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 .
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) 1-20 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Oohashi (US 2006/0216642; IDS, 10/27/2023).
Oohashi discloses a lithographic printing plate precursor comprising a support and an image recording layer capable of drawing an image by exposure with an infrared laser, wherein the image recording layer comprises (A) an infrared absorbent and (B) an iodonium salt. (Para, 0023). Oohashi discloses the lithographic printing plate precursor may allow for printing by loading it on a printing press without passing through a development processing step after recording an image or by recording an image after loading it on a printing press. (Para, 0023). Oohashi discloses the lithographic printing plate precursor as described in any one of (1) to (4), wherein the image recording layer further comprises (C) a radical-polymerizable compound. (Para, 0027). These disclosures teach the limitation of claim 1, ‘An on-press development type planographic printing plate precursor comprising, in the following order: a support; an image-recording layer…and the image-recording layer comprises an infrared absorber…a polymerizable compound…’ Oohashi also discloses that in the lithographic printing plate precursor as described in any one of (1) to (6), at least one of the compounds (A) to (D) is enclosed in a microcapsule. (Para, 0029). This disclosure teaches the limitation of claim 13.
Oohashi discloses in the lithographic printing plate precursor of the present invention, an infrared absorbent is used so as to elevate the sensitivity to an infrared laser and it has a function of converting the absorbed infrared ray into heat. (Para, 0034). Oohashi disclose the infrared absorbent for use in the present invention is a dye or pigment having an absorption maximum at a wavelength of 760 to 1,200 nm. (Para, 0034). Oohashi discloses a dye such as azo dyes, metal complex salt azo dyes, pyrazolone azo dyes, naphthoquinone dyes, anthraquinone dyes, phthalocyanine dyes, carbonium dyes, quinoneimine dyes, methine dyes, cyanine dyes, squalium colorants, pyrylium salts, metal-thiolate complexes and the like may be used. (Para, 0036). Oohashi discloses Cyanine dye are preferred and illustrates it is represented by Formula (I). (Para, 0039-0044). These disclosure and the illustrations of Formula I teach the limitation of claims 17-18.
Oohashi discloses the radical-polymerizable compound (hereinafter sometimes simply referred to as a "polymerizable compound") which can be used in the present invention is an addition-polymerizable compound having at least one ethylenically unsaturated double bond and is selected from compounds having at least one, preferably two or more, ethylenically unsaturated bond(s). (Para, 0074). Oohashi discloses such compounds are widely known in this industrial field and these known compounds can be used in the present invention without any particular limitation. (Para, 0074). Oohashi discloses these compounds have a chemical mode such as monomer, prepolymer (that is, dimer, trimer or oligomer) or a mixture or copolymer thereof. (Para, 0074). Oohashi discloses examples of the monomer and its copolymer include an unsaturated carboxylic acid (e.g., acrylic acid, methacrylic acid, itaconic acid, crotonic acid, isocrotonic acid, maleic acid), and esters and amides thereof. (Para, 0074). Oohashi also discloses examples such as polyfunctional acrylates or methacrylates such as the polyester acrylates, the epoxy acrylates resulting from a reaction between an epoxy resin and a (meth)acrylic acid, or the like. (Para, 0083). These disclosures teach the limitation of claims 11-12.
Oohashi also discloses the lithographic printing plate precursor of the present invention, a radical-polymerization initiator can be used. (Para, 0095). Oohashi explains the radical-polymerization initiator for use in the present invention is a compound of generating a radical by the effect of light or heat energy or both energies. (Para, 0096). These disclosures teach the limitiaotn of claim 1, ‘An on-press development type planographic printing plate precursor comprising, in the following order: …and the image-recording layer comprises…a polymerization initiator...’ Oohashi discloses the radical-polymerization initiators disclosed may be used alone or two or more thereof may be used in combination. (Para, 0098). Oohashi discloses radical polymerization initiator may include, for example, an organic halogen compound, a carbonyl compound, organic peroxides, an azo-based compound, an azide compound, a metallocene compound, a hexaaryl biimidazole compound, an organic boron compound, a disulfone compound, an oxime ester compound and an onium salt compound. (Para, 0099). Oohashi also discloses examples of the organic boron compound such as organic boric acid salts may be used. (Para, 0106). These disclosures teach the limitation of claims 7-8. It also necessarily follows from these disclosures of Oohashi regarding the electron-donating polymerization initiator and the infrared absorber that the disclosures of Oohashi also teach the limitation of claims 9-10.
