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and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114.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 03/03/2026 has been entered.
Response to Amendment
The amendment filed 03/03/2026 has been entered. In the present application, claims 15, 16-26 are currently pending and examined below. Claims 1-14 and 16 have been canceled. Claim 15, 17-19, 21-22, and 25 are currently amended. Claim 26 is newly added.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments, see pages 7-13, filed 03/03/2026, with respect to the pending claims have been fully considered and are persuasive in view of Applicant’s amendments. Therefore, the claim rejections cited in the final office action dated 11/03/2025 have been withdrawn.
Claim Objections
Claim 15 objected to because of the following informalities:
Claim 15 does not provide indention where new items are provide. Where a claim sets forth a plurality of elements or steps, each element or step of the claim should be separated by a line indentation, 37 CFR 1.75(i). See MPEP 6.08.01(m). It is suggested to indent claim 15 as follows:
Regarding Claim 15, A medical device comprising;
an endoscope head designed to be detachably connected to endoscope tubes of different diameters and including a longitudinal channel for receiving a respective one of the endoscope tubes,
said longitudinal channel having an opening width which is variable to receive the endoscope tubes of different diameters,
said endoscope head including a clamping device designed to hold the respective one of the endoscope tubes inserted into the longitudinal channel in a clamping manner,
said clamping device including a base body, the base body including an externally threaded portion and a plurality of displaceable clamping bodies movably connected to a distal end of the base body,
the plurality of displaceable clamping bodies being dispersed over a circumference of the longitudinal channel and having a relaxed initial position;
a clamping sleeve having an internally threaded portion in engagement with the externally threaded portion of the base body so as to be displaceable axially with respect to the base body and allowing the clamping sleeve to be rotated relative to the base body,
the clamping sleeve including a run-on surface at a radial inner edge of a distal end of the clamping sleeve,
wherein rotation of the clamping sleeve causes the clamping sleeve to be displaced in a longitudinal direction of the endoscope head resulting in the-run- on surface striking the plurality of displaceable clamping bodies to vary the opening width of the longitudinal channel by actively displacing the plurality of displaceable clamping bodies inwards from the relaxed initial position against the respective one of the endoscope tubes inserted into the longitudinal channel in the clamping manner.
Appropriate correction is required.
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 19 and 26 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 19 recites the limitation "the clamping bodies" in line 3. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim. It is suggested to amend the limitation to state, “the plurality of displaceable clamping bodies.” Appropriate correction is required.
Claim 26 recites the limitation “wherein the plurality of displaceable clamping bodies are displaced outwards towards the by springing back towards the relaxed initial position when the clamping sleeve is rotated back” in lines 2-3. It is unclear what Applicant is trying to claim within this limitation. Claim 15, which claim 26 directly depends from, in lines 10-12 claim the plurality of displaceable clamping bodies are movably connected to the distal end of the base body having a relaxed initial position around the circumference of the longitudinal channel. Claim 15 lines 17-23 also claims the clamping sleeve is displaced in the longitudinal direction along the endoscope head resulting in the run on surface striking the plurality of displaceable clamping bodies to vary the opening width of the longitudinal channel. Therefore Examiner is interpreting the limitation within claim 26 as “wherein the plurality of displaceable clamping bodies are displaced radially and return to the relaxed initial position when the clamping sleeve is rotated to a proximal portion of the base body.” Also, support for such interpretation is supported in paragraphs [0048-0050] of Applicant’s specification. Appropriate correction is required.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 15 and 17-26 are objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten to overcome the above cited claim objection and 35 U.S.C. §112b claim rejections.
The following is an examiner’s statement of reasons for allowance:
The prior art fails to teach, among other features, a medical device comprising; an endoscope head designed to be detachably connected to endoscope tubes of different diameters and including a longitudinal channel for receiving a respective one of the endoscope tubes, said longitudinal channel having an opening width which is variable to receive the endoscope tubes of different diameters, said endoscope head including a clamping device designed to hold the respective one of the endoscope tubes inserted into the longitudinal channel in a clamping manner, said clamping device including a base body, the base body including an externally threaded portion and a plurality of displaceable clamping bodies movably connected to a distal end of the base body, the plurality of displaceable clamping bodies being dispersed over a circumference of the longitudinal channel and having a relaxed initial position; a clamping sleeve having an internally threaded portion in engagement with the externally threaded portion of the base body so as to be displaceable axially with respect to the base body and allowing the clamping sleeve to be rotated relative to the base body, the clamping sleeve including a run-on surface at a radial inner edge of a distal end of the clamping sleeve, wherein rotation of the clamping sleeve causes the clamping sleeve to be displaced in a longitudinal direction of the endoscope head resulting in the-run- on surface striking the plurality of displaceable clamping bodies to vary the opening width of the longitudinal channel by actively displacing the plurality of displaceable clamping bodies inwards from the relaxed initial position against the respective one of the endoscope tubes inserted into the longitudinal channel in the clamping manner.
Ortiz et al. (US2010/0228094), Thomas Wenchell (US8926505), Tak et al. (US2018/0049768), and Cantor et al. (US2018/0125603), alone or in combination, teach the above except for a clamping sleeve having an internally threaded portion in engagement with the externally threaded portion of the base body so as to be displaceable axially with respect to the base body and allowing the clamping sleeve to be rotated relative to the base body, the clamping sleeve including a run-on surface at a radial inner edge of a distal end of the clamping sleeve, wherein rotation of the clamping sleeve causes the clamping sleeve to be displaced in a longitudinal direction of the endoscope head resulting in the-run- on surface striking the plurality of displaceable clamping bodies to vary the opening width of the longitudinal channel by actively displacing the plurality of displaceable clamping bodies inwards from the relaxed initial position against the respective one of the endoscope tubes inserted into the longitudinal channel in the clamping manner.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to MEGAN E MONAHAN whose telephone number is (571)272-7330. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Friday, 8am - 5pm.
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/MEGAN ELIZABETH MONAHAN/Examiner, Art Unit 3795
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