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, 5-6, 10, 12-13, 15, 17-18, and 20 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Krouse et al. (US 2019/0317016; hereinafter Krouse).
Regarding claim 1, Krouse discloses a method for retrieving at least one alternating current (AC) signal SAC from at least one measurement signal Smeas (modulated output waveform) of at least one detector (17, 20), wherein the measurement signal Smeas comprises the AC signal SAC and at least one direct current (DC) signal SDC (DC components), wherein the AC signal SAC (sin(ωt) and cos(ωt) terms) has at least one predefined frequency f0 (ω), the method comprising the following steps: a) monitoring the measurement signal Smeas over time by using the detector (17, 20); b) determining the DC signal SDC by using at least one evaluation unit (18, 23), wherein the determining comprises evaluating the measurement signal Smeas by using at least one of the frequency f0 (ω) and at least one overtone of the frequency f0 (nω) (pars. 185-192: sine and cosine terms: Fourier analysis); and c) determining the AC signal SAC by subtracting the DC signal SDC from the measurement signal Smeas (pars. 185-192: (e.g., Fast Fourier Transform (FFT) algorithm can be applied to a digitized output waveform and the relevant Fourier components extracted)) by using the evaluation unit (18, 23).
Regarding claim 2, Krouse discloses wherein the detector comprises at least one photodetector comprising at least one photosensitive region, wherein step a) comprises measuring the measurement signal Smeas by using the photosensitive region of the photodetector, wherein the measurement signal Smeas is dependent on an illumination of the photosensitive region (par. 142).
Regarding claim 5, Krouse discloses wherein in step b) the DC signal SDC is determined by transforming the measurement signal Smeas into a frequency domain, wherein the measurement signal Smeas is transformed into the frequency domain by using a Fourier transformation (par. 186).
Regarding claim 6, Krouse discloses wherein the evaluation of the measurement signal Smeas comprises filtering the transformed measurement signal Smeas for at least one of the frequency f0 and at least one overtone of the frequency f0, wherein the evaluation of the measurement signal Smeas comprises using the filtered transformed measurement signal Smeas for determining the DC signal SDC (par. 191: Fast Fourier Transform (FFT) algorithm can be applied to a digitized output waveform and the relevant Fourier components extracted).
Regarding claim 10, Krouse discloses a method for determining at least one item of information on at least one measurement object (abstract) by using at least one detector (17), the method comprising the following steps: i) determining at least one measurement signal Smeas by using the detector (17); ii) determining the AC signal SAC (par. 191: Fast Fourier Transform (FFT) algorithm can be applied to a digitized output waveform and the relevant Fourier components extracted); and iii) determining the item of information on the measurement object by evaluating the AC signal SAC by using the evaluation unit (fig. 19:192-193).
Regarding claim 12, Krouse discloses a photodetector for measuring optical radiation, the photodetector being configured for performing the method, wherein the photodetector comprises at least one photosensitive region (par. 142).
Regarding claim 13, Krouse discloses a spectrometer for spectrally analyzing optical radiation provided by at least one measurement object (title and abstract), the spectrometer comprising: at least one radiation source (11) configured for emitting optical radiation at least partially towards the measurement object (16); and at least one photodetector (17).
Regarding claim 15, Krouse discloses a method of using the spectrometer (title and abstract), the method comprising using the spectrometer for a purpose of use selected from the group consisting of: an infrared detection application (par. 105); a heat detection application; a thermometer application; a heat-seeking application; a flame-detection application; a fire-detection application; a smoke-detection application; a temperature sensing application; a spectroscopy application; an exhaust gas monitoring application; a combustion process monitoring application; a pollution monitoring application; an industrial process monitoring application; a chemical process monitoring application; a food processing process monitoring application; a water quality monitoring application; an air quality monitoring application; a quality control application; a temperature control application; a motion control application; an exhaust control application; a gas sensing application; a gas analytics application; a motion sensing application; a chemical sensing application; a mobile application; a medical application; a mobile spectroscopy application; a food analysis application; an agricultural application; and a cosmetic application.
Regarding claim 17, Krouse discloses a photodetector for measuring optical radiation, the photodetector being configured for performing the method, wherein the photodetector comprises at least one photosensitive region (par. 142).
Regarding claim 18, Krouse discloses a spectrometer for spectrally analyzing optical radiation provided by at least one measurement object (title and abstract), the spectrometer comprising: at least one radiation source (11) configured for emitting optical radiation at least partially towards the measurement object (16); and at least one photodetector (17).
