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 Amendment
The amendment filed 06/26/2026 has been entered. Claims 1-2, 4-5, and 7-8 remain pending in the application and claims 3, 6, and 9 are cancelled. Applicant’s amendments to the claims have overcome each rejection previously set forth in the Non-Final Office Action mailed 03/26/2026.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments, see “Remarks”, filed 06/26/2026, with respect to the claims have been fully considered and are persuasive. The rejection of Jen et al. has been withdrawn.
Claim Objections
Claims 5 and 7 are objected to because of the following informalities:
Claim 5 line 2 “the net wires” is suggested to read “the at least two net wires” for claim language consistency.
Claim 7 line 2 “the one more more” is suggested to read “the one or more” for better claim language consistency.
Claim 7 line 4 “the net wires” is suggested to read “the at least two net wires” for claim language consistency.
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.
Claim 7 is 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 7 recites “at least a portion of the loop wire” in line 2 and is unclear if this is the same “at least a portion of the loop wire” as recited in claim 1, or another “at least a portion of the loop wire.” For the purposes of examination, the Office will interpret both instances of “at least a portion of the loop wire” to be the same.
Claim 7 recites “at least a portion of the loop wire is configured to be the one more more connecting springs” in lines 2-3 and is unclear how the loop wire can be configured to be the one or more connecting springs if in claim 1, the “one or more connecting springs are provided on at least a portion of the loop wire, the one or more connecting springs including a plurality of coils winding around the loop.” For the purposes of examination, the Office will interpret the claim to mean “at least a portion of the loop wire is configured to extend through the one or more connecting springs.”
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 1-2, 4-5, and 8 are allowed.
The following is an examiner’s statement of reasons for allowance:
With regards to claims 1-2, 4-5, and 8, the allowable subject matter is in the context of the claims. Specifically, the prior art of records fails to disclose or make obvious the claimed implant, comprising, inter alia,
“the one or more connecting springs including a plurality of coils winding around the loop; and
the at least two net wires extend through the plurality of coils to maintain a position of the at least two net wires.”
The closest prior art of Jen et al. (US PGPub 2021/0022594) discloses in implant 5 in figures 1-9A, however is silent to the one or more connecting springs including a plurality of coils winding around the loop; and the at least two net wires extend through the plurality of coils to maintain a position of the at least two net wires. The prior art fails to disclose or make obvious the claimed subject matter of the plurality of coils. Therefore, the claims are allowable over all prior art.
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.”
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 MOHAMMED S ADAM whose telephone number is (571)272-8981. The examiner can normally be reached 8-5.
Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Jackie Ho can be reached at 571-272-4696. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/MOHAMMED S ADAM/Examiner, Art Unit 3771 07/08/2026
/KATHERINE M SHI/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3771
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