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 .
2. This Office Action is in response to amendments and remarks filed on 03/03/2026. Claims 1-20 are currently pending.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
3. 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)(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.
4. Claims 1-2, 4-6, 15 and 17 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by Toussaint et al., (US 2025/0000398 A1).
Regarding claim 1, Toussaint et al., disclose (Figs. 3-9) an electronic device (10), comprising a light source (18, Fig.3 or “An LED light source”, Fig.9 and [0065]), wherein the light source (the LED) comprises: an electromagnetic spectral emission source (the LED) configured to output an electromagnetic spectral emission (see Fig.9, the LED light source generates a light to illuminate individual's finger, and [0065], the “LED light source spectrally centered at 780-nm wavelength”), and at least one of:
a polarization optical element (LP1) configured to polarize the electromagnetic spectral emission (Fig.9, the LP1 receives the electromagnetic spectral emission and [0065], “ linear polarizer (LP1) is subsequently used to ensure that vertically polarized light propagates through a zero-order vortex wave plate” toward the finger), and
a collimation optical element (L3, [0065], “collimating lens (L3)”) configured to focus or collimate the electromagnetic spectral emission (see Fig.9 and [0065]” collimating lens (L3) arranged in a 2f system”),wherein the electronic device is configured to emit the polarized electromagnetic spectral emission toward biological tissue (Fig.9 shows output path of the polarized electromagnetic spectral emission is directed to the finger) such that at least a portion of the electromagnetic spectral emission penetrates the biological tissue and is backscattered from within the biological tissue (see Figs 3, 4, 9 and [0048], “FIG. 4 the biological tissue 14 is human skin of a portion of a patient's body (e.g., a finger)…The depth of penetration of the light can depend on the wavelength with shorter wavelengths penetrating to a shorter depth than longer wavelengths”; and [0068], “the non-specular light reflected from the deep and diffuse layers of the finger is collected”).
Regarding claim 2, Toussaint et al., as discussed in claim 1, disclose wherein the polarization optical element (LP1, Fig.9) includes at least one of an active polarization optical element modulated by electrical input or a passive polarization optical element ([0065], “A linear polarizer (LP1) is subsequently used to ensure that vertically polarized light propagates through a zero-order vortex wave plate…for radially polarized vector field generation”, indicating a passive polarization optical element ).
Regarding claim 4, Toussaint et al., as discussed in claim 1, disclose wherein the collimation optical element (L3, Fig.9) comprises at least one focusing or lensing optical element ([0065], “collimating lens (L3)”).
Regarding claim 5, Toussaint et al., as discussed in claim 1, disclose wherein the electromagnetic spectral emission includes frequencies in a visible range or a near infrared (NIR) spectrum ([0065], “An LED light source spectrally centered at 780-nm wavelength”).
Regarding claim 6, Toussaint et al., as discussed in claim 1, disclose wherein the electromagnetic spectral emission source is a light emitting diode (LED), at least one laser diode, or a vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser (VCSELL) ([0065], “An LED light source spectrally centered at 780-nm wavelength”).
