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 statement(s) submitted on September 18, 2024 and December 11, 2024 is/are in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement(s) is/are being considered by the examiner.
Claim Objections
Claim 7 is objected to because of the following informalities: “the” should be inserted between “of” and “multi-” (line 1). Appropriate correction is required.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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, 3, 4, 7-13 and 16-19 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by US 2007/0012940 A1 (hereinafter “Suh”).
Regarding claim 1, Suh discloses in Fig. 3 and related text a light emitting apparatus (30; [0032]) comprising:
a base substrate (31a; [0032]);
a light emitting source (35; [0032]) disposed on the base substrate; and
a multi-refractive layer (36, 37, 38; [0033]-[0034]) disposed on the light emitting source,
wherein the multi-refractive layer comprises a first refractive layer (36; [0033]) and a second refractive layer (37; [0034]) disposed outside the first refractive layer, the first refractive layer having an index of refraction that is lower than an index of refraction of the second refractive layer ([0034]).
Regarding claim 3, Suh discloses the first refractive layer or the second refractive layer includes a flat region (Fig. 3).
Regarding claim 4, Suh discloses at least one layer (36) of the multi-refractive layer comprises a gas (atmosphere; [0016] and [0033]) or a liquid.
Regarding claim 7, Suh discloses at least a region (37) of the multi-refractive layer includes a rough region (37a; Fig. 3; [0034]).
Regarding claim 8, Suh discloses the light emitting source has a refractive index, and the first refractive layer has an index of refraction that is lower than an index of refraction of the light emitting source ([0039]).
Regarding claim 9, Suh discloses a region of the first refractive layer adjoins a region of the light emitting source (Fig. 3).
Regarding claim 10, Suh discloses in Fig. 3 and related text a light emitting apparatus (30; [0032]) comprising:
a base substrate (31a; [0032]);
a light emitting source (35; [0032]) disposed on the base substrate; and
a multi-refractive layer (36, 37, 38; [0033]-[0034]) including a plurality of refractive layers (36, 37, 38) disposed on the light emitting source, the multi-refractive layer comprising:
m layers, m being a natural number greater than or equal to 3,
an nth refractive layer (37; [0034]) corresponding to an nth layer of the multi-refractive layer, n being greater than 1 and less than m, and having an index of refraction RIn;
an n-1th refractive layer (36; [0033]) corresponding to an n-1th layer of the multi-refractive layer and having an index of refraction RIn-1; and
an n+1th refractive layer (38; [0034]) corresponding to an n+1th layer of the multi-refractive layer and having an index of refraction RIn+1,
wherein the index of refraction RIn is greater than the index of refraction RIn-1 and is greater than the index of refraction RIn+1 ([0034]).
Regarding claim 11, Suh discloses a last refractive layer (38; [0034]) of the multi-refractive layer has an index of refraction RIfn, the index of refraction RIfn being greater than an index of refraction of external air (note: resin, which is a liquid phase or solid phase organic material, necessarily has an index of refraction greater than that of gas-phase external air).
Regarding claim 12, Suh discloses a first refractive layer (36; [0033]) of the multi-refractive layer adjacent to the light emitting source has an index of refraction that is lower than an index of refraction of the light emitting source ([0039]).
Regarding claim 13, Suh discloses in Fig. 3 and related text a light emitting module (30; [0032]) comprising:
a module substrate (31a; [0032]);
a light emitting source (35; [0032]) disposed on the module substrate; and
a multi-refractive layer (36, 37, 38; [0033]-[0034]) disposed on the light emitting source,
wherein the multi-refractive layer includes a first refractive layer (36; [0033]) and a second refractive layer (37; [0034]) disposed outside of the first refractive layer, the first refractive layer having an index of refraction that is lower than an index of refraction of the second refractive layer ([0034]).
Regarding claim 16, Suh discloses at least a refractive layer (37) of the first refractive layer or the second refractive layer includes a rough region (37a; Fig. 3; [0034]).
Regarding claim 17, Suh discloses the first refractive layer has an index of refraction that is lower than an index of refraction of the light emitting source ([0039]).
Regarding claim 18, Suh discloses a region of the first refractive layer adjoins a region of the light emitting source (Fig. 3).
Regarding claim 19, Suh discloses at least a layer (36) of the multi-refractive layer comprises a gas (atmosphere; [0016] and [0033]).
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.
Claim(s) 2 and 14 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Suh.
Regarding claim 2, Suh discloses, in the embodiment of Fig. 3, the light emitting apparatus according to claim 1.
Suh does not disclose, in the embodiment of Fig. 3, the first refractive layer or the second refractive layer includes a curved region.
