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 § 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.
A broad range or limitation together with a narrow range or limitation that falls within the broad range or limitation (in the same claim) may be considered indefinite if the resulting claim does not clearly set forth the metes and bounds of the patent protection desired. See MPEP § 2173.05(c). In the present instance, claim 10 recites the broad recitation “preferably ranges from 2% to 30%”, and the claim also recites “an optimal weight ratio being substantially 10%.” which is the narrower statement of the range/limitation. The claim(s) are considered indefinite because there is a question or doubt as to whether the feature introduced by such narrower language is (a) merely exemplary of the remainder of the claim, and therefore not required, or (b) a required feature of the claims.
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.
Claim(s) 1-2, 9 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Tsou et al. (Pub. No. US 2023/0031184) in view of Ikemiya et al. (Pub. No. US 2016/0340191).
As to claim 1, Tsou discloses a PCB structure with heat dissipation function, including:
at least one substrate, including a first substrate which includes a first primer material 120 and a first electronic conductive layer 122 disposed on the first primer material; and
a solder mask layer 160, disposed on the first electronic conductive layer;
wherein, when the at least one substrate includes the first substrate and a second substrate, the PCB structure further includes an adhesive insulation layer disposed between the first substrate and the second substrate; and
However, Tsou does not disclose that at least one of the material compositions of the solder mask layer and the adhesive insulation layer, includes an aluminum oxide-boron nitride-fullerene composite material, to transmit heat from the substrate into the outside of the substrate by radiation heat transfer.
Ikemiya discloses a resin having boron nitride and can include alumina and fullerene (¶0176).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have the solder mask of Tsou include an aluminum oxide-boron nitride-fullerene composite material, to transmit heat from the substrate into the outside of the substrate by radiation heat transfer in order to improve heat radiation.
As to claim 2, Tsou discloses that the first electronic conductive layer covers a top surface of the first primer material (fig. 1), or the first electronic conductive layer covers the top surface and a bottom surface of the first primer material opposite to the top surface, wherein the solder mask layer covers the first electronic conductive layer.
As to claim 9, Tsou does not disclose that the material of the primer material, includes epoxy resin, glass fiber nonwoven, polyester fiber, bake lite, or polyester material.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have the primer material of Tsou include epoxy resin, glass fiber nonwoven, polyester fiber, bake lite or polyester material since it has been held to be within the general skill of a worker in the art to select a known material on the basis of its suitability for the intended use as a matter of obvious design choice. In re Leshin, 125 USPQ 416.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 3-8 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.
Regarding dependent claim 3, the prior art of record, taken alone or in combination, fails to teach or fairly suggest, in combining with other limitations within the claim and limitation recited in claim 1, a combination of limitations that discloses wherein the aluminum oxide-boron nitride-fullerene composite material includes plural micro-composite particles, wherein the aluminum oxide is disposed at the center of each of the micro-composite particles and encircled by plural sandwich structures in the micro-composite particle, and each of the sandwich structures is formed in a sequence of boron nitride, fullerene, and boron nitride. None of the reference art of record discloses or renders obvious such a combination.
Regarding dependent claim 5, the prior art of record, taken alone or in combination, fails to teach or fairly suggest, in combining with other limitations within the claim and limitation recited in claim 1, a combination of limitations that discloses wherein the fullerene includes a C60 molecular structure in a long capsule-like shape. None of the reference art of record discloses or renders obvious such a combination.
Regarding dependent claim 6, the prior art of record, taken alone or in combination, fails to teach or fairly suggest, in combining with other limitations within the claim and limitation recited in claim 1, a combination of limitations that discloses wherein the material of the adhesive insulation layer includes the aluminum oxide-boron nitride-fullerene composite material, and the first primer material is made of a high thermal radiation transmissive material, wherein the thermal radiation from the adhesive insulation layer penetrates the first primer material; or, the first substrate includes a thermal radiation-permeable section, and the thermal radiation from the adhesive insulation layer passes through the thermal radiation-permeable section. None of the reference art of record discloses or renders obvious such a combination.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to AMOL H PATEL whose telephone number is (571)270-7833. The examiner can normally be reached 9:30AM-6:00PM.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, TIMOTHY THOMPSON can be reached at (571) 272-2342. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/AMOL H PATEL/Examiner, Art Unit 2847
/TIMOTHY J THOMPSON/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2847
