NON-FINAL REJECTION
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 § 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.
Claims 1-4, 9, and 10 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over WO2007/083832A1 to Sato (“Sato”), published July 26, 2007, in view of WO2004/061009A1 to Sasaki et al. (“Sasaki”), published July 22, 2004.
As to claim 1, Sato discloses:
A plastic optical fiber comprising:
a core; and
a cladding disposed on an outer circumference of the core,
Sato discloses a plastic optical fiber comprising a core and a cladding. Sato at FIG 4 and Abstract.
wherein
the plastic optical fiber has a length of 30 m or less,
Sato discloses the fiber has a length of .03m to 50m, which encompasses a length of less than 30m. Sato at 6 (“[t]he plastic optical fiber preferably has a length in the range of 0.03 m to 50 m”).
the core has a diameter of 30 µm or more and 100 µm or less,
Sato discloses that the core may have a diameter of 60-250μm, which encompasses more than 30 and less than 100μm. Sato at 5 (“[i]t is preferable that the core has a constant outer diameter of in a range of 60μm to 250μm”)
a transmission loss at a wavelength of 850 nm is 70 dB/km or more and 500 dB/km or less,
Sato discloses a transmission loss at 850nm of 20-200dB/km, which includes amounts that are above 70 and below 500dB/km. Sato at 5 (“a light source of 850nm wavelength”) (“it is preferable that a value of the transmission loss is in a range of 20dB/km to 200dB/km”) as well as at 9.
Sato discloses a band of 730MHz.km. Sato at 54 (“[w]hen the bandwidth of 100m length of the POF 12 obtained by Experiment (1) was measured by time-domain method, the bandwidth was 7.3GHz at 850nm wavelength”). Sato does not disclose a band value between 30 and 600 MHZ*km.
Sasaki discloses an analogous invention, namely a plastic optical fiber with a clad layer. Sasaki at p. 46 (“[t]he polymerizable composition of the first or second embodiment may be used for producing a core region of graded-refractive-index optical member comprising the core region and a clad region”). The core may have the properties of an 850nm transmission loss of 198-220 (within the range claimed here) and a transmission band of 1.2 or 2 GHZ*100m, which is 120 or 200MHz*km. Id. at 74-75 TABLES 1-1 and 1-2, as well as at 79 TABLE 2-2.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to design the POF of Sato so as to have a smaller transmission band at 850 nm. Sasaki discloses that band and other optical characteristics are balanced in order to obtain good mechanical and thermo-stability characteristics with high transmission capacity. Sasaki at 3. Further, one of ordinary skill in the art would have understood such to be a simple substitution of one known element for another, obtaining predictable results. MPEP § 2143 I. B., citing KSR Int'l Co. v. Teleflex Inc., 550 U.S. 398, 415-421, 82 USPQ2d 1385, 1395-97 (2007).
Further as to claim 2:
The plastic optical fiber according to claim 1, wherein the plastic optical fiber is a graded-index plastic optical fiber.
Sasaki discloses that the fiber is a graded-index fiber. Sasaki at p. 46 (“[t]he polymerizable composition of the first or second embodiment may be used for producing a core region of graded-refractive-index optical member comprising the core region and a clad region”).
Further as to claims 3 and 4:
The plastic optical fiber according to claim 1, wherein
the core includes a first resin, and
the first resin is at least one selected from the group consisting of a fully fluorinated resin, a partially fluorinated resin, a partially chlorinated resin, and a partially deuterated resin.
The plastic optical fiber according to claim 3, wherein the first resin is at least one selected from the group consisting of the fully fluorinated resin and the partially fluorinated resin.
Sasaki discloses the core contains a fluorine-containing resin and also a partially deuterated compound. Sasaki at 12 ([w]hen deuterated (meth) acrylates, in which at least a part of hydrogens are replaced with deuteriums, are used, optical members having low transmission loss can be produced, and thus deuterated (meth) acrylates are desirable. Using fluorinated (meth) acrylates may easily result in much difference of refractive index between the obtained optical fibers and copolymers of non-fluorinated monomers, and in consequence, may easily create graded refractive index structures. Thus, fluorinated (meth) acrylates are desirable.”) as well as at 52.
The Examiner notes that the fluorinated resin of Sasaki must inherently be either fully or partially fluorinated.
Further as to claim 9:
The plastic optical fiber according to claim 3, wherein the core further includes a refractive index modifier.
Sato discloses the core may have a modified refractive index. Sato at 2 (speaking of GI-POF).
Further as to claim 10:
The plastic optical fiber according to claim 1, further comprising a reinforcing layer disposed on an outer circumference of the cladding.
Sato discloses an outermost shell around the cladding. Sato at Abstract.
Claims 5-8 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Sato in view of Sasaki as applied to claim 3 above, and further in view of WO2021/020566A1 to Kawamitsu et al. (“Kawamitsu”), published February 4, 2021.
As to claim 5:
The plastic optical fiber according to claim 4, wherein the first resin includes a fluorine-containing polymer including a structural unit (A) represented by the following formula (1):
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182
236
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where Rff1 to Rff4 each independently represent a fluorine atom, a perfluoroalkyl group having 1 to 7 carbon atoms, or a perfluoroalkyl ether group having 1 to 7 carbon atoms, and Rff1 and Rff2 are optionally linked to form a ring.
Sato in view of Sasaki discloses claim 4 above, but does not discloses the specific resin claimed.
