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 .
Priority
Receipt is acknowledged of certified copies of papers required by 37 CFR 1.55.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 12/19/2023 was filed in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner.
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.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph:
The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention.
Claim 18 (and corresponding dependent claims) 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 applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention.
Specifically, in claim 18, lines 6-7, applicant discloses wherein “the reflection panel is formed by the windshield or a combiner panel arranged in front of the reflection panel…,” making it unclear how the reflection panel can be formed by a combiner panel arranged in front of itself, thereby rendering the claim vague and indefinite.
For purpose of examination, it was presumed applicant intended to disclose --the reflection panel is formed by the windshield, or a combiner panel is arranged in front of the reflection panel-- placing the limitations in the alternative. The dependent claims inherit the rejection from their parent claim.
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)(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) 11-21 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Saito et al (US 2017/0115485 A1).
In regard to claim 11, Saito et al discloses a projection unit for a field-of-view display apparatus for use in a vehicle (page 2, section [0025] – page 3, section [0036], Figures 1-3 & page 5, section [0061], Figure 7B), the projection unit (Figures 3 & 7B, “10”) comprising: a picture-generating unit (page 2, section [0030], Figure 3, “11, 12, 14”) for generating a light beam with a display content (Figure 3, “200”); a mirror, arranged in a beam path of the light beam (page 3, sections [0037]-[0040], Figures 3 & 7B, “24”), having a first adjustment device (Figure 3, “25”), which is configured to tilt the mirror for adapting a beam propagation direction of the light beam to different eyebox positions of different users (page 5, section [0061], Figures 3 & 7B, “3, 3a, 3b”); and a second adjustment device (Figure 3, “22”), which is configured for an image-orientation-maintaining tilt of the picture-generating unit (Figure 3, “11, 12, 14”) or of a further optical component (Figures 3 & 7B, “22”) in the beam path of the light beam (Figure 3, “200” & Figure 7B, “200a”), wherein: the projection unit is configured to generate a virtual display image in a virtual image plane in a field of view of a user by outputting the light beam in a direction of a reflection panel which is arranged in the field of view of the user (page 2, section [0028], Figure 2, “2a”) and by which the light beam is reflected to the user's eyebox (Figure 2, “3”); and the image-orientation-maintaining tilt is configured such that the virtual image plane has a same predetermined orientation for different eyebox positions (page 5, section [0061], Figure 7b, “3, 3a, 3b,” re: imaging position at different eyebox positions is substantially matched).
Regarding claim 12, Saito et al discloses wherein: the second adjustment device (Figure 3, “22”) is configured such that the picture-generating unit or the further optical component is tilted about its midpoint (page 3, section [0037], Figure 3, “23”), from which a central ray of the light beam emanates or on which the central ray of the light beam is incident (Figure 3, “200”).
Regarding claim 13, Saito et al discloses wherein: the first adjustment device (Figure 3, “25”) is configured such that the mirror is tilted about its midpoint (page 3, section [0037], Figure 3, “26”), on which a central ray of the light beam is incident (Figure 3, “200”).
Regarding claim 14, Saito et al discloses wherein: the mirror that is tiltable by the first adjustment device is a concave mirror (page 3, section [0039], re: reflection unit “24” may have concave shape).
Regarding claim 15, Saito et al discloses wherein: a folding mirror for folding the beam path of the light beam (Figure 4, “13a”) is arranged in the beam path of the light beam between the picture-generating unit (Figure 3, “11, 12, 14”) and the concave mirror (page 3, section [0039], re: reflection unit “24” may have concave shape).
Regarding claim 16, Saito et al discloses a method for operating said projection unit comprising: performing a tilt of the mirror by the first adjustment device for adapting the beam propagation direction of the light beam to a current eyebox position of the user; and simultaneously therewith or subsequently thereto, performing the image-orientation-maintaining tilt of the picture-generating unit or of the further optical component by the second adjustment device (page 5, sections [0059]-[0061], Figures 7A,B, “21, 24, 3a, 3, 3b”).
Regarding claim 17, Saito et al discloses a field-of-view display apparatus for use in a vehicle (page 2, section [0028], Figure 2, “60”), the field-of-view display apparatus comprising: said projection unit (Figure 2, “10”); and a reflection panel, which is arranged in the field of view of the user and is configured to reflect the light beam output by the projection unit to the user's eyebox, intended for eyes of the user, for generating a virtual display image in front of or behind the reflection panel in the user's field of view (Figure 2, “2a”).
Regarding claim 18, Saito et al discloses a vehicle (page 2, sections [0026]-[0028] & page 7, section [0080], Figure 2, “2”) comprising: a windshield (Figures 1 & 2, “2a”); an instrument panel arranged below the windshield (Figures 1 & 2, “1,” re: dashboard); and said field-of-view display apparatus (Figure 2, “60”), wherein: the projection unit is arranged in the instrument panel (Figure 2, “20, 1”), and the reflection panel is formed by the windshield (Figure 2, “2a”), or a combiner panel is arranged in front of the reflection panel on an inside of the vehicle.
Regarding claim 19, Saito et al discloses wherein: a same predetermined orientation of the virtual image plane in the different eyebox positions corresponds to a substantially horizontal plane in respectively different vertical poses (Figure 7B, “100a, 100, 100b, V”).
Regarding claim 20, Saito et al discloses wherein: the first adjustment device is configured to tilt the mirror about its horizontal axis to adapt the beam propagation direction of the light beam to different eyebox heights of the user in the vehicle (page 5, sections [0060]-[0061], Figure 7B, “24, 3a, 3, 3b”).
Regarding claim 21, Saito et al discloses wherein: the second adjustment device is configured for an image-orientation-maintaining tilt of the picture-generating unit or of the further optical component about its horizontal axis (page 5, sections [0060]-[0061], Figure 7B, “21, 3a, 3, 3b”).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to WILLIAM C CHOI whose telephone number is (571)272-2324. The examiner can normally be reached Monday- Friday, 9:00 am - 6:00 pm.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Pinping Sun can be reached at (571) 270-1284. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/WILLIAM CHOI/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2872 January 5, 2026
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