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 .
Continued Examination Under 37 CFR 1.114
A request for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, including the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e), was filed in this application after final rejection. Since this application is eligible for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114. Applicant's submission filed on 12/10/2025 has been entered.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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 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.
Claims 1 and 4-5 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Noma et al. (US Publication No. 2008/0277793).
Regarding claim 1, Noma discloses a package (Figure 24) comprising:
an assembly of an image sensor die (1) and a glass cover (7) attached to the image sensor die (1), the glass cover (7) including a lower portion defined by a recess (18/21) in a side surface of the glass cover (7) along a perimeter of the glass cover (7), the lower portion of the glass cover (7) being disposed above an optically active area (top side) on a front side of the image sensor die (1) (paragraph 64)
a layer of molding material (21) disposed on a sidewall of the assembly of the image sensor die (1) and the glass cover (7), the layer of molding material (21) hermetically sealing the assembly of the image sensor die (1) and the glass cover (7) (paragraph 116)
PNG
media_image1.png
176
330
media_image1.png
Greyscale
Regarding claim 4, Noma discloses the glass cover (7) has upper portion having a width greater than the width of the image sensor die (1).
Regarding claim 5, Noma discloses the layer of molding material (21) is disposed below the upper portion of the glass cover (7).
Claims 13-14 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Chen et al. (US Publication No. 2021/0111220).
Regarding claim 13, Chen discloses a package comprising (Figures 6-11):
an image sensor die (610)
a glass cover (620) disposed above the image sensor die (610), the glass cover (620) including a monolithic glass panel (620) and having a stepped side surface (1050) defining and upper portion and a lower portion, where a width (1054W) of the upper portion is greater than a width of the lower portion being attached to the image sensor die (610) by a bead of adhesive material (840) placed on an edge of the image sensor die (610)
a layer of molding material (1310) disposed on a sidewall of the image sensor die (610)
PNG
media_image2.png
182
214
media_image2.png
Greyscale
Regarding claim 14, Chen discloses the layer of molding material (1310) disposed on the sidewall of the image sensor die (610) extends along a side of the lower portion (1312) of the monolithic glass panel (620)
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.
Claims 1-5 and 7-9 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Wang (US Publication No. 2018/0090524) in view of Li et al. (US Patent No. 9,748,293), and further in view of Noma et al. (US Publication No. 2008/0277793).
Regarding claim 1, Wang discloses a package (Figure 2) comprising:
an assembly of an image sensor die (210) and a glass cover (330) attached to the image sensor die (210), the lower portion of the glass cover (330) being disposed above an optically active area (211) on a front side (210a) of the image sensor die (210)
a layer of molding material (511) disposed on a sidewall of the assembly of the image sensor die (210) and the glass cover (330), the layer of molding material (511) hermetically sealing the assembly of the image sensor die (210) and the glass cover (330) (paragraph 25 – “air tight”)
Wang does not disclose the glass cover including a lower portion defined by a recess in a bottom surface of the glass cover. However, Li discloses a recess in both glass covers (320/330) which accommodate an image sensor (210) (Figure 3A). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at a time before the effective filing date of the invention to have modified the cover of Wang to include the recess, as taught by Li, to provide a large sealing interface to properly protect the image sensor (col. 2, lines 40-60).
Wang does not disclose a lower portion of the glass cover defined by a recess in a side surface of the glass cover along a perimeter of the glass cover, and the molding material to be disposed at least within the recess and on opposite sidewalls of the image sensor. However, Noma discloses a recess (18/21) in a side surface along a perimeter of a glass cover (7), and a molding material (21) within a recess (18) and on opposite sidewalls of the image sensor (1). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at a time before the effective filing date of the invention to combined the package of Wang to include Noma’s assemblage of a glass cover with a recess for molding material, since it can improve the moisture resistance of the device (paragraph 80).
Regarding claim 2, Wang discloses the glass cover (330) has a width that is a same as a width of the image sensor die (210) (Figure 2).
