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 .
Priority
Receipt is acknowledged of certified copies of papers required by 37 CFR 1.55. Examiner acknowledges foreign priority claim of 04/18/2019.
Continued Examination Under 37 CFR 1.114
Receipt is acknowledged of a request for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, including the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) and a submission, filed on 10/24/2025.
Response to Amendment
Examiner acknowledges applicants’ amendment to the independent claim 1, which also overcomes the previous 112 rejection set forth in the prior office action. Claims 1-11 are currently pending in the present application.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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 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(s) 1-7 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Jin et al. (Korean Patent No 20160116462A) in view of Dongkyun (US Patent No 20190042018) further in view of Seo (US Patent No 20200229766) further in view of Shinoda (US Patent No 20110295087). Examiner acknowledges that the publication date of the US publication of Seo is found after the priority date given to the application, however, Seo has a foreign publication date of September 25, 2017 in Korean Patent No 2017-0123344, and thereby contains publication information qualifying Seo as prior art.
Regarding claim 1, Jin teaches A skin condition measurement device for measuring a skin condition including a moisture condition of a user's skin, comprising: a skin condition measurement sensor module (see touch sensor, fig 1).
Jin does not explicitly teach wherein the sensor module and transparent film are configured to be attached on a touch screen of a mobile communication terminal or on a protective film attached to the touch screen.
However, Jin does state that the touch sensor of the present invention can be formed on the substrate 100 which can be made of glass or other materials commonly known in the art for a screen material, ([0063]- [0064]). Therefore, one apprised of reasonable skill in the art could infer the substrate screen material to be a touchscreen in which the sensor module would be attached for during use. Furthermore, the analogous touch screen sensing apparatus disclosed by Dongkyun does teach a touch sensor 200 which is overlayed on a display panel 100 which can be made of an LCD display or other touch screen compatible materials, (see [0062] and fig 1).
Therefore, it would have been obvious for one skilled in the art prior to the effective filing date to overlay or attach the sensor module onto the touch screen of a mobile communication device as it is shown to be commonly known to those skilled in the art as disclosed in Dongkyun.
Jin furthermore does not teach the skin condition measurement device configured to measure the moisture condition of a first skin wherein it is configured to be attached on a touch screen on the front of a mobile communication terminal or on a protective film attached to the touch screen, the first skin being a part of the users skin that comes in contact with the sensor module, a module also comprising: a circuit module disposed on the rear of the mobile communication terminal wherein the circuit module comprises a micro controller unit (MCU), and including a measurement part that measures moisture and a surrounding temperature of a user's second skin based on a signal detected by a pair of sensor electrodes of the skin condition measurement sensor module; wherein the circuit module further comprises a moisture sensor which is configured to measure a moisture condition of the user's second skin to provide the measured moisture to the MCU, the second skin being a part of the user's skin to be sensed by the moisture sensor on the rear of the mobile communication terminal, and a connection part configured to connect a terminal of the skin condition measurement sensor module and a terminal of the circuit module.
However, the analogous skin condition measuring case disclosed by Seo does teach the skin condition measurement device configured to measure the moisture condition of a first skin (a case for skin condition measuring functions including a moisture measurement, [abstract], see also the skin condition moisture sensor 412 which is found on the front face of the communication device, [0042]) wherein it is configured to be attached on a touch screen on the front of a mobile communication terminal or on a protective film attached to the touch screen (see [0044] in which the case is provided with a bracket 210 containing the moisture measurement sensor 412 for connecting on the front surface of a phone or mobile communication device 1), the first skin being a part of the users skin that comes in contact with the sensor module (see the skin condition moisture sensor 412 which is found on the front face of the communication device and comes in contact with the skin for sensing capabilities, [0042], therefore seen as the first skin), the circuit module comprises a micro controller unit (MCU) (see the control unit 300, [0049]), comprising: a circuit module disposed on the rear of the mobile communication terminal (see the terminal 205 which is found inside the case or on the rear of the mobile communication device in connection to the controller 300 equating to the circuit module, [0049]) and including a measurement part that measures moisture and a surrounding temperature of a user's second skin (information measurement sensor 432 is capable of obtaining information in the surrounding environment based on moisture content and may also contain a temperature sensor, [0052]) based on a signal detected by a pair of sensor electrodes of the skin condition measurement sensor module (see first and second electrodes 414 and 416 used for receiving moisture sensor signals from the moisture sensor 432, [0047]); wherein the circuit module further comprises a moisture sensor which is configured to measure a moisture condition of the user's second skin to provide the measured moisture to the MCU (information measurement sensor 432 is capable of obtaining information in the surrounding environment based on moisture content and may also contain a temperature sensor, [0052], see also in which the measurement sensor 432 is in data communication with the control unit or MCU 300, [0055]), the second skin being a part of the user's skin to be sensed by the moisture sensor on the rear of the mobile communication terminal (see in which the sensor 432 is found on the rear of the communication device and is capable of measuring the moisture content of the users skin on the rear, [0052], and thereby analogous to sensing the second skin), and a connection part configured to connect a terminal of the skin condition measurement sensor module and a terminal of the circuit module (see the terminal 205 which is found inside the case or on the rear of the mobile communication device in connection to the controller 300 equating to the circuit module, [0049]).
