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 .
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and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114.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 10/06/2025 has been entered.
Response to Amendment
This Office Action is responsive to the amendment filed on 10/06/2025. As directed by the amendment: Claims 1 and 10 have been amended, claims 4-6 and 14-16 have been cancelled, and no claims have been added. Thus, claims 1-3, 7-13, and 17-20 are presently under consideration in this application.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments, see pages 6-7, filed 10/06/2025, with respect to the rejection(s) of the claim(s) under 35 U.S.C. 103 have been fully considered and are persuasive. Applicant argues on pages 6-7 that the time period of Drake is a duration that occurs during stimulation and not determined by ECG logic ahead of time. Examiner disagrees because the length of time of the procedure is not specified but it is finite and is for a test. Nevertheless, the amendments obviate the rejection of record. However, upon further consideration, a new ground(s) of rejection is made in view of Drake (US 20160135701)(Hereinafter Drake) in view of Stelzer et al. (US 20090216142)(Hereinafter Stelzer), Hughes et al. (US 20190274574)(Hereinafter Hughes), Chong et al. (US 20180211656)(Hereinafter Chong), Thomson et al. (US 20150018660) (Hereinafter Thomson) and Albert et al. (US20170265806)(Hereinafter Albert).
Claim Objections
Claims 1 and 10 are objected to because of the following informalities: Regarding claims 1 and 10, the newly amended phrase of “determining, by the ECG logic, a time period” should be amended to say “prescribing, by the ECG logic, a time period”, per [0041] of the instant specification because the time period is not determined. Appropriate correction is required.
Claims 1 and 10 are objected to because of the following informalities: Claims 1 (line 10) and 10 (line 16) should be amended to recite “the ECG monitoring device is configured to take the ECG according…”. Appropriate correction is required.
Claim Interpretation
The term “directives and events” is not a term of art, and will be interpreted as a module that functions “to exchange information”, as disclosed in [0039].
The claim recites that “wherein the instructions specify a time period for taking the ECG”, which Examiner interprets the limitation to mean that the instruction occurs during a duration of time for taking the ECG. In the instant case of Drake, Drake teaches in [0065] that the user holds contact with the electrode for the duration [time period] of the ECG procedure, and specifies the completion [the end of the time period] with an auditory signal. The claim does not suggest or imply that the time period is displayed [or provided as an audio output] to the user. When “the instructions specify a time period for taking the ECG”, that means that the instructions have a specific duration of time for taking an ECG. Examiner notes that if the claim recited “wherein one step of the instructions specifies a time period for taking the ECG” would mean that the user would know the time period of from one of the steps of the instructions.
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 and 3 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Drake (US 20160135701)(Hereinafter Drake) in view of Stelzer et al. (US 20090216142)(Hereinafter Stelzer), Hughes et al. (US 20190274574)(Hereinafter Hughes), Chong et al. (US 20180211656)(Hereinafter Chong), and Albert et al. (US20170265806)(Hereinafter Albert).
Regarding claim 1, Drake teaches A method (Title “SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR PERFORMING ELECTROCARDIOGRAMS”) comprising:
receiving via a smart device, a command associated with taking an electrocardiogram (ECG) and …([0045] “The mobile electronic device 104 [smart device] … can include …a microphone (e.g., for receiving dictated instructions)” Those instructions can be [0060] “At block 202, the system can receive a command (e.g., from a user, which can be the patient) to start an ECG procedure.” [0036] “the mobile electronic device 104 can operate as a middleman to relay information between the ECG device 102 and the remote computing system 106 (or another external device or system).”);
determining, by the ECG logic, a time period for taking the ECG ([0065] “the user can hold the contact with the electrodes 108, 110, and 112 for the duration of the ECG procedure, for example, until instructed via the user interface 136 that the procedure is completed such as with a visual, auditory, or tactile signal from the mobile electronic device 104 or ECG device 102.” Examiner notes that the time period is a finite period of time which must be determined for the duration of the procedure.);
providing, via the ECG logic, instructions for taking the ECG using an ECG monitoring device to the smart device, wherein the ECG monitoring device and the ECG logic each comprise logic to communicate with each other, via the smart device using a set of directives and events ([0060] “In some embodiments, the ECG device 102 [ECG monitoring device] can receive an instruction to start an ECG procedure from the mobile electronic device 104 (e.g., via the communication interfaces 124 and 130)[smart device].” [0048] “the remote computing system 106 can include memory 144, which can store executable program instructions that can be executed by the controller 142 to implement various methods, operations, and features described herein.” [0036] “the mobile electronic device 104 can operate as a middleman to relay information between the ECG device 102 and the remote computing system 106 (or another external device or system).” [0079] “A user interface may be generated on a local computer or on a mobile device, or it may be generated from a service or cloud server and sent to a client for rendering, e.g., in a browser or “app [directives and events].”” [0050] “In some embodiments, the mobile electronic device 104 can perform an initial analysis (which can be performed relatively quickly on the local device) on the ECG data to make one or more initial determinations (e.g., regarding diagnosis and rhythm analysis), and the remote computing system 106 can perform a more detailed analysis” It is noted that the ECG data is sent to the mobile device for initial processing, and then to the remote device for the detailed analysis using the controller 142 [ECG logic]. See [0051] showing the controller part of the cloud computing system. The “logic” are communication means for each of the devices, [0034].);
