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
Claim 73-74 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to a nonelected group, there being no allowable generic or linking claim. Election was made without traverse in the reply filed on 12/19/2025.
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) 34, 38, 39, 41-43, 71, 72, 77, 80 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Garmshausen (US 2022/0305723 A1) in view of Matheu (US 2020/0063093 A1) and Converse (US 2021/0213675 A1).
Regarding claim 34, Garmshausen meets the claimed method of printing one or more three-dimensional objects, (a process for local polymerization of a starting material by means of dual color photopolymerization is provided [0023]) the method comprising: providing a volume of a photopolymerizable liquid in a container configured to contain a volume of a photopolymerizable liquid, (local volume is provided that, by absorption of a photon of the first wavelength, the photoinitiator molecules are converted from an initial state, in which the photoinitiator molecules do not substantially absorb the light of the second wavelength, to an intermediate state with optical properties different from those of the initial state [0024]) the container including one or more printing zones, (see Fig. 2) wherein a printing zone is configured to facilitate directing at least two excitation light projections into the printing zone to form a three-dimensional printed object within the volume of photopolymerizable liquid in the printing zone, (which is simultaneously irradiated both by light from a first light source 20, 30 and light from a second light source 25, 35, Fig. 2, [0136]) wherein the photopolymerizable liquid comprises a photohardenable component and a photoswitchable photoinitiator, (a process for local polymerization of a starting material by means of dual color photopolymerization is provided [0023]) the wherein the photoswitchable photoinitiator is activatable by exposure to a first excitation light including a first wavelength and light having a second excitation light including second wavelength to induce a crosslinking or polymerization reaction in the photohardenable component, wherein the first and second wavelengths are different, (local volume is provided that, by absorption of a photon of the first wavelength, the photoinitiator molecules are converted from an initial state, in which the photoinitiator molecules do not substantially absorb the light of the second wavelength, to an intermediate state with optical properties different from those of the initial state [0024]) directing the at least two excitation light projections into the printing zone to selectively photopolymerize the photopolymerizable liquid at one or more selected locations in the printing zone. (which is simultaneously irradiated both by light from a first light source 20, 30 and light from a second light source 25, 35, Fig. 2, [0136]).
Garmshausen is silent on wherein the photopolymerizable composition displays non- Newtonian rheological behavior.
Matheu teaches wherein the photopolymerizable composition displays non- Newtonian rheological behavior. Matheu teaches a solution may be doped with additional chemical and/or biological components, with or without expressed chemical or biological activity, to alter the solution behavior such that it is non-Newtonian. Such behavior may be particularly useful in the instances of shear thinning properties, wherein media becomes less viscous upon experiencing shear force, or thixotropic media, wherein media becomes less viscous with vibration or shaking, [0353].
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the present application to combine the rheology modifiers and non-Newtonian fluid properties of Matheu with the 3D printing photohardenable material of Garmshausen in order to obtain a media that may exhibit improved, better controlled draining during media replacement.
Garmshausen is silent on the container including an exit port, the exit port facilitating discharge of photopolymerizable liquid and one or more of any printed three-dimensional objects contained therein from the container, and discharging the photopolymerizable liquid and any printed objects contained therein out of the container.
Converse teaches the container including an exit port, the exit port facilitating discharge of photopolymerizable liquid and one or more of any printed three-dimensional objects contained therein from the container, and discharging the photopolymerizable liquid and any printed objects contained therein out of the container. (Converse teaches additive manufacturing where (b) producing (12) an intermediate object by light polymerization, [0046], followed by (c) separating where centrifugal separation in an enclosed chamber is currently preferred, where the collected excess resin can be drained, continuously or in a batch-wise fashion, from the enclosed chamber. When centrifugal separation is employed, the objects can be retained on their build platforms and those build platforms mounted on a rotor for spinning; [0055]).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to combine the separating steps of Converse with the additive manufacturing steps of Garmshausen to reduce waste of resin, and avoid the need to discard resin, see [0004].
