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 Status
Claims 1-20 are pending.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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 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.
The factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness.
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.
Claim(s) 1, 3-6, 8-10, 13, 15, 18, and 20 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Yamanaka (US 2019/0330470 A) in view of Kondo (US 2008/0004375 A1) and Ouchiyama (JP 2015/178590 A*).
*All citations directed towards an English machine translation
Yamanaka is directed towards a polyphenylene sulfide resin composition comprising a polyphenylene sulfide resin (PPS) (A), an amino group-containing compound (B), an epoxy group-containing elastomer (C) [abstract].
Yamanaka teaches, from the viewpoint of achieving excellent toughness, the PPS resin (A) is preferably a substantially linear PPS resin which is not subjected to a thermal oxidative cross-linking treatment for a higher molecular weight, or a half cross-linked PPS resin which is lightly subjected to the oxidative cross-linking treatment. On the other hand, the PPS resin subjected to the thermal oxidative cross-linking treatment is suitable from the viewpoint of suppressing the creep strain, and can be appropriately mixed with a linear PPS resin and used. In the present invention, a plurality of the PPS resins (A) having different melt viscosities may be mixed and used [p. 0081]. Yamaka is silent with respect to the loss tangent (tan delta) of PPS (A).
Kondo teaches PPS resins having a melt viscoelasticity loss tangent of 0.10 to 0.30, as measured at a temperature of 310 °C and an angular velocity of 1 rad/sec, inhibit burr formation and improve the surface properties of molded products [p. 0001, 0018-0019]. Kondo teaches burr formation is particularly problematic in injection molding, where portions of a molding material, which have flown out in interstices of a mold and solidified form burrs [p. 0005].
Yamanaka teaches, as amino group-containing compounds, alkoxysilanes having an amino group can be included [p. 0109]. Yamanaka teaches the amount of amino-group containing compounds to be blended is preferably 0.1 to 30 parts by weight, and more preferably 0.2 to 5 parts by weight based on 100 parts by weight of the polyphenylene sulfide resin (A) [p. 0112]
Yamanaka teaches that the epoxy group-containing elastomer (C) can be used in combination with an elastomer (D) not containing a functional group Yamanaka teaches, from the viewpoint of achieving excellent toughness and flexibility, the blending amount of the elastomers (C) and (D) is, based on 100 parts by weight of the polyphenylene sulfide resin (A), preferably in a range of 1 to 200 parts by weight [p. 0102].
Yamanaka teaches, in the polyphenylene sulfide resin composition, it is necessary that the polyphenylene sulfide resin (A) form a continuous phase and the amino group-containing compound (B) and the epoxy group-containing elastomer (C) form a dispersed phase [p. 0122]. In order to form such a phase structure, it is necessary that the amino group-containing compound (B) and the epoxy group-containing elastomer (C) should be reacted sufficiently to increase the viscosity [p. 0123]. Yamanaka teaches examples of methods of forming such a phase structure include melt kneading the mixture at the resin temperature which is 5° C. to 100° C higher than the melting peak temperature of the polyphenylene sulfide resin (A) [p. 0123, 0131]. Yamanaka teaches the compositions with these phase-separated structures have long melt residence times, excellent heat aging resistance, and are used to prepare injection molded products [p. 0124, 0139-140]. However, Yamanaka is silent with respect to the melt viscosity change after a melt residence time of 5 minutes vs. 30 minutes.
Ouchiyama is directed towards a similar PPS composition. Ouchiyama teaches melt viscosity can be exemplified as a preferable range in which the melt viscosity change rate defined by the following formula (1) is 30% or less from the viewpoint of melt residence stability at the time of molding [p. 0028-0030].
Melt viscosity change rate (%) = 100 (ηa / ηb-1) (1)
Ouchiyama teaches ηa in the above formula represents the initial melt viscosity with a melt residence time of 5 minutes, and ηb represents the melt viscosity after the melt residence with a melt residence time of 30 minutes, measured at a temperature of 300 °C. Ouchiyama teaches that when the melt viscosity change rate is small, there is excellent melt residence stability. Ouchiyama teaches when the melt viscosity change rate is 15% or less, it is particularly suitable for injection molding of a large number of large-sized automobile parts with a relatively long melt residence time, and product defects (short shots and overfilling) due to fluidity variations [p. 0030].
