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 .
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.
Election/Restrictions
Applicant's election with traverse of Species I in the reply filed on 18 December, 2025 is acknowledged. The traversal is on the ground(s) that the species are directed to similar pad conditioner subject matter and separate searches would likely identify the same subject matter. This is not found persuasive because each of the species contain unique structural elements that would require distinct keywords and/or combinations of classifications when searching for elements such as the different gimbal structures, slurry holes in the center, or flexure configurations.
The requirement is still deemed proper and is therefore made FINAL.
Claims 3-20 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b), as being drawn to a nonelected species, there being no allowable generic or linking claim. Applicant timely traversed the restriction (election) requirement in the reply filed on 18 December, 2025.
Applicant indicated in their traversal arguments that claim 1 was generic to species I, II, IV, and V (corresponding to figs. 2a-2c, 3a-3b, 5a-5b, and 6a-6c, respectively). However, species II, IV, and V are not disclosed as including the “bearing ring contacting a rolling element” recited by claim 1. Therefore, claim 1 is not generic to any of species II, IV, and V.
Claims 3-7 are withdrawn as directed to non-elected species. Claim 3 is directed to non-elected species III, because the limitation of “the inner disk main body has a circular shape with recesses to accommodate each of the outer disk holders” is only disclosed with regards to embodiment of figs. 4a-4b. (see Specification [0055]).
Claims 4 and 5 are directed to one of non-elected species IV and V, because the limitation of “the outer disk main body comprises a first plurality of prongs”, is only disclosed with regards to the embodiments of figs. 5a-6c. (see Specification [0051] and [0057]-[0058]).
Claim 6 is directed to non-elected species V, because the limitation of “wherein the outer disk flexure and the inner disk flexure have an s-shape” is only disclosed with regards to embodiment of figs. 6a-6c. (see Specification [0060]).
Claim 7 is directed to non-elected species V, because the limitation of “wherein the outer disk flexure contacts a first stop on the shaft and the inner disk flexure contacts a second stop on the shaft” is only disclosed with regards to embodiment of figs. 6a-6c. (see Specification [0060]).
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.
Claims 1 and 2 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Moon et al. (KR 20040085995, "Moon") in view of Williams et al. (US 6110025, "Williams") and Chang et al. (US 7597608, "Chang").
1. Moon teaches a pad conditioner (500), comprising:
a shaft (connecting conditioner 500 to drive system 600, see Moon fig. 1);
an outer disk assembly comprising: an outer disk main body (534) and a conditioning surface (516) disposed on a bottom surface of the outer disk main body; and
an inner disk assembly concentric to the outer disk assembly (see Moon figs. 2 and 4a) and comprising an inner disk main body (532) and a plurality of inner disks (513,514) disposed on a bottom surface of the inner disk main body (see Moon fig. 2).
Moon further teaches that the disk assemblies are capable of independent vertical movement (Moon Translation [32]-[35]).
Moon does not teach the presence of a bearing ring connected to a lower portion of the shaft, the bearing ring contacting a rolling element, or that each of the inner and outer disk assemblies comprise respective disk flexures, each connected to the respective disk main bodies and the lower portion of the shaft.
However, Williams teaches a polishing system configured to independently press inner and outer disk assemblies (annular rings 178 and 168, see Williams fig. 11), wherein the disk assemblies are connected to a lower portion (22) of a shaft (21) by means of a bearing ring contacting a rolling element (rolling element 24 sits in a ring, Williams fig. 1), and concentric disk flexures (flexures 162 and 158 respectively connect rings 168 and 178 to the lower end of shaft 21 via body 29 and flexible torque coupling 25, see Williams figs. 1 and 11 and 7:17-54, 11:66-12:51).
