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 .
Status of Claims
This action is in reply to the application filed on 07/26/2024. The preliminary amendment submitted on 07/26/2024 is acknowledged. Claims 1-9 are currently pending and have been examined.
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 –
(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.
Claims 1-6 and 8-9 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Kimba et al (US Patent No. 8,771,038), hereinafter referred to as Kimba.
Regarding claim 1 (Original), Kimba discloses a polishing head for polishing a substrate [Kimba, fig 5a, 42], comprising:
a pressing mechanism configured to press a polishing tape against the substrate [Kimba, fig 5a, and col 7, lines 35-43, 49 and 56 form a pressing mechanism]; and
a tape hook configured to restrict movement of an edge of the polishing tape in a direction toward the substrate [Kimba, figs 5a-5b, 57 and at least one side of the frame of 42 form a tape hook that restricts the movement of polishing tape 41], the tape hook having a tape positioning surface that faces a polishing surface of the edge of the polishing tape [Kimba, fig 5a, 57 has a surface that faces the top of 41].
Regarding claim 2 (Original), Kimba further discloses the polishing head according to claim 1, wherein the tape hook is disposed adjacent to the pressing mechanism [Kimba, fig 5a, 57 and the at least one side of the frame of 42 are adjacent to 49 and 56].
Regarding claims 3 (Currently Amended) and 4 (Original), Kimba further discloses the polishing head according to claim 1, wherein the tape hook comprises a plurality of tape hooks arranged at both sides of the pressing mechanism [Kimba, fig 5a, showing multiple 57’s on either side of 49 and 56] (clm 3); and wherein the plurality of tape hooks have a plurality of tape positioning surfaces that face polishing surfaces of both edges of the polishing tape [Kimba, fig 5a, showing that 57 has surfaces that face both sides of 41] (clm 4).
Regarding claims 5 (Currently Amended) and 6 (Original), Kimba further discloses the polishing head according to claim 1, wherein the pressing mechanism comprises a pressing member configured to press the polishing tape against the substrate [Kimba, fig 5a, 49], the polishing head further comprises a pressing-member holder that holds the pressing member [Kimba, fig 5a, 56], and a distance from a reference plane in the pressing- member holder to an end surface of the tape hook is shorter than a distance from the reference plane to a tape pressing surface of the pressing member [Kimba, fig 5a, the distance between 49 and 41 is shorter than the distance from 57 to the surface of 49] (clm 5); and wherein the tape hook has a protrusion that protrudes toward the pressing member [Kimba, fig 5b, 57 is a protrusion that has a thickness in the direction of 49], one side of the protrusion forming the tape positioning surface and an opposite side of the protrusion forming the end surface of the tape hook [Kimba, figs 5a-5b, 57 forms the surface to position 41 and the other surface of 57 forms the hook to retain 41] (clm 6).
Regarding claim 8 (Currently Amended), Kimba further discloses the polishing head according to claim 1, wherein the tape hook and the pressing mechanism are movable together [Kimba, 57 and the sides of 42 and 49 and 56 are movable together when 42 moves].
Regarding claim 9 (Currently Amended), Kimba further discloses a polishing apparatus comprising: a substrate holder configured to hold a substrate [Kimba, fig 2, 20 holds W]; and a polishing head according to claim 1 configured to polish the substrate [Kimba, fig 2, 42].
Allowable Subject Matter
Claim 7 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.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter:
Regarding claim 7, Seki et al (US PGPUB No. 2012/0252320) teaches a polishing head comprising a pressing mechanism configured to press a polishing tape against the substrate [Seki, figs 28 and 33, 131 which presses 123 against W] (where Seki is similar to the prior art Kimba et al as previously shown).
Hildebrandt et al (US PGPUB No. 2017/0151645) teaches a polishing head configured to press a polishing tape against a workpiece [Hildebrandt, fig 1, 22 presses 18 against a workpiece 16]. Hildebrandt is silent regarding a tape hook.
The prior art considered as a whole, alone or in combination, neither anticipates nor renders obvious “wherein the protrusion is located between the substrate and the edge of the polishing tape” together in combination with the rest of the limitations of the claim and in the independent claim.
Conclusion
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/ROBERT F NEIBAUR/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3723
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