Regarding claim 38, Garmshausen as modified meets the claimed method of claim 34 wherein the at least two excitation light projections are selectively directed into the printing zone to selectively photopolymerize the photopolymerizable liquid at one or more selected locations in the printing zone to form a printed object without support structures. (No support structures are required, which saves material and allows for the fabrication of soft and fragile products. [0035])
Regarding claim 39, Garmshausen as modified meets the claimed method of claim 38 wherein the printed object remains at a fixed position or is minimally displaced in the unpolymerized photopolymerizable liquid during formation. (Garmshausen indirectly teaches a fixed position, see Fig. 2, simultaneously irradiated both by light from a first light source 20, 30 and light from a second light source 25, 35, Fig. 2, [0136]).
Regarding claim 41, Garmshausen as modified meets the claimed method of claim 34 further including separating any printed objects from unpolymerized photopolymerizable liquid included in the discharged contents. (Garmshausen teaches the residual uncured resin is removed to obtain the shaped body, which is further washed with solvent and post-cured, [0365]. Examiner notes that “washed” meet the claimed step.)
Regarding claim 42, Garmshausen as modified meets the claimed method of claim 41 further comprising recirculating the discharged unpolymerized photopolymerizable liquid after separation of any printed objects to a reservoir. (Converse teaches blending the excess resin back into the resin apparatus, see Fig. 1).
Regarding claim 43, Garmshausen as modified meets the claimed method of claim 39 wherein minimally displaced comprises displacing the printed object by an amount that is acceptable for precisely reproducing the geometry of the object to be printed during time intervals required to form the object. (Garmshausen teaches Application of the disclosed dual color photoinitiators in a polymerizable mixture allows fast volumetric printing with high resolution. No support structures are required, which saves material and allows for the fabrication of soft and fragile products, see [0035]).
Regarding claim 71, Garmshausen as modified meets the claimed method of claim 34 further comprising post-treating printed parts after separation from unpolymerized photopolymerizable liquid. (Garmshausen teaches washed and post-cured, [0365]).
Regarding claim 72, Garmshausen as modified meets does not meet the claimed method of claim 34 further comprising inspecting printed parts after formation.
Converse teaches [0059] Testing. The physical properties of objects produced by the present invention can be determined and compared in accordance with known techniques.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the present application to combine the testing/inspecting step of Converse with the additive manufacturing process of Garmshausen because it ensures uniformity and consistency of objects produced, see Converse [0059].
Regarding claim 77, Garmshausen as modified meets the claimed method of claim 34 wherein the photopolymerizable liquid further includes a coinitiator. (3-10 wt % of co-initiator [0096])
Regarding claim 80, Garmshausen as modified meets the claimed method of claim 34 further including a separation step comprising lowering the apparent viscosity of the non-Newtonian photopolymerizable liquid including the one or more 3D objects to a value below the static value such that the unhardened photopolymerizable liquid flows off or separates from the one or more 3D objects.
Examiner notes that the instant specification discloses “apparent viscosity is lowered to a value below the static value by application of force or stress, e.g., by tapping, shaking, vibrating, sonicating” [0067]. Matheu teaches non-Newtonian behavior may be particularly useful in the instances of shear thinning properties, wherein media becomes less viscous upon experiencing shear force, or thixotropic media, wherein media becomes less viscous with vibration or shaking, [0353]. Converse teaches (c) separating where centrifugal separation in an enclosed chamber is currently preferred, where the collected excess resin can be drained, [0055]. Examiner finds that the centrifugal separation force of Converse and non-Newtonian liquid of Matheu results in force that lowers the apparent viscosity of the resin.
Claim(s) 55, 60, 78, 82, is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Garmshausen (US 2022/0305723 A1) in view of Matheu (US 2020/0063093 A1) and Doyle (US 2007/0105972 A1).
