DETAILED ACTION
Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status
1. The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
Summary
This action is responsive to the Request for Continued Examination filed on 07/21/2026. The amendment has been entered. Applicant has submitted Claims 1-11, 16-17, and 21-22 for examination.
Examiner finds the following: 1) Claims 1-11, 16-17, and 21-22are rejected; 2) no claims objected to; and 3) no claims allowable.
Request for Continued Examination
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 07/21/2026.
Response to Arguments and Remarks
Examiner respectfully acknowledges Applicant’s arguments, remarks, and amendments.
Regarding Applicant arguments and remarks regarding Gold, Examiner is not persuaded.
Applicant argues that Gold fails to disclose “a database in electric communication with the detection system” and that the database stores “the temperature of the melt pool.”
Examiner maps Gold to those as follows:
… a database in electrical communication with the detection system (Gold, FIG. 1, [0039], “Controller 220 may include one or more memory devices and one or more microprocessors”); and …
And:
… the temperature of the melt pool is collected and stored in the database (Gold, FIG. 1, [0039], “Controller 220 may include one or more memory devices and one or more microprocessors,” and FIG. 5, “[0055], “beam steering apparatus 124 may be oriented as if it were directing energy beam 122 toward each of the calibrated light sources 240 and data may be collected from melt pool monitoring system 200 when beam steering apparatus 124 is in each of the one or more positions”), …
A reasonable interpretation of the above mapping would show that Gold has a controller (220), that collect data from directing energy beam (122) within melt pool monitoring system (200). For the above to happen, Examiner understands said controller (220) to be in some communication with the memory devices, and since that information would be electronic in nature, Examiner understands that communication to be electrical communication. Examiner does not find the above understanding or interpretation to be anything more than the plain meaning of the above with reasonable information PHOSITA would be aware of. As such, Examiner is not persuaded and maintains the mapping.
Regarding Applicant arguments and remarks regarding Narra, Examiner is not persuaded.
Applicant argues that Narra fails to disclose:
… the database comprises a control board configured to provide instructions to the laser via a feedback loop to modify process parameters in real time via the machine learning.
Examiner notes that Narra is directed towards machine learning, a process where a machine, through the use of algorithms, can “learn” the patterns of training data to, in subsequent instances, improve upon, modify, or otherwise make inferences about those subsequent instances.
Narra discloses that generally in FIG. 1 and [0044]:
The process map includes a model of how changes to one or more inputs to a physical process (e.g., process variables, materials variables, etc.) affect an output of the physical process or process outcomes (e.g., melt pool dimensions in the context of additive manufacturing). Generally, in this description, process variables include process inputs, and physical outcomes include process outcomes. For example, during a manufacturing process, the process map can be analyzed to determine what settings should be applied to a system to get a desired result.
Examiner, in an attempt to better map to Narra’s processing system environment 1400 from FIG. 14, now specifically maps to computing system 1412.
Examiner does not understand Applicant’s machine learning limitations to be claiming anything unusual or otherwise abnormal for a machine learning system outside of applying it to the claimed invention. There does not appear to be anything to differentiate it from standard uses of machine learning as shown in Narra. If Applicant is claiming something unusual or abnormal, Examiner would appreciate such to be pointed out, but as is, Examiner is not persuaded and maintains the mapping.
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.
The factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or non-obviousness.
Claims 1-8, 10, and 15-18 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Gold (US 20190323951 A1), in view of Calta (US 20200254565 A1), in further view of Zalameda (US 20170297095 A1), in further view of Novotny (US6847907B1), in further view of Liu (CN 111953935 A), and in further view of Narra (US 20190337232 A1).
