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 Arguments
Applicant’s arguments, per page 6, filed August 19, 2026, with respect to the title have been fully considered and are persuasive. The objection of May 19, 2026 has been withdrawn.
Applicant’s arguments with respect to claim(s) 1 have been considered but are moot because the new ground of rejection does not rely on the combination of references applied in the prior rejection of record for any teaching or matter specifically challenged in the argument.
Specifically, Tani (US 2014/0339665) discloses (Fig. 11) an isolator 22 with a lower refractive index than the refractive index of filters 21s.
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) 1-4 and 15 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Tani (US 2014/0339665). Claim 1, Tani discloses (Figs. 3 and 11) an imaging device, comprising: a first filter (21g, green color filter, Para [0033]) that allows light of a first wavelength band (allows green color wavelength to pass through) to pass therethrough; a first photoelectric converter (PD under 21g, silicon photodiodes, Para [0070], hereinafter “PD1”) that photoelectrically converts the light of the first wavelength band having passed through the first filter (PD1 functions as photoelectric conversion element, Para [0070]); a second filter (21b, blue color filter, Para [0033]) that is provided adjacent to the first filter (21b is adjacent to 21g), and allows light of a second wavelength band to pass therethrough (21b allows blue color wavelength to pass through); a second photoelectric converter (PD under 21b, silicon photodiodes, Para [0070], hereinafter “PD2”) that photoelectrically converts the light of the second wavelength band having passed through the second filter (PD2 functions as photoelectric conversion element, Para [0070]); and an isolator (22, transparent partition wall isolates colors, Para [0033]) provided between the first filter and the second filter (22 is between 21g and 21b), wherein a refractive index of the first filter for the light of the first wavelength band (Fig. 3, refractive index of 21g (G) is about 1.7 at 500 nm) is higher than a refractive index of the second filter for the light of the first wavelength band (Fig. 3, refractive index of 21b (B) is about 1.4 at 500 nm); and each of the refractive index of the first filter and the refractive index of the second filter is higher by 0.4 or more than a refractive index of the isolator (22 may be air and have a refractive index of 1 which is 0.4 or more than refractive indices of 21g and 21b, Para [0069]). Claim 2, Tani discloses (Figs. 3 and 11) the imaging device according to claim 1, wherein the first wavelength band includes a wavelength of green light (21g has the wavelength of green light), and the second wavelength band includes a wavelength of red light or a wavelength of blue light (21b has the wavelength of blue light). Claim 3, Tani discloses (Figs. 3 and 11) the imaging device according to claim 2, wherein the first wavelength band includes a wavelength band from 500 nm to 550 nm (Fig. 3, 21g and 21b can have the wavelength at 500 nm). Claim 4, Tani discloses (Figs. 3 and 11) the imaging device according to claim 3, wherein in the wavelength band from 500 nm to 550 nm, the refractive index of the first filter is higher by 0.05 or more than the refractive index of the second filter (Fig. 3, at 500 nm, 21g has an index of 1.7 and 21b has an index of 1.4). Claim 15, Tani discloses (Figs. 3 and 11) the imaging device according to claim 1, wherein a substrate (S2, substrate, Para [0071]) is provided in which a plurality of photoelectric converters (plurality of PDs are in S2, Para [0070]) including the first photoelectric converter and the second photoelectric converter is provided (PD1 and PD2 are included in S2), the first filter (21g) and the second filter (21b) are provided on the substrate (21g and 21b are provide in S2), and the isolator reaches at least to the substrate (22 reaches S2).
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) 16 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Tani (US 2014/0339665) as applied to claim 1, and further in view of Ito (US 2012/0075509).
Claim 16, Tani discloses the imaging device according to claim 1. Tani does not explicitly disclose a lens where light enters, wherein the first photoelectric converter photoelectrically converts light having passed through the lens and the first filter, and a refractive index of the lens is higher than a refractive index of silicon dioxide (SiO2).
However, Ito discloses (Fig. 5D) a lens (33a, on-chip lens, Para [0078]) where light enters (light enters through 33a), wherein a first photoelectric converter (21 under G filter (not shown in Fig. 5D), Para [0078]) photoelectrically converts light having passed through the lens (21 is a photoelectric conversion unit, Para [0080]) and a first filter (G green filter not shown in Fig. 5D, Para [0078]), and a refractive index of the lens is higher than a refractive index of silicon dioxide (SiO2) (33 may comprise an organic material with a refractive index of 1.6 which is higher than SiO2 refractive index of 4.5, Para [0075]). Therefore it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to apply the lens structure of Ito to the imaging device of Tani as it allows for collection of incoming light and allow for formation of a mixed color prevention layer (Ito, Para [0075])
Claim(s) 17 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Tani (US 2014/0339665) as applied to claim 1, and further in view of Ueno (US 2011/0175187). Claim 17, Tani discloses the imaging device according to claim 1. Tani does not explicitly disclose comprising a fixed electric charge film and an antireflective film provided between the first filter and the first photoelectric converter.
However, Ueno discloses (Fig. 1) a fixed electric charge film (28a, negative fixed charge layer, Para [0019]) and an antireflective film (28b/28c, insulating layer of antireflection structure, Para [0019]) provided between a first filter (30, color filter, Par a[0018]) and a first photoelectric converter (24/26, n-type diffusion/p-type diffusion constituting pn photodiode, Para [0018]). Therefore it would have been obvious to one of ordinary before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to apply the antireflection layer of Ueno including the fixed electric charge film as it can reduce dark current generated by interfacial defects (Ueno, Para [0072]).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 5-12 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 closest prior art of record, Ito (US 2012/0075509), Toda (US 2006/0044429), Naya (US 2014/0346629), Hsu (US 2016/0099270), Ueno (US 2011/0175187), Tani (US 2014/0339665), fail to disclose (by themselves or in combination) the following limitations in combination with the rest of the claim:
Regarding Claim 5 (from which claims 6-12 depend), wherein the refractive index of the first filter for the light of the first wavelength band is higher than a refractive index of the third filter for the light of the first wavelength band.
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 GUSTAVO G RAMALLO whose telephone number is (571)272-9227. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 10am - 6pm.
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/G.G.R/Examiner, Art Unit 2812 /William B Partridge/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2812
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