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 .
Status of Claims
Claims 1-20 are pending.
Information Disclosure Statement
The Information Disclosure Statement submitted on 9/19/2022 is in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97 and 1.98 and has been considered.
Drawings
The drawings are objected to because of a minor informality. In Figure 7, step 730 recites combining the first RX beam with the second RX “beam o obtain a combined beam” and it seems like applicant intended for this to recite: “[…] beam to obtain a combined beam”. Corrected drawing sheets in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(d) are required in reply to the Office action to avoid abandonment of the application. Any amended replacement drawing sheet should include all of the figures appearing on the immediate prior version of the sheet, even if only one figure is being amended. The figure or figure number of an amended drawing should not be labeled as “amended.” If a drawing figure is to be canceled, the appropriate figure must be removed from the replacement sheet, and where necessary, the remaining figures must be renumbered and appropriate changes made to the brief description of the several views of the drawings for consistency. Additional replacement sheets may be necessary to show the renumbering of the remaining figures. Each drawing sheet submitted after the filing date of an application must be labeled in the top margin as either “Replacement Sheet” or “New Sheet” pursuant to 37 CFR 1.121(d). If the changes are not accepted by the examiner, the applicant will be notified and informed of any required corrective action in the next Office action. The objection to the drawings will not be held in abeyance.
Claim Objections
Claims 14 and 15 are objected to because of the following informalities:
Regarding Claim 14: line 13 recites “a second optical interface configured to output the first TX beam and to obtain the second RX beam, the second RX beam comprising (i) a second reflected beam caused by interaction of the second TX beam with the first object or a second object”. Because the rest of this specific claim limitation is directed to the second TX / RX beam, it seems that applicant intended for the underlined recitation of “the first TX beam” in line 13 to read “the second TX beam.” By way of suggestion and without limiting applicant’s discretion to amend in a matter consistent with the disclosure, this could be corrected to recite --a second optical interface configured to output the second TX beam and to obtain the second RX beam, the second RX beam comprising (i) a second reflected beam caused by interaction of the second TX beam with the first object or a second object--.
Regarding Claim 15: Claim 15 is objected to by virtue of dependency.
Appropriate correction is required.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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)(1) the claimed invention was patented, described in a printed publication, or in public use, on sale, or otherwise available to the public before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
(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 1-3, 5-9, 11, 13, and 16-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Chen (US 20200249351 A1).
Regarding Claim 1: Chen discloses a system (Fig. 1 illustrating a LiDAR system; [0020]) comprising: a lidar transceiver (Fig. 1 laser beams 15-1 through 15-N are transmitted and collected by the same multi-line generation circuit and optical lens 20) configured to:
produce a first TX beam (Fig. 1, transmitted beam 15-1);
collect a first RX beam (Fig. 1 and [0020] light reflected back from object 10 follows the same sensing beam path 15-1 and is collected by optical lens 20 and coupled back into multi-line generation circuit 32) comprising:
a first reflected beam caused by interaction of the first TX beam with a first object ([0020] light reflected back from object 10 follows the same sensing beam path 15-1 and is collected by optical lens 20 and coupled back into multi-line generation circuit 32), and
a first RR beam caused by interaction of the first TX beam with one or more internal components of the lidar transceiver ([0023] echoes, generated by strong reflections off internal interfaces within the system are also detected); and combine the first RX beam with a phase-controlled beam to obtain a combined beam (Fig. 3, Receiving light and a phase-controlled beam are mixed at mixer 318. The phase-controlled beam takes the path from beam splitter 312, to VOA 310, and phase shifter 317, before being mixed to form a combined beam at mixer 318); and
one or more circuits (Fig. 3, first echo cancelling circuit 53, multi-line generation driving circuit 57 having echo detection scheme 565; Fig. 1 with echo cancelling digital processor 58) configured to:
control a phase of the phase-controlled beam to cause at least partial destructive interference of the phase-controlled beam and the first RR beam (Figs. 2 and 3 and [0022-0023] phase shifter 317 is used for phase modulation during the optical echo cancelling process. A phase value is added to match the unintended reflection in order to cancel it out. Echo detection scheme 565 sends feedback control signals to the phase shifter 317 through DAC 56-3 during the echo cancellation process); and
determine, using the combined beam, one or more characteristic of the object ([0019] this lidar system measures distance and velocity; [0021] and Fig. 1, control and communication circuit 50 calculates distance of the remote object 10 based on a ratio between measured phase variances).