Regarding Claim 1, Gold discloses:
An additive manufacturing apparatus comprising:
a laser (Gold, FIG. 1, [0029], laser beam 122), wherein the laser is operable to emit a laser beam to heat a powder bed to form a melt pool (Gold, FIG. 1, [0032], “energy beam 122 is emitted from energy source 120 and beam steering apparatus 26 is used to steer the focal spot 174 of energy beam 122 over the exposed powder surface in an appropriate pattern. A small portion of exposed layer of the additive powder 142 surrounding focal spot 174, referred to herein as a “weld pool” or “melt pool” or “heat effected zone” 176 (best seen in FIG. 2) is heated by energy beam 122 to a temperature allowing it to sinter or melt, flow, and consolidate”), and wherein the melt pool emits light proportional to a temperature of the melt pool (Gold, FIG. 1, [0034], “the heated material emits electromagnetic energy in the form of visible and invisible light”);
a database in electrical communication with the detection system (Gold, FIG. 1, [0039], “Controller 220 may include one or more memory devices and one or more microprocessors”); and
a detection system (Gold, FIG. 1, [0035], melt pool monitoring system 200) comprising:
a spectral disperser (Gold, FIG. 1, [0029], “beam steering apparatus 124 includes one or more mirrors, prisms, lenses, and/or electromagnets operably coupled with suitable actuators and arranged to direct and focus energy beam 122”); and
one of a) two or more on-axis sensors or b) a line scanner, wherein the two or more on-axis sensors or the line scanner are/is located along an axis of the light emitted from the melt pool (Gold, FIG. 1, [0035], “melt pool monitoring system 200 includes two on-axis light sensors 202 and one fixed, off-axis light sensor 204”),
the detection system is operable to receive the light emitted from the melt pool (Gold, FIG. 1, [0029], “beam steering apparatus 124 includes one or more mirrors, prisms, lenses, and/or electromagnets operably coupled with suitable actuators and arranged to direct and focus energy beam 122”), and
an intensity of the light detected by the a) two or more on-axis sensors (Gold, FIG. 4, [0036], “On-axis sensor 202 can measure any suitable parameter of the filtered, reflected beam, such as intensity, frequency, wavelength, etc.”) or the b) line scanner is … compared with the blackbody spectral map at a particular wavelength of the emitted light to determine a temperature of the melt pool (Gold, FIG. 4, [0045], “calibrated light sources 240 may be any source of electromagnetic energy, such as a light emitting diode (LED), a laser, a halogen bulb, an incandescent bulb, a glow bar, a fiber coupled light source, a black body emitter, or any other electromagnetic emission device which having a known emission intensity, wavelength mission, emission area, or any other suitable measurable quantity or quality of electromagnetic energy”), …
… the temperature of the melt pool is collected and stored in the database (Gold, FIG. 1, [0039], “Controller 220 may include one or more memory devices and one or more microprocessors,” and FIG. 5, “[0055], “beam steering apparatus 124 may be oriented as if it were directing energy beam 122 toward each of the calibrated light sources 240 and data may be collected from melt pool monitoring system 200 when beam steering apparatus 124 is in each of the one or more positions”), …
Gold discloses the above but does not explicitly disclose:
… wherein the two or more on-axis sensors each generate a first colored thermal image corresponding to a first wavelength band of light and a second colored thermal image corresponding to a second wavelength band of light, respectively,
wherein the first colored thermal image and the second colored thermal image are combined to form a composite thermal image, …
However, Calta, in a similar field of endeavor (TWO-COLOR HIGH SPEED THERMAL IMAGING SYSTEM FOR LASER-BASED ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING PROCESS MONITORING), discloses:
… wherein the two or more on-axis sensors each generate a first colored thermal image corresponding to a first wavelength band of light and a second colored thermal image corresponding to a second wavelength band of light, respectively (Calta, FIG. 1, [0037], “The two-color high speed thermal imaging system directly images light emitted from the melt pool 110,” and [0039], “The setup produces greyscale images of light intensity for two wavelength bands λ1-λ2 and λ3-λ4. The two thermal images are then divided on a pixel by pixel basis to produce an image consisting of a spatial map of the ratio between the collected light intensity of the two chosen spectral bands.” For the purposes of mapping, Examiner maps the image related to wavelength band λ1-λ2 to the first colored thermal image and the image related to the wavelength band λ3-λ4 to the second colored thermal image),
wherein the first colored thermal image and the second colored thermal image are combined to form a composite thermal image (Calta, [0039], “The two thermal images are then divided on a pixel by pixel basis to produce an image consisting of a spatial map of the ratio between the collected light intensity of the two chosen spectral bands,” and FIG. 3, [0062], “The images are then divided 312 to obtain a map of the ratio between the two single color images collected by the two cameras 302 & 304.” Examiner maps this as forming a composite thermal image), …
It would have been obvious to PHOSITA before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Gold with the thermal imaging of Calta. PHOSITA would have known about the uses of thermal imaging as disclosed by Calta and how to use them to modify Gold. PHOSITA would have been motivated to do this as a use of known technique to improve similar devices in the same way (See MPEP § 2143 (I)(C)), specifically the use of thermal imaging of composite imaging in analyzing melt pools.
