Detailed Office 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 .
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 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.
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 of this title, 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 set forth in Graham v. John Deere Co., 383 U.S. 1, 148 USPQ 459 (1966), that are applied 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.
This application currently names joint inventors. In considering patentability of the claims the examiner presumes that the subject matter of the various claims was commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the claimed invention(s) absent any evidence to the contrary. Applicant is advised of the obligation under 37 CFR 1.56 to point out the inventor and effective filing dates of each claim that was not commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the later invention in order for the examiner to consider the applicability of 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(2)(C) for any potential 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) prior art against the later invention.
Claims 1-3, 5-6, 9 and 13-14
Claims 1-3, 5-6, 9 and 13-14 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Grieco et al. (2021/0116655; “Grieco”) in view of Wood et al. (11,493,753; “Wood”).
Regarding claim 1, Grieco discloses in figures 1A, 1B, 3B, and 4A, and related figures and text, for example, Selected Text, beam steering embodiments comprising switch matrices coupling bus and branch waveguides, the matrices formed by arrays of emitters, detectors, and microring resonators activated by control electronics. Grieco discloses that embodiments of lens systems for directing (steering/sweeping) emitted and received light: “Multi-spectral transmission is possible through the use of broadband emitters, while multi-spectral reception is possible through the use of dispersive optical elements that direct different wavelengths to different detectors or focal planes.” Grieco, paragraph [0058]. See below, Grieco, figures 1A, 1B, 3B, and 4A, and related figures and text, for example, Selected Text.
Further regarding claim 1, Wood discloses in figures 13A and 17, and related figures and text, for example, Selected Text, image projecting embodiments that enable wavelength (spectral) encryption and angular (spatial) encryption. See below, Wood, figures 13A and 17, and related figures and text, for example, Selected Text.
Consequently, in light of Wood’s spectral and spatial encoding embodiments, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to modify Grieco’s embodiments to disclose a plurality of waveguides extending in a first direction, the plurality of waveguides spaced apart from one another in a second direction crossing the first direction; a plurality of light sources spaced apart from one another in the second direction, each of the plurality of light sources having a first end optically connected to a waveguide from among the plurality of waveguides, corresponding to the respective light source from the plurality of light sources; a plurality of light switching elements that are two-dimensionally spaced apart from one another in the first direction and the second direction, a plurality of first light switching elements, among the plurality of light switching elements, that are spaced apart from one another in the first direction are optically connected to a first waveguide among the plurality of waveguides; a plurality of light input/output elements optically connected to the plurality of light switching elements, respectively, the plurality of light input/output elements configured to output light in a third direction crossing the first direction and the second direction or receive external light; and a light steering element arranged in the third direction from the plurality of light input/output elements, the light steering element configured to steer incident light based on a position of the incident light on the light steering element; See below, Grieco, figures 1A, 1B, 3B, and 4A, and related figures and text, for example, Selected Text; See below, Wood, figures 13A and 17, and related figures and text, for example, Selected Text; because the resulting configurations and methods would facilitate designing, fabricating, and deploying compact beam steering devices, Grieco, paragraph [0003], for example, that project ‘unique image codes.’ Wood, column 16, lines 4-8.
Grieco – Figures 1A, 1B, 3B, and 4A and Selected Text
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Abstract. The technology described in this document can be used to implement beam steering in optical systems and photonic devices, to provide a nonmechanical beam steering system for projecting optical energy and controlling the direction of the optical energy using a collection of devices and components that are fixed in position to selectively direct light from an array of different optical emitters at different locations.
[0005] … a device including an array of light emitters located at different locations, each light emitter operable to produce an optical beam that is associated with a location of the light emitter and is different from another optical beam produced by another light emitter due to the location of the light emitter being different from a location of another light emitter, an optical projection device located at a fixed position relative to the array of light emitters in optical paths of the optical beams from the array of light emitters, the optical projection device operable to direct each optical beam to a particular beam direction that is associated with a location of each light emitter relative to the optical projection device and is different from any other beam directions, the optical projection device structured to include no moving part, and a control circuit coupled to the array of light emitters and operable to turn on or off the light emitters to project one or more optical beams from the light emitters to the optical projection device which in turn directs the received one or more optical beams to corresponding one or more particular beam directions, wherein the control circuit is operable to selectively turn on and off different laser diodes to project the different optical beams from the selected laser diodes to form a desired beam scanning pattern to effectuate an effect of scanning a single optical beam in different beam directions.
