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 .
Response to Amendment
The amendment filed on 05/14/2026 has been considered by Examiner.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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 1-3 and 7 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Guo et al (US 2022/0392970 A1) in view of Bok et al (US 2021/0191552 A1).
Claim 1, Guo (Fig. 1-9) discloses an electronic device (Paragraph [0088]; Fig. 1), comprising:
a first display portion (200; Fig. 1 and 2) comprising a substrate (200; Fig. 2; Paragraph [0042]; wherein discloses a second display substrate) and a first array of pixels (Fig. 6; Paragraph 0074]), wherein the first array of pixels has a first pitch (Fig. 6; wherein figure shows a first pitch which is a distance between center points of adjacent pixels; Paragraph [0041]), wherein the first array of pixels (Fig. 6) is arranged in a light-emitting area (200; Fig. 1 and 2), and wherein the first display portion (Fig. 2) has a transparent window (201; Fig. 2; wherein discloses a through slot) that does not include any of the pixels of the first array of pixels (Fig. 6); and
a second display portion (100; Fig. 1 and 3) comprising a substrate (100; Fig. 3; Paragraph [0043]; wherein discloses a first display substrate) and a second array of pixels (Fig. 4; Paragraph [0056]), wherein the second array of pixels (Fig. 4) has a second pitch (Fig. 6; wherein figure shows a second pitch which is a distance between center points of adjacent pixels; Paragraph [0041]) that is different than the first pitch (Fig. 6; wherein figure shows a first pitch which is a distance between center points of adjacent pixels; Paragraph [0041]) and wherein the second array of pixels (100; Fig. 1 and 3) emits light through the transparent window (201; Fig. 2) of the first display portion (200; Fig. 2).
Guo does not expressly disclose a first display portion comprising a glass substrate; and
a second display portion comprising a silicon substrate.
Bok (Fig. 1-104) discloses a first display portion (MDA; Fig. 8H and 8I) comprising a glass substrate (100; Fig. 81 and 82; Paragraph [0236]; wherein discloses “he substrate 100 may include an insulative material, such as glass”); and
a second display portion (CA; Fig. 8H and 8I) comprising a silicon substrate (200; Fig. 81 and 82; Paragraph [0819]; wherein discloses “The substrate 200 may be implemented as a silicon bulk wafer”).
Before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art to modify Guo’s display device by applying different substrates, as taught by Bok, so to use a display device with different substrates for providing and image is realized in the second display area DA2 overlapped by the component area CA by employing the second display panel 20, and thus the brightness and color of the component area CA may be compensated for, leading to an improvement in visibility (Paragraph [0795]).
Claim 2, Bok (Fig. 1-104) discloses wherein the first display portion (10; Fig. 81, 82, and 84B) includes opaque structures (BML; Fig. 81, 82, and 84B; Paragraph [0269]; wherein "The bottom metal layer BML may prevent external light from reaching the auxiliary thin-film transistor TFT") for the first array of pixels (Pr, Pb, and Pg; Fig. 16G and 16H) in the light-emitting area (PG; Fig. 16A, and 16C-16H) and wherein the opaque structures are omitted (BMLH; Fig. 16A, 16C-16H) in the transparent window (TA; Fig. 16A and 16C-16H).
Before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art to modify Guo’s display device by applying different substrates, as taught by Bok, so to use a display device with different substrates for providing and image is realized in the second display area DA2 overlapped by the component area CA by employing the second display panel 20, and thus the brightness and color of the component area CA may be compensated for, leading to an improvement in visibility (Paragraph [0795]).
Claim 3, Bok (Fig. 1-104) discloses wherein the first display portion (10; Fig. 17) includes a thin-film transistor layer (TFT'; Fig. 17) on the glass substrate (100; Fig. 17; Paragraph [0236]), wherein each pixel in the first array of pixels (Pr, Pg, and Pb; Fig. 13A-14C) is controlled by a respective plurality of thin-film transistors (Fig. 11A or 11B) in the thin-film transistor layer (TFT'; Fig. 17), and wherein at least some of the respective plurality of thin-film transistors for each pixel (Fig. 17; wherein figure shows a transparent area in which the thin film transistor was omitted) is omitted in the transparent window (TA; Fig. 17).