Regarding claim 15, Toussaint et al., disclose (Figs. 3-9) an electronic device (10), comprising a light source (18, Fig. 3 or “An LED light source”, Fig.9) and a detector (28, Fig.3 or camera, Fig.9), wherein the light source (LED, Fig.9) comprises: an electromagnetic spectral emission source (LED) configured to output an electromagnetic spectral emission ([0065], the “LED light source spectrally centered at 780-nm wavelength”), and at least one of:
a polarization optical element (LP1) configured to polarize the electromagnetic spectral emission (Fig.9, the LP1 receives the electromagnetic spectral emission and [0065], “linear polarizer (LP1) is subsequently used to ensure that vertically polarized light propagates through a zero-order vortex wave plate” toward the finger), and
a collimation optical element (L3, [0065], “collimating lens (L3)”) configured to focus or collimate the electromagnetic spectral emission (see Fig. 9 and [0065], collimating lens (L3) arranged in a 2f system to collimate/focus the electromagnetic spectral emission) and
wherein the detector (28) comprises; a sensor ([0047], “The light detector 28 can include at least one of a charge-coupled device (CCD) camera, a CMOS camera, a photodiode”) configured to detect the electromagnetic spectral emission backscattered from within biological tissue (Figs. 3, 9, and [0068], “The non-specular light reflected from the deep and diffuse layers of the finger is collected”) and to detect one or more polarization states of the electromagnetic spectral emission (Fig.6, The polarization analyzer 22 can analyze the interacted polarized light and output at least a first polarization state and a second polarization state of the interacted polarized light and the detector captures output from the analyzer 22) and wherein the electronic device (10) determines pulse-wave bioinformation based on the one or more detected polarization states (Fig.3, the system 10 comprises the processor 26; [0053], “The processor 26 can execute instructions at least for the determination of one or more cardiovascular variability parameters using the first and second polarization states of the interacted polarized light output by the polarization analyzer 22”, and [0044], “Examples of cardiovascular variability parameters include an oxygen saturation value, a heart rate value, a respiratory rate value” ).
Regarding claim 17, Toussaint et al., as discussed in claim 15, disclose a depth of the electromagnetic spectral emission ([0048], “The depth of penetration of the light can depend on the wavelength”) being determined based on an angle at which a portion of the electromagnetic spectral emission is detected ([0052, “A portion of the polarization analyzer 22 can be oriented at a first angle… Another portion of the polarization analyzer 22 can be oriented at a second angle”) by at least one pixel (the CMOS camera, Fig.9, the CMOS camera is an array of pixels to generate the regions of interest as depicted by the horizontal and vertical boxes in FIG. 10, [0068]).
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
5. 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 3 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Toussaint et al., in view of Farkas et al., (US 2015/0018645 A1).
Regarding claim 3, Toussaint et al., as discussed in claim 1, do not disclose the collimation optical element comprising a diffractive optical element as claimed. Farkas et al., disclose a collimation optical element (310/320, Fig.7) comprising a diffractive optical element (310, [0045], “a diffraction grating”). Thus, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Toussaint et al., by utilizing the teaching of Farkas et al., to better control of how light interact with the biological tissue, improving signal quality.
Claims 7, 8, 10, 11, 19 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Toussaint et al., in view of Dehkordi et al., (US 2021/0199593 A1).
Regarding claims 7 and 8, Toussaint et al., as discussed in claim 1, disclose further comprising a detector (28, Fig. 3), wherein the detector comprises: a sensor configured to detect the electromagnetic spectral emission (Fig.3 and [0047], The light detector 28 can receive the light output from the polarization analyzer 22, in which the LED generates the electromagnetic spectral emission). Toussaint et al., do not disclose an electromagnetic spectrum filter as claimed. Dehkordi et al., disclose an electromagnetic spectrum filter to filter an electromagnetic spectral emission (Fig.2, [0072, electromagnetic source 114 include, but are not limited to, one or more of LED, and the electromagnetic sensor 116 include, filter-wheel including…narrow band filters to receive/filter electromagnetic spectral emission. Dehkordi et al., also disclose the electromagnetic spectrum filter being a color filter, a narrow band filter, a distributed Bragg filter or a broadband filter ([0072], “narrow band filters”). Thus, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Toussaint et al., to incorporating the electromagnetic spectrum filter, as taught by Dehkordi et al., to improve signal quality and selectively detect desired wavelengths.
Regarding claim 10, Toussaint et al., in view of Dehkordi et al., as discussed in claim 7, Toussaint et al., disclose the sensor including at least one photo diode (PD) pixel ([0053], The light detector 28 includes a photodiode), avalanche photo diode (APD) pixel, and single-photon avalanche diode (SPAD).
Regarding claim 11, Toussaint et al., in view of Dehkordi et al., as discussed in claim 7, Toussaint et al., disclose the electromagnetic spectral emission source being positioned to be oriented 90 degrees relative to the detector (Fig.9 shows the light from the LED traveling the detector (camera) at the position 1. The position 1 is located at 90 degrees relative to the illumination axis to capture the light from light source LED).
