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 .
Status of Claims
Claims 1-20 are presently pending and under examination.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) was submitted on 01/18/2024. 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 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, 3-4, 6, 8, 10, 16-17, and 19 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Marchese et al. (US Patent 11,478,657 B1), hereinafter Marchese in view of Chaverri (US 2024/0299765 A1), hereinafter Chaverri further in view of Van Erlach (US Patent 9,877,593 B2), hereinafter Van Erlach.
Regarding claim 1, Marchese discloses a light therapy lounger (an LED therapy bed 19), comprising: a frame (view Figure 1, Column 6, lines 19-22: “legs 23 suspends a frame structure above the ground. The frame structure has front and rear frame members 22 and 25 with elongated side members 24 there between”) comprising a peripheral wall (elongated side members 24 and 26) and an inward protrusion extending internally from an inner surface of the peripheral wall (view Examiner modified Figure 2), the inward protrusion disposed at a predetermined depth from an upper surface of the peripheral wall (view Examiner modified Figure 2: d); a plurality of irradiation boards (Figure 1-5: LED module 40) comprising a plurality of irradiation sources (Figure 5: LEDS 44), the plurality of irradiation boards configured to be located on the inward protrusion (view Figure 2); and an upper cover made up of a diaphanous material (Figure 1 and 2: transparent acrylic cover 49), the upper cover configured to be located above the plurality of irradiation boards (Column 7, lines 12-19: “The transparent acrylic cover 49 provides a slight spacing between the user and the LEDs. The transparent acrylic cover 49 distributes the weight of the user on the frame structure of the plurality of removable and replaceable LED modules 40 The transparent acrylic cover 49 is preferably made from a clear material, such as acrylic or polycarbonate, but other materials may be used that provide equivalent or superior transparency or structural strength.”, view Figures 1 and 2), wherein each irradiation board of the plurality of irradiation boards comprises: several irradiation sources electrically coupled to a first Printed Circuit Board (PCB) (circuit board 46, Column 7, lines 64-65: “Housing 41 supports the internal electronics and a circuit board 46 (see FIG. 5) which supports the LEDs 44”), and a plurality of cooling fans (Column 8, lines 19-23: “each module has one or more fans 51 to move air within the module, in order to control the temperature of the air below acrylic cover 49, which results in control of the temperature of the top of the acrylic cover” ).
PNG
media_image1.png
713
1233
media_image1.png
Greyscale
Examiner Modified Figure 2
Marchese fails to disclose wherein each irradiation board of the plurality of irradiation boards comprises: one or more pressure sensors, a heat sink thermally coupled to the first PCB and located under the first PCB, and a plurality of cooling fans coupled to the first PCB and/or second PCB and located under the heat sink.
However, Chaverri teaches a light therapy device for delivering photobiomodulation (Abstract) which can be housed within an item of furniture ([0045]) wherein each irradiation board (module 120) of the plurality of irradiation boards comprises: a heat sink thermally coupled to the first PCB ([0054] “module 120, having, in some embodiments, LED array 107 mounted on a single PCB 112 thermally coupled to a heat sink 122. In some embodiments, heat sink 122 is thermally coupled to PCB 112 through a common mounting of heat sink 122 to an aluminum mounting plate within the interior of case 102 with PCB 112”), and a plurality of cooling fans (a cooling fan 121) coupled to the first PCB and located under the heat sink ([0054] “a cooling fan 121 is configured to circulate air through and around heat sink 122. In some embodiments, cooling fan 121 is mounted to base 103 over a ventilation aperture (not shown) in base 103 generally corresponding in size to the size and blade-span diameter of fan 121.”, [0055] plurality of cooling fans 121).
It would have been prima facie obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art to have modified Marchese’s irradiation boards to incorporate the teachings of Chaverri to have a heat sink thermally coupled to the first PCB, and a plurality of cooling fans coupled to the first PCB and located under the heat sink, as these prior art references and the instant application are directed to light therapy devices. One would be motivated to do this to increase heat dissipation and cooling, as recognized by Chaverri ([0054], [0037]).
Marchese and Chaverri, alone or in combination, fail to teach wherein each irradiation board of the plurality of irradiation boards comprises: one or more pressure sensors.
However, Van Erlach teaches a system for automatically sensing a body portion and delivering an associated therapy wherein the system comprises a substrate such as a mattress, a chair, etc. wherein the substrate comprises integrated therapy devices and one or more pressure sensors (Column 4, lines 10-27: “The substrate 119 may be, inter alia, a mattress, a slip cover, wearable material, a chair, a wheelchair, etc. Substrate 119 comprises networked sensors 115a . . . 115n for sensing a value(s) of biological parameters of a portion(s) of a body for identifying and determining a position of a portion(s) of the body on the substrate 119 The substrate 119 additionally comprises integrated and networked therapy devices 116a . . . 116n capable of administering a specified therapy(s) to the portion(s) of the body on the substrate 119…light therapy, infrared therapy…”, Column 4, lines 39-42: “The sensors 115a . . . 115n may comprise any type of sensor configured to detect any type of body characteristics such as, inter alia, a position of a portion of a body (via, e.g., pressure and/or temperature measurements)”, Column 6, line 49: pressure sensor).
It would have been prima facie obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Marchese and Chaverri to incorporate the teachings of Van Erlach to have one or more pressure sensors, as these prior art references are directed to delivering therapy to a patient. One would be motivated to do this to determine a position of the body to deliver the specified therapy, as recognized by Van Erlach (Column 5, line 57-Column 6, line 7).
Although, Van Erlach does not specifically teach have the irradiation board comprise of one or more pressure sensor, it would have been obvious to one skilled in the art to incorporate the pressure sensor in each of the irradiation boards to be able to determine body position and part on the substrate, view Figure 4 of Van Erlach.
