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 .
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 –
Claim(s) 1-4, and 7-10 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Oratti Kalandar et al (US 20170084491).
Oratti Kalandar et al teaches
[claim 1] A method of manufacturing semiconductor assemblies, comprising the steps of: forming an array of semiconductor assemblies, the semiconductor assemblies including an encapsulant having frangible connections between adjacent semiconductor assemblies (figures 9 and 10, paragraphs 0020-0021, where element 100 comprises the formation of semiconductor assemblies, where one semiconductor assembly is represented by element 100 in figure 10, which includes an encapsulant [element 52] having frangible [brittle] connections between each section [as described in paragraph 0015]),
and applying force to the semiconductor assemblies to break the frangible connections and thereby singulate the semiconductor assemblies (figures 9 and 10, paragraph 0015, where the singulation of the semiconductor assemblies to break the frangible [brittle] connections is caused by a force used by the saw as described in paragraph 0015).
[claim 2] The method of claim 1, wherein the encapsulant is formed without frangible connections, and applying force includes cutting to cut into the encapsulant and thereby form the frangible connections (figures 3, 9 and 10, paragraphs 0015-0016, where the encapsulant [element 52] is formed without frangible connections, and after the encapsulant is formed the frangible connections are formed by cutting with a laer or saw [frangible connection is seen as the connecting part of each element 100 [as described in figure 10] of figure 9 that is not cut into of the semiconductor assembly and the encapsulant).
[claim 3] The method of claim 2, wherein the cutting is performed from above the semiconductor assemblies (figures 9 and 10, paragraph 0016, where the cutting is performed from above [as seen by the indents in figure 9 from above downward]).
[claim 4] The method of claim 1, wherein the encapsulant is formed with frangible connections (figures 3, 9 and 10, paragraphs 0015-0016, where the encapsulant [element 52] is formed frangible connections, where the formation of the encapsulant is not finished until the cutting of encapsulant. Note, no temporal designation on formation of the encapsulant leaves it broad, if applicant wishes to designate the “formation” ending at a certain time it is recommended that the applicant explicitly do so in the claim).
[claim 7] The method of claim 1, wherein the encapsulant is formed using a mould (figure 3, paragraphs 0015-0016, where the encapsulant [element 40] is formed with a mold, where the mold is the confines of the cavity in which the encapsulant is disposed).
[claim 8] The method of claim 1, wherein the encapsulant has non-lead bearing sides that comprise inwardly tapering upper sides (figure 6, paragraph 0017, where the encapsulant does not have lead sides and comprises an inward tapering upper sides [as noted by the notch at the bottom of element 52 with the taper going inward as one goes up the encapsulant]).
[claim 9] The method of claim 1, wherein the encapsulant has a lower surface that is connected to non-lead bearing sides of the encapsulant by a curved edge or chamfered edge (figure 6, paragraph 0017, where the encapsulant has a lower surface connected to non-lead bearing sides [sides of element 12 of figure 6], and has a chamfered edge).
[claim 10] The method of claim 1, wherein the encapsulant has non-lead bearing sides that comprise vertical sides which extend from the frangible connections (figure 6, paragraph 0017, where the non-lead bearing side [left and right sides of figure 6] comprises vertical sides extending upward from the frangible connection points [the notch that sticks out of element 52]).
Claim(s) 11 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Wu (US 20030067057).
[claim 11] A semiconductor assembly comprising a die held in an encapsulant, with leads extending out of the encapsulant, wherein the encapsulant has non-lead bearing sides that include a portion which has been formed by breaking a frangible connection (figure 4, paragraph 0036, where figure 4 shows a semiconductor assembly with a die [element 31] held in an encapsulant [element 35 – note the disclosure only cites element 15 of figure 1 as the encapsulant then states the same is shown in figure 4, piecing together that element 35 and 15 are the same]), where the encapsulant has a non-lead bearing side [sides of the encapsulant, element 35] are each non-lead bearing, that is they do not have lead in them. Note, per MPEP 2113, a product by process claim [such as the phrasing of “a portion which has been formed by…” is only examinable upon the product formed and not the process which forms them. Therefore, the examinable portions of the claim are “the encapsulant has non-lead bearing sides that include a portion” where the word “portion” is interpreted broadly to mean “any section, or portion” with no qualifications per the limitations established by MPEP 2113 – product by process).
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) 5-6 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Oratti Kalandar et al (US 20170084491) in view of Tan et al (US 20200350237).
Oratti Kalandar et al teaches all of the limitations of the parent claim, claim 1, but does not specifically disclose
[claim 5] The method of claim 1, wherein the frangible connections are tabs with a thickness of at least 0.1mm.
[claim 6] The method of claim 1, wherein the frangible connections are tabs with a thickness of up to 3mm.
However, Tan et al does teach
[claim 5] The method of claim 1, wherein the frangible connections are tabs with a thickness of at least 0.1mm (figure 4A, paragraph 0021, where the connection portion [distances A-C] is 1.2-1.7 mm in length, which is greater than 0.1mm).
