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and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114.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 04/30/2026 has been entered.
This Office Action is in response to the amendment filed on 04/08/2026. Claims 1-10, 14, and 22-23 are canceled. Claims 11, 18, 21, 24-26, and 30 are amended. Claims 12-13, 15-17, 19-20, and 27-29 are as previously presented. As such, claims 11-13, 15-21, and 24-30 are pending in the instant application.
All objections and rejections pursuant of 35 U.S.C. 112(b) are withdrawn in light of the filed amendments.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b):
(b) CONCLUSION.—The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph:
The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention.
Claims 11-13, 15-21, and 24-30 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention.
Claim 11 recites the limitation “at least one plane” in line 9. It is unclear if the limitation is referencing the plane of the seat recited in line 4 or if Applicant is attempting to recite a new limitation. For the purpose of examination, at least one place will be interpreted as – the plane of the seat – in reference to the plane of the seat recited in line 4.
Similarly, claim 18 recites the limitation “at least one plane” in lines 8-9. It is unclear if the limitation is referencing the plane of the seat recited in line 4 or if Applicant is attempting to recite a new limitation. For the purpose of examination, at least one place will be interpreted as – the plane of the seat – in reference to the plane of the seat recited in line 4.
The term “substantially” in claim 12 is a relative term which renders the claim indefinite. The term “substantially” is not defined by the claim, the specification does not provide a standard for ascertaining the requisite degree, and one of ordinary skill in the art would not be reasonably apprised of the scope of the invention. Specifically, Applicant’s specification recites “each active surface of each pneumatic massage bubble is designed to execute a stroke movement which is oriented, at an acute angle for example, in the direction of the at least one plane in order to establish contact with a body of a person sitting in the seat in a region and to implement a massage for said region of the body or to massage said region” in paragraph [0012] (see US PGPub 2023/0103214 A1) and “…an active or contact surface of at least one massage element, normally of several massage elements, is set and/or oriented at an acute angle of, e.g., about 10° in the direction of the person or the occupant. The acute angle, about which the active or contact surface of the at least one massage bubble is oriented in the direction of the person, can vary in embodiment from an acute angle, e.g., of about 5°-20°” in paragraph [0032] (see US PGPub 2023/0103214 A1). As such, the scope of the acute angle at which the active surfaces of two respective massage bubbles are oriented is unclear. For the purpose of examination, the limitation “active surfaces of two respective massage bubbles are oriented at an acute angle of substantially 10° in the direction of the at least one plane”, as recited in claim 12, will be interpreted as – active surfaces of two respective massage bubbles are configured to be oriented at an angle in the direction of the at least one plane to contact the body of the user – based on paragraphs [0012] and [0032] of Applicant’s specification (see US PGPub 2023/0103214 A1).
Similarly, the term “substantially” in claim 21 is a relative term which renders the claim indefinite. The term “substantially” is not defined by the claim, the specification does not provide a standard for ascertaining the requisite degree, and one of ordinary skill in the art would not be reasonably apprised of the scope of the invention. Specifically, Applicant’s specification recites “each active surface of each pneumatic massage bubble is designed to execute a stroke movement which is oriented, at an acute angle for example, in the direction of the at least one plane in order to establish contact with a body of a person sitting in the seat in a region and to implement a massage for said region of the body or to massage said region” in paragraph [0012] (see US PGPub 2023/0103214 A1) and “…an active or contact surface of at least one massage element, normally of several massage elements, is set and/or oriented at an acute angle of, e.g., about 10° in the direction of the person or the occupant. The acute angle, about which the active or contact surface of the at least one massage bubble is oriented in the direction of the person, can vary in embodiment from an acute angle, e.g., of about 5°-20°” in paragraph [0032] (see US PGPub 2023/0103214 A1). As such, the scope of the acute angle at which the active surfaces of two respective massage bubbles are oriented is unclear. For the purpose of examination, the limitation “the active surfaces of the two respective massage bubbles are both oriented downward relative to the plane of the seat at an acute angle of substantially 10° in the direction of the at least one plane”, as recited in claim 21, will be interpreted as – the active surfaces of the two respective massage bubbles are both configured to be oriented downward at an angle relative to the plane of the seat to contact the body of the user – based on paragraphs [0012] and [0032] of Applicant’s specification (see US PGPub 2023/0103214 A1).