Kawamitsu discloses an analogous invention, namely plastic resin materials for optical transmission line cores. Kawamitsu at ¶65 (“[f]or example, when the optical resin composition of the present embodiment is used as a material for POF, particularly as a core material”). Kawamitsu specifies that the resin may include a fluorine-containing polymer with a structural unit as follows:
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176
318
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…where Rff1 to Rff4 each independently represent a fluorine atom, a perfluoroalkyl group having 1 to 7 carbon atoms, or a perfluoroalkyl ether group having 1 to 7 carbon atoms, and Rff1 and Rff2 are optionally linked to form a ring.
Id. at p. 3 and claim 1.
Therefore it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of applicant’s filing to use such a resin in Sato in view of Sasaki. This is because Kawamitsu suggests it is beneficial in such a fiber. Kawamitsu at p. 22 ¶73 (“the optical resin molded product of the present embodiment can be suitably used for an optical transmitter such as a POF”). Further, one of ordinary skill in the art would have understood such to be a simple substitution of one known element for another, obtaining predictable results. MPEP § 2143 I. B., citing KSR Int'l Co. v. Teleflex Inc., 550 U.S. 398, 415-421, 82 USPQ2d 1385, 1395-97 (2007).
Further as to claim 6:
The plastic optical fiber according to claim 5, wherein the fluorine-containing polymer further includes a structural unit (B) represented by the following formula (2):
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149
182
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where R¹ to R³ each independently represent a fluorine atom or a perfluoroalkyl group having 1 to 7 carbon atoms, R⁴ represents a perfluoroalkyl group having 1 to 7 carbon atoms, the perfluoroalkyl group optionally has a ring structure, one or some of the fluorine atoms are each optionally substituted by a halogen atom other than a fluorine atom, and one or some of fluorine atoms in the perfluoroalkyl group are each optionally substituted by a halogen atom other than a fluorine atom.
Kawamitsu further discloses a structural unit B as follows:
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149
296
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… where R¹ to R³ each independently represent a fluorine atom or a perfluoroalkyl group having 1 to 7 carbon atoms, R⁴ represents a perfluoroalkyl group having 1 to 7 carbon atoms, the perfluoroalkyl group optionally has a ring structure, one or some of the fluorine atoms are each optionally substituted by a halogen atom other than a fluorine atom, and one or some of fluorine atoms in the perfluoroalkyl group are each optionally substituted by a halogen atom other than a fluorine atom. Kawamitsu at 3.
Further as to claim 7:
The plastic optical fiber according to claim 5, wherein the fluorine-containing polymer further includes a structural unit (C) represented by the following formula (3):
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152
163
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where R⁵ to R⁸ each independently represent a fluorine atom or a perfluoroalkyl group having 1 to 7 carbon atoms, the perfluoroalkyl group optionally has a ring structure, one or some of the fluorine atoms are each optionally substituted by a halogen atom other than a fluorine atom, and one or some of fluorine atoms in the perfluoroalkyl group are each optionally substituted by a halogen atom other than a fluorine atom.
Kawamitsu further discloses a structural unit C as follows:
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150
276
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… where R⁵ to R⁸ each independently represent a fluorine atom or a perfluoroalkyl group having 1 to 7 carbon atoms, the perfluoroalkyl group optionally has a ring structure, one or some of the fluorine atoms are each optionally substituted by a halogen atom other than a fluorine atom, and one or some of fluorine atoms in the perfluoroalkyl group are each optionally substituted by a halogen atom other than a fluorine atom. Kawamitsu at 3-4.
Further as to claim 8:
The plastic optical fiber according to claim 5, wherein the fluorine-containing polymer further includes a structural unit (D) represented by the following formula (4):
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210
325
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where Z represents an oxygen atom, a single bond, or -OC(R¹⁹R²⁰)O-, R9 to R²⁰ each independently represent a fluorine atom, a perfluoroalkyl group having 1 to 5 carbon atoms, or a perfluoroalkoxy group having 1 to 5 carbon atoms, one or some of the fluorine atoms are each optionally substituted by a halogen atom other than a fluorine atom, one or some of fluorine atoms in the perfluoroalkyl group are each optionally substituted by a halogen atom other than a fluorine atom, one or some of fluorine atoms in the perfluoroalkoxy group are each optionally substituted by a halogen atom other than a fluorine atom, S and t are each independently 0 to 5, and s + t is an integer of 1 to 6 or, in the case where Z is -OC(R¹⁹R²⁰)O-, s + t is optionally 0.
Kawamitsu discloses a structural unit D as follows:
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192
330
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…where Z represents an oxygen atom, a single bond, or -OC(R¹⁹R²⁰)O-, R9 to R²⁰ each independently represent a fluorine atom, a perfluoroalkyl group having 1 to 5 carbon atoms, or a perfluoroalkoxy group having 1 to 5 carbon atoms, one or some of the fluorine atoms are each optionally substituted by a halogen atom other than a fluorine atom, one or some of fluorine atoms in the perfluoroalkyl group are each optionally substituted by a halogen atom other than a fluorine atom, one or some of fluorine atoms in the perfluoroalkoxy group are each optionally substituted by a halogen atom other than a fluorine atom, S and t are each independently 0 to 5, and s + t is an integer of 1 to 6 or, in the case where Z is -OC(R¹⁹R²⁰)O-, s + t may be 0. Kawamitsu at 4.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the Examiner should be directed to Charles Craver whose telephone number is (571) 272-7849. The Examiner can normally be reached on Monday - Friday 8:30-5:30 PT Pacific Time.
If attempts to reach the Examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the Examiner’s
supervisor, Andrew J. Fischer can be reached on 571-272-6779. The fax phone
number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-
273-8300.
Signed,
/CHARLES R CRAVER/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3992
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