The combination of Gold and Calta discloses the above but does not explicitly disclose:
… wherein the composite thermal image is examined for potential defects during manufacturing, and …
However, Zalameda, in a similar field of endeavor (System And Method For In-Situ Characterization And Inspection Of Additive Manufacturing Deposits Using Transient Infrared Thermography), discloses:
… wherein the composite thermal image is examined for potential defects during manufacturing (Zalameda, FIG. 2A, [0041], “the processor 201 may receive images acquired from the one or more thermal imagers 206 and process those images to detect defects in and/or the quality of the build as described herein”), and …
It would have been obvious to PHOSITA before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the combination of Gold and Calta with the defect detection of Zalameda. PHOSITA would have known about the uses of defect detection as disclosed by Zalameda and how to use them to modify the combination of Gold and Calta. PHOSITA would have been motivated to do this as a use of known technique to improve similar devices in the same way (See MPEP § 2143 (I)(C)), specifically the use of thermal imaging for defect detection.
The combination of Gold, Calta, and Zalameda discloses the above but does not explicitly disclose:
… wherein the detection system scales and normalizes the first and second colored thermal images using an optical transfer function of the spectral disperser to compensate for optical characteristics of the additive manufacturing apparatus.
However, Novotny, in a similar field of endeavor (Defect detection and repair of micro-electro-mechanical systems (MEMS) devices), discloses:
… wherein the detection system scales and normalizes the first and second colored thermal images using an optical transfer function of the spectral disperser to compensate for optical characteristics of the additive manufacturing apparatus (Novotny, FIG. 7, C13, L26-40, “In DGV, the velocity information is obtained by means of an optical & spectroscopic frequency converter (a pre-selected linear spectral line optical transfer function), known as an absorption line filter (ALF), that transforms the Doppler shifted frequency of light scattered by the particles (.about.0.5 to 5 microns (in air)) in the flow to real intensity variations in the imaging plane. Once this transformation is completed, the converted Doppler signal intensity map can then be processed by light intensity detectors (CCD camera) and computers to obtain a velocity map of the flow of interest. To eliminate the problem of both scattering signal and illumination intensity variations spatially in the measurement window, the Doppler signal intensity map is normalized by a reference intensity map from the same view of the flow”).
It would have been obvious to PHOSITA before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the combination of Gold, Calta, and Zalameda with the optical transfer function of Novotny. PHOSITA would have known about the uses of optical transfer functions as disclosed by Novotny and how to use them to modify the combination of Gold, Calta, and Zalameda. PHOSITA would have been motivated to do this as a use of known technique to improve similar devices in the same way (See MPEP § 2143 (I)(C)), specifically the use of optical transfer functions to normalize and scale spectral signals.
The combination of Gold, Calta, Zalameda, and Novotny discloses the above but does not explicitly disclose:
… corrected with a transfer function of the spectral disperser to provide a blackbody spectral map and the intensity of the light detected is then …
However, Liu, in a similar field of endeavor (Temperature Monitoring Method, Device, Intelligent Screen And Computer Readable Storage Medium), discloses:
… corrected with a transfer function of the spectral disperser to provide a blackbody spectral map and the intensity of the light detected is then (Liu, P14, L25-29, “The algorithm SDK then determines the forehead area in the thermal image based on the forehead area in the portrait image, and obtains the measured body temperature based on the forehead area in the thermal image, combined with the black body Correct the measured body temperature, and finally calculate the body temperature result”) …
It would have been obvious to PHOSITA before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the combination of Gold, Calta, Zalameda, and Novotny with the black body correction of Liu. PHOSITA would have known about the uses of black body correction as disclosed by Liu and how to use them to modify the combination of Gold, Calta, Zalameda, and Novotny. PHOSITA would have been motivated to do this as a use of known technique to improve similar devices in the same way (See MPEP § 2143 (I)(C)), specifically the use of black body correction to normalize and scale spectral signals.
The combination of Gold, Calta, Zalameda, Novotny, and Liu discloses the above but does not explicitly disclose:
… wherein the temperature data stored in the database is used to facilitate machine learning, and
wherein the database comprises a control board configured to provide instructions to the laser via a feedback loop to modify process parameters in real time via the machine learning.
However, Narra, in a similar field of endeavor (NON-DIMENSIONALIZATION OF VARIABLES TO ENHANCE MACHINE LEARNING IN ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING PROCESSES), further discloses:
… wherein the temperature data stored in the database is used to facilitate machine learning (Narra, FIG. 12, [0109], “To update the model, the process 1200 includes training the machine learning logic using the updated set of training data”), and
wherein the database comprises a control board configured to provide instructions to the laser via a feedback loop to modify process parameters in real time via the machine learning (Narra, FIG. 12, [0109], “To update the model, the process 1200 includes training the machine learning logic using the updated set of training data,” and FIG. 14, [0116], computing system 1412).
It would have been obvious to PHOSITA before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the combination of Gold, Calta, Zalameda, Novotny, and Liu with the machine learning of Narra. PHOSITA would have known about the machine learning as disclosed by Narra and how to use it to modify the combination of Gold, Calta, Zalameda, Novotny, and Liu. PHOSITA would have been motivated to do this as a combination of prior art elements according to known methods to yield predictable results (See MPEP § 2143 (I)(A)), specifically the use of machine learning to improve iterative analysis processes.
