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 allowance or after an Office action under Ex Parte Quayle, 25 USPQ 74, 453 O.G. 213 (Comm'r Pat. 1935). 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, prosecution in this application has been reopened pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114. Applicant's submission filed on January 27th, 2026 has been entered.
Response to Amendment
Acknowledgment is made that applicant's Amendment, filed on January 27th, 2026, has been entered.
Upon entrance of the Amendment, claims 1-3, 7, 8, 14, 16, 17, and 19-25 were amended, claim 26 were added, and claim 15 were cancelled. Claims 1-3, 7-11, 13, 14, 16, 17, and 19-26 are currently pending.
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.
(a)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claims 1, 3, 7-11, 14, 16-17, 19, 22-24, and 26 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by Chida (U.S. Patent No. 10,984,755).
Regarding to claim 1, Hong teaches an integrated circuit, comprising:
a substrate including a first substrate portion, a second substrate portion, and a third substrate portion (Figs. 16A-B, please see the attached figure with annotations);
a first shape memory polymer portion is coupled between the first and second substrate portions (Figs. 16A-B, column 22, lines 15-17; Fig. 23, element 380; column 28, lines 35-42), wherein the first shape memory polymer portion is foldable to position the first and second substrate portions on different planes (Figs. 16B1-B2); and
a second shape memory polymer portion coupled between the first and third substrate portions (Figs. 16A-B, column 22, lines 15-17; Fig. 23, element 380; column 28, lines 35-42), wherein the second shape memory polymer portion is foldable to position the first and third substrate portions on different planes (Figs. 16B1-B2);
wherein the first substrate portion includes one or more contact pads formed thereon (Figs. 16B1-B2).
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Regarding to claim 3, Hong teaches the first and second shape memory polymer portions have a flat original shape (Fig. 16A).
Regarding to claim 7, Hong teaches a semiconductor die coupled to the one or more contact pads (Fig. 23).
Regarding to claim 8, Hong teaches the first substrate portion includes a layer of polyimide and a conductive layer, the conductive layer being partially covered by the layer of the polyimide, and the one or more contact pads are at exposed portions of the conductive layer (Fig. 23, column 30, lines 18-19).
Regarding to claim 9, Hong teaches the conductive layer is covered by the first and second polymer portions (Fig. 23, the conductive layer is covered by the first and second polymer portions 380).
Regarding to claim 10, Hong teaches the conductive layer includes copper (column 24, lines 57-60).
Regarding to claim 11, Hong teaches the layer of the polyimide includes at least one of: a thermoplastic material, or a thermosetting material (column 28, lines 33-34).
Regarding to claim 14 Hong teaches
a substrate including a first substrate portion, a second substrate portion, and a third substrate portion (Figs. 16A-B, please see the attached figure with annotations),
a first polymer portion that is capable of changing between a first shape and a second shape upon being heated (Figs. 16A-B, column 22, lines 15-17; Fig. 23, element 380; column 28, lines 35-42, polymer is softer under heating), wherein the first polymer portion is coupled between the first and second substrate portions (Figs. 16B1-B2); and
a second polymer portion capable of changing between the first shape and the second shape upon being heated (Figs. 16A-B, column 22, lines 15-17; Fig. 23, element 380; column 28, lines 35-42, polymer is softer under heating), wherein the second polymer portion is coupled between the first and third substrate portions (Figs. 16B1-B2),
wherein the first substrate portion includes one or more contact pads formed thereon (Figs. 16B1-B2).
Regarding to claim 16, Hong teaches
the first shape is a flat shape (Fig. 16A), and the second shape is a bent shape (Fig. 16B); or
the first shape is the bent shape (Fig. 16B), and the second shape is the flat shape (Fig. 16A).
Regarding to claim 17, Hong teaches the first and second polymer portions include a shape memory polymer (Figs. 16A-B).
