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 § 112
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b):
(b) CONCLUSION.—The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
Claims 1-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor, regards as the invention.
Claim 16 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) as being indefinite for failing to provide a proper antecedent basis. Claim 16 recites the limitation "the display device of claim 15," but claim 15 is an “electronic device” claim. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim.
Claims 1, 7, 10, 13 and 20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) as being indefinite. Regarding claims 1, 7, 10, 13 and 20, the term “faces” (e.g., “the first portion of the third signal line faces the first portion of the first signal line”) is used as a structural limitation. It is unclear if the term implies physical adjacency, a specific lateral alignment, or a lack of intervening structures. Claims 2-12 and 15-20 are rejected herewith by virtue of claim dependency.
Claims 5 and 18 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) as being indefinite. The term “imaginary line” to define physical structural crossovers in claims 5 and 18 relies on non-physical constructs, rendering the physical boundaries of the claim indeterminate.
Claims 3-5, 7, 10-11, 16-18 and 20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) as being indefinite. These claims use hyphenated ordinal terminology (e.g., “first-first line part,” “first-second line part,” “second-first line part,” and “second-third line part”) to identify structural components. This nomenclature renders the scope of the claim elements unclear because the relationship between the hyphens and the modified term is ambiguous. It is unclear whether the first ordinal (e.g., “first-” in “first-first”) refers to the identity of the signal line (e.g., First Signal Line) or a hierarchical sequence within the portion. Standard claim drafting practice requires clear, distinct names (e.g., “first line segment,” “second line segment”) provided with proper antecedent basis to distinctively point out the subject matter.
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 of this title, 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 1-2, 8-9, and 12-15 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Lin et al. (US 2011/0090170, hereinafter “Lin”) in view of Lee (US 2017/0097703).
With respect to Claim 1, Lee teaches a display device comprising:
a display panel; and
an input detection sensor on the display panel, wherein the input detection sensor (Lin: [0022], [0057]; a touch display panel 300A with a touch device 104) comprises:
a first electrode extending in a first direction and positioned in a sensing region;
a second electrode extending in a second direction crossing the first direction and positioned in the sensing region;
a third electrode extending in the second direction (Lin: Fig. 1A-B; Para. [0046] – [0048]; plurality of electrodes of the first and second sensing series 110, 120 in active region 102a);
a first pad in a first pad region located outside the sensing region;
a second pad in the first pad region;
a third pad in a second pad region located outside the sensing region and spaced apart from the first pad region in the second direction;
a fourth pad in the second pad region (Lin: Para. [0047]; signal pads 130 in peripheral region 102b);
a first signal line connecting between a first end of the first electrode and the first pad;
a second signal line connecting between a second end of the first electrode and the second pad;
a third signal line connecting between a first end of the second electrode and the third pad; and
a fourth signal line connecting between a first end of the third electrode and the fourth pad (Lin: Para. [0047]; signal transmission lines 140 corresponding to first to fourth signal lines),
the third electrode is placed further from the second pad region than the second
electrode (Lin: Para. [0050]; distances between sensing series and pads are different from one another),
the first signal line comprises a first portion that is extended in the first direction,
the third signal line comprises a first portion that is bent multiple times,
the fourth signal line comprises a first portion that is placed further from the first portion of the first signal line than the first portion of the third signal line,
the first portion of the third signal line faces the first portion of the first signal line in the second direction (Lin: [0055]; distances between adjacent transmission lines are substantially equal and they face each other to maintain consistent capacitance),
the first portion of the fourth signal line faces the first portion of the third signal line in the second direction, and the first portion of the fourth signal line is shorter than the first portion of the third signal line (Lin: Para. [0053]; lines with shorter wiring lengths have longer winding portions to equalize resistance; thus, the portion for a further electrode is shorter).
Lin fails to expressly disclose:
That the first signal line comprises a first portion that is extended in the first direction while the third signal line comprises a first portion that is bent multiple times. Lin's description, at Para. [0010], states that "each signal transmission line includes a winding portion."
However, Lee discloses:
That a resistance compensation pattern (bent portion) is provided to a signal line specifically when a resistance value is lower than or equal to a set value (Lee: Para. [0014], [0043]). Lee teaches that lines closer to the IC (lower physical resistance) are provided with the compensation pattern (meander shape) to increase resistance, while lines further away (higher physical resistance) may maintain a standard path (Lee: Para. [0050] - [0051], [0058]).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to modify the display device, as taught by Lin, to incorporate the selective compensation logic, as taught by Lee, in order to provide the "bent multiple times" portion only to signal lines with low inherent resistance (those closer to the pads) to equalize detection across the panel and prevent ESD damage as taught by Lee (Lee: Para. [0011], [0088]).
With respect to Claim 2, the combination of Lin and Lee teaches the display device of claim 1, wherein the first signal line further comprises a second portion bent from the first portion of the first signal line and extended in the second direction (Lin: [0052]; the winding portion 142 comprises first line segments 144 parallel to the extending direction and second line segments 146 parallel to the line-width direction. It is an obvious structural result of a winding path to include segments in both the first and second directions).
