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 .
Priority
Receipt is acknowledged of certified copies of papers required by 37 CFR 1.55.
Specification
The lengthy specification has not been checked to the extent necessary to determine the presence of all possible minor errors. Applicant’s cooperation is requested in correcting any errors of which applicant may become aware in the specification.
Drawings
The drawings are objected to under 37 CFR 1.83(a). The drawings must show every feature of the invention specified in the claims. Therefore, the “[a] plurality of color photoresists”, “ones of the plurality of first electrodes corresponding to at least two ones of the color photoresists having the same color are insulated from each other”, “ones of the plurality of first electrodes corresponding to at least two ones of the color photoresists having the same color are electrically connected to each other” must be shown or the feature(s) canceled from the claim(s). No new matter should be entered.
Corrected drawing sheets in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(d) are required in reply to the Office action to avoid abandonment of the application. Any amended replacement drawing sheet should include all of the figures appearing on the immediate prior version of the sheet, even if only one figure is being amended. The figure or figure number of an amended drawing should not be labeled as “amended.” If a drawing figure is to be canceled, the appropriate figure must be removed from the replacement sheet, and where necessary, the remaining figures must be renumbered and appropriate changes made to the brief description of the several views of the drawings for consistency. Additional replacement sheets may be necessary to show the renumbering of the remaining figures. Each drawing sheet submitted after the filing date of an application must be labeled in the top margin as either “Replacement Sheet” or “New Sheet” pursuant to 37 CFR 1.121(d). If the changes are not accepted by the examiner, the applicant will be notified and informed of any required corrective action in the next Office action. The objection to the drawings will not be held in abeyance.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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 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.
(a)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claim(s) 1, 6-11 and 16-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1)/102(a)(2) as being anticipated by Matsushima, US 2023/0296946 A1.
Claim 1 is anticipated by Matsushima’s figures 2, 5 and accompanying text which discloses a liquid crystal display (LCD) panel, in which a display substrate SUB1 comprising:
. an array substrate BA1
. a first electrode layer LE having a plurality of first electrodes PE
. an insulation layer DIE
. a second electrode layer UE having a plurality of second electrodes CE, and the plurality of second electrodes CE are arranged in one-to-one correspondence with the plurality of first electrodes PE (fig 2).
Re claims 6 and 16, wherein the second electrode CE comprises a main electrode DT, one or more branch electrodes BR/CR with a plurality of domains enclosed therebetween, wherein the branch electrode is located within at least one of the domains (e.g., inside the aperture OP), and the branch electrode in one of two adjacent ones of the domains form an angle relative to the branch electrode in other of the two adjacent ones of the domains, and an orthographic projection of the first electrode on the array substrate at least covers an orthographic projection of the main electrode of the second electrode on the array substrate (figs 4-5).
Re claims 7 and 17, wherein a plurality of hollow regions (open space inside PE) are formed in the first electrode, and the plurality of hollow regions are arranged in a one-to-one correspondence with the plurality of domains in the second electrode (fig 5).
Re claims 8 and 18, wherein more than one of the one or more branch electrodes CR are arranged in parallel in the domain, a spacing is provided between two adjacent ones of the one or more branch electrodes, and the hollow region in the first electrode is provided corresponding to the spacing between two adjacent ones of the branch electrodes in the second electrode (fig 5).
Re claims 9 and 19, wherein an orthographic projection of the first electrode PE on the array substrate covers the orthographic projections of the main electrode and the branch electrodes of the second electrode on the array substrate (figs 4, 5).
Re claims 10 and 20, wherein the first electrode PE and the second electrode CE are transparent electrodes ([0036]).
Re claim 11, Matsushima further discloses an opposing substrate BA2, and a liquid crystal layer LC.
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.
Claims 2-5 and 12-15 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Matsushima, US 2023/0296946 A1, in view of Kuroe et al., US 2021/0341804 A1.
Re claims 2 and 12, Masushima discloses the claimed invention as described above except for a color photoresist layer comprising a plurality of color photoresists arranging in a one-to-one correspondence with the plurality of first electrodes, and ones of the plurality of first electrodes corresponding to at least two adjacent ones of the plurality of color photoresists having different colors are insulated from each other. Kuroe et al. do disclose a color photoresist layer 230 comprising a plurality of color photoresists 230R/230G/230B corresponding to a first electrode 224 (e.g., first electrodes corresponding to at least two adjacent ones of the plurality of color photoresists having different colors are insulated from each other)(fig. 8, [0006]). Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to employ the Masushima’s array substrate including a color photoresist layer that corresponding to the Matsushima’s first electrode, as shown by Kuroe et al., for color displaying purposes.
Re claims 3 and 13, the modification to Masushima would result ones of the plurality of first electrodes 224 corresponding to any two adjacent ones of the color photoresists having different colors 230R/230G/230B are insulated from each other (Kuroe et al., fig 8).
Re claims 4 and 14, the modification to Masushima would also result ones of the plurality of first electrodes 224 corresponding to at least two ones of the color photoresists 230R/230G/230B having the same color (e.g., inside same pixel PX) are insulated from each other (Kuroe et al., fig 8).
Re claims 5 and 15, the modification to Masushima would further result ones of the plurality of first electrodes 224 corresponding to any two ones of the color photoresists having the same color are electrically connected to each other, e.g., within pixel PX (Kuroe et al., fig 8).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to DUNG T NGUYEN whose telephone number is (571)272-2297. The examiner can normally be reached 8:00 - 5:00.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Jennifer Carruth can be reached at 571-272-9791. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/DUNG T NGUYEN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2871
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