DETAILED ACTION
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 09/30/24 was filed after the mailing date of the application. The submission is in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner.
Claims 1-18, 23-24 are pending.
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 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 1, 2, 23, 24 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)91) as being anticipated by Kase et al., U.S. Pub. No. 2020/0035927.
Regarding claim 1, Kase discloses:
An organic electroluminescent device, comprising:
a base substrate, and
a light-emitting layer 5 (Fig. 1), an electron transport layer 7, and a first electrode layer 9 sequentially stacked on the base substrate,
wherein the electron transport layer comprises a multilayer structure (layers 6/7/8) that is stacked, and a material of at least one layer in the multilayer structure comprises lithium metal [0119].
Regarding claim 2, Kase discloses the organic electroluminescent device according to claim 1, wherein the electron transport layer comprises a first electron transport sub-layer 7, a second electron transport sub-layer 8 that are stacked, the first electron transport sub-layer is sandwiched between the light emitting layer and the second electron transport sub-layer, and a material of the first electron transport sub-layer comprises a first electron transport material, the second comprises the lithium metal [0119].
Regarding claim 23, Kase discloses a second electrode layer (the other electrode – anode) on a side of the light-emitting layer away from the first electrode layer, wherein a material of the second electrode layer comprises at least one of aluminum, silver, molybdenum, and copper [0121].
Regarding claim 24, Kase discloses the displayer equipment comprising the device according to claim 1.
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 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.
Claims 3-13, 15-18 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kase et al., U.S. Pub. No. 2020/0035927.
Regarding claims 3-10, 15-16, 18, Kase discloses wherein the second electron transport sub-layer further comprises a second electron transport material, the lithium metal is doped in the second electron transport material but fails to disclose a direction perpendicular to a main surface, a thickness of the first electron transport sub-layer is greater than a thickness of the second electron transport sub-layer, the electron mobilities range, the thickness of the layers, energy level, mass ratio etc. However, the selection of such parameters such as energy, concentration, temperature, time, molar fraction, depth, thickness, etc., would have been obvious and involve routine optimization which has been held to be within the level of ordinary skill in the art. "Normally, it is to be expected that a change in energy, concentration, temperature, time, molar fraction, depth, thickness, etc., or in conbination of the parameters would be an unpatentable modification. Under some circumstances, however, changes such as these may impart patentability to a process if the particular ranges claimed produce a new and unexpected result which is different in kind and not merely degree from the results of the prior art ... such ranges are termed "critical ranges and the applicant has the burden of proving such criticality.... More particularly, where the general conditions of a claim are disclosed in the prior art, it is not inventive to discover the optimum or workable ranges by routine experimentation." In re Aller 105 USPQ233, 255 (CCPA 1955). See also In re Waite 77 USPQ 586 (CCPA 1948); In re Scherl 70 USPQ 204 (CCPA 1946); In re Irmscher 66 USPQ 314 (CCPA 1945); In re Norman 66 USPQ 308 (CCPA 1945); In re Swenson 56 USPQ 372 (CCPA 1942); In re Sola 25 USPQ 433 (CCPA 1935); In re Dreyfus 24 USPQ 52 (CCPA 1934).
Regarding claim 11, Kase discloses wherein the second sub-layer is formed of an alloy material of the lithium and yttrium metals [0119].
Regarding claim 17, Kase discloses wherein the electron transport layer comprises a first sub-layer and second sub-layer that are stacked, the first electron transport sub-layer 7 is sandwiched between the light-emitting layer and the second electron transport sub-layer 8 but fails to disclose the material of the first electron transport sub-layer comprises a third electron transport material 7 and the lithium metal doped in the third electron transport material, the second electron transport sub-layer is formed of an alloy material of magnesium metal and silver metal. However, Kase discloses the second electron transport sub-layer is formed of other metals such as cesium (Cs), Yb, Sr, Ca [0119]-[0121]. It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was made to use those metals that disclosed in Kase since the metal disclosed in Kase carry out similar functions as those in present application.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claim 14 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, since the prior made of record and considered pertinent to the applicant’s disclosure does not teach or suggest the claimed limitations of claim 1 and 2, wherein the second electron transport sub-layer comprises a first portion and a second portion that are stacked, a material of the first portion comprises a second electron transport material, and the lithium metal is doped in the second electron transport material, the second portion is formed of an alloy material of the lithium metal and yttrium metal, and other limitations cited in claim 14.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to THAO P LE whose telephone number is (571)272-1785. The examiner can normally be reached on Monday-Friday 9AM-6PM.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Jeff Natalini can be reached on 571-272-2266. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 703-872-9306.
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/THAO P LE/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2818
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