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 .
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b):
(b) CONCLUSION.—The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph:
The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention.
Claim 8 rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention.
Claim 8 recites “the visible light of the object passes through the eyepiece positive lens and the eyepiece cemented lens successively”. However, figure 1 of the application shows light passing through the cemented lens 6 then the positive lens 7 (as light is traveling from object through lens 1 and to eyepiece comprised of lenses 6 and 7). These two examples contradict each other. For purposes of examination, the embodiment of the drawings will be considered the correct embodiment.
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 1-8 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Liu (CN 111239751 A) in view of Noyes (US 6122106 A) and further in view of Sun (CN 113654514 A).
Claim 1: Liu teaches a miniaturized monocular telescopic laser range finder,
comprising a receiving and emitting lens group (Fig. 1 and 2, objective lens 1 and receiving lens 9),
[…]
a beam splitting prism group (Fig. 1, prisms 2 and 3),
an eyepiece group (Fig. 1, ocular lens group 5)
and a laser ranging unit (Fig. 1, photoelectric receiving tube 11),
wherein the receiving and emitting lens group, […] the beam splitting prism group and the eyepiece group are arranged in sequence from left to right (Fig. 1);
[…]
the laser ranging unit is used for emitting laser, receiving the return laser of the laser emitted by the emitting lens, and calculating a distance (pg 2 of attached PDF - laser distance measuring device).
Liu does not teach, but Noyes does teach, a focusing negative lens positioned between the emitting lens group and beam splitting prism group (Fig. 1, concave lens 4 between outgoing lens 2 and beam splitter 28),
It would have been prima facie obvious to someone having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to use the negative/concave lens, as taught by Noyes, in the system as taught by Liu, because this lens could easily fit between Liu’s emitting lens and beam splitter. Further, a negative lens has predictable results (via the beam equation), and helps focus the incoming light.
Liu, as modified, does not teach, but Sun does teach a receiving and emitting lens group. […] The receiving and emitting lens group comprises an objective lens and an emitting lens; one side of the objective lens is provided with a groove, and the emitting lens is embedded in the groove (Fig. 1 and 2, showing objective lens 1 with emitting lens 16 in grove and pg 5 of pdf).
It would have been prima facie obvious to someone having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to use the lens arrangement, as taught by Sun, in the system as taught by Liu, as modified, because this allows the system to be compacted and made in a single-cylinder design, thus reducing cost (Sun pg. 2).
Claim 2: Liu, as modified, teaches the miniaturized monocular telescopic laser range finder according to claim 1, wherein the laser ranging unit comprises a laser emitting diode and a laser receiver (Fig. 1, photoelectric receiving tube 11 and laser emitter 12);
the laser emitting diode is used for emitting laser externally through the emitting lens (Fig. 1, emitter 12 emitting through lens 7);
the laser returns after passing through an object, and passes through the objective lens (Fig. 1, light entering through objective lens 1 and to receiving tube 11),
the focusing negative lens and the beam splitting prism group successively to obtain the return laser (Fig. 1, prisms 2 and 3 after lens 1);
the laser receiver is used for receiving the return laser split by the beam splitting prism group (Fig. 1, laser split by prisms 2 and 3 before being received by receiving tube 11).
Claim 3: Liu, as modified, teaches the miniaturized monocular telescopic laser range finder according to claim 2, wherein the laser ranging unit further comprises a display device; and the display device is used for displaying a distance from a measured object (Fig. 1, display unit 4 ang pg 3-4, highlighted portions).
Claim 4: Liu, as modified, teaches the miniaturized monocular telescopic laser range finder according to claim 2, wherein the laser ranging unit further comprises a light filter, and the light filter is arranged at a receiving end of the laser receiver and used for transmitting band light emitted by a laser emitter (Fig. 1, optical filter 10 before receiving tube 11).
Claim 5: Liu, as modified, teaches the miniaturized monocular telescopic laser range finder according to claim 2, wherein the beam splitting prism group comprises a roof half penta prism (Fig. 1 prism 2),
an isosceles prism and a compensating prism (Fig. 1, prism 3 and pg. 5);
the roof half penta prism is used for receiving the return laser and the visible light of the object (Fig. 1, prism 2 receiving incoming light);
the isosceles prism is used for outputting the visible light of the object (pg 3-4 - highlighted portion);
the compensating prism is used for outputting the return laser (Fig. 1 and pg. 5 - laser goes through bottom of prism 3 before reaching receiving tube).
Claim 6: Liu, as modified, teaches the miniaturized monocular telescopic laser range finder according to claim 5, wherein the roof half penta prism comprises a light input surface, a reflection and output surface and a roof surface; and the return laser and the visible light of the object are inputted from the light input surface, reflected through the reflection and output surface, reflected through the roof surface, and outputted from the reflection and output surface to the isosceles prism (Fig. 1, light path through prisms 2 and 3 and pg. 5).
Claim 7: Liu, as modified, teaches the miniaturized monocular telescopic laser range finder according to claim 6, wherein the isosceles prism comprises a light input and reflection surface, a light output and reflection surface and a beam splitting surface (Fig. 1, prism 3 having beam input, splitting beam, and outputting beam);
the return laser and the visible light of the object are inputted by the light input and reflection surface and reflected to the beam splitting surface through the light output and reflection surface; the beam splitting surface is used for outputting laser to the compensating prism and reflecting the visible light of the object to the light input and reflection surface, and the light output and reflection surface outputs the light to the eyepiece group (Fig. 1, light path through prism 3);
the compensating prism comprises a second beam splitting surface and a light output surface (pg. 5, describing joining of cemented prism and Fig. 1, showing beam split through cemented prism 3);
and the return laser is inputted by the second beam splitting surface and outputted to the laser receiver through the light output surface (Fig. 1, light path from prism 3 to receiving tube 11);
the beam splitting surface of the compensating prism is cemented to the beam splitting surface of the isosceles prism (pg 5);
a light receiving surface of the roof half penta prism is parallel to the light output surface of the isosceles prism (Fig. 1, input of prism 2 parallel to output of prism 3).
Claim 8: Liu, as modified, teaches the miniaturized monocular telescopic laser range finder according to claim 1. Liu, as modified, does not teach, but Sun does teach wherein the eyepiece group comprises an eyepiece positive lens and an eyepiece cemented lens; the visible light of the object passes through the eyepiece positive lens and the eyepiece cemented lens successively (Fig 1 and 2, ocular group 6 and pg 5).
It would have been prima facie obvious to someone having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to use the ocular group, as taught by Sun, in the system as taught by Liu, as modified, because this would allow for a person to view the image in real-time, which could further allow real-time adjustment.
Conclusion
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/CLARA G CHILTON/Examiner, Art Unit 3645
/HELAL A ALGAHAIM/SPE , Art Unit 3645