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 .
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 1 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Liao et al (CN 116939071A; “Liao” hereinafter).
Regarding Claim 1, Liao teaches a display apparatus, comprising:
a body support assembly (120, figs. 2b, 15b);
two rotatable support assemblies (110 and 120) disposed on two sides of the body support assembly (figs. 2b and 15b) in a first direction (see ‘F1’ in annotated fig. 2b below);
a hinge (140 and 150) disposed between the body support assembly and the rotatable support assembly in the first direction (figs. 2b and 15b), wherein the hinge comprises a support base (141) and at least two flip assemblies (142-145, figs. 5a-5b), wherein the support base extends along a second direction intersected with the first direction (see ‘F2’ in annotated fig. 2b below); and the at least two flip assemblies are oppositely disposed in the first direction and are both connected to the support base (figs. 2b and 15b, ¶[0152], [0162], [0165]), one of the at least two flip assemblies (145) is connected to the body support assembly (through 122, ¶[0167]), and another of the at least two flip assemblies (144) is connected to the rotatable support assembly (through 112, ¶[0167]); and
a flexible display panel (200), wherein a rear surface of the flexible display panel is connected to the body support assembly, the support base, and the rotatable support assemblies (¶[0151], [0153]).
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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 20 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Liao et al (CN 116939071A), in view of Ko et al (US 20160062410; “Ko” hereinafter).
Regarding Claim 20, Liao teaches a display apparatus, wherein the display apparatus comprises:
a body support assembly (120, figs. 2b, 15b);
two rotatable support assemblies (110 and 120) disposed on two sides of the body support assembly (figs. 2b and 15b) in a first direction (see ‘F1’ in annotated fig. 2b above);
a hinge (140 and 150) disposed between the body support assembly and the rotatable support assembly in the first direction (figs. 2b and 15b), wherein the hinge comprises a support base (141) and at least two flip assemblies (144 and 145), wherein the support base extends along a second direction intersected with the first direction (see ‘F2’ in annotated fig. 2b above); and the at least two flip assemblies are oppositely disposed in the first direction and are both connected to the support base (figs. 2b and 15b, ¶[0152], [0162], [0165]), one (145) of the at least two flip assemblies is connected to the body support assembly (through 122, ¶[0167]), and another (144) of the at least two flip assemblies is connected to the rotatable support assembly (through 112, ¶[0167]); and a flexible display panel (200), wherein a rear surface of the flexible display panel is connected to the body support assembly, the support base, and the rotatable support assemblies (¶[0151], [0153]).
Liao does not explicitly teach:
a wearable device, comprising: a display apparatus and a watchband detachably connected to the display apparatus.
However, Ko discloses:
a wearable device (100, fig. 1), comprising: a display apparatus (101, ¶[0049]) and a watchband (103, fig. 1-2) detachably connected to the display apparatus (¶[0053]).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filling date of the claimed invention to combine the teachings of Ko with Liao, such that a wearable device, comprising: a display apparatus and a watchband is detachably connected to the display apparatus, in order to provide a display apparatus having a sufficient screen size including a flexible display element being bendable in a curved form so as to be wearable on a user's body portion (¶[0002]).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claim 2-19 would be allowable if rewritten to overcome the rejection(s) under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), 2nd paragraph, set forth in this Office action and to include all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
Regarding claim 2, the prior art of record taken alone or in combination, fails to teach or fairly suggest, in combination with other limitations recited in claim 1, a combination of limitations that teaches: wherein each of the at least two flip assemblies comprises a rotating arm, wherein a first end of the rotating arm is fixedly connected to the support base, and a second end of the rotating arm is rotatably connected to a target support assembly, the target support assembly being the body support assembly or the rotatable support assembly. None of the reference art of record discloses or renders obvious such a combination.
Claims 3-19 are objected to by virtue of dependency to claim 2.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is:
US 4412751A Jointed Electronic Watch. This invention relates generally to a jointed electronic watch comprises a plurality of watch cases each capable of bearing a different type of display and an energy source.
US 10070547 B1 Bendable Display Apparatus and Supporting Device. This invention generally relates to a bendable display apparatus including a carrying plate, two supporting devices disposed on an inner side of the carrying plate, and a bendable display mounted on an outer side of the carrying plate.
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/P.K./Examiner, Art Unit 2841
/ALLEN L PARKER/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2841
