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) 1-3 and 5-21 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Maeda et al. (US 2020/0233269 A1).
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Regarding claim 1, Maeda et al. teaches a lighting device comprising:
a light source (7); and
at least one optical element (light distribution control element 6; figure 11) formed of a crystalline or amorphous solid (see paragraph [0062] where acrylic resin is disclosed), wherein the at least one optical element (6) includes an incidence surface (61b; figure 2) on which light emitted from the light source (7) is incident, and an emission surface (62b; figure 2) from which the light incident from the incidence surface (61b) is emitted toward an irradiation surface (see figure 2), when viewed in an optical axis direction of the light source (7), the light source (7) is disposed inside respective outer peripheral edges of the incidence surface (61b) and the emission surface (62a) of the at least one optical element (6), the at least one optical element (6) is provided so as to refract the light incident from the incidence surface (61b) to emit light having a non-uniform intensity distribution from the emission surface to the irradiation surface (see figure 2), and least one of the incidence surface (61a) and the emission surface (62b) is an uneven and curved surface that has no rotational symmetry and line symmetry (see figure 2).
Regarding claim 2, Maeda et al. teaches the lighting device according to claim 1, wherein the at least one optical element (light distribution control elment 6; figure 11) is provided so as to emit light whose intensity distribution has no rotational symmetry to the irradiation surface (see paragraph [0057] where luminous intensity distribution is disclosed).
Regarding claim 3, Maeda et al. teaches the lighting device according to claim 1, further comprising a casing (120) to accommodate the light source (7) and the at least one optical element (6) in the casing (120), wherein in the casing (120), a reflection member (5) to reflect the light emitted from the light source (7) is not disposed in a region that overlaps the at least one optical element (6; see figure 11) when viewed in the optical axis direction of the light source (7).
Regarding claim 5, Maeda et al. teaches the lighting device according to claim 1, further comprising a rotation portion to rotate the at least one optical element (6) in relation to the light source (7; see paragraph [0086]).
Regarding claim 6, Maeda et al. teaches the lighting device according to claim 5, wherein the rotation portion changes a rotation period of the at least one optical element (see pargarpah [0086]; light distribution control element 6).
Regarding claim 7, Maeda et al. teaches the lighting device according to claim 6, wherein the rotation portion is provided so as to bring a characteristic of 1/f fluctuation to the rotation period of the at least one optical element (6; see paragraph [0086]).
Regarding claim 8, Maeda et al. teaches the lighting device according to claim 5, wherein the at least one optical element (6) includes a first optical element (6left; see figure 11) and a second optical element (6right; see figure 11) that are arranged side by side in the optical axis direction (see figure 11), the incidence surface of the second optical element (6right) is disposed so as to face the emission surface (62a) of the first optical element (6left), and the rotation portion rotates one of the first optical element and the second optical element relatively to the other of the first optical element and the second optical element (see paragraph [0086]).
Regarding claim 9, Maeda et al. teaches the lighting device according to claim 1, further comprising a light amount controller (68) to control a light amount of light to be emitted from the light source (7), wherein the light amount controller (68) changes a variation period of the light amount of the light to be emitted from the light source (7).
Regarding claim 10, Maeda et al. teaches the lighting device according to claim 9, wherein the light amount controller (68) is provided so as to bring a characteristic of 1/f fluctuation to the light amount of the light to be emitted from the light source (7).
Regarding claim 11, Maeda et al. teaches the lighting device according to claim 9, wherein the light source (7) includes a first light source (7left; figure 11) and a second light source (7right; figure 11), when viewed in an optical axis direction of the first light source (7left), the first light source (7left) and the second light source (7right) are disposed inside respective outer peripheral edges of the incidence surface (61b) and the emission surface (62a) of the at least one optical element (6), and the light amount controller (68) controls light to be emitted from at least one of the first light source (7left) and the second light source (7right).
Regarding claim 12, Maeda et al. teaches the lighting device according to claim 1, wherein a material of which the at least one optical element (light distribution control element 6) is formed includes an amorphous resin material (see paragraph [0062] where acrylic resin (PMMA) is disclosed).
Regarding claim 13, Maeda et al. teaches the lighting device according to claim 1,wherein the light source (7) is capable of emitting white light. It has been held that the recitation that an element is “capable of” performing a function is not a positive limitation but only requires the ability to so perform. It does not constitute a limitation in any patentable sense. In re Hutchison, 69 USPQ 138.