The term “substantially” in claims 24-26 is a relative term which renders the claim indefinite. The term “substantially” is not defined by the claim, the specification does not provide a standard for ascertaining the requisite degree, and one of ordinary skill in the art would not be reasonably apprised of the scope of the invention. Specifically, Applicant’s specification recites “ So that this region of the shoulder is reached, the active surface or the contact surface of the massage elements is tilted, i.e. the active surfaces of the inner massage elements are tilted, in one embodiment, about a first acute angle of 23°, for example, and the active surfaces of the outer massage elements are tilted about a larger, second acute angle of 34°, for example, in the direction of the at least one plane of the seat, wherein massage elements are oriented, e.g. tilted, e.g. at a torso angle, toward a torso or body of the person, according to this angle respectively” in paragraph [0043] (see US PGPub 2023/0103214 A1) and “a respective angle, e.g. tilt angle, of an active surface of a respective massage bubble can vary, e.g. between 0° and 45°, from inside to outside, wherein an active surface of a massage element, which is arranged further out in the region of a concave-curved surface of the headrest, i.e. further away from the at least one plane” in paragraph [0044] (see US PGPub 2023/0103214 A1). As such, the scope of the downward tilt angle of the two inner massage bubbles and the two outer massage bubbles is unclear. For the purpose of examination, the limitations of “two inner massage bubbles are tilted downward relative to the plane of the seat at a first angle of substantially 34°” and “two outer massage bubbles are tilted downward relative to the plane of the seat at a second angle of substantially 26°”, as recited in claims 24-26, will be interpreted as – two inner massage bubbles configured to tilt at a downward angle relative to the plane of the seat to contact and implement a massage function on a neck region or shoulder region of the user – and – two outer massage bubbles configured to tilt at a downward angle relative to the plane of the seat to contact and implement a massage function on a neck region or shoulder region of the user – respectively, based on paragraphs [0043], [0044], and [0097] of Applicant’s specification (see US PGPub 2023/0103214 A1).
Claim 24 recites “two inner massage bubbles” in lines 1-2 and “two outer massage bubbles” in line 3. It is unclear if the recited inner massage bubbles and outer massage bubbles are in reference to the two inner massage bubbles and two outer massage bubbles disclosed in claim 11, or if Applicant is attempting to disclose a new limitation. For the purpose of examination, above limitations recited in claim 24 will be interpreted as – the two inner massage bubbles – and – the two outer massage bubbles – in references to the two inner massage bubbles and the two outer massage bubbles disclosed in claim 11.
Claim 25 recites “two inner massage bubbles” in lines 1-2 and “two outer massage bubbles” in line 3. It is unclear if the recited inner massage bubbles and outer massage bubbles are in reference to the two inner massage bubbles and two outer massage bubbles disclosed in claim 11, or if Applicant is attempting to disclose a new limitation. For the purpose of examination, above limitations recited in claim 24 will be interpreted as – the two inner massage bubbles – and – the two outer massage bubbles – in references to the two inner massage bubbles and the two outer massage bubbles disclosed in claim 11.
Claim 26 recites “two inner massage bubbles” in lines 1-2 and “two outer massage bubbles” in line 3. It is unclear if the recited inner massage bubbles and outer massage bubbles are in reference to the two inner massage bubbles and two outer massage bubbles disclosed in claim 11, or if Applicant is attempting to disclose a new limitation. For the purpose of examination, above limitations recited in claim 24 will be interpreted as – the two inner massage bubbles – and – the two outer massage bubbles – in references to the two inner massage bubbles and the two outer massage bubbles disclosed in claim 11.
Line 1 of claim 26 recites “[t]he massage system of claim 14”. Claim 14 was canceled in the amendment filed on 04/08/2026. As such, claim 26 will be interpreted as depending from claim 11.
Line 1 of claim 29 recites “[t]he massage system of claim 14”. Claim 14 was canceled in the amendment filed on 04/08/2026. As such, claim 29 will be interpreted as depending from claim 11.
Claims 13, 15-17, 19-20, 27-28, and 30 are rejected as they depend from a rejected claim.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 103 which forms the basis for all obviousness rejections set forth in this Office action:
A patent for a claimed invention may not be obtained, notwithstanding that the claimed invention is not identically disclosed as set forth in section 102, if the differences between the claimed invention and the prior art are such that the claimed invention as a whole would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to a person having ordinary skill in the art to which the claimed invention pertains. Patentability shall not be negated by the manner in which the invention was made.
Claims 11 and 17-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Lem et al. (US 10258535 B2; hereinafter “Lem”) in view of Kolich et al. (US 20160129815 A1; hereinafter “Kolich”).
