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 .
Continued Examination under 37 CFR 1.114
A request for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, including the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e), was filed in this application after allowance or after an Office action under Ex Parte Quayle, 25 USPQ 74, 453 O.G. 213 (Comm'r Pat. 1935). Since this application is eligible for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, prosecution in this application has been reopened pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114. Applicant's submission filed on 12/15/25 has been entered.
Claim Objections
Claims 6-8 are objected to because of the following informalities: consider changing claim 6 to read “where the width of the metal plate in the width direction gradually decreases toward the end portion of the metal plate”.
Appropriate correction is required.
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)(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.
(a)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claims 6-8 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) and 102(a)(2) as being clearly anticipated by Nakamoto et al., U.S.P.G. Pub. No. 2022/0100128 (previously cited).
Regarding independent claim 6, a fixing apparatus (fig 2) for fixing an unfixed image formed on a recording material to the recording material, comprising:
a cylindrical film (24);
a planar heater (21) disposed in an internal space of the film so that a longitudinal direction of the heater is parallel to a generatrix direction of the film (figs 2, 3), the heater includes a substrate made of ceramic (21A) and an electrically heating resistance layer formed on the substrate (21B);
a roller (30) in contact with an outer circumferential surface of the film and configured to form a nip portion for pinching and conveying the recording material together with the heater via the film (fig 2); and
a metal (¶ 33) plate (22) in contact with a surface of the heater opposite to a surface of the heater facing an inner circumferential surface of the film (fig 2) and configured to make a temperature distribution of the heater uniform (¶ 33),
wherein, in the nip portion, the unfixed image formed on the recording material is fixed to the recording material while the recording material is conveyed in a conveyance direction (fig 2),
wherein as seen in a thickness direction of the heater which is a direction perpendicular to both the longitudinal direction and the conveyance direction (the view in figs 7), the metal plate includes a width constant region (the region near the center where the width is constant) where a width of the metal plate in a width direction of the heater perpendicular to the longitudinal direction is constant and a tapered region (the region near the ends where the metal plate splits to have tapering ends in the width direction which gradually decrease toward the end portion of the metal plate), arranged at position closer to an end portion of the metal plate in the longitudinal direction than the width constant region (figs 7), where the width of the metal plate in the width direction gradually decrease toward the end portion of the metal plate (figs 7), and
wherein with respect to the longitudinal direction, the tapered region is arranged from an end of the width constant region to the end portion of the metal plate (figs 7, noting that nothing in the claims requires the tapering to continue until the very end, merely that “the width of the metal plate in the width direction gradually decrease toward the end portion of the metal plate”).
Regarding claim 7, which depends from claim 6, wherein with respect to the longitudinal direction, a position of the end portion of the metal plate is outside an end portion of a maximum size recording material conveyable by the fixing apparatus (figs 7 showing the end portion continuing until the end, again noting that nothing in the claims requires the tapering to continue until the very end, merely that “the width of the metal plate in the width direction gradually decrease toward the end portion of the metal plate”).
Regarding claim 8, which depends from claim 6, wherein as seen in the thickness direction, all of the electrically heating resistance layer corresponding to the width constant region in the longitudinal direction are located in an area of the metal plate in the width direction, and a part of the electrically heating resistance layer corresponding to the tapered region in the longitudinal direction are located outside the area of the metal plate in the width direction (¶ 38, discussing how the heater 21, which includes the electrically heating resistance layer 21B, is in contact with the metal plate so as to uniform the temperature distribution, such that the region with the taper includes opening 26, such that the heater is located outside the area of the metal plate in the width direction at the opening).
Claims 6-8 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) and 102(a)(2) as being clearly anticipated by Yamaguchi, U.S.P.G. Pub. No. 2015/0338795 (previously cited).
Regarding independent claim 6, a fixing apparatus (fig 5) for fixing an unfixed image formed on a recording material to the recording material, comprising:
a cylindrical film (202);
a planar heater (300) disposed in an internal space of the film so that a longitudinal direction of the heater is parallel to a generatrix direction of the film, the heater includes a substrate made of ceramic (¶ 30) and an electrically heating resistance layer (301-1, 301-2) formed on the substrate (¶ 30);
a roller (208) in contact with an outer circumferential surface of the film and configured to form a nip portion for pinching and conveying the recording material together with the heater via the film (fig 5); and
a metal (¶ 32) plate (220) in contact with a surface of the heater opposite to a surface of the heater facing an inner circumferential surface of the film (fig 5) and configured to make a temperature distribution of the heater uniform (¶ 32, due to its high thermal conductivity),
wherein, in the nip portion, the unfixed image formed on the recording material is fixed to the recording material while the recording material is conveyed in a conveyance direction (fig 5),
wherein as seen in a thickness direction of the heater (the view as shown in fig 7B) which is a direction perpendicular to both the longitudinal direction and the conveyance direction, the metal plate includes a width constant region (one of the regions near the center only where the width of the metal plate in a width direction of the heater perpendicular to the longitudinal direction is constant) where a width of the metal plate in a width direction of the heater perpendicular to the longitudinal direction is constant and a tapered region (the region near the end including where the width of the metal plate in the width direction gradually decreases toward the end portion of the metal plate), arranged at position closer to an end portion of the metal plate in the longitudinal direction than the width constant region (figs 7), where the width of the metal plate in the width direction gradually decrease toward the end portion of the metal plate, and
wherein with respect to the longitudinal direction, the tapered region is arranged from an end of the width constant region to the end portion of the metal plate (figs 7, noting that nothing in the claims requires the tapering to continue until the very end, merely that “the width of the metal plate in the width direction gradually decrease toward the end portion of the metal plate”).
Regarding claim 7, which depends from claim 6, wherein with respect to the longitudinal direction, a position of the end portion of the metal plate is outside an end portion of a maximum size recording material conveyable by the fixing apparatus (figs 7, showing the metal plate extending at least as far as the heater, which must be longer than the maximum size recording material conveyable by the fixing apparatus so that the fixing device can adequately fix the toner onto the sheet).
Regarding claim 8, which depends from claim 6, wherein as seen in the thickness direction, all of the electrically heating resistance layer corresponding to the width constant region in the longitudinal direction are located in an area of the metal plate in the width direction, and a part of the electrically heating resistance layer corresponding to the tapered region in the longitudinal direction are located outside the area of the metal plate in the width direction (¶ 56-58, discussing how the widths 220Wd, which is the smallest widths of the metal plate, and located in the tapered region, are smaller than the widths 220Wb, which is the same width as the heater, ¶ 48).
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed 12/15/25 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive.
Applicants have made no attempt to point out the patentable novelty over the cited references of the amended claims newly added as claims 6-8, in derogation of MPEP 714.04.
Conclusion
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/SEVAN A AYDIN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2852