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 .
Claims Pending
Applicant's arguments, filed 09/11/2025, have been fully considered. The following rejections and/or objections are either reiterated or newly applied. They constitute the complete set presently being applied to the instant application.
Applicants have amended their claims, filed 09/11/2025, and therefore rejections newly made in the instant office action have been necessitated by amendment.
Applicant’s cancellation of claims 2-3 in the response filed 09/11/2025 and previous cancellation of claim 4 is acknowledged.
Claims 1 and 5-20 are the current claims hereby under examination.
Drawings- Objection Withdrawn
The applicant’s arguments, filed 10/22/2024, have been fully considered, and the previous objection withdrawn.
Claim Objections - Withdrawn
The applicant’s amendments, filed 04/25/2025, have been fully considered, and the previous interpretation withdrawn.
Claim Interpretation- Withdrawn
The applicant’s amendments, filed 10/22/2024, have been fully considered, and the previous interpretation withdrawn.
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.
The claims are generally directed towards an electronic skin sensor patch that comprises a patch body with a frame that is formed of a mechanical metamaterial of repeating patterns. The patch has a sensor and sensor structure connected to one another along the frame of the patch body.
Claim(s) 1 and 5-10 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Yi (US Pub. No. 20200205673) hereinafter Yi, and further in view of Mattila (US Pub. No. 20220117533) hereinafter Mattila, Sterling (US Pub. No. 20090062670) hereinafter Sterling, Iwasaki (US Pub. No. 20210100511) hereinafter Iwasaki, and Toth (US Pub. No. 20150335288) hereinafter Toth.
Regarding claim 1, Yi discloses An electronic skin sensor patch which is attached to a skin of a user and measures a bio signal (Abstract), the electronic skin sensor patch comprising:
a patch body (sensor patch – 10) including a frame (Fig. 2A, frame – 203) which is formed of a mechanical metamaterial (Par. 133, “auxetic structure of the frame 203 of the present disclosure refers to a structure having a negative Poisson's ratio which is the ratio of transverse strain and longitudinal strain when a material is stretched in a specific direction by tension.”) (Par. 134,135, “among various mechanical metastructures which the frame 203 of the present disclosure may have, an open-type auxetic structure is a stable design pattern…” “… and may thus have high adhesion to the skin of a user”) the frame comprising a plurality of repeating patterns (Fig. 2A (observable repeating patterns in the frame 203)), each of the repeating patterns having one or more opening (Fig. 2A, openings – 201 (observable openings 201 made by the repeating patterns of frame 203)) (Par. 75, “The body fluid sensor 21 according to some embodiments may include: at least one body fluid passage 30 for discharging body fluids in a direction away from the skin of the user 1; and electrodes 221 for sensing current flowing through the body fluids of the user 1 discharged through the body fluid passage 30.” (Passage 30)) (Par. 71, “Referring to enlarged portions in FIG. 2B, a plurality of body fluid sensors 21 and a plurality of bioelectrical sensors 25 may be provided on a unit frame of the frame 203”);
a sensor disposed on a first region of the patch body (Par. 54, Fig. 2B, body fluid sensor – 21 (body fluid sensor 21 contains electrodes 221)), the sensor covering at least one of the openings of one of the repeating patterns (Fig. 4A (observable that electrode 221 covers part of the opening of passage – 30));
a sensor system structure (Fig. 2B, bioelectric sensor – 25)(Par. 64)(Par. 141, “the term “sensor” may be a hardware component such as a processor or a circuit, and/or a software component executable by a hardware component such as a processor.”) disposed on a second region of the patch body (Par. 57, “a bioelectrical sensor 25 configured to monitor an electrophysiological signal of the user 1.”) (Fig. 2B, (observable that body fluid sensor 21 and bioelectric sensor 25 are on separate areas)), the sensor system structure covering on or more of the openings (Fig. 5A (opening – 259 under bioelectrical sensor - 25)) and being configured to maintain a nonadherent state with the skin (Par. 59 (bioelectric sensor 25 includes a hydrogel)).
