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 .
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 12/03/2024 and 04/14/2025 has been considered by the examiner.
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.
Claims 41-42, 46-48, 51-53, 59-60 and 67-68 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by He et al. (US 2013/0222758).
Regarding claim 41, He discloses, a spectacles assembly (Figs. 1-4), comprising:
a spectacles frame (20) comprising a left rim (see annotated Fig. 4 below) having one or more mount points, a right rim (see annotated Fig. 4 below), and a bridge (see annotated Fig. 4 below) disposed between the left rim and the right rim;
a right temple (see annotated Fig. 4 below) coupled with the right rim;
a left temple (see annotated Fig. 4 below) comprising a blind recess (61) having a first end of a circuit board (41) disposed therein, the first end of the circuit board having a processor (40, 44) mounted thereon, a second end of the circuit board having an LED assembly (42) disposed thereon; and
a hinge assembly (see annotated Fig. 4 below) connecting the left temple to the spectacles frame (see annotated Fig. 4 below), the hinge assembly comprising:
an axle (see annotated Fig. 4 below) coupled with the one or more mount points; and
a rotatable body (see annotated Fig. 4 below) comprising a barrel (see annotated Fig. 4 below) disposed at a first end and disposed around the axle, a flange at a second end opposite the first end, a temple interface (see annotated Fig. 4 below) forming a mechanical connection about a periphery of the blind recess of the left temple, a translucent portion (see annotated Fig. 4 below) disposed between the temple interface and the barrel, and a hinge passage (see annotated Fig. 4 below) disposed through the temple interface;
wherein the second end of the circuit board is disposed in the hinge passage and through the temple interface such that the LED assembly is disposed at or adjacent to the translucent portion of the rotatable body such that light from the LED assembly is visible at the translucent portion.
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Regarding claim 42, He discloses, an entire portion of the rotatable body that is exposed on a surface of the spectacles assembly consists of a translucent material (see annotated Fig. 4 above).
Regarding claim 46, He discloses, a spectacles assembly (Figs. 1-4), comprising:
a front frame (20) configured for mounting lenses (see annotated Fig. 4 above) and comprising a hinge mount feature (see annotated Fig. 4 above);
a temple (10) comprising an elongate body (see portion of 10 where 30 disposed) having a free end and a recess (61) disposed at a fixed end opposite to the free end;
a circuit board (40, 44) having a processor (41) mounted thereto disposed in the recess;
a hinge assembly (see annotated Fig. 4 above) connecting the temple to the front frame, the hinge assembly comprising:
an axle (see annotated Fig. 4 above) coupled with the hinge mount feature; and
a rotatable body (see annotate Fig. 4 above) comprising a barrel (see annotated Fig. 4 above) disposed around the axle, a flange (see annotated Fig. 4 above) disposed opposite to the barrel, a temple interface (see annotated Fig. 4 above) disposed between the flange and the barrel and configured to mechanically couple the rotatable body to the fixed end of the temple;
the rotatable body having a translucent portion (see annotated Figs. 1 and 4 above) disposed between the flange and the barrel; and
an LED assembly (42) electrically connected to the processor and disposed at or adjacent to the translucent portion such that light from the LED assembly is visible at the translucent portion.
Regarding claim 47, He discloses, a spectacles assembly (Figs. 1-4), comprising:
a front frame (20) configured for supporting lenses (see annotated Fig. 4 above) and a hinge mount feature (see annotated Fig. 4 above);
a temple (10) comprising an elongate body (see portion of 10 where 30 disposed) having a free end and a fixed end opposite to the free end (see annotated Fig. 4 above);
a hinge assembly (see annotated Fig. 4 above) connecting the temple to the front frame, the hinge assembly comprising:
a pivot (see annotated Fig. 4 above; note, labeled as “axle”) coupled with or disposed at the hinge mount feature; and
a rotatable body (see annotated Fig. 4 above) comprising a temple interface (see annotated Fig. 4 above) coupled with the fixed end of the temple; and
a translucent portion (see annotated Fig. 4 above) disposed along a medial side of the hinge assembly; and
an LED (42) disposed adjacent to the translucent portion to illuminate the translucent portion within a field of view of a wearer of the spectacles assembly (Para. 0039).
