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 .
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed July 16, 2025 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive. While applicant correctly argues that there is support for a first tubular member (syringe barrel) and a second tubular member (plunger), there is NO support in either the specification nor the drawings to have the SECOND tubular member have a sidewall with a plurality of gradations, the gradations with an identifier, each with a different weight. Further, while there is support for the sensor to be in communication with a portion of the second tubular member, it is unclear how the sensor can then identify the line weight of an identifier which is positioned on the second tubular member. There is no reference frame if the both the identifier and the sensor are on the same elements, because there would be no movement relative to each other.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
Claims 1, 3-9, 11-15, 27-31 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(a) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), 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 applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the inventor(s), at the time the application was filed, had possession of the claimed invention. While there is support for the sensor to be in communication with a portion of the second tubular member, there is no support for that same sensor located on the second tubular member identifying the line weight of an identifier which is positioned on the second tubular member, and then using the data to determine a position of the second tubular member relative to the first tubular member.
Drawings
The drawings are objected to under 37 CFR 1.83(a). The drawings must show every feature of the invention specified in the claims. Therefore, in regards to claim 1, of there being: a plurality of gradations located on a portion of the sidewall of the second tubular member, each of the plurality of gradations including an identifier; and a sensor in communication with a portion of the second tubular member, wherein the sensor detects the identifier to determine a position of the second tubular member relative to the first tubular member.
Corrected drawing sheets in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(d) are required in reply to the Office action to avoid abandonment of the application. Any amended replacement drawing sheet should include all of the figures appearing on the immediate prior version of the sheet, even if only one figure is being amended. The figure or figure number of an amended drawing should not be labeled as “amended.” If a drawing figure is to be canceled, the appropriate figure must be removed from the replacement sheet, and where necessary, the remaining figures must be renumbered and appropriate changes made to the brief description of the several views of the drawings for consistency. Additional replacement sheets may be necessary to show the renumbering of the remaining figures. Each drawing sheet submitted after the filing date of an application must be labeled in the top margin as either “Replacement Sheet” or “New Sheet” pursuant to 37 CFR 1.121(d). If the changes are not accepted by the examiner, the applicant will be notified and informed of any required corrective action in the next Office action. The objection to the drawings will not be held in abeyance.
Specification
The specification is objected to as failing to provide proper antecedent basis for the claimed subject matter. See 37 CFR 1.75(d)(1) and MPEP § 608.01(o). Correction of the following is required: In regards to claim 1, of there being: a plurality of gradations located on a portion of the sidewall of the second tubular member, each of the plurality of gradations including an identifier; and a sensor in communication with a portion of the second tubular member, wherein the sensor detects the identifier on the second tubular member.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. U.S. Patent No. 6,764,469, U.S, Patent No. 7,498,563, and U.S. Publication No. 2016/0074587.
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 REBECCA E EISENBERG whose telephone number is (571)270-5879. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 8-5.
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REBECCA E. EISENBERG
Supervisory Patent Examiner
Art Unit 3781
/REBECCA E EISENBERG/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3781
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