RESPONSE TO AMENDMENT
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 .
Application Status
Amendments to the abstract and claims 1, 3, 5, 14, 16, and 18, filed on 30 June 2026, have been entered in the above-identified application. Claims 4, 6, 11, and 17 have been cancelled by applicant. Claims 1-3, 5, 7-10, 12-16 and 18 are pending, of which claims 7-10 and 12-13 remain withdrawn from consideration as described on page 3 of the Office Action mailed on 03 April 2026.
WITHDRAWN REJECTIONS
The objections to the specification abstract, made of record on page 3, paragraph 6 of the office action mailed 03 April 2026 have been withdrawn due to Applicant’s amendment in the response filed 30 June 2026.
The 35 U.S.C. § 112(b) rejection of claims 1-3, 5, 6, 14-16, and 18 made of record on page 4, paragraph 9 of the office action mailed 03 April 2026 have been withdrawn due to Applicant’s amendment in the response filed 30 June 2026.
The 35 U.S.C. § 102 rejection of claims 1-3 and 14-16 over Xia (U.S. Pub. 2013/0323521) made of record on page 6, paragraph 11 of the office action mailed 03 April 2026 have been withdrawn due to Applicant’s amendment in the response filed 30 June 2026. In particular, the claims as amended now include the limitations of former claim 6 which is not disclosed in Xia.
The 35 U.S.C. § 103 rejection of claims 5 and 18 Xia (U.S. Pub. 2013/0323521) made of record on page 9, paragraph 15 of the office action mailed 03 April 2026 have been withdrawn due to Applicant’s amendment in the response filed 30 June 2026. In particular, the claims as amended now include the limitations of former claim 6 which is not disclosed in Xia.
NEW AND REPEATED REJECTIONS
The text of those sections of Title 35, U.S. Code not included in this action can be found in a prior Office action.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
Claims 1-3, 5, 14-16 and 18 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable based on Xia (U.S. Pub. 2013/0323521) in view of WO 2019/088752 A1. Lee (U.S. Pub. 2021/0079269) was relied upon as the translation of WO ‘752.
Regarding claim 1, Xia discloses an adhesive composition that includes an alkyl (meth)acrylate ester in which the alkyl group has 4 to 18 carbon atoms and a copolymerizable monomer, see abstract and p. 1, [0007]. Example 1 at p. 7, [0056] of the reference combines 55 parts by weight of 2-ethylhexyl acrylate, 25 parts of isobornyl acrylate, 20 parts of 2-hydroxyethyl acrylate, and minor amounts of photoinitiator and other additives. This is 80 parts of the claimed alkyl acrylate soft monomers and 20 parts of the claimed acrylate polar monomer as claimed. See also Table 1 on p. 9.
Example 4 uses 75 parts by weight of 2-ethylhexyl acrylate, 10 parts of 2-hydroxyethyl acrylate, and 15 parts of N,N-dimethyl acrylamide for a total of 75 parts of alkyl acrylate soft monomer and 25 parts of acrylate polar monomers as claimed. See p. 8, [0059] and Table 1.
The mixtures are partially polymerized under a nitrogen-rich atmosphere to provide a syrup which is then coated and cured between release liners, see p. 6, [0056] and p. 8, [0059]. Thus the adhesive film is prepared by crosslinking of a prepolymer as claimed.
Xia does not specify that the prepolymer has a molecular weight of at least 600,000 Da as claimed.
Lee describes a multilayer adhesive tape used with optical components such as polarizing plates, optical compensation films, and other components for a liquid crystal display (LCD), see p. 1, [0002]. The adhesive includes a cured product of a low molecular weight acrylic prepolymer and a high molecular weight acrylic prepolymer, in which the high molecular weight prepolymer has a molecular weight in the range of 100,000 to 1,500,000 g/mol, see p. 2, [0035] describing the molecular weight range and p. 4, [0070] describing the acrylic components of the high molecular weight prepolymer. Crosslinking takes place to connect the low- and high-molecular weight prepolymers, see p. 3, [0052]
Xia and Lee are analogous because they each disclose crosslinking of acrylic prepolymers to form an adhesive layer used in electronic display devices, thus they are similar in composition and function.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of the invention to have used a high molecular weight acrylic prepolymer as taught in Lee in the adhesive formulation of Xia to arrive at the claimed invention, as Lee teaches that the high molecular weight prepolymer provides excellent adhesive properties and controllable durability to the layer, see p. 2, [0038-0041]. In particular, the high molecular weight prepolymer contributes to reliability at high temperature and/or high humidity conditions, see p. 2, [0041].
Regarding claim 2, 2-ethylhexyl acrylate, when polymerized, forms an alkyl acrylate soft monomer meeting Formula I as claimed in which R1 is a C8 alkyl group and n1 is greater than 0.
