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and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114.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 April 17, 2026 has been entered.
Claims 1-6 and 8-22 remain pending wherein claims 9-22 remain withdrawn. Applicant amended claims 1 and 8.
Response to Arguments
The amendment necessitated the new ground of rejection set forth below, rendering moot Applicant’s arguments directed to the patentability 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.
Claims 1-6 and 8 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Giri (WO 2018067177 A1) in view of Yager et al. (‘Yager”) (US 6,482,306 B1).
With respect to claim 1, Giri teaches a molded microfluidic substrate comprising (see Fig. 1):
a molding compound layer 110 (see [0011] disclosing epoxy molding compound); and
a microfluidic channel 130 formed within the molding compound layer 110, the microfluidic channel having a round sidewall profile defined by a sacrificial metal bond wire of predetermined diameter* (see [0019] disclosing that the channel comprises a diameter);
wherein the microfluidic channel 130 has a portion 134 at a bottom exterior surface of the molding compound layer (see annotated Fig. 1 below), the portion being planar with and bounded by the bottom exterior surface, the portion corresponding to an etched-away sacrificial metal portion of a molded-interconnect substrate (MIS) sacrificial metal bond layer* (see annotation).
PNG
media_image1.png
260
622
media_image1.png
Greyscale
*The limitations marked by asterisk are directed to processes of making the claimed channel. The patentability of the claimed invention is based on the device itself, and not how the device is made. Consequently, prior art need not teach the claimed processes to anticipate the limitations. Because the microfluidic channel 130 taught by Giri is structurally indistinct from the claimed microfluidic channel formed using the claimed methods, the channel 130 is sufficient to anticipate the asterisked limitations.
The substrate illustrated in Figure 1 of Giri differs from the claimed invention in that the channel 130 does not have a three-dimensional configuration corresponding to a sacrificial metal bond wire being bent in three spatial dimensions. Rather, the channel 130 is bent in two spatial dimensions to form a U-shape (see Fig. 1). In addition, Giri does not disclose the claimed metal component.
Regarding the three-dimensional configuration of the channel, Giri discloses that the U-shaped channel 130 illustrated in Figure 1 is merely a “simplified example” and that inlet 132 and outlet 134 of channel 130 can be situated on different surfaces of substrate 110, including adjacent surfaces (see [0015]). Based on the disclosure, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have provided inlet 132 on the front face of substrate 110 such that the channel 130 bends in all three spatial dimensions.
Alternatively, Giri illustrates plan views (i.e. top-down views) of other channel configurations in which the channel narrows and widens (see Fig. 2) and the channel forks (see Figs. 3 and 4). If such channels are formed in the molding compound layer 110 illustrated in Figure 1 with the same inlet 132 and outlet 134 arrangements, then the channel 110 would have a three-dimensional configuration corresponding to a sacrificial metal bond wire being bent in three spatial dimensions.
Regarding the metal component, Yager discloses a microfluidic device comprising metal electrodes for inducing mixing within the channels of the device (see abstract). The electrodes can be incorporated into the device by embedding pieces of wires into a channel surface, or by coating a portion of the channel such that electrodes form plates protruding into the channel (see lines 34-37, col. 2 and Fig. 2F). In light of the disclosure of Yager, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have provided the Giri device with a metal component within the molding compound layer, the metal component being separate from the microfluidic channel and having a round cross-sectional shape corresponding to a non-sacrificial metal bond wire or a rectangularly flat cross-sectional shape corresponding to a non-sacrificial metal ribbon. The modification would enable the device to perform electroosmotic mixing.
With respect to claim 2, as discussed above, the molding compound layer 110 comprises an epoxy molding compound (EMC) layer.
With respect to claim 3, as discussed above, the microfluidic channel 130 has a round sidewall (see also [0019]).
With respect to claim 4, as discussed above (see rejection of claim 1), Yager teaches electrodes plated onto a wall of a channel. The plated metal anticipates the subject matter of claim 4.
As discussed above, the patentability of the claimed invention is based on the structure of the device, not how it is made. In this case, the Giri device modified pursuant to the teachings of Yager arrives at a microfluidic channel comprising a metal-plated sidewall, which is sufficient to reject the claim.
With respect to claim 5, Giri teaches other embodiments of the microfluidic channel 330/430, said embodiment comprising a plurality of inlets (see [0038] and Fig. 3) or a plurality of outlets (see [0039] and Fig. 4). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have provided the device with either channel embodiment in the molding compound layer 110. Such a channel would comprise a second opening corresponding to a second inlet/outlet at the bottom exterior surface of the molding compound layer 110 (see annotated Fig. 1 below), the second opening inlet/outlet corresponding to another etched-away sacrificial metal portion of the MIS sacrificial metal bond layer*.
PNG
media_image2.png
271
653
media_image2.png
Greyscale
*As discussed above, prior art need not teach the claimed method to anticipate the claim. The second opening taught by Giri is deemed to be structurally indistinct from the claimed second opening formed using the claimed method, and thus the asterisked limitations are deemed to be anticipated.
With respect to claim 6, as discussed above, the patentability of the claimed invention is based on the structure of the device, not how it is made. That said, claim 6 conveys a device comprising a second microfluidic channel formed within the molding compound layer, which is taught by Giri (see [0018]).
With respect to claim 8, as discussed above, the patentability of the claimed invention is based on the structure of the device, and the sacrificial metal bond wire is not part of the claimed invention given that it is sacrificed during manufacturing. Moreover, the recitation “same metal as or a different metal than” encompasses all possibilities. That said, the metal recited in the claim can refer to any metal. Naturally, the subject matter of the claim is taught by the combination of Giri and Yager.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to PAUL S HYUN whose telephone number is (571)272-8559. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 8:30-5:00.
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, Luan Van can be reached at 571-272-8521. 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.
/PAUL S HYUN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1796
Prosecution Insights