Ex Parte Cobbley et al - Page 8

                Appeal 2007-1772                                                                             
                Application 10/672,750                                                                       
                      In this regard, one of ordinary skill in the art would clearly grasp that              
                the so-called “dummy die” of Pai are merely substitutes/additions to the                     
                adhesive bonds formed between electrically connected stacked die of a                        
                packaged device, as disclosed in the Background portion of the disclosure of                 
                Pai. While Pai may disclose that prior art dummy die –free packages are                      
                assembled with some difficulty, Pai does not teach that eliminating a dummy                  
                die would render the integrated circuit package device inoperative or                        
                substantially alter the function or mode of operation thereof.                               
                      Appellants argue that the applied prior art does not teach or suggest a                
                shingle stack arrangement for the stacked die as called for in claims 48 and                 
                66 (Br. 20).  However, the artisan is presumed to have some capability in                    
                combining the die into a stack form.  “The combination of familiar elements                  
                according to known methods is likely to be obvious when it does no more                      
                than yield predictable results.”  KSR Int’l v. Teleflex Inc., 127 S. Ct. at 1739,            
                82 USPQ2d at 1395.  The question to be asked is “whether the improvement                     
                is more than the predictable use of prior art elements according to their                    
                established functions.”  Id.                                                                 
                      Stacked chip packages, which are the subject matter of Pai’s U.S.                      
                Patent and Appellants’ Specification and Claims, are clearly known by one                    
                of ordinary skill in the art as an integrated circuit package arrangement that               
                allows chip combinations in an integrated circuit package, while saving                      
                space as evidenced by a review of the “Background of the Invention”                          
                Section of Pai’s disclosure.  Compare Appellants’ “Description of the                        
                Related Art” (Specification 1-4).  The question before us with respect to                    
                Appellants’ claimed “shingle stack” arrangement is:  Would one of ordinary                   
                skill in the art have recognized that chips or die, to be stacked, may come in               

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