[0006] … an optical transceiver device including an array of light emitters located at different locations, each light emitter operable to produce an optical beam that is associated with a location of the light emitter and is different from another optical beam produced by another light emitter due to the location of the light emitter being different from a location of another light emitter, an array of optical detectors that are distributed amongst the array of light emitters for detecting light, an optical projection device located at a fixed position relative to the array of light emitters in optical paths of the optical beams from the array of light emitters, the optical projection device operable to direct each optical beam to a particular beam direction that is associated with a location of each light emitter relative to the optical projection device and is different any other beam directions, the optical projection device operable to collect received light and directs the received light onto the optical detectors distributed amongst the array of light emitters for detecting light, the optical projection device structured to include no moving part, and a control circuit coupled to the array of light emitters and operable to turn on or off the light emitters to project one or more optical beams from the light emitters to the optical projection device which in turn directs the received one or more optical beams to corresponding one or more particular beam directions, wherein the control circuit is operable to selectively turn on and off different laser diodes to project the different optical beams from the selected laser diodes to form a desired beam scanning pattern to effectuate an effect of scanning a single optical beam in different beam directions.
[0007]… a beam steering system including a light emission device including a light source array and a light source selector coupled to the light source array, the light source array including a plurality of light sources arranged in rows and columns, the light source selector being structured to select one or more light sources from the light source array to produce one or more optical beam, an optical device located at a fixed position relative to the light emission device in optical paths of the one or more optical beams from the light emission device such that, from the one or more selected optical beams, a collimated beam is produced at different angle depending on the location of incident light on the optical device, and a control circuit coupled to the light source selector of the light emission device to select the one or more light sources from the light source array based on address information indicative of the location of the light source associated with the location of incident light on the optical device.
[0008] … a light emission device including a light source structured to generate a light beam and a light path selector coupled to the light source and configured to provide a plurality of light paths to direct the light beam generated by the light source to a desired location, an optical device located at a fixed position relative to the light emission device in optical paths of the one or more optical beams from the light emission device such that, from the one or more selected optical beams, a collimated beam is produced at different angle depending on the location of incident light on the optical device, and a control circuit coupled to the light source selector of the light emission device to select the one or more light sources from the light source array based on address information indicative of the location of the light source associated with the location of incident light on the optical device.
[0009] FIG. 1A shows an example of the beam steering system where angular steering is performed by sequential activation of the individual emitter elements such that the emitted radiation is collimated in each direction by the diffractive lens system. FIG. 1B shows an example configuration of the beam steering system including unit cell subsystems.
[0011] …an example of …an optical switching fabric formed by a network of waveguides and optical rings at different output waveguide segments (FIG. 3B) …
[0012]… an example of the beam steering system, including an angular steering is performed by sequential activation of the individual emitter elements (FIG. 4A) …
[0036] FIG. 1A shows an example of the beam steering system where angular steering is performed by sequential activation of the individual emitter elements such that the emitted radiation is collimated in each direction by the diffractive lens system. FIG. 1B shows an example configuration of the beam steering system including unit cell subsystems.
[0037] The beam steering system 100A implemented based on an embodiment of the disclosed technology may include an emitter array 120A of different light emitters to produce light beams and an optical module 110A for redirecting the light beams from the emitter array 120A. The optical module 110A can be implemented as an optical imaging module or a diffractive optical element such as a diffractive lens system. In an implementation, the beam steering system 100A may include one or more unit cells, each of which includes a plurality of discrete layers. For example, as illustrated in FIG. 1B, a beam steering system 100B includes an imaging system 110B, an emitter array 120B, and control electronics 130B. The emitter array 120B is configured to emit light towards the imaging system 110B under control of the control electronics 130B. The imaging system 110A, 110B may be a planar imaging system with an optical projection device for directing output optical beams out in directions, and the emitter array 120A, 120B may be an optical emitter layer having the array of light emitters or light sources. For example, the imaging system 110A, 110B may include a planar imaging system combined with a uniform array of nanoscale optical emitters in one focal plane, and the emitter array 120A, 120B may include an array of light sources located at different locations and operable to produce an optical beam that is associated with a location of the light source. The emitter array 120A, 120B selectively activates an individual emitter element so that the imaging system 110A, 110B can send out a collimated beam at an angle that depends on the position of the emitter within the focal plane. The control electronics 130B may include an electrical control system for selecting and controlling the emitter array 120B such that one or more light emitters selected from the light emitters of the emitter array 120B. The control electronics 130B may include transistor logic gates and appropriate amplifiers to provide adequate voltage levels to the emitter array 120B. In another embodiment of the disclosed technology, the beam steering system 100B may further include an environmental stabilisation layer 140B. The imaging system 110A, 110B can be implemented to include diffractive lens elements as the optical projection device. The emitter array 120A, 120B may be implemented to include waveguides, optical switches (e.g., ring resonators), and vertical couplers. The emitter array 120 may include one or more laser sources coupled to waveguides to direct laser light to the different light emitters.
[0038] As illustrated in FIG. 1A, an input light beam (e.g., a laser beam) generated by an individual emitter element is directed through the diffractive lens system, and the resulting light radiation is collimated by the diffractive lens system. The direction of the collimated output beam is determined by the position of the activated emitter element in the array, and the beam may be steered by activating the desired sequence of emitters. This can be said an integrated chip-scale equivalent of a Rotman lens antenna. Although the diameter of a single unit cell will be limited by the available nanofabrication technology, multiple unit cells can be combined to form an aperture of any size.
