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 .
Election/Restrictions
Applicant’s election without traverse of Species A – A first embodiment of a display substrate shown in Figs. 1-5M in the reply filed on 7/13/2026 is acknowledged. Claims 10-20 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to a nonelected invention, there being no allowable generic or linking claim.
Therefore, Claims 1-9 are under examination.
Abstract
Applicant is reminded of the proper content of an abstract of the disclosure.
A patent abstract is a concise statement of the technical disclosure of the patent and should include that which is new in the art to which the invention pertains. The abstract should not refer to purported merits or speculative applications of the invention and should not compare the invention with the prior art.
If the patent is of a basic nature, the entire technical disclosure may be new in the art, and the abstract should be directed to the entire disclosure. If the patent is in the nature of an improvement in an old apparatus, process, product, or composition, the abstract should include the technical disclosure of the improvement. The abstract should also mention by way of example any preferred modifications or alternatives.
Where applicable, the abstract should include the following: (1) if a machine or apparatus, its organization and operation; (2) if an article, its method of making; (3) if a chemical compound, its identity and use; (4) if a mixture, its ingredients; (5) if a process, the steps.
Extensive mechanical and design details of an apparatus should not be included in the abstract. The abstract should be in narrative form and generally limited to a single paragraph within the range of 50 to 150 words in length.
See MPEP § 608.01(b) for guidelines for the preparation of patent abstracts.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b):
(b) CONCLUSION.—The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph:
The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention.
Claims 1-9 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ),
second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject
matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the
applicant), regards as the invention.
Claim 1 recites “a channel region of at least one active layer.” It is unclear whether this refers to the previously recited “an active layer” or introduces additional active layers.
Claims 2-3 recite “an orthographic projection of … on the display substrate.” Claim 1 recites “a base substrate” as a distinct element of the display substrate, and each projected element is itself a component of the display substrate. The reference plane for the projection cannot be determined.
Claim 3 recites “at least one opening.” Claim 1 already recites “an opening provided in the at least one insulating layer.” It is unclear whether these are the same opening.
Claim 9 recites “a portion of the connection electrode is reused as at least a portion of the light shielding structure.” It is unclear whether the connection electrode and the light shielding structure are a single structure or separate structures.
Claims 2-9 are also rejected as being dependent on rejected claim 1.
Appropriate correction is required.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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 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.
(a)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claims 1 and 9 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1)/102(a)(2) as being anticipated by Kong et al. (US 2019/0165065 A1, hereinafter “Kong”).
Regarding claim 1, Kong teaches a display substrate (Fig. 4, display device), comprising a base substrate (substrate 101), a drive circuit layer located on one side of the base substrate (Fig. 4, the buffer layer 114, active layer 104, gate insulating pattern 112, gate electrode 106, interlevel insulating layer 116, source electrode 108, drain electrode 110, storage capacitor Cst and passivation layer 118, disposed on the substrate 101), and a light emitting structure layer located on a side of the drive circuit layer away from the base substrate (Fig. 4, light-emitting element 130 disposed on the planarization layer 128), wherein the drive circuit layer comprises at least one pixel drive circuit (the pixel driving circuit disposed in the driving circuit area CA of each sub-pixel, including a switching transistor TS, a driving transistor TD and a storage capacitor Cst), the at least one pixel drive circuit comprises at least one transistor (driving transistor TD), the transistor at least comprises an active layer (active layer 104), the drive circuit layer further comprises at least one insulating layer located on a side of the active layer away from the base substrate (Fig. 4, interlevel insulating layer 116 and passivation layer 118, disposed above the active layer 104), and the light emitting structure layer comprises at least one light emitting device (Fig. 4, light-emitting element 130, comprising an anode electrode 132, an organic layer 134 and a cathode electrode 136); and
the display substrate further comprises a light shielding structure (Fig. 4, upper light-shielding layer 122), at least a portion of the light shielding structure is located in an opening provided in the at least one insulating layer (Fig. 4, pixel contact hole 120, formed to penetrate the passivation layer 118 and the planarization layer 128, into which the upper light-shielding layer 122 disposed on the transparent conductive layer 121 is extended where the anode electrode 132 is electrically connected to the transparent conductive layer 121), and the light shielding structure is configured to block light emitted by the at least one light emitting device from being emitted to a channel region of at least one active layer (Fig. 4, the upper light-shielding layer 122 absorbs or reflects internal light generated in the light-emitting element and input to the active layer 104, and thereby blocks light input to the sides and the upper surface of the active layer 104; the active layer 104 includes a channel region formed between the source electrode 108 and the drain electrode 110).
