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 .
Claims 1-20 are currently pending and prosecuted.
Continued Examination Under 37 CFR 1.114
A request for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, including the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e), was filed in this application after allowance or after an Office action under Ex Parte Quayle, 25 USPQ 74, 453 O.G. 213 (Comm'r Pat. 1935). Since this application is eligible for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, prosecution in this application has been reopened pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114. Applicant's submission filed on 1 May 2025 has been entered.
Priority
Receipt is acknowledged of certified copies of papers required by 37 CFR 1.55.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 1 May 2025 was considered by the examiner.
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.
Claims 1-9 and 11-19 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Aoki, US PG-Pub 2020/0033964, hereinafter Aoki, in view of Ogawa et al., U SPG-Pub 2011/0169756, hereinafter Ogawa.
Regarding Claim 1, Aoki teaches an electronic pen (electronic pen 1) comprising:
a first casing (tubular casing 11) that has an opening on a pen tip side of the first casing (Figs. 1 and 3A-3B, and corresponding descriptions, showing the tubular casing has an opening on a pen tip side); and
a second casing (cap member 15) that is configured to be rotatably coupled to the first casing in an axial direction of the first casing (Fig. 7B, and corresponding descriptions; [0078], “switching control can also be performed so as to produce the first state and the second state by displacing the control member in a direction of rotation about an axis extending in the axial direction of the casing of the electronic pen”);
wherein the first casing includes a first circuit (electronic circuit 13).
However, Aoki does not explicitly teach wherein the second casing includes a second circuit connected to the first circuit, and wherein the first circuit and the second circuit are electrically connected to each other by a cable having a portion that is extendable or contractable in the axial direction of the first casing.
Ogawa teaches wherein the second casing (Ogawa: operation knob 48) includes a second circuit (Ogawa: rotary-type operation switch 44) connected to the first circuit (Ogawa: Fig. 2, and corresponding descriptions, showing the rotary type operation switch is connected to the pen controlling unit 27), and
wherein the first circuit and the second circuit are electrically connected to each other by a cable having a portion that is extendable or contractable in the axial direction of the first casing (Ogawa: Fig. 2, and corresponding descriptions, showing the rotary type operation switch is connected to the pen controlling unit 27 utilizing a cable connection).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective filing date of the invention to incorporate the second circuit and connection taught by Ogawa into the device taught by Aoki in order to provide a different type of input based on a user selection (Ogawa: [0062]), thereby allowing for a more personalized user input device.
Regarding Claim 2, Aoki, as modified by Ogawa, teaches the electronic pen according to claim 1, wherein an operation mode of the electronic pen is changed by rotating the second casing about the axial direction of the first casing with respect to the first casing (Ogawa: [0062], “The rotary-type operation switch (property selector) 44 changes the property of the function of the electronic pen 1 by rotating an operation knob 48”).
Regarding Claim 3, Aoki, as modified by Ogawa, teaches the electronic pen according to claim 2, wherein the electronic pen is changed to a plurality of different operation modes according to a difference in magnitude of a rotational angle of the second casing about the axial direction with respect to the first casing (Ogawa: [0062], “The rotary-type operation switch (property selector) 44 changes the property of the function of the electronic pen 1 by rotating an operation knob 48. Specifically, here, it is possible to select black, red, green, or blue as a drawing color in a drawing mode, or an eraser mode by the operation switch 44.”).
Regarding Claim 4, Aoki, as modified by Ogawa, teaches the electronic pen according to claim 2, wherein the second casing is provided with a switch (Aoki: switch member 18) that, in operation, is turned on or off to change the operation mode of the electronic pen when the second casing is rotated about the axial direction of the first casing with respect to the first casing (Aoki: Figs. 7A-7B, and corresponding descriptions, showing how the cap member 15 may be rotated to expose switch member 18, [0086], “the protruding portion 19b of the ring member 19 depresses the protrusion 18a of the switch member 18, so that the switch member 18 is in an opened state (switched-off state)”).
Regarding Claim 5, Aoki, as modified by Ogawa, teaches the electronic pen according to claim 1, wherein operation of the electronic pen is started by rotating the second casing in a first direction about the axial direction of the first casing with respect to the first casing (Aoki: [0078], “switching control can also be performed so as to produce the first state and the second state by displacing the control member in a direction of rotation about an axis extending in the axial direction of the casing of the electronic pen”; [0088]), and operation of the electronic pen is stopped by rotating the second casing in a second direction opposite to the first direction (Aoki: [0078], “switching control can also be performed so as to produce the first state and the second state by displacing the control member in a direction of rotation about an axis extending in the axial direction of the casing of the electronic pen”; [0088]).