Before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art to modify Guo’s display device by applying different substrates, as taught by Bok, so to use a display device with different substrates for providing and image is realized in the second display area DA2 overlapped by the component area CA by employing the second display panel 20, and thus the brightness and color of the component area CA may be compensated for, leading to an improvement in visibility (Paragraph [0795]).
Claim 7, Guo (Fig. 1-9) discloses further comprising:
a first organic light-emitting diode layer (Paragraph [0076]; wherein discloses an OLED) that forms part of the first array of pixels (Fig. 6); and
a second organic light-emitting diode layer (Paragraph [0061]; wherein discloses a PMOLED) that forms part of the second array of pixels (Fig. 4).
Claim 4 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Guo et al (US 2022/0392970 A1) in view of Bok et al (US 2021/0191552 A1) as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of Cancel Olmo et al (US 2018/0269266 A1).
Claim 4, Guo in view of Bok discloses the electronic device defined in claim 1.
Guo in view of Bok does not expressly disclose wherein the first pitch is higher than the second pitch.
Cancel Olmo (Fig. 1A-12) discloses wherein the first pitch (P2; Fig. 1C) is higher than (Paragraph [0038]; wherein discloses “As shown in FIGS. 1B and 1C, display elements 111, 112, 113 may be spaced apart from one another at a pitch P1 and display elements 121, 122 may be spaced apart from one another at a pitch P2 such that P2 is greater than P1 to provide display element density 125 having a lesser density than display element density 115”) the second pitch (P1; Fig. 1B).
Before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art to modify Guo in view of Bok’s display device by applying different pitches, as taught by Cancel Olmo’s, so to use a display device with different pitches for providing foveated display device(s) that have regions of differing display element densities (Paragraph [0084]).
Claim 8 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Guo et al (US 2022/0392970 A1) in view of Bok et al (US 2021/0191552 A1) as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of Chen et al (US 2019/0339570 A1).
Claim 8, Guo in view of Bok discloses the electronic device defined in claim 1.
Chen in view of Bok does not expressly disclose further comprising:
a display driver integrated circuit that drives both the first array of pixels and the second array of pixels. Chen (Fig. 1-16) discloses further comprising:
a display driver integrated circuit (134; Fig. 13; Paragraph [0049]; wherein discloses a panel driving portion) that drives both the first array of pixels (106; Fig. 13) and the second array of pixels (104; Fig. 13).
Before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art to modify Guo in view of Bok's display device by applying a driving circuit, as taught by Chen, so to use a display device with a driving circuit for providing to develop a design that can effectively reduce heterogeneity in the hybrid display device (Paragraph [0005]).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 9-21 are allowed.
Claims 5-6 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.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter:
With respect to claim 9, and dependent claim 5, the claims are directed to Applicant’s figure 4 which teaches the at least one common organic light-emitting diode layer that forms part of both the first array of pixels and the second array of pixels.
For providing to eliminates potential mismatch caused by the light-emitting emissive layers being positioned in different planes. After further review of the Applicant’s submitted argument, the Examiner believes this limitation is not taught or disclosed by the cited prior art references and to be allowable over the currently available prior art references.
With respect to claim 18, the claim is directed to Applicant’s figures 14-15 which teach the attachment structures 160 formed from conductive material that both electrically and mechanically connect the backplane to the frontplane. As one example, the attachment structures 160 may be formed by conductive (e.g., indium) bumps. After further review of the Applicant’s submitted argument, the Examiner believes this limitation is not taught or disclosed by the cited prior art references and to be allowable over the currently available prior art references.
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 ADAM J SNYDER whose telephone number is (571)270-3460. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 8am-4:30pm.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Chanh D Nguyen can be reached at (571)272-7772. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/Adam J Snyder/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2623 06/30/2026
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