Regarding claim 3, Wang discloses a width of the package including the layer of molding material (511) disposed on the sidewall of the assembly is no greater than 120% of a width of the image sensor die (210) (Figure 2).
Regarding claim 4, Li discloses an upper portion (330) having a width greater than the width of the image sensor die (210). As explained above, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time before the effective filing date of the invention to modify the disclosure of Wang in view of Li, and further in view of Noma.
Regarding claim 5, Noma discloses the layer of molding material (21) is disposed below the upper portion of the glass cover (7). As explained above, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time before the effective filing date of the invention to modify the disclosure of Wang in view of Li, and further in view of Noma.
Regarding claim 7, Wang discloses:
a signal redistribution layer (214 horizontal portion) disposed on a back side of the image sensor die (210)
a through-semiconductor via (TSV) (214 vertical portion) providing electrical connections between the front side (210a) of the image sensor die (210) and the back side (210b) of the image sensor die (210).
Regarding claim 8, Wang discloses external input/output pads (the portion connecting elements 216 and 214) and solder bumps (216) for electrical connections to the image sensor die (210) in the package, the external input/output pads (the portion connecting elements 216 and 214) being disposed on the signal redistribution layer (214) that is disposed on a back side (210b) of the image sensor die (210).
Regarding claim 9, Wang discloses a layer of molding material (511) is disposed on the signal redistribution layer (214) that is disposed on the back side of the image sensor die (210b), the layer of molding material (511) hermetically sealing a back side (210b) of the assembly of the image sensor die (210) and the glass cover (330) (paragraph 25 – “air tight”).
Claims 20-21 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Chen et al. (US Publication No. 2020/0098811) in view of Lin et al. (US Publication No. 2015/0123285), and further in view of Chen et al. (US Publication No. 2021/0111220).
Regarding claim 20, Chen discloses (Figure 3) a method, comprising:
disposing a sheet of glass (200) on a front side (100a) of a semiconductor substrate (100), the semiconductor substrate (100) including at least one image sensor die (100)
attaching the sheet of glass (200) to the at least one image sensor die (100) by a bead of adhesive material disposed on an edge of the at least one image sensor die (100) (paragraph 28)
sawing the semiconductor substrate (100) from a back side to form a trench (140) along a side of the at least one image sensor die (100), the trench extending through a thickness of the semiconductor substrate (100) and at most only through a part of a thickness of the sheet of glass (200) (Figure 2F – “at most only through a part of a thickness of the sheet of glass” is being interpreted to mean that the trench does not need to go through the glass at all. Paragraph 53 pre-cuts, then dices using saw or laser)
filling the trench with a molding material (142) to form a layer of molding material on a sidewall of the at least one image sensor die (100)
singulating the semiconductor substrate (100) and attached sheet of glass (200) to isolate an individual image sensor package (20) enclosing the at least one image sensor die (100) (Figures 2H-3)
Chen does not disclose sawing a trench only partially through a part of a thickness of the sheet of glass. However, Li discloses sawing a trench (130) through a substrate and glass (Figure 4G), then filling the trench with mold material (126) (Figure 4H; paragraph 56). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at a time before the effective filing date of the invention to have modified the method of Chen to include a step of partial sawing, as taught by Li, since it can protect the device from moisture and delamination (paragraphs 59-60).
Chen does not disclose forming a glass cover having a stepped side surface. However, Chen (‘220) discloses forming a glass cover (620) having a stepped surface (1050). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at a time before the effective filing date of the invention to have modified the method of Chen to include a stepped side surface, as taught by Chen (‘220) since it can improve the angle of entry of the glass and block side light from entering, thereby reducing image degradation (paragraphs 2 and 18).
Regarding claim 21, Chen discloses:
before singulating the semiconductor substrate, disposing a layer of the molding material (142) on a bottom side of the at least one image sensor die (100) in the semiconductor substrate (Figure 2H)
forming structures in or on the layer of the molding material (142) disposed on the bottom side of the at least one image sensor die (100) for making external electrical package connections to the at least one image sensor die, the structures including at least one of a through-mold via (TMV) (134a), a redistribution layer (134b), and a solder bump (144)
Claims 13-16 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Wang (US Publication No. 2018/0090524) in view of Li et al. (US Patent No. 9,748,293), and further in view of Chen et al. (US Publication No. 2021/0111220).
