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and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114.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 20 March 2026 has been entered.
Response to Amendment
The amendment filed on 20 March 2026 under 37 CFR 1.312 has been entered.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to claims 1-12, 15-20 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
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:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness.
Claims 1-12, 15-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Du et al. (US 2021/0151471 A1) in view of Kim et al. (US 2021/0399069 A1) and Kim et al. (US 2019/0206973 A1), hereinafter Kim II.
With respect to claim 1: Du teaches “a display device (101) comprising: a display area (106) in which pixels (1+7) are disposed (paragraph 37), each of the pixels (see Figs. 6, 8) comprising: a first electrode (2a) and a second electrode (2b) extending in a first direction (see Fig. 8) and spaced apart from each other in a second direction (see Fig. 8); a first dummy pixel area (103) disposed outside the display area (see Fig. 4) and in which dummy pixels are disposed (paragraph 37), each of the dummy pixels (see Fig. 8; the dummy pixels are on the left, the real ones are on the right) comprising the first electrode, the second electrode (see Fig. 8), a second dummy pixel area (102+104) surrounding the display area (106) and the first dummy pixel area (103) and in which dummy electrode lines (electrical wires connecting to and from dummy GOA circuits) and dummy electrode patterns (dummy GOA circuits) are disposed (see Fig. 1), wherein the dummy electrode lines extend in the first direction (see Fig. 8), are spaced apart from each other in the second direction (see Fig. 8), and are electrically connected to the second electrodes (2b) of the dummy pixels (the pixels in the left column of Fig. 8), and the dummy electrode patterns extend in the first direction (see Fig. 1), are disposed between the dummy electrode lines (see Fig. 1), and are spaced apart from the first electrodes of the dummy pixels in the first direction (see Fig. 8); a first connection electrode (1) disposed on the first electrode of each of the pixels and the dummy pixels (see Fig. 8); and a second connection electrode (7) disposed on the second electrode of each of the pixels and the dummy pixels (see Fig. 8); the first connection electrode and the second connection electrode are configured to provide power supply voltages to each pixel (paragraph 38), the first connection electrode and the second connection electrode of each pixel electrically contact the first electrode and the second electrode, respectively (paragraph 40), and the first connection electrode and the second connection electrode disposed in each of the dummy pixels do not electrically contact the first electrode and the second electrode, respectively (paragraph 41)”.
Du does not specifically teach “light emitting elements disposed on the first electrode and the second electrode; a first connection electrode disposed on the first electrode of each of the pixels and the dummy pixels and electrically contacting the light emitting elements; and a second connection electrode disposed on the second electrode of each of the pixels and the dummy pixels and electrically contacting the light emitting elements; the first connection electrode and the second connection electrode are configured to provide power supply voltages to each pixel to emit light”.
However, Kim teaches “light emitting elements (30) disposed on the first electrode (21) and the second electrode (22); a first connection electrode (26) disposed on the first electrode of each of the pixels and the dummy pixels and electrically contacting the light emitting elements (see Fig. 8); and a second connection electrode (27) disposed on the second electrode of each of the pixels and the dummy pixels and electrically contacting the light emitting elements (see Fig. 8); the first connection electrode and the second connection electrode are configured to provide power supply voltages to each pixel to emit light (paragraph 89)”.
It would have been obvious at the time the application was effectively filed to implement display device of Du as an emissive display having light emitting elements as taught by Kim due to the art-recognized equivalence of emissive displays such as OLED displays and non-emissive displays such as LCDs (Kim paragraph 3)”.
Du in view of Kim does not specifically teach “the light emitting elements of the dummy pixels are disposed to not emit light” (Du is silent about whether or not there are light emitting elements, while Kim’s are disposed to emit light even in the dummy pixels).
However, Kim II teaches “the light emitting elements (500) of the dummy pixels (DP) are disposed to not emit light (paragraphs 126-128)”.