Regarding Claim 2: Chen discloses the system of claim 1. Chen further discloses further comprising: a first beam splitter configured to produce, using a common beam, the first TX beam and the phase-controlled beam (Fig. 3, light from laser diode 40 is split by splitter 312, where one portion becomes transmitting light, and the second portion passes through phase shifter 317); and
a phase shifter configured to modify the phase of the phase-controlled beam (Fig. 3, phase shifter 317).
Regarding Claim 3: Chen discloses the system of claim 2. Chen further discloses wherein the one or more circuits comprise a coherent photodetector (Figs. 1 and 3, coherent receiving circuit 34; Fig. 2, balanced detectors 345 and 346) configured to:
receive the combined beam and a LO beam (Fig. 3, the coherent receiving circuit 34 receives the combined light from mixer 318 and reference light from the spatial reference unit 33); and
generate an electrical signal representative of a difference between the combined beam and the LO beam ([0020] and Fig. 2, coherent receiving circuit 34 produces an in-phase and quadrature output from the combined and LO beams; [0019] coherent receiver with I/Q outputs measure distance based on a phase difference of the phase measured by the coherent receiver and a phase of the reference light);
wherein to cause the at least partial destructive interference of the phase-controlled beam and the first RR beam, the one or more circuits are configured to control one or more settings of the phase shifter using the generated electrical signal (Fig. 3 and [0023] Outputs from coherent receiving circuit 34 with balanced detectors 345 and 346 are sent to the echo detection scheme 565. Unwanted echo signals are identified by the echo detection scheme 565, which sends a feedback control signal to phase shifter 317 to adjust the phase of the phase-controlled beam to cancel out the echo signals).
Regarding Claim 5: Chen discloses the system of claim 2. Chen further discloses an amplitude changer connected in series with the phase shifter and configured to modify an amplitude of the phase-controlled beam (Fig. 3, VOA 310 controls amplitude, since control over optical attenuation is the same as having control of the amplitude. VOA 310 is in series with the phase shifter 317).
Regarding Claim 6: Chen discloses the system of claim 5. Chen further discloses wherein the amplitude changer comprises: a second beam splitter configured to split the phase-controlled beam into a plurality of component beams (Fig. 2, VOA 310 has beam splitter 313);
an additional phase shifter configured to modify a phase of at least one of the plurality of the component beams of the phase-controlled beam (Fig. 2, phase shifters 314 and 315 modify the phase of the component beams); and
an optical combiner configured to combine the plurality of component beams of the phase-controlled beam (Fig. 2, VOA 310 has splitter/combiner 316 that combines the component beams again before the entire beam is directed to phase shifter 317).
Regarding Claim 7: Chen discloses the system of claim 1. Chen further discloses wherein the lidar transceiver comprises: a first optical interface configured to transmit the first TX beam and collect the first RX beam (Figs. 1 and 5 and [0020] multi-line generation circuit 32 can take the transmitted beam 402 and form N outputs and transmit them to the N ports of the PIC 30); and
a second optical interface configured to transmit a second TX beam and collect a second reflected beam ([0020] and Fig. 5, the N outputs from the multi-line generation circuit are directed to their respective port), wherein the second TX beam is produced using the first TX beam, and wherein the second reflected beam is caused by interaction of the second TX beam with the first object or a second object (Fig. 5, originally, the beam 32-0 enters the multi-line generation unit 32, which generates beams 32-1 and 32-2. N can be 2, so the N beams can just be two beams); and
an optical coupler configured to combine the first RX beam with the phase-controlled beam to obtain the combined beam (Fig. 2, splitter/combiner 321 combines the two RX beams. The phase-controlled beam can be the second RX beam, since the second RX beam is also phase controlled by phase shifter 324), wherein the phase-controlled beam comprises the second RX beam (Fig. 2, the second RX beam returning back to the multi-line generation unit 32 has phase shifter 324, which controls the phase of this RX beam) and a second RR beam caused by interaction of the second TX beam with at least the second optical interface ([0022] “the reflections from the interfaces between different components within the system can be mitigated by the echo cancelling process”; a person of ordinary skill would conclude that if the first TX beam interacts with the first optical interface and creates a RR beam, that the second TX beam would also create a second RR beam. [0020] This is because the N beams can share the same optical lenses 20 and also share a multi-line generation unit 32 which are system-internal interfaces that can cause echo reflections);
wherein the one or more circuits comprise: a phase shifter configured to modify the phase of the phase-controlled beam to cause at least partial destructive interference of the first RR beam and the second RR beam ([0022] “the reflections from the interfaces between different components within the system can be mitigated by the echo cancelling process”; a person of ordinary skill in the art would conclude that the phase shifter 323 is included in the echo cancelling process because components in the multi-line generation unit 32 and/or the lens 20 can also cause undesired echo signals that the echo detection scheme 565 would address. These signals would be lower frequency due to shorter optical path).
