DETAILED ACTION
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and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114.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 2/18/26 has been entered.
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 § 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.
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.
Claims 1, 4, 5, 9-12, 18 and 19 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as anticipated by or, in the alternative, under 35 U.S.C. 103 as obvious over US Publication 2016/0200975 to Cooper et al.
Regarding Claim 1, Cooper et al. teaches an etchant composition comprising: an etidronic acid or a salt thereof (Paragraph 31), an inorganic base (Paragraph 27), hydrogen peroxide (Paragraph 28), and a remaining amount of water, wherein 0.01 to 5 wt% of the etidronic acid or the salt thereof; 0.1 to 2.8 wt% of the inorganic base; 15 to 25 wt% of the hydrogen peroxide; and a remaining amount of water are included (Tables), based on the total weight of the etchant composition, and the etchant composition further comprises a phosphate (Paragraph 29) selected from the group consisting of trisodium phosphate (Na₃PO₄), monopotassium phosphate (KH2PO4), dipotassium phosphate (K2HPO₄), monoammonium phosphate ((NH₄)H₂PO₄), diammonium phosphate ((NH₄)₂HPO₄), triammonium phosphate ((NH4)₃PO₄), and a combination of two or more thereof. The composition is disclosed with sufficient specificity for anticipation, further the composition would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention by selectin of the recited embodiments and disclosed ranges with predictable results.
Regarding Claim 4, Cooper et al. teaches the inorganic base is a hydrate (aqueous).
Regarding Claim 5, Cooper et al. teaches (Tables) etidronic acid or a salt thereof (0.1%) and the inorganic base (0.2%) 1:1 to 1:2.5.
Regarding Claim 7, Cooper et al. teaches embodiments in which a quaternary ammonium salt is not included.
Regarding Claim 9, Cooper et al. teaches (Tables) 0.01 to 1 wt% of the phosphate.
Regarding Claims 10 and 19, Cooper et al. teaches (Paragraph 31) one or more chealating agents may be used.
Regarding Claim 11, Cooper et al. teaches (Paragraph 39) pH 6-10. Further, the same pH would reasonably be expected to be achieved using the same components, or else is the result of essential limitations that are not claimed.
Regarding Claim 12, Cooper et al. teaches etching a titanium-containing material layer. However, the claim reads on an intended use and does not materially limit the claimed composition.
Regarding Claim 18, Cooper et al. teaches (Paragraph 27) inorganic base such as potassium hydroxide.
Conclusion
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/ROBERTS P CULBERT/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1716
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