DETAILED ACTION
This is the First Office Action on the Merits based on the 18/293,691 application filed on 01/30/2024 and which claims as originally filed have been considered in the ensuing 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 .
Priority
Application 18/293,691 is a 371 of PCT/US2022/039982 filed 08/10/2022, which has priority to a provisional filed 08/13/2021. Accordingly, Application 18/293,691 has been given priority to 08/13/2021.
Election/Restrictions
Applicant’s election without traverse of Species A (Fig. 1-5) in the reply filed on 11/07/2025 is acknowledged. Claims 2-9 and 11-14 have been withdrawn.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 05/30/2025 was filed. The submission is in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner.
Claim Objections
Claim 1 is objected to because of the following informalities:
On line 8, “said beam” should be corrected to ---said resiliently deflectable beam---
On line 9, “said beam” should be corrected to ---said resiliently deflectable beam---
On line 14, “said body elements” should be corrected to ---said first and second body elements---
On lines 14-15, “said body elements” should be corrected to ---said first and second body elements---
On line 14, “said body elements” should be corrected to ---said first and second body elements---
On line 17, “said beam” should be corrected to ---said resiliently deflectable beam--- in both instances
On line 19, “said beam” should be corrected to ---said resiliently deflectable beam---
Claim 15 is objected to because of the following informalities:
On line 2, “said beam” should be corrected to ---said resiliently deflectable beam---
Claim 17 is objected to because of the following informalities:
On line 2, “said beam” should be corrected to ---said resiliently deflectable beam---
Appropriate correction is required.
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)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claims 1, 10, 15, 19-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by An (US 2010/0255956).
Regarding claim 1:
An discloses a variable resistance device (Fig. 7-8) comprising: a first body element (11); a second body element (12); and a force-generating system (plate shaped spring 43, first link arm 52, Fig. 7-8) disposed between said first and second body elements ( Fig. 7-8), said force-generating system including a resiliently deflectable beam (plate shaped spring 43, Fig. 7-8), an interface element (Fig. 7-8; contact surface 57 of the plate shaped spring), and a cam (upper portion of link arm 55; the upper portion has been considered a cam in the broadest reasonable interpretation, as it is a rotating or sliding piece in a mechanical linkage, see the definition of “cam” according to Merriam-Webster, Fig. 7-8), said beam extending relative to the first body element and toward the second body element (Fig. 7), said beam presenting a distal region spaced from the first body element (Fig. 7-8), said interface element being disposed at the distal region of the beam ( Fig. 7-8; the contact surface 57 is on the distal end of the plate shaped spring), said cam projecting relative to the second body element and toward the first body element ( Fig. 7-8), said cam presenting a cam surface (Fig, 7-8; the outer surface of the link arm has been considered a cam surface), said interface element configured to shift along the cam surface (Fig. 7-8) upon application of a driving force to at least one of said body elements relative to the other of said body elements and consequent shifting of said body elements (14, Fig. 7-8; force to the first and second body elements causes the contact surface of the plate shaped spring and the upper portion of the linkage arm to move relative to teach other) relative to each other, wherein shifting of said interface element along the cam surface results in corresponding bending of the beam (Fig. 7-8) and consequent generation of a resistance force by said beam (Fig. 7-8), said cam surface presenting a profile that varies along a length thereof such that the resistance force generated by the beam (the surface of the linkage arm is irregular in shape) varies irregularly as the Interface element moves along the cam surface (Fig. 7-8).
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Regarding claim 10:
An discloses said variable resistance device defining an axis (Fig. 7-8 - the horizontal axis extending between first body element 11 and second body element 12), said first and second body elements being axially shiftable relative to each other (Fig. 7-8 - the first body element 11 and the second body element 12 shift horizontally relative to each other).
Regarding claim 15:
An discloses that said beam comprising a rectangular plate (Fig. 7 - the cross section of beam 43 is rectangular).
Regarding claim 19:
An discloses that said variable resistance device configured such that the resistance force corresponds to a biologically relevant strength profile (Fig. 7-8 - the variable resistance device is a hand exerciser used for improving the muscular strength of the hand and forearm of a user and would need the resistance force to correspond to the average hand strength of a user, insomuch as Applicant has shown this limitation, An has disclosed the same).
Regarding claim 20:
An discloses that said variable resistance device configured for use as at least one of a hand exerciser (Fig. 7-8 - the variable resistance device is a hand exerciser; para[0002]), a shaft centering mechanism, a chuck element, and a clamp component.
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 17-18 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over An (US 2010/0255956) in view of An (US 2020/0368577). An discloses the device as substantially claimed above.
Regarding claim 17:
An (2010/0255956) discloses fails to disclose that said force-generating system including a plurality of said beams and a plurality of said interface element.
However, An (US 2020/0368577) teaches a variable resistance device for hand exercises comprising a plurality of said force-generating systems (50a, 50b, Fig. 1-2; para[0028)) comprising a force generating system on either side of the device. The Examiner notes that the Applicant discloses two beams and two interface elements, but fails to disclose more than two in the embodiment elected.
It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the device of An (2010/0255956) to have two force generating systems, one on either side of the device, resulting in two beams, two interface elements and two cam surfaces, as taught by An (US 2020/0368577) to increase the amount of resistance. Further, the Examiner notes that a duplication of parts is within ordinary skill in the art.
Regarding claim 18:
An as modified disclose that said cam presenting a plurality of said cam surfaces (see rejection of claim 17 above, the duplication of the force generating system results in two beams, two interfaces and two cam surfaces).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claim 16 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.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to MEGAN M ANDERSON whose telephone number is (313)446-6531. The examiner can normally be reached M-TH 6 a.m. -4 p.m. (Arizona).
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, LoAn Jimenez can be reached at 571-272-4966. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/Megan Anderson/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3784