DETAILED ACTION
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 .
Response to Amendment
The Amendment filed February 02, 2026 has been entered. Currently, claims 1 and 20 have been amended, and claims 1-3, 6, 8-23 are pending in the application.
Claim Objections
Claim 1 is objected to because of the following informalities: the phrase “wherein the signal processing circuitry is further configured to clock signals the electrical signal” appears to have an accidental “signals” after “clock”. Appropriate correction is required. Claims 2-3, 6, 8-23 are also objected to because they are dependent on claim 1.
Claim 1 is objected to because of the following informalities: the “electrical signal” in line 2 of page 3 should be plural to maintain claim consistency. Appropriate correction is required. Claims 2-3, 6, 8-23 are also objected to because they are dependent on claim 1.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 103 which forms the basis for all obviousness rejections set forth in this Office action:
A patent for a claimed invention may not be obtained, notwithstanding that the claimed invention is not identically disclosed as set forth in section 102, if the differences between the claimed invention and the prior art are such that the claimed invention as a whole would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to a person having ordinary skill in the art to which the claimed invention pertains. Patentability shall not be negated by the manner in which the invention was made.
Claims 1-3, 6, 9-13, 15-23 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kaiser (U.S. Application No. 20190192077 A1), in view of Kang (K.R. Application No. 20200056744 A), in view of Tiemens (U.S. Application No. 20080187161 A1), in view of Cartledge (U.S. Application No. 20170087364 A1), and further in view of Pine (U.S. Patent No. 10827249 B1).
Regarding independent claim 1, Kaiser discloses a modular auricular sensing earphone (100) (pa. 0024),comprising:
an earpiece module having a housing (112) (pa. 0008 & Fig. 1), a first coupling element (120, 122, including a set of laterally offset concentric conductive rings) (pa. 0048-0049) and at least one electrode (114/116/118) (pa. 0008, 0041), the housing including a first end portion (i.e., tapered distal end of the housing 122) configured for at least partial insertion into an ear canal and a second end portion (i.e., remaining region of the cylindrical housing (112) that does not include the first end portion) opposite the first end portion (pa. 0040), the first coupling element being secured to the second end portion of the housing (i.e., structures 120, 122, and the rings are integrally formed on the housing; Examiner is interpreting “secured” as being permanently or releasably attached to), and the at least one electrode being arranged along the housing between the first end portion and the second end portion (refer to Figure 1); and
an electronics module (140) having a second coupling element (144, 142, and corresponding concentric rings on its outside surface of the electronics module) (pa. 0049-0049) at a first side (i.e., distal side, left-most side) thereof, the second coupling element being releasably attached to the first coupling element (pa. 0047-0049), wherein the electronics module includes electrical signals (e.g., EEG signals) gathered from the at least one electrode (pa. 0011);
wherein the first coupling element and the second coupling element facilitate an electrical connection between the earpiece module and the electronics module to transmit electrical signals from the electrode to the electronics module (pa. 0048),
wherein the at least one electrode comprises circular-shaped electrodes positioned on an exterior surface of the housing (pa. 0033, 0035), and wherein the electronics module includes signal processing circuitry (combination of amplifiers, an ADC, and a transceiver) (pa. 0050) configured to independently process electrical signals from each of the plurality of annular conductive rings to generate differential voltage measurements for brain-computer interface applications (with the aid of controller 150) (pa. 0056, 0066).
However, Kaiser does not disclose wherein the second coupling element and the first coupling element are magnetically coupled.
Kang, in the same field of endeavor, teaches an earplug device for collecting biosignals comprising an ear tip (10, 11) (analogous to the housing) provided with a first connecting portion (12) (analogous to the second end of the housing) for engaging to a second connecting portion (22) (analogous to the first side of the electronics module) of a main body (20) (analogous to the electronics module) (page 6, paragraph 3; page 7 last paragraph – page 8, first paragraph & Figs. 2a-2c);
wherein the inside portion of the hollow, cylindrical body of the first connecting portion includes a first magnetic region (13) (analogous to the first coupling element), and an outside region of the pipe body of the second connecting portion includes a second magnetic region (23) (analogous to the second coupling element) (page 8, last three paragraphs), and wherein the second coupling element and the first coupling element are magnetically coupled (page 8, paragraph 3-4).
It would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have substituted the conductive material of the first and second coupling elements of Kaiser with a metal powder having electrical conductivity and magnetism, as taught by Kang, for the purpose of improving the electrical conductivity and thermal conductivity between the housing and the electronics module (Kang, page 8, paragraph 4).