transmitting the time period … to the smart device in the instructions such that the ECG monitoring device takes the ECG according to the time period upon detecting the position by the ECG monitoring device ([0065] “the user can hold the contact with the electrodes 108, 110, and 112 for the duration of the ECG procedure, for example, until instructed via the user interface 136 that the procedure is completed such as with a visual, auditory, or tactile signal from the mobile electronic device 104 or ECG device 102.” Examiner notes that the time period is a finite period of time which must be determined for the duration of the procedure.);
providing, by the smart device, the instructions for taking the ECG using the ECG monitoring device as an audio output ([0065] “At block 310, the user can hold the contact with the electrodes 108, 110, and 112 for the duration of the ECG procedure, for example, until instructed via the user interface 136 that the procedure is completed such as with a visual, auditory, or tactile signal from the mobile electronic device 104 or ECG device 102.”);
transmitting to the ECG logic via the smart device, ECG data measured by the ECG monitoring device using the set of directives and events; and ([0050] “In some embodiments, the mobile electronic device 104 can perform an initial analysis (which can be performed relatively quickly on the local device) on the ECG data to make one or more initial determinations (e.g., regarding diagnosis and rhythm analysis), and the remote computing system 106 can perform a more detailed analysis ” It is noted that the ECG data is sent to the mobile device for initial processing, and then to the remote device for the detailed analysis using the controller 142 [ECG logic]. See [0051] showing the controller part of the cloud computing system. [0079] “A user interface may be generated on a local computer or on a mobile device, or it may be generated from a service or cloud server and sent to a client for rendering, e.g., in a browser or “app [directives and events].””).
analyzing by the ECG logic, the measured ECG data to determine a set of interpretations based on the measured ECG data ([0051] “In some implementations, the controller 142 of the remote computing system 106 can be used to perform various signal processing and data analysis tasks described herein (e.g., digital signal processing, improvement of signal-to-noise ratio, removal or reduction of baseline wander, compensation for impedance, linear phase filtering, providing a 6-lead ECG),” Claim 14 “remote computing system [contains the ECG logic] comprising…analyze the 6-lead electrocardiogram data; and provide diagnostic information [set of interpretations].”).
However, Drake does not teach receiving via a smart device, a voice command associated with taking an electrocardiogram (ECG). Stelzer, in the same field of endeavor, teaches measuring, recording, and transmitting ECG for analyzing and viewing (Abstract), and further teaches receiving via a smart device, a voice command associated with taking an electrocardiogram (ECG) ([0046] “When the patient is in position and still, the patient is then instructed via the VDU 18 on-screen prompts and audio messaging via the speakers 16 to press both hand grip trigger switches or confirm via a voice command their ready state to initiate the ECG test procedure.”) to confirm positioning for initiating ECG testing ([0046]). It would have been obvious to one skilled in the art, prior to the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system and apparatus of Drake, with the receiving via a smart device, a voice command associated with taking an electrocardiogram (ECG) of Stelzer, because such a modification would allow to confirm positioning for initiating ECG testing.
Although Drake and Stelzer may display the initiation of a start time for acquiring ECG, Drake and Stelzer do not teach the transmitting of the period from the cloud to the mobile device. Hughes, in the same field of endeavor, teaches a wearable ECG monitoring device is communication with a paired device and the cloud (Abstract and Fig. 10), and further teaches the transmitting of information from the cloud to the mobile device, and thereby capable of also time period (Fig. 10 where the cloud send data to the mobile device. [0143] “a cardiac rhythm inference system 910 is implemented as a cloud service or server-based system that exposes an application programming interface (API) enabling R-R interval time series data or other signal data to be transmitted to the system (for instance, via HTTP) and the resulting cardiac rhythm information to be returned to the calling software.” This includes time period because cloud computation and determination can be made in the cloud.) to reduce local computing, which consumes too much energy and power. It would have been obvious to one skilled in the art, prior to the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system and apparatus of Drake in view of stelzer, with the transmitting of the period from the cloud to the mobile device of Hughes, because such a modification would allow to reduce local computing, which consumes too much energy and power.
