DETAILED ACTION
Claims 1-3 are pending and currently under review.
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 § 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.
Claims 2-3 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim 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.
Claim 2 recites “a light pickling step” which includes pickling “with a mixed acid obtained by mixing one or more… for 5 to 30 seconds”. It is unclear whether this limitation requires either: 1) pickling is performed for 5 to 30 seconds, or 2) mixing is performed for 5 to 30 seconds. The examiner interprets the claim to be met by either interpretation.
Claim 2 further recites a “fine particle emulsion of manganese phosphate”, which is indefinite because “fine” is a relative term of degree which is not further defined by the specification or claims. It is unclear whether “fine” requires some particular particle size or merely pertains to a broad categorization of particles or something else entirely.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claim 1 is allowed.
Claims 2-3 would be allowable if rewritten or amended to overcome the rejection(s) under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), 2nd paragraph, set forth in this Office action.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter:
Independent claim 1 is directed to a steel having an insulation coating of an intermediate layer and tension coating with parameters as claimed. There is no prior art of record that teaches all of the claimed features together.
The closest prior art of record is Tanaka et al. (US 3,856,568) and Ueishi et al. (JP2003193251, machine translation referred to herein). Tanaka et al. discloses general methods for producing oriented silicon steel sheets having insulation coatings formed thereon. Ueishi et al. discloses that it is known to provide an intermediate phosphate layer between an electrical steel sheet and insulation sheet for improving adhesion. However, the prior art does not expressly teach all of the claimed features together, including the claimed coverage of the intermediate layer relative to the base sheet. Rather, the prior art teaches away from this feature. For example, Yamamoto et al. (WO2020149349, US 2022/0074016 referred to as English translation) teaches that partial coating (ie. less than 100%) of an intermediate layer does not achieve desirable adhesion and is therefore not desired [0067]. Therefore, the prior art of record does not teach or suggest all of the claimed features together.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to NICHOLAS A WANG whose telephone number is (408)918-7576. The examiner can normally be reached usually M-Th: 7-5.
Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Jonathan Johnson can be reached at 5712721177. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000.
/NICHOLAS A WANG/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1734
Prosecution Insights