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 .
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(a):
(a) IN GENERAL.—The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor or joint inventor of carrying out the invention.
The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112:
The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor of carrying out his invention.
Claim(s) 13 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(a) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, first paragraph, as failing to comply with the written description requirement. The claim(s) contains subject matter which was not described in the specification in such a way as to reasonably convey to one skilled in the relevant art that the inventor or a joint inventor, or for pre-AIA the inventor(s), at the time the application was filed, had possession of the claimed invention.
The specification discloses an optional reset time adjustment unit (9 in Fig. 4) with the function and purpose of reset time adjustment unit described in connection with the Fig. 3A embodiment (e.g., see “… FIG. 4 also shows optional reset time adjustment unit 9, receiving input from ADC output S-10 and producing reset time tR, whose value is input to micro-reset circuit 8. The function and purpose of reset time adjustment unit 9 has been described above in connection with FIG. 3A …” in paragraph 49). Thus there does not appear to be any disclosure of a reset time adjustment unit for the Fig. 3B embodiment (e.g., see “… FIG. 3B illustrates a particular embodiment of a charge reset drop algorithm …” in paragraph 43).
Therefore, there does not appear to be a written description of the claim limitation “wherein the second signal reset drop is less than the first signal reset drop” recited in amended independent claim 11 in combination with the claim limitation “changing one or both of the first reset time and the second reset time based on the determined one or both of the first change and the second change in the digitized signal values” recited in dependent claim 13 in the application as filed.
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 pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, 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.
Claim(s) 9 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being incomplete for omitting essential structural cooperative relationships of elements, such omission amounting to a gap between the necessary structural connections. See MPEP § 2172.01. The omitted structural cooperative relationships are: a desired constant charge reset drop and a predetermined charge reset drop.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(d):
(d) REFERENCE IN DEPENDENT FORMS.—Subject to subsection (e), a claim in dependent form shall contain a reference to a claim previously set forth and then specify a further limitation of the subject matter claimed. A claim in dependent form shall be construed to incorporate by reference all the limitations of the claim to which it refers.
The following is a quotation of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, fourth paragraph:
Subject to the [fifth paragraph of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA )], a claim in dependent form shall contain a reference to a claim previously set forth and then specify a further limitation of the subject matter claimed. A claim in dependent form shall be construed to incorporate by reference all the limitations of the claim to which it refers.
Claim(s) 9 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(d) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, 4th paragraph, as being of improper dependent form for failing to further limit the subject matter of the claim upon which it depends, or for failing to include all the limitations of the claim upon which it depends.
The newly added limitation “the reset time adjustment unit receives digitized signal values from the ADC indicative of [[the]]an actual charge reset drop for each reset, wherein the reset time adjustment unit is configured to R according to the digitized signal values in order to change the actual charge reset drop during the reset to be substantially equal to [[the]]a predetermined charge reset drop” recited in claim 9 does not appear to further limit or include the newly added limitation “increase the value of reset time tR to adjust the charge reset drop when the determined charge reset drop is less than a desired constant charge reset drop and reduce the value of reset time tR to adjust the charge reset drop when the determined charge reset drop is greater than the desired constant charge reset drop” recited in claim 1.
Applicant may cancel the claim(s), amend the claim(s) to place the claim(s) in proper dependent form, rewrite the claim(s) in independent form, or present a sufficient showing that the dependent claim(s) complies with the statutory requirements.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claim(s) 1-6, 10-12, and 15-20 is/are allowed.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter: the instant application is deemed to be directed to a nonobvious improvement over the invention disclosed in US 2014/0197307. The improvement comprises in combination with other recited elements: (a) a reset time adjustment unit configured to determine the charge reset drop using a change in the ADC output level and increase the value of reset time tR to adjust the charge reset drop when a measured charge reset drop is less than a desired constant charge reset drop and reduce the value of reset time tR to adjust the charge reset drop when a measured charge reset drop is greater than the desired constant charge reset drop as recited in claim 1; and (b) resetting the charge produced from detected X-ray events for a reset time using a first signal reset drop when the series of digitized signal values increases to a predetermined upper signal level, wherein the first signal reset drop produces a reset drop in the series of digitized signal values, and resetting the charge produced from detected X-ray events using a second signal reset drop when detecting an X-ray pile-up event that includes two of the detected X-ray events occurring within a predetermined X-ray pile-up event detection time, wherein the second signal reset drop is less than the first signal reset drop as recited in claim 11.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to the amended claims have been fully considered but some are moot in view of the new ground(s) of rejection. Applicant's remaining arguments filed 17 November 2025 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive.
Applicant argues that claim 13 is allowable under 35 U.S.C. § 112(a) because the reset time adjustment unit can apply to both FIGS. 3A and 3B. Examiner respectfully disagrees. The specification states Fig. 3B is an alternative embodiment (e.g., see “… FIG. 3B is a graph of an alternative embodiment of ADC output vs time for an Xray detection system according to the present disclosure …” in paragraph 21) comprising a reset time adjustment unit 9 (e.g., see “… function and purpose of reset time adjustment unit 9 has been described above in connection with FIG. 3A …” in paragraph 42) in order to achieve constant charge reset drop (e.g., see “… FIG. 3A, charge reset drop <Q> is configured to be constant for all micro-resets …” in paragraph 42). Independent claim 11 recites “resetting the charge produced from detected X-ray events using a second signal reset drop when detecting an X-ray pile-up event that includes two of the detected X-ray events occurring within a predetermined X-ray pile-up event detection time, wherein the second signal reset drop is less than the first signal reset drop” and dependent claim 13 recites “changing one or both of the first reset time and the second reset time based on the determined one or both of the first change and the second change in the digitized signal values”. Thus there does not appear to be a written description of the claim limitation wherein the second signal reset drop is less than the first signal reset drop recited in amended independent claim 11 in combination with the claim limitation changing one or both of the first reset time and the second reset time based on the determined one or both of the first change and the second change in the digitized signal values recited in dependent claim 13 in the application as filed. Therefore, applicant's arguments are not persuasive.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
US 5,430,406 teaches detector readout.
US 5,873,054 teaches detector readout.
US 5,870,051 teaches detector readout.
Applicant's amendment necessitated the new ground(s) of rejection presented in this Office action. Accordingly, THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. See MPEP § 706.07(a). Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Shun Lee whose telephone number is (571)272-2439. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Uzma Alam can be reached at (571)272-3995. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/SL/
Examiner, Art Unit 2884
/UZMA ALAM/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2884