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 was filed on 1/29/2026.
Claims 1-12 are pending.
Response to Arguments
Applicants’ arguments filed under Remarks on pages 7-9 on 1/29/2026 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive. Applicants state on page 8 that:
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The Examiner respectfully disagrees. Ye discloses reconstructed image and correcting based on the motion quality information at paragraph 0024. The Office action states that Ye fails to disclose a second energy range, the second energy range including an energy range different from a first energy range. Therefore, the secondary teaching of Lee was brought in that teaches second energy range, the second energy range including an energy range different from a first energy range as illustrated in Figures 2 and 4 and paragraphs [0077 and 0095].
Applicants state on page 8 that:
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The Examiner respectfully disagrees. Ye discloses one or more processor at paragraph 0008; further, Ye discloses CT reconstruction processor 32, reconstruction processor 24, processor system 28, video processor 36, etc. Lee is not stated as to teach motion correction based on energy ranges. Lee teaches a second energy range [Figure 2 & 4; reconstruct the first raw data and the second raw data and obtain VMIs corresponding to different energy levels, para 0077]. Lee teaches the second energy range including an energy range different from a first energy range [the CT image processing apparatus may obtain a first image to a third image corresponding to the three energy ranges by reconstructing the first to third raw data, 0095].
Along with the motivation of having better detection of absorbing material corresponding to different energy levels, in combination, Ye and Lee teaches the apparatus, nonvolatile computer-readable storage medium storing a medical image correction program, and the method of pending claims.
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.
Claims 1–2, 4–6, and 10–12 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Ye et al. (US 2014/0212011 A1) (hereafter, “Ye”) in view of Lee et al. (US 2021/0110583 A1) (hereafter, “Lee”).
Regarding claim 1, Ye discloses an X-ray computed tomography imaging apparatus [a system for generating motion-corrected nuclear images is provided ... an X-ray scanner 30, such as a CT scanner, generates radiation attenuation data which is reconstructed by a CT reconstruction processor, para 0008, 0026] comprising: processing circuitry [one or more processors are programmed to perform he method as set forth, para 0008] configured to: obtain reconstructed image data [the acquired projections P0 from the acquired data memory 22 are reconstructed with a reconstruction processor system 24 to generate a motion-artifacted image I0, para 0024]; infer motion-quantity information as to a region of interest [Figure 1; the detector heads are mounted for rotation around an examination region 16 (the examiner interprets the examination region to be a region of interest) in which a subject 18 is supported on a subject support 20. Data from the detector heads in each of a plurality of angular orientations, i.e., a projection P0 at each of the angular orientations, is stored in an acquired data memory 22, para 0023] included in the reconstructed image data, based on the reconstructed image data [Figure 1; the acquired projections P0 from the acquired data memory 22 are reconstructed with a reconstruction processor system 24 to generate a motion-artifacted image I0 ... the reconstruction processor 24 can perform iterative or non-iterative (analytical) reconstruction routines. An iterative motion-correction loop or processor system 28 uses the motion-artifacted image I0 to generate a motion model or motion-correction vector VC which is used to correct the acquired projections P0 into motion-corrected projections PC, para 0024]; and correct a quantity of motion of the region of interest included in reconstructed image data, by motion correction based on the motion-quantity information inferred from the reconstructed image data [the motion-corrected projections PC are reconstructed by the iterative reconstruction processor system 24 to generate the first generation motion-corrected image I1, para 0024; The improved motion-correction projections are reconstructed by the reconstruction processor 24 into a second motion-corrected 3D image I.sub.2 in the image memory 26. This process can be iteratively repeated to generate a third motion-corrected image I.sub.3, etc., para 0036].
Ye fails to explicitly disclose [obtain reconstructed image data] corresponding to a second energy range, the second energy range including an energy range different from a first energy range; [correct a quantity of motion of the region of interest included in reconstructed image data] containing data corresponding to at least the first energy range, [by motion correction based on the motion-quality information inferred from the reconstructed image data] corresponding to the second energy range.
