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 .
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 8/22/2024 was filed. The submission is in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner.
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) 20, 22-23 and 25 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Lee (US 2021/0202917) in view of Jung (US 2019/0251318), and further in view of Bang (US 2017/0315372).
Regarding claim 20, Lee discloses, in at least figures 11-13 and related text, a display device comprising:
a substrate (111, [132]) including a display area (DA, [140]) and a non-display area (NDA, [140]);
a transistor (210, [146]) on the display area (DA, [140]) of the substrate (111, [132]);
a planarization layer (250, [146]) on the display area (DA, [140]) and the non-display area (NDA, [140]), the planarization layer (250, [146]) on the transistor (210, [146]) in the display area (DA, [140]);
a light emitting element (260, [147]) configured to emit light in an emission area of the light emitting element (260, [147]), the light emitting element (260, [147]) on the planarization layer (250, [146]) and connected to the transistor (210, [146]);
an encapsulation layer (280, [168]) on the light emitting element (260, [147]) in the display area (DA, [140]).
Lee does not explicitly disclose a color filter overlapping the emission area of the light emitting element; a lens overlapping the color filter and the emission area of the light emitting element, the lens having a flat upper surface and a curved side surface that extends from the flat upper surface.
Jung teaches, in at least figure 9 and related text, the device comprising a color filter (330, [133]) overlapping the emission area of the light emitting element (310, [104]); a lens (130, [81]) overlapping the color filter (330, [133]) and the emission area of the light emitting element (310, [104]), for the purpose of providing a plurality of lenses disposed in a light emission area of the display device thereby increasing the display quality ([161]).
Bang teaches, in at least figures 6, 8, and related text, the device comprising the lens (ML, [92], [106]) having a flat upper surface and a curved side surface that extends from the flat upper surface, for the purpose of magnifying emission area effectively ([106]).
Lee, Jung, and Bang are analogous art because they all are directed to display device and one of ordinary skill in the art would have had a reasonable expectation of success to modify Lee with the specified features of Jung and Bang because they are from the same field of endeavor.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the structure disclosed in Lee to have the color filter overlapping the emission area of the light emitting element; the lens overlapping the color filter and the emission area of the light emitting element, as taught by Jung and the lens having a flat upper surface and a curved side surface that extends from the flat upper surface, as taught by Bang, for the purpose of providing a plurality of lenses disposed in a light emission area of the display device thereby increasing the display quality ([161], Jung) and magnifying emission area effectively ([106], Bang). as described above.
Regarding claim 22, Lee in view of Jung and Bang discloses the display device of claim 20 as described above.
Jung further teaches, in at least figure 9 and related text, the color filter (330, [133]) is between the lens (130, [81]) and the encapsulation layer (320, [104]), for the purpose of providing a plurality of lenses disposed in a light emission area of the display device thereby increasing the display quality ([161]).
Regarding claim 23, Lee in view of Jung and Bang discloses the display device of claim 20 as described above.
Jung further teaches, in at least figure 9 and related text, the lens (330, [133]) is between the color filter (130, [81]) and the encapsulation layer (320, [104]), for the purpose of providing a plurality of lenses disposed in a light emission area of the display device thereby increasing the display quality ([161]).
Regarding claim 25, Lee in view of Jung and Bang discloses the display device of claim 20 as described above.
Jung further teaches, in at least figure 9 and related text, a capping layer (420, [144], [145]) over the lens (130, [81]) and the color filter (330, [133]), the capping layer (420, [144], [145]) including a transparent material having a refractive index that is less than a refractive index of the lens (130, [81]), for the purpose of providing a plurality of lenses disposed in a light emission area of the display device thereby increasing the display quality ([161]).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 1-19 are allowed because the prior art of record neither anticipates nor render obvious the limitations of the base claims 1 that recite "a height of an upper surface of the lens processing pattern is a same as a height as an upper surface of the lens layer" in combination with other elements of the base claims 1.
Claim 21 is 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 because the prior art of record neither anticipates nor render obvious the limitations of the base claims 20 and 21 that recite "a height of an upper surface of the lens processing pattern is a same as a height as the flat upper surface of the lens" in combination with other elements of the base claims 20 and 21.
Claim 24 is 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 because the prior art of record neither anticipates nor render obvious the limitations of the base claims 20 and 24 that recite "another lens that neighbors the lens, the other lens having a flat upper surface of the other lens and a curved side surface of the other lens that extends from the flat upper surface of the other lens; a black matrix between and in contact with the curved side surface of the lens and the curved side surface of the other lens" in combination with other elements of the base claims 20 and 24.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to TONG-HO KIM whose telephone number is (571)270-0276. The examiner can normally be reached Monday thru Friday; 8:30 AM to 5PM.
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/TONG-HO KIM/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2811
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