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 .
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 22-26 allowed.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter:
For claim 22 the best combination found was Rhe et al. (US 20200388667 A1) hereafter referred to as Rhe in view of Choi et al. (KR 20220135272 A) hereafter referred to as Choi
In regard to claim 22 Rhe teaches a [see Fig. 6B “FIG. 3 is a plan view showing a flexible electroluminescent display device having a touch sensor according to an embodiment of the present disclosure”] display apparatus, comprising:
a display module including a bending area [“bending area BA” “bending area BA is a flexible area and has flexibility”], a first non-bending [“active area AA” and “link area LA” see non-bending inorganic “The gate insulation layer GI and the passivation film PAS may be formed of an inorganic insulation material, such as silicon nitride or silicon oxide”] area, and a second non-bending [“pad area PA”] area, the first non-bending area and the second non-bending area being spaced apart [see Fig. 6B] from each other with the bending area interposed therebetween;
a display driver [“With reference to FIG. 3, a flexible electroluminescent display device 10 may include display drive circuits 12, 14, and 16 and a display panel DIS. The display driving circuits 12, 14, and 16 may include a data driving circuit 12, a gate driving circuit 14 and a timing controller 16” “data voltages output from the data driving circuit 12 may be supplied to the data lines D1 to Dm. The gate driving circuit 14 may sequentially supply gate pulses synchronized with the data voltages to the gate lines G1 to Gn” “host system 19 may transmit the timing signals Vsync, Hsync, DE, and MCLK to the timing controller 16 together with the digital video data”];
a stiffener [see non-bending inorganic “The gate insulation layer GI and the passivation film PAS may be formed of an inorganic insulation material, such as silicon nitride or silicon oxide”] disposed in the second non-bending area
but does not state that the display driver is disposed in the second non-bending area;
that the stiffener disposed in the second non-bending area is adjacent to the display driver;
an adhesive disposed between the stiffener and the display module; and
a bending protection layer disposed in the bending area, wherein the bending protection layer is in contact with the adhesive.
[The Examiner notes that adjacent does not require touching]
See Choi Fig. 4 see “The display driver 21 and the display circuit board 22 may be disposed in the pad area PDA. The display driver 21 may receive control signals and power voltages, and generate and output signals and voltages for driving the display panel 10 . The display driver 21 may include an integrated circuit (IC)” “the display panel 10 may further include a bending protection layer BPL positioned in the third area AR3 of the substrate 100” “As the display panel 10 is bent, the pad area PDA of the display panel 10 may overlap the display area DA and/or the outer area OA of the display panel 10” see Choi teaches adhesive “lower protective layer PL may be attached to the second surface 100S2 of the substrate 100 in the form of a film through an adhesive member”, however the combination does not satisfy wherein the bending protection layer is in contact with the adhesive.
Claim 5-9, 12-16, 19-21 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 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.
The factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness.
Claim(s) 1-4, 10, 11 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Rhe et al. (US 20200388667 A1) hereafter referred to as Rhe in view of Oh (US 20180321764 A1)
In regard to claim 1 Rhe teaches a display apparatus [see Fig. 6B], comprising:
a display module including a bending area [“bending area BA” “bending area BA is a flexible area and has flexibility”], a first non-bending [“active area AA” and “link area LA” see non-bending inorganic “The gate insulation layer GI and the passivation film PAS may be formed of an inorganic insulation material, such as silicon nitride or silicon oxide”] area, and a second non-bending [“pad area PA”] area, the first non-bending area and the second non-bending area being spaced apart from each other [see Fig. 6B] with the bending area interposed therebetween;
a display driver [“With reference to FIG. 3, a flexible electroluminescent display device 10 may include display drive circuits 12, 14, and 16 and a display panel DIS. The display driving circuits 12, 14, and 16 may include a data driving circuit 12, a gate driving circuit 14 and a timing controller 16” “data voltages output from the data driving circuit 12 may be supplied to the data lines D1 to Dm. The gate driving circuit 14 may sequentially supply gate pulses synchronized with the data voltages to the gate lines G1 to Gn” “host system 19 may transmit the timing signals Vsync, Hsync, DE, and MCLK to the timing controller 16 together with the digital video data”];
