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 § 102
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 1-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by de Jong et al (US11,513,554B1).
With regards to claim 1, de Jong discloses an electronic device comprising a display cover layer 42 overlapping a display panel 14 (i.e., a display panel assembly comprising a display panel including a light emitting structure and a film layer disposed under the display panel and overlapping a display panel, as whether or not the film layer is “under” the display panel depends on orientation), the display panel having a rectangular shape with rounded corners, and the display cover layer including a central area having a rectangular planar shape and a peripheral area surrounding the central area (de Jong: abstract; Figs. 1, 4, and 10; col. 5, lines 25-37). In addition, de Jong depicts the film layer as including, in a peripheral area, a thickness change section in which a thickness gradually decreases and then gradually increases in a direction away from the central area (de Jong: Fig. 10). An annotated version of de Jong is provided on the following page for the purpose of enhancing clarity (de Jong: Fig. 10).[AltContent: connector][AltContent: connector]
With regards to claim 2, the film layer includes an edge thickness which is greater than a thickness of the film in a central area. It is noted that, technically, the entire border structure 16 constitutes an “edge” of the film layer (i.e., the “edge” is not necessarily the furthest point from the central area) (de Jong: Fig. 10).
With regards to claim 3, de Jong depicts its peripheral area as including an edge area comprising an edge adjacent area (i.e., an area adjacent to one side of the central area), an edge outer area (i.e., an area adjacent to the edge area and paced apart from the central area), a corner adjacent area in contact with a corner of the central area and the edge adjacent area, and a corner outer area in contact with the corner adjacent area and the edge outer area. In other words, the entire peripheral area of de Jong may be arbitrarily split into four separate areas meeting the present claim (de Jong: Fig. 10).
With regards to claim 4, the thickness of the film layer in the edge outer area gradually decreases and then gradually increases in a direction from the edge adjacent area (de Jong: Fig. 10).
With regards to claim 5, de Jong depicts a first extension direction having a same relative angle with respect to an extension direction of a first side in contact with the corner portion of the central area and an extension direction of a second side in contact with the corner portion of the central area, as each of the claimed areas including an infinite number of extension directions (i.e., as each area extends three-dimensionally) (de Jong: Fig. 10). The thickness of the film layer in the corner adjacent area gradually decreases away from the central area along the first extension direction (de Jong: Fig. 10). It is noted that the claimed extension directions do not have to be facing toward or away from any particular structure relative to the claimed display panel.
With regards to claim 6, a thickness of the film layer in the corner outer area can be considered to gradually increase away from the central area along the first extension direction (de Jong: Fig. 10).
With regards to claim 7, de Jong depicts an upper surface of the film layer as flat (de Jong: Fig. 10).
With regards to claim 8, de Jong depicts the display panel as disposed on an upper surface (i.e., assuming the depicted display panel has been rotated 180 degrees) (de Jong: Fig. 10).
With regards to claim 9, de Jong depicts a thickness of the film area as constant in the central area (de Jong: Fig. 10).
With regards to claim 10, de Jong further discloses the inclusion of an additional layer (i.e., a functional layer) on the display panel (de Jong: col. 9, lines 47-59).
With regards to claim 11, the additional layer may be used to form, for example, a color sensor (i.e., a color conversion layer) (de Jong: col. 9, lines 47-59).
With regards to claim 12, the additional layer may include an adhesive layer (de Jong: col. 8, line 52 through to col. 9, line 3).
With regards to claim 13, de Jong discloses an electronic device comprising a display cover layer 42 overlapping a display panel 14 (i.e., a display panel assembly comprising a display panel including a light emitting structure and a film layer disposed under the display panel and overlapping a display panel, as whether or not the film layer is “under” the display panel depends on orientation), the display panel having a rectangular shape with rounded corners, and the display cover layer including a central area having a rectangular planar shape and a peripheral area surrounding the central area (de Jong: abstract; Figs. 1, 4, and 10; col. 5, lines 25-37). In addition, de Jong depicts the film layer as including, in a peripheral area, a thickness change section in which a thickness gradually decreases and then gradually increases in a direction away form the central area, and further, de Jong depicts a third peripheral area, such that the second peripheral area has a thickness smaller than the third peripheral area (de Jong: Fig. 10).
With regards to claim 14, it is noted that the thickness of the film area in each of the first, second, and third peripheral areas is constant, since in each area, thickness is measured instantaneously (i.e., at a particular point, with respect to each of the areas) (de Jong: Fig. 10).
With regards to claim 15, the thickness of the film area in the first peripheral area is equal to the thickness of the film layer in the third peripheral area (i.e., as the first and third peripheral areas are located at opposite sides of second peripheral area, and since the second peripheral area has a minimum local thickness with respect to the cover layer, there must exist first and third areas which are equal) (de Jong: Fig. 10).
With regards to claim 16, the thickness of the film area in the first peripheral area is equal to a thickness of the film in the second area (i.e., as the first area is immediately adjacent the central area) (de Jong: Fig. 10).
With regards to claim 17, de Jong further discloses the inclusion of an additional layer (i.e., a second layer) on the display panel (see above discussion).
With regards to claim 18, de Jong further discloses the inclusion of an additional layer (i.e., a functional layer) on the display panel (see above discussion).
With regards to claim 19, the additional layer may be used to form, for example, a color sensor (i.e., a color conversion layer) (see above discussion).
With regards to claim 20, the additional layer may include an adhesive layer (see above discussion).
Conclusion
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/E.W./
Examiner, Art Unit 1783
/MARIA V EWALD/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 1783