However, Lee teaches [obtain reconstructed image data] corresponding to a second energy range [Figure 2 & 4; when the first raw data and the second raw data are obtained, the CT image processing apparatus may reconstruct the first raw data and the second raw data and obtain VMIs (for example, a first image 200 and a second image 201) corresponding to different energy levels, para 0077], the second energy range including an energy range different from a first energy range [the CT image processing apparatus 100 a 1 may obtain a first image to a third image 410, 411, and 412 corresponding to the three energy ranges 401, 402, and 403 by reconstructing the first to third raw data, respectively, 0095]; [correct a quantity of motion of the region of interest included in reconstructed image data] containing data corresponding to at least the first energy range [the CT image processing apparatus 100 a 1 may obtain a first image to a third image 410, 411, and 412 corresponding to the three energy ranges 401, 402, and 403 by reconstructing the first to third raw data, respectively, para 0095], [by motion correction based on the motion-quality information inferred from the reconstructed image data] corresponding to the second energy range (Figure 2 & 4; when the first raw data and the second raw data are obtained, the CT image processing apparatus may reconstruct the first raw data and the second raw data and obtain VMIs (for example, a first image 200 and a second image 201) corresponding to different energy levels, para 0077).
It would have been obvious to someone of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Ye’s reference by incorporating the teachings of Lee to better detect absorbing material corresponding to different energy levels, as recognized by Lee [¶0076].
Further, one skilled in the art could have combined the elements as described above with known method with no change in their respective functions, and the combination would have yielded nothing more than predictable results. Therefore, it would have been obvious to combine Lee with Ye to obtain the invention as specified in claim 1.
Regarding claim 2, which claim 1 is incorporated, Ye fails to explicitly disclose wherein the first energy range and the second energy range are two of a plurality of energy ranges, and the first energy range is a lower energy range than the second energy range.
However, Lee teaches wherein the first energy range and the second energy range are two of a plurality of energy ranges [Figure 4; the CT image processing apparatus 100 may divide the plurality of energy levels into three or more energy ranges 401, 402, and 403, para 0094], and the first energy range is a lower energy range than the second energy range [the plurality of energy levels may be divided into a low energy range 401 (the examiner interprets a low energy range to be the first energy range), a middle energy range 402 (the examiner interprets a middle energy range to be the second energy range) ... the CT image processing apparatus 100 a may divide an energy range equal to or greater than 0 keV and less than 50 keV as the I low energy range 401, an energy range equal to or greater than 50 keV and less than 100 keV as the middle range 402, para 0094].
It would have been obvious to someone of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Ye’s reference by incorporating the teachings of Lee with a plurality of energy ranges to determine the energy level where the contrast-to-noise ratio is maximum, as recognized by Lee [¶0129].
Further, one skilled in the art could have combined the elements as described above with known method with no change in their respective functions, and the combination would have yielded nothing more than predictable results. Therefore, it would have been obvious to combine Lee with Ye to obtain the invention as specified in claim 2.
Regarding claim 4, which claim 1 is incorporated, Ye fails to explicitly disclose wherein the region of interest is a region including an X-ray absorber.
However, Lee teaches wherein the region of interest is a region [may set a region of interest (ROI) on the CT image based on a user input received via the user input unit 740. In an embodiment, the processor 720 may set blood vessels, tissues, and background areas on the CT image as ROI based on the user input, para 0128] including an X-ray absorber [may determine a concentration of a contrast agent injected into the object in the ROI, para 0131].
It would have been obvious to someone of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Ye’s reference by incorporating the teachings of Lee to determine when the contrast-to-noise ratio is maximum for a region of interest, as recognized by Lee [¶0129].
Further, one skilled in the art could have combined the elements as described above with known method with no change in their respective functions, and the combination would have yielded nothing more than predictable results. Therefore, it would have been obvious to combine Lee with Ye to obtain the invention as specified in claim 4.
Regarding claim 5, which claim 4 is incorporated, Ye fails to explicitly disclose wherein the X-ray absorber includes metal, calcium, and/or a contrast agent.
