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and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114.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 January 5th, 2026 has been entered.
Claim Status
The amendment submitted on January 5th 2026 has been entered. Claims 1-11, 13, 16-17, 19, 23, 25, 28, and 39-40 are currently pending. Claims 12, 14-15, 18, 20-22, 24, and 29-38 remain cancelled. Claims 26-27 have been newly cancelled. Claims 1, 2, 10, 17, and 19 have been amended. Claims 39 and 40 have been newly added.
Claim Objections
Claim 1, 10, 17 are objected to because of the following informalities:
Newly added limitation section of “a portion a lower wall” should read –a portion of a lower wall—in claims 1, 10, and 17. Appropriate correction is required.
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed June 18th, 2025 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive.
Regarding applicant’s arguments pertaining to Kaye that nowhere in Kaye is a portion of a lower wall of a filter element of the manifold described to be lower than said perimeter surface, the examiner does not find this argument persuasive as the disclosure of Kaye is not relied upon in the current rejection to teach this aspect of the claim limitations and rather it is the disclosure of Gavlak that is seen to teach a portion of the lower wall being lower than a perimeter surface of the baffle (see below rejections). 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).
Regarding applicant’s arguments pertaining to Gavlak that Gavlak fails to teach or suggest a baffle wall defining a sump region below an outlet opening, examiner does not find this argument persuasive as Gavlak is not utilized in the current rejection to teach this feature of the limitations and rather it is the teachings of Kaye that are relied upon to teach the feature of providing the outlet opening near an upper aspect of the manifold housing and as such the sump below it (see below rejections). 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).
Regarding applicant’s arguments that Gavlak’s baffle is disposed entirely above the outlet opening and thus teaches away from the operation of the manifold, examiner does not find this argument persuasive as the fact that Gavlak presents the device in a particular arrangement does not inherently teach away from different arrangements of components of the device and there is no disclosure of Gavlak that teaches away or describes the teachings of Kaye as detrimental to the design of the Gavlak device. As such Gavlak is not found to teach away from creating the sump region as stated by the applicant.
Regarding applicant’s argument that the cylindrical or cup shaped filter of Gavlak, configured to receive a horizontal flow of fluid, would fail to receive a flow of liquid through the vertically oriented inlet, examiner does not find this argument persuasive as the current combination does not rely upon any teachings of a vertical orientation of the inlet or outlets of the device but rather relies on Kaye to teach the positioning of the outlet in a higher position of the base above the baffle port as placing the outlet in a higher position is what results in the reduction of solid matter being pulled through the suction opening, as such Kaye is only relied upon to teach positioning the outlet above the port of a baffle such that suction can be pulled through the baffle port at the lower end, one of ordinary skill in the art would have been able to apply this teaching to arrive at a device where the outlet is positioned above the baffle port but still in the orientation necessary for flow through the device of Gavlak. 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).
Regarding applicant’s argument that Merchant does not teach the baffle wall including a perimeter surface along a bottom of the baffle wall wherein a lower wall of a filter element within the manifold is disposed lower than the perimeter surface, the examiner does not find this argument persuasive as Merchant is not relied upon to teach this limitation but rather the disclosure of Gavlak (see below rejections). 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).
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.
Claim(s) 1-2, 4-9, and 40 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Gavlak et al. (U.S. Publication 2016/0367734) in view of Kaye et al. (U.S. Publication 2007/0191731) and Merchant (U.S. Publication 2018/0185560).
Regarding claim 1, Gavlak discloses a manifold (Fig. 3 components) for filtering medical waste (Abstract, medical waste collection manifold) including fluid received from a suction tube (¶0064 suction tube attached to ports 203) under influence of a vacuum (¶0064 suction) provided by a medical waste collection system (¶0064 provided by vacuum) into which said manifold is configured to be inserted in a proximal direction and removed in a distal direction opposite the proximal direction (¶0066 protrusions 417 enable manifold to engage and lock into a vacuum device, the fact that 417 are locked into the device shows that element 413 would be held within) , wherein the medical waste collection system includes a receiver defining an opening (¶0066 protrusions 417 that lock into medical waste collection system necessitate the medical waste collection system including a receiver that defines an opening for element 413 to be inserted), said manifold comprising:
a housing (Fig. 4) comprising an upper wall (see below illustrative diagram of Fig. 6A of Gavlak), a lower wall (see below illustrative diagram of Fig. 6A of Gavlak), and opposing sides (sides of cylinder extending between upper and lower sides of device) collectively defining a manifold volume (¶0066 internal volume) and an outlet opening 312 in fluid communication with said manifold volume (¶0065 forms openable fluid port),
said housing comprising a rim defining said outlet opening (portion of housing that surrounds opening);
a seal coupled to said rim (valve 311, Fig. 12 embodiment), said seal comprising a seal body (¶0077 valve body) shaped to cover said outlet opening (¶0077, circumferential groove configured to engage the annular opening of the vacuum port outlet), said seal configured to prevent egress of the fluid when said manifold is removed from the receiver (¶0078 in absence of vacuum inlet the wall slit is closed to prevent fluid communication therethrough);
a filter element (Fig. 9) disposed within said manifold volume (Fig. 8A shows the filter element disposed within manifold volume);
an inlet fitting 307 configured to receive the suction tube (¶0064 suction tube attached to ports 203) such that a suction path is established from the suction tube to said outlet opening across said filter element (¶0063 between two ends manifold may have encased body forming a fluid path therebetween); and
a baffle wall 708 disposed within said manifold volume (¶0070 walls of manifold body may include baffles), wherein said baffle wall includes a perimeter surface along a bottom of said baffle wall (see figure 7b third embodiment, arrow shows flow going around baffle along bottom of said wall suggesting a perimeter surface that allows fluid to flow through below the baffle) wherein said baffle wall 708 and said housing define a sump region of said manifold volume (region below baffle wall).
