DETAILED ACTION
Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status
1. The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
2. The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of 35 U.S.C. 112(a):
(a) IN GENERAL. The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor or joint inventor of carrying out the invention.
The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112:
The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor of carrying out his invention.
3. Claims 5, 6, 13 and 14 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(a) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), first paragraph, as failing to comply with the enablement requirement. The claim(s) contains subject matter which was not described in the specification in such a way as to enable one skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and/or use the invention. For example, the specification, while being enabling for the flexible composite material to be a conductive does not reasonably provide enablement for the same flexible composite material to be substantially non-conductive. The specification does not enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to practice the invention commensurate in scope with these claims. As such, the applicant's specification does not disclose enough to enable one of ordinary skill in the art to determine which one of these materials is to be avoided.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
4. 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.
5. Claim(s) 1-20, is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a1) as being anticipated by Brunner et al., US 20220250902 A1.
Claims 1-3. Brunner et al., disclose a micro-electromechanical (MEMS) component (such as the one in fig. 1), comprising:
-a glass substrate (item 3);
-a MEMS device (item 9) disposed on the glass substrate;
-a glass cap (i) (item 15) having at least one conductive via (item 27) therethrough and (ii) attached to the glass substrate thereby encapsulating and hermetically sealing (as seen in the structure of fig. 1) the MEMS device within a cavity (item 21), the at least one conductive via having a top planar end cap coupled to a top end (item 25) of the electrically-conductive via and a bottom planar end cap (item 11) coupled to a bottom end of the electrically-conductive via.
Claim 11. Brunner et al., disclose a micro-electromechanical (MEMS) component (such as the one in fig. 1), comprising:
-a glass substrate (item 3);
-a MEMS device (item 9) disposed on the glass substrate;
-a glass cap (item 15) disposed on the glass substrate, the glass cap having at least one electrically conductive via therethrough (this limitation would read through [0024] wherein is disclosed, the first layer 3 is a functional layer, such as a substrate, provided on its first surface 5 with electrically conductive traces 11, like printed circuits 11, to which the MEMS or ASIC component 9 is electrically connected by wire bonding 13);
-(i) a cylindrical void (item 27) traversing the glass cap from a top surface of the glass cap to a bottom surface of the glass cap;
-(ii) a metal conformal (item 23) coating disposed on an interior sidewall of the cylindrical void, the metal conformal coating having a top end at the top surface of the glass cap and a bottom end at the bottom surface of the glass cap (as seen in the structure of fig. 1);
-(iii) a flexible composite material disposed in the cylindrical void from the top surface of the glass cap to the bottom surface of the glass cap (this would read through [0034] wherein is disclosed the feedthrough 111 of the first layer 3 and the second feedthrough 109 of the second layer 15 have the same diameter and are aligned with respect to each other along the axis X);
-(iv) a top planar cap coupled to the top end of the metal conformal coating (this would read through [0034] wherein is disclosed the feedthrough 111 of the first layer 3 and the second feedthrough 109 of the second layer 15 have the same diameter and are aligned with respect to each other along the axis X);
-and (v) a bottom planar cap coupled to the bottom end of the metal conformal coating (this would read through [0034] wherein is disclosed the feedthrough 111 of the first layer 3 and the second feedthrough 109 of the second layer 15 have the same diameter and are aligned with respect to each other along the axis X).
Claim 17. Brunner et al., disclose a method of conveying an electrical signal to an encapsulated micro-electromechanical (MEMS) device, (such as the steps in fig. 1), comprising:
-providing a MEMS device (item 9) disposed on a glass substrate (item 3);
-forming at least one conductive via (item 23) through a glass cap (item 15), the at least one conductive via having a top planar cap coupled to a top end of the electrically-conductive via and a bottom planar cap coupled to a bottom end of the electrically-conductive via (this limitation would read through [0028] wherein is disclosed for example, the feedthrough 23 is filled with an electrically conductive material 25. Therefore, the feedthrough 23 shown in FIG. 1 is a via 27. The electrically conductive material 25 is connected to the electrically conductive traces 11 on the interface of the first surface 5 of the first layer 3 and the second layer 19 of the second layer 15);
-and attaching the glass cap to the glass substrate thereby encapsulating and hermetically sealing the MEMS device within a cavity (item 21), (this limitation would read through [0028] wherein is disclosed for example, the second layer 15 is attached to the first layer 3 by adhesive bonding, for example with an isolating adhesive).
Claims 4-6, 13, 14. Brunner et al., disclose the MEMS component of claims 3, 12, wherein the remaining void is filled, from the top end to the bottom end, with a flexible composite material (this limitation would read through [0024] wherein is disclosed conductive traces 11 can be formed by a printed pattern of circuits or a printed patterns of dielectric material).
