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 .
Priority
Receipt is acknowledged of certified copies of papers required by 37 CFR 1.55.
Applicant’s claim for the benefit of a prior-filed application under 35 U.S.C. 119(e) or under 35 U.S.C. 120, 121, 365(c), or 386(c) is acknowledged. Applicant has not complied with one or more conditions for receiving the benefit of an earlier filing date under 35 U.S.C. 119 as follows: A certified copy of case JP2023-128300 has not been received (i.e., associated with date August 7, 2023). However, a certified copy of case JP2024-117455 has been received (i.e., associated with date July 23, 2024).
Applicant cannot rely upon the certified copy of the foreign priority application to overcome this rejection because a translation of said application has not been made of record in accordance with 37 CFR 1.55. When an English language translation of a non-English language foreign application is required, the translation must be that of the certified copy (of the foreign application as filed) submitted together with a statement that the translation of the certified copy is accurate. See MPEP §§ 215 and 216.
Specification
The lengthy specification has not been checked to the extent necessary to determine the presence of all possible minor errors. In addition to correcting the errors discussed below, the Applicant’s cooperation is requested in correcting any additional errors of which applicant may become aware in the specification.
The disclosure is objected to because of the following informalities:
¶0061 – “The ink to be stored in the ink storage portion described above includes, in addition to the magenta ink, normally, another ink other than the magenta ink, such as a cyan ink and a yellow ink”, based on the context, is clearly intending to refer to an ink set (i.e., multiple separate inks, not multiple pigmented colors within one ink) and should therefore be stated accordingly.
¶0061–“another ink other than the magenta ink, such as a cyan ink and a yellow ink” is grammatically incorrect and should be corrected to “a cyan ink or a yellow ink”.
¶0061 – “water in the another ink” is grammatically incorrect.
Appropriate correction is required.
Claim Objections
Claim 6 is objected to because of the following informalities: “in the another ink” is not grammatically correct. Appropriate correction is required.
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.
Claim 6 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as failing to set forth 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. Evidence that Claim 6 fails to correspond in scope with that which the applicant regards as the invention can be found in the specification filed August 7th, 2024. In that specification, the applicant indicates that the invention is different from what is defined in the claims as will be discussed below:
The applicant references “another ink other than magenta ink, such as a cyan ink and a yellow ink” which can be “stored in the ink storage portion” (emphasis added; Applicant’s specification: ¶0061) indicating that the ink set used within the ink storage portion contains both a magenta ink and “another ink”. However, in Claim 6, the applicant claims “the ink jet recording method according to claim 1, wherein the aqueous ink further comprises another ink other the magenta ink” (emphasis added). This phrasing conveys that “the aqueous ink” with the claimed elements defined in Claim 1 (e.g., a magenta ink with quinacridone pigment) also comprises a non-magenta ink within that one ink’s composition (i.e., claiming the composition of the pre-defined “aqueous ink” from Claim 1 has two different colors within it). This is not aligned with the invention as described in the specification.
In an effort to advance prosecution of the application, the examiner is interpreting Claim 6’s phrase “the aqueous ink further comprises another ink other the magenta ink” using the applicant’s specification “another ink other than magenta ink” (Applicant’s specification: ¶0061). Therefore, the examiner is interpreting Claim 6 to be claiming a second (i.e., “another”) aqueous ink, and that this second aqueous ink, which is a non-magenta ink also to be stored in the ink storage portion, is not the aqueous ink containing a magenta quinacridone pigment previously claimed in Claim 1. Appropriate correction of Claim 6 is required to properly claim the invention, such as rephasing to “wherein the inkjet recording apparatus further comprises a second aqueous ink other than the magenta ink… water in the second aqueous ink”.
Additionally, in an effort to advance prosecution of the application, the examiner is interpreting Claim 6’s phrase “a content (% by mass) of water” to be referring to the overall water content in each ink, including the water within a pigment dispersion.
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 (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 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.
The factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness.
