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 .
Priority
Acknowledgment is made of applicant's claim for foreign priority based on an application filed in Korea on 14 August 2023. It is noted, however, that applicant has not filed a certified copy of the KR 10-2023-0106413 application as required by 37 CFR 1.55.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statements (IDS's) submitted comply with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the examiner has considered the information disclosure statement; please see attached annotated forms.
Drawings
The drawings submitted have been reviewed and determined to facilitate understanding of the invention. The drawings are accepted as submitted.
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 1-3, 10, and 19-20 rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by US Patent Application Publication US 2003/0048976 A1 to Lundqvist (“US1”).
Regarding Claim 1, US1 describes an electro-optical device (see Fig 1) comprising:
a waveguide (108) configured to generate a dispersive wave of which a center wavelength is different from a center wavelength of an incident wave (from 102) of the waveguide (see [0024]-[0026]); and
a wavelength modulator (110) disposed along the waveguide and configured to absorb the incident wave propagating through the waveguide (see [0029]-[0032]) ,
wherein, as the wavelength modulator absorbs the incident wave, the center wavelength of the dispersive wave changes (see [0011]-[0014]).
Regarding Claim 2, US1 describes the wavelength modulator configured to absorb the incident wave at a controllable absorption rate (see [0026], [0029]-[0032]).
Regarding Claim 3, US1 describes the controllable absorption rate of the wavelength modulator controlled based on a voltage applied (via 112) to the wavelength modulator.
Regarding Claim 10, US1 describes the wavelength modulator configured to absorb a part of the incident wave (see [0011]-[0014]).
Regarding Claim 19, US1 describes a laser device (see Fig 1) comprising:
a pulse laser source (102) configured to emit a pulse wave;
a waveguide (108) configured to generate a dispersive wave of which a center wavelength is different from a center wavelength of an incident wave (from 102) of the waveguide (see [0024]-[0026]); and
a wavelength modulator (110) disposed along the waveguide and configured to absorb the incident wave propagating through the waveguide (see [0029]-[0032]) ,
wherein, as the wavelength modulator absorbs the incident wave, the center wavelength of the dispersive wave changes (see [0011]-[0014]).
Regarding Claim 20, US1 describes the pulse laser source is configured to generate the pulse wave from a continuous pump wave (see [0025]).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 21-22 are allowed.
Claims 4-9 and 11-18 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.
Claim 4 describes that a dispersion profile of the waveguide changes according to the controllable absorption rate of the wavelength modulator.
Claim 5 describes that as the controllable absorption rate of the wavelength modulator changes, a refractive index of the waveguide changes, and, as the refractive index of the waveguide changes, the dispersion profile of the waveguide changes.
Claim 6 describes that a dispersion profile of the waveguide changes according to a voltage applied to the wavelength modulator.
Claim 7 describes that as a dispersion profile of the waveguide changes, a center wavelength of the dispersive wave changes.
Claim 8 describes the waveguide is configured to generate the dispersive wave in a nonlinear process based on the dispersion profile of the waveguide.
Claim 11 describes the wavelength modulator comprises an electro-optical material layer disposed along the waveguide.
Claim 21 describes a second laser device comprising:
a second pulse laser source configured to emit a second pulse wave in a second time period;
a second waveguide configured to receive the second pulse wave as a second incident wave and to generate the second dispersive wave of which a center wavelength is different from a center wavelength of the second incident wave; and
a second wavelength modulator disposed along the second waveguide and configured to absorb the second incident wave propagating through the second waveguide
These limitations represent subject matter not described or reasonably suggested, in conjunction with the further limitations of the present claims, by the prior art of record.
Claim 9 depends from Claim 8 and therefore contain at least the same allowable subject matter.
Claims 12-17 depend from Claim 11 and therefore contain at least the same allowable subject matter.
Claim 22 depends from Claim 21 and therefore contain at least the same allowable subject matter.
Conclusion
The prior art cited in the attached form PTO-892 are made of record and considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. The cited prior art describes optical devices comprising waveguides and modulators.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JERRY RAHLL whose telephone number is (571)272-2356. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 9:00am-5:00pm.
Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Uyen-Chau Le can be reached at 571-272-2397. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/JERRY RAHLL/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2874
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