DETAILED ACTION
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 .
Response to Amendment
The objection to claim 1 has been withdrawn. The 35 USC 112 rejection of claims 1, 4-7, 9-11 have been withdrawn. Claims 6, 10-12 have been cancelled by Applicant.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to the claims have been considered but are
moot because the arguments do not apply to the references as used in the current
rejection.
Concerning the amended claim limitation of “a heating unit disposed on a surface of the cover window and covering the surface of the cover window” and a resistor unit which is disposed to cover an opposite surface of the cover window; and a detection unit for detecting whether the cover window is damaged by detecting a change in resistance of the resistor unit”, newly found reference Melcher et al is looked to. The Melcher reference details a crack detection system using resistance and resistance in the heating of the window.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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 1-5, 8, 9 rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Mueller et al (US 20170334397) in view of Melcher et al (US 10739292).
In regards to claim 1, Mueller discloses a LIDAR apparatus comprising:
a cover window which covers a transmission path and reception path of laser light ([0043] ref. 26 window area, seen in Fig. 2);
a heating unit disposed on a surface of the cover window and covering the surface of the cover window (ref. 30, disclosed as heater);
a heating control unit connected to the heating unit to control the heating unit (ref. 35 power control unit),
Mueller does not expressly disclose: a resistor unit which is disposed to cover an opposite surface of the cover window; and a detection unit for detecting whether the cover window is damaged by detecting a change in resistance of the resistor unit.
Melcher teaches a window comprising a resistor unit covering a side of a window (C6:10 “one or more conductive layers in layer 54 (e.g., one or more silver layers or other metal layers) may be used to carry current through window 16. When it is desired to monitor window 16 for cracks, the amount of current that flows for a given applied voltage (or the voltage that is produced for a given applied current) can be monitored by control circuitry 24 to determine whether the resistance of the conductive layer is abnormally high”).
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to modify, with the reasonable expectation of success, Mueller with Melcher by providing a resistor unit which is disposed to cover an opposite surface of the cover window; and a detection unit for detecting whether the cover window is damaged by detecting a change in resistance of the resistor unit in order to notify the system to a crack or fault in the window for repair.
In regards to claim 2, Mueller discloses the LIDAR apparatus of claim 1, wherein the heating unit is formed of a heating film ([0045] “the front-face heater 30 may provide for a thin sheet of transparent and in some cases optically clear polymer material providing a substrate 32”, claim 1).
In regards to claim 3, Mueller as combined discloses the LIDAR apparatus of claim 2, wherein the heating film is formed to be transparent (Mueller [0020] discloses transparent film).
In regards to claim 4, Mueller discloses the LIDAR apparatus of claim 3, wherein the heating film is disposed to have an area corresponding to an area of one surface of the cover window (as seen in Fig. 2 of Mueller, ref. 30 disposed on an area corresponding to the area of one surface of the cover window).
In regards to claim 5, Mueller discloses the LIDAR apparatus of claim 1, further comprising: a temperature measuring unit which is coupled to the cover window or disposed adjacent to the cover window to measure a temperature of the cover window and transmit the temperature to the heating control unit (Mueller [0044] “Power from the electrical leads 37 may be provided by a power control circuit 35…based on a range of air temperature sensed by separate temperature sensors (not shown)”).
In regards to claim 8, Mueller as combined discloses the LIDAR apparatus of claim 1, wherein the resistor unit is formed of a transparent resistance film (Mueller [0020] discloses transparent film).
In regards to claim 9, Mueller as combined discloses The LIDAR apparatus of claim 1, wherein the cover window is coupled to a housing that protects an optical system for transmitting and receiving the laser light from an external environment (Mueller ref. 30 coupled to housing ref. 12 as seen in Fig. 2), and
Mueller does not expressly disclose: wherein the heating unit is disposed on an inner surface of the cover window located inside the housing and the resistor unit is disposed on an outer surface of the cover window located outside the housing.
However, the device of Melcher teaches a heating layer on both the outside and inside surface of a window (Fig. 2 ref. 54 seen on window ref. 16 “One or more conductive layers in layer 54 (e.g., one or more silver layers or other metal layers) may be used to carry current through window 16”), Melcher further teaches a resister unit on an outer surface (C5:6 “One or more of layers 54 may be incorporated into window 16 (e.g., on the inner and/or outer surface of an inner structural layer 50 or on the inner and/or outer surface of an outer structural layer 50)”, detailed at least in C6:10, which describes ref 54 used to monitor for cracks).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to modify, with the reasonable expectation of success, Mueller with Melcher by providing the heating unit is disposed on an inner surface of the cover window inside the housing and the resistor unit is disposed on an outer surface of the cover window outside the housing in order to reduce interior moisture/frost on the window and to determine if the surface is damaged.
Claim 7 rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Mueller, Melcher as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of Marquet (US 8895899).
In regards to claim 7, Mueller as combined discloses the LIDAR apparatus of claim 1, but does not expressly disclose: wherein the resistor unit has a matrix structure.
Marquet teaches a matrix structure (similar to that in figure 3 of the instant application) for a heated window (as seen in Fig. 1 matrix pattern).
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to modify, with the reasonable expectation of success, Mueller with Marquet by providing the means for the resistor unit to have a matrix structure in order to provide even heating through the coverage.
Conclusion
Applicant's amendment necessitated the new ground(s) of rejection presented in this Office action. Accordingly, THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. See MPEP § 706.07(a). Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action.
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/V.R./ Examiner, Art Unit 3642 /JOSHUA D HUSON/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3642