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 .
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 09/27/2024, 09/30/2024 and 06/03/2025 were filed. The submission 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 § 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.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph:
The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention.
Claim 14 is 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 1 recites the limitation
• “the third direction” in line 16;
There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim.
Drawings
The drawings are objected to under 37 CFR 1.83(a). The drawings must show every feature of the invention specified in the claims. Therefore, the in cross-sections of the body in the first and third directions, is Dc, and a porosity of the disconnection portion measured in an end of the internal electrode in the third direction is Dm features of claim 1 must be shown or the feature(s) canceled from the claim(s). No new matter should be entered.
Corrected drawing sheets in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(d) are required in reply to the Office action to avoid abandonment of the application. Any amended replacement drawing sheet should include all of the figures appearing on the immediate prior version of the sheet, even if only one figure is being amended. The figure or figure number of an amended drawing should not be labeled as “amended.” If a drawing figure is to be canceled, the appropriate figure must be removed from the replacement sheet, and where necessary, the remaining figures must be renumbered and appropriate changes made to the brief description of the several views of the drawings for consistency. Additional replacement sheets may be necessary to show the renumbering of the remaining figures. Each drawing sheet submitted after the filing date of an application must be labeled in the top margin as either “Replacement Sheet” or “New Sheet” pursuant to 37 CFR 1.121(d). If the changes are not accepted by the examiner, the applicant will be notified and informed of any required corrective action in the next Office action. The objection to the drawings will not be held in abeyance.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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 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 1-16 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Cha et al. (US20210035736).
With respect to claim 1, Cha discloses a multilayer electronic component (see FIG. 1, element 100), comprising: a body (see FIG. 1, element 110) including a dielectric layer (see FIG. 2, element 111) and internal electrodes (see FIG. 2, elements 121 and 122) alternately disposed in a first direction (see FIG. 1, Z direction), and including first and second surfaces (see FIG. 1, elements 1 and 2) opposing each other in the first direction, third and fourth surfaces (see FIG. 1, elements 3 and 4) connected to the first and second surfaces and opposing each other in a second direction (see FIG. 1, X direction), and fifth and sixth surfaces (see FIG. 1, elements 5 and 6) connected to the first to fourth surfaces and opposing each other in a third direction (see FIG. 1, Y direction); and an external electrode (see FIG. 2, elements 131 and 132) disposed on the body and connected to the internal electrode, wherein the internal electrode includes a plurality of electrode portions (see FIG. 4, element E) and disconnection portions (see FIG. 4, element G), and the disconnection portion includes at least one of a dielectric (see FIG. 4, element D) and a pore (see FIG. 4, element P), and when a ratio of a length of the pore to a length of the disconnection portion is a porosity of the disconnection portion, a porosity of the disconnection portion measured in a central portion of the internal electrode in the third direction, in cross-sections of the body in the first and third directions, is Dc (see FIG. 4, elements g1, g2 and g3), and a porosity of the disconnection portion measured in an end of the internal electrode in the third direction is Dm (see FIG. 4, element g4), Dm/Dc is less than 0.79 (
g
4
A
v
g
.
g
1
+
g
2
+
g
3
=
0
A
v
g
.
(
1
3
+
1
2
+
2
3
)
=
0
0.4966
=
0
,
noting Dm is 0 base on g4 lacking any pore). As such, Dm/Dc is less than 0.79 which meets the claim limitation.
With respect to claim 2, Cha discloses wherein Dm/Dc is 0.51 or less (
g
4
A
v
g
.
g
1
+
g
2
+
g
3
=
0
A
v
g
.
(
1
3
+
1
2
+
2
3
)
=
0
0.4966
=
0
,
noting Dm is 0 base on g4 lacking any pore). As such, Dm/Dc is less than 0.51 which meets the claim limitation.
With respect to claim 3, Cha discloses Dm/Dc is 0.26 or more and 0.51 or less It would clearly be well within the purview of a person having ordinary skill in the art, given the previously claimed structure, to be able to determine, through routine experimentation, the value of Dm/Dc is 0.26 or more and 0.51 or less in order to improve the bonding force while increasing the withstand the voltage (see paragraph 74-75). See MPEP 2144.04(IV)(A), citing In Gardner v. TEC Syst., Inc., 725 F.2d1338, 220 USPQ 777 (Fed. Cir. 1984), cert. denied, 469 U.S. 830, 225 USPQ 232 (1984) and MPEP 2144.05(II)(A), citing Merck & Co. Inc. v. Biocraft Lab. Inc., 874 F.2d804, 809, 10 USPQ2d 1843, 1848 (Fed. Cir. 1989), cert. denied, 493 U.S. 975 (1989).
