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 .
DETAILED ACTION
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status.
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 of this title, 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 1, 3-13, 15, 16, and 18-21 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Hall et al (US Pub 2018/0087969 A1) (hereinafter Hall 969) in view of Takagi (JP H1082783) (translation provided on in IDS dated 7/29/2022).
Regarding claim 1, Hall 969 discloses a toilet system (see Fig. 1) comprising a bowl (element 120) and an outlet (see Fig. 1; through element 118), the toilet system being adapted for discerning between types of excretion excreted into the bowl by a user of the toilet system, the toilet system further comprising: at least one first sensor device configured to capture at least one signal indicative of a type of excretion excreted into the bowl by a user of the toilet system (paragraph 0020; element 110), but this embodiment of Hall 969 does not disclose and at least one second sensor device configured to capture at least one signal indicative of a quantity of excretion excreted into the bowl by a user of the toilet system, wherein the at least one second sensor device is arranged in the outlet of the toilet system in a position downstream of a water seal arranged between the bowl and the outlet of the toilet and comprises a chamber adapted for collecting liquid forced through the water seal and a measuring unit arranged and adapted for measuring the quantity of liquid collected in the chamber. Another embodiment of Hall 969 teaches and at least one second sensor device configured to capture at least one signal indicative of a quantity of excretion excreted into the bowl by a user of the toilet system (see Fig. 5; paragraph 0027 and element 502) and a measuring unit arranged and adapted for measuring the quantity of liquid collected in the chamber (see Fig. 5; paragraph 0027 where a weight and water level sensor provide inputs that are correlated and used to make a quantitative conclusion of quantity of material present) for the purpose of making a conclusion of specific quantities of various excrements (paragraph 0027). Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention with a reasonable expectation of success to modify Hall 969, as taught by another embodiment of Hall 969, for the purpose of providing user feedback for data collection and health trend reporting for the purpose of making a conclusion of specific quantities of various excrements.
Takagi teaches wherein the at least one second sensor device is arranged in the outlet of the toilet system in a position downstream of a water seal arranged between the bowl and the outlet of the toilet (element 12) and comprises a chamber adapted for collecting liquid forced through the water seal (see Fig. 1; element 11) for the purpose of sampling the water for the amount of urination of a subject. Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention with a reasonable expectation of success to modify Hall 969, as taught by Takagi, for the purpose of sampling the water for the amount of urination of a subject.
Regarding claim 3, Hall 969 discloses the at least one first sensor device is arranged in or at any one of the toilet seat, the bowl above a waterline and the bowl below the waterline (see Fig. 1; element 110).
Regarding claim 4, Hall 969 discloses the at least one first sensor device further comprises any one or more of a pressure sensor, a radar, an image capturing device (element 110), a capacitive sensor, and flow rate sensor, and/or wherein the at least one first sensor device is further configured to transmit the at least one signal indicative of a type of excretion excreted into the bowl by a user of the toilet system to a data analysis device (paragraph 0020).
Regarding claim 5, Hall 969 does not disclose the limitations of the claim. Another embodiment of Hall 969 teaches the at least one second sensor device is configured to measure a volume of liquid indicative of a quantity of excretion excreted into the bowl by a user of the toilet system (paragraph 0026; element 504), and/or wherein the at least one second sensor device is arranged in the outlet of the toilet system in a position downstream of a water seal arranged between the bowl and the outlet of the toilet, and/or wherein the at least one second sensor device is further configured to transmit the at least one signal indicative of a quantity of excretion excreted into the bowl by a user of the toilet system to a data analysis device (paragraph 0027) for the purpose of making a conclusion of specific quantities of various excrements (paragraph 0027). Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention with a reasonable expectation of success to modify Hall 969, as taught by another embodiment of Hall 969, for the purpose of providing user feedback for data collection and health trend reporting for the purpose of making a conclusion of specific quantities of various excrements.
Regarding claim 6, Hall 969 discloses a data analysis device, the data analysis device comprising a data processing unit and a data storage unit, the data processing unit (paragraph 0021) being configured to:- receive one or more signals transmitted by the at least one first sensor device, and- analyse the received one or more signals such as to produce a data output indicative of at least the type of excretion excreted into the bowl by a user of the toilet system (paragraph 0021; element 122).
