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.
Restriction/Election Requirement
The Office acknowledges the Applicant’s election in the Response filed 02/04/26 of Group 2 and Group 5 for n1 and n2, respectively, as set forth in the Restriction/Election Requirement filed 12/11/25.
The election reads on Claims 1-17.
Claims 1-17 are pending. No claims have been withdrawn from consideration.
Specification
The disclosure is objected to because of the following informalities:
The Specification filed 11/22/22 recites the structures of compounds (and/or chemical names in reactions) on the following pages: 3 (for Ar”1 and Ar”2), 22-26, 34-38, 43 (for D2” to D2 reaction), and 44-46 which are all graphically unclear due to their low resolutions and small size; they are barely legible. All the structures (and/or chemical names in reactions) need to be replaced by structures which are clearly legible, with all bonds and atoms that are clearly drawn (i.e., solid lines and of sufficient size).
Appropriate correction is required.
Claim Objections
Claims 1-17 are objected to because of the following informalities:
Claim 1, which the other claims are dependent upon, recites the structures of Ar”1 and Ar”2 which are all graphically unclear due to their low resolutions and small size; the substituents are barely legible. The structures need to be replaced by structures which are clearly legible, with all bonds and atoms that are clearly drawn (i.e., solid lines and of sufficient size).
Appropriate correction is required.
Claims 14-16 are objected to because of the following informalities:
The claims recite structures which are all graphically unclear due to their low resolutions and small size; they are barely legible. All the recited structures need to be replaced by structures which are clearly legible, with all bonds and atoms that are clearly drawn (i.e., solid lines and of sufficient size).
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.
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 1-17 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Lee et al. (KR 10-2018-0059380) in view of Radu et al. (US 2016/0329497 A1).
Examiner’s Note: The Office has relied on the Machine English translation of foreign document publication KR 10-2018-0059380 (herein referred to as “Lee et al.”) as the English equivalent. Unless otherwise noted, all figure, page, and paragraph numbers referenced herein refer to numbers found in the Machine English translation.
Lee et al. discloses an organic electroluminescent (EL) device (light emitting device) comprising the following layers: substrate (101), anode (201), hole-injecting layer (301), hole-transporting layer (401), light-emitting layer (501), electron-transporting layer (601), and cathode (701) (Fig. 1). Lee et al. discloses that the hole-injecting and/or hole-transporting layer comprises the following ionic compound as p-dopant material (in combination with host material) ([0075], [0172], [0189]):
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(pages 28, 32) such that n1 = n2 = 2, Ar”1 = recited formula (with n3 = 4 and R”1 = halogen (F), and R” = photocurable or thermosetting group), and Ar”2 = recited formula (with n4 = 5 and R”2 = halogen (F) or photocurable or thermosetting group) of Applicant’s Chemical Formula 2; X32-46 = hydrogen of the Applicant’s formula as recited in Claim 15. The host material includes polymeric arylamines ([0178]). Lee et al. discloses a preferred p-dopant material to host material ratio of 2:8 in a coating composition (in solvent), which is spin coated to form a coating layer over a substrate ([0276]). However, Lee et al. does not explicitly disclose a polymer of Applicant’s Chemical Formula 1.
Radu et al. discloses copolymers of the following form:
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50
316
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([0058]) comprising units such as the following:
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86
432
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([0102]) where T1-T2 = non-planar conjugated moieties ([0105]). Embodiments for such moieties are disclosed such as the following:
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486
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(page 9) such that L1 = substituted C6 arylene (hexyl-substituted phenylene), m = n = 1, R = unsubstituted C1 alkyl (methyl), L2 = unsubstituted C12 arylene (biphenylene), and Ar = substituted C12 aryl (propyl-substituted biphenyl) of Applicant’s Chemical Formula 1; R’ = C6 alkyl (hexyl) of the formula as recited in Claim 3. Radu et al. discloses its inventive polymers as hole-transporting materials (which can be formed into layers via solution techniques) for use in an “organic active layer” (any organic layer interposed between electrodes) of an organic EL device ([0295], [0297], [0305]-[0306]). Benefits of its inventive copolymers include lowered viscosities, which can allow for more concentrated solutions to be jetted ([0296]). It would have been obvious to incorporate the copolymer as disclosed by Radu et al. (above) into the hole-injecting and/or hole-transporting layer of the organic EL device as disclosed by Lee et al. (as the host material). The motivation is provided by the disclosure of Radu et al. which is directed to hole-transporting polymeric arylamines in an identical field of invention with known benefits in solution processing.
Conclusion
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.
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/JAY YANG/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1786
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