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 .
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.
Claims 6, 15, 21 are 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.
Regarding claims 6 and 21, it is unclear how the additional layers are staggered. Figs. 4-5 show the additional layers simply stacked above each other. Additionally, it is unclear how staggering the additional layers improve flexibility and impedance control.
Regarding claim 15, it is unclear how the dielectric materials within the grease or gel contribute to an improvement in insertion loss. The specification does not provide examples of which dielectric materials and how they impact insertion loss.
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(s) 1-3, 7-8, 10-12, 16-18, 22-25 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Park (Pub. No. US 2021/0185809) in view of Olgun (Patent No. US 11,115,074).
As to claim 1, Park discloses an apparatus (fig. 4A) comprising:
a flexible printed circuit board (FPCB) (¶0006) configured to be positioned at a hinge region (fig. 6) of a device;
an air gap 340 within the FPCB to facilitate bending at the hinge region; and
an Electromagnetic Interference (EMI) film 313 positioned adjacent to a stripline impedance-controlled layer 311 within the FPCB, the EMI film providing a consistent ground reference on one side of the stripline impedance-controlled layer.
However, Park does not disclose an augmented reality (AR) eyewear device.
Olgun discloses an AR eyewear device 100 (fig. 1A) having a FPCB 240.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have the FPCB of Park be used in an AR eyewear device since it has been held by the courts that a recitation with respect to the manner in which a claimed apparatus is intended to be employed does not differentiate the claimed apparatus from a prior art apparatus satisfying the claimed structural limitations. Ex parte Masham 2 USPQ2d 1647 (1987).
As to claim 2, Park discloses that the FPCB comprises asymmetrical dielectric thicknesses above and below the stripline impedance-controlled layer to preferentially direct high-speed signals towards the EMI film (fig. 4A, see dielectric layers 312 and 330).
As to claim 3, Park discloses a second ground reference layer 322.
As to claim 7, Park discloses that the EMI film is configured to reduce electromagnetic interference emissions from high-speed signals (the ground layers are acting as shield layers).
As to claim 8, Park does not disclose that the EMI film provides more than 40dB of shielding from 10 to 1000 MHz and maintains signal integrity with an insertion loss greater than -10dB from 10 to 4000MHz.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have the EMI film of Park provide more than 40dB of shielding from 10 to 1000 MHz and maintains signal integrity with an insertion loss greater than -10dB from 10 to 4000MHz, since it has been held that where the general conditions of a claim are disclosed in the prior art, discovering the optimum or working ranges involves only routine skill in the art. In re Aller, 105 USPQ 233.
As to claim 10, Park discloses that the air gap is positioned to correspond with a bending axis of the hinge region (figs. 4A, 6).
As to claim 11, Park discloses that the stripline impedance-controlled layer is configured to support signals with a frequency above a predetermined threshold (¶0004, 0030).
As to claim 12, Park does not disclose that the FPCB is included in the AR eyewear device.
Olgun discloses an AR eyewear device 100 (fig. 1A) having a FPCB 240.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have the FPCB of Park be used in an AR eyewear device since it has been held by the courts that a recitation with respect to the manner in which a claimed apparatus is intended to be employed does not differentiate the claimed apparatus from a prior art apparatus satisfying the claimed structural limitations. Ex parte Masham 2 USPQ2d 1647 (1987).
As to claim 16, Park discloses a method for manufacturing a flexible printed circuit board (FPCB) 300 (fig. 4) for a device, the method comprising:
providing an air gap 340 within the FPCB to facilitate bending at a hinge region of the device (fig. 6); and
positioning an Electromagnetic Interference (EMI) film 313 adjacent to a stripline impedance-controlled layer 311 within the FPCB to provide a consistent ground reference on one side of the stripline impedance-controlled layer.
Park does not disclose an augmented reality (AR) eyewear device.
Olgun discloses an AR eyewear device 100 (fig. 1A) having a FPCB 240.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have the FPCB of Park be used in an AR eyewear device since it has been held by the courts that a recitation with respect to the manner in which a claimed apparatus is intended to be employed does not differentiate the claimed apparatus from a prior art apparatus satisfying the claimed structural limitations. Ex parte Masham 2 USPQ2d 1647 (1987).
