DETAILED ACTION
This Office action is responsive to Applicant’s response submitted 04 June 2026.
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 .
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status.
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) 1-3 and 6-8 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over U.S. Patent Application Publication 2017/0357054 to Sugiyama et al.
In regards to claim 1, Sugiyama recites an optical multiplex/demultiplex circuit (Figure 1) which includes first and second waveguides (112 & 113), is made up of an asymmetric Mach-Zehnder interferometer (MZ) in which two arms having different lengths [0026] are formed between two coupler portions, and multiplexes and demultiplexes light of a first and second wavelength, the second wavelength being different than the first wavelength (wavelength filter splits the light into different wavelengths), wherein a second waveguide core width of the arm of the second waveguide through which light of the second wavelength is input is larger than a first waveguide core with of the arm of the first waveguide through which light of the first wavelength is input. ([0049 & claim 4). Although Sugiyama does not expressly recite the second wavelength being shorter than the first wavelength, Sugiyama does teach a wavelength filter to split the input light into different wavelengths. Furthermore, Sugiyama teaches the device to be a wavelength demultiplexing/multiplexing device, where the device is capable of splitting wavelengths. Since it would be advantageous to have split the wavelengths into the desired waveguide arm for the desired light output, it would have been obvious before the effective filing date to a person having ordinary skill in the art to have chosen the second wavelength being shorter than the first wavelength
In regards to claims 2 and 3, Sugiyama recites wherein the arm of the second waveguide through which the light of the second wavelength is input includes a waveguide width expansion part having the second waveguide core width, and a waveguide width conversion part which is a tapered waveguide (Figure 1) which connects the waveguide width expansion part and the waveguide having the first waveguide core width (Figure 1) and wherein, in the two coupler portions, a waveguide core width of the arm of the second waveguide which the light of the second wavelength input is made thicker to be equal to the second waveguide core width (Figure 1).
In regards to claims 6-8, Sugiyama recites the waveguide constituting the asymmetric MZ is a silica-based planar lightwave circuit (Figure 4; 70) and a directional coupler (22). Although Sugiyama does not expressly recite ZrO2 as a dopant, multiplexes/demultiplexes at least blue light and green light; and a mode coupler which multiplexes an output of the optical multiplex/demultiplex circuit and red light, Sugiyama does recite the filters in the device to be designed to separate the different wavelengths (red, blue, green) and shift the wavelengths as desired. Furthermore, choosing a known dopant such as ZrO2 to further alter the light signal in the waveguide to the desired output would have been a matter of common skill to one of ordinary skill in the art. since ZrO2 is a known dopant, readily available and allows for the manipulation of the light signal as desired. Therefore, it would have been obvious before the effective filing date to a person having ordinary skill in the art for there to have a ZrO2 as a dopant, and multiplexes/demultiplexes at least blue light and green light; and a mode coupler which multiplexes an output of the optical multiplex/demultiplex circuit and red light.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 4 and 5 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 prior art of record fails to disclose or reasonably suggest a third waveguide core width of an arm of the first waveguide through which the light of the first wavelength is input is larger than the first waveguide core width and shorter than the second waveguide core width in addition to the accompanying features of the independent claim and any intervening claims. \
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments 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.
References Cited
The references cited made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant’s disclosure. The documents submitted by applicant in the Information Disclosure Statement have been considered and made of record. Note attached copy of form PTO-1449. None of the references cited by the Examiner or submitted by Applicant discloses or reasonably suggest the allowable subject matter discussed above.
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 TINA M WONG whose telephone number is (571)272-2352. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 8:30-5:30.
Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Uyen-Chau Le can be reached at (571) 272-2397. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000.
/TINA WONG/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2874
Prosecution Insights