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 with traverse of Invention I, corresponding to Claims 1 – 19, drawn to a toner and image forming apparatus, in the reply filed on 2025-11-28 is acknowledged.
Claim 20 is withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b), as being drawn to a nonelected Invention II, drawn to an image forming method, there being no allowable generic or linking claim. Applicant timely traversed the restriction (election) requirement in the reply filed on 2025-11-28.
Specification
The disclosure is objected to because of the following informalities: there is at least one typographical error in each of the condensed chemical formulae for quaternary ammonium salts in paragraph [0066] of the Specification. 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.
Claims 5, 6, and 15 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) as failing to set forth the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
Claims 5, 6, and 15 are indefinite for claiming the invention in terms of physical properties rather than the chemical or structural features that produce said properties. Claim 5 and Claim 6 recite limitations in terms of the intensity of molybdenum and silicon elements resulting from measurement of the silica particles by X-ray fluorescence analysis. This measurement is a physical property, and not a chemical or structural feature, of the claimed invention. Claim 15 is dependent on Claim 5.
Ex parte Slob, 157 USPQ 172, states, “Claims merely setting forth physical characteristics desired in an article, and not setting forth specific composition which would meet such characteristics, are invalid as vague, indefinite, and functional since they cover any conceivable combination of ingredients either presently existing or which might be discovered in the future and which would impart said desired characteristics.” Also, “it is necessary that the product be described with sufficient particularity that it can be identified so that one can determine what will and will not infringe.” Benger Labs, Ltd v. R.K. Laros Co., 135 USPQ 11, In re Bridgeford 149 USPQ 55, Locklin et al. v. Switzer Bros., Inc., 131 USPQ 294; furthermore, “Reciting the physical and chemical characteristics of the claimed product will not suffice where it is not certain that a sufficient number of characteristics have been recited that the claim reads only on the particular compound which applicant has invented.” Ex parte Siddiqui, 156 USPQ 426, Ex parte Davission et al., 133 USPQ 400, Ex parte Fox, 128 USPQ 157.
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.
This application currently names joint inventors. In considering patentability of the claims the examiner presumes that the subject matter of the various claims was commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the claimed invention(s) absent any evidence to the contrary. Applicant is advised of the obligation under 37 CFR 1.56 to point out the inventor and effective filing dates of each claim that was not commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the later invention in order for the examiner to consider the applicability of 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(2)(C) for any potential 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) prior art against the later invention.
Claims 1 - 16 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kudo et al (JP 2001-194825) in view of Sakai et al (JP 2005-202132), further in view of Zenitani et al (JP 2021-151944) (machine translations of which referred to henceforth).
Kudo teaches silica fine particles used as an external additive for a toner ([0008]), and a toner bearing the externally added silica particles ([0050], [0061]). Kudo teaches that the silica fine particles comprise hydrophobic silica fine particles treated with an agent selected from a group containing at least quaternary ammonium salts ([0009]). The silica particles may be prepared by the sol-gel method ([0012]), and they may be made hydrophobic by treatment with an alkyltrialkoxysilane (trifunctional silane) ([0012], [0019]). The hydrophobized silica particles may also be treated with a quaternary ammonium salt ([0026]).
Sakai teaches a toner comprising toner particles comprising at least a binder resin, a colorant, a release agent, and an external additive ([0015]). The external additive includes large-diameter particles which are surface-treated with a charge control agent ([0015]). Sakai teaches that externally added particles surface-treated with a charge control agent stabilize charging, thereby improving the fluidity, charging properties, developability, transferability, cleaning properties, and fixing of the toner ([0020]).
The externally added particles may be inorganic particles, and silica is pointed out as an example ([0025]). Sakai describes a method of pre-treating the particles with an alkoxysilane or polysiloxane before treatment with the charge control agent, resulting in more uniform treatment of the particles with the charge control agent ([0027]). Sakai gives as examples of alkoxysilane treatment agents methyltrichlorosilane, octyltrichlorosilane, and octyltrimethoxysilane ([0030]). It is preferable to add 0.15 – 45 parts by mass of alkoxysilane surface treatment agent relative to 100 parts of inorganic particles to be treated ([0033]).
