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 .
Priority
Receipt is acknowledged of papers submitted under 35 U.S.C. 119(a)-(d), which papers have been placed of record in the file.
Claim Amendments
Acknowledgment of receiving amendments to the claims, which were received by the Office on 07/21/2026.
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed 07/21/2026 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive.
In that remarks, applicant argues in substance:
Applicant argues: “Referring to Oe, Oe teaches that the base section 15 (alleged as the claimed support member) supports the rotation of the display section 16 with respect to the base section 15 on the axis AX2 and the rotation of the second section 12 with respect to the section 11 on the axis AX1. The base section 15 may connect to the first section 11 at two places (e.g., first hinges) which is marked in below annotated FIG. 22 of Oe; and the display section 16 may connect to the base section 15 at a single a single place (e.g., second hinge) which is marked in below annotated FIG. 22 of Oe. As shown in the annotated FIG. 22 of Oe, both the first hinges are disposed at the same side with respect to the second hinge. The two first hinges as taught by Oe is not disposed on opposite sides with respect to the second hinge.
Accordingly, Oe does not anticipate the features "the support member includes a first support portion [...] and a second support portion [...] wherein the first hinge includes a hinge that is disposed on a side in a first direction along the second axis with respect to the second hinge, and a hinge that is disposed on a side opposite to the first direction with respect to the second hinge" in claim 1. Withdrawal of the rejection under 35 U.S.C. 102 to claim 1 is requested.”
Examiner’s Response: Examiner respectfully disagrees. Claim language is not seen to require the interpretation that the two hinges of the first hinge are on opposite sides of the second hinge.
Oe is seen to disclose the support member includes a first support portion (Oe, Fig. 22, The first support portion is the portion of base section 15 including the hinges for AX1.), and a second support portion (Oe, Fig. 22, The second support portion is the horizontal top section of base section 15);
wherein the first hinge includes a plurality of hinges (Oe, Fig. 22, Paragraphs 0089 and 0166, The first hinge connects the base section 15 to the first section 11 at two places (hinges).) disposed at intervals along the first axis (Oe, Fig. 22, AX1), wherein the first hinge includes a hinge that is disposed on a side (Oe, Fig. 22, A side is considered to be the top half of Figure 22A) in a first direction (Oe, Fig. 22, The first direction is up from the middle.) along the second axis (Oe, Fig. 22, AX2) with respect to the second hinge (Oe, Fig. 22, Hinge for rotation around AX2, Paragraph 0166, The side and/or the second axis are with respect to the second hinge.), and a hinge that is disposed on a side opposite to the first direction (Oe, Fig. 22, A side opposite to the first direction is considered to be the bottom half of Figure 22A. The first direction is up from the middle.) with respect to the second hinge (Oe, Fig. 22, The side opposite to the first direction is an opposite side with respect to the second hinge.).
Therefore, Oe is seen to disclose the limitation.
Further, Examiner notes Figure 22 of Oe is not considered to be drawn to scale since Oe does not state the figures are drawn to scale. Therefore, placement of the top hinge of the first hinge may be above, at the same level, or below the second hinge in the vertical direction of Figure 22. The three options are obvious placements of the top hinge and would be considered to be "Obvious to try" (choosing from a finite number of identified, predictable solutions, with a reasonable expectation of success). If the top hinge of the first hinge is above the second hinge in the vertical direction, the two hinges of the first hinge would be on opposite sides of the second hinge in the vertical direction.
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, 4-5 and 12 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Oe et al. (US 2005/0164745 A1).