Regarding claim 11, Lem discloses a massage system (Fig. 9) comprising:
a seat (10; Fig. 9) comprising
a headrest (headrest attached to seatback 14, see Fig. 9),
a backrest (14; Fig. 9), and
a seat surface (12; Fig. 9), wherein the backrest (14) comprises two side bolsters (see side bolsters in Annotated Fig. 9 below), each side bolster comprises at least one massage bubble entirely contained within the respective side bolster (each side bolster has a massage bladder 98 entirely contained within the respective side bolster, see Fig. 9), at least one plane is defined for the seat (plane along center line 22, where the plane divides the seat 10 in half into a left side and a right side; Fig. 9), each massage bubble in a first side bolster is symmetrical across the at least one plane with each massage bubble in a second side bolster (massage bladders 98 within each of the two side bolsters are symmetrical across the plane created along center line 22, see Fig. 9), the at least one plane is spanned by a longitudinal axis of the seat (the plane formed along center line 22 spans across a longitudinal axis of seat 10 to dived the seat 10 in half into symmetrical left and right sides, see Fig. 9) and a vertical axis of the seat (the plane spans along center line 22, where center line 22 is a vertical axis, see Fig. 9), the at least one plane respectively separates a first side of the seat and a second side of the seat from one another and bisects the seat (plane along center line 22 bisects seat 10 to separate a left side of seat 10 from a right side of seat 10, see Fig. 9), at least one massage element (16 and 34; Fig. 9) is arranged in at least one component of the seat (16 and 34 are arranged in seatback 14, see Fig. 9), the at least one massage element (16 and 34; Fig. 9) has at least one active surface (at least one surface of a massage bladder 18 of the set of massage bladders 16 and 34 contacts back of an occupant 8 to implement a massaging action, see Col. 3, lines 13-16), which is arranged on at least one of the first side of the seat and the second side of the seat (34 is arranged on the left side of seat 10, and 16 is arranged on the right side of seat 10, see Fig. 9), the at least one active surface of the at least one massage element executes at least one stroke movement which is oriented parallel, downwards, and/or upwards at least partially in a direction of the at least one plane and/or as relates to the seat surface (the massage bladder 18 of sets 16 and 34 extend diagonally along long diagonal 20, see Fig. 2B, a stroke movement is executed in a partially upward direction of the plane formed by center line 22 and in relation to seat surface 12 by the contact surfaces of massage bladders 18 as massage bladders 18 inflate sequentially along diagonal; Figs. 2B and 9; Col. 4, lines 39-42), to have contact with a region of a body of a person sitting in the seat and to implement a massage for said region (a rubbing/stroke movement is executed on the back of the occupant hence, the contact surfaces of massage bladders 18 have contact with the body of the occupant of seat 10 and a massage action is performed on occupant’s back, see Col. 4, lines 39-42).
While Lem does disclose a headrest (14), Lem is silent to the headrest (14), wherein two inner massage bubbles and two outer massage bubbles are arranged symmetrically relative to a plane of the seat, and active surfaces of the two inner massage bubbles together form a concave cavity on a surface of the headrest.
However, Kolich teaches an analogous vehicle seat with a massaging system (Fig. 1) with a headrest (12; Fig. 5), where the headrest (12) has an inflatable bladder assembly (22; Fig. 5) with a plurality of cells (24, 26, 28, 30; Fig. 5, where 24 and 26 are two inner cells, and 28 and 30 are two outer cells). Kolich further teaches the arrangement of the plurality of cells (24, 26, 28, 30, see Fig. 5) allows for lateral sides of an outer surface of the headrest (20; Fig. 1) to be moved inwardly and outwardly such that outer cells (28 and 30) may be moved further outward compared to inner cells (24 and 26) to create a lateral concavity of the outer surface of the headrest ([0025]).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to modify the headrest taught by Lem with the headrest taught by Kolich, as described above, such that the headrest (Kolich 12) has two inner cells (Kolich 24 and 26) and two outer cells (Kolich 28 and 30) that are symmetrically arranged relative to the plane (plane along center line 22, see Fig. 9, see Kolich Fig. 5), where the active surfaces of the inner cells (Kolich 24 and 26) and the active surfaces of the outer cells (Kolich 28 and 30) are in contact with an outer surface of the headrest (Kolich 20), such that when the outer cells (Kolich 28 and 30) are inflated more than the inner cells (24 and 26), a concave cavity is formed by the surface of the inner cells (Kolich 24 and 25) and a lateral concavity is formed on the outer surface of the headrest (Kolich [0025]) to improve patient comfort and stabilize a user’s neck and head by cradling the head (Kolich [0025], lines 6-8).
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Annotated Fig. 9
Regarding claim 17, Lem as modified teaches the invention as set forth in claim 11, wherein at least one side bolster of the two side bolsters (see side bolsters of backrest 14 in Annotated Fig. 9 below) is configured to execute a movement (both side bolsters of backrest 14 contain seat configuration bladders 98, where seat configuration bladders 98 can be inflated and deflated to change the general configuration of the seating surfaces of seat 10, hence the two side bolsters execute a movement via the inflation and deflation of seat configuration bladders 98; Col. 7, lines 13-20) which is at least partially oriented in the direction of the at least one plane (side bolsters are angled inward toward the plane along center line 22, see claim 11 above, hence the inflation and deflation of seat configuration bladders 98 is at least partially oriented in the direction of the plane).