wherein the display module includes a display panel [“pixel array of the display panel DIS may include pixels defined by data lines D1 to Dm (where m is a positive integer) and gate lines G1 to Gn (where n is a positive integer). Each of the pixels may include an organic light-emitting diode OLE which is a self-light-emitting element” “active area AA, in which the display elements are disposed, includes a gate insulation layer GI covering the gate lines and gate electrodes of thin film transistors, a passivation film PAS covering source and drain electrodes of the thin film transistors and data lines formed on the gate insulation layer GI, a planarization layer PL formed on the passivation film PAS, and a bank BN formed to expose organic light-emitting diodes (not shown) disposed on the planarization layer PL. An encapsulation layer ENC is disposed on the bank BN to prevent moisture from permeating from the outside”] including a display element, a touch unit [“A touch sensor is formed on the encapsulation layer ENC. The touch sensor includes a plurality of first touch electrodes Tx, arranged in parallel along a first direction, and a plurality of second touch electrodes Rx, arranged in parallel along a second direction crossing the first direction”] disposed on the display panel and including a touch electrode [“The data lines (not shown) extending from the active area AA, a plurality of first routing wires TW connected to the plurality of first touch electrodes Tx, and a plurality of second routing wires RW connected to the plurality of second touch electrodes Rx are disposed in the link area LA and the bending area BA”] and a signal line, and
a insulation layer [“the second insulation layer INS2 is an organic insulation layer for protecting the second touch electrodes Rx. The first and second insulation layers INS1 and INS2 may be formed using the same material as the planarization layer PL”] disposed on the touch unit, wherein the insulation layer is disposed in [see Fig. 6B] the first non-bending area and extends from [see Fig. 6B] the first non-bending area to the second non-bending area,
a stiffener [see non-bending inorganic “The gate insulation layer GI and the passivation film PAS may be formed of an inorganic insulation material, such as silicon nitride or silicon oxide”] disposed in the second non-bending area
but does not state that the display driver is disposed in the second non-bending area;
that the stiffener disposed in the second non-bending area is adjacent to the display driver; and
an adhesive disposed in the second non-bending area and on a lower surface of the stiffener,
and that the insulation layer is planarization layer.
[The Examiner notes that adjacent does not require touching]
However see Fig. 6B “The first and second insulation layers INS1 and INS2 may be formed using the same material as the planarization layer PL” and see that the top of INS2 in the bending area BA is as planar as that of PL below it, thus whether the INS2 is designated as planarization is essentially a naming issue, see “planarization layer PL may be a resin, such as, polyacrylate-based resin, epoxy resin, phenolic resin, polyamide-based resin, polyimide-based resin, unsaturated polyester-based resin, poly-phenylenether-based resin, poly-phenylenesulfide-based resin, and/or benzocyclobutene. However, the planarization layer PL is not limited thereto, and can be formed of various materials”.
See Oh Fig. 1, Fig. 2, Fig. 5 see “A plurality of routing lines 160, which is connected to respective touch electrodes of the touch sensor array 220, and a plurality of display signal links 178, which is connected to respective signal lines of the pixel array 210, are disposed in the bending area BA” see stiffeners “A first support film 270a” “a second support film 270b” “maintained in a planar state by the back plate 280 and the first and second support films 270a and 270b” to support display driver “The back plate 280 and the first and second support films 270a and 270b are attached to the bottom surface of an area of the flexible display panel 200” “The touch pad 180 is bonded to a touch signal transmission film 218, on which a touch-driving part is mounted, through a film-on-glass (FOG) method or a tape-automated bonding (TAB) method. The display pad 170 is also bonded to a display signal transmission film 216, on which a display-driving part is mounted, through a film-on-glass (FOG) method or a tape-automated bonding (TAB) method” “gap-maintaining member 212 is disposed between the back plate 280 and the first support film 270a in order to maintain the curvature of the bending area BA” see that Oh uses adhesives to attach things “The upper flexible substrate 101, on which the touch sensor array 220 is formed, is attached onto the lower flexible substrate 111, on which the light-emitting unit 120 and the color filter array 230 are formed, via an adhesive layer 110” “The adhesive layer 110 is formed of an optical clear adhesive (OCA) or optical clear resin (OCR)”, see that the surfaces in Oh are planar and designed to bend “Each of the upper and lower flexible substrates 101 and 111 is formed of a flexible material that can be bendable. For example, each of the upper and lower flexible substrates 101 and 111 may include polyimide, polyethylene terephthalate (PET), polycarbonate (PC), cyclic olefin polymer (COP), cellulose acetate propionate (CAP), polyethersulfone (PES), polyacrylate (PAR), polyetherimide (PEI), polyethylene naphthalate (PEN), polyphenylene sulfide (PPS), polyarylate, cellulose triacetate (TAC), etc. However, the present disclosure is not limited thereto. The display device, which includes the upper and lower flexible substrates 101 and 111, which are formed of a flexible and bendable material, can exhibit flexibility and rollability” , see that 270a is adjacent i.e. on the other side of 216 on which the display-driving part is mounted.