Regarding claim 16, Marchese discloses a method of manufacturing a light therapy lounger (an LED therapy bed 19, Column 3, lines 15-17: “exemplary embodiments of the invention provide a custom designed bottom portion that has the LEDs virtually right up against an acrylic or other material cover”), the method comprising: fabricating a frame (view Figure 1, Column 6, lines 19-22: “legs 23 suspends a frame structure above the ground. The frame structure has front and rear frame members 22 and 25 with elongated side members 24 there between”) comprising a peripheral wall (elongated side members 24 and 26) and an inward protrusion extending internally from an inner surface of the peripheral wall (view Examiner modified Figure 2), the inward protrusion disposed at a predetermined depth from an upper surface of the peripheral wall (view Examiner modified Figure 2: d); fabricating a plurality of irradiation boards (Figure 1-5: LED module 40) comprising a plurality of irradiation sources (Figure 5: LEDS 44); fabricating an upper cover made up of a diaphanous material (Figure 1 and 2: transparent acrylic cover 49); and assembling the frame, the plurality of irradiation boards and the upper cover, such that, the plurality of irradiation boards are located on the inward protrusion and the upper cover is located above the plurality of irradiation boards (Column 7, lines 12-19: “The transparent acrylic cover 49 provides a slight spacing between the user and the LEDs. The transparent acrylic cover 49 distributes the weight of the user on the frame structure of the plurality of removable and replaceable LED modules 40 The transparent acrylic cover 49 is preferably made from a clear material, such as acrylic or polycarbonate, but other materials may be used that provide equivalent or superior transparency or structural strength.”, view Figures 1 and 2), wherein each irradiation board of the plurality of irradiation boards comprises: several irradiation sources electrically coupled to a first Printed Circuit Board (PCB) (circuit board 46, Column 7, lines 64-65: “Housing 41 supports the internal electronics and a circuit board 46 (see FIG. 5) which supports the LEDs 44”), and a plurality of cooling fans (Column 8, lines 19-23: “each module has one or more fans 51 to move air within the module, in order to control the temperature of the air below acrylic cover 49, which results in control of the temperature of the top of the acrylic cover” ).
Marchese fails to disclose wherein each irradiation board of the plurality of irradiation boards comprises: one or more pressure sensors, a heat sink thermally coupled to the first PCB and located under the first PCB, and a plurality of cooling fans coupled to the first PCB and/or second PCB and located under the heat sink.
However, Chaverri teaches a light therapy device for delivering photobiomodulation (Abstract) which can be housed within an item of furniture ([0045]) wherein each irradiation board (module 120) of the plurality of irradiation boards comprises: a heat sink thermally coupled to the first PCB ([0054] “module 120, having, in some embodiments, LED array 107 mounted on a single PCB 112 thermally coupled to a heat sink 122. In some embodiments, heat sink 122 is thermally coupled to PCB 112 through a common mounting of heat sink 122 to an aluminum mounting plate within the interior of case 102 with PCB 112”), and a plurality of cooling fans (a cooling fan 121) coupled to the first PCB and located under the heat sink ([0054] “a cooling fan 121 is configured to circulate air through and around heat sink 122. In some embodiments, cooling fan 121 is mounted to base 103 over a ventilation aperture (not shown) in base 103 generally corresponding in size to the size and blade-span diameter of fan 121.”, [0055] plurality of cooling fans 121).
It would have been prima facie obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art to have modified Marchese’s irradiation boards to incorporate the teachings of Chaverri to have a heat sink thermally coupled to the first PCB, and a plurality of cooling fans coupled to the first PCB and located under the heat sink, as these prior art references and the instant application are directed to light therapy devices. One would be motivated to do this to increase heat dissipation and cooling, as recognized by Chaverri ([0054], [0037]).
Marchese and Chaverri, alone or in combination, fail to teach wherein each irradiation board of the plurality of irradiation boards comprises: one or more pressure sensors.
However, Van Erlach teaches a system for automatically sensing a body portion and delivering an associated therapy wherein the system comprises a substrate such as a mattress, a chair, etc. wherein the substrate comprises integrated therapy devices and one or more pressure sensors (Column 4, lines 10-27: “The substrate 119 may be, inter alia, a mattress, a slip cover, wearable material, a chair, a wheelchair, etc. Substrate 119 comprises networked sensors 115a . . . 115n for sensing a value(s) of biological parameters of a portion(s) of a body for identifying and determining a position of a portion(s) of the body on the substrate 119 The substrate 119 additionally comprises integrated and networked therapy devices 116a . . . 116n capable of administering a specified therapy(s) to the portion(s) of the body on the substrate 119…light therapy, infrared therapy…”, Column 4, lines 39-42: “The sensors 115a . . . 115n may comprise any type of sensor configured to detect any type of body characteristics such as, inter alia, a position of a portion of a body (via, e.g., pressure and/or temperature measurements)”, Column 6, line 49: pressure sensor).
It would have been prima facie obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Marchese and Chaverri to incorporate the teachings of Van Erlach to have one or more pressure sensors, as these prior art references are directed to delivering therapy to a patient. One would be motivated to do this to determine a position of the body to deliver the specified therapy, as recognized by Van Erlach (Column 5, line 57-Column 6, line 7).
Although, Van Erlach does not specifically teach have the irradiation board comprise of one or more pressure sensor, it would have been obvious to one skilled in the art to incorporate the pressure sensor in each of the irradiation boards to be able to determine body position and part on the substrate, view Figure 4 of Van Erlach.
Regarding claim 3, Marchese in view of Chaverri further in view of Van Erlach teaches the light therapy lounger as claimed in claim 1 (as shown above). Marchese further discloses wherein the plurality of irradiation sources is selected from a group consisting of Light Emitting Diodes (LEDs) (LEDs 44, Column 7, lines 52-59: “each LED module 40 has a matrix of LEDs configured in 19 by 32 columns for a total of 608 LEDs, but other embodiments of rows and columns of LEDs may be provided, instead of the particular configuration shown. The LEDs provide non-coherent light generated by an array of conventional light emitting diodes (LEDs) which are confined within a bandwidth of about 415 nm to about 940 nm.”)
Regarding claims 4 and 17, Marchese in view of Chaverri further in view of Van Erlach teaches the light therapy lounger as claimed in claim 1 and the method as claimed in claimed 16 (as shown above). Marchese further discloses “Each LED module 40 has openings or holes 42 for venting air from the inside of the LED module 40. The holes 42 allow for cooling or heating air to be independently moved through each LED module 40 to independently regulate the temperature of each LED module 40” (Column 8, lines 12-17), but Marchese and Van Erlach, alone or in combination, fail to teach further comprising one or more exhaust vents located in the frame for dissipating heated air generated by the plurality of cooling fans.
