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.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on December 12, 2024 was filed in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner.
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 5 is 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 5 recites the limitation "the first direction" in line 5 of the claim. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim.
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 1-2, 6-7 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Usuda (US 20120147077 A1) in view of Usui et al. (JP 2023087372 A), hereinafter Usui. Textual references to Usui are drawn from the attached machine translation.
Regarding claim 1, Usuda teaches a printing method comprising an image forming step for performing a first process that forms the image on the transfer medium by ejecting a colored ink from a first inkjet head (figs. 2A-B, 3, 4B; head 41, colored nozzles KCMY, medium S, rear-surface printing mode; ¶[0067], [0070]-[0075]) and
an undercoat forming step for performing a second process including a process of overlaying the undercoat ink on the image on the transfer medium by ejecting the undercoat ink from a second inkjet head (figs. 2A-B, 3, 4B; head 41, white nozzles W, medium S, rear-surface printing mode; ¶[0067], [0070]-[0075]), wherein
assuming that a region where the adhesive is applied to the transfer medium at the same timing in the adhesive application step is a process unit region, in the undercoat forming step, the second process for the process unit region is delayed from an intermediate stage of the second process to completion of the second process (figs. 5-8B; shortest printing control, left position LP, right position RP, steps S001, S002; ¶[0076]-[0095]).
However, Usuda fails to teach the printing method being for printing on a transfer medium in order to perform an adhesive application step for applying an adhesive on undercoat ink that was overlaid on an image that was formed on the transfer medium, and to perform a transfer step for transferring the image to a transfer target medium by attaching the adhesive to the transfer target medium.
Usui teaches a printing method for printing on a transfer medium in order to perform an adhesive application step for applying an adhesive on undercoat ink that was overlaid on an image that was formed on the transfer medium, and to perform a transfer step for transferring the image to a transfer target medium by attaching the adhesive to the transfer target medium (figs. 1-4; steps S102-S112; ¶[0038]-[0043]).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate the method of Usui into the method of Usuda in order to print an image on a preferred medium such as the fabric of a T-shirt (see translation of Usui, ¶[0023]).
Regarding claim 2, Usuda as modified by Usui teaches the printing method according to claim 1. Usuda further teaches wherein the process unit region includes a first region and a second region where the undercoat ink is overlaid on the image after the first region, the second region includes a portion where the undercoat ink is lastly overlaid on the image in the process unit region, and in the undercoat forming step, the second process for the second region is delayed (figs. 5-8B; image region where both inks are printed, background image region, shortest printing control, left position LP, right position RP, steps S001, S002; ¶[0076]-[0095]).
Regarding claim 6, Usuda as modified by Usui teaches the printing method according to claim 1. Usuda further teaches wherein the undercoat ink is an ink that contains a component that blocks transmission of light (figs. 2A-B; head 41, white nozzles W; ¶[0059], [0198]-[0204]).
Regarding claim 7, Usuda teaches a printing device comprising: a first inkjet head that ejects colored ink (figs. 2A-B; head 41, color nozzles KCMY; ¶[0059]); a second inkjet head that ejects the undercoat ink (figs. 2A-B; head 41, white nozzles W; ¶[0059]); a drive section configured to move the second inkjet head in a first direction relative to the transfer medium (fig. 1; transporting unit 20, carriage unit 30; ¶[0054]-[0057]); and a control section that controls ejection of the colored ink from the first inkjet head, ejection of the undercoat ink from the second inkjet head, and the drive section, wherein the control section controls a first process that forms the image on the transfer medium by ejecting the colored ink from the first inkjet head, controls a second process that includes a process that overlays the undercoat ink on the image on the transfer medium by ejecting the undercoat ink from the second inkjet head, and performs control that delays the second process for a process unit region from an intermediate stage of the second process to the completion of the second process (figs. 2A-B, 3, 4B, 5-8B; controller 10, head 41, white nozzles W, medium S, rear-surface printing mode, shortest printing control, left position LP, right position RP, steps S001, S002; ¶[0067], [0070]-[0095]).
However, Usuda fails to teach or fairly suggest a printing device that prints on a transfer medium in order to perform an adhesive application step that applies an adhesive on undercoat ink that was overlaid on an image that was formed on the transfer medium, and a transfer step that transfers the image to a transfer target medium by attaching the adhesive to the transfer target medium.
Usui teaches a printing device that prints on a transfer medium in order to perform an adhesive application step that applies an adhesive on undercoat ink that was overlaid on an image that was formed on the transfer medium, and a transfer step that transfers the image to a transfer target medium by attaching the adhesive to the transfer target medium (figs. 1-4; head unit 102, main scanning drive unit 108, sub-scanning drive unit 110, control unit 120, steps S102-S112; ¶[0021]-[0026], [0038]-[0043]).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate the apparatus of Usui into the apparatus of Usuda in order to print an image on a preferred medium such as the fabric of a T-shirt (see translation of Usui, ¶[0023]).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 3-4 are objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter:
Regarding claim 3, the prior art of record fails to teach or fairly suggest the method of the claim, particularly including and in combination with, wherein, assuming that the number of times that the main scanning that accompanies ejection of the undercoat ink is performed on the same portion of the transfer medium is the number of passes, the undercoat forming step performs the second process that makes the number of passes for the second region greater than the number of passes for the first region.
Claim 5 would be allowable if rewritten 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 and to include all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
Regarding claim 5, the prior art of record fails to teach or fairly suggest the method of the claim, particularly including and in combination with, wherein, assuming that the number of times that the main scanning that accompanies ejection of the undercoat ink is performed on the same portion of the transfer medium is the number of passes, the undercoat forming step performs the second process that makes the number of passes when an ejection amount of the undercoat ink per unit area exceeds a first ejection amount in at least one of the first region and the second region greater than the number of passes when the ejection amount of the undercoat ink per unit area does not exceed a first ejection amount, and that makes the number of passes for the second region greater than the number of passes for the first region when the ejection amount of the undercoat ink per unit area is not changed.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Ozawa (US 20170282591 A1) teaches a printing method wherein regions of an image are printed with a larger number of passes per unit area. Roder et al. (US 20200198366 A1) teaches a transfer image printer and method comprising inkjet printing an image on a transfer medium, drying the image, and layering the image with an adhesive.
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/TRK/Examiner, Art Unit 2853
/STEPHEN D MEIER/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2853
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