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 § 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, 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 1-3, 7-10, and 16-18 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kimmel (US 7,714,801), in view of Kilpatrick, II et al (US 2010/0064244; hereinafter Kilpatrick) and further in view of Chida et al (US 2013/0240855; hereinafter Chida).
• Regarding claim 1, Kimmel discloses a display device (figure 12 and col. 6, lines 49-67) comprising:
a first housing (element 3c in figure 12, as shown on the next page; where element 5 is described with respect to figure 1 and col. 4, lines 1-58);
a second housing (element 3b in figure 12, as shown on page 4);
a third housing (element 3a in figure 12, as shown on page 4);
a first hinge connecting the first housing and the second housing (element 5b as in figure 12, as shown on page 4; where element 5 is described with respect to figure 1 and col. 4, lines 1-58);
a second hinge connecting the second housing and the third housing (element 5a in figure 12, as shown on page 4); and
a display panel overlapping with the first housing, the second housing, and the third housing (elements 2a-2e in figure 12, as shown on page 4; where element 2 is described with respect to figure 1 and col. 4, lines 1-58),
wherein the display panel comprises:
a first display region overlapping with the first housing (note the relationship between elements 2e and 3c in figure 12, as shown on the next page);
a second display region overlapping with the second housing (note the relationship between elements 2c and 3b in figure 12, as shown on the next page);
a third display region overlapping with the third housing (note the relationship between elements 2a and 3a in figure 12, as shown on the next page);
a fourth display region configured to bend inwards at a first connection portion between the first housing and the second housing using the first hinge (note the relationship between elements 2d and 5b in figure 12, as shown on the next page); and
a fifth display region configured to bend outwards at a second connection portion between the second housing and the third housing using the second hinge (note the relationship between elements 2b and 5a in figure 12, as shown on the next page),
wherein the fourth display region is configured to bent inwards (figure 12), and
wherein, in an opened state of the display device, the first display region, the second display region, the third display region, the fourth display region, and the fifth display region are visible (figures 6 and 12 and col. 6, lines 49-67),
wherein, in an opened state of the display device, the first display region, the second display region, the third display region, the fourth display region, and the fifth display region are visible (figure 6),
wherein, in a folded state of the display device, the first display region, the second display region, and the fourth display region are not visible (figure 12),
wherein, in the folded state of the display device, the first display region, the second display region, and the third display region overlap each other (figure 12),
wherein, in the folded state of the display device, the third display region and the fifth display region are visible (figure 12),
wherein, in the folded state of the display device, the second hinge is exposed (figure 12),
wherein, in the opened state of the display device, the second hinge is exposed between the second housing and the third housing (figure 6, in view of col. 6, lines 49-67),
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However, Kimmel fails to disclose the additional details of the display device.
In the same field of endeavor, Kilpatrick discloses where the display device further comprises:
a sensor (at least one of elements 1512-1516 and 1522-1526 in figures 15-17 and ¶s 120-124),
wherein, in the folded state of the display device, the third display region is configured to display an image (¶ 212),
wherein the sensor is configured to sense whether the display device is in the folded state or the opened state (¶s 120-124), and
wherein, when the sensor has determined that the display device is in the folded state, display in the first display region, the second display region, and the fourth display region is stopped (¶s 120-24 and 212).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to have modified the invention of Kimmel according to the teachings of Kilpatrick, for the purpose of providing a portable electronic device that may be configured to have a larger screen size or may be configured to have a small form factor for convenience and portability (¶ 9). However, Kilpatrick also fails to disclose the additional details of the display panel.
In the same field of endeavor, Chida discloses wherein the display panel (figure 7) further comprises:
a first substrate having flexibility (element 501 in figure 7B and ¶ 107);
a first transistor over the first substrate (element 150 in figure 7B and ¶ 107);
a light-emitting element over and electrically connected to the first transistor (element 130 in figure 7B and ¶ 107); and
a second substrate having flexibility over the light-emitting element (element 502 in figure 7B and ¶ 107),
wherein a channel formation region of the first transistor comprises an oxide semiconductor (¶ 126).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to have modified the invention of Kimmel, as modified by Kilpatrick, according to the teachings of Chida, for the purpose of manufacturing a thin and lightweight display device having a fast response speed and flexibility (¶s 4, 5, and 10).
• Regarding claims 2, 3, and 7-10, Kimmel, in view of Kilpatrick and Chida, discloses everything claimed, as applied to claim 1. However, Kimmel fails to disclose the additional details of the display device.
In the same field of endeavor, Kilpatrick discloses where:
Claim 8: in a state of being folded, the display device is configured to detect a touch on each of a flat surface portion of the display panel, a convex curved portion of the display panel, and a concave curved portion of the display panel (¶s 103-105).
Claim 9: in a state of being folded, the display device is configured display an image on the first display region, the second display region, the third display region, the fourth display region, and the fifth display region (¶ 212).
Claim 10: in a state of being folded, the first display region faces a first direction, the second display region faces a second direction different from the first direction, and the third display region faces a third direction different from the first direction and the second direction (figure 16).