Regarding claim 7, Hall 969 does not disclose the limitations of the claim. Another embodiment of Hall 969 teaches the data analysis device is further configured to:- receive one or more signals transmitted by the at least one second sensor device, and – analyse, using the data processing unit, the received one or more signals such as to produce a data output indicative of the quantity of excretion and the quantity of excretion excreted into the bowl by a user of the toilet system (paragraph 0026-0027), and/or wherein the data analysis device further comprises a data visualization unit, and the data processing unit is further configured to visualize on the data visualization unit the data output indicative of one or more of the type of excretion excreted into the bowl by a user of the toilet system and the quantity of excretion excreted into the bowl by a user of the toilet system (paragraph 0027; quantitative and qualitative analysis) for the purpose of making a conclusion of specific quantities of various excrements (paragraph 0027). Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention with a reasonable expectation of success to modify Hall 969, as taught by another embodiment of Hall 969, for the purpose of providing user feedback for data collection and health trend reporting for the purpose of making a conclusion of specific quantities of various excrements.
Regarding claim 8, Hall 969 does not disclose the limitations of the claim. Another embodiment of Hall 969 teaches any one or more of:- an actuator configured to allow a user to indicate a type of excretion excreted into the bowl by the user of the toilet system and to transmit a signal indicative of the user's indication to an analysis device,- an actuator configured to allow a user to activate the toilet system and/or the analysis device before use of the toilet system, and- a weight sensor arranged and configured to capture signals indicative of the user's weight before and after excretion, respectively (see Fig. 5; element 502) for the purpose of making a conclusion of specific quantities of various excrements (paragraph 0027). Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention with a reasonable expectation of success to modify Hall 969, as taught by another embodiment of Hall 969, for the purpose of providing user feedback for data collection and health trend reporting for the purpose of making a conclusion of specific quantities of various excrements.
Regarding claim 9, Hall 969 discloses the at least one first sensor device is an image capturing device arranged in or at any one of the toilet seat and the bowl above a waterline (element 110).
Regarding claim 10, Hall 969 discloses the first sensor device is arranged to point downwards at an angle (see Fig. 2; element 210); but Hall 969 does not explicitly disclose an angle of between 70 and 80 degrees with the horizontal or in an angle of between 20 and 10 degrees with the vertical, where an angle of 90 degrees in this context corresponds to the vertical or the direction of gravity. However, before the time the invention was effectively filed, it would have been an obvious matter of design choice to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention with a reasonable expectation of success to monitoring the water because Applicant has not disclosed that specific angle for the sensor provides an advantage, is used for a particular purpose, or solves a stated problem. One of ordinary skill in the art, furthermore, would have expected Hall 969, and applicant’s invention, to perform equally well with either angle because both angles would perform the same function of monitoring the water for the purpose of detecting excrement entering the water.
Regarding claim 11, Hall 969 discloses a method for determining a type of excretion excreted into a bowl of a toilet system according to claim 1 by a user of the toilet system, the method comprising the steps of:- using the at least one first sensor device of the toilet system, capturing a signal indicative of a type of excretion excreted into the bowl by a user of the toilet system (paragraph 0020; element 110),- transmitting the captured signal indicative of a type of excretion excreted into the bowl by a user of the toilet system to an analysis device comprising a data processing unit and a data storage unit,(paragraph 0021; processor and memory within element 122)- receiving, by means of the data processing unit, one or more signals transmitted by the at least one first sensor device (paragraph 0021; sensor connects to the processor), and- analysing, by means of the data processing unit, the received one or more signals transmitted by the at least one first sensor device such as to produce a data output indicative of the type of excretion excreted into the bowl by a user of the toilet system (paragraph 0021; store and process data through data processing functions).
Regarding claim 12, Hall 969 does not disclose the limitations of the claim. Another embodiment of Hall 969 teaches the further steps of:-using the at least one second sensor device of the toilet system, capturing a signal indicative of a quantity of excretion excreted into the bowl by a user of the toilet system (paragraph 0027; element 502),- transmitting the captured signal indicative of a quantity of excretion excreted into the bowl by a user of the toilet system to the analysis device (paragraph 0027; processor and memory within element 506),- receiving, by means of the data processing unit, one or more signals transmitted by the at least one second sensor device (see Fig. 5; combination of elements 502 and 504), and- analysing, by means of the data processing unit, the received one or more signals transmitted by the at least one second sensor device such as to produce a data output indicative of the quantity of excretion excreted into the bowl by a user of the toilet system (see Fig. 5; element 506), and/or wherein the data analysis device further comprises a data visualization unit (see Fig. 5), and the method further comprises the step of: visualizing on the data visualization unit, using the data processing unit, the data output indicative of the type of excretion excreted into the bowl by a user of the toilet system and/or the data output indicative of the quantity of excretion excreted into the bowl by a user of the toilet system (see Fig. 5; element 508) for the purpose of making a conclusion of specific quantities of various excrements (paragraph 0027). Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention with a reasonable expectation of success to modify Hall 969, as taught by another embodiment of Hall 969, for the purpose of providing user feedback for data collection and health trend reporting for the purpose of making a conclusion of specific quantities of various excrements.
