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 Objections
Claims 10-11 are objected to because of the following informalities:
Regarding claim 10, line 1, “any one of” should be deleted.
Regarding claim 11, line 1, “any one of” should be deleted.
Appropriate correction is required.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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 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.
The factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness.
This application currently names joint inventors. In considering patentability of the claims the examiner presumes that the subject matter of the various claims was commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the claimed invention(s) absent any evidence to the contrary. Applicant is advised of the obligation under 37 CFR 1.56 to point out the inventor and effective filing dates of each claim that was not commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the later invention in order for the examiner to consider the applicability of 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(2)(C) for any potential 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) prior art against the later invention.
Claims 1-2 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Wang et al. (CN 107132372 A) (hereinafter Wang) (citations from English machine translation provided in IDS filed 26 September 2024) in view of Nakatani (US 2010/0194407 A1) (hereinafter Nakatani).
Regarding claim 1, Wang teaches an acceleration sensor [accelerometer] (Para [0001]) comprising:
a MEMS electrode that is provided and includes a fixed electrode having a first fixed electrode and a second fixed electrode electrically insulated from the first fixed electrode [fixed electrodes 5, 7 and 9, 11], and a movable electrode having a first movable electrode and a second movable electrode electrically insulated from the first movable electrode [movable electrodes 4, 8 (mass block 1) and 6, 10 (mass block 2)] (Para [0037], see Fig. 3), and constitutes a differential circuit (Para [0038-0057], see Fig. 4); and
an isolation joint that mechanically connects the first movable electrode and the second movable electrode while electrically insulating the first movable electrode and the second movable electrode [mass block 3 connected together with mass block 1 and mass block 2; mass block 3 is an insulator electrically isolating block 1 and block 2] (Para [0037], see Fig. 3).
Wang fails to teach a substrate having a first main surface and a second main surface facing the first main surface; a recessed portion recessed from the first main surface toward the second main surface; wherein the MEMS electrode is provided in the recessed portion. Nakatani teaches a MEMS acceleration sensor comprising a substrate having a first main surface and a second main surface facing the first main surface; a recessed portion recessed from the first main surface toward the second main surface; wherein the MEMS electrode is provided in the recessed portion (see Abstract, Figs. 1-6). It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art at the time of the filing of the invention to modify Wang with Nakatani such to further comprise a substrate having a first main surface and a second main surface facing the first main surface; a recessed portion recessed from the first main surface toward the second main surface; wherein the MEMS electrode is provided in the recessed portion, in order to form an accelerometer body to support the MEMS electrode.
Regarding claim 2, Wang in view of Nakatani as applied to claim 1 above teaches the claimed invention, in addition to wherein the first fixed electrode includes a plurality of first fixed electrode elements [fixed plates 5, 7], the second fixed electrode includes a plurality of second fixed electrode elements [fixed plates 9, 11] (Para [0037], see Fig. 3),
the first movable electrode includes a plurality of first movable electrode elements [movable plates 4, 8], the second movable electrode includes a plurality of second movable electrode elements [movable plates 6, 10] (Para [0037], see Fig. 3),
the MEMS electrode includes: a first capacitor including the plurality of first fixed electrode elements and the plurality of first movable electrode elements facing each of the plurality of first fixed electrode elements in a first direction [capacitor C1 comprises movable plate 4 and fixed plate 5] (Para [0037], see Fig. 3);
a second capacitor including the plurality of first fixed electrode elements and the plurality of second movable electrode elements facing each of the plurality of first fixed electrode elements in the first direction [capacitor C2 comprises movable plate 6 and fixed plate 7] (Para [0037], see Fig. 3);
a third capacitor including the plurality of second fixed electrode elements and the plurality of first movable electrode elements facing each of the plurality of second fixed electrode elements in the first direction [capacitor C3 comprises movable plate 8 and fixed plate 9] (Para [0037], see Fig. 3); and
a fourth capacitor including the plurality of second fixed electrode elements and the plurality of second movable electrode elements facing each of the plurality of second fixed electrode elements in the first direction [capacitor C4 comprises movable plate 10 and fixed plate 11] (Para [0037], see Fig. 3), and
when the first movable electrode and the second movable electrode are displaced in the first direction in a state where input voltages of opposite phases are input to the first movable electrode and the second movable electrode, output voltages of opposite phases are output from the first fixed electrode and the second fixed electrode [V1, V2 having opposite phases] (Para [0037-0038], see Figs. 3-4).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 3-11 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.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter:
Regarding claim 3, the primary reason for the indication of allowable subject matter is the inclusion of the limitations regarding in the first region, the first movable electrode element and the second movable electrode element arranged adjacent to one side in the first direction of the first movable electrode element are connected to each other via the isolation joint, these constitute a first set movable electrode element, and each of a plurality of the first set movable electrode elements and each of the plurality of first fixed electrode elements are alternately arranged in the first direction, and in the second region, the first movable electrode element and the second movable electrode element arranged adjacent to the other side in the first direction of the first movable electrode element are connected to each other via the isolation joint, these constitute a second set movable electrode element, and each of a plurality of the second set movable electrode elements and each of the plurality of second fixed electrode elements are alternately arranged in the first direction, in combination with the rest of the limitations found in the claim and any claims it depends upon.
Regarding claims 4-11, they are dependent on claim 3.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to DAVID Z HUANG whose telephone number is (571)270-5360. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Friday, 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM EST.
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/DAVID Z HUANG/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2855
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