DETAILED ACTION
Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status
1. 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
2. Applicant’s arguments (see Remarks dated 12/15/2025) with respect to claims 1-16 have been fully considered, but they are not persuasive.
On page 7, the applicant argues that Shiraishi (US 20200106911 A1, of record) “does not disclose a lens mirror array including at least one travel inhibiting surface among at least one downstream-side reflection surface, the at least one traveling inhibiting surface including a plurality of grooves.”
However, Shiraishi does disclose a lens mirror array (Fig. 3, 20) including at least one travel inhibiting surface (Figs. 6, outer face surface of 26) among at least one downstream-side reflection surface (Fig. 7, 24), the at least one traveling inhibiting surface including a plurality of grooves (Fig. 6, 27).
Applicant further argues that “the grooves 27 of Shiraishi surround the alleged upstream-side reflection surface, not the alleged downstream-side reflection surface.” However, the applicant has not claimed “grooves surrounding a downstream-side reflection surface,” so it is unclear what distinction the applicant is attempting to make.
While [0078] of Shiraishi does disclose that “[t]he grooves 27 are formed to surround end portions of the plurality of upstream-side reflecting surfaces 23,” the configurations presented in (at least) Figures 6-7 of Shiraishi show at least one travel inhibiting surface (Fig. 6, outer face surface of 26) among the at least one downstream-side reflection surface 24, as claimed by applicant.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
3. The text of those sections of Title 35, U.S. Code not included in this action can be found in a prior Office action.
4. Claims 1-5, 7-11, and 13 are rejected under 35 USC 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Shiraishi (US 20200106911 A1, of record).
Regarding claim 1, Shiraishi discloses a lens mirror array (Fig. 3, 20) comprising a plurality of optical elements (Fig. 3, 21) arrayed in a main scanning direction (Fig. 7, along the z-axis direction), the lens mirror array configured such that:
each of the optical elements includes
an incident surface (Fig. 7, 22) that transmits and converges light made incident thereon ([0073]);
at least one reflection surface (Fig. 7, 23-24) having positive optical power for reflecting and converging the light made incident via the incident surface ([0082], 24), the at least one reflection surface comprising at least one downstream-side reflection surface (Fig. 7, 24) and at least one upstream-side reflection surface (Fig. 7, 23);
an emission surface (Fig. 7, 25) that emits the light reflected by the reflection surface ([0076]), and
the lens mirror array comprises:
at least one travel inhibiting surface among the at least one downstream-side reflection surface (Fig. 6, outer face surface of 26), the at least one travel inhibiting surface comprising a plurality of grooves (Fig. 6, 27) arranged in the main scanning direction of the plurality of optical elements ([0078]); and
a light blocking member (Fig. 7, 26) provided in the plurality of grooves ([0079]).
Regarding claim 2, Shiraishi discloses wherein the at least one travel inhibiting surface having a predetermined width in the main scanning direction (Fig. 6, outer facing surface of 26) is present between the at least one reflection surface (Fig. 6, between 23 and 24), and the plurality of grooves are provided side by side in a width direction on the at least one travel inhibiting surface (Fig. 6, 27).
Regarding claim 3, Shiraishi discloses wherein the at least one travel inhibiting surface continues to an adjacent reflection surface in the main scanning direction without a step (Fig. 3).
Regarding claim 4, Shiraishi discloses wherein the at least one travel inhibiting surface projects further to an outer side than an adjacent reflection surface in the main scanning direction (Fig. 7, further than 22).
Regarding claims 5 and 7, Shiraishi discloses wherein the plurality of grooves are shaped to receive light blocking ink ([0077]) by capillary action ([0079]) and allow the light blocking ink to spread to the plurality of grooves ([0079]), the light blocking ink being hardenable to form the light blocking member ([0077]).
Regarding claim 8, Shiraishi discloses one ink application surface to which the light blocking ink is applied ([0077], surface of 21), the ink application surface being connected to the at least one travel inhibiting surface among the at least one reflection surface on one end side of the plurality of grooves (Fig. 6).
Regarding claim 9, Shiraishi discloses wherein the ink application surface is an inclined surface, with respect to the at least one travel inhibiting surface, to a side where the plurality of grooves are provided (Fig. 6).
Regarding claim 10, Shiraishi discloses wherein the ink application surface is a surface disposed at an obtuse angle with respect to the at least one travel inhibiting surface (Fig. 6).