However, Lee teaches wherein the X-ray absorber includes metal, calcium, and/or a contrast agent [contrast agent: may determine a concentration of a contrast agent injected into the object in the ROI ... the CT system 100 may or may not use contrast media during a CT scan, para 0131, 0074].
It would have been obvious to someone of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Ye’s reference by incorporating the teachings of Lee to determine when the contrast-to-noise ratio is maximum for a region of interest, as recognized by Lee [¶0129].
Further, one skilled in the art could have combined the elements as described above with known method with no change in their respective functions, and the combination would have yielded nothing more than predictable results. Therefore, it would have been obvious to combine Lee with Ye to obtain the invention as specified in claim 5.
Regarding claim 6, which claim 1 is incorporated, Ye discloses wherein the motion-quantity information represents the quantity of motion of the region of interest or a correction amount for a motion compensation for the region of interest [correction amount for a motion compensation for the region of interest: an iterative motion-correction loop or processor system 28 uses the motion-artifacted image I0 to generate a motion model or motion-correction vector VC ... the motion correction process is iteratively repeated by generating an initial image I0 which is forward-projected to generate image degrading modeled forward-projections which are compared to the actual projections to generate the motion-model or vector VC, para 0024, 0038].
Regarding claim 10, which claim 1 is incorporated, Ye fails to explicitly disclose wherein at least one of the first energy range and the second energy range is set depending on a substance to be corrected in the region of interest.
However, Lee teaches wherein at least one of the first energy range and the second energy range is set depending on a substance to be corrected in the region of interest [Figure 8 & 11; may determine a CNR of a region corresponding to the ROI in the plurality of VMIs respectively corresponding to the energy levels equal to or greater than 40 keV and less than or equal to 140 keV and determine the energy level at which the determined CNR is the maximum among the plurality of VMIs. The CT image processing apparatus may select a VMI of the energy level having the highest CNR ... determines the energy level at which the CNR is the maximum based on the type of the contrast agent and a relationship between the measured concentration of the contrast agent and the CNR, para 0150, 0168].
It would have been obvious to someone of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Ye’s reference by incorporating the teachings of Lee to increase the accuracy of the diagnosis, as recognized by Lee [¶0144].
Further, one skilled in the art could have combined the elements as described above with known method with no change in their respective functions, and the combination would have yielded nothing more than predictable results. Therefore, it would have been obvious to combine Lee with Ye to obtain the invention as specified in claim 10.
Regarding claim 11, Ye discloses a medical image correction method [method of generating motion-corrected nuclear images, para 0007] comprising: obtaining reconstructed image data [the acquired projections P0 from the acquired data memory 22 are reconstructed with a reconstruction processor system 24 to generate a motion-artifacted image I0, para 0024]; inferring motion-quantity information as to a region of interest [Figure 1; the detector heads are mounted for rotation around an examination region 16 (the examiner interprets the examination region to be a region of interest) in which a subject 18 is supported on a subject support 20. Data from the detector heads in each of a plurality of angular orientations, i.e., a projection P0 at each of the angular orientations, is stored in an acquired data memory 22, para 0023] included in the reconstructed image data, based on the reconstructed image data [Figure 1; the acquired projections P0 from the acquired data memory 22 are reconstructed with a reconstruction processor system 24 to generate a motion-artifacted image I0 ... the reconstruction processor 24 can perform iterative or non-iterative (analytical) reconstruction routines. An iterative motion-correction loop or processor system 28 uses the motion-artifacted image I0 to generate a motion model or motion-correction vector VC which is used to correct the acquired projections P0 into motion-corrected projections PC, para 0024]; and correcting a quantity of motion of the region of interest included in reconstructed image data, by motion correction based on the motion-quantity information inferred from the reconstructed image data [the motion-corrected projections PC are reconstructed by the iterative reconstruction processor system 24 to generate the first generation motion-corrected image I1, para 0024; The improved motion-correction projections are reconstructed by the reconstruction processor 24 into a second motion-corrected 3D image I.sub.2 in the image memory 26. This process can be iteratively repeated to generate a third motion-corrected image I.sub.3, etc., para 0036].