Regarding claim 14, Maeda et al. teaches the lighting device according to claim 1, wherein the light source (7) is capable of changing a wavelength range of light to be emitted. It has been held that the recitation that an element is “capable of” performing a function is not a positive limitation but only requires the ability to so perform. It does not constitute a limitation in any patentable sense. In re Hutchison, 69 USPQ 138.
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Regarding claim 15, Maeda et al. teaches a lighting device comprising:
a light source (7); and at least one optical element (6) formed of a crystalline or amorphous solid (see paragraph [0062] where acrylic resin is disclosed),
wherein the at least one optical element (6; figure 1 and 2) includes an incidence surface (61b) on which light emitted from the light source (7) is incident, and an emission surface (62a) from which the light incident from the incidence surface (62b) is emitted toward an irradiation surface (see figure 2), when viewed in an optical axis (C; see figure 2) direction of the light source (7), the light source (7) is disposed inside respective outer peripheral edges of the incidence surface (61b) and the emission surface (62a) of the at least one optical element (6), and the at least one optical element (6) is provided so as to refract the light incident from the incidence surface (61b) to emit light having a non-uniform intensity distribution from the emission surface (62a; see figure 2 and 3) to the irradiation surface (see figure 1 and 2), the lighting device further comprising a casing (100; figure 1) to accommodate the light source (7) and the at least one optical element (6) in the casing (100), wherein in the casing (100), a reflection member (5) to reflect the light emitted from the light source (7) is not disposed in a region that overlaps the at least one optical element (6) when viewed in the optical axis direction of the light source (7).
Regarding claim 16, Maeda et al. teaches the lighting device according to claim 15, wherein the at least one optical element (6; figure 1 and 2) is provided so as to emit light whose intensity distribution has no rotational symmetry to the irradiation surface (see paragraph [0055]-[0056] where luminous intensity distribution is disclosed).
Regarding claim 17, Maeda et al. teaches the lighting device according to claim 15, wherein at least one of the incidence surface (61b) and the emission surface (62a) is a free curved surface (see figure 2).
Regarding claim 18, Maeda et al. teaches the lighting device according to claim 15, further comprising a rotation portion to rotate the at least one optical element (6; see paragraph [0086]) in relation to the light source (7).
Regarding claim 19, Maeda et al. teaches a lighting device comprising:
a light source (7; figure 1); and at least one optical element (6) formed of a crystalline or amorphous solid (paragraph [0062] discloses light distribution control element 6 is an acrylic resin), wherein the at least one optical element (6; figure 1 and 2) includes an incidence surface (61b) on which light emitted from the light source (7) is incident, and an emission surface (62a) from which the light incident from the incidence surface is emitted toward an irradiation surface (see figure 1 and 2), when viewed in an optical axis direction of the light source (7), the light source (7) is disposed inside respective outer peripheral edges of the incidence surface (61b) and the emission surface (62a) of the at least one optical element (6), and the at least one optical element (6) is provided so as to refract the light incident from the incidence surface to emit light having a non-uniform intensity distribution from the emission surface to the irradiation surface (see figure 2), the lighting device further comprising a rotation portion to rotate the at least one optical element (see paragraph [0086] in relation to the light source (7).
Regarding claim 20, Maeda et al. teachs the lighting device according to claim 19, wherein the at least one optical element (light distribution control element 6; figure 5 and paragraph [0056]-[0057]) is provided so as to emit light whose intensity distribution has no rotational symmetry to the irradiation surface (see paragraph [0056]-[0057] where luminous intensity is disclosed).
Regarding claim 21, Maeda et al. teaches the lighting device according to claim 19, further comprising a casing (100; figure 1) to accommodate the light source (7) and the at least one optical element (6) in the casing, wherein in the casing (100), a reflection member (reflector 5; figure 1) to reflect the light emitted from the light source (7) is not disposed in a region that overlaps the at least one optical element (6) when viewed in the optical axis direction of the light source (see pargraph [0063] where optical axis C is disclosed).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JESSICA MCMILLAN APENTENG whose telephone number is (571)272-5510. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 9:00 am-5:00 pm.
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/JESSICA M APENTENG/ Examiner, Art Unit 2875
/ABDULMAJEED AZIZ/ Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2875