[0039] Referring to FIG. 1B, each unit cell of the beam steering system 100B may include an imaging system 110B such as planar lens, an emitter array and associated photonic switching fabric 120B, control electronics 130B, and a stabilisation system 140B which will monitor and compensate for environmental temperature fluctuations.
[0040] The control electronics 130B may be configured to selectively turn on and off different laser diodes to project the different optical beams from the selected laser diodes to form a desired beam scanning pattern. In selectively activating one single emitter from the emitter array 120A, 120B, any selection scheme may be used, including, e.g., ring resonator optical switches, cross-bar switches, and multistage switching networks.
[0048] … an example of an emitter subsystem architecture. …FIG. 3B shows an optical switching fabric formed by a network of waveguides and optical rings at different output waveguide segments. Activation of an emitter occurs by operating the ring resonator switches associated with the corresponding row and column. An optical ring resonator switch can be turned on to couple the light received from a respective waveguide into a corresponding vertical emitter as an optical output. Each optical waveguide can be optically to each of the optical ring resonator switches via evanescent optical coupling and a tunable coupling element can be used to tune the coupling condition to turn on the optical coupling from a waveguide to an optical ring resonator switch or turn off the coupling. Each optical ring resonator switch is also optically coupled to a corresponding vertical emitter such as the waveguide emitter shown in FIG. 3A. The tunable coupling element between a waveguide and a ring resonator switch can be a thermal tuning element to change the coupling condition or other tuning mechanism such as an electro-optic device. The tunable coupling elements in the optical switching fabric can be individually controlled to route the master laser beam into one or more desired vertical emitter locations so the diffractive optical system placed above the optical switching fabric can direct the output light in a desired output beam direction or in a desired beam scanning path or pattern….
[0050] Referring to FIG. 3B, individual emitter elements may be selectively activated as follows. The emitter elements may be arranged in a rectangular array fed by waveguides. Laser light will be launched into a waveguide parallel to the bottom emitter row, and may then be directed into a desired column waveguide using a ring resonator switch. An identical switch may then be used to direct the laser light entirely into the desired emitter. In the illustrated example, in FIG. 3B, the switches may be thermally driven by resistive heating elements. In some embodiments of the disclosed technology where activation of an emitter occurs by operating the ring resonator switches associated with the corresponding row and column, only two switches are turned on. In some other embodiments of the disclosed technology, a multistage network topology can be also used.
[0057] an example of the beam steering system. Specifically, FIG. 4A shows that an angular steering is performed by sequential activation of the individual emitter elements. The emitted polarized radiation is collimated in each direction by the diffractive lens system. The birefringence of the imaging system enables the device to operate as a receiver for orthogonally polarized optical input signals…
[0058] In some embodiments of the disclosed technology, the beam steering system may include a birefringent planar imaging system combined with a uniform array of interspersed nanoscale optical emitters and detectors in one focal plane, with transmission and reception occurring on orthogonally polarized beams, as illustrated in FIGS. 4A and 4B. When operated in transmission mode, this is the integrated chip-scale equivalent of a Rotman lens antenna. More specifically, transmission occurs by the selective activation of an individual emitter, which will send out a collimated polarized beam at an angle that depends on the position of the emitter within the focal plane. The selective activation can be realized on a chip using various switching fabric architectures (e.g., cross-bar, multistage network, etc.). Successive activation of emitters can thus be used to direct the beam across the entire aperture of the transmission system as illustrated in FIG. 4A. It should be noted that an integrated modulator/encoder can be integrated on the same chip and be driven by electronics imposing various modulation and coding protocols. The device can also simultaneously act as a receiver over the same transmitter/receiver aperture, since the birefringent optical relay system will direct a beam with orthogonal polarization onto the detection elements, as illustrated in FIG. 4B. There are no coherence requirements on the sources within the array since only a single emitter is active at any time. Multi-spectral transmission is possible through the use of broadband emitters, while multi-spectral reception is possible through the use of dispersive optical elements that direct different wavelengths to different detectors or focal planes.
[0098] FIGS. 19A-19B show an architecture of the beam steering system. Specifically, FIG. 19A shows breakdown of the unit cell subsystems, and FIG. 19 B shows angular steering is performed by sequential activation of the individual emitter elements. The emitted radiation is collimated in each direction by the diffractive lens system.