Regarding claim 48, He discloses, the temple comprises a recess (61) formed into the elongate body at the fixed end (see annotated Fig. 4 above), and further comprising a circuit board (41) having a processor (40, 44) formed thereon, the circuit board extending through a hinge passage disposed through the temple interface to electrically connect the processor to the LED (see Figs. 2 and 4).
Regarding claim 51, He discloses, the temple interface comprises a peripheral surface engaged with an end surface of the fixed end of the temple (see Figs. 3-4), the end surface of the fixed end of the temple disposed around a recess formed into the elongate body of the temple (see Figs. 3-4).
Regarding claim 52, He discloses, the temple interface further comprises a ridge projection (13, 14, 15, 34, 35, 36) configured to be inserted into the recess (11, 16) to engage peripheral grooves formed within an interior of the elongate body around the recess (Para. 0042).
Regarding claim 53, He discloses, the rotatable body comprises a flange disposed at one end thereof and a barrel disposed opposite to the flange (see Figs. 2-4), the flange projecting into the recess and having a plurality of mount locations for mechanical connection to the hinge assembly (see Figs. 2-4).
Regarding claim 59, He discloses, the temple is a first temple (see 10), the hinge assembly (see annotated Fig. 4 above) is a first hinge assembly, the LED is a first LED (42), and the translucent portion is a first translucent portion (Para. 0004 and see annotated Fig. 1 above), and further comprising a second temple (see annotated Fig. 1 above) coupled to the front frame (20) by a second hinge assembly (Para. 0004 and see annotated Fig. 1 above), the second hinge assembly comprising a second translucent portion (see annotated Figs. 1 and 4 above) disposed between a second LED (42) and a medial side of the second hinge assembly (Para. 0004 and see annotated Fig. 1 above).
Regarding claim 60, He discloses, the second hinge assembly comprises a second rotatable portion (see annotated Figs. 1 and 4 above) having a second hinge passage, the second LED (41) being disposed on a second circuit board (41) disposed through the second hinge passage and positioned within a recess of the second temple (Para. 0004 and see annotated Fig. 1 above).
Regarding claim 67, He discloses, the temple comprises a recess for enclosing a circuit board (61) and comprises a seamless outer periphery (30) disposed around the recess.
Regarding claim 68, He discloses, one or more processors (Para. 0004 and 40, 44) disposed on the spectacles assembly configured to activate the LED to illuminate the translucent portion to provide one or more notifications to the wearer of the spectacles assembly regarding an operational parameter or state of the spectacles assembly (Para. 0004 and 0038-0039).
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.
Claim 43 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over He et al. (US 2013/0222758) as applied to claim 41 above, in view of Cheung et al (US 2023/0266607).
He remains as applied to claim 41 above.
He does not disclose the hinge passage extends from one side of the temple interface through an end surface of the barrel to open into a frame passage formed in the spectacles frame.
Cheung teaches, from the same field of endeavor that in a spectacles assembly (Figs. 1-14) that it would have been desirable to make the hinge passage (20a) extends from one side of the temple interface (see Figs. 3-4) through an end surface of the barrel to open into a frame passage (20b) formed in the spectacles frame (Fig. 5).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to make the hinge passage extends from one side of the temple interface through an end surface of the barrel to open into a frame passage formed in the spectacles frame as taught by the spectacles assembly of Cheung in the spectacles assembly of He since Cheung teaches it is known to include this feature in a spectacles assembly for the purpose of providing a spectacles assembly with low power consumption and enhanced performance.