In the rejection of claim 1 (above), the “phase-controlled beam” was disclosed by Chen as the beam coming from the beam splitter 312 in Fig. 3. However, the returning beam passing through phase shifter 324, disclosed by Chen in Fig, 2, can be “the phase-controlled beam” instead, as explained above.
Regarding Claim 8: Chen discloses the system of claim 7. Chen further discloses wherein the optical coupler is further configured to produce the first TX beam and the second TX beam from a common beam (Fig. 2, a common beam enters multi-line generation circuit 32, and is split by splitter 321).
Regarding Claim 9: Chen discloses the system of claim 7. In the system of claim 7, Chen discloses that the phase-controlled beam contains the second RX beam (Fig. 2, the second received beam has a phase shifter 324 to control the phase).
Chen further discloses a first beam splitter configured to produce, from a common beam, the first TX beam and an additional phase-controlled beam (Fig. 3, splitter 312, which produces additional phase-controlled beam and the transmitting light);
an amplitude changer configured to modify an amplitude of the additional phase-controlled beam (Fig. 3, after splitter 312, there is VOA 310. Since control over attenuation is analogous to control over amplitude, the VOA can control amplitude by applying variable attenuation); and
an additional phase shifter, connected in series with the amplitude changer (Fig. 3, after VOA 310, there is phase shifter 317), configured to modify the phase of the additional phase-controlled beam to cause at least partial destructive interference of the additional phase-controlled beam with a residual of the first RR beam and/or the second RR beam remaining in the combined beam (Fig. 2, the combined beam returns from multi-line generation unit 32 and is mixed with this additional phase-controlled beam at mixer 318. [0023] the phase shifter 317 is used to cancel out echo signals in the receiving light, which, as illustrated by Figs. 2 and 3, is the combined beam having the first and second RX beams).
Regarding Claim 11: Chen discloses the system of claim 7. Chen further discloses a PIC (Figs. 1 and 2 and [0022], PIC 30), the PIC comprising:
a plurality of waveguides to guide the first TX beam, the phase-controlled beam, and the combined beam ([0020] and Figs. 1 and 2, there are optical transmitter and receiver waveguides, such as an input/output separation and optical echo cancelling circuit 31, which guides the TX beam 410 and 402, as well as receives the combined beam 403 which contains the phase-controlled beam),
the first optical interface ([0020] and Fig. 2, PIC 30 has N ports; Fig. 5, there are N output ports 32-1 through 32-N which terminate on the edge of the PIC 30),
the second optical interface ([0020] and Fig. 2, PIC 30 has N ports; Fig. 5, there are N output ports 32-1 through 32-N which terminate on the edge of the PIC 30),
the optical coupler (Fig. 2, splitter/combiner 321 combines the two RX beams and is on the PIC 30), and
the phase shifter (Fig. 2, the phase shifter 324 is on the PIC 30).
Regarding Claim 13: Chen discloses the system of claim 1. Chen further discloses wherein the characteristics of the object comprise a distance of the object and a speed of the object ([0019] this lidar system measures distance and velocity).