Regarding claim 55, Garmshausen meets the claimed method of printing one or more three-dimensional objects, (a process for local polymerization of a starting material by means of dual color photopolymerization is provided [0023]) the method comprising: providing a volume of a photopolymerizable liquid ( curable composition 24, 34, Fig. 2 and 3, [0136]) in the container including at least one printing zone comprising at least an optically transparent window (a transparent container 22, Fig. 2, [0136]) to facilitate directing at least two excitation light projections into the printing zone through the at least an optically transparent window, wherein the photopolymerizable liquid comprises a photohardenable component and a photoswitchable photoinitiator, (a process for local polymerization of a starting material by means of dual color photopolymerization is provided [0023]) wherein the photoswitchable photoinitiator is activatable by exposure to a first excitation light including a first wavelength and light having a second excitation light including second wavelength to induce a crosslinking or polymerization reaction in the photohardenable component, (local volume is provided that, by absorption of a photon of the first wavelength, the photoinitiator molecules are converted from an initial state, in which the photoinitiator molecules do not substantially absorb the light of the second wavelength, to an intermediate state with optical properties different from those of the initial state [0024]) wherein the first and second wavelengths are different, directing the at least two excitation light projections through the at least one optically transparent window (a transparent container 22, Fig. 2, [0136]) into the printing zone to selectively photopolymerize the photopolymerizable liquid in the printing zone without support structures to form a printed object, (local volume is provided that, by absorption of a photon of the first wavelength, the photoinitiator molecules are converted from an initial state, in which the photoinitiator molecules do not substantially absorb the light of the second wavelength, to an intermediate state with optical properties different from those of the initial state [0024]) wherein the printed object remains at a fixed position or is minimally displaced in the unpolymerized photopolymerizable liquid during formation. (which is simultaneously irradiated both by light from a first light source 20, 30 and light from a second light source 25, 35, Fig. 2, [0136]).
Matheu teaches wherein the photopolymerizable composition displays non- Newtonian rheological behavior. Matheu teaches a solution may be doped with additional chemical and/or biological components, with or without expressed chemical or biological activity, to alter the solution behavior such that it is non-Newtonian. Such behavior may be particularly useful in the instances of shear thinning properties, wherein media becomes less viscous upon experiencing shear force, or thixotropic media, wherein media becomes less viscous with vibration or shaking, [0353].
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the present application to combine the rheology modifiers and non-Newtonian fluid properties of Matheu with the 3D printing photohardenable material of Garmshausen in order to obtain a media that may exhibit improved, better controlled draining during media replacement.
Garmshausen does not teach a container including an entry port and an exit port, the entry port and the exit port being connected by a flow path therebetween, and applying pressure to the contents of the container and/or pumping additional photopolymerizable liquid into the container through the entry port to at least transport the printed object out of the printing zone toward the exit port, thereby discharging at least a portion of contents of the container out of the container through the exit port.
Doyle teaches a container including an entry port (monomer stream 15 enters device 10, Fig 1A, [0031]) and an exit port, (output monomer stream 36 exits device 10, Fig. 1A) the entry port and the exit port being connected by a flow path therebetween (flow path depicted in Fig. 1A) and applying pressure to the contents of the container and/or pumping additional photopolymerizable liquid (flow rate of the monomer stream can be controlled by, e.g., syringe pump operation, [0073]) into the container through the entry port to at least transport the printed object out of the printing zone toward the exit port, (Fig. 1A) thereby discharging at least a portion of contents of the container out of the container through the exit port. (output monomer stream 36, which includes a population 38 of polymerized microstructures, Fig. 1A, [0038]).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the present application to combine pump operation and exit and entry ports of Doyle with the additive manufacturing device of Garmshausen because it achieves a high-throughput technique that enables superior control over microstructure geometry, shape, composition, and anisotropy, see [0009].
Regarding claim 60, Garmshausen as modified meets the claimed method of claim 55 wherein the photopolymerizable liquid further includes a coinitiator. (3-10 wt % of co-initiator [0096])
Regarding claim 78, Garmshausen as modified meets the claimed method of claim 55 further comprising post-treating printed parts after separation from unpolymerized photopolymerizable liquid. (Garmshausen teaches washed and post-cured, [0365])
Regarding claim 82, Garmshausen as modified meets the claimed method of claim 55 further including a separation step comprising lowering the apparent viscosity of the non-Newtonian photopolymerizable liquid including the one or more 3D objects to a value below the static value such that the unhardened photopolymerizable liquid flows off or separates from the one or more 3D objects. Examiner notes that the instant specification discloses “apparent viscosity is lowered to a value below the static value by application of force or stress, e.g., by tapping, shaking, vibrating, sonicating” [0067]. Matheu teaches non-Newtonian behavior may be particularly useful in the instances of shear thinning properties, wherein media becomes less viscous upon experiencing shear force, or thixotropic media, wherein media becomes less viscous with vibration or shaking, [0353]. Converse teaches (c) separating where centrifugal separation in an enclosed chamber is currently preferred, where the collected excess resin can be drained, [0055]. Examiner finds that the centrifugal separation force of Converse and non-Newtonian liquid of Matheu results in force that lowers the apparent viscosity of the resin.