Oohashi also discloses a surfactant is preferably used in the image recording layer so as to accelerate the on-press development at the initiation of printing and enhance the coated surface state. (Para, 0149). Oohashi discloses the surfactant includes a nonionic surfactant, an anionic surfactant, a cationic surfactant, an amphoteric surfactant, a fluorine-containing surfactant and the like and one surfactant may be used alone or two or more surfactants may be used in combination. (Para, 0149). Oohashi discloses the nonionic surfactants used in the invention are not particularly limited and any known ones can be used including polyoxyethylene alkylethers, polyoxyethylene alkylphenylethers, polyoxyethylene polystyryl phenylethers, polyoxyethylene polyoxypropylene alkylethers, glycerin fatty acid partial esters, sorbitan fatty acid partial esters, pentaerythritol fatty acid partial esters, propylene glycol monofatty acid esters, sucrose fatty acid partial esters, polyoxyethylene sorbitan fatty acid partial esters polyoxyethylene sorbitol fatty acid partial esters, polyethylene glycol fatty acid esters, polyglycerin fatty acid partial esters, polyoxyethyleneated castor oils, polyoxyethylene glycerin fatty acid partial esters, fatty acid diethanol amides, N,N-bis-2-hydroxyalkylamines, polyoxyethylene alkylamine, triethanolamine fatty acid esters, trialkylamine oxide, polyethylene glycol, and copolymers of polyethylene glycol and polypropylene glycol. (Para, 0150). These disclosures teach the limitation of claim 1, ‘An on-press development type planographic printing plate precursor comprising, in the following order: …and the image-recording layer comprises… an oil agent.’ Moreover, these disclosures teach the limitation of claims 2-6.
Oohashi discloses the lithographic printing plate precursor of the invention may include a protective layer constructed on the image recording layer, for prevention of the occurrence of damage, etc. in the image recording layer, blocking of oxygen, and prevention of aberration upon exposure to a high illumination intensity laser. (Para 0240). Oohashi explains as the material used for the protective layer, examples may include water-soluble polymeric compounds having relatively high crystallinity such as water-soluble polymers such as polyvinyl alcohol, polyvinyl pyrrolidone, acidic celluloses, gelatin, gum Arabic, polyacrylic acid and the like. (Para, 0241). Oohashi discloses as other constituents of the protective layer, glycerin, dipropylene glycol may be added in an amount equivalent to several percent by mass with respect to the water-soluble polymeric compound, in order to impart flexibility, and anionic surfactants such as sodium alkyl sulfate, sodium alkyl sulfonate or the like; cationic surfactants such as alkylaminocarboxylic acid salts, alkylaminodicarboxylic acid salts or the like; and nonionic surfactants such as polyoxyethylene alkylphenyl ether or the like may be also added in an amount of several percent by mass with respect to the (co)polymer. (Para, 0246). These disclosures teach the limitiaotn of claim 1, ‘An on-press development type planographic printing plate precursor comprising, in the following order: …and an overcoat layer, wherein a content of an inorganic compound in the overcoat layer is zero or is more than 0% by mass and less than 1% by mass with respect to a total mass of the overcoat layer…’ and the limitation of claim 14.
Oohashi discloses, a compound capable of causing change in the color under the action of radical, a radical polymerization initiator and an infrared absorbent may be incorporated into the protective layer. (Para, 0250). Oohashi explains, incorporating these printout image-forming components into the protective layer is preferred because the printout image-forming reaction can be separated from the polymerization reaction system in the image recording layer and these reactions can be prevented from inhibiting each other. (Para, 0250). Oohashi also, discloses these printout image-forming components in the microencapsulated form into the protective layer is preferred and to strengthen the printout image, the printout image-forming components may be incorporated into both the protective layer and the image-forming layer. (Para, 0250). Oohashi further discloses, as for the compound of changing in the color under the action of a radical, a conventionally known leuco dye may be arbitrarily used. (Para, 0089). These disclosures teach the limitation of claims 15-16.
Oohashi discloses a lithographic printing method of the present invention, after the lithographic printing plate precursor of the present invention is imagewise exposed with an infrared laser as described above, printing is performed by supplying an oily ink and an aqueous component without passing through any development processing step. (Para, 0255). Oohashi discloses that specifically the includes exposing the lithographic printing plate precursor with an infrared laser, then loading it on a printing press without passing through a development processing step, and performing printing, and a method of loading the lithographic printing plate precursor on a printing press, exposing it with an infrared laser on the printing press, and performing printing without passing through a development processing step. (Para, 0256). Oohashi discloses in one embodiment of the negative on-press development-type lithographic printing plate precursor, when the lithographic printing plate precursor is imagewise exposed with an infrared laser and then printing is performed by supplying an aqueous component and an oily ink without passing through a development processing step such as wet development, the image recording layer cured by the exposure forms an oily ink-receiving part having a lipophilic surface in the exposed area of the image recording layer. (Para, 0257). Oohashi discloses on the other hand, in the unexposed area, the uncured image recording layer is removed by dissolving or dispersing in the supplied aqueous component and/or oily ink and the hydrophilic support surface in this portion is revealed. (Para, 0257). These disclosures teach the limitations of claim 19.
Oohashi discloses that as a result, the aqueous component adheres to the revealed hydrophilic surface and the oily ink adheres to the image recording layer in the exposed region, thereby initiating the printing. (Para, 0258). Oohashi explains, either the aqueous component or the oily ink may be first supplied to the plate surface, but the oily ink is preferably first supplied so as to prevent the aqueous component from being contaminated by the image recording layer in the unexposed area. (Para, 0258). Oohashi discloses a fountain solution and a printing ink for normal lithographic printing are used as the aqueous component and oily ink respectively. (Para, 0258). Oohashi discloses the lithographic printing plate precursor is on-press developed on an off-set printing press and used as-is for printing of a large number of sheets. (Para, 0259). These disclosures teach the limitations of claim 20.
Therefore, the recitations of claims 1-20 are anticipated by the disclosures and illustrations of Oohashi.
Conclusion
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/CALEEN O SULLIVAN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2899