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.
Election/Restrictions
Claims 9-13 and 18-19 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to a nonelected species, there being no allowable generic or linking claim. Election was made without traverse in the reply filed on 6/19/2026.
Applicant’s election without traverse of Species A in the reply filed on 6/19/2026 is acknowledged.
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.
The factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness.
Claims 1, 8 and 20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over US 20110025681 A1 to Komatsu et al. in view of US 20190390512 A1 to Iwahori.
Regarding Claim 1. Komatsu discloses an optical path control member comprising: a first substrate (Fig. 2 substrate 9); a first electrode disposed on the first substrate (Fig. 2 electrode 81 and 82); a second electrode (See Fig. 2 electrodes 71 and 72) disposed on the first electrode (See Fig. 2); a second substrate (Fig. 2 substrate 4); and a light conversion unit including a plurality of accommodating parts disposed between the first electrode and the second electrode (Fig. 2 recesses 31) and in which a light conversion material is disposed (Fig. 2 a solution 5 and 5A-5C), wherein the first substrate includes a first-first region overlapping the accommodating part along a thickness direction of the first substrate (as shown in at least Fig. 2 and Fig. 5) and a first-second region surrounding the first-first region and disposed at an edge of the first substrate (as shown in at least Fig. 2 and Fig. 5), wherein the second substrate includes a second-first region overlapping the accommodating part along the thickness direction (as shown in at least Fig. 2 and Fig. 5) and a second-second region surrounding the second-first region and disposed at an edge of the second substrate (as shown in at least Fig. 2 and Fig. 5), wherein the first electrode includes a first-first electrode part disposed on the first-first region and the first-second region (See Fig. 2 and Fig. 5 electrodes 82) and a first-second electrode disposed on the first-second region (See Fig. 2 and Fig. 5 electrodes 81), wherein the second electrode includes a second-first electrode part disposed on the second-first region and the second-second region (See Fig. 2 and Fig. 5 electrodes 72) and a second-second electrode part disposed on the second-second region (See Fig. 2 and Fig. 5 electrodes 71), wherein an area of the first-first electrode part is greater than an area of the first-second electrode part (para 60 “ width (area) of the electrode 72 (82) may be set to be greater than the width (area) of the electrode 71 (81) as exemplified in FIG. 5”), wherein an area of the second-first electrode part is greater than an area of the second-second electrode part (para 60 “ width (area) of the electrode 72 (82) may be set to be greater than the width (area) of the electrode 71 (81) as exemplified in FIG. 5”), and wherein the first-second electrode part is disposed on the first-second region while surrounding the first-first region (See at least Fig. 5).
Komatsu does not specifically disclose a second substrate disposed on the second electrode.
However, Iwahori discloses a first electrode disposed on the first substrate (Fig. 3 substrate 110 and electrode 140); a second electrode disposed on the first electrode (See Fig. 3 electrode 150); a second substrate (Fig. 3 substrate 120) disposed on the second electrode (See Fig. 3), with the motivation of protecting the electrodes from external elements
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before Applicant’s effective filing date to include that the second substrate disposed on the second electrode.
Regarding Claim 8. Komatsu further discloses at least one of the first-first electrode part and the second-first electrode part includes indium tin oxide, indium zinc oxide, copper oxide, tin oxide, zinc oxide, or titanium oxide, and wherein at least one of the first-second electrode part and the second-second electrode part includes at least one metal of chromium (Cr), nickel (Ni), copper (Cu), aluminum (Al), silver (Ag), molybdenum (Mo). Gold (Au), titanium (Ti), and any alloys thereof (See para 53).
Regarding Claim 20. Komatsu further discloses a display device comprising: a panel including at least one of a display panel or a touch panel; and the optical path control member of claim 1 disposed on or under the panel (See at least Fig. 1).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 2-7 and 14-17 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.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to EDMOND C LAU whose telephone number is (571)272-5859. The examiner can normally be reached M-Th 8am-6pm EST.
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/EDMOND C LAU/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2871
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