Regarding Claim 2, the combination of Gold, Calta, Zalameda, Novotny, Liu, and Narra discloses Claim 1, and Gold further discloses:
… wherein the detection system comprises at least 4 on-axis sensors (Gold, FIG. 1, [0035], “it should be appreciated that melt pool monitoring system 200 may include any other suitable type, number, and configuration of sensors for detecting electromagnetic energy and other properties of melt pool 176 or the process in general”).
Regarding Claim 3, the combination of Gold, Calta, Zalameda, Novotny, Liu, and Narra discloses Claim 1, and Gold further discloses:
… wherein the spectral disperser comprises a diffraction grating, a prism, a prism combined with a mirror, a dichroic, or a combination thereof (Gold, FIG. 1, [0029], “beam steering apparatus 124 includes one or more mirrors, prisms, lenses, and/or electromagnets operably coupled with suitable actuators and arranged to direct and focus energy beam 122”), and
the spectral disperser splits the emitted light from the melt pool into light of different wavelengths (Gold, FIG. 1, [0029], “beam steering apparatus 124 includes one or more mirrors, prisms, lenses, and/or electromagnets operably coupled with suitable actuators and arranged to direct and focus energy beam 122,” and FIG. 1, [0036], beam splitter 206).
Regarding Claim 4, the combination of Gold, Calta, Zalameda, Novotny, Liu, and Narra discloses Claim 1, and Gold further discloses:
… further comprising two or more filters (Gold, FIG. 1, [0038], “melt pool monitoring system 200 may further include one or more filters 210”), wherein
the filters lie downstream of the spectral disperser and upstream of the two or more on- axis sensors or the line scanner (Gold, as shown in FIG. 1), and
the spectral disperser, the two or more filters, and the two or more on-axis sensors or the line scanner are in optical communication with each other (Gold, as shown in FIG. 1).
Regarding Claim 5, the combination of Gold, Calta, Zalameda, Novotny, Liu, and Narra discloses Claim 4, and Gold further discloses:
… wherein the two or more filters permits light of at least two different wavelengths to impinge on the two or more on-axis sensors (Gold, FIG. 1, [0036], “An on-axis sensor 202 may include a beam splitter 206 positioned along the beamline which may include a coating for redirecting a portion of the electromagnetic energy toward a beamline sensing element 208. In this regard, for example, sensing element 208 may be a photodiode, a pyrometer, an optical camera, an infrared (IR) camera, or a spectral sensor configured for measuring electromagnetic energy in any frequency spectrum(s), such as infrared (IR), ultraviolet (UV), visible light, etc. On-axis sensor 202 can measure any suitable parameter of the filtered, reflected beam, such as intensity, frequency, wavelength, etc.”), and …
The combination of Gold, Calta, Zalameda, Novotny, Liu, and Narra discloses the above but does not explicitly disclose filtering for shorter and a longer wavelength compared to the black body. Gold does disclose:
… the two or more filters comprise a first filter that is selected to permit light of a shorter wavelength than a peak wavelength of the blackbody spectral map and a second filter that is selected to permit light of a longer wavelength than the peak wavelength of the blackbody spectral map (Gold, FIG. 4, [0045], “calibrated light sources 240 may be any source of electromagnetic energy, such as a light emitting diode (LED), a laser, a halogen bulb, an incandescent bulb, a glow bar, a fiber coupled light source, a black body emitter, or any other electromagnetic emission device which having a known emission intensity, wavelength mission, emission area, or any other suitable measurable quantity or quality of electromagnetic energy”).
Examiner notes that for a calibration, there must inherently be a comparison, and that comparison would be either a shorter wavelength, a longer wavelength, or the exact same wavelength. It would have been obvious to PHOSITA before the effective filing date of the claimed invention that calibrating against the black body would inherently involve filtering for shorter or longer wavelengths to compare against.
Regarding Claim 6, the combination of Gold, Calta, Zalameda, Novotny, Liu, and Narra discloses Claim 1, and Gold further discloses:
… further comprising a plurality of partially reflective mirrors (Gold, FIG. 1, [0029], “beam steering apparatus 124 includes one or more mirrors, prisms, lenses, and/or electromagnets operably coupled with suitable actuators and arranged to direct and focus energy beam 122,” and FIG. 1, [0036], beam splitter 206. Examiner notes that beam splitter 206 is a partially reflective mirror), wherein
the plurality of partially reflective mirrors are located downstream of the laser and upstream of the melt pool (Gold, as shown in FIG. 1), and
the plurality of partially reflective mirrors are controlled by a galvanometer-based scanning motor (Gold, FIG. 1, [0029], “beam steering apparatus 124 may be a galvanometer scanner that moves or scans the focal point of the laser beam 122 emitted by energy source 120 across the build surface 130 during the laser melting and sintering processes”).
