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(s) 1, 2, 8, 9 and 11-13 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Idesawa JP 2003-255278A (Citation is from the attached English Translation).
Regarding claim 1, Idesawa teaches a lens control apparatus (see Figs. 1-2 and para 0015-0019: teaches autofocus adjustable eyeglasses including variable focus lens, gaze point distance calculation portion 2, focal length control portion 3, adjustment portion 4 and memory setting portion 5) for controlling a focal length of a variable focus lens for eyes (Figs. 2-3 and paras. 0016-0017: variable focus lens 1 is positioned in front of eyeball 10, and focal length control portion 3 controls the focal length of variable focus lens 1 through actuator 31), comprising:
a storage portion for storing focal-length-specifying-information for specifying a focal length of the variable focus lens according to a distance to a view object (Fig. 1 and para 0019: memory setting portion 5 stores in correspondence, a gaze point distance and a control amount of variable focus lens obtained through adjustment portion 4; the stored control amount specifies the focal length because it is supplied to focal length control portion 3 to control variable focus lens 1);
a control portion for controlling a focal length of the variable focus lens based on a detection result of a distance detection portion that detects the distance to the view object and the focal-length-specifying-information in the storage portion (Figs. 1-2 and paras. 0017, 0019 and 0024: gaze point distance calculation portion 2 calculated the distance to the gaze point based on the detected directions of the user’s right and left eyes, and focal length control portion 3 controls variable focus lens 1 using the control amount corresponding to the gaze point distance stored by memory setting portion 5); and
a setting process portion for executing a setting process (Figs. 1 and 4, paras. 0019-0020: memory setting portion 5, operating together with gaze point distance calculation portion 2 and adjustment portion 4 performs a calibration process in which the viewed object distance and corresponding lens control amount selected by the user are obtained and stored) in which a distance to each of setting-use view objects located at multiple different distances (Fig. 6 and para 0022: the user first performs adjustment at an arbitrary point and then repeats the adjustment at other points, thereby sequentially performing calibration while viewing objects at close, intermediate and far distances) when the user of the variable focus lens views the respective setting-use view objects (Fig. 2 and para 0020: the user views an object, and gaze point distance calculation portion 2 calculates the distance to that objected based on the user’s gaze direction), and the focal-length-specifying-information generated based on each focal length of the variable focus lens at which the user focuses on each of the setting-use view objects (Figs. 4-6 and paras. 0019-0023: at teach viewed object distance, the user operates adjustment portion 4 to adjust the left and right variable focus lenses 1 until the object appears clearest, thereby obtaining the respective lens control amount corresponding to the user selected focal length; interpolation information may also be generated from the control amounts and corresponding gaze point distances), are stored in the storage portion (paras. 0019, 0020 and 0022: memory setting portion 5 stores, in correspondence, the gaze point distance and the control amount of variable focus lens 1 obtained through the user’s adjustment at each calibration point).
Regarding claim 2, Idesawa further teaches the lens control apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the setting process portion uses the detection result of the distance detection portion as distance information to each of the setting-use view objects (Figs. 1, 2 and 4 and paras. 0017, 0019 and 0020: while the user views an object, gaze point distance calculation portion 2 calculates the distance to the gaze point based on the detected directions of the user’s right and left eyes; memory setting portion 5 uses and stores that calculated gaze point distance in correspondence with the lens control amount obtained when the user adjusts variable focus lens 1 until the object appears clear), and executes the setting process (Fig. 6 and para 0022-0023: the user first performs the distance detection and focal length adjustment process for an arbitrary object and then repeats the process for other objects at close, intermediate and far distances, thereby establishing the correspondence between the detected distance information and the respective focal length control amounts).
Regarding claim 8, Idesawa teaches an ophthalmic lens apparatus having a variable focus lens for eyes (Figs. 1-3 and paras. 0015-0016: autofocus adjustable eyeglasses having left and right variable focus lenses 1 positioned before the user’s eye), and a lens control device for controlling the variable focus lens (Fig. 1 and paras. 0017 and 0019: focal length control portion 3 having actuator 31 controls the focal length of variable focus lens 1 based on control information supplied by memory setting portion), further comprising a distance detection portion for detecting a distance to the view object (Figs. 1-2 and para 0017 and 0020: gaze point distance calculation portion 2 calculates the distance to the viewed object based on gaze directions detected by right eye and left eye gaze direction detectors 21 and 22), wherein the lens control apparatus according to claim 1 is used as the control device (Figs. 1 and 4-6 and para 0019-0024: portions 2-5 collectively execute the distance dependent focal length control and multi distance calibration functions).