Claim(s) 56, 57, 79 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Garmshausen (US 2022/0305723 A1) in view of Matheu (US 2020/0063093 A1) and Doyle (US 2007/0105972 A1) and in further view of Converse (US 2021/0213675 A1).
Regarding claim 56, Garmshausen as modified meets the claimed method of claim 55 but does not teach further comprising separating any printed objects from unpolymerized photopolymerizable liquid included in the discharged contents.
Converse teaches further comprising separating any printed objects from unpolymerized photopolymerizable liquid included in the discharged contents. (Converse teaches additive manufacturing where (b) producing (12) an intermediate object by light polymerization, [0046], followed by (c) separating where centrifugal separation in an enclosed chamber is currently preferred, where the collected excess resin can be drained, continuously or in a batch-wise fashion, from the enclosed chamber. When centrifugal separation is employed, the objects can be retained on their build platforms and those build platforms mounted on a rotor for spinning; [0055]).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to combine the separating steps of Converse with the additive manufacturing steps of Garmshausen to reduce waste of resin, and avoid the need to discard resin, see [0004].
Regarding claim 57, Garmshausen as modified meets the claimed method of claim 55 but does not teach further comprising recirculating the discharged unpolymerized photopolymerizable liquid after separation of any printed objects to a reservoir.
Converse teaches blending the excess resin back into the resin apparatus, see Fig. 1.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to combine the separating steps of Converse with the additive manufacturing steps of Garmshausen to reduce waste of resin, and avoid the need to discard resin, see [0004].
Regarding claim 79, Garmshausen as modified meets the claimed method of claim 55 but does not teach further comprising inspecting printed parts after formation.
Converse teaches [0059] Testing. The physical properties of objects produced by the present invention can be determined and compared in accordance with known techniques.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the present application to combine the testing/inspecting step of Converse with the additive manufacturing process of Garmshausen because it ensures uniformity and consistency of objects produced, see Converse [0059].
Claim(s) 81 and 83 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Garmshausen (US 2022/0305723 A1) in view of Matheu (US 2020/0063093 A1) and Doyle (US 2007/0105972 A1) and in further view of Converse (US 2021/0213675 A1) and Fan et al. (US 5,474,719).
Regarding claim 81, Garmshausen as modified meets the claimed method of claim 80 wherein the separation step further comprises applying heat at least a portion of the time force or stress is being applied.
Fan teaches the formed object 243 is further cleaned with heat, solvent, brushes, and the like, and post cured as necessary to obtain the desired final physical properties, Col. 17, lines 36-40.
It would have been obvious to one ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the present application to combine the heat step of Fan with the post-curing and cleaning step of Garmshausen because it achieves the desired final physical properties, see Fan Col. 17, lines 38-40.
Regarding claim 83, Garmshausen as modified meets the claimed method of claim 82 but does not teach wherein the separation step further comprises applying heat at least a portion of the time force or stress is being applied.
Fan teaches the formed object 243 is further cleaned with heat, solvent, brushes, and the like, and post cured as necessary to obtain the desired final physical properties, Col. 17, lines 36-40.
It would have been obvious to one ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the present application to combine the heat step of Fan with the post-curing and cleaning step of Garmshausen because it achieves the desired final physical properties, see Fan Col. 17, lines 38-40.
Relevant Prior Art
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Lippert (US 2020/0108557 A1) teaches [0013] In one embodiment, the present invention includes an apparatus for generating a three-dimensional image, the system comprising: a medium comprising an optical molecular switch molecule, wherein the optical molecular switch molecule has a non-fluorescent state and a fluorescent state, wherein at one wavelength of optical excitation, the molecule has a first state and at a second state the optical molecular switch molecule fluoresces at a second wavelength of excitation; and at least a first light source and a second light source into the medium.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to MICHAEL M. ROBINSON whose telephone number is (571)270-0467. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 9:30AM-6PM.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Sam Zhao can be reached at (571)270-5343. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/MICHAEL M. ROBINSON/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1744