Regarding Claim 7, the combination of Gold, Calta, Zalameda, Novotny, Liu, and Narra discloses Claim 6, and Gold further discloses:
… further comprising a scanning and focusing system located downstream of the laser and upstream of the melt pool (Gold, as shown in FIG. 1).
Regarding Claim 8, the combination of Gold, Calta, Zalameda, Novotny, Liu, and Narra discloses Claim 7, and Gold further discloses:
The additive manufacturing apparatus of claim 7,
… further comprising a first optical fiber that transmits the laser beam from the laser to the melt pool (Gold, FIG. 1, [0045], “calibrated light sources 240 may be any source of electromagnetic energy, such as a light emitting diode (LED), a laser, a halogen bulb, an incandescent bulb, a glow bar, a fiber coupled light source”).
Regarding Claim 10, the combination of Gold, Calta, Zalameda, Novotny, Liu, and Narra discloses Claim 1, and Calta further discloses:
… wherein the additive manufacturing apparatus collects data at the melt pool at 20,000 to 2,000,000 hertz to obtain a temperature of the melt pool (Calta, FIG. 1, [0038], “The cameras are triggered by the scanning laser and are capable of data collection rates exceeding 20 kHz”).
It would have been obvious to PHOSITA before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the combination of Gold, Calta, Zalameda, Novotny, Liu, and Narra with the detection specs of Calta. PHOSITA would have known about the detection specs as disclosed by Calta and how to use them to modify the combination of Gold, Calta, Zalameda, Novotny, Liu, and Narra. PHOSITA would have been motivated to do this as a simple substitution of one known element for another to obtain predictable results (See MPEP § 2143 (I)(B)), specifically the use of a detector with the specifications needed or wanted by the user.
Regarding Claim 16, the combination of Gold, Calta, Zalameda, Novotny, Liu, and Narra discloses Claim 1, and Calta further discloses:
… wherein the line scanner is operative to simultaneously receive light having wavelengths of 450 to 850 nanometers to produce a third colored thermal image (Calta, [0042], “The Inventors used 780-820 nm and 830-870 nm as the colors. The best 2 colors depend on a variety of factors such as the characteristics of the scanning mirrors, the material being manufactured, and the sensitivity of the cameras used as detectors. In general colors between ˜650 nm and ˜950 run should work, based on the temperatures of Interest and the current state of high speed camera technology”).
It would have been obvious to PHOSITA before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the combination of Gold, Calta, Zalameda, Novotny, Liu, and Narra with the wavelength specs of Calta. PHOSITA would have known about the wavelength specs as disclosed by Calta and how to use them to modify the combination of Gold, Calta, Zalameda, Novotny, Liu, and Narra. PHOSITA would have been motivated to do this as a simple substitution of one known element for another to obtain predictable results (See MPEP § 2143 (I)(B)), specifically the use of an emitter with the specifications needed or wanted by the user.
Regarding Claim 17, Gold discloses:
A method of imaging a melt pool during additive manufacturing, the method comprising:
illuminating a powder bed with a laser beam to create a melt pool (Gold, FIG. 1, [0032], “energy beam 122 is emitted from energy source 120 and beam steering apparatus 26 is used to steer the focal spot 174 of energy beam 122 over the exposed powder surface in an appropriate pattern. A small portion of exposed layer of the additive powder 142 surrounding focal spot 174, referred to herein as a “weld pool” or “melt pool” or “heat effected zone” 176 (best seen in FIG. 2) is heated by energy beam 122 to a temperature allowing it to sinter or melt, flow, and consolidate”);
transmitting emitted light from the melt pool to a detection system (Gold, FIG. 1, [0035], melt pool monitoring system 200), the detection system comprising:
a spectral disperser (Gold, FIG. 1, [0029], “beam steering apparatus 124 includes one or more mirrors, prisms, lenses, and/or electromagnets operably coupled with suitable actuators and arranged to direct and focus energy beam 122”); and
one of a) two or more on-axis sensors or b) a line scanner (Gold, FIG. 1, [0035], “melt pool monitoring system 200 includes two on-axis light sensors 202 and one fixed, off-axis light sensor 204”),
wherein the spectral disperser and the two or more on-axis sensors or the line scanner are in optical communication with each other (Gold, FIG. 1, [0029], “beam steering apparatus 124 includes one or more mirrors, prisms, lenses, and/or electromagnets operably coupled with suitable actuators and arranged to direct and focus energy beam 122”); and …
