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 .
Response to Amendment
The Amendment filed 6/9/2026 has been entered. Claims 1, 4-7 and 9-16 remain pending in the application. Applicant’s amendments to the Specification and Claims have overcome each and every objection, 112(a) and 112(b) rejections previously set forth in the Non-Final Office Action mailed 5/15/2026.
The specification was received on 6/9/2026. This specification is acceptable.
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.
Claim 7 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Esguerra et al. (US 2012/0172703 A1).
Regarding claim 7, Esguerra teaches a modifiable steerable medical device (figure 1), comprising:
an elongate body (integrated structure formed by elements 12 and 14) having a deflectable distal end 15 and a proximal end (end of element 12 closest to elements 16a, 16b);
a steering assembly (assembly shown in figure 15) secured to the proximal end (end of element at element 12) of the elongate body and operable to deflect the distal end 15 of the medical device, the steering assembly including an actuator 75, a slider block 154, and a wire lock 90;
a pull wire 42 (formed by elements 42a, 42b together, paragraph 0096, lines 1-5) routed through the elongate body 12 and having a distal end (end of element 42 in element 90) and a proximal end (end of element 42 in element 14), wherein the distal end (end of element 42 in element 90) of the pull wire is secured to the wire lock, wherein, with the actuator 76 in a neutral position (position shown in figure 15) and the wire lock 90 extended proximally without tension on the pull wire (see figure 15), the wire lock 90 is spaced apart from the slider block 154;
a first pre-tensioner (one of two elements 147), wherein, when the first pre-tensioner is installed between the wire lock 90 and the slider block 154, slack in the pull wire between the wire lock and the slider block is reduced by a first amount (see figures 15, 20A-20C where installation of element 147 will stretch element 42b upward thereby reducing slack compared to a situation where element 147 was absent); and
a second pre-tensioner (second of two elements 147), wherein, when the second pre-tensioner is installed between the wire lock and the slider block, slack (installing and moving element 147 in position shown in figure 20b or 20c where the second of two elements 147 is being pulled upward will change the slack by second amount different from the first amount) in the pull wire between the wire lock and the slider block is reduced by a second amount different from the first amount,
wherein the first pre-tensioner (one of two elements 147) and the second pre-tensioner (second of two elements 147) are integrated into a single body 78 including an aperture 46 having a shape complementary to the wire lock (element 46 is hollow circular which is complementary to solid circular cross-sectional shape of element 90), a first end (see “FE” in figure 15 below) having a first surface (see “FS” in figure 15 below) complementary to the slider block, and a second end (see “SE” in figure 15 below) opposite the first end and having a second surface (see “SS” in figure 15 below) complementary to the slider block, wherein the first pre-tensioner 147 is defined between the aperture 46 and the first end (see “FE” in figure 15 below) of the body and the second pre-tensioner 147 is defined between the aperture and the second end of the body.
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Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 1 and 4-6 are allowed.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter:
Claim 3 was previously indicated allowable in the Office Action mailed on 5/15/2026 if claim 3 is rewritten in an independent form including any limitations from the intervening claims. Claim 1, as currently amended, is an independent form of previously presented claim 3.
Claims 4-6 being dependent on claim 1 are also allowed.
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed 6/9/2026 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive.
Applicant argues on page 11, line 26-page 12, line 5 that claim 7 overcomes the rejection under the prior art because claim 7 includes analogous subject matter of claim 8. Examiner respectfully disagrees. While limitations in claim 7, as currently amended, has analogous subject matter of previously presented claim 3, the claimed limitations are different because claim 3, as previously presented, recited “wherein a distance between the aperture and the first end is different from a distance between the aperture and the second end” which is not recited in any form in claim 7, as currently amended. If claim 7 is further amended to include the subject matter on the distance then the claim could overcome the prior art of record.
Conclusion
THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to NILAY J SHAH whose telephone number is (571)272-9689. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Thursday 8:00 AM-4:30 PM EST.
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/NILAY J SHAH/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3783
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