Gavlak does not expressly disclose the outlet opening being positioned near an upper aspect of said housing when said manifold is oriented for insertion into the opening of the receiver; the sump region being positioned below a lowermost aspect of said seal such that the fluid in said suction path is pulled from below said seal, thereby reducing a level of the fluid retained within said manifold; the baffle wall being expressly secured to the filter element such that when the filter element is coupled to the housing an upper edge of the baffle wall is positioned adjacent to the upper wall of the housing to redirect fluid towards the sump region, or wherein at least a portion of a lower wall of said filter element is disposed lower than said perimeter surface.
However, Kaye, in the same field of endeavor of filtering fluids under suction (Abstract), teaches a manifold 10 including an outlet opening 26 positioned near an upper wall of a housing (see below illustrative diagram of Fig. 6) a baffle wall 36 and proximal wall (see below illustrative diagram of Fig. 6 of Kaye, defines flow pattern through sump region positioned between basket filter base and outlet opening) defining a sump region positioned below a lowermost aspect of the outlet opening (see below illustrative diagram of Fig. 6), wherein the baffle wall is positioned such that an upper edge of the baffle wall is adjacent to the upper wall of the housing to redirect fluid toward said sump region such that the fluid in said suction path is pulled from below the opening, thereby reducing a level of the fluid retained with said manifold (¶0026 structure is believed to further prohibit a polyp from being suctioned out of the collection container and increase fluid flow through the container), for the purpose of further prohibiting a polyp from being suctioned out of the collection container and increase fluid flow through the container ¶0026.
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Illustrative diagram of Fig. 6 of Kaye.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to have modified the position of the baffle and outlet opening of Gavlak such that the baffle of Gavlak is positioned with an upper edge of the baffle wall adjacent to the upper wall of the housing after the filter element in the flow path and before the outlet opening with the outlet opening positioned near an upper aspect of a housing such that the fluid in said suction path is pulled from below the opening (and as such from below the seal which is positioned in the opening), as taught by Kaye for the purpose of further prohibiting any potential solid tissue (polyps) from being suctioned out of the collection container and increase fluid flow through the container (¶0026 of Kaye). As such the modification of Gavlak in view of Kaye would have resulted in the baffle port (see illustrative diagram of Fig. 6 of Kaye above) having an uppermost aspect (where the bottom edge of baffle defines port opening) below a lowermost aspect of said seal (as placed in opening) when the manifold is inserted in the receiver.
Furthermore, the placement of the baffle after the filter element of Gavlak would as taught by Kaye would have resulted in a portion of a lower wall of said filter element (see below illustrative diagram of Fig. 8) being disposed lower than said perimeter surface due to the tapering of the filter element and housing to a smaller diameter as they approach the distal end. This smaller diameter would have resulted in the perimeter surface of the baffle necessarily being higher than the portion of the lower wall of the filter element that occurs before the taper.
Gavlak in view of Kaye do not expressly disclose or suggest the baffle being secured to the filter element.
However, Merchant, in the same field of endeavor of filter devices with baffles to control fluid flow pathways, teaches coupling (through element 190) a baffle wall 175 to the base of a filter 120 and spaced from said filter (spaced by length of element 190) for the purpose of attaching the baffles to the device such that the baffles are disposed in the fluid flow pathway in a set manner (¶0036 disposed in second portion, attachable by known means, attachable to filter 120).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the baffle of Gavlak to have been coupled to the base of the basket of the filter, as taught by Merchant, for the purpose of maintaining the baffle in a particular orientation with relation to the filter in order for the baffle to maintain the flow pathway modulating effect intended.
Regarding claim 2, Gavlak in view of Kaye and/or Merchant suggest the manifold of claim 1. Gavlak further discloses the housing further comprising a body portion having a vertical proximal wall (see below illustrative diagram of Fig. 6A of Gavlak) at least partially extending between said opposing sides (extends between upper, lower, and opposing sides as it encompasses proximal end of device), wherein said proximal wall and said baffle wall cooperate to further define said sump region of said manifold volume (see fig. 6 of Kaye above, wall associated with outlet opening and baffle together form sump region that allows for directing flow of fluid from A1 to A3).
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Illustrative diagram of Fig. 6a of Gavlak.
Regarding claim 4, Gavlak in view of Kaye suggest the device of claim 2. Gavlak further discloses a basket (901 ¶0073 basket filter) having a base 903 and comprising said filter element (Fig. 9). Gavlak does not expressly disclose how the baffle wall is connected to the device and therefore does not disclose the baffle wall being coupled to said basket and spaced from said base.
