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 § 103
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 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) 1, 3-7 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Reese et al US 2014/0355167 (hereinafter Reese) in view of Chapman US 2002/0092531 (hereinafter Chapman) and CN 206971993 (hereinafter CN993).
Re Claim 1.
Reese discloses a restraint apparatus comprising a handcuff (Figs.1-2), the handcuff comprising: a housing (110); a stationary strand (130) being coupled to and extending away from the housing; a movable strand (120), the movable strand being pivotably coupled to the stationary strand opposite the housing, the stationary strand and the movable strand being positionable with respect to each other in a closed configuration (Fig.1-2) wherein the stationary strand and the movable strand define a receiving space therebetween; a lock (137) being mounted in the housing (110) and being engageable to the movable strand to secure the stationary strand and the movable strand in the closed configuration (para [0072-0075]); however, Reese discloses a conventional connector (163) and fails to teach a receiver being releasably couplable to the housing, the receiver defining a cavity in the receiver and an opening to the cavity; a protrusion being coupled to the housing, the protrusion being insertable into the cavity of the receiver, the protrusion being complementary in size and shape to the cavity; [[and]] an engagement member being mounted in the receiver, the engagement member being operable to engage the protrusion when the protrusion is inserted into the cavity to secure the receiver to the housing; and a fingerprint reader being mounted to the receiver, the fingerprint reader being operatively coupled to the engagement member, the fingerprint reader being configured to cause the engagement member to release from the protrusion when sensing an authorized finger.
Chapman discloses a handcuff restraint device (Figs. 3, 4B) comprising a receiver (52/72) being releasably couplable to the housing (26), the receiver defining a cavity (Fig. 4B) in the receiver and an opening to the cavity; a protrusion (end of housing portion 26) being coupled to the housing, the protrusion being insertable into the cavity of the receiver (Fig. 4B), the protrusion being complementary in size and shape to the cavity; and an engagement member (para [0048, conventional seat belt connector with lock engagement) being mounted in the receiver, the engagement member being operable to engage the protrusion when the protrusion is inserted into the cavity to secure the receiver to the housing.
CN993 discloses (Figs. 1-4) a fingerprint reader (12) being mounted to the receiver (6), the fingerprint reader (12) being operatively coupled to the engagement member (5/7), the fingerprint reader being configured to cause the engagement member (5/7, 8) to release from the protrusion when sensing an authorized finger (intelligent lock circuit board, fingerprint ID, processor, storage and comparison module 10).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to modify the housing of Reese to include a protrusion as taught by Chapman and further modify the connector (163) of Reese to include a receiver as taught by Chapman in order to facilitate disengagement and release of the cuffs from the tether as desired and, further to include a fingerprint reader mounted to the receiver as taught by CN993 to be old and well known in smart lock systems.
Re Claim 3. (currently amended)
Reese as modified by Chapman and CN993 discloses the restraint apparatus of claim [[2]]1, wherein the handcuff further comprises: a processor (CN993 – 10, intelligent lock circuit board, fingerprint ID, processor, storage and comparison module) being mounted in the housing; a housing transceiver (10) being mounted in the housing and being operatively coupled to the processor (10); and a receiver transceiver being mounted in the receiver; wherein the fingerprint reader (12) is configured to cause the lock (8) to release from the movable strand when sensing the authorized finger.
Re Claim 4.
Reese (as modified by Chapman and CN993) discloses the restraint apparatus of claim 1, wherein the handcuff further comprises: a processor (160, Fig. 6C) being mounted in the housing; an electric shock element (150) being operatively coupled to the processor, the electric shock element being configured to selectively transmit an electric shock to a body part contained in the receiving space (para [0062-0066]); and a tamper sensor (motion sensor 742, Fig. 7C) being coupled to the lock and operatively coupled to the processor, the tamper sensor being configured to detect motions (para [0062-0066, 0113]) indicative of tampering with the lock, the processor being programmed to cause the electric shock element to activate when the tamper sensor detects motions indicative of tampering with the lock.
Re Claim 5.