… comparing an intensity of the emitted light detected by the a) two or more on-axis sensors (Gold, FIG. 4, [0036], “On-axis sensor 202 can measure any suitable parameter of the filtered, reflected beam, such as intensity, frequency, wavelength, etc.”) or the b) line scanner with a blackbody spectral map at a particular wavelength of the emitted light to determine a temperature of the melt pool (Gold, FIG. 4, [0045], “calibrated light sources 240 may be any source of electromagnetic energy, such as a light emitting diode (LED), a laser, a halogen bulb, an incandescent bulb, a glow bar, a fiber coupled light source, a black body emitter, or any other electromagnetic emission device which having a known emission intensity, wavelength mission, emission area, or any other suitable measurable quantity or quality of electromagnetic energy”); …
… storing the first colored thermal image, the second colored thermal image, and the composite thermal image in a database as temperature data (Gold, FIG. 1, [0039], “Controller 220 may include one or more memory devices and one or more microprocessors,” and FIG. 5, “[0055], “beam steering apparatus 124 may be oriented as if it were directing energy beam 122 toward each of the calibrated light sources 240 and data may be collected from melt pool monitoring system 200 when beam steering apparatus 124 is in each of the one or more positions”); …
Gold discloses the above but does not explicitly disclose:
… generating, via the two or more on-axis sensors, a first colored thermal image corresponding to a first wavelength band of light and a second colored thermal image corresponding to a second wavelength band of light;
combining the first colored thermal image and the second colored thermal image to form a composite thermal image; and …
However, Calta, in a similar field of endeavor (TWO-COLOR HIGH SPEED THERMAL IMAGING SYSTEM FOR LASER-BASED ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING PROCESS MONITORING), discloses:
… generating, via the two or more on-axis sensors, a first colored thermal image corresponding to a first wavelength band of light and a second colored thermal image corresponding to a second wavelength band of light (Calta, FIG. 1, [0037], “The two-color high speed thermal imaging system directly images light emitted from the melt pool 110,” and [0039], “The setup produces greyscale images of light intensity for two wavelength bands λ1-λ2 and λ3-λ4. The two thermal images are then divided on a pixel by pixel basis to produce an image consisting of a spatial map of the ratio between the collected light intensity of the two chosen spectral bands”);
combining the first colored thermal image and the second colored thermal image to form a composite thermal image (Calta, [0039], “The setup produces greyscale images of light intensity for two wavelength bands λ1-λ2 and λ3-λ4. The two thermal images are then divided on a pixel by pixel basis to produce an image consisting of a spatial map of the ratio between the collected light intensity of the two chosen spectral bands”); and …
It would have been obvious to PHOSITA before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Gold with the thermal imaging of Calta. PHOSITA would have known about the uses of thermal imaging as disclosed by Calta and how to use them to modify Gold. PHOSITA would have been motivated to do this as a use of known technique to improve similar devices in the same way (See MPEP § 2143 (I)(C)), specifically the use of thermal imaging of composite imaging in analyzing melt pools.
The combination of Gold and Calta discloses the above but does not explicitly disclose
… examining the composite thermal image for potential defects during manufacturing.
However, Zalameda, in a similar field of endeavor (System And Method For In-Situ Characterization And Inspection Of Additive Manufacturing Deposits Using Transient Infrared Thermography), discloses:
… examining the composite thermal image for potential defects during manufacturing (Zalameda, FIG. 2A, [0041], “the processor 201 may receive images acquired from the one or more thermal imagers 206 and process those images to detect defects in and/or the quality of the build as described herein”).
It would have been obvious to PHOSITA before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the combination of Gold and Calta with the defect detection of Zalameda. PHOSITA would have known about the uses of defect detection as disclosed by Zalameda and how to use them to modify the combination of Gold and Calta. PHOSITA would have been motivated to do this as a use of known technique to improve similar devices in the same way (See MPEP § 2143 (I)(C)), specifically the use of thermal imaging for defect detection.
