DETAILED ACTION
Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status
The present application is being examined under the pre-AIA first to invent provisions.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of 35 U.S.C. 112(a):
(a) IN GENERAL.—The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor or joint inventor of carrying out the invention.
The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112:
The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor of carrying out his invention.
Claims 9-15 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(a) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), first paragraph, as failing to comply with the written description requirement. The claim(s) contains subject matter which was not described in the specification in such a way as to reasonably convey to one skilled in the relevant art that the inventor or a joint inventor, or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the inventor(s), at the time the application was filed, had possession of the claimed invention. Claim 9 recites first, second and third content displayed on a display, however fig. 22 and page 24, lines 4-10 of the specification teaches static content 118A and moving content 118B, it is unclear how content 118A and 118B show first, second and third content. Additionally, the specification at page 24, lines 4-5 discuss fig. 22 illustrating the display 12 of fig. 21, where the display 12 of fig. 21 is a circular display which includes points A, B, C and D (as also shown in fig. 22). The device 12 of fig. 18 however does not include points A, B, C, and D. It is unclear how the claimed opposing faces and wall with a surface which displays first, second and third content are shown in fig. 21. Claims 10-15 do not further limit claim 9 to overcome the new matter rejection.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
The following is a quotation of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 103(a) which forms the basis for all obviousness rejections set forth in this Office action:
(a) A patent may not be obtained though the invention is not identically disclosed or described as set forth in section 102, if the differences between the subject matter sought to be patented and the prior art are such that the subject matter as a whole would have been obvious at the time the invention was made to a person having ordinary skill in the art to which said subject matter pertains. Patentability shall not be negated by the manner in which the invention was made.
Claims 1-8 are rejected under pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 103(a) as being unpatentable over Kang et al. (US PGPub 2011/0128241) in view of Scholler (US 8,381,102) and Richardson et al. (US PGPub 2013/0033434).
Regarding claim 1, Kang discloses an electronic device (figs. 2A-2E) having front and rear surfaces (fig. 2D and 2E), the electronic device comprising:
a housing having a sidewall between the front and rear surfaces ([0012], “a mobile terminal according to the present invention includes a housing, a main display unit provided to a front side of the housing, a first subdisplay unit provided one lateral side of the housing”);
a planar display portion on the front surface (fig. 2D, display 151);
a display portion on the sidewall (fig. 2D, display module 133);
a touch sensor layer having a first portion that gathers touch input on the front surface and a second portion that gathers touch input on the sidewall ([0010], “the mobile terminal having a touchscreen provided to at least two sides of the mobile terminal in association with a scheme for displaying the touchscreen provided to the at least two sides of the mobile terminal”); and
a (figs. (4-3)-(4-6) and [0117]-[0120]: where a flicking or dragging gesture causes a touched object 413 to be shifted from the main display 400 to a second subdisplay 600 via the first subdisplay 500 where the first subdisplay 500 would be the side display).
While Kang discloses adjusting display data on a sidewall of a device based on a flick motion, it has been known to use a motion sensor to adjust display information. In a similar field of endeavor of display devices, Scholler discloses a motion sensor (column 6, lines 26-38, “According to step S206 in FIG. 2, detection module 104 may determine a motion of device 300 relative to the neutral position of device 300. For example, as shown in FIG. 3C, device 300 may be tilted in the direction of either arrow 310a or arrow 310b. In some aspects, the motion of device 300 may comprise at least one of a velocity of device 300 (e.g., angular velocity) and a displacement of device 300 (e.g., angular displacement). Detection module 104 may receive the velocity from an accelerometer and/or a gyroscope of device 300. Furthermore, detection module 104 may determine the angular displacement value of device 300 relative to the neutral position by multiplying a duration of the motion of device 300 with the angular velocity of device 300”).
In view of the teachings of Kang and Scholler, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to use a motion sensor, as taught by Scholler, in the system of Kang, for the purpose of improving a user’s experience by using a motion sensor to scroll information on a display which would provide an intuitive experience.
