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 Objections
Claims 1 and 14 are objected to because of the following informalities:
Claims 1 and 14 recite “wherein the notch finding station includes a housing including floor and sidewalls that form an open-topped reservoir,” and should recite “a housing including a floor and sidewalls...”
Claims 1 and 14 also recite “and including a carrier hold a substrate” and should recite “a carrier holding a substrate.” Appropriate correction is required.
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 19 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 applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention.
Claim 19 recites “an upper portion” in “the carrier is configured to hold the substrate at a height of 3-6 mm above an upper edge of an upper portion.” It is unclear whether the limitation is referring to the upper portion of the sidewalls set forth in claim 14 or setting forth a separate upper portion of some other component. As such, the claim language has been held to be indefinite. For examination purposes, the claim has been understood to read “the upper 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, 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.
Claims 1, 5-10, and 12-13 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Cherian (US20140242883A1) in view of Hirokawa (US20060105679A1).
Regarding claim 1, Cherian (US20140242883A1) discloses a polishing apparatus, comprising: a polishing station; (FIG. 1: polishing apparatus 100 including polishing stations 124; see also ¶[0025])
a notch finding station; (spectrographic metrology systems 160 for finding a fiducial, which may be a notch; see ¶[0007], [0043], [0066], and [0071])
and a substrate handling system to move a substrate between the polishing station and the notch finding station (a system of carrier heads 126 and overhead track 128 moves the substrate between polishing stations 124 and metrology systems 160; see FIG. 3 and ¶[0024], [0033], and [0045]-[0049])
and including a carrier hold a substrate at the notch finding station (carrier head 126 holds a substrate including at metrology system 160; see ¶[0006].
a passage to introduce a liquid into the [open space] extending to the substrate, (tube 186 introduces liquid 188 into the space extending to the substrate 10; see FIG. 7 and ¶[0075]-[0076])
and an optical fiber extending through [the open space] and positioned to direct a light beam through the liquid column onto the substrate when held by the carrier at the notch finding station and to receive reflections of the light beam from the substrate (FIG. 7: optical fiber 170 extending through tube 186 and positioned to direct light onto the substrate 10, which is held by carrier head 126 at wet metrology system 160/169 and transmits light reflected from the substrate 10; see also ¶[0058], [0075] and [0078]).
Cherian (US20140242883A1) does not specifically teach that the notch finding station includes a housing including a floor and sidewalls that form an open-topped reservoir,
the sidewalls having a lower portion and an upper portion having an upper edge that is thinner than the lower portion,
and the passage introduces liquid into the open-topped reservoir to form a liquid column, and the optical fiber extends through a floor of the housing.
However, Hirokawa (US20060105679A1), in the same or similar field of endeavor related to polishing apparatuses incorporating optical fibers, teaches a notch finding station including a housing including a floor and sidewalls that form an open-topped reservoir, (see annotated FIG. 8 below: including a housing comprising pipe piece 122 and fiber support 130, including a floor and sidewalls to form a reservoir with an open top that is outlet 128; see also ¶[0213]-[0215])
the sidewalls having a lower portion and an upper portion having an upper edge that is thinner than the lower portion, (see annotated FIG. 8 below: upper portion has an upper edge that is thinner than the lower portion)
and the passage introduces liquid into the open-topped reservoir to form a liquid column, (supply passage 44 introduces liquid into the open-topped reservoir and would form a liquid column as the reservoir fills up) and the optical fiber extends through a floor of the housing (optical fibers 118 and 120 extend through the floor of the housing; see also ¶[0213]-[0215]).
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Annotated Hirokawa FIG. 8
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the apparatus of Cherian so that the notch finding station includes a housing including a floor and sidewalls that form an open-topped reservoir, the sidewalls having a lower portion and an upper portion having an upper edge that is thinner than the lower portion, and the passage introduces liquid into the open-topped reservoir to form a liquid column, and the optical fiber extends through a floor of the housing, as taught by Hirokawa.