The combination of Gold, Calta, and Zalameda discloses the above but does not explicitly disclose:
… wherein the detection system scales and normalizes the first and second colored thermal images using an optical transfer function of the spectral disperser to compensate for ontical characteristics of the additive manufacturing apparatus; …
However, Novotny, in a similar field of endeavor (Defect detection and repair of micro-electro-mechanical systems (MEMS) devices), discloses:
… wherein the detection system scales and normalizes the first and second colored thermal images using an optical transfer function of the spectral disperser to compensate for ontical characteristics of the additive manufacturing apparatus (Novotny, FIG. 7, C13, L26-40, “In DGV, the velocity information is obtained by means of an optical & spectroscopic frequency converter (a pre-selected linear spectral line optical transfer function), known as an absorption line filter (ALF), that transforms the Doppler shifted frequency of light scattered by the particles (.about.0.5 to 5 microns (in air)) in the flow to real intensity variations in the imaging plane. Once this transformation is completed, the converted Doppler signal intensity map can then be processed by light intensity detectors (CCD camera) and computers to obtain a velocity map of the flow of interest. To eliminate the problem of both scattering signal and illumination intensity variations spatially in the measurement window, the Doppler signal intensity map is normalized by a reference intensity map from the same view of the flow”); …
It would have been obvious to PHOSITA before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the combination of Gold, Calta, and Zalameda with the optical transfer function of Novotny. PHOSITA would have known about the uses of optical transfer functions as disclosed by Novotny and how to use them to modify the combination of Gold, Calta, and Zalameda. PHOSITA would have been motivated to do this as a use of known technique to improve similar devices in the same way (See MPEP § 2143 (I)(C)), specifically the use of optical transfer functions to normalize and scale spectral signals.
The combination of Gold, Calta, Zalameda, and Novotny discloses the above but does not explicitly disclose:
… correcting an emission spectrum measured by the spectral disperser with an optical transfer function of the spectral disperser to provide a blackbody spectral map; …
However, Liu, in a similar field of endeavor (Temperature Monitoring Method, Device, Intelligent Screen And Computer Readable Storage Medium), discloses:
… correcting an emission spectrum measured by the spectral disperser with an optical transfer function of the spectral disperser to provide a blackbody spectral map (Liu, P14, L25-29, “The algorithm SDK then determines the forehead area in the thermal image based on the forehead area in the portrait image, and obtains the measured body temperature based on the forehead area in the thermal image, combined with the black body Correct the measured body temperature, and finally calculate the body temperature result”); …
It would have been obvious to PHOSITA before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the combination of Gold, Calta, Zalameda, and Novotny with the black body correction of Liu. PHOSITA would have known about the uses of black body correction as disclosed by Liu and how to use them to modify the combination of Gold, Calta, Zalameda, and Novotny. PHOSITA would have been motivated to do this as a use of known technique to improve similar devices in the same way (See MPEP § 2143 (I)(C)), specifically the use of black body correction to normalize and scale spectral signals.
The combination of Gold, Calta, Zalameda, Novotny, and Liu discloses the above but does not explicitly disclose:
… using the database to facilitate machine learning; and
providing instructions to the laser via a feedback loop to modify process parameters via the machine learning.
However, Narra, in a similar field of endeavor (NON-DIMENSIONALIZATION OF VARIABLES TO ENHANCE MACHINE LEARNING IN ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING PROCESSES), further discloses:
… using the database to facilitate machine learning (Narra, FIG. 12, [0109], “To update the model, the process 1200 includes training the machine learning logic using the updated set of training data”), and
providing instructions to the laser via a feedback loop to modify process parameters via the machine learning (Narra, FIG. 12, [0109], “To update the model, the process 1200 includes training the machine learning logic using the updated set of training data,” and FIG. 14, [0116], computing system 1412).
It would have been obvious to PHOSITA before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the combination of Gold, Calta, Zalameda, Novotny, and Liu with the machine learning of Narra. PHOSITA would have known about the machine learning as disclosed by Narra and how to use it to modify the combination of Gold, Calta, Zalameda, Novotny, and Liu. PHOSITA would have been motivated to do this as a combination of prior art elements according to known methods to yield predictable results (See MPEP § 2143 (I)(A)), specifically the use of machine learning to improve iterative analysis processes.
Claim 9 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Gold (US 20190323951 A1), in view of Calta (US 20200254565 A1), in view of Zalameda (US 20170297095 A1), in view of Novotny (US6847907B1), in further view of Liu (CN 111953935 A), in further view of Narra (US 20190337232 A1), and in further view of Beckett (US 20200290154 A1).
Regarding Claim 9, the combination of Gold, Calta, Zalameda, Novotny, Liu, and Narra discloses Claim 8, and but does not explicitly disclose:
… further comprising a second optical fiber that transmits the emitted light from at least the spectral disperser to the two or more on-axis sensors or to the line scanner.
However, Beckett, in a similar field of endeavor (SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR MEASURING RADIATED THERMAL ENERGY DURING AN ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING OPERATION), discloses:
… further comprising a second optical fiber that transmits the emitted light from at least the spectral disperser to the two or more on-axis sensors or to the line scanner (Beckett, FIG. 20B, [0148], “sensor assembly 2010 can be attached to the optics of laser 2000 by fiber optic cable 2012”).
