Ex Parte 6357595 et al - Page 3



                Appeal 2006-3236                                                                                
                Inter Partes Reexamination Control No. 95/000,006                                               

                                              BACKGROUND                                                        
                       The invention relates to a tray for storing a semiconductor integrated                   
                circuit device, such as an integrated circuit device in a ball grid array (BGA)                 
                package.  Figure 1 of the '595 patent shows a side view of a BGA device.                        






                                                                                                               
                A BGA device 5 is characterized by a thin planar housing and a plurality of                     
                external terminals 1 on the lower surface of the housing usually arranged in                    
                a two-dimensional array.  Each external terminal is a small solder ball.                        
                       A BGA semiconductor device is stored in a storage portion of a tray                      
                to be transported or subjected to tests (Specification, col. 1, ll. 26-29).  A                  
                storage portion of a conventional tray is a recess having almost the same                       
                shape as that of the package of the semiconductor device (id. at ll. 29-31).  It                
                is important that there not be any contact between the solder ball and the                      
                tray.  The conventional tray supports the peripheral portion outside the                        
                outermost ball terminals of the lower surface of the package of the                             
                semiconductor device with a peripheral ledge of the storage portion of the                      
                tray, and restrains horizontal movement of the package with a wall surface                      
                of the storage portion (id. at ll. 31-43).  As packages have become more and                    
                more compact, the width of the peripheral portion of the lower surface of the                   

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