DETAILED ACTION
This Office Action is in response to the applicant's amendment entered with the RCE filed December 22nd, 2025. In virtue of this communication, claims 1, 2, 4, and 5 are currently presented in the instant application.
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 § 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.
Claims 1, 2, 4, and 5 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kim et al. (US 2020/0111390 A1; hereinafter Kim) in view of Winters et al. (US 2007/0176538 A1; hereinafter Winters).
With respect to claim 1, Kim discloses an organic light emitting display device 500 in Fig. 8 with Figs. 1-4G teaching overlapping subject matter, comprising:
a first substrate 111 including a plurality of sub-pixels SPX (see Figs. 1, 2, 8, and paragraphs 38, 43-46, 53, 136, 167);
a transistor 150 in each of the sub-pixels SPX of the plurality of sub-pixels and on the first substrate 111 (see Figs. 1, 2, 8, and paragraphs 70, 73, 74, 136, 167);
an organic light emitting diode 160 in each of the sub-pixels SPX of the plurality of sub-pixels and on the first substrate 111 (see Figs. 1, 2, 8, and paragraphs 74, 75, 78, 79, 136);
an aging voltage supply line (comprising 781 and 782) extending from a lower surface of the first substrate 111 to a portion of the transistor 150 and supplying an aging voltage to the transistor 150 (see Figs. 1, 2, 8, and paragraphs 48, 95, 99, 100, 169-174; note that 781 and 782 are functionally equivalent to 181 and 182 and supply low and high potential power to transistor 150; as noted in both previous rejections, any electrically conductive element capable of supplying a voltage can supply an aging voltage); and
an aging pad (where 130 and 140 connect to 180; 180 is equivalent to 780) formed at an end of the aging voltage supply line (comprising 781 and 782), a probe (130 and 140) being contacted with the aging pad (where 130 and 140 connect to 180) to supply the aging voltage to the aging pad (where 130 and 140 connect to 180) from outside (see Figs. 1, 2, 8, and paragraphs 48-53, 95, 99, 100, 167; note 130 and 140 supply signals (i.e. voltage) to the pixels, i.e., a voltage applying means; any pad capable of supplying a voltage can supply an aging voltage),
wherein the aging voltage supply line (comprising 781 and 782) includes:
a first aging voltage supply line 781 connected to a gate electrode 151 of the transistor 150 through a first contact hole CT1 formed in the first substrate 111 and a gate insulating layer 113 (see Fig. 8 and paragraphs 70-72, 74, 99, 169-171; 171 connected to 151 to transmit a gate signal), and
a second aging supply line connected to an electrode 153 of the transistor 150 through a second contact hole CT2 formed in the first substrate 111, the gate insulating layer 113, and an interlayer insulating layer 114 (see Fig. 8 and paragraphs 70-72, 75, 94, 172-174).
Kim does not explicitly disclose where the transistor 150 is a thin film transistor (even though the transistor looks like and is formed like a TFT) or wherein the electrode 153 is a drain electrode.
Winters discloses an organic light emitting display device in Figs. 4a-6 wherein a transistor 140 is a thin film transistor and that the source and drain terminal indications are interchangeable and can be switched to suit a particular device construction, pixel design, or driving operation method (see Figs. 4a-6 and paragraphs 7, 35, 39, 53; note TFT can be a top gate structure).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention that the transistor 150 of Kim would be a thin film transistor as taught by Winters because the such thin film transistors are well known in the art and active matrix circuitry for OLED displays is commonly achieved by forming thin film transistors from thin layers of semiconductor material, such a silicon, deposited over the substrate (see MPEP 2144 I and see Winters: paragraph 7). Additionally, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention that in the transistor 150 of Kim the electrode 153 would be a drain and thus the electrode 154 would be source as taught by Winters because one skilled in the art will realize that the source and drain terminal indications are interchangeable and can be switched to suit a particular device construction, pixel design, or driving operation method (see Winters: paragraph 39)
With respect to claim 2, the combination of Kim and Winters discloses the organic light emitting display device according to claim 1, wherein the thin film transistor 150 includes: a semiconductor layer 152 over the first substrate 111 and under the gate insulating layer 113; the gate electrode 151 on the gate insulating layer 113 and under the interlayer insulating layer 114; and a source electrode 154 and the drain electrode 153 on the interlayer insulating layer 114 (see Kim: Fig. 8 and paragraphs 70, 71, 74, 80. Also see Winters: paragraph 39 for source and drain interchangeability).
With respect to claim 4, the combination of Kim and Winters discloses the organic light emitting display device according to claim 1, wherein the first aging voltage supply line 781 is formed of the same material as the gate electrode 151 (see Kim: Fig. 8 and paragraphs 171).
With respect to claim 5, the combination of Kim and Winters discloses the organic light emitting display device according to claim 1, wherein the second aging voltage supply line 782 is formed of the same material as the drain electrode 153 (see Kim: Fig. 8 and paragraphs 174. Also see Winters: paragraph 39 for source and drain interchangeability).
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to claims 1, 2, 4, and 5 have been considered but are moot because the new ground of rejection does not rely on any reference applied in the prior rejection of record for any teaching or matter specifically challenged in the argument.
Inquiry
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JORDAN M KLEIN whose telephone number is (571)270-7544. The examiner can normally be reached 9:00 am - 5:00 pm.
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/J.M.K/Examiner, Art Unit 2893
/SUE A PURVIS/ Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2893