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 .
Drawings
The drawings are objected to under 37 CFR 1.83(a). The drawings must show every feature of the invention specified in the claims. Therefore, the limitation in claim 3 “wherein an area of the guiding member is greater than the inlet end of the outlet end “ must be shown or the feature(s) canceled from the claim(s). No new matter should be entered.
Corrected drawing sheets in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(d) are required in reply to the Office action to avoid abandonment of the application. Any amended replacement drawing sheet should include all of the figures appearing on the immediate prior version of the sheet, even if only one figure is being amended. The figure or figure number of an amended drawing should not be labeled as “amended.” If a drawing figure is to be canceled, the appropriate figure must be removed from the replacement sheet, and where necessary, the remaining figures must be renumbered and appropriate changes made to the brief description of the several views of the drawings for consistency. Additional replacement sheets may be necessary to show the renumbering of the remaining figures. Each drawing sheet submitted after the filing date of an application must be labeled in the top margin as either “Replacement Sheet” or “New Sheet” pursuant to 37 CFR 1.121(d). If the changes are not accepted by the examiner, the applicant will be notified and informed of any required corrective action in the next Office action. The objection to the drawings will not be held in abeyance.
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 3 and 4 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.
With respect to claim 3, the limitations “the inlet end of the outlet end” lacks antecedent basis, because an inlet of claim 2 from which claim 3 depends is the inlet of the guiding member and not of the outlet end.
For the purpose of examination, the limitation will be interpreted as “an inlet end of the outlet end”.
With respect to claim 4, the limitations “the outlet end” and ” the inlet end” lack antecedent basis.
For the purpose of examination, they will be interpreted as an outlet end and an inlet end.
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(s) 1, 12-15 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Greg (United States Patent Application Publication 2005/0001988 A1) in view of Chen (United States Patent Application Publication 2011/0019161 A1).
With respect to claim 1, Greg discloses a projection device (see fig.1), comprising a casing (see case in fig.1), a projection lens (see 22), a light valve module (20), a light source module (14), a fan (see 28), and a guiding member (see 34 on one or the other or both sides of 28 ), wherein: the casing has a first side cover (see cover in which 30 is located, opposite 36 in fig.1), a second side cover (see cover in which 30 is located, opposite 22), a third side cover (see where 32 exits in fig.1), and a fourth side cover (see where 22 is located), the first side cover, the second side cover, the third side cover, and the fourth side cover define an accommodating space (see the accommodating space of fig.1), the first side cover is opposite to the third side cover (see fig.1, wherein 30 which is opposite of 36 ) and connected to the second side cover and the fourth side cover (see 22 across from 30), the second side cover is opposite to the fourth side cover, the first side cover has a first air inlet (see the inlet opposite 36), the second side cover has a second air inlet (see the inlet opposite 22), the third side cover has an air outlet (see the outlet adjacent to 36); the light valve module (see 20), and the light source module (see 14) are disposed in the accommodating space (see the accommodating space of fig.1), the guiding member (see upper 34 or lower 34) and the fan (28) are disposed in the accommodation space of the casing and are adjacent to the third side cover (see the side nearest the cover), an airflow in the accommodating space of the casing is guided to the guiding member by the fan (see the operation of 28 in fig.1), and is transferred from the guiding member (34) to the air outlet (32) to flow out of the casing; and the projection lens (see 22) protrudes from the fourth side cover, and a direction of an image beam of the projection lens (see the optical axis of the lens 22) is different from an airflow direction flowing out from the air outlet of the third side cover (see the direction of air flow 42) but does not disclose a first heat dissipation module, a second heat dissipation module, the first heat dissipation module, the second heat dissipation module in an accommodating space, the first heat dissipation module is disposed corresponding to the first vent and connected to one of the light valve module or the light source module, the second heat dissipation module is disposed corresponding to the second air vent and connected to the other one of the light valve module or the light source module.
