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 .
Election/Restrictions
Applicant’s election without traverse of Group III (claims 7-13, 17, 32-38, and 42) in the reply filed on February 12, 2026, is acknowledged. Claims 2-6,14-16,18-25,27-31,39-41 and 43-51 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to nonelected inventions, there being no allowable generic or linking claim.
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.
Claim(s) 1 and 26 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Braun (EP 9946 A1).
Braun discloses a target assembly with a corresponding method for an x-ray apparatus, the target assembly comprising: a target housing (30); an entrance path (13) formed in an entrance part of the target housing for accepting an incident electron beam (11); a target member (21) for generating x-rays under electron beam illumination through the entrance path; and an exit path (20) formed in an exit part of the target housing for allowing generated x-rays to exit the target assembly, the exit path covered by an x-ray transmissive window (12), wherein the exit path comprises an exit bore formed in the exit part and configured to limit the generation of x-rays by impact of scattered electrons (p. 12:22-23: substantially reducing reback-scatter and off-focus x-ray radiation), which have been reflected from the target member, onto an inside of the bore (p. 11:29-31: the main purpose of the anode enclosure 30 is to absorb electrons back-scattered from the focal spot).
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.
Claim(s) 8 and 33 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Braun as applied to claims 1 and 26 above, and further in view of Sellers (US 3383510).
Braun discloses claims 1 and 26. Braun further discloses wherein the exit bore is provided with a material (for 20).
However, Braun fails to disclose a liner of aluminium, beryllium or carbon.
Sellers teaches a liner of aluminium, beryllium or carbon (col. 3:32-38).
It would have been obvious, to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention, to modify Braun with the teaching of Sellers, since one would have been motivated to make such a modification for modifying the energy as desired (Sellers: col. 3:40-46).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 7, 9-13, 17, 32, 34-38, and 42 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 a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter.
Regarding claim 7 and its dependent claim(s), if any, the prior art (e.g., Braun) discloses a target assembly for an x-ray apparatus, the target assembly comprising: a target housing (30); an entrance path (13) formed in an entrance part of the target housing for accepting an incident electron beam (11); a target member (21) for generating x-rays under electron beam illumination through the entrance path; and an exit path (20) formed in an exit part of the target housing for allowing generated x-rays to exit the target assembly, the exit path covered by an x-ray transmissive window (12), wherein the exit path comprises an exit bore formed in the exit part and configured to limit the generation of x-rays by impact of scattered electrons (p. 12:22-23: substantially reducing reback-scatter and off-focus x-ray radiation), which have been reflected from the target member, onto an inside of the bore (p. 11:29-31: the main purpose of the anode enclosure 30 is to absorb electrons back-scattered from the focal spot).
However, the prior art fails to disclose or fairly suggest a target assembly for an x-ray apparatus, the target assembly including: wherein the exit bore is provided with a liner predominantly composed of a material having lower atomic number than the atomic number of the predominant material of a surface of the exit part inward of the liner, the atomic number being lower than 16, the liner extending substantially around a cross-section of the bore, in combination with all of the other recitations in the claim.
Regarding claim 32 and its dependent claim(s), if any, the prior art (e.g., Braun) discloses a similar method.
However, the prior art fails to disclose or fairly suggest a method of modifying a target assembly for an x-ray apparatus, wherein the modification comprises providing the exit bore with a liner predominantly composed of, a material having lower atomic number than the atomic number of the predominant material of a surface of the exit part inward of the liner, the atomic number being optionally lower than 16, the liner extending substantially around a cross-section of the bore, in combination with all of the other recitations in the claim.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Chih-Cheng Kao whose telephone number is (571)272-2492. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 9-5.
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/Chih-Cheng Kao/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2884