DETAILED ACTION
The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status.
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 final rejection. 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and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114. Applicant's submission filed on 03/11/26 has been entered.
Response to Amendment
The rejection of Claims 1-13, 15, 17, and 19 under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Yamada et al. (US 2011/0049479 A1) as set forth in the Final Rejection filed 12/22/25 is herein amended due to the Applicant’s amendments.
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.
The factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness.
Claims 1-13, 15, 17, and 19 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Yamada et al. (US 2011/0049479 A1).
Yamada et al. discloses compounds of the following form:
PNG
media_image1.png
250
398
media_image1.png
Greyscale
([0020]) where at least one of R11-22 = Rm = -X1-Ar1 where Ar1 = aryl included fused polycyclic group and X1 = substituted or unsubstituted phenylene group or substituted or unsubstituted divalent monocyclic heterocyclic group (only), the latter of which includes pyridylene and pyrimidylene ([0021]-[0026]). An embodiment is disclosed:
PNG
media_image2.png
302
558
media_image2.png
Greyscale
(compound B-6) (page 5) such that A1-3 = C6 carbocyclic group (benzene), a1 = 1, Z1 = Applicant’s Formula 2 (with n1-3 = 1, L1-3 = single bond, and Ar1-2 = R10a-substituted C6 carbocyclic group (methyl-substituted phenyl)) of Applicant’s Formulae 1 and 1-3; e5 = 1 and Z41 = C1 alkyl group (methyl) of Applicant’s Formula 4-1. However, Yamada et al. does not explicitly disclose an embodiment that fully reads on Applicant’s Formula 1, particularly in regards to the nature of R4. Nevertheless, it would have been obvious to modify compound B-6 as disclosed by Yamada et al. (above) such that any one of d1-3 = 1 (rest being 0) and the corresponding one of R1-3 = substituted C6 carbocyclic group (naphthyl-substituted phenyl) and R4 = hydrogen of Applicant’s Formulae 1 and 1-3. The motivation is provided by the fact that the modification merely involves change in the substitution position of the naphthyl-substituted phenyl group, producing a positional isomer that can be expected to have highly similar chemical and physical properties; further motivation exists, including the fact that the modification merely involves the selection of one embodiment from a highly finite list as envisioned from the scope of Yamada et al.’s general formula (wherein any one of R11-22 = Rm = -X1-Ar1), thus rendering the production predictable with a reasonable expectation of success.
Yamada et al. further discloses an organic electroluminescent (EL) device (light-emitting device) comprising the following layers: substrate (1), anode (2), hole-transporting layer (5), light-emitting layer (3), hole-blocking layer (8), electron-transporting layer (6), and cathode (4) (Fig. 5); a color filter may further be present in the substrate to control the emitted light ([0080]). Its inventive compounds comprise any one of the hole-transporting, electron-transporting, and light-emitting layers ([0067]). The organic EL device is designed for light production in the blue, green, and red ([0005], [0103]); the device is further connected to a thin-film transistor (TFT) (inherently comprising source and drain electrodes) ([0080]).
Allowable Subject Matter
8. Claims 14, 16, 18, 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 closest prior art is provided by Ikeda et al. (JP 2010-238924 A), which discloses materials which can be used preferably in an organic thin-film solar cell; nevertheless, the materials can also be used as organic electroluminescent (EL) materials (Abstract; [0127]). The materials are of the following form:
PNG
media_image3.png
170
266
media_image3.png
Greyscale
where adjacent R1-12 can bind together to form a ring, and at least one of R1-12 is the following ([0015]-[0016]):
PNG
media_image4.png
140
214
media_image4.png
Greyscale
(page 2) where Ra-b = independently C6-40 aryl group such as phenyl or biphenyl ([0016], [0023]). Such amine compounds are known to have hole-transporting properties ([0008]). An embodiment is disclosed:
PNG
media_image5.png
112
156
media_image5.png
Greyscale
(page 9). However, it is the position of the Office that neither Ikeda et al. singly nor in combination with any other prior art discloses any of the compounds as recited in the claims, particularly in regards to the nature of the substituent groups attached to the core condensed cyclic group of Applicant’s Formula 1.
Response to Arguments
9. Applicant’s arguments on pages 30-33 with respect to the deficiencies of the previously cited prior art have been considered but are moot in view of the new grounds of rejection as set forth above.
Conclusion
10. Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JAY L YANG whose telephone number is (571)270-1137. The examiner can normally be reached Mon-Fri, 6am-3pm.
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, Jennifer A Boyd can be reached at 571-272-7783. 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.
/JAY YANG/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1786