Regarding Claim 16: Chen discloses a method to operate a lidar transceiver (Fig. 1 illustrates a LiDAR system with laser beams 15-1 through 15-N are transmitted and collected by the same multi-line generation circuit and optical lens 20), comprising:
producing a first TX beam (Fig. 1, transmitted beam 15-1);
collecting a first RX beam (Fig. 1 and [0020] light reflected back from object 10 follows the same sensing beam path 15-1 and is collected by optical lens 20 and coupled back into multi-line generation circuit 32) comprising:
a first reflected beam caused by interaction of the first TX beam with a first object ([0020] light reflected back from object 10 follows the same sensing beam path 15-1 and is collected by optical lens 20 and coupled back into multi-line generation circuit 32), and
a first RR beam caused by interaction of the first TX beam with one or more internal components of the lidar transceiver ([0023] echoes, generated by strong reflections off internal interfaces within the system are also detected);
combining the first RX beam with a phase-controlled beam to obtain a combined beam (Fig. 3, Receiving light and a phase-controlled beam are mixed at mixer 318. The phase-controlled beam takes the path from beam splitter 312, o VOA 310, and phase shifter 317, before being mixed to form a combined beam at mixer 318); and
controlling a phase of the phase-controlled beam to cause at least partial destructive interference of the phase-controlled beam and the first RR beam (Figs. 2 and 3 and [0022-0023] phase shifter 317 is used for phase modulation during the optical echo cancelling process. A phase value is added to match the unintended reflection in order to cancel it out. Echo detection scheme 565 sends feedback control signals to the phase shifter 317 through DAC 56-3 during the echo cancellation process); and
determining, using the combined beam, one or more characteristic of the object ([0019] this lidar system measures distance and velocity; [0021] and Fig. 1, control and communication circuit 50 calculates distance of the remote object 10 based on a ratio between measured phase variances).
Regarding Claim 17: Chen discloses the method of claim 16. Chen further discloses wherein producing the first TX beam comprises splitting a common beam into the first TX beam and the phase-controlled beam (Fig. 3, light from laser diode 40 is split by splitter 312, where one portion becomes transmitting light, and the second portion passes through phase shifter 317).
Regarding Claim 18: Chen discloses the method of claim 16. Chen further discloses wherein controlling the phase of the phase-controlled beam comprises:
generating an electrical signal representative of a difference between the combined beam and a LO beam ([0020] and Fig. 2, coherent receiving circuit 34 produces an in-phase and quadrature output from the combined and LO beams; [0019] coherent receiver with I/Q outputs measure distance based on a phase difference of the phase measured by the coherent receiver and a phase of the reference light);
wherein causing the at least partial destructive interference of the phase-controlled beam and the first RR beam comprises:
modifying the phase of the phase-controlled beam based on the generated electrical signal (Fig. 3 and [0023] Outputs from coherent receiving circuit 34 with balanced detectors 345 and 346 are sent to the echo detection scheme 565. Unwanted echo signals are identified by the echo detection scheme 565, which sends a feedback control signal to phase shifter 317 to adjust the phase of the phase-controlled beam to cancel out the echo signals).
Regarding Claim 19: Chen discloses the method of claim 16. Furthermore, in the method of claim 16, the phase-controlled beam can be disclosed by Chen as the second RX beam (Fig. 2 the second received beam has a phase shifter 324 to control the phase), instead of the additional phase controlled beam also disclosed by Chen (Fig. 3, the beam portion that is originally split by splitter 312 and controlled by phase shifter 317).
Chen further discloses transmitting a second TX beam (Fig. 1, transmitted beam 15-2);
collecting a second RX beam ([0020] and Fig. 5, the N beams from the multi-line generation circuit are directed to and collected by their respective ports), wherein the second RX beam is the phase-controlled beam (Fig. 2, the second RX beam returning back to the multi-line generation unit 32 has phase shifter 324, which controls the phase of this RX beam) comprising:
a second reflected beam caused by interaction of the second TX beam with the first object or a second object (Fig. 5, second beam 32-2 takes path 15-2 and is reflected off object 10), and
a second RR beam caused by interaction of the second TX beam with the one or more internal components of the lidar transceiver ([0022] “the reflections from the interfaces between different components within the system can be mitigated by the echo cancelling process”; a person of ordinary skill would conclude that if the first TX beam interacts with the first optical interface and creates a RR beam, that the second TX beam would also create a second RR beam. [0020] This is because the N beams can share the same optical lenses 20 and also share a multi-line generation unit 32 which are system-internal interfaces that can cause echo reflections); and
combining the first RX beam with the second RX beam to obtain the combined beam (Fig. 2, splitter/combiner 321 combines the two RX beams).
