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 .
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.
The factual inquiries 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(s) 1-4, 6-10, and 12-14 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Iwai (U.S. 2017/0213782 A1, hereinafter refer to Iwai) in view of Satou et al. (U.S. 2012/0139130 A1, hereinafter refer to Satou).
Regarding Claim 1: Iwai discloses a semiconductor device (see Iwai, Figs.3 and 10 as shown below and ¶ [0002]) comprising:
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a first lead (3) including a base (3) that includes a first surface facing a first side in a thickness direction (see Iwai, Figs.3 and 10 as shown above);
a second lead (2) spaced apart from the first lead (3) as viewed in the thickness direction (see Iwai, Figs.3 and 10 as shown above);
a semiconductor element (4) mounted on the first surface (see Iwai, Figs.3 and 10 as shown above); and
a plurality of conductive members (52) each including a first end portion and a second end portion (see Iwai, Figs.3 and 10 as shown above),
wherein the semiconductor element (4) includes an element obverse surface facing the first side in the thickness direction, an element reverse surface facing a second side in the thickness direction, and an obverse-surface electrode (42) formed on the element obverse surface (see Iwai, Figs.3 and 10 as shown above),
the first end portion of each of the conductive members (52) is bonded to the obverse-surface electrode (42) (see Iwai, Figs.3 and 10 as shown above),
the second lead (2) includes a first portion (212) and a second portion (211) connected to the first portion (see Iwai, Figs.3,10, and 12 as shown above),
as viewed in the thickness direction, the first portion (212) is located on a first side in a first direction (X) perpendicular to the thickness direction with respect to the base (3) (see Iwai, Figs.3, 10, and 12 as shown above),
the plurality of conductive members (52) include at least one first conductive member (52) whose second end portion is bonded to the second portion (211) (see Iwai, Figs.3, 10, and 12 as shown above).
Iwai is silent upon explicitly disclosing wherein as viewed in the thickness direction, the second portion is located on a first side in a second direction perpendicular to the thickness direction and the first direction with respect to the base, and extends in the first direction.
For support see Satou, which teaches as viewed in the thickness direction, the second portion (7b2 (7b)) is located on a first side in a second direction (Y) perpendicular to the thickness direction and the first direction (X) with respect to the base (7a2), and extends in the first direction (X) (see Satou, Figs.8-9 as shown below, ¶ [0012], and ¶ [0130]).
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Thus, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teachings of Iwai and Satou to enable as viewed in the thickness direction, the second portion of Iwai’s to be located on a first side in a second direction perpendicular to the thickness direction and the first direction with respect to the base, and extends in the first direction as taught by Satou in order to reduce the size and speeding-up and increase in efficiency of the DC-DC converter.
Regarding Claim 2: Iwai as modified teaches a semiconductor device as set forth in claim 1 as above. The combination of Iwai and Satou further teaches wherein the plurality of first conductive members (52) are spaced apart from each other in the first direction (wherein the plurality of first conductive members are spaced apart from each other in the first direction (X) (see Iwai, Figs.3 and 10 as shown above).
Regarding Claim 3: Iwai as modified teaches a semiconductor device as set forth in claim 1 as above. The combination of Iwai and Satou further teaches wherein the plurality of conductive members (WR2) include at least one second conductive member (WR2) whose second end portion is bonded to the first portion (7b2 (7b)) (see Satou, Figs.8-9 as shown above).
Regarding Claim 4: Iwai as modified teaches a semiconductor device as set forth in claim 3 as above. The combination of Iwai and Satou further teaches wherein the first portion (7b2(7b)) extends in the second direction (Y), and the plurality of second conductive members (WR2) are spaced apart from each other in the second direction (Y) (see Satou, Figs.8-9 as shown above).
Regarding Claim 6: Iwai as modified teaches a semiconductor device as set forth in claim 1 as above. The combination of Iwai and Satou further teaches wherein a third lead (1) spaced apart from the first lead (3) and the second lead (2) as viewed in the thickness direction (see Iwai, Figs.3 and 6 as shown above),
wherein the plurality of conductive members (51/52) include at least one fourth conductive member (51) whose second end portion is bonded to the third lead (1) (see Iwai, Figs.3 and 6 as shown above).
Regarding Claim 7: Iwai as modified teaches a semiconductor device as set forth in claim 6 as above. The combination of Iwai and Satou further teaches wherein the third lead (1) includes a fourth portion (see Iwai, Figs.3 and 6 as shown above),
as viewed in the thickness direction, the fourth portion is located on the second side in the second direction (Y) with respect to the base (3), and extends in the first direction (X) (see Iwai, Figs.3 and 6 as shown above), and
the second end portion of the at least one fourth conductive member (51) is bonded to the fourth portion (see Iwai, Figs.3 and 6 as shown above).