Regarding claim 9, Idesawa teaches the ophthalmic lens apparatus according to claim 8, further comprising a focal-length determination portion for determining each focal length of the variable focus lens at which the user of the variable focus lens views and focuses on each of the setting-use view objects (Figs. 1, 4 and paras. 0017-0020: adjustment portion 4 permits the user to adjust the focal length of variable focus lens 1, either continuously or in predetermined steps, and focal length control portions 3 controls the lens through actuator 31, when the user views an object and operates adjustment portion 4 until the object appears clearest, the resulting focal length and corresponding lens control amount are thereby determined), wherein, and the setting process portion uses a result of determination by the focal-length determination portion, and executes the setting process (Figs. 4 and 6 and paras. 0019-0023: memory setting portion 5 uses the control amount corresponding to the focal length obtained through the user’s adjustment and stores that control amount in correspondence with the calculated gaze point distance; the same procedure is repeated for objects at close, intermediated and far distances, thereby setting the distance dependent focal length information).
Regarding claim 11, Idesawa teaches the ophthalmic lens apparatus according to claim 9, further comprising an operation portion for receiving a user operation for changing a focal length of the variable focus lens (Fig. 1 and para 0018: adjustment portion 4 includes an operating unit through which the user changes the focal length of variable focus lens either continuously or in predetermined steps), wherein the focal-length determination portion determines the focal length based on an operation result of the operation portion (Fig. 4 and paras. 0019-0020: the user operates adjustment portion 4 to change the focal lengths of the left and right lenses until the viewed object appears clearest, thereby determining the focal lengths corresponding to the user’s operation; the resulting control amounts are obtained and stored by memory setting portion).
Regarding claim 12, Idesawa teaches spectacles comprising the ophthalmic lens apparatus according to claim 8 (Figs. 1-2 and para 0015-0020: autofocus adjustable eyeglasses having variable focus lenses 1), wherein the variable focus lens is held in a spectacle frame (Fig. 2 and paras. 0015-0016: depicts the left and right variable focus lenses 1 supported within a wearable spectacle frame structure and positioned before the respective eyeballs).
Regarding claim 13, Idesawa teaches a control method for controlling a focal length of a variable focus lens for eyes (see Figs. 1, 4-6 and paras. 0015-0024: a method of calibrating and subsequently operating autofocus eyeglasses having variable focus lenses 1, gaze point distance calculation portion 1, focal length control portion 3, adjustment portion 4, and memory setting portions 5), comprising: a control step for controlling a focal length of the variable focus lens based on a detection result of a distance detection portion that detects a distance to a view object and focal-length-specifying-information stored in a storage portion that stores the focal-length-specifying-information for specifying a focal length of the variable focus lens according to the distance to the view object (Figs. 1-2 and para 0017 and 0019: gaze point distance calculation portion 2 calculates the distance to the viewed object based on the user’s right eye and left eye gaze directions, memory setting portion 5 stores, in correspondence, the calculated gaze point distance and the control amount obtained for variable focus lens, and the control amount corresponding to a particular gaze point distance is supplied to focal length control portion 3, which controls the focal length of variable focus lens 1 through actuator 31); and a setting process step for executing a setting process in which a distance to each of setting-use view objects located at multiple different distances when the user of the variable focus lens views the respective setting-use view objects, and the focal-length-specifying-information generated based on each focal length of the variable focus lens at which the user focuses on each of the setting-use view objects, are stored in the storage portion (Figs. 4 and 6, and paras. 0019, 0020, 0022 and 0023: during calibration the use views an object, gaze point distance calculation portion 2 calculates the distance to the object based on the user’s line of sight, and the user operates adjustment portion 4 to adjust the left and right variable focus lenses 1 until the object appears clear; memory setting portion 5 then stores the resulting lens control amounts in correspondence with the calculated distance; the procedure is repeated at other points to perform sequential calibration while viewing object at close, medium and long distances, and interpolation data may be generated for unmeasured distances.).
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) 3-6 and 14-18 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Idesawa JP 2003-255278A (Citation is from the attached English Translation) in view of Jiang US 2012/0133891.