While the combination of Kang and Scholler teaches a display on a sidewall of a device, it has been known that a side can be curved. In a similar field of endeavor of display devices, Richardson discloses wherein the sidewall and the additional display portion are curved ([0022] and fig. 2B, “The display 12 comprises a central portion 14 and at least a curved side portion 16”).
In view of the teachings of Kang, Scholler and Richardson, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to have the side curved as taught by Richardson, within the system of Kang and Scholler, for the purpose of improving aesthetic and ease of user’s grip.
Regarding claim 2, the combination of Kang, Scholler and Richardson further discloses wherein the housing has opposing end faces between the front and rear surfaces and the curved sidewall couples the opposing end faces (Kang: fig. 2D, shows the device being 3-dimensional; Scholler: fig. 3C, shows the top side of device 300; Richardson: fig. 2B, shows the device being 3-dimensional).
Regarding claim 3, the combination of Kang, Scholler and Richardson discloses wherein the motion sensor comprises an accelerometer (Scholler: column 6, lines 33-34, “Detection module 104 may receive the velocity from an accelerometer and/or a gyroscope of device 300.”).
Regarding claim 4, the combination of Kang, Scholler and Richardson further discloses wherein the display content is scrolled at a speed that is based on the information from the motion sensor (Scholler: column 6, lines 39-43: “According to step S208 in FIG. 2, display module 106 may visually scroll through stack of items 302 in response to the motion of device 300. In some aspects, stack of items 302 may be scrolled through based on the angular displacement value of device 300” and column 2, lines 7-8, “visually scroll through the stack of items based on the angular displacement value, the speed factor, and the direction factor”).
Regarding claim 5, the combination of Kang, Scholler and Richardson further discloses wherein the display content has a displayed orientation that is based on the information from the motion sensor (Scholler: column 3, lines 27-36, “For example, if the user tilts the mobile device forward while the mobile device is in a portrait mode (e.g., when the screen of the mobile device is oriented vertically from the user's perspective and may be taller than it is wide), the stack of items may be visually scrolled through in an upward direction relative to the screen of the mobile device, thereby allowing the user to quickly view the contents of each of the items as the items move upward without necessarily having to rely on the user's finger gestures for the scrolling”).
Regarding claim 6, the combination of Kang, Scholler and Richardson further discloses wherein the display content is moved in synchronization with movement of the electronic device (Kang: ([0163]-[0165], “A terminal user shakes the mobile terminal 100 or can rotate the mobile terminal 100 in a prescribed direction. If so, a motion of the mobile terminal 100 (i.e., a motion of the terminal housing) can be detected by the sensing unit 140. According to the detected motion, the controller 180 is able to control the second subdisplay 600 to display second information of the multimedia file.”).
Regarding claim 7, the combination of Kang, Scholler and Richardson further discloses wherein additional display content on the curved display portion remains in a fixed position while the display content is adjusted (Kang: [0125], “Yet, irrespective of the picture switching of the main display 400, the shifted object 413 keeps being displayed on the second subdisplay 600 [S34]” and [0156], “FIG. 9 shows that the indicator bar 430 remains still when the list is being scrolled”).
Regarding claim 8, the combination of Kang, Scholler and Richardson further discloses wherein the display content wraps around the housing (Kang: figs. 4 and 9 and [0117]-[0120]: where a flicking or dragging gesture causes a touched object 413 to be shifted from the main display 400 to a second subdisplay 600 via the first subdisplay 500 where the first subdisplay 500 would be the side display).
Claims 9, 11-13, and 15 are rejected under pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 103(a) as being unpatentable over Kang in view of Scholler Raffle et al. (US PGPub 2013/0003708).
