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 of Species Aii in the reply filed on 8/13/25 is acknowledged. The restriction requirement for Species Bi-v is withdrawn since the applicant stated that they are obvious variations and are not patentably distinct in the noted reply. Because applicant did not distinctly and specifically point out the supposed errors in the restriction requirement, the election has been treated as an election without traverse (MPEP § 818.01(a)). Note that claims 5 and 6 are withdrawn since they are drawn to non-elected species Ai.
Drawings
The drawings are objected to under 37 CFR 1.83(a). The drawings must show every feature of the invention specified in the claims. Therefore, the “displacement and/or positioning module” and “device for exciting” in claim 1, “upper surface” in claim 4, “bonding head” in claim 7, “the second part of the optical waveguide, at least in sections, is fixed to a bonding head” in claim 7, “the head end” in claim 8, and “the deflecting and beam-splitting unit and/or the laser generator and/or the collimator and/or the temperature sensor are arranged in a stationary manner outside the bonding head and/or wherein the beam-forming optical unit is fixed on the bonding head” in claim 9 must be shown or the feature(s) canceled from the claim(s). No new matter should be entered.
Corrected drawing sheets in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(d) are required in reply to the Office action to avoid abandonment of the application. Any amended replacement drawing sheet should include all of the figures appearing on the immediate prior version of the sheet, even if only one figure is being amended. The figure or figure number of an amended drawing should not be labeled as “amended.” If a drawing figure is to be canceled, the appropriate figure must be removed from the replacement sheet, and where necessary, the remaining figures must be renumbered and appropriate changes made to the brief description of the several views of the drawings for consistency. Additional replacement sheets may be necessary to show the renumbering of the remaining figures. Each drawing sheet submitted after the filing date of an application must be labeled in the top margin as either “Replacement Sheet” or “New Sheet” pursuant to 37 CFR 1.121(d). If the changes are not accepted by the examiner, the applicant will be notified and informed of any required corrective action in the next Office action. The objection to the drawings will not be held in abeyance.
Specification
The disclosure is objected to because of the following informalities: throughout the specification “bonding head” and “bonding tool” are used interchangeably however, paragraph 00055 recites “the masses moved when positioning the bonding tool held on the bonding head 1 are low” which clearly shows they are not.
Appropriate correction is required.
Claim Interpretation
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(f):
(f) Element in Claim for a Combination. – An element in a claim for a combination may be expressed as a means or step for performing a specified function without the recital of structure, material, or acts in support thereof, and such claim shall be construed to cover the corresponding structure, material, or acts described in the specification and equivalents thereof.
The following is a quotation of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph:
An element in a claim for a combination may be expressed as a means or step for performing a specified function without the recital of structure, material, or acts in support thereof, and such claim shall be construed to cover the corresponding structure, material, or acts described in the specification and equivalents thereof.
The claims in this application are given their broadest reasonable interpretation using the plain meaning of the claim language in light of the specification as it would be understood by one of ordinary skill in the art. The broadest reasonable interpretation of a claim element (also commonly referred to as a claim limitation) is limited by the description in the specification when 35 U.S.C. 112(f) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph, is invoked.
As explained in MPEP § 2181, subsection I, claim limitations that meet the following three-prong test will be interpreted under 35 U.S.C. 112(f) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph:
(A) the claim limitation uses the term “means” or “step” or a term used as a substitute for “means” that is a generic placeholder (also called a nonce term or a non-structural term having no specific structural meaning) for performing the claimed function;
(B) the term “means” or “step” or the generic placeholder is modified by functional language, typically, but not always linked by the transition word “for” (e.g., “means for”) or another linking word or phrase, such as “configured to” or “so that”; and
(C) the term “means” or “step” or the generic placeholder is not modified by sufficient structure, material, or acts for performing the claimed function.
Use of the word “means” (or “step”) in a claim with functional language creates a rebuttable presumption that the claim limitation is to be treated in accordance with 35 U.S.C. 112(f) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph. The presumption that the claim limitation is interpreted under 35 U.S.C. 112(f) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph, is rebutted when the claim limitation recites sufficient structure, material, or acts to entirely perform the recited function.
