DETAILED ACTION
The communication dated 08/04/2026 has been entered and fully considered.
Claims 1-26 are currently pending. Claims 1-2, 4, 7, 10-13, and 18 are amended.
Claims 25-26 are withdrawn.
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 .
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments, see pages 8-9, filed 08/04/2026, with respect to claims have been fully considered and are persuasive. The 35 U.S.C. § 112 rejection of claims 4 and 7-20 has been withdrawn.
Applicant’s arguments, see pages 10-21, filed 08/04/2026, with respect to the rejection(s) of claim(s) 1-24 under 35 U.S.C. § 102 and § 103 have been fully considered and are persuasive. Therefore, the rejection has been withdrawn. However, upon further consideration, a new ground(s) of rejection is made in view of Chou et al. U.S. Publication 2002/0162572 (henceforth referred to as Chou), Igarashi WO2022224583 (henceforth referred to as Igarashi), and Choi U.S. Publication 2022/0117071 (henceforth referred to as Choi).
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.
The factual inquiries 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 1, 7, and 10-14 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Chou et al. U.S. Publication 2002/0162572 (henceforth referred to as Chou) in view of Igarashi WO2022224583 (henceforth referred to as Igarashi).
As to claim 1, (Currently amended) Chou teaches a cleaning apparatus comprising:
a chemical liquid supply section that supplies a chemical liquid other than an organic solvent to a surface of the substrate (paragraph [0021] silicon wafer 3 is brush-cleaned with a hydrofluoric acid in step 21.);
an organic solvent supply section that supplies an organic solvent to a surface of the substrate (paragraphs [0018] and [0022] silicon wafer 3 is further brush-cleaned with TMAH liquid and NH4OH liquid (or a mixture of both) in step 22. If the mixture contains TMAH, then the liquid is organic); and
cleaning means that cleans a surface of the substrate using a chemical liquid from the chemical liquid supply section, and then cleans a surface of the substrate using an organic solvent from the organic solvent supply section wherein the cleaning means includes a first contact cleaning member that comes into contact with a surface of the substrate to clean the surface when a chemical liquid is supplied from the chemical liquid supply section (paragraph [0021] silicon wafer 3 is brush-cleaned with a hydrofluoric acid in step 21.).
Chou differs from the instant claim in failing to teach a rotation support section that supports and rotates a substrate; a cleaning means that cleans a surface of the substrate as it is supported by the rotation support section.
Igarashi teaches a similar cleaning apparatus that cleans polished wafers (FIG. 2 paragraphs [0040] and [0087] cleaning apparatus 1). Igarashi teaches a rotation support a rotation support section that supports and rotates a substrate (paragraph [0089] wafer holder 4 is capable of rotating and the held wafer W is capable of rotating by its rotation); a cleaning means that cleans a surface of the substrate as it is supported by the rotation support section (FIG. 2 paragraph [0089] a nozzle can supply cleaning fluid to the surface S of the wafer W held by the wafer holder 4. Cleaning liquids can be supplied during brush cleaning.).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the cleaning apparatus as taught by Chou with a rotation support section as taught by Igarashi. A rotating chuck to support a wafer is known in the art and can be used to aid in the dispersing of cleaning liquids and/or is used to allow the brushes to reach all areas of the wafer.
As to claim 7, (Currently amended) Chou and Igarashi further teach the cleaning means includes a non-contact cleaning nozzle that sprays the chemical liquid onto a surface of the substrate to clean the surface when the chemical liquid is supplied from the chemical liquid supply section and when an organic solvent is supplied from the organic solvent supply section (Chou teaches a two-step cleaning process with a first liquid and a second liquid, but is silent as to how the liquids are being supplied. Igarashi teaches a cleaning fluid supply mechanism 2 (which is shown in figure 2) which is not contacting the surface of the substrate. It would have been obvious to one skilled in the art to use a nozzle in order to supply a liquid to the surface of the substrate. Additionally, it would be beneficial to use a non-contact nozzle in order to prevent contamination to the nozzle and damage to the substrate).