Suh teaches, in the embodiment of Fig. 5(b), the first refractive layer (56; [0053]) or the second refractive layer (57; [0053]) includes a curved region.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to form the first refractive layer or the second refractive layer to include a curved region, as taught by Suh in the embodiment of Fig. 5(b), in order to optimize the spatial distribution of light emitted from the light emitting source in accordance with the intended use of the light emitting apparatus.
Regarding claim 14, Suh discloses, in the embodiment of Fig. 3, the light emitting module according to claim 13.
Suh does not disclose, in the embodiment of Fig. 3, at least one layer of the multi-refractive layer comprises a spacer including a flat region parallel to at least a region of the module substrate and having a predetermined thickness.
Suh teaches, in the embodiment of Fig. 5(a), at least one layer of the multi-refractive layer (46, 47b, 47, 48; [0045]-[0048]) comprises a spacer (47b; [0047]) including a flat region parallel to at least a region of the module substrate (41a; [0044]) and having a predetermined thickness.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to form at least one layer of the multi-refractive layer to comprise a spacer including a flat region parallel to at least a region of the module substrate and having a predetermined thickness, as taught by Suh in the embodiment of Fig. 5(a), in order to facilitate propagation of light emitted from the light emitting source to the second refractive layer (Suh: [0047]).
Claim(s) 5 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Suh in view of US 2024/0363815 A1 (hereinafter “Jang”).
Regarding claim 5, Suh discloses the light emitting apparatus according to claim 1, wherein an outermost refractive layer (38) of the multi-refractive layer covers an upper region of the light emitting source (Fig. 3).
Suh does not disclose a spacer including a region parallel to at least a region of the base substrate and having a predetermined thickness, the spacer comprising a stress reduction region having a curved region.
Jang teaches in Fig. 6 and related text a spacer (x40b, x40c; [0222]) including a region parallel to at least a region of the base substrate (x10; [0254]) and having a predetermined thickness, the spacer comprising a stress reduction region having a curved region ([0222]).
Suh and Jang are analogous art because they both are directed to light emitting diode packages and one of ordinary skill in the art would have had a reasonable expectation of success to modify Suh with the specified features of Jang because they are from the same field of endeavor.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to provide a spacer including a region parallel to at least a region of the base substrate and having a predetermined thickness, the spacer comprising a stress reduction region having a curved region, as taught by Jang, in order to distribute physical stress (e.g., stress due to heat, pressure, etc.) (Jang: [0254]).
Claim(s) 6 and 15 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Suh in view of KR 20080046043 A (hereinafter “Park”).
Regarding claim 6, Suh discloses the light emitting apparatus according to claim 1.
Suh does not disclose the base substrate and the multi-refractive layer comprise a stereobate formed on at least a region of the base substrate or the multi-refractive layer.
Park teaches in Figs. 2, 3 and related text a stereobate (91; Abstract, line 8) formed on at least a region of the base substrate (81; [11]).
Suh and Park are analogous art because they both are directed to light emitting apparatus and one of ordinary skill in the art would have had a reasonable expectation of success to modify Suh with the specified features of Park because they are from the same field of endeavor.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to form a stereobate on at least a region of the base substrate, as taught by Park, in order to improve the utilization efficiency of light (Park: Abstract, line 1).
Regarding claim 15, Suh discloses the light emitting module according to claim 13.
Suh does not disclose the module substrate and the multi-refractive layer is provided with a stereobate on at least a region of the module substrate or the multi-refractive layer.
Park teaches in Figs. 2, 3 and related text a stereobate (91; Abstract, line 8) on at least a region of the module substrate (81; [11]).
Suh and Park are analogous art because they both are directed to light emitting apparatus and one of ordinary skill in the art would have had a reasonable expectation of success to modify Suh with the specified features of Park because they are from the same field of endeavor.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to form a stereobate on at least a region of the module substrate, as taught by Park, in order to improve the utilization efficiency of light (Park: Abstract, line 1).
Claim(s) 20 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Suh in view of US 2022/0293674 A1 (hereinafter “Sung”).
Regarding claim 20, Suh discloses the light emitting module according to claim 13.
Suh does not explicitly disclose a display comprising the light emitting module.
Sung teaches in Fig. 9 and related text a display (1; [0078]) comprising a light emitting module (100; [0078]).
Suh and Sung are analogous art because they both are directed to light emitting modules and one of ordinary skill in the art would have had a reasonable expectation of success to modify Suh with the specified features of Sung because they are from the same field of endeavor.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to provide a display comprising a light emitting module, as taught by Sung, in order to use the light emitting module as a backlight for a display panel of the display device (Sung: [0078]). Alternatively, the light emitting module may be directly used as a display device without being combined with a display panel (Sung: [0079]).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to PETER M ALBRECHT whose telephone number is (571)272-7813. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 9:30 AM - 6:30 PM (CT).
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Lynne Gurley can be reached at (571) 272-1670. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/PETER M ALBRECHT/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2811
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