However, Drake, Stelzer, and Hughes do not teach the transmitting the voice command to the ECG logic hosted on the cloud service. Chong, in the same field of endeavor, teaches a server, voice command device, and a medical device used to communicate and compute measurement (Abstract), and further teaches providing the voice command to ECG logic hosted on a cloud service ([0098]-[0099] “Voice command device 510 may send 535 the voice activation command to server computing device 515, which may then perform a voice print identification to identify a user 540.”) to determine that the medical device should take a measurement ([0099]). It would have been obvious to one skilled in the art, prior to the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system and apparatus of Drake in view of Stelzer, and Hughes, with the transmitting of the voice command to the ECG logic, hosted on the cloud service of Chong, because such a modification would allow to determine that the medical device should take a measurement.
However, Drake, Stelzer, Hughes, and Chong do not teach instructions on the monitoring device for positioning the electrodes to take ECG and dedicating a period of time for taking ECG on the monitoring device upon detecting the position by the monitoring device. Albert, in the same field of endeavor, teaches ECG electrodes placed on a patient’s body for proper positioning (Abstract), and further teaches wherein the instructions indicate, to the ECG monitoring device, a position for taking the ECG ([0100]-[0102] “The instructions can include a modified image of the picture of the patient's body showing the correct electrode placement…the electrodes can be attached to the computer device to take the ECG after the electrodes are placed on the patient… The ECG data can be recorded over a period of time and averaged to prepare an ECG for a representative heartbeat.”) to verify the placement of the electrodes ([0100]). It would have been obvious to one skilled in the art, prior to the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system and apparatus of Drake in view of Stelzer, Hughes, and Chong, with the instructions on the monitoring device for positioning the electrodes to take ECG and dedicating a period of time for taking ECG on the monitoring device upon detecting the position by the monitoring device of Albert, because such a modification would allow to verify the placement of the electrodes.
“The broadest reasonable interpretation of a method (or process) claim having contingent limitations requires only those steps that must be performed and does not include steps that are not required to be performed because the condition(s) precedent are not met.” “The broadest reasonable interpretation of a system (or apparatus or product) claim having structure that performs a function, which only needs to occur if a condition precedent is met, requires structure for performing the function should the condition occur.” Note the phrase, “to determine whether the ECG is being taken properly… in response to determining that the measured ECG data indicates the ECG is not being taken properly… in response to providing the instructions for retaking the ECG, receiving via the smart device, updated measured ECG data indicating the ECG is being taken properly” in claim 1 are conditional language, that is, if a condition precedent in a method claim is not met, the conditional steps recited in the claim are not required to be performed. The conditions of determining that the ECG being taken properly may be determined that the ECG is already being taken properly and therefore the following limitation are not required.. As such, the broadest reasonable interpretation of such a method claim does not include the conditional step along with the steps proceeding the conditional step. See MPEP 2111.04(II).
Regarding claims 3 and 13, Drake teaches wherein processing measured the ECG data in accordance with the one or more functions comprises:
performing filtering, error correction, and transformation of the measured ECG data ([0051] “In some implementations, the controller 142 of the remote computing system 106 can be used to perform various signal processing and data analysis tasks described herein (e.g., digital signal processing, improvement of signal-to-noise ratio [error correction], removal or reduction of baseline wander [transformation], compensation for impedance, linear phase filtering [filtering], providing a 6-lead ECG),”); and
generating one or more additional leads based on the measured ECG data ([0022] “The ECG device 102 can include three electrodes, such as a right arm electrode 108, a left arm electrode 110, and a left leg electrode 112. In some embodiments, the system 100 can use fewer electrodes than a traditional 12-lead ECG, which would use ten electrodes, which can facilitate performance of the ECG procedure, especially for ECG procedures performed by a patient himself or herself.” Using more electrodes to produce all 12 leads in comparison to the required procedure of 6 leads would allow to facilitate the performance of the ECG procedure.).
Claims 10, 12, and 13 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Drake (US 20160135701)(Hereinafter Drake) in view of Stelzer et al. (US 20090216142)(Hereinafter Stelzer), Hughes et al. (US 20190274574)(Hereinafter Hughes), Chong et al. (US 20180211656)(Hereinafter Chong), Thomson et al. (US 20150018660) (Hereinafter Thomson) and Albert et al. (US20170265806)(Hereinafter Albert).
