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 .
Drawings
The drawings are objected to as failing to comply with 37 CFR 1.84(p)(5) because they include the following reference character(s) not mentioned in the description:
161b-162b and 140b-147b as shown in Figures 1 and 2 are not sufficiently described.
Corrected drawing sheets in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(d), or amendment to the specification to add the reference character(s) in the description in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(b) are required in reply to the Office action to avoid abandonment of the application. Any amended replacement drawing sheet should include all of the figures appearing on the immediate prior version of the sheet, even if only one figure is being amended. Each drawing sheet submitted after the filing date of an application must be labeled in the top margin as either “Replacement Sheet” or “New Sheet” pursuant to 37 CFR 1.121(d). If the changes are not accepted by the examiner, the applicant will be notified and informed of any required corrective action in the next Office action. The objection to the drawings will not be held in abeyance.
Specification
The disclosure is objected to because of the following informalities:
161b-162b and 140b-147b (Figures 1 and 2) are not defined or properly mentioned within the specification.
Appropriate correction is required.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b):
(b) CONCLUSION.—The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph:
The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention.
Claims 2-6 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention. Claims 4-6 depend upon rejected claim 3 and inherit the deficiency thereby.
Claim 2, Lines 1-2, “a case where the signal pattern is seen in a plan view” is unclear to one of ordinary skill in the art as to how this recitation relates to the “a case where the signal pattern is seen in a plan view” as previously defined in Lines 8-9 of claim 1, from which this claim depends, thereby leaving the boundaries of the claim unclear.
Claim 3, Line 10, “a via” is unclear to one of ordinary skill in the art as to whether this limitation is in the same as the “a via” as previously defined in Line 8 of the same claim, or a differing, new “via”, thereby leaving the boundaries of the claim unclear.
Appropriate correction is required.
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.
Claims 1-2 and 5 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Shigemura (JP 2002135005), a reference as cited by applicant and examiner is depending on examiner’s attached translation.
As per Claims 1 and 5:
Shigemura discloses in Figure 3: A filter group having a first (“filter block”, 17, as shown in related Figure 2) and second filter (“filter block”, 18, as shown in related Figure 2) formed in a multilayer substrate (“laminate”, 1, corresponding to “dielectric sheets”, 1a-1e inherently form the multilayer substrate) each including a strip line constituted by a signal pattern (filter block 17 includes “stripline” 10a and filter block 18 includes “stripline” 13a, as shown in related Figure 2) formed in an inner layer of the multilayer substrate (as is evident by the formation of striplines 10a and 13a on dielectric sheet 1c) and paired ground conductor layers (“earth/ground electrode” 6 and “shield electrodes” 16a, 16b) formed on respective paired main surfaces (16a, 16b are formed on dielectric sheet 1d and 6 is formed on dielectric sheet 1a) of the multilayer substrate sandwiching the signal pattern (6, 16a, and 16b sandwich striplines 10a and 13a, as is evident by the layering in Figure 3), the paired ground conductor layers (6 and 16a, 16b) each including, when the signal pattern is seen in plan view, a first area (A11, corresponding to the left-side area of earth/ground conductor 6 and A21, corresponding to the area of the shield electrode 16a, as defined below in annotated Image 1) overlapping the signal pattern of the first filter (as is evident by A11 and A21 overlapping 10a in Figure 3 and annotated Image 1 below) and a second area (A12, corresponding to the right-side area of earth/ground conductor 6 and A22, corresponding to the area of shield electrode 16b, as defined below in annotated Image 1) overlapping the signal pattern of the second filter (as is evident by A12 and A22 overlapping 13a in Figure 3 and annotated Image 1 below), and the first and second area in the one ground conductor layer (as per claim 5, area A21 of 16a and area A22 of 16b) of the paired ground conductor layers (6 and 16a, 16b) being disconnected from each other (A21 corresponding to 16a and A22 corresponding to 16b are disconnected, as is evident by Figure 3).
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Image 1
As per Claim 2:
Shigemura discloses in Figure 3:
The filter group according to claim 1, when the signal pattern (“striplines” 10a and 13a) is seen in a plan view, the signal pattern (“stripline”, 10a) of the first filter (“block filter”, 17) and the signal pattern (“stripline”, 13a) of the second filter (“block filter”, 18) have congruent shapes or mirror symmetrical shapes (as is evident by the similar and mirrored shapes of striplines 10a and 13a, as shown in Figure 3 and by the boxed in portions of annotated Image 2 below).
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Image 2
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to ABIGAIL YALDO whose telephone number is (703)756-1784. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Friday 7 AM - 4 PM.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Andrea Lindgren Baltzell can be reached at (571) 272-5918. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/ABIGAIL AMIR YALDO/Examiner, Art Unit 2843
/ANDREA LINDGREN BALTZELL/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2843
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