A charge control agent is then added to the particles that have been treated with the alkoxysilane agent ([0034]). Sakai points out quaternary ammonium salts as preferable charge control agents ([0035]). The charge control agent is preferably added in an amount of 3 – 30 parts by mass relative to 100 parts of particles to be treated, which ensures a resultant content of 0.1 – 10% by mass of the charge control agent in the treated particles ([0038]). Sakai describes a heating and drying step in which the treated particles are heated at 40 - 150°C, resulting in conversion of the alkoxysilane treatment agent into an organosilane reaction product ([0039]).
Neither of Kudo or Sakai appears to teach TP-415 as a quaternary ammonium salt to be used in the surface-treatment of silica particles.
Zenitani teaches silica particles which may be used as additives to improve the fluidity of powders ([0002]). The silica particles of Zenitani contain a quaternary ammonium salt ([0008]). Zenitani points out that silica particles tend to have high capacitance, leading to the accumulation of static electricity ([0022]), an effect which can be suppressed by the presence of the quaternary ammonium salt on the surface of the silica particles ([0024]). Zenitani teaches that TP-415 is a preferable quaternary ammonium salt for use as a surface treatment agent for the silica particles ([0041]), the same agent used in the present invention, which contains molybdenum. In addition, the molybdate anion is given as an optional counteranion contained alongside the quaternary ammonium ([0063]). Zenitani teaches that in the step of treating the silica particles with the quaternary ammonium treatment agent, the amount of quaternary ammonium salt is preferably 0.5 – 10% by mass relative to the mass of silica particles ([0087]).
The example silica particles 1 - 9 of the instant application are prepared from 258 parts by mass of TMOS (Specification, [0254] and Table 1), which would convert to roughly 101.8 parts of silica particles.
258
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152
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S
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=
101.8
p
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Those example silica particles are coated with 10 parts by mass of MTMS (Specification, [0255] and Table 1), or roughly 9.8 parts of MTMS per 100 parts of silica particles.
10
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This ratio lies in the range for alkoxysilane treatment amount taught by Sakai.
The example silica particles 1 – 9 of the instant application are also treated with 2.5 – 5.0 parts by mass of TP-415 (Specification, [0256] and Table 1), or roughly 2.45 – 4.91 parts of TP-415 per 100 parts of silica particles.
2.5
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415
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100
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101.8
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415
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5.0
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415
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101.8
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415
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This range overlaps the range for quaternary ammonium salt treatment amount taught by Sakai.
Example silica particles 1 – 9 of the instant application all possess a value for the abundance ratio of molybdenum lumps of 4.5% or less (Specification, Table 2).
In preparing the toner of Kudo, one of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to improve the fluidity, charging properties, developability, transferability, cleaning properties, and fixing of the toner by adopting the surface treatment method for externally added silica particles taught by Sakai. In addition, one of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to reduce the capacitance of the silica particles and suppress the accumulation of static electricity by the silica particles by incorporating TP-415 as the quaternary ammonium salt, as taught by Zenitani. These silica particles would have a surface bearing the reaction product of a trifunctional silane coupling agent, wherein a nitrogen- and molybdenum-containing compound (TP-415) is adhered to said reaction product. Such silica particles, being produced and surface-treated with the same agents in similar amounts and by similar methods to those used to prepare Example silica particles 1 - 9, would inherently possess similar values for the abundance ratio of molybdenum lumps. Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the instant application to prepare the silica particles of Kudo, surface-treated by the method taught by Sakai, and incorporating the nitrogen- and molybdenum-containing compound of Zenitani, resulting in silica particles having a value for the ratio of the total area of lumps having a long diameter of 500 nm or more to the total area of a molybdenum element map created by SEM-EDX satisfying the inequality stated in Claim 1.
As mentioned above, TP-415 is a quaternary ammonium salt containing a molybdenum element, satisfying Claim 2. TP-415 is the same as the compound with the CAS Registry Number 117342-25-3, satisfying Claim 3.
Sakai teaches alkyl(methoxy)silanes as hydrophobic treatment agents for the silica particles ([0030]), and Kudo teaches methyl(trimethoxy)silane among other alkyl(trialkoxy)silanes as surface-treatment agents for silica particles ([0019]), satisfying Claim 4.
Example silica particles 1 – 9 of the instant application possess values for NMo/NSi lying in the range 0.21 – 0.44 (Specification, Table 2). The silica particles of Kudo, surface-treated by the method taught by Sakai, and incorporating the nitrogen- and molybdenum-containing compound of Zenitani, being produced and surface-treated with the same agents in similar amounts and by similar methods to those used to prepare Example silica particles 1 – 9 (see discussion above), would inherently possess similar values for the ratio NMo/NSi, lying in the range stated in Claim 5.