One would have been motivated to make such a modification so that the optical fiber is better structurally supported within the apparatus (see also Hirokawa ¶[0214]).
Regarding claim 5, the rejection of claim 1 is incorporated in this rejection. Hirokawa, as used to modify Cherian as discussed in the rejection of claim 1 above, teaches that the upper portion has a uniform thickness along a vertical axis (see annotated FIG. 8 in the discussion of claim 1 above: the wall of pipe piece 122 of the upper portion has a uniform thickness along a vertical axis).
Regarding claim 6, the rejection of claim 5 is incorporated in this rejection. Hirokawa, as used to modify Cherian as discussed in the rejection of claim 1 above, teaches that an outer surface of the upper portion is recessed relative to an outer surface of the lower portion (see annotated FIG. 8 in the discussion of claim 1 above: the outer surface of the upper portion is recessed such that its width is smaller than the width of the outer surface of the lower portion).
Regarding claim 7, the rejection of claim 6 is incorporated in this rejection. Hirokawa, as used to modify Cherian as discussed in the rejection of claim 1 above, teaches that the lower portion and the upper portion have a continuous vertical inner surface (Hirokawa FIG. 8: continuous vertical inner surface within passage 132 extending through both the lower portion and the upper portion).
Regarding claim 8, the rejection of claim 5 is incorporated in this rejection. Hirokawa, as modified, does not explicitly teach that the upper portion projects 3-5 mm above the lower portion.
However, It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the polishing apparatus of Hirokawa, as modified, so that the upper portion projects 3-5 mm above the lower portion. Such a modification is viewed as a change in size, which has been held to be of routine in the art (MPEP 2144.04). The sizes of the upper portion and the lower portion would depend on the sizes of the components in which the polishing pad and the polishing apparatus is manufactured. Further, when looking to the specification, namely ¶[0055] of the instant application, there is no discussion of criticality or unexpected results concerning the sizes of the upper and lower portions.
Regarding claim 9, the rejection of claim 1 is incorporated in this rejection. Hirokawa, as used to modify Cherian as discussed in the rejection of claim 1 above, further teaches that the floor and sidewalls form a cylindrical cup (the pipe piece is cylindrical; see also Hirokawa ¶[0210]).
Regarding claim 10, the rejection of claim 9 is incorporated in this rejection. Cherian, as modified, does not specifically teach that an inner diameter of the cylindrical cup is 10-20 mm.
However, It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the cylindrical cup of Cherian, as modified, to have an inner diameter of 10-20 mm. Such a modification is viewed as a change in size, which has been held to be of routine in the art (MPEP 2144.04). Further, when looking to ¶[0050] of the instant application, there is no discussion of criticality or unexpected results concerning the inner diameter of the cylindrical cup.
Regarding claim 12, the rejection of claim 1 is incorporated in this rejection. Cherian, as modified, further teaches a lens positioned on an end of the optical fiber in the housing (Cherian ¶[0059]: a focusing lens may be positioned over the end of trunk 172 of the optical fiber).
Regarding claim 13, the rejection of claim 1 is incorporated in this rejection. Cherian, as modified, further teaches a controller configured to cause an actuator to position the carrier (Cherian ¶[0038]: controller 190 connected to an actuator in each carriage 108 to control the motion of carrier head 126) such that the substrate is positioned at the notch finding station such that sensing region of a sensor is at an edge of the substrate, (at the metrology station, light detector 164 is directed onto an outer face 103 of substrate 10 adjacent a perimeter 312; see Cherian ¶[0071]-[0072])
cause a motor to rotate the carrier such that a sensing region of the sensor scans along a circumference of the substrate, (controller 190 causes carrier head rotation motor 156 to rotate the carrier heads 126 so that the light detector 164 scans along the circumference of substrate 10; Cherian ¶[0037], [0041] and [0072])
and detect an angular position of a notch in an edge of the substrate based on a signal from the sensor. (controller 190 uses the data collected from light detector 164 to detect an angular position of the fiducial 310, which may be a notch ; Cherian [0068]-[0073]).