With respect to Claim 8, the combination of Lin and Lee teaches the display device of claim 1, wherein the third signal line further comprises a second portion bent from the first portion of the third signal line and facing the sensing region in the second direction (Lin: Fig. 1B illustrates the winding portion 142 oriented such that its segments run parallel to the active region 102a boundary).
With respect to Claim 9, the combination of Lin and Lee teaches the display device of claim 1, wherein the input detection sensor further comprises:
a fourth electrode extending in the second direction and between the second electrode and the third electrode;
a fifth pad in the second pad region; and
a fifth signal line connecting between a first end of the fourth electrode and the
fifth pad (Lin: Para. [0046] – [0047]; disclosing a plurality of sensing series, pads, and transmission lines. Providing additional electrodes and lines to increase sensor density is a standard design choice.).
With respect to Claim 12, the combination of Lin and Lee teaches the display device of claim 1, wherein a line width of the first portion of the third signal line is substantially uniform (Lin: Para. [0051]; stating the winding portions and other parts are formed by the same fabricating process using the same material. Standard microfabrication process inherently results in substantially uniform widths unless variations are specifically engineered.).
Regarding Claim 13, the combination of Lin and Lee discloses an independent electronic device incorporating all of the display device limitations as noted in the obviousness rejection to claim 1 above. Integration into a common electronic appliance like cellular phones is a standard design choice disclosed by Lin (Para. [0005]).
With respect to Claim 14, the combination of Lin and Lee teaches the electronic device of claim 13, wherein the electronic device is one of a
television, a monitor, a mobile phone, a tablet PC, a navigation unit for a vehicle, a game console, and a smart watch (Lin: Para. [0005]).
With respect to Claim 15, the combination of Lin and Lee teaches the electronic device of claim 13, wherein the first signal line further comprises a second portion bent from the first portion of the first signal line and extended in the second direction (Lin: [0052]; the winding portion 142 comprises first line segments 144 parallel to the extending direction and second line segments 146 parallel to the line-width direction. It is an obvious structural result of a winding path to include segments in both the first and second directions).
Claims 3-7, 10, 11, and 16-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Lin in view of Lee, as applied to claims 1-2, 8-9, and 12-15 above, and further in view of Fujikawa (US 2020/0074955).
Lin fails to expressly disclose:
The specific nested routing relationships of a "fifth signal line" and the displacement of multiple circuit parts for different electrode sets.
However, Fujikawa discloses:
An electronic component board with high-density routing where multiple circuits (first and second circuits) are arranged on the line paths of connection lines (Fujikawa: Para. [0008]). Fujikawa explicitly teaches:
Multi-group circuit arrangement: Providing different circuit components (first and second circuits) for different sets of source lines (e.g., outer vs inner sets) (Fujikawa: Para. [0063]).
Nested routing: Circuits can be displaced in the arrangement direction with different perpendicular dimensions to reduce frame width (Fujikawa: Para. [0008], [0009]).
Circuit deformation areas: Using spaces between adjacent circuits to route or deform line paths based on dimensional changes (Fujikawa: Para. [0108], [0111]).
Therefore, it would be obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to would be motivated to combine the resistance-matching bent portions of Lin/Lee with the multi-group routing efficiency of Fujikawa.
With respect to Claims 3-4 and 16-17, Lin teaches the structural breakdown of the winding portion into first and second line segments (parts and intermediate parts) (Lin: Para. [0014], [0052]), while Fujikawa teaches the motivation to vary these parts' dimensions for routing efficiency (Fujikawa: Para. [0008]).
With respect to Claims 10-11, Fujikawa teaches providing the "fifth signal line" for an intermediate electrode set and specifically positioning its parts between the parts of the third signal line to maximize space utilization in the peripheral region (Fujikawa: Para. [0008], [0063]).
With respect to Claims 5-6 and 18-19, Lin's orthogonal segment arrangement (Lin: Para. [0052]) inherently results in parallel alignment along geometric axes, which is an obvious design choice for high-density serpentine routing to ensure uniform capacitance as reinforced by Fujikawa (Fujikawa: Para. [0071], [0074]).
With respect to Claims 7 and 20, Lin discloses that the winding portion comprises a plurality of alternating segments (Lin: Para. [0052]), which inherently teaches repeating the pattern to include the claimed “second-third line part” and “third intermediate part.” Furthermore, Lee expressly teaches that “the number of bent portions of the meander may be increased” as the required resistance compensation increases (Lee: Para. [0053]), providing the motivation to extend the winding portion with additional parts to achieve the target resistance.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to BRYAN EARLES whose telephone number is (571)272-4628. The examiner can normally be reached on Monday - Thursday at 7:30am - 5:00pm.
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/BRYAN EARLES/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2625