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 amendment filed on 11/06/2025 has been entered. Claims 1-9 and 12 are amended. Claims 1-5, 7-8 and 11-13 remain pending.
In the amended claims, the previously raised issues with objections, rejections under 35 USC 112 and rejections under 35 USC 101 have been properly addressed.
Response to Arguments
In Page 10 of Remarks, the Applicant argues that Venkatraman does not disclose a second biometric sensor and a separate member for light transmitting. The Examiner agrees, but notes that Venkatraman covers most of the elements in Claim 1, including the overall structure, the first biometric sensor and a blocking structure. Venkatraman even discloses that more than one biometric sensor can be included in the device, but without structural details. Therefore, in the 35 USC 103 rejection for Claim 1, the reference of Trapero Martin is included. Trapero Martin discloses structure for multiple biometric sensors. More importantly, Trapero Martin provides clear motivation on measuring multiple physiological parameters using multiple sensors on a single device.
In Page 11 of Remarks, the Applicant argues that Venkatraman's disclosed waterproof structure of adhesive 310 and gasket 305 is different from the blocking structure as claimed. The Examiner respectfully disagrees. The claimed blocking structure in Claims 1 and 7 specifies the location of such structure, which is the same as Venkatraman's disclosure.
In Page 11 of Remarks, the Applicant argues that Trapero Martin's disclosed bottom portion and the window does not correspond to separate light-transmitting layer structures for two light-transmitting and receiving sensors. The Examiner respectfully disagrees. In Column 12, Lines 1-10, Trapero Martin discloses using multiple non-contact sensors 240 (also in Fig. 4) and that "In some cases, more than one sensor window can be used".
In Page 12 of Remarks, the Applicant argues that the optical sensor disclosed in Venkatraman and the non-contact sensor disclosed in Trapero Martin are both based on PPG sensors, and the respiration rate and oxygenation saturation data referenced in the office action cannot be considered biometric information obtained from different types of sensors. The Examiner respectfully disagrees. In Claim 1, what is claimed to be different is the first and the second biometric information, but not the first and second biometric sensors. Besides, Venkatraman discloses that "The term “optical sensor” may be used interchangeably with a PPG sensor 300 hereinafter; however, in certain embodiments, the optical sensor may comprise a non-PPG sensor." (Para 0033).
In Page 12 of Remarks, the Applicant argues that Venkatraman and Trapero Martin do not disclose different light-transmitting layers for each sensor, so cannot derive the claimed rear cover structure. The Examiner respectfully disagrees. As discussed above, Trapero Martin discloses that more than one sensor window can be used.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 103 which forms the basis for all obviousness rejections set forth in this Office action:
A patent for a claimed invention may not be obtained, notwithstanding that the claimed invention is not identically disclosed as set forth in section 102, if the differences between the claimed invention and the prior art are such that the claimed invention as a whole would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to a person having ordinary skill in the art to which the claimed invention pertains. Patentability shall not be negated by the manner in which the invention was made.
Claims 1, 3-4, 7-8 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Venkatraman et al (US 20160166197 A1; hereafter Venkatraman), in view of Trapero Martin et al (US 11116448 B1; hereafter Trapero Martin).