Absence of the word “means” (or “step”) in a claim creates a rebuttable presumption that the claim limitation is not to be treated in accordance with 35 U.S.C. 112(f) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph. The presumption that the claim limitation is not interpreted under 35 U.S.C. 112(f) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph, is rebutted when the claim limitation recites function without reciting sufficient structure, material or acts to entirely perform the recited function.
Claim limitations in this application that use the word “means” (or “step”) are being interpreted under 35 U.S.C. 112(f) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph, except as otherwise indicated in an Office action. Conversely, claim limitations in this application that do not use the word “means” (or “step”) are not being interpreted under 35 U.S.C. 112(f) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph, except as otherwise indicated in an Office action.
This application includes one or more claim limitations that do not use the word “means,” but are nonetheless being interpreted under 35 U.S.C. 112(f) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph, because the claim limitation(s) uses a generic placeholder that is coupled with functional language without reciting sufficient structure to perform the recited function and the generic placeholder is not preceded by a structural modifier. Such claim limitation(s) is/are: “a device for exciting” in claim 1.
Because this/these claim limitation(s) is/are being interpreted under 35 U.S.C. 112(f) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph, it/they is/are being interpreted to cover the corresponding structure described in the specification as performing the claimed function, and equivalents thereof.
If applicant does not intend to have this/these limitation(s) interpreted under 35 U.S.C. 112(f) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph, applicant may: (1) amend the claim limitation(s) to avoid it/them being interpreted under 35 U.S.C. 112(f) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph (e.g., by reciting sufficient structure to perform the claimed function); or (2) present a sufficient showing that the claim limitation(s) recite(s) sufficient structure to perform the claimed function so as to avoid it/them being interpreted under 35 U.S.C. 112(f) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph.
Claim Objections
Claims 1, 7, and 9 are objected to because of the following informalities: in claim 1, the first “that” paragraph should not end with “and”, in claims 7 and 9 there are too many “and/or”. Appropriate correction is required.
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.
Claims 1-11 are 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 1 recites “An apparatus for detecting a temperature of a bonding tool during laser-assisted ultrasonic bonding, the apparatus comprising: an automatic bonding machine having the bonding tool” which is indefinite since it is unclear how an apparatus for detecting can be part of the thing it detects. For the purposes of this examination, this limitation will be interpreted as -- An apparatus for detecting a temperature during laser-assisted ultrasonic bonding, the apparatus comprising: an automatic bonding machine having a bonding tool--.
Claim 1 limitation “device for exciting” invokes 35 U.S.C. 112(f) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph. However, the written description fails to disclose the corresponding structure, material, or acts for performing the entire claimed function and to clearly link the structure, material, or acts to the function. The disclosure is devoid of any structure that performs the function in the claim. Therefore, the claim is indefinite and is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, second paragraph.
Applicant may:
(a) Amend the claim so that the claim limitation will no longer be interpreted as a limitation under 35 U.S.C. 112(f) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph;
(b) Amend the written description of the specification such that it expressly recites what structure, material, or acts perform the entire claimed function, without introducing any new matter (35 U.S.C. 132(a)); or
(c) Amend the written description of the specification such that it clearly links the structure, material, or acts disclosed therein to the function recited in the claim, without introducing any new matter (35 U.S.C. 132(a)).
If applicant is of the opinion that the written description of the specification already implicitly or inherently discloses the corresponding structure, material, or acts and clearly links them to the function so that one of ordinary skill in the art would recognize what structure, material, or acts perform the claimed function, applicant should clarify the record by either:
(a) Amending the written description of the specification such that it expressly recites the corresponding structure, material, or acts for performing the claimed function and clearly links or associates the structure, material, or acts to the claimed function, without introducing any new matter (35 U.S.C. 132(a)); or
(b) Stating on the record what the corresponding structure, material, or acts, which are implicitly or inherently set forth in the written description of the specification, perform the claimed function. For more information, see 37 CFR 1.75(d) and MPEP §§ 608.01(o) and 2181.
Claim 1 recites “at least two adjacent parts”, “the adjacent parts”, “the first part”, and “a second part”. It is unclear if the last three are of the “at least two adjacent parts”. For the purposes of this examination, the last three limitations will be interpreted as –the at least two adjacent parts--, --a first part of the at least two adjacent parts--, and --a second part of the at least two adjacent parts--.