Regarding claim 10, Drake teaches A system (Title “SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR PERFORMING ELECTROCARDIOGRAMS”) comprising:
an electrocardiogram (ECG) monitoring device (Fig. 1 (102));
a smart device to receive a voice command associated with taking an electrocardiogram (ECG) and … ([0045] “The mobile electronic device 104 [smart device] … can include …a microphone (e.g., for receiving dictated instructions)” Those instructions can be [0060] “At block 202, the system can receive a command (e.g., from a user, which can be the patient) to start an ECG procedure.” [0036] “the mobile electronic device 104 can operate as a middleman to relay information between the ECG device 102 and the remote computing system 106 (or another external device or system).” In order for the ECG logic to provide instructions to the mobile device, it would have to receive information (that being the command) to send the instructions.); and
a cloud service that hosts the ECG logic, the cloud service ([0018] “remote computing system (e.g., an ECG server or ECG cloud service)” ECG logic 142.) configured to:
receive the voice command ([0045] “The mobile electronic device 104 [smart device] … can include …a microphone (e.g., for receiving dictated instructions)” Those instructions can be [0060] “At block 202, the system can receive a command (e.g., from a user, which can be the patient) to start an ECG procedure.” [0050] “In some embodiments, the mobile electronic device 104 can perform an initial analysis (which can be performed relatively quickly on the local device) on the ECG data to make one or more initial determinations (e.g., regarding diagnosis and rhythm analysis), and the remote computing system 106 can perform a more detailed analysis” It is noted that the ECG data is sent to the mobile device for initial processing, and then to the remote device for the detailed analysis using the controller 142 [ECG logic]. See [0051] showing the controller part of the cloud computing system. [0036] “the mobile electronic device 104 can operate as a middleman to relay information between the ECG device 102 and the remote computing system 106 (or another external device or system).” In order for the ECG logic to provide instructions to the mobile device, it would have to receive information (that being the command) to send the instructions.);
determining, by the ECG logic, a time period for taking the ECG ([0065] “the user can hold the contact with the electrodes 108, 110, and 112 for the duration of the ECG procedure, for example, until instructed via the user interface 136 that the procedure is completed such as with a visual, auditory, or tactile signal from the mobile electronic device 104 or ECG device 102.” Examiner notes that the time period is a finite period of time which must be determined for the duration of the procedure.);
provide, via the ECG logic, instructions for taking the ECG using the ECG monitoring device to the smart device, wherein the ECG monitoring device and the ECG logic each comprise logic to communicate with each other via the smart device using a predefined set of directives and events, wherein in response to receiving the instructions for taking the ECG using the ECG monitoring device, the smart device is to provide the instructions for taking the ECG using the ECG monitoring device as an audio output ([0065] “At block 310, the user can hold the contact with the electrodes 108, 110, and 112 for the duration of the ECG procedure, for example, until instructed via the user interface 136 that the procedure is completed such as with a visual, auditory, or tactile signal from the mobile electronic device 104 or ECG device 102.” [0060] “In some embodiments, the ECG device 102 [ECG monitoring device] can receive an instruction to start an ECG procedure from the mobile electronic device 104 (e.g., via the communication interfaces 124 and 130)[smart device].” [0048] “the remote computing system 106 can include memory 144, which can store executable program instructions that can be executed by the controller 142 to implement various methods, operations, and features described herein.” [0036] “the mobile electronic device 104 can operate as a middleman to relay information between the ECG device 102 and the remote computing system 106 (or another external device or system).” [0079] “A user interface may be generated on a local computer or on a mobile device, or it may be generated from a service or cloud server and sent to a client for rendering, e.g., in a browser or “app [directives and events].”” [0050] “In some embodiments, the mobile electronic device 104 can perform an initial analysis (which can be performed relatively quickly on the local device) on the ECG data to make one or more initial determinations (e.g., regarding diagnosis and rhythm analysis), and the remote computing system 106 can perform a more detailed analysis” It is noted that the ECG data is sent to the mobile device for initial processing, and then to the remote device for the detailed analysis using the controller 142 [ECG logic]. See [0051] showing the controller part of the cloud computing system. The “logic” are communication means for each of the devices, [0034].);
transmitting the time period … to the smart device in the instructions such that the ECG monitoring device takes the ECG according to the time period upon detecting the position by the ECG monitoring device ([0065] “the user can hold the contact with the electrodes 108, 110, and 112 for the duration of the ECG procedure, for example, until instructed via the user interface 136 that the procedure is completed such as with a visual, auditory, or tactile signal from the mobile electronic device 104 or ECG device 102.” Examiner notes that the time period is a finite period of time which must be determined for the duration of the procedure.);
receive, via the smart device, ECG data measured by the ECG monitoring device using the set of directives and events ([0050] “In some embodiments, the mobile electronic device 104 can perform an initial analysis (which can be performed relatively quickly on the local device) on the ECG data to make one or more initial determinations (e.g., regarding diagnosis and rhythm analysis), and the remote computing system 106 can perform a more detailed analysis ” It is noted that the ECG data is sent to the mobile device for initial processing, and then to the remote device for the detailed analysis using the controller 142 [ECG logic]. See [0051] showing the controller part of the cloud computing system. [0079] “A user interface may be generated on a local computer or on a mobile device, or it may be generated from a service or cloud server and sent to a client for rendering, e.g., in a browser or “app [directives and events].””);
analyze using the ECG logic, the measured ECG data to determine a set of interpretations based on the measured ECG data (Claim 14 “remote computing system [contains the ECG logic] comprising…analyze the 6-lead electrocardiogram data; and provide diagnostic information [set of interpretations].”); and
transmit the set of interpretations to the smart device (Claim 15 “wherein the mobile electronic device further comprises program instructions stored on the second computer readable storage media that, when executed by the second controller, direct the second controller to: receive the diagnostic information provided from the remote computing system”).
