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 Amendment
Withdrawn Rejections
The 35 U.S.C. 112(b) rejections of claims 1-15 are withdrawn due to Applicant’s amendment filed on December 5, 2025.
New Rejections
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.
Claims 1, 3-5, 7-15 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Tsujino (Clarivate Analytics English translation of JP-2007256501-A) in view of Miyatake (Clarivate Analytics English translation of JP-2011013684-A).
Regarding claim 1, Tsujino teaches an adhesive composition for polarizing plates (4th para of page 4) comprising: a polyvinyl alcohol-based resin (PVA-type resin, 3rd para of page 5), a crosslinking agent comprising polyethyleneimine (4th para of page 4) which has both a primary amine group (-NH2) and a secondary amine group (-NH) at terminals; and ethylene glycol diglycidyl ether which is an epoxy-based compound having an alkylene oxide group (Denacol EX810, 1st para of page 5), as evidenced by Nagase.
Nagase teaches that the commercially named Denacol EX810 (EX-810, bottom of page 1) is ethylene glycol diglycidyl ether (chemical name, top of page 2).
In addition, Tsujino teaches that in the crosslinking agent having a primary amine group and a secondary amine group at terminals (polyethyleneimine, 4th para of page 4), the primary amine group and/or the secondary amine group react with a hydroxyl functional group of the polyvinyl alcohol-based resin (PVA resin, last para of page 4). Tsujino fails to teach that the polyvinyl alcohol-based resin comprises an acetoacetyl group-containing polyvinyl alcohol-based resin.
However, Miyatake teaches that in an adhesive composition for polarizing plates (polarizing plate has an adhesive layer, 4th last para of page 6), the polyvinyl alcohol-based resin comprises an acetoacetyl group-containing polyvinyl alcohol-based resin, for the purpose of providing the desired durability (polyvinyl alcohol resin containing an acetoacetyl group, 3rd last para of page 6).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time, to have comprised an acetoacetyl group-containing polyvinyl alcohol-based resin, in the polyvinyl alcohol-based resin of the adhesive composition for polarizing plates of Tsujino, in order to obtain the desired durability, as taught by Miyatake.
Regarding claim 3, Tsujino teaches that the weight ratio of crosslinking agent (polyethyleneimine, adhesive 4, 3rd para of page 9): the epoxy-based compound having an alkylene group (water-soluble polyepoxy compound (Denacol EX-810, adhesive 4, 3rd para of page 9) is 1:1 (100 parts of a 7 wt% polyethyleneimine aqueous solution: 100 parts of a 7 wt% aqueous solution of a water-soluble polyepoxy(Denacol EX-810, adhesive 4, 3rd para of page 9).
Regarding claims 4 and 5, Tsujino, as evidenced by Nagase, teaches that the epoxy-based compound having an alkylene oxide group, comprises a compound represented by Chemical Formula 1 of Applicant, where R of the alkylene oxide group (-[-OR-]-) of Applicant is a linear C2 alkylene chain (the ethylene group of the ethylene glycol diglycidyl ether, Denacol EX810, 1st para of page 5), n of Applicant = 1, and R1 and R2 of Applicant = epoxide group-containing group (the diglycidyl ether of the ethylene glycol diglycidyl ether, Denacol EX810, 1st para of page 5).
Regarding claim 7, Tsujino teaches that when a content of the polyvinyl alcohol-based resin is normalized to 100 parts by weight in the adhesive composition (500 PVA/5 = 100, 4th para of page 6), a content of the crosslinking agent having a primary amine group and a secondary amine group can be 20 parts by weight (100 polyalkyleneimine/5, 4th para of page 6) which is within the claimed range of about 0.1 to about 50 parts by weight, such that the epoxy-based compound having an alkylene oxide group can be 4 parts by weight (20 parts of a water-soluble polyepoxy compound … blended with 100 parts of polyethylene imine, 2nd last para of page 8) which is within the claimed range of about 1 parts by weight to about 100 parts by weight, for the purpose of providing the desired adhesive strength to a polarizer comprising a PVA resin (PVA polarizer, 3rd para of page 5).
