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 .
Drawings
Figure 3 should be designated by a legend such as --Prior Art-- because only that which is old appears to be illustrated. See MPEP § 608.02(g). Corrected drawings in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(d) are required in reply to the Office action to avoid abandonment of the application. The replacement sheet(s) should be labeled “Replacement Sheet” in the page header (as per 37 CFR 1.84(c)) so as not to obstruct any portion of the drawing figures. If the changes are not accepted by the examiner, the applicant will be notified and informed of any required corrective action in the next Office action. The objection to the drawings will not be held in abeyance.
Election/Restrictions
Applicant’s election without traverse of Species A in the reply filed on April 28, 2026 is acknowledged. Accordingly, claims 6-14, 16, 17, 19 and 20 have been withdrawn from further consideration, and claims 1-5, 15 and 18 are examined as follows.
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.
This application currently names joint inventors. In considering patentability of the claims the examiner presumes that the subject matter of the various claims was commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the claimed invention(s) absent any evidence to the contrary. Applicant is advised of the obligation under 37 CFR 1.56 to point out the inventor and effective filing dates of each claim that was not commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the later invention in order for the examiner to consider the applicability of 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(2)(C) for any potential 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) prior art against the later invention.
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.
Claims 1-4, 15 and 18 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Okita (US 2009/0073407) in view of Toyoda (US 2011/0299055).
Regarding claim 1, Okita discloses an exposure method (Figs. 1-23) comprising:
focusing linearly polarized light (EL) with an optical member (70, Figs. 8-11) and exposing a film (P) including a compound having a photo-aligned group (para. [0058]),
wherein while rotating a polarization direction of the linearly polarized light (Fig. 20; para. [0180]),
the film (P) and the optical member (70) are relatively moved in a direction tilted with respect to an optical axis of the optical member (Figs. 8-11; paras. [0119-0126]).
Okita fails to explicitly disclose focusing the linearly polarized light in a ring shape.
However, Toyoda discloses an exposure method (Figs. 1-23) comprising focusing linearly polarized light in a ring shape (Figs. 2, 4, 5; paras. [0071, 0075-0076]).
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate focusing the linearly polarized light in a ring shape, as in Toyoda, into the exposure method of Okita to pattern the shape around an optical axis, useful in a lens application.
Regarding claim 2, Okita discloses wherein while maintaining an angle between a normal line of the film (P) and the optical axis of the optical member (70), the film and the optical member are relatively moved in the direction tilted with respect to the optical axis of the optical member (Figs. 8-11; paras. [0119-0126]).
Regarding claim 3, Okita discloses wherein while maintaining a normal line of the film (P) and the optical axis of the optical member (70) in parallel, the film and the optical member are relatively moved in the direction tilted with respect to the optical axis of the optical member (Figs. 8-11; paras. [0119-0126]).
Regarding claim 4, Okita fails to explicitly disclose wherein the optical member includes an axicon lens or an axicon mirror.
However, Toyoda discloses wherein the optical member includes an axicon lens or an axicon mirror (8, Figs. 1, 3; para. [0054]).
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate wherein the optical member includes an axicon lens or an axicon mirror, as in Toyoda, into the exposure method of Okita in order to form the ring shape as desired.
Regarding claim 15, Okita discloses wherein in the relative movement of the film (P) and the optical member (70), a movement speed is continuously changed (paras. [0091-0092, 0123]).
Regarding claim 18, Okita discloses wherein in the rotation in the polarization direction of the linearly polarized light, a rotation speed is continuously changed (paras. [0186, 0188]).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claim 5 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.
Reasons for Allowance
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter:
Regarding claim 5, Okita in view of Toyoda, along with the other prior art of record, fails to explicitly disclose wherein in a case where an angle between a bottom surface and a generatrix of a cone configuring the axicon lens or the axicon mirror is represented by θ and a refractive index of a material for forming the axicon lens is represented by n,
an angle α between the relative movement direction of the film and the optical member and an optical axis of the axicon lens satisfies
α < sin-1(n ∙ sinθ) - θ
or
an angle α between the relative movement direction of the film and the optical member and an optical axis of the axicon mirror satisfies
α < 2θ, along with the other limitations of claims 1 and 4.
Therefore, claim 5 would be allowable.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to PAISLEY L WILSON whose telephone number is (571)270-5023. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday, 9:00am-5:00pm ET.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, MICHAEL CALEY can be reached at 571-272-2286. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/PAISLEY L WILSON/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2871
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