However, Drake does not teach receiving via a smart device, a voice command associated with taking an electrocardiogram (ECG). Stelzer, in the same field of endeavor, teaches measuring, recording, and transmitting ECG for analyzing and viewing (Abstract), and further teaches receiving via a smart device, a voice command associated with taking an electrocardiogram (ECG) ([0046] “When the patient is in position and still, the patient is then instructed via the VDU 18 on-screen prompts and audio messaging via the speakers 16 to press both hand grip trigger switches or confirm via a voice command their ready state to initiate the ECG test procedure.”) to confirm positioning for initiating ECG testing ([0046]). It would have been obvious to one skilled in the art, prior to the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system and apparatus of Drake, with the receiving via a smart device, a voice command associated with taking an electrocardiogram (ECG) of Stelzer, because such a modification would allow to confirm positioning for initiating ECG testing.
Although Drake and Stelzer may display the initiation of a start time for acquiring ECG, Drake and Stelzer do not teach the transmitting of the period from the cloud to the mobile device. Hughes, in the same field of endeavor, teaches a wearable ECG monitoring device is communication with a paired device and the cloud (Abstract and Fig. 10), and further teaches the transmitting of information from the cloud to the mobile device, and thereby capable of also time period (Fig. 10 where the cloud send data to the mobile device. [0143] “a cardiac rhythm inference system 910 is implemented as a cloud service or server-based system that exposes an application programming interface (API) enabling R-R interval time series data or other signal data to be transmitted to the system (for instance, via HTTP) and the resulting cardiac rhythm information to be returned to the calling software.” This includes time period because cloud computation and determination can be made in the cloud.) to reduce local computing, which consumes too much energy and power. It would have been obvious to one skilled in the art, prior to the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system and apparatus of Drake in view of Stelzer, with the transmitting of the period from the cloud to the mobile device of Hughes, because such a modification would allow to reduce local computing, which consumes too much energy and power.
However, Drake, Stelzer, and Hughes do not teach the transmitting the voice command to the ECG logic, hosted on the cloud service. Chong, in the same field of endeavor, teaches a server, voice command device, and a medical device used to communicate and compute measurement (Abstract), and further teaches providing the voice command to ECG logic hosted on a cloud service ([0098]-[0099] “Voice command device 510 may send 535 the voice activation command to server computing device 515, which may then perform a voice print identification to identify a user 540.”) to determine that the medical device should take a measurement ([0099]). It would have been obvious to one skilled in the art, prior to the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system and apparatus of Drake in view of , Stelzer, and Hughes, with the transmitting of the voice command to the ECG logic, hosted on the cloud service of Chong, because such a modification would allow to determine that the medical device should take a measurement.
However, Drake, Stezler, Hughes, and Chong do not teach monitoring ECG as it is received to determine that the ECG data indicates that ECG is not taken properly, and in response, provide instructions for repositioning one or more appendages relative to the electrode via a smart device for retaking ECG as a second audio. Thomson, in the same field of endeavor, teaches a hand held ECG device that transmit the recorded data to computing device for processing (Abstract), and further teaches monitoring the measured ECG data as it is received to determine whether the ECG is being taken properly ([0051] “This will allow the patient to receive immediate visual feedback from the apparatus as the measurement is made”); and
in response to determining that the measured ECG data indicates the ECG is not being taken properly ([0051] “This will allow the patient to receive immediate visual feedback from the apparatus as the measurement is made, including providing guidance (using the mobile telecommunications device screen or audio output) to adjust or correct the contact or position of the electrodes” There must be an issue with the measured ECG signal if after feedback of the signal, the device guides a correction of the position of the electrode. ):
providing, via the smart device, instructions for retaking the ECG to the user as a second audio output, wherein the instructions for retaking the ECG include instructions for repositioning one or more appendages relative to electrodes of the ECG monitoring device ([0051] “This will allow the patient to receive immediate visual feedback from the apparatus as the measurement is made, including providing guidance (using the mobile telecommunications device screen or audio output) to adjust or correct the contact or position of the electrodes, and/or to display one or more ECG signals.” Examiner interprets the term “appendage” to be a hand of a user as the hand is part of the arm RA/LA, which in the instant case, the RA and LA can adjust contact with the electrode, as seen in Figs. 2D1 and 2D2.) to correct the contact and position of the electrode ([0051]). It would have been obvious to one skilled in the art, prior to the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system and apparatus of Drake in view of Stezler, Hughes, and Chong, with the monitoring ECG as it is received to determine that the ECG data indicates that ECG is not taken properly, and in response, provide instructions for repositioning one or more appendages relative to the electrode via a smart device for retaking ECG as a second audio of Thomson, because such a modification would allow to correct the contact and position of the electrode.