It would have been obvious at the time the application was effectively filed to implement display device of Du with non-emissive dummy pixels as taught by Kim II in order to prevent leakage in the non-display area (Kim II paragraph 126).
With respect to claim 2: Du in view of Kim and Kim II teaches “the display device of claim 1 (see above)”.
Du teaches “wherein the second dummy pixel area comprises: a first area disposed on a side of the display area in the first direction (102 on left of Fig. 4); a second area disposed on each of sides of the display area in the second direction (104; see Fig. 4); and a third area disposed on another side of the display area in the first direction (102 on right of Fig. 4), and the first dummy electrode lines and the first dummy electrode patterns are disposed in the first area and the third area (paragraph 35)”.
With respect to claim 3: Du in view of Kim and Kim II teaches “the display device of claim 2 (see above)”.
Du teaches “wherein each of the dummy electrode patterns disposed in the first area and the third area is electrically connected to any adjacent one of the dummy electrode lines (see Fig. 8)”.
With respect to claim 4: Du in view of Kim and Kim II teaches “the display device of claim 2 (see above)”.
Du teaches “wherein the dummy electrode lines disposed in the third area are directly connected to the second electrodes (7) disposed in the pixels of the display area (paragraph 40)”.
With respect to claim 5: Du in view of Kim and Kim II teaches “the display device of claim 2 (see above)”.
Du teaches “wherein the dummy electrode patterns comprise: second dummy electrode patterns (GOA circuits and connections disposed in area 102 on left of Fig. 4) disposed in the second area (102 on left) on sides of the first area and the third area in the second direction (see Figs. 1, 4); and third dummy patterns (GOA circuits and connections disposed in area 102 on right of Fig. 4) disposed in the second area on sides of the display area in the second direction (see Figa. 1, 4) and spaced apart from each other in the first direction (see Fig. 4)”.
With respect to claim 6: Du in view of Kim and Kim II teaches “The display device of claim 5”.
Du further teaches “wherein the third dummy electrode patterns are respectively electrically connected (via output terminal) to the second electrodes of the dummy pixels disposed in the first dummy pixel area (see Fig. 8)”.’
With respect to claim 7: Du in view of Kim and Kim II teaches “The display device of claim 5”.
Du further teaches “wherein the second dummy electrode patterns are respectively electrically connected to the dummy electrode lines disposed in outermost portions of the first area and the third area (see Fig. 1)”.
With respect to claim 8: Du in view of Kim and Kim II teaches “the display device of claim 2 (see above)”.
Du teaches “wherein the first dummy pixel area is disposed between the display area and the first area and the second area of the second dummy pixel area (see Fig. 4)”.
With respect to claim 9: Du in view of Kim and Kim II teaches “the display device of claim 2 (see above)”.
However, Du teaches “wherein the third area of the second dummy pixel area is in contact with the display area (see Fig. 1)”.
With respect to claim 10: Du in view of Kim and Kim II teaches “the display device of claim 2 (see above)”.
Du does not specifically teach “wherein lengths of the dummy electrode lines and the first dummy electrode patterns in the first direction in the third area are greater than lengths of the dummy electrode lines and the first dummy electrode patterns in the first direction in the first area”.
However, Kim devotes a significant amount of space to accommodate the scan driver (SDR) in the first area, whereas the third area is empty (see Figs. 1, 2). Since there is less space available in this location for other elements such as dummy lines and patterns, one of ordinary skill in the art would reasonably expect the dummy lines and patters to be shorter on the side that shares space with the scan driver than on the other side.
It would have been obvious at the time the application was effectively filed for one of ordinary skill in the art to modify the display device of Du by making the dummy region on one side extend further than on the other, in order to make room for additional elements such as a scan driver (see Kim Fig. 1).
With respect to claim 11: Du in view of Kim and Kim II teaches “the display device of claim 1 (see above)”.
