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 05-08-2026 is acknowledged.
Claim 11 is withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to a nonelected invention, there being no allowable generic or linking claim.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 05-08-2026.
Drawings
The drawings are objected to under 37 CFR 1.83(a). The drawings must show every feature of the invention specified in the claims. Therefore, the “light through aperture of the incident surface” as recited in claim 10 must be shown or the feature(s) canceled from the claim(s). No new matter should be entered.
Corrected drawing sheets in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(d) are required in reply to the Office action to avoid abandonment of the application. Any amended replacement drawing sheet should include all of the figures appearing on the immediate prior version of the sheet, even if only one figure is being amended. The figure or figure number of an amended drawing should not be labeled as “amended.” If a drawing figure is to be canceled, the appropriate figure must be removed from the replacement sheet, and where necessary, the remaining figures must be renumbered and appropriate changes made to the brief description of the several views of the drawings for consistency. Additional replacement sheets may be necessary to show the renumbering of the remaining figures. Each drawing sheet submitted after the filing date of an application must be labeled in the top margin as either “Replacement Sheet” or “New Sheet” pursuant to 37 CFR 1.121(d). 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.
Claim Objections
Claims 1 and 9 are objected to because of the following informalities: Claim 1 at line 17 (as numbered by Applicant) and claim 9 at line 28 each recite “chamfering”. It appears they should both read --chamfered-- to make grammatical sense. Appropriate correction is required.
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.
Claims 4 and 7-10 are 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 applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention.
Claim 4 recites “after bonding the strip glass to the workpiece using two opposite surfaces of the strip glass as datum planes”. Claim 1 at step S3 provides antecedent for “bonding the strip glass to the workpiece”, but it does not provide antecedent for bonding “using two opposite surfaces of the strip glass as datum planes”. It is unclear if claim 4 is attempting to further limit the “bonding” step recited in claim 1 at step S3, or if it is reciting a different bonding step.
Claim 4 recites “centers of all spherical structures or aspherical structures on the same strip glass”. This is unclear because claim 1 only recites singular “a strip glass” and claim 2 only recites singular “a spherical structure or an aspherical structure”. There is no previous recitation other spherical structures of aspherical structures, and “the same strip glass” suggests that there are additional strip glasses.
Claim 7 recites “centers of a spherical structure or an aspherical structure…are in the same horizontal plane”. This is unclear because a spherical structure or an aspherical structure would only have one center. Additionally, claim 2 already recites “a spherical structure or an aspherical structure”, and it is unclear if claim 7 intends to refer back to the previously recited limitation, or if it is introducing a new separate structure.
Claim 7 recites “after bonding the strip glass to the workpiece using the incident surface and the right-angled surface of the strip glass as datum planes”. Claim 1 at step S6 provides antecedent for “bonding the strip glass to the workpiece”, but it does not provide antecedent for bonding “using the incident surface and the right-angled surface of the strip glass as datum planes”. It is unclear if claim 7 is attempting to further limit the “bonding” step recited in claim 1 at step S6, or if it is reciting a different bonding step.
Claim 8 recites “S62, performing a second grinding on the reflective surface after grinding”. It is unclear what “after grinding” is referring to. In claim 1, step S3 recites “a first grinding”, and step S6 does not recite any grinding.
The term “high reflective” in claim 9 is a relative term which renders the claim indefinite. The term “high reflective” is not defined by the claim, the specification does not provide a standard for ascertaining the requisite degree, and one of ordinary skill in the art would not be reasonably apprised of the scope of the invention. It is unclear how reflective a film must be to be considered “high reflective”.
Claim 10 recites “the aspherical prism” (singular). However, claim 1 previously recites “aspherical prisms” (plural) in steps S9 and S10. It is unclear if claim 10 is referring to a particular single prism.
Claim 10 recites “applying ink to an outside of a light-through aperture of the incident surface”. The claim does not previously recite the presence or forming of any apertures of the incident surface, and the drawings do not illustrate any apertures, and thus the nexus of this limitation with the claimed method is unclear.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 1-3 and 5-6 are allowable, except for the claim objections above.