Regarding claim 9, Kang discloses an electronic device (figs. 2A-2E) having opposing faces surfaces (fig. 2D and 2E), the electronic device comprising:
a housing having a wall extending between the faces ([0012], “a mobile terminal according to the present invention includes a housing, a main display unit provided to a front side of the housing, a first subdisplay unit provided one lateral side of the housing”);
a display configured to display content on the surface (fig. 2D, display 151 and see fig. 9 which shows an indicator bar 430 and other items displayed);
a touch sensor layer that gathers touch input on the surface ([0010], “the mobile terminal having a touchscreen provided to at least two sides of the mobile terminal in association with a scheme for displaying the touchscreen provided to the at least two sides of the mobile terminal”);
a([0053], “orientation or acceleration/deceleration of the mobile terminal 100) and
control circuitry configured to modify the content currently being displayed on the display based on data from the ([0156], “FIG. 9 shows that the indicator bar 430 remains still when the list is being scrolled”).
While Kang discloses sensing acceleration of the mobile terminal ([0053]) without describing what type of sensor is used, it has been known to use an accelerometer to perform such sensing. In a similar field of endeavor of display devices, Scholler discloses an accelerometer (Scholler: column 6, lines 33-34, “Detection module 104 may receive the velocity from an accelerometer and/or a gyroscope of device 300.”).
In view of the teachings of Kang and Scholler, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to use the accelerometer of Scholler, to perform the acceleration sensing in Kang, as a known alternative where an accelerometer is a known specific type of acceleration sensor.
While the combination of Kang and Scholler discloses modifying content based on sensing means, it has been known to modify first content without modifying additional content. Ina similar field of endeavor of display devices, Raffle discloses display first, second and third content, wherein the first content is between the second and third content (fig. 5, dynamic content 640 appearing in front of static content as the pages of the ebook); modify the first content currently being displayed on the display based on data from the accelerometer without modifying the second or third content ([0004], “A method, apparatus and computer program product are provided to enable an apparatus, such as an electronic reading device, to display interactive dynamic content in front of static content. As such, the user experience for the user of an electronic reading device may be enhanced with an animated character configured to interact with a reader”).
In view of the teachings of Kang, Scholler and Raffle, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to modify the content as taught by Raffle, within the system of Kang and Scholler, for the purpose of enhancing a user’s experience by including an interactive character (Raffle: [0004]).
Regarding claim 11, the combination of Kang, Scholler and Raffle further discloses wherein the first content comprising moving content and the second content comprises static content ([0049], “An example embodiment of dynamic content appearing in front of static content is illustrated in FIG. 5”).
Regarding claim 12, the combination of Kang, Scholler and Raffle further discloses wherein the accelerometer detects an orientation of the electronic device and wherein the first content has a displayed orientation that is based on the orientation of the electronic device (Scholler: column 3, lines 27-36, “For example, if the user tilts the mobile device forward while the mobile device is in a portrait mode (e.g., when the screen of the mobile device is oriented vertically from the user's perspective and may be taller than it is wide), the stack of items may be visually scrolled through in an upward direction relative to the screen of the mobile device, thereby allowing the user to quickly view the contents of each of the items as the items move upward without necessarily having to rely on the user's finger gestures for the scrolling”).
Regarding claim 13, the combination of Kang, Scholler and Raffle further discloses wherein the control circuitry is further configured to scroll the first content based on the data from the accelerometer (Scholler: column 6, lines 39-43: “According to step S208 in FIG. 2, display module 106 may visually scroll through stack of items 302 in response to the motion of device 300. In some aspects, stack of items 302 may be scrolled through based on the angular displacement value of device 300” and column 2, lines 7-8, “visually scroll through the stack of items based on the angular displacement value, the speed factor, and the direction factor”).
Regarding claim 15, the combination of Kang, Scholler and Raffle further discloses wherein the control circuitry is further configured to continually update the first content in response to rotational motion of the electronic device detected by the accelerometer (Scholler: column 6, lines 39-43: “According to step S208 in FIG. 2, display module 106 may visually scroll through stack of items 302 in response to the motion of device 300. In some aspects, stack of items 302 may be scrolled through based on the angular displacement value of device 300” and column 2, lines 7-8, “visually scroll through the stack of items based on the angular displacement value, the speed factor, and the direction factor”).
Claim 10 is rejected under pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 103(a) as being unpatentable over Kang, Scholler and Raffle further in view of Richardson.