With regard to Claim 1, Venkatraman discloses a wearable electronic device (Venkatraman, Abstract; “the wearable device includes one or more biometric sensors and a user interface”) comprising:
a device housing (device housing 210 in Fig. 3) including a rear cover (Venkatraman, Para 0032; “The wrist-worn wearable device 202′ of FIG. 3 may include … a device housing 210 …”. In this disclosure, the device housing 210 acts as a rear cover for the device), the rear cover being configured to at least partially contact a body of a user while the wearable electronic device is worn by the user (Venkatraman, Para 0036; “… allowing the skin-side of the wearable device 10 … to conform … so that the light source(s) 315 and/or the associated detector(s) 320 is/are close to the skin of the user (i.e., with little to no gap between the skin-side of the device and the adjacent surface of the skin of the user)”), wherein the rear cover includes a first member including a first hole (Venkatraman, Fig. 4 (cited below) shows a hole in the device body 210, which can act as a first member of a rear cover of the device, includes a hole to dispose the optically transparent layer 330);
Venkatraman, Fig. 4
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a printed circuit board (PCB) disposed in the housing (Venkatraman, Fig. 4 (cited below) shows a PCB 325 disposed in the device);
a first biometric sensor (PPG sensor 300 in the cited Fig. 4) disposed between the PCB and the first member (Venkatraman, Fig. 4 (cited below) shows that the sensor, comprising light sources 315, photodetector 320 and optical transparent layer 330, is disposed between PCB 325 and device body 210) and aligned with the first hole (Venkatraman, Fig. 4 shows that a PPG sensor 300 is disposed in a hole of device body 210), wherein the first biometric sensor includes a sensor housing at least a portion of which is disposed in the first hole (Venkatraman, Fig. 4 shows that optical transparent layer 330, which covers other components of the sensor, act as a housing of the sensor, and the lower portion of the layer 330 is disposed in a hole of the device body 210) and a first lens (Venkatraman, Fig. 4: a part of Fig. 4 is cited below, showing a central thin portion of optically transparent layer 330 (red annotation) that acts as a lens for light transmission) disposed in a light receiving hole (Venkatraman, Fig. 4: a part of Fig. 4 is cited below, showing a space (green annotation) formed in the optically transparent layer 330 that acts as a light receiving hole) formed in the portion of the sensor housing (Venkatraman, Fig. 4: the portion of optically transparent layer 330 annotated with blue corresponds to “the portion of the sensor housing” of Application) and which is configured to detect first biometric information (Venkatraman, Para 0033; “For example, an optical sensor 300 may be used to detect and measure features of a cardiac signal of the user.”) of the user based on light of a designated wavelength band, which passes through the first lens (Venkatraman, Para 0035; “the light sources 315 may emit green light, infrared light, or light having multiple wavelengths, (e.g., red, green, and infrared light or any combination thereof). … An optically transparent layer 330 may be placed on the lower surface of the PPG sensor 300 …”);
Venkatraman, Fig. 4 – sensor housing and lens
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a second biometric sensor (Venkatraman, Para 0069; “… the wearable device 10 comprises one or more biometric sensors 160 …”. This disclosure show that a second biometric sensor can be included); and
a blocking structure disposed between the first member and the sensor housing (In the cited Fig. 4, liquid gasket 305 and pressure-sensitive adhesive 310 are disposed between the optically transparent layer 330 and device body 210) and configured to prevent or reduce foreign substances from being introduced through the first hole (Venkatraman, Para 0034; “The optically transparent layer 330 may be attached to the device body 210 via a pressure-sensitive adhesive 310 and a liquid gasket 305 may be provided to seal the wearable device 10.”).
Venkatraman does not explicitly and clearly disclose comprising:
a frame that as a part of device housing is connected to the rear cover, and
a second member coupled to the first member, and a second biometric sensor including at least one light emitter and at least one light receiver and being disposed between the PCB and the second member to face the rear cover, wherein the second biometric sensor is configured to detect second biometric information that is different from the first biometric information.