Regarding claim 8, Tsujino teaches a polarizing plate comprising a polarizer and a first protective film layer stacked on a lower surface of the polarizer (on both sides of the PVA polarizer, 2nd para of page 3) and a first bonding layer bonding the polarizer to the first protective film layer (adhesive of present invention can be used to bond a protective film on both sides of a PVA polarizer, 2nd para of page 3), wherein the first bonding layer comprises a bonding layer formed of the adhesive composition for polarizing plates (adhesive of present invention, 2nd para of page 3). Tsujino fails to teach that a first liquid crystal retardation layer is stacked on a lower surface of the polarizer, with the first bonding layer bonding the polarizer to the first liquid crystal retardation layer.
However, Miyatake teaches that a first retardation layer can be stacked on a lower surface of the polarizer to also serve as a protective film layer (so as to serve also as a transparent protective film, 1st para of page 10), where the first retardation layer can be a first liquid crystal retardation layer (4th para of page 8, a discotic liquid crystal tilt alignment layer is preferable, 1st para of page 10). A support layer can be removed, for the purpose of reducing the thickness and weight of the polarizing plate.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time, to have stacked a first liquid crystal retardation layer on the lower surface of the polarizer, in the polarizing plate of Tsujino, in order to obtain the desired optical retardation function, as taught by Miyatake, and further, to have done so without a support layer in-between, the first bonding layer bonding the polarizer to the first liquid crystal retardation layer, in order to reduce the thickness and weight of the polarizing plate.
Regarding claim 9, Miyatake teaches that the first liquid crystal retardation layer can comprise a mesogenic ring-containing liquid crystal compound (substituted cyclic compound unit, 3rd last para of page 8) which is most commonly an aromatic ring-containing liquid crystal compound, for the purpose of providing the desired optical retardation.
Regarding claim 10, Miyatake teaches that the polarizing plate can further comprise a second retardation layer formed on a lower surface of the first liquid crystal retardation layer, for the purpose of providing the desired resultant optical retardation effect (retardation plate … may be composed of … more retardation layers, para of plage 19), where the second retardation layer can be a second liquid crystal retardation layer (4th para of page 8, a discotic liquid crystal tilt alignment layer is preferable, 1st para of page 10) attached by a second bonding layer.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time, to have further formed a second liquid crystal retardation layer along with a second bonding layer on a lower surface of the first liquid crystal retardation layer, of the polarizing plate of Tsujino, as modified by Miyatake, in order to obtain the desired resultant optical retardation effect, as taught by Miyatake.
Regarding claim 11, Miyatake teaches that the second liquid crystal retardation layer can comprise a mesogenic ring-containing liquid crystal compound (substituted cyclic compound unit, 3rd last para of page 8) which is most commonly an aromatic ring-containing liquid crystal compound, for the purpose of providing the desired optical retardation.
Regarding claims 12-14, Tsujino, as modified by Miyatake, as evidenced by Nagase, teaches that the first bonding layer is formed of the adhesive composition for polarizing plates, as described above. Accordingly, the second bonding layer can also be formed of the adhesive composition for polarizing plates, comprising: a polyvinyl alcohol-based resin (PVA-type resin, 3rd para of page 5, Tsujino), a crosslinking agent comprising polyethyleneimine (4th para of page 4, Tsujino) which is an ethylene imine-based crosslinking agent which has both a primary amine group (-NH2) and a secondary amine group (-NH) at terminals; and ethylene glycol diglycidyl ether which is an epoxy-based compound having an alkylene oxide group (Denacol EX810, 1st para of page 5, Tsujino).
Regarding claim 15, Tsujino teaches an optical display device comprising the polarizing plate (liquid crystal display device, use of polarizing plate, 3rd last para of page 7).
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 should be directed to Sow-Fun Hon whose telephone number is (571)272-1492. The examiner is on a flexible schedule but can usually be reached during a regular workweek between the hours of 10:00 AM and 6:00 PM.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner's supervisor, Aaron Austin, can be reached at (571)272-8935. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is (571)273-8300.
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/Sophie Hon/
Sow-Fun Hon
Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1782