DETAILED ACTION
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 .
Priority
Receipt is acknowledged of certified copies of papers required by 37 CFR 1.55.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 12/11/2025 and 05/22/2026 is in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner.
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.
Claim 41 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by US PG Pub 2011/0192965 to Ledermann et al (hereinafter Ledermann).
Regarding Claim 41, Ledermann discloses a photomask used in a transferring method in which objects to be transferred are transferred by virtue of laser from a first substrate provided with the objects to be transferred onto a second substrate (Fig. 1b), comprising:
a first part having a pattern (30) formed for shaping a received laser beam into a patterned shape and a first laser transmissivity; and
a second part (39) having a second laser transmissivity being lower than the first laser transmissivity [0043].
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 26-40 are allowed.
The following is an examiner’s statement of reasons for allowance:
Claim 26 recites a laser lift-off apparatus for transferring objects to be transferred from a first substrate provided with the objects to be transferred onto a second substrate by virtue of laser lift-off, the apparatus comprising:
a laser oscillator;
a stage for supporting the first substrate and the second substrate while facing each other; and
a photomask provided in an optical path between the laser oscillator and the stage,
wherein the laser oscillator, the photomask, and the stage are configured to irradiate interfaces between the objects to be transferred and the first substrate with a laser beam from the laser oscillator at once, and
the photomask has a pattern for shaping a laser beam from the laser oscillator into such a shape that only a portion of an interface between each of the objects to be transferred and the first substrate is irradiated with the laser beam.
Claim 29 recites a photomask used in a laser lift-off method in which objects to be transferred are transferred by virtue of laser lift-off from a first substrate provided with the objects to be transferred onto a second substrate, wherein
the photomask is configured so that an interface between each of the objects to be transferred and the first substrate is irradiated at once with a received laser beam, and
the photomask has a pattern to shape the laser beam so that only a portion of the interface between each of the objects to be transferred and the first substrate is to be an irradiated portion.
Claim 34 recites a transferring apparatus for transferring objects to be transferred from a first substrate provided with the objects to be transferred onto a second substrate by virtue of laser, the apparatus comprising:
a laser oscillator;
a stage for supporting the first substrate and the second substrate while facing each other; and
a photomask provided in an optical path between the laser oscillator and the stage,
wherein the laser oscillator, the photomask, and the stage are configured to irradiate interfaces between the objects to be transferred and the first substrate with a laser beam from the laser oscillator at once, and
the photomask has a pattern for shaping a laser beam from the laser oscillator into such a shape that only a portion of an interface between each of the objects to be transferred and the first substrate is irradiated with the laser beam.
US PG Pub 2021/0151354 (“Yanagawa”), US PG Pub 2014/0131580 (“Sidery”) and US PG Pub 2011/0192965 (“Ledermann”) are cited as being examples of relevant references in the art for comparison to Applicant’s invention. Applicant utilizes a photomask with portions having different transmissivity to create portions of a pattern for transfer. While the use of transmissive and non-transmissive elements are found in the art, they do not anticipate the method of forming only a portion of an interface between each of the objects to be transferred as required by Applicant.
A search of other, relevant references does not show Applicants invention to be anticipated or obvious. Claims 27, 28, 30-33 and 35-40 depend on one of Claims 26, 29 or 34 and are allowable for at least the reasons above.
Any comments considered necessary by applicant must be submitted no later than the payment of the issue fee and, to avoid processing delays, should preferably accompany the issue fee. Such submissions should be clearly labeled “Comments on Statement of Reasons for Allowance.”
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to DAVID C SPALLA whose telephone number is (303)297-4298. The examiner can normally be reached Mon-Fri 10am-5pm MST.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Britt Hanley can be reached at 571-270-3042. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/DAVID C SPALLA/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2893
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