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 .
The information disclosure statements filed on 10/15/2024, 4/2/2025, and 4/28/2025 have been entered. Claims 1-20 are presented for examination.
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.
(a)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claims 1-2, and 11-12 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a) (1) as being anticipated by Suh et al. (Suh – 2025/0007146; herein after referred to as “Suh”).
Regarding claim 1, Suh discloses an antenna array comprising: at least one radiation module comprising a radiation layer and a dielectric layer arranged in stack, the radiation layer comprising a plurality of radiators, each of the plurality of radiators configured to radiate signals (Suh; Fig. 1, 2(a) – (b); par. 0044—0066; plurality of patch antennas PA11-PA28),
the dielectric layer being made of non-conductive material (Suh; Fig. 1, 2(a) – (b); par. 0044—0066; plurality of patch antennas PA11-PA28, plurality of dielectric layers GND1-GND4, F1 to F8 may be disposed in the top regions with respects to a central axis of the PCB 1010a, the F9 to F16 may be disposed in the bottom region with respects to a central axis of the PCB1010a);
a feed module arranged on a side of the radiation module closes to the dielectric layer, the feed module comprising a first feed layer and a second feed layer arranged in a stack, the first feed layer provided with a plurality of first feed lines, the second feed layer provided with a plurality of second feed lines, the plurality of first feed lines and the plurality of second feed lines arranged in one-to-one correspondence, forming a plurality of feed line units, the plurality of feed line units corresponding to the plurality of radiators one-to-one for providing feed signals for the corresponding radiators (Suh; Fig. 1, 2(a) – (b); par. 0044—0066; plurality of patch antennas PA11-PA28, plurality of dielectric layers GND1-GND4, F1 to F8 may be disposed in the top regions with respects to a central axis of the PCB 1010a, the F9 to F16 may be disposed in the bottom region with respects to a central axis of the PCB1010a, the feed layers formed a stack on RFIC 1400a; par. 0057 – CP11 to CP28 corresponding to coupling pads and overlaps areas with the patch antennas PA11 to PA28).
Regarding claim 2, Suh discloses the antenna array of claim 1, wherein the feed module further comprises a coupling layer arranged close to the at least one radiation module, the feed module is configured to couple a current signal flowing through the plurality of feed line units to the at least one radiation module (Suh; Fig. 1, 2(a) – (b); par. 0044—0066; plurality of patch antennas PA11-PA28, plurality of dielectric layers GND1-GND4, F1 to F8 may be disposed in the top regions with respects to a central axis of the PCB 1010a, the F9 to F16 may be disposed in the bottom region with respects to a central axis of the PCB1010a; par. 0057, 0066 – CP11 to CP28 corresponding to coupling pads and overlaps areas with the patch antennas to PA11 to PA28).
Regarding claim 11, Suh discloses a ground station comprising an antenna array, the antenna array comprising: at least one radiation module comprising a radiation layer and a dielectric layer arranged in stack, the radiation layer comprising a plurality of radiators, each of the plurality of radiators configured to radiate signals, the dielectric layer being made of non-conductive material; a feed module arranged on a side of the radiation module closes to the dielectric layer, the feed module comprising a first feed layer and a second feed layer arranged in a stack, the first feed layer provided with a plurality of first feed lines, the second feed layer provided with a plurality of second feed lines, the plurality of first feed lines and the plurality of second feed lines arranged in one-to-one correspondence, forming a plurality of feed line units, the plurality of feed line units corresponding to the plurality of radiators one-to-one for providing feed signals for the corresponding radiators (Suh; Fig. 1, 2(a) – (b); par. 0044—0066; plurality of patch antennas PA11-PA28, plurality of dielectric layers GND1-GND4, F1 to F8 may be disposed in the top regions with respects to a central axis of the PCB 1010a, the F9 to F16 may be disposed in the bottom region with respects to a central axis of the PCB1010a; par. 0057, 0066 – CP11 to CP28 corresponding to coupling pads and overlaps areas with the patch antennas to PA11 to PA28) .
Regarding claim 12, Suh discloses the ground station of claim 11, wherein the feed module further comprises a coupling layer arranged close to the at least one radiation module, the feed module is configured to couple a current signal flowing through the plurality of feed line units to the at least one radiation module (Suh; Fig. 1, 2(a) – (b); par. 0044—0066; plurality of patch antennas PA11-PA28, plurality of dielectric layers GND1-GND4, F1 to F8 may be disposed in the top regions with respects to a central axis of the PCB 1010a, the F9 to F16 may be disposed in the bottom region with respects to a central axis of the PCB1010a; par. 0057, 0066 – CP11 to CP28 corresponding to coupling pads and overlaps areas with the patch antennas to PA11 to PA28).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 3-10, and 13-20 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.
i. The antenna array of claim 2, wherein the coupling layer is provided with a plurality of coupling slots, the plurality of coupling slots and the plurality of feed line units are arranged in one-to-one correspondence (claim 3; claim 13 recites similar limitations to claim 3).
ii. The antenna array of claim 1, wherein the at least one radiation module comprises two radiation modules, the radiation layer of one of the two radiation modules closes to the dielectric layer of the other one of the two radiation modules, the plurality of radiators of the radiation layer of the two radiation modules are arranged in one-to-one correspondence, two corresponding radiators receive the feed signal provided by a same feed line unit (claim 4; claim 5 depends on claim 4; claims 14-15 recite similar limitations to claim 4-5).
iii. The antenna array of claim 1, wherein the first feed layer is provided with a plurality of first receiving grooves, the plurality of first receiving grooves penetrates the first feed layer, the second feed layer is provided with a plurality of second receiving grooves, the plurality of second receiving grooves penetrates the second feed layer, the plurality of first feed lines is arranged in the plurality of first receiving grooves, the plurality of second feed lines is arranged in the plurality of second receiving grooves (claim 6; claims 16 recites similar limitations to claim 6; claim 17 depends on claim 16).
iv. The antenna array of claim 6, wherein an extension direction of the first feed line in the first feed layer does not completely coincide with an extension direction of the corresponding second feed line in the second feed layer (claim 7).
v. The antenna array of claim 1, wherein the feed module further comprises a cavity layer and ground layer, the cavity layer is arranged between the second feed layer and the ground layer, the cavity layer is provided with a plurality of through cavities, the plurality of through cavities is arranged in one-to-one correspondence with the plurality of feed line units (claim 8).
vi. The antenna array of claim 1, wherein the feed signal comprises a first feed signal and a second feed signal, the at feed module further comprises a plurality of phase couplers, the plurality of phase couplers is arranged on the first feed layer or the second feed layer, each of the plurality of phase couplers is connected to the first feed line and the second feed line correspondingly, the plurality of phase couplers is configured to output the first feed signal to the plurality of first feed lines, the plurality of phase couplers is further configured to output the second feed signal to the plurality of second feed lines (claim 9; claim 10 depends on claim 9).
vii. The ground station of claim 11, wherein the feed module further comprises a cavity layer and a ground layer, the cavity layer is arranged between the second feed layer and the ground layer, the cavity layer is provided with a plurality of through cavities, the plurality of through cavities is arranged in one-to-one correspondence with the plurality of feed line units (claim 18; claim 19-20 depends on claim 18).
Conclusion
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/THIEN M LE/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2876