In light of the teachings of Yamanaka, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was filed to prepare a PPS composition comprising (A) 100 parts by weight of PPS, (B) 0.2 to 5 parts by weight of an amino silane, and a (C) 1 to 200 parts by weight of a thermoplastic elastomer. Furthermore, Yamanaka teaches the composition is used to prepare injection molded products, therefore, in light of the teachings of Kondo, it would have been obvious to select a PPS resin(A) that has a loss tangent of 0.10 to 0.30, as measured at a temperature of 310 °C and an angular velocity of 1 rad/sec in order to inhibit burr formation. In addition, although Yamanaka teaches the composition has long melt residence times, it would have been obvious to target a melt viscosity change rate of less than 30% (corresponds to less than 130% when considering applicant’s formula) in order to ensure long melt residence times and minimize product defects as taught by Ouchiyama.
Regarding claims 3 and 8; Yamanaka teaches, as amino group-containing compounds, alkoxysilanes having an amino group can be included [p. 0109].
Regarding claims 4-5, 9-10, 13, 15, 18, and 20; Yamanaka teaches the method of producing a polyphenylene sulfide resin composition is not particularly limited, and one representative example is a method of feeding raw materials to a usually known melt kneading machine [p. 0131]. Yamanaka further teaches the polyphenylene sulfide resin composition can be molded in any method to obtain a forming product, wherein products include ducts which comes in contact with exhaust condensation water of an internal combustion engine [p. 0139, 0142].
Claim(s) 2, 7, 11, 12, 14, 16, 17, and 19 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Yamanaka (US 2019/0330470 A) in view of Kondo (US 2008/0004375 A1) and Ouchiyama (JP 2015/178590 A*), as applied to claims 1, 3-6, 8-10, 13, 15, 18, and 20 above, and further in view of Kamiya (JP 2017/061607 A*)
*All citations directed towards an English machine translation.
The disclosures of Yamanaka, Kondo, and Ouchiyama are above and are applied here as such.
Regarding claims 2 and 7; Yamanaka teaches, After its production through the polymerization step and collection step, the preferred treatment method for PPS (A) is removing the residual oligomers and the residual salts by repeating the washing with an organic solvent and a hot water several times, followed by an acid treatment or a treatment with an alkali metal salt or an alkaline earth metal salt, and particularly preferably followed by a treatment with an alkali metal salt or an alkaline earth metal salt [p. 0068, 0077]. Yamanaka describes the acid treatment as a chemical modification of PPS (A) [p. 0070] Yamanaka is silent with respect to the zeta potential of PPS (A).
Kamiya teaches raw PPS particles have a zeta potential in liquid of -75 mV to -20 mV in a pH 7±1 environment [p. 0059]. Kamiya teaches the manufacturing method of the raw PPS results in molecular end groups that are acidic or metal salts thereof, leading to the raw PPS exhibiting a negative surface potential [p. 0048].
In light of the teachings of Kamiya, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was filed that embodiments of the PPS (A) of Yamanaka have molecular end groups that are acidic, or metal salts thereof, and therefore would reasonably predict these embodiments to exhibit a zeta potential in liquid of -75 mV to -20 mV in a pH 7±1 environment.
Regarding claims 11 and 16; Yamanaka teaches, as amino group-containing compounds, alkoxysilanes having an amino group can be included [p. 0109].
Regarding claims 12, 14, 17, and 19; Yamanaka teaches the method of producing a polyphenylene sulfide resin composition is not particularly limited, and one representative example is a method of feeding raw materials to a usually known melt kneading machine [p. 0131]. Yamanaka further teaches the polyphenylene sulfide resin composition can be molded in any method to obtain a forming product, wherein products include ducts which comes in contact with exhaust condensation water of an internal combustion engine [p. 0139, 0142].
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. JP 2013/112783 A is directed toward a PPS composition and teaches moldability is improved when the thermoplastic elastomer is blended at 7 to 20 parts by mass, with respect to 100 parts by mass of the polyarylene sulfide resin (A) [p. 0048 of English machine translation].
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/HOLLEY GRACE HESTER/ Examiner, Art Unit 1766
/RANDY P GULAKOWSKI/ Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 1766