However, Keiser/Kang combination do not teach wherein the earpiece module has a stiffening tube extending along a longitudinal axis from the first end portion to the second end portion, and wherein the housing of the earpiece module has a through-hole therethrough from the first end portion to the second end portion defined by a lumen of the stiffening tube, and wherein the through-hole extends through the stiffening tube providing an acoustic path from the electronics module to the ear canal.
Tiemens, in the same field of endeavor, teaches a stiffening tube (26) extending along a longitudinal axis from the first end portion to the second end portion (pa. 0018 & Fig. 1);
wherein the housing of the earpiece module has a through-hole (30) therethrough from the first end portion to the second end portion defined by a lumen of the stiffening tube (pa. 0018); and
wherein the through-hole extends through the stiffening tube providing an acoustic path from the electronics module to the ear canal (pa. 0027, 0032).
It would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have added the through-hole with a stiffening tube in order to provide support, rigidity, and stiffening to the housing body of Kaiser when it is inserted into the ear canal (Tiemens, pa. 0018).
However, Kaiser/Kang/Tiemens combination do not teach wherein the at least one electrode comprises a plurality of annular conductive rings positioned and spaced apart along the longitudinal axis between the first end portion and the second end portion, nor a dedicated EEG sensor configured to detect brain activity signals in addition to/separate from the at least one electrode.
Cartledge, in the same field of endeavor, teaches an earbud/neurostimulator device (8100) comprising ear piece (8130) (analogous to the housing of Kaiser) and audio platform (8102) (analogous to the electronics module of Kaiser) (pa. 0300 & Fig. 81). An exterior surface (8139) of the ear piece further comprises a plurality of neuromodulation electrodes (8136/8138) which may be arranged on the exterior surface in different manners. In one embodiment, the electrodes form of circular pads, and are spread out over the entirety of the exterior surface of the ear piece, as seen in Fig. 85 (this is analogous to the manner in which the electrodes of Kaiser are disposed on the surface of the housing, as described above). In a second embodiment, the electrodes are in the form of circumferential rings or bands alternating from the base to the tip on the exterior surface of the ear piece, as seen in Fig. 87 (pa. 0303).
Furthermore, a different embodiment of Cartledge teaches a device including a controller (13650) receiving input information from EEG sensor(s) (13680) in order to provide control for a user feedback system, wherein the sensors can be isolated sensors or part of electrodes (13690) (pa. 0352-0353).
It would have been an obvious matter of design choice to one having ordinary skill in the art at before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the shape of the electrodes of Kaiser from a circular-shape to a ring-shape, as taught by Cartledge, since it appears that the invention would perform equally as well with either shape.
It would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have added the isolated/dedicated EEG sensor of Cartledge to the modular auricular sensing in-ear earphone of Kaiser for the purpose of providing additional EEG signals that further confirm diagnosis/treatment of a patient.
However, Kaiser/Kang/Tiemens/Cartledge combination do not teach wherein a pair of interstitial flexible circuit is compressed between the first coupling element and the second coupling element, wherein each interstitial flexible circuit in the pair of the interstitial flexible circuit is patterned to provide alignment between the first coupling element and the second coupling element, nor wherein the signal processing circuitry is further configured to clock signals the electrical signal in a predetermined pattern to provide electrical passthrough for each of the at least one electrode.
Pine, in the same field of endeavor, teaches a wireless earbud device (100) comprising a pair of interstitial flexible circuit (816, including a first PCB 1400 and a second PCB 1402) (Col. 4, lines 40-50; Col. 17, lines 42-27 & Fig. 8) is compressed between the first coupling element and the second coupling element (see the interstitial flexible circuit being compressed inside the internal assembly 702 as seen in Fig. 8), and wherein each interstitial flexible circuit in the pair of the interstitial flexible circuit is patterned to provide alignment (via grooves 1502 and opening 1418) between the first coupling element and the second coupling element (Col. 3, lines 62-67 – Col. 4, lines 1-8; Col. 21, lines 13-28 & Figs. 15-15B); and
wherein the wireless earbuds further include a signal processing circuitry (a time-division multiplexing (TDM)) further configured to clock electrical signals in a predetermined pattern to provide electrical passthrough (Col. 28, lines 62-65).
