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 § 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 - 20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Yoshizawa (US PGP 2019/0219938).
Yoshizawa teaches an electrophotographic photoreceptor comprising a photosensitive layer and a conductive support, wherein the photosensitive layer contains a polyester resin (Abstract). The photosensitive layer may be disposed on the conductive support ([0201]). The photosensitive layer may be a single-layer type photosensitive layer, or a laminate type photosensitive layer having a charge generation layer and a charge transport layer ([0221]). The binder resin of the charge transport layer is preferably a polyester resin described by Yoshizawa ([0237]). Yoshizawa’s polyester resin contains at least one structure that may be represented by a Formula (2) ([0017]), and further contains a divalent phenol residue and a divalent carboxylic acid residue ([0018]). The divalent carboxylic acid residue of the polyester may contain a structure represented by a Formula (7) ([0026]), which may be the same ([0027]) as instant units of formulae (1-A3) or (1-A4) (Specification, [0064]), and reading on the structure of instant Formula (1) of Claim 1. Yoshizawa teaches that the amount of carboxylic acid chloride group present in the polyester resin is preferably 0.05 µeq/g (micro-equivalents per gram) or less ([0157]). This equates to a value of 5 x 10-8 µmol/g of carboxylic acid chloride in the polyester resin. Where the polyester resin does not make up the entirety of the charge transport layer, that content of acid chloride groups would necessarily satisfy the inequality stated in Claim 1 and Claim 2.
Yoshizawa’s dicarboxylic acid residues according to Formula (7) read on instant Formula (2) of Claim 3.
Yoshizawa teaches the use of divalent acid chlorides ([0050]), [0180], [0181] – [0184]), satisfying Claim 4.
Yoshizawa teaches that the binder resin of the photoreceptor may contain another resin other than the polyester resin already discussed, which may preferably be a polycarbonate resin ([0164]), satisfying Claim 5.
As discussed above, Yoshizawa teaches dicarboxylic acid units of a Formula (7), which may be the same as instant units of formulae (1-A3) and (1-A4), reading on formula (1-A) of Claim 6.
Yoshizawa’s dicarboxylic acid unit of Formula (7) may be the same ([0027]) as the instant unit of formula (A3-2), reading on formula (A3) of Claim 7.
Yoshizawa teaches that the divalent phenol residue of the polyester may contain a structure represented by a Formula (6) ([0024]), which may be the same ([0025]) as at least instant units of formulae (B6-3) and (B6-4) (Specification, [0143]), and reading on the structure of instant Formula (B6) of Claim 8.
As discussed above, the photosensitive layer of Yoshizawa may be a single-layer type photosensitive layer ([0221]), satisfying Claim 9.
As discussed above, Yoshizawa teaches that the amount of carboxylic acid chloride group present in the polyester resin is preferably 0.05 µeq/g (micro-equivalents per gram) or less ([0157]). This equates to a value of 5 x 10-8 µmol/g of carboxylic acid chloride in the polyester resin. Where the polyester resin does not make up the entirety of the photosensitive layer, that content of acid chloride groups would necessarily satisfy the inequality stated in Claim 10.
Yoshizawa’s dicarboxylic acid residues according to Formula (7) read on instant Formula (2) of Claim 11.
Yoshizawa teaches the use of divalent acid chlorides ([0050]), [0180], [0181] – [0184]), satisfying Claim 12.
Yoshizawa teaches that the binder resin of the photoreceptor may contain another resin other than the polyester resin already discussed, which may preferably be a polycarbonate resin ([0164]), satisfying Claim 13.
As discussed above, Yoshizawa teaches dicarboxylic acid units of a Formula (7), which may be the same as instant units of formulae (1-A3) and (1-A4), reading on formula (1-A) of Claim 14.
Yoshizawa’s dicarboxylic acid unit of Formula (7) may be the same ([0027]) as the instant unit of formula (A3-2), reading on formula (A3) of Claim 15.
Yoshizawa teaches that the divalent phenol residue of the polyester may contain a structure represented by a Formula (6) ([0024]), which may be the same ([0025]) as at least instant units of formulae (B6-3) and (B6-4) (Specification, [0143]), and reading on the structure of instant Formula (B6) of Claim 16.
Yoshizawa teaches an electrophotographic photoreceptor cartridge, analogous to a process cartridge, which incorporates the photoreceptor described above and which is mounted on and demounted from the main body of an electrophotographic apparatus ([0269], [0270]), reading on Claim 17, Claim 18, and Claim 19.
Yoshizawa describes an image forming apparatus comprising the photoreceptor described above, a charging device, an exposing device (analogous to an electrostatic latent image forming device), a developing device, and a transfer device ([0265] – [0267]), reading on Claim 20.
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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/GRANT STEVEN SEILER/Examiner, Art Unit 1734
/PETER L VAJDA/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1737 07/02/2026
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