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 .
Priority
Receipt is acknowledged of certified copies of papers required by 37 CFR 1.55.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 02/16/2024 is in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner.
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.
Claims 14 and 17-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Ashkenazi (2009/0147331).
Regarding claim 14, Ashkenazi discloses a prismatic collimating device to collimate image bearing light (at least Figures 3 and 5), the prismatic collimating device comprising: a first prism (Figure 5, 142, first prism) and a second prism arranged to receive and collimate a light beam (152, second prism; [0061] teaches 158, surface, allows the light beam to exit at a substantially perpendicular direction to 156, surface, thus interpreted as collimated light), wherein the first prism comprises an output surface (148, surface) adjacent to an input surface of the second prism (158, surface), and the first prism and second prism are arranged such that the light beam undergoes total internal reflection and refraction at both the output surface of the first prism and the input surface of the second prism ([0061]), and each of the first prism and second prism comprises at least three optically powered surfaces (142, first prism, includes 144, 146, and 148, surfaces; 152, second prism, includes 154, 156, and 158, surfaces; [0061]).
Regarding claim 17, Ashkenazi discloses a prismatic collimating device to collimate image bearing light (at least Figures 3 and 5), the prismatic collimating device comprising: a first prism (Figure 5, 142, first prism) and a second prism arranged to receive and collimate a light beam (152, second prism; [0061] teaches 158, surface, allows the light beam to exit at a substantially perpendicular direction to 156, surface, thus interpreted as collimated light), wherein the first prism comprises an output surface (148, surface) adjacent to an input surface of the second prism (158, surface), and an air gap is provided between the output surface and the input surface (160, gap), and the first prism and second prism are arranged such that the light beam undergoes total internal reflection and refraction at both the output surface of the first prism and the input surface of the second prism ([0061]), and each of the first prism and second prism comprises at least three optically powered surfaces (142, first prism, includes 144, 146, and 148, surfaces; 152, second prism, includes 154, 156, and 158, surfaces; [0061]).
Regarding claim 18, Ashkenazi discloses the prismatic collimating device according to claim 17, wherein the first prism and the second prism have a substantially triangular cross-section (Figure 5), and the air gap size is less than 1 mm ([0061] teaches 160, gap, is infinitesimal, and furthermore must be larger than the size of the smallest wavelength in the display image; since visible light is in the range of 380-750 nm, Examiner interprets the gap to be less than 1 mm).
Regarding claim 19, Ashkenazi discloses the prismatic collimating device according to claim 17, wherein: the output surface is configured to reflect light received from a first range of angles (Figure 5 depicts 148, surface, reflects light on 150A, path), and transmit light received from a second range of angles (Figure 5 depicts 148, surface, transmits light on 150D, path); and the input surface is configured to reflect light received from a third range of angles (Figure 5 depicts 158, surface, reflects light on 150F, path), and transmit light received from a fourth range of angles (Figure 5 depicts 158, surface, transmits light on 150D, path).
Regarding claim 20, Ashkenazi discloses the prismatic collimating device according to claim 19, wherein the first range of angles and the second range of angles have zero overlap (Figure 5 depicts 150A, path, and 150D, path, do not overlap in angle), and wherein the third range of angles and the fourth range of angles have zero overlap (Figure 5 depicts 150F, path, and 150D, path, do not overlap in angle).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 1-13 are allowed.
Claims 15 and 16 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: the prior art fails to teach or suggest the third surface configured to reflect light received, from the second surface, towards the second surface; and the fifth surface configured to receive light, from the fourth surface, and reflect towards the fourth surface, along with the structural limitations positively recited in claims 1 and 15. Claims 2-13 are dependent on claim 1, and are therefore allowable. Claim 16 is dependent on claim 15, and is therefore objected to for at least the same reasons.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Cheng (2019/0377185), Morant (2017/0285453), and Liao (8,104,898) disclose relevant prismatic devices.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to BALRAM T PARBADIA whose telephone number is (571)270-0602. The examiner can normally be reached 9:00 am - 5:00 pm, Monday - Friday.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Bumsuk Won can be reached at (571) 272-2713. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/BALRAM T PARBADIA/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2872