DETAILED ACTION
The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
The office acknowledges the receipt of applicants’ response to restriction dated 07/06/2026.
Elected Species
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A search of the prior art did not show the elected species. As no claims where specifically drawn to applicants’ elected species in independent form, no claims have been indicated as allowable. Claims written in independent form which require all the limitations of the elected species along with any dependent claims which require all the limitations of the elected species would be allowable. Under MPEP 803.02, the search was expanded to find an examinable species.
Examinable Species
The examinable species is represented by Compound 1-0 (paragraph 122):
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Compound 1-0-CN reads on claims 1-4, 10-13, 17-20. Claim 5-9 and 14-16 are withdrawn from further consideration as not reading on the examinable species.
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.
Claims 1-4, 10-13, 17-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Ma (US 2013/0181190 A1).
Regarding Claims 1-4, 10-13, 17-20, Ma teaches an OLED containing a substrate 110, an anode 115, a hole injection layer 120, a hole transport layer 125, an electron blocking layer 130, an emissive layer 135, a hole blocking layer 140, an electron transport layer 145, an electron injection layer 150, a protective layer 155, and a cathode 160 (paragraph 37). The emissive layer contains an emissive layer and the compound is a non-emissive dopant The light emitting layer contains at least a metal complex as light emitting material (Compound 1-0) and may contain a host material using the metal complex as a dopant material (paragraph 83).
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Compound 1-0 shows Ring A =imidazole, RA = methyl, Z1 = N; Ring system B = dibenzofuranyl; Z2 = C; RB = H but lacks RB as a cyclic moiety or electron withdrawing group.
Compound 1-0 is derived from Generic Formula 1 (GF1) (paragraph 59):
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Compound 1-0 is a derived from GF1 wherein R1 = methyl; R2, R5-R6 = H; R4 = phenyl; R3 = H, M – Ir; RA = methyl; RB = H Ring a = pyridine; Ring B = dibenzofuran.
The R groups are defined by a finite set of options which are viewed as functionally equivalent and readily exchangeable whereby upon selection rises rise to obvious variants of GF, absent unexpected results.
One such variant reading on applicants’ Formula 1 is best viewed as a modification of Compound 1-0 wherein R3 as H is replaced with R3 as nitrile, Compound 1-0-CN:
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Je teaches various substituents options for R1-R18. Such groups are viewed as functional equivalent substituents which gives rise to obvious variants based on Generic Formula 1 (GF1).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the filing date of the invention to have made a variety of derivatives of generic GF1 by selecting various functional equivalent substituents which would have included the above variant which reads on the instant limitations, absent unexpected results (per claims 1-3, 17).
Ring B = dibenzofuran compasses
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, y = O (per claim 4).
Compound 1-0-CN =
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LA =
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, p =1; LB =
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, rq = 2; r = 0 (per claim 10).
Compound 1-0-CN =
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LA = 1; LB = 2 (LB = 2) (per claim 11).
LB =
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, Ra = methyl, Rb = H, K1 = single bond (per claim 12).
Compound 1-0-CN =
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La define above in treatment of claim 1; LBK, K = 1; LB =
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(per claim 13).
The host material for the emissive layer inlcudes
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(paragraph 30) (per claims 18-19).
The OLED of Ma is used in a consumer product (paragraph 27) (per claim 20).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to GREGORY D CLARK whose telephone number is (571)270-7087. The examiner can normally be reached on 8AM-4PM M-F.
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, Jennifer Chriss can be reached on 571-272-7783. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/GREGORY D CLARK/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1786
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