Claims 55-56 and 62-64 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over He et al. (US 2013/0222758) as applied to claim 53 above, in view of Pugh et al. (US 2012/0203310; already of record).
He remains as applied to claim 53 above.
He does not disclose the flange has a charging contact passage disposed therethrough, a charge conductor disposed through the charging contact passage and extending to a lateral side of the temple.
Pugh teaches, from the same field of endeavor that in a spectacles assembly (Figs. 5-9) that it would have been desirable to make the flange has a charging contact passage (503, 606, 705, 805) disposed therethrough, a charge conductor (Para. 0039-0041) disposed through the charging contact passage and extending to a lateral side of the temple.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to make the flange has a charging contact passage disposed therethrough, a charge conductor disposed through the charging contact passage and extending to a lateral side of the temple as taught by the spectacles assembly of Pugh in the spectacles assembly of He since Pugh teaches it is known to include this feature in a spectacles assembly for the purpose of providing a spectacles assembly that effectively and efficiently charges a battery.
Regarding claim 56, He in view of Pugh discloses and teaches as set forth above, and Pugh further teaches, from the same field of endeavor that in a spectacles assembly (Figs. 5-9) that it would have been desirable to make the charging contact passage comprises two apertures disposed adjacent to each other (503, 606, 705, 805), the charge conductor comprising two metallic surfaces exposed on the lateral side of the temple (Para. 0039-0041).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to include the above mentioned limitations as taught by the spectacles assembly of Pugh in the spectacles assembly of He since Pugh teaches it is known to include this feature in a spectacles assembly for the purpose of providing a spectacles assembly that effectively and efficiently charges a battery.
Regarding claim 62, He in view of Pugh discloses and teaches as set forth above, and He further discloses, the temple is a first temple (10) and the hinge assembly is a first hinge assembly (see annotated Figs. 1 and 4 above).
Pugh further teaches, from the same field of endeavor that in a spectacles assembly (Figs. 5-9) that it would have been desirable to make the first hinge assembly comprising a charge contact disposed therethrough and electrically connecting a charge surface disposed on an exterior surface of the first temple to a circuit disposed on the spectacles assembly (Para. 0039 and see 701, 801), the circuit configured to direct current from the charge surface through conductors disposed through the first hinge assembly to a battery disposed in a second temple (Para. 0039-0041).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to include the above mentioned limitations as taught by the spectacles assembly of Pugh in the spectacles assembly of He since Pugh teaches it is known to include this feature in a spectacles assembly for the purpose of providing a spectacles assembly that effectively and efficiently charges a battery.
Regarding claim 63, He in view of Pugh discloses and teaches as set forth above, and Pugh further teaches, from the same field of endeavor that in a spectacles assembly (Figs. 5-9) that it would have been desirable to the charge contact disposed through the first hinge assembly is a first charge contact and the charge surface disposed on the exterior surface of the first temple is a first charge surface (see left 109 and 112), further comprising a second charge surface disposed on an exterior surface of second temple electrically connected to the circuit disposed on the spectacles assembly (see right 109 and 112), the circuit configured to direct current from the second charge surface or the first charge surface to the battery disposed in the second temple (Para. 0042).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to include the above mentioned limitations as taught by the spectacles assembly of Pugh in the spectacles assembly of He since Pugh teaches it is known to include this feature in a spectacles assembly for the purpose of providing a spectacles assembly that effectively and efficiently charges a battery.
Regarding claim 64, He in view of Pugh discloses and teaches as set forth above, and Pugh further teaches, from the same field of endeavor that in a spectacles assembly (Figs. 5-9) that it would have been desirable to include a charger configured to engage the first charge surface or the second charge surface and to charge the battery of the spectacles assembly through the first charge surface or the second charge surface (Para. 0039-0041 and 503, 606, 705, 805).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to include the above mentioned limitations as taught by the spectacles assembly of Pugh in the spectacles assembly of He since Pugh teaches it is known to include this feature in a spectacles assembly for the purpose of providing a spectacles assembly that effectively and efficiently charges a battery.
