Ex Parte DeGRAAFF et al

Patent Trials and Appeals Board

Jun 24, 2019

14747836 - (D) (P.T.A.B. Jun. 24, 2019)

UNITED STA TES p A TENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE
APPLICATION NO. FILING DATE FIRST NAMED INVENTOR
14/747,836 06/23/2015 David DeGRAAFF
74254 7590 06/25/2019
Okamoto & Benedicto LLP
P.O. Box 641330
San Jose, CA 95164-1330
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.
10031.006710 3248
EXAMINER
BAKHTIARI, NIKI
ART UNIT PAPER NUMBER
1726
MAIL DATE DELIVERY MODE
06/25/2019 PAPER
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.
PTOL-90A (Rev. 04/07)
UNITED STATES PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE
BEFORE THE PATENT TRIAL AND APPEAL BOARD
Ex parte DAVID DEGRAAFF and ADAM DETRICK
Appeal2018-007818
Application 14/747,836
Technology Center 1700
Before BRADLEY R. GARRIS, ROMULO H. DELMENDO, and
GRACE KARAFFA OBERMANN, Administrative Patent Judges.
DELMENDO, Administrative Patent Judge.
DECISION ON APPEAL
The Applicant 1 ("Appellant") appeals under 35 U.S.C. § 134(a) from
the Primary Examiner's final decision to reject claims 1-9.2 We have
jurisdiction under 35 U.S.C. § 6(b).
We affirm.
1 The Applicant is "SunPower Corporation" (Application Data Sheet filed
June 23, 2015, 4--5), which is also identified as the real party in interest
(Appeal Brief filed March 2, 2018 ("Appeal Br."), 1).
2 Appeal Br. 3-7; Reply Brief filed July 24, 2018 ("Reply Br."), 2--4; Final
Office Action entered November 3, 2017 ("Final Act."), 3-9; Examiner's
Answer entered June 8, 2018 ("Ans."), 3-10.
Appeal2018-007818
Application 14/747,836
I. BACKGROUND
The subject matter on appeal relates to a photovoltaic laminate
including a string of photovoltaic cells and three electrical conductors
(Specification filed June 23, 2015 ("Spec."), 2, 11. 11-13). Figure 2
( annotated), which is reproduced from the Drawings filed June 23, 2015
below, is illustrative:
Figure 2 above shows a photovoltaic laminate 200 in accordance with an
embodiment of the invention, wherein the photovoltaic laminate 200
includes, inter alia, a string of photovoltaic (solar) cells 202 connected in
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Appeal2018-007818
Application 14/747,836
series, a first electrical conductor 208-1 that is electrically connected to a
first (negative polarity) end and second and third electrical conductors 208-2
and 208-3, respectively, that are electrically connected to a second (positive
polarity) end (Spec. 9, 1. 1-10, 1. 4).
Representative claim 1 is reproduced from the Claims Appendix to the
Appeal Brief, as follows:
1. A photovoltaic laminate comprising:
a string of photovoltaic cells of the photovoltaic laminate,
the string of photovoltaic cells having a first end and a second
end·
' a first connector of the photovoltaic laminate;
a first electrical conductor that is electrically connected to
the first end of the string of photovoltaic cells and ends at the first
connector;
a second connector of the photovoltaic laminate;
a second electrical conductor that is electrically connected
to the second end of the string of photovoltaic cells and ends at
the second connector; and
a third electrical conductor that is electrically connected to
the second end of the string of photovoltaic cells and ends at the
first connector,
wherein the first electrical conductor is electrically
connected to the first end of the string of photovoltaic cells from
within the photovoltaic laminate, and the second and third
electrical conductors are electrically connected to the second
end of the string of photovoltaic cells from within the
photovoltaic laminate.
(Appeal Br. 9 (emphasis added)).
II. REJECTIONS ON APPEAL
Claims 1-9 stand rejected as follows:
A. Claims 1, 2, and 7-9 under pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. § 102(b) as
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Appeal2018-007818
Application 14/747,836
anticipated by Wattman et al. 3 ("Wattman"); and
B. Claims 3---6 under 35 U.S.C. § I02(b) as anticipated by
Wattman or, in the alternative, under 35 U.S.C. § I03(a) as
unpatentable over Wattman in view of Adriani et al. 4
(" Adriani ").
(Ans. 3-10; Final Act. 3-9).
III. DISCUSSION
The Appellant's arguments against both rejections focus only on
claim 1 (Appeal Br. 3-7). Therefore, all claims stand or fall with claim 1.
See 37 C.F.R. § 4I.37(c)(l)(iv).
The Examiner finds that Wattman's Figures 5 and 7 (reproduced
below) disclose photovoltaic laminates including every limitation recited in
claim 1 (Ans. 3--4, 9-10). With respect to the disputed limitations
highlighted in reproduced claim 1 above, the Examiner finds that W attman' s
second electrical terminus 514 and fourth electrical terminus 524, as shown
in Figure 5, correspond to the "second and third electrical conductors"
recited in claim 1, respectively, and that these termini are electrically
connected to a second end of the string of photovoltaic elements 510 via
second electrical connector 564 when a terminator connector 776 is
connected to photovoltaic laminate 764, as shown in Figure 7 (id. at 9-10).
The Appellant disputes the Examiner's finding (Appeal Br. 5---6).
Specifically, the Appellant argues that Wattman "does not disclose that the
electrical terminus 522/524 ('third electrical conductor') is electrically
3 US 2009/0242015 Al, published October 1, 2009.
4 US 2008/0041434 Al, published February 21, 2008.
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Appeal2018-007818
Application 14/747,836
connected to the photovoltaic cells 51 O" (id.). According to the Appellant,
"[t ]he electrical terminus 522 and the electrical terminus 514 are electrically
isolated from each other in the connector 564" and "both the electrical