Claims 1-6, 8, and 10 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Albertin & Ferrarotti (US 20090213195 A1; herein referred to as “Albertin”) in view of Kawakami (US 20210340395 A1) further in view of Yamakami et al. (US 20070109378 A1; herein referred to as “Yamakami”).
With respect to Claim 1, Albertin teaches an ink jet recording method (Albertin: ¶0002-0004) using an ink jet recording apparatus (i.e., “ink-jet printers”; Albertin: ¶0002), the ink jet recording apparatus comprising:
an ink comprising a pigment (i.e., “inks of different colors”; Albertin: ¶0061)
an ink storage portion which is configured to store the ink (i.e., “cartridge body” aka “body”; Albertin: ¶0102, ¶0055, and Fig. 1, element “1”), and is formed from a thermoplastic resin composition (i.e., “a thermoplastic polymeric compound” such as “polyphenylene ether (PPE)”; Albertin: ¶0110) comprising a filler material (i.e., “glass fibre reinforcement” as a filler in a “modified PPE resin”; Albertin: ¶0110); and
a recording head (i.e., “printhead”; Albertin: ¶0055-0056 and Fig. 1, element “5”) to be bonded to the ink storage portion (i.e., “adhesive laid between the printhead and the body”; Albertin: ¶0059), the recording head having formed therein an ejection orifice (i.e., “ink delivery slots”; Albertin: ¶0055 and Fig. 1, element “6”) configured to eject the ink supplied from the ink storage portion (Albertin: ¶0059),
the ink jet recording method (Albertin: ¶0002-0004) comprising recording an image by applying the aqueous ink ejected from the ejection orifice (i.e., “nozzle arrays” used to eject ink through “slots of the printhead”; Albertin: ¶0002-0004 and ¶0059) to a recording medium (i.e., “printing medium”; Albertin: ¶0002-0004),
wherein the ink storage portion comprises three or more storage parts divided independently of each other (i.e., “ink chambers”; Albertin: ¶0022 and Fig. 1, elements “11a”-“11c”), and the three or more storage parts are arrayed in one predetermined direction (Albertin: Fig. 1, elements “1”, “10”, and “11a”-“11c”).
Albertin is silent on the ink jet recording apparatus comprising:
an aqueous ink comprising a pigment;
an ink storage portion which is configured to store the aqueous ink
the recording head having formed therein an ejection orifice configured to eject the aqueous ink supplied from the ink storage portion
wherein the aqueous ink comprises a magenta ink comprising a quinacridone pigment, and
wherein the magenta ink is stored in a corresponding one of the three or more storage parts arranged on an inner side.
Kawakami teaches the ink jet recording apparatus comprising:
an aqueous ink comprising a pigment (i.e., “a water-based ink for ink-jet recording including…a quinacridone pigment”; emphasis added; Kawakami: ¶0007-0008);
an ink storage portion which is configured to store the aqueous ink (i.e., “a water-based ink for ink-jet recording”; emphasis added; Kawakami: ¶0007);
the recording head having formed therein an ejection orifice configured to eject the aqueous ink supplied from the ink storage portion (i.e., “a water-based ink for ink-jet recording including”; emphasis added; Kawakami: ¶0007);
wherein the aqueous ink comprises a magenta ink comprising a quinacridone pigment (i.e., water-based magenta ink comprising a quinacridone pigment; Kawakami: ¶0006-0010), and
Yamakami teaches the ink jet recording apparatus comprising:
wherein the magenta ink is stored in a corresponding one of the three or more storage parts arranged on an inner side (i.e., magenta is stored in the ink absorbing body “44M” within a space arranged on the inner side of the partitioned spaces within ink cartridge “41”; Yamakami: ¶0017 & ¶0120; Fig. 2, elements “41”, “44M”, “44C”, “44Y”).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to use the magenta ink taught by Kawakami, which is an aqueous ink comprising a quinacridone pigment (i.e., “a water-based ink for ink-jet recording including…a quinacridone pigment”; emphasis added; Kawakami: ¶0007-0008), as one of the “inks of different colors” taught in Albertin (Albertin: ¶0061) being stored in the multiple storage parts (i.e., “ink chambers”; Albertin: ¶0022 and Fig. 1, elements “11a”-“11c”), because, as taught by Kawakami, this ink is “capable of achieving the wide color reproduction range from magenta to red, and which has satisfactory chromaticness of magenta and satisfactory recording density (optical density), as well”.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to modify the ink storage portion taught in Albertin (i.e., an ink storage portion with three or more storage parts arrayed in one predetermined direction and contains “inks of different colors”; Albertin: ¶0102, ¶0055, ¶0022, & ¶0061; and Fig. 1, elements “1”, “11a”-“11c”) using the teachings of Yamakami (i.e., ink colors and their arrangement within an ink storage portion; Yamakami: ¶0017 & ¶0120; Fig. 2, elements “41”, “44M”, “44C”, “44Y”). Incorporating Yamakami’s teaching of the storage of yellow, magenta, and cyan within the ink storage portion is beneficial because these three colors can be used in tandem to print a wide color-range of images.
