DETAILED ACTION
The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed 06/26/2026 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive.
In regards to the applicant’s arguments that Atabaki fails to disclose “an application specific integrated circuit ASIC”, the Examiner respectfully disagrees. Attention is brought to paragraph 56 of Atabaki, wherein a “printed circuit board 204” is utilized to support and connect to a tunable laser light source (210), a detector (240) and a processor (290), wherein the system (200) is explicitly disclosed for “specific application” as a swept-source spectrometer. Attention is further brought to Figure 2a, which explicitly discloses a photonic integrated circuit being integrated and supported by the “printed circuit board”.
Attention is brought to the general nature of the recitation of the claimed “application specific integrated circuit”. The claims do not define its structure in any way.
Additionally, given the well-known and ubiquitous nature of “application specific integrated circuits”, one of ordinary skill would recognize that the disclosed Swept-Source Spectrometer system (200) would inherently utilize an “application specific integrated circuit” in the disclosed processor (290). Further, Atabaki explicitly discloses the Swept-source Spectrometer system as utilizing a tunable laser source, which may be tuned “with a controller executing an adaptive algorithm”, wherein the disclosed tunable light source controller could also be understood to inherently contain an “application specific integrated circuit” for tuning the light source.
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) 1-4, 6-8, 10 and 12-16 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a1) as being anticipated by US Publication 2019/0195688 to Atabaki et al.
In regards to claims 1-4, 6-8, 10 and 12-16, Atabaki discloses and shows in Figures 1-5, a sensor module and method for Raman spectroscopy (par. 2, 7, 42), comprising a sensor package (200) which encloses:
an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC) (204) (par. 9, 47, 56; wherein all of the components of the system may be implemented on a combined photonic integrated circuit chip; wherein the PIC is mounted onto a printed circuit board that includes a detector 240 and a processor 290);
a light emitter arrangement (210) electrically connected to the ASIC and operable to emit light with multiple excitation wavelengths to excite Raman scattering in an external probe (21) to be placed outside of the sensor module (par. 8, 10-12, 56, 60; wherein a swept laser source is utilized to excite desired Raman signals from a sample under test),
a light detector arrangement (240) operable to generate sensor signals from incident light emitted back from the external probe due to the Raman scattering (par. 8, 10, 46-47, 56, 58; wherein a single photon detector or a detector array may be utilized to detect the Raman scattering signals), and
a filter arrangement (259, 260) operable to filter the incident light according to a target passband (par. 8-10, 47, 56-57; wherein single bandpass or notch filters may be utilized; or an array of individual separate filters may be utilized with a detector array); and
wherein the ASIC is operable to drive the light emitter arrangement at the excitation wavelengths to shift a Raman spectral band of the external probe into the passband of the filter arrangement (par. 8, 10-12, 42-44, 104; wherein a swept source laser is utilized to scan and detect Raman wavelength bands of interest; wherein the laser source is connected to a printed circuit board 204, along with a detector 240 and a processor 290);
[claim 2] wherein the light emitter arrangement comprises a single light emitter (210) operable to emit light with multiple emission lines according to the multiple excitation wavelengths (par. 8, 10-12, 56, 60, 104; wherein a swept laser source is utilized to excite desired Raman signals from a sample under test);
[claim 3] wherein the light emitter arrangement (210) comprises a single tunable light emitter operable to emit light with tunable emission lines according to the multiple excitation wavelengths (par. 8, 10-12, 56, 60, 104; wherein a swept laser source is utilized to excite desired Raman signals from a sample under test);
[claim 4] wherein the light emitter arrangement (210) comprises an array of light emitters with different emission lines, and the light emitters of the array are operable to emit light with at least one emission line according to the multiple excitation wavelengths (par. 70; wherein an array of lasers at different wavelengths is disclosed);
[claim 6] wherein the light detector arrangement comprises a single light detector and the filter arrangement comprises a filter which is arranged in front of the light detector (Figure 2a) (par. 46-47, 56-58);
[claim 7] wherein the light detector arrangement comprises an array of light detectors and the filter arrangement comprises multiple filters arranged in front of the light detectors, respectively (par. 10, 58);
[claim 8] wherein the filter in front of the single light detector comprises a broad passband, or broadband-filter; or multiple filters arranged in front of the light detectors comprise narrow passbands, or narrowband-filters (par. 10, 53, 57-58);