Claims 2-4 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Cherian (US20140242883A1) in view of Hirokawa (US20060105679A1), further in view of Boyd (US 6953515 B2).
Regarding claim 2, the rejection of claim 1 is incorporated in this rejection. Cherian, as modified, does not teach that the sidewalls include an angularly tapered portion.
Boyd (US6953515B2), in the same or similar field of endeavor related to polishing apparatuses with internal liquid passages, teaches that the sidewalls of a housing for a sensor, which maybe a spectrometer sensor, includes an angularly tapered portion (see annotated FIG. 6 below: sidewalls of hollow section 160 have an angularly tapered portion; see also Col 6, Line 61-Col. 7, Line 17).
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Annotated Boyd FIG. 6
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the sidewalls of Cherian to include an angularly tapered portion, as taught by Boyd. Such a modification is viewed as a change in shape, which has been held to be of routine in the art (MPEP 2144.04). Further, when looking to the specification, namely ¶[0053] and [0057] of the instant application, there is no discussion of criticality or unexpected results concerning the angularly tapered shape of the sidewalls.
Regarding claim 3, the rejection of claim 2 is incorporated in this rejection. Cherian, as modified, does not teach that the sidewalls taper such that an outer surface of the sidewalls is angled.
However, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the sidewalls of Cherian to taper such that an outer surface of the sidewalls is angled. Such a modification is viewed as a change in shape, which has been held to be of routine in the art (MPEP 2144.04). Further, when looking to the specification, namely ¶[0053] of the instant application, there is no discussion of criticality or unexpected results concerning the angled outer surfaces of the sidewalls.
Regarding claim 4, the rejection of claim 3 is incorporated in this rejection. Hirokawa, as used to modify Cherian as discussed in the rejection of claim 1 above, further teaches that the lower portion and the upper portion have a continuous vertical inner surface (Hirokawa FIG. 8: continuous vertical inner surface within passage 132 extending through both the lower portion and the upper portion).
Claim 11 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Cherian (US20140242883A1) in view of Hirokawa (US20060105679A1), further in view of Kobayashi (US 20030124957 A1).
Regarding claim 11, the rejection of claim 1 is incorporated in this rejection. Cherian, as modified, does not specifically teach that the carrier is configured to hold the substrate at a height of no more than 10 mm above the upper edge of the upper portion.
However, Kobayashi (US 20030124957 A1) in the same or similar field of endeavor related to polishing apparatuses incorporating optical fibers, teaches a polishing apparatus wherein the substrate is held at a height of no more than 10 mm above the upper edge of the upper portion of an open-topped reservoir (FIG. 4a: clearance CL of 0.1 mm between the substrate 21 and upper edge of polishing member 12 which marks the top of the reservoir filling openings 41 and 42; see also ¶[0052]).
Cherian further teaches that the height of the substrate relative to the top of the upper edge of the upper portion is selected such that as the liquid overflows the reservoir, the liquid fills the space between the end of the optical fiber and the substrate (see Cherian ¶[0076]). Thus, the height of the substrate above the upper edge depends on the relative positioning of the optical fiber and the amount of liquid supplied to fill the space between the optical fiber and the substrate.
It would then have been obvious through routine experimentation to select a height of no more than 10 mm, as a matter of selection of a workable range of a result effective variable. The result would have been predictable to one of ordinary skill in the art, and one skilled in the art would have a reasonable expectation of success with the modification. Further, in ¶[0055], [0067], [0070] of the specification, there is no discussion of criticality or unexpected results concerning the specifically claimed height of the substrate.
Claim 14 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Cherian (US20140242883A1) in view of Hirokawa (US20060105679A1) and Boyd (US6953515B2).