terminus 522 and electrical terminus 514 simply extend out of the connector
564" (id. at 6). Regarding the Examiner's reliance on Wattman's Figure 7,
the Appellant argues that the Examiner's position is based on a "claim
construction [that] impermissibly removes the claim limitation 'from within
the photovoltaic laminate,' as the electrical connection to the photovoltaic
cells 510 of the photovoltaic laminate 560 can only be made from outside of
the photovoltaic laminate 560" (Reply Br. 2).
The Appellant's arguments are insufficient to identify reversible error
in the Examiner's rejection of claim 1. In re Jung, 637 F.3d 1356, 1365
(Fed. Cir. 2011).
Wattman's Figure 5 (annotated) is reproduced as follows:
first
fourth electrical
elec!rical
return eiectrica!
_path
connector 530 526
terminus 562 byp~ss did/de 564 _
524 - ...... : ________ ,__ _______ --!
512___... ..
first electrical ~===~ ~=~~~
terminus
510
photovoitaic e!ements
5
560 photovoltaic laminate
/ "'lt
third
electrical
eiectricai
terminus
/
562
51.2
·510
565) l.563 top iaminate !ayer
bottom Fl G. 5
!aminate
!ayer
Appeal2018-007818
Application 14/747,836
Wattman's Figure 5 above shows a top schematic view and a cross-sectional
view of a photovoltaic laminate 560 in which two photovoltaic elements 510
are connected in series between a first electrical terminus 512
[ corresponding to the "first electrical conductor" recited in claim 1] and a
second electrical terminus 514 [ corresponding to the "second electrical
conductor" recited in claim 1] (Wattman, ,r 51 ). Wattman further teaches
that "[a] return electrical path 526 connects a third electrical terminus 522
and a fourth electrical terminus 524 [ corresponding to the "third electrical
conductor" recited in claim 1 ]" (id.).
Wattman further teaches that "the photovoltaic laminates ... can
include connectors for series interconnection" (id. ,r 58 (emphasis added)),
which is illustrated in Figure 7 (annotated) reproduced as follows:
770
&tarter c,ormector
T16 tet-r,,in;itor connector
electn.~-;~; fead·----.... ~~~~~~~~~.............-~~---' ----.. ----
762 760
serie'S--in(en;onnedeci !,m;in,lte;e;
Wattman's Figure 7 above depicts a top schematic view of a set of three
photovoltaic laminates 760, 762, and 764 interconnected in series using
connectors, including a terminator connector 77 6 connected to a rear end
photovoltaic laminate 764 connecting its second electrical terminus 514 to
its third electrical terminus 522, thereby connecting all the photovoltaic
elements 510 to their return electrical paths 526 (id.).
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Application 14/747,836
Thus, for example, Wattman's photovoltaic laminate 764, which
includes terminator connector 776 as shown in Figure 7, meets every
limitation in claim 1. Specifically, in Wattman's photovoltaic laminate 764
including terminator connector 776, the third and fourth electrical termini
522/524 and return electrical path 526, which, according to the Appellant,
correspond to the "third electrical conductor" recited in claim 1 (Appeal
Br. 6), would be electrically connected to the second electrical terminus 514,
which corresponds to the "second electrical conductor" and is connected to
the right-side (i.e., second end) of the photovoltaic cell 510, as shown in
Figure 5. Hence, we discern no error in the Examiner's finding that the
disputed limitations are disclosed in Wattman.
We discern no persuasive merit in the Appellant's argument that the
Examiner engaged in an unreasonable claim construction that, in effect,
ignores the claim limitation "from within the photovoltaic laminate" in the
"wherein" clause recited in claim 1. Claim 1 recites the open transitory term
"comprising" to define the claimed "photovoltaic laminate" (Appeal Br. 9).
Therefore, unrecited components, such as Wattman' s terminator
connector 776, are not excluded. Cf In re Baxter, 656 F.2d 679, 686 (CCPA
1981) ("As long as one of the monomers in the reaction is propylene, any
other monomer may be present, because the term 'compris[ing]' permits the
inclusion of other steps, elements, or materials.").
Furthermore, the Appellant does not direct us to any description in the
Inventors' Specification and Drawings that would have indicated to one
skilled in the relevant art that unrecited components, such as Wattman's
terminator connector 776, would be excluded from the claimed
"photovoltaic laminate." To the contrary, the Inventors' own Specification
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Appeal2018-007818
Application 14/747,836
and Drawings describe connectors 214-1 and 214-2 as part of the
"photovoltaic laminate" (Spec. 10, 11. 5-17; Fig. 2) as well as interconnected
photovoltaic laminates using diode connectors (Fig. 3). Therefore, we do
not find the Examiner's proffered claim construction to be unreasonable. 5
For these reasons and those well-stated by the Examiner, we uphold
the Examiner's rejection of claim 1.
IV. SUMMARY
Rejections A and Bare sustained. Therefore, the Examiner's final
decision to reject claims 1-9 is affirmed.
No time period for taking any subsequent action in connection with
this appeal may be extended under 37 C.F.R. § 1.136(a).
AFFIRMED
5 Wattman' s usage of the term "photovoltaic laminate" is also consistent
with the broadest reasonable claim interpretation because Wattman states
that "the photovoltaic laminates ... can include connectors for series
interconnection" (id. ,r 58 (emphasis added)). Cf In re Smith Int'!, Inc., 871
F.3d 1375, 1382 (Fed. Cir. 2017) (a broad claim construction was erroneous
where "the ... specification consistently describe[d] and refer[red] to the
body as a component distinct from others, such as the mandrel, piston, and
drive ring.").
8