DETAILED ACTION
Continued Examination Under 37 CFR 1.114
A request for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, including the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e), was filed in this application after final rejection. Since this application is eligible for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114. Applicant's submission filed on 29 December 2025 has been entered. Claims 1, 3-5, 8, 10-13, 21, 22 and 24 are now pending. The Examiner acknowledges the amendments to claim 1, as well as the cancellation of claims 9 and 14-20.
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 .
Drawings
3. The drawings are objected to under 37 CFR 1.83(a). The drawings must show every feature of the invention specified in the claims. Therefore, the “the microblade has a cutting edge pointing and facing away from the inner surface and inwardly towards the hollow central portion” (lines 27-29 of claim 1) must be shown or the feature(s) canceled from the claim(s). No new matter should be entered.
Corrected drawing sheets in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(d) are required in reply to the Office action to avoid abandonment of the application. Any amended replacement drawing sheet should include all of the figures appearing on the immediate prior version of the sheet, even if only one figure is being amended. The figure or figure number of an amended drawing should not be labeled as “amended.” If a drawing figure is to be canceled, the appropriate figure must be removed from the replacement sheet, and where necessary, the remaining figures must be renumbered and appropriate changes made to the brief description of the several views of the drawings for consistency. Additional replacement sheets may be necessary to show the renumbering of the remaining figures. Each drawing sheet submitted after the filing date of an application must be labeled in the top margin as either “Replacement Sheet” or “New Sheet” pursuant to 37 CFR 1.121(d). If the changes are not accepted by the examiner, the applicant will be notified and informed of any required corrective action in the next Office action. The objection to the drawings will not be held in abeyance.
Specification
4. The disclosure is objected to because of the following informalities: paragraph [0049] recites “actuation cinches the distal end of the nut driver/cutter and reduces the ID of the microblade to cut into the tether as the nut driver/cutter rotates”. It is unclear what “ID” is defined as in this instance. See 37 CFR 1.71(a).
Appropriate correction is required.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
5. The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of 35 U.S.C. 112(a):
(a) IN GENERAL.—The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor or joint inventor of carrying out the invention.
The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112:
The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor of carrying out his invention.
6. Claims 1, 3-5, 8, 10-13, 21, 22 and 24 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(a) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), first paragraph, as failing to comply with the written description requirement. The claim(s) contains subject matter which was not described in the specification in such a way as to reasonably convey to one skilled in the relevant art that the inventor or a joint inventor, or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the inventor(s), at the time the application was filed, had possession of the claimed invention.
Claim 1 at lines 27-29 recites that the microblade has a cutting edge “pointing and facing away from the inner surface and inwardly towards the hollow central portion.” While it is reasonable that a microblade would have a cutting edge, the disclosure as originally filed does not appear to support a cutting edge which is “pointing and facing away from the inner surface and inwardly towards the hollow central portion” and therefore the recitation constitutes new matter.
7. 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.
8. Claim 3 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention.
9. Claim 3 recites “the nut driver/cutter comprises an interior surface…”. It is unclear if the recited “interior surface” is the same as or different than “an inner surface” (of the nut driver/cutter) recited at lines 23-24 of claim 1, from which claim 3 depends.
Response to Arguments
10. Applicant’s arguments filed 29 December 2025 with respect to the objections to the Drawings have been fully considered and are persuasive with respect to the objection of lines 23-24 of claim 1. However, with respect to the specific objection of claim 1 (lines 27-29), the objection remains. While the filing of new Fig. 8A is acknowledged, such an objection is not resolved in light of the amendments as the Drawings as originally filed fail to show “the microblade has a cutting edge pointing and facing away from the inner surface and inwardly towards the hollow central portion”. Applicant has labeled new Fig. 8A with “cutting edge” however this does not show the cutting edge “pointing and facing away from the inner surface and inwardly towards the hollow central portion”.
11. Applicant’s arguments filed 29 December 2025 with respect to the objection to the Specification have been fully considered and are now persuasive. Applicant notes that “ID” refers to an inner diameter defined by the cutting edge of the microblade, however, determining “ID” to be equated to “inner diameter” is not clear in light of the specification and such an acronym should be followed by a definition in parentheses to apprise the reader of its meaning and an understanding of the disclosure. “The specification must include a written description of the invention or discovery and of the manner and process of making and using the same, and is required to be in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art or science to which the invention or discovery appertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same” (see 37 CFR 1.71(a)).
12. Applicant’s arguments filed 29 December 2025 with respect to the rejection of claim 1 under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) have been fully considered and are persuasive in light of the amendments. However, previous rejection of claim 3 under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) is not addressed and no amendment made to claim 1 resolves the rejection. As such, the rejection of claim 3 under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) has been maintained as noted above.
13. Applicant’s arguments filed 29 December 2025 with respect to the rejection of claims 1, 3-5, 8, 10-13, 21, 22 and 24 under 35 U.S.C. 112(a) have been fully considered. Applicant’s amendments to claim 1 resolved the first rejection under 35 U.S.C. 112(a) (of the previous Office action), however the second rejection with respect to claim 1 at lines 27-29 remains rejected for the reasons noted above. While it is reasonable that a microblade would have a cutting edge, the disclosure as originally filed does not appear to support a cutting edge which is “pointing and facing away from the inner surface and inwardly towards the hollow central portion”. Further, the newly presented Fig. 8A now points to a “cutting edge” but in this new figure, one of ordinary skill could not reasonably ascertain that the cutting edge is “pointing and facing away from the inner surface and inwardly towards the hollow central portion”.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to CHRISTINE HOPKINS MATTHEWS whose telephone number is (571)272-9058. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Friday, 7:30 am - 4:00 pm.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Charles A Marmor, II can be reached on (571) 272-4730. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/CHRISTINE H MATTHEWS/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3791
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