However, Drake, Stezler, Hughes, Chong, and Thomson does not teach instructions on the monitoring device for positioning the electrodes to take ECG and dedicating a period of time for taking ECG on the monitoring device upon detecting the position by the monitoring device. Albert, in the same field of endeavor, teaches ECG electrodes placed on a patient’s body for proper positioning (Abstract), and further teaches wherein the instructions indicate, to the ECG monitoring device, a position for taking the ECG ([0100]-[0102] “The instructions can include a modified image of the picture of the patient's body showing the correct electrode placement…the electrodes can be attached to the computer device to take the ECG after the electrodes are placed on the patient… The ECG data can be recorded over a period of time and averaged to prepare an ECG for a representative heartbeat.”) to verify the placement of the electrodes ([0100]). It would have been obvious to one skilled in the art, prior to the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system and apparatus of Drake in view of Stezler, Hughes, Chong, and Thomson, with the instructions on the monitoring device for positioning the electrodes to take ECG and dedicating a period of time for taking ECG on the monitoring device upon detecting the position by the monitoring device of Albert, because such a modification would allow to verify the placement of the electrodes.
Regarding claim 12, Drake teaches wherein the cloud service is further to:
process the measured ECG data in accordance with one or more functions to generate processed ECG data; ([0051] “In some implementations, the controller 142 of the remote computing system 106 can be used to perform various signal processing and data analysis tasks described herein (e.g., digital signal processing, improvement of signal-to-noise ratio, removal or reduction of baseline wander, compensation for impedance, linear phase filtering, providing a 6-lead ECG),”);
analyze the processed ECG data to generate the set of interpretations based on the ECG data (Claim 14 “remote computing system [contains the ECG logic] comprising…analyze the 6-lead electrocardiogram data; and provide diagnostic information [set of interpretations].”).
Regarding claims 13, Drake teaches wherein processing measured the ECG data in accordance with the one or more functions comprises:
performing filtering, error correction, and transformation of the measured ECG data ([0051] “In some implementations, the controller 142 of the remote computing system 106 can be used to perform various signal processing and data analysis tasks described herein (e.g., digital signal processing, improvement of signal-to-noise ratio [error correction], removal or reduction of baseline wander [transformation], compensation for impedance, linear phase filtering [filtering], providing a 6-lead ECG),”); and
generating one or more additional leads based on the measured ECG data ([0022] “The ECG device 102 can include three electrodes, such as a right arm electrode 108, a left arm electrode 110, and a left leg electrode 112. In some embodiments, the system 100 can use fewer electrodes than a traditional 12-lead ECG, which would use ten electrodes, which can facilitate performance of the ECG procedure, especially for ECG procedures performed by a patient himself or herself.” Using more electrodes to produce all 12 leads in comparison to the required procedure of 6 leads would allow to facilitate the performance of the ECG procedure.).
Claims 2 and 11 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Drake (US 20160135701)(Hereinafter Drake) in view of Stelzer et al. (US 20090216142)(Hereinafter Stelzer), Hughes et al. (US 20190274574)(Hereinafter Hughes), Chong et al. (US 20180211656)(Hereinafter Chong), Albert et al. (US20170265806)(Hereinafter Albert) and Ogino et al. (US 20190046036)(Hereinafter Ogino).
Regarding claim 2, Drake teaches further comprising:
processing by the ECG logic, the measured ECG data in accordance with one or more functions to generate processed ECG data, wherein the ECG logic analyzes the processed ECG data to determine the set of interpretations ([0051] “In some implementations, the controller 142 of the remote computing system 106 can be used to perform various signal processing and data analysis tasks described herein (e.g., digital signal processing, improvement of signal-to-noise ratio, removal or reduction of baseline wander, compensation for impedance, linear phase filtering, providing a 6-lead ECG),” Claim 14 “remote computing system [contains the ECG logic] comprising…analyze the 6-lead electrocardiogram data; and provide diagnostic information [set of interpretations].”);
transmitting the set of interpretations to the smart device (Claim 15 “wherein the mobile electronic device further comprises program instructions stored on the second computer readable storage media that, when executed by the second controller, direct the second controller to: receive the diagnostic information provided from the remote computing system”); and
However, Drake, Stelzer, Hughes, Chong, and Albert do not teach a set of interpretations that are transmitted to the smart device as a second audio output. Ogino, in the same field of endeavor, teaches a detection device and an alarm system using an ECG signal to observe an abnormal arrhythmia (Abstract), and further teaches
providing, by the smart device, the set of interpretations as a second audio output ([0055] “The alarming section further outputs a voice message notifying the occurrence of an arrhythmia, such as the above-described message “Heart attack occurs.””). Ogino teaches this to cause attention to the surrounding people of such an event (0055]). It would have been obvious to one skilled in the art, prior to the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system and apparatus of Drake in view of Stelzer, Hughes, Chong, and Albert, with the second audio output of Ogino, because such a modification would allow to cause attention to the surrounding people of such an event.
