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 .
Continued Examination Under 37 CFR 1.114
A request for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, including the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e), was after final rejection. Since this application is eligible for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114. Applicant's submission filed on 4/16/26 has been entered.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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.
Claims 1-5 and 8-16 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Wang et al. (US 2021/0086290, hereafter “Wang”) in view of Shimizu et al. (JP 2006-231402-A, “Shimizu”, see attached document).
Regarding claims 1 and 16, Wang discloses an ultrasonic welding apparatus comprising a processing mechanism (figs. 1-5), including: a welding head 22 (horn- figs. 1-2, [0036]), wherein the welding head has a welding mark end surface 40 (curved outer surface- see fig. 2) at an end in a second direction, and a middle portion of the welding mark end surface in a first direction (horizontal direction) protrudes away from the welding head, so that said middle portion of the welding mark end surface 40 is curved in an arch shape (figs. 2-3); wherein a plurality of welding teeth 50/52 (fig. 4) are distributed on the welding mark end surface 40 [0038]; wherein the second direction is a length direction (vertical direction- fig. 2) of the welding head; and the second direction is perpendicular to the first direction (fig. 1).
Wang merely differs from the clam in being silent with respect to a reciprocating movement in the horizontal direction of the welding head. However, such feature is known in the art. Shimizu (also drawn to ultrasonic bonding) teaches that it is known in prior art to have a bonding/welding tool having protrusions/teeth on the surface, applying pressure and providing reciprocating linear motion in a horizontal direction by ultrasonic vibrations (see Background – [0003]). Shimizu also teaches the bonding tool being applied with ultrasonic vibration in the horizontal direction indicated by line AB in fig. 2. Accordingly, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to provide a reciprocating vibrations in the horizontal direction in the welding head of Wang since such movement is conventional in the ultrasonic bonding art, as evidenced by Shimizu. Thus, Wang as modified by Shimizu discloses that the first direction (x-direction) is parallel to a reciprocating movement direction of ultrasonic vibrations of the welding head during welding; and the second direction is perpendicular to the first direction.
As to claim 2, Wang shows that a cross-section of the welding mark end surface 40 parallel to the first direction is in an arc shape (fig. 2).
As to claim 3, Wang discloses that a plane passing through the middle portion of the welding head 22 in the first direction and perpendicular to the first direction is an intermediate plane (along line 42- fig. 2), and two opposite sides of the welding mark end surface on the intermediate plane are respectively a first region and a second region; wherein the first region and the second region are symmetrically arranged with respect to the intermediate plane (fig. 2). Examiner notes that features of first region and second region are open to any area and not limited by specific shape or dimensions. It is also noted that bending amplitude is optional due to ‘or’.
As to claim 4, Wang shows that points on the welding teeth 50/52 that are farthest from the welding mark end surface 40 in a direction perpendicular to the welding mark end surface are far points, wherein a surface on which a plurality of far points are located is a far surface, and a middle portion of the far surface is curved in an arch shape (fig. 4).
As to claim 5, Wang shows that the far surface is parallel to the welding mark end surface 40 (fig. 4).
As to claims 8-10, Wang discloses that points on the welding teeth that are farthest from the welding mark end surface in the second direction are far end points, wherein a surface on which all far end points are located is a far end surface, the far end surface is a plane, and the second direction 38 is perpendicular to the far end surface (fig. 2); wherein any two adjacent welding teeth on the welding mark end surface are spaced apart (fig. 4); an end of each of the welding teeth close to the welding mark end surface is a tooth root, wherein a joint between a surface of the tooth root and the welding mark end surface is a smooth curved surface due to curved surface 40 (fig. 2).
As to claim 11, Wang shows that a region of the welding mark end surface between two adjacent welding teeth 52 is recessed into an arc surface due to curved outer surface 40 (figs. 2, 4).
As to claim 12, Wang discloses that plurality of welding teeth 52 are arranged in rows and columns on the welding mark end surface (fig. 3).
As to claim 13, Wang shows that wherein edges of two ends of the welding head in the first direction are each provided with a first rounded corner; (fig. 2). The term ‘and/or’ is taken to mean ‘or’.
As to claim 14, Wang discloses that the welding teeth 52 are in pyramidal shape (fig. 4) and can also be formed in other shapes such as conical [0038].
