled.
Claims 20-33 are rejected.
Reissue Oath/ Declaration 35 U.S.C. §251 rejection
The reissue oath/declaration filed with this application is defective because it fails to identify at least one claim with respect to the error which is relied upon to support the reissue application. See 37 CFR 1.175 and MPEP § 1414. The Broadening reissue application is directed to an overlooked aspect namely the reissue application is directed to systems with a cooling system and a CPU surface with specific features.
Claims 20-33 are rejected as being based upon a defective reissue Declaration under 35 U.S.C. 251. See 37 CFR 1.175. The nature of the defect is set forth above.
Receipt of an appropriate supplemental oath/declaration will overcome this rejection. An example of acceptable language to be used in the supplemental oath/declaration is as follows:
“The reissue application is a broadening reissue application and is directed to an overlooked aspect. For example, claim 1 of the issued patent are directed to systems with a specific coolant. In contrast, the independent claim 20 pending in this reissue application is directed to systems with a cooling system and a CPU surface with specific features..”
See MPEP § 1414.01.
Claim Interpretation
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(f):
(f) Element in Claim for a Combination. – An element in a claim for a combination may be expressed as a means or step for performing a specified function without the recital of structure, material, or acts in support thereof, and such claim shall be construed to cover the corresponding structure, material, or acts described in the specification and equivalents thereof.
The following is a quotation of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph:
An element in a claim for a combination may be expressed as a means or step for performing a specified function without the recital of structure, material, or acts in support thereof, and such claim shall be construed to cover the corresponding structure, material, or acts described in the specification and equivalents thereof.
The claims in this application are given their broadest reasonable interpretation using the plain meaning of the claim language in light of the specification as it would be understood by one of ordinary skill in the art. The broadest reasonable interpretation of a claim element (also commonly referred to as a claim limitation) is limited by the description in the specification when 35 U.S.C. 112(f) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph, is invoked.
As explained in MPEP § 2181, subsection I, claim limitations that meet the following three-prong test will be interpreted under 35 U.S.C. 112(f) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph:
Claim 20 “the porous network configured to facilitate bubble formation and bubble release when the porous network is immersed in liquid coolant.” Functional Phrase #1 FP#1
Claim limitations in this application that use the word “means” (or “step”) are being interpreted under 35 U.S.C. 112(f) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph, except as otherwise indicated in an Office action. Conversely, claim limitations in this application that do not use the word “means” (or “step”) are not being interpreted under 35 U.S.C. 112(f) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph, except as otherwise indicated in an Office action. In this case the “the porous network” is the nonce term that acts as “a means for”. The corresponding structure required for performing the claimed function is described as follows: in the 279’ patent column 9 lines 10-31 “the porous network” is configured to facilitate or “it is possible to provide the CPU surface with a treatment or configuration facilitating bubble formation and bubble release. An example of such surface configuration is to create a porous layer that will increase the surface area of the CPU/coolant interface. The porosity and the thickness of the porous layer may vary. For instance, the pores are open pores to allow bubbles to escape. In addition, it is generally preferred to dimension the pores such that the average pore size is larger than the average bubble size. In this fashion, bubbles are less likely to become trapped in the porous network. Bubble formation may induce an isolation layer due to the fact that the heat transfer from the surface of the electronic module 18 is less through gas than through liquid. The bubble starts small and increases in size until the point where the force of differential density is larger than the force of adhesion of the bubble surface to the CPU surface. Hence the bubble should be carried away as fast as possible once created. Another feature of the porous layer is to increase the heat transfer coefficient, thereby increasing the heat flux at the CPU/coolant interface.”
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JOHN M HOTALING II whose telephone number is (571)272-4437. The examiner can normally be reached 730-4 Monday - Friday.
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/JOHN M HOTALING II/Reexamination Specialist, Art Unit 3992
Conferees:
/Cameron Saadat/Patent Reexam Specialist, Art Unit 3992 /ANDREW J. FISCHER/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3992
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