Claim 1 recites the limitations “the first part” and “the thermal radiation”. There is insufficient antecedent basis for these limitations in the claim.
Claims 7 and 9 recite “bonding head” which is indefinite since neither the figures or specification clearly define what this is. For the purposes of this examination, this limitation will be interpreted as a portion of the automatic bonding machine that moves with the tool.
Claim 9 recites the limitations “the collimator”, “the bonding head”, and “the beam-forming optical unit”. There is insufficient antecedent basis for these limitations in the claim.
A broad range or limitation together with a narrow range or limitation that falls within the broad range or limitation (in the same claim) may be considered indefinite if the resulting claim does not clearly set forth the metes and bounds of the patent protection desired. See MPEP § 2173.05(c). In the present instance, claim 10 recites the broad recitation “1500 nm to 15000 nm”, and the claim also recites “1800 nm to 2100 nm” and claim 11 recites the broad recitation “200 nm to 1200 nm”, and the claim also recites “1070 nm” which are the narrower statement of the range/limitation. The claims are considered indefinite because there is a question or doubt as to whether the feature introduced by such narrower language is (a) merely exemplary of the remainder of the claim, and therefore not required, or (b) a required feature of the claims.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
The text of those sections of Title 35, U.S. Code not included in this action can be found in a prior Office action.
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.
Claims 1-3 and 7-11 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Troska et al. (US 2020/0282663 A1) in view of Vanzetti et al. (US 4,696,101) and Kim et al. (US 6,344,625 B1).
Concerning claim 1, Troska teaches:
An apparatus [joining arrangement shown in figure 1] for detecting a temperature of a bonding tool [tool (42)] during laser-assisted ultrasonic bonding [0025], the apparatus comprising:
an automatic bonding machine [joining arrangement shown in figure 1] having the bonding tool [tool (42)], having a displacement and/or positioning module for the bonding tool [the tool is moved so the arrangement inherently has a displacement module; 0017] and having a device for exciting the bonding tool to ultrasonically vibrate [ultrasonic transducer (43)];
a laser generator to provide a laser beam [temperature unit (421) may contain a laser unit which inherently has a generator in in order to create a laser]; and
a temperature sensor [temperature unit (421) may contain an infrared temperature sensor; 0038-0039].
Troska does not teach:
an optical waveguide to guide the laser beam from the laser generator to the bonding tool, the optical waveguide having a multi-part design; and
a deflecting and beam-splitting unit provided between at least two adjacent parts of the optical waveguide;
wherein the deflecting and beam-splitting unit is arranged between the adjacent parts of the optical waveguide and is assigned to the temperature sensor such:
that the laser beam provided by the laser generator is guided through the first part of the optical waveguide to the deflecting and beam-splitting unit, then is incident on the deflecting and beam-splitting unit and there is deflected in a direction of a second part of the optical waveguide and is guided through the second part of the optical waveguide to the bonding tool and the bonding tool is heated; and
that a portion of the thermal radiation emitted by the bonding tool as a result of the heating is coupled into the second part of the waveguide via an end face of the second part of the optical waveguide that is facing the bonding tool, and is fed to the deflecting and beam-splitting unit; and
that at least some of the coupled-in thermal radiation passes through the deflecting and beam-splitting unit and then is incident on the temperature sensor.
Concerning the guiding of the laser,
Vanzetti teaches an arrangement for heating an area during bonding and controlling the heat by sensing the reflected radiation of the bonding area comprising Nd:YAG heating laser (20), optical fiber (12), lens (13), infrared detector (19), and dichroic mirror (14); wherein the laser beam is guided from the laser to the mirror via the optical fiber and lens and then onto the bonding area by the mirror, the lens renders the beam parallel, and the reflected radiation passes back through the mirror to the infrared detector; front page; 6:52-68.
Since Troska desires a laser that can heat the tool and a means for detecting the temperature of the tool it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to incorporate the Vanzetti arrangement since it can do both.
