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 .
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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, 3, and 4 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Hiroyoshi (JP 2017-043878), English translation relied upon.
Regarding claim 1, Hiroyoshi meets the claimed method for producing a random sheet, (molding a sheet for a fiber-reinforced plastic molded body in which the orientation directions of the reinforcing fibers are random, [0007]) the method comprising: spreading thin pieces of a fiber reinforced resin so as to form a flat shape, (a random mat obtained by
shredding a prepreg obtained by impregnating paralleled reinforcing fibers with
resins and forming the prepreg into a sheet, [0020]) wherein in the fiber reinforced resin, a plurality of reinforcing fibers arranged to be oriented in one direction are impregnated with a first thermoplastic resin; (the orientation of the reinforcing fibers in the thickness direction is preferably a fixed direction, but the orientation of the reinforcing fibers in the plane direction is preferably a random orientation [0019]) applying powder of a second thermoplastic resin to the thin pieces spread; (thermoplastic resin in the form of fiber, powder, pellet, or flake can be used alone or in combination. [0045]. Examiner notes that as described in claim 4 below, the claim is met where the first and second resin are the same resin) and integrating the thin pieces with each other by heating and pressurizing the thin pieces, the thin pieces being subjected to the applying of the powder. (formed by performing a heat and pressure treatment at the melting temperature of the thermoplastic resin contained in the sheet [0037]).
Regarding claim 3, Hiroyoshi meets the method according to claim 1, wherein the first thermoplastic resin and the second thermoplastic resin are both polyolefin resins. (Hiroyoshi teaches the resin to be a polyolefin such as polypropylene [0046]).
Regarding claim 4, Hiroyoshi meets the claimed method according to any one of claim 1, wherein the first thermoplastic resin and the second thermoplastic resin are both polypropylene. (Hiroyoshi teaches the resin to be polypropylene [0046]).
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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.
Claim(s) 2 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Hiroyoshi (JP 2017-043878), English translation relied upon.
Regarding claim 2, Hiroyoshi is silent the claimed method according to claim 1, wherein in the applying the powder, the powder is applied in an amount of 20.0 g/m2 or more.
Hiroyoshi teaches applying a powder [0045] and three sheets for a fiber-reinforced plastic shaped product having a basis weight of 20g /m2 may be laminated to achieve 60 g/m2, [0087].
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the present application to vary the powder density of Hiroyoshi to meet the claimed 20.0 g/m2 or more in order to optimize the lightweight properties and high strength.
Claim(s) 5 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Hiroyoshi (JP 2017-043878), English translation relied upon, in view of Tomioka (US 2018/0222128 A1).
Regarding claim 5, Hiroyoshi is silent on the claimed method according to any one of claim 1, wherein the second thermoplastic resin is polypropylene having a melt flow rate (MFR) of 5.0 g/10 min or more measured at 230C and a load of 2,160 g in accordance with ASTM D-1238.
Tomioka meets the claimed wherein the second thermoplastic resin is polypropylene having a melt flow rate (MFR) of 5.0 g/10 min or more measured at 230C and a load of 2,160 g in accordance with ASTM D-1238. Tomioka teaches a a fiber sheet which was composed of an acid-modified polypropylene resin (MODIC manufactured by Mitsubishi Chemical Corporation, product number: P958V, MFR: 50, and specific gravity: 0.91) , see [0758], as well as Examples 1, 2, 4, and 6, see [0758]-[0763] include a MFR of 50 or 60.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the present application to select the polypropylene of MFR of greater than 5.0 because of Tomioka with the process of Dodworth of pressing fibers and resins because it can be molded in a short time and results in favorable mechanical properties, particularly an excellent bending strength to a structural material to be obtained after shaping, see [0822].
Claim(s) 6 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Hiroyoshi (JP 2017-043878), English translation relied upon, in view of Dodworth (US 2017/0080675 A1).
Regarding claim 6, Hiroyoshi meets the method according to any one of claim 1, wherein the integrating the thin pieces with each other includes, in an order below, and heating and pressurizing the thin pieces spread and the powder at a temperature equal to or higher than a melting point of the first thermoplastic resin and equal to or higher than a melting point of the second thermoplastic resin to integrate the thin pieces with each other. (formed by performing a heat and pressure treatment at the melting temperature of the thermoplastic resin contained in the sheet [0037]).
Hiroyoshi does not teach bumping for removing air from a space between the thin pieces spread and the powder.
Dodworth meets the claimed bumping for removing air from a space between the thin pieces spread and the powder. Dodworth teaches composite skin including a plurality of fibers embedded in a polymer matrix, [0010] the first and/or second mold portions may be shaken or vibrated (e.g., during processing of the skin assembly), which may facilitate air flow or circulation in the mold cavity [0107].
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the present application to combine the vibration step of Dodworth with the method of pressing fibers and resins of Hiroyoshi because it facilitates air flow, see Dodworth [0107].
Relevant Prior Art
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Lee (US 2022/0063148 A1) teaches pressing out the mixture and eliminating air bubbles in the mixture, and a forming part producing a block by compressing the mixture supplied from the consolidation part through a forming device, wherein the inorganic material pretreatment part includes a plurality of cylindrical members inside the disk mill and pulverizes the inorganic material by rotating and vibrating using power of a motor, see claim 1.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to MICHAEL M. ROBINSON whose telephone number is (571)270-0467. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 9:30AM-6PM.
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/MICHAEL M. ROBINSON/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1744