However, Merchant, in the same field of endeavor of filter devices with baffles to control fluid flow pathways, teaches coupling (through element 190) a baffle wall 175 to the base of a filter 120 and spaced from said filter (spaced by length of element 190) for the purpose of attaching the baffles to the device such that the baffles are disposed in the fluid flow pathway in a set manner (¶0036 disposed in second portion, attachable by known means, attachable to filter 120).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the baffle of Gavlak to have been coupled to the base of the basket of the filter, as taught by Merchant, for the purpose of maintaining the baffle in a particular orientation with relation to the filter in order for the baffle to maintain the flow pathway modulating effect intended.
Regarding claim 5, Gavlak in view of Kaye and Merchant suggest the manifold of claim 4. Gavlak further discloses wing portions 904 disposed on the filter element of the device and shoulder portions 613 disposed on opposing sides (disposed circumferentially around inner wall of the casing and thus on opposing sides and upper and lower walls), wherein said wing portions and said shoulder portion have complementary profiles with said shoulder portion configured to receive said wing portion such that rotation of the basket is prevented when the filter element is disposed in said housing (¶0069 mating of the indentations and the cooperative protrusions affix the filter element in place when the filter element is disposed between the first and second outer casings are cooperatively joined).
Gavlak in view of Kaye and Merchant do not expressly disclose the baffle wall comprising the wing portion.
However, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have rearranged the wing portions to be on the baffle since this claimed position of the wing portions being on the baffle does not change the wing portion’s ability to mate with the shoulder portions and maintain the filter basket in place as the baffle wall is connected to the basket of the filter. Since applicant has not given any criticality to why the position of the wing and shoulder portions disclosed has any importance to the function of the claimed device, the Federal Circuit held that, where the only difference between the prior art and the claims was the position of a claimed element and altering the position of that claimed element would not have modified the operation of the device, the claimed device was not patentably distinct from the prior art device because it merely involved the rearrangement of parts. See MPEP 2144. In re Japikse, 181 F.2d 1019, 86 USPQ 70 (CCPA 1950).
Regarding claim 6, Gavlak in view of Kaye and/or Merchant suggest the manifold of claim 2. Gavlak in view of Kaye and/or Merchant do not expressly disclose the outlet opening being at least partially defined by said upper wall.
However, Gavlak further discloses the lower wall partially defining the outlet opening as illustrated in Fig. 8A below, and as such it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have had the upper wall partially define the outlet opening when performing the modification of Gavlak in view of Kaye, as Gavlak discloses utilizing the wall adjacent to the opening transverse to the proximal wall to form a portion of the wall so when the position of the opening is modified to be near to the upper wall to allow for pulling of liquid from a space lower than the opening, such that it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to have formed the opening in the same manner already disclosed using the upper wall that would now be adjacent to the opening and transverse to the proximal wall rather than the lower wall.
Regarding claim 7, Gavlak in view of Kaye and/or Merchant suggest the manifold of claim 1. Gavlak further discloses the housing comprising a head 415 and a body portion 413, the body portion having an interior surface at least partially defining said manifold volume (manifold volume defined by head and body portion), said head coupled to said inlet fitting (Fig. 16c shows coupling of inlet fitting to head using mechanical lock 1617) and engageable with said body portion such that the suction tube and said manifold volume are in fluid communication (head and body are joined together at line where element 417 is attached and thus are engaged together).
Regarding claim 8, Gavlak in view of Kaye and/or Merchant suggest the manifold of claim 1. Kaye, as detailed in the above rejection of claim 1, suggests the baffle wall defining a baffle port (see above illustrative diagram of Fig. 6 of Kaye which suggest that the baffle leaves an area for the suction to flow) arranged in said sump region, said baffle port configured such that an upper most aspect of said baffle port is below said lowermost aspect of said seal when the manifold is inserted in the receiver (baffle port arranged lower than outlet) for the purpose of further prohibiting a polyp from being suctioned out of the collection container and increase fluid flow through the container ¶0026.
As such It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to have modified the position of the baffle and outlet opening of Gavlak such that the baffle of Gavlak is positioned with an upper edge of the baffle wall adjacent to the upper wall of the housing after the filter element in the flow path and before the outlet opening with the outlet opening positioned near an upper aspect of a housing resulting in a baffle port being defined in said sump region below the baffle wall such that the fluid in said suction path is pulled from below the opening (and as such from below the seal which is positioned in the opening), as taught by Kaye for the purpose of further prohibiting any potential solid tissue (polyps) from being suctioned out of the collection container and increase fluid flow through the container (¶0026 of Kaye). As such the modification of Gavlak in view of Kaye would have resulted in the baffle port (see illustrative diagram of Fig. 6 of Kaye above) having an uppermost aspect (where the bottom edge of baffle defines port opening) below a lowermost aspect of said seal (as placed in opening) when the manifold is inserted in the receiver.
Regarding claim 9, Gavlak in view of Kaye suggest the manifold of claim 8. Kaye further suggests a cross-sectional area of said suction path through said baffle port being less than a cross-sectional area of said suction path across said filter element (the suction filter element allows a suction path with the cross-sectional area of nearly the full volume of the manifold with the baffle limiting the cross-sectional area of the body and therefore would be less than the cross-sectional area of the suction path across the filter element) as the baffle port is formed by the baffle wall which serves the purpose of reducing the cross-sectional area of the flow path in order to guide the path of suction to be pulled from below the opening (and as such from below the seal which is positioned in the opening), as taught by Kaye for the purpose of further prohibiting any potential solid tissue (polyps) from being suctioned out of the collection container and increase fluid flow through the container (¶0026 of Kaye).