However, Chaverri discloses “cooling fan 121 operates to draw outside air into case 102 through the ventilation aperture, blowing the cool outside air across heat sink 122 and out of case through holes (not shown) formed within side 105” ([0054]).
It would have been prima facie obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Marchese and Van Erlach to incorporate the teachings of Chaverri to have one or more exhaust vents located in the frame for dissipating heated air generated by the plurality of cooling fans, as these prior art references and the instant application are directed to light therapy devices. One would be motivated to do this to increase heat dissipation and venting the heat generated from the case, as recognized by Chaverri ([0054])
Regarding claims 6 and 19, Marchese in view of Chaverri further in view of Van Erlach teaches the light therapy lounger as claimed in claim 1 and the method as claimed in claim 16(as shown above). Marchese further discloses the lounger further comprising a user interface configured to receive a control input signal to modify irradiation characteristics of the plurality of irradiation sources (Figure 8: controller 70, Column 10, lines 47-52: “The controller 70 is the master controller and each LED module 40 is a slave unit to controller 70. The host operates the display and a keyboard or knobs that accept user input, and operates the display, indicators, sound making devices etc., and the slave unit(s).”, Column 10, lines 52-54 : “Each slave LED module 40 has their own controller that controls the LEDs, fan, and monitors the temperature sensors.”, Column 8, lines 64-66: “The power to a module of LEDs or to each LED 44 is supplied at a desired power or current, as controlled by the controller.”).
Regarding claim 8, Marchese in view of Chaverri in view of Van Erlach teaches the light therapy lounger as claimed in claim 1 (as shown above). Marchese and Chaverri, alone or in combination, fail to teach, the lounger further comprising a plurality of sensors, the one or more pressure sensors representing a subset of the plurality of sensors, a processor, and a memory unit, the memory unit comprising machine-readable instructions that when executed by the processor, enable the processor to: receive input data from the plurality of sensors, the input data indicative of presence of a user within a predefined 3-Dimensional space around the frame; determine a location of the user using the input data; and activate one or more irradiation sources of the plurality of irradiation sources directed towards the location of the user.
However, Van Erlach teaches furthering comprising a plurality of sensors (sensors 115a . . . 115n), the one or more pressure sensors representing a subset of the plurality of sensors (Column 4, lines 39-42: “The sensors 115a . . . 115n may comprise any type of sensor configured to detect any type of body characteristics such as, inter alia, a position of a portion of a body (via, e.g., pressure and/or temperature measurements)”), a processor (processor 91), and a memory unit (memory devices 94 and 95) comprising machine-readable instructions (computer code 97) that when executed by the processor (Column 15, lines 3-4: “The processor 91 executes the computer code 97”) enable the processor to: receive input data from the plurality of sensors (Column 2, lines 6-15: “the computer readable program code comprising an algorithm that when executed by a computer processor of a computing system implements a method, the method comprising: receiving, by the processor from physical sensors of a plurality of physical sensors spatially distributed on or in a substrate, a value of an environmental parameter measured by the physical sensors while the mammal is on or in contact with a substrate and in contact with a first subset of the plurality of physical sensors”), the input data indicative of presence of a user within a predefined 3-Dimensional space (matrix 101) around the frame (substrate 119, Column 2, lines 17-27: “determining, by the processor, a second subset of the plurality of physical sensors as being those physical sensors whose received value differs from a corresponding predetermined reference value, of the environmental parameter, specific to the physical sensors; determining, by the processor, a physical part subset of the second subset, the physical part subset corresponding to the specified body part, the determining the physical part subset comprising utilizing the second subset and virtual data for identifying a plurality of virtual sensors spatially distributed to map a space occupied by the mammal's body parts”, Column 6, lines 47-54: “Example interactions between sensors 115a . . . 115n, therapy devices 116a . . . 116n, and controller 103 may include the use of distributed pressure or thermal sensors providing pressure and/or thermal data readings to the controller 103 executing a program for identifying the mammal 117 and associated portions of a body (of the mammal 117) in contact with specified locations on the substrate 119.”); determine a location of the user using the input data (Column 4, lines 39-44: “The sensors 115a . . . 115n may comprise any type of sensor configured to detect any type of body characteristics such as, inter alia, a position of a portion of a body (via, e.g., pressure and/or temperature measurements), a type of a portion of a body (e.g., an arm, a leg, etc.), an orientation and/or location on a surface of substrate 119,”, Column 8, lines 1-7: “The controller identifies a location of a specified body portion (e.g., a right elbow) on a surface of the substrate 219 based on comparing biological/environmental body portion parameters to virtual data identifying virtual sensors spatially distributed to map a space occupied by the mammal's 217 body parts 217a . . . 217n as described in detail with respect to FIGS. 5 and 6, infra”); and activate one or more irradiation sources of the plurality of irradiation sources directed towards the location of the user (Column 7, lines 38-54: “Sensors enabling body portion location and identification may be used with all therapy devices to enable body portion targeted therapy…For example, a thermal pattern of a hip may illustrate evidence of inflammation for which infrared or ultrasound therapy may be indicated…In response, the controller instructs one or more therapy devices (associated with specified sensors described any means such as, inter alia, a table of specified sensors associated with specified therapy devices) to deliver a desired therapy triggered by the specified biological parameter readings associated with a body portion according to prescribed doses.”, Column 8, lines 10-23: “For example, a right elbow of a user may be programmed to receive infrared therapy for two five minute intervals during a 6-8 hour expected sleep cycle. The controller may instruct infrared therapy devices (i.e., proximal to a current position of the right elbow) to deliver the infrared therapy at a specified intensity level for a programmed duration…As the elbow may move across the substrate 219, the plurality of sensor and therapy device clusters provide readings enabling the controller to track a changing location of the right elbow and instruct and manage therapy devices to complete the desired duration of the infrared therapy.”).
