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 .
Responsive to correspondence
This office action is in response to correspondence filed on 07/09/2024.
Election /Restrictions
Applicant's election Claims 1-4, 7-11, 13-16, and 18- 20 in the reply filed on 08/18/2026 is acknowledged, the withdrawn claims 5-6 and 12 provided these claims included all the limitations of allowable base claim 1 and claim 11 including intervening claims.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statements filed 11/18/2024 was filed before the first action on the merits. This submission is in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97.
Accordingly, the IDS has been fully considered by the Office.
Abstract
The abstract filed 07/09/2024 appears to be acceptable.
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.
(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.
Claims 1, 2, 7, and 18 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by US Publication number 2023/0185105 to MIREAULT et al. (MIREAULT).
Re: Claim 1:
MIREAULTS discloses:
A flex hinge actuator (See Figs. 1-4: ¶0052: actuator 408) comprising:
a static base (See Figs. 1-4: ¶0057: stationary base structure 412);
a moving carriage configured to move in a Z direction with respect to the static base (See Figs. 1-4: ¶0026, ¶0046, ¶ 0051, ¶0056: moveable platform 410 same as movable platform 106 moves in the Z-axis with respect to base structure 412 via the leaf springs 428 same as leaf springs 112a); and
a flex hinge assembly (See Figs. 1-4: ¶0026, ¶ 0051, ¶0056: leaf springs 428 same as leaf springs 112a) configured to allow motion of the moving carriage in the Z direction and limit movement in other directions (See Figs. 1-4: ¶0026, ¶ 0051, ¶0056: moveable platform 410 moves in the Z-axis with respect to base structure 412 via the leaf springs 428 same as leaf springs 112a providing sufficient stiffness in the X-Y plane to resist or prevent movement), wherein the flex hinge assembly includes at least two flex hinge structures disposed on corresponding sides of the flex hinge actuator (See Figs. 1-4: ¶0026, ¶ 0051, ¶0056: four leaf springs 428 same as leaf springs 112a shown on the corresponding sides of the actuator 408).
Re: Claim 2:
MIREAULTS discloses :
The flex hinge actuator of claim 1, wherein the flex hinge assembly includes flex hinge structures disposed each of four sides of the flex hinge actuator (See Figs. 1-4: ¶0026, ¶0046, ¶ 0051, ¶0056: four leaf springs 428 same as leaf springs 112a shown on the four sides of the actuator 408 same as movable platform 106).
Re: Claim 7:
MIREAULTS discloses :
The flex hinge actuator of claim 1, wherein the flex hinge structure includes at least a first flex hinge structure orientated in a first direction and a second flex hinge structure oriented in a second direction opposite that of the first direction (Figs. 1-4: ¶0026, ¶ 0051, ¶0056: two of the four leaf springs 428 same as leaf springs 112a shown on the opposite sides of the actuator 408 same as movable platform 106).
Re: Claim 18:
MIREAULTS discloses :
An actuator (See Figs. 1-4: ¶0052: actuator 408) comprising:
a static base (See Figs. 1-4: ¶0057: stationary base structure 412); (See Figs. 1-4: ¶0052: actuator 408);
a moving carriage configured to move with respect to the static base (See Figs. 1-4: ¶0026, ¶0046, ¶ 0051, ¶0056: moveable platform 410 same as movable platform 106 moves in the Z-axis with respect to base structure 412 via the leaf springs 428 same as leaf springs 112a); and
a flex hinge assembly ((See Figs. 1-4: ¶0026, ¶ 0051, ¶0056: leaf springs 428 same as leaf springs 112a) configured to allow motion of the moving carriage in a first direction and limit movement in other directions (See Figs. 1-4: ¶0026, ¶ 0051, ¶0056:moveable platform 410 moves in the Z-axis with respect to base structure 412 via the leaf springs 428 same as leaf springs 112a providing sufficient stiffness in the X-Y plane to resist or prevent movement), wherein the flex hinge assembly includes at four flex hinge structures disposed each side of the flex hinge actuator (See Figs. 1-4: ¶0026, ¶0046, ¶ 0051, ¶0056: four leaf springs 428 same as leaf springs 112a shown on the four sides of the actuator 408 same as movable platform 106).
