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 .
Continued Examination Under 37 CFR 1.114
A request for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, including the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e), was filed in this application after final rejection. Since this application is eligible for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114. Applicant's submission filed on 23 June 2026 has been entered.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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 8 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kawano et al. (US 2010/0239879 – previously cited).
Considering claim 8, Kawano teaches an iron powder coated with an oxide (abstract). The iron powder may comprise less than 0.01 mass percent Si (Paragraph 44). The coating comprises and oxide film which is Si-based and comprises SiO2 and Fe2SiO4 in a ratio of 7 or more (Paragraph 13) and is positively taught to disclose the presence of Fe2SiO4 (Fig. 1, upper portion; Paragraph 14).
While not expressly teaching a singular example of the instantly claimed alloy particle this would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date in view of the teachings of Kawano as this is considered a conventionally known combination of a core comprising Fe and optionally Si with a coating containing Fe2SiO4 known to afford high insulating properties (Paragraph 16) and one would have had a reasonable expectation of success. Further, while not expressly teaching the claimed XRD diffraction ratio of FeO/ Fe2SiO4, Kawano teaches an oxide coating directly on the iron particle and is silent regarding the presence of FeO and therefore is expected to meet the claimed ratio due to the recitation of “or lower” as ~zero is encompassed by the claimed range. See MPEP §§ 2111.01, 2111.03, 2112.01, and 2144.05.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 1-7 are allowed.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter: The closest prior art to the instant claims is that of Orimo (US 2018/0374619 – previously cited) which teaches an outermost coating of Fe2SiO4, and is silent regarding a positive recitation of FeO. Therefore, it would not have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to achieve the claimed ratio.
Claim 8 may be placed in condition for allowance if amended to recite where the ratio is greater than 0, similar to instant claim 1.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments, see remarks p.4 last section - p. 6, 2nd paragraph, filed 23 June 2026, with respect to 35 USC 103 rejections in view of Orimo have been fully considered and are persuasive. The rejection of claims 1-7 has been withdrawn. As outlined above, applicant has amended to recite ratio features not disclosed by Orimo.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to SETH DUMBRIS whose telephone number is (571)272-5105. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 6:00 AM - 3:30 PM.
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SETH DUMBRIS
Primary Examiner
Art Unit 1784
/SETH DUMBRIS/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1784
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