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
Applicant's election with traverse of Claims 7-12 in the reply filed on 7/8/26 is acknowledged. The traversal is on the ground(s) that undue diverse search should not be required. This is not found persuasive because diverse search is required for the inventions as necessitated by divergent subject matter. The requirement is still deemed proper and is therefore made FINAL. Claims 1-6 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to a nonelected invention, there being no allowable generic or linking claim.
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.
Claims 7-12 are 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 7 recites the limitation "the film". There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim.
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.
Claims 7 and 11 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102 (a)(1) as being anticipated by US 2001/0037858 to Taniyama et al.
Regarding Claim 7, Taniyama et al. teaches (Figure 15 and related discussion) a substrate processing method comprising: rotating a substrate (Paragraphs 94 -118) at a first rotation speed; supplying a first processing liquid for hindering removal of the film, toward the substrate from a first nozzle (221) above the substrate, and supplying a second processing liquid for removing the film, toward the substrate from a second nozzle (222) below the substrate, thereby removing a peripheral portion of a film formed on an upper surface of the substrate.
Regarding Claim 11, Taniyama et al. teaches (Figure 15 and related discussion) the first nozzle ejects the first processing liquid obliquely downwards and outwards in a radial direction of the substrate, the second nozzle ejects the second processing liquid obliquely upwards and outwards in the radial direction of the substrate, and after the first nozzle starts ejecting the first processing liquid (Paragraph 118), the second nozzle starts ejecting the second processing liquid.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 8-10 and 12 are objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim but would be allowable if rewritten to overcome the rejection(s) under 35 U.S.C. 112(b), 2nd paragraph, set forth in this Office action and to include all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims
Conclusion
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/ROBERTS P CULBERT/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1716
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