As such, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to have modified Gavlak such that the baffle of Gavlak is positioned with an upper edge of the baffle wall adjacent to the upper wall of the housing after the filter element in the flow path and before the outlet opening with the outlet opening positioned near an upper aspect of a housing such that the fluid in said suction path is pulled from below the opening (and as such from below the seal which is positioned in the opening), which would inherently have led the baffle port reducing the cross-section area of the flow path as taught by Kaye for the purpose of further prohibiting any potential solid tissue (polyps) from being suctioned out of the collection container and increase fluid flow through the container (¶0026 of Kaye).
Regarding claim 40, Gavlak in view of Kaye and Merchant suggest the manifold of claim 1. Gavlak in view of Kaye further suggest the lower wall of said filter element being adjacent to said perimeter surface of said baffle wall as Kaye suggests the baffle being placed after the filter element of the device and the lower wall extends across the length of the filter element thus the perimeter surface of the baffle wall would be placed adjacent to end 906 which is the end of lower wall, thus the end of the lower wall would be adjacent to the perimeter surface of said baffle wall.
Claim(s) 3 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Gavlak et al. (U.S. Publication 2016/0367734) in view of Kaye et al. (U.S. Publication 2007/0191731), Merchant (U.S. Publication 2018/0185560), and Peterson et al. (WIPO Publication 2018/170233).
Regarding claim 3, Gavlak in view of Kaye and Merchant suggest the manifold of claim 1. Gavlak in view of Kaye and Merchant does not expressly disclose said housing further comprising a leg extending proximally from said proximal wall and wherein said rim is arranged on said leg.
However, Peterson, in the same field of endeavor of manifolds for filtering medical waste, teaches a leg extending proximally from a proximal wall wherein a rim of an outlet opening 68 is arranged on said leg (see illustrative diagram of Fig. 18 below).
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Illustrative diagram of Fig. 18 of Peterson.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have substituted the rim and outlet opening of Gavlak that performs the function of allowing fluid to flow out of the manifold toward a vacuum source for the rim and outlet opening of Peterson since these elements perform the same function of allowing fluid to flow out of the manifold toward a vacuum source. Simply substituting one outlet means for another would yield the predictable result of allowing a(n) manifold to outlet fluid. See MPEP 2143.
Claim(s) 10, 11, and 16 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Gavlak et al. (U.S. Publication 2016/0367734) in view of Kaye et al. (U.S. Publication 2007/0191731).
Regarding claims 10, 11, and 16 Gavlak discloses a manifold (Fig. 3 components) for filtering medical waste (Abstract, medical waste collection manifold) including fluid received from a suction tube (¶0064 suction tube attached to ports 203) under influence of a vacuum (¶0064 suction) provided by a medical waste collection system (¶0064 provided by vacuum) into which said manifold is configured to be inserted in a proximal direction (direction of 406) and removed in a distal direction (direction of end 405) opposite the proximal direction (¶0066 protrusions 417 enable manifold to engage and lock into a vacuum device, the fact that 417 are locked into the device shows that element 413 would be held within), wherein the medical waste collection system includes a receiver defining an opening (¶0066 protrusions 417 that lock into medical waste collection system necessitate the medical waste collection system including a receiver that defines an opening for element 413 to be inserted), said manifold comprising:
a housing (Fig. 4) comprising an upper wall (see below illustrative diagram of Fig. 5 of Gavlak), a lower wall (see below illustrative diagram of Fig. 5 of Gavlak), and opposing sides (sides of cylinder extending between upper and lower sides of device) collectively defining a manifold volume (¶0066 internal volume) wherein said upper wall and said opposing sides define upper shoulder portions of said housing (see below illustrative diagram of Fig. 5), said housing comprising a body portion 415 extending to a distal aspect (line delineating 415 from 413 by the reduction of circumference), a leg 413 extending proximally (extends proximally to end 406) from said distal aspect and comprising a rim (rim of opening that holds valve 311 inside as best seen in Fig. 8A) defining said outlet opening; a seal 311 coupled to said rim (coupled using annular groove 1202 which engages annular opening of outlet ¶0077), said seal comprising a seal body (Fig. 12B) shaped to cover said outlet opening (annular grove 1202 allows annular opening to sit within and thus the body covers the outlet on either side of annular opening that is placed into groove), said seal configured to prevent egress of the fluid when said manifold is removed from the receiver(¶0078 in absence of vacuum inlet the wall slit is closed to prevent fluid communication therethrough);
a filter element (Fig. 9) disposed within said manifold volume (Fig. 8A shows the filter element disposed within manifold volume);
an inlet fitting 307 configured to receive the suction tube (¶0064 suction tube attached to ports 203) such that a suction path is established from the suction tube to said outlet opening across said filter element (¶0063 between two ends manifold may have encased body forming a fluid path therebetween); and
a baffle wall 708 disposed within said manifold volume (¶0070 walls of manifold body, internal features) and spaced apart from said distal aspect (Fig. 7B shows baffle placed before the distal aspect transition point and is thus spaced apart) such that said baffle wall, and said distal aspect cooperate to reduce a cross-sectional area of said suction path near said outlet opening to less than a cross-sectional area of said suction path opposite said baffle wall (cross-sectional area of flow path before baffle subject to entire cross-section of manifold volume when taken transversely to axis 408, Fig. 7 shows baffle reducing flow pathway cross-section to just around baffle, distal aspect has shorter circumference ¶0066 shorter circumference than proximal portion 415 which reduces the cross-sectional area of manifold volume as it moves toward proximal end), wherein said baffle wall includes a perimeter surface along a bottom of said baffle wall (see figure 7b third embodiment, arrow shows flow going around baffle along bottom of said wall suggesting a perimeter surface that allows fluid to flow through below the baffle), and the baffle wall defining a baffle port having an uppermost aspect (baffle port is area in which fluid flows around baffle, uppermost aspect would be where baffle wall forms edge of baffle port) (claim 16).