As to claim 17, Park discloses configuring the FPCB with asymmetrical dielectric thicknesses above and below the stripline impedance-controlled layer to facilitate high-speed signal transmission (fig. 4A, see dielectric layers 312 and 330).
As to claim 18, Park discloses applying a second ground reference layer 322 within the FPCB.
As to claim 22, Park discloses that the EMI film is selected to reduce electromagnetic interference emissions from high-speed signals (the ground layers are acting as shield layers).
As to claim 23, Park discloses that the air gap is positioned to correspond with a bending axis of the hinge region (fig. 4A, 6, 9).
As to claim 24, Park discloses that the stripline impedance-controlled layer is configured to support signals with a frequency above a predetermined threshold (¶0004, 0030).
As to claim 25, Park does not disclose including the FPCB in the AR eyewear device.
Olgun discloses an AR eyewear device 100 (fig. 1A) having a FPCB 240.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have the FPCB of Park be used in an AR eyewear device since it has been held by the courts that a recitation with respect to the manner in which a claimed apparatus is intended to be employed does not differentiate the claimed apparatus from a prior art apparatus satisfying the claimed structural limitations. Ex parte Masham 2 USPQ2d 1647 (1987).
Claim(s) 4, 19 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Park (Pub. No. US 2021/0185809) and Olgun (Patent No. US 11,115,074) as applied to claim 3 and 18 above respectively, and further in view of Lin et al. (Pub. No. US 2001/0010271).
As to claim 4, Park does not explicitly disclose that the second ground reference layer includes a crosshatch pattern to improve dynamic flexibility and to maintain impedance control of the stripline impedance-controlled layer.
Lin discloses a shielding layer with a crosshatch pattern (fig. 10).
Park discloses that the second ground reference has a mesh pattern (¶0114-015). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have the second ground reference layer of Park include a crosshatch pattern as similarly taught by Lin in order to improve flexibility and electrical characteristics (¶0015-0017).
As to claim 19, Park does not explicitly disclose that the second ground reference layer is applied with a crosshatch pattern to improve dynamic flexibility and to maintain impedance control of the stripline impedance-controlled layer.
Lin discloses a shielding layer with a crosshatch pattern (fig. 10).
Park discloses that the second ground reference has a mesh pattern (¶0114-015). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have the second ground reference layer of Park include a crosshatch pattern as similarly taught by Lin in order to improve flexibility and electrical characteristics (¶0015-0017).
Claim(s) 5, 20 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Park (Pub. No. US 2021/0185809) and Olgun (Patent No. US 11,115,074) as applied to claims 1 and 16 above respectively, and further in view of Kim et al. (Pub. No. US 2013/0175077).
As to claim 5, Park does not disclose that the FPCB is configured to support additional layers for power planes and low-speed signal layers.
Kim discloses adding a plurality signal and power layers (¶0012).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have the FPCB of Park be configured to support additional layers for power planes and low-speed signal layers as similarly taught by Kim since it was known in the art to add additional circuit board layers based on design needs.
As to claim 20, Park does not disclose adding additional layers to the FPCB to support other functions, wherein the additional layers include at least one of power planes and low-speed signal layers.
Kim discloses adding a plurality signal and power layers (¶0012).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have the FPCB of Park be configured to support additional layers for power planes and low-speed signal layers as similarly taught by Kim since it was known in the art to add additional circuit board layers based on design needs.
Claim(s) 9 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Park (Pub. No. US 2021/0185809) and Olgun (Patent No. US 11,115,074) as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of Shen et al. (Pub. No. US 2019/0320563).
As to claim 9, Park does not explicitly disclose that the EMI film is capable of enduring more than 10,000 fold cycles with a radius of 1 millimeter (mm) when repeatedly flexed to bend through 100 degrees of movement.
Shen discloses an electromagnetic shielding film 100 with a bending limit or more than 10,000 times (¶0030).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have the EMI film of Park be capable of enduring more than 10,000 fold cycles with a radius of 1 millimeter (mm) when repeatedly flexed to bend through 100 degrees of movement as similarly taught by Shen in order to provide an EMI film capable of being bent while retaining its mechanical and electrical properties.