[0099] The disclosed technology can be implemented in some embodiments to provide a fully integrated 2D beam steering system that offers a much higher packing density. The proposed architecture consists of four discrete functional layers as shown in FIG. 19A. The first layer is a planar imaging element that transmits, orients, and collimates beams that are emitted from different locations on the chip. This element could be realized by a single graded index Fresnel zone plate, or alternatively a single 2D micro-lens array (commercially available from Axetris down to a pitch of 10 μm and diameter of 9 μm) with an afocal system as shown in this paper. The second layer is a silicon device layer which consists of emitters (e.g. vertical couplers) and a switching fabric (e.g. waveguides and ring resonators). High density vertical couplers can be formed out of plasmonic antennas or angled terminated waveguides. The third layer is an electrical control system layer used to tune the individual heaters placed on the switching fabric. The final layer is an environmental stabilisation layer that monitors and compensates for any environmental temperature fluctuations. The approximate size of each layer including the substrate will be on the order of 1 mm. Since the emitters occupy the entire plane, arbitrary 2D illumination can be realized (see FIG. 19B for an example of how a beam could be swept across the center plane of the device).
Wood – Figures 13A and 17, and Selected Text
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Column 14, lines 29-55: Encryption (encoding) of an image generated by the optical system 10 may be accomplished in a simple and natural way when a scanner 22 is used. With an appropriate laser, the pattern of wavelength-tuned steps resulting in angle-tuned steps does not need to be operated in sequence. FIG. 13A shows such an example, where the same 8 wavelengths are chosen, but the time sequence of wavelengths is now λ3, λ7, λ6, λ1, λ8, λ5, λ2, λ4, rather than λ1, λ2, λ3, λ4, λ5, λ6, λ7, λ8. This variable pattern of wavelengths in time represents a modified form of ‘frequency hopping’ (‘wavelength hopping’) and can be used for encryption. Extensions of this example include, but are not limited to, unique encoding for each column of an image, and/or unique patterns (individual columns and/or entire images) of encoding for different sensors. Such techniques would be useful, for instance, to provide unique encoding and security for a LiDAR system in automobiles analogous to the unique code for a personal cell phone. Uniquely, this form of laser-scanned image encryption results in both wavelength (spectral) encryption and angular (spatial) encryption, providing enhanced security that makes the system even more difficult to hack, spoof, or disable. Security further increases when the number of beams or the number of wavelength steps increases. Advantageously, this image encoding technique can be implemented with essentially zero additional overhead or cost, with an appropriate high-speed tunable laser.
Column 15, line 55 – column 16, line 8: As with the above imaging example, encryption (encoding) may be implemented via a unique or random choice for the wavelength stepping (hopping) pattern in time. FIG. 17 describes elements of this process, where the encoding may occur by rows (rather than by columns or within a column, as above). FIG. 17 shows that the choice of two sequential time sequenced wavelengths could be λ1 then λ2, or it could be λ1 then λ4, or it could be λ7 then λ6. And this only illustrates the first two time-sequenced wavelengths, so it is clear that the overall random or arbitrary time sequence for all wavelengths represents another form of wavelength hopping (frequency hopping), as above. Again, the associated encoding represents a form of encryption that is both spectral and spatial. In this way, the specific pattern of rows within an image can have a unique time sequence due to the time sequence of wavelengths. The unique assignment of this pattern of rows represents a unique overall code for an image. For example, this unique image code can be assigned to each unique vehicle employing a machine vision system (e.g., LiDAR).
Regarding claims 2-3, 5-6, 9 and 13-14, as dependent upon claim 1, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to modify Grieco in view of Wood’s embodiments, as applied in the rejection of claim 1, to disclose:
2. The LiDAR apparatus of claim 1, wherein the plurality of light sources are configured to generate light of different wavelengths. See Grieco, figures 1A, 1B, 3B, and 4A, and related figures and text, for example, Selected Text; See Wood, figures 13A and 17, and related figures and text, for example, Selected Text.
3. The LiDAR apparatus of claim 1, wherein wavelengths of light emitted from the plurality of light sources sequentially change in the second direction. See Grieco, figures 1A, 1B, 3B, and 4A, and related figures and text, for example, Selected Text; See Wood, figures 13A and 17, and related figures and text, for example, Selected Text.
5. The LiDAR apparatus of claim 1, wherein a first light switching element among the plurality of light switching elements optically connects the first waveguide to a first output element among the plurality of light input/output elements selectively based on an input electrical signal. See Grieco, figures 1A, 1B, 3B, and 4A, and related figures and text, for example, Selected Text; See Wood, figures 13A and 17, and related figures and text, for example, Selected Text.
6. The LiDAR apparatus of claim 1, wherein at least one of the plurality of switching elements comprises a ring resonator and a tuning element configured to control the ring resonator to selectively resonate based on an electrical signal. See Grieco, figures 1A, 1B, 3B, and 4A, and related figures and text, for example, Selected Text; See Wood, figures 13A and 17, and related figures and text, for example, Selected Text.
9. The LiDAR apparatus of claim 1, wherein at least one of the plurality of light input/output elements comprises at least one of a diffraction-based optical coupler or a mirror-based optical coupler. See Grieco, figures 1A, 1B, 3B, and 4A, and related figures and text, for example, Selected Text; See Wood, figures 13A and 17, and related figures and text, for example, Selected Text.