Trapero Martin in the same field of endeavor discloses comprising:
a frame that as a part of device housing is connected to the rear cover (Trapero Martin, column 18, lines 43-46; “The smart patch 600 can include an electronics module 602 inserted into a receptacle 662 of a flexible patch 660.” The disclosed “flexible patch 660” is a part of exterior housing of the patch 600, and is connected to a rear cover (e.g. bottom portion 506)), and
a second member coupled to the first member (Trapero Martin, column 9, lines 12-13; “The sensor window 112 can integrate into the bottom portion 106 of the housing …”), and a second biometric sensor including at least one light emitter and at least one light receiver (Trapero Martin, column 12, lines 21-23; “The sensor system 240 for PPG measurements may include one or more light emitters and one or more photodetectors.”) and being disposed between the PCB and the second member (Trapero Martin, column 11, line 63 to column 12, line 2; “Non-contact sensors 240, such as optical and other types of sensors, can be located on the bottom surface of the PCB 224 … The non-contact sensors 240 can be arranged in an array that correlates with the outline of the sensor window (e.g., sensor window 112 of FIG. 1) of the electronics module.”) to face the rear cover (Trapero Martin, column 8, lines 67; “non-contact sensors (e.g., working through the sensor window 112 located on the base of the electronics module 102)”), wherein the second biometric sensor is configured to detect second biometric information (Trapero Martin, column 12, lines 17-18; “PPG can be used to monitor the user's heart rate (HR) …”) that is different from the first biometric information.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Venkatraman, as suggested by Trapero Martin, in order to include a frame connected to rear cover of the device and to include a second sensor behind a second member to measure a different biometric parameter. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to make the modification of including a frame for the benefit of providing additional protection for the device and facilitating the placement of the device against the skin of user (Trapero Martin, column 7, lines 29-40; “the electronics module can be coupled to a flexible patch (e.g., via a receptacle) for placement on a user's body … The attachment module can be any module suitable for receiving the electronics module and facilitating the placement or securing of one or more sensors and/or electrodes of the electronics module against the skin of the user.”), and make the modification of including a second sensor to measure a different biometric parameter for the benefit of measuring multiple aspects of physiology so as to precisely assess a user’s health status (Trapero Martin, column 4, lines 37-40; “Cardiac diseases can affect other aspects of an individual, such as pulmonary function. Therefore, it can be beneficial to understand the interactions between the cardiovascular system and other systems, such as the pulmonary system.”).
With regard to Claim 3, Venkatraman and Trapero Martin disclose all the limitations in Claim 1 as discussed above. Venkatraman further discloses wherein the first hole is formed in the first member to be exposed through a rear surface of the wearable electronic device (Venkatraman, Fig. 4 shows a hole in the rear cover of the device body 210).
Venkatraman does not explicitly and clearly disclose wherein the second member is disposed under the first member,
wherein the second member is coupled to the first member to close an opening formed at a central portion of the first member, and
wherein the second biometric sensor is at least partially disposed in the opening to face the second member.
Trapero Martin further discloses wherein the second member (sensor window 112) is disposed under the first member (Trapero Martin, Fig. 1 shows the sensor window 112 disposed under the bottom portion 106 of the module),
wherein the second member is coupled to the first member to close an opening (sensor window opening 110) formed at a central portion of the first member (Trapero Martin, column 8, lines 1-2; “… the sensor window 112 placed in a sensor window opening 110 of the bottom portion 106 …”), and
wherein the second biometric sensor (non-contact sensors) is at least partially disposed in the opening (Trapero Martin, Fig. 10B shows that the second biometric sensor in the center is at least partially disposed in the opening) to face the second member (Trapero Martin, column 8, lines 67; “non-contact sensors (e.g., working through the sensor window 112 located on the base of the electronics module 102)”).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Venkatraman and Trapero Martin, as further suggested by Trapero Martin, in order to position the second sensor to face a separate and central member of the rear cover. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to make the modification for the benefit of making the central region to be optically transparent by using a separate member manufactured with proper material (Trapero Martin, column 13, lines 19-23; “Depending on the type of non-contact sensors 240 in use, the sensor window can be translucent or transparent to specific sensing wavelengths used by the non-contact sensors 240 to provide clear access to the surface of the skin of the user.”) and positioning optical sensor behind the center region of the rear cover to be in close proximity with the user’s skin (Trapero Martin, column 17, lines 5-8; “In the center of the bottom portion 406 of the electronics module 402, the sensor window 412 allows non-contact sensors 440 within the device to perform optical measurements of the skin of the user.”).
With regard to Claim 4, Venkatraman and Trapero Martin disclose all the limitations in Claim 3 as discussed above.
