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 .
Continued Examination Under 37 CFR 1.114
A request for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, including the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e), was filed in this application after final rejection. Since this application is eligible for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114.
Applicant's submission filed on 3/12/2026 has been entered.
Claims 1, 5-6, 9-10, 18, and 20 have been amended.
Claims 4, 7-8, and 19 have been cancelled.
Claim 23 is newly added.
Response to Arguments
The 112 rejection and the Gilman reference have been withdrawn in view of applicant’s amendment.
Terminal Disclaimer
The terminal disclaimer filed on 3/12/2026 disclaiming the terminal portion of any patent granted on this application which would extend beyond the expiration date of U.S. Patent No. 11,291,589 has been reviewed and is accepted.
The terminal disclaimer has been recorded.
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, a sterile cloth coupled to the covering (claim 10) must be shown or the feature(s) canceled from the claim(s). No new matter should be entered.
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.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of 35 U.S.C. 112(a):
(a) IN GENERAL.—The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor or joint inventor of carrying out the invention.
Claim 10 is 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. Applicant’s originally-filed specification does not describe claimed limitation a sterile cloth coupled to the covering as recited in claim 10.
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 1-3, 5-6, 11-17, and 22-23 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Downing (U.S. Patent No. 6,274,787) in view of Askem (U.S. Patent Application Publication No. US 2015/0174304 A1).
Regarding independent claim 1, Figures 6-7 in Downing discloses applicant’s claimed apparatus (46) for wound covering, the apparatus comprising:
a fastener (44) that is coupled to a covering (46) and that is configured to secure the covering (46) to a body that includes a wound (see Figure 2;
the covering (46), wherein the covering (46) includes a base (40) and a curved bridging surface (Figures 6-7 illustrate covering 46 being curved, bridging surface) that extends between portions of the base (40),
wherein at least one base surface (42) of the base (40) of the covering (46) is configured to contact the body part while the fastener (44) secures the covering (46) to the body part, and
wherein the curved bridging surface (46) of the covering (46) is configured to cover at least one portion of the wound and to avoid contact (Figures 6-7 illustrate covering 46 avoid contact between the canopy/bridging portion and the wound as the canop/bridging portion extend above the wound) direct between the curved bridging surface (46) and the at least one portion of the wound while the fastener (32) secures the covering (46) to the body part; and
a passageway (70, see Figure 3a) within the covering (20), wherein the passageway (70) configured to convey a treatment toward the wound (column 5 lines 53-58 disclose air vents which are passageway or aperture through the covering 20, such that the air vents/passageway is capable of conveying a treatment therethough).
Downing invention does not disclose at least one sensor coupled to the curved bridging structure of the covering, wherein the at least one sensor is configured to detect a condition of the wound and to communicate an update associated with the condition of the wound.
However, Askem teaches an analogous wound bandage comprising one or more moisture sensor positioned under the backing/covering layer (paragraph 0203, 0409). The Examiner takes the position that claim 1 the least one sensor is within/under the bridging structure to be able to be effectively sensing/detecting a condition or status of the wound.
Paragraph 0409 in Askem further teaches the sensors triggers 3-level alarms alerting/notifying a threshold has reached.
Further, paragraph 0409 in Askem teaches an embodiment that includes a sensor position under the backing layer.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art prior to applicant’s effective filing date to modify Downing’s wound apparatus to include one or more moisture sensor under the backing/covering layer, taught by Askem, as level of moisture deems advantageous know when treating burn/boiled wounds, such that Askem moisure sensor being installed under Gilman’s backing/covering layer (36) being positioned farthest away from the at least one base surface of the base (12) relative to other points on the curved bridging surface (36).
Regarding claim 2, Downing/Askem combination, presented above, discloses applicant’s claimed apparatus comprising all feature recited in these claims, further comprising a screen that displays an alert that is based on the update (paragraph 0409 in Askem discloses alarm feature which is interpreted to correspond on claimed limitation an alert).
Regarding claim 3, Downing/Askem combination, presented above, discloses applicant’s claimed apparatus comprising all feature recited in these claims, wherein the apparatus sends an alert that is based on the update (paragraph 0409 in Askem discloses alarm feature which is interpreted to correspond on claimed limitation an alert).
