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 .
Election/Restrictions
Applicant’s election without traverse of Invention of Embodiment 4 of Figure 10, Claims 1-7 and 9-20 in the reply filed on 06/05/2026 is acknowledged.
Claim 8 is withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to a nonelected Invention, there being no allowable generic or linking claim. Election was made without traverse in the reply filed on 06/05/2026.
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 –
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.
Claim(s) 1-4, 11-13, and 20 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Kim et al. (US 2019/0329540).
Regarding claim 1, Kim et al. discloses, as shown in Figures 1-10F, a display device comprising:
a display panel (130) including:
a main display area that displays images and an edge region disposed adjacent to the main display area;
a protection film (120) disposed below the display panel; and
at least one additional layer (110) disposed below the protection film, wherein
the edge region includes a corner portion disposed on a corner, and
the at least one additional layer overlap the corner portion and are spaced from each other.
Regarding claim 2, Kim et al. discloses the at least one additional layer includes a resin (polyimide, [0045]).
Regarding claim 3, Kim et al. discloses the at least one additional layer (110) contacts a rear side of the protection film (Figures 1-2).
Regarding claim 4, Kim et al. discloses further comprising: a first adhesive layer (layer 110 may have multi-layer structure, and formed of polyimide which is also adhesive, [0045]) disposed between the at least one additional layer and the protection film (Figures 1-2).
Regarding claim 11, Kim et al. discloses the corner portion is bent with a curvature radius (Figures 1-2).
Regarding claim 12, Kim et al. discloses the edge region further includes a first lateral edge region and a second lateral edge region connected to the corner portion, the first lateral edge is bent with a first curvature radius, and the second lateral edge is bent with a second curvature radius (Figures 1-2).
Regarding claim 13, Kim et al. discloses a curvature radius of the corner portion is changed according to positions (Figures 1-2).
Regarding claim 16, Kim et al. discloses, as shown in Figures 1-10F, a display device comprising:
a display panel (130) including a main display area that displays images and an edge region disposed adjacent to the main display area;
a protection film (120) disposed below the display panel;
a support member (layer 110 may have multi-layer structure, and formed of rigid, soft, so portion of 110 is a support member, [0045]) that is rigid and disposed below the protection film; and
at least one additional layer (layer 110 may have multi-layer structure, and formed of rigid, soft, so portion of 110 is a support member, [0045]) disposed between a rear side of the protection film and the support member, wherein
the edge region includes a corner portion disposed on a corner, and
the at least one additional layer contacts the corner portion
Regarding claim 20, Kim et al. discloses, as shown in Figures 1-10F, a display device comprising:
a display panel (130) including a main display area that displays images and an edge region disposed adjacent to the main display area;
a protection film (120) disposed below the display panel; and
a support member (110, layer 100 may have multi-layer structure, and formed of rigid, or soft, [0045] that is rigid and is disposed below the protection film, wherein
the edge region includes a corner portion disposed on a corner, and
thicknesses of the protection film overlapping the corner portion follows positions.
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) 5-6 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kim et al. (US 2019/0329540).
Regarding claim 5, Kim et al. discloses the claimed invention including the display device as explained in the above rejection. Kim et al. does not disclose the at least one additional layer includes a metal. However, Kim mentions, in [0045], that the at least one additional layer (110) may be formed of any of various know materials. Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was made to form the additional layer of Kim et al. having the materials as that claimed by Applicant, since it has been held to be within the general skill of a worker in the art to select a known material on the basis of its suitability for the intended use as a matter of obvious design choice. In re Leshin, 125 USPQ 416.
Regarding claim 6, Kim et al. discloses further comprising: a first adhesive layer (layer 110 may have multi-layer structure, and formed of polyimide which is also adhesive, [0045]) disposed between the at least one additional layer and the protection film.
Claim(s) 14 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kim et al. (US 2019/0329540) in view of Joo et al. (US 2022/0013746).
Kim et al. discloses the claimed invention including the display device as explained in the above rejection. Kim et al. does not disclose a polarization layer disposed on the display panel, and a cover window disposed on the polarization layer, wherein the cover window that corresponds to the edge region is bent. However, Joo et al. discloses a display device having a polarization layer (PF) disposed on the display panel, and a cover window (CW) disposed on the polarization layer, wherein the cover window that corresponds to the edge region is bent. Note Figure 4 of Joo et al. Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was made to form the display device of Kim et al. having a polarization layer disposed on the display panel, and a cover window disposed on the polarization layer, wherein the cover window that corresponds to the edge region is bent, such as taught by Joo et al. in order to reduce the reflection of light and to protect the display panel.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 7, 9-10, 15, and 17-19 are objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter:
Applicant' s claims 7, 9-10, 15, and 17-19 are allowable over the references of record because none of these references disclose or can be combined to yield the claimed at least one additional layer includes a first additional layer and a second additional layer spaced from each other with a corner portion center line passing through a center of an edge of the corner portion, as recited in claim 7; the at least one additional layer includes: a first side corresponding to a first edge of the protection film; a second side connected to a first end of the first side; and a third side connected to a second end of the first side and facing the second side, as recited in claim 9; the at least one additional layer is spaced from each other, and the at least one additional layer each has an island shape, as recited in claim 17.
Conclusion
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/HUNG K VU/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2897
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