Appeal No. 2003-0614
Application 09/520,591
predetermined receiving station in an integrated circuit
manufacturing facility” (column 3, lines 22 through 26). To this
end, the prealigner includes an optical scanning assembly 36
which performs an edge scan of a wafer to compute its position
and orientation and a second scan to read a bar code symbol 86 on
the wafer (see column 4, lines 60 through 67). The periphery of
the wafer may include a notch 82 which can be scanned to identify
the orientation of the wafer (see column 4, lines 45 through 53)
In proposing to combine Tigelaar and Bacchi, the examiner
concludes that
[t]o have a scanning device provide input to the host
computer of Tigelaar et al and a means to provide
identification of a wafer by way of an identification
code on the wafer to the host computer so as to aid in
the operation of the apparatus would be obvious in view
of Bacchi et al [final rejection, pages 4 and 5].
Notwithstanding the appellants’ hindsight arguments to the
contrary (see pages 16 through 18 in the main brief), the
combined teachings of Tigelaar and Bacchi would have suggested
the use of a scanning device of the sort disclosed by Bacchi as a
practical manner of implementing the wafer identification and
tracking functions broadly disclosed by Tigelaar.
As so modified in view of Bacchi, the Tigelaar system would
account for all of the limitations set forth in claims 2, 4, 7,
8, 13 and 22 through 26. To the extent that the appellants have
10
Page: Previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 Next
Last modified: November 3, 2007