Regarding claim 13, Hall 969 does not disclose the limitations of the claim. Takagi teaches a chamber provided on the outlet of the toilet system in a position downstream of a water seal arranged between the bowl and the outlet of the toilet system, the chamber being arranged adjacent to at least a part of a lower half of the outlet pipe of the toilet system and being adapted to receive a quantity of liquid pressed through the water seal of the toilet system (see Fig. 1; element 11), and at least one through opening provided in the outlet of the toilet system in the position downstream of the water seal at which the chamber is provided such as to allow liquid being forced through the water seal to flow into the chamber (element 22), wherein the at least one through opening is arranged with a main axis (see Fig. 1; element 8) extending perpendicular to a longitudinal axis (see Fig. 1; element 22) of the outlet pipe, and wherein the at least one through opening comprises a shape tapering in an upstream direction (see Fig. 1; element 8 tapers down to the entrance of element 22) for the purpose of sampling the water for the amount of urination of a subject. Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention with a reasonable expectation of success to modify Hall 969, as taught by Takagi, for the purpose of sampling the water for the amount of urination of a subject.
Regarding claim 15, Hall 969 does not disclose the limitations of the claim. Takagi teaches the at least one through opening a shape tapering and ending in a tip end pointing in an upstream direction, and/or wherein the at least one through opening comprises a cross-sectional shape being polygonal, ellipsoid, circular (element 22), with any one or more of regular, concave, convex or irregular edge(s), or any combination thereof for the purpose of sampling the water for the amount of urination of a subject. Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention with a reasonable expectation of success to modify Hall 969, as taught by Takagi, for the purpose of sampling the water for the amount of urination of a subject.
Regarding claim 16, Hall 969 in view of Takagi does not explicitly disclose the at least one through opening comprises a largest size A measured in a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the outlet pipe and a largest size B measured in a direction parallel with the longitudinal axis of the outlet pipe, and wherein the size A is between 0.5 mm and 100 mm, and/or wherein the size B is between 0.5 mm and 100 mm. However, before the time the invention was effectively filed, it would have been an obvious matter of design choice to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention with a reasonable expectation of success to let water flow because Applicant has not disclosed that opening and pipe sizes provides an advantage, is used for a particular purpose, or solves a stated problem. One of ordinary skill in the art, furthermore, would have expected Takagi, and applicant’s invention, to perform equally well with either opening and pipe sizes because both sizes would perform the same function of let water flow for the purpose of sampling the water for the amount of urination of a subject.
Regarding claim 18, Hall 969 does not disclose the limitations of the claim. Takagi teaches the at least one second sensor device further comprises any one or more of: a screening device arranged upstream of the at least one through opening or extending over the at least one through opening, and a valve mounted in connection with at least one of the one or more openings and configured to control inflow of liquid into the chamber (see Fig. 1; valve along element 22) for the purpose of sampling the water for the amount of urination of a subject. Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention with a reasonable expectation of success to modify Hall 969, as taught by Takagi, for the purpose of sampling the water for the amount of urination of a subject.
Regarding claim 19, Hall 969 does not disclose the limitations of the claim. Another embodiment of Hall 969 teaches the at least one second sensor device further comprises: a mass sensor or a weight sensor arranged and configured to monitor a weight of the chamber and to capture at least one signal indicative of a quantity of excretion excreted into the bowl by a user of the toilet system (see Fig. 5; elements 502 and 508), and/or a flow sensor arranged and configured to monitor a flow of liquid through the chamber and to capture at least one signal indicative of a quantity of excretion excreted into the bowl by a user of the toilet system for the purpose of making a conclusion of specific quantities of various excrements (paragraph 0027). Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention with a reasonable expectation of success to modify Hall 969, as taught by another embodiment of Hall 969, for the purpose of providing user feedback for data collection and health trend reporting for the purpose of making a conclusion of specific quantities of various excrements.
Regarding claim 20, Hall 969 does not disclose the limitations of the claim. Takagi teaches the at least one second sensor device further comprises a mounting element adapted for enabling mounting the sensor device (element 12) on an outlet pipe of a toilet system for the purpose of sampling the water for the amount of urination of a subject. Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention with a reasonable expectation of success to modify Hall 969, as taught by Takagi, for the purpose of sampling the water for the amount of urination of a subject.
