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 .
DETAILED ACTION
This office action is responsive to the applicant's amendment submitted on 09/08/2026. Claims 1, 9 and 19 have been amended. Thus, claims 1-20 are currently pending in the instant application.
Drawings
The drawings are objected to under 37 CFR 1.83(a). The drawings must show every feature of the invention specified in the claims. Therefore, the limitation recites “the ground well comprising an electrically conductive material forming a monolithic electrical ground plane defining a cross-sectional step shape that extends in a first direction along the exposed bottom surface of the bottom laminate, that extends in a second direction different from the first direction along the exposed side surfaces of the bottom laminate, and extends in the first direction along the exposed portion of the surface of the second side of the middle laminate” in claim 1; the limitation recites “the first ground well comprising an electrically conductive material forming a first monolithic electrical ground plane defining a first cross-sectional step shape that extends in a first direction along the exposed bottom surface of the first bottom laminate, that extends in a second direction different from the first direction along the exposed side surfaces of the first bottom laminate, and extends in the first direction along the exposed portion of the surface of the second side of the antenna board,…and the second ground well comprising an electrically conductive material forming a second monolithic electrical ground plane defining a second cross-sectional step shape that extends in the first direction along the exposed bottom surface of the second bottom laminate, that extends in the second direction along the exposed side surfaces of the second bottom laminate, and extends in the first direction along the exposed portion of the surface of the second side of the antenna board” recites in claim 9; and the limitation recites “the second portion includes an electrically conductive material extending over a bottom surface and side surfaces of the bottom laminate and over at least an exposed portion of the bottom surface of the middle laminate to form a monolithic electrical ground plane defining a cross-sectional step shape that extends in a first direction along the bottom surface of the bottom laminate, that extends in a second direction different from the first direction along the side surfaces of the bottom laminate, and extends in the first direction along the exposed portion of the bottom surface of the middle laminate” in claim 19 must be shown or the feature(s) canceled from the claim(s). No new matter should be entered.
Corrected drawing sheets in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(d) 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. The figure or figure number of an amended drawing should not be labeled as “amended.” If a drawing figure is to be canceled, the appropriate figure must be removed from the replacement sheet, and where necessary, the remaining figures must be renumbered and appropriate changes made to the brief description of the several views of the drawings for consistency. Additional replacement sheets may be necessary to show the renumbering of the remaining figures. 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.
Double Patenting
The non-statutory double patenting rejection is based on a judicially created doctrine grounded in public policy (a policy reflected in the statute) so as to prevent the unjustified or improper timewise extension of the “right to exclude” granted by a patent and to prevent possible harassment by multiple assignees. A non-statutory double patenting rejection is appropriate where the conflicting claims are not identical, but at least one examined application claim is not patentably distinct from the reference claim(s) because the examined application claim is either anticipated by, or would have been obvious over, the reference claim(s). See, e.g., In re Berg, 140 F.3d 1428, 46 USPQ2d 1226 (Fed. Cir. 1998); In re Goodman, 11 F.3d 1046, 29 USPQ2d 2010 (Fed. Cir. 1993); In re Longi, 759 F.2d 887, 225 USPQ 645 (Fed. Cir. 1985); In re Van Ornum, 686 F.2d 937, 214 USPQ 761 (CCPA 1982); In re Vogel, 422 F.2d 438, 164 USPQ 619 (CCPA 1970); In re Thorington, 418 F.2d 528, 163 USPQ 644 (CCPA 1969).
A timely filed terminal disclaimer in compliance with 37 CFR 1.321(c) or 1.321(d) may be used to overcome an actual or provisional rejection based on non-statutory double patenting provided the reference application or patent either is shown to be commonly owned with the examined application, or claims an invention made as a result of activities undertaken within the scope of a joint research agreement. See MPEP § 717.02 for applications subject to examination under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA as explained in MPEP § 2159. See MPEP § 2146 et seq. for applications not subject to examination under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA . A terminal disclaimer must be signed in compliance with 37 CFR 1.321(b).
The USPTO Internet website contains terminal disclaimer forms which may be used. Please visit www.uspto.gov/patent/patents-forms. The filing date of the application in which the form is filed determines what form (e.g., PTO/SB/25, PTO/SB/26, PTO/AIA /25, or PTO/AIA /26) should be used. A web-based eTerminal Disclaimer may be filled out completely online using web-screens. An eTerminal Disclaimer that meets all requirements is auto-processed and approved immediately upon submission. For more information about eTerminal Disclaimers, refer to www.uspto.gov/patents/process/file/efs/guidance/eTD-info-I.jsp.
Claims 1-20 are rejected on the ground of non-statutory double patenting as being unpatentable over claims 1-17 of U.S. Patent No. 12374797 B2. Although the claims at issue are not identical, they are not patentably distinct from each other because the differences between the two sets of claims are only minor structural variations that are not seen to involve an inventive step when the abilities of person of ordinary skill are taken into consideration. The claim limitations of the U.S Patent No. 12374797 B2 clearly anticipated the claim limitations of the pending application. They are containing the same essential limitations, and they are both capable performed the same function.
Regarding claims 1-20, the limitations of the applicant’s claims are obvious variations of the mapped claims above. The pending claims 1 and 5 use different vernacular than the patented claim 1 of U.S Patent No. 12374797 B2. And the pending claims 9 and 14, and claims 19 and 20 are also similar to patented claims 8 and 17. One of ordinary skilled in the art would recognize that the claims are directed to substantially the same invention, and their structures are the same. The principle differences are that the pending claims are broader in scope than the patented claims. It is generally understood that anticipation is the epitome of obviousness. Alternatively, the elimination of an element and its structure is generally held to be within the skill of the art. They both are containing the same essential limitations, and they are both capable performed the same function. Therefore, it would have been obvious that the claims 1-20 of pending application contains the same structures and capable perform the same function as claims 1-17 of U.S Patent No. 12374797 B2.
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed on 09/08/2026 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive.
First, the drawings must show every feature of the invention specified in the claims. The claims have been amended with the features not shown in the drawings. Thus, the drawings are objected as stated above.
Second, the applicant didn’t file a response to the double patenting rejection or a terminal disclaimer to overcome the double patenting rejection as stated in the previous office action.
Therefore, the examiner still maintains the rejection and makes the office action as final.
Conclusion
THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to THAI N PHAM whose telephone number is (571)270-5518. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 9:00 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, Alexander Taningco can be reached at 571-272-8048. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/Thai Pham/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2845 09/28/2026