Yi fails to explicitly disclose a sensor system structure comprising a flexible printed circuit board and configured to receive bio signals detected by the sensor.
However, Mattila teaches a sensor system structure (Par. 75, “the electronics assembly 904 may be the same or similar in structure and/or function to the composite assembly 480 shown and described with respect to FIG. 4.”) (Fig. 4, (composite assembly – 480 with portion - 486)) (Fig. 9, electronics assembly – 904) comprising a flexible printed circuit board (Par. 53, “The composite assembly 480 can be included in and/or otherwise form an integrated circuit (IC), a printed circuit board (PCB) assembly including a printed circuit board, an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), or any other suitable electrical circuit structure.”) (Par. 56, “The portion 482 can include a composite board including an insulator and at least one conductive trace (e.g., a flexible printed circuit board)”) and configured to receive bio signals detected by the sensor (Fig. 4 (electrode – 483)) (Par. 56, “the third conductive trace can extend from the electrode 483 to the portion 486”) (Par. 76, “measurements related to the surface (e.g., skin) of the patient can be taken by the electronics assembly 904 via the first electrode and the second electrode.”) (Par. 75, “the electronics assembly 904 may be the same or similar in structure and/or function to the composite assembly 480 shown and described with respect to FIG. 4.”).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art to modify the device of Yi with that of Mattila to include a sensor system structure comprising a flexible printed circuit board and configured to receive bio signals detected by the sensor through the combination of references as different circuit structures are known in the art (Mattila (Par. 53)) and it would have yielded the predictable result of conforming to the structure that it is attached to and allow for the explicit measurement of signals.
Modified Yi fails to explicitly disclose a wiring disposed along the frame of the patch body in a winding manner around the openings and configured to connect the sensor and the sensor system structure.
However, Sterling teaches wiring (Fig. 3, wires – 70) disposed along the frame of the patch body (Par. 68, Fig. 3 (wires disposed on flexible support 60)) in a winding manner around the openings (Fig. 12 (sensor 20 and board 40 each occupy an opening)) (Fig. 3,12 (observable curve in wires 70) (observable that wires 70 pass near sensor 20 and board 40, which occupy an opening)) and configured to connect the sensor (Par. 68, Fig. 3, sensors – 20) and the sensor system structure (Par. 65, circuitry board – 40, “circuitry board 40 comprising a control circuitry 41 configured to control behavior of the plurality of sensors 10, the data storage unit 43, and the transceiver 42. The transceiver 42 may be connected with the analyzer 90 through a wired communication or a wireless communication. Alternatively, the transceiver 20 may be connected with the analyzer 90 through a socket provided in the analyzer 90.”) (Par. 68, “wires 70 connecting the sensors 20, the data storage unit 43, and the transceiver 42.”).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art to modify the device of Yi and Mattila with that of Sterling to include a wiring disposed along the frame of the patch body of Yi in a winding manner around the openings of Yi and configured to connect the sensor and the sensor system structure as it would have through the combination of references as it would have yielded the predictable result of explicitly connecting the components together and enabling signals to be passed between the components.
Modified Yi fails to explicitly disclose a wiring cover coupled to the frame of the patch body with the wiring interposed therebetween in a winding manner around the openings.
However, Sterling further teaches wiring in a winding manner around the openings (Fig. 12 (sensor 20 and board 40 each occupy an opening)) (Fig. 3,12 (observable curve in wires 70) (observable that wires 70 pass near sensor 20 and board 40, which occupy openings)).
Iwasaki teaches a wiring cover (second stretchable substrate – 30) (Par. 43, “examples of the resin material configuring the first stretchable substrate and the second stretchable substrate include thermoplastic polyurethane and the like.”) coupled to the frame (first stretchable substrate 10 with conductive pattern 20) of the patch body (electrode – 1) with the wiring interposed therebetween (Fig. 4, (second stretchable substrate 30 is between the first stretchable substrate and the body))(Par. 33, “the second stretchable substrate 30 is provided on the one main surface of the first stretchable substrate 10 so as to cover at least the wiring part 22 of the conductive pattern 20”).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art to modify the device of Yi, Mattila, and Sterling with that of Iwasaki to include a wiring cover coupled to the frame of the patch body of Yi with the wiring of Sterling interposed therebetween in a winding manner around the openings of Yi through the combination of references as it would have yielded the predictable result of explicitly connecting the components together and protecting the wiring from coming into contact with the body.
