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 .
Terminal Disclaimer
The terminal disclaimer filed on January 29, 2026, disclaiming the terminal portion of any patent granted on this application which would extend beyond the expiration date of U.S. patent number 11,602,444 has been reviewed and is accepted. The terminal disclaimer has been recorded.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
The following is a quotation of the appropriate paragraphs of 35 U.S.C. 102 that form the basis for the rejections under this section made in this Office action:
A person shall be entitled to a patent unless –
(a)(1) the claimed invention was patented, described in a printed publication, or in public use, on sale, or otherwise available to the public before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claims 1-5, 8, 10-28, and 31 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being clearly anticipated by Seto et al., US 2001/0029343 A1. The embodiment of Figures 1-3 involves an actuator-damper unit for use between first and second components 8a and 8b of an orthotic device 2, the unit comprising a first housing 12 having hydraulic cylinders 14a-14c formed therein and configured to be indirectly coupled to each of components 8a and 8b, said unit also including pistons 16a-16f displaceably mounted in respective cylinders to define fluid chambers and piston-cylinder units, the corresponding piston rods forming a comb shape 18a or 18b with other piston rods to facilitate coupling to first and second components 8a and 8b via connecting portions 8a1 and 8b1 (abstract; paragraphs 0002, 0094-0096, 0185). For example, “first” piston 16a separates cylinder 14a into “first” and “second” fluid chambers, the latter occupied by a “second” piston 16d dividing the “second” chamber to create a separate variable volume fluid chamber (Figure 2; paragraph 0096).
Regarding claim 2, the first and second pistons are hydraulically coupled to each other (paragraph 0096) and indirectly mechanically coupled (Figure 2). Regarding claims 3-4, the working fluid may instead be a compressible fluid such as air (paragraph 0186). Regarding claims 5 and 10-11, control valves 26a and 32b1-32b3 correspond to at least one of the fluid chambers by controlling fluid ingress and egress (Figure 3; paragraphs 0100, 0104, 0107-0108, 0112) and function as non-return valves when closed (paragraphs 0036, 0104, 0112). Regarding claim 12, fluid flow rate is in part controlled by fluid viscosity in that air and hydraulic oil, for instance, innately possess dissimilar fluid properties or characteristics. Regarding claims 13-16, a compensating volume in the form of reservoir 22 is fluidically coupled to some of the fluid chambers by way of said control valves 26a and 32b1-32b3 (Figure 3; paragraphs 0029, 0098-0100, 0107-0108) and can serve as a pressure accumulator, particularly when a compressible fluid like air is employed (paragraph 0186); moreover, a subset of fluid chambers themselves may act as energy accumulators and compensating volumes (paragraphs 0067-0068, 0176). Regarding claims 17 and 19, pressurizing pumps 24a-24c are coupled between reservoir or energy accumulator 22 and valves 32b1-32b3 (Figure 3; paragraphs 0098-0100, 0104, 0107). Regarding claim 18, cylinders 14a-14c are parallel to each other (Figures 2-3; paragraphs 0044, 0096), and each piston-cylinder unit may be viewed as a hand pump because compressive forces at connecting portions 8a1 and 8b1 tend to pump fluid out of pressure chambers 20a-20c (Figures 1-2; paragraphs 0068, 0096, 0107-0108, 0118, 0176).
Regarding claims 21-23, control devices 28, 32d, 26c; pressure sensors 32a1-32a3; and acceleration sensor 26b (Figure 3) are explained in paragraphs 0022-0026, 0029-0030, 0035, 0098-0100, 0104. Regarding claims 24-28, a “third” piston 16b is mechanically coupled to “first” piston 16a (to form comb-shaped piston rod 18a) and forms an additional variable-volume fluid chamber (such as pressure chamber 20b); “second” piston 16d and “third” piston 16b are disposed on opposite sides of “first” piston 16a when fluid chamber 20a is depressurized (paragraphs 0035-0036, 0112; “first”, “second”, and “third” are somewhat arbitrarily assignable to different pistons and cylinders, which may be even greater in number: paragraph 0187); a “fourth” piston 16c or 16f is disposed in a “second” housing 14c and is displaceable relative to a “first” housing 14a (under an alternative interpretation of the claimed term “housing”); as for claim 28, under another interpretation, housing 12 itself is a cylinder (paragraph 0096: “cylindrical actuator body 12”), with “sub-cylinders” 14a-14c (and chambers) defined by partitions or separating walls integrally formed in housing or cylinder 12 (Figure 2). Regarding claim 31, heater 126 elevates fluid temperature (Figure 14; paragraphs 0062-0063, 0160) and thus alters fluid viscosity. The further limitations of other claims are readily apparent (MPEP § 707) from the referenced passages and drawings in light of the discussion above.