Venkatraman further discloses wherein the first biometric sensor (Venkatraman, Para 0034; “The PPG sensor 300 may be formed within the device body 210 and may include one or more light sources (e.g., light-emitting diodes (LEDs)) 315, a photodetector 320, a printed circuit board (PCB) 325, and an optically transparent layer 330.”) includes:
a first board (PCB 325), and;
a sensor part disposed in the first board (Venkatraman, Para 0035; “The light source(s) 315 and the photodetector(s) 320 may be placed on the PCB 325”), wherein the sensor part is disposed to face the first lens to receive the light of the designated wavelength band (Venkatraman, Para 0035; “the light sources 315 may emit green light, infrared light, or light having multiple wavelengths …”), which passes through the first lens (optically transparent layer 330);
wherein the sensor housing surrounds the sensor part (Venkatraman, Para 0035; “An optically transparent layer 330 may be placed on the lower surface of the PPG sensor 300 to form a seal.”. Fig. 4 shows that a housing is formed to surround the sensor part), and wherein the first lens is coupled to the light receiving hole (Venkatraman, Para 0035; “The optically transparent layer 330 may be formed through in-mold labeling (IML).” As demonstrated in the above cited Fig. 4, the portion of the layer that acts as lens is coupled to the hole formed in the layer).
With regard to Claim 7, Venkatraman and Trapero Martin disclose all the limitations in Claim 4 as discussed above. Venkatraman further discloses wherein the blocking structure includes a waterproof adhesion layer interposed between the sensor housing and the first member (Venkatraman, Para 0034; “The optically transparent layer 330 may be attached to the device body 210 via a pressure-sensitive adhesive 310 and a liquid gasket 305 may be provided to seal the wearable device 10.”).
With regard to Claim 8, Venkatraman and Trapero Martin disclose all the limitations in Claim 7 as discussed above.
Venkatraman further discloses wherein the sensor housing (Venkatraman, Para 0035; “An optically transparent layer 330 may be placed on the lower surface of the PPG sensor 300 to form a seal.”) includes a first part disposed on the first board to surround the sensor part, a second part extending from an inner periphery of the first part along the sensor part, and a third part extending from the second part toward the first lens, and defining the light receiving hole (Venkatraman, Fig. 4: the optically transparent layer 330 in this figure shows the same structure as the combination of sensor housing 407 and lens 409 in Fig. 5B of the application. Specifically, the optically transparent layer of Venkatraman includes a first part disposed on PCB (325), a second part extending from the first part along the sensor parts (light sources 315 and photodetector 320), and a third part extending from the second part toward the center region of the layer (i.e. the lens)),
wherein the second part and the third part are at least partially inserted into the first hole (Venkatraman, Fig. 4: the second part and the third part, i.e. the lower portion of the optically transparent layer 330, are inserted into the shown hole of the device body 210.), and
wherein the waterproof adhesion layer includes:
a first layer (liquid gasket 305) interposed between the first part and the first member (Venkatraman, Fig. 4: liquid gasket 305 is interposed between the first part of the optically transparent layer 330 and an inner peripheral surface of the hole of device body 210.); and
a second layer (pressure-sensitive adhesive 310) interposed between a first inner peripheral surface of the first hole and the second part, and between the first inner peripheral surface and the third part (Venkatraman, Fig. 4: pressure-sensitive adhesive 310 is interposed between a first inner peripheral surface of the hole and the second part of the optically transparent layer 330, and also between a first inner peripheral surface of the hole and the third part of the optically transparent layer 330.).
Claim 2 and 13 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Venkatraman and Trapero Martin, further in view of Seo et al (US 20200304618 A1; hereafter Seo).
With regard to Claim 2, Venkatraman and Trapero Martin disclose all the limitations in Claim 1 as discussed above, but do not explicitly and clearly disclose wherein the first biometric sensor is configured to detect a temperature as the first biometric information, based on the light of the designated wavelength band, which is received in the first hole.
Seo in the same field of endeavor discloses wherein the first biometric sensor is configured to detect a temperature as the first biometric information, based on the light of the designated wavelength band, which is received in the first hole (Seo, Para 0196; “the temperature sensor 143 includes …, a second element 440, a sensor cover 450, and a filter 460.”) (Seo, Para 0229; “The sensor cover 450 is provided with a filter 460 covering the hole 455 and transmitting only the wavelength band of the infrared region to perform optical focusing.”). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Venkatraman and Trapero Martin, as suggested by Seo, in order to use the optical sensor to measure temperature as biometric information. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to make the modification for the benefit of making use of infrared light from the subject to measure temperature in a non-contact way (Seo, Para 0002; “A general non-contact infrared sensor includes a first element for absorbing infrared rays radiated from a measurement object to generate an electrical signal, and a second element for sensing temperature by amplifying and filtering an electrical signal generated from the first element”).