13. The LiDAR apparatus of claim 1, wherein, the plurality of light input/output elements comprises a first light input/output element configured to emit first light, and a second light input/output element configured to emit second light in a sequential manner, and wherein the first light input/output element and the second light input/output element are not adjacent to each other. See Grieco, figures 1A, 1B, 3B, and 4A, and related figures and text, for example, Selected Text; See Wood, figures 13A and 17, and related figures and text, for example, Selected Text.
14. The LiDAR apparatus of claim 13, wherein a first wavelength of the first light is different rom a second wavelength of the second light. See Grieco, figures 1A, 1B, 3B, and 4A, and related figures and text, for example, Selected Text; See Wood, figures 13A and 17, and related figures and text, for example, Selected Text.
because the resulting configurations and methods would facilitate designing, fabricating, and deploying compact beam steering devices, Grieco, paragraph [0003], for example, that project ‘unique image codes.’ Wood, column 16, lines 4-8.
Claims 4, 7, 8, and 15
Claims 4, 7, 8, and 15 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Grieco et al. (2021/0116655; “Grieco”) in view of Wood et al. (11,493,753; “Wood”), as applied in the rejection of claims 1-3, 5-6, 9 and 13-14, further in view of Hinderling, Jurg (2023/0194255; “Hinderling”) in view of Lizotte et al. (2006/0065640; “Lizotte”), and further.in view of Piracha et al. (Range resolved lidar for long distance ranging with sub-millimeter resolution, Opt. Express 18, 7184-7189 (2010); “Piracha”).
Regarding claims 4, 7, 8, and 15, Hinderling discloses that one of ordinary skill in the art would consider that, “Laser diodes are miniaturized and inexpensive radiation sources for distance measurement units but have limited peak power. To avoid this limit, instead of single pulses, pulse groups consisting of a uniform or interval-coded pulse sequence are transmitted. This ensures that higher average transmission powers are achieved. For example, burst sequences consisting of a regular pulse train with interruptions between the pulse trains, but also randomized pulse trains based on the coding principle of m-sequences or gold codes are known.” Hinderling, paragraph [0072].
And Lizotte discloses in figure 5B, and related figures and text, for example, Selected Text, “very complex sequences of pulses and stacks, including specified sequences of pulses within the stacks and selected sequences of stacks that vary over time can thereby be generated by the method of the present invention, thereby allowing the generation of sequences of pulse and stacks that are tailored to any situation…FIG. 5B … illustrates a sequence 84 of stacks 86 wherein each stack 86 is comprised of multiple closely adjacent or overlapping pulses 88”).” Lizotte, paragraph [0077]. See below, Lizotte, figure 5B, and related figures and text, for example, Selected Text.
Consequently, in light of Hinderling’s and Lizotte’s disclosures, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to modify Grieco in view of Wood, as applied in the rejection of claims 1-3, 5-6, 9 and 13-14, to disclose:
4. The LiDAR apparatus of claim 1, wherein a difference between peak wavelengths of light emitted from two neighboring light sources, from among the plurality of light sources, is 50 nm or less. Hinderling, paragraph [0072]; See Lizotte, Selected Text; See Grieco, figures 1A, 1B, 3B, and 4A, and related figures and text, for example, Selected Text; See Wood, figures 13A and 17, and related figures and text, for example, Selected Text.
7. The LiDAR apparatus of claim 1, wherein control signals applied to at least two light switching elements among the plurality of light switching elements overlap each other for a time duration. Hinderling, paragraph [0072]; See Lizotte, Selected Text; See Grieco, figures 1A, 1B, 3B, and 4A, and related figures and text, for example, Selected Text; See Wood, figures 13A and 17, and related figures and text, for example, Selected Text.
8. The LiDAR apparatus of claim 7, wherein the overlapping time duration between the control signals is less than or equal to a settling time of each of the at least two light switching elements. Hinderling, paragraph [0072]; See Lizotte, Selected Text; See Grieco, figures 1A, 1B, 3B, and 4A, and related figures and text, for example, Selected Text; See Wood, figures 13A and 17, and related figures and text, for example, Selected Text.
15. The LiDAR apparatus of claim 1, wherein, from among the plurality of light input/output elements, first light input/output elements in a same column emit light at a first time, and second light input/output elements in a different column emit light at a second time different from the first time. Hinderling, paragraph [0072]; See Lizotte, Selected Text; See Grieco, figures 1A, 1B, 3B, and 4A, and related figures and text, for example, Selected Text; See Wood, figures 13A and 17, and related figures and text, for example, Selected Text.
because the resulting configurations and methods would facilitate designing, fabricating, and deploying compact beam steering devices, Grieco, paragraph [0003], for example, that project ‘unique image codes,’ Wood, column 16, lines 4-8, while promoting “unambiguous range measurements.” Piracha, 3. Resolving the lidar range ambiguity.
