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 group I, claims 1-5 in the reply filed on 1/20/2026 is acknowledged. 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)).
Claims 6-15 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to a nonelected invention, there being no allowable generic or linking claim.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 1/20/2026.
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 1-5 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Williams et al. (US Pat No 5,779,159).
Re claim 1, Williams et al. show a nozzle (Fig. 5) for injecting a processing liquid (W), the nozzle comprising a cylindrical housing (B) having a central axis, wherein the housing comprises: a liquid supply port (at W) to supply the processing liquid into the housing; a gas supply port (24) to supply a compressed gas into the housing; and an injection port (top of B) to inject the processing liquid together with the compressed gas, wherein the injection port has an annular shape (Fig. 4A, demonstrated as cylindrical) extending around the central axis.
Re claim 2, Williams et al. show a rod member (S) disposed between the liquid supply port (at W) and the injection port (top of B) in an extending direction of the central axis, the rod member (S) having an inclined surface (Fig. 5) in which a diameter increases toward the injection port (top of B), wherein a fluid passage (F+W) is formed between an inner peripheral surface of the housing (B) and the inclined surface to guide the processing liquid (W) supplied from the liquid supply port (at W) and the compressed gas (F) supplied from the gas supply port (24) to the injection port (top of B).
Re claim 3, Williams et al. show the nozzle is configured to atomize and inject the processing liquid from the injection port (top of B).
Re claim 4, Williams et al. show a liquid supply pipe (bottom of B) to guide the processing liquid into the housing (B) along the central axis; and a diffusion plate (Figs. 4C & 5, SS) to diffuse the processing liquid flowing through the liquid supply pipe, the diffusion plate having a plurality of openings (between 18) arranged along a circumferential direction about the central axis.
Re claim 5, Williams et al. disclose the processing liquid is an etching liquid (col. 3, line 13) to etch a workpiece.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to STEVEN MICHAEL CERNOCH whose telephone number is (571)270-3540. The examiner can normally be reached Mon-Fri; 8am-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, Arthur Hall can be reached at (571)270-1814. 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.
STEVEN MICHAEL CERNOCH
Primary Examiner
Art Unit 3752
/STEVEN M CERNOCH/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3752