With regard to Claim 13, Venkatraman and Trapero Martin disclose all the limitations in Claim 1 as discussed above, but do not disclose wherein the rear cover includes sapphire glass, and wherein the first lens includes a silicon lens.
Trapero Martin further discloses wherein the rear cover includes sapphire glass (Trapero Martin, column 9, lines 16-17; “The sensor window may be made of materials such as plastic, sapphire crystals …”). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Venkatraman and Trapero Martin, as further suggested by Trapero Martin, in order to use sapphire glass/crystals as at least part of the rear cover. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to make the modification for the benefit of protecting the electronics of the device while allowing light to transmit through the rear cover (Trapero Martin, column 9, lines 9-18; “the sensor window 112 may integrate augmenting lenses so signals emitted and/or received by the sensors in the electronics module can be magnified or otherwise altered. The sensor window 112 can integrate into the bottom portion 106 of the housing of the electronics module 102 in a manner that protects the electronics 104 within the device from outside contaminants (e.g., liquid, dust, and/or other particles)”).
Venkatraman and Trapero Martin do not disclose wherein the first lens includes a silicon lens.
Seo in the same field of endeavor discloses wherein the first lens includes a silicon lens (Seo; Para 0250; “the temperature sensor 143 may have a hole formed on an upper surface thereof, and a filter (to be described later) may be disposed at the formed hole. The filter may be a spherical silicon lens.”). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Venkatraman and Trapero Martin, as suggested by Seo, in order to use a silicon lens. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to make the modification for the benefit of improved performance of the device by enabling transmitting infrared rays through the silicon lens (Seo, Para 0230; “… a spherical or aspherical lens formed of a material capable of transmitting infrared rays, including silicon”).
Claim 5 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Venkatraman and Trapero Martin, further in view of Shimizu (US 20150173675 A1; hereafter Shimizu).
With regard to Claim 5, Venkatraman and Trapero Martin disclose all the limitations in Claim 4 as discussed above.
Venkatraman further discloses comprising at least one processor (processor 120 or data processing circuitry) operatively connected to the first biometric sensor and the second biometric sensor (Venkatraman, Para 0027; “Each of the biometric sensors illustrated in FIG. 1B is in electrical communication with the processor 120 …”).
Venkatraman and Trapero Martin do not explicitly and clearly disclose wherein the first biometric sensor includes an elastic member disposed between the first board and the PCB, and
wherein the elastic member provides an elastic force in a direction that faces the lens, to the first board.
Shimizu in the same field of endeavor discloses wherein the first biometric sensor includes an elastic member (shock absorber 92) disposed between the first board and the PCB (Shimizu, Para 0135; “the shock absorber 92 is provided between the circuit board 160 and the sensor substrate 45.”), and
wherein the elastic member provides an elastic force in a direction that faces the lens, to the first board (Shimizu, Fig. 9 shows the elastic member (shock absorber 92) to be disposed immediately above the board (sensor substrate 45), and facing the lens (light transmitting member 50).)
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Venkatraman and Trapero Martin, as suggested by Shimizu, in order to include an elastic member between the board and the printed circuit board so that the elastic member provides elastic force to the board in a direction facing the lens. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to make the modification for the benefit of stably supporting the board and the printed circuit board inside the device (Shimizu, Para 0036; “… if the shock absorber is provided, the circuit board and the sensor substrate can be stably supported in the case unit, and occurrence of rattling or the like of the components can be suppressed.”).
Claim 10 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Venkatraman and Trapero Martin, further in view of Hettler et al (US 20210251509 A1; hereafter Hettler).
With regard to Claim 10, Venkatraman and Trapero Martin disclose all the limitations in Claim 1 as discussed above. Venkatraman further discloses wherein the first lens includes a first surface that faces an outside of the wearable electronic device (Venkatraman, Fig. 4 shows the bottom surface of the optically transparent layer 330 to face an outside of the device body 210).
Venkatraman and Trapero Martin do not explicitly and clearly wherein the first lens is disposed in an interior of the first hole such that the first surface is spaced apart from a rear surface of the wearable electronic device.