Claim 7. Brunner et al., disclose the MEMS component of claim 4, wherein the flexible composite material comprises a mixture of materials that forms a hermetic seal from the top end to the bottom end (this limitation would read through [0087] wherein is disclosed as further described in the following, multiple layers of functions is rendered possible, such as intermediary wire-bonding area for stacked ASICs or MEMS, embedded cavities, re-distribution of the circuitry between the stacks of plates).
Claim 8. Brunner et al., disclose the MEMS component of claim 4, wherein a top surface of the top planar cap is substantially coplanar with a top surface of the glass cap, and a bottom surface of the bottom planar cap is substantially coplanar with a bottom surface of the glass cap (this limitation would read through [0025] wherein is disclosed example, a second layer 15 provided on or over the first layer 3. The second layer 15 has a first surface 17 and a second surface 19, opposite to the first surface 17 along the axis X of the Cartesian coordinates shown in FIG. 1). Further, [0034] disclosed the feedthrough 111 of the first layer 3 and the second feedthrough 109 of the second layer 15 have the same diameter and are aligned with respect to each other along the axis X).
Claim 9. Brunner et al., disclose the MEMS component of claim 1, wherein the bottom planar cap is electrically coupled to the MEMS device (this limitation would read through [0024] wherein is disclosed for example, first layer 3 is a functional layer, such as a substrate, provided on its first surface 5 with electrically conductive traces 11, like printed circuits 11, to which the MEMS or ASIC component 9 is electrically connected by wire bonding 13).
Claim 10. Brunner et al., disclose the MEMS component of claim 1, wherein the glass cap is bonded to the glass substrate such that the MEMS device is hermetically sealed within a cavity formed between the glass substrate and the glass cap (as seen in the structure of fig. 1).
Claim 12. Brunner et al., disclose the MEMS component of claim 11, wherein the glass cap is bonded to the glass substrate such that the MEMS device is hermetically sealed within a cavity (item 21) formed between the glass substrate and the glass cap (this limitation would read through [0028] wherein is disclosed for example, the second layer 15 is attached to the first layer 3 by adhesive bonding, for example with an isolating adhesive).
Claim 15. Brunner et al., disclose the MEMS component of claim 11, wherein the flexible composite material comprises a mixture of materials that forms a hermetic seal from the top end to the bottom end (this limitation would read through [0087] wherein is disclosed as further described in the following, multiple layers of functions is rendered possible, such as intermediary wire-bonding area for stacked ASICs or MEMS, embedded cavities, re-distribution of the circuitry between the stacks of plates).
Claim 16. Brunner et al., disclose the MEMS component of claim 11, wherein a top surface of the top planar cap is substantially coplanar with a top surface of the glass cap, and a bottom surface of the bottom planar cap is substantially coplanar with a bottom surface of the glass cap (this limitation would read through [0025] wherein is disclosed example, a second layer 15 provided on or over the first layer 3. The second layer 15 has a first surface 17 and a second surface 19, opposite to the first surface 17 along the axis X of the Cartesian coordinates shown in FIG. 1). Further, [0034] disclosed the feedthrough 111 of the first layer 3 and the second feedthrough 109 of the second layer 15 have the same diameter and are aligned with respect to each other along the axis X).
Claim 18. Brunner et al., disclose the method of claim 17, further comprising bonding the glass cap to the glass substrate such that the MEMS device is hermetically sealed within a cavity (item 21) formed between the glass substrate and the glass cap (this limitation would read through [0028] wherein is disclosed for example, the second layer 15 is attached to the first layer 3 by adhesive bonding, for example with an isolating adhesive).
Claim 19. Brunner et al., disclose the method of claim 17, further comprising electrically coupling the bottom planar cap to the MEMS device (this limitation would read through [0028] wherein is disclosed for example, the feedthrough 23 is filled with an electrically conductive material 25. Therefore, the feedthrough 23 shown in FIG. 1 is a via 27. The electrically conductive material 25 is connected to the electrically conductive traces 11 on the interface of the first surface 5 of the first layer 3 and the second layer 19 of the second layer 15).
Claim 20. Brunner et al., disclose the method of claim 17, further comprising fabricating a top surface of the top planar cap to be substantially coplanar with a top surface of the glass cap, and a bottom surface of the bottom planar cap to be substantially coplanar with a bottom surface of the glass cap (this limitation would read through [0025] wherein is disclosed example, a second layer 15 provided on or over the first layer 3. The second layer 15 has a first surface 17 and a second surface 19, opposite to the first surface 17 along the axis X of the Cartesian coordinates shown in FIG. 1). Further, [0034] disclosed the feedthrough 111 of the first layer 3 and the second feedthrough 109 of the second layer 15 have the same diameter and are aligned with respect to each other along the axis X).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to WILNER JEAN BAPTISTE whose telephone number is (571)270-7394. The examiner can normally be reached M-T 8:00-6:00.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Dale Page can be reached at 571-270-7877. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/W.J/Examiner, Art Unit 2899 /DALE E PAGE/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2899