Therefore, it would have been obvious for one skilled in the art prior to the effective filing date to combine the measurement device and sensor module disclosed by Jin and Dongkyun with the skin moisture sensing capabilities and structure taught by Seo as it is known in the art and allows for the user to measure biological conditions such moisture sensing in an easy and efficient manner.
The combination at hand does not necessarily teach that the sensor module is configured to measure the respective skin moisture values through a sensed capacitance value, and wherein the sensor module is further configured to measure a first capacitance corresponding to the user's first skin to provide the first capacitance to the MCU through the connector; wherein the MCU is configured to determine a moisture of the first skin using the first capacitance with the moisture of the second skin as a reference, wherein the sensor module comprises: sensor electrodes configured to measure the first capacitance; and a floating electrode configured to measure the second capacitance independently to the first capacitance, the second capacitance measured to recognize the user's touch.
However, the analogous biological information sensor apparatus disclosed by Shinoda does teach a sensor module which measures respective skin moisture values through capacitance values, and wherein the sensor module is further configured to measure a first capacitance corresponding to the user's first skin to provide the first capacitance to the MCU through the connector (wherein there is a capacitor which is configured to measure a first capacitance between the interaction of the first and second electrode structures and communicates a capacitance fluctuation to the detection component 17, [0046]); wherein the MCU is configured to determine a moisture of the first skin using the first capacitance with the moisture of the second skin as a reference (see [0053] in which it is explained how the amount of moisture is determined by reading the capacitance fluctuation between the different sensor membranes or electrode terminals 5a-5c using the non-contact state as a reference value), wherein the sensor module comprises: sensor electrodes configured to measure the first capacitance (wherein there is a capacitor which is configured to measure a first capacitance between the interaction of the first and second electrode structures and communicates a capacitance fluctuation to the detection component 17, [0046]); and a floating electrode configured to measure the second capacitance independently to the first capacitance, the second capacitance measured to recognize the user's touch (see the skin detection component 16 which acts as a second capacitance which is utilized to recognize the users skin contact or touch individually from the main capacitor C, [0053]).
Therefore, it would have been obvious for one skilled in the art prior to the effective filing date to combine the skin condition measurement device structure specifically containing a first moisture sensor measurement side on the front of the device and a second measurement side on the rear of the device as taught by Jin, Dongkyun and Seo with the specific capacitance measurements with the function of determining the moisture quantity of the users skin as taught by Shinoda as it is another known method of determining the amount of moisture present as well as allowing for moisture measurements and skin touch recognition to be individually sensed by the skin condition measurement module, as disclosed by Shinoda, [0053].
Regarding claim 2, the combination teaches the skin condition measurement device of claim 1, wherein: the sensor electrodes are a pair of electrodes and formed in a concavo-convex shape and comprises a first sensor electrode and a second sensor electrode (see Donkin first electrodes 11, para [0103] and second electrodes 21 para [0105]); and the floating electrode is disposed in concave portions of the first sensor electrode and the second sensor electrode (see Donkin fig 13, in which it can be seen that the fourth electrodes 60, equivalent to the floating electrode, is disposed overtop of the third electrodes 50 concave openings, equivalent to the sensor electrodes).
