DETAILED ACTION
Claims 1-20 of U.S. Application No. 18639457 filed on 04/18/2024 are presented for examination.
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 .
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statements (IDS) submitted on 05/13/2024, and 08/07/2025 are in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statements are being considered by the examiner.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b):
(b) CONCLUSION.—The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph:
The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention.
Claims 11, 18-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention.
Regarding claim 11: claim 11 recites, “the wafer substrate” while claim 1, on which claim 11 depend recites “a wafer”. It is not clear if the two elements are the same of different. If they are the same, the Applicant should be consistent in elements nomenclature.
Regarding claim 18: claim 18 recites, “…fingers formed from a piezoelectric material and extending from a first arm in a first horizontal direction” and then recites, “…fingers formed from an electrically conductive material and extending from a second arm in the first horizontal direction”.
It is not clear how the first array of fingers and the second array of fingers extending in the same “first horizontal direction”. As seen in for example, Fig. 3A-3C of the instant application, the first and second arrays for fingers 150 and 170 are extending in opposite direction, thus not in the same direction as required by claim 18.
For examination purposes, the limitations in questions will be interpreted as “…fingers formed from a piezoelectric material and extending from a first arm in a first direction” and then recites, “…fingers formed from an electrically conductive material and extending from a second arm in a second direction opposite the first direction”.
Claims 19-20 are rejected for depending on claim 18.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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 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.
Claim 18 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) and 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by Behin et al. (US 2001/0040419; Hereinafter, “Behin”).
Regarding claim 18 (as best understood): Behin discloses a MEMS actuator (200; fig. 2, para [0002]), comprising:
an anchor structure (27); and a plurality of micromechanical arm arrays (“first arm” and 23) connected to the anchor structure (27), each arm array comprising:
a first array of spaced-apart fingers (20) formed from a piezoelectric material (ceramic; para [0032]) and extending from a first arm in a first horizontal direction (downward in the annotated fig. 2 below); and
a second array of spaced-apart fingers (22) formed from an electrically conductive material (metal; para [0032]) and extending from a second arm (23) in the first horizontal direction (upwards in the annotated fig. 2 below), wherein distal ends of the first array of fingers (20) and distal ends of the second array of fingers (22) are interposed between each other (fig. 2).
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Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 1-10, 12-17 are allowed.
Regarding claim 1: the limitations, “…forming a first array of fingers from a piezoelectric material on a wafer; forming a second array of fingers from an electrically conductive material on the wafer, wherein distal ends of the first array of fingers and distal ends of the second array of fingers are interposed between each other; forming micro-spring precursor structures between the interposed distal ends of adjacent fingers and upon each finger of the first array of fingers; forming a metal cap that contacts each finger in the second array of fingers and each micro-spring precursor structure upon the first array of fingers; forming a cavity in the wafer below the first array of fingers and the second array of fingers; and annealing to convert each micro-spring precursor structure into a micro-spring” in the combination as claimed are neither anticipated nor obvious over the prior arts in record. Claims 2-10 are allowable for depending on claim 1.
Regarding claim 12: the limitations, “…a top wafer bonded to a bottom wafer; patterning the top wafer to form a recess that includes a plurality of pillars spaced apart from each other within the recess; forming a dielectric layer on exposed surfaces of the recess in the top wafer; forming a metal layer upon each pillar in the recess to obtain a horizontal composite structure upon each pillar; forming a sacrificial spacer upon each horizontal composite structure; forming a dielectric layer on exposed surfaces of the horizontal composite structures and the sacrificial spacers, resulting in a first set of trenches and a second set of trenches within the recess, and in a first dielectric layer upon the top wafer; depositing a piezoelectric material into the first set of trenches to form a first array of fingers; depositing an electrically conductive material into the second set of trenches to form a second array of fingers, wherein distal ends of the first array of fingers and distal ends of the second array of fingers are interposed between each other; forming a vertical composite structure upon each finger of the first array of fingers, each vertical composite structure comprising a dielectric layer bonded to a metal layer; forming a metal cap that contacts each finger in the second array of fingers and each vertical composite structure upon the first array of fingers; etching to remove the sacrificial spacers and form a cavity within the top wafer; and annealing to convert each horizontal composite structure and each vertical composite structure into a micro-spring” in the combination as claimed are neither anticipated nor obvious over the prior arts in record. Claims 13-17 are allowable for depending on claim 12.
Claims 19-20 would be allowable if rewritten to overcome the rejection(s) under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), 2nd paragraph, set forth in this Office action and to include all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to AHMED ELNAKIB whose telephone number is (571)270-0638. The examiner can normally be reached 8:00AM-4:00PM. Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice. If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Tulsidas Patel can be reached at 571-272-2098. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300. Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000.
/AHMED ELNAKIB/Primary Examiner,
Art Unit 2834