It would have been obvious to PHOSITA before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the combination of Gold, Calta, Zalameda, Novotny, Liu, and Narra with the fiber optics of Beckett. PHOSITA would have known about the uses of fiber optics as disclosed by Beckett and how to use them to modify the combination of Gold, Calta, Zalameda, Novotny, Liu, and Narra. PHOSITA would have been motivated to do this as a simple substitution of one known element for another to obtain predictable results (See MPEP § 2143 (I)(B)), specifically the use of a fiber optic cable to transmit light.
Claims 11 and 21-22 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Gold (US 20190323951 A1), in view of Calta (US 20200254565 A1), in view of Zalameda (US 20170297095 A1), in further view of Novotny (US6847907B1), in further view of Liu (CN 111953935 A), in further view of Narra (US 20190337232 A1), and in further view of Dave (US 20170090462 A1).
Regarding Claim 11, the combination of Gold, Calta, Zalameda, Novotny, Liu, and Narra discloses Claim 1, but does not explicitly disclose:
… wherein the temperature of the melt pool is obtained using Wien's displacement law.
However, Dave, in a similar field of endeavor (SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING OPERATIONS), discloses:
… wherein the temperature of the melt pool is obtained using Wien's displacement law (Dave, Equation 11, [0053], “The relationship between the absolute temperature and the wavelength of the maximum emitted radiation is given by Wien's Displacement Law”).
It would have been obvious to PHOSITA before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the combination of Gold, Calta, Zalameda, Novotny, Liu, and Narra with Wien’s Displacement Law of Dave. PHOSITA would have known about Wien’s Displacement Law as disclosed by Dave and how to use it to modify the combination of Gold, Calta, Zalameda, Novotny, Liu, and Narra. PHOSITA would have been motivated to do this as a combination of prior art elements according to known methods to yield predictable results (See MPEP § 2143 (I)(A)), specifically the use of a known equation in the art.
Regarding Claim 21, the combination of Gold, Calta, Zalameda, Novotny, Liu, and Narra discloses Claim 1, but does not explicitly disclose:
… wherein the temperature of the melt pool is obtained by dividing Wien's displacement constant by a maximum of the intensity of the light.
However, Dave, in a similar field of endeavor (SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING OPERATIONS), discloses:
… wherein the temperature of the melt pool is obtained by dividing Wien's displacement constant by a maximum of the intensity of the light (Dave, Equation 11, [0053], “The relationship between the absolute temperature and the wavelength of the maximum emitted radiation is given by Wien's Displacement Law.” Examiner notes that this claim is a simple modification of Wien’s Displacement Law).
It would have been obvious to PHOSITA before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the combination of Gold, Calta, Zalameda, Novotny, Liu, and Narra with Wien’s Displacement Law of Dave. PHOSITA would have known about Wien’s Displacement Law as disclosed by Dave and how to use it to modify the combination of Gold, Calta, Zalameda, Novotny, Liu, and Narra. PHOSITA would have been motivated to do this as a combination of prior art elements according to known methods to yield predictable results (See MPEP § 2143 (I)(A)), specifically the use of a known equation in the art.
Regarding Claim 22, the combination of Gold, Calta, Zalameda, Novotny, Liu, and Narra discloses Claim 17, but does not explicitly disclose:
… wherein the temperature of the melt pool is obtained by dividing Wien's displacement constant by a maximum of the intensity of the emitted light.
However, Dave, in a similar field of endeavor (SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING OPERATIONS), discloses:
… wherein the temperature of the melt pool is obtained by dividing Wien's displacement constant by a maximum of the intensity of the emitted light (Dave, Equation 11, [0053], “The relationship between the absolute temperature and the wavelength of the maximum emitted radiation is given by Wien's Displacement Law.” Examiner notes that this claim is a simple modification of Wien’s Displacement Law).
It would have been obvious to PHOSITA before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the combination of Gold, Calta, Zalameda, Novotny, Liu, and Narra with Wien’s Displacement Law of Dave. PHOSITA would have known about Wien’s Displacement Law as disclosed by Dave and how to use it to modify the combination of Gold, Calta, Zalameda, Novotny, Liu, and Narra. PHOSITA would have been motivated to do this as a combination of prior art elements according to known methods to yield predictable results (See MPEP § 2143 (I)(A)), specifically the use of a known equation in the art.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to CHAD A REVERMAN whose telephone number is (571)270-0079. The examiner can normally be reached Mon-Fri 9-5 EST.
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/CHAD ANDREW REVERMAN/Examiner, Art Unit 2877
/Kara E. Geisel/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2877
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