Lizotte – Selected Text
[0072] As will be described in following, single and multiple multi-pumped fiber lasers as described above may be used in beam generation and delivery systems, such as are used in laser micro/nano-machining systems, to generate beams comprised of stacked pulses with individual pulse durations ranging from 2 to 200 ns and wherein the pulses are stacked with a pulse separation ranging between pico seconds and several tens of nanoseconds. Such methods can generate tacks of several 10's of pulses, wherein a stack is defined for purposes of the present invention as a sequence of closely spaced or overlapping pulses forming an identifiable group that is separated in time, or space, from other such stacks.
[0077] FIG. 5B, in turn, illustrates the method of the present invention wherein a laser 82, such as a fiber laser or arrangement of fiber lasers of the present invention arranged as discussed below, is used to generate a sequence 84 of stacks 86 wherein each stack 86 is comprised of multiple closely adjacent or overlapping pulses 88. FIG. 6B in turn illustrates such a sequence 84 of stacks 86 of pulses 88 directed against a target 80 and it is shown in FIGS. 5B and 6B that pulses 88 in successive stacks 86 are separate in time by a pulse repetition rate, or interval, Pr, which determines the interval between successive stacks 86. Each stack 86 in turn has a length, or duration in time, Ps, that is determined by the number of pulses 88 in each stack 86 and the interval between successive pulses 88 of the stack 86. It will be appreciated by those of skill in the relevant arts that the length and number of pulses in each stack and the interval between stacks can thereby be determined by controlling the number of pulses, the repetition rate of each laser 74 and the relative firing times of the lasers 74. It will also be appreciated that very complex sequences of pulses and stacks, including specified sequences of pulses within the stacks and selected sequences of stacks that vary over time can thereby be generated by the method of the present invention, thereby allowing the generation of sequences of pulse and stacks that are tailored to any situation.
[0082] According to the present invention as discussed below, a multi-mode non-excimer UV (ultra-violet) or Visible or IR (infra-red) (188 nm to 4000 nm range) fiber laser that can simultaneously produce both a continuous wave (CW) output beam or a pseudo continuous wave (PCW) output beam as well as pulsed output beam will provide an enhanced process for micro/nano-machining.
Piracha – Figure 5 and Selected Text
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Claims 10-12 and 16-20
Claims 10-12 and 16-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Grieco et al. (2021/0116655; “Grieco”) in view of Wood et al. (11,493,753; “Wood”), as applied in the rejection of claims 1-3, 5-6, 9 and 13-14, further in view of Hinderling, Jurg (2023/0194255; “Hinderling”) in view of Lizotte et al. (2006/0065640; “Lizotte”), and further.in view of Piracha et al. (Range resolved lidar for long distance ranging with sub-millimeter resolution, Opt. Express 18, 7184-7189 (2010); “Piracha”), as applied in the rejection of claims 4, 7-8, and 15, further in view of Sun et al. (2014/0192394; “Sun”), as evidenced by Yu et al. (Flat optics with designer metasurfaces, Nature Materials, Review Article, 20134; “Yu).
Regarding claims 10-12 and 16-20, Sun discloses in figure 2A, and related figures and text, for example, Selected Text, optical phase array embodiments: “In this optical phased array 100, the coupling to the row bus waveguides 120 is controlled in such a way that each row bus waveguide 120 obtains the same amount of power as described in greater detail below. The optical power in each row bus waveguide 120 is then similarly divided among the 64 pixels 130 coupled to that row bus waveguide 120 so that all 4,096 optical nanoantennas in the optical phased array 100 are uniformly excited. Because each pixel 130 receives an equal portion of the optical power provided by the optical fiber 102, differences in the relative phases of the beams emitted by the pixels 130 determine the optical phased array's far-field emission pattern. In other examples, the optical power coupled into and/or out of each pixel 130 may be weighted, attenuated, or amplified to produce a pixel-by-pixel variation in the emitted power to produce a particular far-field radiation pattern.” Sun, paragraph [0048].
Consequently, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to modify the embodiments of Grieco in view of Wood, further in aview of Hinderling, further in view of Lizotte, and further in view of Piracha, to disclose:
10. The LiDAR apparatus of claim 1, wherein the light steering element has a lens shape. Sun, figure 2A, and related figures and text, for example, Selected Text; Hinderling, paragraph [0072]; fSee Lizotte, Selected Text; See Grieco, figures 1A, 1B, 3B, and 4A, and related figures and text, for example, Selected Text; See Wood, figures 13A and 17, and related figures and text, for example, Selected Text.
11. The LiDAR apparatus of claim 1, wherein the light steering element is configured to: steer light incident from a plurality of first light input/output elements, among the plurality of light input/output elements, spaced apart from one another in the first direction to scan an external space in a fourth direction, and steer light incident from a plurality of second light input/output elements, among the plurality of light input/output elements, spaced apart from one another in the second direction to scan the external space in a fifth direction crossing the fourth direction. Sun, figure 2A, and related figures and text, for example, Selected Text; Hinderling, paragraph [0072]; fSee Lizotte, Selected Text; See Grieco, figures 1A, 1B, 3B, and 4A, and related figures and text, for example, Selected Text; See Wood, figures 13A and 17, and related figures and text, for example, Selected Text.