Regarding claim 3, the combination teaches the skin condition measurement device of claim 1, wherein: each of the pair of sensor electrodes is formed in a comb shape (see Dongkyun, fig 5, first electrodes 10 arranged in a comb shape); and a maximum width of each of the pair of sensor electrodes is 1 to 20 mm (from Jin, bridge electrodes 30 have side length of body which may be 30 to 1000um, para [0053], which fall in the specified range).
Regarding claim 4, the combination teaches the skin condition measurement device of claim 1, further comprising a transparent film being attached to the touch screen or the protective film to cover entire display of the touch screen, (Dongkyun, [0062] a touch sensor 200 which is overlayed on a display panel 100 which can be made of an LCD display or other touch screen compatible materials, fig 1) wherein the transparent film comprises one selected from the group consisting of polystyrene (PS), polyethylene terephthalate (PET), polybutylene terephthalate (PBT), polyethylene naphtha late (PEN), polyimide (PI), polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE), a liquid crystal polymer (LCP), fluorinated ethylene propylene (PEP), perfluoro alkoxy (PFA), an ethylene- tetrafluoroethylene copolymer (ETFE), polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF), an ethylene- chlorotrifluoroethylene copolymer (ECTFE), polychlorotrifluoroethylene (PCTFE), and a combination thereof (see Jin para [0064] for substrate 100 materials including PET, PS, PEN, etc.).
Regarding claim 5, the combination teaches the skin condition measurement device of claim 1, wherein the sensor electrodes and the floating electrode are formed of a grid-shaped pattern layer (from Dongkyun, see fig 1, touch sensor 200 for the grid shaped pattern of the electrodes, further or see para [0063]), wherein the pattern layer comprises one selected from the group consisting of aluminum (Al), titanium (It), chromium (Cr), iron (Fe), cobalt (Co), nickel (Ni), copper (Cu), zinc (Zn), ruthenium (Ru), palladium (Pd), silver (Ag), tin (Sn), neodymium (Nd), tungsten (W), platinum (Pt), gold (Au), molybdenum (Mo), stainless steel (SUS), and a combination thereof (see Jin para [0054] for electrode material comprised of zinc mixtures).
Regarding claim 6, the combination teaches the skin condition measurement device of claim 1, wherein the sensor electrodes and the floating electrode are formed of a grid-shaped pattern layer (from Dongkyun, see fig 1, touch sensor 200 for the grid shaped pattern of the electrodes, further or see para [0063]), wherein the pattern layer comprises one selected from the group consisting of indium tin oxide (ITO), indium zinc oxide (IZO), indium zinc tin oxide (IZTO), indium aluminum zinc oxide (IAZO), indium gallium zinc oxide (IGZO), indium gallium tin oxide (IGTO), aluminum zinc oxide (AZO), antimony tin oxide (ATO), gallium zinc oxide (GZO), IrOx, RuOx, TiO2, and a combination thereof (see Jin para [0054] for electrode material comprised of tin and zinc oxides).
Regarding claim 7, the combination teaches the skin condition measurement device of claim 1, wherein the sensor electrodes and the floating electrode are formed of a grid-shaped pattern layer (from Dongkyun, see fig 1, touch sensor 200 for the grid shaped pattern of the electrodes, further or see para [0063]), wherein the pattern layer is formed by one process selected from the group consisting of metal-organic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD), hydride vapor phase epitaxy (HVPE), thermal deposition, e- beam deposition, laser deposition, sputtering, and ion plating (see Jin para [0040] for methods of forming including chemical vapor deposition).
Claim(s) 8-11 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Jin et al. (Korean Patent No 20160116462A) in view of Dongkyun (US Patent No 20190042018) further in view of Seo (US Patent No 20200229766) further in view of Shinoda (US Patent No 20110295087) further in view of Li et al. (US Patent No 20190000332).
Regarding claim 8, the combination of Jin, Dongkyun, Seo and Shinoda teaches a skin condition measurement device comprising of claim 1.
The combination also does not teach a power generator configured to harvest energy to generate power during a call of a mobile communication terminal and a near field communication (NFC) communication part configured to transmit the measured information to the mobile communication terminal; wherein the MCU is further configured to control generation of power and data transmission to the mobile communication terminal.
