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 .
Election/Restrictions
Claims 12-15 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to a nonelected Invention, there being no allowable generic or linking claim.
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.
Claim(s) 1, 5, and 8 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Kawagoe (US 2012/0200330).
Regarding claim 1, fig. 1 and 11 of Kawagoe discloses a circuitry, comprising: a first sampling circuit [e.g. that associated with the channels with 3.sub.8 and 3.sub.9 such as D8, D9, 5.sub.8, 5.sub.9, etc.], configured to use a first clock signal [output of 2.sub.8 and 2.sub.9] to sample first data [at respective D inputs of flip-flops in the channels] to generate sampled first data [at respective D outputs of flip-flops in the channels] to a plurality of first lanes of a transmitter [that receiving data SD, which propagates those signals to the next stage] (not shown) via a plurality of first connection lines; and a second sampling circuit [e.g. that associated with the channels with 3.sub.1 and 3.sub.16], configured to use a second clock signal [output of 2.sub.1 and 2.sub.16] to sample second data to generate sampled second data to a plurality of second lanes of the transmitter via a plurality of second connection lines; wherein lengths of the plurality of second connection lines are longer than lengths of the plurality of first connection lines (par. 83-84 describes where length of CLL is longest for 3.sub.1 and 3.sub.16 and shortest for 3.sub.8 and 3.sub.9), and delay amount of the second clock signal is less than delay amount of the first clock signal (par. 37 and 55 describe correcting for skew based on the length of the lines).
Regarding claim 5, fig. 1 and 11 of Kawagoe discloses a third sampling circuit [e.g. that associated with the channels with 3.sub.1 and 3.sub.16 if the second sampling circuit were that associated with the channels with 3.sub.2 and 3.sub.15], configured to use a third clock signal to sample third data to generate sampled third data to a plurality of third lanes of the transmitter via a plurality of third connection lines; wherein lengths of the plurality of third connection lines are longer than the lengths of the plurality of second connection lines, and delay amount of the third clock signal is less than the delay amount of the second clock signal (par. 83-84).
Regarding claim 8, fig. 1 and 11 of Kawagoe discloses a third sampling circuit [e.g. that associated with the channels with 3.sub.2 and 3.sub.15 if the second sampling circuit were that associated with the channels with 3.sub.2 and 3.sub.15], configured to use a third clock signal to sample third data to generate sampled third data, wherein the third data is received from a plurality of third lanes of a receiver via a plurality of third connection lines; and a fourth sampling circuit [e.g. that associated with the channels with 3.sub.1 and 3.sub.16 if the second sampling circuit were that associated with the channels with 3.sub.3 and 3.sub.14], configured to use a fourth clock signal to sample fourth data to generate sampled fourth data, wherein the fourth data is received from a plurality of fourth lanes of the receiver via a plurality of fourth connection lines; wherein lengths of the plurality of fourth connection lines are longer than lengths of the plurality of third connection lines, and delay amount of the fourth clock signal is greater than delay amount of the third clock signal.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 2-4, 6, 7, and 9-11 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.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Huang describes a signal sampling circuit. Stuijt describes an apparatus for monitoring performance of a circuit. Shaetfer describes a memory controller with staggered request signal output.
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/SIBIN CHEN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2836
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