Claim 57 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over He et al. (US 2013/0222758) in view of Pugh et al. (US 2012/0203310; already of record) as applied to claim 53 above, and further in view of Chen et al. (US 2023/0361601).
He in view of Pugh remains as applied to claim 53 above.
He in view of Pugh does not disclose the flange comprises an anchor point, a magnet aperture, and a charging contact passage, the circuit board coupled with the anchor point and disposed in the recess of the elongate body of the temple, a hinge magnet disposed in the magnet aperture, and a charge conductor disposed through the charging contact passage and through the temple to be exposed on a lateral surface of the temple.
Chen teaches, from the same field of endeavor that in a spectacles assembly (Figs. 1-5D) that it would have been desirable to make the flange comprises an anchor point (Para. 0027-0030), a magnet aperture (Para. 0027-0030 and see 203), and a charging contact passage (Para. 0027-0030 and see 201), the circuit board coupled with the anchor point and disposed in the recess of the elongate body of the temple (Para. 0027-0030), a hinge magnet disposed in the magnet aperture (Para. 0027-0030), and a charge conductor (320 and 343) disposed through the charging contact passage and through the temple to be exposed on a lateral surface of the temple (Para. 0027-0030).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to make the flange comprises an anchor point, a magnet aperture, and a charging contact passage, the circuit board coupled with the anchor point and disposed in the recess of the elongate body of the temple, a hinge magnet disposed in the magnet aperture, and a charge conductor disposed through the charging contact passage and through the temple to be exposed on a lateral surface of the temple as taught by the spectacles assembly of Chen in the combination of He in view of Pugh since Chen teaches it is known to include these features in a spectacles assembly for the purpose of providing a spectacles assembly with increased life expectancy to provide efficient charging.
Claim 58 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over He et al. (US 2013/0222758) as applied to claim 47 above, in view of Lore et al. (US 2019/0212584).
He remains as applied to claim 47 above.
He does not disclose the rotatable body of the hinge assembly is formed of a monolithic translucent body.
Lore teaches, from the same field of endeavor that in a spectacles assembly that it would have been desirable to make the rotatable body of the hinge assembly is formed of a monolithic translucent body (Para. 0018-0019).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to make the rotatable body of the hinge assembly is formed of a monolithic translucent body as taught by the spectacles assembly of Lore in the spectacles assembly of He since Lore teaches it is known to include this feature in a spectacles assembly for the purpose of providing a spectacles assembly with enhanced reliability and heat dissipation.
Claim 65 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over He et al. (US 2013/0222758) as applied to claim 65 above, in view of Waters (US 2011/0013135).
He remains as applied to claim 65 above.
He does not disclose an environmental sensor configured to detect a first signal when at least one of the temple and a second temple are unfolded such that the spectacles assembly can be worn and a second signal when at least one of the temple and the second temple are folded such that the spectacles assembly cannot be worn, the processor configured reduce power consumption when the second signal is detected.
Waters teaches, from the same field of endeavor that in a spectacles assembly that it would have been desirable to include an environmental sensor (Para. 0007) configured to detect a first signal when at least one of the temple and a second temple are unfolded such that the spectacles assembly can be worn (Para. 0007) and a second signal when at least one of the temple and the second temple are folded such that the spectacles assembly cannot be worn (Para. 0007), the processor configured reduce power consumption when the second signal is detected (Para. 0007).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to include an environmental sensor configured to detect a first signal when at least one of the temple and a second temple are unfolded such that the spectacles assembly can be worn and a second signal when at least one of the temple and the second temple are folded such that the spectacles assembly cannot be worn, the processor configured reduce power consumption when the second signal is detected as taught by the spectacles assembly of Waters in the spectacles assembly of He since Waters teaches it known to include these features in a spectacles assembly for the purpose of providing a spectacles assembly with enhanced performance, reduced size and cost.