Claim 8 is rejected under lacks an inventive step under PCT Article 33(3) as being 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over US Publication number 2023/0185105 A1 to MIREAULT (MIREAULT) in view of US Publication number 2022/0106942 A1 to MILLER et al. (MILLER).
Re: Claim 8:
MIREAULTS discloses :
The flex hinge actuator of claim 1, further comprising:
a lens connected to the moving carriage (Figs. 1-4: ¶0055: lens group 404 is magnetically connected to the moveable platform 410); APLLE is silent regarding:
an outer housing; and
four bimorph actuators, with each of the four bimorph actuators being disposed on the outer housing and providing X/Y motion of the moving carriage.
MILLER teaches an outer housing (See Figs. 64-65: ¶0150: outer housing 6504); and four bimorph actuators (SMA actuator 6602 with four bimorph actuators 6604; paragraph [0150]), with each of the four bimorph actuators being disposed on the outer housing and providing X/Y motion of the moving carriage (See Figs. 64-65: ¶0150: four bimorph actuators 6604 act on the outer housing 6504 to move the lens carriage 6506 in the X and Y axis).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to modify MIREAULT's flex hinge actuator to incorporate MILLER’s outer housing and four bimorph actuators to improve hysteresis (MILLER: ¶0121).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 11, 13-16 are allowed.
Claim 11 is allowed, the prior art of record, individually or in combination, does not teach or fairly suggest a device including: the specific device wherein each flex hinge structure includes a first link and a second link, wherein the first link connects to the static base at a first hinge joint and to the second link at a second hinge joint, and wherein the second link connects to the moving carriage at a third hinge joint.
Claims 13-16 are allowed by virtue of their dependency on base claim 11 and intervening claims.
Claims 3-4, 9-10, 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:
Claim 3 contains an allowable subject matter since the prior art of record failed to disclose or teach wherein each flex hinge structure includes a first link and a second link, wherein the first link connects to the static base at a first hinge joint and to the second link at a second hinge joint, and wherein the second link connects to the moving carriage at a third hinge joint. Claim 4 is allowable by virtue of its dependency on claim 3.
Claim 9 contains an allowable subject matter since the prior art of record failed to disclose or teach a cover disposed over a portion of the moving carriage and outer housing, the cover comprising end stops to limit movement of the moving carriage past a threshold stroke range.
Claim 10 contains an allowable subject matter since the prior art of record failed to disclose or teach further comprising: an image sensor assembly disposed below the flex hinge assembly; and a flexible sensor circuit connected to the flex hinge assembly and the image sensor assembly.
Claim 11 contains an allowable subject matter since the prior art of record failed to disclose or teach further comprising: an image sensor assembly disposed below the flex hinge assembly; and a flexible sensor circuit connected to the flex hinge assembly and the image sensor assembly.
Claim 19 and 20 are objected to since the prior art of record failed to disclose or teach limitations as recited in claims 19 and 20 combined with the limitations of base claim 18.
MIREAULT modified BY MILLER discloses the flex hinge actuator of claim 8, and MIREAULT further discloses further comprising: an image sensor assembly (image sensor 406; figure 4) disposed below the flex hinge assembly (leaf springs 428; figure 4)., and MILLER discloses a flexible sensor circuit connected to the image sensor assembly (flexible sensor circuit shown to be connected to the image sensor assembly; figure 69). However, none of the cited prior art references taken alone or in combination disclose or suggest the specific flex hinge actuator wherein a flexible sensor circuit connected to the flex hinge assembly as claimed.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to SHAFIQ A MIAN whose telephone number is (571)272-4925. The examiner can normally be reached 8:30 am to 6:30 pm (Monday thru Thursday).
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/SHAFIQ MIAN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3746
September 26, 2026