Claims 2 and 11 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Drake (US 20160135701)(Hereinafter Drake) in view of Stelzer et al. (US 20090216142)(Hereinafter Stelzer), Hughes et al. (US 20190274574)(Hereinafter Hughes), Chong et al. (US 20180211656)(Hereinafter Chong), Thomson et al. (US 20150018660) (Hereinafter Thomson), Albert et al. (US20170265806)(Hereinafter Albert), and Ogino et al. (US 20190046036)(Hereinafter Ogino).
Regarding claim 11, Drake teaches wherein the smart device is further to:
provide the instructions for taking the ECG using the ECG monitoring device to a user as an audio output ([0065] “At block 310, the user can hold the contact with the electrodes 108, 110, and 112 for the duration of the ECG procedure, for example, until instructed via the user interface 136 that the procedure is completed such as with a visual, auditory, or tactile signal from the mobile electronic device 104 or ECG device 102.”); and
However, Drake, Stelzer, Hughes, Chong, Thomson, and Albert do not teach a set of interpretations that are transmitted to the smart device as a second audio output. Ogino, in the same field of endeavor, teaches a detection device and an alarm system using an ECG signal to observe an abnormal arrhythmia (Abstract), and further teaches provide the set of interpretations to the user as a second audio output. ([0055] “The alarming section further outputs a voice message notifying the occurrence of an arrhythmia, such as the above-described message “Heart attack occurs.””). Ogino teaches this to cause attention to the surrounding people of such an event (0055]). It would have been obvious to one skilled in the art, prior to the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system and apparatus of Drake in view of Stelzer, Hughes, Chong, Thomson, and Albert, with the second audio output of Ogino, because such a modification would allow to cause attention to the surrounding people of such an event.
Claims 7-8 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Drake (US 20160135701)(Hereinafter Drake) in view of Stelzer et al. (US 20090216142)(Hereinafter Stelzer), Hughes et al. (US 20190274574)(Hereinafter Hughes), Chong et al. (US 20180211656)(Hereinafter Chong), Albert et al. (US20170265806)(Hereinafter Albert), Ogino et al. (US 20190046036)(Hereinafter Ogino), and Peluso et al. (US 20140378781)(Hereinafter Peluso).
Regarding claims 7, Drake teaches wherein the ECG data measured by the ECG monitoring device while taking the ECG is received (Claim 15 “wherein the mobile electronic device further comprises program instructions stored on the second computer readable storage media that, when executed by the second controller, direct the second controller to: receive the diagnostic information provided from the remote computing system”).
Drake, Stelzer, Hughes, Chong, and Albert do not teach a mobile device. Peluso, in a similar field of endeavor, teaches the use of a diagnostic device to obtain ECG signals with a network ([0017] and Fig. 3B), and further teaches the smart device via a mobile device that is in communication with the smart device ([0034] “smart phone 404” Examiner notes that system 402 is in communication with mobile device 404.). However, does not teach the interpretations on the mobile device. Peluso teaches this to obtain desired data (that being the diagnosis of an event) ([0035]). It would have been obvious to one skilled in the art, prior to the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system and apparatus of Drake in view of Stelzer, Hughes, Chong, and Albert, with the mobile device of Peluso, because such a modification would allow to obtain desired data.
Regarding claims 8, Drake teaches further comprising:
transmitting the set of interpretations (Claim 15 “wherein the mobile electronic device further comprises program instructions stored on the second computer readable storage media that, when executed by the second controller, direct the second controller to: receive the diagnostic information provided from the remote computing system”).
Drake, Stelzer, Hughes, Chong, and Albert do not teach a mobile device. Peluso, in a similar field of endeavor, teaches the use of a diagnostic device to obtain ECG signals with a network ([0017] and Fig. 3B), and further teaches to the mobile device ([0034] “smart phone 404”). However, does not teach the interpretations on the mobile device. Peluso teaches this to obtain desired data (that being the diagnosis of an event) ([0035]). It would have been obvious to one skilled in the art, prior to the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system and apparatus of Drake in view of Stelzer, Hughes, Chong, and Albert, with the mobile device of Peluso, because such a modification would allow to obtain desired data.
Claims 17-18 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Drake (US 20160135701)(Hereinafter Drake) in view of Stelzer et al. (US 20090216142)(Hereinafter Stelzer), Hughes et al. (US 20190274574)(Hereinafter Hughes), Chong et al. (US 20180211656)(Hereinafter Chong), Thomson et al. (US 20150018660) (Hereinafter Thomson), Albert et al. (US20170265806)(Hereinafter Albert), Ogino et al. (US 20190046036)(Hereinafter Ogino), and Peluso et al. (US 20140378781)(Hereinafter Peluso).
Regarding claims 17, Drake teaches wherein the ECG data measured by the ECG monitoring device while taking the ECG is received (Claim 15 “wherein the mobile electronic device further comprises program instructions stored on the second computer readable storage media that, when executed by the second controller, direct the second controller to: receive the diagnostic information provided from the remote computing system”).