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to modify the conditioner of Moon to incorporate the teachings of Williams regarding methods for driving inner and outer disk assemblies while applying independent vertical loads thereto such that the conditioner included a bearing ring connected to a lower portion of the shaft, the bearing ring contacting a rolling element, and each of the inner and outer disk assemblies comprise respective disk flexures, each connected to the respective disk main bodies and the lower portion of the shaft, as known work in one field of endeavor may prompt variations of it for use in a different one based on design incentives or other market forces if the variations are predictable to one of ordinary skill in the art. One of ordinary skill in the CMP arts would be familiar with both carrier head design and conditioner design, and would have been familiar with the sorts of mechanisms including flexures and universal joints used in carrier head design to enable independent vertical movement of retainer rings while maintaining a pressing force in a direction normal to a pad surface, and would have found it advantageous to adapt those mechanisms for use in a closely related conditioner, and the implementation of such a variation would have been predictable to one of ordinary skill in the art.
Moon as modified does not teach that the outer disk assembly comprises a plurality of outer disks disposed on a bottom thereof.
However, Chang teaches the use of pluralities of disk-shaped conditioning elements (206) on a conditioner (104) that has been divided into independently controllable inner and outer regions (zones P1 and P2 have different sets of individual conditioning elements 206 thereunder, see Chang figs. 2a-2c).
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to further modify the conditioner of Moon as modified according to the teachings of Chang regarding shape for conditioning elements such that that the outer disk assembly comprised a plurality of outer disks disposed on a bottom thereof, as doing so represents the simple substitution of one art-recognized equivalent (Chang teaches that a variety of shapes may be used, Chang 5:28-56) for another, the results of such a substitution being predictable to one of ordinary skill in the art.
2. Moon as modified teaches the pad conditioner of claim 1, wherein the outer disk main body has a toroidal shape and the inner disk main body has a circular shape (all bodies are circular, and the outer body is toroidal, as it is positioned outside the inner body, see Moon figs. 2 and 4a).
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Huang (US 10974366), Lan et al. (US 10857651), Lee et al. (US 10814457), Shinozaki (US 9849557), Kubo et al. (US 9669510), Chen et al. (US 9308623), Yeh et al. (US 9149906), Maruoka et al. (US 8662961), Chen et al. (US 8550879), Watanabe et al. (US 8382558), Xu et al. (US 7815495), Fujita (US 7670209), Kim et al. (US 7510463), Lujan (US 7404757), Lujan (US 7094134), Dunn (US 7033253), Taylor et al. (US 7004825), Kimura et al. (US 6969305), Gotkis et al. (US 6935938), Togawa et al. (US 6899604), Bottema et al. (US 6887138), Kimura et al. (US 6824454), Stoeckgen et al. (US 6699107), Osterheld et al. (US 6572446), Hung et al. (US 6565705), Huang et al. (US 6514127), Chen et al. (US 6394886), Quek et al. (US 6245193), Gurusamy et al. (US 6200199), Wada et al. (US 6190243), Drill et al. (US 6139428), Takahashi (US 6135858), Brown et al. (US 6135868), Wilson et al. (US 6042457), Doan et al. (US 6004196), Yano et al. (US 5954570), Ko et al. (US 5938507), Tanaka (US 5902173), Ploessl (US 5885137), Volodarsky et al. (US 5857899), Hayashi (US 5626509), Boettcher (US 3515115), Tsai et al. (US 20200094375), Tregub et al. (US 20190193245), So, Joseph K. (US 20030190874), and Mandall, Michael C. (US 20020151264) teach relevant structural aspects of pad conditioners.
Borinato et al. (US 7104873), Jeong (US 6905398), Ueno (US 6638151), Sato et al. (US 6386956), Takahashi et al. (US 6179695), Jiang et al. (US 5810648), Beardsley (US 5389032), Sauer (US 4328645), Lappin (US 2930056), Schuhmann (US 2749684), White (US 2687603), Handy (US 1980403), Drake (US 1811044), Chen et al. (US 20150111478), Schwappach et al. (US 20120149279), Boutaghou et al. (US 20110159784), and Boutaghou (US 20100330890) teach relevant structures from the field of polishing and grinding.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JONATHAN R ZAWORSKI whose telephone number is (571)272-7804. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Thursday 8:00-5:00, Fridays 9:00-1:00.
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/J.R.Z./ Examiner, Art Unit 3723
/MONICA S CARTER/ Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3723