With respect to Claim 2, Albertin in view of Kawakami further in view of Yamakami teaches the ink jet recording method (Albertin: ¶0002-0004) according to claim 1, wherein the magenta ink further comprises a non-quinacridone pigment (i.e., “an azo pigment” in addition to a quinacridone pigment; Kawakami: ¶0006-0010).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to modify the ink storage portion taught in Albertin (i.e., an ink storage portion with three or more storage parts arrayed in one predetermined direction and contains “inks of different colors”; Albertin: ¶0102, ¶0055, ¶0022, & ¶0061; and Fig. 1, elements “1”, “11a”-“11c”) to include the magenta ink taught by Kawakami as this enables the printing of images that incorporate magenta. Moreover, this pigment’s specific composition, comprising of both a quinacridone and a non-quinacridone pigment, yields an optimized ink that “is capable of achieving the wide color reproduction range from magenta to red, and has satisfactory chromaticness of magenta and satisfactory recording density, as well. The water-based ink related to the present teaching is widely applicable to a variety of kinds of the ink-jet recording, for example, as a water-based magenta ink for ink-jet recording” (Kawakami: ¶0095).
With respect to Claim 3, Albertin in view of Kawakami further in view of Yamakami teaches the ink jet recording method (Albertin: ¶0002-0004) according to claim 2, wherein a content (% by mass) of the quinacridone pigment in the magenta ink is 1.5 times or more to 4.0 times or less in terms of a mass ratio with respect to a content (% by mass) of the non-quinacridone pigment (i.e., “a mass ratio” of quinacridone pigment to non-quinacridone pigment in “a range of 9:1 to 2:8”; Kawakami: ¶0007-0010). Note that the mass ratio taught by Kawakami is equivalent to a content (% by mass) of the quinacridone pigment 9 times or more to 0.25 times or less in terms of a mass ratio with respect to a content (% by mass) of the non-quinacridone pigment. This range taught by Kawakami encapsulates the claimed range. Moreover, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to use a content of the quinacridone pigment in the magenta ink 1.5 times or more to 4.0 times or less in terms of a mass ratio with respect to a content of the non-quinacridone pigment, since it has been held that where the general conditions of a claim are disclosed in the prior art, discovering the optimum or workable ranges involves only routine skill in the art (in re Aller, 105 USPQ 233).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to modify the ink storage portion taught in Albertin (i.e., an ink storage portion with three or more storage parts arrayed in one predetermined direction and contains “inks of different colors”; Albertin: ¶0102, ¶0055, ¶0022, & ¶0061; and Fig. 1, elements “1”, “11a”-“11c”) to include the magenta ink taught by Kawakami as this enables the printing of images that incorporate magenta. Moreover, this pigment’s specific composition, comprising of a 1.5-4.0 (inclusive) ratio of quinacridone to non-quinacridone pigment, yields an optimized ink that “is capable of achieving the wide color reproduction range from magenta to red, and has satisfactory chromaticness of magenta and satisfactory recording density, as well. The water-based ink related to the present teaching is widely applicable to a variety of kinds of the ink-jet recording, for example, as a water-based magenta ink for ink-jet recording” (Kawakami: ¶0095).