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Illustrative diagram of Fig. 5 of Gavlak.
Gavlak does not expressly disclose the baffle wall comprising wing portions having a profile complementary of said upper shoulder portions, at least a portion of a lower wall of said filter element being disposed lower than said perimeter surface (Claim 10), the outlet opening being positioned near said upper wall when said manifold is oriented for insertion into the opening of the receiver (Claim 11), or the baffle port configured such that said uppermost aspect is below a lowermost aspect of said seal when the manifold is inserted in the receiver, as when inserted the seal is positioned near to a lower wall of the device (Claim 16).
However, Kaye, in the same field of endeavor of filtering fluids under suction (Abstract), teaches a manifold 10 including an outlet opening 26 positioned near an upper wall of a housing (see below illustrative diagram of Fig. 6) a baffle wall 36 and proximal wall (see below illustrative diagram of Fig. 6 of Kaye, defines flow pattern through sump region positioned between basket filter base and outlet opening) defining a sump region positioned below a lowermost aspect of the outlet opening (see below illustrative diagram of Fig. 6), wherein the baffle wall is positioned such that an upper edge of the baffle wall is adjacent to the upper wall of the housing to redirect fluid toward said sump region such that the fluid in said suction path is pulled from below the opening, thereby reducing a level of the fluid retained with said manifold (¶0026 structure is believed to further prohibit a polyp from being suctioned out of the collection container and increase fluid flow through the container), for the purpose of further prohibiting a polyp from being suctioned out of the collection container and increase fluid flow through the container ¶0026.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to have modified the position of the baffle and outlet opening of Gavlak such that the baffle of Gavlak is positioned with an upper edge of the baffle wall adjacent to the upper wall of the housing after the filter element in the flow path and before the outlet opening with the outlet opening positioned near an upper aspect of a housing such that the fluid in said suction path is pulled from below the opening (and as such from below the seal which is positioned in the opening), as taught by Kaye for the purpose of further prohibiting any potential solid tissue (polyps) from being suctioned out of the collection container and increase fluid flow through the container (¶0026 of Kaye). As such the modification of Gavlak in view of Kaye would have resulted in the baffle port (see illustrative diagram of Fig. 6 of Kaye above) having an uppermost aspect (where the bottom edge of baffle defines port opening) below a lowermost aspect of said seal (as placed in opening) when the manifold is inserted in the receiver.
Furthermore, the placement of the baffle after the filter element of Gavlak would as taught by Kaye would have resulted in a portion of a lower wall of said filter element (see above illustrative diagram of Fig. 8 of Gavlak) being disposed lower than said perimeter surface due to the tapering of the filter element and housing to a smaller diameter as they approach the distal end. This smaller diameter would have resulted in the perimeter surface of the baffle necessarily being higher than the portion of the lower wall of the filter element that occurs before the taper.
While Gavlak in view of Kaye do not expressly disclose the baffle having wing portions having a profile complementary of said upper shoulder portions, Gavlak in view of Kaye do suggest the baffle being complementary in shape with the upper wall and sides of the device as the baffle is required to be complementary with the upper wall and sides in order to force the fluid to follow a flow path underneath the baffle towards the lower wall of the device as taught by Kaye. As such it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art for the baffle of Gavlak as modified by Kaye to have had wing portions complementary with the upper shoulders disclosed by Gavlak as the baffle following the curvature of the upper wall and sides to prevent fluid flow in those directions would have inherently led to wing portions on the baffle complementary to the upper shoulder portions.
Claim(s) 13 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Gavlak et al. (U.S. Publication 2016/0367734) in view of Kaye et al. (U.S. Publication 2007/0191731) and Merchant (U.S. Publication 2018/0185560).
Regarding claim 13, Gavlak in view of Kaye suggest the device of claim 11. Gavlak further discloses a basket (901 ¶0073 basket filter) having a base 903 and comprising said filter element (Fig. 9). Gavlak does not expressly disclose how the baffle wall is connected to the device and therefore does not disclose the baffle wall being coupled to said basket.
However, Merchant, in the same field of endeavor of filter devices with baffles to control fluid flow pathways, teaches coupling (through element 190) a baffle wall 175 to the base of a filter 120 for the purpose of attaching the baffles to the device such that the baffles are disposed in the fluid flow pathway in a set manner (¶0036 disposed in second portion, attachable by known means, attachable to filter 120).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the baffle of Gavlak to have been coupled to the base of the basket of the filter, as taught by Merchant, for the purpose of maintaining the baffle in a particular orientation with relation to the filter in order for the baffle to maintain the flow pathway modulating effect intended.
