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 .
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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(s) 10-16 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Yamauchi et al. US 6797926 in view of Rohde et al. US 5667128 and Tsujimoto US 6689245.
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Yamauchi discloses a manufacturing method (col. 8, lines 37-67 and col. 9, lines 1-40) of a semiconductor device using a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus including a substrate supply unit (not shown, known in the art) to which a carrier jig (110) on which a substrate (5) having a plurality of package areas (soldering points 8) is placed, is supplied from an external device (not shown), a bond stage (120), and a bond head (not shown, described for bonding components 6, 7 to 5; col. 9, lines 2-8) comprising the steps of: (a) conveying the carrier jig (110) which holds the substrate (5) to a bond stage (120) in a first direction (col. 8, lines 53-55); (b) mounting the carrier jig on the bond stage (col. 8, lines 55-56); (c) fixing the substrate mounted on the mounting section (110a) of the carrier jig to the bond stage (120) by adsorbing through adsorption holes (111) provided in the mounting section (110a) of the carrier jig (110) (col. 8, lines 56-67); (d) heating the substrate on the bond stage (col. 9, lines 1-4); (e) bonding the die (6, 7) to the substrate using the bond head (col. 9, lines 5-6); (f) further conveying the carrier jig (110) in the first direction a distance shorter than a length of the substrate along the first direction (col. 9, lines 6-8); and (g) repeating steps (b) to (f) (col. 11, lines 56-59, repeated for sequentially treating substrates 5), wherein the bond stage (120) includes a mounting section portion (121a) having a suction port (134) for adsorbing the mounted substrate (5) via the absorption holes (111) of the carrier jig and a heating device (121) for heating the adsorbed substrate, and an upper surface of the mounting portion (121a) of the bond stage is configured to abut against a lower surface (110b) of the mounting section (110a) of the carrier jig (110).
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Yamauchi does not specify wherein the carrier jig includes a frame section for pressing a peripheral edge of the mounted substrate. However, the use of a frame section or peripheral edge clamp/holding section is well known in the art as evidence by Rohde (see Fig. 1 below) who teaches a carrier jig (14) having a frame section (24) for holding a peripheral edge of a mounted substrate (16) to a heated bond stage (12). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date, to modify the carrier jig of Yamauchi to include a frame section as taught by Rohde in order to provide a means for properly aligning and/or position the substrate on the carrier.
Yamauchi further discloses steps of placement and bonding of dies (electronic components 6 and 7) on the substrate (5, col. 9, lines 2-8) but does not explicitly specify a bond head. However, the use of bond heads for placement of dies on the substrate to be bonded is well known in the art and is further taught by Rohde who teaches the placement of dies (32) onto bond pad (28) on substrate (16) wherein the placement and bonding of the dies is provided by a bond head (thermo-compression, col. 3, lines 66-67 and col. 4, lines 1-10) for axially lowering and compressing the die (32) onto the bond pad (28). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date, that the bonding process of Yamauchi would use a bonding step of thermo-compression of the dies to the substrate as is well known in the art and taught by Rohde.
Yamauchi discloses an apparatus for processing substrates to have dies bonded to said substrates wherein the substrates are manually supplied to the apparatus to be processed which could be interpreted under broadest reasonable interpretation as a supply unit. Furthermore, the use of automated supply units for supplying substrates to a bonding apparatus to be processed is well known in the art as evidence by Tsujimoto who teaches a die bonding apparatus (1, see Fig. 3 below) having a substrate supply unit (10, 12, 14) for supplying substrates to the apparatus (1) for processing. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date, to modify and/or substitute the substrate supply of Yamauchi with an automated supply unit as taught by Tsujimoto as an alternative means for supplying substates to be processed by the die bonding apparatus.
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As for claim 11, the modified Yamauchi teaches wherein in step (e), the carrier jig (110) is moved at a conveyance pitch (0º, horizontal flat) that is the same as the arrangement pitch (0º, horizontal flat) of the substrates (5) in the package area in the first direction.
