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 .
The preliminary amendment filed 6/19/2025 has been entered.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement(s) (IDS) submitted on 6/19/2025 is/are being considered by the examiner.
Claim Objections
Claim(s) 9 is/are objected to because of the following informalities:
Claim 9 recites “the optical illumination assembly” on line 7 which should be changed to – the optical assembly – to provide antecedent basis.
Appropriate correction is required.
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.
(a)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claim(s) 1, 3, and 6-9 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by Owada et al. (US 2023/0392765) (hereinafter Owada).
Claim 1: Owada discloses an optical illumination assembly comprising: a light source (3, fig. 1) and a printed circuit board (11, fig. 1), the light source (3) being arranged on the printed circuit board (11) and emitting light (L, fig. 1); a light reflector (5, fig. 1), the light reflector (5) being provided with a reflective surface (5a, fig. 1), the reflective surface (5a) being configured to collect light (see fig. 1) emitted by the light source (3), and reflect the light in a light beam (L, fig. 1) along an optical axis (OA, see annotated fig. 1) of the optical illumination assembly; and an optical projection apparatus (10, fig. 1), the optical projection apparatus (10) being configured to project the light beam (see fig. 1), wherein the light source (3) is provided with a main light-emitting range (range of L1, L2, fig. 1), and the printed circuit board (11) is inclined towards the light reflector (5) relative to the optical axis (OA), to prevent light emitted by the light source (3) within the main light-emitting range (see fig. 1) from directly reaching the optical projection apparatus (light is reflected off 5a, fig. 1) and being projected (see fig. 1).
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Claim 3: Owada discloses in a plane (P, see annotated fig. 1) jointly defined by a normal line of the printed circuit board (11) and the optical axis (see annotated fig. 1), the main light-emitting range of the light source is defined by a first light boundary (B1, see annotated fig. 1) and a second light boundary (B2, see annotated fig. 1), wherein the second light boundary (B2) is closer to the optical projection apparatus (10) than the first light boundary (B1), and the second light boundary (B1) is inclined towards the light reflector relative to a connecting line (C, see annotated fig. 1) of the light source (3) and an edge of an effective area (edge of E, see annotated fig. 1) of the optical projection apparatus (10), or coincides with the connecting line of the light source (C) and the edge of the effective area of the optical projection apparatus (E, see annotated fig. 1).
Claim 6: Owada discloses the light reflector (5, fig. 1) has a parabolic contour or an elliptical contour (elliptical reflecting surface 5a, see para [0088]).
Claim 7: Owada discloses a light beam (L, fig. 1) projected by the optical projection apparatus (10, fig. 1) forms a light distribution of a low beam function (low beam, see para [0173]) and/or high beam function (high beam, see para [0173]).
Claim 8: Owada discloses a lighting device, comprising an optical illumination assembly (2A, fig. 1),wherein the optical assembly (10) includes a light source (3, fig. 1) and a printed circuit board (11, fig. 1), the light source (3) being arranged on the printed circuit board (11) and emitting light (L, fig. 1), a light reflector (5, fig. 1), the light reflector (5) being provided with a reflective surface (5a, fig. 1), the reflective surface (5a) being configured to collect light emitted by the light source (3), and reflect the light in a light beam (L1, L2, fig. 1) along an optical axis (OA, see annotated fig. 1) of the optical illumination assembly (2A), and an optical projection apparatus (10, fig. 1), the optical projection apparatus (10) being configured to project the light beam (L), wherein the light source (3) is provided with a main light-emitting range (range of L1 and L2, fig. 1), and the printed circuit board (11) is inclined towards the light reflector (5) relative to the optical axis (OA), to prevent light emitted by the light source (3) within the main light-emitting range (range of L1 and L2) from directly reaching the optical projection apparatus (10) and being projected (see fig. 1).
Claim 9: Owada discloses motor vehicle, comprising a lighting device (1A, fig. 1), wherein the lighting device (1A) includes an optical assembly (2A) that includes a light source (3, fig. 1) and a printed circuit board (11, fig. 1), the light source (3) being arranged on the printed circuit board (11) and emitting light (L, fig. 1), a light reflector (5, fig. 1), the light reflector (5) being provided with a reflective surface (5A, fig. 1), the reflective surface (5A) being configured to collect light (L) emitted by the light source (3), and reflect the light in a light beam (L1 and L2, fig. 1) along an optical axis (OA, see annotated fig. 1) of the optical assembly (2A), and an optical projection apparatus (10, fig. 1), the optical projection apparatus (10) being configured to project the light beam (L1 and L2), wherein the light source (3) is provided with a main light-emitting range (range of L1 and L2, fig. 1), and the printed circuit board (11) is inclined towards the light reflector (5) relative to the optical axis (OA, see annotated fig. 1), to prevent light emitted by the light source (3) within the main light-emitting range (range of L1 and L2) from directly reaching the optical projection apparatus (10) and being projected.
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 and 4 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Owada et al. (US 2023/0392765).
Claim 2: Owada teaches the main light-emitting range of the light source (3) is between a light-emitting range (range of L1 and L2, see fig. 1).
Owada discloses the claimed invention except for the main light-emitting range of the light source s between a light-emitting range of 120 degrees and a light-emitting range of 180 degrees.
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was made to adjust the light output range of the main light-emitting range of the light source is between a range of 120 degrees and 180 degrees to provide a specified light output distribution, since it has been held that where the general conditions of a claim are disclosed in the prior art, discovering the optimum or workable ranges involves only routine skill in the art. In re Aller, 220 F.2d 454, 456, 105 USPQ 233, 235 (CCPA 1955).
Claim 4: Owada teaches the printed circuit board (3) is inclined (see fig. 1) relative to the optical axis (OA, see annotated fig. 1).
Owada discloses the claimed invention except for the printed circuit board is inclined 1 degree to 15 degrees relative to the optical axis.
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was made to adjust the angle of the printed circuit board to be inclined 1 degree to 15 degrees relative to the optical axis to provide a specified light output distribution, since it has been held that where the general conditions of a claim are disclosed in the prior art, discovering the optimum or workable ranges involves only routine skill in the art. In re Aller, 220 F.2d 454, 456, 105 USPQ 233, 235 (CCPA 1955).
Claim(s) 5 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Owada et al. (US 2023/0392765) in view of Gromfeld (FR 310253) (cited IDS filed 6/19/2025).
Claim 5: Owada teaches a focus region (f12, f21, fig. 1) of the optical projection apparatus (10).
However, Owada fails to teach a focus region of the optical of the optical projection apparatus is at a rear edge of the reflective surface of the light reflector or in the vicinity thereof.
Gromfeld teaches a focus region (14.1, fig. 1) of the optical projection apparatus (14, fig. 1) is at a rear edge of the reflective surface (rear edge of 20, fig. 1) of the light reflector (20) or in the vicinity thereof.
Therefore, in view of Gromfeld, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to change the focus region of the optical projection apparatus to a rear edge of the reflective surface of the light reflector or in the vicinity thereof, in order to adjust the light output to produce a desired light distribution.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Magarill (US 2005/0094401), Toko et al. (US 2019/0195457), Chen (CN 108368981), Yamada (WO 2012/070169), Suzuki (WO 2014163197), Mochizuki (WO 2019/230663), Hu (EP 3447368) and Zhang (WO 2021/109361) disclose a similar head lamp.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to ZHENG B SONG whose telephone number is (571)272-9402. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday: 9AM - 5PM.
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/ZHENG SONG/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2875
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