DETAILED ACTION
The communication dated 6/20/2025 has been entered and fully considered.
Claims 1-5 are pending.
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) 1-4 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kodera Katsuyoshi (JP 2022041083A), hereinafter KODERA, in view of Fujisawa et al. (JP 2014231185A), hereinafter FUJISAWA.
Regarding claim 1, KODERA teaches: A carrier-tape thermal bonding device that thermally bonds a top tape to a carrier tape including a cavity inside which a workpiece is accommodated, the carrier tape extending in a transport direction (KODERA teaches a thermal bonding device for a carrier tape [Abstract; 0004; 0016].), the carrier-tape thermal bonding device comprising: a transport rail that is configured to hold the carrier tape and the top tape in a stacked condition and includes a lower end portion (KODERA teaches a transport rail (21) to hold the carrier tape (7) and the top tape (17) in an overlapping state a lower end portion [Fig. 1; 0027].); a heating device that is arranged above the transport rail to be opposed to and parallel to the transport rail and is configured to heat and press the top tape (KODERA teaches a heating device (40) that is arranged above the transport rail (21) opposed to and parallel to the transport rail and configured to heat and press the top tape [Fig. 1; 0027].); and a pneumatic drive unit that has an upper end portion for supporting the lower end portion of the transport rail and is configured to move the transport rail upward and downward (KODERA teaches a pneumatic drive unit (23) that has an upper end portion (24) for supporting the lower end portion (22) of the transport rail (21) [0034-0035; Fig. 1].); wherein: the upper end portion of the drive unit has a concave surface that is curved when seen from the transport direction (KODERA teaches the upper end portion (24) of the drive unit (23) has a concave surface (24a) that is curved [0037].), the lower end portion of the transport rail having a convex surface that is curved when seen from the transport direction (KODERA teaches the lower end portion (22) of the transport rail (21) has a convex surface (22a) [0037].), and a plurality of rollers being interposed between the concave surface and the convex surface (KODERA teaches a plurality of rollers (27) are interposed between the concave surface and the convex surface [0037].); the heating device includes at a lower end portion thereof a pair of heating elements positioned on both sides of a width direction of the cavity (KODERA teaches the heating device (40) includes a lower end portion with a pair of heating elements (41a) positioned on both sides of a width direction of the cavity [0028; 0033; 0038; Fig. 1].); the pair of heating elements are each divided into a preheating area and a pressurizing area formed in this order from an upstream side to a downstream side along the transport direction (KODERA teaches the heating elements (41) of the heating device (40) each pressure and heat carrier tape and top tape [0057; 0065]. KODERAA teaches the bonding device (20) preheating the tapes [0026; 0029].); and a length in the width direction of the preheating area of each heating element is greater than a length in the width direction of the pressurizing area (KODERA teaches the length in the width direction of the preheating area of each heating element (41) is greater than a length in the width direction of the pressurizing area (41a) [Fig. 6; 0028-0030].).
If the Applicant remains unconvinced KODERA teaches: the pair of heating elements are each divided into a preheating area and a pressurizing area formed in this order from an upstream side to a downstream side along the transport direction; and a length in the width direction of the preheating area of each heating element is greater than a length in the width direction of the pressurizing area. In the same field of endeavor, molding, FUJISAWA teaches heating elements on a tool that are divided into a heating area (73) [0094] and a pressing area (57) [0158; Figs. 10-12]. FUJISAWA teaches the length in the width direction of the heating area is greater than a length in the width direction of the pressurizing area [Figs. 10-12]. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of the effective filing date of the applicant’s invention to modify KODERA, by having the concept of heating elements divided into separate areas and a length in the width direction of the preheating area of each heating element is greater than a length in the width direction of the pressurizing area, as suggested by FUJISAWA, in order to reduce quality defects [0003].
Regarding claim 2, KODERA teaches: wherein a centerline of the preheating area along the transport direction of each heating element corresponds to a centerline of the pressurizing area along the transport direction (KODERA shows a preheating area along the transport direction of each heating element corresponds to a centerline of the pressurizing area along the transport direction [Fig. 6].).
Regarding claim 3, KODERA teaches: wherein a length in the transport direction of each of the pair of heating elements present in the preheating area is longer than a length in the transport direction of each of the pair of heating elements present in the pressurizing area (KODERA shows the length in the transport direction of each pair of heating elements (41) present in the preheating area is longer than a length in the in the transportation direction of each of the heating elements present in the pressurizing area (41a) [Fig. 6].).
Regarding claim 3, FUJISAWA further teaches: wherein a length in the transport direction of each of the pair of heating elements present in the preheating area is longer than a length in the transport direction of each of the pair of heating elements present in the pressurizing area (FUJISAWA shows the length in the transport direction of each pair of heating elements present in the preheating area is longer than a length in the in the transportation direction of each of the heating elements present in the pressurizing area [Figs. 10-12].).
Regarding claim 4, KODERA teaches: wherein the heating device is supported to be rotatable about a rotation shaft extending parallel to the transport direction (KODERA teaches the heating device (40) has an upper rotating shaft (42) provided at the upper end thereof [0031; Figs. 2-3].), so that the heating device is rotatable between an operation position in which the pair of heating elements face downward, and a standby position in which the pair of heating elements face transversely (KODERA teaches the heating device (40) is rotatable between an operation position in which the pair of heating elements (41) and a standby position in which the pair of heating elements face transversely [Fig. 6; 0031-0032].).
Claim(s) 5 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kodera Katsuyoshi (JP 2022041083A), hereinafter KODERA, and Fujisawa et al. (JP 2014231185A), hereinafter FUJISAWA, as applied to claim 4 above, and further in view of Slagel et al. (U.S. 2,999,533), hereinafter SLAGEL.
Regarding claim 5, KODERA and FUJISAWA teach all of the claimed limitations as stated above, but are silent as to: wherein a cooling channel that cools the rotation shaft is formed in the rotation shaft. In the same field of endeavor, bonding, SLAGEL, teaches a cooling channel that cools a rotation shaft [Col. 5, lines 69-75]. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of the effective filing date of the applicant’s invention to modify KODERA and FUJISAWA, by having a cooling channel that cools to rotation shaft, as suggested by SLAGEL, in order to limit the heat areas of the heating device [Col. 9, lines 3-9].
Conclusion
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/C.B./Examiner, Art Unit 1748
/JACOB T MINSKEY/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1748
