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 .
Status of the Claims
Claims 1-10 are pending wherein claims 1-4 and 10 are currently under examination and claims 5-9 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to a method for preparing a samarium-iron-based rare earth permanent magnet. Applicant’s election of claims 1-4 and 10 was made without traverse in the Response filed on July 14, 2026.
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.
Claims 1 and 10 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Qian et al. (Crystallization and magnetic properties of ThMn12-type Sm-Fe-Co-Ti-Si based magnetic materials). Qian et al. discloses Sm(Fe0.8Co0.2)11Ti+Six, where x = 0, 0.5 and 1.0. This formula would translate to an a-value of 1, a b-value of 8.8, a c-value of 2.2, a d-value of 1 and an e-value of 0.5 or 1, which would be within the ranges set forth in the claim (abstract and Experiment). Additionally, grain boundaries of 20 to 30 nm exist in the ribbons of the alloy with the phase present (Results and Discussion and Figures 5(a) and 5(b)).
In regard to claim 10, Qian et al. suggest forming permanent magnets or bulk magnets, which would be magnetic devices (Introduction).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 2-4 are objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
In regard to claim 2, Qian et al. discloses wherein the α-phase would be present in a small amount despite the presence of silicon as well as Sm(Fe0.8-Co0.2)11Ti, ThMn2 phase and TbCu7- phase would be present (Results and Discussions). However, Qian et al. fails to specify a segregation of non-magnetic elements in the grain boundary phase and the grain boundary phase is wrapped on the surface of the samarium-iron based main phase.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Tomita et al. (WO 2017/164312).
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Jessee Roe whose telephone number is (571)272-5938. The examiner can normally be reached Monday thru Friday 7:30 am to 4 pm.
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, Curt Mayes can be reached at 571-272-1234. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000.
/JESSEE R ROE/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1759
Prosecution Insights