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 .
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments, see the Response, filed 04/14/2026, with respect to the rejection(s) of claim(s) 1-4 and 6-22 under 35 USC 103 have been fully considered and are persuasive. Therefore, the rejection has been withdrawn. However, upon further consideration, a new ground(s) of rejection is made in view of the prior art set forth below.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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.
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.
This application currently names joint inventors. In considering patentability of the claims the examiner presumes that the subject matter of the various claims was commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the claimed invention(s) absent any evidence to the contrary. Applicant is advised of the obligation under 37 CFR 1.56 to point out the inventor and effective filing dates of each claim that was not commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the later invention in order for the examiner to consider the applicability of 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(2)(C) for any potential 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) prior art against the later invention.
Claim(s) 1-4 and 6-22 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over JP 2016-142930 (henceforth JP ‘930) in view of Konishi et al. (US PGP 2015/0355560).
JP ‘930 teaches an image forming device comprising an electrophotographic photoreceptor comprising a conductive substrate and a single layer type photosensitive layer. The photosensitive layer is taught to comprise at least a charge generating agent, an electron transport agent, a hole transport agent and a binder resin (Abstract). The electron transport agent is taught to comprise at least a first and second component (Abstract). The first component is taught to comprise a compound of Chemical Formula 1 and the second component is taught to comprise a compound of Chemical Formula 3 ([0007-13]). Specific examples of a suitable first and second component taught by JP ‘930 are represented by the compound 1-5 and 3-6 ([0061], [0072] and Table 1 Example 1-6):
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228
156
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166
204
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.
As can be seen above, Compound 1-5 and 3-6 read on the Applicant’s recited compounds E-1 and E-2, respectively. JP ‘923 additionally teaches a protective layer formed on the photosensitive layer ([0097]). The image forming device is further taught to possess a contact charging unit such as a charging roller for applying charge to the surface of the photoreceptor ([0124]). While JP ‘923 teaches a protective layer the disclosure is silent as to the specific materials and dimensions of such a layer.
JP ’923 further teaches that the photosensitive layer contains 30% by mass or more of the electron transport compounds ([0019-20]). The photosensitive layer is further taught to comprise a hole transport compound in an amount of 10 parts by mass to 100 parts by mass based on the 100 parts by mass of the binder resin ([0089]). In embodiments the charge generating compound is taught to be present in 3.0 parts by mass based on 100 parts by mass of the binder resin ([0141]). The photosensitive layer is also taught to comprise tribenzylamine ([0107-108]). The contact charging device in the image forming apparatus is taught to apply direct voltage to the photoreceptor ([0125]).
As stated above, JP ‘923 teaches an image forming apparatus comprising the previously detailed photoreceptor and contact charging system. The image forming apparatus is further taught to comprise the additional elements recited by the Applicant in pending claim 18 and is also taught to perform an image forming method that reads on the limitations recited by the Applicant in pending claims 13-17 ([0117-131]). Additionally, the charge potential applied to the photoreceptor is taught preferably be at least 1000V ([0125]).
Konishi teaches an image forming device comprising a positively charging photoreceptor comprising a laminated layer configuration comprising a charge generating layer, a charge transporting layer and a surface protective layer (Abstract, [0184-199]). The layers are all taught to comprise a binder resin and the charge transport layer comprises a charge transporting compound ([0174-182]). The outermost protective layer is taught to comprise a metal oxide particle such as silica that is surface treated with a silane coupling agent having a radical polymerizable (chain polymerizable) functional group ([0041-42] and [0114]). The outermost layer is further taught to comprise a curable binder resin ([0037-39]) which may be photocurable ([0130-131]). The content of the metal oxide particles in the surface layer is taught to be from 50 to 200 parts by mass based on 100 parts by mass of the binder resin ([0140]). The surface layer is further taught to have a thickness of from 0.2 to 10 micrometers and preferably 0.5 to 6 micrometers ([0141]). The surface layer is taught to be cured using an acylphosphine based photopolymerization initiator and/or a alkylphenone hydrogen abstraction type initiator ([0147-148]). The initiator is further taught to comprise from 0.5 to 10 parts by mass based on 100 parts by mass of the polymerizable compound ([0148]). The metal oxide particles are not taught to contain a phosphorous element. Konishi teaches that such a surface protective layer allows for injected holes to to move efficiently through the surface layer thereby preventing image memory while simultaneously enhancing wear resistance by virtue of the metal oxide particles ([0030]). These properties allow for increasing the force used by the cleaning blade while effectively removing electric discharge products on the surface of the photoreceptor, thereby preventing image blurring. Therefore, it would have been obvious to any person of ordinary skill in the art at the time of the effective filing date of the instant application to have utilized the surface protective layer taught by Konishi et al. on the photoreceptor of JP ‘923 in order to impart the improvements associated therewith to the photoreceptor of JP ‘923.
Conclusion
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/PETER L VAJDA/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1737 04/29/2026
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