Claim 16: in the opened state of the display device, the second hinge does not protrude from the second housing and the third housing (elements 1512-1516 and 1522-1526 in figure 17).
Claim 17: in the opened state of the display device, the first hinge does not protrude from the first housing and the second housing (elements 1512-1516 and 1522-1526 in figure 17).
Claim 18: in the folded state of the display device, a visible portion of the second hinge does not protrude from the second housing and the third housing (elements 1512-1516 and 1522-1526 in figure 15).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to have modified the invention of Kimmel according to the teachings of Kilpatrick, for the purpose of providing a portable electronic device that may be configured to have a larger screen size or may be configured to have a small form factor for convenience and portability (¶ 9). However, Kilpatrick also fails to disclose the additional details of the display device.
In the same field of endeavor, Chida discloses where:
Claim 2: the display device further comprises:
an adhesive layer over the light-emitting element (element 700b in figure 7B and ¶ 171); and
a touch sensor over the adhesive layer (¶ 168),
the second substrate having flexibility is provided over the touch sensor (¶ 168).
Claim 3: the display device further comprises:
a first passivation layer between the first substrate and the first transistor (element 104 in figure 7B and ¶ 121);
an adhesive layer over the light-emitting element (element 700b in figure 7B and ¶ 171);
a touch sensor over the adhesive layer (¶ 168); and
a second passivation layer over the touch sensor (while Chida does not explicitly disclose a passivation layer between a substrate and a touch sensor, one of ordinary skill in the art would have understood providing a passivation layer between a touch sensor and a substrate would have yielded the predictable result of minimizing the ability of water to reach the layers under the passivation layer (see “the first buffer layer 104 is formed at a temperature of higher than or equal to 250.degree. C. and lower than or equal to 400.degree. C. by a plasma CVD method, whereby a dense film having very low water permeability can be obtained” in ¶ 121)),
the second substrate having flexibility is provided over the [touch sensor] ¶ 168).
Claim 7: the first substrate comprises an organic insulating material or a resin (¶ 81).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to have modified the invention of Kimmel, as modified by Kilpatrick, according to the teachings of Chida, for the purpose of manufacturing a thin and lightweight display device having a fast response speed and flexibility (¶s 4, 5, and 10).
Claims 4-6 and 11-14 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Huang, in view of Park and Chida, and further in view of Miyake (US 2013/0069068).
• Regarding claim 4, Kimmel, in view of Kilpatrick, discloses everything in common with claim 1. However, Kimmel, in view of Kilpatrick, fails to disclose the additional details of the display panel.
In the same field of endeavor, Chida discloses wherein the display panel (figure 7) further comprises:
a first substrate having flexibility (element 501 in figure 7B and ¶ 107);
a first insulating layer over the first substrate (element 103 in figure 7B and ¶ 122);
a first conductive layer over the first insulating layer, the first conductive layer functioning as a first gate electrode of a first transistor (element 106 in figure 7B and ¶ 123);
a second insulating layer over the first conductive layer (element 108 in figure 7B and ¶ 124);
a semiconductor layer of the first transistor over the second insulating layer (element 110 in figure 7B and ¶s 125 and 126);
a third insulating layer over the semiconductor layer (elements 114 and 116 in figure 7B and ¶s 130-132);
a second conductive layer over the third insulating layer and electrically connected to the semiconductor layer (element 118 in figure 7B and ¶s 134 and 135);
a fourth conductive layer over the fourth insulating layer, the fourth conductive layer functioning as one electrode of a light-emitting element (element 118 in figure 7B and ¶s 134 and 135);
an EL layer over the fourth conductive layer (element 120 in figure 7B and ¶ 138);
a fifth conductive layer over the EL layer, the fifth conductive layer functioning as the other electrode of the light-emitting element (element 122 in figure 7B and ¶ 138);
a first adhesive layer over the light-emitting element (element 700b in figure 7B and ¶ 171);
a touch sensor over the first adhesive layer (¶ 168); and
a second substrate having flexibility over the touch sensor (element 502 in figure 7B and ¶ 107),
wherein the semiconductor layer comprises an oxide semiconductor in a channel formation region of the first transistor (¶ 126).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to have modified the invention of Kimmel, as modified by Kilpatrick, according to the teachings of Chida, for the purpose of manufacturing a thin and lightweight display device having a fast response speed and flexibility (¶s 4, 5, and 10). However, Chida also fails to disclose the additional details of the display panel.