However, Du teaches “wherein the second electrodes disposed in the first dummy pixel area are directly connected to the second electrodes of the pixels disposed in the display area (see Fig. 4), and the first electrodes disposed in the first dummy pixel area are spaced apart from the first electrodes of the pixels disposed in the display area (see Fig. 4)”.
With respect to claim 12: Du in view of Kim and Kim II teaches “the display device of claim 1 (see above)”.
However, Du teaches “wherein the light emitting elements are not disposed in the second dummy pixel area (see Fig. 6)”.
With respect to claim 15: Du in view of Kim and Kim II teaches “the display device of claim 1 (see above)”.
Du teaches “wherein the first connection electrode and the second connection electrode are not disposed in the second dummy pixel area (see Fig. 6)”.
With respect to claim 16: Du in view of Kim and Kim II teaches “the display device of claim 1 (see above)”.
Du does not specifically teach “wherein the first and second electrodes, the dummy electrode lines, and the dummy electrode patterns are disposed on a same layer”.
However, Kim teaches “wherein the first and second electrodes, the dummy electrode lines, and the dummy electrode patterns are disposed on a same layer (see Fig. 5; all are disposed on layer 17)”.
It would have been obvious at the time the application was effectively filed for one of ordinary skill in the art to modify the display device of Du by forming the first and second electrodes, dummy electrode, and dummy electrode patterns on the same layer as taught by Kim due to the art recognized suitability of this configuration to provide a light emitting display (see Kim Fig. 5)
With respect to claim 17: Du teaches “a display device (101) comprising: a display area (106) in which pixels (1+7) are disposed (paragraph 37), each of the pixels (see Figs. 6, 8) comprising: a first electrode (2a) and a second electrode (2b) extending in a first direction (see Fig. 8) and spaced apart from each other in a second direction (see Fig. 8); a first dummy pixel area (103) disposed outside the display area (see Fig. 4) and in which dummy pixels are disposed (paragraph 37), each of the dummy pixels (see Fig. 8; the dummy pixels are on the left, the real ones are on the right) comprising the first electrode, the second electrode (see Fig. 8), a second dummy pixel area (102+104) surrounding the display area (106) and the first dummy pixel area (103) and in which dummy electrode lines (electrical wires connecting to and from dummy GOA circuits) and dummy electrode patterns (dummy GOA circuits) are disposed (see Fig. 1), wherein the dummy electrode lines extend in the first direction (see Fig. 8), are spaced apart from each other in the second direction (see Fig. 8), and are electrically connected to the second electrodes (2b) of the dummy pixels (the pixels in the left column of Fig. 8), and the dummy electrode patterns extend in the first direction (see Fig. 1), are disposed between the dummy electrode lines (see Fig. 1), and are spaced apart from the first electrodes of the dummy pixels in the first direction (see Fig. 8); a first connection electrode (1) disposed on the first electrode of each of the pixels and the dummy pixels (see Fig. 8); and a second connection electrode (7) disposed on the second electrode of each of the pixels and the dummy pixels (see Fig. 8); the first connection electrode and the second connection electrode are configured to provide power supply voltages to each pixel (paragraph 38), the first connection electrode and the second connection electrode of each pixel electrically contact the first electrode and the second electrode, respectively (paragraph 40), and the first connection electrode and the second connection electrode disposed in each of the dummy pixels do not electrically contact the first electrode and the second electrode, respectively (paragraph 41), a second dummy pixel area (102+104) surrounding the display area (106) and the first dummy pixel area (105) and in which dummy electrode lines (2b) and dummy electrode patterns (2a) are disposed, wherein the second dummy pixel area comprises: a first area disposed on a side of the display area in the first direction (102 on left; see Fig. 4); a second area disposed on each of sides of the display area in the second direction (104); and a third area disposed on another side of the display area in the first direction (102 on right; see Fig. 4), the dummy electrode lines comprise: first dummy electrode lines disposed in the first area and the third area (paragraph 34); and a second dummy electrode line disposed in the second area (paragraph 45), and the dummy electrode patterns comprise a first dummy electrode pattern disposed between the first dummy electrode lines in the first area and the third area and electrically connected to each of adjacent ones of the first dummy electrode lines (see Fig. 8)”.”.
