DETAILED ACTION
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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.
Claim(s) 1, 2, 9 thru 11, 18, 20, 24, and 25 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Wen et al. US 2013/0049181 A1. Wen discloses (see, for example, FIG. 3) a method comprising arranging a semiconductor integrated circuit 310 on a first surface (i.e. top surface) of a thermally conductive die pad 220 of a lead frame 210, second surface (i.e. bottom surface), and molding an encapsulation 350 wherein the encapsulation borders on the thermally conductive die pad 220 at a borderline around the thermally conductive die pad 220. The encapsulation 350 has a recessed portion that is filled with a thermally and electrically conductive material 340 that augments the surface area of the thermally conductive die pad 220 in said recessed portion of the encapsulation 350.
Regarding claim 2, and 20, see, for example, FIG. 3 wherein Wen discloses a depositing (i.e. plating) a metal into the recess of the encapsulation 350.
Regarding claims 9, and 24, see, for example, FIG. 3 wherein Wen discloses the thermally and electrically conductive material 340 filled in said recessed portion of the encapsulation 350 has a thickness different from the thickness of the thermally conductive die pad 220.
Regarding claims 10, and 25, see, for example, FIG. 3 wherein Wen discloses said lead frame 210 includes an array of electrically conductive leads 230 surrounding the thermally conductive die pad 220, and wherein the electrically conductive leads 230 project above the thermally and electrically conductive material 340 filled in said recessed portion of the encapsulation 350.
Regarding claim 11, see, for example, paragraph [0018], and [0041] wherein Wen discloses using metals (i.e. electrically conductive material).
Regarding claim 18, see the rejection for claim 1 above. Further, see, for example, FIG. 3 wherein Wen discloses a bottom surface of the encapsulation 350 and the second surface (i.e. bottom surface) of the thermally conductive pad 220 being coplanar, and the thermally and electrically conductive material 340 filling the recessed portion of the encapsulation 350 and has a bottom surface coplanar with both the bottom surface of the encapsulation 350 and the second surface (i.e. bottom surface) of the thermally conductive die pad 220.
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) 19, and 21 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Wen et al. US 2013/0049181 A1 as applied to claims 1, 2, 9 thru 11, 18, 20, 24, and 25 above, and further in view of Koduri US 2022/0230944 A1. Wen does not clearly disclose filling thermally and electrically conductive material comprises jet printing thermally and electrically conductive material at said recessed portion. However, Koduri discloses (see, for example, paragraph [0120]) jet printing as a well-known method for laying down conductive layers. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to fill thermally and electrically conductive material comprises jet printing thermally and electrically conductive material at said recessed portion in order to have high-precision deposition with minimal cost according to the preferences of the user.
Regarding claim 21, see, for example paragraph [0120] wherein Koduri also discloses laser transfer.
Claim(s) 22, and 23 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Wen et al. US 2013/0049181 A1 as applied to claims 1, 2, 9 thru 11, 18, 20, 24, and 25 above, and further in view of Derai et al. US 2019/0115287 A1. Wen does not clearly disclose the insulating material of the encapsulation comprises laser direct structuring material, and wherein removing comprising applying a laser structuring to the LDS material of the encapsulation at said borderline around the thermally conductive die pad. However, Derai discloses (see, for example, FIG. 3, and paragraph [0054]) a method comprising insulating material of the encapsulation 16 being LDS material. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to have the insulating material of the encapsulation comprising laser direct structuring material, and wherein removing comprising applying a laser structuring to the LDS material of the encapsulation at said borderline around the thermally conductive die pad in order to permit production of electrically-conductive formations in an encapsulation with diverse circuitry for the semiconductor device.
Regarding claim 23, see, for example, FIG. 3 wherein Wen discloses a depositing (i.e. plating) a metal into the recess of the encapsulation 350.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 3 thru 8 are 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.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to claim(s) 1-11, and 18-25 have been considered but are moot because the new ground of rejection does not rely on any reference applied in the prior rejection of record for any teaching or matter specifically challenged in the argument.
Conclusion
THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. 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.
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Eugene Lee
January 28, 2026
/EUGENE LEE/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2815