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 .
Election/Restrictions
Applicant’s election without traverse of Invention I (claims 1-10) in the reply filed on 06/10/2026 is acknowledged.
Claims 11-20 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to a nonelected invention, there being no allowable generic or linking claim. Election was made without traverse in the reply filed on 06/10/2026.
Specification
The title of the invention is not descriptive. A new title is required that is clearly indicative of the invention to which the claims are directed. For example, a more descriptive title could be, “Display Device With Common Electrode Between Step Coverage and Oxidation Prevention Layers”.
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) 1-3 and 10 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Higginson et al. (US 8,933,433 B2; hereinafter, “Higginson”).
Regarding claims 1-3 and 10:
re claim 1, Higginson discloses a display device comprising:
a substrate 100 (Figs. 7, 8 and Col. 7, line 18) having a pixel electrode 102 (Fig. 3D, 7, 18 and Col. 7, line 17, wherein layer 102 is a conductive layer on one side of the LEDs of a pixel in Fig. 18; accordingly, layer 102 is a pixel electrode);
a light emitting element 400 (Fig. 3D and Col. 9, line 16) disposed on the pixel electrode and including a first semiconductor layer 418 (Col. 10, line 6), an active layer 416 (Col. 10, line 6), and a second semiconductor layer 414 (Col. 10, line 5);
a step coverage prevention layer 120 (Figs. 7, 8 and Col. 13, lines 13-19) surrounding the light emitting element 400 in a plan view (e.g., in Fig. 15, element(s) 400 are island-shaped and are surrounded by other layers for proper isolation/insulation from adjacent element(s) 400);
a common electrode 114/118 (Figs. 7, 8, 18, Col. 12, lines 33-48, and Col. 12, lines 58-65, wherein layer 118 is a common layer for light emitting elements in a column in Fig. 18; accordingly, layer 114/118 is a common electrode) disposed on the light emitting element and the step coverage prevention layer 112 (Figs. 7 and 8); and
an oxidation prevention layer 112 (Figs. 7, 8 and Col. 8, line 34) disposed on a portion of the common electrode 116/118 that does not overlap the light emitting element in a thickness direction (i.e., layer 112 is not directly above element 400), wherein
the common electrode includes a first portion 118 (Figs. 7-8) disposed on the light emitting element 400 and a second portion 114 (Figs. 7-8) disposed between the oxidation prevention layer 112 and the step coverage prevention layer 120, and
a material forming the first portion 118 (i.e., a material for layer 118, Col. 12, lines 63-65) is an oxide of a material forming the second portion 114 (i.e., a material for layer 114 can be InZn, Col. 12, lines 33-42; and a material for layer 118 can be indium-zinc-oxide);
re claim 2, the display device of claim 1, wherein Fig. 7 and Col. 12, lines 63-65) includes InZnOx and the second portion 114 includes InZn (Fig. 7 and Col. 12, lines 41-42);
re claim 3, the display device of claim 2, wherein the second portion 114 (Fig. 7) extends from the first portion 118 and surrounds a side surface of the light emitting element 400; and
re claim 10, the display device of claim 2, wherein the oxidation prevention layer 112 (Col. 8, lines 39-40) and the step coverage prevention layer 120 (Col. 13, lines 16-19) include an insulating material including one of an organic material, an inorganic material, and an organic-inorganic hybrid material.
Therefore, Higginson anticipates claims 1-3 and 10.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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.
The factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness.
Claim(s) 8 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Higginson.
Higginson does not explicitly disclose an amount of indium (In) in the second portion 114; however, because Higginson discloses the second portion 114 comprises indium-zinc-oxide, IZO (Col. 12, lines 41-42), the current claim is deemed obvious because it was common in the art incorporate 90 wt % of In, which would be standard or commercially available. Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to specifically incorporate 90 wt % of In because it was common in the art for an IZO layer.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 4-7 and 9 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.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter:
Claims 4-7 are allowable primarily because the prior art of record cannot anticipate or render obvious the limitations in claim 4 (when combined with claims 1-3) and claims 5-7 depend from claim 1; and
Claim 9 is allowable primarily because the prior art of record cannot anticipate or render obvious the limitations in this claim (when combined with claims 1 and 2).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to LEX H MALSAWMA whose telephone number is (571)272-1903. The examiner can normally be reached M-F (4-12 Hours, between 5:30AM-10PM).
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.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, N. Drew Richards can be reached at 571-272-1736. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000.
/LEX H MALSAWMA/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2892
Prosecution Insights