It would have been prima facie obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Marchese and Chaverri to incorporate the teachings of Van Erlach to have a plurality of sensors, the one or more pressure sensors representing a subset of the plurality of sensors, a processor, and a memory unit, the memory unit comprising machine-readable instructions that when executed by the processor, enable the processor to: receive input data from the plurality of sensors, the input data indicative of presence of a user within a predefined 3-Dimensional space around the frame; determine a location of the user using the input data; and activate one or more irradiation sources of the plurality of irradiation sources directed towards the location of the user, as these prior art references are directed to delivering therapy to a patient. One would be motivated to do this as tracking and identifying an orientation of body portions allows for specified therapy to a specified body portion, as recognized by Van Erlach (Column 8, lines 31-34).
Regarding claim 10, Marchese in view of Chaverri in view of Van Erlach teaches the light therapy lounger as claimed in claim 8 (as shown above). Marchese and Chaverri, alone or in combination, fail to teach wherein the processor is further enabled to: identify a location of one or more of a predetermined body portion, a predetermined muscle group, and a predetermined group of blood vessels; and activate one or more irradiation sources of the plurality of irradiation sources, the activated one or more irradiation sources directed towards the location of the one or more of the identified predetermined body portion, the predetermined muscle group, and the predetermined group of blood vessels.
However, Van Erlach teaches wherein the processor is further enabled to: identify a location of one or more of a predetermined body portion; and activate one or more irradiation sources of the plurality of irradiation sources, the activated one or more irradiation sources directed towards the location of the one or more of the identified predetermined body portion, the predetermined muscle group, and the predetermined group of blood vessels (Column 7, lines 38-54: “Sensors enabling body portion location and identification may be used with all therapy devices to enable body portion targeted therapy…For example, a thermal pattern of a hip may illustrate evidence of inflammation for which infrared or ultrasound therapy may be indicated…In response, the controller instructs one or more therapy devices (associated with specified sensors described any means such as, inter alia, a table of specified sensors associated with specified therapy devices) to deliver a desired therapy triggered by the specified biological parameter readings associated with a body portion according to prescribed doses.”, Column 8, lines 10-23: “For example, a right elbow of a user may be programmed to receive infrared therapy for two five minute intervals during a 6-8 hour expected sleep cycle. The controller may instruct infrared therapy devices (i.e., proximal to a current position of the right elbow) to deliver the infrared therapy at a specified intensity level for a programmed duration…As the elbow may move across the substrate 219, the plurality of sensor and therapy device clusters provide readings enabling the controller to track a changing location of the right elbow and instruct and manage therapy devices to complete the desired duration of the infrared therapy.”).
It would have been prima facie obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Marchese and Chaverri to incorporate the teachings of Van Erlach to have wherein the processor is further enabled to: identify a location of one or more of a predetermined body portion, a predetermined muscle group, and a predetermined group of blood vessels; and activate one or more irradiation sources of the plurality of irradiation sources, the activated one or more irradiation sources directed towards the location of the one or more of the identified predetermined body portion, the predetermined muscle group, and the predetermined group of blood vessels, as these prior art references are directed to delivering therapy to a patient. One would be motivated to do this as tracking and identifying an orientation of body portions allows for specified therapy to a specified body portion, as recognized by Van Erlach (Column 8, lines 31-34).
Claim(s) 2, 11, and 17 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Marchese in view of Chaverri in view of Van Erlach as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of Dijkstra (US 2021/0282962 A1), hereinafter Dijkstra.
Regarding claims 2 and 17, Marchese in view of Chaverri in view of Van Erlach teaches the light therapy lounger as claimed in claim 1 and the method as claimed in claim 16 (as shown above). Marchese, Chaverri, and Van Erlach, alone or in combination, fail to teach wherein: the inward protrusion comprises a first protrusion portion parallel to a locating surface for locating the frame, a second protrusion portion at a first predetermined angle to the first protrusion portion and extending rearwardly and downwardly, and a third protrusion portion at a second predetermined angle to the second protrusion portion and extending rearwardly and upwardly, the plurality of irradiation boards comprises at least a first irradiation board configured to be located on the first protrusion portion, at least a second irradiation board configured to be located on the second protrusion portion, and at least a third irradiation board configured to be located on the third protrusion portion, and the upper cover comprises a first cover portion parallel to the first protrusion portion, a second cover portion parallel to the second protrusion portion, and a third cover portion parallel to the third protrusion portion.
However, Dijkstra teaches a bed for providing irradiation and heating for therapeutic and recreational applications comprising a frame structure (view Figure 1C).
PNG
media_image2.png
228
296
media_image2.png
Greyscale
It would have been prima facie obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Marchese’s bed and its features to have the inward protrusion comprises a first protrusion portion parallel to a locating surface for locating the frame, a second protrusion portion at a first predetermined angle to the first protrusion portion and extending rearwardly and downwardly, and a third protrusion portion at a second predetermined angle to the second protrusion portion and extending rearwardly and upwardly, the plurality of irradiation boards comprises at least a first irradiation board configured to be located on the first protrusion portion, at least a second irradiation board configured to be located on the second protrusion portion, and at least a third irradiation board configured to be located on the third protrusion portion, and the upper cover comprises a first cover portion parallel to the first protrusion portion, a second cover portion parallel to the second protrusion portion, and a third cover portion parallel to the third protrusion portion, since it has been held that changing the shape was a matter of choice one of ordinary skill in the art would have found obvious over Dijkstra’s shape. One would be motivated to do this as Dijkstra teaches that this shape results in “the spine of the user will be even more relaxed and blood flow to upper portions of the body of the user will also be enhanced. Moreover, muscle tissues in the legs of the user will also be comparatively relaxed and less strained”, as recognized by Dijkstra.
Regarding claim 11, Marchese in view of Chaverri in view of Van Erlach teaches the light therapy lounger as claimed in claim 8 (as shown above). Although, Marchese discloses a controller that receivers user input (Column 10, lines 47-52), Marchese, Chaverri, and Van Erlach, alone or in combination, fail to teach further comprising a communication interface configured to receive a control input signal, from a user computing device, the processor further enabled to modify irradiation characteristics of the plurality of irradiation sources in response to the receipt of the control input signal.
However, Dijkstra teaches “the processor 1512 may receive a control input from the computing device 1532, being operated by the user. Further, the processor 1512, may modify the one or more of the emission characteristics of the electromagnetic radiation and heat generated by the infrared heater 400, in correlation with the received control input.” ([0102]).
