DETAILED ACTION
Priority
1. Receipt is acknowledged of papers submitted under 35 U.S.C. 119 (a) — (d), which papers have been placed of record in the file. Oath/Declaration
Oath/Declaration
2. Oath and declaration filed on 12/6/2023 is accepted.
Information Disclosure Statement
3. The prior art documents submitted by application in the Information Disclosure Statement filed on 12/6/2023 and 12/4/2023 and 12/4/2024 and 12/6/2023 and 3/21/2024 have all been considered and made of record (note the attached copy of form PTO – 1449).
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
4. 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) 1,7-16 and 17 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Hinata et al (2024/0122044 A1) in view of Nishio et al (2020/0063933 A1).
Regarding claim 1, Hinata et al discloses (refer to figures 1-13) a light emitting device (10) (paragraph 0064) comprising a substrate (8) , a lens (17), and a light emitting portion arranged between a main surface of the substrate (8) and the lens (17) (paragraph 0026) , the light emitting portion includes a first reflective layer (18) (paragraph 0096) , an organic layer (20) (figure 6), and a second reflective layer (11) (paragraph 0096) from a side of the substrate in this order, and the first reflective layer includes one of a convex portion and a concave portion (paragraph 0007).
Hinata discloses all of the claimed limitation except wherein the lens functions as a collimator.
Nishio et al discloses wherein the lens functions as a collimator (paragraph 0164 optical system 140 using the collimator lens functions as a collimator in figure 3).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of invention was made to provide teaching the lens functions as a collimator in to the Hinata et al a light emitting device the clear illumination pattern can be form as taught by Nishio et al (paragraph 0007).
Regarding claim 7, Hinata et al discloses wherein in a case where n1 represents a refractive index of the lens (17) , a medium layer (35) with a refractive index n2 is arranged between the light emitting portion and the lens, and a relationship of n1≤ n2 is satisfied (paragraph 0028).
Regarding claim 8, Hinata et al discloses wherein the medium layer (35) includes a color filter (paragraph 0041).
Regarding claim 9, Hinata et al discloses wherein the medium layer is set as a first medium layer (35a), a second medium layer (35b) (paragraph 0041) with a refractive index n3 is arranged between the first medium layer and the light emitting portion, and a relationship of n2≤ n3 is satisfied.
Regarding claim 10, Hinata et al discloses wherein a layer with a refractive index lower than the refractive index n1 of the lens is not arranged between the light emitting portion and the lens.
Regarding claim 11, Hinata et al discloses wherein a central portion of the light emitting portion and a central portion of the lens are arranged to overlap each other in orthogonal projection to the main surface (figure 6).
Regarding claim 12, Hinata et al discloses wherein r > a is further satisfied (paragraph 0040).
Regarding claim 13, Hinata et al discloses wherein the first reflective layer (18) includes a reflective surface, and the reflective surface is part a spherical surface.
Regarding claim 14, Hinata et al discloses wherein the first reflective layer (18) includes a reflective surface, and the reflective surface includes a convex surface.
Regarding claim 15, Hinata et al discloses and an active element connected to the light emitting device (10).
Regarding claim 16,Hinta et al discloses photoelectric conversion device (1100) (paragraph 0099 -0100) comprising an optical unit including a plurality of lenses, an image sensor configured to receive light having passed through the optical unit, and a display unit (1102) configured to display an image, wherein the display unit displays an image captured by the image sensor, and includes a light emitting.
Regarding claim 17, Hinata et al discloses photo electronic apparatus(1100) comprising a housing provided with a display unit (1102) , and a communication unit provided in the housing (1104) and configured to perform external communication, wherein the display unit includes a light emitting device (10) defined.
Allowable Subject Matter
5. Claims 2-6 and 18 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.
6. The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter: wherein in a case where a vertex of the lens in a first direction perpendicular to the main surface of the substrate is set as a first position, and a position where an inclination angle θ of the lens is largest in a section passing through the first position and parallel to the first direction is set as a second position, r represents a distance from the first position to the second position in a second direction parallel to the main surface of the substrate, H represents a distance from the vertex of the first reflective layer to the second position in the first direction, and a represents a distance from a center to an end portion of the light emitting portion in the second direction, at a time of tracking, from the second position in a direction of the light emitting portion, a light beam transmitted through the second position and extracted in a direction perpendicular to the main surface of the substrate, letting L be a distance by which the light beam travels in the second direction while traveling from the second position in the first direction by the distance H, a relationship of r - a < L < r + a is satisfied and the first reflective layer includes the convex portion, and in a case where a vertex of the lens in a first direction perpendicular to the main surface of the substrate is set as a first position, and a position where an inclination angle θ of the lens is largest in a section passing through the first position and parallel to the first direction is set as a second position, r represents a distance from the first position to the second position in a second direction parallel to the main surface of the substrate, and H represents a distance from the vertex of the first reflective layer to the second position in the first direction, at a time of tracking, from the second position in a direction of the light emitting portion, a light beam transmitted through the second position and extracted in a direction perpendicular to the main surface of the substrate, letting L be a distance by which the light beam travels in the second direction while traveling from the second position in the first direction by the distance H, a relationship of L < r is satisfied and the first reflective layer includes the convex portion, and a relationship of r - a < L < r is satisfied and the first reflective layer includes the concave portion, and in a case where a vertex of the lens in a first direction perpendicular to the main surface of the substrate is set as a first position, and a position where an inclination angle θ of the lens is largest in a section passing through the first position and parallel to the first direction is set as a second position, r represents a distance from the first position to the second position in a second direction parallel to the main surface of the substrate, and H represents a distance from the vertex of the first reflective layer to the second position in the first direction, at a time of tracking, from the second position in a direction of the light emitting portion, a light beam transmitted through the second position and extracted in a direction perpendicular to the main surface of the substrate, letting L be a distance by which the light beam travels in the second direction while traveling from the second position in the first direction by the distance H, a relationship of r < L is satisfied and the first reflective layer includes the concave portion, and a relationship of r < L < r + a is satisfied and an image forming device comprising a photosensitive member, and an exposure light source configured to expose the photosensitive member, wherein the exposure light source includes a light emitting device defined.
Conclusion
7. Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to MOHAMMED A HASAN whose telephone number is (571)272-2331. The examiner can normally be reached M-TH 6 AM -4 PM.
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/MOHAMMED A HASAN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2872 3/4/2026