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 certified copies of papers required by 37 CFR 1.55.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statements (IDS) submitted on 3/5/25 and 9/15/25 are in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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 1-3 and 5-15 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Lee, US 2018/0164030.
Regarding claim 1, Lee teaches (at least in Figures 9 and 24) a home appliance comprising: a cabinet having a space therein (see Figure 4); and a door (20) configured to open and close at least a portion of the storage space of the cabinet, wherein the door includes a door body (40) and a panel assembly (60) coupled to a front surface of the door body, wherein the panel assembly includes: a front plate (61) that defines a front surface of the door, the front plate being made of glass, a light guide plate (64) disposed below the light guide plate and spaced apart from the light guide plate, the lighting device including a substrate (display including substrate 62) and a light source (68) that is disposed on the substrate and that is configured to irradiate light to the light guide plate, wherein the lighting device is spaced apart from the light guide plate (see Figure 27); and a bracket (67) that defines a receiving space(see Figure 12, space between 67 and 631a, where light source 68 slides) for accommodating the lighting device therein (see Figure 12 and 16), wherein the bracket includes a support that supports supporting the light guide plate and that is in contact with the light guide plate and with the lighting device and wherein the bracket defines a position of the light source below the light guide plate (see Figures 12 and 16, bracket 67), the light source being positioned downward relative to a lower end of the front plate (light source 68 is on top and bottom of light guide plate).
Regarding claim 2, Lee further teaches the bracket includes a front part (676), wherein the support extends from the front part towards the door body (see Figure 24).
Regarding claim 3, Lee further teaches the support includes a first support in contact with a front surface of the light source and/or with a bottom surface of the light guide plate (678).
Regarding clam 5, Lee further teaches the front part includes a receiving groove (677) in which a front end of the substrate is accommodated.
Regarding claim 6, Lee further teaches the receiving groove (677) is arranged between the support (678) and a bottom part (675) of the bracket, the bottom part extending from the front part toward the door body (see Figure 24).
Regarding claim 7, Lee further teaches an upper surface of the light source (682) is located lower than an upper surface of the support and a lower surface of the support is in contact with the substrate (see Figure 24).
Regarding claim 8, Lee further teaches a light supporter (676) that supports a lower surface of the substrate, wherein a lower surface of the light supporter is supported by the bracket (see Figure 24).
Regarding claim 9, Lee further teaches a back cover (65) covering a rear surface of the panel assembly and being coupled to the bracket (see Figure 24), wherein the back cover includes a cover bent portion disposed between the light supporter and the bracket, and/or wherein the back cover supports a rear surface of the light supporter (see Figure 24).
Regarding claim 10, Lee further teaches the bracket is a lower bracket that defines a lower surface of the panel assembly (see Figure 24).
Regarding claim 11, Lee further teaches the bracket includes a first front part and a second front part, wherein the support is disposed between the first and second front part and protrudes towards the door body.
Regarding claim 12, Lee further teaches the second front part is in contact with a front surface of the light guide plate and a rear surface of the front plate and the second front part is disposed between the front plate and the light guide plate (678 and 676).
Regarding claim 13, Lee further teaches an upper end of the second front part is located higher than a lower end of the light guide plate (678).
Regarding claim 14, Lee further teaches a support member disposed between the front plate and the light guide plate and that supports the front plate and the light guide plate (635).
Regarding claim 15, Lee further teaches the home appliance comprises a refrigerator, a dish washer, a laundry machine, a clothing manager, a washing machine and/or drying machine, a cooking device or an oven (Figure 4, refrigerator).
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 4 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Lee in view of Jeon et al., US 2013/0235302.
Regarding claim 4, Lee teaches the invention as explained above but is silent as to a plurality of second support parts. However, in the same field of display of flat panel displays, Jeon teaches multiple support parts are useful in preventing movement of component panels, such as the light guide plate, touch screen, and display panel ([0037]). Therefore, it would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of filing to provide multiple second support parts in the Lee device in order to provide extra protection against movement of the component parts within the display panel to prevent damage.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Riegel, US 9514661 teaches a cabinet having a transparent display panel, but fails to teach the substrate and lighting unit configuration of the claimed invention.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to MARY-ELLEN BOWMAN whose telephone number is (571)270-5383. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Thursday; 7:00 am-5:00 pm.
Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, James Greece can be reached at (571) 272-3711. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000.
MARY ELLEN BOWMAN
Examiner
Art Unit 2875
/MARY ELLEN BOWMAN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2875
Prosecution Insights