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 .
Election/Restrictions
Claims 4 and 8 – 20 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b), as being drawn to a nonelected Invention II (method claim) and species A and species B, there being no allowable generic or linking claim. Applicant timely traversed the restriction (election) requirement in the reply filed on 09/18/2026.
Claims 8 and 9 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to a nonelected species, there being no allowable generic or linking claim. Election was made with traverse in the reply filed on 09/18/2026. Applicant states in the REMARKS, “Applicant preliminary elects Invention I and Figures 3 and 6 (Species C), corresponding to claims 1-7 and 10, for examination with traverse”. Claim 4 states “wherein the first opening is staggered with the second opening”, however as seen by Figure 5, this claim pertains to an unelected species. See Applicant’s Specification [0057] referencing Figure 2 and [0087,0091] referencing Figure 5. With respect to the elected species of Figure 6, Applicant explicitly states in Applicant’s Specification at [0097] “Since the first opening BV1′ and the second opening BV2′are not staggered to each other”. Therefore claim 4 is also withdrawn. Note that claim 10 depends from non-elected claim 8 and thus would not pertain to the elected species. Therefore claim 10 is also withdrawn.
Applicant's election with traverse of Species C in the reply filed on 09/18/2026 is acknowledged. The traversal is on the ground(s) that “Applicant asserts that claims 1, 10 are generic claims, which can correspond to the elected Invention I and Species C, as well as the non-elected Invention II, Species A, and Species B” and “Applicant believes, under the same concept, the non- elected Invention II, Species A, and Species B, and the elected Invention I and Species C may require the same field of search, wherein the same search strategies or search queries may be adopted. There would be no undue search burden if examining the non- elected Invention II, Species A, and Species B, and the elected Invention I and Species C at the same time. For the above reason, reconsideration and withdrawal of this restriction are hereby respectfully requested”. This is not found persuasive because the species individually require different search strategies and thus would yield a burden of search on the Office. The inventions require different fields of search (e.g., searching different electronic resources, or employing different search strategies or search queries). Different inventions such as product and method of mounting would require different means of search strings and strategies and thus yield a burden of search on the Office, even if the classification previously presented was to one subclass. Note also that Applicant argues claims 1 and 10 are generic for all species. However claim 10 depends from non-elected claim 8. Thus claim 10 is not generic, as claim 10 requires the limitations of a non-elected species. The requirement is still deemed proper and is therefore made FINAL.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claim 3 is 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.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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 (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) 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.
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, 2 and 5 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by Lee (US 2025/0014955 A1).
Regarding Claim 1, Lee (US 2025/0014955 A1) discloses an electronic device (Fig 1), comprising: a glass substrate (110; [0078]), having a first side (towards upper surface of 110 in Fig 1) and a second side (towards lower surface of 110 in Fig 1) relative to the first side and comprising a through via (at 120); a first circuit structure (140), disposed on the first side, wherein the first circuit structure (140) at least partially overlaps the through via (120); and a second circuit structure (141), disposed on the second side, wherein the second circuit structure (141) at least partially overlaps the through via (120), wherein the first circuit structure (140) and the second circuit structure (141) are electrically connected ([0080]) through the through via (120), and a thickness of the glass substrate is greater than or equal to 50 μm and less than or equal to 2 mm ([0082] “500 μm to 2000 μm”).
Regarding Claim 2, Lee further discloses the electronic device (Fig 1) according to claim 1, wherein the through via (120) is connected by a first opening (upper opening portion of 115 in Fig 1A) formed on the first side and a second opening (lower opening portion of 115 in Fig 1A) formed on the second side, in a cross-sectional direction (see Fig 1), the first opening has a first width (side-to-side width as seen in Fig 1A towards upper portion of 115) on the first opening, the second opening has a second width (side-to-side width as seen in Fig 1A towards lower portion of 115) on the second side, and the through via has a third width (side-to-side width of 115 towards the middle of 110 in Fig 1) in a middle of the glass substrate (110), wherein the first width is greater than the third width (see Fig 1A), and the second width is greater than the third width (see Fig 1A).
Regarding Claim 5, Lee further discloses the electronic device (Fig 1) according to claim 2, wherein the first opening (upper opening portion of 115) is continuous with the second opening (lower opening portion of 115).
Claim(s) 1, 2 and 5 – 7 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Taniguchi (US 2003/0137056 A1).
