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 .
Specification
The title of the invention is not descriptive. A new title is required that is clearly indicative of the invention to which the claims are directed.
Claims are directly to “a circuit board”. Please, revise.
The following title is suggested: A CIRCUIT BOARD.
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.
(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 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102a(1) as being anticipated by Patil et al. (U.S. 2021/0104467).
As to claim 1, Patil discloses a circuit board (200) as shown in figure 2, comprising:
a first insulating layer (210) including a cavity (606-figure 6);
a connection member (250) buried in the cavity (606) of the first insulating layer (210); and
a molding layer (260) buried in the cavity (606) and surrounding the connection member (250),
wherein a width of the molding layer (260) gradually decreases along a direction from a lower surface to an upper surface of the first insulating layer (210).
Claim(s) 1-4 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102a(1) as being anticipated by Jeon et al. (U.S. 2020/0144234) submitted by the applicant.
As to claim 1, Jeon discloses a circuit board (para-0041) as shown in figure 1 and 7, comprising:
a first insulating layer (300) including a cavity (C, para-0042);
a connection member (22) buried in the cavity (C) of the first insulating layer (100); and
a molding layer (30-figure 7) buried in the cavity (C) and surrounding the connection member (22),
wherein a width of the molding layer (30) gradually decreases along a direction from a lower surface to an upper surface of the first insulating layer (300).
As to claim 2, Jeon discloses a first circuit pattern (510) disposed on the first insulating layer (300) and including a first electrode pattern (bump pad BP) overlapping the connection member (22) in a vertical direction (figure 7) and a second electrode pattern (via pad VP) not overlapping the connection member in the vertical direction (figure 7);
a post bump (inner via IV) disposed on the second electrode pattern (VP) of the first circuit pattern (510); and
a through electrode (400, para-0047) buried in the first insulating layer (300), overlapped with the connection member (22) in a horizontal direction (figure 7), and overlapped with the post bump (IV) in a vertical direction (figure 7);
wherein the connection member (22), has a pad portion (electrode 22a, para-0112) connected to the first electrode pattern (BP), and
wherein a width of the through electrode (400) is greater than a width of the pad
portion (22a).
AS to claim 3, Jeon discloses a width of the through electrode (400) changes in the vertical direction, and
wherein the width of the pad portion (22a) is smaller than a width of a region having a smallest width in an entire region (the region where the portion of the element 400 connected to the element VP) of the through electrode (400).
As to claim 4, Jeon discloses a width of the first electrode pattern (BP) is smaller than a width of the second electrode pattern (VP).
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) 18 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Jeon in view of Koh et al. (U.S. 2019/0304914).
Regarding claim 18, Jeon discloses a lower surface of the pad portion (22a), except for the pad portion includes a stepped portion, and wherein the stepped portion is provided at an outer side portion of the lower surface of the pad portion.
Koh teaches a semiconductor apparatus (105) as shown in figure 1E comprising a connection member (120) having a pad portion (126, 133), the pd portion includes a stepped portion (133), and wherein the stepped portion (133) is provided at an outer side portion of the lower surface of the pad portion.
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filling date to have a teaching of Koh employed in the circuit board of Jeon in order to provide excellent bonding structure for connecting the connection member to an external element.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 5-17, and 19-20 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.
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/TUAN T DINH/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2848
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