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 .
DETAILED ACTION
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
The following is a quotation of the appropriate paragraphs of 35 U.S.C. 102 that form the basis for the rejections under this section made in this Office action:
A person shall be entitled to a patent unless –
(a)(1) the claimed invention was patented, described in a printed publication, or in public use, on sale, or otherwise available to the public before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claim(s) 1, 3-7, 9, 10, and 13 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Morioka et al. (WO2020129894A1). Morioka et al. discloses (claims 1 and 13) an article with a conductive structure 10, comprising: a cured layer 12 formed by curing a curable composition; a conductive linear body 18 fixed by the cured layer 12; and a pair of electrodes 30 placed so as to directly contact the conductive linear body 18, wherein the curable composition contains a cationic polymerizable compound and a photocationic polymerization initiator (paragraph [0050] “The ultraviolet curing adhesive agent can be classified into a radical polymerization-curing adhesive agent and a cationic polymerization adhesive agent. In addition, the radical polymerization-curing adhesive agent can be used as a thermosetting adhesive agent.”), and the cured layer 12 fixes the electrodes 30.
Regarding claim 3, Morioka et al. discloses that the conductive linear body 18 has a wave-like shape (Figs. 6 and 7).
Regarding claim 4, Morioka et al. discloses that the conductive linear body 18 includes a metal wire (paragraph [0109]).
Regarding claim 5, Morioka et al. discloses that two or more of the conductive linear bodies 18, wherein a pseudo-sheet structure is formed by arranging the two or more of the conductive linear bodies at an interval (paragraph [0103]).
Regarding claim 6, Morioka et al. discloses that the electrodes are metal wires or metal foils (paragraph [0167] “…A copper foil (thickness 10 μm, width 10 mm) was prepared as an electrode...”)
Regarding claim 7, Morioka et al. further discloses a first support 14 adjacent to a side of the cured layer 12 on which the electrodes 30 are not provided, wherein an inherent light transmittance at a wavelength of 365 nm of the first support is 50% or less.
Regarding claim 9, Morioka et al. discloses that at least one of the first support 14 or the second support is a polyimide film (paragraph [0119] “….polyimide resin film…”).
Regarding claim 10, Morioka et al. discloses that at least one of the first support or the second support is a non-woven fabric or a woven fabric (paragraph [0119] “…woven fabric, knitted fabric, non-woven fabric…”).
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 2 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Morioka et al., as applied to claim 1 above, in view of Hasegawa et al. (WO2019189618). Morioka et al. discloses all of the claimed subject matter except that the cationic polymerizable compound is a compound that includes a cyclic ether group.
Hasegawa et al. teaches for an article with a conductive structure comprising: a cured layer 2 formed by curing a curable composition and that (claim 2) the cationic polymerizable compound is a compound that includes a cyclic ether group (paragraph [0008] and[0023]) for the purposes of obtaining a cured product of the sheet adhesive that is excellent in the curability and water vapor blocking properties of the sheet adhesive.
Since Morioka et al. and Hasegawa et al. are both in the same field of endeavor the purpose disclosed by Hasegawa et al. would have been recognized in the pertinent art of Morioka et al. It would have been obvious at a time before the invention was effectively filed to a person having ordinary skill in the art to modify the cured layer of Morioka et al. such that the cationic polymerizable compound is a compound that includes a cyclic ether group for the purposes of obtaining a cured product of the sheet adhesive that is excellent in the curability and water vapor blocking properties of the sheet adhesive.
Claim 8 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Morioka et al., as applied to claim 1 above, in view of Ito et al. (20180326697). Morioka et al. discloses all of the claimed subject matter except for a second support adjacent to a side of the cured layer on which the electrodes are provided, wherein a light transmittance at a wavelength of 365 nm of the second support is 50% or less.
Ito et al. teaches for an article with a conductive structure, comprising: a cured layer 12 formed by curing a curable composition; a conductive linear body fixed by the cured layer; and a pair of electrodes 44 placed so as to directly contact the conductive linear body and that there is (claim 8) a second support 34 adjacent to a side of the cured layer on which the electrodes are provided (Fig. 4), wherein an inherent light transmittance at a wavelength of 365 nm of the second support is 50% or less for the purposes of providing a sheet with high light transparency and low surface resistance capable of working with lower applied voltages (paragraph [0017]).
Since Morioka et al. and Ito et al. are both in the same field of endeavor the purpose disclosed by Ito et al. would have been recognized in the pertinent art of Morioka et al. It would have been obvious at a time before the invention was effectively filed to a person having ordinary skill in the art to modify the conductive structure of Morioka et al. to include a second support adjacent to a side of the cured layer on which the electrodes are provided, wherein a light transmittance at a wavelength of 365 nm of the second support is 50% or less for the purposes of providing a sheet with high light transparency and low surface resistance capable of working with lower applied voltages
Regarding claims 11, 12, and 14, Morioka et al. discloses a manufacturing method for the conductive structure comprising: a step of manufacturing a manufacturing intermediate 10 including a curable composition layer 12 that is a coating of a curable composition that contains a cationic polymerizable compound and a photocationic polymerization initiator, a conductive linear body 18 temporarily fixed by the curable composition layer, and a pair of electrodes 30 placed so as to directly contact the conductive linear body 18; a step of irradiating light on the curable composition layer 12 in the manufacturing intermediate, a step of affixing the curable composition layer 12 irradiated with the light to a support 14, and a step of placing a pair of electrodes 30 on the conductive linear body 18 so as to directly contact the conductive linear body. Morioka et al. is silent as to the order of the steps. However, it would have been obvious at a time before the invention was effectively filed to a person having ordinary skill in the art to order the steps as claimed as a matter of engineering expedience.
Prior Art
Prior art made of record but not relied upon is considered pertinent to Applicant's disclosure for showing other conductive structures with cured layers and electrodes.
Contact Information
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communication from the examiner should be directed to Thomas Lazo whose telephone number is (571) 272-4818. The examiner can normally be reached on Monday-Friday from 8:00 am to 4:30 pm.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner's supervisor Nathaniel Wiehe, can be reached on (571) 272-8648. The fax phone number for this Group is (571) 273-8300.
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/THOMAS E LAZO/Primary Examiner,
Art Unit 3745
December 13, 2025