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Annotated Fig. 9
Regarding claim 18, Lem discloses a method for massaging a region of a body of a person sitting in a seat (Col. 1, line 63 to Col. 2, line 5; seat 10, see Fig. 9) comprising
a headrest (headrest attached to seatback 14, see Fig. 9),
a backrest (14; Fig. 9), and
a seat surface (12; Fig. 9), wherein the backrest (14) comprises two side bolsters (see side bolsters in Annotated Fig. 9 below), each side bolster comprises at least one massage bubble entirely contained within the respective side bolster (each side bolster has a massage bladder 98 entirely contained within the respective side bolster, see Fig. 9), at least one plane is defined for the seat (plane along center line 22, where the plane divides the seat 10 in half into a left side and a right side; Fig. 9), each massage bubble in a first side bolster is symmetrical across the at least one plane with each massage bubble in a second side bolster (massage bladders 98 within each of the two side bolsters are symmetrical across the plane created along center line 22, see Fig. 9), wherein the at least one plane is spanned by a longitudinal axis (the plane formed along center line 22 spans across a longitudinal axis of seat 10 to dived the seat 10 in half into symmetrical left and right sides, see Fig. 9) and a vertical axis of the seat (the plane spans along center line 22, where center line 22 is a vertical axis, see Fig. 9), the at least one plane respectively separates a first side of the seat and a second side of the seat from one another and bisects the seat (plane along center line 22 bisects seat 10 to separate a left side of seat 10 from a right side of seat 10, see Fig. 9), wherein at least one massage element (16 and 34; Fig. 9) is arranged in at least one component of the seat (16 and 34 are arranged in seatback 14, see Fig. 9), the at least one massage element has at least one active surface (16 and 34; Fig. 9) has at least one active surface (at least one surface of a massage bladder 18 of the set of massage bladders 16 and 34 contacts back of an occupant 8 to implement a massaging action, see Col. 3, lines 13-16) which is arranged on at least one of the sides of the seat (34 is arranged on the left side of seat 10, and 16 is arranged on the right side of seat 10, see Fig. 9), a stroke movement is executed by the at least one active surface of the at least one massage element (the massage bladder 18 of sets 16 and 34 extend diagonally along long diagonal 20, see Fig. 2B, a stroke movement; Col. 4, lines 39-42), which stroke movement is oriented parallel, downwards, and/or upwards at least partially in a direction of the at least one plane and/or relative to the seat surface (a stroke movement is executed in a partially upward direction of the plane formed by center line 22 and in relation to seat surface 12 by the contact surfaces of massage bladders 18 as massage bladders 18 inflate sequentially along diagonal; Figs. 2B and 9; Col. 4, lines 39-42), and the region of the body of the person sitting in the seat is in contact and is massaged with the at least one active surface of the at least one massage element (a rubbing/stroke movement is executed on the back of the occupant hence, the contact surfaces of massage bladders 18 have contact with the body of the occupant of seat 10 and a massage action is performed on occupant’s back, see Col. 4, lines 39-42).
While Lem does disclose a headrest (14), Lem fails to disclose the headrest (14), wherein two inner massage bubbles and two outer massage bubbles are arranged symmetrically relative to a plane of the seat, and active surfaces of the two inner massage bubbles together form a concave cavity on a surface of the headrest.
However, Kolich teaches an analogous headrest (12; Fig. 5), where the headrest (12) has an inflatable bladder assembly (22; Fig. 5) with a plurality of cells (24, 26, 28, 30; Fig. 5, where 24 and 26 are two inner cells, and 28 and 30 are two outer cells). Kolich further teaches the arrangement of the plurality of cells (24, 26, 28, 30, see Fig. 5) allows for lateral sides of an outer surface of the headrest (20; Fig. 1) to be moved inwardly and outwardly such that outer cells (28 and 30) may be moved further outward compared to inner cells (24 and 26) to create a lateral concavity of the outer surface of the headrest ([0025]).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to modify the headrest taught by Lem with the headrest taught by Kolich, as described above, such that the headrest (Kolich 12) has two inner cells (Kolich 24 and 26) and two outer cells (Kolich 28 and 30) that are symmetrically arranged relative to the plane (plane along center line 22, see Fig. 9, see Kolich Fig. 5), where the active surfaces of the inner cells (Kolich 24 and 26) and the active surfaces of the outer cells (Kolich 28 and 30) are in contact with an outer surface of the headrest (Kolich 20), such that when the outer cells (Kolich 28 and 30) are inflated more than the inner cells (24 and 26), a concave cavity is formed by the surface of the inner cells (Kolich 24 and 25) and a lateral concavity is formed on the outer surface of the headrest (Kolich [0025]) to improve patient comfort and stabilize a user’s neck and head by cradling the head (Kolich [0025], lines 6-8).
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Annotated Fig. 9
Regarding claim 19, Lem as modified teaches the invention as set forth in claim 18. The seat (10; Fig. 9) taught by Lem does not explicitly teach wherein the region of the body of the person is a neck, a shoulder, and a lateral torso.
However, an alternative embodiment taught by Lem (see Fig. 7) teaches an arrangement of a plurality of sets of massage bladders (218, 216, 240a-240f, 234a-234g; see Fig. 7) to contact and implement a massage on a user’s neck, shoulders, and lateral torso (see Fig. 7).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to modify the seat (10; Fig. 9) taught by Lem to have the arrangement of the plurality sets of massage bladders (218, 216, 240a-240f, 234a-234g; see Fig. 7) taught by an alternative embodiment of Lem depicted in Fig. 7, such that the region of the body of the person in contact with and massaged by at least one active surface of the at least one massage element (see claim 18 above) is a neck, a shoulder, and a lateral torso (see Fig. 7) to implement various types of massages among different muscle groups of the user (Col. 6, lines 64-67).
