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 .
Status of the Application
This Office Action is in response to Applicant’s application 18/321,081 filed on January 18 2026, in which claims 11 to 33 are pending. Claims 1-10 are canceled.
Drawings
The drawings submitted on May 22 2023 have been reviewed and accepted by the Examiner.
Notation
References to patents will be in the form of (C: L) where C is the column number and L is the line number. References to pre-grant patent publications will be to the paragraph number in the form of (¶ xxxx).
Election/Restrictions
Applicant’s election without traverse of claims 11-33 in the reply filed on 18 January 2026 is acknowledged. Claims 1-10 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to a nonelected invention, there being no allowable generic or linking claim. Claim 1-10 are canceled.
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 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.
The factual inquiries set forth in Graham v. John Deere Co., 383 U.S. 1, 148 USPQ 459 (1966), that are applied for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness.
Claims 11-17, 21, 22 and 26 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Borodulin et al. (US 2016/0079019 A1; hereinafter “Borodulin”).
Regarding claim 11, Borodulin teaches in figures 1-8 and related text e.g. a method of forming a phase change material (PCM) switch (Fig.1-2), comprising:
forming a first phase change material element (56; Fig.2; ¶ 0025);
forming a second phase change material element (a second strip of 56; Fig.2; ¶ 0025);
forming a first conductor (52; Fig.2; ¶ 0024) electrically connected to a first end of each of the first phase change material element and the second phase change material element (52 connects to each end of 56; Fig.2);
forming a second conductor (54; Fig.2; ¶ 0024) electrically connected to a second end of each of the first phase change material element and the second phase change material element (54; can connect to each end of 56; Fig.2);
forming a device (64; Fig.2; ¶ 0026) coupled to the first phase change material element and to the second phase change material element (connected to the middle of each 56 strip); and
configuring the first conductor (52), the second conductor (54), the first phase change material element (56), and the second phase change material element as an electrical circuit (Fig. 1 and Fig.2) comprising a parallel configuration (¶ 0025).
Borodulin does not explicitly teach the device is a heating device.
However, Borodulin teaches that the strip (64, Fig.2 and 170; Fig.4) can provide more uniform temperature distribution along the longitudinal dimension of the strip during ohmic heating of the strip and the strip is made from metal (¶ 0016).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filling date of the invention to recognize that the conductive strip in the device of the Borodulin can be a heating device since longevity of the phase-change switch can be substantially increased based on mitigating the degree of temperature-induced damage of the conductive strip (¶ 0016).
Regarding claim 12, Borodulin teaches forming each of the first phase change material element and the second phase change material element to have a first resistance such that the electrical circuit comprising the parallel configuration has a second resistance that is less than the first resistance (PCM 56 can have different dimension which can result in different resistance; ¶0030).
Regarding claim 13, Borodulin teaches: forming a third phase change material element (third 56 strip; Fig.2);
electrically connecting the first conductor to a first end of the third phase change material element (52; Fig.2; ¶ 0024);
electrically connecting the second conductor to a second end of the third phase change material element (54; Fig.2); and
configuring the first conductor (52), the second conductor (54), the first phase change material element, the second phase change material element, and the third phase change material element to form the electrical circuit comprising the parallel configuration (56 strips are in parallel connection; Fig.2; ¶ 0017).
Regarding claim 14, Borodulin teaches forming the third phase change material element to have the first resistance such that the electrical circuit comprising the parallel configuration comprises a third resistance that is less than the first resistance and the second resistance (PCM 56 can have different dimension which can result in different resistance; ¶0030).
Regarding claim 15, Borodulin teaches wherein forming the heating device further comprises: forming a first heating element in contact with the first phase change material element; and forming a second heating element in contact with the second phase change material element (122 can be first heating element and second heating element; Fig.3; ¶ 0033).
Regarding claim 16, Borodulin does not explicitly teach forming a first transistor that is electrically connected to the first heating element; forming a second transistor that is electrically connected to the second heating element; and configuring the first transistor and the second transistor to supply respective first and second electrical current pulses to the first heating element and the second heating element.
However, Borodulin teaches the PCM switch in Fig. 1 can be incorporated in a logic and RF circuits (¶ 0018).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filling date of the invention to have a first transistor that is electrically connected to the first heating element, forming a second transistor that is electrically connected to the second heating element, and configuring the first transistor and the second transistor to supply respective first and second electrical current pulses to the first heating element and the second heating element in the device of Borodulin since a claim containing a "recitation with respect to the manner in which a claimed apparatus is intended to be employed does not differentiate the claimed apparatus from a prior art apparatus" if the prior art apparatus teaches all the structural limitations of the claim (see MPEP § 2114.II,B).
Regarding claim 17, Borodulin teaches forming two or more additional phase change material elements; and electrically connecting the two or more additional phase change material elements to the first conductor and the second conductor such that the first conductor, the second conductor, the first phase change material element, the second phase change material element, and the two or more additional phase change material elements are configured as the electrical circuit comprising the parallel configuration (at least 5 strips of PCM 56 can be formed in Fig.2; ¶ 0025).