Modified Yi fails to explicitly disclose a sensor system structure cover coupled to the frame of the patch body with the sensor system structure interposed therebetween in the second region of the patch body, wherein the sensor system structure cover includes a nonadherent surface on a surface facing the skin.
However, Toth teaches a sensor system structure cover (Par. 480, substrate – 1109) coupled to the frame (Fig. 11a, (module – 1115)) of the patch body with the sensor system structure (Fig. 11a, internal components of module – 1115) (Par. 244, “A patch in accordance with the present disclosure may include a substrate, one or more interconnects fastened to the substrate, each interconnect including one or more connectors, configured, and dimensioned for interfacing with a module…” (interconnects couple the substrate to the module)) (Par. 480, “The module 1115 may be configured for wireless communication 1130 in accordance with the present disclosure.”) (Par. 291, “In aspects, the three dimensional antenna may be printed along the inner wall of a suitable shaped housing (i.e. a pseudo hemispherical housing) with one or more pickups arranged along the base thereof. A module in accordance with the present disclosure may include a circuit configured and dimensioned so as to form a wall of the housing, including one or more electrical connections configured to interface with the pickups during assembly…”) (Par. 283, “”In aspects, the module may include a housing, the housing including one or more aspects of the interconnect, optionally providing a sealed cavity in which other components of the module may reside. One or more of the circuits may be integrated into the housing. In aspects, the interconnect may be integrated into one or more circuits included in the housing. The antenna may be integrated into the housing (e.g. printed onto the housing, embedded into the housing, sealed within the housing, etc.).”) interposed therebetween in the second region of the patch body (Par. 480, “The module 1115 is shown with a plurality of corresponding interconnects 1120a,b each including caps to isolate one or more regions of the module 1115 from the elements. The module 1115 may be configured for wireless communication 1130 in accordance with the present disclosure.”) (Fig. 11a, substrate – 1109, module 1115 (internal components of module 1115 are interposed between)), wherein the sensor system structure cover includes a nonadherent surface on a surface facing the skin (Par. 246, “In aspects, the substrate or the patch in accordance with the present disclosure on the whole may be stretchable, so as to maintain operation while stretching in conjunction with the surface of the subject…”)(Par. 480, substrate – 1109) (Par. 254, “In aspects, a patch in accordance with the present disclosure may include a substrate…”) (Par. 255, “In aspects, the substrate may be coated with a thin lubricious coating of a silicone and/or silicon micro/nano bead layer. Such a coating may provide a soft, lubricious feel for the substrate while maintaining a hypoallergenic quality and further limit nicking during a monitoring session”) (Par. 254, “To maintain a sufficiently flexible, comfortable and/or breathable interface for a subject, the substrate may be formed from a thin polymeric material with thickness less than 50 um, less than 25 um, less than 12 um, less than 8 um, less than 4 um, etc.”).
Yi, Mattila, Sterling, Iwasaki, and Toth are considered to be analogous art to the claimed invention as they are involved with biological sensors.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art to modify the device of Yi, Mattila, Sterling, and Iwasaki with that of Toth to include a sensor system structure cover coupled to the frame of the patch body of Yi with the sensor system structure interposed therebetween in the second region of the patch body of Yi, wherein the sensor system structure cover includes a nonadherent surface on a surface facing the skin through the combination of references as it would have yielded the predictable result of providing cover of a hypoallergenic material that stretches with the skin, improving comfort for long term monitoring (Toth (Par. 246, 255)).
Regarding claim 5, modified Yi fails to explicitly disclose the limitations of the claim.
