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 without traverse of Species I and Shunt Species I in the reply filed on 7/29/2026 is acknowledged. Claims 1-20 remain pending.
Claims 13-19 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to a nonelected species, there being no allowable generic or linking claim.
Claim Objections
Claim 7 is objected to because of the following informalities: the claim states in part “….and comprising a conductive material different from the shunt material”. It is not clear what comprises a conductive material different from the shunt material. If Applicant means the layer adjacent to the layer of the shunt material, then Applicant could write “….a layer adjacent to the layer of the shunt material Appropriate correction is required.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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.
Claims 1-3, 6, and 9-10 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102a1 as being anticipated by US20140035605A1 (Kurz).
Regarding Claim 1, Kurz discloses a molded electronic component (Figs. 1-3), comprising: a power semiconductor die (Fig. 1, el. 1, Para. [0049]) at least partly embedded in a mold compound (Fig. 1, el. 72, Para. [0030]); a load terminal (Figs. 1-3, el. 31, Para. [0029]) partly embedded in the mold compound (Para. [0029]); a sense terminal (Fig. 3, el. 34, Para. [0034]) separate from the load terminal and partly embedded in the mold compound (Para. [0038]); a shunt (Fig. 1, el. 30, Para. [0027]) having a first side attached to the load terminal (Fig. 1, Para. [0028]); a first connection between a first contact pad of the power semiconductor die and a second side of the shunt opposite the first side (Fig. 2, els. 8, 21, and 32 define a connection path between the semiconductor die and a second side of the shunt, Para. [0031]); and a second connection between the sense terminal and the second side of the shunt (Fig. 3, Para. [0035]), wherein the shunt has a higher specific resistance than the first connection (Para. [0028]), and wherein a resistance of the shunt varies by less than 10 percent over a normal operating temperature range of the molded electronic component (Para. [0027]).
Regarding Claims 2 and 3, Kurz discloses the molded electronic component of claim 2, wherein the shunt comprises a layer of a shunt material and the shunt material is an alloy comprising copper and nickel (Para. [0027]).
Regarding Claim 6, Kurz discloses the molded electronic component of claim 2, wherein at least one of the load terminal or the first connection is directly attached to the layer of the shunt material (Para. [0035]).
Regarding Claim 9, Kurz discloses the molded electronic component of claim 1, wherein the first side of the shunt is soldered, diffusion soldered, sintered, glued, or welded to the load terminal (Para. [0035]).
Regarding Claim 10, Kurz discloses the molded electronic component of claim 1, wherein the first connection is soldered, diffusion soldered, sintered, glued, or welded to the second sided of the shunt (Para. [0035]).
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 4-5 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kurz in view of DE10301682B4 (Mauder).
Regarding Claims 4-5, Kurz discloses the molded electronic component of claim 2.
Kurz does not disclose that the layer of the shunt material is a foil and does not disclose that the layer has a thickness of up to 700 micrometers.
Mauder discloses a shunt resistor foil (Para. [0037]) made of Manganin that has a thickness of up to 700 micrometers (0059).
It would have been obvious to one skilled in the art before the effective filing date of the
claimed invention to use a shunt resistor foil with a thickness of up to 700 micrometers. As disclosed by Mauder, this has the benefit of enabling a significantly higher temperature load capacity with simultaneously improved heat dissipation and increased reliability (Para. [0018]).
Claim 7 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kurz in view of Mauder.
Regarding Claim 7, Kurz discloses the molded electronic component of claim 2.
Kurz does not disclose that at least one of the first side of the shunt or the second side of the shunt comprises a layer adjacent to the layer of the shunt material with a conductive material different from the shunt material.
Mauder discloses a shunt resistor foil made of a copper-managanese alloy with copper on the underside (Fig. 3).
It would have been obvious to one skilled in the art before the effective filing date of the
claimed invention to add a layer of copper to the underside of the foil disclosed by Mauder. This would have the benefit of enabling fastening the shunt to other circuits (Para. [0046]).
Claim 8 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kurz.
Regarding Claim 8, Kurz discloses the molded electronic component of claim 1, wherein the specific resistance of the shunt is 40*10^-8 ohm-meters.
Kurz does not disclose that the specific resistance of the shunt is at least 8 times higher than the specific resistance of the first connection.
However, it would have been obvious to one skilled in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have the specific resistance of the shunt resistor at least 8 times higher than that of the first connection. Although Kurz does not disclose a material of the first connection, it is common to use a conductive material such as copper, which has a specific resistance of about 1.68 * 10^-8 ohm-meters. Thus, the value provided by Kurz (40 * 10^-8 ohm-meter) is well above 8 times the specific resistance of typical conductors, and a person of ordinary skill in the art would find it obvious to use a typical conductor for the first connection.
Claim 20 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kurz.
Regarding Claim 20, Kurz discloses the molded electronic component of Claim 1.
Kurz does not disclose mounting the power semiconductor die on a lead frame that is partly embedded in the mold compoung.
However, it would have been obvious to one skilled in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to mount the semiconductor die on a leadframe. Mounting it on a leadframe has the benefit of providing better thermal performance over an insulating substrate. Also, this would be a simple substitution of one known element (a leadframe) for another (an insulating substrate) to obtain predictable results (the result of a chip mounted on a leadframe with good thermal performance) (MPEP 2143 I).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 11-12 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:
Regarding Claims 11-12, none of the prior art of record teaches, suggests or renders
obvious, either alone or in combination the limitations wherein the first connection and the second connection are implemented by a single metallic body, wherein the first connection comprises a horizontal segment of the metallic body that is disposed above the power semiconductor die and attached to the first contact pad of the power semiconductor die, and a vertical bridging segment of the metallic body that connects the horizontal segment to the second side of the shunt, and wherein the second connection comprises a lateral bridging segment of the metallic body that connects the sense terminal to the second side of the shunt and (for claim 12) wherein a gap in the metallic body separates the lateral bridging segment of the metallic body from the horizontal segment of the metallic body over at least part of a length of the lateral bridging segment.
Conclusion
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/ROHIT PARTHASARATHY/Examiner, Art Unit 2899 /DALE E PAGE/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2899
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