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 .
DETAILED ACTION
Instant application is a continuation of a parent Application no. 18/204,405 and a family of applications that began with Application no. 16/871,052.
Currently, claims 1-8 are pending and examined below.
Priority
Acknowledgment is made of applicant’s claim for foreign priority under 35 U.S.C. 119 (a)-(d). Receipt is acknowledged of certified copies of papers required by 37 CFR 1.55.
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.
The following title is suggested: ELECTRONIC DEVICE HAVING CONDUCTIVE PAD OFFSET FROM FIRST CONDUCTIVE STRUCTURE
Drawings
The drawings are objected to under 37 CFR 1.83(a). The drawings must show every feature of the invention specified in the claims. Therefore, a limitation of “the first long edge extends from the active region to the peripheral region” of the independent claim 1 must be shown or the feature(s) canceled from the claim(s). No new matter should be entered.
Corrected drawing sheets in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(d) are required in reply to the Office action to avoid abandonment of the application. Any amended replacement drawing sheet should include all of the figures appearing on the immediate prior version of the sheet, even if only one figure is being amended. The figure or figure number of an amended drawing should not be labeled as “amended.” If a drawing figure is to be canceled, the appropriate figure must be removed from the replacement sheet, and where necessary, the remaining figures must be renumbered and appropriate changes made to the brief description of the several views of the drawings for consistency. Additional replacement sheets may be necessary to show the renumbering of the remaining figures. Each drawing sheet submitted after the filing date of an application must be labeled in the top margin as either “Replacement Sheet” or “New Sheet” pursuant to 37 CFR 1.121(d). If the changes are not accepted by the examiner, the applicant will be notified and informed of any required corrective action in the next Office action. The objection to the drawings will not be held in abeyance.
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.
Claim 6 is 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 pre-AIA the applicant regards as the invention.
Here, claim 6 is indefinite, because it is unclear what “the first openings” are referring to as there is no antecedent basis for “the first openings” but there is antecedent basis for “the first opening.”
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 1021
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 and 7 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Pub. No. US 2017/0317153 A1 to Shin ("Shin").
Figs. 1 and 11 have been provided and Fig. 10 has been annotated to support the rejections below:
[AltContent: textbox (SUB)][AltContent: arrow][AltContent: textbox (PR)][AltContent: textbox (AR)]
PNG
media_image1.png
558
501
media_image1.png
Greyscale
[AltContent: arrow][AltContent: arrow][AltContent: textbox (LE4)][AltContent: textbox (LE3)][AltContent: arrow][AltContent: textbox (LE2)][AltContent: arrow][AltContent: textbox (LE1)]
PNG
media_image2.png
611
476
media_image2.png
Greyscale
[AltContent: textbox (OP1)][AltContent: arrow]
PNG
media_image3.png
383
492
media_image3.png
Greyscale
Regarding independent claim 1, Shin teaches an electronic device, comprising:
a substrate SUB having an active region AR and a peripheral region PR adjacent to the active region AR;
a first conductive structure CDP1 disposed in the peripheral region PR;
an insulating layer 14 disposed on the first conductive structure CDP1 and having a first opening OP1;
a conductive pad CP1 (para [0069] - “a first contact portion CP1”) disposed on the first conductive structure CDP1 and electrically connected to the first conductive structure CDP1 through the first opening OP1; and
a conductive element CPD2 (para [0069] - “the second connection pad CPD2”) or CB (para [0073] - “conductive bump CB”) disposed on the conductive pad CP1,
wherein in a top view of the electronic device, the first conductive structure CDP1 has a first long edge LE1 and a second long edge LE2 opposite to the first long edge LE1, the conductive pad CM has a third long edge LE3 adjacent (near) to the first long edge LE1 and a fourth long edge LE4 adjacent (near) to the second long edge LE2, the first long edge LE1 extends from the active region AR to the peripheral region PR, and in a direction perpendicular to the first long edge LE1, a distance between the first long edge LE1 and the second long edge LE2 is less than a distance between the third long edge LE3 and the fourth long edge LE4, and a distance between the first long edge LE1 and the third long edge LE3 is different from a distance between the second long edge LE2 and the fourth long edge LE4.
Regarding claim 3, Shin teaches the second long edge LE2, the third long edge LE3, and the fourth long edge LE4 are all parallel to the first long edge LE1.
Regarding claim 7, Shin teaches an outline of the first conductive structure CDP1 has a curved portion (corner portion).
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 of this title, 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.
The factual inquiries set forth in Graham v. John Deere Co., 383 U.S. 1, 148 USPQ 459 (1966), that are applied for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
(1). Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
(2). Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
(3). Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
(4). Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness.
Claim 2 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Shin and further in view of Pub. No. US 2019/0163304 A1 to Shim et al. (“Shim”) and Patent No. US 6,245,175 B1 to Hotta et al. (“Hotta”)
Regarding claim 2, Shin teaches a bump CB that is electrically connected to the conductive pad CP1.
Shin does not teach the bump is electrically connected to the conductive pad through a conductive element that is a conductive particle.
Shim teaches a bump BMP that is electrically connected to a conductive pad OPD through a conductive element 150 (of ACF) that is a conductive particle (para [0166] - “The ACF may include a plurality of conductive balls 150 and an adhesive material 151. The conductive ball 150 may allow the bump BMP and the input and output pads IPD and OPD to be electrically connected to each other.”).
Hotta teaches “In view of fine patterns of circuits, anisotropic conductive films have been used to connect plural conductor patterns on a substrate with patterns of a conductor to be connected therewith or with IC or LSI.” (col. 1, ln 12-22). Hotta teaches anistropic conductive films that are “capable of establishing electrical connection at a narrow pitch, maintaining strength in the film surface direction that that has not been achieved so far, and improving the adhesion to the objective substance…” (col. 1, ln 40-46).
Before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to modify the electronic device of Shin by employing anistropic conductive film as taught by Shim rather than just using solder bumps in Shin so as to establish an “electrical connection at a narrow pitch, maintaining strength in the film surface direction that that has not been achieved so far, and improving the adhesion to the objective substance.” (Hotta, col. 1, ln 40-46).
Allowable Subject Matter
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter:
Claim 4 is objected to for depending on a rejected base claim 1, but would be allowable if it is rewritten in independent form to include all of the limitations of the base claim 1 or the base claim 1 is amended to include all of the limitations of claim 4.
Claim 5 is allowable for depending on the allowable claim 4.
Claim 8 is objected to for depending on a rejected base claim 1, but would be allowable if it is rewritten in independent form to include all of the limitations of the base claim 1 or the base claim 1 is amended to include all of the limitations of claim 8.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure:
Pub. No. US 10,504,856 B2 to Chen et al.
Pub. No. US 2019/0014664 A1 to Ahn et al.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to MICHAEL JUNG whose telephone number is (408) 918-7554. The examiner can normally be reached on 8:30 A.M. to 7 P.M.
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, Eliseo Ramos-Feliciano can be reached on (571) 272-7925. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300. Information regarding the status of an application may be obtained from the Patent Application Information Retrieval (PAIR) system. Status information for published applications may be obtained from either Private PAIR or Public PAIR. Status information for unpublished applications is available through Private PAIR only. For more information about the PAIR system, see http://pair-direct.uspto.gov. Should you have questions on access to the Private PAIR system, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative or access to the automated information system, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000.
/MICHAEL JUNG/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2817 22 June 2026
1 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 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
Prosecution Insights