As to claim 10, (Currently amended) Chou and Igarashi further teach the cleaning means includes: a contact cleaning member that comes into contact with a surface of the substrate to clean the surface when a chemical liquid is supplied from the chemical liquid supply section (Chou paragraph [0021] silicon wafer 3 is brush-cleaned with a hydrofluoric acid in step 21.); and
a non-contact cleaning nozzle that sprays the organic solvent onto a surface of the substrate to clean the surface when the organic solvent is supplied from the organic solvent supply section (Igarashi teaches a cleaning fluid supply mechanism 2 (which is shown in figure 2) which is not contacting the surface of the substrate. Igarashi’s cleaning fluid supply mechanism 2 is capable of supplying an organic solvent).
As to claim 11, (Currently amended) Chou and Igarashi do not expressly teach the non-contact cleaning nozzle sprays the chemical liquid onto a surface of the substrate to clean the surface also when the chemical liquid is supplied from the chemical liquid supply section.
However, Chou teaches a first step in the cleaning process with a first liquid (see paragraph [0021]), but is silent as to how the liquids are being supplied. Igarashi teaches in figure 2 a cleaning fluid supply mechanism 2 that is not contacting the surface of the substrate. It would have been obvious to one skilled in the art to supply a liquid (such as Chou’s first liquid, which is a nonorganic solution) to the surface of the substrate with a non-contact nozzle as a non-contact nozzle will prevent contamination to the nozzle and prevent damage to the substrate.
As to claim 12, (Currently amended) Chou and Igarashi further teach the cleaning means includes: a non-contact cleaning nozzle that sprays the chemical liquid onto a surface of the substrate to clean the surface when the chemical liquid is supplied from the chemical liquid supply section (Igarashi teaches a cleaning fluid supply mechanism 2 (which is shown in figure 2) which is not contacting the surface of the substrate. Igarashi’s cleaning fluid supply mechanism 2 is capable of supplying a chemical liquid); and
a contact cleaning member that comes into contact with a surface of the substrate to clean the surface when an organic solvent is supplied from the organic solvent supply section (Chou paragraphs [0018] and [0022] silicon wafer 3 is further brush-cleaned with TMAH liquid and NH4OH liquid (or a mixture of both) in step 22).
As to claim 13, (Currently amended) Chou and Igarashi do not expressly teach the non-contact cleaning nozzle sprays the organic solvent onto a surface of the substrate to clean the surface also when the organic solvent is supplied from the organic solvent supply section.
However, Chou teaches a second step in the cleaning process with a second liquid (see paragraph [0022]), but is silent as to how the liquid is being supplied. Igarashi teaches in figure 2 a cleaning fluid supply mechanism 2 that is not contacting the surface of the substrate. It would have been obvious to one skilled in the art to supply a liquid (such as Chou’s second liquid TMAH and/or NH4OH) to the surface of the substrate with a non-contact nozzle as a non-contact nozzle will prevent contamination to the nozzle and prevent damage to the substrate.
As to claim 14, (Original) Igarashi further teaches a material of the contact cleaning member is polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) (paragraph [0061] brushes can be made of PTFE).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the cleaning apparatus of Chou with a cleaning member made of PTFE as taught by Igarashi. A brush made of PTFE can prevent damage to the brush body, and generally has superior cleaning capabilities compared to PVA-based products (paragraph [0092]).
Claims 2-3 and 6 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Chou et al. U.S. Publication 2002/0162572 (henceforth referred to as Chou) and Igarashi WO2022224583 (henceforth referred to as Igarashi) as applied to claim 1 above, in further view of Miyahara U.S. Publication 2019/0084117 (henceforth referred to as Miyahara).
As to claim 2, (Currently amended) Chou teaches the cleaning means includes: a second contact cleaning member coming into contact with a surface of the substrate to clean the surface when an organic solvent is supplied from the organic solvent supply section (paragraph [0022] silicon wafer 3 is further brush-cleaned with a liquid mixture of TMAH and NH4OH in step 22, which would read on the organic solvent.).