Du does not specifically teach “light emitting elements disposed on the first electrode and the second electrode; a first connection electrode disposed on the first electrode of each of the pixels and the dummy pixels and electrically contacting the light emitting elements; and a second connection electrode disposed on the second electrode of each of the pixels and the dummy pixels and electrically contacting the light emitting elements; the first connection electrode and the second connection electrode are configured to provide power supply voltages to each pixel to emit light”.
However, Kim teaches “light emitting elements (30) disposed on the first electrode (21) and the second electrode (22); a first connection electrode (26) disposed on the first electrode of each of the pixels and the dummy pixels and electrically contacting the light emitting elements (see Fig. 8); and a second connection electrode (27) disposed on the second electrode of each of the pixels and the dummy pixels and electrically contacting the light emitting elements (see Fig. 8); the first connection electrode and the second connection electrode are configured to provide power supply voltages to each pixel to emit light (paragraph 89)”.
It would have been obvious at the time the application was effectively filed to implement display device of Du as an emissive display having light emitting elements as taught by Kim due to the art-recognized equivalence of emissive displays such as OLED displays and non-emissive displays such as LCDs (Kim paragraph 3)”.
Du in view of Kim does not specifically teach “the light emitting elements of the dummy pixels are disposed to not emit light” (Du is silent about whether or not there are light emitting elements, while Kim’s are disposed to emit light even in the dummy pixels).
However, Kim II teaches “the light emitting elements (500) of the dummy pixels (DP) are disposed to not emit light (paragraphs 126-128)”.
It would have been obvious at the time the application was effectively filed to implement display device of Du with non-emissive dummy pixels as taught by Kim II in order to prevent leakage in the non-display area (Kim II paragraph 126).
With respect to claim 18: Du in view of Kim and Kim II teaches “the display device of claim 17 (see above)”.
Du teaches “wherein the first dummy electrode lines are spaced apart from the second electrodes of the dummy pixels in the first direction (see Fig. 8), and the second dummy electrode line is directly connected to the second electrodes (1) of the dummy pixels disposed in an outermost portion of the first dummy pixel area in the second direction (see Fig. 8)”.
It would have been obvious at the time the application was effectively filed for one of ordinary skill in the art to modify the display device of Kim with the second dummy pixel area of Du in order to provide dummy circuitry having the same resistance and capacitance as that of the real driving circuits (Du paragraph 36) so as to provide a reset signal with a consistent delay to subsequent drive circuits (Du paragraph 29).
With respect to claim 19: Du in view of Kim and Kim II teaches “the display device of claim 18 (see above)”.
Du teaches “wherein the second dummy electrode line is directly connected to the first dummy electrode lines disposed in outermost portions of the first area and the third area in the second direction (paragraph 38; see Fig. 1)”.
It would have been obvious at the time the application was effectively filed for one of ordinary skill in the art to modify the display device of Kim with the second dummy pixel area of Du in order to provide dummy circuitry having the same resistance and capacitance as that of the real driving circuits (Du paragraph 36) so as to provide a reset signal with a consistent delay to subsequent drive circuits (Du paragraph 29).
With respect to claim 20: Du in view of Kim and Kim II teaches “the display device of claim 17 (see above)”.
However, Du teaches “wherein the light emitting elements are not disposed in the second dummy pixel area (see Fig. 6)”.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Shih (US 20150325593 A1), which teaches a display panel structure.
Contact Information
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to NATHANIEL J. LEE whose telephone number is (571)270-5721. The examiner can normally be reached 9-5 EST M-F.
Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, ABDULMAJEED AZIZ can be reached at (571)270-5046. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000.
/NATHANIEL J LEE/Examiner, Art Unit 2875
/ABDULMAJEED AZIZ/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2875
Prosecution Insights