With respect to Claim 4, Albertin in view of Kawakami further in view of Yamakami teaches the ink jet recording method (Albertin: ¶0002-0004) according to claim 1, wherein
the magenta ink further comprises a first water-soluble organic solvent having a relative dielectric constant of 20.0 or more to 30.0 or less (i.e., a “water-soluble organic solvent…exemplified…by a humectant…for example…2-pyrrolidone”; Kawakami: ¶0042-0043). 2-pyrrolidone, a water-soluble organic solvent with a dielectric constant of 28.0 (as acknowledged by the applicant in specification ¶0064), is within the claimed range of 20.0-30.0 (inclusively).
a content (% by mass) of the first water-soluble organic solvent (i.e., the humectant 2-pyrrolidone; Kawakami: ¶0042-0043) in the magenta ink is 10.00% by mass or more with respect to a total mass of the magenta ink (i.e., 0-95% by mass (inclusively); Kawakami: ¶0042-0043). This range taught by Kawakami overlaps with the claimed range.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to modify the ink storage portion taught in Albertin (i.e., an ink storage portion with three or more storage parts arrayed in one predetermined direction and contains “inks of different colors”; Albertin: ¶0102, ¶0055, ¶0022, & ¶0061; and Fig. 1, elements “1”, “11a”-“11c”) to include the magenta ink taught by Kawakami as this enables the printing of images that incorporate magenta. Additionally, this pigment’s specific composition, comprising 2-pyrrolidone (i.e., a water-soluble organic solvent with a dielectric constant of 20-30) at a content of ≥10.00% by mass (Kawakami: ¶0042-0043), yields an optimized ink that “is capable of achieving the wide color reproduction range from magenta to red, and has satisfactory chromaticness of magenta and satisfactory recording density, as well. The water-based ink related to the present teaching is widely applicable to a variety of kinds of the ink-jet recording, for example, as a water-based magenta ink for ink-jet recording” (Kawakami: ¶0095). Moreover, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to use a content (% by mass) of the first water-soluble organic solvent in the magenta ink that is 10.00% by mass or more with respect to a total mass of the magenta ink, since it has been held that where the general conditions of a claim are disclosed in the prior art, discovering the optimum or workable ranges involves only routine skill in the art (in re Aller, 105 USPQ 233).
With respect to Claim 5, Albertin in view of Kawakami further in view of Yamakami teaches the ink jet recording method (Albertin: ¶0002-0004) according to claim 1, wherein the magenta ink further comprises an acetylene glycol-based surfactant (Kawakami: ¶0038).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to modify the ink storage portion taught in Albertin (i.e., an ink storage portion with three or more storage parts arrayed in one predetermined direction and contains “inks of different colors”; Albertin: ¶0102, ¶0055, ¶0022, & ¶0061; and Fig. 1, elements “1”, “11a”-“11c”) to include the magenta ink taught by Kawakami as this enables the printing of images that incorporate magenta. Moreover, this pigment’s specific composition, comprising an acetylene glycol-based surfactant, yields an optimized ink that “is capable of achieving the wide color reproduction range from magenta to red, and has satisfactory chromaticness of magenta and satisfactory recording density, as well. The water-based ink related to the present teaching is widely applicable to a variety of kinds of the ink-jet recording, for example, as a water-based magenta ink for ink-jet recording” (Kawakami: ¶0095).