Regarding claim 5, Downing/Askem combination, presented above, discloses applicant’s claimed apparatus comprising all feature recited in these claims, wherein the update associated with the condition of the wound includes an update associated with the treatment affecting the condition of the wound (paragraph 0409 in Askem discloses various level of alarms associating with specified saturation percentile which are indicative to treatment of the wound).
Regarding claim 6, Downing/Askem combination, presented above, discloses applicant’s claimed apparatus comprising all feature recited in these claims, wherein the update is associated with a suggestion to apply the treatment to the wound based on the condition of the wound (paragraph 0409 in Askem discloses various level of alarms associating with specified saturation percentile. which are indicative to actions to treatment of the wound).
Regarding claim 11, Downing/Askem combination, presented above, discloses applicant’s claimed apparatus comprising all feature recited in these claims, wherein the at least one sensor includes a moisture sensor (paragraph 0409 in Askem) that identifies an amount of moisture in a vicinity of the wound.
Regarding claim 12, Downing/Askem combination, presented above, discloses applicant’s claimed apparatus comprising all feature recited in these claims, wherein the update is associated with an alert as to the amount of moisture in the vicinity of the wound (paragraph 0409 in Askem discloses an alarm triggering an amount of moisture in the vicinity of the wound).
Regarding claim 13, Downing/Askem combination, presented above, discloses applicant’s claimed apparatus comprising all feature recited in these claims, wherein the at least one sensor includes a sensor that measures an attribute of air in a vicinity of the wound (paragraph 0409 in Askem).
Regarding claim 14, Downing/Askem combination, presented above, discloses applicant’s claimed apparatus comprising all feature recited in these claims, wherein the update is associated with an alert as to the attribute of the air in the vicinity of the wound (paragraph 0409 in Askem).
Regarding claim 15, Downing/Askem combination, presented above, discloses applicant’s claimed apparatus comprising all feature recited in these claims, wherein the at least one sensor monitors a view of the wound to monitor the condition of the wound (paragraph 0409 in Askem discloses an alarm which is interpreted as being monitoring status of the wound).
Regarding claim 16, Downing/Askem combination, presented above, discloses applicant’s claimed apparatus comprising all feature recited in these claims, wherein the fastener (44) includes an adhesive (column 5 lines 39-42, Downing).
Regarding claim 17, Downing/Askem combination, presented above, discloses applicant’s claimed apparatus comprising all feature recited in these claims, wherein the covering (20) includes a dome (see Figures 6-7 in Dowing).
Regarding claim 22, Downing/Askem combination, presented above, discloses applicant’s claimed apparatus comprising all feature recited in these claims, further comprising:
at least one secondary sensor coupled to the fastener, wherein the at least one secondary sensor detects a secondary condition of the wound and determines a second update associated with the secondary condition of the wound (paragraph 0409 in Askem discloses multiple alarms based on percentile saturation).
Regarding claim 23, Downing/Askem combination, presented above, discloses applicant’s claimed apparatus comprising all feature recited in these claims, further comprising: a breathable fabric coupled to an airway (70) in the covering (46), wherein the airway is configured to convey air toward the wound through the breathable fabric (see Figure 3a, column 5 lines 53-58 in Downing discloses microfiber and other filtration elements which are interpreted to meet claimed limitation breathable fabric).
Claim 10 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Downing (U.S. Patent No. 6,274,787)/Askem (U.S. Patent Application Publication No. US 2015/0174304 A1) in view of Fritz (U.S. Patent Application Publication No. US 2010/0047324A1).
Regarding claim 10, Downing/Askem combination, presented above, discloses applicant’s claimed apparatus comprising all feature recited in these claims.
The Downing/Askem combination does not disclose a sterile cloth coupled to the covering (36) coupled to the covering, wherein the sterile cloth is configured to dress the wound.
However, Figure 2 illustrates sterile cloth (210) coupled to covering (220) wherein the sterile cloth (210) is configured to dress (240) the wound (230), paragraph 0041 describes sterile gauze which is broadly interpreted to meet limitations in claim 10.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art prior to applicant’s effective filing date to modify Downing’s wound apparatus to include a sterile cloth, taught by Fritz, as having the sterile cloth dressing the wound protects the wound and maintain sterility thereon for purposes of facilitating healing (paragraph 0040, Fritz).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claim 9 is 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.
Claims 18 and 20-21 are allowed.
Conclusion
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/CAMTU T NGUYEN/Examiner, Art Unit 3786