DETAILED ACTION
Response to Amendment
The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
This office action is responsive to the amendment received August 5, 2026. Claims 1-5 were amended. Claim 11 was added. Claims 1-11 are pending.
The previous rejection of claims 1-10 under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention is withdrawn.
The previous rejection of claim 6 under 35 U.S.C. 112(d) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, 4th paragraph, as being of improper dependent form for failing to further limit the subject matter of the claim upon which it depends, or for failing to include all the limitations of the claim upon which it depends is withdrawn.
The rejection of claims 1-10 under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Joo et al. (US 2020/0172558 A1) in view of Cha et al. (US 2017/0141322 A1) is withdrawn.
Claim Objections
Claims 6 and 7 are objected to because of the following informalities:
Claims 6 and 7 include chemical structures with blurry bonding lines and blurry heteroatoms. Clearly printed structures are requested. Appropriate correction is required.
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 1-11 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Yamatani (US 2020/0227639 A1) in view of Cha et al. (US 2017/0141322 A1).
Regarding a device of claim 1, Yamatani teaches polycyclic aromatic compounds for an organic electroluminescent device (see abstract). The compounds are of formula 1 (par. 8) and more specifically of formula 4 with respect to instant Formulas C and D (see par. 17-18):
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.
Compounds of the formulas are described for use in a light emitting layer of a device structure (see abstract and par. 105). Specific compounds are shown in par. 104 and include compounds identical to instant C or D formula compounds of instant claim 7. For instance, see at least compound 1, which is the same as instant compound 8 (see page 8):
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.
Also further note that at least compound #14 is the same as instant #5, #2 is the same as instant #124, and #9 is the same as instant #2 (par. 104).
With respect to instant claim 1 compounds A or B, Yamatani teaches any suitable hole transport material such as amine or carbazole-containing compounds for a hole transporting layer of the device (par. 48), but does not appear to teach an amine compound identical to instant A or B compounds. In analogous art, Cha teaches compounds for an organic light emitting device of formula A or B (see Cha par. 15-26):
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The compounds A or B may be in a layer of the device (see Cha par. 27) such as the hole transport layer (see Cha claims 7-9 on page 83). Per at least instant formula 31 (reproduced below) of instant claim 6, Cha Formula A corresponds by teaching the specific heterocyclic portion
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and an Ar1 phenyl-tert butyl group
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within Cha compound #37 on page 63. With respect to the carbazole substituted with phenyl of instant formula 31, a Cha Ar2 is defined to include substituted heteroaryl of 2 to 50 carbon atoms (see par. 20 and substituents in par. 26 such as C6 aryl). While Cha does not specifically list carbazole as one of the heteroaryl groups, primary reference Yamatani provides a teaching at par. 66 that carbazole is a known heteroaryl group (see Yamatani par. 66).
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[Instant compound 31 shown in instant claim 6]
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have selected an amine compound as taught by Cha formula A or B including a substituted heteroaryl carbazole group as taught by Yamatani for a hole transport layer material in a Yamatani device structure, because one would expect the compounds taught by Cha to provide the desired function of hole transportation in a device structure according to Yamatani. One would expect to achieve an operational device comprising functional materials within the disclosures of Yamatani and Cha with a predictable result and a reasonable expectation of success. Per claim 11, the corresponding groups to instant R1 and R2 are bonded together in the described compound the same as instant compound 31.
Regarding claims 2 and 3, Yamatani compounds of par. 104 meet the requirements of the instant formulas. Further regarding claims 4 and 5, at least Yamatani compound 7 and compound 8 are taught (see page 9), which show a diarylamine substituent group as suitable.
Regarding claim 8, Yamatani teaches the device structure layers (see Yamatani par. 38). Regarding claim 9, the process of depositing layers may include a deposition process (see par. 164-167). Regarding claim 10, a device may at least be part of a display (see par. 4). Note that a recitation of the intended use of the claimed invention must result in a structural difference between the claimed invention and the prior art in order to patentably distinguish the claimed invention from the prior art. If the prior art structure is capable of performing the intended use, then it meets the claim.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to the claims have been considered but are moot because the new ground of rejection does not rely on the combination of references applied in the prior rejection.
Conclusion
Applicant's amendment necessitated the new ground(s) of rejection presented in this Office action. Accordingly, THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. See MPEP § 706.07(a). Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Dawn Garrett whose telephone number is (571)272-1523. The examiner can normally be reached Monday through Thursday (Eastern Time).
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Jennifer 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.
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/DAWN L GARRETT/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1786
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