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 .
Election/Restrictions & Status of Claims
Claims 6 and 9-10 remain for examination of which claims 6 and 9-10 were amended in Applicant’s reply dated 01/21/2026.
Claims 1-5 and 7-8 were canceled in Applicant’s reply dated 01/21/2026.
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 6 and 9-10 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.
Regarding claims 6 and 9-10, claim 6 recites “heating, for 3-5 hours, a plate slab” followed by “performing first-stage rolling on a heated steel slab”, “performing on-line cooling on a rolled steel plate”. It is unclear whether these steel forms are connected to each other or if the claim is reciting three different steels of different forms at different stages.
Regarding claims 6 and 9-10, claim 6 recites “performing first-stage rolling on a heated steel slab to obtain an intermediate slab, and performing second-stage rolling on the intermediate slab, wherein an initial rolling temperature of the first-stage rolling is 950 °C to 1100 °C, an initial rolling temperature of the second-stage rolling is 850°C to 900°C, and a final rolling temperature of the second-stage rolling is 800 °C to 860 °C; and performing on-line cooling on a rolled steel plate to 500° C. to 600° C. at a cooling rate of 5° C/s - 20°C/s to obtain a steel plate” However, the claim was also amended to recite “wherein when the final rolling temperature of the second-stage rolling ranges from 840°C to 860°C, and the rolled steel plate is cooled to 550°C to 600°C at the cooling rate of 5°C/s to 15°C/s, the cooled steel plate has a microstructure of polygonal ferrite and pearlite, and a volume fraction of the pearlite is ≤30%, and” “wherein when the initial rolling temperature of the second-stage rolling ranges from 850°C to 890°C, the final rolling temperature of the second-stage rolling ranges from 800°C to 840°C and the rolled steel plate is cooled to 500°C to 560°C at the cooling rate of 7°C/s to 20°C/s, the cooled steel plate has a microstructure of acicular ferrite and bainite, and volume fraction of bainite is ≤35%.”
Regarding claims 6 and 9-10, there is insufficient antecedent basis for the limitation “the cooled steel plate” in claim 6.
Regarding claims 6 and 9-10, a broad range or limitation together with a narrow range or limitation that falls within the broad range or limitation (in the same claim) may be considered indefinite if the resulting claim does not clearly set forth the metes and bounds of the patent protection desired. See MPEP § 2173.05(c). In the present instance, claim 6 recites the broad recitation “performing first-stage rolling on a heated steel slab to obtain an intermediate slab, and performing second-stage rolling on the intermediate slab, wherein an initial rolling temperature of the first-stage rolling is 950 °C to 1100 °C, an initial rolling temperature of the second-stage rolling is 850°C to 900°C, and a final rolling temperature of the second-stage rolling is 800 °C to 860 °C; and performing on-line cooling on a rolled steel plate to 500 C to 600°C at a cooling rate of 5° C/s - 20°C/s to obtain a steel plate”, and the claim also recites “wherein when the final rolling temperature of the second-stage rolling ranges from 840°C to 860°C, and the rolled steel plate is cooled to 550°C to 600°C at the cooling rate of 5°C/s to 15°C/s, the cooled steel plate has a microstructure of polygonal ferrite and pearlite, and a volume fraction of the pearlite is ≤30%, and” “wherein when the initial rolling temperature of the second-stage rolling ranges from 850°C to 890°C, the final rolling temperature of the second-stage rolling ranges from 800°C to 840°C and the rolled steel plate is cooled to 500°C to 560°C at the cooling rate of 7°C/s to 20°C/s, the cooled steel plate has a microstructure of acicular ferrite and bainite, and volume fraction of bainite is ≤35%.” which are narrower statements of the range/limitation. The claim(s) are considered indefinite because there is a question or doubt as to whether the feature introduced by such narrower language is (a) merely exemplary of the remainder of the claim, and therefore not required, or (b) a required feature of the claims.
Processing Parameter
Broad
Condition
Narrow
Condition 1
Narrow
Condition 2
Second Stage Rolling
Initial Rolling Temperature
850 to 900 °C
Not specified
850 to 890 °C
Second Stage Rolling
Final Rolling Temperature
800 to 860 °C
840 to 860 °C
800 to 840 °C
On-line Cooling
Temperature
500 to 600 °C
550 to 600 °C
500 to 560 °C
On-line Cooling
Rate
5 to 20 °C/s
5 to 15 °C/s
7 to 20 °C/s
Microstructure
Not specified
Polygonal ferrite + Pearlite
pearlite is ≤30%
Acicular ferrite + Bainite
bainite is ≤35%
Regarding claims 6 and 9-10, as shown in the table above, instant claim 6 recites three processing conditions: a broad one followed by two narrower conditions. It is unclear how one can attain the two distinct microstructures as recited in the two narrower conditions when they share the same processing parameters. For example, both narrow condition 1 and narrow condition 2 share 850 to 890°C, 840°C, 550 to 560°C and 7 to 15 °C/s for Second Stage Rolling Initial Rolling Temperature, Second Stage Rolling Final Rolling Temperature, On-line Cooling Temperature and On-line Cooling Rate but require vastly different microstructure.
Regarding claims 6 and 9-10, the narrower conditions recite the limitations “the cooled steel plate has a microstructure of polygonal ferrite and pearlite, and a volume fraction of the pearlite is ≤30%” and “the cooled steel plate has a microstructure of acicular ferrite and bainite, and volume fraction of bainite is ≤35%.” It is unclear whether the claim is requiring the presence of both phases of (a) polygonal ferrite and pearlite in Narrower Condition 1 and (b) acicular ferrite and bainite in Narrower Condition 2 as they also recite “pearlite is ≤30%” and “bainite is ≤35%” since the “less than or equal to” ranges include a value of zero.
Regarding claim 9, claim 9 recites “slowly cool a straightened finished steel plate with thickness ≥ 40mm” and “getting a product off a production line”. It is unclear how these are related to each other and how they relate to the “corrosion-resistant cargo oil tank steel”.
Regarding claim 10, claim 10 recites the limitation “in a rolling process, a ratio of a thickness of the intermediate slab to a thickness of a finished steel plate is not less than 2.5”. It is unclear whether the “rolling process” of the instant claim is in addition to the first-stage rolling and second-stage rolling of claim 6 or whether it refers to one or both of them.
No prior art is applied to the instant claims due to the various issues raised above such as how to attain two different microstructures as recited in the same claim using the same processing conditions.
Response to Arguments
The rejection of 10/21/2025, “Claims 6-10 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over EP 3239334 A1 Tashiro (EP'334), and further in view of US 2005/0230012 A1 of Usami (US'012)” has been withdrawn in view of the amendments to the instant claims along with Applicant’s arguments, see pages 5-7, filed 01/21/2026.
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 JOPHY S. KOSHY whose telephone number is (571)272-0030. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 8:30 AM- 5:00 PM.
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/JOPHY S. KOSHY/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1733
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