The example silica particles 1 – 9 of the instant application are also treated with 2.5 – 3.8 parts by mass of TP-415 (Specification, [0256] and Table 1), or roughly 2.45 – 3.73 parts of TP-415 per 100 parts of silica particles.
2.5
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101.8
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3.8
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These example silica particles also possess values for NMo/NSi lying in the range 0.21 – 0.33 (Specification, Table 2). This range overlaps the range for quaternary ammonium salt treatment amount taught by Sakai. Therefore, the silica particles of Kudo, surface-treated by the method taught by Sakai, and incorporating the nitrogen- and molybdenum-containing compound of Zenitani, being produced and surface-treated with the same agents in similar amounts and by similar methods to those used to prepare Example silica particles 1 – 5 (see discussion above), would inherently possess similar values for the ratio NMo/NSi, overlapping the range stated in Claim 6.
Example silica particles 1 – 9 of the instant application possess values for B/A lying in the range 3.4 – 4.1, and values for B lying in the range 0.94 – 1.2 cm3/g (Specification, Table 2). The silica particles of Kudo, surface-treated by the method taught by Sakai, and incorporating the nitrogen- and molybdenum-containing compound of Zenitani, being produced and surface-treated with the same agents in similar amounts and by similar methods to those used to prepare Example silica particles 1 – 9 (see discussion above), would inherently possess similar values for B/A and B, lying inside the ranges stated in Claim 7.
Kudo teaches a preferred particle size of the inorganic fine particles of 10 – 5,000 nm ([0025]), and Zenitani teaches a preferred average particle diameter for the silica particles of 5 – 300 nm ([0053]), each of which encompass the range stated in Claim 8.
Example silica particles 1 – 9 of the instant application possess values for the particle size distribution index in the range of 1.10 – 1.18 (Specification, Table 2). The silica particles of Kudo, surface-treated by the method taught by Sakai, and incorporating the nitrogen- and molybdenum-containing compound of Zenitani, being produced and surface-treated with the same agents in similar amounts and by similar methods to those used to prepare Example silica particles 1 – 9 (see discussion above), would inherently possess similar values for the particle size distribution index, lying inside the range stated in Claim 9.
Zenitani teaches a preferred average circularity of silica particles of 0.65 – 0.90, overlapping the range stated in Claim 10.
As mentioned above, Kudo teaches a toner comprising externally added silica particles, satisfying Claims 11 – 15.
Kudo teaches that the toner described above may be used as a one-component developer, or may be mixed with a carrier for use as a two-component developer, satisfying Claim 16.
Claims 17 - 19 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kudo et al (JP 2001-194825) in view of Sakai et al (JP 2005-202132), further in view of Zenitani et al (JP 2021-151944), further in view of Tanabe et al (JP 2018-159864) (machine translations of which referred to henceforth).
The above discussions of Kudo, Sakai, and Zenitani are incorporated herein.
None of Kudo, Sakai, or Zenitani appear to teach a toner cartridge, a process cartridge, or an image forming apparatus.
Tanabe discloses a developer, which may be a one-component or two-component developer ([0114]), and a toner cartridge, a process cartridge, and an image forming apparatus ([0001]) which may be used with the toner or developer.
Tanabe teaches a toner cartridge which contains the toner, and which is detachable from an image forming apparatus ([0142]). In the absence of an apparatus taught by Kudo, Sakai, or Zenitani, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the instant application to use the toner of Kudo having silica particles surface-treated by the method taught by Sakai, and incorporating the nitrogen- and molybdenum-containing compound of Zenitani, with the toner cartridge of Tanabe, satisfying Claim 17.
Tanabe teaches a process cartridge which contains the developer; which comprises a developing unit which develops an electrostatic image formed on an electrostatic image holding member; and which is detachable from an image forming apparatus ([0138]), satisfying Claim 18.
Tanabe describes an image forming apparatus comprising an image holding member, a charging unit, an electrostatic charge image forming unit, a developing unit which contains the developer and develops an electrostatic image held on the image holding member, a transfer unit, a cleaning unit, and a fixing unit ([0120]), satisfying Claim 19.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Grant S Seiler whose telephone number is (571)272-3015. The examiner can normally be reached 9:30 - 5:30 Pacific.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Jonathan Johnson can be reached at 571-272-1177. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/GRANT STEVEN SEILER/ Examiner, Art Unit 1734
/PETER L VAJDA/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1737 02/05/2026