Chen discloses a first heat dissipation module (see 40), a second heat dissipation module (71), the first heat dissipation module, the second heat dissipation module in an accommodating space (see the accommodating space of fig.2 and see claim 1), the first heat dissipation module (see 40) is disposed corresponding to the first vent (see 14) and connected to one of the light valve module (321) or the light source module, the second heat dissipation module (see 70 and 71) is disposed corresponding to the second air vent (see 12) and connected to the other one of the light valve module or the light source module (see 331).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in art before the effective filling date of the claimed invention to modify Greg in view of Chen so that a first heat dissipation module, a second heat dissipation module, the first heat dissipation module, the second heat dissipation module in an accommodating space, the first heat dissipation module is disposed corresponding to the first inlet and connected to one of the light valve module or the light source module, the second heat dissipation module is disposed corresponding to the second air inlet and connected to the other one of the light valve module or the light source module to improve temperature regulation by providing the light source and modulator with heat dissipation assemblies.
With respect to claim 12, Greg in view of Chen discloses the projection device according to claim 1, but Greg does not disclose in the embodiment of fig.1, wherein the accommodating space of the casing further comprises a first air intake guide and a second air intake guide, the first air intake guide is connected between the first air inlet and the first heat dissipation module, and the second air intake guide is connected between the second air inlet and the second heat dissipation module, wherein the first air intake guide and the second air intake guide are disposed independently of each other.
However, in fig.6 Greg discloses wherein the accommodating space (fig.6) of the casing further comprises a first air intake guide and a second air intake guide (see vent screen 50 in fig.6; [0021]: Vents 26, and more specifically inlet vents 30 [i.e. first and second inlets above], may be fitted with a vent screen that may allow air to pass through the casing to the internal portion of the device.), the first air intake guide (see para.[0021] and fig.1 and the inlet opposite 36) is connected between the first air inlet (see 30 as discussed above) and the heat sources (a heat source in 16 of fig.1), and the second air intake guide (see para.[0021] and fig.1) is connected between the second air inlet (see 30 opposite 22 as discussed above) and the second heat source (any other heat source in16 in fig.1), wherein the first air intake guide and the second air intake guide are disposed independently of each other (see para.[0021], wherein each inlet gets its own vent).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in art before the effective filling date of the claimed invention to modify the air inlets of Greg in view of Chen with the teaching of fig.6 and para.[0021] of Greg so that the accommodating space of the casing further comprises a first air intake guide and a second air intake guide, the first air intake guide is connected between the first air inlet and the first heat dissipation module, and the second air intake guide is connected between the second air inlet and the second heat dissipation module, wherein the first air intake guide and the second air intake guide are disposed independently of each other to enhance cooling efficiency by providing directed air flow and reduce moisture entry during storage.
With respect to claim 13, Greg in view of Chen discloses the projection device according to claim 1, Greg does not disclose wherein the second heat dissipation module comprises a heat dissipation fin set and a heat pipe, the heat pipe is connected to the heat dissipation fin set and the light source module.
Chen discloses wherein the second heat dissipation module (see 71 and 73 in fig.2) comprises a heat dissipation fin set (see 71) and a heat pipe (731 in fig.1), the heat pipe is connected to the heat dissipation fin set (see 731) and the light source module (see the interconnected structure of configuration of fig.2; [0015]: The heat dissipation module 70 includes third fins 71, fourth fins 72, and a heat pipe 73 interconnecting the third and fourth groups of fins 71, 72. The third fins 71 are mounted to the light source 33 for being aligned with the green LED 331 and adjacent to the second wall 12 of the shell 10.).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in art before the effective filling date of the claimed invention to modify Greg in view of Chen with the teaching of Chen so that the second heat dissipation module comprises a heat dissipation fin set and a heat pipe, the heat pipe is connected to the heat dissipation fin set and the light source module to improve temperature regulation by providing the light source with a heat dissipation assembly.
With respect to claim 14, Greg in view of Chen discloses the projection device according to claim 1, Greg discloses wherein the fan (see 28) is closer to the second air inlet than the guiding member (see lower 34 in fig.1 ).
With respect to claim 15, Greg in view of Chen discloses the projection device according to claim 1, Greg discloses wherein the guiding member (see the upper 34 in fig.1) is closer to the second air inlet than the fan (see the upper 34 which is closer to 30 across from 22 than 28).
