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 .
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.
Drawings
3. The drawings are objected to because the "FIG. 1" label of the single viewing cannot appear in the sheet. See 37 CFR 1.84(u)(1). Corrected drawing sheets in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(d) are required in reply to the Office action to avoid abandonment of the application. Any amended replacement drawing sheet should include all of the figures appearing on the immediate prior version of the sheet, even if only one figure is being amended. The figure or figure number of an amended drawing should not be labeled as “amended.” If a drawing figure is to be canceled, the appropriate figure must be removed from the replacement sheet, and where necessary, the remaining figures must be renumbered and appropriate changes made to the brief description of the several views of the drawings for consistency. Additional replacement sheets may be necessary to show the renumbering of the remaining figures. Each drawing sheet submitted after the filing date of an application must be labeled in the top margin as either “Replacement Sheet” or “New Sheet” pursuant to 37 CFR 1.121(d). If the changes are not accepted by the examiner, the applicant will be notified and informed of any required corrective action in the next Office action. The objection to the drawings will not be held in abeyance.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
4. 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.
5. Claims 1-20 are 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 1, which the other claims are dependent upon, recites “d3” (page 3) which is nowhere found in any one of Formula 5-1 to 5-9. Furthermore, d53 as found in the formulae is nowhere defined. The Applicant should ensure that all subscript variables found in Formulae 5-1 to 5-9 are fully defined in the claim.
Correction is required.
6. Claim 9 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.
The claim recites the subscript variable “d6a” in Formula 1A-1 which is nowhere defined. The Applicant should ensure that all subscript variables found in Formulae 1A-1 to 1A-12 are fully defined in the claim.
Correction is required.
7. Claim 9 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.
The claim recites that “the heterocyclic compounds represented by Formulae 1-1 to 1-12 each comprise at least one deuterium” (page 15) which renders the exact scope of the claim indefinite as “Formulae 1-1 to 1-12” are nowhere found. The Office has interpreted to formulae to refer to Formula 1A-1 to 1A-12 for the purpose of this Examination
Correction is required.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
8. 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.
9. Claims 1-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) and 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by Um et al. (US 2022/0112163 A1).
Um et al. discloses the following compound:
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(page 25) such that d5 = 0, k1 = 2, n2 = 0, d7 = 5, R7 = deuterium, n1 = 1, d3-4 = 0, d1-2 = 4, and R1-2 = deuterium of Applicant’s Formula 1A; d53 = 0, d75 = d75’ = 5, and R7 = deuterium of Applicant’s Formula 5-3; R31-34 = R41-42 = R44 = hydrogen and R11-14 = R21-24 = deuterium of Applicant’s Formula 3-1; d33 = d44 = 0, d14 = d24 = 4, and R1-2 = deuterium of Applicant’s Formula 1A-3; corresponds to 1-3 as recited in Claim 10. Um et al. further discloses an organic electroluminescent (EL) device comprising the following layers: anode, hole-injecting layer, hole-transporting layer, light-emitting layer, electron-transporting layer, electron-injecting layer, and cathode ([0108]-[0112]); its inventive compounds can comprise any of the layers, including the light-emitting layer ([0113]). The light-emitting layer comprises a host material and dopant material; its inventive compounds serve as host and/or dopant material ([0114]). The host material may also include compounds such as the following:
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(page 49). The dopant material includes phosphorescent and/or fluorescent materials ([0186]).
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
10. 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.
11. The factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness.
12. Claims 1-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Nagao et al. (WO 2012/153725 A1).
Examiner’s Note: The Office has relied on the national phase publication US 2014/0070204 A1 as the English equivalent of WIPO publication WO 2012/153725 A1 (herein referred to as “Nagao et al.”). Unless otherwise noted, all figure, page, and paragraph numbers referenced herein refer to numbers found in the national phase publication.
Nagao et al. discloses compounds of the following form:
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([0010]) where R1-8 = hydrogen or substituent such as the following ([0011]):
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where R51-59 = hydrogen or substituent, and any position of R51-59 is coupled to any of R1-8 of general formula (1) ([0013]); A is the following:
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([0011]) where R11 = hydrogen or substituted or unsubstituted aryl group (among others) ([0012]). Nagao et al. discloses that “hydrogen may be deuterium” among any of the substituents, or that hydrogen “included in the various kinds of substituents” may be deuterium ([0019], [0037]). An embodiment is disclosed:
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(page 41) such that n2 = 0, k1 = 2, and n1 = 1 of Applicant’s Formula 1A. However, Nagao et al. does not explicitly disclose a compound of Applicant’s Formula 1A, particularly in regards to the existence of deuterium. Nevertheless, it would have been obvious to modify compound [198] as disclosed by Nagao et al. (above) such that any one of R1-7 = deuterium (of any number) (corresponds to 1-8 as recited in Claim 10). The motivation is provided by the fact that the modification merely involves an exchange of one atom (hydrogen) for a functional equivalent (deuterium) selected from a highly finite class of possible substituent groups as envisioned by Nagao et al. (and explicitly suggested as possible avenue of modification); further motivation exists, as deuterium is merely an isotope of hydrogen with similar chemical and physical properties, thus rendering the production predictable with a reasonable expectation of success.
Nagao et al. further discloses an organic electroluminescent (EL) device comprising the following layers: anode, hole-injecting layer, hole-transporting layer, light-emitting layer, electron-transporting layer, electron-injecting layer, and cathode ([0060]); its inventive compounds can comprise any of the layers, including the hole-transporting layer and/or light-emitting layer ([0061]). The light-emitting layer (in the form of a single layer or a plurality of layers each) comprises a host material and dopant material ([0076]); an electron-transporting host material may be used ([0074]). The host material can be a mixture of compounds that include its inventive compounds; hosts include pyrimidine derivatives ([0078]). Nagao et al. discloses the use of fluorescent or phosphorescent dopant materials as emissive material ([0080]-[0081]).
Conclusion
13. Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JAY L YANG whose telephone number is (571)270-1137. The examiner can normally be reached Mon-Fri, 6am-3pm.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Jennifer A Boyd can be reached at 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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/JAY YANG/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1786
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