DETAILED ACTION
Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status
The present application is being examined under the pre-AIA first to invent provisions.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of 35 U.S.C. 112(a):
(a) IN GENERAL.—The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor or joint inventor of carrying out the invention.
The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112:
The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor of carrying out his invention.
Claims 459, 460, and 463 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(a) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), first paragraph, as failing to comply with the written description requirement. The claim(s) contains subject matter which was not described in the specification in such a way as to reasonably convey to one skilled in the relevant art that the inventor or a joint inventor, or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the inventor(s), at the time the application was filed, had possession of the claimed invention.
In claims 459 and 460, there is no specification support for a detector. The claimed invention is drawn to instant Fig 22B and there is nothing in the specification that describes a detector can be applied here.
In claim 463, there is no support for a regular spacing as [0289] only refers to a sparse or irregular arrangement for the invention drawn to Fig 22B.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
The following is a quotation of the appropriate paragraphs of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 that form the basis for the rejections under this section made in this Office action:
A person shall be entitled to a patent unless –
(b) the invention was patented or described in a printed publication in this or a foreign country or in public use or on sale in this country, more than one year prior to the date of application for patent in the United States.
Claims 455, 457, 458, and 462-467 are rejected under pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102(b) as being anticipated by Johnson (US Pub 2006/0287596 -cited by applicant).
Re claim 455: Johnson discloses an apparatus, comprising:
a first plurality of ultrasound elements on a cylindrical support and being arranged such that the ultrasound transducer elements are directed toward an interior of the cylindrical support and configured as ultrasound imaging elements (Figures 1, 2, 34; 0413, 0421, 0425 0477, 0555; see the cylindrical ultrasound transducer 70 wherein elements 100-107 are transmit arrays and 108-115 are receive arrays in a transmission mode; see the cylindrical support a water tank 86 that houses the structure or carriage 34 which directly supports the transducer 70);
a second plurality of ultrasound elements on the cylindrical support in a fixed relationship with respect to each other and being arranged such that the ultrasound transducer elements are directed toward an interior of the cylindrical support, wherein the first plurality of ultrasound elements and the second plurality of ultrasound elements are configured in combination to operate in a transmissive imaging modality in which the one of the first and second pluralities of ultrasound elements are configured to transmit ultrasound signals and the other of the first and second pluralities of ultrasound elements are configured to receive the ultrasound signals (Figures 1, 2, 34; 0413, 0421, 0425 0477, 0555; see the cylindrical ultrasound transducer 70 wherein elements 100-107 are transmit arrays and 108-115 are receive arrays in a transmission mode; see the cylindrical support a water tank 86 that houses the structure or carriage 34 which directly supports the transducer 70); and
processing circuitry configured to generate an ultrasound image by processing the ultrasound signals received by either of the first and second pluralities of ultrasound elements (Figure 4A; 0475; see the processing components to generate an ultrasound image).
Re claim 457: The elements comprise lead zirconate titanate (PZT) elements [0422; see the piezo elements]
Re claim 458: The cylindrical support is sized to accommodate insertion of a subject for imaging [0424; see that the support permits the body to be scanned].
Re claims 462: The first plurality of ultrasound elements are arranged in three dimensions (Figure 2; see elements 100-107 which are disposed vertically in a 2D arrangement (i.e. as array 100) and also three dimensionally in a circular arrangement (i.e. see arrays 100-107).
Re claim 463: The first plurality of ultrasound elements are arranged in a pattern in which the ultrasound elements of the first plurality are regularly spaced from each other (Figure 4C; 0421, 0428, 0439, 0440; see the “thin” elements that are regularly spaced vertically).
Re claim 464: The processing circuitry is further configured to couple to the plurality of radiation sensors and to receive and discriminate between the source signals sensed by the plurality of radiation sensors [0016; see the discriminating of the sources of the signals through the inverse scattering].
Re claims 465-467: The first plurality of ultrasound elements arranged in three dimensions are arranged in a substantially opposed helical three-dimensional arrangement, wherein transmit ultrasound signals from ultrasound elements on one side of the cylindrical support are transmitted through an interior volume of the cylindrical support to ultrasound elements on an opposed side of the cylindrical support [0025, figure 2; see the alternating arrangement of sources and sensors wherein transmit signals from one side are transmitted through the volume to the opposite side at receive sensors, see the arrays 100-107 that each include a linear arrangement of elements that comprise a helical pattern (i.e. the lowest element of array 100, the second lowest element of array 101, the third lowest element of array 102…form a substantially helical pattern of elements).
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
The following is a quotation of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 103(a) which forms the basis for all obviousness rejections set forth in this Office action:
(a) A patent may not be obtained though the invention is not identically disclosed or described as set forth in section 102, if the differences between the subject matter sought to be patented and the prior art are such that the subject matter as a whole would have been obvious at the time the invention was made to a person having ordinary skill in the art to which said subject matter pertains. Patentability shall not be negated by the manner in which the invention was made.
Claim 456 is rejected under pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 103(a) as being unpatentable over Johnson, as applied to claim 455, in view of Haider et al (US Pub 2010/0152587 -cited by applicant).
Re claim 456: Johnson discloses all features including that various types of transducers can be used [0422], but does not disclose cMUTs. However, Haider teaches of a transducer wherein cMUTs or piezo transducers are used [0016]. It would have been obvious to the skilled artisan to modify Johnson, to use cMUTs as taught by Haider, as such are well known in the field of ultrasound to be interchanged as desired.
Claims 459 and 460 are rejected under pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 103(a) as being unpatentable over Johnson, as applied to claim 455, in view of Smith et al (US Pub 2006/0004290 -cited by applicant)
Re claims 459, 460: Johnson discloses all features except for a detector configured to detect the relative position or orientation of the first plurality of ultrasound elements relative to the second plurality of ultrasound elements. However, Smith teaches of a MUT array wherein sensors are used to detect position and orientation of the array [0033; see the non-imaging sensors]. It would have been obvious to the skilled artisan to modify Johnson, to incorporate detectors as taught by Smith, in order to improve the positioning of the arrays for imaging.
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed 4/7/26 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive. In regard to claim 455, Applicant argues that Johnson does not disclose a transmissive mode. Respectfully, Examiner disagrees and finds that the mode is not limited to reflection mode. It is explicitly set forth that the arrays may be operated in transmissive mode [0425, 0557, 0479]. Regarding dependent claim 464, Examiner maintains that Johnson discloses discriminating signals from respective sources. In the transmissive mode, the discrimination is from the respective sources and that particular transmitted signal is discriminated between fat and other tissue.
In regard to the 112 1st rejection, Applicant argues that there is support for the detector and that the elements are “regularly” spaced. However, these rejections are maintained. While the specification does refer to a detector, this is not in reference to the cylindrical arrangement that is claimed (see instant figure 22b) and there is nothing that says the detector is incorporated into the claimed cylinder. Further, [0289] specifically recites that Fig 22B is a sparse/irregular arrangement and, therefore, the elements are not “regularly spaced” as claimed.
The prior claim objection and 112b rejections are withdrawn due to amendments.
Conclusion
THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. 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 MICHAEL T ROZANSKI whose telephone number is (571)272-1648. The examiner can normally be reached Mon - Fri 8:00-4:00.
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/MICHAEL T ROZANSKI/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3797
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