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
Applicant’s election without traverse of Group I (claims 1-6) in the reply filed on 01/16/2026 is acknowledged.
Claims 7-11 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to a nonelected invention, there being no allowable generic or linking claim. Election was made without traverse in the reply filed on 01/16/2026.
Claim Objections
Claims 1-3 are objected to because of the following informalities:
In claim 1, in the paragraph starting with “(In formula 1…”, the parentheses language should be replaced with the language “…wherein, in formula 1…” instead.
In claims 2-3, “…in 5% of sulfuric acid aqueous solution…” should be “…in 5% concentration sulfuric acid aqueous solution…”.
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 1-6 are rejected as failing to define the invention in the manner required by 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, second paragraph.
The claims (in the instant case, claim 1) must be in one sentence form only.
Claims 2-6 are rejected as being dependent from claim 1.
Claim 6 is 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.
Claim 6 recites the limitation "the phosphate treatment" in line 2 of claim 6. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 1-5 would be allowable if 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.
Claim 6 would be allowable if rewritten 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 to include all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter: with regard to independent claim 1, the prior art does not anticipate or reasonably render obvious the cumulative limitations of the claim, with particular attention to the features of “the steel sheet has an oxide layer having a thickness of 10 nm or less inward from the surface of the steel sheet”, “contains cementite in an area fraction of 2% or more, and the balance of ferrite”, and satisfying formula 1, wherein formula 1 is ([Mn]+[Si]+[Al])/(3×[P])≤0.60, and wherein in formula 1, [Mn], [Si], [Al] and [P] mean the maximum amount of each element when elemental analysis is carried out in the thickness direction of the oxide layer.
Specifically, the applicant has demonstrated criticality of ranges; as can be seen in Table 1, Examples that satisfied the combination of Formula 1, the oxide layer thickness limitation of being 10 nm or less (as seen in Table 2), and containing cementite in an area fraction of 2% or more with a balance of ferrite, (as seen in Table 2), all were able to satisfy all three of the yield strength being sufficiently high (220-270 MPa), the 180° folding crack test being passed, and the phosphate particle major axis length property of being under 10 µm (as can be seen in Table 2). The comparative examples, which did not satisfy one or more of the oxide layer thickness limitation, the cementite limitation, or Formula 1, were not able to satisfy all three of the yield strength being sufficiently high (220-270 MPa), the 180° folding crack test being passed, and the phosphate particle major axis length property.
Examiner Note
In the interest of compact prosecution, if the applicant would like claims 7-11 to be rejoined, the applicant should amend claim 7 to include all of the limitations of claim 1 (e.g., recite “A method of manufacturing the steel sheet with excellent phosphatability according claim 1…” and correct all informalities, such as “phosphatability” spelling in claim 1, change “th” to “the” in claim 9, and claim 10 should be one sentence, not two.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Adil Siddiqui whose telephone number is (571)272-8047. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 10AM-6PM CST.
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/ADIL A. SIDDIQUI/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1735