DETAILED ACTION
The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
Claim(s) 1-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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.
This application currently names joint inventors. In considering patentability of the claims the examiner presumes that the subject matter of the various claims was commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the claimed invention(s) absent any evidence to the contrary. Applicant is advised of the obligation under 37 CFR 1.56 to point out the inventor and effective filing dates of each claim that was not commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the later invention in order for the examiner to consider the applicability of 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(2)(C) for any potential 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) prior art against the later invention.
Claim(s) 1, 3-14 and 16-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over US Publication 2018/0164567 to Chan, in view of US Publication 2018/0199409 to Waag et al.
In regards to claims 1, 6, 9 and 19, Chan discloses and shows in Figures 1-11, a system configured to image a surface and a method for detecting a biological material on a surface (par. 1-3, 5), comprising:
a first light source (94) and a second light source (96) configured to illuminate a first surface of a well (52) (par. 20, 30, 34, 37-38; wherein a light source array may include any suitable number of sources);
an objective lens (86) (applicant’s optical element) configured to couple emitted light of the first light source and the second light source from a second surface of the well (par. 22, 30, 42), wherein the second surface of the well is axially separated from the first surface of the well along an optical axis parallel to an optical axis of the first light source or an optical axis of the second light source (par. 20, 27-28, 35) (Figures 8-9; wherein a plurality of multi-well sample holders are irradiated at a top surface, and light is transmitted through the sample holder and a stage, to an objective lens system), and wherein the optical element comprises a plurality of lens elements (par. 42; wherein the objective may have any suitable number of lenses); and
a detector (146) optically coupled to the optical element, wherein the detector is configured to detect the light emitted from the second surface of the well (par. 42-43).
Chan differs from the limitations in that it is silent to the system further comprising:
[claims 1 and 9] wherein the first light source and the second light source are separated at a distance of less than about 500 nanometers; and
[claims 6 and 19] wherein the first light source emits a first wavelength of light, and the second light source emits a second wavelength of light, wherein the first wavelength of light and the second wavelength of light differ.
However, Waag teaches and shows in Figures 1-5, an optical detection device for imaging a sample, wherein a nanoLED array (12) having a pixel pitch of less than 500 nm, is utilized to image a sample (5) (par. 1, 5, 15, 53, 58). Wagg explicitly discloses that the pixel pitch provides the advantage of providing super resolution images, with a resolution higher than the detection device (par. 30). Further, Wagg teaches the nanoLED array (12) wherein each LED may utilize a different wavelength or filter layer to obtain desired irradiation characteristics and enable wavelength sensitive excitation and imaging (par. 58).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of the effective filing date of the invention, to modify the sample imaging system of Chan to include the nanoLED array light source as discussed above for the advantage of obtaining super resolution images of a sample at desired wavelengths and at a resolution higher than a detection device, with a reasonable expectation of success.
In regards to claims 3-5, 7-8, 10-14, 16-18 and 20, Chan discloses and shows in Figures 1-11, a system configured to image a surface and a method for detecting a biological material on a surface (par. 1-3, 5), comprising:
[claim 3] wherein the first light source, the second light source, or a combination thereof, comprise a light emitting diode, and wherein the light emitting diode comprises a plurality of light emitting diodes (par. 37-38, 50);
[claims 4 and 10] wherein the well comprises a well of a multi-well plate (par. 28), and wherein the detector comprises a plurality of detectors (par. 43), wherein a first detector of the plurality of detectors is configured to detect emitted light from a first well of the multi-well plate, and a second detector of the plurality of detectors is configured to detect emitted light from a second well of the multi-well plate (par. 28, 43, 86; wherein the imaging system may be configured to automatically collect a sample image from each of a plurality of wells; wherein the objective collects the light transmitted from the floor of each well and focuses it onto an area of the imaging detector);
[claims 5 and 11] wherein the first well and the second well are non-adjacent wells of the multi-well plate (par. 28; wherein the sample holder may include any number of wells, and wherein the system is configured to automatically collect an image from a sample present in each of the wells; wherein non-adjacent wells are imaged during the automatic collection of images);
[claim 7] wherein the detector comprises a two-dimensional sensor, a charge coupled device sensor, a complementary metal oxide semiconductor sensor, an event-based sensor, or a combination thereof (par. 43);
[claim 8] wherein the first surface of the well comprises a biological material (par. 5, 20, 26; wherein a biological sample forms a meniscus (70));
[claim 12] wherein the detector comprises a two-dimensional sensor, a charge coupled device sensor, a complementary metal oxide semiconductor sensor, an event-based sensor, or a combination thereof (par. 43);
[claim 13] wherein a pixel of a plurality of pixels of the event-based sensor activates to detect the emission signal when a change in the emission signal is detected (par. 43; wherein an array of pixels detects variations in intensity);
[claim 14] further comprising translating the detector, the first light source, the second light source, the optical element, or a combination thereof, along an axis of the multi-well plate and repeating (a) and (b) (par. 44-45; wherein a drive subsystem (140) may include a plurality of drive mechanisms to move components of the imaging system relative to each other; further the stage may be moved so as to place different sample wells within a field of view);
[claim 16] wherein the first light source, the second light source, or a combination thereof, comprises a light emitting diode (par. 38);
[claim 17] wherein the light emitting diode comprises a plurality of light emitting diodes (par. 38);
[claim 18] wherein the light emitting diode comprises an array of light emitting diodes (par. 38);
[claim 20] wherein the biological material comprises a nucleic acid, a protein, or both (par. 26).
Claim(s) 2 and 15 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over US Publication 2018/0164567 to Chan, in view of US Publication 2017/0168048 to Szmacinski et al.
In regards to claims 2 and 15, Chan discloses the system and method wherein a sample holder may include a polygonal shaped floor (par. 27).
Chan in view of Waag, differ from the limitations in that they are silent to the system and method, wherein the optical element comprises a polygonal optical element optically coupled to a surface of at least a lens element of the plurality of lens elements.
However, Szmacinski teaches and shows a system and method for imaging biological samples (par. 9), wherein a polygonal optical element (314) is utilized to providing scanning light to and from a sample under test (par. 70).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of the effective filing date of the invention, to modify the sample imaging system of Chan in view of Wagg, to include the polygonal optical element discussed above for the advantage of providing desired scanning light to and from a sample to be imaged, with a reasonable expectation of success.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JONATHAN M HANSEN whose telephone number is (571)270-1736. The examiner can normally be reached Monday to Friday, 8am to 4pm.
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JONATHAN M. HANSEN
Primary Examiner
Art Unit 2877
/JONATHAN M HANSEN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2877
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