Hettler in the same field of endeavor discloses wherein the first lens is disposed in an interior of the first hole such that the first surface is spaced apart from a rear surface of the wearable electronic device (Hettler, Para 0140; “…according to FIG. 3A, the support 7 protrudes beyond the at least one window 9a, 9b made of glass and/or glass ceramics along the edges thereof.”). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Venkatraman and Trapero Martin, as suggested by Hettler, in order to make the outer surface of the lens to space apart from the rear surface of the device. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to make the modification for the benefit of simplifying the fabrication process of the rear cover (Hettler, Para 0141; “This simplifies the fabrication process in the case of a compression glass seal embodiment. The protruding of support 7 along the edges and the associated countersunk arrangement of window 9a, 9b allows to accommodate variations in volume of the glass material of windows 9a, 9b.”).
Claims 11-12 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Venkatraman, Trapero Martin and Hettler, further in view of Han et al (US 20200264343 A1; hereafter Han).
With regard to Claim 11, Venkatraman and Trapero Martin disclose all the limitations in Claim 1 as discussed above. Venkatraman further discloses wherein the first lens includes a first surface that faces an outside of the wearable electronic device, and a second surface in an opposite direction to the first surface (Venkatraman, Fig. 4 shows that optically transparent layer 330 has two surfaces, one facing outside of the device body 210, and the other facing the opposite direction).
Venkatraman and Trapero Martin do not disclose wherein the first lens has a plurality of fine holes that extend from the first surface to the second surface and pass through the first lens, and
wherein the wearable electronic device includes a first protection layer and/or a second protection layer disposed on the first surface and/or the second surface of the first lens.
Hettler in the same field of endeavor discloses wherein the first lens (window 9) has a plurality of fine holes (regions denoted as 14) that extend from the first surface to the second surface and pass through the first lens (Hettler, Fig. 7 shows a plurality of holes (denoted as 14) in the window 9). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Venkatraman and Trapero Martin, as suggested by Hettler, in order to include a plurality of fine holes extending from one surface to the other surface of the lens. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to make the modification for the benefit of filling in the holes with materials of different refractive index to reduce optical noise (Hettler, Para 0186; “When using a fiber-optic plate 16, the light, when injected into the optical fibers, remains within the respective individual light-conducting fibers, so that backscattering of light within the fiber-optic plate 16 onto the receiver diode 11 cannot occur, or at least to a much lesser degree.”).
Venkatraman, Trapero Martin and Hettler do not disclose wherein the wearable electronic device includes a first protection layer and/or a second protection layer disposed on the first surface and/or the second surface of the first lens.
Han in the same field of endeavor discloses wherein the wearable electronic device includes a first protection layer and/or a second protection layer disposed on the first surface and/or the second surface of the first lens (Han, Para 0085; “A protection layer 151 covering the plurality of second nanostructures NS2 may further be included in the meta-lens 101.”). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Venkatraman, Trapero Martin and Hettler, as suggested by Han, in order to add a protection layer on one or both surfaces of the lens. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to make the modification for the benefit of protecting the nanostructures inside the lens.
With regard to Claim 12, Venkatraman, Trapero Martin, Hettler and Han disclose all the limitations in Claim 11 as discussed above, but do not disclose comprising:
optic members filled in the plurality of fine holes, respectively.
Hettler further discloses comprising:
optic members (fibers 14) filled in the plurality of fine holes, respectively (Hettler, Para 0158; “… a fiber-optic plate is made up of fibers 14, such as glass fibers, which are embedded in a cladding material 15 …”).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Venkatraman, Trapero Martin, Hettler and Han, as further suggested by Hettler, in order to fill optical members in the holes of the lens. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to make the modification for the benefit of effectively guiding light to transmit from one side of the lens to the other side (Hettler, Para 0082; “Due to the lower refractive index of the cladding material compared to the material of the fibers, total internal reflection occurs so that individual light guides are defined.”).
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.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to LEI ZHANG whose telephone number is (571)272-7172. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 8am-5pm E.T..
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/L.Z./Examiner, Art Unit 3798
/PASCAL M BUI PHO/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3798