[claim 6] The method of claim 1, wherein the frangible connections are tabs with a thickness of up to 3mm (figure 4A, paragraph 0021, where the connection portion [distances A-C] is 1.2-1.7 mm in length, which is less than 3mm).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the present application to have modified the teachings of Oratti Kalandar et al to incorporate the teachings of Tan et al to have the connection portions be a specific length to maximize durability for the size of the semiconductor assembly while minimizing amount of material needed for the connection portion, thus maximizing efficiency for a particular size.
Claim(s) 12-18 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Wu (US 20030067057) in view of Oratti Kalandar et al (US 20170084491).
Wu discloses all of the limitations of the parent claim, claim 11, but does not specifically disclose
[claim 12] The semiconductor assembly of claim 11, wherein the portion formed by breaking the frangible connection has a rougher surface than other portions of the encapsulant.
[claim 13] The semiconductor assembly of claim 11, wherein the portion formed by breaking the frangible connection comprises a broken frangible tab which projects from a non-lead bearing side of the encapsulant.
[claim 14] The semiconductor assembly of claim 11, wherein the portion formed by breaking the frangible connection comprises a broken frangible tab which is generally flush with a non-lead bearing side of the encapsulant.
[claim 15] The semiconductor assembly of claim 11, wherein the non-lead bearing sides of the encapsulant have upper sides that include inwardly tapering upper sides.
[claim 16] The semiconductor assembly of claim 12, wherein the portion formed by breaking the frangible connection comprises a broken frangible tab which projects from a non-lead bearing side of the encapsulant.
[claim 17] The semiconductor assembly of claim 12, wherein the portion formed by breaking the frangible connection comprises a broken frangible tab which is generally flush with a non-lead bearing side of the encapsulant.
[claim 18] The semiconductor assembly of claim 12, wherein the non-lead bearing sides of the encapsulant have upper sides that include inwardly tapering upper sides.
However, Oratti Kalandar et al does teach
[claim 12] The semiconductor assembly of claim 11, wherein the portion formed by breaking the frangible connection has a rougher surface than other portions of the encapsulant (figure 10, paragraph 0050, where the “notch” that sticks out from the side of element 52 is part of the portion of the encapsulant which is rougher than the rest of the encapsulant due to the presence of the notch – by definition “rough” is uneven, and the presence of a notch/tab is rough by definition since it is uneven to the rest of the encapsulant. Keep in mind, per MPEP 2113, only the “portion” is examined and not the process which made the portion as it is a product by process claim).
[claim 13] The semiconductor assembly of claim 11, wherein the portion formed by breaking the frangible connection comprises a broken frangible tab which projects from a non-lead bearing side of the encapsulant (figure 10, paragraph 0050, where the notch sticking out of element 52 on the right-hand and left-hand side is the portion which is defined as a tab and on a non-lead bearing side [no side is lead bearing]).
[claim 14] The semiconductor assembly of claim 11, wherein the portion formed by breaking the frangible connection comprises a broken frangible tab which is generally flush with a non-lead bearing side of the encapsulant (figure 10, paragraph 0050, where the notch/tab on the side of element 52 [the encapsulant] is generally flush with the rest of the encapsulant which is non lead-bearing).
[claim 15] The semiconductor assembly of claim 11, wherein the non-lead bearing sides of the encapsulant have upper sides that include inwardly tapering upper sides (figure 10, paragraph 0050, where the notch/tab that sticks out of element 52 on the bottom has a side above it that tapers inward as the encapsulant progresses upward).
[claim 16] The semiconductor assembly of claim 12, wherein the portion formed by breaking the frangible connection comprises a broken frangible tab which projects from a non-lead bearing side of the encapsulant (figure 10, paragraph 0050, where the tab/notch of element 52 on the bottom portion is the portion of the encapsulant and comprises a broken brittle/frangible tab and projects outward from the non-lead bearing side of the encapsulant [each side is non-lead bearing]).
[claim 17] The semiconductor assembly of claim 12, wherein the portion formed by breaking the frangible connection comprises a broken frangible tab which is generally flush with a non-lead bearing side of the encapsulant (figure 10, paragraph 0050, where the notch/tab on the side of element 52 [the encapsulant] is generally flush with the rest of the encapsulant which is non lead-bearing).
[claim 18] The semiconductor assembly of claim 12, wherein the non-lead bearing sides of the encapsulant have upper sides that include inwardly tapering upper sides (figure 10, paragraph 0050, where the notch/tab that sticks out of element 52 on the bottom has a side above it that tapers inward as the encapsulant progresses upward).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the present application to have modified the teachings of Wu in view of Oratti Kalandar et al in order to form the encapsulant in a particular way to singulate the devices from one another while keeping the encapsulant in form thus keeping structural stability of the overall device and also allowing for singulation to occur.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Dai et al (US 20170025582), Van Gemert et al (US 20140091458), Burgyan (US 8597979), Liu et al (US 20190144270), Grivna (US 20180254259), Suzuki et al (US 6717256) as other singulating methods and structures of semiconductor assemblies.
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/ANDREW JOHN ZABEL/ Examiner, Art Unit 2818
/JEFF W NATALINI/ Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2818
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