Regarding claim 3, 2-hydroxyethyl acrylate when polymerized, forms an acrylate polar monomer meeting Formula II as claimed in which R2 is a C2 alkylene group, R2 is a hydroxyl group, and n2 is greater than 0.
Regarding claim 5, Xia discloses an adhesive composition that includes an alkyl (meth)acrylate ester in which the alkyl group has 4 to 18 carbon atoms and a copolymerizable monomer, see abstract and p. 1, [0007]. Example 4 uses 75 parts by weight of 2-ethylhexyl acrylate, 10 parts of 2-hydroxyethyl acrylate, and 15 parts of N,N-dimethyl acrylamide for a total of 75 parts of alkyl acrylate soft monomer and 25 parts of acrylate polar monomers as claimed. See p. 8, [0059] and Table 1.
However, other preferred monomers are contemplated including butyl acrylate, see p. 2-3, [0019] as well as p. 4, [0026]. The total amount of alkyl acrylate monomers is from 60-95 parts by weight out of a total of 100 parts of monomers comprising the acrylic co-prepolymer, see p. 3, [0020]. Xia also teaches using a combination of these monomers, see the examples in Table 1 and more generally at p. 2-3, [0019]. Thus it would have been obvious to have used butyl acrylate in the claimed amount along with 2-ethylhexyl acrylate or another suitable alkyl acrylate monomer to arrive at a total amount of suitable alkyl acrylate monomers to arrive at the claimed invention.
The mixtures are partially polymerized under a nitrogen-rich atmosphere to provide a syrup which is then coated and cured between release liners, see p. 6, [0056] and p. 8, [0059]. Thus the adhesive film is prepared by crosslinking of a prepolymer as claimed.
Regarding claims 14 and 16, Xia discloses an adhesive composition that includes an alkyl (meth)acrylate ester in which the alkyl group has 4 to 18 carbon atoms and a copolymerizable monomer, see abstract and p. 1, [0007]. Example 1 at p. 7, [0056] of the reference combines 55 parts by weight of 2-ethylhexyl acrylate, 25 parts of isobornyl acrylate, 20 parts of 2-hydroxyethyl acrylate, and minor amounts of photoinitiator and other additives. This is 80 parts of the claimed alkyl acrylate soft monomers and 20 parts of the claimed acrylate polar monomer as claimed. See also Table 1 on p. 9.
Example 4 uses 75 parts by weight of 2-ethylhexyl acrylate, 10 parts of 2-hydroxyethyl acrylate, and 15 parts of N,N-dimethyl acrylamide for a total of 75 parts of alkyl acrylate soft monomer and 25 parts of acrylate polar monomers as claimed. See p. 8, [0059] and Table 1.
The mixtures are partially polymerized under a nitrogen-rich atmosphere to provide a syrup which is then coated and cured between release liners, see p. 6, [0056] and p. 8, [0059]. Thus the adhesive film is prepared by crosslinking of a prepolymer as claimed. The release liners read on the claimed first and second assemblies.
Xia also teaches laminating a printed lens and a second display substate, see p. 2, [0017]. These also read on the claimed first and second assemblies of claim 14 and also the electronic device comprising the claimed first and second assemblies as in claim 16.
Regarding claim 15, Xia discloses that the adhesive has a low shear storage modulus G’ at 25 °C lamination temperature of less than 105 Pascal (100,000 Pa) when measured at 1 Hz frequency. This overlaps the shear storage modulus range of feature (1).
Xia also discloses that the adhesive has a thickness of preferably 50 to 175 micrometers, see p. 6, [0044], which is within the thickness range of feature (6).
Regarding claim 18, the composite assembly is claimed be prepared by a series of operations which are method limitations and do not determine the patentability of the product, unless the process produces unexpected results. The method of forming the product is not germane to the issue of patentability of the product itself, unless Applicant presents evidence from which the Examiner could reasonably conclude that the claimed product differs in kind from those of the prior art. See MPEP § 2113. Furthermore, there does not appear to be a difference between the prior art structure and the structure resulting from the claimed method because Xia also discloses a composite assembly as claimed.
In particular, Xia discloses an adhesive composition that includes an alkyl (meth)acrylate ester in which the alkyl group has 4 to 18 carbon atoms and a copolymerizable monomer, see abstract and p. 1, [0007]. Example 1 at p. 7, [0056] of the reference combines 55 parts by weight of 2-ethylhexyl acrylate, 25 parts of isobornyl acrylate, 20 parts of 2-hydroxyethyl acrylate, and minor amounts of photoinitiator and other additives. This is 80 parts of the claimed alkyl acrylate soft monomers and 20 parts of the claimed acrylate polar monomer as claimed. See also Table 1 on p. 9.