Regarding claim 13, Wang discloses a package comprising:
an image sensor die (210)
a glass cover (330) disposed above the image sensor die (210), the glass cover (300) being attached to the image sensor die (210) by a bead of adhesive material placed on an edge of the image sensor die (210) (paragraph 43)
a layer of molding material (511) disposed on a sidewall of the image sensor die (210)
Wang does not disclose the glass cover including a monolithic glass panel having an upper portion and a lower portion, a width of the upper portion being greater than a width of the lower portion, the width of the upper portion being greater than a width of the image sensor. However, Li discloses a monolithic glass panel (330) with an upper portion (370) which has a width greater than a lower portion (380) (Figure 3A). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at a time before the effective filing date of the invention to have modified the glass panel of Wang to include a wider upper portion, as taught by Li, to provide a large sealing interface to properly protect the image sensor (col. 2, lines 40-60).
Chen does not disclose forming a glass cover having a stepped side surface. However, Chen (‘220) discloses forming a glass cover (620) having a stepped surface (1050). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at a time before the effective filing date of the invention to have modified the method of Chen to include a stepped side surface, as taught by Chen (‘220) since it can improve the angle of entry of the glass and block side light from entering, thereby reducing image degradation (paragraphs 2 and 18).
Regarding claim 14, Wang discloses the layer of molding material (511) disposed on the sidewall of the image sensor die (210) extends along a side of a bottom layer of the glass cover (330) (paragraph 20; Figure 2), and Li discloses the lower portion of the monolithic glass panel (326) to be bonded to the substrate (320) via an adhesive glue (col. 3, lines 1-12).
Regarding claim 15, Wang discloses:
a signal redistribution layer (214 horizontal portion) disposed on a back side of the image sensor die (210)
a through-semiconductor via (TSV) (214 vertical portion) providing electrical connections between a front side (210a) of the image sensor die (210) and the back side (210b) of the image sensor die (210)
Regarding claim 16, Wang discloses a layer of molding material (511) disposed on the signal redistribution layer (214) that is disposed on the back side of the image sensor die (210), the layer of molding material hermetically sealing the back side of the image sensor die (paragraph 25 – “air tight”).
Claim 17 rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Wang (US Publication No. 2018/0090524) in view of Li et al. (US Patent No. 9,748,293), and further in view of Yee et al. (US Publication No. 2016/0013235).
Regarding claim 17, Wang/Li discloses the limitations as discussed in the rejection of claim 15 above. Wang also discloses external input/output pads (element between solder bumps 216 and horizontal portion of redistribution layer 214) and solder bumps (216) for electrical connections to the image sensor die (210) in the package. Wang/Li does not disclose the external input/output pads being disposed on the layer of molding material that is disposed on the signal redistribution layer. However, Yee discloses a package includes a second signal redistribution layer (123) disposed on a bottom of the layer of molding material (121) that is disposed on a first signal redistribution layer (116), and includes external input/output pads (123) and solder bumps (126). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at a time before the effective filing date of the invention to have modified the signal redistribution layer to include a second signal redistribution layer on the bottom of the molding layer, as taught by Yee, since adding an additional redistribution layer for external connection can provide signal remapping, physical support, and thermal stress relief to the device (paragraph 20).
Claim 6 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Wang (US Publication No. 2018/0090524) in view of Li et al. (US Patent No. 9,748,293), and further in view of Noma et al. (US Publication No. 2008/0277793), and further in view of Hsieh et al. (US Publication No. 2020/0312897).
Regarding claim 6, Wang/Li/Tae discloses the limitations as discussed in the rejection of claim 1 above. Wang/Li/Noma does not disclose an edge portion of a top surface of the glass cover is coated with a light blocking material. However, Hsieh discloses an edge portion of a top surface of a glass cover (106) is coated with light blocking material (110). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at a time before the effective filing date of the invention to have modified the glass cover of Wang to include the light blocking material of Hsieh, since it can reduce or block light that would otherwise cause flare within the image sensor package (paragraph 8).
