Prosecution Insights
Last updated: October 27, 2026
Application No. 17/635,074

ARRAY SUBSTRATE AND DISPLAY PANEL

Non-Final OA §102
Filed
Oct 10, 2024
Priority
Jan 13, 2022 — CN 202210037851.8 +1 more
Examiner
MUSE, ISMAIL A
Art Unit
Tech Center
Assignee
Wuhan China Star Optoelectronics Technology Co., Ltd.
OA Round
1 (Non-Final)
87%
Grant Probability
Favorable
1-2
OA Rounds
3m
Est. Remaining
95%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 87% — above average
87%
Career Allowance Rate
565 granted / 651 resolved
+26.8% vs TC avg
Moderate +8% lift
Without
With
+8.1%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Typical timeline
2y 4m
Avg Prosecution
30 currently pending
Career history
693
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
0.3%
-39.7% vs TC avg
§103
57.0%
+17.0% vs TC avg
§102
27.4%
-12.6% vs TC avg
§112
14.5%
-25.5% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 651 resolved cases

Office Action

§102
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)(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 and 11 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by Moon et al. [US PGPUB 20230073848] (hereinafter Moon). Regarding claim 1, Moon teaches an array substrate, wherein the array substrate comprises a display area (see annotated Fig. 13) and a peripheral area (see annotated Fig. 13) adjacent to the display area (Fig. 13), and the array substrate comprises: a base (110/111/211/120, Fig. 13) comprising stacked layers of a substrate (110, Para 119), a sheltering-and-wiring metal layer (211, Para 157, Fig. 13), a buffer layer (lowermost layer of layer 120, Para 160), a shielding metal layer (111, Para 157, Fig. 13), and a blocking insulation layer (uppermost layer of layer 120, Para 160); an active layer (A2 and material connected to opposite ends of A2, Para 158, Fig. 13) disposed on the base (Fig. 13), wherein the active layer comprises an active segment (A2, Fig. 13) and a first conductor segment (right material connected to D2, Fig. 13) and a second conductor segment (left material connected to S2, Fig. 13) disposed at two ends of the active segment (Fig. 13); a first insulation layer (120, Para 163) disposed on the base and the active layer (Fig. 13); a first metal layer (material layer on layer 160 connecting material in holes H6/H7/H4, Para 168) disposed on the first insulation layer (Fig. 13); a second insulation layer (160, Para 167) disposed on the first insulation layer and the first metal layer (Fig. 13); a second metal layer (DL, Para 153) disposed on the second insulation layer (Fig. 13), wherein the array substrate further comprises a first via hole (H7, Para 173) defined above the sheltering- and-wiring metal layer (Fig. 13), a second via hole (H3, Para 170) defined above the shielding metal layer (Fig. 13), a third via hole (H6, Para 173) defined above the first conductor segment (Fig. 13), a fourth via hole (H5, Para 172) defined above the second conductor segment (Fig. 13), and a first connection segment (materials in holes H6, H7 and material on layer 160 connecting the materials in the hole, Fig. 13) located within the display area (Fig. 13) and a second connection segment (PL, Para 152, Fig. 13) located within the peripheral area (Fig. 13), wherein an end of the first connection segment passes through the first via hole to connect with the sheltering-and-wiring metal layer, another end of the first connection segment passes through the third via hole to connect with the first conductor segment (Fig. 13), the second connection segment passes through the second via hole to connect with the shielding metal layer (Fig. 13), the second metal layer passes through the fourth via hole to connect with the second conductor segment (Fig. 13), wherein the first metal layer comprises the first connection segment and the second connection segment (Fig. 13); or the second metal layer comprises the first connection segment and the second connection segment. Regarding claim 11, Moon teaches a display panel (310, Para 135), wherein the display panel comprises an array substrate, the array substrate comprises a display area (see annotated Fig. 13) and a peripheral area (see annotated Fig. 13) adjacent to the display area (Fig. 13), and the array substrate comprises: a base (110/111/211/120, Fig. 13) comprising stacked layers of a substrate (110, Para 119), a sheltering-and-wiring metal layer (211, Para 157, Fig. 13), a buffer layer (lowermost layer of layer 120, Para 160), a shielding metal layer (111, Para 157, Fig. 13), and a blocking insulation layer (uppermost layer of layer 120, Para 160); an active layer (A2 and material connected to opposite ends of A2, Para 158, Fig. 13) disposed on the base (Fig. 13), wherein the active layer comprises an active segment (A2, Fig. 13) and a first conductor segment (right material connected to D2, Fig. 13) and a second conductor segment (left material connected to S2, Fig. 13) disposed at two ends of the active segment (Fig. 13); a first insulation layer (120, Para 163) disposed on the base and the active layer (Fig. 13); a first metal layer (material layer on layer 160 connecting material in holes H6/H7/H4, Para 168) disposed on the first insulation layer (Fig. 13); a second insulation layer (160, Para 167) disposed on the first insulation layer and the first metal layer (Fig. 13); a second metal layer (DL, Para 153) disposed on the second insulation layer (Fig. 13), wherein the array substrate further comprises a first via hole (H7, Para 173) defined above the sheltering- and-wiring metal layer (Fig. 13), a second via hole (H3, Para 170) defined above the shielding metal layer (Fig. 13), a third via hole (H6, Para 173) defined above the first conductor segment (Fig. 13), a fourth via hole (H5, Para 172) defined above the second conductor segment (Fig. 13), and a first connection segment (materials in holes H6, H7 and material on layer 160 connecting the materials in the hole, Fig. 13) located within the display area (Fig. 13) and a second connection segment (PL, Para 152, Fig. 13) located within the peripheral area (Fig. 13), wherein an end of the first connection segment passes through the first via hole to connect with the sheltering-and-wiring metal layer, another end of the first connection segment passes through the third via hole to connect with the first conductor segment (Fig. 13), the second connection segment passes through the second via hole to connect with the shielding metal layer (Fig. 13), the second metal layer passes through the fourth via hole to connect with the second conductor segment (Fig. 13), wherein the first metal layer comprises the first connection segment and the second connection segment (Fig. 13); or the second metal layer comprises the first connection segment and the second connection segment. Allowable Subject Matter Claims 2-10 and 12-20 are objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims. The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter: Claims 2-4, 6, 12-14 and 16 are objected to because the prior arts of record and related prior arts fail to anticipate or render obvious the limitation of claim 2-4, 6, 12-14 and 16. Although individual elements of claim 2-4, 6, 12-14 and 16 may be found in one of more of the prior arts, none of the prior arts, alone or in combination, teaches or suggests the particularly claimed combination of individual elements or the relationship of the claimed individual elements. Wherein any combination of the prior arts to arrive at the claimed combination would be nothing short of impermissible hindsight. Claims 5, 7-10, 15, and 17-20 are allowable base on their dependency on allowable claims. Conclusion Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to ISMAIL A MUSE whose telephone number is (571)272-1470. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Friday 8:00 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, William Partridge can be reached at (571)270-1402. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300. Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000. /ISMAIL A MUSE/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2812
Read full office action

