DETAILED ACTION
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.
(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 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by Harada et al. (WO 2021/085305). US20220363044 is the PG-Pub for the National Stage Application of the WIPO document and is used as the English translation, wherein for entry, the disclosure is translated as-is. See MPEP 1893.01(d).
Harada discloses a resin-impregnated decorative paper and panel thereof. Concerning claims 1 and 2, Harada discloses the decorative paper (FIGS. 1 and 2) comprises a base paper (element 6) upon which a pattern layer is printed (element 7) and a foamable resin layer (element 8) is disposed with an impregnation resin layer (element 9) disposed thereon, wherein the foamable resin comprises a foaming agent that has a foaming start temperature of 180°C and post-foaming particle size of 120 microns that expands to form an uneven surface (abstract; para. 0012-0066). Given that the post-foaming particle size is within the claimed range and the structure is the same as that claimed and disclosed, the surface roughness (i.e. the uneven pattern) would have the claimed maximum height. Regarding claims 3 and 4, the base paper is a titanium paper (para. 0019) and the impregnation resin is a melamine resin (para. 0066). With respect to claim 5, the lower side of the decorative paper is bonded to a substrate (FIGS. 1 and 2, element 3; para. 0013-0015).
Claims 1-5 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Harima et al. (WO 2019/230373). US20210198845 is the PG-Pub for the National Stage Application of the WIPO document and is used as the English translation, wherein for entry, the disclosure is translated as-is. See MPEP 1893.01(d).
Harima discloses a resin-impregnated decorative paper and panel thereof. Concerning claims 1 and 2, Harada discloses the decorative paper (FIG. 1) comprises a base paper (element 6) upon which a pattern layer is printed (element 7) and a foamable resin layer (element 8) is disposed with an impregnation resin layer (element 5) disposed thereon, wherein the foamable resin comprises a foaming agent that has a foaming start temperature of 180°C and post-foaming particle size of 120 microns that expands to form an uneven surface (abstract; para. 0014-0051). Given that the post-foaming particle size is within the claimed range and the structure is the same as that claimed and disclosed, the surface roughness (i.e. the uneven pattern) would have the claimed maximum height. Regarding claims 3 and 4, the base paper is a titanium paper (para. 0018) and the impregnation resin is a melamine resin (para. 0036 and 0051). With respect to claim 5, the lower side of the decorative paper is bonded to a substrate (FIG. 1, element 3; para. 0014-0015).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to PRASHANT J KHATRI whose telephone number is (571)270-3470. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 10AM-6:30PM.
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PRASHANT J. KHATRI
Primary Examiner
Art Unit 1783
/PRASHANT J KHATRI/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1783
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