Regarding Claim 1, Taniguchi (US 2003/0137056 A1) discloses an electronic device (Fig 2), comprising: a glass substrate (16; [0039]), having a first side (towards upper surface of 16 in Fig 2B) and a second side (towards lower surface of 16 in Fig 2B) relative to the first side and comprising a through via (18,20); a first circuit structure (22; [0042]), disposed on the first side, wherein the first circuit structure (22) at least partially overlaps the through via (18); and a second circuit structure (28; [0043]), disposed on the second side, wherein the second circuit structure (28) at least partially overlaps the through via (18), wherein the first circuit structure (22) and the second circuit structure (28) are electrically connected (18,20; [0047]) through the through via (18,20), and a thickness of the glass substrate is greater than or equal to 50 μm and less than or equal to 2 mm ([0039] “500 μm-thickness”).
Regarding Claim 2, Taniguchi further discloses the electronic device (Fig 2-3) according to claim 1, wherein the through via (18,20) is connected by a first opening (upper opening portion of 18 toward upper 34 in Fig 3B) formed on the first side and a second opening (lower opening portion of 18 toward lower 34 in Fig 3B) formed on the second side, in a cross-sectional direction (see Fig 3), the first opening has a first width ([0053-0056]; side-to-side width as seen in Fig 3B towards upper 34) on the first opening, the second opening has a second width ([0053-0056]; side-to-side width as seen in Fig 3B towards lower 34) on the second side, and the through via has a third width (side-to-side width of 18 towards the middle of 16 in Fig 3B; [0053-0056]) in a middle of the glass substrate (16), wherein the first width is greater than the third width (see Fig 3B; [0053-0056]), and the second width is greater than the third width (see Fig 3B; [0053-0056]).
Regarding Claim 5, Taniguchi further discloses the electronic device (Fig 2-3) according to claim 2, wherein the first opening (upper opening portion of 18 toward upper 34 in Fig 3B) is continuous with the second opening (lower opening portion of 18 toward lower 34 in Fig 3B).
Regarding Claim 6, Taniguchi further discloses the electronic device (Fig 2-3) according to claim 2, wherein the first width of the first opening shortens ([0053-0056]; “a diameter of the abraded parts is decreased gradually away from the surfaces of the glass substrate 16”; side-to-side width as seen in Fig 3B tapers from upper 34 to the middle of 16) in a direction extending from the first side of the glass substrate toward a center of the glass substrate (16).
Regarding Claim 7, Taniguchi further discloses the electronic device (Fig 2-3) according to claim 2, wherein the second width of the second opening is shortened ([0053-0056]; “a diameter of the abraded parts is decreased gradually away from the surfaces of the glass substrate 16”; side-to-side width as seen in Fig 3B tapers from lower 34 to the middle of 16) in a direction extending from the second side of the glass substrate toward a center of the glass substrate (16).
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure:
Brown (US 2021/0210359 A1) teaches of an electronic device (Fig 7), comprising: a glass substrate (100; [0044,0052]), having a first side (102) and a second side (104) relative to the first side and comprising a through via (at 108); and a thickness of the glass substrate is greater than or equal to 50 μm and less than or equal to 2 mm ([0052] “25 μm to about1 mm”) and further teaches of a first and second seed layer in contact with each other (120,126). This could be used in a future 103 Rejection.
Sunohara (US 2015/0083469 A1) teaches of an electronic device (Fig 2-4), comprising: a glass substrate (11; [0022,0023]), having a first side (upper surface of 11 in Fig 4A) and a second side (lower surface of 11 in Fig 4A) relative to the first side and comprising a through via (at 11x); a first circuit structure (15a), disposed on the first side, wherein the first circuit structure (15a) at least partially overlaps the through via (11x); and a second circuit structure (25), disposed on the second side, wherein the second circuit structure (25) at least partially overlaps the through via (11x), wherein the first circuit structure (15a) and the second circuit structure (25) are electrically connected ([0010,0040]) through the through via (11x), and a thickness of the glass substrate is greater than or equal to 50 μm and less than or equal to 2 mm ([0022] “100 to 200 μm”). This could be used in a future 103 Rejection.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to ROSHN K VARGHESE whose telephone number is (571)270-7975. The examiner can normally be reached M-Th: 900 am-300 pm.
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/ROSHN K VARGHESE/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2847
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