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 .
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed 6/3/2026 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive for all claims. Please see rejection below for newly added independent claim 27. Please note the same prior art reference is used, with added clarity to address all limitations.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status.
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.
Claims 27 and 28 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Shimzu (20180040783).
Regarding claim 27, Shimzu teaches a light-emitting and protected nanoparticle (fig. 1) which is composed of a light- emitting nanoparticle in the form of a light-emitting core (1, par. 15) optionally totally or partially coated with a layer of first ligands (4) bonded to the surface of said core, said core, where applicable said layer of first ligands (par. 44-46 and 50), being coated with at least one oxidation protective layer, said nanoparticle further comprises a layer formed of second ligands which are grafted to the surface of said oxidation protective layer (par. 17-19, 44-46 and 50), Chem II
wherein the second ligands of the layer formed of second ligands which are grafted to the surface of the oxidation protective layer are silanes of the following chemical formula: [Chem II]: in which: - n is equal to 1, 2 or 3, - Y is a hydrolyzable group, an alkoxy, halide or amine group, - R is a non-hydrolyzable organic group (par. 17-19, 37-39, 44-46 and 50; further, please see claims 3 and 11 of Shimzu).
Regarding claim 28, Shimzu teaches a nanoparticle according to claim 27, wherein the oxidation protective layer comprises the following two layers: - a 1st layer with a thickness comprised between 2 nm and 100 nm comprising Al2O3, - (par. 17-19, 37-39, 44-46 and 50; further, please see claims 3 and 11 of Shimzu) a 2nd so-called "external" layer superimposed on the 1st layer and with thickness comprised between 5 nm and 50 nm, comprising TiO2, ZrO2, SiO2 or ZnO, taken alone or as a mixture thereof (par. 17-19, 37-39, 44-46 and 50; further, please see claims 3 and 11 of Shimzu).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 1-7 and 13-26 allowed.
The following is an examiner’s statement of reasons for allowance: prior art fails to teaches all limitations mentioned in newly amended claim 1.
Any comments considered necessary by applicant must be submitted no later than the payment of the issue fee and, to avoid processing delays, should preferably accompany the issue fee. Such submissions should be clearly labeled “Comments on Statement of Reasons for Allowance.”
Conclusion
THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to CALEB E HENRY whose telephone number is (571)270-5370. The examiner can normally be reached Mon-Fri.
Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Eva Montalvo can be reached at (571) 270-3829. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/CALEB E HENRY/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2818
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