Regarding claim 19, Toussaint et al., disclose (Figs. 3-9) an electronic device (10, Fig. 3), comprising a light source (100) and a detector (200), wherein the light source (100) comprises: an electromagnetic spectral emission source (18, Fig.3 or “An LED light source”, Fig.9 and [0065]), configured to output an electromagnetic spectral emission (see Fig.9, the LED light source generates a light to illuminate individual's finger, and [0065], the “LED light source spectrally centered at 780-nm wavelength”), and wherein the detector comprises: a sensor (28, ([0047], “The light detector 28 can include at least one of a charge-coupled device (CCD) camera, a CMOS camera, a photodiode”) configured to detect the electromagnetic spectral emission backscattered from within biological tissue (Figs. 3, 9, and [0068], “The non-specular light reflected from the deep and diffuse layers of the finger is collected”) and to detect one or more polarization states of the electromagnetic spectral emission (Fig.6, “The polarization analyzer 22 can analyze the interacted polarized light and output at least a first polarization state and a second polarization state of the interacted polarized light” and the detector captures output from the analyzer 22) and wherein the electronic device (10) determines pulse-wave bioinformation based on the one or more detected polarization states (Fig.3, the system 10 comprises the processor 26; [0053], “The processor 26 can execute instructions at least for the determination of one or more cardiovascular variability parameters using the first and second polarization states of the interacted polarized light output by the polarization analyzer 22”, and [0044], “Examples of cardiovascular variability parameters include an oxygen saturation value, a heart rate value, a respiratory rate value” ).
Toussaint et al., do not disclose an electromagnetic spectrum filter as claimed. Dehkordi et al., disclose an electromagnetic spectrum filter to filter an electromagnetic spectral emission (Fig.2, [0072, electromagnetic source 114 include, but are not limited to, one or more of LED, and the electromagnetic sensor 116 include, filter-wheel including…narrow band filters to receive/filter electromagnetic spectral emission. Thus, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Toussaint et al., to incorporating the electromagnetic spectrum filter, as taught by Dehkordi et al., to improve signal quality and selectively detect desired wavelengths.
Claims 9, 12-14, 20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Toussaint et al., in view of Dehkordi et al., and further in view of Siddique et al., (US 2021/0191021 A1).
Regarding claim 9, Toussaint et al., in view of Dehkordi et al., as discussed in claim 7, do not disclose the electromagnetic spectrum filter including one or more filter types, and each filter type is respectively associated with one or more pixels in the sensor as claimed. Siddique et al., disclose the electromagnetic spectrum filter (201, Fig. 2A) including one or more filter types (“201 a-201 d”, Fig. 2A), and each filter type is respectively associated with one or more pixels in the sensor (paragraph [0053], “filters 201 a-201 d with respect to four pixels 205-208”). Thus, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Toussaint et al., in view of Dehkordi et al., by utilizing the teaching of Siddique et al., to improve both measurement stability and measurement accuracy.
Regarding claim 12, Toussaint et al., in view of Dehkordi et al., as discussed in claim 7, although Toussaint et al., disclose (Fig.3) the detector (28) further comprising a polarization filter (22) arranged in a predetermined arrangement (see Fig.3), Toussaint et al., and Dehkordi et al., do not disclose the at least one array, line, or row as claimed. Siddique et al., disclose a polarization filter (201, Fig.2) that at least one array, line, or row (see Fig.2). Thus, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the proposed system of Toussaint et al., in view of Dehkordi et al., a by utilizing the teaching of Siddique et al., to capture multiple polarization states, and thus, leading to faster/better performance for the system.
