NON-FINAL REJECTION
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 .
Election/Restrictions
Applicant’s election without traverse of claims 1-3 in the reply filed on 7/17/2026 is acknowledged.
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)(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.
Claim(s) 1-3 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by Koizumi et al. U.S. Patent Application Publication 2022/0082458.
The applied reference has a common assignee and inventor with the instant application. Based upon the earlier effectively filed date of the reference, it constitutes prior art under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2). This rejection under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) might be overcome by: (1) a showing under 37 CFR 1.130(a) that the subject matter disclosed in the reference was obtained directly or indirectly from the inventor or a joint inventor of this application and is thus not prior art in accordance with 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(2)(A); (2) a showing under 37 CFR 1.130(b) of a prior public disclosure under 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(2)(B) if the same invention is not being claimed; or (3) a statement pursuant to 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(2)(C) establishing that, not later than the effective filing date of the claimed invention, the subject matter disclosed in the reference and the claimed invention were either owned by the same person or subject to an obligation of assignment to the same person or subject to a joint research agreement.
With respect to claim 1, Koizumi teaches a main substrate having flexibility (substrate 21, paragraph 21, figure 5); a transistor over the main substrate (transistor 25, paragraph 34-32, figure 5); a support substrate over the transistor (interpreted as insulating film 26b, paragraph 57, figure 5), wherein the support substrate has flexibility and at least an outer surface of the support substrate comprises a material having electric insulation (paragraphs 57-58); and a variable resistance part (variable resistance part 24, figure 5) over a first surface which is an upper surface of the support substrate, in which a resistance value of the variable resistance part changes according to strain of the variable resistance part (paragraphs 34-35).
With respect to claim 2, Koizumi teaches a through-hole passing through the support substrate (contact holes CH1, CH2, figure 5), and a wiring electrically connected with the transistor and the variable resistance part, wherein at least a part of the wiring is disposed in the through-hole (the wiring of the contact holes CH1, CH2, figure 3).
With respect to claim 3, Koizumi teaches a coating member over the variable resistance part (insulating film 26c, figure 5), wherein the coating member covers the variable resistance part (figure 5), wherein, in a cross sectional secondary moment around an axis along the first surface, a cross sectional secondary moment of the main substrate and cross sectional secondary moments of the support substrate and the coating member are equal to each other (interpreted as the function of the insulating film because an "[A]pparatus claims cover what a device is, not what a device does." Hewlett-Packard Co. v. Bausch & Lomb Inc., 909 F.2d 1464, 1469, 15 USPQ2d 1525, 1528 (Fed. Cir. 1990), MPEP 2114 II.).
Conclusion
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FREDDIE KIRKLAND III
Primary Examiner
Art Unit 2855
/Freddie Kirkland III/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2855 8/5/2026
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