With respect to Claim 6, Albertin in view of Kawakami further in view of Yamakami teaches the ink jet recording method (Albertin: ¶0002-0004) according to claim 1, wherein the aqueous ink further comprises another ink other than the magenta ink (i.e., cyan ink “compound of formula 1-1”; Yamakami: ¶0139-0141, ¶0121, & ¶0124-0131; Table 1, column associated with Example 2), and a content (% by mass) of water in the magenta ink (i.e., a magenta ink with a content of water in “a range of 10% by mass to 90% by mass”; Kawakami: ¶0037 & ¶0035) is lower than a content (% by mass) of water in the another ink (i.e., water content of 76.5% by mass in cyan ink Example 2; Yamakami: ¶0139-0141, ¶0121, & ¶0124-0131; Table 1, column associated with Example 2). Kawakami teaches a magenta ink that has a water content (% by mass) that is the “balance of all the other components” in the ink (e.g., a pigment, a surfactant, etc.) (Kawakami: ¶0037; ¶0035-0038) and that this water content can be impacted depending on the quantity of other components used in the ink. For example, one could increase the quantity of magenta pigment in the ink, thereby decreasing the water content in the ink (while staying within the taught range of 10-90% water by mass).
Please note, as discussed in the 112 Claim Rejections section, in an effort to advance prosecution of the application, the examiner is interpreting the phrase “the aqueous ink further comprises another ink other the magenta ink” to be claiming a second (i.e., “another”) aqueous ink, and that this second aqueous ink, which is a non-magenta ink also to be stored in the ink storage portion, is not the aqueous ink containing a magenta quinacridone pigment previously claimed in Claim 1.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to modify the ink storage portion taught in Albertin (i.e., an ink storage portion with three or more storage parts arrayed in one predetermined direction and contains “inks of different colors”; Albertin: ¶0102, ¶0055, ¶0022, & ¶0061; and Fig. 1, elements “1”, “11a”-“11c”) to include the magenta ink taught by Kawakami as this enables the printing of images that incorporate magenta. Moreover, this pigment’s specific composition, comprising a water content of 10-90% by mass, yields an optimized ink that “is capable of achieving the wide color reproduction range from magenta to red, and has satisfactory chromaticness of magenta and satisfactory recording density, as well. The water-based ink related to the present teaching is widely applicable to a variety of kinds of the ink-jet recording, for example, as a water-based magenta ink for ink-jet recording” (Kawakami: ¶0095). Moreover, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to adjust the content (% by mass) of water in the magenta ink, since it has been held that where the general conditions of a claim are disclosed in the prior art, discovering the optimum or workable ranges involves only routine skill in the art (in re Aller, 105 USPQ 233). For example, decreasing the water content in order to increase the quantity of pigment in the magenta ink, thereby strengthening the color of the ink, would be a form of optimization.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to modify the ink storage portion taught in Albertin (i.e., an ink storage portion with three or more storage parts arrayed in one predetermined direction and contains “inks of different colors”; Albertin: ¶0102, ¶0055, ¶0022, & ¶0061; and Fig. 1, elements “1”, “11a”-“11c”) using the teachings of Yamakami. Incorporating Yamakami’s teaching of the storage of cyan along with magenta within the ink storage portion is beneficial because these colors can be used in tandem to print a wide color-range of images. Moreover, Yamakami’s teaching of the cyan ink “Example 2” (i.e., a cyan ink with a water content of 76.5% by mass; Yamakami: ¶0139-0141, ¶0121, & ¶0124-0131; Table 1, column associated with Example 2) is a beneficial addition to the ink storage portion as it is an ink “which has extremely excellent ejection property” (Yamakami: ¶0010).
With respect to Claim 8, Albertin teaches the ink jet recording method according to claim 1 (see discussion in Claim 1), wherein the ink storage portion (i.e., “cartridge body” aka “cartridge”; Albertin: ¶0102, ¶0055, ¶0005, and Fig. 1, element “1”) is replaced with another ink storage portion after the aqueous ink stored therein has been consumed (Albertin: ¶0005).