***As allowable subject matter has been indicated, applicant's reply must either comply with all formal requirements or specifically traverse each requirement not complied with. See 37 CFR 1.111(b) and MPEP § 707.07(a).
Claims 4 and 7-10 would be allowable if rewritten or amended to overcome the rejection(s) under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), 2nd paragraph, set forth in this Office action.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter: The prior art teaches many elements of the claimed method. However, there is not sufficient teaching, suggestion, or motivation to combine all of the teachings in the manner claimed, without improper hindsight reasoning, to arrive at the claimed method.
CN 114750031 A (Zhang – English equivalent publication US 2025/0109053 A1 referenced herein) teaches:
molding a lens configured to form an incident surface and a prism integrally using a hot press molding method to obtain a strip glass (¶ [0036], [0042]; Fig. 1)
bonding the strip glass to a workpiece and performing a first grinding and a first polishing on a right-angled surface according to a predetermined size; wherein a machining volume for the first polishing is reserved after the first grinding (¶ [0037], [0044]; Fig. 2)
bonding the strip glass to a workpiece and machining a reflective surface (¶ [0038], [0045]-[0050])
coating the strip glass (¶ [0040], [0062])
cutting the strip glass into individual aspherical prisms (¶ [0039], [0057]-[0059])
applying ink to the aspherical prisms (¶ [0041], [0063]).
Zhang is silent regarding the initial cutting of a molding glass body into a strip glass, machining a curved surface structure on the right-angled surface after the first polishing, performing a second polishing on the machined curved surface, bonding the strip glass to the same workpiece for the first grinding and first polishing and for the machining of the reflective surface, and chamfering edges of the strip glass after machining the reflective surface.
CN 117850012 A (Wang – English language translation provided herewith and referenced herein) also suggests molding a lens configured to form an incident surface and a prism integrally to obtain a strip glass (p. 1, lines 41-47; p. 3, lines 39-44), and that each of the right-angled surface, the reflective surface, and the light-transmitting lens surface are polished (p. 1, lines 49-52; p. 3, lines 47-49). The strip glass is cut into individual aspherical prisms (p. 2, lines 46-48; p. 4, lines 46-47). Wang further suggests a chamfered edge (Figs. 1, 3, 4), which may correspond to “leftover material” 12 or 13, which is described as being cut off, but not otherwise described in detail.
US 6,305,194 B1 (Budinski) suggests molding a plurality of lenses by hot pressing to obtain a molding body glass (Abstract), which can be cut into a strip glass for lens singulation (column 5, lines 3-5; column 7, lines 10-21; Figs. 6, 9; claim 4), but there is no suggestion of processing of the strip glass as claimed and subsequent cutting into individual elements.
US 2021/0333476 A1 (Kang) also suggests molding a plurality of lenses by pressing to obtain a molding glass body (¶ [0068]-[0075]; Fig. 3b-3c), which can be cut into a strip glass (¶ [0076]-[0082]; Fig. 3d). However the strips are intended to remain joined rather than singulated.
US 2007/0056325 A1 (Wang) suggests molding a plurality of lenses by hot pressing to obtain a molding glass body (¶ [0026]) and then cutting along X and Y directions to obtain a plurality of individual optical elements (¶ [0028]). However Wang does not teach or suggest cutting into strips, processing the strips, and then cutting into individual optical elements. The products of Wang are also not aspherical prisms as claimed.
US 2022/0052511 A1 (Lu) suggests an aspherical prism with two aspheric surfaces (Figs. 5-6, lens array 14 with aspheric lenses 141, 142). Lu suggests the lens array 14 can be formed through “processing” and “compression molding” (¶ [0050]), but there is no additional disclosure of specific processing steps, there is no disclosure of the material of the lens array, and the lens array is intended to remain integral rather than be cut into individual aspherical prisms.
US 2016/0025932 A1 (Shi) suggests a prism with two curved lens surfaces and a reflective surface. However the prism and lenses are made of polymer and are all shaped by integral press molding (Figs. 1, 2, 5, 9). There is no suggestion to machine a curved surface structure on a right-angled surface as claimed.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Erin Snelting whose telephone number is (571)272-7169. The examiner can normally be reached Monday to Friday, 8:00 to 5:00.
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/ERIN SNELTING/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1741
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