Regarding claim 14, Cherian discloses a polishing apparatus, comprising: a polishing station; (FIG. 1: polishing apparatus 100 including polishing stations 124; see also ¶[0025])
a notch finding station; (spectrographic metrology systems 160 for finding a fiducial, which may be a notch; see ¶[0007], [0043], [0066], and [0071])
and a substrate handling system to move a substrate between the polishing station and the notch finding station (a system of carrier heads 126 and overhead track 128 moves the substrate between polishing stations 124 and metrology systems 160; see FIG. 3 and ¶[0024], [0033], and [0045]-[0049])
and including a carrier holding a substrate at the notch finding station (carrier head 126 holds a substrate including at metrology system 160; see ¶[0006].
a passage to introduce a liquid into the [open space] extending to the substrate, (tube 186 introduces liquid 188 into the space extending to the substrate 10; see FIG. 7 and ¶[0075]-[0076])
and an optical fiber extending through [the open space] and positioned to direct a light beam through the liquid column onto the substrate when held by the carrier at the notch finding station and to receive reflections of the light beam from the substrate (FIG. 7: optical fiber 170 extending through tube 186 and positioned to direct light onto the substrate 10, which is held by carrier head 126 at wet metrology system 160/169 and transmits light reflected from the substrate 10; see also ¶[0058], [0075] and [0078]).
a liquid source to supply the liquid; (liquid source 189; see FIG. 7 and ¶[0076])
and a controller (controller 190; ¶[0039]) configured to cause the liquid source to flow the liquid at a flow rate when the notching finding station is operating to detect a notch (liquid source 189 can pump liquid 188 during measurement of the surface of the substrate, which includes finding the fiducial; see ¶[0075]).
Cherian (US20140242883A1) does not specifically teach that the notch finding station includes a housing including a floor and sidewalls that form an open-topped reservoir,
the sidewalls having a lower portion and an upper portion having an upper edge that is thinner than the lower portion,
and the passage introduces liquid into the open-topped reservoir to form a liquid column, and the optical fiber extends through a floor of the housing,
and a controller configured to cause the liquid source to flow the liquid at a first flow rate when the notching finding station is operating to detect a notch and at a second reduced non-zero flow rate when the notching finding station is idling.
However, Hirokawa (US20060105679A1), in the same or similar field of endeavor related to polishing apparatuses incorporating optical fibers, teaches a notch finding station including a housing including a floor and sidewalls that form an open-topped reservoir, (see annotated FIG. 8 in the discussion of claim 1 above: including a housing comprising pipe piece 122 and fiber support 130, including a floor and sidewalls to form a reservoir with an open top that is outlet 128; see also ¶[0213]-[0215])
the sidewalls having a lower portion and an upper portion having an upper edge that is thinner than the lower portion, (see annotated FIG. 8 in the discussion of claim 1 above: upper portion has an upper edge that is thinner than the lower portion)
and the passage introduces liquid into the open-topped reservoir to form a liquid column, (supply passage 44 introduces liquid into the open-topped reservoir and would form a liquid column as the reservoir fills up) and the optical fiber extends through a floor of the housing (optical fibers 118 and 120 extend through the floor of the housing; see also ¶[0213]-[0215]).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the apparatus of Cherian so that the notch finding station includes a housing including a floor and sidewalls that form an open-topped reservoir, the sidewalls having a lower portion and an upper portion having an upper edge that is thinner than the lower portion, and the passage introduces liquid into the open-topped reservoir to form a liquid column, and the optical fiber extends through a floor of the housing, as taught by Hirokawa. One would have been motivated to make such a modification so that the optical fiber is better structurally supported within the apparatus (see also Hirokawa ¶[0214]).