With respect to Claim 10, Albertin teaches an ink jet recording apparatus (i.e., “ink-jet printers”; Albertin: ¶0002) comprising:
an ink comprising a pigment (i.e., “inks of different colors”; Albertin: ¶0061)
an ink storage portion which is configured to store the ink (i.e., “cartridge body” aka “body”; Albertin: ¶0102, ¶0055, and Fig. 1, element “1”), and is formed from a thermoplastic resin composition (i.e., “a thermoplastic polymeric compound” such as “polyphenylene ether (PPE)”; Albertin: ¶0110) comprising a filler material (i.e., “glass fibre reinforcement” as a filler in a “modified PPE resin”; Albertin: ¶0110); and
a recording head (i.e., “printhead”; Albertin: ¶0055-0056 and Fig. 1, element “5”) to be bonded to the ink storage portion (i.e., “adhesive laid between the printhead and the body”; Albertin: ¶0059), the recording head having formed therein an ejection orifice (i.e., “ink delivery slots”; Albertin: ¶0055 and Fig. 1, element “6”) configured to eject the ink supplied from the ink storage portion (Albertin: ¶0059),
wherein the ink storage portion comprises three or more storage parts divided independently of each other (i.e., “ink chambers”; Albertin: ¶0022 and Fig. 1, elements “11a”-“11c”), and the three or more storage parts are arrayed in one predetermined direction (Albertin: Fig. 1, elements “1”, “10”, and “11a”-“11c”)
Albertin is silent on the ink jet recording apparatus comprising:
an aqueous ink comprising a pigment;
an ink storage portion which is configured to store the aqueous ink
the recording head having formed therein an ejection orifice configured to eject the aqueous ink supplied from the ink storage portion
wherein the aqueous ink comprises a magenta ink comprising a quinacridone pigment, and
wherein the magenta ink is stored in a corresponding one of the three or more storage parts arranged on an inner side.
Kawakami teaches the ink jet recording apparatus comprising:
an aqueous ink comprising a pigment (i.e., “a water-based ink for ink-jet recording including…a quinacridone pigment”; emphasis added; Kawakami: ¶0007-0008);
an ink storage portion which is configured to store the aqueous ink (i.e., “a water-based ink for ink-jet recording”; emphasis added; Kawakami: ¶0007);
the recording head having formed therein an ejection orifice configured to eject the aqueous ink supplied from the ink storage portion (i.e., “a water-based ink for ink-jet recording including”; emphasis added; Kawakami: ¶0007);
wherein the aqueous ink comprises a magenta ink comprising a quinacridone pigment (i.e., water-based magenta ink comprising a quinacridone pigment; Kawakami: ¶0006-0010).
Yamakami teaches the ink jet recording apparatus comprising:
wherein the magenta ink is stored in a corresponding one of the three or more storage parts arranged on an inner side (i.e., magenta is stored in the ink absorbing body “44M” within a space arranged on the inner side of the partitioned spaces within ink cartridge “41”; Yamakami: ¶0017 & ¶0120; Fig. 2, elements “41”, “44M”, “44C”, “44Y”).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to use the magenta ink taught by Kawakami, which is an aqueous ink comprising a quinacridone pigment (i.e., “a water-based ink for ink-jet recording including…a quinacridone pigment”; emphasis added; Kawakami: ¶0007-0008), as one of the “inks of different colors” taught in Albertin (Albertin: ¶0061) being stored in the multiple storage parts (i.e., “ink chambers”; Albertin: ¶0022 and Fig. 1, elements “11a”-“11c”), because, as taught by Kawakami, this ink is “capable of achieving the wide color reproduction range from magenta to red, and which has satisfactory chromaticness of magenta and satisfactory recording density (optical density), as well”.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to modify the ink storage portion taught in Albertin (i.e., an ink storage portion with three or more storage parts arrayed in one predetermined direction and contains “inks of different colors”; Albertin: ¶0102, ¶0055, ¶0022, & ¶0061; and Fig. 1, elements “1”, “11a”-“11c”) using the teachings of Yamakami (i.e., ink colors and their arrangement within an ink storage portion; Yamakami: ¶0017 & ¶0120; Fig. 2, elements “41”, “44M”, “44C”, “44Y”). Incorporating Yamakami’s teaching of the storage of yellow, magenta, and cyan within the ink storage portion is beneficial because these three colors can be used in tandem to print a wide color-range of images.