Thus, it 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 to modify Rhe to include that the display driver is disposed in the second non-bending area; that the stiffener disposed in the second non-bending area is adjacent to the display driver; and an adhesive disposed in the second non-bending area and on a lower surface of the stiffener, and that the insulation layer is planarization layer.
Thus it would be obvious to combine the references to arrive at the claimed invention.
The motivation is that stiffener of Oh helps provide support in a planar state, adhesive are useful to attach stiffener after bending, insulation made of planarization material also performs planarization role and gives good strength during bending and display driver mounted below gives good results to supply the signals to the display using the bent portion so as to get a functional display to perform work.
In regard to claim 2 Rhe and Oh as combined teaches wherein a portion of the planarization layer [see Rhe Fig. 6B, see combination] is disposed in the bending area.
In regard to claim 3 Rhe and Oh as combined teaches wherein the touch electrode of the touch unit is disposed [see Rhe Fig. 6B, see “A touch sensor is formed on the encapsulation layer ENC. The touch sensor includes a plurality of first touch electrodes Tx, arranged in parallel along a first direction, and a plurality of second touch electrodes Rx, arranged in parallel along a second direction crossing the first direction” ] in the first non-bending area and a portion of the signal line is disposed [“The data lines (not shown) extending from the active area AA, a plurality of first routing wires TW connected to the plurality of first touch electrodes Tx, and a plurality of second routing wires RW connected to the plurality of second touch electrodes Rx are disposed in the link area LA and the bending area BA”] in the bending area, and wherein the planarization layer overlaps [see Rhe Fig. 6B, see combination] the portion of the signal line disposed in the bending area.
In regard to claim 4 Rhe and Oh as combined teaches wherein the first non-bending area includes a display area [“active area AA, in which the display elements are disposed, includes a gate insulation layer GI covering the gate lines and gate electrodes of thin film transistors, a passivation film PAS covering source and drain electrodes of the thin film transistors and data lines formed on the gate insulation layer GI, a planarization layer PL formed on the passivation film PAS, and a bank BN formed to expose organic light-emitting diodes (not shown) disposed on the planarization layer PL”] in which the display element is disposed and a first peripheral area [ “link area LA” see Fig. 6B, “bezel area ZA includes a link area LA, a bending area BA, and a pad area PA”] disposed outside of the display area, and wherein the planarization layer is disposed in the display area [see Rhe Fig. 6B, see combination] and the first peripheral area.
In regard to claim 10 Rhe and Oh as combined teaches wherein the planarization layer overlaps [see Rhe Fig. 6B, see combination Oh, see Oh Fig. 1, see 101 overlaps] at least a portion of the stiffener.
In regard to claim 11 Rhe and Oh as combined teaches wherein the planarization layer overlaps [see Rhe Fig. 6B, see combination Oh, see Oh Fig. 1, see 101 overlaps] at least a portion of the adhesive.
