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 .
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.
Claims 34-39 are 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 34, line 2 recites “device according to claim 1”; however, there is no claim 1 pending in the application. Therefore, the metes and bounds of the claim are unclear as to what is to be included in the wearable device. In line 9, “said at least one sensor” lacks proper antecedent basis in the claim as no sensor has been recited to that point in the claim. All recitations of a sensor after this occurrence are considered to have antecedent basis from this recitation.
Claims 35-39 are necessarily rejected as being dependent upon a rejected base claim.
Claim Objections
Claims 34-39 are objected to because of the following informalities:
In claim 34, line 3, ASIS and PSIS should be spelled out as --Anterior Superior Iliac Spine-- and --Posterior Superior Iliac Spine--, respectively. In line 3, "configured" should read --positioned--. In line 5, "configure" should read --positioned--. In line 7, “one” should read –a second--. In line 9, "actuators", should read --at least two expandable actuators--.
Further in claim 34, the first letter of each of steps (a) to (e) should be lower case, e.g., “Positioning” should read –positioning--.
Appropriate correction is required.
Examiner made several phone calls to Attorney Maxwell Minch in an attempt to make changes to place the application in condition for allowance; however, no return phone call was received. Applicants are encouraged to place all of the limitations of canceled claim 1 into claim 34 to potentially place the application in condition for allowance. Examiner reserves the right to reconsider the claim based on any amendment made in response to this office action.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to LINDA C DVORAK whose telephone number is (571)272-4764. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 7 am-4 pm EST.
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LINDA C. DVORAK
Supervisory Patent Examiner
Art Unit 3739
/LINDA C DVORAK/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3794
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