Claim 66 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over He et al. (US 2013/0222758) as applied to claim 65 above, in view of Reedie (US 2017/0014071).
He remains as applied to claim 65 above.
He does not disclose the environmental sensor comprises a magnetometer configured to detect a magnetic field generated by a magnet disposed at an end of a blind recess in one of the temple and the second temple.
Reedie teaches, from the same field of endeavor that in a spectacles assembly that it would have been desirable to make the environmental sensor comprises a magnetometer configured to detect a magnetic field generated by a magnet disposed at an end of a blind recess in one of the temple and the second temple (Para. 0024).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to make the environmental sensor comprises a magnetometer configured to detect a magnetic field generated by a magnet disposed at an end of a blind recess in one of the temple and the second temple as taught by the spectacles assembly of Reedie in the spectacles assembly of He since Reedie teaches it is known to include this feature in a spectacles assembly for the purpose of providing a spectacles assembly with accurate position detecting.
Claim 69 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over He et al. (US 2013/0222758) as applied to claim 47 above, in view of Santarelli (US 2014/0268018).
He remains as applied to claim 47 above.
He does not disclose the front frame comprises a left rim having a left rim conductor passage open to a left lens mounting region, a right rim having a right rim conductor passage open to a right lens mounting region, and a bridge connecting the left rim to the right rim, the bridge having a bridge conductor passage open to the left lens mounting region and to the right lens mounting region, further comprising a first flex circuit assembly coupled with an electronic component coupled with the left rim and having a first contact and a second flex circuit assembly coupled with an electronic component coupled with the right rim and having a second contact, the first contact and the second contact configured to engage each other to provide electrical signals across the bridge conductor passage.
Santarelli teaches, from the same field of endeavor that in a spectacles assembly (Figs. 1-2) that it would have been desirable to make the front frame comprises a left rim having a left rim conductor passage open to a left lens mounting region (see Fig. 1), a right rim having a right rim conductor passage open to a right lens mounting region (see Fig. 1), and a bridge connecting the left rim to the right rim (see Fig. 1), the bridge having a bridge conductor passage open to the left lens mounting region and to the right lens mounting region (see 12, 17), further comprising a first flex circuit assembly (13, 14, 16, 21) coupled with an electronic component coupled with the left rim and having a first contact and a second flex circuit assembly coupled with an electronic component coupled with the right rim and having a second contact (13, 14, 16, 21), the first contact and the second contact configured to engage each other to provide electrical signals across the bridge conductor passage (see Fig. 2).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to make the front frame comprises a left rim having a left rim conductor passage open to a left lens mounting region, a right rim having a right rim conductor passage open to a right lens mounting region, and a bridge connecting the left rim to the right rim, the bridge having a bridge conductor passage open to the left lens mounting region and to the right lens mounting region, further comprising a first flex circuit assembly coupled with an electronic component coupled with the left rim and having a first contact and a second flex circuit assembly coupled with an electronic component coupled with the right rim and having a second contact, the first contact and the second contact configured to engage each other to provide electrical signals across the bridge conductor passage as taught by the spectacles assembly of Santarelli in the spectacles assembly of He since Santarelli since He teaches it is known to include these features in a spectacles assembly for the purpose of providing a simple spectacles assembly with reduced dazzle.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Castañeda et al. (US 11,163,155), Wang (US 8,007,101) and Desheng (US 2011/0007264) discloses a spectacles assembly that comprises a spectacle frame, a right temple, a left temple comprising a blind recess having a first end of a circuit board, the circuit board having a processor mounted thereon, a LED disposed on the circuit board, a hinge assembly comprising an axle and a rotatable body.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to DAWAYNE A PINKNEY whose telephone number is (571)270-1305. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 9-5.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Pinping Sun can be reached at 571-270-1284. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/DAWAYNE PINKNEY/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2872 09/26/2026
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