Claim(s) 2-4 and 6-11 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Greg (United States Patent Application Publication 2005/0001988 A1) in view of Chen (United States Patent Application Publication 2011/0019161 A1) and Huang (United States Patent Publication 6, 421, 239).
With respect to claims 2-4, 6, and 8-11, Greg in view Chen discloses the projection device according to claim 1,but does not explicitly disclose wherein the guiding member comprises an inlet end and an outlet end, the inlet end is connected to an air exit portion of the fan, and the outlet end is connected to the air outlet of the third side cover, wherein an area of the guiding member is greater than an area of the inlet end of the outlet end, wherein an end surface of the outlet end of the guiding member is not parallel to an end surface of the inlet end, wherein the guiding member forms an airflow channel, the guiding member comprises at least one arc-shaped plate located on the airflow channel, the at least one arc-shaped plate has a first terminal and a second terminal that are opposite to each other, the first terminal faces toward an air exit portion of the fan, and the second terminal faces toward the air outlet of the third side cover, wherein the at least one arc-shaped plate and the guiding member are integrally formed, wherein the first terminal of the at least one arc-shaped plate extends to an inlet end of the guiding member and faces the air exit portion of the fan, and the second terminal of the at least one arc-shaped plate extends to an outlet end of the guiding member and faces the air outlet, wherein a number of the at least one arc-shaped plate is multiple, and the multiple arc-shaped plates are arranged in a staggered, aligned, or irregular manner, wherein the guiding member comprises a plurality of partitions, the partitions form an airflow channel, and an inlet end of the guiding member covers an exit portion of the fan.
Huang discloses wherein the guiding member comprises an inlet end and an outlet end (see the inlet end and outlet end 21) , the inlet end is connected to an air exit portion of the fan (see the inlet end 21), and the outlet end is connected to the air outlet (see the outlet of 21), wherein an area of the guiding member (see any area covered by 21) is greater than an area of the inlet end of the outlet end (disclosed by the area of the inlet end of the outlet (any region from the inlet to the outlet of 21) being smaller than at least some other area of 21 ), wherein an end surface of the outlet end of the guiding member (see the end of the outlet surface of 21) is not parallel to an end surface of the inlet end (see the different facing inlet end and outlet end in fig.1), wherein the guiding member (21 in fig.1) forms an airflow channel (see the channels of 21), the guiding member comprises at least one arc-shaped plate located on the airflow channel (see the arc-shaped plate), the at least one arc-shaped plate has a first terminal and a second terminal that are opposite to each other (see the edges at the inlets and outlets of fig.1), the first terminal faces toward an air exit portion of the fan (see the region of 21 near the fan), and the second terminal faces toward the air outlet of the third side cover (see the sides opposite of the inlet of 21 ), wherein the at least one arc-shaped plate and the guiding member are integrally formed (see the integral formation of the arc-shaped plates of 21 in fig.1), wherein the first terminal of the at least one arc-shaped plate extends (see the arc-shaped potions of 21) to an inlet end of the guiding member and faces the air exit portion of the fan (see the configuration in fig.1, 10 and 21), and the second terminal of the at least one arc-shaped plate extends to an outlet end of the guiding member(see the end opposite to the inlet portion of 21 ) and faces the air outlet, wherein a number of the at least one arc-shaped plate is multiple (see at least 2 arc shaped plates in fig.1), and the multiple arc-shaped plates are arranged in a staggered, aligned (see the alignment of arc-shaped plates in fig.1), or irregular manner, wherein the guiding member (see the guide member of 21) comprises a plurality of partitions (see the plurality of partitions of 21), the partitions form an airflow channel (see the partitions of 21 in fig.1), and an inlet end of the guiding member covers an exit portion of the fan (see the inlet of 21 which covers the exit portion of fan 10).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in art before the effective filling date of the claimed invention to modify the guide member of Greg in view of Chen with the teaching of Huang so that the guiding member comprises an inlet end and an outlet end, the inlet end is connected to an air exit portion of the fan, and the outlet end is connected to the air outlet of the third side cover, wherein an area of the guiding member is greater than an area of the inlet end of the outlet end, wherein an end surface of the outlet end of the guiding member is not parallel to an end surface of the inlet end, wherein the guiding member forms an airflow channel, the guiding member comprises at least one arc-shaped plate located on the airflow channel, the at least one arc-shaped plate has a first terminal and a second terminal that are opposite to each other, the first terminal faces toward an air exit portion of the fan, and the second terminal faces toward the air outlet of the third side cover, wherein the at least one arc-shaped plate and the guiding member are integrally formed, wherein the first terminal of the at least one arc-shaped plate extends to an inlet end of the guiding member and faces the air exit portion of the fan, and the second terminal of the at least one arc-shaped plate extends to an outlet end of the guiding member and faces the air outlet, wherein a number of the at least one arc-shaped plate is multiple, and the multiple arc-shaped plates are arranged in a staggered, aligned, or irregular manner, wherein the guiding member comprises a plurality of partitions, the partitions form an airflow channel, and an inlet end of the guiding member covers an exit portion of the fan to make the fan-guide member system more compact by providing a truncated arched flow path from the output of the fan to the outlet of the third side cover and a smooth, efficient airflow by providing arc shaped plates and guiding members in the flow path.
