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 March 13, 2024 was in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner.
Election/Restrictions
Applicant’s election with traverse of Group I (claims 1-14 and 17-18) and Species A1 (Figs. 1-2; claims 1-12, 14, 17 and 18) in the reply filed on 07/17/2026 is acknowledged. The traversal is on the ground(s) that it should be no undue burden on the Examiner to consider all claims in the single application. The Examiner respectfully disagrees. The Examiner has already stated in the Requirement for Restriction/Election mailed on 05/20/2026 that the application includes multiple distinct inventions (Inventions I and II) and multiple species and he has also explained why he believes examining all the inventions and species would constitute a search and/or examination burden. The Applicant, on the other hand, has not explained why in their opinion, examining all the patentably distinct inventions and species would not constitute a search and/or examination burden
Since, the Applicant has not explained why examining all the patentably distinct inventions and species would not be a search and/or examination burden, the requirement is still deemed proper and is therefore made FINAL.
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 was 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. Claim 18 recites “a display device, comprising: a panel including a circuit layer and a device layer which is electrically connected to said circuit layer; and a plurality of light-emitting modules disposed on said panel, each of said light-emitting modules being electrically connected to said device layer via said circuit layer, wherein each of said light-emitting modules is a light-emitting module as claimed in claim 12” (emphasis added by the Examiner). The Applicant has not defined what is meant by the term “device layer” in the specification, and the Examiner is unclear about the metes and bounds of what it encompasses and what it does not encompass. Appropriate correction/clarification is requested.
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 –
(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 12 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Masui et al. (Pub. No.: US 2009/0065798 A1).
Regarding Claim 12, Masui et al. discloses a light-emitting module, comprising a plurality of light-emitting elements that are spacedly arranged (Par. 0020, 0058, 0067), said light-emitting module having a three-dimensional structure which is formed with a guiding structure (abstract, Par. 0017-0021; this prior art teaches that a polarized light emitting diode (LED) includes a marker indicating a polarization direction and a package for the LED also includes a marker indicating the polarization direction; the marker on the LED comprises a notch on the die, or a scratch on the die, while the marker on the package comprises a notch on the package, or a scratch on the package; the notches or the scratches could be considered as the guiding structure),
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said guiding structure extending in a direction orthogonal to a thickness direction of said three-dimensional structure so as to extend across said three-dimensional structure (abstract, Par. 0017-0021).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 1-11 and 17 are allowed. The following is an examiner's statement of reasons for allowance:
Regarding Claim 1: The prior art of record to the examiner’s knowledge does not teach or render obvious the instant invention, particularly characterized by a light-emitting module, comprising: a plurality of light-emitting elements that are spacedly arranged, each of said light-emitting elements having a light-emitting surface and a back surface opposite to said light-emitting surface; a plurality of conductive pads disposed above said back surfaces of said light-emitting elements; and a package layer disposed around said conductive pads, said package layer having a guiding structure which is formed between two adjacent ones of said conductive pads and which extends in a direction orthogonal to a thickness direction of said package layer so as to extend across said package layer.
The most relevant prior art reference due to Masui et al. (Pub. No.: US 2009/0065798 A1) substantially discloses a light-emitting module, comprising: a plurality of light-emitting elements that are spacedly arranged, each of said light-emitting elements having a light-emitting surface and a back surface opposite to said light-emitting surface (Par. 0020, 0058, 0067); a plurality of conductive pads disposed above said back surfaces of said light-emitting elements (Par. 0020, 0058, 0067 - implied); and a package layer disposed around said conductive pads, said package layer having a guiding structure across said package layer (Par. 0041-0048; Figs. 4-5 – light emitting element 500 (only one is shown in Fig. 5); plurality of conductive pads are implied to be on the back surface although not shown; top layer of package 506 could be considered as the package layer; the package layer has notches on it which is used to properly orient the light emitting element on the package 506 and could be considered as a guiding structure).
This prior art, however, does not disclose a light-emitting module, comprising: a package layer disposed around said conductive pads, said package layer having a guiding structure which is formed between two adjacent ones of said conductive pads.
Additionally, the prior arts made of record and not relied upon are considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. See form PTO-892.
However, none of these prior art references indicated above or the prior arts made of record in form PTO-892, disclose all the limitations of claim 1 (the individual limitations may be found in a plurality of prior arts but there is no motivation to combine). Because no reference alone teaches all the limitations, nor is there any motivation to combine the prior arts to construct all the limitations of this independent claim, claim 1 is deemed patentable over the prior arts.
Regarding Claims 2-11 and 17: these claims are allowed because of their dependency status from claim 1.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claim 14 is 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.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Koizumi et al. (Patent No.: US 6,023,104 A) – This prior art teaches a light-emitting module, comprising: a plurality of light-emitting elements (10) that are spacedly arranged, each of said light-emitting elements having a light-emitting surface and a back surface 15) disposed above said back surfaces of said light-emitting elements; and a package layer (14) disposed around said conductive pads (15), said package layer having a guiding structure (20) Fig. 1A).
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to SYED I GHEYAS whose telephone number is (571)272-0592. The examiner can normally be reached on Monday-Friday from 8:30 AM - 5:30 PM EST.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Britt Hanley, can be reached at telephone number (571)270-3042. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice.
08/29/2026
/SYED I GHEYAS/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2893
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