Regarding claim 21, Hall 969 does not disclose the limitations of the claim. Takagi teaches method of providing a toilet system according to claim 13, the method further comprising the steps of:- providing at least one through opening (see Fig. 1; element 22) in at least a part of a lower half of the outlet of the toilet system in a position downstream of the water seal arranged between the bowl and the outlet of the toilet system to allow liquid being forced through the water seal to flow through the at least one through opening and into the chamber, wherein the at least one through opening is arranged with a main axis extending perpendicular to a longitudinal axis L of the outlet (see Fig. 1; element 22), and wherein the at least one through opening comprises a shape including a tip end pointing in an upstream direction (element 22 opening meeting element 8),- providing a chamber adapted to receive a quantity of liquid pressed through a water seal of the toilet system (element 11), and - arranging the chamber on the outlet of the toilet system in the position downstream of the water seal arranged between the bowl and the outlet of the toilet system and adjacent to at least a part of a lower half of the outlet of the toilet system (see Fig. 1; element 11) for the purpose of sampling the water for the amount of urination of a subject. Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention with a reasonable expectation of success to modify Hall 969, as taught by Takagi, for the purpose of sampling the water for the amount of urination of a subject.
Claim 2 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Hall 969/Takagi in view of Hall et al (USP 9,743,903 B1) (hereinafter Hall 903)
Regarding claim 2, Hall 969 does not disclose the limitations of the claim. Hall 903 teaches the at least one first sensor device is configured to measure sounds, and/or wherein the at least one first sensor device comprises an acoustic sensor or a microphone (elements 106 and 114) or a vibration sensor for the purpose of providing user feedback for data collection and health trend reporting (col. 1, lines 23-25). Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention with a reasonable expectation of success to modify Hall 969, as taught by Hall 903, for the purpose of providing user feedback for data collection and health trend reporting.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 14, 17, and 22 are objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
The following is an examiner’s statement of reasons for allowance: The closest prior art discloses a toilet system and method. The closest prior art does not disclose or make obvious a plurality of through openings is provided in the outlet of the toilet system, wherein the plurality of through openings comprise a largest size A measured in a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the outlet pipe and a largest size B measured in a direction parallel with the longitudinal axis of the outlet pipe, wherein neighboring through openings of the plurality of through openings are arranged spaced apart with a shortest distance C measured in a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the outlet pipe and a shortest distance D measured in a direction parallel with the longitudinal axis of the outlet pipe, and wherein the plurality of through openings are arranged in a pattern fulfilling the relations C <A and D<2B in claims 14 and 22.
Any comments considered necessary by applicant must be submitted no later than the payment of the issue fee and, to avoid processing delays, should preferably accompany the issue fee. Such submissions should be clearly labeled “Comments on Statement of Reasons for Allowance.”
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed 1/2/2026 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive.
Claim Objections
Regarding the claim objections, the claim objections have been withdrawn due to Applicant’s amendment.
Rejection under USC 112
Regarding the USC 112 rejections, the rejections have been withdrawn due to Applicant’s amendment.
Rejection under USC 103
Regarding Applicant’s argument,” Applicant respectfully asserts that the cited references, separately or in combination, fail to disclose or suggest "a toilet system comprising a bowl and an outlet, the toilet system being adapted for discerning between types of excretion excreted into the bowl by a user of the toilet system, the toilet system further comprising: at least one first sensor device configured to capture at least one signal indicative of a type of excretion excreted into the bowl by a user of the toilet system, and at least one second sensor device configured to capture at least one signal indicative of a quantity of excretion excreted into the bowl by a user of the toilet system, wherein the at least one second sensor device is arranged in the outlet of the toilet system in a position downstream of a water seal arranged between the bowl and the outlet of the toilet and comprises a chamber adapted for collecting liquid forced through the water seal and a measuring unit arranged and adapted for measuring the quantity of liquid collected in the chamber," as recited in claim 1, as amended,” the Examiner disagrees. The Examiner refers to the new rejection to claim 1, Hall discloses a measuring unit arranged and adapted for measuring the quantity of liquid collected in the chamber (see Fig. 5; paragraph 0027 where a weight and water level sensor provide inputs that are correlated and used to make a quantitative conclusion of quantity of material present) for the purpose of making a conclusion of specific quantities of various excrements (paragraph 0027). Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention with a reasonable expectation of success to modify Hall 969, as taught by another embodiment of Hall 969, for the purpose of providing user feedback for data collection and health trend reporting for the purpose of making a conclusion of specific quantities of various excrements. Takagi teaches wherein the at least one second sensor device is arranged in the outlet of the toilet system in a position downstream of a water seal arranged between the bowl and the outlet of the toilet (element 12) and comprises a chamber adapted for collecting liquid forced through the water seal (see Fig. 1; element 11) for the purpose of sampling the water for the amount of urination of a subject. Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention with a reasonable expectation of success to modify Hall 969, as taught by Takagi, for the purpose of sampling the water for the amount of urination of a subject.
Conclusion
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 Kalyanavenkateshware Kumar whose telephone number is (571)272-8102. The examiner can normally be reached on M-F 08:00-16:30.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Michael McCullough can be reached on 571-272-7805. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/K.K./Examiner, Art Unit 3653
/MICHAEL MCCULLOUGH/ Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3653
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