Drake, Stelzer, Hughes, Chong, Thomson, and Albert do not teach a mobile device. Peluso, in a similar field of endeavor, teaches the use of a diagnostic device to obtain ECG signals with a network ([0017] and Fig. 3B), and further teaches the smart device via a mobile device that is in communication with the smart device ([0034] “smart phone 404” Examiner notes that system 402 is in communication with mobile device 404.). However, does not teach the interpretations on the mobile device. Peluso teaches this to obtain desired data (that being the diagnosis of an event) ([0035]). It would have been obvious to one skilled in the art, prior to the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system and apparatus of Drake in view of Stelzer, Hughes, Chong, Thomson, and Albert, with the mobile device of Peluso, because such a modification would allow to obtain desired data.
Regarding claims 18, Drake teaches further comprising:
transmitting the set of interpretations (Claim 15 “wherein the mobile electronic device further comprises program instructions stored on the second computer readable storage media that, when executed by the second controller, direct the second controller to: receive the diagnostic information provided from the remote computing system”).
Drake, Stelzer, Hughes, Chong, Thomson, and Albert do not teach a mobile device. Peluso, in a similar field of endeavor, teaches the use of a diagnostic device to obtain ECG signals with a network ([0017] and Fig. 3B), and further teaches to the mobile device ([0034] “smart phone 404”). However, does not teach the interpretations on the mobile device. Peluso teaches this to obtain desired data (that being the diagnosis of an event) ([0035]). It would have been obvious to one skilled in the art, prior to the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system and apparatus of Drake in view of Stelzer, Hughes, Chong, Thomson, and Albert, with the mobile device of Peluso, because such a modification would allow to obtain desired data.
Claims 19-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Drake (US 20160135701)(Hereinafter Drake) in view of Stelzer et al. (US 20090216142)(Hereinafter Stelzer), Hughes et al. (US 20190274574)(Hereinafter Hughes), Chong et al. (US 20180211656)(Hereinafter Chong), Thomson et al. (US 20150018660) (Hereinafter Thomson), Albert et al. (US20170265806)(Hereinafter Albert), Ogino et al. (US 20190046036)(Hereinafter Ogino), and Bongberg et al. (US 20210154487)(Hereinafter Bongberg).
Regarding claims 19, claim 10 is obvious over Drake, Stelzer, Hughes, Chong, Thomson, and Albert. However, Drake, Stelzer, Hughes, Chong, Thomson, and Albert do not teach the smart device being a smart speaker. Bongberg, in a similar field of endeavor, teaches a network for obtain an ECG using a cloud server used for public emergencies ([0009]-[0013]) and further teaches a smart speaker ([0042]) to listen for commands ([0042]). It would have been obvious to one skilled in the art, prior to the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system and apparatus of Drake in view of Stelzer, Hughes, Chong, Thomson, and Albert, with the smart speaker of Bongberg, because such a modification would allow to listen for commands.
Regarding claim 20, claim 10 is obvious over Drake, Stelzer, Hughes, Chong, Thomson, and Albert. However, Drake, Stelzer, Hughes, Chong, Thomson, and Albert do not teach the smart device being a home automation controller. Bongberg, in a similar field of endeavor, teaches a network for obtain an ECG using a cloud server used for public emergencies ([0009]-[0013]) and further teaches a home automation controller ([0042] “Google Assistant” which can be a Nest Hub with a display, the amazon echo with display [0041], or any smart speaker which is included in a home automation controller.) to listen for commands ([0042]). It would have been obvious to one skilled in the art, prior to the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system and apparatus of Drake in view of Stelzer, Hughes, Chong, Thomson, and Albert, with the home automation controller of Bongberg, because such a modification would allow to listen for commands.
Claims 9 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Drake (US 20160135701)(Hereinafter Drake) in view of Stelzer et al. (US 20090216142)(Hereinafter Stelzer), Hughes et al. (US 20190274574)(Hereinafter Hughes), Chong et al. (US 20180211656)(Hereinafter Chong), Albert et al. (US20170265806)(Hereinafter Albert), Ogino et al. (US 20190046036)(Hereinafter Ogino), and Bongberg et al. (US 20210154487)(Hereinafter Bongberg).
Regarding claims 9, claim 10 is obvious over Drake, Stelzer, Hughes, Chong, and Albert. However, Drake does not teach the smart device being a smart speaker. Bongberg, in a similar field of endeavor, teaches a network for obtain an ECG using a cloud server used for public emergencies ([0009]-[0013]) and further teaches a smart speaker ([0042]) to listen for commands ([0042]). It would have been obvious to one skilled in the art, prior to the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system and apparatus of Drake, in view of Stelzer, Hughes, Chong, and Albert, with the smart speaker of Bongberg, because such a modification would allow to listen for commands.
Conclusion
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/MOUSSA HADDAD/Examiner, Art Unit 3796
/ALLEN PORTER/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3796