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
1. Priority claim to DE202024101838.9 is acknowledged.
Information Disclosure Statement
2. The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 04/10/2025 is 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)(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.
3. Claims 1-8, 11-12 and 14-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by Handshaw (2017/0310856).
As to claim 1: Handshaw teaches an optical sensor (10, figure 2) for detecting objects, having a housing in which electronic components and at least one sensor component are mounted (housing 30, figure 1), wherein at least one electronic component generates an output signal in dependence upon sensor signals of the sensor component or a sensor component (paragraph 0038), characterized in that a printed circuit board is present as electronic component (38, figures 2 and more), wherein on a side forming an assembly side, the sensor component is arranged in a tube and wherein the tube is fastened with fastening means which are all arranged on or at the assembly side and can be mounted on the assembly side (tubular holder 14 with circular aperture 16, figures 5, 6, figures 11 and 12 showing side view including conical object 56 containing electrical and optical components).
As to claim 2: Handshaw teaches that the sensor component mounted in the tube is an image sensor, wherein a lens is arranged in the tube in front of the image sensor (lens 44, having imaging sensor 10, figure 11).
As to claim 3: Handshaw teaches light-beam emitting light-emitting diodes, which constitute an illumination unit, are mounted on the assembly side of the printed circuit board, and/or in that the side of the printed circuit board opposite the assembly side is a component side on which electronic components are arranged (42, figures 5 and 6).
As to claim 4: Handshaw teaches that a computer unit is arranged on the component side of the printed circuit board as an electronic component which forms an evaluation unit in which the sensor signals of the sensor component or a sensor component are evaluated for generating the output signal (22 on the opposite side of the PCB as seen in figure 2).
As to claim 5: Handshaw teaches that the tube has guide pins for centering on the printed circuit board, which guide pins can be inserted into blind centering boreholes which open out on the assembly side of the printed circuit board (figure 3, elements 92, 98 and 86, for receiving posts 88).
As to claim 6: Handshaw teaches that the guide pins form fastening means for fastening the tube on the printed circuit board, in that the guide pins are fixed in the blind centering boreholes by adhesive connections (figure 3, elements 92, 98 and 86, for receiving posts 88, connections described in paragraphs 0033, 0052).
As to claim 7: Handshaw teaches that an annular bracket with latching means projecting from its top is fastened on the assembly side, and in that the tube can be fastened onto the assembly side of the printed circuit board by means of the latching means (figure 18, element 120 is housed by the annular bracket between 120 and 118, affixed by lower and upper hooks 116 and 118 for mounting on the chassis and PCB, paragraph 0053).
As to claim 8: Handshaw teaches a rotationally symmetric arrangement of identically designed latching means is provided in the circumferential direction of the annular bracket (figure 18).
As to claim 11: Handshaw teaches that the tube has a hollow-cylindrical base body on the bottom of which an annular pedestal projecting beyond the outer jacket surface of the base body is present, wherein the tube is fastened to the assembly side of the printed circuit board in that the latching means are in engagement with the pedestal (figure 11 showing the base-bode which is hollow, element containing element 70, figure 11).
As to claim 12: Handshaw teaches that the printed circuit board has blind holes that open out on its assembly side, in which holes a threaded bushing is respectively mounted, and in that for fixing the tube to the printed circuit board, screws mounted in seatings of the tube are screwed into the threaded bushings (paragraph 0046, figure 7).
As to claim 14: Handshaw teaches that the tube has a hollow-cylindrical base body on the bottom of which an annular projection opens out in which the screws are mounted, wherein the screws are mounted in boreholes on the top of the annular projection (corresponding figures 7-8 on figure 11).
As to claim 15: Handshaw teaches that it is a code reader (paragraph 0036).
Allowable Subject Matter
4. Claims 9, 10 and 13 are objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter:
The prior art of record does not fairly teach or suggest the limitations of claim 10, specifically that the latching means is fixed by means of a soldered or adhesive connection in addition to threaded bushings, in view of all other limitations present in the claims. Further, the prior art of record does not teach or suggest the limitations of claim 9, specifically that the latching means are design in the form of spring-loaded hooks.
Examiner finds references in the art that teach of conical or cylindrical housing element on top of a PCB which contains optical imaging and sensing elements. However, the means of affixing this conical element to the PCB typically chooses either a threading, a post, a tensioned method, or soldering method in the alternative. Contrasting with the instant application, the claims recited above teach soldering and spring-loading attachment at the same time as both a post-hole arrangement and a screw-threading method.
Fabbri (2025/0445545) teaches a conical optical barrel formed onto a PCB containing typical optical elements such as a lens and a sensor, further teaching that the PCB can be glued to other objects with either through-holes, or soldering in the alternative. Fabbri is silent as to that both methods are used at the same time, and Fabbri is further silent as to illumination elements, as the disclosure is for a camera lens, which does not provide its own light.
Li (2020/0304692) teaches a lens module for a photosensitive chip on a PCB, wherein the conical lens holder is affixed to the PCB through posts which use adhesives connected to an adhesive layer. Li is silent as to either screws or solder, let alone both methods used simultaneously. Li additionally lacks LED elements, as it is a passive lens sensor.
Apel (2009/0128684) teaches a camera module with an affixed cylindrical element holding lenses and limiting field of view, attached to a PCB with a sensor and an IC. Appel teaches that attachment is either done with thermal joining or cable with plug, not both simultaneously. Further, Apel is silent as to other structure adjoining the cylinder to the PCB and housing.
Handshaw (2017/0310856) teaches the majority of limitations of the claims, but is silent as to spring loading or soldering, but merely relies on post-hole configurations for alignment, or screwing elements onto one another with threaded holes.
As the claims objected to contain a large amount of other structure, examiner does not find motivation to combine references to use both methods of solder and threading, instead finding them in the alternative.
Claim 13 is objected to for the same reasons as discussed above.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to DAVID P TARDIF whose telephone number is (571)270-7810. The examiner can normally be reached on M-F 11AM-7:30PM. If the examiner cannot be reached by telephone, he can be reached through the following email address: david.tardif@uspto.gov
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone and email are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Thomas Pham can be reached on (571)272-3689. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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DAVID TARDIF
Examiner
Art Unit 2876
/DAVID TARDIF/
Examiner, Art Unit 2876
david.tardif@uspto.gov
/THOMAS K PHAM/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2876
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