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 .
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 3/23/2023 and 1/15/2026 is in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner.
Election/Restrictions
Applicant’s election without traverse of Species A and sub-species 1 in the reply filed on 1/15/2026 is acknowledged.
Claims 5-34 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to a nonelected species and sub-species, there being no allowable generic or linking claim. Election was made without traverse in the reply filed on 1/15/2026.
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.
Claims 1-3 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Lee (US 2020/0119101; hereinafter Lee) in view of Iguchi et al (US 2019/0267357; hereinafter Iguchi).
Regarding claim 1, Figs 19 and 27 of Lee discloses a display device comprising:
a substrate (141; Fig 3; ¶ [0080]) comprising a display area (100; Fig 1; ¶ [0065]) comprising a plurality of sub-pixels (SPx; Fig 4; ¶ [0083]);
a plurality of light emitting units (142; Fig 19; ¶ [0080]) on the substrate, the plurality of light emitting units (142R/142G/142B/142W; Fig 19; ¶ [0081]) respectively corresponding to the plurality of sub-pixels; and
a partition wall (125; Fig 19; ¶ [0102]) on the substrate and corresponding to a boundary (Fig 19) between adjacent ones of the plurality of sub-pixels,
wherein the plurality of sub-pixels (SPx; Fig 4; ¶ [0083]) comprises a first sub-pixel (110R; Fig 19; ¶ [0135]) corresponding to light of a first color (Red color; Wavelength of 620 nm to 750 nm), a second sub-pixel (110G; Fig 19; ¶ [0134]) corresponding to light of a second color (Green color; Wavelength of 490 nm to 570 nm) different from the first color (Red color), a third sub-pixel (110B; Fig 19; ¶ [0134]) corresponding to light of a third color (Blue color) different from the first color (Red color) and the second color (Green color), and a fourth sub-pixel (110W; Fig 19; ¶ [0134]) corresponding to light of a fourth color (White color; Wavelength of 380 nm-780 nm) having a wavelength band (White color; Wavelength of 380 nm-780 nm) wider than wavelength bands of the first color (Red color; Fig 19), the second color (Green color; Fig 19), and the third color (Blue color; Fig 19), and
each light emitting unit (142R/142G/142B/142W; Fig 19; ¶ [0081]) of the plurality of light emitting units comprises a light emitting element (142R/142G/142B/142W; Fig 19; ¶ [0081]) and a light adjustment layer (121/127R/122/127G/123/127B/124; Figs 19/23; ¶ [0133]) covering the light emitting element.
However Lee does not expressly disclose the partition wall is around the light emitting unit.
In the same field of endeavor, Fig 1 of Iguchi discloses a partition wall (15; Fig 1; ¶ [0065]) is formed around the light emitting unit (100B/R/G; Fig 1; ¶ [0065]).
Accordingly it would have been obvious to the person in the ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention such that the partition wall is formed around the light emitting unit for the purpose for forming an isolation trench that is desirable for inhibiting light crosstalk between pixels (¶ [0065]).
Regarding claim 2, Figs 19 and 27 of Lee discloses the plurality of light emitting units (142R/142G/142B/142W; Fig 19; ¶ [0081]) comprise:
a first light emitting unit (110R; Fig 19; ¶ [0135]) corresponding to the first sub-pixel and configured to emit the light of the first color (Red color);
a second light emitting unit (110G; Fig 19; ¶ [0135]) corresponding to the second sub-pixel and configured to emit the light of the second color (Green color);
a third light emitting unit (110B; Fig 19; ¶ [0135]) corresponding to the third sub-pixel and configured to emit the light of the third color (Blue color); and
a fourth light emitting unit (110W; Fig 19; ¶ [0135]) corresponding to the fourth sub-pixel and configured to emit the light of the fourth color (Yellow),
wherein the first light emitting unit comprises a first light emitting element configured to emit the light of the first color, the second light emitting unit comprises a second light emitting element configured to emit the light of the second color, the third light emitting unit comprises a third light emitting element configured to emit the light of the third color, and the fourth light emitting unit comprises the third light emitting element. (Fig 19)
Regarding claim 3, Figs 19 and 27 of Lee discloses the fourth light emitting unit (110W; Fig 19; ¶ [0135]) further comprises a phosphor (124P; Fig 5; ¶ [0101]) of a fifth color (Yellow color; Fig 5) dispersed in the light adjustment layer (120; Fig 5),
the fifth color (Yellow color; Fig 5) corresponds to a wavelength band (540nm -580 nm; ¶ [0024]) between the wavelength band of the first color (Red color) and a wavelength band of the second color (Green color), and
the phosphor of the fifth color is configured to convert a part of the light of the third color (Blue color) emitted from the third light emitting element into light of the fifth color. (Fig 5; ¶ [0029])
Claims 4 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Lee (US 2020/0119101; hereinafter Lee) in view of Iguchi et al (US 2019/0267357; hereinafter Iguchi) and further in view of Grottenmueller et al (US 2019/0300748; hereinafter Grottenmueller).
Regarding claim 4, Lee does not expressly disclose the phosphor of the fifth color is at least one of (Y,Gd)3(Al,Ga)5O12:Ce3+ and (Lu,Y)3(Al,Ga)5O12:Ce3+.
In the same field of endeavor, Grottenmueller discloses a suitable yellow phosphor is (Gd,Y).sub.3(Al, Ga).sub.5O.sub.12 doped with Ce (¶ [0170]).
Accordingly it would have been obvious to the person in the ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention such that a suitable yellow phosphor such that Ce:YAG is used as it is commercially available phosphor very well known in the art (¶ [0170]).
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure:
Hack et al (US 2019/0280055; This prior art discloses the display device with OLED displays in which multiple subpixels are configured to emit different colors of light)
Lee et al (US 2018/0374409; This prior art discloses the display device with OLED displays in which multiple subpixels are configured to emit different colors of light)
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to RATISHA MEHTA whose telephone number is (571)270-7473. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday: 9:00am - 5:00 pm.
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/RATISHA MEHTA/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2817