Regarding claim 20, Lem as modified teaches the invention as set forth in claim 18, wherein air is filled into pneumatic massage bubbles, wherein an equivalent quantity of air is stored in at least two of the pneumatic massage bubbles and/or different quantities of the air are stored in at least two pneumatic massage bubbles at a point in time (individual massage bladders 18a-18f are independently inflatable, hence at any given point in time at least two of the individual massage bladders 18a-18f can have an equivalent quantity of air stored therein or have different quantities of air stored therein; Col. 3, lines 10-12).
Claims 13, 16, 25-26, and 28-29 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Lem (US 10258535 B2) in view of Kolich (US 20160129815 A1) as applied to claim 11 above, and further in view of Noso & Ogiso (US 20170231861 A1; hereinafter “Noso”).
Regarding claim 13, Lem as modified teaches the invention as set forth in claim 11, each massage bubble is formed as a pneumatic massage bubble (98 and 18 are massage bladders that is inflated and deflated to perform a massaging function, where 16 and 34 are sets of massage bladders 18, hence 98, 16, and 34 can be interpreted as pneumatic massage bubbles; Kolich 24, 26, 28, and 30 are all air cells, hence Kolich 24, 26, 28, and 30 can be interpreted as pneumatic massage bubbles). Lem further teaches massage bladder sets 16 and 34 have at least one upper chamber and at least one lower chamber (see Fig. 2B, where massage bladders 18 are arranged overlayed and stack in a diagonal arrangement; Col. 3, lines 56-58); however, Lem as modified fails to teach the inner massage bubbles and the outer massage bubbles positioned in the headrest (Kolich 24, 26, 28, and 30, see claim 11 above) have a first upper chamber and a second lower chamber which are pneumatically connected to one another by an overflow element.
However, Noso teaches an analogous massage apparatus (Figs. 1 and 11; first sentence of [0029]) with air bags (1; Fig. 3) that are a pair of air bags (see airbags 1a and 1b in Fig. 3; [0031]) having an upper air bag (1a; Fig. 3) and a lower air bag (1b; Fig. 3) that are pneumatically connected by a through hole (1c; Fig. 3; first sentence of [0034]), such that when the pair of air bags (1a and 1b) are inflated, an upper air bag (1a) is tilted at an angle (Fig. 3; [0039]).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to substitute each of the air cells taught by Kolich (see claim 11 above) with a corresponding air bag pair, as taught by Noso, such that each of the air bag pairs positioned on the headrest have an upper air bag (Noso 1a), a lower air bag (Noso 1b), and a through hole pneumatically connecting the upper air bag and the lower air bag (Noso 1c, see Noso Fig. 3; first sentence of Noso [0034]) to provide a massage to the user’s neck and shoulders that is similar to a human hand at a reduced cost due to the simple structure and control of the air bags (Noso [0014] and last sentence of Noso [0045]).
Regarding claim 16, Lem as modified teaches the invention as set forth in claim 11, further comprising: at least one control unit (controller 60) configured to perform a stroke movement (controller 60 controls the inflation of massage bladders 18, where massage bladders 18 extend along diagonal 20, see Fig. 2B, to implement a stroke movement), but is silent to the stroke movement being superposed by a rotation enabled by off-center overflow elements.
However, Noso teaches an analogous massage apparatus (Figs. 1 and 11; first sentence of [0029]) with air bags (1; Fig. 3) that are a pair of air bags (see airbags 1a and 1b in Fig. 3; [0031]) and are rotatably fixed to a base of the massage apparatus (2; Figs. 2-4; [0035]), where the pair of air bags (1a and 1b) are fluidically coupled via an off-center through hole (1c; Figs. 3 and 5; [0034]) such that when the pair of air bags (1a and 1b) are inflated, an upper air bag of the pair of air bags (1a) rotates to perform a massaging function ([0041], [0045]).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to substitute each of the massage bladders taught by Lem with a corresponding pair of air bags, as taught by Noso above, such that a stroke movement is performed by a rotation of superposed air bags (Noso 1a and 1b) enabled by an upper air bag (Noso 1a) that is off-center from a lower air bag (Noso 1b; Noso Figs. 3 and 5; Noso [0035], [0041], and [0045]) when controlled by the at least one control unit (60) to simplify the massage structure and reduce the cost of the massage apparatus (last two sentences of Noso [0045]).
Regarding claim 25, Lem as modified teaches the invention as set forth in claim 13, wherein two inner massage bubbles (a first pair of air bags, as taught by Noso, positioned on headrest where Kolich air cell 24 is located and a second pair of air bags, as taught by Noso, positioned on headrest where Kolich air cell 26 is located, see claim 13 above) are tilted at a downward angle relative to the plane of the seat (the plane spans along center line 22, where center line 22 is a vertical axis, see Fig. 9; Noso Fig. 3; Noso [0039]) to contact and implement a massage function on a neck region or a shoulder region of the user (Kolich [0025]; Noso [0039] and [0041]) and two outer massage bubbles (a third pair of air bags, as taught by Noso, positioned on the headrest where Kolich air cell 28 is located and a fourth pair of air bags, as taught by Noso, positioned on the headrest where Kolich air cell 30 is located, see claim 13 above) are tilted at a downward angle relative to the plane of the seat (the plane spans along center line 22, where center line 22 is a vertical axis, see Fig. 9; Noso Fig. 3; Noso [0039]) to contact and implement a massage function on a neck region or a shoulder region of the user (Kolich [0025]; Noso [0039] and [0041]), as best understood by the Examiner (see claim 25 112b rejection above).
