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 .
Preliminary Amendment
The amendment filed 9/23/2024 pursuant to 37 CFR 1.115 and 37 CFR 1.125 was entered.
Priority
Acknowledgment is made of applicant’s claim for foreign priority under 35 U.S.C. 119 (a)-(d). Receipt is acknowledged of certified copies of papers required by 37 CFR 1.55.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 9/23/2024 is in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97 and being considered by the examiner.
Specification
The title of the invention is not descriptive. A new title is required that is clearly indicative of the invention to which the claims are directed.
The following title is suggested: Dielectric Filter With Coupling Patterns.
Double Patenting
The nonstatutory double patenting rejection is based on a judicially created doctrine grounded in public policy (a policy reflected in the statute) so as to prevent the unjustified or improper timewise extension of the “right to exclude” granted by a patent and to prevent possible harassment by multiple assignees. A nonstatutory double patenting rejection is appropriate where the conflicting claims are not identical, but at least one examined application claim is not patentably distinct from the reference claim(s) because the examined application claim is either anticipated by, or would have been obvious over, the reference claim(s). See, e.g., In re Berg, 140 F.3d 1428, 46 USPQ2d 1226 (Fed. Cir. 1998); In re Goodman, 11 F.3d 1046, 29 USPQ2d 2010 (Fed. Cir. 1993); In re Longi, 759 F.2d 887, 225 USPQ 645 (Fed. Cir. 1985); In re Van Ornum, 686 F.2d 937, 214 USPQ 761 (CCPA 1982); In re Vogel, 422 F.2d 438, 164 USPQ 619 (CCPA 1970); In re Thorington, 418 F.2d 528, 163 USPQ 644 (CCPA 1969).
A timely filed terminal disclaimer in compliance with 37 CFR 1.321(c) or 1.321(d) may be used to overcome an actual or provisional rejection based on nonstatutory double patenting provided the reference application or patent either is shown to be commonly owned with the examined application, or claims an invention made as a result of activities undertaken within the scope of a joint research agreement. See MPEP § 717.02 for applications subject to examination under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA as explained in MPEP § 2159. See MPEP § 2146 et seq. for applications not subject to examination under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA . A terminal disclaimer must be signed in compliance with 37 CFR 1.321(b).
The filing of a terminal disclaimer by itself is not a complete reply to a nonstatutory double patenting (NSDP) rejection. A complete reply requires that the terminal disclaimer be accompanied by a reply requesting reconsideration of the prior Office action. Even where the NSDP rejection is provisional the reply must be complete. See MPEP § 804, subsection I.B.1. For a reply to a non-final Office action, see 37 CFR 1.111(a). For a reply to final Office action, see 37 CFR 1.113(c). A request for reconsideration while not provided for in 37 CFR 1.113(c) may be filed after final for consideration. See MPEP §§ 706.07(e) and 714.13.
The USPTO Internet website contains terminal disclaimer forms which may be used. Please visit www.uspto.gov/patent/patents-forms. The actual filing date of the application in which the form is filed determines what form (e.g., PTO/SB/25, PTO/SB/26, PTO/AIA /25, or PTO/AIA /26) should be used. A web-based eTerminal Disclaimer may be filled out completely online using web-screens. An eTerminal Disclaimer that meets all requirements is auto-processed and approved immediately upon submission. For more information about eTerminal Disclaimers, refer to www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/applying-online/eterminal-disclaimer.
Claims 1-3 are provisionally rejected on the ground of nonstatutory double patenting as being unpatentable over claims 1, 3, and 4 of co-pending Application No. 18/552,488 (“Reference Application”). Although the claims at issue are not identical, they are not patentably distinct from each other because the identified claims of the Reference Application recite substantially the same limitations recited in the identified claims of the present application. The following chart identifies which claims from the present application correspond to conflicting claims of the Reference Application.
Present Application
Reference Application
1
1
2
3
3
4
This is a provisional nonstatutory double patenting rejection because the patentably indistinct claims have not in fact been patented. The identified claims of the Reference Application recite additional limitations and therefore meet the identified claims of the present application under an “anticipation” analysis in the provisional double patenting rejection.
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 1-3 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2021/0296748 A1, published Sep. 23, 2021 (“Ogawa”), cited by the applicant.
Ogawa discloses in Figs. 1-3, 20-22 and the corresponding description:
Claim 1
A filter (Figs. 1-3, 20-22, filter 10, ¶¶37-56, 92-99) comprising:
a dielectric substrate (14);
a first shielding conductor (12B) formed in vicinity of a first main surface (14b) of the dielectric substrate;
a second shielding conductor (12A) formed in vicinity of a second main surface (14a) of the dielectric substrate;
a plurality of resonators (11A to 11C) each including a via electrode portion (20) formed inside the dielectric substrate and a capacitor electrode (18) facing toward the first shielding conductor and connected to one end of the via electrode portion; and
a first capacitive coupling structure including a first electrode pattern (a portion of electrode 18 or a portion of electrode 27A) connected to a first capacitor electrode (18) which is the capacitor electrode provided in a first resonator (11A) from among the plurality of resonators, and a second electrode pattern (a portion of electrode 29) connected to a second capacitor electrode (18) which is the capacitor electrode provided in a second resonator (11B) from among the plurality of resonators, at least a portion of the second electrode pattern overlapping with at least a portion of the first electrode pattern as viewed in plan (Figs. 1, 3, 20, 22).
Claim 2
further comprising a second capacitive coupling structure including a third electrode pattern (a portion of electrode 29) connected to the second capacitor electrode, and a fourth electrode pattern (a portion of electrode 18 or a portion of electrode 27B) connected to a third capacitor electrode (18) which is the capacitor electrode provided in a third resonator (11C) from among the plurality of resonators, at least a portion of the fourth electrode pattern overlapping with at least a portion of the third electrode pattern as viewed in plan (Figs. 1, 3, 20, 22).
Claim 3
wherein the second capacitive coupling structure further includes a fifth electrode pattern (portion of electrode 29) connected to a second via electrode portion (20B) which is the via electrode portion provided in the second resonator (11B), at least a portion of the fifth electrode pattern overlapping with at least a portion of the fourth electrode pattern (a portion of electrode 18 or electrode 27B) as viewed in plan.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claim 4 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.
Claim 5 is allowed because the prior art identified to date does not disclose or render obvious the feature of “a first distance, which is a distance between the capacitor electrode and the capacitive coupling structure in the first direction, is less than or equal to twice a second distance, which is a distance between the first shielding conductor and the capacitor electrode in the first direction,” in combination with the remaining limitations of the claim.
Claim 6 is allowed as dependent on the allowable claim 5.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2022/0131249 A1, published Apr. 28, 2022 (“Uemichi”) discloses a dielectric waveguide filter including a plurality of coupled resonators (Fig. 4, ¶¶126-128).
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to VICTOR COLE, telephone number (571) 272-4686. The examiner can be reached Monday-Friday, 9AM-5PM ET.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, ANDREA LINDGREN BALTZELL, can be reached at (571) 272-5918. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is (571) 273-8300.
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/VICTOR COLE/
Examiner, Art Unit 2843
/ANDREA LINDGREN BALTZELL/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2843