It would have been prima facie obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Marchese, Chaverri, and Van Erlach to incorporate the teachings of Dijkstra to have a communication interface configured to receive a control input signal, from a user computing device, the processor further enabled to modify irradiation characteristics of the plurality of irradiation sources in response to the receipt of the control input signal, as these prior art references are directed to laser therapy devices. One would be motivated to do this to allow the user to control the device according to their preferences.
Claim(s) 5 and 20 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Marchese in view of Chaverri in view of Van Erlach as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of Kim et al. (KR 20120138595 A, citations from NPL Translation), hereinafter Kim.
Regarding claims 5 and 20, Marchese in view of Chaverri in view of Van Erlach teaches the light therapy lounger as claimed in claim 1 and the method as claimed in claim 16(as shown above). Marchese, Chaverri, and Van Erlach, alone or in combination, fail to teach further comprising a wireless charging pod provided with a transmitter induction coil, the wireless charging pod configured to receive an electronic device comprising a receiver induction coil, the receiver induction coil configured to generate an Electro-motive force (EMF) when brought within a time-varying magnetic field generated by the transmitter induction coil.
However, Kim teaches a rechargeable patch for color light therapy wherein “The battery charging coil (140') is installed on the back surface (122) of the body (120), as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, and when the back surface (122) of the body (120) is placed on the charging table (210') in which the electromagnetic induction coil (211) of the wireless charger (200') is built, charging power is generated by an electromagnetic induction action with the electromagnetic induction coil (211) of the charging table (210') and supplied to the battery (130).” ([0036]).
It would have been prima facie obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Marchese, Chaverri, and Van Erlach to incorporate the teachings of Kim to have a wireless charging pod provided with a transmitter induction coil, the wireless charging pod configured to receive an electronic device comprising a receiver induction coil, the receiver induction coil configured to generate an Electro-motive force (EMF) when brought within a time-varying magnetic field generated by the transmitter induction coil, as these prior art references are directed to light therapy devices. One would be motivated to do this to be able to recharge the device as needed.
Claim(s) 7 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Marchese in view of Chaverri in view of Van Erlach as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of ATP RFQ - photobiomodulation bed. ARRC LED. (2023, August 7). https://arrcled.com/devices/atp-rfq/, hereinafter ARRC.
Regarding claim 7, Marchese in view of Chaverri in view of Van Erlach teaches the light therapy lounger as claimed in claim 1 (as shown above). Marchese, Chaverri, and Van Erlach, alone or in combination, wherein the frame further comprises a lower cover made up of aluminum material.
However, ARRC teaches wherein the frame is “constructed with NFL-evaluated Aluminum Alloy” (view NPL attachment pg. 2).
It would have been prima facie obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Marchese, Chaverri, and Van Erlach to incorporate the teachings of ARRC to have the frame further comprises a lower cover made up of aluminum material, as these prior art references are directed to irradiation devices. One would be motivated to do this as aluminum allows for durability while maintaining a lightweight design.
Claim(s) 9 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Marchese in view of Chaverri in view of Van Erlach as applied to claim 8 above, and further in view of Xie et al. (US 2024/0024700 A1), hereinafter Xie.
Regarding claim 9, Marchese in view of Chaverri in view of Van Erlach teaches the light therapy lounger as claimed in claim 8 (as shown above). Marchese, Chaverri, and Van Erlach, alone or in combination, wherein the processor is further enabled to: determine a demographic and/or a species to which the user belongs, and modify irradiation characteristics of the one or more irradiation sources based on the determined demographic and/or species.
However, Xie et al. (US 2024/0024700 A1) teaches a laser therapy device wherein “the laser therapy device according to this embodiment can provide different treatment plans for different ages… the controller 100 is configured to control the laser generator according to the pre-stored correspondence between patient age groups and the laser generation modes of the laser generator (that is, the treatment plans for different ages).” ([0103]-[0104]). For example, “as the patient age increases, the controller 100 is configured to control the total irradiation time, total output power and total output energy of the laser light emitted from the laser generator to increase.” ([0105]).
It would have been prima facie obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Marchese, Chaverri, and Van Erlach to incorporate the teachings of Xie to have the processor is further enabled to: determine a demographic and/or a species to which the user belongs, and modify irradiation characteristics of the one or more irradiation sources based on the determined demographic and/or species, as these prior art references and the instant application are directed to laser therapy devices. One would be motivated to do this as at different ages, the human body has different requirements for the amount of energy and energy application mode in the laser treatment process, as recognized by Xie ([0102]).
Claim(s) 12 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Marchese in view of Chaverri in view of Van Erlach as applied to claim 8 above, and further in view of Main et al. (US 2022/0079514 A1), hereinafter Main.
Regarding claim 12, Marchese in view of Chaverri in view of Van Erlach teaches the light therapy lounger as claimed in claim 8 (as shown above). Marchese and Chaverri, alone or in combination, fail to teach wherein the machine-readable instructions comprised in the memory unit correspond to implementation of Artificial Intelligence (AI) developed through Machine Learning and/or Deep Learning algorithms trained on historical training data.
Van Erlach teaches wherein the machine-readable instructions comprised in the memory unit correspond to implementation of algorithm (Column 1, lines 4-8: “a computer readable hardware storage device storing a computer readable program code, the computer readable program code comprising an algorithm that when executed by a computer processor of a computing system implements a method”)
Marchese, Chaverri, and Van Erlach, alone or in combination, fail to teach wherein the machine-readable instructions comprised in the memory unit correspond to implementation of Artificial Intelligence (AI) developed through Machine Learning and/or Deep Learning algorithms trained on historical training data.
However, Main teaches an intelligent mattress, intelligent office seat, or intelligent wheelchair as a weight support system ([0036]) comprising pressure sensors ([0005]) wherein “A computer (e.g., the computing server 140, the local computer 130, and the user device 170) may process the data from the sensor grid layer 214 and generate different results related to the person. The computer may use one or more machine learning models and other data processing techniques to deduce positions of various joints 540 of the person, the outline of the person, and the pose of the person.” ([0088]), and “the machine learning models may be trained with a set of training samples that are labeled. For example, for a machine learning model trained to classify body parts, the training samples may be different heatmap of pressure data labeled with the body parts.” ([0134]).