Regarding claim 26, Lem as modified teaches the invention as set forth in claim 11, but is silent to the two inner massage bubbles (Kolich 24 and 26) are tilted downward relative to the plane of the seat at a first angle of substantially 34° and the two outer massage bubbles (Kolich 28 and 30) are tilted downward relative to the plane of the seat at a second angle of substantially 26°.
However, Noso teaches an analogous massage apparatus (Figs. 1 and 11; first sentence of [0029]) with air bags (1; Fig. 3) that are a pair of air bags (see airbags 1a and 1b in Fig. 3; [0031]), where when the pair of air bags (1a and 1b) are inflated, an upper air bag (1a) is tilted at an angle (Fig. 3; [0039]).
Therefore, as best understood by the Examiner (see 112b rejections of claim 26 above), it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to substitute each of the air cells taught by Kolich (see claim 11 above) with a corresponding air bag pair, as taught by Noso, such that each of the inner air bag pairs (Kolich 24 replaced with Noso air bags 1; Kolich 26 replaced with Noso air bags 1) and each of the outer air bag pairs (Kolich 28 replaces with Noso air bags 1; Kolich 30 replaced with Noso air bags 1) may be tilted at a downward angle, along the plane of the seat (the plane spans along center line 22, where center line 22 is a vertical axis, see Fig. 9; Noso Fig. 3; Noso [0039]) such that the air bag pairs (each of the Noso air bag pairs 1) are in contact with the neck and shoulders of a user (Kolich [0025]; Noso [0039] and [0041]) to ensure a massage is provided to the neck and shoulders of the user (Noso [0041]).
Regarding claim 28, Lem as modified teaches the invention as set forth in claim 13, further comprising: at least one control unit (controller 60) configured to perform a stroke movement superposed by a rotation enabled by off-center overflow elements (Noso 1c enables pair of air bags Noso 1a and 1b to rotate as the pair of air bags are inflated and deflated that perform a stroke movement; Noso [0035], [0041], and [0045]).
Regarding claim 29, Lem as modified teaches the invention as set forth in claim 11, as best understood by the Examiner, at least one control unit (controller 60) configured to perform a stroke movement (controller 60 controls the inflation of massage bladders 18, where massage bladders 18 extend along diagonal 20, see Fig. 2B, to implement a stroke movement), but is silent to the stroke movement being superposed by a rotation enabled by off-center overflow elements.
However, Noso teaches an analogous massage apparatus (Figs. 1 and 11; first sentence of [0029]) with air bags (1; Fig. 3) that are a pair of air bags (see airbags 1a and 1b in Fig. 3; [0031]) and are rotatably fixed to a base of the massage apparatus (2; Figs. 2-4; [0035]), where the pair of air bags (1a and 1b) are fluidically coupled via an off-center through hole (1c; Figs. 3 and 5; [0034]) such that when the pair of air bags (1a and 1b) are inflated, an upper air bag of the pair of air bags (1a) rotates to perform a massaging function ([0041], [0045]).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to substitute each of the massage bladders taught by Lem with a corresponding pair of air bags, as taught by Noso above, such that a stroke movement is performed by a rotation of superposed air bags (Noso 1a and 1b) enabled by an upper air bag (Noso 1a) that is off-center from a lower air bag (Noso 1b; Noso Figs. 3 and 5; Noso [0035], [0041], and [0045]) when controlled by the at least one control unit (60) to simplify the massage structure and reduce the cost of the massage apparatus (last two sentences of Noso [0045]).
Claims 12, 15, 21, 27, and 30 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Lem (US 10258535 B2) in view of Kolich (US 20160129815 A1) as applied to claim 11 above, and further in view of Yoo (KR 20130061385 A).
Regarding claim 12, Lem as modified teaches the invention as set forth in claim 11, but is silent to wherein active surfaces of two respective massage bubbles are oriented at an acute angle of substantially 10° in the direction of the at least one plane.
However, Yoo teaches an analogous massage system with air cells (air cell set 201 with air cells 201a-201c and air cell set 211 with air cells 211a-211c; Fig. 5), where the active surfaces of two respective air cells (contact surfaces of 211b and 211c, see Fig. 5) are, as best understood by the Examiner, oriented at an acute angle of 14° (see Annotated Fig. 5 of Yoo below) in the direction of a central plane dividing the massage system into symmetrical left and right halves (Fig. 5).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to replace two respective sets of massage bladders (sets 16 and 34 of massage bladders 18; Fig. 9), as taught by Lem, with two sets of air cells (Yoo: air cell set 201 with air cells 201a-201c and air cell set 211 with air cells 211a-211c; Fig. 5), as taught by Yoo above, such that the wherein active surfaces of two respective massage bubbles (Yoo: contact surfaces of 211b and 211c, see Fig. 5) are oriented at an acute angle of substantially 10° in the direction of the at least one plane (angle between active surfaces of 211b and 211c is approximately 14°, see Annotated Fig. 5 of Yoo below) to improve the implemented massage function by more precisely controlling the inflation and deflation of the massage bubbles (Yoo: last sentence of [0024], see provided translation).