Regarding claim 20, Krouse discloses a method of using the spectrometer (title and abstract), the method comprising using the spectrometer for a purpose of use selected from the group consisting of: an infrared detection application (par. 105); a heat detection application; a thermometer application; a heat-seeking application; a flame-detection application; a fire-detection application; a smoke-detection application; a temperature sensing application; a spectroscopy application; an exhaust gas monitoring application; a combustion process monitoring application; a pollution monitoring application; an industrial process monitoring application; a chemical process monitoring application; a food processing process monitoring application; a water quality monitoring application; an air quality monitoring application; a quality control application; a temperature control application; a motion control application; an exhaust control application; a gas sensing application; a gas analytics application; a motion sensing application; a chemical sensing application; a mobile application; a medical application; a mobile spectroscopy application; a food analysis application; an agricultural application; and a cosmetic application.
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) 8-9, 11, and 16 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Krouse as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of Rosen et al. (US 2017/0153142; hereinafter Rosen).
Regarding claim 8, Krouse discloses claim 1. Krouse further discloses wherein the detector (17) comprises the evaluation unit and/or at least one interface for transmitting data from and/or to and/or within the evaluation unit (18 via 14c).
However, Krouse fails to disclose wherein the evaluation unit is at least partially cloud based.
Rosen teaches wherein the evaluation unit is at least partially cloud based (pars. 92 and 99).
It would have been obvious, to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention, to modify Krouse with the teaching of Rosen, since one would have been motivated to make such a modification for greater accuracy and confidence (Rosen: par. 99).
Regarding claim 9, Rosen teaches wherein the method is at least partially computer-implemented (par. 94).
Regarding claim 11, Rosen teaches a non-transient computer-readable medium including instructions that, when executed by one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to perform the method (pars. 94 and 107-108).
Regarding claim 16, Rosen teaches a non-transient computer-readable medium including instructions that, when executed by one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to perform the method (pars. 94 and 107-108).
Claim(s) 14 and 19 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Krouse as applied to claims 13 and 18 above, and further in view of Smith et al. (WO 2014054022; hereinafter Smith).
Krouse discloses claims 13 and 18.
However, Krouse fails to disclose wherein the radiation source is a modulated radiation source, wherein the radiation source is modulated at the frequency f0.
Smith teaches wherein the radiation source is a modulated radiation source (p. 23:3), wherein the radiation source is modulated at the frequency f0 (p. 12:1-3).
It would have been obvious, to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention, to modify Krouse with the teaching of Smith, since one would have been motivated to make such a modification for more accurate analysis (Smith: p. 1:11-12).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 3-4 and 7 are 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. The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter.
Regarding claim 3 and its dependent claim, the prior art fails to disclose or fairly suggest a method for retrieving at least one alternating current (AC) signal SAC from at least one measurement signal Smeas of at least one detector, wherein the measurement signal Smeas comprises the AC signal SAC and at least one direct current (DC) signal SDC, wherein the AC signal SAC has at least one predefined frequency f0 , the method including: wherein in step b) the DC signal SDC is determined by further using a phase φ of the measurement signal Smeas, wherein the evaluation of the measurement signal Smeas comprises determining local minima of the measurement signal Smeas by using the phase φ and at least one of the frequency f0 and at least one overtone of the frequency f0, wherein the DC signal SDC is determined by using the local minima, in combination with all of the other recitations in the claim.
Regarding claim 7, the prior art fails to disclose or fairly suggest a method for retrieving at least one alternating current (AC) signal SAC from at least one measurement signal Smeas of at least one detector, wherein the measurement signal Smeas comprises the AC signal SAC and at least one direct current (DC) signal SDC, wherein the AC signal SAC has at least one predefined frequency f0 , the method including: wherein the evaluation of the measurement signal Smeas comprises fitting the DC signal SDC to the filtered transformed measurement signal Smeas, wherein the DC signal SDC is a function SDC(t) over time comprising at least one of a polynomial function having at least one fit parameter, an exponential function having at least one fit parameter, a square root function having at least one fit parameter and a logarithmic function having at least one fit parameter, in combination with all of the other recitations in the claim.
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed May 19, 2026, have been fully considered but they are not persuasive.
In response to applicant's argument that the references fail to show certain features of the invention, it is noted that the features upon which applicant relies (i.e., only using the measurement signal) are not recited in the rejected claim(s). Although the claims are interpreted in light of the specification, limitations (i.e., only) from the specification are not read into the claims. Since Krouse describes removing a dark current component using a reference and a sample detector, as explained by applicant, this reads on the corresponding recitations of claim 1, since claim 1 uses open-ended claim language that does not limit the claim to the recited elements. Therefore, Krouse does disclose steps b) (pars. 185-192: with the Fourier analysis in order for the processor to remove the DC component) and c) (with the reference and sample detector). Applicant’s arguments are not persuasive, and the claims remain rejected.
Conclusion
THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Chih-Cheng Kao whose telephone number is (571)272-2492. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 9-5.
Examiner interviews are available via telephone and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, David Makiya can be reached at (571) 272-2273. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/Chih-Cheng Kao/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2884
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