Regarding Claim 8: Iwai as modified teaches a semiconductor device as set forth in claim 1 as above. The combination of Iwai and Satou further teaches wherein the semiconductor element (4) is a switching element (see Iwai, Figs.3, 10, and 12 as shown above),
the obverse-surface electrode (41/42) includes a first obverse-surface electrode (42) serving as a source electrode (42), and a second obverse-surface electrode (41) serving as a gate electrode (see Iwai, Fig.6 as shown above),
the semiconductor device further comprises a third lead (1) spaced apart from the first lead (3) and the second lead (2) as viewed in the thickness direction (see Iwai, Fig.3 as shown above),
the plurality of conductive members (51/52) include a fourth conductive member (51) whose second end portion is bonded to the third lead (1) (see Iwai, Fig.3 as shown above),
the first end portion of the at least one first conductive member (52) is bonded to the first obverse-surface electrode (42) (see Iwai, Fig.3 as shown above), and
the first end portion of the fourth conductive member (51) is bonded to the second obverse-surface electrode (41) (see Iwai, Fig.3 as shown above).
Regarding Claim 9: Iwai as modified teaches a semiconductor device as set forth in claim 3 as above. The combination of Iwai and Satou further teaches wherein the semiconductor element is a switching element (4) (see Iwai, Fig.3 as shown above),
the obverse-surface electrode (41/42) includes a first obverse-surface electrode (42) serving as a source electrode (42), and a second obverse-surface electrode (41) serving as a gate electrode (41) (see Iwai, Figs.3 and 6 as shown above),
the semiconductor device further comprises a third lead (1) spaced apart from the first lead (3) and the second lead (2) as viewed in the thickness direction (see Iwai, Figs.3 and 6 as shown above),
the plurality of conductive members (51/52) include a fourth conductive member (51) whose second end portion is bonded to the third lead (1) (see Iwai, Figs.3 and 6 as shown above),
the first end portion of each of the at least one first conductive member (52) and the at least one second conductive member (52) is bonded to the first obverse-surface electrode (42) (see Iwai, Figs.3 and 6 as shown above), and
the first end portion of the fourth conductive member (51) is bonded to the second obverse-surface electrode (41) (see Iwai, Figs.3 and 6 as shown above).
Regarding Claim 10: Iwai as modified teaches a semiconductor device as set forth in claim 8 as above. The combination of Iwai and Satou further teaches wherein the third lead (1) includes a fourth portion (see Iwai, Figs.3 and 6 as shown above),
as viewed in the thickness direction, the fourth portion is located on a second side in the second direction (Y) with respect to the base (3), and extends in the first direction (see Iwai, Figs.3 and 6 as shown above), and
the second end portion of the fourth conductive member (41) is bonded to the fourth portion (see Iwai, Figs.3 and 6 as shown above).
Regarding Claim 12: Iwai as modified teaches a semiconductor device as set forth in claim 1 as above. The combination of Iwai and Satou further teaches wherein a sealing resin (6) covering the semiconductor element (4), at least a portion of each of the first lead (3) and the second lead (2), and the plurality of conductive members (51/52) (see Iwai, Figs.3, 8, and 12 as shown above),
the first lead (3) includes at least one first terminal portion (312) connected to an end of the base (3) on the second side in the first direction and exposed from the sealing resin (6) (see Iwai, Figs.3, 8, and 12 as shown above), and
the second lead (2) includes at least one second terminal portion (221/213) connected to an end of the first portion on the first side in the first direction and exposed from the sealing resin (6) (see Iwai, Figs.3, 8, and 12 as shown above).
Regarding Claim 13: Iwai as modified teaches a semiconductor device as set forth in claim 12 as above. The combination of Iwai and Satou further teaches wherein the at least one first terminal portion (312) extends from the sealing resin to the second side in the first direction, and the at least one second terminal portion (221/213) extends from the sealing resin (6) to the first side in the first direction (see Iwai, Figs.3, 8, and 12 as shown above).
Regarding Claim 14: Iwai as modified teaches a semiconductor device as set forth in claim 1 as above. The combination of Iwai and Satou further teaches wherein each of the conductive members (51/52) is a bonding wire (see Iwai, Figs.3, 10, and 12 as shown above).
Claim(s) 1, 3-5 and 11 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Iwai (U.S. 2017/0213782 A1, hereinafter refer to Iwai) in view of Nishikizawa et al. (U.S. 2018/0315685 A1, hereinafter refer to Nishikizawa).