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Regarding claim 9, Kong teaches the display substrate according to claim 1, wherein the light emitting device comprises a first electrode, an organic light emitting layer and a second electrode which are stacked, the first electrode is closer to the base substrate than the second electrode (Fig. 4, anode electrode 132 disposed on the planarization layer 128, organic layer 134 formed on the anode electrode 132, and cathode electrode 136 formed on the organic layer 134); and
the first electrode is connected to the active layer via a connection electrode (Fig. 4, the transparent conductive layer 121 is electrically connected to the anode electrode 132, and the stack of the transparent conductive layer 121 and the upper light-shielding layer 122 is extended into the pixel contact hole 120 to contact the drain electrode 110, which is in turn connected to the active layer 104 through the drain contact hole 124D), and a portion of the connection electrode is reused as at least a portion of the light shielding structure (Fig. 4, the portion of the transparent conductive layer 121 and the upper light-shielding layer 122 located within the pixel contact hole 120 both provides the electrical connection set forth above and constitutes a portion of the upper light-shielding layer 122 identified as the light shielding structure in claim 1 above).
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.
Claims 2-5 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kong as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of Su et al. (US 11264411 B2, hereinafter “Su”).
Regarding claim 2, Kong teaches the display substrate according to claim 1, wherein the active layer further comprises a first region and a second region located on opposite sides of the channel region (Fig. 4, the regions of the active layer 104 exposed through the source contact hole 124S and the drain contact hole 124D, respectively, located on opposite sides of the channel region formed between the source electrode 108 and the drain electrode 110), and the light shielding structure is located between the active layer and the light emitting structure layer (Fig. 4, the upper light-shielding layer 122 disposed on the planarization layer 128, above the active layer 104 and below the organic layer 134 and the cathode electrode 136).
Kong does not explicitly teach the light shielding structure comprises at least one of a first light shielding portion and a second light shielding portion, an orthographic projection of the first light shielding portion on the display substrate is located within an orthographic projection of the first region on the display substrate, and an orthographic projection of the second light shielding portion on the display substrate is located within an orthographic projection of the second region on the display substrate.
Su teaches the light shielding structure comprises at least one of a first light shielding portion and a second light shielding portion (Fig. 8, the conductive material filling the first through hole and the conductive material filling the second through hole formed in the interlayer insulating layer 6), an orthographic projection of the first light shielding portion on the display substrate is located within an orthographic projection of the first region on the display substrate (Fig. 8, the first through hole extends to the surface of the source electrode contact region 31 of the active layer 3, such that the conductive material filling the first through hole is confined within the source electrode contact region 31), and an orthographic projection of the second light shielding portion on the display substrate is located within an orthographic projection of the second region on the display substrate (Fig. 8, the second through hole extends to the surface of the drain electrode contact region 32 of the active layer 3, such that the conductive material filling the second through hole is confined within the drain electrode contact region 32).
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 light shielding structure of Kong as first and second portions filling the through holes of Su, because Kong and Su address the same problem of threshold voltage drift caused by light incident on the active layer, and because the through holes are already required for the source and drain connections. See MPEP 2143(I)(G).
Regarding claim 3, Kong in view of Su teaches the display substrate according to claim 2, wherein the at least one insulating layer is provided with at least one opening, the at least one opening comprises at least one of a first opening and a second opening (Kong, Fig. 4, the source contact hole 124S and the drain contact hole 124D, each penetrating the interlevel insulating layer 116; Su, Fig. 8, the first through hole and the second through hole formed in the interlayer insulating layer 6), an orthographic projection of the first opening on the display substrate is located within an orthographic projection of the first region on the display substrate (Kong, Fig. 4, the source contact hole 124S exposes the corresponding region of the active layer 104; Su, Fig. 8, the first through hole extends to the surface of the source electrode contact region 31), and an orthographic projection of the second opening on the display substrate is located within an orthographic projection of the second region on the display substrate (Kong, Fig. 4, the drain contact hole 124D exposes the corresponding region of the active layer 104; Su, Fig. 8, the second through hole extends to the surface of the drain electrode contact region 32); and
wherein at least a portion of the first light shielding portion is located within the first opening, and at least a portion of the second light shielding portion is located within the second opening (Su, Fig. 8, each of the first through hole and the second through hole is filled with a conductive material, such that the conductive material is located within the respective through hole).
Regarding claim 4, Kong in view of Su teaches the display substrate according to claim 3, wherein a side of the first light shielding portion close to the active layer is in contact with the first region (Su, Fig. 8, the conductive material filling the first through hole contacts the source electrode contact region 31 of the active layer 3), and a side of the first light shielding portion away from the active layer is flush with a side of the at least one insulating layer away from the active layer (Su, Fig. 8, the first through hole extends from the surface of the interlayer insulating layer 6 facing away from the base substrate 1 to the surface of the source electrode contact region 31, such that the conductive material filling the first through hole terminates at the surface of the interlayer insulating layer 6 facing away from the base substrate 1).
