DETAILED ACTION
The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
Status of Claims
This action is in reply to the communications filed on 9/25/2024.
The Examiner notes claims 1-10 are currently pending and have been examined; claims 9-10 have been withdrawn by a Response to Election/Restriction filed on 3/31/2025, see below for more detail.
The Examiner notes elected claims 1-8 are currently pending and have been examined; all claims are original or previously presented. Please see the Response to Amendments and Response to Arguments sections below for more details.
Election/Restrictions
Claims 9-10 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to a nonelected Groups 2, there being no allowable generic or linking claim. Election was made without traverse in the reply filed on 6/2/2026.
Claim Objections
Claims 5-8 is/are objected to because of the following informalities:
Claims 5-8 depend from multiple claims, please amend.
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.
And/or
(a)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claim(s) 1-3 & 6-8 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Murachi et al. (US 20180071883), hereinafter Murachi.
Regarding claim 1. Murachi discloses a polishing device [Fig 1-2 & 6; 700], comprising a polishing unit [Fig 6], the polishing unit including: a holding rotator [200] configured to rotate a substrate while holding the substrate in a horizontal posture [Fig 1-2 & 6; 200 holds W in a horizontal posture while rotating it]; a heating member configured to heat the substrate [Fig 1-2 & 6; ¶49; 98 is fluid supply system that has a temperature adjuster and is therefore a heating member]; and a polisher [“ph”] having a resin body where abrasive grains are distributed [¶53; ph is formed of polyvinyl alcohol (PVA), which is a synthetic resin, and has abrasive grains distributed throughout the body] and configured to polish a back face of the substrate in a chemo-mechanical grinding manner by contacting against the back face of the substrate rotated while being heated [Fig 1-2 & 6; 400, which includes ph, polish the back surface of W and 400 includes a nozzle (410N) for supplying a polishing liquid thereby performing chemo-mechanical grinding].
Regarding claim 2. Murachi discloses the polishing device according to claim 1, further comprising: a controller [780], wherein the controller adjusts a polishing rate by controlling a heating temperature of the substrate with the heating member when polishing is performed [Fig 8; ¶63 & ¶88; 780 controls each part of the polishing operation which includes temperature adjustments of the substrate during polishing].
Regarding claim 3. Murachi discloses the polishing device according to claim 2, wherein the controller adjusts the polishing rate by also controlling at least one selected from a contact pressure of the polisher against the substrate, a moving speed of the polisher, a rotation speed of the polisher, and a rotation speed of the substrate [Fig 8; ¶63 & ¶88; 780 controls each part of the polishing operation which includes contact pressure of the polisher against the substrate, moving speed of the polisher, rotation speed of the polisher, and rotation speed of the substrate].
Regarding claim 6. Murachi discloses the polishing device according to any of claims 1 to 3, wherein the heater is a second heater for heating the polisher [Fig 1-2 & 6; 98 is also a second heater for the polisher as the 98 can be connected to the nozzle of the polisher].
Regarding claim 7. Murachi discloses the polishing device according to any of claims 1 to 3, wherein the heater is a heated water supply nozzle for supplying heated water to the back face of the substrate [Fig 1-2, 6, & 8; 98 is connected to the nozzle of the polisher and can supply heated fluid to the back face of the substrate].
Regarding claim 8. Murachi discloses a substrate treating apparatus, comprising the polishing device according to any of claims 1 to 3 [Fig 19; 700 is part of a substate treating apparatus (100)].
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.
Claim(s) 4-5 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Murachi in view of OTA et al. (US 20170287769), hereinafter Ota.
Regarding claim 4. Murachi discloses the polishing device according to any of claims 1 to 3, wherein the holding rotator includes a spin base that is rotatable around a rotary axis extending in an up- down direction [Fig 6; ¶75; 213 is rotatable around and axis upwardly through it]; and three or more holding pins that are provided on a top face of the spin base so as to surround the rotary axis in a ring shape and configured to hold the substrate by sandwiching a side face of the substrate so that the substrate is held apart from the top face of the spin base [Fig 6-7; ¶77; more than three 220 provided on a top face and extending downward to surround the axis and form a ring shape and hold W by sandwiching a side face of W], but may not explicitly disclose wherein the heating member is a first heater provided on the top face of the spin base.
However Ota teaches a holding rotator wherein the heating member is a first heater provided on the top face of the spin base [Fig 2; ¶55; 5 is a holding rotator that is positioned with the pins extending above the top surface of 21 of 5 and the heater (6) is provided on the top face of the spin base].
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the holding rotator as disclosed by Murachi to have the heating member is a first heater provided on the top face of the spin base as taught by Ota for the purpose of reversing the orientation of the polishing device as pursuant of MPEP 2144.04-VI-A, it has been held that mere reversal of parts has no patentable significance absent of new and unexpected results produced by the claimed invention as compared to the prior art, it considered to be matters of design/engineering choice which a person skilled in the art would have found obvious.
Regarding claim 5. Murachi discloses the polishing device according to any of claims 1 to 3, wherein the holding rotator includes a spin base that is rotatable around a rotary axis extending in an up- down direction [Fig 6; ¶75; 213 is rotatable around and axis upwardly through it]; and three or more holding pins that are provided on a top face of the spin base so as to surround the rotary axis in a ring shape and configured to hold the substrate by sandwiching a side face of the substrate so that the substrate is held apart from the top face of the spin base [Fig 6-7; ¶77; more than three 220 provided on a top face and extending downward to surround the axis and form a ring shape and hold W by sandwiching a side face of W], wherein the heating member is a gas ejection port [¶108; 215 is a gas ejection port] that is opened in a … face of the spin base and provided in a center portion of the spin base [Fig 6; 215 is opened in the center portion of a face of 213] and configured to eject heated gas in such a manner that the gas flows in a gap between the substrate and the spin base from a portion adjacent to the center of the substrate to a periphery edge of the substrate [¶108].
Murachi may not explicitly disclose the heating member is opened in a top face of the spin base.
However Ota teaches a holding rotator [Fig 2; 5] wherein the heating member is a gas ejection port [¶55; 9a is a gas ejection port] that is opened in a top face of the spin base [Fig 2; 9a is opened in a top face of the spin base (21)].
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the holding rotator as disclosed by Murachi to have the heating member be opened in a top face of the spin base as taught by Ota for the purpose of reversing the orientation of the polishing device as pursuant of MPEP 2144.04-VI-A, it has been held that mere reversal of parts has no patentable significance absent of new and unexpected results produced by the claimed invention as compared to the prior art, it considered to be matters of design/engineering choice which a person skilled in the art would have found obvious.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. See Notice of References Cited, PTO form 892.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to AARON R MCCONNELL whose telephone number is (303)297-4608. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Thursday 0700-1600 MST [0900-1800 EST] 2nd Friday 0700-1500 MST [0900-1700 EST].
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/AARON R MCCONNELL/Examiner, Art Unit 3723
/BRIAN D KELLER/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3723
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