However, Sterling further teaches the sensor (sensors – 20) is configured to have one exposed surface to be in contact with the skin (Fig. 12, (observable that sensor 20 has a surface in direct contact with skin 50)).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art to modify the device of Yi, Mattila, Sterling, Iwasaki, and Toth with that of Sterling to include the sensor is configured to have one exposed surface to be in contact with the skin through the combination of references as it would have yielded the predictable result of providing good electrical contact (Sterling (Par. 31)).
Regarding claim 6, Modified Yi fails to explicitly disclose the limitations of the claim.
However, Sterling further teaches the sensor includes an electrocardiogram (ECG) electrode or an electromyogram (EMG) electrode (Par. 60, “The plurality of sensors 20 may comprise an electrocardiogram (ECG) sensor. The ECG sensor 20 may comprise three or more skin surface electrodes 22, 24, 26 (refer to FIG. 5), and the three skin surface electrodes 22, 24, 26 are configured to form two ECG channels.”).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art to modify the device of Yi, Mattila, Sterling, Iwasaki, and Toth with that of Sterling to include the sensor includes an electrocardiogram (ECG) electrode or an electromyogram (EMG) electrode through the combination of references as it would have yielded the predictable result of providing data regarding the cardiovascular health of the patient.
Regarding claim 7, Modified Yi fails to explicitly disclose the limitations of the claim.
However, Sterling further teaches a spacer (Par. 67, adhesive portion – 62, “the flexible support 60 comprises first and second adhesive surface portions 62, 64.”) interposed between the ECG electrode or the EMG electrode and the frame (Fig. 12, (observable that adhesive 62 is in contact with sensor 20, and as such serves as a spacer between sensor – 20 and adhesive 62))(Flexible support – 60) (Par. 60, “The plurality of sensors 20 may comprise an electrocardiogram (ECG) sensor. The ECG sensor 20 may comprise three or more skin surface electrodes 22, 24, 26 (refer to FIG. 5), and the three skin surface electrodes 22, 24, 26 are configured to form two ECG channels.”) (Par. 70).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art to modify the device of Yi, Mattila, Sterling, Iwasaki, and Toth with that of Sterling to include a spacer interposed between the ECG electrode or the EMG electrode and the frame of Yi through the combination of references as it would have yielded the predictable result of securing the sensor to the frame (Sterling (Par. 70)).
Regarding claim 8, modified Yi further discloses the sensor includes a body fluid sensor (Yi (body fluid sensor – 21)) configured to collect and detect a body fluid (Yi (Par. 88, “The body fluids 41 collected in the body fluid passage 30 may connect both the electrodes 221 of the body fluid sensor 21 to allow current to flow between the electrodes 221. The body fluid sensor 21 may generate sensing data about the body fluids 41 based on the current flowing between the electrodes 221 through the body fluids 41.”)).
Regarding claim 9, modified Yi further discloses the body fluid sensor (Yi (Par. 76, “the body fluid sensor 21 may be provided by combining a structural body 211 and a lower plate 213 with each other.”)) includes:
an opening formed layer including a body fluid passage configured to discharge the body fluid (Yi (Par. 77, “structural body 211 may include, for example, a first opening 215 forming the body fluid passage 30 for discharging body fluids in a direction away from the skin of the user 1.”) (Par. 78, “the lower plate 213 may include: a second opening 219 forming the body fluid passage 30 for discharging body fluids in a direction away from the skin of the user 1; and interconnection electrodes 217 connected to the electrodes 221 which detect current flowing in body fluids contained in the body fluid passage 30. Interconnection electrodes 217 may be formed on the bottom side of the structural body 211.”)); and
an electrode layer positioned in the opening formed layer and configured to detect a current flowing through the body fluid collected to the body fluid passage (Yi (Par. 77)(Par. 78, “the lower plate 213 may include: a second opening 219 forming the body fluid passage 30 for discharging body fluids in a direction away from the skin of the user 1; and interconnection electrodes 217 connected to the electrodes 221 which detect current flowing in body fluids contained in the body fluid passage 30. Interconnection electrodes 217 may be formed on the bottom side of the structural body 211.”)).
