DETAILED ACTION
This Office Action is responsive to the application filed on 06/29/2026. Claims 1, 3-6 are pending. Claim 2 is canceled.
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 .
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 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.
Claim Objections
Claim 1 is objected to because of the following informalities: “which rotates” appears in error for – the polygon mirror rotates --.
Claim 1 is objected to because of the following informalities: “and which causes the laser beam” appears in error for – and the polygon mirror causes the laser beam --.
Claims 3, 5-6 depend from objected to Claim 1 and therefore contain the same informalities noted above.
Claim 4 is objected to because of the following informalities: “which rotates” appears in error for – the polygon mirror rotates --.
Appropriate correction is required.
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.
Claim 4 is 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 pre-AIA the applicant regards as the invention.
As to Claim 4, “the laser scanning device” lacks sufficient antecedent basis and a “laser scanning device” is not previously set forth. It is not clear which combination, if any, previously recited claim elements the term refers to. As such, the “defining W as a width of the laser scanning device along the direction of the rotation axis of the polygon mirror” is ambiguous and the equality “W < Ls” is likewise unclear. As such, the metes and bounds covered by the claim are also unclear.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 1 and 3, 5-6 would be allowable if rewritten to overcome the objections to Claim 1 set forth fully above.
The following is an examiner’s statement of reasons for indicating allowable subject matter.
Prior art fails to teach or suggest, in combination with all the other limitations of independent claim 1, a rotation axis of the polygon mirror is parallel to the surface of the object and substantially parallel to a direction in which the laser beam is scanned, and W < Ls.
Any comments considered necessary by applicant must be submitted no later than the payment of the issue fee and, to avoid processing delays, should preferably accompany the issue fee. Such submissions should be clearly labeled “Comments on Statement of Reasons for Allowance.”
Examiner’s Comment:
The claim term “prismatic shape” in claim 1 has been construed in accordance with the plain meaning of “prism” to those of ordinary skill in the art. Namely, a prism is a polyhedron comprising an n-sided polygon base, a second base which is a translated copy (rigidly moved without rotation) of the first, and n other faces, necessarily all parallelograms, joining corresponding sides of the two bases. All cross-sections parallel to the bases are translations of the bases.
US-6368424-B1 included in the attached PTO-892 is deemed pertinent to laser scanning system and dimensions thereof.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s remarks filed 06/29/2026 have been fully considered.
Applicant’s amendment overcame the previous rejections, but necessitated one or more new ground(s) of rejection set forth fully above. In the instant case, the amendment overcame the previous prior art rejections and 35 U.S.C. 112 rejections, but necessitate a new ground of rejection under 35 U.S.C. 112.
Conclusion
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.
Correspondence
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JASON H DUGER whose telephone number is (313) 446-6536. The examiner can normally be reached 8:30a to 6:30p EST Monday & Tuesday and is OFF Wednesday, Thursday and Friday.
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JASON H DUGER
PRIMARY EXAMINER, ART UNIT 3741
PHONE (313) 446 6536
FAX (571) 270 9083
DATE
September 29, 2026
/JASON H DUGER/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3741
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