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 .
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 01/01/2024 is in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner.
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.
Claim(s) 1, 3 and 7 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Park (US Patent Appl. Pub. No. 2005/0122462 A1).
[Re claim 1] Park discloses the flexible circuit board, comprising: a base material (102); a plurality of bonding pins (140), located on the base material, extending in a first direction (vertical direction) and arranged in a second direction (horizontal direction); wherein the first direction and the second direction intersect; and a protective layer (138), located on a side of the bonding pins facing away from the base material (102); wherein the protective layer comprises a plurality of first openings (141b) and a plurality of second openings (141a) for exposing the plurality of bonding pins, wherein a size of the first opening (141b) is greater than a size of the second opening (141a); one bonding pin corresponds to one first opening and at least one second opening, and the second opening is located on at least one side of the first opening in the first direction (vertical direction) (see figures 4-6 and paragraphs [0032]-[0041]).
[Re claim 3] Park also discloses the flexible circuit board wherein a width of the first opening (141b) in the second direction (horizontal direction) is smaller than or equal to a width of the bonding pin (140) in the second direction; a width of the first opening (141b) in the first direction (vertical direction) is smaller than or equal to half a width of the bonding pin in the first direction (see figure 5).
[Re claim 7] Park also discloses the flexible circuit board wherein the plurality of bonding pins comprise a plurality of first bonding pins (140) and a plurality of second bonding pins (144); wherein the first bonding pin (140) and the second bonding pin (144) are located at two ends of the flexible circuit board respectively, and the first bonding pin and the second bonding pin are located at the same side (upper side surface of 102) of the base material (see figure 4-7 and paragraph [0032]-[0043]).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claim 2, 4-6, and 8-20 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.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to KYOUNG LEE whose telephone number is (571)272-1982. The examiner can normally be reached M to F, 10am to 6pm.
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/KYOUNG LEE/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2817