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 § 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.
(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.
Claim(s) 1-10 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Suzuki (US 2017/0218231 A1), in light of the evidence provided by Matsumura et al. (US 7863182 B2), Satake et al. (US 5814685) and the Aldrich Data Sheet, the latter of which is included with the current action.
Regarding claim 1, Suzuki teaches a pressure-sensitive adhesive (PSA) sheet comprising a radiation curable acrylic-PSA layer (active energy ray-curable PSA layer) comprising an acrylic polymer (PSA comprising a base polymer) and a multifunctional acrylic oligomer (para 0025), which said multifunctional acrylic oligomer contains two or more (meth)acryloyl groups (para 0068), which provide the oligomer with active energy ray-curability (resin A is an active energy ray-curable resin). Table 1 of Suzuki demonstrates that the multifunctional acrylic oligomers of the inventive examples comprise glass transition temperatures (Tg) of 12 and 75 ℃ (0 ℃ or higher) (para 0135).
Regarding claim 2, Suzuki teaches that the weight-average molecular weight (Mw) of the oligomer is 400 to 10000 towards pre-cured workability and post-cured hardness (para 0074) such as a Mw of 5000 (3000 or higher) (para 0135).
Regarding claim 3, as noted above, Suzuki teaches that the multifunctional acrylic oligomer contains two or more (meth)acryloyl groups (i.e., an acrylic resin).
Regarding claim 4, Suzuki teaches that the multifunctional acrylic oligomer is present at 0.05 to 40 parts by mass per 100 parts by mass of the acrylic polymer towards a balance of adhesiveness, post-curing hardness, bonding reliability and handleability (para 0077). The inventive examples 1-19 of Table 1 demonstrate that the multifunctional acrylic oligomer is present at a % by weight proportion of approximately 9 to 23 % by weight of the entire PSA composition (i.e., 1 to 70 % by weight).
Regarding claim 5, the PSA composition comprises a photoinitiator (para 0021).
Regarding claim 6, the Young’s modulus of the PSA layer before curing (i.e., 30 to 200 kPa) and that after curing (i.e., 500 to 10000 kPa) provide a ratio of approximately 333 to 2.5 (E2/E1 ≥ 1.1) (abstract).
Regarding claim 7, the PSA layer has a gel fraction of 70 mass % or more (para 0108).
Regarding claim 8, the PSA layer has a thickness of 10 to 80 mm (para 0101).
Regarding claim 9, as noted above, Suzuki teaches that the PSA comprises an acrylic polymer.
Regarding claim 10, Suzuki does not specify a Tg for the disclosed acrylic polymer, but Suzuki does teach that the acrylic polymer comprises (meth)acrylic alkyl esters at 50 to 90 mass % of the acrylic polymer (para 0042), hydroxyl-containing (meth)acrylic esters and nitrogen-containing monomers each at 1 to 30 mass % of the acrylic polymer (para 0047, 0058) and other monomers at less than 0.01 % mass (para 0062).
The inventive examples of Table 1 provide the acrylic polymers with 63 mass% of 2-ethylhexyl acrylate (2EHA, Tg = -50 ℃), 9 mass% of methyl methacrylate (MMA, Tg = 120 ℃), 15 mass % of n-vinyl pyrrolidone (NVP, Tg = 54 ℃) and 13 mass % of 2-hydroxyethyl acrylate (HEA, Tg = -25 ℃); or 90 mass % of 2EHA and 10 mass % acrylic acid (AA, Tg = 105 ℃) (Example 19 only). Tg values provided by Matsumura (see column 16, lines 31-32) and the Aldrich Data Sheet.
The Examiner notes that the mass % for each of the monomers comprising the acrylic polymer, and their respective Tg values, provides for the acrylic polymer to demonstrate a Tg of below 30 ℃ as given by the fox equation (see column 4, lines 5-19 of Satake).
Conclusion
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/FRANK D DUCHENEAUX/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1788 12/10/2025