Chou does not expressly teach that there is a second contact cleaning member different from the first contact cleaning member.
Miyahara teaches a similar cleaning apparatus (FIG. 9 paragraph [0015] substrate processing unit). Miyahara teaches a second contact cleaning member different from the first contact cleaning member, the second contact cleaning member coming into contact with a surface of the substrate to clean the surface (FIGS. 12A-12B paragraph [0112] polishing brush 29-2, which moves independently of brush 29-1).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the cleaning apparatus as taught by Chou and Igarashi with contact cleaning members as taught by Miyahara. The claims are broad enough to read on the apparatus having two brushes, but the claim does not indicate that the first brush would be removed (or not touching the surface of the substrate) when the organic solvent is supplied. Nevertheless, it would have been obvious to have two separate cleaning members in order to prevent contamination of the brushes.
As to claim 3, (Original) Miyahara further teaches each of the first contact cleaning member and the second contact cleaning member is a pen cleaning member or a buff cleaning member that comes into contact with a surface of the substrate (Figures 12A-12B show that the brushes 29-1 and 29-2 are buff cleaning members that come into contact with a surface of the substrate) while rotating around a central axis perpendicular to the surface of the substrate to clean the surface (paragraph [0046] polishing brush 29 is rotationally driven by rotation motor 30).
As to claim 6, (Original) Igarashi further teaches a material of the second contact cleaning member is polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) (paragraph [0061] brushes can be made of PTFE).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the cleaning apparatus of Chou with a cleaning member made of PTFE as taught by Igarashi. A brush made of PTFE can prevent damage to the brush body, and generally has superior cleaning capabilities compared to PVA-based products (paragraph [0092]).
Claims 8-9 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Chou et al. U.S. Publication 2002/0162572 (henceforth referred to as Chou) and Igarashi WO2022224583 (henceforth referred to as Igarashi) as applied to claim 7 above, in further view of Kobayashi U.S. Publication 2015/0200087 (henceforth referred to as Kobayashi).
As to claim 8, (Original) Chou and Igarashi differ from the instant claim in failing to teach the non- contact cleaning nozzle is a two-fluid jet nozzle that sprays a jet stream containing a mixture of liquid and carrier gas, or a megasonic nozzle that sprays a liquid excited by an ultrasonic vibrator.
Kobayashi teaches a similar cleaning apparatus (paragraph [0030] substrate processing apparatus 100). Kobayashi teaches the non- contact cleaning nozzle is a two-fluid jet nozzle that sprays a jet stream containing a mixture of liquid and carrier gas (paragraph [0064] nitrogen gas and DI water can be supplied to the two fluid nozzle 31. Paragraph [0065] nitrogen gas and IPA (in the liquid phase) can be supplied to the two fluid nozzle 31), or a megasonic nozzle that sprays a liquid excited by an ultrasonic vibrator.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the cleaning apparatus as taught by Chou and Igarashi with a two-fluid jet nozzle as taught by Kobayashi. It would have been obvious to use a two-fluid nozzle in order to change a fluid to become fine droplets (paragraph [0065]).
As to claim 9, (Original) Kobayashi further teaches the chemical liquid supply section and/or the organic solvent supply section are provided in the non-contact cleaning nozzle (Kobayashi FIG. 1 paragraphs [0064] and [0065] either DI water or IPA can be supplied to the nozzle 31).
Claim 15 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Chou et al. U.S. Publication 2002/0162572 (henceforth referred to as Chou) and Igarashi WO2022224583 (henceforth referred to as Igarashi) as applied to claim 10 above, in further view of Miyahara U.S. Publication 2019/0084117 (henceforth referred to as Miyahara).
As to claim 15, (Original) Chou and Igarashi differ from the instant claim in failing to teach the contact cleaning member is a pen cleaning member or a buff cleaning member that comes into contact with a surface of the substrate to clean the surface while rotating around a central axis perpendicular to the surface of the substrate.