[claim 10] wherein the light detector arrangement comprises at least one of a photon counter, e.g. a single photon avalanche diode, or SPAD, an avalanche photo diode, or APD, a silicon photomultiplier, or SiPM, a photodiode or a charge coupled device, or CCD, or a MEMS photo multiplier, or PM, as light detector (par. 46-47, 58);
[claim 12] wherein the sensor package further encloses a lens arrangement (230, 232), and the lens arrangement is arranged to direct the emitted light to the external probe to excite Raman scattering, and/or
the lens arrangement is arranged to direct the incident light to the light detector arrangement (par. 56-57) (Figure 2a);
[claim 13] wherein the lens arrangement (532, 530) is further operable to direct the emitted light (511) to the external probe under an angle different from normal incidence so as to provide angled illumination (Figure 5) (par. 94-97; wherein a sample is illuminated by an off-axis beam);
[claim 14] wherein the light detector arrangement is integrated into the ASIC and/or the semiconductor light emitter arrangement is integrated into the ASIC (par. 9, 43, 47, 56);
[claim 15] an electronic device, comprising: a sensor module for Raman spectroscopy and a host system comprising one of a mobile device, smartphone, handheld computer, smart watch, medical device, point-of-care device (par. 4, 47, 56-58, 111-112; wherein the Raman system may be a handheld, portable system, with potential application in security screening, pharmaceuticals, and medicine).
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.
This application currently names joint inventors. In considering patentability of the claims the examiner presumes that the subject matter of the various claims was commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the claimed invention(s) absent any evidence to the contrary. Applicant is advised of the obligation under 37 CFR 1.56 to point out the inventor and effective filing dates of each claim that was not commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the later invention in order for the examiner to consider the applicability of 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(2)(C) for any potential 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) prior art against the later invention.
Claim(s) 5 and 9 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Atabaki, in view of US Publication 2021/0010865 to Yang et al.
In regards to claims 5 and 9, Atabaki differs from the limitations in that it is silent to the system and method further comprising:
[claim 5] wherein the light emitter arrangement comprises at least one of a laser diode or a laser surface emitter, e.g. a VCSEL, as light emitter; and
[claim 9] wherein the narrowband-filters have non-overlapping passbands with discrete center wavelengths.
However, Yang teaches and shows in Figures 1-3c, a wearable Raman spectroscopy device that utilizes a diode laser excitation source (220) (par. 22-24) and a detector array (280b, 280c) which has a plurality of narrowband, non-overlapping filters (270c) disposed thereon (par. 48).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of the effective filing date of the invention, to modify Atabaki to include the excitation source and filter array discussed above for the advantage of increasing the range of measured Raman shifts for a given range of source wavelength sweep (Atabaki par. 10), with a reasonable expectation of success.
Claim(s) 11 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Atabaki, in view of US Publication 2008/0304046 to Lee et al.
In regards to claim 11, Atabaki differs from the limitations in that it is silent to the system and method further comprising:
[claim 11] a modulator operable to provide an AC drive signal with a modulation frequency and to provide a reference signal associated with the AC drive signal,
a lock-in amplifier operable to receive the sensor signals and to receive the reference signal from the modulator, and to perform phase-locked detection of the modulation frequency in the sensor signals to determine a phase and an amplitude from the sensor signals using the reference signal.
However, Lee teaches and shows in Figure 6, a Raman spectroscopy imaging system, that utilizes a modulation frequency source (Figure 6) to provide a modulation signal to an excitation laser beam, and provide a reference modulation signal to a lock-in amplifier (101), in order to provide amplitude and phase analysis of an interferometric signal (par. 53-55, 66-67, 80-81). Further, the imaging apparatus of Lee provides a high-resolution microscope, with excellent detection sensitivity and spatial resolution (par. 85-86).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of the effective filing date of the invention, to modify Atabaki to include the modulator and lock-in amplifier discussed above for the advantage of providing a high-resolution microscope, with excellent detection sensitivity and spatial resolution, with a reasonable expectation of success.
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 JONATHAN M HANSEN whose telephone number is (571)270-1736. The examiner can normally be reached Monday to Friday, 8am to 4pm.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Michelle Iacoletti can be reached at 571-270-5789. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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JONATHAN M. HANSEN
Primary Examiner
Art Unit 2877
/JONATHAN M HANSEN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2877
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