Regarding claim 10, modified Yi further discloses the frame of the mechanical metamaterial includes a plurality of basic displacement unit bodies (Yi(Fig. 2A (each unit is a six-sided shape of frame 203))), and
in each of the plurality of basic displacement unit bodies, m polygonal basic unit cells are positioned while being adjacent to each other (As indicated in modified Fig. 2A below), m isolation parts are formed between the m basic unit cells (as seen in modified Fig. 2A below), and
a junction part which connects the basic unit cells to each other is formed between the basic unit cells (As seen in modified fig. 2A below), and the junction part includes a junction part pattern in which an outer junction part positioned at an outer edge of the basic unit cell and an inner junction part that is not in contact with the outer edge of the basic unit cell are sequentially repeated (Observable that the inner and outer junction part pattern of modified Fig. 2a below repeats), and
m is an integer of 4 or 6 (as seen in modified Fig. 2a below).
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Yi Modified Fig. 2A
Claim(s) 11-13 and 15 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Yi in view of Mattila, Sterling, Iwasaki, and Toth as applied to claim 10 above, and further in view of Choi (US Pub. No. 20170092389) hereinafter Choi.
Yi, Mattila, Sterling, Iwasaki, and Toth teach the device of claim 10 above.
Regarding claim 11, modified Yi further discloses the basic displacement unit body (Yi (Basic unit cell as indicated in modified Fig. 2a above) includes a first opening having a shape that varies in size in a direction outward from a center thereof (Yi (Fig. 2a (observable that basic unit has 6 sides and is not a circle, as such, the opening formed in the center has a shape that varies from the center to the sides of the shape))).
Modified Yi fails to explicitly disclose the basic displacement unit body having an edge that forms an angle with a line passing through the center that is larger than 0° and is equal to or smaller than 15°.
However, Choi teaches the basic displacement unit body(Fig. 1, (six-sided displacement unit at the bottom)) having an edge (Fig. 1, (interior edge of the six-sided displacement unit)) that forms an angle with a line passing through the center that is larger than 0° and is equal to or smaller than 15° (Fig. 1 (the initial state is considered to be that of the shape made up of 6 triangles, at the moment immediately after the indicated initial state in the image, as the initial angle is 0)).
Yi, Mattila, Sterling, Iwasaki, Toth, Choi are considered to be analogous art to the claimed invention as they are involved with electrodes.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art to modify the device of Yi, Mattila, Sterling, Iwasaki, and Toth with that of Choi to include the basic displacement unit body having an edge that forms an angle with a line passing through the center that is larger than 0° and is equal to or smaller than 15° through the substitution of the amount of sides on the basic unit cell structures of Yi for the 3 sided structures of Choi, while maintaining the openings in each basic unit cell of Yi, as it would have yielded the predictable result of adhering to irregular surfaces (Choi (Par. 52)).
Regarding claim 12, modified Yi fails to explicitly disclose the limitations of the claim.
However, Choi further teaches the first opening has as a 3-pointed star shape (Fig. 1 (middle shape that is made out of six triangles)).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art to modify the device of Yi, Mattila, Sterling, Iwasaki, Toth, and Choi with that of Choi to include the first opening has as a 3-pointed star shape for the reasoning as indicated above in claim 11.
Regarding claim 13, modified Yi further discloses the basic unit cell includes a second opening at a center (Yi (Claim 8, “a unit frame of which both lateral middle portions are bent inward toward the at least one opening.”) (Fig. 2A, (each basic cell unit, as indicated in modified Fig. 2A above, has an opening))).
Regarding claim 15, modified Yi further discloses the six second openings (Yi (Fig. 2A, (each basic cell unit, as indicated in modified Fig. 2A above, has an opening))).
Modified Yi fails to explicitly disclose the six second openings are disposed around each first opening.