Miyahara teaches a similar cleaning apparatus (FIG. 9 paragraph [0015] substrate processing unit). Miyahara teaches the contact cleaning member is a pen cleaning member or a buff cleaning member that comes into contact with a surface of the substrate (Figures 12A-12B show that the brushes 29-1 and 29-2 are buff cleaning members that come into contact with a surface of the substrate)to clean the surface while rotating around a central axis perpendicular to the surface of the substrate (paragraph [0046] polishing brush 29 is rotationally driven by rotation motor 30).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the cleaning apparatus as taught by Chou and Igarashi with a pen cleaning member as taught by Miyahara. Scrubbing a substrate is known in the art and a pen or buff cleaning members are known embodiments of scrubbers.
Claim 17 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Chou et al. U.S. Publication 2002/0162572 (henceforth referred to as Chou) and Igarashi WO2022224583 (henceforth referred to as Igarashi) as applied to claim 10 above, in further view of Kobayashi U.S. Publication 2015/0200087 (henceforth referred to as Kobayashi).
As to claim 17, (Original) Chou and Igarashi differ from the instant claim in failing to teach the non- contact cleaning nozzle is a two-fluid jet nozzle that sprays a jet stream containing a mixture of liquid and carrier gas, or a megasonic nozzle that sprays a liquid excited by an ultrasonic vibrator.
Kobayashi teaches a similar cleaning apparatus (paragraph [0030] substrate processing apparatus 100). Kobayashi teaches the non- contact cleaning nozzle is a two-fluid jet nozzle that sprays a jet stream containing a mixture of liquid and carrier gas (paragraph [0064] nitrogen gas and DI water can be supplied to the two fluid nozzle 31. Paragraph [0065] nitrogen gas and IPA (in the liquid phase) can be supplied to the two fluid nozzle 31), or a megasonic nozzle that sprays a liquid excited by an ultrasonic vibrator.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the cleaning apparatus as taught by Chou and Igarashi with a two-fluid jet nozzle as taught by Kobayashi. It would have been obvious to use a two-fluid nozzle in order to change a fluid to become fine droplets (paragraph [0065]).
Claim 21 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Chou et al. U.S. Publication 2002/0162572 (henceforth referred to as Chou) and Igarashi WO2022224583 (henceforth referred to as Igarashi) as applied to claim 1 above, in further view of and Nakai et al. U.S. Publication 2019/0027383 (henceforth referred to as Nakai).
As to claim 21, (Original) Chou and Igarashi differ from the instant claim in failing to teach an organic solvent heating section that is disposed on an upstream side of the organic solvent supply section, and dilutes and heats, with warm water, an organic solvent to be supplied to the organic solvent supply section.
Nakai teaches a similar cleaning apparatus (FIG. 1 paragraph [0019] substrate processing apparatus 1). Nakai teaches an organic solvent heating section that is disposed on an upstream side of the organic solvent supply section, and dilutes and heats, with warm water, an organic solvent to be supplied to the organic solvent supply section (paragraph [0030] pure water, which is heated by the heater 44, and an organic solvent are supplied to the connecting part 45 to obtain a dilute organic solvent).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the cleaning apparatus as taught by Chou and Igarashi with a diluted, heated organic solvent as taught by Nakai. Using a mixed solution on the wafer reduces the likelihood of local drying on the upper surface, which subsequently suppresses the collapse of the pattern elements while omitting the process of forming the liquid film of the pure water (paragraph [0037]). Additionally, using a heated mixed solution would raise the temperature of the substrate, which reduces the time required for the process related to drying (paragraph [0037]). Also, by using heated water to raise the temperature of the organic solvent, it is thereby possible to easily prepare the mixed solution of high temperature while avoiding heating of the organic solvent accompanied with an increase in the cost in preparing the mixed solution (paragraph [0039]).
Claim 22 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Chou et al. U.S. Publication 2002/0162572 (henceforth referred to as Chou) and Igarashi WO2022224583 (henceforth referred to as Igarashi) as applied to claim 1 above, in further view of and Sekiguchi et al. U.S. Publication 2012/0260949 (henceforth referred to as Sekiguchi).