Regarding claim 3, Idesawa teaches a lens control apparatus for controlling a focal length of a variable focus lens for eyes (Figs. 1-3 and paras. 0015-0019: autofocus adjustable eyeglasses including variable focus lenses 1, gaze point distance calculation portion 2, focal length control portion 3, adjustment portion 4, and memory setting portion 5), comprising: a storage portion for storing focal-length-specifying-information for specifying a focal length of the variable focus lens according to a distance to a view object (Fig. 1 and para 0019: memory setting portion 5 stores, in correspondence, the gaze point distance and the control amount of variable focus lens 1; the stored control amount specifies the focal length because it is supplied to focal length control portion 3 to control the focal length of variable focus lens 1); a control portion for controlling a focal length of the variable focus lens based on a detection result of a distance detection portion that detects the distance to the view object and the focal-length-specifying-information in the storage portion (Figs. 1-2 and para 0017, 0019 and 0024: gaze point distance calculation portion 2 calculates the distance to the viewed object based on the detected gaze directions, and focal length control portion 3); and an update process portion for executing an update process in which a distance to a setting-use view object when the user of the variable focus lens views the setting-use view object, and a focal length of the variable focus lens at which the user focuses on the setting-use view object are acquired (Fig. 4 and paras. 0018-0020: the user views an object, gaze point distance calculation portion 2 calculates the distance to the viewed object, and the user operates adjustment portion 4 to the left and right variable focus lens 1 until the object appears clearest, thereby acquiring the suitable focal length and corresponding control amount at the calculated distance), and the focal-length-specifying-information stored in the storage portion is updated by new focal-length-specifying-information (Figs. 5-6 and paras. 0021-0025: memory setting portion 5 resets or recalibrates the previously stored correspondence between distance information and lens control amount and stores the readjusted correspondence for subsequent autofocus operation), and in which the focal length corresponding to the view distance is corrected by correction value that reduces a difference between the acquired focal length and the focal length corresponding to the view distance in the focal length specifying information stored in the storage portion (Idesawa compares the preset control amount represented by the dashed curve in Fig. 5 with the optimum control amount subsequently obtained through the user’s adjustment, determines the difference between those amounts, and uses the difference to reset the control amount at the corresponding viewing distance, see Fig. 5 and para 0021).
However, Idesawa does not expressly disclose not only the focal length corresponding to the view distance but also focal lengths corresponding to the other distances are corrected by a correction value.
Jiang however, teaches a distance dependent adaptive lens optical power relationship in which optical power is specified as a function of real object distance (Fig. 2 and paras. 0049-0052. Jiang further teaches modifying that relationship by a common correction across the viewing distance range, expressly stating that overdriven reduction curve 206 is short by 0.25 diopter for all distances see Fig. 2 and para 0053. Jiang therefore teaches correcting not only the optical power corresponding to one viewing distance, but also optical powers corresponding to other viewing distances by the correction amount. Accordingly, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to modify Idesawa’s update process so that the difference obtained through the user’s adjustment at the selected viewing distance is applied as an offset to the stored lens control amounts corresponding to other viewing distances, as taught by Jiang in order to reduce or eliminated the need to repeat the same calibration operation at numerous distance while predictably preserving the general shape of the stored distance dependent focusing curve.
Regarding claim 4, the combination of Idesawa and Jiang teaches the lens control apparatus according to claim 3, and Jiang further teaches wherein the new focal-length-specifying-information is obtained by uniformly correcting the focal length corresponding to the view distance and the focal length corresponding to the above other distance by the same correction value (see Fig. 2 and paras. 0049, 0053: a distance dependent adaptive lens optical power curve and expressly teaches uniformly reducing the corrective power by the same 0.25 diopter amount at all viewing distances).
Regarding claim 5, the combination of Idesawa and Jiang teaches the lens control apparatus according to claim 3, and Idesawa further teaches wherein the update process portion uses the detection result of the distance detection portion as distance information to the setting-use view object, and executes the update process (Figs. 1, 2 and 4 and paras. 0017, 0019 and 0020: when the user views a calibration object, gaze point distance calculation portion 2 calculates the distance to the object based on the detected gaze directions; memory setting portion 5 uses and stores that calculated distance in correspondence with the lens control amount obtained when the user adjusts variable focus lens 1 until the object appears clear, thereby executing the recalibration process).
Regarding claim 6, the combination of Idesawa and Jiang teaches the lens control apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the above other distance is any distance included in the focal-length-specifying-information stored in the storage portion, other than the view distance (Idesawa stores a distance dependent correspondence between viewing distances and variable lens control amounts and generates information for additional distance by interpolation (see paras. 0019-0023); Jiang’s Fig. 2 teaches applying the optical power correction throughout the distance dependent relationship, expressly stating that the corrective power is short by the same 0.25 diopter amount for all distances, thereby correcting every stored distance other than the selected viewing distance see Jiang. Fig. 2 and para. 0053).
