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 Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed 05/19/2026 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive. The applicant argues, on pp. 6-7 of the remarks, that Grundy does not provide for the limitations amended to claims 1, 21, and 32, requiring that “…the housing has an open upper side and an open lower side such that the housing is an open enclosure where air can flow in and out through the open upper side and the open lower side…” [claim 1 or equivalent in claims 21 and 32] because Grundy discloses a sealed enclosure that operates at positive pressure as opposed to an “open” enclosure that allows the system to operate at atmospheric pressure [see pp. 7 of the remarks]. The examiner respectfully disagrees. The rejections for claims 1, 21, and 32 rely on the surface formed by reference character 40’ of Grundy as the housing [see annotated Fig. below]. As identified in the Final Rejection the housing is open at upstream end 29 where airflow is admitted into the housing through a filter [reference character 31]. The housing is open from the lower end at discharge opening [reference character 66] which “…discharges the drawn air into the discharge chamber…” [column 9 lines 27-34 of Grundy]. Therefore, the housing can clearly be interpreted as having an open upper side and open lower side allowing air to flow in and out of the housing. While the applicant is correct that the exterior enclosure of Grundy is sealed, the housing, as identified in the Office Action, is not. Air freely flows between the housing and the space formed between the housing and the outer enclosure. Furthermore, the applicant’s argument that the ‘"open enclosure" allows the system to operate at ambient atmospheric pressure’ [pp. 7 of the remarks] is not material to the claims because the claims do not require the internal pressure of the housing as a positively claimed limitation. For these reasons the rejections are maintained.
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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.
Claim(s) 1-3, 5, and 8 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Grundy (US 5,944,602).
With respect to claim 1 Grundy discloses an apparatus for semiconductor processing comprising: a housing [reference character 40’] comprising a plurality of shelves [reference character 37] configured to receive a plurality of substrates [reference character 21] wherein the housing had an open upper side [at reference character 29, where the housing is open to airflow] and an open lower side [at discharge opening 66] such that the housing is an open enclosure where air can flow in and out through the open upper side and the open lower side [see response to arguments, above]; a shelter plate [reference character 47] disposed over the open upper side of the housing and configured to reduce heat loss of an upper substrate of the plurality of substrates, wherein an air gap [reference character 45] extends vertically between an upper side of the housing and the shelter plate; and an airflow structure [reference characters 53, 53’, and 52] in the housing and configured to control an air circulation in the housing.
With respect to claim 2 Grundy discloses that the housing comprises a polygonal cross-sectional shape [see Fig. 3].
With respect to claim 3 Grundy discloses that the housing comprises a material having a thermal conductivity equal to or less than 150W/mK. Specifically, Grundy discloses that the outer structure is clear anodized aluminum [column 6 lines 30-47], where a person having ordinary skill in the art would recognize that anodized aluminum has a thermal conductivity of ~6W/mK1.
With respect to claim 5 Grundy discloses that the shelter plate comprises aluminum [column 6 lines 30-47].
With respect to claim 8 Grundy discloses that the airflow structure comprises a plurality of openings [reference character 35 and 35’] disposed along an inner peripheral surface of the housing and configured to deliver air from left-to-right or right-to-left within an interior space of the housing containing the plurality of shelves [see Fig. 3].
Claim(s) 21-25 and 29-30 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Grundy (US 5,944,602).
With respect to claim 21 Grundy discloses a cooling station comprising: a housing having an inner wall surface [reference characters 40 and 40’] and an upper side [at reference character 29] and an open lower side [at reference character 66] such that the housing is an open enclosure where air can flow in and out through the open upper side and the open lower side [see response to arguments above], where the housing is open to airflow]; a plurality of shelves [reference character 37] attached to the inner wall surface of the housing and configured to receive a plurality of substrates [reference character 31]; a shelter plate [reference character 47] disposed over the open upper side of the housing and configured to reduce heat loss of an upper substrate of the plurality of substrates; wherein an air gap [reference character 45] extends vertically between the open upper side of the housing and the shelter plate, and an airflow structure [reference characters 53, 53’, and 52] in the housing and configured to control an air circulation in the housing.
With respect to claim 22 Grundy discloses that a horizontal cross section of the housing is polygonal [see Figs. 4-5].
With respect to claim 23 Grundy discloses that the horizontal cross section of the housing is rectangular [see Figs. 4-5].
With respect to claim 24 Grundy discloses that the shelter plate comprises aluminum [column 6 lines 30-47] and the housing comprises a material having a thermal conductivity equal to or less than 150W/mK. Specifically, Grundy discloses that the outer structure is clear anodized aluminum [column 6 lines 30-47], where a person having ordinary skill in the art would recognize that anodized aluminum has a thermal conductivity of ~6W/mK2.