However, Choi further teaches each first opening (Fig. 1 (middle shape that is made out of six triangles)).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art to modify the device of Yi, Mattila, Sterling, Iwasaki, Toth, and Choi with that of Choi to include the six second openings are disposed around each first opening for the reasoning as indicated above in claim 11.
Claim(s) 14 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Yi in view of Mattila, Sterling, Iwasaki, Toth, and Choi as applied to claim 11 above, and further in view of Georgeson (US Pub. No. 20230032821) hereinafter Georgeson.
Yi, Mattila, Sterling, Iwasaki, Toth, and Choi teach the device of claim 11 above.
Regarding claim 14, modified Yi fails to explicitly disclose the limitations of the claim.
However, Georgeson teaches the second opening has a triangular shape (Par. 60, “To improve or increase flexibility and/or stretchability characteristics of the membrane sensor 300, the second frame 318 includes a plurality of second openings or cutouts 320. As a result, the second frame 318 includes a plurality of flexible second legs 322 (e.g., strips, frame portions, etc.) that are formed by the second cutouts 320. The second frame 318 (e.g., via the second legs 322 and/or the second cutouts 320) defines a second pattern 324 (e.g., auxetic hexagonal pattern). In particular, the second pattern 324 is an Auxetic.”).
Yi, Mattila, Sterling, Iwasaki, Toth, Choi, and Georgeson are considered to be analogous art to the claimed invention as they are involved with sensors.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art to modify the device of Yi, Mattila, Sterling, Iwasaki, Toth, and Choi with that of Georgeson to include the second opening has a triangular shape through the substitution of the unit structure of modified Yi with that of Georgeson as it would have yielded the predictable result of improving the flexibility (Georgeson (Par. 60)).
Claim(s) 16-20 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Yi in view of Mattila, Sterling, Iwasaki, and Toth as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of Dolla (US Pub. No. 8652602) hereinafter Dolla.
Yi, Mattila, Sterling, Iwasaki, and Toth teach the device of claim 1 above.
Regarding claim 16, modified Yi fails to explicitly disclose the limitations of the claim.
However, Dolla teaches the frame made of the mechanical metamaterial includes a first frame part extending in a horizontal zigzag direction (Col. 5, lines 30-43) (Fig. 9, x axis strands – 2) and a second frame part extending in a vertical zigzag direction (Col. 5, lines 30-43) (Fig. 9, y axis strands – 3), and
the first frame part and the second frame part cross each other to form a crossing point (Fig. 9 (observable that axis strands 2 and 3 intersect at joints 14)), and an opening surrounded by the first frame part and the second frame part which connects the adjacent crossing points in horizontal and vertical directions is included (Fig. 9, (observable that the axis strands 2 and 3 form sub unit cells 8, which are the openings))(Col. 5, lines 30-43).
Yi, Mattila, Sterling, Iwasaki, Toth, Dolla are considered to be analogous art to the claimed invention as they are involved with biomedical materials.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art to modify the device of Yi, Mattila, Sterling, Iwasaki, and Toth with that of Dolla to include the frame made of the mechanical metamaterial includes a first frame part extending in a horizontal zigzag direction and a second frame part extending in a vertical zigzag direction, and the first frame part and the second frame part cross each other to form a crossing point, and an opening surrounded by the first frame part and the second frame part which connects the adjacent crossing points in horizontal and vertical directions is included through the combination of references as different shaped auxetic structures are known in the art and would have yielded the predictable result of customizing the material structure.
Regarding claim 17, modified Yi fails to explicitly disclose the limitations of the claim.
However, Dolla further teaches the opening includes a center opening part and a plurality of branch opening parts integrally extending in directions shifted from the center opening part (As indicated in modified Fig. 9 below).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art to modify the device of Yi, Mattila, Sterling, Iwasaki, Toth, and Dolla with that of Dolla to include the opening includes a center opening part and a plurality of branch opening parts integrally extending in directions shifted from the center opening part for the reasoning as indicated in claim 16 above.
Regarding claim 18, modified Yi fails to explicitly disclose the limitations of the claim.