12. The LiDAR apparatus of claim 11, wherein one of the fourth and fifth directions is an azimuth direction with respect to the external space, and the other of the fourth and fifth directions is an elevation angle direction with respect to the external space. Sun, figure 2A, and related figures and text, for example, Selected Text; Hinderling, paragraph [0072]; fSee Lizotte, Selected Text; See Grieco, figures 1A, 1B, 3B, and 4A, and related figures and text, for example, Selected Text; See Wood, figures 13A and 17, and related figures and text, for example, Selected Text.
16. The LiDAR apparatus of claim 1, wherein at least one of the plurality of waveguides comprises: the first waveguide; a first sub-waveguide optically connected to the first waveguide; and a second sub-waveguide optically connected to the first waveguide and spaced apart from the first sub-waveguide in the second direction, the plurality of light switching elements comprise: n first sub-light switching elements optically connected to the first sub-waveguide; and n second sub-light switching elements optically connected to the second sub-waveguide, and the plurality of light input/output elements comprise: n first sub-light input/output elements optically connected to the n first sub-light switching elements, respectively; and n second sub-light input/output elements optically connected to the n second sub-light switching elements, respectively, and wherein n is natural number equal to or greater than 3. Sun, figure 2A, and related figures and text, for example, Selected Text; Hinderling, paragraph [0072]; fSee Lizotte, Selected Text; See Grieco, figures 1A, 1B, 3B, and 4A, and related figures and text, for example, Selected Text; See Wood, figures 13A and 17, and related figures and text, for example, Selected Text.
17. The LiDAR apparatus of claim 16, further comprising: a light distributor having a first end optically connected to the first waveguide, and a second end optically connected to the first sub-waveguide and the second sub-waveguide. Sun, figure 2A, and related figures and text, for example, Selected Text; Hinderling, paragraph [0072]; fSee Lizotte, Selected Text; See Grieco, figures 1A, 1B, 3B, and 4A, and related figures and text, for example, Selected Text; See Wood, figures 13A and 17, and related figures and text, for example, Selected Text.
18. The LiDAR apparatus of claim 16, further comprising a light amplifier optically coupled to at least one of the first and second sub-waveguides. Sun, figure 2A, and related figures and text, for example, Selected Text; Hinderling, paragraph [0072]; fSee Lizotte, Selected Text; See Grieco, figures 1A, 1B, 3B, and 4A, and related figures and text, for example, Selected Text; See Wood, figures 13A and 17, and related figures and text, for example, Selected Text.
19. The LiDAR apparatus of claim 1, further comprising a light attenuator optically coupled to at least one of the plurality of waveguides. Sun, figure 2A, and related figures and text, for example, Selected Text; Hinderling, paragraph [0072]; fSee Lizotte, Selected Text; See Grieco, figures 1A, 1B, 3B, and 4A, and related figures and text, for example, Selected Text; See Wood, figures 13A and 17, and related figures and text, for example, Selected Text.
20. A light detection and ranging (LiDAR) apparatus comprising: m waveguides, each extending in a first direction and spaced apart from one another in a second direction crossing the first direction; m light sources spaced apart from one another in the second direction, each of the m light sources having one end optically connected to a waveguide from among the m waveguides, corresponding to the respective light source from the m light sources; m×n light switching elements that are two-dimensionally spaced apart from one another in the first direction and the second direction, wherein n light switching elements that are spaced apart from one another in the first direction are optically connected to one of the m waveguides; m×n light input/output elements that are optically connected to the m×n light switching elements, respectively and input/output light in a third direction crossing the first direction and the second direction; and a light steering element that is arranged in the third direction from the m×n light input/output elements and configured to steer incident light based on a position of the incident light on the light steering element, wherein m is natural number equal to or greater than 3, and wherein n is natural number equal to or greater than 3. Sun, figure 2A, and related figures and text, for example, Selected Text; Hinderling, paragraph [0072]; fSee Lizotte, Selected Text; See Grieco, figures 1A, 1B, 3B, and 4A, and related figures and text, for example, Selected Text; See Wood, figures 13A and 17, and related figures and text, for example, Selected Text.
because the resulting configurations and methods would facilitate designing, fabricating, and deploying compact beam steering devices, Grieco, paragraph [0003], for example, that project ‘unique image codes,’ Wood, column 16, lines 4-8, while promoting “unambiguous range measurements,” Piracha, 3. Resolving the lidar range ambiguity, while ‘generating arbitrary far-field radiation patterns dynamically.” Sun, paragraph [0045]. See below, Yu – Figures 3a and 3b and Selected Text.