Concerning the second part of the wave guide,
Kim teaches an apparatus for laser welding comprising the laser (27), fibers (25, 17), dichromatic mirror (21), and radiation detectors (45, 47, 49); wherein the second fiber (17) carries the laser beam from the mirror to optical unit (59) which emits the laser beam to the bonding area; figure 2.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention that any number of fibers/wave guide parts can be used in order to get the laser beam to its destination, as taught by Kim, and to incorporate a second optical fiber and optical unit after the mirror to do so. One would have been motivated to use a second optical fiber as taught by Kim due to the positioning of the components that make up the joining arrangement and/or to keep sensitive components safe. In doing so, the second optical fiber would have the working end assigned to the outside of the bonding tool.
Concerning claim 2, this claim is addressed by the incorporation of Vanzetti as noted above:
wherein a collimator [Vanzetti lens (13)] is assigned to an end face of the first part of the optical waveguide facing the deflecting and beam-splitting unit such that the laser beam is incident on the deflecting and beam-splitting unit with an at least essentially parallel beam path [6:55-58].
Concerning claim 3, Troska teaches:
wherein the temperature sensor is connected to the laser generator via a communication link and wherein a control unit interacting with the temperature sensor and/or the laser generator is provided for operating the laser generator in dependance on the temperature of the bonding tool that is determined via the temperature sensor [0038-0040].
Concerning claims 7 and 8, these claims are addressed by the incorporation of Kim noted in the rejection of claim 1:
wherein the second part of the optical waveguide is assigned to the bonding tool from outside and/or wherein the second part of the optical waveguide is spaced at a distance from the bonding tool and/or wherein the second part of the optical waveguide, at least in sections, is fixed to a bonding head of the automatic bonding machine serving to receive and position the bonding tool and is moved along with the bonding head when it is displaced; and
wherein a head end of the second part of the optical waveguide is assigned a beam-forming optical unit such that a beam path is formed from the laser beam escaping from the second part of the optical waveguide.
Concerning claim 9, Troska does not teach:
wherein the deflecting and beam-splitting unit and/or the laser generator and/or the collimator and/or the temperature sensor are arranged in a stationary manner outside the bonding head and/or wherein the beam-forming optical unit is fixed on the bonding head and moved along with the bonding head when this is displaced.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to stationarily place Nd:YAG laser outside the bonding head as it does not need to move and/or the second fiber optic/optical unit (59) onto the bond head as the flexibility of the optical fiber would allow it to move.
Concerning claim 10, Troska does not teach:
wherein the temperature sensor has a wavelength measuring range of 1500 nm to 15000 nm or of 1800 nm to 2100 nm.
Vanzetti teaches infrared detector (19) measures radiation in the range of 2.5-5.5 µm; 6:64-66.
Thus, the incorporation of Vanzetti laser meets this limitation.
Concerning claim 11, Troska does not teach:
wherein the laser beam provided by the laser generator has a wavelength in the range of 200 nm to 1200 nm or of 1070 nm.
Kim teaches the wavelength of Nd:YAG laser is 1.06 µm; 6:25-30.
Thus, the incorporation of Vanzetti laser meets this limitation.
Claim 4 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Troska et al. (US 2020/0282663 A1) in view of Vanzetti et al. (US 4,696,101) and Kim et al. (US 6,344,625 B1) as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of Geissler et al. (US 8,020,746 B2).
Concerning claim 4, Troska does not teach:
wherein a recess is formed on a casing side of the bonding tool and wherein an end face of the second part of the optical waveguide facing the bonding tool is assigned to the recess such that the laser beam escaping from the second part of the optical waveguide is incident on an upper surface of the recess.
Geissler teaches ultrasonic device (1) comprising tool (2) and laser interferometer (8), wherein the tool has region/recess (5) as to guarantee that the reflected light beam (7) is oriented parallel with respect to the incident light beam (6) when beam (6) hits the surface of the region; 8:1-21.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to incorporate the Geissler recess concept into Troska in order to guarantee that the reflected radiation is oriented parallel with respect to the laser beam. In doing so, the second optical fiber would be assigned to the region.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure; see PTO 892.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to CARLOS J GAMINO whose telephone number is (571)270-5826. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 9-6.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Keith Walker can be reached at 5712723458. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/CARLOS J GAMINO/Examiner, Art Unit 1735
/KEITH WALKER/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 1735