However, Dolla further teaches the center opening part has a quadrangular shape (As indicated in Modified Fig. 9 below (observable that the indicated opening is bounded by a dashed rectangular shape that has 4 sides)), and
the branch opening part includes four branch opening parts extending from sides of the center opening part, respectively (As indicated in modified Fig. 9 below (observable that there are 4 indicated branch openings)).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art to modify the device of Yi, Mattila, Sterling, Iwasaki, Toth, and Dolla with that of Dolla to include the center opening part has a quadrangular shape, and the branch opening part includes four branch opening parts extending from sides of the center opening part, respectively for the reasoning as indicated in claim 16 above.
Regarding claim 19, modified Yi fails to explicitly disclose the limitations of the claim.
However, Dolla further teaches each of the first frame part and the second frame part includes an angled crest and valley (Col. 5, lines 30-43 (peaks and valleys)) (Fig. 9, x axis strands – 2, y axis strands – 3).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art to modify the device of Yi, Mattila, Sterling, Iwasaki, Toth, and Dolla with that of Dolla to include each of the first frame part and the second frame part includes an angled crest and valley for the reasoning as indicated in claim 16 above.
Regarding claim 20, modified Yi fails to explicitly disclose the limitations of the claim.
However, Dolla further teaches each of the first frame part and the second frame part includes a round crest and valley (Fig. 10, (observable that the peaks and valleys of x axis strands – 2 and y axis strands – 3 are rounded).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art to modify the device of Yi, Mattila, Sterling, Iwasaki, Toth, and Dolla with that of Dolla to include each of the first frame part and the second frame part includes a round crest and valley through the combination of embodiments of Dolla for the reasoning as indicated in claim 16 above.
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Dolla Modified Fig. 9
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed 09/11/2025 regarding the 103 rejection have been fully considered, but are moot in view of the newly applied rejection as a result of the applicant's amendments to the claims.
In response to applicant’s argument that there is no teaching, suggestion, or motivation to combine the references, the examiner recognizes that obviousness may be established by combining or modifying the teachings of the prior art to produce the claimed invention where there is some teaching, suggestion, or motivation to do so found either in the references themselves or in the knowledge generally available to one of ordinary skill in the art. See In re Fine, 837 F.2d 1071, 5 USPQ2d 1596 (Fed. Cir. 1988), In re Jones, 958 F.2d 347, 21 USPQ2d 1941 (Fed. Cir. 1992), and KSR International Co. v. Teleflex, Inc., 550 U.S. 398, 82 USPQ2d 1385 (2007). In this case, as indicated in the 103 rejection above, it would have yielded the predictable result of providing cover of a hypoallergenic material that stretches with the skin, improving comfort for long term monitoring (Toth (Par. 246, 255)).
In response to applicant's arguments against the references individually, one cannot show nonobviousness by attacking references individually where the rejections are based on combinations of references. See In re Keller, 642 F.2d 413, 208 USPQ 871 (CCPA 1981); In re Merck & Co., 800 F.2d 1091, 231 USPQ 375 (Fed. Cir. 1986).
In response to applicant's argument that the examiner's conclusion of obviousness is based upon improper hindsight reasoning, it must be recognized that any judgment on obviousness is in a sense necessarily a reconstruction based upon hindsight reasoning. But so long as it takes into account only knowledge which was within the level of ordinary skill at the time the claimed invention was made, and does not include knowledge gleaned only from the applicant's disclosure, such a reconstruction is proper. See In re McLaughlin, 443 F.2d 1392, 170 USPQ 209 (CCPA 1971).
The applicant’s arguments regarding the dependent claims, rely on the arguments related to the independent claim, and as such are also deemed as not persuasive.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Han (US Pub. No. 20220354428) hereinafter Han.
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.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to ARI SINGH KANE PADDA whose telephone number is (571)272-7228. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Friday 8:00 am - 5:00 pm.
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/ARI S PADDA/ Examiner, Art Unit 3791
/RENE T TOWA/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3791
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