DETAILED ACTION
This Office action is in response to the application filed on 30 March 2023.
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 .
Priority
Receipt is acknowledged of certified copies of papers required by 37 CFR 1.55.
Specification
The disclosure is objected to because of the following informalities:
In paragraph [0052], “The input 76c is connected to a low potential power source line LV. The input 75a of the interval generation circuit 75 is connected to the low potential power source line LV through the resistance element ResO.” provides an informality. There is no LV in Fig. 5, which is for an interval generation circuit.
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 1-2, 10-11 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Hazama Hajime (JPH11337522A; hereafter “Hajime”) in view of P. Jelger et. al (2008 Conference on Lasers and Electro-Optics and 2008 Conference on Quantum Electronics and Laser Science, DOI: 10.1109/CLEO.2008.4551213 ; hereafter “Jelger”).
-Regarding claim 1:
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Hajime discloses:
A power source device (Fig.2; 10) configured for an electrophoresis device (Fig. 2; 2) employing a high voltage generation circuit (Fig 2; 14) configured to generate a voltage for electrophoresis; a first external terminal (Fig. 2;6) and a second external terminal (Fig. 2;8) configured to apply the electrophoresis voltage to polarity switching circuit (Fig. 2;16) including a first internal conductor (Fig.3; anode of the high voltage power supply 14) connected to the high voltage generation circuit and a second internal conductor (Fig.3; cathode of the high voltage power supply 14), the polarity switching circuit being configured to selectably apply a potential difference between the second internal conductor and the first internal conductor across the first external terminal and the second external terminal by application with either a forward direction polarity or a reverse direction polarity (Fig. 4; TF and TR); and a switching control circuit (Fig. 2; 12, Hajime discloses “the microcomputer 12 switches the polarity switching unit 16” in his specification.) configured to control polarity switching of the polarity switching circuit to select either one of application with the forward direction polarity or application with the reverse direction polarity.
However, Hajime does not disclose “measurement tool including a capillary,”. Hajime discloses an electrophoresis gel plate (Fig. 2; 4) instead.
Jelger discloses:
“measurement tool including a capillary (Fig. 1 a),”
Jelger presents an all-fiber capillary electrophoresis system in his paper. It enables sensitive in-line electrophoresis separation and fluorescence detection.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the device described in Hajime such that a commonly used measurement tool including the capillary described in Jelger is applied to the electrophoresis device with the power source device. Doing so allows for fast voltage migration to get an affordable result from the electrophoresis device.
-Regarding claim 2:
Hajime discloses:
The power source device of claim 1, wherein: the polarity switching circuit (Fig. 2;16) includes a forward direction switch pair of a first forward direction switch (Fig. 3;16a) and a second forward direction switch (Fig. 3;16d), and a reverse direction switch pair of a first reverse direction switch (Fig. 3;16c) and a second reverse direction switch (Fig. 3;16b); the first forward direction switch is connected between the first internal conductor (Fig. 3; anode of the high voltage power supply 14) and the first external terminal (Fig. 3; 4a) ; the second forward direction switch is connected between the second internal conductor (Fig. 3; cathode of the high voltage power supply 14) and the second external terminal (Fig. 3; 4b); the first reverse direction switch is connected between the first internal conductor (Fig. 3; anode of the high voltage power supply 14) and the second external terminal (Fig. 3; 4b); the second reverse direction switch is connected between the second internal conductor (Fig. 3; cathode of the high voltage power supply 14) and the first external terminal (Fig. 3; 4a); and the switching control circuit is configured to control the polarity switching circuit so as to make either one of the forward direction switch or the reverse direction switch exclusively conductive.
-Regarding claim 10:
Hajime discloses:
An electrophoresis device that employs a measurement toola power source device (Fig.2; 10) configured to generate an electrophoresis voltage, wherein the power source device includes a first external terminal (Fig. 2;6) and a second external terminal (Fig. 2;8) configured to apply the electrophoresis voltage by application with either a forward direction polarity or a reverse direction polarity (Fig. 4; TF and TR); and an input device (Fig. 2; 12, Hajime discloses “the microcomputer 12 switches the polarity switching unit 16” in his specification.) configured to receive designation of an operation mode indicting either the forward direction polarity or the reverse direction polarity.
However, Hajime does not disclose “including a capillary,”.
Hajime discloses an electrophoresis gel plate (Fig. 2; 4) instead.
Jelger discloses:
“including a capillary (Fig. 1 a),”.
Jelger presents an all-fiber capillary electrophoresis system in his paper. It enables sensitive in-line electrophoresis separation and fluorescence detection.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the device described in Hajime such that a commonly used measurement tool including the capillary described in Jelger is applied to the electrophoresis device with the power source device. Doing so allows for fast voltage migration to get an affordable result from the electrophoresis device.
-Regarding claim 11:
For method claim 11, note that under MPEP 2112.02, the principles of inherency, if a prior art device, in its normal and usual operation, would necessarily perform the method claimed, then the method claimed will be considered to be anticipated by the prior art device. When the prior art is the same as a device described in the specification for carrying out the claimed method, it can be assumed the device “1 inherently performs the claimed process. In re King, 801 F.2d 1324, 231 UPSQ 136 (Fed Cir. 1986). Therefore, the previous rejections based on the apparatus will not be repeated.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 3-9 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.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter:
-with respect to claim 3:
the prior arts in Hajime and Jelger, disclose the claimed invention in basic claims but do not further disclose about an input/ an output side of each switch.
-with respect to claim 4:
the prior arts in Hajime and Jelger, disclose the claimed invention in basic claims but do not further disclose about an interval generation circuit.
-with respect to claim 5:
the prior arts in Hajime and Jelger, disclose the claimed invention in basic claims but do not further disclose about a hold circuit, which configured to hold a polarity state as indicated by the polarity signal.
-with respect to claim 8:
the prior arts in Hajime and Jelger, disclose the claimed invention in basic claims but do not further disclose about a generation circuit and an amplification circuit.
-with respect to claim 9:
the prior arts in Hajime and Jelger, disclose the claimed invention in basic claims but do not further disclose about a current detection circuit.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Another reference (Pawel et. al, Improving repeatability of capillary electrophoresis—a critical comparison of ten different capillary inner surfaces and three criteria of peak identification; Fig. 1) also discloses schematic illustration of ten physiochemically different capillaries including their inner surface.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to SEUNG HO CHOI whose telephone number is (571)272-8188. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Thursday, 7:30 AM - 5:30 PM ET.
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/SEUNG HO CHOI/Examiner, Art Unit 2838
/CRYSTAL L HAMMOND/Supervisory Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2838