Regarding claim 11, Shiraishi discloses wherein the plurality of grooves are provided at a fixed pitch in a plurality of regions of a predetermined width in the main scanning direction centering on an edge where two downstream-side reflection surfaces of the at least one reflection surface are adjacent in a main scanning direction cross (Fig. 6, edge where surfaces 24 cross).
Regarding claim 13, Shiraishi discloses the lens mirror array further comprising an ink application surface connected to the at least one travel inhibiting surface on one end side in a longitudinal direction of the plurality of grooves ([0077] & Fig. 6).
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
5. The text of those sections of Title 35, U.S. Code not included in this action can be found in a prior Office action.
6. Claim 6 is rejected under 35 USC 103 as being unpatentable over Shiraishi.
Regarding claim 6, Shiraishi discloses wherein the plurality of grooves are formed among a plurality of triangular prisms of a structure (Figs. 6-7) having one side being approximately 2 µm to approximately 20 µm in length, the plurality of triangular prisms being arranged in a direction crossing an axial direction of the triangular prisms (Figs. 6-7).
Shiraishi fails to explicitly disclose wherein the structure has one side being approximately 2 µm to approximately 20 µm in length.
However, due to the nature of optics/optical engineering, the process of optical design includes manipulation of variables such as index of refraction, lens surface radii, shapes of optical components, and device size, in order to allow a lens system to meet its particular utility (usually based on focal length, but also on aberration elimination). This manipulation would normally be considered routine experimentation since the results are governed by known optics/physics equations and are known to be result-effective (unless the particular range of values meets secondary considerations).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was made to adjust the size of one side of Shiraishi’s structure (depicted in its Figs. 6-7) such that the side was approximately 2-20 µm in length, since it has been held that where the general conditions of a claim are disclosed in the prior art, discovering the optimum or workable ranges involves only routine skill in the art, In re Aller, 105 USPQ 233 (C.C.P.A. 1955). In this case, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art as of the effective filing date of the invention to change the size dimensions of the system such that the expression was satisfied, motivated by maintaining device compactness.
7. Claims 12 and 14-16 are rejected under 35 USC 103 as being unpatentable over Shiraishi in view of Shiraishi (US 20220187581 A, of record, hereinafter referred to as Shiraishi ‘581).
Regarding claim 12, Shiraishi discloses wherein the two downstream-side reflection surfaces are free curved surfaces extending toward an outer side (Fig. 7, 24), and the plurality of grooves have a shape curved along the free curved surfaces (Fig. 6, zig-zag portions to the right of 28).
Shiraishi fails to explicitly disclose wherein the two downstream-side reflection surfaces are free curved surfaces.
However, Shiraishi ‘581 teaches a similar lens mirror array (Figs. 3 & 10), and discloses wherein a downstream-side reflection surface is a free curved surface ([0079], 24).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to combine Shiraishi and Shiraishi ‘581 such that the two downstream-side reflection surfaces were free curved surfaces, motivated by accommodating more precise optical needs.
Regarding claim 14, Shiraishi discloses wherein the at least one downstream-side reflection surface is a free curved surface convex to an outer side (Fig. 7; [0071], “24 … [is] curved to as to be convex outward”) and the at least one upstream-side reflections surface is flat (Fig. 7; [0071], “23 is a flat surface”).
Shiraishi fails to disclose wherein the at least one downstream-side reflection surface is a free curved surface.
However, Shiraishi ‘581 teaches a similar lens mirror array (Figs. 3 & 10), and discloses wherein a downstream-side reflection surface is a free curved surface ([0079], 24).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to combine Shiraishi and Shiraishi ‘581 such that the at least one downstream-side reflection surface was a free curved surface, motivated by accommodating more precise optical needs.
Regarding claim 15, Shiraishi discloses wherein the at least one upstream-side reflection surface is adjacent to an opposite side of a projecting portion with respect to an incident-side lens surface (Shiraishi - Fig. 7, of projecting portion 28).
Regarding claim 16, Shiraishi discloses wherein the downstream-side reflection surface totally reflects the reflected light reflected by the upstream-side reflection surface toward the emission surface (Shiraishi - [0073] & [0075]).
Conclusion
8. 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.
9. Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Daniel Jeffery Jordan whose telephone number is 571-270-7641. The examiner can normally be reached 9:30a-6:00p.
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/D. J. J./Examiner, Art Unit 2872
/STEPHONE B ALLEN/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2872