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 .
Election/Restrictions
Applicant’s election without traverse of invention I, claims 1 and 8-18 in the reply filed on 2/17/2026 is acknowledged.
Claims 2-7 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to a nonelected invention, there being no allowable generic or linking claim.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 2/17/2026.
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.
Claim(s) 1, 8-11, and 14-18 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102a1 and a2 as being anticipated by Huang (US Pub No. 2017/0194102)
Regarding Claim 1, Huang et al. teaches a solar cell module [Fig. 1, 0023], comprising:
a substrate [11, Fig. 1, 0023];
a first electrode layer [121, Fig. 1, 0025] provided on the substrate [11, Fig. 1, 0023];
a photoelectric conversion layer [122, 123, and 124, Fig. 1, 0025] provided on the first substrate [11, Fig. 1, 0023]
a second electrode layer provided on the substrate; and
an extraction electrode layer provided on the substrate in a region that does not overlap
with the photoelectric conversion layer when the substrate is observed in plan view,
wherein at least a layer including a same material as that of the second electrode layer is
provided between the substrate and the extraction electrode [see annotated figure, 0028, 14 can be made of aluminum, silver, gold, or calcium]
14 in the circles are the second electrode layer. 14 in the dotted square is the extraction electrode and does not overlap the photoelectric conversion layer in the plan view. The rectangle is the layer, which includes 14 and the additional layers in the rectangle portion, where a portion of the layers in the rectangle is located between the extraction electrode and the substrate from a side view (left to right), meeting the limitation of between the substrate and the extraction electrode.
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Regarding Claim 8, Huang et al. is relied upon for the reasons given above, Huang et al. teaches wherein the photoelectric conversion layer comprises a light-absorbing layer, an electron transport layer, and a hole transport layer, and the light-absorbing layer contains a perovskite compound [0025 teaches a perovskite for light absorber, 0026 teaches the etl and htl]
Regarding Claim 9, Huang et al. is relied upon for the reasons given above, Huang et al. teaches further comprising: a plurality of unit cells which are connected in series, wherein
each unit cell comprises the photoelectric conversion layer, the first electrode layer, and the
second electrode layer [0028, See annotated figure].
Regarding Claim 10, Huang et al. is relied upon for the reasons given above, Huang et al. teaches wherein the first electrode layer has optical transparency [0031].
Regarding Claim 11, Huang et al. is relied upon for the reasons given above, Huang et al. teaches wherein the extraction electrode layer is a metal layer [0025].
Regarding Claim 14, Huang et al. is relied upon for the reasons given above, Huang et al. teaches further comprising: a first scribe groove which divides the first electrode layer of the unit cell [see annotated figure]
Examiner used circle to show first scribe, the dashed circle to show the second scribe, and the square shows the third scribe
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Regarding Claim 15, Huang et al. is relied upon for the reasons given above, Huang et al. teaches further comprising: a second scribe groove which divides the photoelectric conversion layer of the unit cell [see annotated figure].
Regarding Claim 16, Huang et al. is relied upon for the reasons given above, Huang et al. teaches further comprising: a third scribe groove which divides the photoelectric conversion layer and the second electrode layer of the unit cell, wherein the third scribe groove is filled with a conductive martial [see annotated figure, 0028].
Regarding Claim 17, Huang et al. is relied upon for the reasons given above, Huang et al. teaches further comprising: a sealing layer [13, Fig. 1, 0027], wherein the sealing layer covers side surfaces of the extraction electrode layer along a thickness direction [Fig. 1, 0027].
Regarding Claim 18, Huang et al. is relied upon for the reasons given above, Huang et al. teaches wherein the sealing layer covers a surface of the extraction electrode layer [Fig. 1, 0027].
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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.
Claim(s) 13 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Huang (US Pub No. 2017/0194102)
Regarding Claim 13, Huang et al. is relied upon for the reasons given above, the limitation of “wherein on the substrate, the first electrode layer, the second electrode layer, and the extraction electrode layer are laminated in this order.” is considered a product by process claim. The cited prior art teaches all of the positively recited structure of the claimed apparatus or product. The determination of patentability is based upon the apparatus structure itself. The patentability of a product or apparatus does not depend on its method of production or formation. If the product in the product-by-process claim is the same as or obvious from a product of the prior art, the claim is unpatentable even though the prior product was made by a different process. See In re Thorpe, 777 F.2d 695, 698, 227 USPQ 964, 966 (Fed. Cir. 1985) (see MPEP § 2113).
Claim(s) 12 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Huang (US Pub No. 2017/0194102) in view of Oguz (US Pub No. 2021/0408224)
Regarding Claim 12, Huang et al. is relied upon for the reasons given above, Huang et al. is silent on wherein the extraction electrode layer comprises a first extraction electrode layer and a second extraction electrode layer, the first extraction electrode layer is electrically connected to the first electrode layer, and the second extraction electrode layer is electrically connected to the second electrode layer.
Oguz et al. teaches the use of an electrode which is a bilayer [0060].
Since Huang et al. teaches the use of an extraction electrode, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the filing of the invention to modify the extraction electrode of Huang et al. with electrode bilayer of Oguz et al. as it is merely the selection of a conventional electrode engineering design and one of ordinary skill would have a reasonable expectation of success in doing so.
The combination of familiar elements is likely to be obvious when it does no more than yield predictable results. See KSR International Co. v. Teleflex Inc., 550 U.S. 398, 415-421, 82 USPQ2d 1385, 1395 – 97 (2007) (see MPEP § 2143, A.).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to MICHAEL Y SUN whose telephone number is (571)270-0557. The examiner can normally be reached 9AM-7PM.
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/MICHAEL Y SUN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1728