Regarding claim 10, while the combination of Kang, Scholler and Raffle teaches a display on a sidewall of a device, it has been known that a side can be curved. In a similar field of endeavor of display devices, Richardson discloses wherein the sidewall is a curved sidewall ([0022] and fig. 2B, “The display 12 comprises a central portion 14 and at least a curved side portion 16”).
In view of the teachings of Kang, Scholler, Raffle and Richardson, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to have the side curved as taught by Richardson, within the system of Kang, Scholler and Raffle, for the purpose of improving aesthetic and ease of user’s grip.
Claim 14 is rejected under pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 103(a) as being unpatentable over Kang, Scholler and Raffle further in view of Seo et al. (US PGPub 2013/0321340).
Regarding claim 14, while the combination of Kang, Scholler and Raffle teaches control circuitry configured to modify display content based on the data from the accelerometer (see claim 9), it has been known that flipping pages is a type of modifying content. In a similar field of endeavor of display devices, Seo discloses wherein the control circuitry is further configured to flip pages of the first content ([0321], “As illustrated in FIG. 18B, the first and second touch screens 12 and 14 replace the first and second pages 802a and 804 with succeeding third and fourth pages 802b and 804b and display the third and fourth pages 802b and 804b in response to the detection of the touch gesture 800a. At this time, the third and fourth pages 802b and 804b may be displayed with a three dimensional graphic effect of turning the second page 804a. After the second page 804a is turned, the edge lines 802 and 804 of the previous and next pages of the third and fourth pages 802b and 804b are still displayed.”).
In view of the teachings of Kang, Scholler, Raffle and Seo, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to flip pages of the display content, as taught by Seo, in the system of Kang, Scholler and Raffle, as a known affect to improve a user experience with an e-reader.
Claims 16-18 and 20 are rejected under pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 103(a) as being unpatentable over Kang, Scholler and Cannon (US PGPub 2012/0050198).
Regarding claim 16, Kang discloses an electronic device (figs. 2A-2E) having first and second planar surfaces (fig. 2D and 2E), the electronic device comprising:
a housing having a sidewall between the first and second planar surfaces ([0012], “a mobile terminal according to the present invention includes a housing, a main display unit provided to a front side of the housing, a first subdisplay unit provided one lateral side of the housing”);
a first array of organic light-emitting diode pixels on the first planar surface ([0058], organic light-emitting diode display and fig. 2D, display 151);
a second array of organic light-emitting diode pixels on the sidewall (fig. 2D, display 133), wherein the first and second arrays of organic light-emitting diode pixels are configured to produce display content ([0058], “The display module 151 may be implemented using known display technologies including, for example, a liquid crystal display (LCD), a thin film transistor-liquid crystal display (TFT-LCD), an organic light-emitting diode display (OLED), a flexible display and a three-dimensional display. The mobile terminal 100 may include one or more of such displays”);
a touch sensor having a first portion that gathers touch input on the first planar surface and a second portion that gathers touch input on the sidewall ([0010], “the mobile terminal having a touchscreen provided to at least two sides of the mobile terminal in association with a scheme for displaying the touchscreen provided to the at least two sides of the mobile terminal”);
a ([0053], “orientation or acceleration/deceleration of the mobile terminal 100); and
control circuitry that adjusts the display content based on data from the sensing means ([0163]-[0165], “A terminal user shakes the mobile terminal 100 or can rotate the mobile terminal 100 in a prescribed direction. If so, a motion of the mobile terminal 100 (i.e., a motion of the terminal housing) can be detected by the sensing unit 140. According to the detected motion, the controller 180 is able to control the second subdisplay 600 to display second information of the multimedia file.” and [0166], “FIG. 11 exemplarily shows that the first and second information of the multimedia file are displayed on the second subdisplay 600. Alternatively, the first and second information can be displayed on the first subdisplay 500.”).