Claims 10-12 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Wang (US Publication No. 2018/0090524) in view of Li et al. (US Patent No. 9,748,293), and further in view of Noma et al. (US Publication No. 2008/0277793), and further in view of Yee et al. (US Publication No. 2016/0013235).
Regarding claim 10, Wang/Li/Noma discloses the limitations as discussed in the rejection of claim 9 above. Wang/Li/Tae also discloses the signal redistribution layer (214) disposed on the back side (210b) of the image sensor die (210) is a first signal redistribution layer (214). Wang does not disclose the package further includes a second signal redistribution layer disposed on a bottom of the layer of molding material that is disposed on the first signal redistribution layer. However, Yee discloses a package includes a second signal redistribution layer (123) disposed on a bottom of the layer of molding material (121) that is disposed on a first signal redistribution layer (116). However, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at a time before the effective filing date of the invention to have modified the signal redistribution layer to include a second signal redistribution layer on the bottom of the molding layer, as taught by Yee, since it can provide signal remapping, physical support, and thermal stress relief to the device (paragraph 20).
Regarding claim 11, Yee discloses a through-mold via (TMV) (1214) that electrically connects the first signal redistribution layer (116) on the back side of image sensor die (111) and the second signal redistribution layer (123) disposed on the bottom of the layer of molding material (121). As explained above, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time before the effective filing date of the invention to modify the disclosure of Wang in view of Li, and further in view of Noma and Yee.
Regarding claim 12, Yee discloses external input/output pads (123) and solder bumps (126) for electrical connections to the image sensor die (111) in the package, the external input/output pads (123) and solder bumps (126) being disposed on the second signal redistribution layer (1214) that is disposed on a bottom of the layer of molding material (121). As explained above, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time before the effective filing date of the invention to modify the disclosure of Wang in view of Li, and further in view of Noma and Yee.
Claims 18-19 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Chen et al. (US Publication No. 2020/0098811) in view of Hsu (US Publication No. 2019/0172864), and further in view of Chen et al. (US Publication No. 2021/0111220).
Regarding claim 18, Chen discloses a method comprising:
disposing at least one assembly of an image sensor die (100) and a glass cover (200)
disposing a layer of a molding material (142) on at least a sidewall of the at least one assembly (100) placed with a top surface of the glass cover (200) to form a molded packages structure (Figure 3)
Chen does not disclose disposing the assembly with a top surface of the glass cover (80) placed down on a carrier (82), disposing molding material (114) on the assembly on the carrier, then removing the carrier (Figure 4J). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at a time before the effective filing date of the invention to have modified the method of Chen to include a separate carrier on which a sealed package can be formed, then removed, as taught by Hsu, provide protection from the ingress of contaminants (paragraph 53).
Chen does not disclose forming a glass cover having a recessed side surface for molding. However, Chen (‘220) discloses forming a glass cover (620) having a stepped surface (1050) with molding (1310). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at a time before the effective filing date of the invention to have modified the method of Chen to include a stepped side surface, as taught by Chen (‘220) since it can improve the angle of entry of the glass and block side light from entering, thereby reducing image degradation (paragraphs 2 and 18).
Regarding claim 19, Chen discloses disposing a layer of the molding material (142) on a bottom side of the at least one assembly of the image sensor die (100) and the glass cover (200), and forming structures in or on the molded packages structure for making external electrical package connections to the at least one assembly of the image sensor die (100) and the glass cover (200), the structures including at least one of a through-mold via (TMV) (134a), a redistribution layer (134b), and a solder bump (144).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to NEIL R PRASAD whose telephone number is (571) 270-3129. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 9am-5pm.
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, Jacob Choi can be reached at (469) 295-9060. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000.
/N.R.P/ 3/7/2026Examiner, Art Unit 2897
/JACOB Y CHOI/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2897