Regarding Claim 20: Chen discloses the method of claim 19. Chen further discloses producing, using the first TX beam, an additional phase-controlled beam (Fig. 3, the beam is split by splitter 312 and results in a transmitted beam and a beam controlled by phase shifter 317);
modifying an amplitude of the additional phase-controlled beam (Fig. 3, after splitter 312, there is VOA 310. Since control over attenuation is analogous to control over amplitude, the VOA can control amplitude by applying variable attenuation); and
modifying a phase of the additional phase-controlled beam to cause at least partial destructive interference of the additional phase-controlled beam with a residual of the first RR beam and/or the second RR beam remaining in the combined beam (Fig. 2, the combined beam returns from multi-line generation unit 32 and is mixed with this additional phase-controlled beam at mixer 318. [0023] the phase shifter 317 is used to cancel out echo signals in the receiving light, which, as illustrated by Figs. 2 and 3, is the combined beam having the first and second RX beams).
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 4 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Chen (US 20200249351 A1) in view of Loui (US 12061249 B1). Chen discloses the system according to claim 3. Chen does not expressly disclose: the one or more circuits are configured to control the one or more settings of the phase shifter responsive to an occurrence of a triggering condition, the triggering condition comprising at least one of a passage of a predetermined time, or a change in at least one of a temperature of an environment, a humidity of the environment, or a pressure of the environment.
Loui teaches a system where one or more circuits are configured to control the one or more settings of the phase shifter responsive to an occurrence of a triggering condition (Col. 9, lines 35-52, in response to a triggering environmental condition, a phase shifter is used to shift the phase of the light beam to address leakage across channels of light), the triggering condition comprising at least one of a passage of a predetermined time, or a change in at least one of a temperature of an environment, a humidity of the environment, or a pressure of the environment (Col. 9 lines 48-52, the beam can be “attenuated and phase-shifted based upon a temperature reading output by the temperature sensor. Other environmental conditions can also be detected, such as air pressure, humidity, etc., and the fed forward LOs can be attenuated and phase shifted based upon the detected environmental conditions”).
It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the phase shifting in the system disclosed by Chen, such that environmental conditions also trigger a phase shift, as taught by Loui. It is commonly understood by people having ordinary skill in the art of lidar technologies, that environmental conditions, such as temperature, pressure, and humidity, can affect the index of refraction of the medium that light passes through, changing how light travels through this medium. Incorporating the consideration of environmental conditions in the phase shifting of a beam, as taught by Loui, would be applying this known technique to Chen’s known lidar device to yield predictable results. See MPEP 2141.III KSR Rationale D.
Claim 10 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Chen (US 20200249351 A1) in view of Jin (US 20230027271 A1). Chen discloses the system of claim 7. However, Chen does not expressly disclose wherein each of the first optical interface and the second optical interface comprise a grating coupler. Instead, Chen merely discloses that the optical interfaces are “ports” for light to be transmitted and received ([0020]).
Jin teaches a system wherein each of the first optical interface and the second optical interface comprises a grating coupler (Fig. 1, [0038] and [0042], the transmitting and receiving grating unit 211 has grating couplers for transmitting and receiving measurement light).
It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system disclosed by Chen, such that light is transmitted and collected using grating couplers, as taught by Jin. This would be a simple substitution of the “ports” disclosed by Chen, for grating couplers taught by Jin, to obtain the predictable result of transmitting and receiving measurement light. See MPEP 2141.III KSR Rationale B.
Claims 12, 14, and 15 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Chen (US 20200249351 A1) in view of Hayenga (US 20210405290 A1).
Regarding Claim 12: Chen discloses the system of claim 11. While Chen discloses a system with a PIC and a light source to generate the first TX beam (Fig. 2, laser diode 40 produces the transmitted beam and PIC 30), Chen does not disclose that the PIC further comprises one or more laser light sources configured to generate the first TX beam. Instead, the light source is not on the PIC and is separate.
However, Hayenga teaches a coherent lidar system with a PIC, wherein the PIC further comprises one or more laser light sources configured to generate the first TX beam ([0024] and Fig. 2, LIDAR system 200 has PIC 100, and on the PIC 100 is the light source 400. This light source is integrated on or in the substrate 102 of the PIC 100).
It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system architecture disclosed by Chen, such that the laser diode is located on the PIC, as taught by Hayenga. This is simply an obvious variation in system design that is known and predictable in the art. “Known work in one field of endeavor may prompt variations of it for use in either the same field or a different one based on design incentives or other market forces if the variations are predictable to one of ordinary skill in the art” (MPEP 2141.III KSR Rationale F).
