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 .
This office action is a response to the amendment filed on 4/27/2026.
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 3 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Imura (WO 2017203626 A1) in view of Tanaka (US PAT. 11,231,142).
Imura teaches a component mounting device for picking up a nozzle configured to pick up a component through a negative pressure, at a holding section of a head through the negative pressure, the component mounting device comprising: a nozzle flow path configured to supply the negative pressure (68b) generated by an operation of a vacuum pump to the nozzle (28, Fig. 3); and a positive pressure flow path configured to supply a positive pressure (68a, Fig. 3).
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However, Imura silent an ejector configured to generate a negative pressure using the positive pressure of the positive pressure flow path. Tanaka teaches an electrical device including a first and second vacuum ejectors (14, 16) to generate a negative pressure by using a positive pressure (col. 3, line 65 to col. 4, line 17). Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, at the time of the effective filing date of the claimed invention was made, to a person having ordinary skill in the art to modify a component mounting device of Imura by an ejector to generate a negative pressure by using a positive pressure as taught by Tanaka in order to obtain the invention as specified in claim 1.
Imura, modified by Tanaka, also teaches that a holding section flow path configured to supply the negative pressure generated by an operation of the ejector to the holding section.
Re. claim 3: Imura, modified by Tanaka, also teaches that at least a part of the nozzle flow path and the positive pressure flow path, the ejector, and the holding section flow path are provided in the head (18, Fig. 3), wherein the component mounting device further comprises a moving section (22, 24, Fig. 1) configured to move the head in a horizontal direction (such as X-axis), and the component picked up by the nozzle (28) is mounted on a substrate (S) as shown in Fig. 1.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 2 and 5 are allowed
Claim 4 is 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 filed 4/27/2026 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive. Applicant argues that the prior art of record, Imura reference, the alleged nozzle flow path of Imura does not supply a negative pressure to the nozzle. Examiner traverses the argument. The negative pressure is supplied by a negative pressure source (68b, Fig. 3) and the negative pressure is supplied to the ventilation hole (284, Fig. 3) from a nozzle pressure regulating device (not shown), positive pressure is supplied, or atmospheric pressure is supplied to the ventilation hole (284) (see paragraph [0020]). Therefore, Imura teaches that the nozzle flow path supplies the negative pressure to the nozzle. Examiner maintains his rejection as set forth above.
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.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to PAUL D KIM whose telephone number is (571)272-4565. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday: 6:00 AM-2:00 PM.
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/PAUL D KIM/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3729
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