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 of Species
Applicant’s election of the following species of formula (3-2) from paragraph 2(B)
PNG
media_image1.png
310
431
media_image1.png
Greyscale
in the reply filed on 11 March 2026 is acknowledged. Because applicant did not distinctly and specifically point out the supposed errors in the restriction requirement, the election has been treated as an election without traverse (MPEP § 818.01(a)).
The Examiner notes that applicants did not full respond to the requirement of the selection for ONE identified substituent for each of R2, as in paragraph 2(B1), and/or R3, as in paragraph 2(B2).
Claim Objections
Claim 6 is objected to because of the following informalities: some of the bonds (single vs. double), heteroatoms, and/or substituents in the recited formulae are not clearly discernible. Appropriate correction is required.
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 1-9 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.
Claims 1-6 are rejected as being vague and indefinite when they each recite a
“tetrahydronaphthalene-based organic compound” (emphasis added); the scope of the protection sought is not clear. Regarding claims 1-6, the phrase "tetrahydronaphthalene-based" renders the claims indefinite because the claims include not actually disclosed (those encompassed by "based"), thereby rendering the scope of the claim(s) unascertainable. See MPEP § 2173.05(d). Claim 1 fails to particularly point out and distinctly claim an organic compound represented by formula I, characterized by containing a tetrahydronaphthalene group. Claims 7-9 are similarly rejected as being vague and indefinite when they each recite a “tetrahydronaphthalene-based organic compound” (emphasis added);
Claim 3 is rejected as being vague and indefinite when it recites the general formulae (3-1) through (3-4); the scope of the protection sought is not clear, as claim 3 fails to particularly point out and distinctly claim the definition of the substituents R2, R3, and/or n2 therein the compounds of formulae (3-1) through (3-4).
Claim 9 is rejected as being vague and indefinite when it recites formula (1) and the substituent definition; the scope of the protection sought is not clear, since the claim is dependent upon claim 8 which already recites that the claimed device contains the compound according to claim 1. Claim 9 fails to particularly point out and distinctly claim the contents of the claimed electronic device, i.e., simply that that the claimed device comprises at least one light-emitting layer comprising the tetrahydronaphthalene organic compound of formula (1) according to claim 1.
Rejoinder
The species elected formula (3-2) is allowable. Pursuant to the procedures set forth in MPEP § 821.04(a), the election of species requirement as set forth in the Office action mailed on 22 January 2026, is hereby withdrawn and all species are hereby rejoined and fully examined for patentability under 37 CFR 1.104. In view of the withdrawal of the election of species requirement, applicant(s) are advised that if any claim presented in a divisional application is anticipated by, or includes all the limitations of, a claim that is allowable in the present application, such claim may be subject to provisional statutory and/or nonstatutory double patenting rejections over the claims of the instant application. Once the election of species requirement is withdrawn, the provisions of 35 U.S.C. 121 are no longer applicable. See In re Ziegler, 443 F.2d 1211, 1215, 170 USPQ 129, 131-32 (CCPA 1971). See also MPEP § 804.01.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims rewritten or amended to overcome the rejection(s) under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), 2nd paragraph, set forth in this Office action, AND limited to any one of the compounds of the elected compound of the present formula (3-2), and/or the following formulae (3-1), (3-3), and/or (3-4), would be allowable:
PNG
media_image2.png
304
420
media_image2.png
Greyscale
PNG
media_image3.png
300
421
media_image3.png
Greyscale
and/or
PNG
media_image4.png
281
423
media_image4.png
Greyscale
.
Prior Art
The following prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant’s disclosure:
U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2024/0074305, which is the pre-grant publication corresponding to the present application.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Geraldina Visconti whose telephone number is (571)272-1334. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday, 8:00am-4:30pm.
Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Mark F Huff can be reached at 571-272-1385. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000.
GERALDINA VISCONTI
Primary Examiner
Art Unit 1737
/GERALDINA VISCONTI/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1737
Prosecution Insights