While Kang discloses sensing acceleration of the mobile terminal ([0053]) without describing what type of sensor is used, it has been known to use an accelerometer to perform such sensing. In a similar field of endeavor of display devices, Scholler discloses a sensor (column 6, lines 33-34, “Detection module 104 may receive the velocity from an accelerometer and/or a gyroscope of device 300.”); and control circuitry that scrolls the display content at a speed that is based on data from the sensor (column 6, lines 39-43: “According to step S208 in FIG. 2, display module 106 may visually scroll through stack of items 302 in response to the motion of device 300. In some aspects, stack of items 302 may be scrolled through based on the angular displacement value of device 300” and column 2, lines 7-8, “visually scroll through the stack of items based on the angular displacement value, the speed factor, and the direction factor”).
In view of the teachings of Kang and Scholler, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to scroll items on a display module of Scholler, to perform the acceleration sensing in Kang, as a known alternative where improving a user’s experience by using a motion sensor to scroll information on a display which would provide an intuitive experience.
While the combination of Kang and Scholler teaches a housing having a sidewall, it has been known to have the sidewall couple opposing end faces of the housing. In a similar field of endeavor of display devices, Cannon discloses a housing having a sidewall and opposing end faces, wherein the sidewall couples the opposing end faces ([0124], “Referring to FIG. 4, an electronic device 50 includes a housing 52 with a port 54”).
In view of the teachings of Kang, Scholler and Cannon, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to include the housing structure of Cannon within the system of Kang and Scholler, for the purpose of providing a known structure that improves a user’s experience by improving how a device fits in a user’s hand.
Regarding claim 17, the combination of Kang, Scholler and Cannon further discloses further comprising: a port on at least one of the end faces (Cannon: [0124], “Referring to FIG. 4, an electronic device 50 includes a housing 52 with a port 54”).
Regarding claim 18, the combination of Kang, Scholler and Cannon further discloses wherein the port is selected from the group consisting of: a connector port, a microphone port, a speaker port, and an audio jack port (Cannon: [0124], “In one embodiment, as shown in FIG. 4, the component 60 includes a plug 62 that can be inserted into the port 54 of device 50. The plug 62 is connected to a wire 64 coupled to one or more headphones 66 and 68”).
Regarding claim 20, the combination of Kang, Scholler and Cannon further discloses wherein the sensor comprises an accelerometer (Scholler: column 6, lines 33-34, “Detection module 104 may receive the velocity from an accelerometer and/or a gyroscope of device 300.”).
Claim 19 is rejected under pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 103(a) as being unpatentable over Kang, Scholler and Cannon further in view of Richardson.
Regarding claim 19, while the combination of Kang and Scholler teaches a display on a sidewall of a device, it has been known that a side can be curved. In a similar field of endeavor of display devices, Richardson discloses wherein the sidewall is a curved sidewall ([0022] and fig. 2B, “The display 12 comprises a central portion 14 and at least a curved side portion 16”).
In view of the teachings of Kang, Scholler and Richardson, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to have the side curved as taught by Richardson, within the system of Kang and Scholler, for the purpose of improving aesthetic and ease of user’s grip.
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed 02/04/2026 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive. Regarding claim 1, Applicants argue “Therefore, it would not be obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to modify curved side portion 16A in the same manner that top additional display portion 133 is modified” (page 11, paragraph 1), however Examiner respectfully disagrees. Examiner maintains that “side” and “top” are just a relationship to the front of a device and if a device is turned the “top” could become the “side”. Claim 1 defines a sidewall between the front and rear surfaces of an electronic device, where a top or a side would both read on “sidewall” as both the top and the side are between the front and rear surfaces. Therefore, the combination of Kang, Scholler and Richardson discloses the claimed limitations including the curved side of claim 1.
Applicant’s arguments with respect to claim(s) 9 and 16 have been considered but are moot because the new ground of rejection does not rely on any reference applied in the prior rejection of record for any teaching or matter specifically challenged in the argument.
Conclusion
Applicant's amendment necessitated the new ground(s) of rejection presented in this Office action. Accordingly, THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. See MPEP § 706.07(a). Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to EMILY J FRANK whose telephone number is (571)270-7255. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Thursday 8AM-6PM.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Benjamin C Lee can be reached at (571)272-2963. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/EJF/
/BENJAMIN C LEE/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2629
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