As for claim 12, the modified Yamauchi teaches wherein the adsorption holes (111) are holes that penetrate the mounting section (110a) in the vertical direction, and in step (c), the suction port (134a) of the mounting section portion (120a) communicate with some of the adsorption holes of in the carrier jig (110) to suction the substrate.
As for claim 13, the modified Yamauchi teaches wherein in step (a), the carrier jig (110) is moved from the substrate supply unit to the bond stage along a conveyance lane. Yamauchi discloses multiple embodiments of die bonding apparatuses (see Figs. 10-13, and prior art see Fig. 19) wherein substrates are conveyed for bonding dies to said substrates. The prior art of Tsujimoto further teaches the use of conveyors for processing a substrate.
As for claim 14, the modified Yamauchi teaches wherein in step (a), when the carrier jig (110) is moved to the bond stage (120), the bond stage is capable of being lowered (see embodiment, Yamauchi Fig. 13, 303).
As for claim 15, the modified Yamauchi teaches wherein in step (b), the bond stage (120) is capable of being raised to place the carrier jig (110) on the bond stage (see embodiment, Yamauchi Fig. 13, 303).
As for claim 16, the modified Yamauchi teaches wherein in step (f), the bond stage (120) is capable of being lowered when the carrier jig (110) is moved (see embodiment, Yamauchi Fig. 13, 303).
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed January 16, 2026 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive. Applicant argues that the prior art of Yamauchi and Rohde fails to disclose, teach or suggest claimed invention specifically steps (a), (b), (e), (f) and (g). The examiner respectfully disagrees. The prior art Yamauchi provides multiple embodiments of a bonding apparatus for bonding dies (electrical components 6, 7) to a substrate (5) and teaches the specific steps pointed out by Applicant. The modified Yamauchi teaches: step (a) a carrier jig (110) holding a substrate (5) supplied by a supply unit (as taught by Yamauchi and Tsujimoto) whose peripheral edge is pressed by a frame section (as taught by Rohde) is conveyed (placed) on a bond stage (Yamauchi, 120, col. 8, lines 53-55) in a first direction; step (b) mounting the carrier jig (110) on the bond stage (120, col. 8, lines 55-56); step (e) bonding the die (6, 7) to the substrate using the bond head (col. 9, lines 5-6); step (f) further conveying the carrier jig (110) in the first direction a distance shorter than a length of the substrate along the first direction (col. 9, lines 6-8); and step (g) repeating steps (b) to (f) (col. 11, lines 56-59, steps repeated for substrates to be treated sequentially).
In response to applicant's argument that Rohde does not make up for the deficinies in Yamauchi specifically the carrier jig having a frame section for pressing a peripheral edge of a substrate, the test for obviousness is not whether the features of a secondary reference may be bodily incorporated into the structure of the primary reference; nor is it that the claimed invention must be expressly suggested in any one or all of the references. Rather, the test is what the combined teachings of the references would have suggested to those of ordinary skill in the art. See In re Keller, 642 F.2d 413, 208 USPQ 871 (CCPA 1981). Rohde teaches a die bonding apparatus having a carrier jig (14) with a frame section (30) for pressing a peripheral edge of a substrate (16) and supported on a bonding stage (12). Thus, Rohde does make up for the deficiencies of Yamauchi in teaching the use of a frame section (30) for supporting a substrate on a carrier jig by pressing peripheral edges of the substrate and placing said carrier jig on a bonding stage.
For the above reasons, the claims do not overcome the prior art of record.
Conclusion
Applicant's amendment necessitated the new ground(s) of rejection presented in this Office action. Accordingly, THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. See MPEP § 706.07(a). Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to TYRONE V HALL JR whose telephone number is (571)270-5948. The examiner can normally be reached Mon.-Fri. 7:30am-3:30pm.
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/TYRONE V HALL JR/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3723