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 § 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.
Claim(s) 2, 3, 5, 8, 10-15, 19, 21 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over 2009/0033439 (“Igarashi” or “I”).
2: I teaches a filter module (that of figs 1-4) comprising: an input node (173/201); an output node (101/202); a filter (that of 301+302+401+402+403+404 and corresponding parts of figs 1 and 2) disposed along a signal path extending from the input node to the output node (as shown); and a strip line inductor (that of 303 and corresponding parts, 112+122+132+142a of figs 1 and 2, as described in 0078) having at least a first portion (122) and a second portion (132), the second portion connected to the first portion (as shown), the first portion disposed in a first layer (as shown) and having a first winding pattern (that of 122), the second portion (132) extending in a second layer (as shown) and having a second winding pattern (that of 132).
13: I teaches a radio frequency module (that of figs 1-4) comprising: a multilayer packaging board (as shown in fig 2); and a filter assembly (that of figs 1-4) implemented on the multilayer packaging board (as shown in fig 2), the filter assembly including: an input node (173/201); an output node (101/202); a filter (that of 301+302+401+402+403+404 and corresponding parts of figs 1 and 2) disposed along a signal path extending from the input node to the output node (as shown); and a strip line inductor (that of 303 and corresponding parts, 112+122+132+142a of figs 1 and 2, as described in 0078) having at least a first portion (122) and a second portion (132) connected to the first portion (as shown), the first portion disposed in a first layer of the multilayer packaging board (as shown) and having a first winding pattern (that of 122), the second portion (132) extending in a second layer of the multilayer packaging board (as shown) and having a second winding pattern (that of 132).
3, 15: I teaches that the strip line inductor is connected between the filter and a reference voltage (as shown in fig 3).
5: I teaches that the filter includes a series resonator (301+401, for example) and a shunt resonator (304 and 406, for example).
8, 19: I teaches that the first winding pattern and the second winding pattern each include a plurality of U-shaped bends (as shown in fig 2).
10: I teaches a multilayer package substrate (that of fig 2), the first layer and the second layer being different layers of the multilayer package substrate (as shown).
11: I teaches that the strip line inductor further includes a first connecting portion (via 136) extending between the first layer and the second layer to connect the first portion and the second portion (as shown).
12: I teaches that the strip line inductor further includes a third portion (142, for example) connected to the second portion via a second connecting portion (142 is connected to 132 by via 146), the third portion disposed in a third layer of the multilayer package substrate (as shown) and having a third winding pattern (as shown).
14: I teaches that the radio frequency module is a front-end module (see 1 in fig 7).
21: I teaches a mobile device (that of figs 1-4 and 7) comprising: an antenna (41) configured to receive a radio frequency signal (as shown); and a front end system (that of 1) configured to communicate with the antenna (as shown), the front end system including a filter module (1 is included) including an input node (173/201); an output node (101/202); a filter (that of 301+302+401+402+403+404 and corresponding parts of figs 1 and 2) disposed along a signal path extending from the input node to the output node (as shown); and a strip line inductor (that of 303 and corresponding parts 112+122+132+142a of figs 1 and 2, as described in 0078) having at least a first portion (122) and a second portion (132) connected to the first portion (as shown), the first portion disposed in a first layer (as shown) and having a first winding pattern (that of 122), the second portion (132) extending in a second layer (as shown) and having a second winding pattern (that of 132).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 4, 6, 7, 9, 16-18, 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.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to GRAHAM P SMITH whose telephone number is (571)270-1568. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 10am - 6pm.
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/GRAHAM P SMITH/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2845
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