Regarding claim 13, Toussaint et al., in view of Dehkordi et al., as discussed in claim 7, do not disclose the sensor further comprising at least one pixel having a first pattern type configured to detect at least a portion of the electromagnetic spectral emission having the first pattern type as claimed. Siddique et al., disclose a sensor further comprising at least one pixel (205, Fig. 2A) having a first pattern type configured to detect at least a portion of the electromagnetic spectral emission having the first pattern type (see Fig. 2A). Thus, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the proposed system of Toussaint et al., in view of Dehkordi et al., by utilizing the teaching of Siddique et al., to measure all polarization components at same pixel location using the subpixel, improving both measurement stability and measurement accuracy.
Regarding claim 14, Toussaint et al., in view of Dehkordi et al., and Siddique et al., as discussed in claim 13, Toussaint et al., disclose a depth of the electromagnetic spectral emission ([0048], “The depth of penetration of the light can depend on the wavelength”) being determined based on an angle at which a portion of the electromagnetic spectral emission is detected ([0052, “A portion of the polarization analyzer 22 can be oriented at a first angle… Another portion of the polarization analyzer 22 can be oriented at a second angle”), and Siddique et al., disclose the pixel as discussed in claim13 above.
Regarding claim 20, Toussaint et al., in view of Dehkordi et al., as discussed in claim 19, do not disclose the sensor further comprising at least one pixel having a first pattern type configured to detect at least a portion of the electromagnetic spectral emission having the first pattern type as claimed. Siddique et al., disclose a sensor further comprising at least one pixel (205, Fig. 2A) having a first pattern type configured to detect at least a portion of the electromagnetic spectral emission having the first pattern type (see Fig. 2A). Thus, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the proposed system of Toussaint et al., in view of Dehkordi et al., by utilizing the teaching of Siddique et al., to measure all polarization components at same pixel location using the subpixel, improving both measurement stability and measurement accuracy.
Claims 16 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Toussaint et al., in view of Siddique et al.,
Regarding claim 16, Toussaint et al., as discussed in claim 15, do not disclose the at least one pixel configured to detect at least a portion of the electromagnetic spectral emission having a first pattern type as claimed. Siddique et al., also disclose the at least one pixel (205, Fig. 2A) being configured to detect a portion of the electromagnetic spectral emission having a first pattern type according to a wavelength or frequency of the electromagnetic spectral emission (see all Fig.2, the pixel 205 is designed to detect a portion of the emission due to its wavelength which passes through the nanostructures 211). Thus, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Toussaint et al., by utilizing the teaching of Siddique et al., to measure all polarization components at same pixel location using subpixel, improving both measurement stability and measurement accuracy.
Claims 18 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Toussaint et al., in view of Zuta et al., (US 2020/0240769 A1).
Regarding claim 18, Toussaint et al., as discussed in claim 17, do not disclose the angle at which the electromagnetic spectral emission is detected as claimed. Zuta et al., disclose a depth of the electromagnetic spectral emission being determined based on an angle (paragraph [0054], “A deviation of the measured angle of incidence for a ray of a particular wavelength from the reference angle of incidence for that wavelength may be converted to a distance of the element of the scene”) at which the portion of the electromagnetic spectral emission is detected by the at least one pixel (paragraph [0054], “An angle of incidence of a ray…measured”, and “converted to a relationship that converts a wavelength measured at each image pixel to a distance”). In combination, the angle at which the electromagnetic spectral emission is detected would be determined as a function of a first time at which the electromagnetic spectral emission is output by the electromagnetic spectral emission source and a second time at which the portion of the electromagnetic spectral emission output from the electromagnetic spectral emission source is detected by the at least one pixel (see Fig.1 of Schmidt et al., the electromagnetic spectral emission leaves the source 108 which is as a function of a first time, and when the light is reaches to the detector 128 which is the a second time). Thus, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Toussaint et al., by utilizing the teaching of Zuta et al., to improve the performance of the system by calculating the depth of the sample.
Response to Arguments
5. Applicant’s arguments with respect to the claims have been considered but are moot because the new ground of rejection does not rely on any reference applied in the prior rejection of record for any teaching or matter specifically challenged in the argument.
Conclusion
6. 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 extension fee 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 date of this final action.
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/M.T.T./Examiner, Art Unit 2878
/THANH LUU/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2878
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