Claim(s) 13-15, 26 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Park (Pub. No. US 2021/0185809) and Olgun (Patent No. US 11,115,074) as applied to claims 1 and 16 above respectively, and further in view of Wang et al. (Pub. No. US 2021/0168929).
As to claim 13, Park does not disclose that a lubricating substance dispensed within the air gaps to reduce friction between the layers and improve a bending cycle life of the FPCB.
Wang discloses a lubricating layer provided between two metal layers at a bending region (¶0071, 0076).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have the apparatus of Park have a lubricating substance dispensed within the air gap as similarly taught by Wang in order to reduce friction between layers (¶0076-0077).
As to claim 14, Park does not disclose that the lubricating substance includes a grease or gel formulated with dielectric materials to provide consistent impedance control and reduce electromagnetic emissions from the air gaps.
Wang discloses a lubricating layer provided between two metal layers at a bending region (¶0071, 0076 discloses an insulating material).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have the apparatus of Park have a lubricating substance dispensed within the air gap formed with dielectric materials as similarly taught by Wang in order to reduce friction between layers (¶0076-0077).
As to claim 15, Park does not disclose that the dielectric materials within the grease or gel contribute to an improvement in insertion loss for high-speed signals transmitted through the FPCB.
Wang discloses a lubricating layer provided between two metal layers at a bending region (¶0071, 0076 discloses an insulating material).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have the apparatus of Park have a lubricating substance dispensed within the air gap formed with dielectric materials as similarly taught by Wang in order to reduce friction between layers (¶0076-0077).
As to claim 26, Park does not disclose providing a lubricating substance within the air gap of the FPCB.
Wang discloses a lubricating layer provided between two metal layers at a bending region(¶0071, 0076).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have the apparatus of Park have a lubricating substance dispensed within the air gap as similarly taught by Wang in order to reduce friction between layers (¶0076-0077).
Claim(s) 27 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Nikkhoo et al. (Patent No. US 12,393,052) in view of Park (Pub. No. US 2021/0185809).
As to claim 27, Nikkhoo discloses an augmented reality (AR) eyewear device (fig. 1) comprising:
a frame with at least one hinge region (fig. 1);
a printed circuit board (PCB) positioned at the at least one hinge region a display system integrated with the frame for presenting AR content to a user (col. 2 lines 53-64);
a power source connected to the display system and the PCB to provide electrical power (col. 11 lines 36-41); and
a processing unit configured to control the display system and process the AR content (col. 10 lines 7-48).
However, Nikkhoo does not disclose a flexible printed circuit board (FPCB) positioned at the at least one hinge region, the FPCB including an air gap to facilitate bending and an Electromagnetic Interference (EMI) film adjacent to a stripline impedance-controlled layer to provide a consistent ground reference on one side;
Park discloses a flexible printed circuit board (FPCB) (¶0006) positioned at the at least one hinge region, the FPCB including an air gap 340 to facilitate bending and an Electromagnetic Interference (EMI) film 313 adjacent to a stripline impedance-controlled layer 311 to provide a consistent ground reference on one side.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have the AR eyewear device of Nikkhoo have a FPCB as similarly taught by Park in order to provide a circuit board capable of being bent repeatedly in the hinge area of the eyewear device.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Liao et al. (Patent No. US 11,784,425) discloses a flexible PCB with a hollow portion and a stripline transmission signal.
Katsura et al. (Pub. No. US 2024/0373549) discloses a flexible multilayer substrate having a hollow portion.
Ikemoto et al. (Pub. No. US 2026/0059648) discloses a flexible multilayer substrate having a hollow portion.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to AMOL H PATEL whose telephone number is (571)270-7833. The examiner can normally be reached 9:30AM-6:00PM.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, TIMOTHY THOMPSON can be reached at (571) 272-2342. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/AMOL H PATEL/Examiner, Art Unit 2847
/TIMOTHY J THOMPSON/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2847
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