DETAILED ACTION
Response to Amendment
The text of those sections of Title 35, U.S. Code not included in this action can be found in a prior Office action.
The new grounds of rejection set forth below are necessitated by applicant’s amendment filed on 3/10/2026. In particular, claim 1 has been amended to include the limitations of cancelled claim 3. This presents the claims in a manner with a scope not previously examined. Thus, the following action is properly made FINAL.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
Claim(s) 1-2, 4-5, 7 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Rodzewich (US 2004/0094235) in view of Allen (US 4,225,350).
The rejection is adequately set forth in the office action mailed on 12/10/2025 and is incorporated here by reference.
Claim(s) 6 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Rodzewich (US 2004/0094235) in view of Allen (US 4,225,350) and KR 101506311.
The discussion with respect to Rodzewich and Allen set forth in the office action mailed on 12/10/2025 is incorporated here by reference.
Rodzewich and Allen do not explicitly recite the ratio of phosphonic acid functional groups to carboxylic acid functional groups.
However, KR ‘311 teaches conversion coatings comprising a copolymer (abstract) where the coating is chromium free (pg. 2) and the copolymer is a vinylphosphonic acid/acrylic acid copolymer (pg. 2) where the amount of acrylic acid is 65-75 wt% of the copolymer (pg. 2).
It would have been obvious to use the copolymer of KR ‘311 and ratios of monomers because it enhances the adhesion to metals and to an organic layer such as a top coating (pg. 2).
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed 3/10/2026 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive.
Applicant argues that Allen is not combinable with Rodzewich because Allen underscores the importance of sulfuric acid and hydrogen peroxide.
This is not persuasive. As noted by the Applicant, the sulfuric acid and hydrogen peroxide of Allen are present to provide pleasing and lasting colors without detrimentally affecting corrosion resistance (col. 3, ln. 1-5) while the fluozirconic acid is used to enhance corrosion resistance (¶ 4, 42-47). Rodzewich does not exclude sulfuric acid and/or hydrogen peroxide and the rejection does not rely on a substitution of these components to meet the claimed limitations.
Conclusion
Applicant's amendment necessitated the new ground(s) of rejection presented in this Office action. Accordingly, THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. See MPEP § 706.07(a). 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 nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) 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.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to ROBERT C BOYLE whose telephone number is (571)270-7347. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Thursday, 10am-4pm.
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/ROBERT C BOYLE/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1764