Regarding Claim 1: Iwai discloses a semiconductor device (see Iwai, Figs.3 and 10 as shown above and ¶ [0002]) comprising:
a first lead (3) including a base (3) that includes a first surface facing a first side in a thickness direction (see Iwai, Figs.3 and 10 as shown above);
a second lead (2) spaced apart from the first lead (3) as viewed in the thickness direction (see Iwai, Figs.3 and 10 as shown above);
a semiconductor element (4) mounted on the first surface (see Iwai, Figs.3 and 10 as shown above); and
a plurality of conductive members (52) each including a first end portion and a second end portion (see Iwai, Figs.3 and 10 as shown above),
wherein the semiconductor element (4) includes an element obverse surface facing the first side in the thickness direction, an element reverse surface facing a second side in the thickness direction, and an obverse-surface electrode (42) formed on the element obverse surface (see Iwai, Figs.3 and 10 as shown above),
the first end portion of each of the conductive members (52) is bonded to the obverse-surface electrode (42) (see Iwai, Figs.3 and 10 as shown above),
the second lead (2) includes a first portion (212) and a second portion (211) connected to the first portion (see Iwai, Figs.3,10, and 12 as shown above),
as viewed in the thickness direction, the first portion (212) is located on a first side in a first direction (X) perpendicular to the thickness direction with respect to the base (3) (see Iwai, Figs.3, 10, and 12 as shown above),
the plurality of conductive members (52) include at least one first conductive member (52) whose second end portion is bonded to the second portion (211) (see Iwai, Figs.3, 10, and 12 as shown above).
Iwai is silent upon explicitly disclosing wherein as viewed in the thickness direction, the second portion is located on a first side in a second direction perpendicular to the thickness direction and the first direction with respect to the base, and extends in the first direction.
For support see Nishikizawa, which teaches as viewed in the thickness direction, the second portion (LD) is located on a first side in a second direction (Y) perpendicular to the thickness direction and the first direction (X) with respect to the base (DP), and extends in the first direction (X) (see Nishikizawa, Figs.2 and 7 as shown below and ¶ [0010]).
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Thus, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teachings of Iwai and Nishikizawa to enable as viewed in the thickness direction, the second portion of Iwai’s to be located on a first side in a second direction perpendicular to the thickness direction and the first direction with respect to the base, and extends in the first direction as taught by Nishikizawa in order to improve the reliability of the semiconductor device.
Regarding Claim 3: Iwai as modified teaches a semiconductor device as set forth in claim 1 as above. The combination of Iwai and Nishikizawa further teaches wherein the plurality of conductive members (BW) include at least one second conductive member (BW) whose second end portion is bonded to the first portion (see Nishikizawa, Figs.2 and 7 as shown above).
Regarding Claim 4: Iwai as modified teaches a semiconductor device as set forth in claim 3 as above. The combination of Iwai and Nishikizawa further teaches wherein the first portion extends in the second direction, and the plurality of second conductive members (BW) are spaced apart from each other in the second direction (see Nishikizawa, Figs.2 and 7 as shown above).
Regarding Claim 5: Iwai as modified teaches a semiconductor device as set forth in claim 4 as above. The combination of Iwai and Nishikizawa further teaches wherein the second lead (LD) includes a third portion connected to the second portion (see Nishikizawa, Figs.2 and 7 as shown above),
as viewed in the thickness direction, the third portion is located on a second side in the second direction with respect to the base (DP), and extends in the first direction (see Nishikizawa, Figs.2 and 7 as shown above), and
the plurality of conductive members (BW) include at least one third conductive member (BW) whose second end portion is bonded to the third portion (see Nishikizawa, Figs.2 and 7 as shown above).
Regarding Claim 11: Iwai as modified teaches a semiconductor device as set forth in claim 5 as above. The combination of Iwai and Nishikizawa further teaches wherein the semiconductor element is a switching element (see Iwai, Figs.3 and 6 as shown above),
the obverse-surface electrode (41/42) includes a first obverse-surface electrode (42) serving as a source electrode (42), and a second obverse-surface electrode (41) serving as a gate electrode (41) (see Iwai, Figs.3 and 6 as shown above),
the semiconductor device further comprises a third lead (1) spaced apart from the first lead (3) and the second lead (2) as viewed in the thickness direction (see Iwai, Figs.3 and 6 as shown above),
the plurality of conductive members (51/52) include a fourth conductive member (51) whose second end portion is bonded to the third lead (1) (see Iwai, Figs.3 and 6 as shown above),
the first end portion of each of the at least one first conductive member (52), the at least one second conductive member (52), and the at least one third conductive member (52) is bonded to the first obverse-surface electrode (52) (see Iwai, Figs.3 and 6 as shown above), and
the first end portion of the fourth conductive member (51) is bonded to the second obverse-surface electrode (41) (see Iwai, Figs.3 and 6 as shown above).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to BITEW A DINKE whose telephone number is (571)272-0534. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 7 a.m. - 5 p.m..
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/BITEW A DINKE/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2812
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