Claim(s) 17 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Gavlak et al. (U.S. Publication 2016/0367734) in view of Merchant (U.S. Publication 2018/0185560).
Regarding claim 17, Gavlak discloses a manifold (Fig. 3 components) for filtering medical waste (Abstract, medical waste collection manifold) including fluid received from a suction tube (¶0064 suction tube attached to ports 203) received under influence of a vacuum (¶0064 suction) provided by a medical waste collection system (¶0064 provided by vacuum) into which said manifold is configured to be inserted in a proximal direction (direction of 406) and removed in a distal direction (direction of end 405) opposite the proximal direction (¶0066 protrusions 417 enable manifold to engage and lock into a vacuum device, the fact that 417 are locked into the device shows that element 413 would be held within and inserted), wherein the medical waste collection system includes a receiver defining an opening (¶0066 protrusions 417 that lock into medical waste collection system necessitate the medical waste collection system including a receiver that defines an opening for element 413 to be inserted), said manifold comprising:
a housing (Fig. 4) defining a manifold volume (¶0066 internal volume) and an outlet opening 312 in fluid communication with said manifold volume (¶0065 forms openable fluid port), said housing comprising a rim (rim of opening that holds valve 311 inside as best seen in Fig. 8A) defining said outlet opening;
a filter element (Fig. 9) comprising a basket (901, ¶0073 basket filter) having a mouth (902) secured to said housing (¶0073 secured through interaction of 904 with indentations on manifold body to secure basket filter therein) and a base 903 opposite said mouth, said filter element defining a sump region (region between base and outlet opening) of said manifold volume between said base and said outlet opening; and
an inlet fitting 307 configured to receive the suction tube (¶0064 suction tube attached to ports 203) such that a suction path is established from the suction tube to said outlet opening across said filter element (¶0063 between two ends manifold may have encased body forming a fluid path therebetween); and
a baffle wall 708 wherein the baffle wall 708 arranged to redirect said suction path, wherein said baffle wall includes a perimeter surface along a bottom of said baffle wall (see figure 7b third embodiment, arrow shows flow going around baffle along bottom of said wall suggesting a perimeter surface that allows fluid to flow through below the baffle).
Gavlak does not expressly disclose how the baffle wall is coupled to the device and therefore does not expressly disclose the baffle wall being coupled to the base of the basket, the coupling of the filter element to the housing arranging the baffle wall to redirect said suction path to said sump region, or at least a portion of a lower wall of said filter element being disposed lower than said perimeter surface.
However, Merchant, in the same field of endeavor of filter devices with baffles to control fluid flow pathways, teaches coupling (through element 190) a baffle wall 175 to the base of a filter 120 for the purpose of attaching the baffles to the device such that the baffles are disposed in the fluid flow pathway in a set manner (¶0036 disposed in second portion, attachable by known means, attachable to filter 120).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the baffle of Gavlak to have been coupled to the base of the basket of the filter, as taught by Merchant, for the purpose of maintaining the baffle in a particular orientation with relation to the filter in order for the baffle to maintain the flow pathway modulating effect intended. Coupling the baffle to the base of the basket of the filter would inherently have caused the filtering element being coupled to the housing (through 904 coupling to indentations) to have arranged the baffle wall such that suction path was redirected to said sump region.
Furthermore, the placement of the baffle after the filter element of Gavlak would as taught by Merchant would have resulted in a portion of a lower wall of said filter element (see above illustrative diagram of Fig. 8 of Gavlak) being disposed lower than said perimeter surface due to the tapering of the filter element and housing to a smaller diameter as they approach the distal end. This smaller diameter would have resulted in the perimeter surface of the baffle necessarily being higher than the portion of the lower wall of the filter element that occurs before the taper.
Claim(s) 19, 23, and 25-28 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Gavlak et al. (U.S. Publication 2016/0367734) in view of Merchant (U.S. Publication 2018/0185560) and further in view of Kaye et al. (U.S. Publication 2007/0191731).
Regarding claim 19, Gavlak in view of Merchant suggest the manifold of claim 17. Gavlak further discloses the housing further comprising a body portion having an upper wall (see above illustrative diagram of Fig. 6A of Gavlak), a lower wall (see above illustrative diagram of Fig. 6A of Gavlak), and opposing sides (sides of cylinder extending between upper and lower sides of device) each extending between said upper and lower walls when said manifold is oriented for insertion into the opening of the receiver, and a proximal wall (see above illustrative diagram of Fig. 6A of Gavlak) at least partially extending between said opposing sides (extends between upper, lower, and opposing sides as it encompasses proximal end of device).
Gavlak in view of Merch do not expressly disclose the proximal wall and said baffle wall cooperating to further define said sump region of said manifold volume as Gavlak in view of Merch do not expressly disclose the position of the baffle wall to be in the sump region defined between said base and said outlet opening.