According to broadest reasonable interpretation of the claim language all machine learning can be artificial intelligence, thus examiner interprets the machine learning model of Main to read on the limitation of artificial intelligence of the claim.
It would have been prima facie obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have substitute the algorithm of Van Erlach with the machine learning model of Main, as these prior art references are directed to determining body position of a user on a surface. One would be motivated to do this as machine learning models can enhance decision-making by quickly analyzing a vast set of data.
Claim(s) 13 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Marchese in view of Chaverri in view of Van Erlach in view of Main and further in view of Hamid (US 2012/0059440 A1), hereinafter Hamid.
Regarding claim 13, Marchese discloses a light therapy lounger (an LED therapy bed 19), comprising: a frame (view Figure 1, Column 6, lines 19-22: “legs 23 suspends a frame structure above the ground. The frame structure has front and rear frame members 22 and 25 with elongated side members 24 there between”) comprising a peripheral wall (elongated side members 24 and 26) and an inward protrusion extending internally from an inner surface of the peripheral wall (view Examiner modified Figure 2), the inward protrusion disposed at a predetermined depth from an upper surface of the peripheral wall (view Examiner modified Figure 2: d); a plurality of irradiation boards (Figure 1-5: LED module 40) comprising a plurality of irradiation sources (Figure 5: LEDS 44), the plurality of irradiation boards configured to be located on the inward protrusion (view Figure 2), wherein each irradiation board of the plurality of irradiation boards comprises several irradiation sources electrically coupled to a first Printed Circuit Board (PCB) (circuit board 46, Column 7, lines 64-65: “Housing 41 supports the internal electronics and a circuit board 46 (see FIG. 5) which supports the LEDs 44”), and a plurality of cooling fans (Column 8, lines 19-23: “each module has one or more fans 51 to move air within the module, in order to control the temperature of the air below acrylic cover 49, which results in control of the temperature of the top of the acrylic cover” ); and an upper cover made up of a diaphanous material (Figure 1 and 2: transparent acrylic cover 49), the upper cover configured to be located above the plurality of irradiation boards (Column 7, lines 12-19: “The transparent acrylic cover 49 provides a slight spacing between the user and the LEDs. The transparent acrylic cover 49 distributes the weight of the user on the frame structure of the plurality of removable and replaceable LED modules 40 The transparent acrylic cover 49 is preferably made from a clear material, such as acrylic or polycarbonate, but other materials may be used that provide equivalent or superior transparency or structural strength.”, view Figures 1 and 2).
Marchese fails to disclose wherein each irradiation board of the plurality of irradiation boards comprises one or more pressure sensors, a heat sink thermally coupled to the first PCB and located under the first PCB, and a plurality of cooling fans electrically coupled to the first PCB and/or a second PCB, and located under the heat sink; and a plurality of sensors comprising a plurality of proximity sensors and a plurality of pressure sensors; a memory unit, the memory unit comprising machine-readable instructions that correspond to implementation of Artificial Intelligence (AI) developed through Machine Learning and/or Deep Learning algorithms trained on historical training data, a processor operably connected to the memory unit, the machine-readable instructions when executed by the processor, enable the processor to perform one or more of: receive input data from the plurality of sensors, the input data indicative of presence of a user within a predefined 3-Dimensional space around the frame, determine a location of the user using the input data, determine a demographic and/or a species to which the user belongs, identify a location of one or more of a predetermined body portion, a predetermined muscle group, and a predetermined group of blood vessels, activate one or more of irradiation sources of the plurality of irradiation sources directed towards the location of the one or more of the identified predetermined body portion, the predetermined muscle group, and the predetermined set of blood vessels, and modify irradiation characteristics of the activated one or more irradiation sources based on the determined demographic and/or the species.
However, Chaverri teaches a light therapy device for delivering photobiomodulation (Abstract) which can be housed within an item of furniture ([0045]) wherein each irradiation board (module 120) of the plurality of irradiation boards comprises: a heat sink thermally coupled to the first PCB and located under the first PCB ([0054] “module 120, having, in some embodiments, LED array 107 mounted on a single PCB 112 thermally coupled to a heat sink 122. In some embodiments, heat sink 122 is thermally coupled to PCB 112 through a common mounting of heat sink 122 to an aluminum mounting plate within the interior of case 102 with PCB 112”), and a plurality of cooling fans (a cooling fan 121) electrically coupled to the first PCB and located under the heat sink ([0054] “a cooling fan 121 is configured to circulate air through and around heat sink 122. In some embodiments, cooling fan 121 is mounted to base 103 over a ventilation aperture (not shown) in base 103 generally corresponding in size to the size and blade-span diameter of fan 121.”, [0055] plurality of cooling fans 121).
It would have been prima facie obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art to have modified Marchese’s irradiation boards to incorporate the teachings of Chaverri to have a heat sink thermally coupled to the first PCB, and a plurality of cooling fans electrically coupled to the first PCB and located under the heat sink, as these prior art references and the instant application are directed to light therapy devices. One would be motivated to do this to increase heat dissipation and cooling, as recognized by Chaverri ([0054], [0037]).
Marchese and Chaverri, alone or in combination, fail to teach wherein each irradiation board of the plurality of irradiation boards comprises: one or more pressure sensors, and a plurality of pressure sensors; a memory unit, the memory unit comprising machine-readable instructions that correspond to implementation of Artificial Intelligence (AI) developed through Machine Learning and/or Deep Learning algorithms trained on historical training data, a processor operably connected to the memory unit, the machine-readable instructions when executed by the processor, enable the processor to perform one or more of: receive input data from the plurality of sensors, the input data indicative of presence of a user within a predefined 3-Dimensional space around the frame, determine a location of the user using the input data, determine a demographic and/or a species to which the user belongs, identify a location of one or more of a predetermined body portion, a predetermined muscle group, and a predetermined group of blood vessels, activate one or more of irradiation sources of the plurality of irradiation sources directed towards the location of the one or more of the identified predetermined body portion, the predetermined muscle group, and the predetermined set of blood vessels, and modify irradiation characteristics of the activated one or more irradiation sources based on the determined demographic and/or the species.
