DETAILED ACTION
Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status
This Office action is based on the 18/700,668 application filed 11 April 2024, which is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
Claims 1-15 are pending and have been fully considered.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b):
(b) CONCLUSION.—The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph:
The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention.
Claims 5-7 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention.
Claim 5 recites “…reacting the compound according to formula (III) as obtained at step a) with an amine…” There is no “step a)” in the claim or any preceding claim. Therefore, the metes and bounds of the claimed invention cannot be determined. Additionally, claim 6 recites “…the steps a) and b) are performed in an organic solvent…” Again, there are no “steps a) and b)” in claim 5. See, also, “step b)” in instant claim 7.
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 (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 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.
Claim(s) 1-4 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Virieux et al in Science of Synthesis (2009, “42.12 Alkylphosphonium Salts,” pp 503-594).
With respect to claims 1-4, Virieux et al discloses “synthesis of aminophosphonium salts 209, by phosphorus alkylation of an aminophosphine, is a more amenable process. Due to the high nucleophilic character of such reagents, the reaction generally proceeds smoothly at room temperature. Aminophosphonium salts are more stable than the previous heterophosphonium salts” [see last paragraph on page 577].
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Note that the aminophosphine compound on the left hand side, (Ph)P(R1)(NR2R3), when R1 is NMe2 or pyrrolidine-1-yl and NR2R3 is N-iPr2, corresponds to formula (I) in instant claim 1 wherein R1,R2 are C1 alkyl or pyrrolidinyl and R3 is an aryl (phenyl) group. When R1 is pyrrolidinyl, said group is a heteroaliphatic cycle comprising 4 carbon atoms in which the heteroatom is N.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 8-15 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.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter: the prior art does not teach the use of the compound of formula (I) as a catalyst for dimerization of an alkyl acrylate.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to BRIAN A MCCAIG whose telephone number is (571)270-5548. The examiner can normally be reached Monday to Friday 8 to 4:30 Mountain Time.
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/BRIAN A MCCAIG/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1772
30 September 2026
