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 .
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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.
Claim(s) 1-3 and 7 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Suzuishi et al (CN 104246447).
Regarding claim 1, Suzuishi et al shows in Figs.1 and 8-9 the following elements of applicant’s claim: an optical pattern (2; 32) including two regions with different reflectance or transmittance (3, 4; 33, 34; paragraph 3), wherein the optical encoder scale includes a two-dimensional code (6; 38; paragraph 87).
Regarding claim 2, the limitations therein are shown in Fig.1 of Suzuishi et al.
Regarding claim 3, the limitations therein are disclosed in paragraph 6 of Suzuishi et al.
Regarding claim 7, the limitations therein are shown in Fig.7 of Suzuishi eta l (paragraph 4).
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.
Claim(s) 4-5 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Suzuishi et al (CN 104246447).
Regarding claims 4-5, the specific scheme and configuration utilized to produce an optical encoder scale would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art in view of meeting different design requirements and achieving the particular desired performance.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claim 6 is allowed.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter: Regarding claim 6, while the prior art (i.e. Suzuishi et al) discloses an optical encoder scale comprising an optical pattern with two regions and a two-dimensional code, it fails to disclose or make obvious a multifaced optical scale comprising, in addition to the other recited features of the claim, the limitations of “the multifaced optical encoder scale includes one or more unit regions; and in the unit region, the two-dimensional code differs for each optical scale”.
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Perret et al (US 2015/0102105) is cited for disclosing the use of optical codes for the identification, authentication and/or traceability of one or more items.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to KEVIN K PYO whose telephone number is (571)272-2445. The examiner can normally be reached 9:00-5:30 PM.
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, Georgia Y Epps can be reached at 571-272-2328. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000.
/KEVIN K PYO/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2878
Prosecution Insights