As to claim 22, (Original) Chou and Igarashi differ from an instant claim in failing to teach a first warm water supply nozzle that supplies warm water to a surface of the substrate to dilute and heat an organic solvent from the organic solvent supply section on the surface of the substrate when the organic solvent is supplied from the organic solvent supply section.
Sekiguchi teaches a similar cleaning apparatus (FIG. 1 paragraph [0008] cleaning apparatus). Sekiguchi teaches a first warm water supply nozzle that supplies warm water to a surface of the substrate to dilute and heat an organic solvent from the organic solvent supply section on the surface of the substrate when the organic solvent is supplied from the organic solvent supply section (paragraphs [0065]-[0067] and [0076] the chemical liquid at room temperature is supplied with a heated liquid such as DIW.).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the cleaning apparatus as taught by Chou and Igarashi with a warm water supply nozzle as taught by Sekiguchi. By using a warm liquid, the substitution of the chemical liquid is easily progressed by heat convection (paragraph [0076]).
Claim 23 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable Chou et al. U.S. Publication 2002/0162572 (henceforth referred to as Chou) and Igarashi WO2022224583 (henceforth referred to as Igarashi) as applied to claim 1 above, in further view of and Otsuji et al. U.S. Publication 2018/0076018 (henceforth referred to as Otsuji).
As to claim 23, (Original) Chou and Igarashi differ from an instant claim in failing to teach a second warm water supply nozzle that supplies warm water to a back surface of the substrate to heat the substrate when an organic solvent is supplied from the organic solvent supply section, and thereby heats the organic solvent from the organic solvent supply section on a front surface of the substrate with heat of the substrate.
Otsuji teaches a similar cleaning apparatus (FIG. 1 paragraph [0102] substrate processing apparatus 1). Otsuji teaches a second warm water supply nozzle that supplies warm water to a back surface of the substrate to heat the substrate (paragraphs [0170]-[0171] a discharge port 211a faces the lower surface (rear surface) of the substrate and discharges a heating fluid, such as purified water, toward the substrate) when an organic solvent is supplied from the organic solvent supply section, and thereby heats the organic solvent from the organic solvent supply section on a front surface of the substrate with heat of the substrate (FIG. 10 paragraph [0182] heating fluid is discharged from the discharge port 211a to the lower surface (rear surface) of the substrate. This will subsequently heat the substrate and the liquid film 251 of the organic solvent liquid).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the cleaning apparatus as taught by Chou and Igarashi with a warm water supply nozzle as taught by Otsuji. By using warm water to heat the substrate (and the organic solvent), the replacement performance of the organic solvent can be increased (paragraph [0182]).
Claims 18 and 20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Choi U.S. Publication 2022/0117071 (henceforth referred to as Choi) in view of Nakano U.S. Publication 2013/0167947 (henceforth referred to as Nakano).
As to claim 18, (Currently amended) Choi teaches a cleaning apparatus comprising:
a rotation support section that supports and rotates a substrate (paragraph [0063] support unit 340 supports and rotates the substrate W during a process.);
an organic solvent supply section that supplies an organic solvent to a surface of the substrate (paragraph [0053] a chemical solution treatment can be performed on the substrate W. The chemical solution may include water containing CO2 or IPA);
a non-contact cleaning nozzle (FIG. 2 shows that the nozzles is not contacting the substrate surface) that sprays the organic solvent onto a surface of the substrate supported by the rotation support section to clean the surface when the organic solvent is supplied from the organic solvent supply section (paragraph [0073] a chemical solution can be supplied from the nozzle 384 to clean the substrate W while the substrate is rotating); and
a drying nozzle that sprays organic solvent vapor onto a surface of the substrate to dry the surface with the substrate being kept supported by the rotation support section (paragraph [0073] a drying gas such as isopropyl alcohol vapor can be supplied from the nozzle 384).