Regarding claim 5, Kong in view of Su teaches the display substrate according to claim 3, wherein a side of the second light shielding portion close to the active layer is in contact with the second region (Su, Fig. 8, the conductive material filling the second through hole contacts the drain electrode contact region 32 of the active layer 3), and a side of the second light shielding portion away from the active layer is flush with a side of the at least one insulating layer away from the active layer (Su, Fig. 8, the second through hole extends from the surface of the interlayer insulating layer 6 facing away from the base substrate 1 to the surface of the drain electrode contact region 32, such that the conductive material filling the second through hole terminates at the surface of the interlayer insulating layer 6 facing away from the base substrate 1).
Claims 6 and 7 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kong as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of Seong et al. (US 10985347 B2, hereinafter “Seong”).
Regarding claim 6, Kong teaches the display substrate according to claim 1, further comprising a color film structure layer located between the drive circuit layer and the light emitting structure layer (Fig. 4, the color filters 160 disposed on the passivation layer 118 and overlying the emission areas EA provided by the bank 138, below the light-emitting element 130).
Kong does not explicitly teach the color film structure layer comprises a light shielding layer and a color filter, and the light shielding layer is provided in a same layer as the color filter.
Seong teaches the color film structure layer comprises a light shielding layer and a color filter (Fig. 2, the black matrix 164 and the color filter 162, the black matrix 164 being disposed between adjacent color filters 162 so as to partition them, preventing light emitted from each organic light emitting element 136 from mixing with light of an adjacent element, and blocking light incident to the thin film transistor 131), and the light shielding layer is provided in a same layer as the color filter (Fig. 2, the color filter 162 is formed on the second buffer layer 170 and the black matrix 164 is patterned on that same second buffer layer 170).
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 black matrix in the same layer as the color filters 160 of Kong, as taught by Seong, because Seong teaches that such a black matrix prevents color mixing between adjacent pixels and blocks light incident to the thin film transistor. See MPEP 2143(I)(G).
Regarding claim 7, Kong in view of Seong teaches the display substrate according to claim 6, wherein the light shielding layer comprises a black matrix (Seong, Fig. 2, the black matrix 164 disposed between adjacent color filters 162 and blocking light incident to the thin film transistor 131).
Kong in view of Seong does not explicitly teach at least a portion of the light shielding structure and the black matrix are of an interconnected integral structure.
The light shielding structure of Kong and the black matrix of Seong are both opaque light blocking elements. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to form them as an interconnected integral structure, so that a single continuous light blocking element shields both the transistor and the pixel periphery, since forming in one piece what was previously formed in two is a matter of obvious engineering design absent a showing of criticality or unexpected results. See In re Larson, 340 F.2d 965, 968 (CCPA 1965); MPEP 2144.04(V)(B).
Claim 8 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kong in view of Seong as applied to claim 6 above, and further in view of Kim et al. (US 10770515 B2, hereinafter “Kim”).
Regarding claim 8, Kong in view of Seong teaches the display substrate according to claim 6 respectively, but does not teach that two adjacent color filters partially overlap and form an overlapping region located between two adjacent light emitting devices in a direction perpendicular to a plane of the display substrate.
Kim teaches two adjacent color filters partially overlap (Figs. 3 and 4, a part of the first color filter CF1 overlaps the second color filter CF2 and another part of the first color filter CF1 overlaps the third color filter CF3) and form an overlapping region located between two adjacent light emitting devices in a direction perpendicular to a plane of the display substrate (Figs. 4 and 7, the bank 270 partitions the adjacent pixels P1, P2 and P3, the overlapping regions are aligned with the bank 270, and the regions where the color filters overlap one another serve a function similar to that of the black matrix 294, such that each overlapping region is located over the bank 270 between two adjacent organic light emitting diodes 260 in a direction perpendicular to the plane of the first substrate 111).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to arrange the color filters of Kong in view of Seong to partially overlap one another over the bank, as taught by Kim, because Kim teaches that overlapping widens each color filter and thereby improves its adhesion, and that the overlapping regions perform the light blocking function of a black matrix. See MPEP 2143(I)(G).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JAHAE KIM whose telephone number is (571)270-1844. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 9-5.
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, Fernando Toledo can be reached on (571) 271-1867. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/FERNANDO L TOLEDO/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2897
/JAHAE KIM/Examiner, Art Unit 2897
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