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 .
Response to Amendment
The preliminary amendment filed on 06/24/2025 is entered and acknowledged by the Examiner. Claims 1, 4, 10, and 13 have been amended. Claims 1-14 are currently pending in the instant application.
Election/Restrictions
Applicant’s election without traverse of Group I, drawn to claims 1-5 and 13-14, in the reply filed on 08/20/2026 is acknowledged.
Claims 6-12 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to a nonelected invention, there being no allowable generic or linking claim. Election was made without traverse in the reply filed on 08/20/2026.
Priority
This application is a 371 of PCT/JP2023/016355 (filed on 04/25/2023). Acknowledgment is made of applicant’s claim for foreign priority based on an application filed in Japan on 04/28/2022.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statements (IDS) filed on 10/23/2024, 01/10/2025, and 06/23/2026 are in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97 and have been considered by the examiner. An initialed copy accompanies this Office Action.
Drawings
The drawings filed on 10/23/2024 have been considered.
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)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claims 1-5 and 13-14 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by US 20220055941 A1 (hereinafter Yoon).
Initially, it should be noted that the Yoon reference is cited in the IDS filed on 10/23/2024 and as an “X” reference in the international search report filed on 06/23/2026.
Regarding claims 1-5, Yoon discloses (See Table 2, Comparative Example 1) a silver powder A having a D10 of 1.002 um, a D50 of 1.576 um, a D90 of 2.62 um, and ratio [D90-D10]/D50 of 0.99. The ratio [D90-D10]/D50 of Yoon is less than 1.0. Yoon further discloses (See Table 2, Comparative Example 1) that the silver powder A having a specific surface area (BET) of 0.428 m2/g and a true specific gravity of 10.2 g/cm3. Applicant described the D diameter DBET is calculated by the formula DBET = 6/(SSA)/true density where SSA is BET specific surface area (See [0011] of the present specification). According to Applicant’s formula, Yoon discloses DBET = 6/(0.428)/10.2 = 1.374 um. Moreover, the ratio of D50/DBET of Yoon is 1.576/1.374 = 1.147.
Regarding claims 13-14, Yoon discloses a conductive paste useful in solar cell (See [0014]) comprises an organic vehicle including a binder resin and an organic solvent (See [0139]).
The reference specifically or inherently meets each of the claimed limitations in their broadest interpretations. The reference is anticipatory.
In view of the foregoing, the above claims have failed to patentably distinguish over the applied art.
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 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.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to KHANH TUAN NGUYEN whose telephone number is (571)272-8082. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM EST.
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/KHANH T NGUYEN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1761