However, Van Erlach teaches a system for automatically sensing a body portion and delivering an associated therapy wherein the system comprises a substrate such as a mattress, a chair, etc. wherein the substrate comprises integrated therapy devices and one or more pressure sensors (Column 4, lines 10-27: “The substrate 119 may be, inter alia, a mattress, a slip cover, wearable material, a chair, a wheelchair, etc. Substrate 119 comprises networked sensors 115a . . . 115n for sensing a value(s) of biological parameters of a portion(s) of a body for identifying and determining a position of a portion(s) of the body on the substrate 119 The substrate 119 additionally comprises integrated and networked therapy devices 116a . . . 116n capable of administering a specified therapy(s) to the portion(s) of the body on the substrate 119…light therapy, infrared therapy…”, Column 4, lines 39-42: “The sensors 115a . . . 115n may comprise any type of sensor configured to detect any type of body characteristics such as, inter alia, a position of a portion of a body (via, e.g., pressure and/or temperature measurements)”, Column 6, line 49: pressure sensor); and a plurality of sensors (sensors 115a . . . 115n) comprising a plurality of pressure sensors (Column 4, lines 39-42: “The sensors 115a . . . 115n may comprise any type of sensor configured to detect any type of body characteristics such as, inter alia, a position of a portion of a body (via, e.g., pressure and/or temperature measurements)”, Column 6, line 49: pressure sensor) a memory unit, the memory unit comprising machine-readable instructions correspond to implementation of an algorithm (Column 1, lines 4-8: “a computer readable hardware storage device storing a computer readable program code, the computer readable program code comprising an algorithm that when executed by a computer processor of a computing system implements a method”), a processor (processor 91) operable connected to the memory unit (memory devices 94 and 95), the machine-readable instructions when executed by the processor (Column 15, lines 3-4: “The processor 91 executes the computer code 97”), enable the processor to perform one or more of:
receive input data from the plurality of sensors (Column 2, lines 6-15: “the computer readable program code comprising an algorithm that when executed by a computer processor of a computing system implements a method, the method comprising: receiving, by the processor from physical sensors of a plurality of physical sensors spatially distributed on or in a substrate, a value of an environmental parameter measured by the physical sensors while the mammal is on or in contact with a substrate and in contact with a first subset of the plurality of physical sensors”), the input data indicative of presence of a user within a predefined 3-Dimensional space (matrix 101) around the frame (substrate 119, Column 2, lines 17-27: “determining, by the processor, a second subset of the plurality of physical sensors as being those physical sensors whose received value differs from a corresponding predetermined reference value, of the environmental parameter, specific to the physical sensors; determining, by the processor, a physical part subset of the second subset, the physical part subset corresponding to the specified body part, the determining the physical part subset comprising utilizing the second subset and virtual data for identifying a plurality of virtual sensors spatially distributed to map a space occupied by the mammal's body parts”, Column 6, lines 47-54: “Example interactions between sensors 115a . . . 115n, therapy devices 116a . . . 116n, and controller 103 may include the use of distributed pressure or thermal sensors providing pressure and/or thermal data readings to the controller 103 executing a program for identifying the mammal 117 and associated portions of a body (of the mammal 117) in contact with specified locations on the substrate 119.”); determine a location of the user using the input data (Column 4, lines 39-44: “The sensors 115a . . . 115n may comprise any type of sensor configured to detect any type of body characteristics such as, inter alia, a position of a portion of a body (via, e.g., pressure and/or temperature measurements), a type of a portion of a body (e.g., an arm, a leg, etc.), an orientation and/or location on a surface of substrate 119,”, Column 8, lines 1-7: “The controller identifies a location of a specified body portion (e.g., a right elbow) on a surface of the substrate 219 based on comparing biological/environmental body portion parameters to virtual data identifying virtual sensors spatially distributed to map a space occupied by the mammal's 217 body parts 217a . . . 217n as described in detail with respect to FIGS. 5 and 6, infra”); identify a location of one or more of a predetermined body portion; and activate one or more irradiation sources of the plurality of irradiation sources, the activated one or more irradiation sources directed towards the location of the one or more of the identified predetermined body portion, the predetermined muscle group, and the predetermined group of blood vessels (Column 7, lines 38-54: “Sensors enabling body portion location and identification may be used with all therapy devices to enable body portion targeted therapy…For example, a thermal pattern of a hip may illustrate evidence of inflammation for which infrared or ultrasound therapy may be indicated…In response, the controller instructs one or more therapy devices (associated with specified sensors described any means such as, inter alia, a table of specified sensors associated with specified therapy devices) to deliver a desired therapy triggered by the specified biological parameter readings associated with a body portion according to prescribed doses.”, Column 8, lines 10-23: “For example, a right elbow of a user may be programmed to receive infrared therapy for two five minute intervals during a 6-8 hour expected sleep cycle. The controller may instruct infrared therapy devices (i.e., proximal to a current position of the right elbow) to deliver the infrared therapy at a specified intensity level for a programmed duration…As the elbow may move across the substrate 219, the plurality of sensor and therapy device clusters provide readings enabling the controller to track a changing location of the right elbow and instruct and manage therapy devices to complete the desired duration of the infrared therapy.”)
It would have been prima facie obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Marchese and Chaverri to incorporate the teachings of Van Erlach to have one or more pressure sensors, and a plurality of pressure sensors; a memory unit, the memory unit comprising machine-readable instructions that correspond to implementation of an algorithm, a processor operably connected to the memory unit, the machine-readable instructions when executed by the processor, enable the processor to perform one or more of: receive input data from the plurality of sensors, the input data indicative of presence of a user within a predefined 3-Dimensional space around the frame, determine a location of the user using the input data, identify a location of one or more of a predetermined body portion, a predetermined muscle group, and a predetermined group of blood vessels, activate one or more of irradiation sources of the plurality of irradiation sources directed towards the location of the one or more of the identified predetermined body portion, the predetermined muscle group, and the predetermined set of blood vessels, as these prior art references are directed to delivering therapy to a patient. One would be motivated to do this to determine a position of the body to deliver the specified therapy, as recognized by Van Erlach (Column 5, line 57-Column 6, line 7).