Additionally, Boyd (US6953515B2) teaches adjusting the flow rate of fluid supplied to the optical fiber at a second reduced non-zero flow rate (“The flow rate of the fluid is adjusted so that a positive pressure is maintained in the cavity and the fluid will flow out of the aperture 122 at a low flow rate.”; Boyd Col. 5, Lines 25-54) when the station is idling (“during idle times, such as changing wafers”; Boyd Col. 5, Lines 25-54).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the controller of Boyd, as modified, to supply liquid at a second reduced non-zero flow rate when the notching finding station is idling, as taught by Boyd. One would have been motivated to make such a modification to prevent slurry from drying over the sensor window and preventing air bubbles from the optical path way, while not being “strong enough to perturb the wafer planarization process” (Boyd Col. 5, Lines 25-54).
Claims 15 and 19 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Cherian (US20140242883A1) in view of Hirokawa (US20060105679A1) and Boyd (US6953515B2), further in view of Sugiyama (JP 7141204 B2).
Regarding claim 15, the rejection of claim 14 is incorporated in this rejection. Cherian, as modified, does not teach that during a start-up the controller configured to ramp up a flow rate of the liquid from zero to the second reduced non-zero flow rate at a first ramp-up rate during a start-up operation of the notch finding station and to ramp up the flow rate of the liquid from the second reduced non-zero flow rate to the first flow rate at a second ramp-up rate during operation of the notch finding station, and wherein the second ramp-up rate is greater than the first ramp-up rate.
Sugiyama (JP 7141204 B2) teaches that during a start-up the controller configured to ramp up a flow rate of the liquid from zero to a non-zero flow rate at a first ramp-up rate during a start-up operation (during a start up operation, fluid supply control device 27 triggers the flow of the required fluid; see Sugiyama Trans. Pg. 11, Lines 9-17 and Pg. 15, Lines 18-38)
and [adjusts] the flow rate of the liquid from the non-zero flow rate to another flow rate during operation, (fluid is supplied at a first flow rate to remove the slurry and adjusted to be supplied at a second supply rate; see Sugiyama Trans. Pg. 15, Lines 24-38).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the controller of Cherian, as modified, to be configured to ramp up a flow rate of the liquid from zero to the second reduced non-zero flow rate at a first ramp-up rate during a start-up operation of the notch finding station and to ramp up the flow rate of the liquid from the second reduced non-zero flow rate to the first flow rate at a second ramp-up rate during operation of the notch finding station, as taught by Sugiyama. Boyd, as used in the modification in the discussion of claim 14, teaches that a lower flow rate may be used in idle times, such as changing wafers (Boyd Col. 5, Lines 25-54). Cherian, as modified, teaches that the wafers are changed at the start of the operation (Cherian ¶[0030]). Thus, one would have been motivated to make such a modification to accelerate gradually to the needed working rate to reduce mechanical stress and lower electrical surge.
Boyd further teaches that the flow rate is adjusted to provide the positive pressure necessary to prevent slurry from entering the cavity the optical fiber is disposed in without perturbing the planarization process (Boyd Col. 5, Lines 25-54). Thus, at least the amount of slurry supplied and the size of the cavity affect the selection of the flow rates, and in turn, the ramp-up rates.
It would then have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to have modified the flow rates of Cherian, as modified, so that the second ramp-up rate is greater than the first ramp-up rate. The result would have been predictable to one of ordinary skill in the art, and one skilled in the art would have a reasonable expectation of success with the modification. Further, in ¶[0085] of the instant application, there is no discussion of criticality or unexpected results concerning the ramp-up rates.
Regarding claim 19 (as best understood), the rejection of claim 15 is incorporated in this rejection. Cherian, as modified, does not teach that the carrier is configured to hold the substrate at a height of 3-6 mm above an upper edge of the upper portion.
However, Cherian teaches that the encoder measurements in conjunction with the known dimensions of the components of the polishing system affects the determination of the distance between a point on a substrate and an upper edge of the upper portion of an optical fiber (Cherian ¶[0068]).
