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 without traverse of group I in the reply filed on 03/12/26 is acknowledged.
Claims 10-11 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to a nonelected invention, there being no allowable generic or linking claim. Election was made without traverse in the reply filed on 03/12/26.
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.
This application currently names joint inventors. In considering patentability of the claims the examiner presumes that the subject matter of the various claims was commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the claimed invention(s) absent any evidence to the contrary. Applicant is advised of the obligation under 37 CFR 1.56 to point out the inventor and effective filing dates of each claim that was not commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the later invention in order for the examiner to consider the applicability of 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(2)(C) for any potential 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) prior art against the later invention.
Claim(s) 1-9 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Mizuta et al (US 2016/0172218A1).
As to claim 1, Mizuta et al teaches (see Figs 1, 9, 11-12) a heating apparatus (heat treatment apparatus) configured to heat a substrate (W) on which a coating film is formed, the heating apparatus comprising: a processing vessel (processing container 1) forming therein a processing space in which the substrate (W) is accommodated; a hot plate (heating plate 21) having a placement surface on which the substrate accommodated in the processing space is placed, and a heating device (heater 25) configured to heat the substrate; an adjusting mechanism (support pins 23) configured to adjust a height of the substrate with respect to the hot plate (21); an exhaust device (exhaust port 34 and chamber 30) configured to evacuate the processing space; and a controller (6), wherein the controller (see para [0063]) capable of performing: starting a heating processing of the substrate by setting the height of the substrate with respect to the hot plate to a predetermined height that is away from the hot plate by a preset distance (see para [0088], wafer is moved to heating height position); and setting, when the heating processing reaches a predetermined progress level (predetermined heat treatment temperature), the height of the substrate with respect to the hot plate is capable of being lower than the predetermined height to place the substrate on or close to the hot plate (wafer is heated to a predetermined heat treatment temperature when the wafer is held at the heating height position, see para [0088]), and switching evacuation of the processing space from OFF to ON (see Fig 6 and para [0063-0064], [0094] wherein exhaust flow rate ranging from 0-25 l/min and temperature of 0-350 oC are graphed versus time t0-t2). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention in Mizuta et al for the controller to perform starting a heating processing, setting the height at predetermined height or lower than the predetermined height and switching on/off evacuation of the process as claimed to define the processing space in preventing resist pattern collapse as taught by Mizuta et al (see para [0002 -0003] and [0064]) since the heat treatment apparatus is operated in a controlled environment at predetermined heating temperature, at heating height position and evacuation flow rates of the exhaust device as taught by Mizuta et al (see para [0063-0064] and Fig 6).
As to claim 2, Mizuta et al teaches (see Fig 3) the exhaust device (exhaust port 34 and chamber 30) comprises: a central exhaust device (34) configured to evacuate the processing space from a position above the placement surface and corresponding to a central position of the substrate on the placement surface; and a peripheral exhaust device (31) configured to evacuate the processing space from a position above the placement surface and corresponding to a peripheral position of the substrate on the placement surface, and the controller(6) is capable of performing: keeping OFF evacuation by the central exhaust device in the starting of the heating processing of the substrate and switching from OFF to ON in the setting of the height of the substrate and the switching of the evacuation of the processing space; and keeping ON evacuation by the peripheral exhaust device from the starting of the heating processing of the substrate (the controller 6, in communication the exhaust port and chamber, is capable of operating the claimed process limitation, see para [0063-0064] and Fig 6 ).
As to claim 3, in Mizuta e al (see Figs 1 and 12) the processing vessel (processing container 1) comprises: a bottom member including the hot plate; and a cover member (cover body 300 or top plate 3) including a ceiling wall facing the placement surface, and forming the processing space between the bottom member (bottom structure 2) and the cover member (cover body 300 or top plate 3), the heating apparatus further comprises an additional adjusting mechanism (an elevation mechanism 24) configured to adjust a height of the cover member with respect to the bottom member, and the controller (6) capable of performing turning, at an end of the heating processing, OFF the evacuation by the peripheral exhaust device while keeping ON the evacuation by the central exhaust device (see valve V1 and V2 and flow adjusting units 33 and 38), and then, upon a lapse of a preset time, increasing the height of the cover member with respect to the bottom member to open the processing space (the controller in communication with the valves and the elevation mechanism is capable of operating as claimed since the wafer is moving up and down, see para [0063-0064] and Fig 6).
Regarding claim 4, in Mizuta et al the controller (6) is capable of making, at a current set temperature of the hot plate, a determination on whether the heating processing reaches the predetermined progress level or decides information on the determination based on data indicating a relationship between a substrate temperature and a heating time (see Fig 6 and para [0063-0064], [0094] wherein exhaust flow rate ranging from 0-25 l/min and temperature of 0-350 degree oC are graphed versus time t0-t2) capable of being obtained when the height of the substrate with respect to the hot plate is the predetermined height (see para [0088], wafer is moved to heating height position and the heating processing reaches predetermined heat treatment temperature).
As to claim 5, in the controller capable of performing at least one of deciding the predetermined height, making a determination on whether the heating processing reaches the predetermined progress level (see para [0088], wafer is moved to heating height position and the heating processing reaches predetermined heat treatment temperature), deciding information on the determination, or deciding a candidate for the information, based on data indicating a relationship between a substrate temperature and a heating time for each temperature of the hot plate and each height of the substrate with respect to the hot plate (see Fig 6 and para [0063-0064], [0094] wherein exhaust flow rate ranging from 0-25 l/min and temperature of 0-350 degree oC are graphed versus time t0-t2).
Regarding claims 6-7, Mizuta et al teaches a storage storing the data (a program storage unit, see para [0063]).
With respect to claim 8, Mizuta et al teaches (see para [0060-0061] and [0063]) a gas supply configured to supply an inert gas into the processing space (gas supply ports 52), wherein the controller (6 in communication with the shutter 5) is capable of replacing an oxygen-containing gas in the processing space with the inert gas during the heating processing.
As to claim 9, in Mizuta et al the controller (6) is capable of performing replacing the oxygen-containing gas in the processing space with the inert gas during the setting of the height of the substrate and the switching of the evacuation of the processing space (see para [0060-0061] and [0063]).
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. JP 4030787B2 teaches (see Fig 1) a heating apparatus with adjusting mechanism (27) and exhaust device (36). Mizuta et al (US 10,217,652) is a patent for Mizuta et al (US 2016/0172218A1) recited above.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to YEWEBDAR T TADESSE whose telephone number is (571)272-1238. The examiner can normally be reached 7.00-3:30 PM.
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YEWEBDAR T. TADESSE
Primary Examiner
Art Unit 1717
/YEWEBDAR T TADESSE/
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