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 § 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.
Claims 1-14 are 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.
Claim 1 recites the limitation “the refractive index” in the last clause. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim.
Claims 2-14 are also rejected by virtue of their dependence on claim 1.
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.
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.
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 1-14 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Cai et al. of Tianjin Ofilm Opto Electronics Co., Ltd. (CN 211627919), translation provided herewith, hereinafter “Tianjin”, in view of Hsu et al. (US 2019/0271831), each of record in IDS.
Regarding claim 1, Tianjin discloses an optical imaging system (Figs. 1-21) comprising:
a first lens (L1) having a negative refractive power (para. [0009]);
a second lens (L2) having refractive power;
a third lens (L3) having a refractive power;
a fourth lens (L4) having refractive power;
a fifth lens (L5) having refractive power;
a sixth lens (L6) having refractive power; and
a seventh lens (L7) having refractive power,
wherein the first to seventh lenses are sequentially disposed from an object side (Figs. 1-21),
wherein the third lens (L3) is comprised of glass (para. [0090]), and
wherein 0.2 < DTnF/DTnR < 0.6, where DTnF is a sum of DTn values of the first lens and the second lens, in which ΣDTni (i=1, 2), DTnR is a sum of DTn values of the third to seventh lenses, in which ΣDTni (i=3, 4, . . . , 7), and DTni is a rate (dni/dT) of change of the refractive index according to a temperature of the i-th lens (paras. [0136-0142, 0250, 0253]).
Tianjin fails to explicitly disclose the third lens having a positive refractive power.
However, Hsu discloses an optical imaging system (Figs. 1-17) comprising a third lens (130) having a positive refractive power (para. [0081]).
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate the third lens having a positive refractive power, as in Hsu, into the optical imaging system of Tianjin for balancing the refractive power on the object side (Hsu, para. [0037]).
Regarding claim 2, Tianjin discloses wherein |Pnu|[10−6 °C−1 mm−1] ≤ 30, where Pnu is ΣPnui in which i=1, 2, . . . , 7, Pnui is 1/(vti∙fi), vti is [DTni/(ni−1) − CTEi] −1, fi is an effective focal length of an i-th lens, ni is a refractive index of the i-th lens, and CTEi is a thermal expansion coefficient of the i-th lens (paras. [0105, 0136-0142, 0163, 0170, 0250, 0253]; Tables).
Regarding claim 3, Tianjin discloses wherein |Pnu3/Pnu| < 0.2 (paras. [0105, 0136-0142, 0163, 0170, 0250, 0253]; Tables).
Regarding claim 4, Tianjin discloses wherein 0.4 ≤ f/f3, where f is an effective focal length of the optical imaging system, and f3 is an effective focal length of the third lens (paras. [0105, 0136-0142, 0163, 0170, 0250, 0253]; Tables).
Regarding claim 5, Tianjin discloses wherein the first lens (L1) is comprised of glass (para. [0090]).
Regarding claim 6, Tianjin discloses wherein the second lens, the fourth lens, the fifth lens, the sixth lens, and the seventh lens are comprised of plastic (para. [0090]).
Regarding claim 7, Tianjin discloses wherein −2.0 < Σ1/(DTni∙fi)[104 °C mm−1] < 20.0, where fi is an effective focal length of an i-th lens (i=1, 2, . . . , 7) (paras. [0105, 0136-0142, 0163, 0170, 0250, 0253]; Tables).
Regarding claim 8, Tianjin discloses wherein −620 < DTnT[10−6 °C−1] < −450, where DTnT is a sum of DTn values of the first to seventh lenses, in which ΣDTni (i=1, 2, . . . , 7) (paras. [0099, 0105, 0250]; Tables).
Regarding claim 9, Tianjin discloses wherein −220 < DTnF[10−6 °C−1] < −100 (paras. [0099, 0105, 0250]; Tables).
Regarding claim 10, Tianjin discloses wherein −400 < DTnR[10−6 °C−1] < −300 (paras. [0099, 0105, 0250]; Tables).
Regarding claim 11, Tianjin discloses wherein the fourth lens (L4) has a positive refractive power, and the sixth lens (L6) has a positive refractive power (paras. [0178, 0198]).
Tianjin fails to explicitly disclose the fifth lens has a negative refractive power.
However, Hsu discloses wherein the fifth lens (150) has a negative refractive power (para. [0083]).
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate wherein the fifth lens has a negative refractive power, as in Hsu, into the optical imaging system of Tianjin for correcting chromatic aberration (Hsu, para. [0038])
Regarding claim 12, Tianjin discloses an aperture stop (STO) disposed between the second lens (L2) and the third lens (L3) (Fig. 1).
Tianjin does not necessarily disclose wherein a lens closest to the aperture stop is the third lens.
However, Hsu discloses wherein a lens closest to the aperture stop (100) is the third lens (130) (Fig. 1).
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate wherein a lens closest to the aperture stop is the third lens, as in Hsu, into the optical imaging system of Tianjin for enlarging the field of view (Hsu, para. [0054]).
Regarding claim 13, Tianjin discloses wherein the first lens (L1) has a convex object-side surface in a paraxial region thereof and a concave image-side surface in a paraxial region thereof (Figs. 13, 17).
Regarding claim 14, Tianjin fails to explicitly disclose wherein the third lens has a convex object-side surface in a paraxial region thereof and a convex image-side surface in a paraxial region thereof.
However, Hsu discloses wherein the third lens (130) has a convex object-side surface in a paraxial region thereof and a convex image-side surface in a paraxial region thereof (Fig. 1; para. [0081]).
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate wherein the third lens has a convex object-side surface in a paraxial region thereof and a convex image-side surface in a paraxial region thereof, as in Hsu, into the optical imaging system of Tianjin for moderating the incident light of a large angle of view (Hsu, para. [0037]).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to PAISLEY L WILSON whose telephone number is (571)270-5023. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday, 9:00am-5:00pm ET.
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/PAISLEY L WILSON/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2871
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