Example 4 uses 75 parts by weight of 2-ethylhexyl acrylate, 10 parts of 2-hydroxyethyl acrylate, and 15 parts of N,N-dimethyl acrylamide for a total of 75 parts of alkyl acrylate soft monomer and 25 parts of acrylate polar monomers as claimed. See p. 8, [0059] and Table 1.
The mixtures are partially polymerized under a nitrogen-rich atmosphere to provide a syrup which is then coated and cured between release liners, see p. 6, [0056] and p. 8, [0059]. Thus the adhesive film is prepared by crosslinking of a prepolymer as claimed. The release liners read on the claimed first and second assemblies.
Xia also teaches laminating a printed lens and a second display substate, see p. 2, [0017]. These also read on the claimed first and second assemblies.
Furthermore, Xia teaches forming the prepolymer in a nitrogen atmosphere reading on an inert gas as claimed. Note that nitrogen is considered an inert gas in the present specification, see p. 6, [0033] of the original disclosure. Xia also teaches adding either a thermal initiator or a photoinitiator, and exposing the prepolymer to either heat or UV light, respectively, to initiate and later complete curing of the adhesive. See p. 2, [0016]. A solvent may also be included, see p. 4, [0031]. The monomer amounts disclosed in the examples of the reference are within the claimed ranges as described above, see Examples 1 and 4 in Table 1.
RESPONSE TO APPLICANT’S ARGUMENTS
Applicant’s arguments in the response filed 30 June 2026 regarding the 35 U.S.C. § 102 and 103 rejections of the claims over Xia and Xia in view of WO ‘752 have been carefully considered but are deemed unpersuasive. The Examiner agrees that the Xia reference does not anticipate the present claims. The Examiner has considered the arguments with respect to the present 35 U.S.C. § 103 rejections.
Applicant argues that the isobornyl acrylate (IBA) monomer used in Example 1 of Xia has a high glass transition temperature (high Tg) and thus is not an alkyl acrylate “soft” monomer as required by the claims.
However, the present specification does not define a “soft” monomer with reference to a glass transition temperature, and instead provides non-limiting examples of monomers that are considered soft monomers. Claims are to be considered under the standard of Broadest Reasonable Interpretation consistent with the specification, see MPEP § 2111. The definition of a “soft” monomer in the Xia reference is not read into the present claims. As such, the isobornyl acrylate monomer used in Xia is considered to read on an alkyl acrylate soft monomer as claimed.
Furthermore, even if the IBA monomer of Example 1 of Xia is not considered a soft monomer within the broadest reasonable interpretation of the claims, the Examiner has also pointed to Example 4 of Xia. Example 4 of Xia uses 75 parts by weight of 2-ethylhexyl acrylate, 10 parts of 2-hydroxyethyl acrylate, and 15 parts of N,N-dimethyl acrylamide for a total of 75 parts of alkyl acrylate soft monomer and 25 parts of acrylate polar monomers as claimed. See p. 8, [0059] and Table 1. The monomer 2-ethylhexyl acrylate is included within the exemplary soft monomers on p. 2-3, [0011] of the originally filed disclosure of the present application. 2-hydroxyethyl acrylate is also disclosed as an exemplary acrylate polar monomer, see p. 3, [0014] of the original disclosure. Thus, Example 4 of Xia clearly is within the scope of the claimed invention.
At p. 12, applicant argues that Lee relies on a combination of both a high molecular weight (100,000 to 1,500,00 g/mol) and a low molecular weight (1,000 to 80,000 g/mol) prepolymer to achieve its desired results, whereas Xia discloses a single partially polymerized syrup (prepolymer) system. Applicant argues that a person having ordinary skill in the art would not be motivated to selectively extract only the high molecular weight prepolymer from Lee’s dual-prepolymer system and incorporate it into Xia’s single prepolymer system, as this would destroy the function of Lee’s invention.
The Examiner is not persuaded. When combining references, the primary (Xia) reference is being modified by the secondary (Lee) reference. The question is not whether the combination would destroy the function of Lee’s invention, but how the invention of Xia would be impacted by the combination. In this case, the inclusion of a low molecular weight prepolymer along with the high molecular weight prepolymer as taught in Lee into the adhesive composition of Xia would not affect the function of Xia as an adhesive would still be produced. Lee teaches suitable molecular weights for acrylic prepolymer components for its adhesives, which can be used as the acrylic prepolymer molecular weights in Xia. Lee teaches that the high molecular weight prepolymer provides excellent adhesives properties and controllable durability to the adhesive layer, see p. 2, [0038-0041], and that the high molecular weight prepolymer contributes to reliability at high temperature and/or high humidity conditions. Thus there is a reasonable expectation of success in the combination.
Accordingly, this 35 U.S.C. § 103 rejection is maintained.
Conclusion
All claims are rejected.
THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any extension fee pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action.
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/Scott R. Walshon/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1759
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