Regarding claim 1, Oe et al. (hereafter referred as Oe) teaches an imaging apparatus (Oe, Fig. 22) that has a tilt mechanism (Oe, Fig. 22, mechanism for rotating around axis AX1 and Ax2) of a monitor unit (Oe, Fig. 22, Display section 16, Paragraph 0090 and 0166), the imaging apparatus comprising:
a body part (Oe, Figs. 1 and 22, first section 11) that has an imaging unit (Oe, Fig. 1, imaging section 33, Paragraph 0092);
the monitor unit (Oe, Fig. 22, Display section 16, Paragraph 0090 and 0166); and
a support member (Oe, Fig. 22, base section 15) that has a first hinge, supporting the body part to be rotationally movable around a first axis (Oe, Fig. 22, Hinge for rotation around AX1, Paragraph 0089 and 0166) and a second hinge supporting the monitor unit to be rotationally movable around a second axis along the first axis (Oe, Fig. 22, Hinge for rotation around AX2, Paragraph 0166),
wherein the support member including a first support portion that extends in same direction as the first axis and the second axis (Oe, Fig. 22, The first support portion is the portion of base section 15 including the hinges for AX1 and extending in the vertical direction.), and a second support portion that extends in a direction perpendicular to the first support portion from one end part of the first support portion (Oe, Fig. 22, The second support portion is the horizontal top section of base section 15 and extends in the horizontal direction.), and the first support portion includes the first hinge, and the second support portion includes the second hinge (Oe, Fig. 22),
wherein, in a case where a rotational movement state of the first hinge and a rotational movement state of the second hinge are in a closed state, the first axis is disposed outside the monitor unit as viewed from a direction perpendicular to a display surface of the monitor unit (Oe, Fig. 22, Figure 22 depicts the closed state, axis AX1 is outside monitor unit 16.), and
in a case where the rotational movement state of the first hinge is in an open state, the monitor unit is rotationally movable by at least 180 degrees around the second axis (Oe, Figs. 1 and 22, Paragraph 0095, First hinge must be opened to rotate the monitor unit (display section 16). Monitor unit is rotatable by 180 degrees.);
wherein the first hinge includes a plurality of hinges (Oe, Fig. 22, Paragraphs 0089 and 0166, The first hinge connects the base section 15 to the first section 11 at two places (hinges).) disposed at intervals along the first axis (Oe, Fig. 22, AX1), wherein the first hinge includes a hinge that is disposed on a side (Oe, Fig. 22, A side is considered to be the top half of Figure 22A) in a first direction (Oe, Fig. 22, The first direction is up from the middle.) along the second axis (Oe, Fig. 22, AX2) with respect to the second hinge (Oe, Fig. 22, Hinge for rotation around AX2, Paragraph 0166, The side and/or the second axis is with respect to the second hinge.), and a hinge that is disposed on a side opposite to the first direction (Oe, Fig. 22, A side opposite to the first direction is considered to be the bottom half of Figure 22A. The first direction is up from the middle.) with respect to the second hinge (Oe, Fig. 22, The side opposite to the first direction is an opposite side with respect to the second hinge.).
Regarding claim 4, Oe teaches the imaging apparatus according to claim 1 (see claim 1 analysis), the second hinge includes fewer hinges than the plurality of hinges (Oe, Fig. 22, Paragraphs 0089 and 0166, The first hinge connects the base section 15 to the first section 11 at two places (hinges). And the second hinge is a single hinge with one point of contact.).
Regarding claim 5, Oe teaches the imaging apparatus according to claim 4 (see claim 4 analysis), wherein the second hinge supports one end of the monitor unit in a direction of the second axis (Oe, Fig. 22, Paragraph 0166).
Regarding claim 12, Oe teaches an imaging apparatus (Oe, Fig. 22) that has a tilt mechanism (Oe, Fig. 22, mechanism for rotating around axis AX1 and Ax2) of a monitor unit (Oe, Fig. 22, Display section 16, Paragraph 0090 and 0166) comprising:
a body part (Oe, Figs. 1 and 22, first section 11) that has an imaging unit (Oe, Fig. 1, imaging section 33, Paragraph 0092);
the monitor unit (Oe, Fig. 22, Display section 16, Paragraph 0090 and 0166); and
a support member (Oe, Fig. 22, base section 15) that has a first hinge supporting the body part to be rotationally movable around a first axis (Oe, Fig. 22, Hinge for rotation around AX1, Paragraph 0089 and 0166) and a second hinge supporting the monitor unit to be rotationally movable around a second axis along the first axis (Oe, Fig. 22, Hinge for rotation around AX2, Paragraph 0166),
