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 . Claims 1-20 are pending in the current application.
Drawings
The drawings are objected to because the view numbers must be larger than the numbers used for reference characters. See 37 C.F.R. 1.84(u)(2). Additionally, FIG. 6 is objected to because the text adjacent 146 is illegible. See 37 C.F.R. 1.84(l).
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.
Claims 5-10 and 15-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
Specifically, regarding Claim 5, the 3rd to the last line, there is no antecedent basis for the language “the maximum.”
Regarding Claim 6, line 2, it is not clear what is meant by the language “communicated with.”
Regarding Claim 9, line 4, there is no antecedent basis for the language “the outside.”
Regarding Claim 10, line 4, there is no antecedent basis for the language “the outside.”
Regarding Claim 15, the 3rd to the last line, there is no antecedent basis for the language “the maximum.”
Regarding Claim 16, line 2, it is not clear what is meant by the language “communicated with.”
Regarding Claim 19, line 4, there is no antecedent basis for the language “the outside.”
Regarding Claim 20, line 4, there is no antecedent basis for the language “the outside.”
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 of this title, 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 and 11-14 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Yang et al. (Taiwanese Pat. No. TW 201546849 A, hereinafter “Yang”) in view of He et al. (Chinese Pat. No. CN 202126955 U, hereinafter “He”).
Specifically, Yang discloses a light-emitting structure (Abstract), comprising: a circuit substrate (10; FIG. 1), a light-emitting element (16; FIG. 1), arranged on the circuit substrate (10; FIG. 1), a light-transmitting body (18; FIG. 1), arranged on the circuit substrate (10; FIG. 1) and packaging an outside of the light-emitting element (16), the light-transmitting body (18) having a light-exiting surface (an outer surface of 18 between adjacent portions of 20; FIG. 1) facing away from the circuit substrate (10), and a light-shielding body (20; FIG. 1), arranged on the circuit substrate (10) and packaging an outside of the light-transmitting body (18), the light-shielding body (20) having a light-exiting part (an area between adjacent ones of 20; FIG. 1) arranged on the light-exiting surface (182; FIG. 1), as recited in Claim 1, (ii) a keycap (12; FIG. 2) and the light-emitting structure according to claim 1, wherein the keycap (12) is provided with a light-emitting hole (122; FIG. 1), the light-emitting hole (122) is a strip-shaped hole (FIG. 1), the light-emitting structure is arranged inside the keycap (12; FIG. 1), the light-exiting part is arranged opposite to the light-emitting hole (122; FIG. 1), as recited in Claim 11.
Yang does not disclose that the (i) light-exiting part having two first light-exiting holes for emitting light, wherein the two first light-exiting holes are arranged at intervals, as recited in Claim 1, (ii) orthographic projections, as recited in Claims 2 and 3, (iii) two first light-exiting holes, as recited in Claims 4 and 11, (iv) orthographic projections, as recited in Claims 12 and 13, and (v) shape, as recited in Claim 14.
However, He discloses that (i) a light-exiting part (131; FIG. 4) having two first light-exiting holes for emitting light (FIG. 4), wherein the two first light-exiting holes are arranged at intervals (FIG. 4), as recited in Claim 1, (ii) orthographic projections of centers of light inlets of the two first light-exiting holes on the circuit substrate (two of the holes of 131; FIG. 4) are respectively arranged on opposite sides of an orthographic projection of a center of the light-emitting element (11) on the circuit substrate (the center of the light-emitting element 11 is centered between each hole of 131, as shown in FIG. 3; see, also, FIG. 4), as recited in Claim 2, (iii) orthographic projections of the centers of the light inlets of the two first light-exiting holes on the circuit substrate (10) are collinear with the orthographic projection of the center of the light-emitting element (16) on the circuit substrate (FIG. 4), as recited in Claim 3, (iv) the two first light-exiting holes are respectively circular holes (FIG. 3), as recited in Claim 4, (v) the two first light-exiting holes are arranged along a length direction of the strip-shaped hole (FIGS. 3 and 4), as recited in Claim 11, (vi) wherein orthographic projections of centers of light inlets of the two first light-exiting holes on the circuit substrate are respectively arranged on opposite sides of an orthographic projection of a center of the light-emitting element on the circuit substrate (with the light-emitting element centered between each hole of 131; FIGS. 3 and 4), as recited in Claim 12, (vii) that the orthographic projections of the centers of the light inlets of the two first light-exiting holes on the circuit substrate (FIG. 4) are collinear with the orthographic projection of the center of the light-emitting element on the circuit substrate (with the light-emitting element centered between each hole of 131; FIGS. 3 and 4), as recited in Claim 13, (viii) the two first light-exiting holes are respectively circular holes (FIG. 3), as recited in Claim 14.
Thus, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teachings of He with those of Yang to provide a same luminance no matter a position opposite to a lateral lighting type light emitting diode (Abstract).
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to Applicant's disclosure. Liu (U.S. Pat. No. 8,383,971 B2) discloses an illuminated keyboard utilizing a light-emitting element but does not disclose the claimed light-shielding body, as recited in Claim 1.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to ANTHONY R. JIMENEZ whose telephone number is 313-446-6518. The examiner can normally be reached Monday through Thursday, 1030am - 9pm.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Renee Luebke, can be reached at (571) 272-2009. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/ANTHONY R JIMENEZ/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2831
Prosecution Insights