With respect to claim 7, Greg in view of Chen and Huang discloses the projection device according to claim 6, but does not disclose wherein an arithmetic average roughness of an inner wall of the guiding member and the at least one arc-shaped plate is less than 0.06 micron, and a ten-point average roughness is less than 0.4 micron.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in art before the effective filling date of the claimed invention to modify Greg in view of Chen and Huang, since it would predictably enhance air flow by minimizing turbulence and thereby improve heat dissipation and, 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.
Claim(s) 5 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Greg (United States Patent Application Publication 2005/0001988 A1) in view of Chen (United States Patent Application Publication 2011/0019161 A1) and Nakamura (United States Patent Publication 7, 052, 144 B2).
With respect to claim 5, Greg in view of Chen discloses the projection device according to claim 1, Greg discloses the guiding member (34) is adjacent to the air outlet of the third side cover (see 32) but does not explicitly disclose wherein an air inlet surface of the fan faces the first side cover, and the guiding member is adjacent to the air outlet of the third side cover.
Nakamura discloses wherein an air inlet surface of the fan (see inlet of sirocco fan 732) faces the first side cover (see the opposite side of fig.1 (21B)), and the guiding member is adjacent (2B) to the air outlet of the third side cover (see 21C).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in art before the effective filling date of the claimed invention to modify the projection device of Greg in view of Chen with the teaching of Nakamura so that an air inlet surface of the fan faces the first side cover to improve the air flow from the heat generating elements in the accommodating space to the fan and thereby enhance heat dissipation efficiency.
Claim(s) 12 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Greg (United States Patent Application Publication 2005/0001988 A1) in view of Chen (United States Patent Application Publication 2011/0019161 A1) and Yanai (JP 2015001686 A).
With respect to claim 12, Greg in view of Chen discloses the projection device according to claim 1, but Greg does not disclose in the embodiment of fig.1, wherein the accommodating space of the casing further comprises a first air intake guide and a second air intake guide, the first air intake guide is connected between the first air inlet and the first heat dissipation module, and the second air intake guide is connected between the second air inlet and the second heat dissipation module, wherein the first air intake guide and the second air intake guide are disposed independently of each other.
Yanai discloses wherein the accommodating space of the casing further comprises a first air intake guide (71 adjacent 11) and a second air intake guide (see 71 adjacent 12), the first air intake guide is connected between the first air inlet (see part that connects louver to its pivot just before the inlet in fig.2; louver can also between connected to the air that passes through the inlet or even connected to itself, since claim doesn’t specify what the guide is connected to) and the first heat dissipation module (21), and the second air intake guide is connected (see part that connects louver to its pivot just before the inlet in fig.2; louver can also between connected to the air that passes through the inlet or even connected to itself, since claim doesn’t specify what the guide is connected to) between the second air inlet (see second air inlet) and the second heat dissipation module (22), wherein the first air intake guide and the second air intake guide are disposed independently of each other (see 71 in fig.2).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in art before the effective filling date of the claimed invention to modify the air inlets of Greg in view of Chen with the teaching of Yanai so that the accommodating space of the casing further comprises a first air intake guide and a second air intake guide, the first air intake guide is connected between the first air inlet and the first heat dissipation module, and the second air intake guide is connected between the second air inlet and the second heat dissipation module, wherein the first air intake guide and the second air intake guide are disposed independently of each other to enhance cooling efficiency by providing directed air flow and reduce moisture entry during storage.