As it is known in the art , a TDM is a communication technique that transmits multiple independent signals over a single shared channel by dividing the transmission time into distinct, repeating slots; it is a method of transmitting and receiving independent signals over a common signal path by means of synchronized switches, wherein the slots effectively act as sequential, rapid electrical pass-throughs for electrical signals.
It would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have added the pair of interstitial flexible circuit of Pine between the first and the second coupling elements of Kaiser for the purpose of providing alignment features that coordinate positioning and further allow the first and second coupling features to fit together.
Furthermore, it would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have added the TDM processing device of Pine to the processing circuitry of Kaiser for the purpose of reducing the number of wires required to interface with the at least one electrode and EEG sensor.
Regarding claim 2, Kaiser/Tiemens/Cartledge/Pine combination discloses wherein the first coupling element comprises a plate. Examiner is interpreting the word “plate” as a structure characterized by a small thickness compared to its length and width. Therefore, the first coupling element (specifically, the cylindrical hollow body of 122) has an annular/circular shape, wherein the cross-section of such body results in a plate-shaped structure (as seen by the shape formed by the conductive, concentric rings) with a thickness (as seen by the dashed lines in Fig. 1, where arrow 122 is pointing to) that is smaller than the length/width (Kaiser, see Fig 1).
However, they do not teach the second coupling element comprises a magnet.
Kang, in the same field of endeavor, teaches the second connecting portion includes a second magnetic region (23) (analogous to the second coupling element) (page 8, last three paragraphs).
It would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have substituted the conductive material of the second coupling elements of Kaiser with a metal powder having electrical conductivity and magnetism, as taught by Kang, for the purpose of improving the electrical conductivity and thermal conductivity between the housing and the electronics module (Kang, page 8, paragraph 4).
Regarding claim 3, Kaiser/Tiemens/Cartledge/Pine combination discloses wherein the plate comprises a metal plate (i.e., the conductive material of the electric concentric rings) (Kaiser, pa. 0047-0048), and the second coupling element is a ring (Kaiser, see Fig. 1).
However, they do not teach wherein the magnet comprises a ring magnet, and when coupled together, the ring magnet and the metal plate enables at least one of rotation or translation of the metal plate relative to the ring magnet while maintaining electrical connectivity between the earpiece module and the electronics module.
Kang, in the same field of endeavor, teaches the second magnetic region (23) comprising a ring shape (page 8, last two paragraphs & Fig 2c), and when the first magnetic region and the second magnetic region are coupled together, they enable at least one of rotation or translation of the metal plate relative to the ring magnet while maintaining electrical connectivity between the earpiece module and the electronics module (page 6, paragraph 3). Examiner is determining rotation or translation of the first coupling element relative to the second coupling element since they are attached via magnets (i.e., not a permanent attachment mechanism that allows at least partial rotational movements).
Regarding claim 6, Kaiser/Kang/Tiemens/Cartledge/Pine combination discloses wherein the electronics module includes a speaker (Kaiser, pa. 0064).
Regarding claim 9, Kaiser/Kang/Tiemens/Cartledge/Pine combination discloses wherein the first coupling element and the second coupling element are both annular (Kaiser, see ring shaped concentric rings in both the housing and electronic module in Fig. 1).
Regarding claim 10, Kaiser/Kang/Tiemens/Cartledge/Pine combination discloses wherein the first coupling element has a larger outer diameter than an outer diameter of the second coupling element (Kaiser, pa. 0048).
Regarding claim 11, Kaiser/Kang/Tiemens/Cartledge/Pine combination discloses wherein the first coupling element has a larger inner diameter than an inner diameter of the second coupling element (Kaiser, pa. 0048). Since the second coupling elements fits inside the first coupling element, it can be determined that the first coupling element has a larger inner diameter than an inner diameter of the second coupling element.
Regarding claim 12, Kaiser/Kang/Tiemens/Cartledge/Pine combination discloses wherein the first coupling element is electrically coupled to the electrode and the second coupling element is electrically coupled to an electronic component of the electronics module, and electrical signals are transmitted from the electrode to the electronics module via the first coupling element and the second coupling element (Kaiser, pa. 0060).
Regarding claim 13, Kaiser/Tiemens/Cartledge/Pine combination discloses the invention substantially as claimed in claim 1 and discussed above.
However, they do not disclose wherein the first coupling element comprises a ferromagnetic material and is coated with an electrically conductive material.
