DETAILED ACTION
Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status
1. The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
Information Disclosure Statement
2. The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 10/24/2023 and 6/2/2025 were filed timely. The submission is in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
3. 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.
4. 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.
(a)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
5. Claims 1-6 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) and rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by (US 2022/0251247 A1) to Hirata (hereinafter Hirata).
Hirata is directed toward methods for producing hollow resin particles. Hirata discloses at paragraph [0016] that the particle is hollow. Hirata discloses at paragraph [0076] that the monomer is may be an acrylate based monomer, which is the same material used by the Applicants and therefore should be identical in properties when submerged in an acetone bath. Hirata discloses at paragraph [0020] that the crosslinkable monomer contains a tri- or higher functional crosslinkable monomer having three or more polymerizable functional groups, and with respect to 100 parts by mass of a total amount of the polymerizable monomer in the mixture liquid, a total content of the crosslinkable monomer is from 60 parts by mass to 98 parts by mass, a content of the tri- or higher functional crosslinkable monomer is from 10 parts by mass to 98 parts by mass, which reads on Applicants range of 80 parts per mass of 100 parts monomer units. One skilled in the art would expect a highly crosslinked polymer to be solvent resistant because the crosslinking increases solvent resistance and thus would inherently have the properties to pass the immersion test. Hirata discloses at paragraph [0020] that the non-crosslinkable monomer is preferably 20 parts by mass or more, which reads on Applicants 2 to 20 parts by mass. Hirata discloses at paragraph [0167] that the void ratio is 80% or more, which reads on 50% or greater. Hirata discloses at paragraph [0162] that the particle diameter is 1-25 microns, which reads on Applicants range of 1-30 microns. Hirata discloses at paragraph [0175] that the hollow particles are made into a molded body. Hirata discloses each and every element as arranged in claims 1-6.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
6. 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.
7. 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.
8. Claims 1-6 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over (US 2022/0251247 A1) to Hirata (hereinafter Hirata).
Hirata is directed toward methods for producing hollow resin particles. Hirata discloses at paragraph [0016] that the particle is hollow. Hirata discloses at paragraph [0076] that the monomer is may be an acrylate based monomer, which is the same material used by the Applicants and therefore should be identical in properties when submerged in an acetone bath. Hirata discloses at paragraph [0020] that the crosslinkable monomer contains a tri- or higher functional crosslinkable monomer having three or more polymerizable functional groups, and with respect to 100 parts by mass of a total amount of the polymerizable monomer in the mixture liquid, a total content of the crosslinkable monomer is from 60 parts by mass to 98 parts by mass, a content of the tri- or higher functional crosslinkable monomer is from 10 parts by mass to 98 parts by mass, which reads on Applicants range of 80 parts per mass of 100 parts monomer units. One skilled in the art would expect a highly crosslinked polymer to be solvent resistant because the crosslinking increases solvent resistance and thus would inherently have the properties to pass the immersion test. Hirata discloses at paragraph [0020] that the non-crosslinkable monomer is preferably 20 parts by mass or more, which reads on Applicants 2 to 20 parts by mass. Hirata discloses at paragraph [0167] that the void ratio is 80% or more, which reads on 50% or greater. Hirata discloses at paragraph [0162] that the particle diameter is 1-25 microns, which reads on Applicants range of 1-30 microns. Hirata discloses at paragraph [0175] that the hollow particles are made into a molded body.
It would be obvious to one skilled in the art at the time of the filing of the disclosure of Hirata to select each and every element as arranged in claims to form a hollow particle from a cross linked acrylate polymers having resistance to solvents, which forms a prime facie case of obviousness for claims 1-6.
Conclusion
9. Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JEFFREY D WASHVILLE whose telephone number is (571)270-3262. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 9-5.
10. 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.
11. If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Randy Gulakowski can be reached at 571-272-1302. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
12. 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.
/JEFFREY D WASHVILLE/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1766