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 .
Specification
The abstract of the disclosure is objected to because it uses legalese - i.e. it is an almost verbatim copy of claim 1. Correction is required. See MPEP § 608.01(b).
Applicant is reminded of the proper language and format for an abstract of the disclosure.
The abstract should be in narrative form and generally limited to a single paragraph on a separate sheet within the range of 50 to 150 words. The form and legal phraseology often used in patent claims, such as "means" and "said," should be avoided. The abstract should describe the disclosure sufficiently to assist readers in deciding whether there is a need for consulting the full patent text for details.
The language should be clear and concise and should not repeat information given in the title. It should avoid using phrases which can be implied, such as, "The disclosure concerns," "The disclosure defined by this invention," "The disclosure describes," etc.
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.
Claim(s) 1 and 6 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Nakawaki (JPO 2019179168 A). An English machine translation has been provided for the foreign patent publication.
Regarding claim 1, Nakawaki discloses a light shielding unit ([0001], light intensity control device) comprising: a plurality of diaphragm blades (Fig 11, [0035], multiple aperture blades 106); a base member (102) that rotatably supports each of the plurality of diaphragm blades (Fig 7, [0024], drive ring 103 rotates within the space formed by the holding substrate 102 and the partition member 105, and the aperture blades 106 move within the space formed by the partition member 105 and the opening forming member 107); a cover member (103) that is attached to the base member (102) and defines a blade chamber that stores the plurality of diaphragm blades in cooperation with the base member (Fig 7, [0024], aperture blades 106 move within the space formed by the partition member 105 and the opening forming member 107); and an annular first sheet (105) that is disposed between the base member (107) and the plurality of diaphragm blades in the blade chamber and on which the plurality of diaphragm blades slide (Fig 12, [0036], partition member 105 is supported by the projection 107a formed on the opening forming member 107, and the drive ring 103 is supported on the holding substrate 102 side of the partition member 105), wherein the base member (102) includes a through hole communicating with the blade chamber (Fig 4. [0021], protrusions 102a that serve as a plurality of support portions of the holding substrate 102), and the first sheet covers the through hole (Fig 4, [0021], partition member 105 is supported in the radial direction by the engagement hole 105a of the partition member 105).
Regarding claim 6, Nakawaki discloses a lens barrel ([0015], lens barrel) comprising: at least one lens ([0015], lens barrel); and the light shielding unit ([0001], light intensity control device) according to claim 1.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 2-5 are objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter: with respect to the allowable subject matter, none of the prior art either alone or in combination disclose or teach of the claimed combination of limitations to warrant a rejection under 35 USC 102 or 103.
Specifically, with respect to dependent claim 2, the prior art of Nakawaki taken either singly or in combination with any other prior art fails to suggest such a light shielding unit including the specific arrangement: “wherein the base member includes a hook, the cover member includes a recess that snap-fits with the hook, and the through hole overlaps a tip of the hook as viewed in an optical axis extending direction”. Claims 3-5 are allowable due to pendency on dependent claim 2.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Yoshizawa (20180180971), Sato (20140212123), and Sato (20060033974) are examples of a light regulator incorporated in an image pickup system.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Sharrief I Broome whose telephone number is (571)272-3454. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 8am-5pm, EST.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Ricky Mack can be reached at 571-272-2333. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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Sharrief I. Broome
Primary Examiner
Art Unit 2872
/SHARRIEF I BROOME/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2872
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