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 .
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b):
(b) CONCLUSION.—The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph:
The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention.
Claims 16-20 are rejected 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.
Each claim refers to “The light emitting element of claim 15/16/17” but each depends ultimately from Claim 15, which is directed to “An organometallic compound”. It is unclear whether the claims are meant to be directed to a light emitting element or a compound. 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.
Claim(s) 1-8 and 10-20 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Shin et al (US 12035617 B2, US 20210359227 A1).
Shin discloses an OLED comprising a first and second electrode and organic layers therebetween and the organic layers comprising an organometallic compound [abstract] having the general structures Formula 1-2a and Formula 1-7b [col 4 lines 5-15, col 6 lines 6-7]:
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wherein Ar2 and Ar3 includes aromatic hydrocarbon groups of 6 to 30 forming carbons [col 2 lines 15-27]. A demonstrative specific compound is disclosed:
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[compound 12, col 33 lines 50-65] which reads on the claimed Formula 1 wherein M1 is Pt, Ra is phenyl, C2 is phenyl, C1 is phenyl. The difference with the claimed Formula 1, is that compound 12 includes a cyclic borazine group in the place of R1 of claimed formula 1. Shin discloses that the cyclic borazine group may alternatively be a C6 or greater aryl group based on phenyl S1 [col 9]:
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, wherein S1 reads on the claimed R1 as a substituted or unsubstituted C6 to C30 aryl group. Furthermore, r1 in Formula 1-7b may be zero [col 24 lines 39-40] and so the substitution is not required, which reads on the general formula 1-1A of claim 3. The disclosed substituents may be further substituted by alkyl and aryl groups [col 2 lines 17-27] which includes t-butyl groups, phenyl group groups, biphenyl, terphenyl and other common substituents in the art [col 16 line 53 – col 17 line 36].
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art at the time of filing of Applicant’s invention to have prepared the claimed organometallic compound, with all of the claimed substituents, and OLED thereof, because Shin discloses each of the elements of the claimed structures arranged in the same way in the above cited formulae. If Applicant argues that the claimed embodiments are not disclosed with sufficient specificity and that examiner is picking and choosing with improper hindsight, Examiner notes that the rejection is made under 35 USC 103 obviousness. The claims are obvious over the combination of elements disclosed, and the mere fact that a reference suggests a multitude of possible combinations does not in and of itself make any one of those combinations less obvious. Merck & Co. v. Biocraft Laboratories, 874 F.2d 804, 10 USPQ2d 1843 (Fed. Cir.), cert. denied, 493 U.S. 975 (1989).
Shin also discloses a second a third compound [abstract] wherein the second compound includes HT hosts including carbazole structures of the instant claims
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[col 44] and the third compound: includes ET hosts similar to the structures of instant claim 13:
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[col 48]. Shin also discloses the emitting layer comprising a fluorescent emitter [col 53 line 62 et seq].
Claim(s) 9 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Lin et al (US 20200119289 A1) in view of Shin et al (US 12035617 B2, US 20210359227 A1).
Lin discloses OLED devices comprising platinum phosphorescent emitters, similar to those Shin:
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[abstract]. Lin also discloses the emitting layer further comprising a thermally activated delayed fluorescence, i.e., TADF emitter [0096-0099, 0129].
Lin does not disclose the specific emitters of the claims.
Shin, discussed above, discloses the claimed phosphorescent emitters. Shin discloses that the disclosed emitters provides improvement to efficiency of an OLED device [col 77 lines 47-51].
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art at the time of filing of Applicant’s invention to have used the claimed organometallic compound of Formula 1 as the phosphorescent emitters of Lin because Shin teaches that they provides improvement to efficiency of an OLED device.
Double Patenting
There is currently no ODP rejection over US 12035617 B2, because there is one claim in the patent that discloses the instantly claimed Formula 1 with sufficient specificity to make obvious the instant claims.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to MICHAEL M DOLLINGER whose telephone number is (571)270-5464. The examiner can normally be reached 10am-6:30pm M-F.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Randy Gulakowski can be reached at 571-272-1302. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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MICHAEL M. DOLLINGER
Primary Examiner
Art Unit 1766
/MICHAEL M DOLLINGER/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1766
Prosecution Insights