However, the analogous wearable biometric monitoring device via similar sensor modules of Li does teach a power generator configured to harvest energy to generate power during a call of a mobile communication terminal (energy harvesting module can be implemented using other kinds of energy harvesting such as power generator, para [0032]); a near field communication (NFC) communication part configured to transmit the measured information to the mobile communication terminal (communication interface 270 may allow the device to communicate with other devise via Near Field Communication, para [0027]); wherein the MCU is further configured to control generation of power and data transmission to the mobile communication terminal (wherein the processor 154 implements control function for pre-processing and sending sensed data signals, [0015]).
Therefore, it would have been obvious for one skilled in the art prior to the effective filing date of the application to combine the previous combination of Jin, Dongkyun, Seo and Shinoda with the energy harvesting and control method technique of Li in order to continuously monitor and control the biological sensor measurements as disclosed by Li (para [0017]).
Regarding claim 9, the combination teaches the skin condition measurement device of claim 8, wherein the NFC communication part generates power by energy harvesting during communication (see Li, para [0031] on how the energy harvesting module can be implemented as a radiofrequency energy harvester and convert environmental RF signals from communication into power).
Regarding claim 10, the combination teaches the skin condition measurement device of claim 8, wherein the power generator comprises a rectenna configured to harvest energy during a call of the mobile communication terminal (see Li, para [0031] on how the energy harvesting module can be implemented as a radiofrequency energy harvester and convert environmental RF signals from communication into power); a super capacitor configured to store the harvested energy (see li, capacitor as the energy storage module 220, para [0034]); and a regulator configured to adjust the stored energy to a predetermined voltage (see Li, energy harvesting module 210 can be implemented as a thermoelectric generator and can be used to generate a voltage proportional to that required from the device, para [0030]).
Regarding claim 11, the combination teaches the skin condition measurement device of claim 9, wherein the NFC communication part comprises: a dynamic NFC tag configured to store the measured information and perform the energy harvesting during NFC communication (see Li, para [0031] on how the energy harvesting module can be implemented as a radiofrequency energy harvester and convert environmental RF signals from communication into power); and an NFC antenna configured to transmit an NFC signal (see Li para [0027], in saying the communication interface 270 can send and receive signals of NFC it would have been obvious for one skilled in the art to infer that an NFC antenna were being used to transmit NFC signals).
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to claim(s) 1 and all relevant dependent claims have been considered and are found to be partially persuasive.
With regards to the argument presented about the newly amended claim 1, that the prior art of record of Shinoda in its intended structure does not teach the capabilities of obtaining the capacitance measurements of the moisture content of the first skin and second skin, as newly defined by the amended claim limitation, because Shinoda does not contain sensor systems on either side of a communication terminal, has been considered and found persuasive. Specifically, examiner agrees with the applicant that Shinoda does not appear to teach a sensor system that would sense the moisture content from a front and rear end of a communication terminal corresponding to the claimed first and second skins. However, upon further search and consideration, as necessitated by the amended claim limitation of claim 1, it has been found that the previous prior art of record of Seo does teach and disclose the newly defined structure of a first and second skin found on the front side (front side moisture sensor 412) and the rear side of a communication terminal (rear side moisture sensor 432), as well as the capabilities to sense the moisture content between the two sensor systems (see Seo, [0047]-[0052] describing how the sensing capabilities are structured). Therefore, the prior art of Seo teaches the front and rear side sensing capabilities of the first and second skin as newly defined in the claim amendment. The newly considered prior art of Seo differs from the present claim language in that there is no mention of using a capacitance difference to obtain the skins moisture content. However, as shown in the present office action, the prior art of Shinoda discloses and teaches a sensor apparatus which senses the moisture content using a capacitance fluctuation between electrodes 5 and skin detection components 16 and 17 ([0053]). Therefore, it would have been obvious for one skilled in the art prior to the effective filing date to use the sensor placements on the first and second skin disclosed by Seo with that of the moisture sensing via capabilities via capacitance measuring taught by Shinoda as it is a known method in the art for sensing the moisture content. Therefore, claim 1 and all relevant dependent claims remain rejected under the newly considered prior art of record rejection of Jin in view of Dognkyun in view of Seo further in view of Shinoda set forth in the present office action.
Applicant has not provided any additional arguments for any dependent claims and thus the rejections of those claims are tenable for at least the same reasons as outlined above.
Conclusion
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/LINDA C DVORAK/
Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3794
/KYLE M. BROWN/Examiner, Art Unit 3794