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and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114.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 15 December 2025 has been entered. Claims 1-23 are now pending. The Examiner acknowledges the amendments to claims 1, 8 and 16 as well as the addition of claims 21-23.
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
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 “entry side having… rows of guide channels” and “the entry side is thicker than the exit side” (claim 16) must be shown or the feature(s) canceled from the claim(s). No new matter should be entered.
The drawings are objected to as failing to comply with 37 CFR 1.84(p)(5) because they include the following reference character(s) not mentioned in the description: “764” and “762”. Corrected drawing sheets in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(d), or amendment to the specification to add the reference character(s) in the description in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(b) 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. 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.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
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.
Claims 16-23 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 16 has been amended to recite “an entry side having…rows of guide channels…at a plurality of levels…and an exit side, wherein the entry side is thicker than the exit side”. Claim 16 appears to be drawn to Fig. 13, which shows “an entry side” and “an exit side”. While it appears that the specification discloses “the entry side 1312 of the base 1310 is widened to provide additional directional support of a seed introduction device as it passes into the loading chamber and the carrier sheet, and decreases the complexity of aligning the seed introduction tool with the corresponding exit guide channel 1325B on exit side 1314” [0071], this disclosure would not suggest to one skilled in the relevant art that the entry side is thicker than the exit side and therefore claim 16 constitutes new matter. Further, paragraph [0070] (and Fig. 13) do not appear to disclose “rows of guide channels” in the entry side.
Claim 21 recites “a loading bed” comprising “a hemispherical cutout configured to receive a spherical…seed”. While the specification as originally filed has support for a loading bed having a semi-hemispherical cut out 1120 as shown in Fig. 11 and the accompanying paragraphs, the specification does not provide support for the loading bed itself having a hemispherical cutout. Further, the combination of “a spherical radioactive seed carrier” (line 6) with “a radioactive seed carrier having a thickness defined between opposite and substantially planar first and second surfaces” (lines 1-2) constitutes new matter.
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.
Claims 21-23 are 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.
At line 6 of claim 21, it is unclear if “a spherical radioactive seed carrier” is the same as or different than “a radioactive seed carrier having a thickness defined between opposite and substantially planar first and second surfaces” recited at lines 1-2. A spherical radioactive seed carrier could not have “opposite and substantially planar first and second surfaces” by definition of a sphere.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 1-15 are allowable over the prior art of record. The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter: regarding claims 1-15, while the prior art teaches a loading apparatus comprising: a loading bed configured to support a radioactive seed carrier configured to receive one or more radioactive seeds, the radioactive seed carrier comprising a biocompatible material configured for placement at a treatment area with the one or more radioactive seeds embedded in the radioactive seed carrier; and at least one guide channel positioned in the loading apparatus adjacent to the radioactive seed carrier and configured to guide the one or more radioactive seeds into the radioactive seed carrier, the prior art of record does not teach or fairly suggest a loading apparatus as claimed by Applicant, wherein the loading apparatus is configured to mechanically move the loading bed relative to the at least one guide channel.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments filed 15 December 2025 with respect to the objections to the Drawings have been fully considered and are persuasive in light of the amendment to the specification.
Applicant’s arguments filed 15 December 2025 with respect to the rejection of claims 16-20 under 35 U.S.C. 112(a) have been fully considered however new grounds of rejection are presented above in light of the amendments.
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