Sun – Figure 2A and Selected Text
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[0045] The large number of nanoantennas and the embedded phase tunability enable NPAs to generate arbitrary far-field radiation patterns dynamically and, in turn, to affect new fields such as communication, LADAR, three-dimensional holography, biological and environmental sensing, and biomedical sciences. For instance, an exemplary NPA could be used in a (low-cost) LIDAR suitable for use in cars, trucks, satellites, robots, etc. The ability to take advantage of CMOS integration process also promises a bright future for low-cost and compact NPAs.
[0048] In this optical phased array 100, the coupling to the row bus waveguides 120 is controlled in such a way that each row bus waveguide 120 obtains the same amount of power as described in greater detail below. The optical power in each row bus waveguide 120 is then similarly divided among the 64 pixels 130 coupled to that row bus waveguide 120 so that all 4,096 optical nanoantennas in the optical phased array 100 are uniformly excited. Because each pixel 130 receives an equal portion of the optical power provided by the optical fiber 102, differences in the relative phases of the beams emitted by the pixels 130 determine the optical phased array's far-field emission pattern. In other examples, the optical power coupled into and/or out of each pixel 130 may be weighted, attenuated, or amplified to produce a pixel-by-pixel variation in the emitted power to produce a particular far-field radiation pattern.
[0057] In other embodiments, one or more of the row bus waveguides may include a variable optical attenuators at or near its optical connection with the column bus waveguide. Actuating the variable optical attenuator reduces the optical power propagating through the corresponding row bus waveguide. Alternatively, or in addition, the column bus waveguide may also include one or more variable optical attenuators, e.g., distributed between the successive directional couplers. Actuating a variable optical attenuator in the column bus waveguide reduces the optical power available for coupling into the row bus waveguide(s) downstream from the variable optical attenuator.
Yu – Figures 3a and 3b and Selected Text
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Figure 3. Complex wavefront shaping based on metasurfaces. a, SEM image of part of a metasurface hologram made of aperture antennas. Different colours represent pixels with distinctive transmission coefficients. Size of image, 9 μm × 9 μm. b, Transmitted light intensity of the metasurface in panel a recorded in the far-field. Incident wavelength is 905 nm. c,
Conventional optical components such as lenses, waveplates and holograms rely on light propagation over distances much larger than the wavelength to shape wavefronts. In this way substantial changes of the amplitude, phase or polarization of light waves are gradually accumulated along the optical path. This Review focuses on recent developments on flat, ultrathin optical components dubbed ‘metasurfaces’ that produce abrupt changes over the scale of the free-space wavelength in the phase, amplitude and/or polarization of a light beam. Metasurfaces are generally created by assembling arrays of miniature, anisotropic light scatterers (that is, resonators such as optical antennas). The spacing between antennas and their dimensions are much smaller than the wavelength. As a result the metasurfaces, on account of Huygens principle, are able to mould opti-cal wavefronts into arbitrary shapes with subwavelength resolution by introducing spatial variations in the optical response of the light scatterers. Such gradient metasurfaces go beyond the well-established technology of frequency selective sur-faces made of periodic structures and are extending to new spectral regions the functionalities of conventional microwave and millimetre-wave transmit-arrays and reflect-arrays. Metasurfaces can also be created by using ultrathin films of materials with large optical losses. By using the controllable abrupt phase shifts associated with reflection or transmission of light waves at the interface between lossy materials, such metasurfaces operate like optically thin cavities that strongly modify the light spectrum. Technology opportunities in various spectral regions and their potential advantages in replacing existing optical components are discussed.
Figure 3 shows complex wavefront shaping based on meta-surfaces. Figure 3a shows a metasurface consisting of arrays of aperture antennas that produce a spatially varying transmission coefficient17. By utilizing the dispersion of aperture antennas, the metasurface was designed to operate as two distinctive holograms at two different wavelengths, λ1 = 905 nm, λ2 = 1,385 nm. It creates a word ‘META’ in the far-field at λ1 = 905 nm (Fig. 3b). A differ-ent pattern is created in the far-field at λ2 = 1,385 nm.
Applications and outlook
Wavefront shaping through local control of phase, amplitude and polarization on an optically thin plane will lead to a new class of flat optical components in the areas of integrated optics, flat displays, energy harvesting and mid-infrared photonics, with increased performance and functionality. In this respect it is important to note that integrated circuits manufacturing are based on planar technology that tremendously simplifies fabrication compared with making 3D structures. A large body of research on photonic crystals and metamaterials has concentrated on 3D structures that although physically interesting in our opinion will only find niche applications in technology68–72. Flat optical components based on metasurfaces are naturally better suited for large-scale appli-cations because the fabrication complexity is greatly reduced. A variety of lithographic techniques for large-scale patterning of pla-nar structures are available ranging from deep UV lithography, to nanoimprint lithography and soft lithography.
Conclusion
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/PETER RADKOWSKI/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2874
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