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Annotated Fig. 5 of Yoo
Regarding claim 15, Lem as modified teaches the invention as set forth in claim 11, wherein each massage bubble is formed as a pneumatic massage bubble (98 and 18 are massage bladders that is inflated and deflated to perform a massaging function, where 16 and 34 are sets of massage bladders 18, hence 98, 16, and 34 can be interpreted as pneumatic massage bubbles; Kolich 24, 26, 28, and 30 are all air cells, hence Kolich 24, 26, 28, and 30 can be interpreted as pneumatic massage bubbles). Lem as modified fails to teach each pneumatic massage bubble comprises three chambers.
However, Lem further teaches massage bladder sets 16 and 34 have three chambers (set 16 has massage bladders 18a-18c, set 34 has massage bladders 18d-18f; Fig. 3).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to modify each pneumatic massage bladder, as taught by Lem in combination with Kolich, to have three chambers, as further taught by Lem (set 16 has massage bladders 18a-18c, set 34 has massage bladders 18d-18f; Fig. 3) to implement a massage function to the user regardless of the implemented configuration of the seat and headrest due to the inflation and deflation of the massage bladders (Col. 7, lines 20-24).
Lem as modified is silent to each chamber being pneumatically connected to one another by a respective overflow element.
However, Yoo teaches an analogous massage system with air cells (air cell set 201 with air cells 201a-201c and air cell set 211 with air cells 211a-211c; Fig. 6) positioned along guide members (202 and 212; Fig. 6), where the air cells (201a-201c and 211a-211c; Fig. 6) of the two air cell sets (201 and 211; Fig. 6) are pneumatically connected (Fig. 6; [0024], see provided translation).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to modify the sets of massage bladders with three chambers (set 16 has massage bladders 18a-18c, set 34 has massage bladders 18d-18f; Fig. 3), as taught by Lem as modified above, to have a pneumatic connection in between the individual massage bladders (18; Fig. 9) as taught by Yoo (201, 201a-201c, 211, 211a-211c; Fig. 6; [0024], see provided translation) such that the individual massage bladders (18a-18f; Fig. 3) are pneumatically connected by an opening positioned where two individual massage bladders overlap (see dashed line boxes in Fig. 2B) for each set of massage bladders (16 and 34; Fig. 9) to more precisely control the massage type and pattern implemented by the massage bladder (Yoo: last sentence of [0024], see provided translation).
Regarding claim 21, Lem as modified teaches the invention as set forth in claim 12, but is silent to wherein the active surfaces of the two respective massage bubbles are both oriented downward relative to the plane of the seat at the acute angle of substantially 10°.
However, Lem does teach the massage bladders sets (sets 16 and 34 of massage bladders 18; Fig. 9) can be positioned over the seat configuration bladders (98; Col. 7, lines 20-22). Additionally, Lem teaches an alternative arrangement of a plurality of sets of massage bladders (218, 216, 240a-240f, 234a-234g; see Fig. 7), where the active surfaces of two massage bladder sets (234g and 240f; Fig. 7) to contact and massage an upper shoulder region and lower neck region of the user (250, see Fig. 7; Col. 6, line 57 to Col. 7, line 2). Furthermore, Lem as modified teaches active surfaces of two respective massage bubbles (Yoo: contact surfaces of 211b and 211c, see Fig. 5) are oriented at an acute angle of substantially 10° in the direction of the at least one plane (angle between active surfaces of 211b and 211c is approximately 14°, see claim 12 above).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to modify the seat (10; Fig. 9), as taught by Lem, to have the arrangement of the plurality sets of massage bladders (218, 216, 240a-240f, 234a-234g; see Fig. 7), as taught by an alternative embodiment of Lem depicted in Fig. 7, where the two sets of massage bladders (234g and 240f; Fig. 7) have the configuration of the two respective massage bubbles (Yoo: contact surfaces of 211a and 211b, see Fig. 5, see claim 12 above), such that the active surfaces of the two respective massage bubbles (Yoo contact surfaces of 211b and 211c, see Fig. 5) are both oriented downward relative to the plane of the seat at the acute angle of substantially 10° (Yoo 211b and Yoo 211c extend diagonally downward, see 234g and 240f in Lem Fig. 7, and are oriented at an acute angle of substantially 10°, see claim 12 above) to implement a massage on the muscles of the shoulder and neck of the user (Lem col. 6, lines 64-67).