Alternatively (or in addition), Nakano teaches a similar cleaning apparatus (paragraph [0032] substrate processing apparatus (substrate cleaning apparatus)). Nakano teaches a drying nozzle that sprays organic solvent vapor onto a surface of the substrate to dry the surface with the substrate being kept supported by the rotation support section (paragraph [0046] nozzle 20 is to supply an IPA vapor. Nozzle 20 is separate from a liquid supply nozzle 21).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the cleaning apparatus as taught by Choi with a drying nozzle as taught by Nakano. It is known in the art to use a drying nozzle that sprays IPA in order to reduce the formation of watermarks on a surface.
As to claim 20, (Original) Choi further teaches the organic solvent supply section is provided in the non-contact cleaning nozzle (FIG. 2 shows that the nozzles is not contacting the substrate surface).
Claim 19 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Choi U.S. Publication 2022/0117071 (henceforth referred to as Choi) and Nakano U.S. Publication 2013/0167947 (henceforth referred to as Nakano) as applied to claim 18 above, in further view of Kobayashi U.S. Publication 2015/0200087 (henceforth referred to as Kobayashi).
As to claim 19, (Original) Choi and Nakano differ from the instant claim in failing to teach the non- contact cleaning nozzle is a two-fluid jet nozzle that sprays a jet stream containing a mixture of liquid and carrier gas, or a megasonic nozzle that sprays a liquid excited by an ultrasonic vibrator.
Kobayashi teaches a similar cleaning apparatus (paragraph [0030] substrate processing apparatus 100). Kobayashi teaches the non- contact cleaning nozzle is a two-fluid jet nozzle that sprays a jet stream containing a mixture of liquid and carrier gas (paragraph [0065] nitrogen gas and IPA (in the liquid phase) can be supplied to the two fluid nozzle 31).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the cleaning apparatus as taught by Choi and Nakano with a two-fluid jet nozzle as taught by Kobayashi. It would have been obvious to use a two-fluid jet nozzle as taught by Kobayashi in order to form fine droplets (paragraph [0065]) and the droplets of the IPA solution volatizes immediately, so that the IPA cannot cause damage to the substrate (paragraph [0010] and [0012]).
Claim 24 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Miyazaki et al. U.S. Publication 2022/0401997 (henceforth referred to as Miyazaki) in view of Chou et al. U.S. Publication 2002/0162572 (henceforth referred to as Chou) and Igarashi WO2022224583 (henceforth referred to as Igarashi).
As to claim 24, (Original) Miyazaki teaches a polishing section that polishes a substrate (paragraph [0046] polishing unit 314a to 314d); and a cleaning section that cleans a polished substrate (paragraph [0046] cleaning units 316 and 318).
Miyazaki differs from the instant claim in failing to teach that the cleaning section includes a cleaning apparatus according to claim 1.
Chou and Igarashi teaches a cleaning section that includes a cleaning apparatus according to claim 1 (see previous rejections).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the cleaning apparatus as taught by Miyazaki with a cleaning section as taught by Chou and Igarashi. The cleaning section as taught by Chou and Igarashi is one of the ways in which the cleaner can be configured.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 4, 5, and 16 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.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter: there is no motivation to combine Chou and Igarashi with a reference regarding wherein the first contact cleaning member and the second contact cleaning member are coaxially placed and supported on a same swing arm in a plan view nor each of the first contact cleaning member and the second contact cleaning member is a roll cleaning member that comes into contact with a surface of the substrate to clean the surface while rotating around a central axis parallel to the surface of the substrate.
Although it is known in the art to have (i) a first contact cleaning member and a second contact cleaning member that are coaxially placed and supported on a same swing arm (Igarashi WO2022224583 FIG. 18) or (ii) a first and second contact cleaning member that are roll cleaning members while rotating around a central axis parallel to the surface of the substrate (Hillman U.S. Patent 6,059,888 FIG. 3), it would not have been obvious to combine either of the embodiments with the chemistry-specific cleaning operations (i.e. only using the first contact cleaning member with the chemical liquid supply and a second contact cleaning member with the organic solvent supply).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to LAUREN G ORTA whose telephone number is (703)756-5455. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Friday 7:30-5:00.
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/L.G.O./Examiner, Art Unit 1711
/MICHAEL E BARR/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 1711
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