Claims 32-34 and 38-39 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Mosler, DE 10 2008 045 113 A1, a copy of a machine translation of which is provided in parent application no. 15/726,784. Figure 2 depicts a damper unit 30 having rotary hydraulics 33 for establishing a pivotal connection between upper prosthetic part 10 and lower prosthetic part 20 [title; abstract; machine translation paragraphs 0016, 0025, 0032, 0036, 0039-0040 (“common pivot axis”, “pivoting piston”, etc.)]; rotary vane pumps may be used (paragraph 0049). The “pivoting piston” innately includes a rotary piston rod for connection to upper part 10 or lower part 20, with the cylinder housing being coupled to the other of upper part 10 and lower part 20 in order to impart controlled hydraulic damping at the prosthetic pivot or joint. The system may additionally comprise a mechanical pressure accumulator, such as that illustrated in Figure 4 and having a second piston 61 displaceably mounted in a second cylinder and housing hydraulically coupled to damper unit 30 [which is optionally rotary in design: paragraphs 0015 (“store large amounts of energy [and] provide high peak loads”, 0016, 0018 (“assist in standing up”), 0027, 0041 (“piston 321 or a rotary hydraulic system 33 can be driven… to enable a supported getting up”, “additional pressure accumulator”), 0044 (“supplement to the electric drive”, “can be provided in addition to the exemplary embodiments illustrated in FIGS. 1 to 3”; emphasis added)]. The separate variable-volume fluid chamber (represented by the double-headed arrow in Figure 4) created by second piston 61 is hydraulically coupled via valves 80 and 81 to both fluid chambers separated by the rotary piston or vane (i.e., the rotary analog of piston 321 shown in Figure 4).
Regarding claims 33 and 34, the rotary piston or vane and second piston 61 are thus coupled hydraulically to each other via the aforementioned hydraulic communication among the three fluid chambers and a plurality of valves controlling the fluid flow (paragraphs 0019-0020, 0033, 0036, 0039, 0045+). Regarding claim 38, a compensating volume 50 may be coupled to at least one of said fluid chambers (Figures 1, 3-4; paragraphs 0017, 0033). Regarding claim 39, pump or drive 40 is operable to increase fluid pressure in the actuator-damper unit [Figure 2; paragraphs 0011, 0013, 0021, 0038 (“motor 41 drives the conversion device 40, which acts as a pump and supplies kinetic energy to the hydraulic system”), 0040 (optional “direct fluid coupling between the drive 40 and the damper device 30”)].
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 6, 9, 29-30, and 40 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Seto et al., US 2001/0029343 A1. Regarding claims 6, 9, and 40, hydraulically coupling variable volume fluid chambers would have been obvious from the embodiment illustrated in Figures 12 and 15 in order to provide a compact, lightweight version of the embodiment shown in Figures 1-3 by reducing the size of reservoir 22 or eliminating it entirely (paragraphs 0012-0013, 0022, 0068, 0176). Regarding claims 29-30, integrating control valves 32b1-32b3 into the partitions or separating walls would have been obvious in order to further impart compactness to the system and thereby circumvent or lessen the need for unwieldy fluid tubing and the like (paragraphs 0018, 0020, 0022).
Response to Arguments
Regarding Seto et al., Applicant argues that “the only chamber that includes fluid is the pressure chamber 20 a or the variable chamber as defined by the Office. The other two chambers defined by the Office, the first and second chambers shown below, do not include a fluid” (Applicant’s reply of January 29, 2026: page 12, last paragraph; page 13, annotated Figure 2 of Seto et al.). The examiner disagrees, because air is a fluid, and the first and second chambers as defined by Applicant communicate with the atmosphere and are interconnected via fluid lines within cylindrical actuator body 12, as evidenced by hydraulic oil potentially leaking outwardly to coating material 13 (Seto et al.: Figure 2; paragraph 0097) and since otherwise buildup of air pressure within said first and second chambers would excessively inhibit movement of pistons 16a and 16d. Also noteworthy is that hydraulic cylinders “may be replaced with pneumatic cylinders” (paragraph 0186). Applicant’s remarks do not even mention the rejection of claims 32-24 and 38-39 under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) based upon Mosler, so no further comment by the examiner is deemed necessary.
Conclusion
THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. 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 David H. Willse, whose telephone number is 571-272-4762. The examiner can normally be reached on Monday through Thursday. If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor Melanie Tyson can be reached at telephone number 571-272-9062. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/DAVID H WILLSE/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3774
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