Prosecution Timeline

Oct 10, 2024
Application Filed
Oct 05, 2026
Non-Final Rejection mailed — §102 (current)

Precedent Cases

Applications granted by this same examiner with similar technology

Patent 12772635
DISPLAY PANEL AND SPLICING SCREEN INCLUDING THE SAME
3y 6m to grant Granted Oct 20, 2026
Patent 12772556
3D-STACKED SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICE MANUFACTURED USING CHANNEL SPACER
3y 0m to grant Granted Oct 20, 2026
Patent 12772646
PACKAGE STRUCTURE WITH SUPPORTING FRAME
2y 6m to grant Granted Oct 20, 2026
Patent 12765123
LIGHT EMITTING ELEMENT AND DISPLAY DEVICE
3y 7m to grant Granted Oct 13, 2026
Patent 12765130
RADIATION-EMITTING SEMICONDUCTOR CHIP AND METHOD FOR PRODUCING A RADIATION-EMITTING SEMICONDUCTOR CHIP
3y 3m to grant Granted Oct 13, 2026
Study what changed to get past this examiner. Based on 5 most recent grants.

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Prosecution Projections

1-2
Expected OA Rounds
87%
Grant Probability
95%
With Interview (+8.1%)
2y 4m (~3m remaining)
Median Time to Grant
Low
PTA Risk
Based on 651 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allowance rate.

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