Although, Van Erlach does not specifically teach have the irradiation board comprise of one or more pressure sensor, it would have been obvious to one skilled in the art to incorporate the pressure sensor in each of the irradiation boards to be able to determine body position and part on the substrate, view Figure 4 of Van Erlach.
Marchese, Chaverri, and Van Erlach, alone or in combination, fail to teach a plurality of sensors comprising a plurality of proximity sensors, the machine-readable instructions that correspond to implementation of Artificial Intelligence (AI) developed through Machine Learning and/or Deep Learning algorithms trained on historical training data.
However, Main teaches an intelligent mattress, intelligent office seat, or intelligent wheelchair as a weight support system ([0036]) comprising pressure sensors ([0005]) wherein “A computer (e.g., the computing server 140, the local computer 130, and the user device 170) may process the data from the sensor grid layer 214 and generate different results related to the person. The computer may use one or more machine learning models and other data processing techniques to deduce positions of various joints 540 of the person, the outline of the person, and the pose of the person.” ([0088]), and “the machine learning models may be trained with a set of training samples that are labeled. For example, for a machine learning model trained to classify body parts, the training samples may be different heatmap of pressure data labeled with the body parts.” ([0134]).
According to broadest reasonable interpretation of the claim language all machine learning can be artificial intelligence, thus examiner interprets the machine learning model of Main to read on the limitation of artificial intelligence of the claim.
It would have been prima facie obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have substitute the algorithm of Van Erlach with the machine learning model of Main, as these prior art references are directed to determining body position of a user on a surface. One would be motivated to do this as machine learning models can enhance decision-making by quickly analyzing a vast set of data.
Marchese, Chaverri, Van Erlach, and Main, alone or in combination, fail to teach a plurality of sensors comprising a plurality of proximity sensors.
However, Hamid teaches an apparatus for the therapeutic light treatment wherein a sensing unit of the apparatus comprising at least one proximity sensor ([0031], Claim 3).
It would have prima facie obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Marchese, Chaverri, Van Erlach, and Main to incorporate the teachings of Hamid to have a plurality of proximity sensors, as these prior art references are directed to light therapy devices. One would be motivated to do this to as the proximity sensor can allow for the LED therapy to turned on or off when in use, as recognized by Hamid ([0031]).
Claim(s) 14 and 15 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Marchese in view of Chaverri in view of Van Erlach in view of Main in view of Hamid as applied to claim 13 above, and further in view of Dijkstra.
Regarding claim 14, Marchese/Chaverri/Van Erlach/Main/Hamid teaches the light therapy lounger as claimed in claim 13 (as shown above). Although, Marchese discloses a controller that receivers user input (Column 10, lines 47-52), Marchese, Chaverri, Van Erlach, Main, and Hamid alone or in combination, fail to teach the lounger further comprising a communication interface configured to receive a control input signal, from a user computing device, the processor further enabled to modify irradiation characteristics of the plurality of irradiation sources in response to the receipt of the control input signal.
However, Dijkstra teaches “the processor 1512 may receive a control input from the computing device 1532, being operated by the user. Further, the processor 1512, may modify the one or more of the emission characteristics of the electromagnetic radiation and heat generated by the infrared heater 400, in correlation with the received control input.” ([0102]).
It would have been prima facie obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Marchese, Chaverri, Van Erlach, Main, and Hamid to incorporate the teachings of Dijkstra to have a communication interface configured to receive a control input signal, from a user computing device, the processor further enabled to modify irradiation characteristics of the plurality of irradiation sources in response to the receipt of the control input signal, as these prior art references are directed to laser therapy devices. One would be motivated to do this to allow the user to control the device according to their preferences.
Regarding claim 15, Marchese/Chaverri/Van Erlach/Main/Hamid teaches the light therapy lounger as claimed in claim 13 (as shown above). Marchese, Chaverri, Van Erlach, Main, and Hamid alone or in combination, fail to teach wherein: the inward protrusion comprises a first protrusion portion parallel to a locating surface for locating the frame, a second protrusion portion at a first predetermined angle to the first protrusion portion and extending downwardly, and a third protrusion portion at a second predetermined angle to the second protrusion portion and extending upwardly, the plurality of irradiation boards comprises at least a first irradiation board configured to be located on the first protrusion portion, a second irradiation board configured to be located on the second protrusion portion, and a third irradiation board configured to be located on the third protrusion portion, and the upper cover comprises a first cover portion parallel to the first protrusion portion, a second cover portion at the first predetermined angle to the first cover portion and extending downwardly, and a third cover portion at the second predetermined angle to the second cover portion and extending upwardly.
However, Dijkstra teaches a bed for providing irradiation and heating for therapeutic and recreational applications comprising a frame structure (view Figure 1C).
It would have been prima facie obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Marchese’s bed and its features to have the inward protrusion comprises a first protrusion portion parallel to a locating surface for locating the frame, a second protrusion portion at a first predetermined angle to the first protrusion portion and extending rearwardly and downwardly, and a third protrusion portion at a second predetermined angle to the second protrusion portion and extending rearwardly and upwardly, the plurality of irradiation boards comprises at least a first irradiation board configured to be located on the first protrusion portion, at least a second irradiation board configured to be located on the second protrusion portion, and at least a third irradiation board configured to be located on the third protrusion portion, and the upper cover comprises a first cover portion parallel to the first protrusion portion, a second cover portion parallel to the second protrusion portion, and a third cover portion parallel to the third protrusion portion, since it has been held that changing the shape was a matter of choice one of ordinary skill in the art would have found obvious over Dijkstra’s shape. One would be motivated to do this as Dijkstra teaches that this shape results in “the spine of the user will be even more relaxed and blood flow to upper portions of the body of the user will also be enhanced. Moreover, muscle tissues in the legs of the user will also be comparatively relaxed and less strained”, as recognized by Dijkstra.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to ATTIYA SAYYADA HUSSAINI whose telephone number is (703)756-5921. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 8:00 am - 5:00 pm.
Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Niketa Patel can be reached at 5712724156. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000.
/ATTIYA SAYYADA HUSSAINI/Examiner, Art Unit 3792
/NIKETA PATEL/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3792