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 the restriction requirement dated 06/16/2026.
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 C (page 7):
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Compound C reads on claims 1-11, 14 and 17-20. Claims 12-13, 15-16 are withdrawn from further consideration as not reading on the examinable species.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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.
Claim(s) 1-11, 14, 17 and 20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Tamjima (US 2013/0161664 A1).
Regarding Claims 1-11, 14, Tamjima teaches a material represented by Compound C (page 7):
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Compound C reads on applicants’ iridium complex wherein LA = Ring A = pyridine, RA = H; the attached ring shows X5-X8 as C with two RB = F; Ring C = pyridine with two RC fused to form a phenyl ring; Ring D = phenyl. RD = H; p = 2; q = 1; r = 0, no LC present (per claims 1-9).
LA =
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one RAA = tert-butyl; two RBB = F remaining X(s) = C-H (per claims 10-11).
LB =
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RCC and RDD = H (per claim 14)
Regarding Claims 17 and 20, Tamjima teaches an OLED compassing a light-emitting layer between a first conductive layer and a second conductive layer (paragraph 27). The light-emitting layer includes the light-emitting material (Compound C) and a host material (paragraph 46) (per claim 17).
The OLED can be used in a lighting device (paragraph 79) (per claim 20).
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 18-19 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Tamjima (US 2013/0161664 A1) in view of Ma (US 2013/0181190 A1).
Regarding Claim 18-19, Tamjima teaches compassing a light-emitting layer between a first conductive layer and a second conductive layer (paragraph 27). The light-emitting layer includes the light-emitting material (Compound C) and a host material. The host material has charge transporting properties, and it is also preferable that the host material is a hole-transporting compound (paragraph 46). Tamjima fails to mention a specific host material.
Ma teaches an OLED wherein the host material for the emissive layer includes
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(paragraph 30).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the filing date of invention to have selected from known host materials which would have included the host material of Ma which reads on the instant limitations, absent unexpected results (per claims 18-19).
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.
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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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