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 .
Specification
The specification is objected to as failing to provide proper antecedent basis for the claimed subject matter. See 37 CFR 1.75(d)(1) and MPEP § 608.01(o). Correction of the following is required: regarding claim 10, the original disclosure failed to disclose singulating the stack to form individual stacked units, each unit including one of the openings.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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 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.
Claims 1-2, 6, 8 and 18-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Greenstein et al.
Greenstein et al. (US Pub. No. 2022/0360751 A1) discloses:
Regarding claim 1, a system (i.e. image projector; element 100), comprising: a housing (i.e. barrel; element 102 illustrated in Figures 7 and 32); a plurality of optical elements (Figure 7, elements 200, 300, 400, 500 and 600) stacked within the housing (Figure 7, element 102) to form an optical assembly (Figure 7, element 160); and a stack of opaque frames (i.e. inner sidewalls coated with a light absorbing coating; Figure 32, elements 130a, 130b, 132a, 132b, 134a and 134b) disposed between a first optical element (Figure 7, element 200) and a second optical element (Figure 7, element 600), the stack of opaque frames (i.e. inner sidewalls coated with a light absorbing coating; Figure 32, elements 130a, 130b, 132a, 132b, 134a and 134b) defining a series of light absorbing apertures (i.e. inner sidewalls coated with a light absorbing coating) around a perimeter of the optical assembly (Figure 7, element 160).
Regarding claim 2, the stack of opaque frames (i.e. inner sidewalls coated with a light absorbing coating; Figure 32, elements 130a, 130b, 132a, 132b, 134a and 134b) is interlocked to the housing (Figure 32, element 102).
Regarding claim 6, the series of light absorbing apertures (i.e. inner sidewalls coated with a light absorbing coating) include a glass-filled polymer (page 17, paragraph 0179, lines 11-15).
Regarding claim 8, the optical assembly (Figure 7, element 160) and the series of light absorbing apertures (i.e. inner sidewalls coated with a light absorbing coating) is part of a micro-projector (i.e. projector [element 100] including the micro-display device [Figure 7, element 136]).
Regarding claim 18, a micro-projector (i.e. projector [element 100] including the micro-display device [Figure 7, element 136]), comprising: a housing (i.e. barrel; element 102 illustrated in Figures 7 and 32); a light source (i.e. emissive-display; Figure 7, element 138); a lens (Figure 7, element 160) disposed within the housing (i.e. barrel; element 102 illustrated in Figures 7 and 32), the lens (Figure 7, element 160) including optical elements (Figure 7, elements 200, 300, 400, 500 and 600) arranged to direct light projected by the light source (i.e. emissive-display; Figure 7, element 138) onto a display (Figure 7, element 136), the optical elements (Figure 7, elements 200, 300, 400, 500 and 600) separated by an air gap (i.e. gap or opening; page 16, paragraph 0176, lines 16-31); and stacked apertures disposed in the air gap to absorb stray light (i.e. inner sidewalls coated with a light absorbing coating; Figure 32, elements 130a, 130b, 132a, 132b, 134a and 134b) around a perimeter of the lens (Figure 7, element 160).
Regarding claim 19, the display (Figure 7, element 136) is part of a virtual reality headset (page 21, paragraph 0207, lines 7-8).
Regarding claim 20, the display (Figure 7, element 136) is a heads-up display in a vehicle (page 21, paragraph 0207, line 6).
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.
Claim 9 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Greenstein et al.
Greenstein et al. (US Pub. No. 2022/0360751 A1) discloses a series of light absorbing apertures (i.e. inner sidewalls coated with a light absorbing coating; Figure 32, elements 130a, 130b, 132a, 132b, 134a and 134b). Greenstein et al. does not explicitly state a series of light absorbing apertures absorbing at least 90% of incident light. However, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was made to have a series of light absorbing apertures absorb at least 90% of incident light the purpose of substantially prevent light originating from the image projector from reflecting from the at least one of the edges of the plate (Greenstein et al., page 3, paragraph 0046, lines 21-23).
The applicant should note that it has been held that discovering an optimum value of a result effective variable involves only routine skill in the art. In re Boesch, 617 F.2d 272, 205 USPQ 215 (CCPA 1980). Furthermore, the applicant should note that it has been held that where the general working conditions of a claim are disclosed in the prior art, discovering the optimum or workable ranges involves only routine skill in the art. In re Aller, 105 USPQ 233.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of 35 U.S.C. 112(a):
(a) IN GENERAL.—The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor or joint inventor of carrying out the invention.
The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112:
The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor of carrying out his invention.
Claims 10-17 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(a) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, first paragraph, as based on a disclosure which is not enabling. The disclosure does not enable one of ordinary skill in the art to practice the invention without singulating the stack to form individual stacked units, each unit including one of the openings, which is/are critical or essential to the practice of the invention but not included in the claim(s). See In re Mayhew, 527 F.2d 1229, 188 USPQ 356 (CCPA 1976).
Regarding claim 10, the original disclosure failed to describe “singulating the stack to form individual stacked units, each unit including one of the openings”, rendering the claim language to be indefinite.
Claims 11-17 fall with parent claim.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 3-5 and 7 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:
Regarding claim 3, Greenstein et al. (US Pub. No. 2022/0360751 A1) discloses a system (i.e. image projector; element 100), comprising: a housing (i.e. barrel; element 102 illustrated in Figures 7 and 32); a plurality of optical elements (Figure 7, elements 200, 300, 400, 500 and 600) stacked within the housing (Figure 7, element 102) to form an optical assembly (Figure 7, element 160); and a stack of opaque frames (i.e. inner sidewalls coated with a light absorbing coating; Figure 32, elements 130a, 130b, 132a, 132b, 134a and 134b). However, Greenstein et al. and the prior art of record neither shows nor suggests a system wherein the series of light absorbing apertures includes a first aperture and second aperture, the first aperture and the second aperture in the stack of opaque frames are spaced apart from one another by spacers.
Regarding claims 4, 5 and 7, the claims are allowable based on their dependence from claim 3.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Watanabe (US Patent No. US 11,656,435 B2) discloses an imaging lens provided that secures a space in a device by partially notching an outline of a lens barrel, which used to be in a cylindrical shape in the past, and is less likely to cause performance degradation due to assembly error. An imaging lens includes: a lens provided with an effective optical surface and an edge region formed surrounding the effective optical surface and formed by injection molding of a plastic material; and a lens barrel configured to accommodate and hold the lens, wherein the lens has the edge region with an outline formed in a polygonal shape, the lens barrel has an inner circumferential surface with at least one linear portion formed in a position to accommodate the lens, the at least one linear portion corresponding to at least one linear portion formed in an outline of the lens, and the lens barrel has an outline with a linear portion formed parallel to the linear portion formed in the inner circumferential surface of the lens barrel.
Tang et al. (US Pub. No. 2021/0088752 A1) teaches an imaging lens assembly including a plastic lens barrel, an optical lens element set and a light-absorbing layer. The plastic lens barrel includes a minimum opening. The optical lens element set includes a plurality of optical lens elements, wherein the optical lens elements includes a first optical lens element closest to an object side of the optical lens element set, and the first optical lens element includes an effective optical surface, a peripheral surface and an annular step structure. At least one portion of the light-absorbing layer is coated on the annular step structure, and at least another one portion of the light-absorbing layer is connected to the minimum opening of the plastic lens barrel. The light-absorbing layer is for retaining the first optical lens element on the plastic lens barrel.
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/MAGDA CRUZ/
Primary Examiner
Art Unit 2882
06/13/2026
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