Claim 7 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Albertin in view of Kawakami, further in view of Yamakami, and further in view of O'Reilly et al. (US 20160332454 A1; herein referred to as “O'Reilly”).
With respect to Claim 7, Albertin in view of Kawakami further in view of Yamakami teaches the ink jet recording method (Albertin: ¶0002-0004) according to claim 1, wherein the recording head (i.e., “printhead”; Albertin: ¶0056 and Fig. 1, element “5”) has formed therein an ejection orifice array (i.e., “arrays of ejecting nozzles”; nozzles are also referred to as “slots of printhead 5”; Albertin: ¶0055, ¶0058, and Fig. 1) in which a plurality of the ejection orifices is arrayed in parallel to a longitudinal direction of the ink storage portion (Albertin: ¶0058 and Fig. 1). Note that the array of nozzles (i.e., the “slots of printhead 5”) are arranged to be above the “ink delivery slots 6”, which are shown to be arrayed in parallel to a longitudinal direction of the ink storage portions as shown in Albertin Fig. 1 (Albertin: ¶0058 and Fig. 1)
Albertin is silent on the ink storage portion has a ratio (A/B) of a length A in the longitudinal direction to a length B in a transverse direction orthogonal to the longitudinal direction, the ratio (A/B) being 2.0 times or more to 4.0 times or less.
O'Reilly teaches the ink storage portion (i.e., “housing”; O'Reilly: ¶0016 and Fig. 4-5, element “107”) has a ratio (A/B) of a length A in the longitudinal direction (i.e., “length Lh of the housing”, such as 66 mm; O'Reilly: ¶0016 and Fig. 5, element “Lh”) to a length B in a transverse direction orthogonal to the longitudinal direction (i.e., “total width of the housing”, such as 32 mm; O'Reilly: ¶0018 and Fig. 4, element “Wh”), the ratio (A/B) being 2.0 times or more to 4.0 times or less (i.e., 66 mm ÷ 32 mm = 2.1, which is within the claimed range; O'Reilly: ¶0016 and ¶0018).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to design the dimensions of the outer structure of the ink storage portion (i.e., the body taught in Albertin) using the housing dimension ratio taught in O’Reilly. O’Reilly teaches the dimensions specified above cause the housing of their ink storage portion to have “a relatively long body” which enables the overall structure is intended to “hold relatively large volumes of ink” (¶0016 and Fig. 4-5, element “107”). This decreases the frequency required by a user to replenish the ink within the printer.
Claim 9 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Albertin in view of Kawakami, further in view of Yamakami,, and further in view of William et al. (US 20020027580 A1; herein referred to as “William”).
With respect to Claim 9, Albertin in view of Kawakami further in view of Yamakami teaches the ink jet recording method (Albertin: ¶0002-0004) according to claim 1.
Albertin is silent on wherein the ink jet recording apparatus further comprises:
a second ink storage portion having a capacity larger than a capacity of the ink storage portion; and
a tube through which the aqueous ink flows between the second ink storage portion and the ink storage portion.
William teaches an inkjet recording apparatus further comprising:
a second ink storage portion (William: ¶0016; Fig. 1a and 1b, element “10”) having a capacity larger than a capacity of the ink storage portion (Williams: ¶0025; Fig. 3, element “120”); and
a tube (William: ¶0025; Fig. 1, element “115”) through which the aqueous ink flows between the second ink storage portion and the ink storage portion (William: ¶0025, Fig. 3, elements “120”, “137”, and “132”).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to modify the inkjet recording apparatus taught in Albertin with an “ink supply system” taught in William, given the second ink storage portion (i.e., the “reservoirs” of ink) provide a continuous supply of ink to the ink storage portion (i.e., the “ink cartridges”) in a printer (Williams: ¶0015). This decreases the frequency of replacing the ink being used by the printer.
Conclusion
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/RICARDO I MAGALLANES/ Supervisor Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2853
/SHLOMIT CHELST/ Examiner, Art Unit 2853