In the same field of endeavor, Miyake discloses where the display panel further comprises:
a first substrate (element 500 in figure 10 and ¶ 189);
a first conductive layer over the first insulating layer, the first conductive layer functioning as a first gate electrode of a first transistor (element 511d in figure 10 and ¶ 194);
a second insulating layer over the first conductive layer (element 512 in figure 10 and ¶ 199);
a semiconductor layer of the first transistor over the second insulating layer (element 513d in figure 10 and ¶ 203);
a third insulating layer over the semiconductor layer (element 516 in figure 10 and ¶ 220);
a second conductive layer over the third insulating layer and electrically connected to the semiconductor layer (element 517b in figure 10 and ¶ 222);
a third conductive layer over the third insulating layer, the third conductive layer functioning as a second gate electrode of the first transistor (element 517a in figure 10 and ¶ 221);
a fourth insulating layer over the second conductive layer (element 518 in figure 10 and ¶ 224);
a fourth conductive layer over the fourth insulating layer, the fourth conductive layer functioning as one electrode of a light-emitting element (element 519 in figure 10 and ¶ 226);
an EL layer over the fourth conductive layer (element 522 in figure 10 and ¶ 228); and
a fifth conductive layer over the EL layer, the fifth conductive layer functioning as the other electrode of the light-emitting element (element 523 in figure 10 and ¶ 229).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to have modified the invention of Kimmel, as modified by Kilpatrick and Chida, according to the teachings of Miyake, for the purpose of preventing an influence of fluctuation in threshold voltage of a field-effect transistor (¶ 132).
• Regarding claims 5, 6, and 11-14, Kimmel, in view of Kilpatrick, Chida, and Miyake, discloses everything claimed, as applied to claim 4. Additionally, Kimmel, in view of Kilpatrick and Chida, discloses everything in claims 12-14 in common with claims 8-10, respectively. However, Kimmel, in view of Kilpatrick, fails to disclose the additional details of the display device.
In the same field of endeavor, Chida discloses where:
Claim 6: the display device further comprises:
a second adhesive layer between the first substrate and the first insulating layer (element 700a in figure 7B and ¶s 171 and 174).
Claim 11: the first substrate comprises an organic insulating material or a resin (¶ 81).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to have modified the invention of Kimmel, as modified by Kilpatrick, according to the teachings of Chida, for the purpose of manufacturing a thin and lightweight display device having a fast response speed and flexibility (¶s 4, 5, and 10). However, Chida also fails to disclose the additional details of the display panel.
In the same field of endeavor, Miyake discloses where:
Claim 5: in a cross-sectional view, the semiconductor layer of the first transistor and a semiconductor layer of a second transistor overlap with the fourth conductive layer (note the relationship between elements 513d, 513e, and 519 in figure 10).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to have modified the invention of Kimmel, as modified by Kilpatrick and Chida, according to the teachings of Miyake, for the purpose of preventing an influence of fluctuation in threshold voltage of a field-effect transistor (¶ 132).
Claim 15 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kimmel, in view of Kilpatrick and Chida, and further in view of Poorter et al (US 2014/0009400; hereinafter Poorter).
• Regarding claim 15, Kimmel, in view of Kilpatrick, disclose everything in common with claim 1. However, Kimmel, in view of Kilpatrick, fails to disclose the additional details of the display panel.
In the same field of endeavor, Chida discloses wherein the display panel (figure 7) further comprises:
a first substrate having flexibility (element 501 in figure 7B and ¶ 107);
a first transistor over the first substrate (element 150 in figure 7B and ¶ 107);
a light-emitting element over and electrically connected to the first transistor (element 130 in figure 7B and ¶ 107);
an adhesive layer over the light-emitting element (element 700b in figure 7B and ¶ 171);
a touch sensor over the adhesive layer (¶ 168); and
a second substrate having flexibility over the touch sensor (element 502 in figure 7B and ¶ 107),
wherein a channel formation region of the first transistor comprises an oxide semiconductor (¶ 126).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to have modified the invention of Kimmel, as modified by Kilpatrick, according to the teachings of Chida, for the purpose of manufacturing a thin and lightweight display device having a fast response speed and flexibility (¶s 4, 5, and 10). However, Chida also fails to disclose the additional details of the display device.
In the same field of endeavor, Poorter discloses:
a display panel (element 101 in figure 2 and ¶ 19),
wherein a first flexible printed circuit is electrically connected to the display panel (element 69 in figure 2 and ¶ 21),
wherein a second flexible printed circuit is electrically connected to the touch sensor (element 79 in figure 2 and ¶ 21 is connected to element 102),
wherein the first flexible printed circuit is provided at a first side of the display panel and the second flexible printed circuit is provided at a second side of the display panel opposite the first side (note the relationship between elements 69, 79, and 101 in figure 2D).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to have modified the invention of Kimmel, as modified by Kilpatrick and Chida, according to the teachings of Poorter, for the purpose of providing easier viewing and operation for a user (¶ 24).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claim 19 is 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: the prior art of record, either alone or in combination, fails to teach or fairly suggest, in claim 19, where “in the folded state of the display device, the fifth display region is configured to display the image”, in combination with all the limitations in claim 1.
Closing Remarks/Comments
Applicant's amendment necessitated the new ground(s) of rejection presented in this Office action. Accordingly, THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. See MPEP § 706.07(a). Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to NATHAN DANIELSEN whose telephone number is (571)272-4248. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM Eastern Time.
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/NATHAN DANIELSEN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2622
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