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 .
Continued Examination Under 37 CFR 1.114
A request for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, including the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e), was filed in this application after final rejection. Since this application is eligible for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114. Applicant's submission filed on 01/27/2026 has been entered.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to claim(s) 1-6, 14-19 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.
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(s) 1, 3-6, 16-19 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Koizumi (US2017/0167974) in view of Choi et al. (KR101996234) and Maruyama (JP2017032284).
To claim 1, Koizumi teach a terahertz-wave inspection system for inspecting an object including a base and a coating layer that coats the base (Fig. 5; paragraph 0104), the inspection system comprising:
an emission unit configured to irradiate the object with a terahertz wave (113 of Fig. 1; paragraph 0012), wherein a frequency of the terahertz wave is greater than or equal to 10 GHz and is less than or equal to 100 THz (paragraph 0002, 30GHz; paragraph 0063, 1THz; paragraph 0118, 1.3THz), wherein when the terahertz wave irradiates the object, the terahertz wave forms a reference pattern on the object, wherein the object occupies a three-dimensional space (paragraph 0099);
a support unit configured to adjust a relative position between the emission unit and the object (Fig. 3; paragraphs 0018, 0060);
a detection unit configured to detect the terahertz wave reflected from the object and generate a terahertz image (103 of Fig. 1; paragraphs 0035, 0101).
Paragraph 0040, reference is obtained in advance
But, Koizumi do not expressly disclose , wherein the reference pattern is defined in a two-dimensional space, and wherein the three-dimensional space includes the two-dimensional space; wherein the terahertz image depicts at least part of the reference pattern on the subject; a determination unit configured to determine, from a shape of the at least part of the reference pattern on the object that is depicted in the terahertz image, whether an incident angle of the terahertz wave on the object is a predetermined incident angle.
However, Koizumi does teach adjusting incident angle (paragraph 0012), which obviously indicates there is a determination unit to determine incident angle.
Choi teach using terawaves scanner (paragraph 0059) to scan and model an object in three-dimensional space with reference to a two-dimensional reference image (abstract, paragraphs 0015, 0025), which would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate into the system of Koizumi, in order to further implementation in object scan modeling.
Maruyama teach an inspection system measuring object at a predetermined angle of incidence (paragraph 0002), wherein an incident angle can be determined from a shape of pattern of output image (abstract, paragraphs 0006-0007).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate teaching of Maruyama into the system of Koizumi and Choi, in order to determine incident angle.
To claim 16, Koizumi, Choi and Maruyama teach an inspection system (as explained in response to claim 1 above).
To claim 17, Koizumi, Choi and Maruyama teach a method for controlling an inspection system including: an emission unit configured to oscillate a terahertz wave; a detection unit configured to detect the terahertz wave; and a support unit configured to support an object (as explained in response to claim 1 above).
To claim 3, Koizumi, Choi and Maruyama teach claim 1.
Koizumi, Choi and Maruyama teach wherein the emission unit includes one or more generation elements and an optical unit configured to collimate the terahertz wave by forming a pair with the one or more generation elements, and the one or more generation elements are a surface light source formed by combining, as an array, a plurality of oscillation elements that oscillate the terahertz wave (Koizumi, Figs. 1-3; Maruyama, paragraphs 0020-0022).
To claim 4, Koizumi, Choi and Maruyama teach claim 3.
Koizumi, Choi and Maruyama teach wherein the reference pattern is defined in accordance with an arrangement of a set of the one or more generation elements and the optical unit, and the terahertz wave that forms the reference pattern is composed of light beams that are parallel to an optical axis of the emission unit, and the reference pattern exhibits a given shape on a plane perpendicular to the optical axis, wherein the two-dimensional space is the plane perpendicular to the optical axis (Maruyama, paragraphs 0006, 0010, 0016, 0020, 0027-0028, 0035, 0046, 0059; wherein 2D plane being perpendicular to optical axis would be essential).
To claim 5, Koizumi, Choi and Maruyama teach claim 1.
Koizumi, Choi and Maruyama teach wherein the determination unit infers the incident angle from a correlation between the reference pattern and the shape of the at least part of the reference pattern on the object that is depicted in the terahertz image (Maruyama, abstract, paragraphs 0006-0007, obviously there is a correlation, so that incident angle can be determined based on image output).
To claim 6, Koizumi, Choi and Maruyama teach claim 1.
Koizumi, Choi and Maruyama teach further comprising a distribution measurement unit configured to, if the determination unit determines that the incident angle is the predetermined incident angle, acquire an intensity distribution image of the terahertz wave from the terahertz image acquired by the detection unit (Maruyama, paragraphs 0055, 0058, 0070).
To claim 18, Koizumi, Choi and Maruyama teach claim 1.
Koizumi, Choi and Maruyama teach wherein a frequency of the terahertz wave is greater than or equal to 30GHz and is less than or equal to 30THz (Koizumi, paragraph 0002, 30GHz; paragraph 0063, 1THz; paragraph 0118, 1.3THz).
To claim 19, Koizumi, Choi and Maruyama teach claim 1.
Koizumi, Choi and Maruyama teach wherein the determination unit is further configured to correct respective intensities of pixels in the terahertz image based on the intensity correction data (Koizumi, obvious in paragraphs 0035-0036, wherein intensity correction is well-known in the art, which would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to incorporate to remove unwanted spatial variations, hence Official Notice is taken).
Claim(s) 2, 14-15 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Koizumi (US2017/0167974) in view of Choi et al. (KR101996234), Maruyama (JP2017032284) and Takahashi (US2013/0321823).
To claim 2, Koizumi, Choi and Maruyama teach claim 1.
But, Koizumi, Choi and Maruyama do not expressly disclose wherein the reference pattern includes a shape having at least two sides.
Nevertheless, it is obvious because a signal would have at least two sides if the signal is not a flat or straight line.
Takahashi teach an inspection system (abstract, Fig. 2) irradiates an electromagnetic waveform in terahertz (paragraph 0158) with at least two sides (Fig. 3), which would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate into the system of Koizumi, Choi and Maruyama for irradiation signal pattern by design preference.
To claim 14, Koizumi, Choi and Maruyama teach claim 1.
But, Koizumi, Choi and Maruyama do not expressly disclose wherein the reference pattern is rectangular.
Takahashi teach an inspection system (abstract, Fig. 2) irradiates an electromagnetic waveform in terahertz (paragraph 0158) in rectangular pattern (paragraphs 0166-0167), which would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate into the system of Koizumi, Choi and Maruyama for irradiation signal pattern by design preference.
To claim 15, Koizumi, Choi and Maruyama teach claim 1.
But, Koizumi, Choi and Maruyama do not expressly disclose wherein the reference pattern is a lattice form.
Takahashi teach an inspection system (abstract, Fig. 2) irradiates an electromagnetic waveform in terahertz (paragraph 0158) in lattice form (paragraph 0129, grating pattern), which would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate into the system of Koizumi, Choi and Maruyama for irradiation signal pattern by design preference.
Conclusion
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ZHIYU . LU
Primary Examiner
Art Unit 2669
/ZHIYU LU/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2665 February 20, 2026