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 .
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 1, 6-7, and 12 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over U.S. Patent Publication No. 2010/0265502 ("Nelson") in view of U.S. Patent Publication No. 2020/0003618 ("Fujita").
Regarding claim 1, Nelson discloses a spectrometry apparatus comprising:
a light source (410, Fig. 4 or 510, Fig. 5) that produces illumination light (inherent, paragraph [0023]);
a spectrophotometer (460, Fig. 4, or 570, Fig. 5) that disperses signal light rays (dispersive spectrograph, paragraph [0024]) from a sample (420, Fig. 4, or 520, Fig. 5) illuminated with the illumination light (see also 610, Fig. 6) and detects the signal light rays by a two-dimensional array photodetector (CCD, Figs 4-5, paragraphs [0023]-[0025];
a fiber unit (440, Fig. 4, or 550, Fig. 5) having a plurality of fibers (Fig. 5, fiber array, paragraphs [0023]-[0024]) laid out in an optical path from the sample (420, Fig. 4, or 520, Fig. 5) to the spectrophotometer (460, Fig. 4, or 570, Fig. 5), the plurality of fibers being adjacently arranged (see Figs. 4-5) at an entrance end surface of the fiber unit (440, Fig. 4, or 550, Fig. 5), and the plurality of fibers being arranged in a multi-line shape at intervals at an exit end surface (see 4X x 1D End, Figs. 4-5); and
a processing unit (paragraph [0016]) that, by referring to a layout relationship among the plurality of fibers at the entrance end surface (440, Fig. 4, or 550, Fig. 5) and the exit end surface of the fiber unit (450, Fig. 4, or 560, Fig. 5), generates a spectroscopic image (480, 490, Fig. 4, or 590, 595, Fig. 5) of the sample from a result of detection by the two-dimensional array photodetector (470b, or 580b, Fig. 5), and selectively illuminate a plurality of spots (see spots A, B, C, Figs. 4-5) on a region of interest of the sample (420, Fig. 4, or 520, Fig. 5), wherein signal light rays from the plurality of spots enter the fibers of the fiber unit (see spots A, B, C on fiber unit 440, Fig. 4, or 550, Fig. 5), respectively.
Nelson does not disclose a spatial light modulator for modulating illumination light.
However, Fujita discloses a spatial light modulator (117, Fig. 9) that modulates the illumination light from the light source (laser light source, not shown in Fig. 9, see paragraph [0110]) so as to selectively illuminate a plurality of spots on a region of interest of the sample (138, Fig. 9, paragraph [0112]).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to include a spatial light modulator as disclosed by Fujita in the device of Nelson in order to illuminate the sample with multi-line illumination.
Regarding claim 7, Nelson discloses a spectrometry method comprising steps of:
illuminating a sample (420, Fig. 4, or 520, Fig. 5, paragraph [0023]) using illumination light from a light source (410, Fig. 4 or 510, Fig. 5);
causing signal light rays from the sample (420, Fig. 4, or 520, Fig. 5) to enter a fiber unit (440, Fig. 4, or 550, Fig. 5) from an entrance end surface (440, Fig. 4, or 550, Fig. 5) at which a plurality of fibers are adjacently arranged (see Figs. 4-5);
causing the signal light rays to exit from an exit end surface of the fiber unit (450, Fig. 4, or 560, Fig. 5) at which the plurality of fibers are arranged in a multi-line shape at intervals (see 4X x 1D End, Figs. 4-5);
dispersing the signal light rays (dispersive spectrograph, paragraph [0024]) exited from the exit end surface (450, Fig. 4, or 560, Fig. 5) and detecting the signal light rays by a two-dimensional array photodetector (470b, or 580b, Fig. 5); and
referring to a layout relationship among the plurality of fibers at the entrance end surface (440, Fig. 4, or 550, Fig. 5) and the exit end surface of the fiber unit (450, Fig. 4, or 560, Fig. 5),
generating a spectroscopic image of the sample (480, 490, Fig. 4, or 590, 595, Fig. 5) from a result of detection by the two-dimensional array photodetector (470b, or 580b, Fig. 5), wherein
selectively illuminate a plurality of spots (see spots A, B, C, Figs. 4-5) on a region of interest of the sample (420, Fig. 4, or 520, Fig. 5), and
signal light rays from the plurality of spots enter the fibers of the fiber unit (see spots A, B, C on fiber unit 440, Fig. 4, or 550, Fig. 5), respectively.
Nelson does not disclose that a spatial light modulator modulates light from the light source.
However, Fujita discloses a spatial light modulator (117, Fig. 9) modulates the illumination light from the light source (laser light source, not shown in Fig. 9, see paragraph [0110]) so as to selectively illuminate a plurality of spots on a region of interest of the sample (138, Fig. 9, paragraph [0112]).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to include a spatial light modulator as disclosed by Fujita in the device of Nelson in order to illuminate the sample with multi-line illumination.
Regarding claims 6 and 12, Nelson in view of Fujita discloses the spectrometry apparatus according to claim 1 and method of claim 7, and Nelson further discloses that signal light rays exited from different ones of the fibers (560, Fig. 5) are detected without being overlapped (paragraphs [0025], [0032]) at a light-receiving surface of the two-dimensional array photodetector (see 580b, Fig. 5).
Claims 3 and 9 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Nelson in view of Fujita further in view of U.S. Patent Publication No. 2014/0268104 ("Treado").
Regarding claims 3 and 9, Nelson in view of Fujita discloses the spectrometry apparatus according to claim 1 and method of claim 7, but does not disclose further comprising a camera that captures an optical image of the sample, wherein the plurality of spots on the region of interest of the sample extracted based on the optical image are selectively illuminated.
However, Treado discloses a camera that captures an optical image of the sample (paragraph [0070], [0086]), wherein the plurality of spots on the region of interest of the sample extracted based on the optical image are selectively illuminated (paragraph [0056], region of interest is illuminated for further interrogation after initial imaging).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to use a camera for identifying regions of interest as disclosed by Treado in the device of Nelson in view of Fujita in order to help in surveillance and detection of regions of interest.
Claims 4 and 10 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Nelson in view of Fujita further in view of U.S. Patent No. 5,615,673 ("Berger").
Regarding claims 4 and 10, Nelson in view of Fujita discloses the spectrometry apparatus according to claim 1 and method according to claim 7, but does not disclose that the plurality of fibers have a hexagonal close-packed arrangement at the entrance end surface of the fiber unit.
However, Berger discloses the plurality of fibers have a hexagonal close-packed arrangement (see Fig. 2) at the entrance end surface of the fiber unit (202, Fig. 2, col. 6, lines 39-41).
It would have been an obvious matter of design choice to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to arrange the fiber bundle into any shape as required for an application.
Claims 5 and 11 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Nelson in view of Fujita further in view of U.S. Patent Publication No. 2015/0085099 ("Kleppe").
Regarding claims 5 and 11, Nelson in view of Fujita discloses the spectrometry apparatus according to claim 1 and method of claim 7, but does not disclose that the entrance end surface of the fiber unit is laid out at a position conjugate to the sample.
However, Kleppe discloses the entrance end surface of the fiber unit () is laid out at a position conjugate to the sample (paragraph [0106]).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to place the entrance end surface of the fiber unit at a position conjugate to the sample as disclosed by Kleppe in the device of Nelson in view of Fujita in order to correctly transfer the spatial information from the sample to into the fibers, as it preserves spatial mapping.
Conclusion
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/MONICA T TABA/Examiner, Art Unit 2878