Ex Parte Sultenfuss et al

Patent Trial and Appeal Board

Nov 20, 2018

13779598 (P.T.A.B. Nov. 20, 2018)

UNITED STA TES p A TENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE
APPLICATION NO. FILING DATE FIRST NAMED INVENTOR
13/779,598 02/27/2013 Andrew T. Sultenfuss
154702 7590 11/23/2018
Zagorin Cave LLP (Dell)
4101 Parkstone Heights Drive
Suite 350
Austin, TX 78746
UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
United States Patent and Trademark Office
Address: COMMISSIONER FOR PATENTS
P.O. Box 1450
Alexandria, Virginia 22313-1450
www .uspto.gov
ATTORNEY DOCKET NO. CONFIRMATION NO.
DC-101182.01 5908
EXAMINER
BROWN, ROBERT D
ART UNIT PAPER NUMBER
2835
NOTIFICATION DATE DELIVERY MODE
11/23/2018 ELECTRONIC
Please find below and/or attached an Office communication concerning this application or proceeding.
The time period for reply, if any, is set in the attached communication.
Notice of the Office communication was sent electronically on above-indicated "Notification Date" to the
following e-mail address(es):
docket279@atxiplaw.com
rholland@atxiplaw.com
USPTO@dockettrak.com
PTOL-90A (Rev. 04/07)
UNITED STATES PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE
BEFORE THE PATENT TRIAL AND APPEAL BOARD
Exparte ANDREW T. SULTENFUSS, TRAVIS C. NORTH,
and DEEDER M. AURONGZEB
Appeal2018-000284
Application 13/779,598
Technology Center 2800
Before TERRY J. OWENS, MONTE T. SQUIRE, and
DEBRA L. DENNETT, Administrative Patent Judges.
DENNETT, Administrative Patent Judge.
DECISION ON APPEAL 1
STATEMENT OF THE CASE
Appellant2 appeals under 35 U.S.C. § 134(a) from a rejection of
claims 1, 4--8, 21, 22, and 24--29. We have jurisdiction under 35 U.S.C.
§ 6(b ).
We REVERSE.
1 In our Opinion, we refer to the Specification filed February 27, 2013
("Spec."); the Final Office Action mailed August 15, 2016 ("Final Act.");
the Advisory Action mailed September 15, 2016 ("Adv. Act."); the Appeal
Brief filed March 13, 2017 ("Appeal Br."); the Examiner's Answer mailed
August 11, 2017 ("Ans."); and the Reply Brief filed October 6, 2017
("Reply Br.").
2 Appellant is the applicant, Dell Products L.P ., identified as the real party in
interest. App. Br. 1.
Appeal2018-000284
Application 13/779,598
The claims are directed to information handling systems comprising a
housing heat spreader. Claim 1, reproduced below from the Claims
Appendix of the Appeal Brief, is illustrative of the claimed subject matter:
1. An information handling system comprising:
a housing sized to contain processing components for
processing information, at least a portion of the housing having
a graphene outer surface coupled to a substrate material, the
substrate having inner and outer layers of carbon fiber with an
insulative aerogel layer disposed between the inner and outer
layers of carbon fiber; and
processing components disposed in the housing and
operable to process information, the processing components
generating thermal energy, the graphene spreading the thermal
energy at the outer surface.
REFERENCES
The Examiner relies on the following prior art in rejecting the claims
on appeal:
Roscoe et al.
("Roscoe")
Kim et al. ("Kim")
Waltz
US 6,498,731 Bl
US 2005/0068738 Al
US 2010/0194179 Al
REJECTI0NS 3
Dec. 24, 2002
Mar. 31, 2005
Aug. 5,2010
The Examiner maintains and Appellant seeks review of the following
rejections under 35 U.S.C. § I03(a): (1) claims 1, 4--7, 21, 22, 24--27, and 29
over Kim in view of Waltz; and (2) claims 8 and 28 over Kim in view of
Waltz, and further in view of Roscoe. Final Act. 2-6; App. Br. 2--4.
3 The Office Action Summary of the Final Office Action lists claims 3 and
23 as among the rejected claims. Final Act. 1. However, the Examiner does
not address claim 3 or 23 elsewhere in the Final Office Action, or in the
Answer. Therefore, we do not consider claims 3 and 23 as rejected.
2
Appeal2018-000284
Application 13/779,598
The Examiner provides a provisional double patenting objection to
claims 22-29, should claims 1, 3-8, and 21 be found patentable. Final Act.
6. Objections or other requirements imposed by an Examiner are reviewed
by way of a petition to the Director under Rule 181. 3 7 C.F .R. § 1.113 (a);
we do not address the Examiner's double patenting objection.
OPINION
We need address only the broadest claim, claim 1.
The Examiner finds that Kim teaches the limitations of claim 1 except
for a substrate having inner and outer layers of carbon fiber with an
insulative aerogel layer disposed between the inner and outer layers of
carbon fiber. Final Act. 2-3. The Examiner finds that Waltz teaches the
substrate as claimed. Id. at 3. The Examiner uses the substrate structure
taught in Waltz "in place of the simple graphene layer taught by Kim as
Waltz's substrate would assist in heat spreading as well as enhancing the
structural integrity of the device." Ans. 2. The Examiner states that
substitution and combination of equivalents for the same purpose is obvious.
Id.
Appellant argues that Kim seeks to transfer heat from an interior to an
exterior, with no suggestion of combining with an insulative layer. App. Br.
3. Appellant contends that Waltz, in contrast to Kim, discloses an insulating
aerogel that prevents heat from transferring through the laminate material to
the outer surface. Id. Appellant argues that the Examiner improperly
combines the references. Id. at 2.
The Examiner fails to establish that the combined references result in
the claimed structure. In re Fine, 837 F.2d l 071, 1074 (Fed. Cir. 1988)
3
Appeal2018-000284
Application 13/779,598
("The PTO has the burden under section I 03 to establish a prima facie case
of obviousness .... It can satisfy this burden only by showing some
objective teaching in the prior art or that knowledge generally available to
one of ordinmy skill in the art would lead that individual to combine the
relevant teachings of the references.").
Kim concerns a display apparatus, such as an organic light emitting
display (OLED), having a heat transfer sheet. Kim Abstract, ,r 5. Figure 12
of Kim is reproduced below:
FIG.12
44
49
+ 41
Screen
Figure 12 shows a schematic view of an organic light emitting display
device including a heat transfer sheet including a plurality of pores
according to an embodiment of Kim's invention. Id. at ,r 50. A housing 494
may cover at least the organic light emitting layer 45. Id. at ,r 94. A porous
heat transfer sheet 44 may be arranged adjacent to a rear surface of the
housing, efficiently transmitting heat generated within the OLED to outside
the housing. Id. at 95.
Waltz is drawn to thermal management composite heat shields. Waltz
Abstract. The thermal management system comprises a shield portion and a
4 Throughout this Opinion, for clarity, labels to elements are presented in
bold font, regardless of their presentation in the original document.
4
Appeal2018-000284
Application 13/779,598
dissipation portion. Id. Figure 2 of Waltz, illustrating a shield portion of a
thermal management system, is reproduced below:
, .. , ........................................................................ ·······-·1
COOL SIDE SKIN 108 !
~--- -- --- --·------------------------------------------------·
INSULATION LAYER 106
<<<•<<<<<<•<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<~<<<<<<