Regarding to claim 19, Hong teaches the first shape is an original shape of the first and second polymer portions, and the first and second polymer portions are configurable to change from the second shape to the original shape responsive to at least one of: a temperature change, an electric field, or a magnetic field (polymer change its shape under heating).
Regarding to claim 22, Hong teaches a mold compound on the substrate and encapsulating the semiconductor die (Fig. 23).
Regarding to claim 23, Hong teaches a semiconductor die coupled to the one or more contact pads on the first substrate portion (Fig. 23); and a mold compound on the substrate and encapsulating the semiconductor die (Fig. 23).
Regarding to claim 24, Hong teaches the first shape memory polymer portion at least partially covers the first and second substrate portions (Fig. 23).
Regarding to claim 26, Hong teaches a fourth substrate portion including a contact pad; and a third shape memory polymer portion coupling the fourth substrate portion to the first substrate portion (Fig. 16A-B).
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Claims 20-21 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Choi et al. (U.S. Patent No. 7,923,793).
Regarding to claim 20, Choi teaches a method of fabricating an integrated circuit, the method comprising:
changing a substrate including a shape memory polymer from a first shape to a second bent shape (Fig. 2C, element 33, column 6, lines 49-51);
mounting a semiconductor wafer on the substrate having the second bent shape (Fig. 2C, element 3, column 6, lines 13-17); and
singulating the semiconductor wafer mounted on the substrate having the second into semiconductor dies (Fig. 2D-E, column 11, lines 41-45);
Regarding to claim 21, Choi teaches at least one of:
changing the substrate having the semiconductor dies mounted thereon from the bent shape to the first shape;
singulating the substrate having the first shape into multiple substrates each having one or more semiconductor dies mounted thereon (Fig. 2E); or
applying a mold compound on the one or more semiconductor dies.
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.
Claim 2 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Chida (U.S. Patent No. 10,984,755), as applied to claim 1 above, in view of Chambion et al. (U.S. Patent No. 11,769,785).
Regarding to claim 2, Chida does not explicitly disclose the first and second shape memory polymer portions comprise at least one of: polyethylene terephthalate (PET), polyurethanes, polyimides, polybenzoxazoles (PBO), polytetrafluoroethylene (PFTE), polylactide (PLA), or ethylene-vinyl acetate (EVA) (column 8, lines 13-18, polyimide).
Chambion discloses the first and second shape memory polymer portions comprise at least one of: polyethylene terephthalate (PET), polyurethanes, polyimides, polybenzoxazoles (PBO), polytetrafluoroethylene (PFTE), polylactide (PLA), or ethylene-vinyl acetate (EVA) (Fig. 3h, element 3; column 8, lines 13-18, polyimide). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Chida in view of Chambion to comprise at least one of: polyethylene terephthalate (PET), polyurethanes, polyimides, polybenzoxazoles (PBO), polytetrafluoroethylene (PFTE), polylactide (PLA), or ethylene-vinyl acetate (EVA), in the first and second shape memory polymer portions in order to increase flexibility.
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Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 13 and 25 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. The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter:
Regarding to claim 13, the prior art fails to anticipate or render obvious the claimed limitations including “the substrate includes at least one of: diaminodiphenyl (ODA) - oxydiphthalic anhydride (ODPA), or diaminodiphenyl (ODA) - biphenyltetracarboxylic dianhydride (BPDA).” in combination with the limitations recited in claim 1.
Regarding to claim 25, the prior art fails to anticipate or render obvious the claimed limitations including “the first shape memory polymer portion is foldable to position the second substrate portion perpendicular to the first substrate portion” in combination with the limitations recited in claim 1.
Pertinent Art
For the benefits of the Applicant, US-11763712-B2, US-10991738-B2, US-10943938-B2, US-10991621-B2US-11908832-B2, US-9799708-B2, cited on the record as being pertinent to significant disclosure through some but not all claimed features of the defined invention.
Conclusion
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/VU A VU/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2897