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 .
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status.
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.
Claim(s) 3-5 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over White et al. (US 2021/0054287A1) in view of Clews et al. (US 6,892,578).
With respect to claims 3-5, White teaches an etching composition comprising water, phosphoric acid and at least one compound including aminosiloxane of 1,3 bis(n-aminoalkylaminoalkyl) tetraalkylsiloxanes,1,3 bis(n-aminoalkyl) tetraalkylsiloxanes or claimed aminosiloxane that is a condensate of general formula (1) (para 47, 48, 50, 68, 69). The aminosiloxanes would react with the phosphoric acid, which acts as a catalyst, to form aminosilanol of general formula (2) in the composition (see the Royal Society of Chemistry for the synthesis of aminosilanol with siloxane being catalyzed with some acid in water).
Unlike claimed invention, White doesn’t teach the etching composition has sodium, potassium, and calcium contents of less than 250 ppb and iron content of less than 100 ppb. However, it is known to one skilled in the art to provide high-purity or “semiconductor grade” etching composition, which is higher level of purity than in a “technical grade” chemical for a high-purity semiconductor manufacturing operations as shown here by Clews (col. 2, lines 1-3, 21-31). Therefore, it would have been obvious for one skilled in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to provide a high-purity or “semiconductor grade” etching composition, which is free of other impurities such as claimed composition having sodium, potassium, and calcium contents of less than 250 ppb and iron content of less than 100 ppb, in light of Clews because he teaches a high-purity composition is desired to improve the manufacturing yield and reliability (col. 2, lines 28-31).
Furthermore, a product which differs from prior art only in purity is obvious except when the pure product possesses unexpected properties not possessed by the impure one. Ex parte Gray 10 USPQ 2d 1922, 1926 (BPAI 1989); Ex parte Steelmand 140 USPQ 189, 190; In re King 43 USPQ 400 (CCPA 1939); In re Merz 38 USPQ 143 (CCPA 1938); In re Ridgeway 25 USPQ 202 (CCPA 1935); Ex parte Windhaus 15 USPQ 45 (PO BdPatApp 1931). However secondary considerations such as unexpected results or long felt need may rebut a prima facie case based on purity. Ex parte Stern 13 USPQ 2d 1379, 1381 (BPAI 1989); In re Kratz 201 USPQ 71 (CCPA 1979); In re Bergstrom 166 USPQ 256 (CCPA 1970); In re Irani 166 USPQ 24 (CCPA 1970); In re Cofer 148 USPQ 268 (CCPA 1966); In re Doyle 140 USPQ 421 (CCPA 1964); In re Williams 80 USPQ 150 (CCPA 1948).
The Royal Society of Chemistry, the Initial Stages of Aminosilanol polymerisation, is cited for the synthesis of aminosilanol with siloxane being catalyzed with some acid in water.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 1 and 2 are allowed are allowed because the applied prior art White doesn’t teach a method for producing an aqueous solution of a purified aminosilanol compound and aminosiloxane compound having step of contacting, with an acidic cation exchange resin, an aqueous solution containing claimed aminosilanol compound having claimed general formula (1) and an aminosiloxane compound that is a condensate thereof to remove a metal component from the aqueous solution, wherein a concentration of the aminosilanol compound and the aminosiloxane compound in the aqueous solution to be contacted with the acidic cation exchange resin is 10 to 70 wt%.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to DUY VU NGUYEN DEO whose telephone number is (571)272-1462. The examiner can normally be reached 9-5 M-F.
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/DUY VU N DEO/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1713
8/14/2026
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