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 .
Information Disclosure Statement
The prior art documents submitted by applicant in the Information Disclosure Statements filed on November 11, 2023 and May 19, 2024 have all been considered and made of record (note the attached copies of form PTO-1449).
Drawings
Twenty-one (21) sheets of drawings were filed November 13, 2023.
Election/Restrictions
Applicant’s election without traverse of Species B (Figure 7 and Figure 8), in the reply filed February 11, 2026 is acknowledged.
Specification
Applicant’s cooperation is requested in correcting any errors of which applicant may become
aware in the specification.
Inventorship
This application currently names joint inventors. In considering patentability of the claims
the examiner presumes that the subject matter of the various claims was commonly owned as of the
effective filing date of the claimed invention(s) absent any evidence to the contrary. Applicant is
advised of the obligation under 37 CFR 1.56 to point out the inventor and effective filing dates of
each claim that was not commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the later invention in
order for the examiner to consider the applicability of 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(2)(C) for any potential 35
U.S.C. 102(a)(2) prior art against the later invention.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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 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)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claims 1-4 and 9-10 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by Kharel et al. (US20220390777A1), hereafter Kharel.
Regarding claim 1, Kharel discloses an optical waveguide element(FIG. 1A and 1B. Optical Element 100 and 100’ ), comprising: an optical waveguide(Waveguide 110’) arranged on a main surface of an optical substrate(FIG 1B. Substrate 101); and a control electrode(FIG. 1B: 120 and 130) configured to control light waves propagating through the optical waveguide(Par. [0046]: electrodes provide a modulated optical signal), wherein the control electrode comprises a first control electrode (Electrode 120’) and a second control electrode (Electrode 130’) facing each other across the optical waveguide on the main surface of the optical substrate (FIG 1B), each of the first control electrode and the second control electrode comprises a common electrode (Channel regions 132’ and 122’ - [0052] and [0053] extending along the optical waveguide (FIG. 1B), a plurality of segment electrodes (Retrograde portion 124B/134B) arranged closer to the optical waveguide than the common electrode and divided along an extending direction of the optical waveguide and a plurality of connection electrodes connecting each of the plurality of segment electrodes to the common electrode (FIG 1B), and a low dielectric layer having a relative dielectric constant lower than a relative dielectric constant of the optical substrate is arranged between the common electrode and the optical substrate (Par. [0079]. FIG. 2-5 Interlayer 202 , 302, 402 and 502))
Regarding claim 2, Kharel discloses the device of claim 1. Kharel further discloses the low dielectric layer extends to below the connection electrodes and the segment electrodes(Par. [0079]. FIG. 2-5 Interlayer 202 , 302, 402 and 502).
Regarding claim 3, Kharel discloses the device of claim 1. Kharel further discloses the optical waveguide comprises a Mach-Zehnder type optical waveguide (figs. 22-24) that comprises two parallel waveguides(FIG. 1D. Waveguides 110’ and 150), and the control electrode (FIG. 1D. Optical device 100’’’) comprises: one first control electrode arranged between the two parallel waveguides(Electrode 120); and two second control electrodes facing the first control electrode respectively across the two parallel waveguides(Electrodes 130’ and 140).
Regarding claim 4, Kharel discloses the device of claim 1. Kharel further discloses at least a lower portion of a surface, adjacent to the optical waveguide, of the segment electrode (Extensions 124 and 134) is formed on the optical substrate without the low dielectric layer there between (Par. [0040]: segment electrodes (retrograde portions124b, 134b) are formed directly on the substrate, or in a void within the substrate, bypassing or removing the low-dielectric layer in that specific region. FIG. 13 C-D. Electrodes 1320C and 1320D)
Regarding claim 9, Kharel discloses the device of claim 1. Kharel further discloses an optical modulator(FIG. 26. Modulator 2610), comprising: the optical waveguide element according to claim 1, which is an optical modulation element (Par. [0142]: Optical modulator 2610 is analogous to one or more of the optical devices depicted in FIGS. 1A-25); a housing configured to accommodate the optical waveguide element(Par. [0038]: The largest dimension of an optical modulator limits the reduction in size of the package in which the optical modulator can be provided); an optical fiber configured to input light to the optical waveguide element(Optical signal source 2602); and an optical fiber configured to guide light output by the optical waveguide element to outside of the housing(Modulated optical signal).
Regarding Claim 10, Kharel discloses the device of claim 1. Kharel further discloses an optical transmission device(FIG. 26 . Transmission optical subassembly 2600), comprising: the optical modulator according to claim 9(Modulator 2610); and an electronic circuit(2620) configured to generate an electrical signal for causing the optical waveguide element to perform an optical modulation operation(Par. [0143]).
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 6 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kharel et al. (US20220390777A1), hereafter Kharel.
Regarding claim 6, Kharel discloses the device of claim 1. Kharel further discloses an other main surface of the optical substrate, opposite to the main surface on which the optical waveguide is arranged (Opposite in this instance is being interpreted as the bottom surface of the main surface)(FIG. 18), is in contact with a low dielectric substrate (1803). Kharel fails to disclose the dielectric substrate is composed of a low dielectric material with a relative dielectric constant of 1 or more and 10 or less.
Before the effective filing date of the present invention, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art to modify the low dielectric substrate (1803) of Kharel to have a relative dielectric constant of 1 or more and 10 or less. Such a modification represents a conventional objective of minimizing capacitance and signal loss in high-frequency devices. Utilizing a low-k material (e.g., PTFE or similar glass) in this range is a simple substitution of known materials that yields predictable results. Such a modification falls within the ordinary skill in the art, resulting in optimized optical confinement without unexpected challenges.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant’s
disclosure:
➢ Mattis et al. (US20240008271A1) see the entire disclosure.
➢ Kataoka et al. (US20220100010A1) see the entire disclosure.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to TAJANAE N GREEN whose telephone number is (571)272-2188. The examiner can normally be reached Tues-Fri. 5:30a-3:30p.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Uyen-Chau Le can be reached at (571) 272-2397. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/TAJANAE NICOLE GREEN/Examiner, Art Unit 2874
/UYEN CHAU N LE/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2874
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