Regarding Claim 6, Aoki, as modified by Ogawa, teaches the electronic pen according to claim 5, wherein the second casing is provided with a switch (Aoki: switch member 18) that, in operation, is turned on or off to control starting of the operation of the electronic pen or stopping of the operation of the electronic pen when the second casing is rotated about the axial direction of the first casing with respect to the first casing (Aoki: Figs. 7A-7B, and corresponding descriptions, showing how the cap member 15 may be rotated to expose switch member 18, [0086], “the protruding portion 19b of the ring member 19 depresses the protrusion 18a of the switch member 18, so that the switch member 18 is in an opened state (switched-off state)”).
Regarding Claim 7, Aoki, as modified by Ogawa, teaches the electronic pen according to claim 1, wherein the second circuit of the second casing is provided with a wireless communication circuit (Ogawa: wireless communication circuit 24).
It would have been an obvious matter of design choice to change the location of the wireless communication circuit from the first casing to the second casing since the applicant has not disclosed that placing the wireless communication circuit in the second casing solves any stated problem or is for any particular purpose and it appears that the invention would perform equally well with the wireless communication circuit located within the first casing because the electronic pen would only need a wireless communication circuit located at some location within the entirety of the pen to communicate with an external device.
Regarding Claim 8, Aoki, as modified by Ogawa, teaches the electronic pen according to claim 1, wherein the second casing is provided with an external connection terminal (Aoki: USB connector, used to charge the rechargeable battery) electrically connected to the second circuit (Ogawa: Fig. 2, and corresponding descriptions, showing the battery is connected to the rotary type operation switch through other elements in order for the electronic pen to have power).
Regarding Claim 9, Aoki, as modified by Ogawa, teaches the electronic pen according to claim 1, wherein the first casing includes a rechargeable battery (Aoki: rechargeable battery 12), and the second casing is provided with a charging terminal (Aoki: USB connector, used to charge the rechargeable battery) electrically connected to the second circuit (Ogawa: Fig. 2, and corresponding descriptions, showing the battery is connected to the rotary type operation switch through other elements in order for the electronic pen to have power).
Regarding Claim 11, Aoki, as modified by Ogawa, teaches an electronic pen (electronic pen 1) comprising:
a first casing (tubular casing 11) that has an opening on a pen tip side of the first casing (Figs. 1 and 3A-3B, and corresponding descriptions, showing the tubular casing has an opening on a pen tip side); and
a second casing (cap member 15) that is configured to be rotatably coupled to the first casing in an axial direction of the first casing (Fig. 7B, and corresponding descriptions; [0078], “switching control can also be performed so as to produce the first state and the second state by displacing the control member in a direction of rotation about an axis extending in the axial direction of the casing of the electronic pen”);
wherein the first casing includes a first circuit (electronic circuit 13).
However, Aoki does not explicitly teach wherein the second casing includes a second circuit connected to the first circuit, and wherein the first circuit and the second circuit are electrically connected to each other by a cable having a portion that is twistable in a rotational direction about the axial direction of the first casing.
Ogawa teaches wherein the second casing (Ogawa: operation knob 48) includes a second circuit (Ogawa: rotary-type operation switch 44) connected to the first circuit (Ogawa: Fig. 2, and corresponding descriptions, showing the rotary type operation switch is connected to the pen controlling unit 27), and
wherein the first circuit and the second circuit are electrically connected to each other by a cable having a portion that is twistable in a rotational direction about the axial direction of the first casing (Ogawa: Fig. 2, and corresponding descriptions, showing the rotary type operation switch is connected to the pen controlling unit 27 utilizing a cable connection. It was common and notoriously well known prior to the effective filing date of the invention that a cable may be twistable in a rotational direction).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective filing date of the invention to incorporate the second circuit and connection taught by Ogawa into the device taught by Aoki in order to provide a different type of input based on a user selection (Ogawa: [0062]), thereby allowing for a more personalized user input device.
Regarding Claim 12, Aoki, as modified by Ogawa, teaches the electronic pen according to claim 1, wherein an operation mode of the electronic pen is changed by rotating the second casing about the axial direction of the first casing with respect to the first casing (Ogawa: [0062], “The rotary-type operation switch (property selector) 44 changes the property of the function of the electronic pen 1 by rotating an operation knob 48”).
Regarding Claim 13, Aoki, as modified by Ogawa, teaches the electronic pen according to claim 12, wherein the electronic pen is changed to a plurality of different operation modes according to a difference in magnitude of a rotational angle of the second casing about the axial direction with respect to the first casing (Ogawa: [0062], “The rotary-type operation switch (property selector) 44 changes the property of the function of the electronic pen 1 by rotating an operation knob 48. Specifically, here, it is possible to select black, red, green, or blue as a drawing color in a drawing mode, or an eraser mode by the operation switch 44.”).