As to claim 15, Wang discloses that the processing mechanism further comprises a supporting fixture 32 (fig. 1). Shimizu teaches that the processing mechanism further comprises a supporting body 170/190 (lifting & guide), wherein the welding head 140/150 is mounted on the supporting body (fig. 1). The supporting lifting & guide device moves the horn up and down (fig. 1). Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to incorporate any suitable supporting mount/fixture for the welding head in Wang since such feature is common knowledge and doing so would provide desired movement during welding operation.
Claims 6-7 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Wang in view of Shimizu as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of Popoola et al. (US 6523732) & Shi et al. (CN-215919402-U, of record).
As to claims 6-7, Wang fails to show the height of portions of the welding teeth being equal, or alternatively, the height of portions of the teeth gradually increasing along a direction from the middle portion to two ends of the welding mark end surface. However, such protrusion/teeth shape is known in the art. Popoola teaches an ultrasonic welding head 12/14 (sonotrode- fig. 1) with a welding mark end surface 28 and a plurality of welding teeth 42 distributed on the welding mark end surface (figs. 2a-4). Popoola discloses that other tip configurations of the grooves/teeth are suitable depending on design/logo on the workpiece surface (col. 4, lines 15-50). Analogous to Popoola, Shi (also directed to ultrasonic welding apparatus- abstract) teaches a welding head 1 having a welding mark end surface and a plurality of welding teeth 2 distributed in rectangular array on welding mark end surface, wherein the teeth 2 have different shapes (figs. 1-4). Shi shows the height of portions of the welding teeth 2 that protrude from the welding mark end surface are equal (figs. 1-3). The points on the welding teeth 2 that are farthest from the welding mark end surface are far points, wherein a surface on which a plurality of far points are located is a far surface, which is curved or arch-shape (fig. 1). Shi discloses that such curved shape not only ensures the penetration of the welding workpiece 7, but also prevents damage to surface welding and lug cracking [0027].
Moreover, there is only finite number of predictable options for the height of the protruding welding teeth: a) the height of the welding teeth gradually decreasing along a direction from the middle portion to two ends of the welding mark end surface, b) the height of the welding teeth gradually increasing along a direction from the middle portion to two ends of the welding mark end surface, or c) the height being substantially equal for all welding teeth. In any configuration, the objective is to provide sufficient contact with the workpiece with reduced energy loss at the head/workpiece interface and increasing the overall efficiency of ultrasonic welding (Popoola- col. 1, lines 15-22). The claim would have been obvious because a person of ordinary skill has good reason (reduced energy loss to improve transfer efficiency) to pursue the known options (teeth height options) within his or her technical grasp. If this leads to the anticipated success, it is likely the product not of innovation but of ordinary skill and common sense. KSR International Co. v. Teleflex Inc., 82 USPQ2d 1385 (2007) (see MPEP 2143- exemplary rationales). Wang is also open to other shapes of the welding teeth 52 [0038], which encompasses curved/spherical. Given teachings of Popoola & Shi, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to provide curved welding teeth with desired height portions from the welding mark end surface in the welding head tip of Popoola because doing so would ensure penetration of the welding workpiece(s), reduce energy loss and also prevent cracking or damage to the surface.
Response to Amendment and Arguments
Applicant’s arguments field 4/16/26 with respect to amended claim(s) 1 and 7 have been considered but are moot in light of new ground(s) of rejection set forth above. Current 103 rejection relies on new references of Wang & Shimizu and addresses the matter specifically challenged in the argument.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 4/30/26 complies with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner.
Inquiry
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to DEVANG R PATEL whose telephone number is (571) 270-3636. The examiner can normally be reached on Monday-Friday 8am-5pm, EST.
To schedule an interview, Applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at https://www.uspto.gov/patents/laws/interview-practice. Communications via Internet email are at the discretion of Applicant. If Applicant wishes to communicate via email, a written authorization form must be filed by Applicant: Form PTO/SB/439, available at www.uspto.gov/patent/patents-forms. The form may be filed via the Patent Center and can be found using the document description Internet Communications, see https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/forms. In limited circumstances, the Applicant may make an oral authorization for Internet communication. See MPEP § 502.03.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Keith Walker can be reached on 571-272-3458. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
Information regarding the status of an application may be obtained from the Patent Center. For more information, see https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. For questions, technical issues or troubleshooting, please contact the Patent Electronic Business Center at ebc@uspto.gov or 1-866-217-9197 (toll-free).
/DEVANG R PATEL/
Primary Examiner, AU 1735
Prosecution Insights