Regarding claim 27, Lem as modified teaches the invention as set forth in claim 12, further comprising: at least one control unit (controller 60) configured to perform a stroke movement (controller 60 controls the inflation of massage bladders 18, where massage bladders 18 extend along diagonal 20, see Fig. 2B, to implement a stroke movement), but fails to teach the stroke movement is superposed by a rotation enabled by off-center overflow elements.
However, Yoo teaches an analogous massage system with air cells (air cell set 201 with air cells 201a-201c and air cell set 211 with air cells 211a-211c; Fig. 5), where the air cells (201a-201c and 211a-211c; Fig. 5) of the two air cell sets (201 and 211; Fig. 5) are pneumatically connected (Fig. 5; [0024], see provided translation) by off-center openings between the individual air cells (see Fig. 5) causing the air cells to rotate as they are inflating and performing a stroke movement (see Fig. 5).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to modify the sets of massage bladders (sets 16 and 34 of massage bladders 18; Fig. 9) as taught by Lem with the sets of air cells (Yoo: air cell set 201 with air cells 201a-201c and air cell set 211 with air cells 211a-211c; Fig. 5) as taught by Yoo, such that the at least one control unit (controller 60) configured to perform a stroke movement (controller 60 controls the inflation of massage bladders 18, where massage bladders 18 extend along diagonal 20, see Fig. 2B, to implement a stroke movement) superposed by a rotation enabled by off-center overflow elements (see Yoo [0020] of provided translation; Yoo Fig. 5) to improve control of the massage function and type of massage provided to the user (last sentence of Yoo [0024], see provided translation).
Regarding claim 30, Lem as modified teaches the invention as set forth in claim 15, further comprising: two guides (Yoo 202 and 212; Yoo Fig. 6) configured to support the three chambers (set 16 with massage bladders 18a-18c supported by Yoo 202; set 34 with massage bladders 18d-18f supported by Yoo 212), and the three chambers are configured to execute a stroke movement along the two guides (18 extend along diagonal 20, see Fig. 2B, to implement stroke movement; col. 4, lines 39-42).
Claim 24 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Lem (US 10258535 B2) in view of Kolich (US 20160129815 A1) in view of Yoo (KR 20130061385 A) as applied to claim 12 above, and further in view of Noso (US 20170231861 A1).
Regarding claim 24, Lem as modified teaches the invention as set forth in claim 12, but is silent to the two inner massage bubbles (Kolich 24 and 26) are tilted downward relative to the plane of the seat at a first angle of substantially 34° and the two outer massage bubbles (Kolich 28 and 30) are tilted downward relative to the plane of the seat at a second angle of substantially 26°.
However, Noso teaches an analogous massage apparatus (Figs. 1 and 11; first sentence of [0029]) with air bags (1; Fig. 3) that are a pair of air bags (see airbags 1a and 1b in Fig. 3; [0031]), where when the pair of air bags (1a and 1b) are inflated, an upper air bag (1a) is tilted at an angle (Fig. 3; [0039]).
Therefore, as best understood by the Examiner (see 112b rejections of claim 26 above), it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to substitute each of the air cells positioned on the headrest, as taught by Kolich (see claim 11 above), with a corresponding air bag pair taught by Noso, such that each of the inner air bag pairs (Kolich 24 replaced with Noso air bags 1; Kolich 26 replaced with Noso air bags 1) and each of the outer air bag pairs (Kolich 28 replaces with Noso air bags 1; Kolich 30 replaced with Noso air bags 1) may be tilted at a downward angle, along the plane of the seat (the plane spans along center line 22, where center line 22 is a vertical axis, see Fig. 9; Noso Fig. 3; Noso [0039]) such that the air bag pairs (each of the Noso air bag pairs 1) are in contact with the neck and shoulders of a user (Kolich [0025]; Noso [0039] and [0041]) to ensure a massage is provided to the neck and shoulders of the user (Noso [0041]).
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to independent claims 1 and 18 have been considered but are moot because the new ground of rejection does not rely on any reference applied in the prior rejection of record for any teaching or matter specifically challenged in the argument.
On page 9 of the Remarks filed on 04/08/2026, Applicant argues Lem alone, or in combination with Yoo, teaches or suggests “the structure of pairs of inner and outer massage bubbles that are arranged symmetrically relative to a plane of the seat”. Applicant’s argument is moot as the newly amended limitation of “two inner massage bubbles and two outer massage bubbles are arranged symmetrically relative to a plane of the seat”, as recited in amended independent claims 11 and 18, necessitates new ground(s) of rejection. As such, Kolich has been provided to teach air cells 24, 26, 28, and 30 (Kolich Fig. 5), where inner air cells 24 and 26 and outer air cells 28 and 30 are arranged symmetrically relative to a longitudinal median plane (see 103 rejection of claims 11 and 18 above).
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Mussi & Finck (US 20170113581 A1): Regarding a vehicle seat with inflatable bladders located in a headrest and a backrest of the vehicle seat.
Zhang (CN 203611819 U): Regarding a seat massaging device with airbags having three chambers that, when inflated, rotate relative to a longitudinal median plane of the seat.
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/ABIGAYLE DALE/Examiner, Art Unit 3785
/BRANDY S LEE/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3785
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