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 .
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statements (IDS) submitted on 04/23/2024, 06/12/2024 and 08/20/2024 are in compliance with the provisions on 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner.
Priority
Receipt is acknowledged of papers submitted under 35 U.S.C. 119(a)-(d), which papers have been placed of record in the file.
Election/Restrictions
Applicant’s election without traverse of Species III of Figure 35 in the reply filed on 12/13/2025 is acknowledged.
Claims 2-7 withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to a nonelected species, there being no allowable generic or linking claim. Election was made without traverse in the reply filed on 12/13/2025.
Examiner notes applicant states “At least Claims 1 and 5-7 are readable thereon”. However, claim 5 recites “wherein the high sensitivity filter section is divided into multiple sub-high sensitivity filter sections” which is directed to Species IV of Figure 36. Claim 7 recites “the high sensitivity filter section being divided into multiple sub-high sensitivity filter sections” which is directed to Species IV of Figure 36.
Therefore, claims 5-7 are withdrawn.
Specification
The disclosure is objected to because of the following informalities:
In Applicant’s Specification Page 52, Lines 2-3, change “…and a color filter G has a transmittance of 100% in a range of wavelengths from 580nm to 680nm. It is also premised that RGB” to “…and a color filter R has a transmittance of 100% in a range of wavelengths from 580nm to 680nm. It is also premised that RGB”.
Appropriate correction is required.
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 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Abe et al. (US 2010/0302417 A1).
Regarding claim 1, Abe et al. (hereafter referred as Abe) teaches an image sensor (Abe, Fig. 1, solid-state image pickup device 1, Fig. 24 and 27, Paragraph 0070, 0296 and 0302) comprising:
multiple photoelectric conversion elements (Abe, Fig. 27, photodiodes 21, Paragraph 0302); and
multiple color individual color filters correspondingly arranged to the multiple photoelectric conversion elements (Abe, Fig. 24, Paragraph 0206), respectively,
wherein at least one of the multiple color individual color filters includes:
a primary color filter generating a corresponding primary color (Abe, Fig. 24, one of filter layers 130G, 130B or 130R); and
a high sensitivity filter more sensitive than the primary color filter (Abe, Fig. 24, Filter layer 130W).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to WESLEY JASON CHIU whose telephone number is (571)270-1312. The examiner can normally be reached Mon-Fri: 8am-4pm.
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/WESLEY J CHIU/ Examiner, Art Unit 2639
/TWYLER L HASKINS/ Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2639