Claim(s) 12 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Greg (United States Patent Application Publication 2005/0001988 A1) in view of Chen (United States Patent Application Publication 2011/0019161 A1) and Kayano (WO 2020262024 A1).
With respect to claim 12, Greg in view of Chen discloses the projection device according to claim 1, but Greg does not disclose in the embodiment of fig.1, wherein the accommodating space of the casing further comprises a first air intake guide and a second air intake guide, the first air intake guide is connected between the first air inlet and the first heat dissipation module, and the second air intake guide is connected between the second air inlet and the second heat dissipation module, wherein the first air intake guide and the second air intake guide are disposed independently of each other.
Kayano discloses wherein the accommodating space (see fig.13) of the casing further comprises a first air intake guide (68 in fig.14 or 66 in fig.13), the first air intake guide is connected between the first air inlet (see 60 in figs.13 and 14) and the first heat source (see 24 in fig.13).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in art before the effective filling date of the claimed invention to modify the air inlets of Greg in view of Chen with the teaching of Kayano so that the accommodating space of the casing further comprises a first air intake guide and a second air intake guide, the first air intake guide is connected between the first air inlet and the first heat dissipation module, and the second air intake guide is connected between the second air inlet and the second heat dissipation module, wherein the first air intake guide and the second air intake guide are disposed independently of each other to enhance cooling efficiency by providing directed air flow.
Claim(s) 16 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Greg (United States Patent Application Publication 2005/0001988 A1) in view of Chen (United States Patent Application Publication 2011/0019161 A1) and Sakurai (United States Patent Application Publication 2006/0044513 A1).
With respect to claim 16, Greg in view of Chen discloses the projection device according to claim 1, Greg does not explicitly disclose wherein the casing further has an upper cover and a lower cover, the upper cover is opposite to the lower cover and is connected to the first side cover, the second side cover, the third side cover, and the fourth side cover to form the accommodating space, wherein the accommodating space of the casing further comprises a speaker, and the speaker is adjacently disposed between the guiding member and the lower cover.
Sakurai explicitly discloses wherein the casing further has an upper cover (see 15 in fig.1) and a lower cover (see bottom disclosed in fig.4) , the upper cover is opposite to the lower cover (compare figs. 1 to 4) and is connected to the first side cover, the second side cover, the third side cover, and the fourth side cover to form the accommodating space (see the accommodating space of figs.1 and 4), wherein the accommodating space of the casing further comprises a speaker (see behind 20 in fig.2), and the speaker (see [0053]: The speakers (not shown) serving as sound reproducing devices which are arranged inside the two cover members 20 shown in FIG. 2, may be cone-shaped speakers, each including a substantially rectangular parallelepiped speaker cabinet composed of a conical vibrating plate and an outer package member of the speaker.) is disposed between (see the positioning from the level of the lower cover up to the level of the guide member in fig.2) the guiding member (see 151B1) and the lower cover (see the lower cover of fig.4 at least in the region of 20 in fig.2).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in art before the effective filling date of the claimed invention to modify Greg in view of Chen with the teaching of Sakurai so that the casing further has an upper cover and a lower cover, the upper cover is opposite to the lower cover and is connected to the first side cover, the second side cover, the third side cover, and the fourth side cover to form the accommodating space, wherein the accommodating space of the casing further comprises a speaker, and the speaker is adjacently disposed between the guiding member and the lower cover to protect the internal components by providing top and bottom covers and to improve user experience by providing a speaker to give realistic sensation (para.[0005] of Sakurai).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JERRY L. BROOKS whose telephone number is (571)270-5711. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 9:00-4:00 PM.
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/JERRY L BROOKS/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2882