wherein the support member including a first support portion that extends in same direction as the first axis and the second axis (Oe, Fig. 22, The first support portion is the portion of base section 15 including the hinges for AX1 and extending in the vertical direction.), and a second support portion that extends in a direction perpendicular to the first support portion from one end part of the first support portion (Oe, Fig. 22, The second support portion is the horizontal top section of base section 15 and extends in the horizontal direction.), and the first support portion includes the first hinge, and the second support portion includes the second hinge (Oe, Fig. 22),
wherein a distance between the first axis and the second axis is longer than a distance between a portion of the monitor unit farthest from the second axis and the second axis (Oe, Fig. 22), and
in a case where the rotational movement state of the first hinge is in an open state, the monitor unit is rotationally movable by at least 180 degrees around the second axis (Oe, Figs. 1 and 22, Paragraph 0095, First hinge must be opened to rotate the monitor unit (display section 16). Monitor unit is rotatable by 180 degrees.),
wherein the first hinge includes a plurality of hinges (Oe, Fig. 22, Paragraphs 0089 and 0166, The first hinge connects the base section 15 to the first section 11 at two places (hinges).) disposed at intervals along the first axis (Oe, Fig. 22, AX1), wherein the first hinge includes a hinge that is disposed on a side (Oe, Fig. 22, A side is considered to be the top half of Figure 22A) in a first direction (Oe, Fig. 22, The first direction is up from the middle.) along the second axis (Oe, Fig. 22, AX2) with respect to the second hinge (Oe, Fig. 22, Hinge for rotation around AX2, Paragraph 0166, The side and/or the second axis is with respect to the second hinge.), and a hinge that is disposed on a side opposite to the first direction (Oe, Fig. 22, A side opposite to the first direction is considered to be the bottom half of Figure 22A. The first direction is up from the middle.) with respect to the second hinge (Oe, Fig. 22, The side opposite to the first direction is an opposite side with respect to the second hinge.).
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.
Claim(s) 2-3 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Oe et al. (US 2005/0164745 A1) in view of Sasaki (US 2006/0170651 A1).
Regarding claim 2, Oe teaches the imaging apparatus according to claim 1 (see claim 1 analysis). However, Oe does not teach wherein the monitor unit has a first display unit and a second display unit.
In reference to Sasaki, Sasaki teaches wherein a monitor unit has a first display unit and a second display unit (Sasaki, Figs. 1A and 4A, display screen 5 and sub-display screen 13, Paragraphs and 0033).
These arts are analogous since they are both related to camera phones with rotatable displays. Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention (AIA ) to modify the invention of Oe with the sub-display screen as seen in Sasaki to allow the device to show information to the user when in a closed state.
Regarding claim 3, Oe teaches the imaging apparatus according to claim 2 (see claim 2 analysis), wherein the first display unit has a larger display area than the second display unit (Sasaki, Figs. 1A and 4A, display screen 5 and sub-display screen 13, Paragraphs and 0033).
Claim(s) 7 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Oe et al. (US 2005/0164745 A1) in view of Watanabe (US 2005/0219372 A1).
Regarding claim 7, Oe teaches the imaging apparatus according to claim 1 (see claim 1 analysis). However, Oe does not teach further comprising: a locking mechanism that fixes the monitor unit to the body part.
In reference to Watanabe, Watanabe teaches a locking mechanism that fixes the monitor unit to the body part (Watanabe, Fig. 1, first case 18 (monitor unit), second case 19 (body part), Paragraph 0060, “The cellular phone set 1 comprises a mechanism for locking the cellular phone set in a completely opened state or a closed state by a spring or the like inside of the hinge 17”. Locking in the closed state fixes the monitor unit to the body part.).
These arts are analogous since they are both related to camera phones. Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention (AIA ) to modify the invention of Oe with the locking mechanism as seen in Watanabe to hold the device in the open or closed state.
Claim(s) 8-11 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Oe et al. (US 2005/0164745 A1) in view of Watanabe (US 2005/0219372 A1) in further view of Koike (US 2012/0282983 A1).
Regarding claim 8, the combination of Oe and Watanabe teaches the imaging apparatus according to claim 7 (see claim 7 analysis), further comprising :
a first locking mechanism that fixes the rotational movement state of the first hinge to the closed state (Watanabe, Fig. 1, first case 18 (monitor unit), second case 19 (body part), Paragraph 0060, “The cellular phone set 1 comprises a mechanism for locking the cellular phone set in a completely opened state or a closed state by a spring or the like inside of the hinge 17”.);
However, the combination of Oe and Watanabe does not teach a second locking mechanism that fixes the rotational movement state of the second hinge to the closed state.
