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 § 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.
Claim(s) 1-9 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by U.S. Patent 6,307,590 to Yoshida.
With respect to claim 1 Yoshida discloses, in Fig. 1-9, a camera module (1) comprising: a lens assembly (12 and 13) (column 3 lines 63-67); a first body on which the lens assembly is disposed (Fig. 2 and column 3 lines 63-67; where one of ordinary skill would recognize the lens and image intensifier would be comprised in a body to as to keep unwanted light out so the camera is functional); a second body (10) connected to the first body (Fig. 2); an image sensor (41) disposed inside the second body (Fig. 2 and column 4 lines 45-52); and a substrate part on which the image sensor is disposed (column 4 line45-52; where one of ordinary skill in the art would recognize a CC imager is made of a substrate but also substrate 45 is provided), wherein the second body includes a protrusion protruding toward the image sensor (Fig. 1 and column 4 lines 45-52; where a stack of components for cooling the imager are provided as a protrusion), and the protrusion is connected to the image sensor and overlaps the image sensor in an optical axis direction (Fig. 5 and column 4 lines 45-52).
With respect to claim 2 Yoshida discloses, in Fig. 1-9, the camera module of claim 1, wherein the protrusion passes through the substrate part (45) (Fig. 5).
With respect to claim 3 Yoshida discloses, in Fig. 1-9, the camera module of claim 1, wherein the substrate part includes: a first substrate on which the image sensor is disposed (column 4 lines 45-52; where the image 41 is a CCD which inherently has a substrate holding the imaging array (i.e. the image sensor)); and a second substrate (45) spaced apart from the first substrate (Fig. 5).
With respect to claim 4 Yoshida discloses, in Fig. 1-9, the camera module of claim 3, wherein the second substrate includes a hole through which the protrusion passes (Fig. 5).
With respect to claim 5 Yoshida discloses, in Fig. 1-9, the camera module of claim 3, wherein the substrate part includes a connecting part (46) which connects the first substrate to the second substrate (column 4 line 66 through column 5 line 2).
With respect to claim 6 Yoshida discloses, in Fig. 1-9, the camera module of claim 3, wherein the first substrate and the second substrate are disposed apart from each other in the optical axis direction and overlap in the optical axis direction (Fig. 5).
With respect to claim 7 Yoshida discloses, in Fig. 1-9, the camera module of claim 3, wherein the protrusion passes through the second substrate (Fig. 5).
With respect to claim 8 Yoshida discloses, in Fig. 1-9, the camera module of claim 3, comprising a pad disposed between the protrusion and the first substrate (Fig. 5; where heat transfer plate 42 can be interpreted as the pad of the claim).
With respect to claim 9 Yoshida discloses, in Fig. 1-9, the camera module of claim 8, wherein the pad is in contact with the first substrate and the protrusion (Fig. 5).
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) 10 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over U.S. Patent 6,307,590 to Yoshida in view of U.S. Patent Application Publication 2019/0393254 A1 to Chen et al.
With respect to claim 10 Yoshida discloses, in Fig. 1-9, the camera module of claim 3 (see above).
However, Yoshida does not expressly disclose wherein the substrate part includes a protection member disposed on a side portion of the first substrate (i.e. the image sensor chip).
In analogous art, Chen teaches, in Fig. 6, and image sensor chip (20) that comprises a light sensitive area (341) for the imaging array and where the non-light sensitive portions (including the sides) are covered with a protection member (30) (paragraph 25) and other analogous structures like the image chip being connected and mounted to another substrate 10. Therefore, Chen teaches wherein the substrate part includes a protection member disposed on a side portion of the first substrate.
Before the invention was effectively filed it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to have included a protection member around the image chip of Yoshida as taught by Chen for doing so would merely be combining of prior art elements according to known methods to yield predictable results.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to DANIEL M PASIEWICZ whose telephone number is (571)272-5516. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 9 AM - 5:30 PM EST.
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, George Eng can be reached at (571)272-7495. 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.
/DANIEL M PASIEWICZ/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2699
September 8, 2026