However, Kaye, in the same field of endeavor of filtering fluids under suction (Abstract), teaches a manifold 10 including an outlet opening 26 positioned near an upper wall of a housing (see above illustrative diagram of Fig. 6) with a sump region defined by the cooperation of a baffle wall 36 and proximal wall (see above illustrative diagram of Fig. 6 of Kaye, defines flow pattern through sump region positioned between basket filter base and outlet opening) positioned below a lowermost aspect of the outlet opening (see above illustrative diagram of Fig. 6 of Kaye), such that the fluid in said suction path is pulled from below the opening, thereby reducing a level of the fluid retained with said manifold (¶0026 structure is believed to further prohibit a polyp from being suctioned out of the collection container and increase fluid flow through the container), for the purpose of further prohibiting a polyp from being suctioned out of the collection container and increase fluid flow through the container ¶0026.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to have positioned the baffle of Gavlak after the filter element in the flow path and before the outlet opening with the outlet opening positioned near an upper aspect of a housing such that the fluid in said suction path is pulled from below the opening (and as such from below the seal which is positioned in the opening), as taught by Kaye for the purpose of further prohibiting any potential solid tissue (polyps) from being suctioned out of the collection container and increase fluid flow through the container (¶0026 of Kaye). The positioning of the baffle wall after the filter would have resulted in the proximal wall and the baffle wall cooperating to define the sump region.
Regarding claim 23, Gavlak in view of Merchant suggest the manifold of claim 17. Gavlak further discloses the housing comprising a head 415 and a body portion 413, the body portion having an interior surface at least partially defining said manifold volume (manifold volume defined by head and body portion), said head coupled to said inlet fitting (Fig. 16c shows coupling of inlet fitting to head using mechanical lock 1617) and engageable with said body portion such that the suction tube and said manifold volume are in fluid communication (head and body are joined together at line where element 417 is attached and thus are engaged together).
Gavlak in view of Merchant do not expressly disclose or suggest the baffle wall comprising a perimeter surface configured to engage the interior surface of the body portion.
However, Kaye, in the same field of endeavor of filtering fluids under suction (Abstract), teaches a manifold 10 including an outlet opening 26 positioned near an upper wall of a housing (see above illustrative diagram of Fig. 6) with a sump region defined by the cooperation of baffle wall 36 and proximal wall (see above illustrative diagram of Fig. 6 of Kaye, defines flow pattern through sump region positioned between basket filter base and outlet opening) positioned below a lowermost aspect of the outlet opening (see above illustrative diagram of Fig. 6), wherein the baffle wall comprises a perimeter surface engaging with an interior surface of the body portion (baffle wall engages with interior surface of manifold volume in order to force fluid flow through lower opening) such that the fluid in said suction path is pulled from below the opening, thereby reducing a level of the fluid retained with said manifold (¶0026 structure is believed to further prohibit a polyp from being suctioned out of the collection container and increase fluid flow through the container), for the purpose of further prohibiting a polyp from being suctioned out of the collection container and increase fluid flow through the container ¶0026.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to have positioned the baffle of Gavlak after the filter element in the flow path and before the outlet opening with the outlet opening positioned near an upper aspect of a housing such that the fluid in said suction path is pulled from below the opening (and as such from below the seal which is positioned in the opening) wherein the baffle wall comprises a perimeter surface engaging with an interior surface of the body portion (baffle wall engages with interior surface of manifold volume in order to force fluid flow through lower opening), as taught by Kaye for the purpose of further prohibiting any potential solid tissue (polyps) from being suctioned out of the collection container and increase fluid flow through the container (¶0026 of Kaye).
Regarding claim 25, Gavlak in view of Merchant disclose the manifold of claim 23. Kaye, as detailed in the above rejection of claim 1, suggests the baffle wall defining a baffle port (see above illustrative diagram of Fig. 6 of Kaye which suggest that the baffle leaves an area for the suction to flow) arranged in said sump region, said baffle port configured such that an upper most aspect of said baffle port is below said lowermost aspect of said seal when the manifold is inserted in the receiver (baffle port arranged lower than outlet) for the purpose of further prohibiting a polyp from being suctioned out of the collection container and increase fluid flow through the container ¶0026.
As such It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to have modified the position of the baffle and outlet opening of Gavlak such that the baffle of Gavlak is positioned with an upper edge of the baffle wall adjacent to the upper wall of the housing after the filter element in the flow path and before the outlet opening with the outlet opening positioned near an upper aspect of a housing resulting in a baffle port being defined in said sump region below the baffle wall such that the fluid in said suction path is pulled from below the opening (and as such from below the seal which is positioned in the opening), as taught by Kaye for the purpose of further prohibiting any potential solid tissue (polyps) from being suctioned out of the collection container and increase fluid flow through the container (¶0026 of Kaye). As such the modification of Gavlak in view of Kaye would have resulted in the baffle port (see illustrative diagram of Fig. 6 of Kaye above) having an uppermost aspect (where the bottom edge of baffle defines port opening) below a lowermost aspect of said seal (as placed in opening) when the manifold is inserted in the receiver.
Regarding claim 26, Gavlak in view of Merchant and Kaye suggest the manifold of claim 25. Kaye further teaches the baffle port defined between said perimeter surface of said baffle wall and said interior surface of said body portion (baffle port formed by the lowermost perimeter surface of the baffle and the lower wall interior surface of body) as the teachings of Kaye of providing a baffle wall between an outlet opening located on an uppermost wall of the device serve the purpose of limiting the flow path of the device such that the flow occurs through the baffle port (see above illustrative diagram of Fig. 6 of Kaye) which is positioned at the lowermost aspect of the baffle being formed by the interior surface of the lowermost wall of the body of the device and the perimeter surface of the lowermost point of the baffle wall. Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of skill before the effective filing date to modify Gavlak to include the features of the baffle wall, as taught by Kaye, and one of skill would have been motivated to do so, in order to create a flow path in which suction is pulled from below the opening through the baffle port would have resulted in the baffle port being defined between said perimeter surface of said baffle wall and said interior surface of said body portion (see illustrative diagram of Fig. 6 of Kaye showing the baffle port being formed by the interior wall of the device and the lowermost point of the baffle wall).
