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 .
Election/Restrictions
Applicant's election with traverse of Group II in the reply filed on 03/20/2026 is acknowledged. The traversal is on the grounds that Groups I and II as well as Groups II and III are not restriction applicable. This is not found persuasive because Group I requires “wherein the placement hole includes a position setting aperture whose width decreases with decreasing distance from the top surface of the plate body” which is not found in Group II. Group III is directed towards a method of manufacturing a substrate treatment system with specific assembly steps and the system of Group II could be assembled in a material different way. These two explanations are sufficient to prove burden and maintain the restriction set forth. Therefore Group II directed towards claims 8-15 will be examined and claims 1-7 and 16-20 are withdrawn from consideration.
The requirement is still deemed proper and is therefore made FINAL.
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 (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 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 8-10 and 12-15 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over US 2013/0145640 (Lee hereinafter) in view of KR 10-2011-0049986 (Yong hereinafter).
Regarding claim 8, Lee teaches a substrate processing system that discloses a dry chamber housing that provides a drying space (Figures 1-2 with dry chamber formed by 110/120 and drying space 101 formed between).
Yong is silent with respect to a substrate processing baffle in the dry chamber housing; and a coupling member that connects the dry chamber housing and the substrate processing baffle to each other, wherein the substrate processing baffle includes a plate body, wherein the plate body includes: a lower flow path connected to a bottom surface of the plate body; and a coupling hole extending through a top surface of the plate body, wherein the coupling hole includes a placement hole, wherein at least a portion of the placement hole is defined by an inclined inner surface inclined toward an axis of the placement hole, the axis extending vertically, and wherein a portion of a lateral surface of the coupling member is in contact with the inclined inner surface.
However, Yong teaches a substrate treatment system that discloses a substrate processing baffle in the dry chamber housing (Baffle 200 in Figure 1); and a coupling member that connects the dry chamber housing and the substrate processing baffle to each other (Coupling member 260 connecting baffle 200 and upper chamber 120 as seen in Figures 1-3), wherein the substrate processing baffle includes a plate body (Plate body 220/230 in Figures 2 and 3), wherein the plate body includes: a lower flow path connected to a bottom surface of the plate body (Lower path is the gap between 220 and 230 in Figure 2); and a coupling hole extending through a top surface of the plate body (Coupling hole made of 225 through 235 as seen in Figures 2 and 3), wherein the coupling hole includes a placement hole (Placement hole 252), wherein at least a portion of the placement hole is defined by an inclined inner surface inclined toward an axis of the placement hole (Under the broadest reasonable interpretation, the side wall of 252 is inclined towards an axis), the axis extending vertically (Axis along the coupling member 260), and wherein a portion of a lateral surface of the coupling member is in contact with the inclined inner surface (Evident from Figure 2.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to modify the substrate processing of system of Lee with the baffle of Yong to assist in drying/processing the substrate in a more efficient manner.
Regarding claim 9, Lee’s modified teachings are described above in claim 8 where the combination of Lee and Yong would further discloses that the coupling member includes a coupling head having a portion whose width increases in a downward direction (Coupling member 260 of Yong with coupling head 261), wherein at least a portion of a lateral surface of the coupling head is in contact with the inclined inner surface (Contact made between 261 and 252 of Yong).
Regarding claim 10, Lee’s modified teachings are described above in claim 8 where the combination of Lee and Yong would further discloses that the coupling head has a truncated cone shape (The threading of 260 creates a small truncated shape to 260).
Regarding claim 12, Lee’s modified teachings are described above in claim 8 where the combination of Lee and Yong would further discloses that the dry chamber housing includes: a lower chamber (Lee’s lower chamber 120 and Yong’s lower chamber 110); and an upper chamber on the lower chamber (Lee’s upper chamber 110 and Yong’s upper chamber 120), wherein the coupling member is coupled to a bottom surface of the upper chamber (Yong showing 260 connected to 120).
Regarding claim 13, Lee’s modified teachings are described above in claim 12 where the combination of Lee and Yong would further discloses that the upper chamber includes: a baffle placement space that receives the substrate processing baffle (Yong shows a placement area for the baffle to be placed in Figure 1); and a fluid inlet that upwardly extends from the baffle placement space (Fluid inlet 130 of Yong as equivalent to inlet 320 of Lee).
Regarding claim 14, Lee’s modified teachings are described above in claim 13 where the combination of Lee and Yong would further discloses a supercritical fluid supply that supplies the drying space with a supercritical fluid, wherein the supercritical fluid supply is connected to the fluid inlet (¶ 31 and 33 of Lee)
Regarding claim 15, Lee’s modified teachings are described above in claim 8 where the combination of Lee and Yong would further discloses that dry chuck in the dry chamber housing and downwardly spaced apart from the substrate processing baffle (Dry chuck 200 of Lee and the resultant spacing of the combination of Lee and Yong).
Claim 11 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over US 2013/0145640 (Lee) in view of KR 10-2011-0049986 (Yong) and further in view of US 10878682 (Tucker hereinafter).
Regarding claim 11, Lee’s modified teachings are described above in claim 8 but are silent with respect that the coupling hole further includes an insertion hole on a side of the placement hole and connected to the placement hole, wherein a minimum width of the insertion hole is greater than a minimum width of a position setting aperture defined by the inclined inner surface.
However, Tucker teaches the mounting of two components relative to each other that discloses a coupling hole further includes an insertion hole on a side of the placement hole and connected to the placement hole, wherein a minimum width of the insertion hole is greater than a minimum width of a position setting aperture defined by the inclined inner surface (Figure 4 shows the insertion hole being the larger of the two holes forming 115 and the placement hole being the smaller diameter to allow for the mounted body to be placed onto screws/coupling members and then rotated to secure the two components).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to modify the mounting and insertion of the coupling member of Lee/Yong with the quick connection formed by a keyhole mount of Tucker to allow for quick and easy connect/disconnect of the baffle.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to CONNOR J. TREMARCHE whose telephone number is (571)272-2175. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Thursday 0700-1700 Eastern.
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/CONNOR J TREMARCHE/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3762
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