Kang, in the same field of endeavor, teaches first magnetic region (13) comprising a ferromagnetic material and being coated with an electrically conductive material (page 8, paragraph 3).
It would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have substituted the conductive material of the first coupling element of Kaiser for the ferromagnetic material of Kang for the purpose of improving the electrical conductivity and thermal conductivity between the housing and the electronics module (Kang, page 8, paragraph 4).
Regarding claim 15, Kaiser/Kang/Tiemens/Cartledge/Pine combination discloses wherein the first coupling element is washer-shaped (Kaiser, i.e., the cross-section of the hollow, cylindrical body of 120 is washer/ring-shaped as seen in Fig. 1) having a first side (i.e., the outer diameter of 122) permanently secured to the second end portion (i.e., inner portion) of the housing (Kaiser, pa. 0037).
Regarding claim 16, Kaiser/Kang/Tiemens/Cartledge/Pine combination discloses wherein a second side (i.e., the inner diameter) of the first coupling element is curved to mate with a contact surface of the second coupling element (Keiser, pa. 0047). Examiner is emphasizing that the second coupling element is a protruding structure that engages with the inherently curved structure of the second side of the first coupling element.
Regarding claim 17, Kaiser/Kang/Tiemens/Cartledge/Pine combination discloses wherein the electronics module includes a processor module (130) operatively coupled to the second coupling element to receive the electrical signals and to perform on-board processing of the received electrical signals or to transmit the received electrical signals to a remote processing system (Kaiser, pa. 0024).
Regarding claim 18, Kaiser/Kang/Tiemens/Cartledge/Pine combination discloses wherein the electronics module further includes one or more additional sensors, including at least one of a biosensor, an orientation sensor, or an accelerometer (Kaiser, pa. 0016).
Regarding claim 19, Kaiser/Tiemens/Cartledge/Pine combination discloses the invention substantially as claimed in claim 1 and discussed above.
However, they do not disclose wherein the one or more additional sensors
includes a temperature sensor.
Kang, in the same field of endeavor, teaches the sensor unit may include a temperature sensor (Kang, page 11, paragraph 5).
It would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have added a temperature sensor for the purpose of collecting additional user data (Kang, page 11, paragraph 5).
Regarding claim 20, Kaiser/Kang/Tiemens/Cartledge combination discloses the invention substantially as claimed in claim 1 and discussed above.
However, they do not disclose wherein the pair of interstitial flexible circuits is configured to pass the electrical signals from the first coupling element to the second coupling element.
Pine, in the same field of endeavor, teaches the pair of interstitial flexible circuit (816, including a first PCB 1400 and a second PCB 1402) is configured to pass the electrical signals via conductive traces (Col. 4, lines 40-50; Col. 17, lines 42-27 & Fig. 8).
It would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have added the flexible circuit of Pine in between the first and the second coupling elements of Kaiser to be configured to pass electrical signals for the purpose of aiding in functions such as signal processing that further allows for diagnosis/treatment of the patient.
Regarding independent claim 21, Kaiser/Kang/Tiemens/Cartledge/Pine combination discloses a sensor system assembly configured to detect and process bio-signals of a wearer, the sensor system comprising:
the modular auricular sensing earphone of claim 1; and
a remote processing system (150) including a transceiver configured for
communication with a transceiver of the processor module, and one or more processors
configured to process the bio-signals received from the processor module (Kaiser, pa. 0017, 0025 & Fig. 2).
Regarding independent claim 22, Kaiser/Kang/Tiemens/Cartledge/Pine combination discloses an earpiece kit, comprising:
a plurality of earpiece modules according to claim 1, each of the plurality of earpiece modules having at least one of a different housing size or a different configuration of the at least one electrode; and at least one electronics module according to claim 1 (Kaiser, pa. 0012, 0031).
Regarding claim 23, Kaiser/Kang/Tiemens/Cartledge/Pine combination discloses wherein the electronics module defining a first electronics module and the kit further including a second electronics module having a different arrangement of sensor components than first electronic module (Kaiser, pa. 0058).
It would have been obvious to modify the second electronics module to include different arrangement of sensor components in order to allow the user to collect a wide variety of physiological data.
Claim 8 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over
Kaiser, Kang, Tiemens, Cartledge, and Pine as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of Gilbertson (U.S. Application No. 20170289670 A1).
Regarding claim 8, Kaiser/Kang/Tiemens/Cartledge/Pine combination discloses wherein the electronics module includes a microphone (Kaiser, pa. 0072).