Regarding Claim 14: Chen discloses a lidar apparatus (Fig. 1 illustrating a LiDAR system; [0020]) comprising: a PIC (Fig. 2, PIC 30) comprising:
an optical coupler (Fig. 2, multi-line generation unit 32) configured to:
produce, using the light beam, a first TX beam and a second TX beam (Fig. 1, multi-line generation unit 32 receives light 402 and outputs transmitted beams 15-1 through 15-N), and
produce, by combining, a first RX beam and a second RX beam, a combined beam (Fig. 2, two beams are seen returning to the PIC 30, and they are combined by splitter/combiner 321 to form a combined beam);
a first optical interface configured to output the first TX beam and to obtain the first RX beam, the first RX beam comprising (i) a first reflected beam caused by interaction of the first TX beam with a first object and (ii) a first RR beam caused by the first TX beam (Fig. 5, each of the beams 15-1 through 15-N enter and exit the PIC at their respective ports 32-1 through 32-N; [0023] echoes, generated by strong reflections off internal interfaces within the system, are detected in the signal, which means the RX beam must have light representative of these echoes, combined with the measurement beam);
a second optical interface configured to output the [second] TX beam and to obtain the second RX beam, the second RX beam comprising (i) a second reflected beam caused by interaction of the second TX beam with the first object or a second object and (ii) a second RR beam caused by the second TX beam (Fig. 5, each of the beams 15-1 through 15-N enter and exit the PIC at their respective ports 32-1 through 32-N; [0023] echoes, generated by strong reflections off internal interfaces within the system, are detected in the signal, which means the RX beam must have light representative of these echoes, combined with the measurement beam); and
a first phase shifter configured to modify the phase of the second RX beam (Fig. 2, phase shifter 324); and one or more electronic circuits configured to:
control settings of the first phase shifter to cause at least partial destructive interference of the first RR beam and the second RR beam ([0022] the phase shifters are used in the echo cancelling process, which mitigates the echoes from internal reflections); and
determine, using the combined beam, one or more characteristics of the first object or the second object ([0019] this lidar system measures distance and velocity; [0021] and Fig. 1, control and communication circuit 50 calculates distance of the remote object 10 based on a ratio between measured phase variances).
However, while Chen does disclose a light source configured to generate a light beam (Figs. 1 and 2, laser diode 40 producing beam 401), Chen does not disclose that the PIC comprises the light source. In other words, Chen does not teach the limitation of the light source being on the PIC.
Hayenga teaches a coherent lidar system with a PIC, where the PIC comprises a laser light source configured to generate a light beam ([0024] and Fig. 2, LIDAR system 200 has PIC 100, and on the PIC 100 is the light source 400. This light source is integrated on or in the substrate 102 of the PIC 100).
It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system architecture disclosed by Chen, such that the laser diode is located on the PIC, as taught by Hayenga. This is simply an obvious variation in system design that is known and predictable in the art. “Known work in one field of endeavor may prompt variations of it for use in either the same field or a different one based on design incentives or other market forces if the variations are predictable to one of ordinary skill in the art” (MPEP 2141.III KSR Rationale F).
Regarding Claim 15: Chen, in view of Hayenga, teaches the lidar apparatus of claim 14. Chen further discloses wherein the PIC further comprises: a first beam splitter configured to produce, using the light beam, a phase-controlled beam (Figs. 2 and 3, beam splitter 312, which splits light from the laser diode 40 into transmitting light and the phase-controlled beam. This splitter is on the PIC 30);
an amplitude changer configured to modify an amplitude of the phase-controlled beam (Fig. 3, VOA 310. Control over attenuation of the beam is analogous to control of the beam’s amplitude); and
a second phase shifter connected in series with the amplitude changer and configured to modify the phase of the phase-controlled beam to cause at least partial destructive interference of the phase-controlled beam with a residual of the first RR beam and/or the second RR beam remaining in the combined beam (Figs. 2 and 3, phase shifter 317 is also on the PIC 30. [0023] the phase shifter 317 is used to cancel out echo signals in the receiving light, which, as illustrated by Figs. 2 and 3, is the combined beam having the first and second RX beams).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to ISABELLE LIN BOEGHOLM whose telephone number is (571)270-0570. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Thursday 7:30am-5pm, Fridays 8am-12pm.
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/ISABELLE LIN BOEGHOLM/Examiner, Art Unit 3645
/YUQING XIAO/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3645