Regarding Claim 14, Aoki, as modified by Ogawa, teaches the electronic pen according to claim 12, wherein the second casing is provided with a switch (Aoki: switch member 18) that, in operation, is turned on or off to change the operation mode of the electronic pen when the second casing is rotated about the axial direction of the first casing with respect to the first casing (Aoki: Figs. 7A-7B, and corresponding descriptions, showing how the cap member 15 may be rotated to expose switch member 18, [0086], “the protruding portion 19b of the ring member 19 depresses the protrusion 18a of the switch member 18, so that the switch member 18 is in an opened state (switched-off state)”).
Regarding Claim 15, Aoki, as modified by Ogawa, teaches the electronic pen according to claim 11, wherein operation of the electronic pen is started by rotating the second casing in a first direction about the axial direction of the first casing with respect to the first casing (Aoki: [0078], “switching control can also be performed so as to produce the first state and the second state by displacing the control member in a direction of rotation about an axis extending in the axial direction of the casing of the electronic pen”; [0088]), and operation of the electronic pen is stopped by rotating the second casing in a second direction opposite to the first direction (Aoki: [0078], “switching control can also be performed so as to produce the first state and the second state by displacing the control member in a direction of rotation about an axis extending in the axial direction of the casing of the electronic pen”; [0088]).
Regarding Claim 16, Aoki, as modified by Ogawa, teaches the electronic pen according to claim 15, wherein the second casing is provided with a switch (Aoki: switch member 18) that, in operation, is turned on or off to control starting of the operation of the electronic pen or stopping of the operation of the electronic pen when the second casing is rotated about the axial direction of the first casing with respect to the first casing (Aoki: Figs. 7A-7B, and corresponding descriptions, showing how the cap member 15 may be rotated to expose switch member 18, [0086], “the protruding portion 19b of the ring member 19 depresses the protrusion 18a of the switch member 18, so that the switch member 18 is in an opened state (switched-off state)”).
Regarding Claim 17, Aoki, as modified by Ogawa, teaches the electronic pen according to claim 11, wherein the second circuit of the second casing is provided with a wireless communication circuit (Ogawa: wireless communication circuit 24).
It would have been an obvious matter of design choice to change the location of the wireless communication circuit from the first casing to the second casing since the applicant has not disclosed that placing the wireless communication circuit in the second casing solves any stated problem or is for any particular purpose and it appears that the invention would perform equally well with the wireless communication circuit located within the first casing because the electronic pen would only need a wireless communication circuit located at some location within the entirety of the pen to communicate with an external device.
Regarding Claim 18, Aoki, as modified by Ogawa, teaches the electronic pen according to claim 11, wherein the second casing is provided with an external connection terminal (Aoki: USB connector, used to charge the rechargeable battery) electrically connected to the second circuit (Ogawa: Fig. 2, and corresponding descriptions, showing the battery is connected to the rotary type operation switch through other elements in order for the electronic pen to have power).
Regarding Claim 19, Aoki, as modified by Ogawa, teaches the electronic pen according to claim 11, wherein the first casing includes a rechargeable battery (Aoki: rechargeable battery 12), and the second casing is provided with a charging terminal (Aoki: USB connector, used to charge the rechargeable battery) electrically connected to the second circuit (Ogawa: Fig. 2, and corresponding descriptions, showing the battery is connected to the rotary type operation switch through other elements in order for the electronic pen to have power).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 10 and 20 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:
With respect to Claim 10, the prior art of record fails to teach the limitation, “the electronic pen includes a protruding and retracting mechanism that, in operation, slidingly moves the electronic pen main body unit in the axial direction of the first casing and protrudes, from the opening of the first casing, a front end portion of a pen tip side of the electronic pen main body unit in a state of the electronic pen main body unit not protruding from the opening in the first casing, when the second casing is rotated in a first direction about the axial direction of the first casing with respect to the first casing, and returns the front end portion of the pen tip side of the electronic pen main body unit to the state of the electronic pen main body unit not protruding from the opening in the first casing, when the second casing is rotated in a second direction opposite to the first direction.” As such, claim 10 is objected to as being dependent upon rejected base claim 1.
With respect to Claim 20, the prior art of record fails to teach the limitation, “the electronic pen includes a protruding and retracting mechanism that, in operation, slidingly moves the electronic pen main body unit in the axial direction of the first casing and protrudes, from the opening of the first casing, a front end portion of a pen tip side of the electronic pen main body unit in a state of the electronic pen main body unit not protruding from the opening in the first casing, when the second casing is rotated in a first direction about the axial direction of the first casing with respect to the first casing, and returns the front end portion of the pen tip side of the electronic pen main body unit to the state of the electronic pen main body unit not protruding from the opening in the first casing, when the second casing is rotated in a second direction opposite to the first direction.” As such, claim 20 is objected to as being dependent upon rejected base claim 11.
Conclusion
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STEPHEN T. REED
Primary Examiner
Art Unit 2627
/Stephen T. Reed/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2627