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 Interpretation
The examiner in interpreting the limitation “provided that a total amount of the urethane (meth) acrylate oligomer and the vinyl monomer is 100 mass %” in claims 2-3, 8-9, and 13-14 to mean the respective amounts of urethane (meth) acrylate oligomer and third monomer are 30 mass % or more and less than 20 mass %, respectively, relative to 100 mass % of the urethane (meth)acrylate oligomer and vinyl monomer components, i.e., relative to 100 mass % of the photocurable composition as claimed.
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) 1-5, 6-10, and 12-15 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a1) as being anticipated by Suzuki et al (WO2021/066073, wherein family member US 12,479,153 used for translation).
Suzuki sets forth resin compositions for stereolithography comprising a polymerizable compound (A) having a homopolymer having a glass transition temperature (Tg) of 37 deg. C or higher and (B) a photopolymerization initiator—see abstract. Suzuki sets forth said polymerizable compound (A) comprises a monofunctional polymerizable monomer (A1) having one polymerizable group, and/or a polyfunctional polymerizable monomer (A2) having two or more polymerizable groups, with a preferable homopolymer having a Tg of 60 deg C. or higher to even more preferably 250° C. or less—see col. 7, lines 1-6 and 25-28. Suzuki sets forth the resin composition additionally comprises a polymerizable compound (C) whose homopolymer has a Tg of less than 37 deg. C—see col. 11, lines 40-44. Said polymerizable compound (C) comprises a monofunctional or polyfunctional urethanized (meth)acrylic compound (C1) and a monofunctional or polyfunctional (meth)acrylic acid ester compound (C2) having no urethane bond—see col. 11, lines 34-60. Suzuki sets forth when (C1) is a polyfunctional urethanized (meth) acrylate the resin composition has desirable toughness and water resistance—see col. 11, lines 64-67. Suzuki, additionally, teaches to improve the toughness in the cured product the Tg of the homopolymer of polymerizable compound (C) is preferably 25° C. or less, more preferably 15° C. or less—see col. 12, lines 7-9.
Regarding claims 1-4, 7-10, and 12-16: Suzuki explicitly sets forth a resin composition comprising 30 mass % of pentamethyl piperidinyl methacrylate (Tg 105 deg. C: a monofunctional monomer having a Tg of 70 deg. C or more and 150 deg. C or less); 10 mass % of tricyclodecane dimethanol diacrylate; 10 mass % of tris (2-hydroxyethyl) isocyanurate triacrylate (a trifunctional (meth) acrylate monomer); 2.5 mass % of photoinitiator, TPO; 10 mass % of m-phenoxybenzyl acrylate (Tg = -35 deg. C: monofunctional monomer having a Tg of -100 deg. C or more and 10 deg. C or less); 40 mass % of an aliphatic urethane (meth) acrylate oligomer (C-1-2) and 1.0 mass % of BHT—see example 3 (claim 1). The composition comprises 40 mass % of an aliphatic urethane diacrylate oligomer and 10 mass % of the trifunctional (meth) acrylate monomer: tris (2-hydroxyethyl) isocyanurate triacrylate —claims 2-4.
Regarding claims 7-10 and 12-15: Suzuki sets forth fabricating the resin composition using a stereolithography method to obtain a 3D fabricated cured object—see col 23, lines 10-23. The cured product of the obtained stereolithography method which exposed the photocurable resin composition to selective layering and curing to obtain said 3D cured object, thus claims 7-10 and 12-15 are anticipated.
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.
Claim(s) 5, 11 and 16 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Suzuki (cited above).
Suzuki is deemed to anticipated the resin composition; cured product using said composition and method using said resin composition for the reasons set forth above. Suzuki explicitly set forth the third monomer is a compound represented by general formula (1) or formula (2) as defined in claims 5, 11 and 16. However, in the overall teachings of the reference Suzuki sets forth compound (A2) can be chosen from tri- and higher-functional (meth)acrylic acid ester compounds such as trimethylolpropane tri(meth)acrylate or pentaerythritol tri(meth)acrylate for providing desirable properties, such as strain recovery, water resistance and strength in the cured product—see col. 9, lines 34-36 and 44-47. Therefore, from the overall teachings of the reference, it is deemed a skilled artisan would have found it obvious to use a compound having the structure of claimed formula (1) and (2) with a reasonable expectation of obtaining a cured object having desirable strain recovery, water resistance and strength in absence of evidence to the contrary and/or unexpected results.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to SANZA L MCCLENDON whose telephone number is (571)272-1074. The examiner can normally be reached 8-5.
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/SANZA L. McCLENDON/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1765
SMc
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