In reference to Koike, Koike teaches a second locking mechanism that fixes the rotational movement state of the second hinge to the closed state (Kioke, Figs. 2-6 and 11, anchor unit 4 and storage part 9, Paragraphs 0041-0043, In the closed state, the anchor unit 4 and storage part 9 fixes the rotational movement state of the second hinge.).
These arts are analogous since they are all related to camera phones. Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention (AIA ) to modify the combination of Oe and Watanabe with the second locking mechanism as seen in Koike to prevent unnecessary rotation.
Regarding claim 9, the combination of Oe, Watanabe and Koike teaches the imaging apparatus according to claim 8 (see claim 8 analysis),
wherein the first locking mechanism fixes the rotational movement state of the first hinge to the closed state by a fixed position locking mechanism of the first hinge (Watanabe, Fig. 1, first case 18 (monitor unit), second case 19 (body part), Paragraph 0060, “The cellular phone set 1 comprises a mechanism for locking the cellular phone set in a completely opened state or a closed state by a spring or the like inside of the hinge 17”. Locking in the closed state fixes the monitor unit to the body part.).
Regarding claim 10, the combination of Oe, Watanabe and Koike teaches the imaging apparatus according to claim 9 (see claim 9 analysis), wherein the first locking mechanism biases the monitor unit to the body part by the fixed position locking mechanism (Watanabe, Fig. 1, first case 18 (monitor unit), second case 19 (body part), Paragraph 0060, “The cellular phone set 1 comprises a mechanism for locking the cellular phone set in a completely opened state or a closed state by a spring or the like inside of the hinge 17”. Locking in the closed state biases the monitor unit to the body part side.).
Regarding claim 11, the combination of Oe, Watanabe and Koike teaches the imaging apparatus according to claim 8 (see claim 8 analysis),
wherein the second locking mechanism includes a protrusion portion provided on one of the monitor unit and the support member and a recess portion provided on the other of the monitor unit and the support member (Kioke, Figs. 2-6 and 11, anchor unit 4 and storage part 9, Paragraphs 0041-0043), and
the rotational movement state of the second hinge is fixed to the closed state by fitting between the protrusion portion and the recess portion (Kioke, Fig. 5 and 11, Paragraphs 0041-0043).
Alternatively, claim(s) 10 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Oe et al. (US 2005/0164745 A1) in view of Watanabe (US 2005/0219372 A1) in further view of Koike (US 2012/0282983 A1) in view of Potter et al (US 2009/0126152 A1).
Regarding claim 10, the combination of Oe, Watanabe and Koike teaches the imaging apparatus according to claim 9 (see claim 9 analysis). However, the combination of Oe, Watanabe and Koike does not teach wherein the first locking mechanism biases the monitor unit to the body part by the fixed position locking mechanism.
In reference to Potter et al. (hereafter referred as Potter), Potter teaches wherein the first locking mechanism (Potter, Fig. 3) biases the monitor unit (Potter, Fig. 1, first housing element 1) to the body part (Potter, Fig. 1, second housing element 14) by the fixed position locking mechanism (Potter, Figs. 1 and 3, Paragraph 0056).
These arts are analogous since they are all related to mobile phones. Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was made to modify the combination of Oe, Watanabe and Koike with the locking mechanism as seen in Potter.
"A person of ordinary skill has good reason to pursue the known options within his or her technical grasp. If this leads to the anticipated success, it is likely the product not of innovation but of ordinary skill and common sense" KSR International Co. v. Teleflex Inc., 550 U.S. _, 82 USPQ2d 1385 (2007).
It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill, when pursuing the known options within his or her technical grasp (See KSR International Co. v. Teleflex Inc., 550 U.S. _, 82 USPQ2d 1385 (2007)), to have modified the combination of Oe, Watanabe and Koike with the locking mechanism as seen in Potter since it is a known locking mechanism used in mobile phones and would provide similar and expected results for maintaining open and closed states.
Conclusion
THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. 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 WESLEY JASON CHIU whose telephone number is (571)270-1312. The examiner can normally be reached Mon-Fri: 8am-4pm.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Twyler Haskins can be reached at (571) 272-7406. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/WESLEY J CHIU/ Examiner, Art Unit 2639
/TWYLER L HASKINS/ Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2639
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