Regarding claim 14, the claimed method steps correspond to the functions recited in claim 3. Accordingly, claim 14 is rejected over Idesawa in view of Jiang for substantially the same reasons set forth above regarding claim 3.
Regarding claim 15, the combination of Idesawa and Jiang teaches an ophthalmic lens apparatus having a variable focus lens for eyes (Figs. 2: autofocus adjustable eyeglasses having variable focus lenses 1), and Idesawa further teaches a lens control device for controlling the variable focus lens, further comprising a distance detection portion for detecting a distance to the view object, wherein the lens control apparatus according to claim 3 is used as the control device (Figs. 1-3 and paras. 0015-0020: autofocus adjustable eyeglasses having variable focus lenses 1, gaze point distance calculation portion 2, focal length control portion 3, adjustment portion 4, and memory setting portion 5).
Regarding claim 16, the combination of Idesawa teaches the ophthalmic lens apparatus according to claim 15, and Idesawa teaches further comprising a focal-length determination portion for determining a focal length of the variable focus lens at which the user of the variable focus lens views and focuses on the setting-use view objects (Fig. 4 and paras. 0018, 0020: the user operates adjustment portion 4 until the object appears clear, thereby determining the suitable focal length), wherein the update process portion uses a result of determination by the focal-length determination portion, and executes the update process (Fig. 5 and paras. 0019-0021: memory setting portion 5 uses the resulting control amount and its difference from the stored value to update the distance/control amount relationship).
Regarding claim 17, the combination of Idesawa teaches the ophthalmic lens apparatus according to claim 16, and Idesawa teaches further comprising an operation portion for receiving a user operation for changing a focal length of the variable focus lens (para 0018: adjustment unit 4 includes an operating unit permitting the user to change the focal length continuously or in predetermined steps), wherein the focal-length determination portion determines the focal length based on an operation result of the operation portion (Fig. 4 and paras. 0019-0020: the user operates adjustment portion 4 until the viewed object appears clear, thereby determining the focal length corresponding to the user’s operation).
Regarding claim 18, the combination of Idesawa and Jiang teaches spectacles comprising the ophthalmic lens apparatus according to claim 15, wherein the variable focus lens is held in a spectacle frame (Fig. 2 and paras. 0015-0016: depicts the left and right variable focus lenses 1 supported within a wearable spectacle frame structure and positioned before the respective eyeballs).
Claim(s) 7 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Idesawa JP 2003-255278A (Citation is from the attached English Translation) in view of Jiang US 2012/0133891 and Inoue et al. US 2014/0347623.
Regarding claim 7, the combination of Idesawa and Jiang teaches the lens control apparatus according to claim 3, except for wherein the update process portion acquires a distance to the setting-use view object located within a distance range in which a rate of change of focal length with respect to distance is equal to or less than a predetermined threshold, and executes the update process.
Inoue teaches predetermined gaze distance ranges within which a constant focal length is selected for example, a focal length of 60 cm throughout a gaze distance range from 30 cm to less than 100 cm and a focal length of 300 cm throughout a gaze distance range of 100 cm or more. Accordingly, within each range, the rate of change of focal length with respect to distance is zero and therefore equal to or less than a predetermined nonnegative threshold. See Inoue Fig. 2 and para 0050. Inoue further teaches placing a test object at a set gaze distance and repeating the test while varying the gaze distance and focal length (see para. 0058). Accordingly, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to execute Idesawa’s update process using a setting use object positioned within one of Inoue’s constant focal length distance ranges. Such selection would predictably reduce the sensitivity of the update to small variations or error in the detected object distance, because the specified focal length remains unchanged throughout that distance range. Inoue, similarly teaches maintaining the same focal length over an enlarged distance range to reduce focal length switching caused by small changes in gaze distance (see para 0079).
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Aiba US 2023/0418131: is considered pertinent because it discloses automatic focus adjusting spectacles having a variable focus lens, that detects distance to be viewed object, and a controller that controls the lens focal length based on the detected distance see Figs. 1, 4 and para 0020.
Melakari et al. US 2023/0258960: is considered pertinent because it discloses variable power ophthalmic eyewear that determine the depth at which the use is looking and selects a user specific optical power associated with that depth. See paras. 0059-0064.
Watanabe et al. US 2021/0364825: discloses autofocus spectacles having a power variable lens 101, control unit 103, storage unit 105 and distance sensor 108, wherein lens power information is stored in correspondence with object position information and the lens power is automatically controlled according to the detected object distance. See Figs. 1, 4, 6-8 and paras. 0024-0038.
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/EPHREM Z MEBRAHTU/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2872
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