Claim(s) 17, 18 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Rhe et al. (US 20200388667 A1) hereafter referred to as Rhe in view of Oh (US 20180321764 A1)
In regard to claim 17 Rhe teaches a [see Fig. 6B “FIG. 3 is a plan view showing a flexible electroluminescent display device having a touch sensor according to an embodiment of the present disclosure”] display apparatus,
comprising: a display module including a bending area [“bending area BA” “bending area BA is a flexible area and has flexibility”], a first non-bending [“active area AA” and “link area LA” see non-bending inorganic “The gate insulation layer GI and the passivation film PAS may be formed of an inorganic insulation material, such as silicon nitride or silicon oxide”] area, and a second non-bending [“pad area PA”] area, the first non-bending area and the second non-bending being spaced apart [see Fig. 6B] from each other with the bending area interposed therebetween;
a display driver [“With reference to FIG. 3, a flexible electroluminescent display device 10 may include display drive circuits 12, 14, and 16 and a display panel DIS. The display driving circuits 12, 14, and 16 may include a data driving circuit 12, a gate driving circuit 14 and a timing controller 16” “data voltages output from the data driving circuit 12 may be supplied to the data lines D1 to Dm. The gate driving circuit 14 may sequentially supply gate pulses synchronized with the data voltages to the gate lines G1 to Gn” “host system 19 may transmit the timing signals Vsync, Hsync, DE, and MCLK to the timing controller 16 together with the digital video data”];
wherein the display module includes a display panel [“pixel array of the display panel DIS may include pixels defined by data lines D1 to Dm (where m is a positive integer) and gate lines G1 to Gn (where n is a positive integer). Each of the pixels may include an organic light-emitting diode OLE which is a self-light-emitting element” “active area AA, in which the display elements are disposed, includes a gate insulation layer GI covering the gate lines and gate electrodes of thin film transistors, a passivation film PAS covering source and drain electrodes of the thin film transistors and data lines formed on the gate insulation layer GI, a planarization layer PL formed on the passivation film PAS, and a bank BN formed to expose organic light-emitting diodes (not shown) disposed on the planarization layer PL. An encapsulation layer ENC is disposed on the bank BN to prevent moisture from permeating from the outside”] and a insulation layer [“the second insulation layer INS2 is an organic insulation layer for protecting the second touch electrodes Rx. The first and second insulation layers INS1 and INS2 may be formed using the same material as the planarization layer PL”], the display panel including a light-emitting device [“Each of the pixels may include an organic light-emitting diode OLE which is a self-light-emitting element”] and an encapsulation structure [“a planarization layer PL formed on the passivation film PAS, and a bank BN formed to expose organic light-emitting diodes (not shown) disposed on the planarization layer PL. An encapsulation layer ENC is disposed on the bank BN to prevent moisture from permeating from the outside”] encapsulating the light-emitting device, and the insulation layer is disposed [see Fig. 6B, “A touch sensor may be formed on the encapsulation layer ENC. The touch sensor may include a plurality of first touch electrodes Tx arranged in parallel along a first direction, and a plurality of second touch electrodes Rx arranged in parallel along a second direction crossing the first direction. A first insulation layer INS1 made of an organic insulation material may be disposed entirely between the first touch electrodes Tx and the second touch electrodes Rx, or may be disposed only at the crossings thereof. A second insulation layer INS2 may be disposed on the first insulation layer INS1 to cover the second touch electrode Rx” ] on the display panel,
wherein the first non-bending area includes a display area [“pixel array of the display panel DIS may include pixels defined by data lines D1 to Dm (where m is a positive integer) and gate lines G1 to Gn (where n is a positive integer). Each of the pixels may include an organic light-emitting diode OLE which is a self-light-emitting element” “active area AA, in which the display elements are disposed, includes a gate insulation layer GI covering the gate lines and gate electrodes of thin film transistors, a passivation film PAS covering source and drain electrodes of the thin film transistors and data lines formed on the gate insulation layer GI, a planarization layer PL formed on the passivation film PAS, and a bank BN formed to expose organic light-emitting diodes (not shown) disposed on the planarization layer PL. An encapsulation layer ENC is disposed on the bank BN to prevent moisture from permeating from the outside”] in which the light-emitting device is disposed and a first peripheral area [ “link area LA” see Fig. 6B, “bezel area ZA includes a link area LA, a bending area BA, and a pad area PA”] disposed outside of the display area, and
wherein the insulation layer is disposed in [see Fig. 6B] the display area and the first peripheral [see Fig. 6B] area and overlaps [see Fig. 6B] the bending area
a stiffener [see non-bending inorganic “The gate insulation layer GI and the passivation film PAS may be formed of an inorganic insulation material, such as silicon nitride or silicon oxide”] disposed in the second non-bending area
but does not state that the display driver is disposed in the second non-bending area; and
that the stiffener disposed in the second non-bending area is adjacent to the display driver,
and that the insulation layer is planarization layer
[The Examiner notes that adjacent does not require touching]
However see Fig. 6B “The first and second insulation layers INS1 and INS2 may be formed using the same material as the planarization layer PL” and see that the top of INS2 in the bending area BA is as planar as that of PL below it, thus whether the INS2 is designated as planarization is essentially a naming issue, see “planarization layer PL may be a resin, such as, polyacrylate-based resin, epoxy resin, phenolic resin, polyamide-based resin, polyimide-based resin, unsaturated polyester-based resin, poly-phenylenether-based resin, poly-phenylenesulfide-based resin, and/or benzocyclobutene. However, the planarization layer PL is not limited thereto, and can be formed of various materials”.