It would then have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to have modified the height of the substrate above an upper edge of the upper portion of the apparatus of Cherian, as modified, to be within the range of 3-6 mm. The result would have been predictable to one of ordinary skill in the art, and one skilled in the art would have a reasonable expectation of success with the modification. Further, in ¶[0055] of the instant application, there is no discussion of criticality or unexpected results concerning the ramp-up rates.
Claims 16-18 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Cherian (US20140242883A1) in view of Hirokawa (US20060105679A1) and Boyd (US6953515B2), further in view of Kogure (JP 5632132 B2).
Regarding claim 16, the rejection of claim 14 is incorporated in this rejection. Cherian, as modified, does not explicitly teach that the first flow rate is 0.8-2 liters per minute.
However, Boyd teaches that the flow rate is adjusted to provide the positive pressure necessary to prevent slurry from entering the cavity the optical fiber is disposed in without perturbing the planarization process (Boyd Col. 5, Lines 25-54). Thus, at least the amount of slurry supplied and the size of the cavity affect the selection of the flow rate.
Further, Kogure (JP 5632132 B2) teaches that the flow rate of rinse water combatting slurry (continuously supplying rinse water at a reduced flow rate allows the machine to maintain the wet state, preventing damage to the apparatus from the debris in dried polishing liquid; see Kogure Trans. Pg. 1, Line 22-Pg. 2, Line 6 and Pg. 5, Line 39-Pg. 6, Line 9) may be 1 L/min as an example (Kogure Trans. Pg. 5, Line 39-Pg. 6, Line 9).
It would then have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to have selected the range of 0.8-2 liters per minute, as a matter of selection of a workable range of a result effective variable. The result would have been predictable to one of ordinary skill in the art, and one skilled in the art would have a reasonable expectation of success with the modification. Further, in ¶[0056] and [0083]-[0084] of the instant application, there is no discussion of criticality or unexpected results concerning the ranges of the flow rates.
Regarding claim 17, the rejection of claim 14 is incorporated in this rejection. Cherian, as modified, does not explicitly teach that the second reduced non-zero flow rate is 0.1 to 1LPM.
However, Boyd teaches that the flow rate is adjusted to provide the positive pressure necessary to prevent slurry from entering the cavity the optical fiber is disposed in without perturbing the planarization process (Boyd Col. 5, Lines 25-54). Thus, at least the amount of slurry supplied and the size of the cavity affect the selection of the flow rate.
Further, Kogure (JP 5632132 B2) teaches that the flow rate of rinse water combatting slurry (continuously supplying rinse water at a reduced flow rate allows the machine to maintain the wet state, preventing damage to the apparatus from the debris in dried polishing liquid; see Kogure Trans. Pg. 1, Line 22-Pg. 2, Line 6 and Pg. 5, Line 39-Pg. 6, Line 9) may be 1 L/min or 0.6 l/min as an example (Kogure Trans. Pg. 5, Line 39-Pg. 6, Line 9).
It would then have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to have selected the range of 0.1 to 1 liters per minute, as a matter of selection of a workable range of a result effective variable. The result would have been predictable to one of ordinary skill in the art, and one skilled in the art would have a reasonable expectation of success with the modification. Further, in ¶[0056] and [0083]-[0084] of the instant application, there is no discussion of criticality or unexpected results concerning the ranges of the flow rates.
Regarding claim 18, the rejection of claim 14 is incorporated in this rejection. Cherian, as modified, teaches that the liquid is water (liquid 188 is de-ionized water; Cherian ¶[0076]).
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Zhang (US20140141694A1) discloses a polishing apparatus with an optical fiber in contact with a liquid column.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to CATHERINE JOH whose telephone number is (571)272-0410. The examiner can normally be reached Mon-Fri 8a-5p.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, David Posigian can be reached at (313) 446-6546. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/C.J./Examiner, Art Unit 3723
/ROBERT F NEIBAUR/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3723
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