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 Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed on 06/09/2026have been fully considered but they are not persuasive. Using BRI, amended claims 1 and 11 are anticipated by prior art Kim. See rejections below.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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 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.
Claims 1, 3-4, 8-12 and 14-16 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Kim et al. 20200176520.
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Regarding claim 1, fig. 7 of Kim discloses a display device, comprising:
a display panel including:
a first display area AA (fig. 1) having a plurality of first pixels P; and
a second display (figs. 2 and 7) having a plurality of second pixels P’ and a light-transmission area TH between the second pixels; and
a sensor or an optical element CM under the display panel and overlapping with the second display area of the display panel,
wherein the display panel includes:
a substrate (par [0076] - organic buffer film – which is a substrate for the two or more inorganic buffer films are stacked);
a circuit layer (transistor layer with insulating materials) on the substrate and having a buffer layer (two or more inorganic buffer films are stacked on the organic buffer film – par [0076]) and a plurality of insulating layers (GI/ILD); and
a light emitting element layer (ED layer) on the circuit layer, and
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wherein the second display area includes a hole (par [0118] - two side walls SW and BS forms a hole – fig. 5A) penetrating the substrate, the buffer layer, and the plurality of insulating layers, and
a glass SUB (par [0075] – glass material) disposed to cover the hole, and
wherein the glass is disposed in the second display area,
the glass including a first surface (top surface) in contact with the substrate and a second surface (bottom surface) opposite the first surface and facing the sensor or the optical element CM.
Regarding claim 11, fig. 7 of Kim discloses a display device, comprising:
a display panel including:
a first display area AA (fig. 1) having a plurality of first pixels P; and
a second display area (figs. 2 and 7) having a plurality of second pixels P’ and a light-transmission area TH between the second pixels; and
a sensor or an optical element CM under the display panel and overlapping with the second display area of the display panel,
wherein the display panel includes:
a substrate (par [0076] - organic buffer film – which is a substrate for the two or more inorganic buffer films are stacked) including a low-transmittance area (solid region) and a high-transmittance area having higher light transmissivity (the TH/THB region) than the low-transmittance area in the second display area, the substrate having a hole (par [0118] - two side walls SW and BS forms a hole – fig. 5A) or at least one first groove (TH) penetrating at least a bottom surface of the substrate in the high-transmittance area;
a circuit layer (transistor layer) on the substrate; and
a light emitting element layer (ED layer) on the circuit layer and
wherein the display device further comprises a glass plate SUB (par [0075] – glass material) disposed between the bottom surface of the substrate and the sensor or the optical element CM, the glass plate SUB overlapping at least a portion of the low-transmittance area of the substrate.
Regarding claim 3, fig. 7 of Kim discloses wherein: the second surface includes a predetermined pattern (the bottom surface includes a hole TH which is a predetermined pattern).
Regarding claim 4, fig. 7 of Kim discloses wherein: the circuit layer further includes a first planarization layer PLN on the plurality of insulating layers, and a same material (insulating material) forming the first planarization layer is disposed in the hole.
Regarding claim 8, Kim discloses wherein the substrate is formed of one single layer.
Regarding claim 9, fig. 7 of Kim discloses wherein the sensor or the optical element is an image sensor or a lens of a camera module.
Regarding claim 10, fig. 2 of Kim discloses wherein a resolution of the second pixels in the second display area is lower than a resolution of the first pixels in the first display area.
Regarding claim 12, par [0101] of Kim discloses wherein: the display panel further includes an inorganic material in the hole or the at least one first groove of the substrate, the inorganic material includes at least one of silicon oxide (SiOx), silicon nitride (SiNx)), aluminum oxide (AlO), and titanium oxide (TiO2).
Regarding claim 14, Kim discloses wherein the glass plate includes: a first glass plate area overlapping with the low-transmittance area; and a second glass plate area overlapping with the high-transmittance area and having a second groove (hole in TH is a groove) penetrating at least a bottom surface of the glass plate, the second glass plate area having a smaller thickness (thickness is zero at the TH) than the first glass plate area.
Regarding claim 15, Kim discloses wherein the glass plate includes: a first glass plate area overlapping with the low-transmittance area; and a second glass plate area overlapping with the high-transmittance area and having a hole (TH) through the glass plate, the second glass plate area having a minimum thickness of 0 (thickness at the TH).
Regarding claim 16, Kim discloses (par [0076] - organic buffer film – which is a substrate for the two or more inorganic buffer films are stacked) wherein the substrate is formed of one single layer.
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.
Claim 5 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kim.
Regarding claim 5. Fig. 7 of Kim discloses wherein the hole has a non-tapered cross section with a wider opening at a top of the hole than at a bottom of the hole.
Kim does not disclose wherein the hole has a tapered cross section with a wider opening at a top of the hole than at a bottom of the hole.
In reDailey, 357 F.2d 669, 149 USPQ 47 (CCPA 1966) (The court held that the configuration of the claimed disposable plastic nursing container was a matter of choice which a person of ordinary skill in the art would have found obvious absent persuasive evidence that the particular configuration of the claimed container was significant.).
As such it would have been obvious to form a display device comprising wherein the hole has a tapered cross section with a wider opening at a top of the hole than at a bottom of the hole in order to meet applicant design requirement.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 17-20 are allowed.
Claims 2 and 6-7 are objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
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.
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/VONGSAVANH SENGDARA/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2893
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