However, they do not teach the microphone being coupled to the earpiece module via the through-hole of the earpiece module.
Gilbertson, in the same field of endeavor, teaches earphone device comprising an ear-adapter (24) (analogous to the earpiece module housing) is formed with an internal short tubular stub (32) (analogous to the stiffening tube) (pa. 0041 & Fig. 3), and a dosimeter (12) (analogous to the electronics module) including a microphone (20) (pa. 0039 & Figs. 1-2). The microphone is acoustically coupled to the tubular stub (i.e., the stiffening tube) via an adapter (18) with a tubing (22) (pa. 0039).
It would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have added the microphone of Gilbertson to the electronics module of Kaiser to be acoustically coupled to the housing in order to allow for sound to be measured and carried to a processor for further analysis, if necessary.
Claim 14 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over
Kaiser, Kang, Tiemens, Cartledge, and Pine as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of Kockx (U.S. Application No. 20150303619 A1).
Regarding claim 14, Kaiser/Kang/Tiemens/Cartledge/Pine combination discloses the coupling elements may be formed of a variety of ferromagnetic materials (Kang, page 11, paragraph 6).
However, they do not explicitly disclose wherein the second coupling element comprises Neodymium.
Kockx, in the same field of endeavor, teaches a coupling element (40) comprising Neodymium (pa. 0043).
It would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have substituted the ferromagnetic material of the second coupling element to be Neodymium since they are both known equivalents in the art and they would yield the same predictable results of being magnetic and electrically conductive.
Response to Arguments
Applicant' s arguments, see pages 6-11 of the Remarks filed February 02, 2026, with respect to the rejection of claim 1 under 35 U.S.C. 103 as unpatentable over the combination of Kaiser, Kang, Tiemens, and Cartledge have been fully considered and are partially persuasive.
With regards to newly amended claim 1, Applicant’s amendments to further require a pair of interstitial flexible circuit is compressed between the first coupling element and the second coupling element, and wherein each interstitial flexible circuit in the pair of the interstitial flexible circuit is patterned to provide alignment between the first coupling element and the second coupling element, and wherein the signal processing circuitry is further configured to clock signals the electrical signal in a predetermined pattern to provide electrical passthrough for each of the at least one electrode is defined over Kaiser, Kang, Tiemens, and Cartledge given that they do not contemplate these claimed structures. Therefore, the rejection has been withdrawn. However, upon further consideration, the following new grounds of rejection have been set forth in the action above:
Claims 1-3, 6, 9-13, 15-23 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kaiser (U.S. Application No. 20190192077 A1), in view of Kang (K.R. Application No. 20200056744 A), in view of Tiemens (U.S. Application No. 20080187161 A1), in view of Cartledge (U.S. Application No. 20170087364 A1), and further in view of Pine (U.S. Patent No. 10827249 B1).
It is the Examiner’s position that the newly filed rejections based on the combination of references are tenable for at least the reasoning set forth in the action above.
With regards to newly amended claim 1, Applicant argues that the Cartledge reference does not disclose the new claim limitations including the dedicated EEG sensor configured to detect brain activity signals in addition to electrical signals gathered from the at least one electrode. Specifically, Applicant contends that no portion of Cartledge discloses an EEG sensor configured to detect brain activity signals in addition to electrical signals gathered from the at least one electrode. However, Examiner, respectfully disagrees.
The Kaiser reference discloses the electronics module includes electrical signals (e.g., EEG signals) gathered from the at least one electrode (pa. 0011); however, Kaiser is silent on dedicated EEG sensor configured to detect brain activity signals in addition to electrical signals gathered from the at least one electrode. Therefore, Cartledge teaches a device including a controller (13650) receiving input information from EEG sensor(s) (13680) in order to provide control for a user feedback system, wherein the sensors can be isolated sensors or part of electrodes (13690) (pa. 0352-0353).
It would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have added the isolated/dedicated EEG sensor of Cartledge to the modular auricular sensing in-ear earphone of Kaiser for the purpose of providing additional EEG signals that further confirm diagnosis/treatment of a patient. Therefore, claim 1 is rejected based on this new interpretation of the Cartledge reference.
Conclusion
Applicant's amendment necessitated the new ground(s) of rejection presented in this Office action. Accordingly, THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. See MPEP § 706.07(a). Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action.
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/A.V.G./Examiner, Art Unit 3794 /Ronald Hupczey, Jr./Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3794