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 1-10 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.
In claim 1, lines 7-8 it is unclear if “a pressure detection circuit” is referring to “a pressure detection circuit” in lines 4-5, “the pressure detection circuit” in line 6, or a separate device.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status.
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)(1) the claimed invention was patented, described in a printed publication, or in public use, on sale, or otherwise available to the public before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
(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.
Claim(s) 1-3 and 11-12 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Thillainadarajah et al. (US 2014/0366650A1) (hereafter Thillainadarajah).
With respect to claim 1, Thillainadarajah teaches a golf practice (intended use) club with grip force detection function, comprising a golf club and a club head (figure 18), wherein the golf club is provided with a grip handle (grip assembly 100), the grip handle is provided with a printed circuit board (PCB) therein (FPCB 103); and the printed circuit board is provided with a pressure detection circuit thereon (control board); and wherein the pressure detection circuit comprises: a pressure sensor (piezo-resistive sensor material 104), an analogue-to-digital converter (ADC), a processor (processor/microprocessor), a switch circuit (power switch 5), a pressure detection circuit (paragraphs 14-17, 22-23,29, 37, 63-66, 69, 71, 88-89, 93, 95, 109-134, 137, and 139), a pressure value compliance analysis circuit (paragraphs 14-17, 22-23,29, 37, 63-66, 69, 71, 88-89, 93, 95, 109-134, 137, and 139), and a power circuit (power supply); wherein the pressure sensor is configured to collect pressure information of a hand of a user gripping the golf club (paragraphs 116 and 122); the ADC is configured to convert an analog signal into a digital signal (an ADC intrinsically converts an analog signal into a digital signal); the processor is configured to (automatically) analyze and process the pressure information to generate processed pressure information (paragraphs 14-17, 22-23,29, 37, 63-66, 69, 71, 88-89, 93, 95, 109-134, 137, and 139); the switch circuit is configured to control a switch to be turned on or off (power switches intrinsically turn devices on or off); the pressure detection circuit is configured to detect the processed pressure information (paragraphs 14-17, 22-23,29, 37, 63-66, 69, 71, 88-89, 93, 95, 109-134, 137, and 139); the pressure value compliance analysis circuit is configured to analyze whether the processed pressure information satisfies a threshold (paragraphs 119, 124, and 134); and the power circuit is configured to provide power to the processor (a power supply intrinsically delivers power to a processor/microprocessor); and wherein the pressure sensor is configured to transmit the pressure information to the processor through the ADC (paragraphs 76 and 86); the processor is configured to control the pressure detection circuit through the switch circuit (paragraphs 14-17, 22-23,29, 37, 63-66, 69, 71, 88-89, 93, 95, 109-134, 137, and 139); and the pressure detection circuit is configured to control the pressure value compliance analysis circuit (paragraphs 14-17, 22-23,29, 37, 63-66, 69, 71, 88-89, 93, 95, 109-134, 137, and 139).
With respect to claim 2, Thillainadarajah teaches wherein the processor comprises a wireless communication circuit and the wireless communication circuit is configured for wireless transmission of the processed pressure information of the processor (paragraphs 23, 25, 63, 69, 95, 97, 108, 111, and 120).
With respect to claim 3, Thillainadarajah teaches wherein the pressure value compliance analysis circuit comprises a display circuit and the display circuit is configured to display pressure data (paragraphs 68, 122, and 137).
With respect to claim 11, Thillainadarajah teaches a golf practice (intended use) club with grip force detection function, comprising a golf club and a club head (figure 18), wherein the golf club is provided with a grip handle, the grip handle (grip assembly 100) is provided with a PCB (FPCB 103) and a pressure detection circuit (control board) disposed on the PCB therein; wherein the pressure detection circuit is configured to obtain pressure information of a hand of a user gripping the golf club, and determine whether the pressure information reaches to a threshold, and prompt the user in response to the pressure information reaching to the threshold (figures; and paragraphs 14-17, 22-23,29, 37, 63-66, 69, 71, 88-89, 93, 95, 109-134, 137, and 139).
With respect to claim 12, Thillainadarajah teaches wherein the pressure detection circuit is further configured to display the collected pressure information in real time (paragraphs 17, 25, 95, 97, and 108).
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.
Claim(s) 10 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Thillainadarajah as applied to claims 1-2 above, and further in view of Nam et al. (KR-20170142787A) (hereafter Nam).
With respect to claim 10, Thillainadarajah teaches wherein the grip handle is provided with a protective layer (105) (figures 13-14; and paragraph 110), but does not teach that the protective layer is silicone.
However, Nam teaches forming a grip from silicone (machine translation).
At the time of filing the claimed invention it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to utilize the silicone of Nam as the protective material of Thillainadarajah in order to form a grip with the desired elasticity.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 4-9 would be allowable if rewritten to overcome the rejection(s) under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), 2nd paragraph, set forth in this Office action and to include 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 KILEY SHAWN STONER whose telephone number is (571)272-1183. The examiner can normally be reached on Monday-Thursday.
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/KILEY S STONER/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1735