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 .
This action is in response to IDS filed on 05/25/2026 and RCE filed on the same day.
Application claims a FP date of 4/26/2023
Claim 1 is independent
Claims 1-9 are pending
Continued Examination Under 37 CFR 1.114
A request for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, including the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e), was filed in this application after allowance. Since this application is eligible for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, prosecution in this application has been reopened pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114. Applicant's submission filed on 05/25/2026 has been entered.
Applicant is advised that the Notice of Allowance mailed 02/02/2026 is vacated. If the issue fee has already been paid, applicant may request a refund or request that the fee be credited to a deposit account. However, applicant may wait until the application is either found allowable or held abandoned. If allowed, upon receipt of a new Notice of Allowance, applicant may request that the previously submitted issue fee be applied. If abandoned, applicant may request refund or credit to a specified Deposit Account.
Prosecution on the merits of this application is reopened on claims 1-9 considered unpatentable for the reasons indicated in the detailed action below.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 05/26/2026 is in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97 and 37 CFR 1.98(a)(4). Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner.
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.
(a)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claim(s) 1-6 and 9 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1)/(a)(2) as being anticipated by Applicant disclosed prior art Hibino et al. (U.S. Patent Publication Number 2017/0372176 A1).
Regarding Claim 1, Hibino discloses an imaging device (Fig 1- camera system 1 used in vehicle 5) comprising:
a camera module which includes a lens (Fig 2 – lens unit 11a), a holder in which the lens is disposed (In ¶0038 Hibino discloses that lens unit 11a has plurality of lenses and a cylindrical lens barrel for holding the plurality of lenses), and an image sensor (Fig 2 – imager sensor 21) which captures an image using light having passed through the lens and outputs the captured image in a form of an electrical signal (In ¶0040 Hibino discloses that the imager sensor includes a photosensor array 31;¶0041);
a board (Fig 2- first substrate 11b) which derives the electrical signal from the image sensor (In ¶0052 Hibino discloses that communication unit 23 outputs image information acquired by the image sensor 21 to the second substrate 12);
a case (Fig 2 – camera casing 15); and
a cover (Fig 2 – fixture 17 has been interpreted as the cover) which defines an inner chamber along with the case in which the lens, the holder, , and the board are disposed (In Fig 2 Hibino discloses the fixture 17 houses the case 15, lens 11a, lens barrel, the image sensor21 and first substrate 11b. In ¶0072, Hibino discloses that the first substrate 11b and the second substrate 12 are accommodated in the single casing 15), wherein
the case includes an opening-defining portion which defines an opening through which the holder is inserted (In Fig 2 and in ¶0073, Hibino discloses the opening 63 through which the lens unit 11a of the camera module 11is exposed);
a first wall, second wall (The first and second wall has been annotated Fig2 and is attached below), and a shield (the partition wall 64 has been interpreted as a shield and has also been annotated in Fig2), the first wall being located between the holder and the board, the second wall being arranged on an opposite side of the holder to the first wall (Attached figure 2 below clearly discloses this), the shield extending from the first wall in a first direction (The direction of the optical axis of the camera is interpreted as the first direction and the shield – partition wall 64 – is parallel to the optical axis of the imaging device) and being located between the holder and the board in the inner chamber defined by the case and the cover (Hibino discloses this as clearly revealed in the Fig 2 and in the figure below.).
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Regarding Claim 2, Hibino discloses wherein the shield is formed integrally with the first wall (In Fig 2 Hibino clearly discloses that the partition wall 64 is disposed inside the casing and integral to the casing wall. See ¶0074).
Regarding Claim 3, Hibino discloses wherein the first direction is a direction in which an optical axis (OL) of the lens extends (The direction of the optical axis of the camera is interpreted as the first direction and the shield – partition wall 64 – is parallel to the optical axis of the imaging device).
Regarding Claim 4, Hibino discloses wherein the shield is oriented to slant relative to an optical axis (OL) of the lens (Hibino discloses this in Figs 12 and 13) to have a first distance (L1) smaller than a second distance (L2), the first distance being a distance between an end of the shield and the holder in a direction traversing the optical axis, the end of the shield facing in the first direction, the second distance being a distance between the holder and a boundary of the shield and the first wall in the direction traversing the optical axis (The annotated Fig 13 below discloses Examiner’s interpretation of L1 and L2. It is clear from the figure that L1 is smaller than L2).
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Regarding Claim 5, Hibino discloses wherein the second wall includes a holder-facing surface and an outer surface (As annotated in Fig 2 above and since the second wall has a thickness, it is clear that the second wall will have a surface facing the holder or lens barrel and the portion of the casing as interpreted as second wall, will also have an outer surface), the holder-facing surface being oriented to face the holder in a direction traversing an optical axis (OL) of the lens (The second wall faces the lens barrel and therefore it will be in a direction traversing the optical axis), the outer surface extending to intersect the holder-facing surface, connecting with the holder-facing surface, and facing outside the case, the shield has an end which faces in the first direction and is located away from the outer surface in the first direction (Hibino’s disclosure of the casing 15 and the portion interpreted as “second wall” is parallel and is in the same orientation and structure as the instant application and therefore Hibino discloses all the limitations of Claim 5).
Regarding Claim 6, Hibino discloses wherein an end of the shield which faces in the first direction is located away from an end of the board in the first direction (Hibino in Fig 2).
Regarding Claim 9, Hibino discloses wherein the second wall (As shown in the annotated figure 2 above) is located away from the first wall (As shown in the annotated figure 2 above) in the first direction (Hibino discloses that the two walls are on either side of the imaging device and is therefore separated in the first direction (optical axis direction)).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 7-8 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.
Reference Cited
The following prior art made of record but not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Wang et al. (U.S. Patent Number 9,871,871 B2) Wang’s disclosure relates to a vehicle vision system that includes a bracket, a stray light shield and a camera module. The bracket is configured to attach at an in-cabin surface of a vehicle windshield. The light shield includes a base portion and side walls that extend upward from the base portion so as to establish a pocket. The camera module includes a camera having an image sensor array and a lens, and the camera module is configured to mount at the bracket. The stray light shield, when the camera module is mounted at the bracket attached at the windshield, shields the image sensor array from light emanating from within the cabin of the vehicle. At least the base portion of the stray light shield comprises light traps structurally established thereat and configured to reduce incidence of extraneous light at the image sensor array.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to PADMA HALIYUR whose telephone number is (571)272-3287. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 7AM - 4PM.
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/PADMA HALIYUR/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2639 June 24, 2026
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