With respect to claim 25 Grundy discloses that the housing comprises stainless steel [column 6 lines 30-47].
With respect to claim 30 Grundy discloses that the airflow structure comprises a plurality of openings [reference character 35 and 35’] disposed along an inner peripheral surface of the housing and configured to deliver air from left-to-right or right-to-left within an interior space of the housing containing the plurality of shelves [see Fig. 3].
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) 4, 6, 9, 27, 31 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Grundy (US 5,944,602) in view of Kestner et. al (US 9,980,322 B1).
With respect to claims 4, 6 and 27 Grundy does not disclose that the shelter plate is removably mounted to the upper side of the housing.
Kestner discloses a heated holding station that includes a top panel [reference character 20] which is removably attached to a housing using fasteners [see annotated Fig. below] (claims 4 and 27), or that the shelter plate is mounted to the upper side of the housing through a fastening member (claim 6).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of the filing date of the invention to modify the apparatus taught by Grundy by removably attaching the top panel/shelter plate to the housing in order to allow for servicing of the filter [reference character 31 of Grundy].
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With respect to claims 9 and 31 Grundy does not disclose that the plurality of shelves each comprise a heating element configured to heat an associated substrate to a predetermined temperature.
Kestner discloses shelves [reference character 52] that include a heating element [reference characters 65 and 67].
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of the filing date of the invention to modify the apparatus taught by Grundy by including heating elements in the shelves, as taught by Kester, in order to allow for better thermal control.
Claim(s) 26 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Grundy (US 5,944,602).
With respect to claim 26 Grundy does not disclose that the housing comprises glass. However, in the same field of cabinet housings it would have been obvious to one skilled in the art at the time of the invention to modify Grundy by including glass in the housing, since it has been held to be within the general skill of a worker in the art to select a known component or material on the basis of suitability for the intended use as a matter of obvious mechanical design expediency. In re Leshin, 125 USPQ 416. Also see MPEP 2144.07. Sinclair & Carroll Co. v. Interchemical Corp. states "Reading a list and selecting a known compound to meet known requirements is no more ingenious than selecting the last piece to put in the last opening in a jig-saw puzzle." 325 U.S. at 335, 65 USPQ at 301.). Since both glass, stainless steel, and aluminum are well known housing construction materials, the designation of a specific material does nothing to enhance the patentability of a design.
Claim(s) 32 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Zhao et.al (US 2004/0020601 A1) in view of Grundy (US 5,944,602).
With respect to claim 32 Zhao discloses a substrate processing system, comprising: two or more process chambers [reference characters 1125] where semiconductor processing is conducted; a curing chamber [reference character 1121] for curing a substrate after the semiconductor processing; and a cooling station [reference character 1115] in a vicinity of the curing chamber.
Zhao does not disclose that the cooling station comprises: a housing having an inner wall surface and an open upper side; a plurality of shelves attached to the inner wall surface of the housing and configured to receive a plurality of substrates; a shelter plate disposed over the open upper side of the housing and configured to reduce heat loss of an upper substrate of the plurality of substrates; wherein an air gap extends vertically between the open upper side of the housing and the shelter plate and an airflow structure in the housing and configured to control an air circulation in the housing.
Grundy discloses an apparatus for semiconductor processing comprising: a housing [reference character 40’] comprising a plurality of shelves [reference character 37] configured to receive a plurality of substrates [reference character 21] wherein the housing had an open upper side [at reference character 29, where the housing is open to airflow] an open lower side [at reference character 66] such that the housing is an open enclosure where air can flow in and out through the open upper side and the open lower side [see response to arguments above]; a shelter plate [reference character 47] disposed over the open upper side of the housing and configured to reduce heat loss of an upper substrate of the plurality of substrates, wherein an air gap [reference character 45] extends vertically between an upper side of the housing and the shelter plate; and an airflow structure [reference characters 53, 53’, and 52] in the housing and configured to control an air circulation in the housing.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of the filing date of the invention to modify the cooling station taught by Zhao by including the shelves, shelter plate, filter, and airflow structure taught by Grundy in order to ensure uniform cooling and remove particulate matter from the circulating air.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claim 29 is 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.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to VIVEK K SHIRSAT whose telephone number is (571)272-3722. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 9:00AM-5:20AM.
Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Steven B McAllister can be reached at 571-272-6785. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/VIVEK K SHIRSAT/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3762
1 https://semanoinc.com/hard-anodizing-information-properties-and-performance/#:~:text=Thermal%20Properties:%20Hard%20anodized%20surfaces%20have%20an,as%20in%20heatsinks%20and%20electrical%20battery%20packs.
2 https://semanoinc.com/hard-anodizing-information-properties-and-performance/#:~:text=Thermal%20Properties:%20Hard%20anodized%20surfaces%20have%20an,as%20in%20heatsinks%20and%20electrical%20battery%20packs.
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