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 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.
Claim(s) 1, 10-11 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Kubo et al (U.S. Pub. 2008/0174628)
Regarding claims 1, 11, a liquid ejection head comprising: a channel member (10) having a liquid channel including a nozzle (Figure 5; Paragraph 0030)
An actuator member (11) disposed on an upper surface of the channel member (Figures 3-5), the actuator member having an upper surface including a first contact region (upper surface of actuator member 11) in which a first contact (43; electrodes) is disposed and a first outer peripheral region (Figure 5; area surrounding the actuator) surrounding the first contact region, the actuator member being configured to cause the nozzle to eject liquid (Figures 3-5; Paragraphs 0030-0032)
A wiring member (12) including a connection portion disposed on the upper surface of the actuator member (Figure 5; Paragraph 0032), the connection portion including a second contact region (upper surface of actuator member 11) and a second outer peripheral region (Figure 5; area surrounding the actuator), the second contact region overlapping with the first contact region in a perpendicular direction perpendicular to the upper surface of the actuator member (Figure 5), a second contact (44) electrically connected to the first contact (43) being disposed in the second contact region, the second outer peripheral region overlapping with the first outer peripheral region in the perpendicular direction (Figure 5; Paragraphs 0030-0032)
A pressing member (15) disposed above the connection portion, the pressing member contacting the second outer peripheral region without contacting the second contact region, the pressing member being configured to press the second outer peripheral region toward the actuator member (Figure 4; Paragraphs 0029-0030)
A thermal interface material (13) disposed above the connection portion, the thermal interface material contacting the second contact region without contacting the second outer peripheral region, the thermal interface material having a lower hardness than the pressing member (Figures 3-5; Paragraphs 0030, 0034)
Further regarding claim 11, a printer comprising a conveyor configured to convey a sheet; a liquid ejection head configured to eject liquid onto the sheet conveyed by the conveyor (Figures 1-2; Abstract; Paragraphs 0025-0027)
Regarding claim 10, the wiring member (12) includes a folded portion (Figure 7), the folded portion including a vertical portion and a horizontal portion, the vertical portion extending upward from an end of the connection portion in a first direction that is parallel to the upper surface of the actuator member, the horizontal portion extending in the first direction form an upper end of the vertical portion toward a center of the wiring member in the first direction; and wherein the liquid ejection head further comprises a driver circuit (12c) disposed on an upper surface of the horizontal portion; and a heat sink contacting the driver circuit (Figures 5-7; Paragraphs 0036-0039)
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.
Claim(s) 2 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kubo et al (U.S. Pub. 2008/0174628) in view of Wade et al (U.S. Pat. 6,280,013)
Regarding claim 2, Wade discloses wherein the thermal interface material is made of gel (thermally conductive gel 84; Figure 5, Column 4, Lines 26-44)
It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate the teaching of Wade into the device of Kubo, for the purpose of allowing the print head to operate at a very high throughput rate
Claim(s) 3 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kubo et al (U.S. Pub. 2008/0174628) in view of Oyanagi et al (U.S. Pub. 2008/0211893)
Regarding claim 3, Oyanagi discloses a first heat sink disposed above the thermal interface material and contacting the thermal interface material (Figures 4B, 7; Paragraphs 0070-0071)
It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate the teaching of Oyanagi into the device of Kubo, for the purpose of promoting and radiating heat that has reached the heat sink
Claim(s) 4-5 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kubo et al (U.S. Pub. 2008/0174628) as modified by Oyanagi et al (U.S. Pub. 2008/0211893) and further in view of Ito (U.S. Pub. 2009/0244186)
Regarding claim 4, Ito discloses wherein the first heat sink is made of a metal (Paragraph 0052)
It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate the teaching of Oyanagi as modified by Ito into the device of Kubo, for the purpose of providing high thermal conductivity
Regarding claim 5, Ito discloses wherein the first heat sink is made of graphite (Paragraph 0052)
It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate the teaching of Oyanagi as modified by Ito into the device of Kubo, for the purpose of providing high thermal conductivity
Claim(s) 6, 8 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kubo et al (U.S. Pub. 2008/0174628) as modified by Oyanagi et al (U.S. Pub. 2008/0211893) and further in view of Rae et al (U.S. Pub. 2018/0339507)
Regarding claim 6, Rae discloses a water-cooling module (15) with a pipe attached to the heat sink (2) (Figure 5; Paragraphs 0060, 0095-0096)
It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate the teaching of Oyanagi as modified by Rae into the device of Kubo, for the purpose of allowing the apparatus to run for a long period of time while improving the transferring of heat
Regarding claim 8, Kubo discloses a heat transfer material (13) and a heat sink (60) (Figures 5-7; Paragraphs 0034, 0036-0039)
Rae discloses a water-cooling module (15) with a pipe attached to the heat sink (2) (Figure 5; Paragraphs 0060, 0095-0096)
It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate the teaching of Oyanagi as modified by Rae into the device of Kubo, for the purpose of allowing the apparatus to run for a long period of time while improving the transferring of heat
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 7, 9 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 primary reason for the allowance of claim 7 is the inclusion of the limitation of an other first water cooling pipe attached to the first head sink; wherein the first water cooling pipe and the other first water cooling pipe are arranged to overlap with the circuit board in a first direction, the first direction being parallel to the upper surface of the actuator member, the circuit board being disposed between the first water cooling pipe and the other first water cooling pipe in the first direction; and wherein teach of the first water cooling pipe and the other first water cooling pipe extends in a second direction, the second direction being parallel to the upper surface of the actuator member and crossing the first direction. It is this limitation found in each of the claims, as it is claimed in the combination, that has not been found, taught or suggested by the prior art of record which makes these claims allowable over the prior art.
The primary reason for the allowance of claim 9 is the inclusion of the limitation of a second heat sink contacting the driver circuit; a second water cooling pipe attached to the second heat sink; and a water source communicating with both the first water cooling pipe and the second water cooling pipe. It is this limitation found in each of the claims, as it is claimed in the combination, that has not been found, taught or suggested by the prior art of record which makes these claims allowable over the prior art.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JASON S UHLENHAKE whose telephone number is (571)272-5916. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday, 8:00 am - 5:00 pm.
Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Douglas X. Rodriguez can be reached at (571) 431-0716. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000.
/JASON S UHLENHAKE/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2853 June 24, 2026
Prosecution Insights