With respect to claim 4, Cha discloses a third directional size of the central portion of the internal electrode in the third direction is 23 μm, and a third directional size of the end of the internal electrode in the third direction is 15 μm. It would clearly be well within the purview of a person having ordinary skill in the art, given the previously
claimed structure, to be able to determine, through routine experimentation, the size of the internal electrode layers in various portion in order to improve the bonding force while increasing the withstand the voltage (see paragraph 74-75). See MPEP 2144.04(IV)(A), citing In Gardner v. TEC Syst., Inc., 725 F.2d1338, 220 USPQ 777 (Fed. Cir. 1984), cert. denied, 469 U.S. 830, 225 USPQ 232 (1984) and MPEP 2144.05(II)(A), citing Merck & Co. Inc. v. Biocraft Lab. Inc., 874 F.2d804, 809, 10 USPQ2d 1843, 1848 (Fed. Cir. 1989), cert. denied, 493 U.S. 975 (1989).
With respect to claim 5, Cha discloses Dm is 40% or less (
g
4
A
v
g
.
g
1
+
g
2
+
g
3
=
0
A
v
g
.
(
1
3
+
1
2
+
2
3
)
=
0
0.4966
=
0
,
noting Dm is 0 base on g4 lacking any pore). As such, Dm is less than 40% which meets the claim limitation.
With respect to claim 6, Cha discloses Dm is 19% or less (
g
4
A
v
g
.
g
1
+
g
2
+
g
3
=
0
A
v
g
.
(
1
3
+
1
2
+
2
3
)
=
0
0.4966
=
0
,
noting Dm is 0 base on g4 lacking any pore). As such, Dm is less than 19% which meets the claim limitation.
With respect to claim 7, Cha discloses the disconnection portion is disposed to penetrate through the internal electrode in the first direction (see FIG. 4, element D).
With respect to claim 8, Cha discloses the dielectric is disposed to connect dielectric layers adjacent to the disconnection portion (see FIG. 4, elements 111a, 111b and D, paragraph 73).
With respect to claim 9, Cha discloses at least one of the plurality of disconnection portions includes both the dielectric and the pore (see FIG. 4, elements D and P).
With respect to claim 10, Cha discloses at least one of the plurality of disconnection portions is formed of the dielectric (see FIG. 4, element d5).
With respect to claim 11, Cha discloses the dielectric includes the same material as the dielectric layer (see paragraph 60).
With respect to claim 12, Cha discloses the dielectric includes one or more selected from the group consisting of Ca, Mg, Mn, Al, and Si (see paragraph 60).
With respect to claim 13, Cha discloses an average thickness of the internal electrode is 1 μm or less (see paragraph 89, noting 0.41um or less).
With respect to claim 14, Cha discloses a multilayer electronic component (see FIG. 1, element 100), comprising: a body (see FIG. 1, element 110) including a dielectric layer (see FIG. 2, element 111) and internal electrodes (see FIG. 2, elements 121 and 122) alternately disposed in a first direction (see FIG. 1, Z direction), and including first and second surfaces opposing each other in the first direction (see FIG. 1, elements 1 and 2), third and fourth surfaces (see FIG. 1, elements 3 and 4) connected to the first and second surfaces and opposing each other in a second direction (see FIG. 1, X direction), and fifth and sixth surfaces (see FIG. 1, elements 5 and 6) connected to the first to fourth surfaces and opposing each other in the third direction (see FIG. 1, Y direction); and an external electrode (see FIG. 2, elements 131 and 132) disposed on the body and connected to the internal electrode, wherein the internal electrode includes a plurality of electrode portions (see FIG. 4, element E) and disconnection portions (see FIG. 4, element G), and the disconnection portion includes at least one of a dielectric (see FIG. 4, element D) and a pore (see FIG. 4, element P), and when a ratio of a length of the pore to a length of the disconnection portion is referred to as a porosity of the disconnection portion, a porosity of the disconnection portion measured in a central portion of the internal electrode in the third direction, in cross-sections of the body in the first and third directions, is Dc (see FIG. 4, elements g1, g2 and g3), and a porosity of the disconnection portion measured in an end of the internal electrode in the third direction is Dm (see FIG. 4, element g4), the Dm is 40% or less, and Dm<Dc is satisfied (
g
4
A
v
g
.
g
1
+
g
2
+
g
3
=
0
A
v
g
.
(
1
3
+
1
2
+
2
3
)
=
0
0.4966
=
0
,
noting Dm is 0 base on g4 lacking any pore). As such, Dm<Dc and Dm is less than 40% which meets the claim limitation.
With respect to claim 15, Cha discloses the Dm is 19% or less (
g
4
A
v
g
.
g
1
+
g
2
+
g
3
=
0
A
v
g
.
(
1
3
+
1
2
+
2
3
)
=
0
0.4966
=
0
,
noting Dm is 0 base on g4 lacking any pore). As such, Dm is less than 19% which meets the claim limitation.
With respect to claim 16, Cha discloses the Dc is 43% or less (see FIG. 4, element g1, noting g1 is
1
3
=0.33). As such, Dc is less than 43% which meets the claim limitation.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to ESTHER N LIAN whose telephone number is (571)272-5726. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 8:00 - 5:00 ET.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Timothy Dole can be reached at 571-272-2229. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/ESTHER N LIAN/Examiner, Art Unit 2847
/Timothy J. Dole/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2847
Prosecution Insights