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 .
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 7/30/24 is in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner.
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.
Claim(s) 1, 22, and 24 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1)/(a)(2) as being anticipated by Hosek et al. (US 2020/0262060).
Regarding claim 1,
Hosek discloses (Fig. 20A):
A robot assembly (Fig. 20A, 202) for performing maintenance operations in a process module (220, vacuum chamber, ¶0091), comprising: a base plate (204) configured to mount to a mounting surface of the process module (220), a first end of the base plate (Fig. 21A, top portion of 204) having a mounting extension (208, rails, for example) configured to secure the robot assembly (202) to the mounting surface of the process module (mounted to 204); a robot arm (36) coupled to the base plate (204) via a first end of the robot arm (202), wherein the robot arm includes a plurality of motors (Fig. 7, 42a, 42b, 42c, ¶0051), one or more linear actuators (30, ¶0059), and an end-effector (end of 36); a safety shield coupled to the first end of the base plate (Fig. 21A, 220, vacuum chamber), the safety shield having sidewalls enclosing the robot arm and the base plate (encloses base plates 204 and top of enclosure 224); and a controller (Fig. 1, 50) coupled to the robot arm (36) and the base plate, wherein the controller is configured to control the base plate, the plurality of motors, and the one or more linear actuators (¶0084).
Regarding claim 22,
Hosek discloses (Fig. 20A):
A robot assembly (Fig. 20A, 202) for performing maintenance operations in a process module (220, vacuum chamber, ¶0091), comprising: a base plate (204) configured to mount to a mounting surface of the process module (220), a first end of a bottom surface of the base plate having a first mounting extension that is configured to be received into a first recess defined on the mounting surface of the process module (32, robot rides on wheels, 33, ¶0050), and a second end of the bottom surface of the base plate having a second mounting extension that is configured to be received into a second recess defined on the mounting surface of the process module (on each side of rails, 32, and 33), the first and the second mounting extensions used to mount and align the robot arm assembly (parallel, ¶0050); and a robot arm having a plurality of motors, one or more linear actuators and an end-effector, a first end of the robot arm coupled to the first end on a top surface of the base plate (¶0084).
Regarding claim 24,
Hosek discloses (Fig. 20A):
wherein the base plate is coupled to the mounting surface using double-side mounting (¶0050).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 2-21, 23, and 25-27 are 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.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Ueno (US 2022/0182002) – linear motor module
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/C.S.L./Examiner, Art Unit 2837 /KAWING CHAN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2837
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