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 .
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) 1-3, 5, 7-8, 14-17 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Dupoiron (US 2022/0271094) in view of You (US 2017/0127036).
Regarding Claim 1, Dupoiron teaches a sensor of a reflected light signal corresponding to the reflection on a scene [#10A, #10C of Fig 1; 0075; 0139-40; 0144-45] of a periodically … incident light signal for acquiring a depth map of the scene, the sensor comprising depth pixels wherein: each depth pixel- at least one first sample of charges …[0075; 0139-40; 0144-45]. Dupoiron does not explicitly teach – but You does teach an amplitude-modulated incident light signal [0013; 0016; 0018; 0051-55; 0064], and photogenerated in the first and second photosensitive elements of a first pair of photosites of said pixel y detection of the light signal reflected during first time periods [0013; 0016; 0018; 0051-55; 0064]; - at least one second sample of charges photogenerated in the first and second photosensitive elements of a second pair of photosites of said pixel by detection of the light signal reflected during second time periods offset with respect to the first time periods by a first constant phase shift; and - at least one third sample of charges photogenerated in the first and second photosensitive elements of a third pair of photosites of said pixel by detection of the light signal reflected during third time periods offset with respect to the first time periods by a second constant phase shift different from the first phase shift [0013; 0016; 0018; 0051-55; 0064], wherein the acquisition of a sample of charges photogenerated during a given time period in a pair of first and second photosites corresponds to the acquisition of the charges photogenerated in the first photosite during said given time period and to the simultaneous acquisition of the charges photogenerated in the second photosite during the same given time period [0013; 0016; 0018; 0051-55; 0064].
Regarding Claim 2, Dupoiron also teaches wherein each first photosensitive element of each depth pixel is stacked on a second photosensitive element preferably of said pixel [Fig 1; Claim 2; 0075; 0139-40; 0144-45].
Regarding Claim 3, Dupoiron also teaches wherein each depth pixel comprises as many first photosensitive elements as second photosensitive elements [Fig 1; Claim 2; 0075; 0139-40].
Regarding Claim 5, Dupoiron does not explicitly teach – but Cazaux does teach wherein each depth pixel is further configured to acquire at least a fourth sample of charges photogenerated in the first and second photosensitive elements of a fourth pair of photosites of said pixel by detection of the light signal reflected during fourth time periods offset with respect to the first time periods by a third constant phase shift different from the first and second phase shifts [Fig 1; 0075; 0139-40; 0144-45].
Regarding Claim 7, Dupoiron also teaches wherein, in each pair of photosites of each depth pixel, the first photosensitive element of the first photosite of said pair is stacked on the second photosensitive element of the second photosite of said pair [Fig 1; Claim 2; 0075; 0139-40; 0144-45].
Regarding Claim 8, Dupoiron also teaches wherein: the first and second photosites of the depth pixels are organized in rows and in columns [0077]; and in each depth pixel, the first photosite of each pair of photosites of said pixel is offset by one row and/or by one column with respect to the second photosite of said pair of photosites [0111; 0152; 0276-77; 0280].
Regarding Claim 14, Dupoiron also teaches wherein the sensor further comprises 2D image pixels arranged on top and inside of one and/or other of the first and second substrates [0013-16; 0021].
Regarding Claim 15, Dupoiron also teaches a control circuit [0122] configured, for each pair of photosites of each pixel, to identically and simultaneously control the first and second photosites of said pair of photosites [0118-0126].
Regarding Claim 16, Dupoiron also teaches a light source configured to periodically emit the amplitude-modulated incident light signal, and a processor configured to determine, based on the first, second, and third samples, a phase shift between the incident light signal and the reflected light signal [Fig 1; 0075; 0139-40; 0144-45].
Regarding Claim 17, Dupoiron also teaches wherein each depth pixel is further configured to acquire at least a fourth sample of charges photogenerated in the first and second photosensitive elements of a fourth pair of photosites of said pixel by detection of the light signal reflected during fourth time periods offset with respect to the first time periods by a third constant phase shift different from the first and second phase shifts and wherein the processor is configured to determine, based on the first, second, third, and fourth samples, the phase shift between the incident light signal and the reflected light signal [Fig 1; 0075; 0139-40; 0144-45].
Claim(s) 4, 6 and 9-13 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Dupoiron (US 2022/0271094) in view of You (US 2017/0127036), as applied to Claim 1 above, and further in view of Cazaux (US 2018/0167606).
Regarding Claim 4, Dupoiron does not explicitly teach – but Cazaux does teach wherein, in each depth pixel, the first and third pairs of photosites have a same first photosite and a same second photosite [Fig 7C; Abstract; 0007; 0043-47; 0076]. It would have been obvious to modify the sensor of Dupoiron to create depth pixels from pairs of pixels as each depth pixel is surrounded by eight two-by-two blocks of 2D image pixels, thus allowing the user a variety of different density of depth pixels to be created.
Regarding Claim 6, Dupoiron does not explicitly teach – but Cazaux does teach wherein, in each depth pixel, the second and fourth pairs of photosites have a same first photosite and a same second photosite [Fig 7C; Abstract; 0007; 0043-47; 0076]. It would have been obvious to modify the sensor of Dupoiron to create depth pixels from pairs of pixels as each depth pixel is surrounded by eight two-by-two blocks of 2D image pixels, thus allowing the user a variety of different density of depth pixels to be created.
Regarding Claim 9, Dupoiron also teaches each first photositeinclude sampling circuit nodes at each photosite to provide charge storage zones in which charge transferred from the photosensitive element is temporarily stored.
10. (Currently Amended) Sensor according to claim 9, wherein: each first photosite
Regarding Claim 11, Dupoiron also teaches wherein, in each pair of photosites, the second node of the second photosite is directly connected to the first node of the first photosite [0123-26; 0170]. Cazaux also teaches these limitations in [0043-47].
Regarding Claim 12, Dupoiron also teaches wherein, in each pair of photosites, the first output line of the first photosite is directly connected to the second output line of the second photosite [0123-26; 0170]. Cazaux also teaches these limitations in [0043-47].
Regarding Claim 13, Dupoiron also teaches wherein the sensor comprises a digital processing circuit configured to add, by digital processing, for each pair of photosites, the charges photogenerated in the first photosensitive element of the first photosite of said pair and the charges photogenerated in the second photosensitive element of the second photosite of said pair [0144-52]. You also teaches these limitations in [0033; 0042; 0058]. Cazaux also teaches these limitations in [0043-47].
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JAMES R HULKA whose telephone number is (571)270-7553. The examiner can normally be reached M-R: 9am-6pm, F: 10am-2pm.
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JAMES R. HULKA
Primary Examiner
Art Unit 3645
/JAMES R HULKA/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3645
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