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 § 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.
Claim(s) 1-3, 5-8 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Miyazawa et al (U.S. Pub. 2011/0074890) in view of Kobayashi (U.S. Pub. 2015/0280103)
Regarding claim 1, a piezoelectric element comprising: a first electrode (10) and a second electrode (14) and a piezoelectric layer (12) provided between the first electrode and the second electrode (Figures 1, 9; Paragraphs 0034-0035)
Among the plurality of layers including the composite oxide, a first layer closest to the first electrode is preferred orientation in a first orientation, which is a {100} plane orientation in a film thickness direction (Figures 1, 9; Paragraphs 0029, 0034-0038)
Among the plurality of layers including the composite oxide, a second layer closest to the second electrode is, in an in-plane direction intersecting the film thickness direction, a mix of the first orientation and a second orientation, which is a {110} plane orientation, and is not preferred orientation in either the first orientation or the second orientation (Figures 1, 9; Paragraphs 0029, 0034-0038)
Kobayashi discloses using a perovskite structure containing potassium, sodium, and niobium (Paragraphs 0046-0047)
It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate the teaching of Kobayashi into the device of Miyazawa, as the compositions have been recognized as equivalents and for the purpose of considering environmental considerations
Regarding claim 2, wherein the second layer is, in the in-plane direction, a mix of the first orientation, the second orientation, and a third orientation, which is a {111} plane orientation, and is not preferred orientation in the third orientation (Paragraph 0029)
Regarding claim 3, the second layer is preferred orientation in the first orientation in the film thickness direction (Figures 1, 9; Paragraphs 0029, 0034-0038)
Regarding claim 5, Miyazawa in view of Kobayashi discloses the claimed invention except for a domain diameter of the second layer in the in-plane direction is 5.01 µm or less. It would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to one having ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was made to incorporate a domain diameter of the second layer in the in-plane direction is 5.01 µm or less, 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 a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate the teaching of a domain diameter of the second layer in the in-plane direction is 5.01 µm or less into the device of Miyazawa in view of Kobayashi, for the purpose of incorporate a piezoelectric element with improved ejection characteristics
Regarding claim 6, Miyazawa in view of Kobayashi discloses the claimed invention except for a domain diameter of the second layer in the in-plane direction is 0.22 µm or less. It would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to one having ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was made to incorporate a domain diameter of the second layer in the in-plane direction is 0.22 µm or less, 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 a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate the teaching of a domain diameter of the second layer in the in-plane direction is 0.22 µm or less into the device of Miyazawa in view of Kobayashi, for the purpose of incorporate a piezoelectric element with improved ejection characteristics
Regarding claim 7, a liquid ejection head comprising: the piezoelectric element; a channel forming substrate in which a pressure generating chamber whose volume is changed by the piezoelectric element is formed; and a nozzle plate in which a nozzle hole communicating with the pressure generating chamber is formed (Figure 13; Abstract; Paragraphs 0008, 0108-0111)
Regarding claim 8, a printer comprising the liquid ejection head and a transport mechanism configured to perform relative movement; a recording medium with respect to the liquid ejection head; and a control section that controls the liquid ejection head and the transport mechanism (Figure 13; Paragraphs 0108-0111)
Claim(s) 4 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Miyazawa et al (U.S. Pub. 2011/0074890) as modified by Kobayashi (U.S. Pub. 2015/0280103) and further in view of Kitada (U.S. Pub. 2023/0057734)
Regarding claim 4, Kitada discloses an orientation control layer (443) that is provided between the first electrode (441) and the first layer and that includes bismuth, iron, titanium, and lead (Figure 5; Paragraph 0044)
It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art to before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate the teaching of Kitada into the device of Miyazawa as modified by Kobayashi, for the purpose of improving the piezoelectric characteristics of the piezoelectric element (Paragraph 0039)
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JASON S UHLENHAKE whose telephone number is (571)272-5916. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday, 8:00 am - 5:00 pm.
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/JASON S UHLENHAKE/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2853 June 30, 2026
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