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 . The instant application with Application Number 18/477,435 filed on 09/28/2023 is presented for examination. Claims 1-20 are pending.
Information Disclosure Statment
The Information Disclosure Statements dated 09/28/2023 and 02/23/2024 are acknowledged and the cited references have been considered in this examination.
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 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 present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
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 of this title, 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.
The factual inquiries set forth in Graham v. John Deere Co., 383 U.S. 1, 148 USPQ 459 (1966), that are applied for establishing a background for determining obviousness under pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 103(a) are summarized as follows:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness.
This application currently names joint inventors. In considering patentability of the claims the examiner presumes that the subject matter of the various claims was commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the claimed invention(s) absent any evidence to the contrary. Applicant is advised of the obligation under 37 CFR 1.56 to point out the inventor and effective filing dates of each claim that was not commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the later invention in order for the examiner to consider the applicability of 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(2)(C) for any potential 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) prior art against the later invention.
Claims 1-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Lee et al. (US 2014/0194058) (Hereinafter, Lee) in view of Pei et al. (US 2021/0001129).
With respect to claims 1 and 16, Lee discloses an electronic device/ system (Fig. 2, 220), comprising: a battery (Fig. 2A, 223B); a microcontroller configured to receive power from the battery (Fig. 2A, 225), along a first path comprising a first battery switch (Fig. 2, 227), configured to change between an opened configuration and a closed configuration (Para. # 0040: Such a selective on/off operation of the switch 227 may either supply or shut off the operation power of the battery 223b provided to the control unit 225); and a receiver coil configured (Fig. 2, 221; para. # 0041: selectively perform the data communication with the external device 210 by the secondary coil 221 only when data exists for communication), in response to being positioned in
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a changing magnetic field, to generate an alternating electric current and to change, via the alternating electric current (Para. # 0034 and 0035: medical device 220 includes the secondary coil 221, a power processing block 222, a charge unit 223, a communication signal detector 224, a control unit 225, a first regulator 226 for regulating voltage, a switch 227, a second regulator 228 and a data communication circuit 229), the first battery switch from the opened configuration to the closed configuration (Para. # 0040: he switch 227 is selectively turned on/off pursuant to the control by the control unit 225. Such a selective on/off operation of the switch 227 may either supply or shut off the operation power of the battery 223b provided to the control unit 225).
Lee, does not expressly disclose a microcontroller configured to receive power from the battery along a first path.
Pei, on the other hand, discloses a microcontroller configured to receive power from the battery along a first path (Para. # 0096: Sensing circuit 1044 receives a control signal 1046 from microcontroller 1020 for purposes of controlling the gain, threshold, polarization charge removal circuitry (not shown), and the timing of any blocking circuitry (not shown) coupled to the inputs of the sensing circuitry).
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LEE and Pei are analogous art because they are from the same field of endeavor namely implantable medical device and power controlling method and system estimates longevity of implantable device.
At the time of the invention, it would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to a person of ordinary skill in the art to have added a microcontroller configured to receive power from a battery and controls multiple functions using switches and sensers to the implantable medical device of Lee in view of Pei for the benefit of prolonging the battery usage in a medical device to keep the patient health constantly controlled with accuracy.
With respect to claim 2, the combined references of Lee and Pei disclose the electronic device/system as described above, further Lee discloses wherein the receiver coil is electrically coupled to the first battery switch along a second path comprising a rectifying device configured to at least partially rectify the alternating electric current and to provide a direct current to the first battery switch (Para. # 0024: the secondary coil 121, a rectifier 122b configured to rectify the generated RF signal of a sinusoidal waveform into a DC electric power).
With respect to claims 3, 4 and 20, the combined references of Lee and Pei disclose the electronic device/system as described above, further Lee discloses comprising a battery charger electrically coupled to the receiver coil and configured to receive power from the battery along a third path comprising a second battery switch configured to be changed between an opened configuration and a closed configuration, wherein the receiver coil is configured to change, via the alternating electric current, the second battery switch from the opened configuration to the closed configuration (See Para. # 0023-0026).
With respect to claim 5, the combined references of Lee and Pei disclose the electronic device/system as described above, further Pei discloses wherein the fourth path further comprises one or more resistors between the rectifying device and the second battery switch and to at least partially define a threshold amplitude that the direct current must exceed to change the second battery switch from the opened configuration to the closed configuration (Para. # 0099: Microcontroller 1020, and the programmable operating parameters used by microcontroller 1020, and customize the operation of the IMD 1001 to suit the needs of a particular patient. Such operating parameters define, for example, pacing pulse amplitude, pulse duration, electrode polarity, rate, sensitivity, automatic features, arrhythmia detection criteria).
With respect to claims 6-9, the combined references of Lee and Pei disclose the electronic device/system as described above, further Lee discloses wherein the microcontroller is configured to transmit a first maintaining signal and to maintain, via the first maintaining signal, the first battery switch in the closed configuration (Para. # 0040 and 0043: The switch 227 is selectively turned on/off pursuant to the control by the control unit 225. Such a selective on/off operation of the switch 227 may either supply or shut off the operation power of the battery 223b provided to the control unit 225).
With respect to claims 10-12, the combined references of Lee and Pei disclose the electronic device/system as described above, further Pei discloses wherein the communication circuit is configured to transmit the second maintaining signal in response to the microcontroller ceasing to transmit the first maintaining signal and one or more set conditions being satisfied (Para. # 0091: microcontroller 1020 via control signal 1024. Pulse generator 1022 may be coupled to the select electrode(s) via an electrode configuration switch 1026, which includes multiple switches for connecting the desired electrodes to the appropriate I/O circuits, thereby facilitating electrode programmability. Switch 1026 is controlled by a control signal 1028 from microcontroller 1020).
With respect to claims 13, 14 and 17-19, the combined references of Lee and Pei disclose the electronic device/system as described above, further Pei discloses wherein the electronic device is configured to maintain, by the microcontroller and in response to receiving a communication from the external device within the set time period, the first battery switch in the closed configuration after the set time period (see Fig. 10, microcontroller 1020, time control 1032, and connection of battery in communication mode 1040 receiving communication from the external device 1054).
With respect to claim 15, the combined references of Lee and Pei disclose the electronic device/system as described above, further Pei discloses wherein the electronic device comprises an implantable pulse generator configured to provide stimulation to a tissue proximal to the electronic device (Fig. 10, pulse generator 1022; par. # 0096).
Contact Information
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to YALKEW FANTU whose telephone number is (571)272-8928. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 7:00AM-4:00PM.
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supervisor, DREW A DUNN can be reached at 571-272-2312. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/YALKEW FANTU/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2859
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