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.
(a)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claims 1-3 and 6-8 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) and (a)(2) as being anticipated by Yokokawa et al. (US 2022/0209402, hereby referred as Yokokawa).
Regarding claim 1, Yokokawa teaches the following:
an antenna device configured by using a dielectric substrate (the combination of elements 1, 5, and 9, figures 1-2; or the combination of elements 201, 205, 209, figure 10), comprising:
a patch antenna (element 11, figure 1; or element 212, figure 10) formed in a predetermined conductor layer of the dielectric substrate;
a cavity (element 10, figure 1; or element 211, figure 10) formed in a dielectric layer disposed above the predetermined conductor layer of the dielectric substrate, the cavity having a shape which encompasses the patch antenna in a plan view as viewed in a first direction, which is a thickness direction of the dielectric substrate (as shown in the figures);
and a ground conductor (elements 2, 4, 6, 8, figures 1-2; or elements 202, 204, 206, 208, figure 10) disposed to face the dielectric layer in the first direction with the predetermined conductor layer intervening therebetween.
Regarding claim 2, Yokokawa as referred in claim 1 teaches the following:
wherein each of the patch antenna (element 11, figure 1) and the cavity (element 10, figure 1) has a rectangular shape in the plan view as viewed in the first direction (paragraphs [0051] and [0056]).
Regarding claim 3, Yokokawa as referred in claim 1 teaches the following:
wherein each of the patch antenna (element 11, figure 1) and the cavity (element 10, figure 1) has a circular shape in the plan view as viewed in the first direction (paragraphs [0051] and [0056]).
Regarding claim 6, Yokokawa as referred in claim 1 teaches the following:
wherein, in the plan view as viewed in the first direction, the patch antenna and the cavity are disposed symmetrically with respect to a center of the dielectric substrate (as shown in figures 1-2, 10).
Regarding claim 7, Yokokawa as referred in claim 1 teaches the following:
wherein the ground conductor (elements 202, 204, 206, 208, figure 10) is composed of a plurality of conductor layers (elements 202, 204, 206, 208, figure 10) connected to each other via a plurality of via conductors (elements 203, 207, figure 10) extending in the first direction.
Regarding claim 8, Yokokawa as referred in claim 1 teaches the following:
wherein a feeding structure for feeding one or both of horizontally polarized and vertically polarized waves is provided for the patch antenna (paragraphs [0056], [0064]-[0065], while not explicitly shown, it is inherent that there is a feeding structure since a radiating patch antenna requires a feed to radiate).
Claim 1 and 5 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) and (a)(2) as being anticipated by Rojanski et al. (US 2015/0084814, hereby referred as Rojanski).
Regarding claim 1, Rojanski teaches the following:
an antenna device configured by using a dielectric substrate (the combination of elements 111, 117, and 1120, figures 2), comprising:
a patch antenna (element 1133, figure 2) formed in a predetermined conductor layer of the dielectric substrate;
a cavity (element 115, figure 2) formed in a dielectric layer disposed above the predetermined conductor layer of the dielectric substrate, the cavity having a shape which encompasses the patch antenna in a plan view as viewed in a first direction, which is a thickness direction of the dielectric substrate (as shown in the figures);
and a ground conductor (elements 12, 1121, 1181, 1131, figures 2) disposed to face the dielectric layer in the first direction with the predetermined conductor layer intervening therebetween.
Regarding claim 5, Rojanski as referred in claim 1 teaches the following:
wherein, in the plan view as viewed in the first direction, an outer edge of the cavity is located outward of an outer edge of the patch antenna (as shown in figures 2), and a distance between the outer edges is set to fall within a range of 0.03 lambda to 0.07 lambda (“a diameter of antenna element cavity 115 can, for example, be in the range of 0.1λ to 0.6λ”, paragraphs [0116], “a diameter of the circular patch 1133 can, for example, be in the range of 0.05λ to 0.35λ”, [0120]).
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 4 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Yokokawa et al. (US 2022/0209402, hereby referred as Yokokawa).
Regarding claim 4, Rojanski as referred in claim 1 teaches the antenna device with the exception of following:
wherein a height of the cavity in the first direction falls within a range of 0.7 lambda to 0.8 lambda, where lambda represents a wavelength at a used frequency in the dielectric substrate.
However, Rojanski does teach that size of the cavity can be adjusted (paragraph [0065]).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to have a height of the cavity in the first direction of Rojanski to fall within a range of 0.7 lambda to 0.8 lambda as suggested by the teachings of Rojanski in order to decrease a gain difference between the vertically and horizontally polarized waves in the wide angle direction (paragraph [0065]), and since it has been held that where the general conditions of a claim are disclosed in the prior art, discovering the optimum or workable ranges involves only routine skill in the art. In re Aller, 105 USPQ 233 (CCPA 1955).
Additional Comments
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. The various rejections made in the European, Japan, and PCT Search reports would also apply to the current claims.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to AB SALAM ALKASSIM JR whose telephone number is (571)270-0449. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Thursday.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Dameon Levi can be reached at (571) 272-2105. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/AB SALAM ALKASSIM JR/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2845
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