Regarding claim 27, Gavlak in view of Merchant and Kaye suggest the manifold of claim 25. Kaye further suggests a cross-sectional area of said suction path through said baffle port being less than a cross-sectional area of said suction path across said filter element (the suction filter element allows a suction path with the cross-sectional area of nearly the full volume of the manifold with the baffle limiting the cross-sectional area of the body and therefore would be less than the cross-sectional area of the suction path across the filter element) as the baffle port is formed by the baffle wall which serves the purpose of reducing the cross-sectional area of the flow path in order to guide the path of suction to be pulled from below the opening (and as such from below the seal which is positioned in the opening), as taught by Kaye for the purpose of further prohibiting any potential solid tissue (polyps) from being suctioned out of the collection container and increase fluid flow through the container (¶0026 of Kaye).
As such, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to have modified Gavlak such that the baffle of Gavlak is positioned with an upper edge of the baffle wall adjacent to the upper wall of the housing after the filter element in the flow path and before the outlet opening with the outlet opening positioned near an upper aspect of a housing such that the fluid in said suction path is pulled from below the opening (and as such from below the seal which is positioned in the opening), which would inherently have led the baffle port reducing the cross-section area of the flow path as taught by Kaye for the purpose of further prohibiting any potential solid tissue (polyps) from being suctioned out of the collection container and increase fluid flow through the container (¶0026 of Kaye).
Regarding claim 28, Gavlak in view of Merchant disclose the manifold of claim 17. Gavlak in view of Merchant do not expressly disclose or suggest the sump region of said manifold volume being positioned below a lowermost aspect of said outlet opening such that the fluid in said suction path is pulled from below said outlet opening, thereby reducing a level of the fluid retained within said manifold.
However, Kaye, in the same field of endeavor of filtering fluids under suction (Abstract), teaches a manifold 10 including an outlet opening 26 positioned near an upper aspect of a housing (see above illustrative diagram of Fig. 6) with a sump region positioned below a lowermost aspect of the outlet opening (see above illustrative diagram of Fig. 6), such that the fluid in said suction path is pulled from below the opening, thereby reducing a level of the fluid retained with said manifold (¶0026 structure is believed to further prohibit a polyp from being suctioned out of the collection container and increase fluid flow through the container), for the purpose of further prohibiting a polyp from being suctioned out of the collection container and increase fluid flow through the container ¶0026.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to have positioned the baffle of Gavlak after the filter element in the flow path and before the outlet opening with the outlet opening positioned near an upper aspect of a housing such that the fluid in said suction path is pulled from below the opening (and as such from below the seal which is positioned in the opening), as taught by Kaye for the purpose of further prohibiting any potential solid tissue (polyps) from being suctioned out of the collection container and increase fluid flow through the container (¶0026 of Kaye).
Claim(s) 39 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Gavlak et al. (U.S. Publication 2016/0367734) in view of Kaye et al. (U.S. Publication 2007/0191731) and Merchant (U.S. Publication 2018/0185560) and further in view of Peterson et al. (WIPO Publication 2018/170233).
Regarding claim 39, Gavlak in view of Kaye and Merchant suggest the manifold of claim 4. Merchant further suggest said baffle wall being coupled to said base with at least one post 190,
Wherein said baffle wall being spaced from said base creates a gap between said baffle wall and said base, said gap being configured for providing a surface area of said base through which the fluid can flow and for a second suction path to flow through said gap (the coupling of the baffle to the base with post 190 necessarily creates a gap the length of the post between the filter element and baffle element, the presence of fluid exit holes of Gavlak in the sidewall 911 and in the distal end 909 would create a first suction path through the holes 911 on the lower wall of the filter element as well as a path through holes 909 on the distal element resulting in a second suction path, the suction flow through distal holes 909 would necessarily flow out of the holes an into the gap between the baffle and the filter element whereas the first suction path through the lower wall holes would flow directly into the baffle port located on the lowermost perimeter surface of the baffle wall).
Gavlak in view of Kaye and Merchant do not expressly disclose or suggest the at least one post including two rails, each of said rails including a rectangular profile and being disposed to extend vertically along said baffle wall.
However, Peterson, in the same field of endeavor of manifolds for filtering medical waste, teaches two posts 290 coupling a baffle wall 280 to a base structure 258 wherein the baffle wall is spaced from said base structure by a gap (gap the length of panel 282, wherein said two post includes two rails 290, each of said rails including a rectangular profile (¶00075 rectangularly-shaped cross-sectional profile) and being disposed to extend vertically along said baffle wall (extends vertically along 288).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have substituted the post of Gavlak in view of Merchant that performs the function of securing the baffle wall to a base structure for the posts of Peterson since these elements perform the same function of securing a baffle to a base structure. Simply substituting one attachment/securing means for another would yield the predictable result of allowing a(n) baffle wall to be attached/secured to a base. See MPEP 2143.
Conclusion
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/PETER DANIEL SMITH/Examiner, Art Unit 3781
/PHILIP R WIEST/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3781