18867DETAILED 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 § 112
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b):
(b) CONCLUSION.—The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph:
The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention.
Claim 11 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention.
Applicant recites:” one dimension of the flexible guide sheets is between 3 and 25 cm.”. As currently recited, the above limitations render claim 11 vague and indefinite since it is unclear which dimension of the flexible light guide sheets is being referred to, since there are several possible dimensions to the flexible light guide sheets.
As best understood, the following rejection applies.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status.
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) 1,4,6,10-12 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Ouderkirk (2013/0208498) in view of McCollum et al (2018/0074257).
Regarding claim 1, Ouderkirk discloses a luminous module (300, Para. 0029, fig. 3) comprising: - an assembly of at least two flexible guide sheets (380, 210, Fig. 3 Para. 31, Fig. 3), including a first flexible guide sheet and a second flexible guide sheet(380, Para.0032, each flexible guide sheet of the assembly being able to receive rays of light via at least a first edge (382, input edge of backlight 380, Para. 31, Fig. 3) of said the flexible guide sheet and to reflect the rays of light in a direction substantially normal to a surface of the flexible guide sheet according to at least one pattern etched in said the flexible guide sheet (388, extraction features, Para. 31, Fig. 3), at least a first light-injection element (22, light input surface. 218, light reflective edge 218, Para. 29, Fig. 3) able to receive light and to distribute the light in the first flexible guide sheet and a second light-injection element able to receive light and to distribute the light in the second flexible guide sheet(200, illumination converter having a spiral portion 202 and a planar portion 204, Para. 29, Fig. 3); - at least one light source (LED 370, Para. 30, Fig. 3) able to inject light into the first light-injection element and into the second light-injection element; wherein the first flexible guide sheet and the second flexible guide sheet are arranged one beside the other in such a way that a second edge of the first flexible guide sheet faces a second edge of the second flexible guide sheet (380 is tiltable to illuminate a larger display, Para. 32) ; wherein the first flexible guide sheet and the second flexible guide sheet delimit an outer half-space toward which the light rays are emitted in the direction substantially normal to the surface of the flexible guide sheets (388 can be included in backlight 380 to provide uniform light extraction across from surface 386, Para. 31), and an inner half-space of the luminous module, complementing the outer half-space(Para. 31);
Ouderkirk does not disclose: the illumination module also comprises a second light injection element suitable for receiving light and distributing the light in the second flexible guide sheet; a portion of the first flexible light guide sheet along the second edge and a portion of the second flexible guide sheet along the second edge are folded toward the inter half-space or are at least partially covered with a reflective material.
McCollum et al discloses a first and second guide sheet (210a, 210b, Figs. 8a-8b, Para 50) wherein a portion of the first guide sheet (210a, Figs. 8a-8b, Para. 50) and a portion of the second light guide sheet (210b, Figs. 8a-8b;Para. 50)are at least partially covered with a reflective material (film 305, which is a specularly -reflective or diffusely-reflective film, Para. 50). Accordingly, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the device of Ouderkirk with the limitations of McCollum as recited above for the purpose of reducing the amount of light reflected by the seam between the two light waveguides, as made possible by film 305, (Para. 50).
Regarding claim 4, wherein the reflective material at least partially covers a surface facing toward the outer half-space of the part of the first flexible guide sheet extending along the second edge and of the part of the second flexible guide sheet extending along the second edge. (Figs. 8a,8b, Para. 50, Ouderkirk )
Regarding claim 6, wherein the reflective material is a strip extending along the second edges of the first and second flexible guide sheets (Figs. 8a,8b, Para. 50, Ouderkirk).
Regarding claim 10, the assembly includes more than two flexible guide sheets placed one beside the other in such a way as to form an array of flexible guide sheets.
Claim(s) 5 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Ouderkirk in view of McConnell and further in view of Vasylyev et al (2020/0150333).
Regarding claim 5, Ouderkirk in view of McCollum et al does not teach the reflective material being a reflective paint. Vasylyev et al discloses an illumination device which uses reflective paint. Accordingly, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to use a reflective paint as the reflective material of the device of Ouderkirk in view of McCollum et al as taught by Vasylyev et al, because of its suitable reflective qualities when used in an illumination device (Para 0111, Vasylyev et al).
Claim(s) 12 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Ouderkirk in view of McConnell and further in view of Chen (CN112162436).
Regarding claim 12, Ouderkirk in view of McConnell teaches the limitations of claim 1 above. Ouderkirk in view of McConnell do not disclose each flexible guide sheet of the assembly has a thickness between 0.2- and 1-mm. Chen discloses a light guide plate with a thickness of between .2mm to 5mm. Accordingly, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to use a measurement of .2mm-1mm in the device of Ouderkirk in view of McConnell, since Chen discloses that this range of a thickness for a light guide plate is old and well known in the art. (Contents of invention, Para. 5)
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 2,3,7-9,13,14 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.
Ouderkirk in view of McCollum et al teach the limitations as shown in the rejection of claim 1 above. Ouderkirk in view of McCollum et al do not anticipate individually or teach in combination the limitations as recited in claims 2,3,7-9,13,14.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Beddar (FR3146333) discloses a light module using flexible light guide sheets according to a certain pattern (abstract, figs. 5a,5b)
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/ANABEL TON/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2875
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