See Oh Fig. 1, Fig. 2, Fig. 5 see “A plurality of routing lines 160, which is connected to respective touch electrodes of the touch sensor array 220, and a plurality of display signal links 178, which is connected to respective signal lines of the pixel array 210, are disposed in the bending area BA” see stiffeners “A first support film 270a” “a second support film 270b” “maintained in a planar state by the back plate 280 and the first and second support films 270a and 270b” to support display driver “The back plate 280 and the first and second support films 270a and 270b are attached to the bottom surface of an area of the flexible display panel 200” “The touch pad 180 is bonded to a touch signal transmission film 218, on which a touch-driving part is mounted, through a film-on-glass (FOG) method or a tape-automated bonding (TAB) method. The display pad 170 is also bonded to a display signal transmission film 216, on which a display-driving part is mounted, through a film-on-glass (FOG) method or a tape-automated bonding (TAB) method” “gap-maintaining member 212 is disposed between the back plate 280 and the first support film 270a in order to maintain the curvature of the bending area BA” see that Oh uses adhesives to attach things “The upper flexible substrate 101, on which the touch sensor array 220 is formed, is attached onto the lower flexible substrate 111, on which the light-emitting unit 120 and the color filter array 230 are formed, via an adhesive layer 110” “The adhesive layer 110 is formed of an optical clear adhesive (OCA) or optical clear resin (OCR)”, see that the surfaces in Oh are planar and designed to bend “Each of the upper and lower flexible substrates 101 and 111 is formed of a flexible material that can be bendable. For example, each of the upper and lower flexible substrates 101 and 111 may include polyimide, polyethylene terephthalate (PET), polycarbonate (PC), cyclic olefin polymer (COP), cellulose acetate propionate (CAP), polyethersulfone (PES), polyacrylate (PAR), polyetherimide (PEI), polyethylene naphthalate (PEN), polyphenylene sulfide (PPS), polyarylate, cellulose triacetate (TAC), etc. However, the present disclosure is not limited thereto. The display device, which includes the upper and lower flexible substrates 101 and 111, which are formed of a flexible and bendable material, can exhibit flexibility and rollability”, see that 270a is adjacent i.e. on the other side of 216 on which the display-driving part is mounted.
Thus, it 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 to modify Rhe to include that the display driver is disposed in the second non-bending area; and that the stiffener disposed in the second non-bending area is adjacent to the display driver, and that the insulation layer is planarization layer.
Thus it would be obvious to combine the references to arrive at the claimed invention.
The motivation is that stiffener of Oh helps provide support in a planar state, adhesive are useful to attach stiffener after bending, insulation made of planarization material also performs planarization role and gives good strength during bending and display driver mounted below gives good results to supply the signals to the display using the bent portion so as to get a functional display to perform work.
In regard to claim 18 Rhe and Oh as combined teaches wherein the planarization layer overlaps [see Rhe Fig. 6B, see combination Oh, see Oh Fig. 1, see 101 overlaps] a portion of the stiffener.
Conclusion
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/SITARAMARAO S YECHURI/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2893
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