Regarding claim 21, Borodulin teaches in figures 1-8 and related text e.g. a method of forming a phase change material (PCM) switch (Fig.1-2), comprising:
forming a first phase change material element (56; Fig.2; ¶ 0025);
forming a second phase change material element (a second strip of 56; Fig.2; ¶ 0025);
forming a first conductor (52; Fig.2; ¶ 0024) electrically connected to a first end of each of the first phase change material element and the second phase change material element (52 connects to each end of 56; Fig.2);
forming a second conductor (54; Fig.2; ¶ 0024) electrically connected to a second end of each of the first phase change material element and the second phase change material element (54; can connect to each end of 56; Fig.2);
forming a device (64; Fig.2; ¶ 0026) coupled to the first phase change material element and to the second phase change material element (connected to the middle of each 56 strip); and
configuring the first conductor (52), the second conductor (54), the first phase change material element (56), and the second phase change material element as an electrical circuit (Fig. 1 and Fig.2) comprising a parallel configuration (¶ 0025) forming a first element (222, Fig.6; ¶ 0041) in contact with the first phase change material element (220, Formed in the first row 210 and first column 202; Fig.6; ¶ 0040); and forming a second element (222 formed in the third row of 214; Fig.6; ¶0040), separate from the first element (222 formed in the third row of 214 is separate from 222 formed in the first row 210; Fig.6), in contact with the second phase change material element (220 formed in the third row 214 and second column 204; Fig.6; ¶ 0040).
Borodulin does not explicitly teach forming a first heating element and a second heating element.
However, Borodulin teaches that the strip (64, Fig.2 and 222; Fig.6; ¶ 0041) can provide more uniform temperature distribution along the longitudinal dimension of the strip during ohmic heating of the strip and the strip is made from metal (¶ 0016).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filling date of the invention to recognize that the conductive strip in the device of the Borodulin can be a heating device since longevity of the phase-change switch can be substantially increased based on mitigating the degree of temperature-induced damage of the conductive strip (¶ 0016).
Regarding claim 22, Borodulin does not explicitly teach forming a first transistor electrically connected to the first heating element; and forming a second transistor electrically connected to the second heating element.
However, Borodulin teaches the PCM switch in Fig. 1 can be incorporated in a logic and RF circuits (¶ 0018).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filling date of the invention to have a first transistor that is electrically connected to a first transistor electrically connected to the first heating element; and forming a second transistor electrically connected to the second heating element in the device of Borodulin since a claim containing a "recitation with respect to the manner in which a claimed apparatus is intended to be employed does not differentiate the claimed apparatus from a prior art apparatus" if the prior art apparatus teaches all the structural limitations of the claim (see MPEP § 2114.II,B).
Regarding claim 26, Borodulin does not teach such that a combined on-state resistance of the parallel configuration is approximately half the resistance of one of the phase change material elements.
However, Borodulin teaches forming the first and second phase change material elements to have substantially equal resistances in a crystalline state and teach the total resistance of the switch of the PCM switches (¶0044).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filling date of the invention to have a combined on-state resistance of the parallel configuration is approximately half the resistance of one of the phase change material elements in the device of Borodulin since since it has been held that where the general conditions of a claim are disclosed in the prior art, discovering the optimum or working ranges involves only routine skill in the art. See MPEP § 2144.05.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 27- 33 are allowed.
Claims 23-25 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.
Claim 23 is objected to since the prior art reference does not teach: “forming a first resistive heater pad and a first thermally conductive dielectric capping layer between the first resistive heater pad and the first phase change material element, and forming the second heating element comprises forming a second resistive heater pad and a second thermally conductive dielectric capping layer between the second resistive heater pad and the second phase change material element.”
Claim 27 is objected to over the prior the art reference because none of the prior art on the record teaches the order of the forming as stated in the claim specifically the step of: ‘... and forming a heat spreader over the phase change material element on an opposite side of the phase change material element from the heating element.”
The closest prior art references El-Hinnawy et al (US 2020/0058848 A1) teaches a similar device (PCM Switch; Fig.1B), however, El-Hinnawy teaches a heat spreader can be integrated in the substrate (¶ 0019); and forming the PCM layer (112; ¶ 0021) over the substrate and from the heating element (122) over the PCM layer (112).
The second closest prior art reference Slovin et al. (US 2021/0135100 A1) teaches a heat spreader (402; Fig.4A; ¶ 0057) formed under the PCM layer (412) and the heating element (206; Fig.2) formed under the PCM (212).
Claims 28- 33 are objected to since the following claims are dependent on claim 27.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Mounir S Amer whose telephone number is (571)270-3683. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 9:00-5:30.
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/Mounir S Amer/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2818