Reese (as modified by Chapman) discloses the restraint apparatus of claim 1, wherein the handcuff further comprises: a processor (160) being mounted in the housing; and a microphone (housing interface 130/ 739) being mounted to the housing and being operatively coupled to the processor wherein the processor being configured to receive audible commands via the microphone.
Re Claim 6.
Reese (as modified by Chapman and CN993) discloses the restraint apparatus of claim 1, wherein the handcuff further comprises: a processor (160) being mounted in the housing; and a housing transceiver (housing interface139/ 608) being mounted in the housing and being operatively coupled to the processor, the processor being configured to wirelessly communicate to a remote electronic device (170) via the housing transceiver; and a global positioning system module (139/ 742) being mounted in the housing and being operatively coupled to the processor wherein the processor is configured to determine a location of the housing, the processor being configured to selectively transmit the location of the housing to the remote electronic device (170).
Re Claim 7. (original)
As discussed above with respect to claims 3-6, and not reiterated herein, Reese as modified by Chapman and CN993 disclose a restraint apparatus comprising: a pair of handcuffs (Reese; Fig.2), each handcuff of the pair of handcuffs comprising: a housing; a stationary strand being coupled to and extending away from the housing; a movable strand, the movable strand being pivotably coupled to the stationary strand opposite the housing, the stationary strand and the movable strand being positionable with respect to each other in a closed configuration wherein the stationary strand and the movable strand define a receiving space therebetween; a lock being mounted in the housing and being engageable to the movable strand to secure the stationary strand and the movable strand in the closed configuration; a receiver being releasably couplable to the housing, the receiver defining a cavity in the receiver and an opening to the cavity; a protrusion being coupled to the housing, the protrusion being insertable into the cavity of the receiver, the protrusion being complementary in size and shape to the cavity; an engagement member being mounted in the receiver, the engagement member being operable to engage the protrusion when the protrusion is inserted into the cavity to secure the receiver to the housing, the engagement member comprising a securement pin and an actuator; a processor being mounted in the housing; a housing transceiver being mounted in the housing and being operatively coupled to the processor, the processor being configured to wirelessly communicate to a remote electronic device via the housing transceiver; a receiver transceiver being mounted in the receiver; a fingerprint reader (CN993; 12) being mounted to the receiver, the fingerprint reader being operatively coupled to the engagement member, the fingerprint reader being configured to cause the engagement member to release from the protrusion when sensing an authorized finger, the fingerprint reader being configured to cause the lock to release from the movable strand when sensing the authorized finger;
an electric shock element being operatively coupled to the processor, the electric shock element being configured to selectively transmit an electric shock to a body part contained in the receiving space;
a tamper sensor being coupled to the lock and operatively coupled to the processor, the tamper sensor being configured to detect motions indicative of tampering with the lock, the processor being programmed to cause the electric shock element to activate when the tamper sensor detects motions indicative of tampering with the lock;
a microphone being mounted to the housing and being operatively coupled to the processor wherein the processor being configured to receive audible commands via the microphone;
a global positioning system module being mounted in the housing and being operatively coupled to the processor wherein the processor is configured to determine a location of the housing, the processor being configured to selectively transmit the location of the housing to the remote electronic device;
a housing power supply being electrically coupled to the processor, the housing power supply comprising a housing battery; and
a receiver power supply being electrically coupled to the engagement member, the receiver transceiver, and the fingerprint reader, the receiver power supply comprising a receiver battery; and a tether (Reese; 166, Fig.2) being coupled to and extending between the pair of handcuffs, the tether being mounted to said receiver of each handcuff of the pair of handcuffs, the tether comprising a chain Reese, 166).
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to claim(s) 1, 3-7 have been considered but are moot because the new ground of rejection does not rely on any reference applied in the prior rejection of record for any teaching or matter specifically challenged in the argument.
In light of the discovery of new prior art to CN993, the rejection has been amended. The prior art is now deemed to teach the elements of claims 2 and 7, which were previously indicated as being allowable.
Accordingly, claims 1, 3-7 stand rejected, however, this action is non-final.
Conclusion
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SUZANNE DINO BARRETT
Primary Examiner
Art Unit 3675B
Sdb
/SUZANNE L BARRETT/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3675