Ye fails to explicitly disclose [obtaining reconstructed image data] corresponding to a second energy range, the second energy range including an energy range different from a first energy range; [correcting a quantity of motion of the region of interest included in reconstructed image data] containing data corresponding to at least the first energy range, [by motion correction based on the motion-quality information inferred from the reconstructed image data] corresponding to the second energy range.
However, Lee teaches [obtaining reconstructed image data] corresponding to a second energy range [Figure 2 & 4; when the first raw data and the second raw data are obtained, the CT image processing apparatus may reconstruct the first raw data and the second raw data and obtain VMIs (for example, a first image 200 and a second image 201) corresponding to different energy levels, para 0077], the second energy range including an energy range different from a first energy range [the CT image processing apparatus 100 a 1 may obtain a first image to a third image 410, 411, and 412 corresponding to the three energy ranges 401, 402, and 403 by reconstructing the first to third raw data, respectively, 0095]; [correcting a quantity of motion of the region of interest included in reconstructed image data] containing data corresponding to at least the first energy range [the CT image processing apparatus 100 a 1 may obtain a first image to a third image 410, 411, and 412 corresponding to the three energy ranges 401, 402, and 403 by reconstructing the first to third raw data, respectively, para 0095].
It would have been obvious to someone of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Ye’s reference by incorporating the teachings of Lee to better detect absorbing material corresponding to different energy levels, as recognized by Lee [¶0076].
Further, one skilled in the art could have combined the elements as described above with known method with no change in their respective functions, and the combination would have yielded nothing more than predictable results. Therefore, it would have been obvious to combine Lee with Ye to obtain the invention as specified in claim 11.
Regarding claim 12, Ye discloses a nonvolatile computer-readable storage medium storing a medical image correction program which causes a computer to execute [one or more processors are programmed to perform the method as set forth ... the one or more processors or computers are programmed with one or more programs to perform the above-described functions, para 0008, 0037]: obtaining reconstructed image data [the acquired projections P0 from the acquired data memory 22 are reconstructed with a reconstruction processor system 24 to generate a motion-artifacted image I0, para 0024]; inferring motion-quantity information as to a region of interest [Figure 1; the detector heads are mounted for rotation around an examination region 16 (the examiner interprets the examination region to be a region of interest) in which a subject 18 is supported on a subject support 20. Data from the detector heads in each of a plurality of angular orientations, i.e., a projection P0 at each of the angular orientations, is stored in an acquired data memory 22, para 0023] included in the reconstructed image data, based on the reconstructed image data [Figure 1; the acquired projections P0 from the acquired data memory 22 are reconstructed with a reconstruction processor system 24 to generate a motion-artifacted image I0 ... the reconstruction processor 24 can perform iterative or non-iterative (analytical) reconstruction routines. An iterative motion-correction loop or processor system 28 uses the motion-artifacted image I0 to generate a motion model or motion-correction vector VC which is used to correct the acquired projections P0 into motion-corrected projections PC, para 0024]; and correcting a quantity of motion of the region of interest included in reconstructed image data, by motion correction based on the motion-quantity information inferred from the reconstructed image data [the motion-corrected projections PC are reconstructed by the iterative reconstruction processor system 24 to generate the first generation motion-corrected image I1, para 0024; The improved motion-correction projections are reconstructed by the reconstruction processor 24 into a second motion-corrected 3D image I.sub.2 in the image memory 26. This process can be iteratively repeated to generate a third motion-corrected image I.sub.3, etc., para 0036].
Ye fails to explicitly disclose [obtaining reconstructed image data] corresponding to a second energy range, the second energy range including an energy range different from a first energy range; [correcting a quantity of motion of the region of interest included in reconstructed image data] containing data corresponding to at least the first energy range, [by motion correction based on the motion-quality information inferred from the reconstructed image data] corresponding to the second energy range.
However, Lee teaches [obtaining reconstructed image data] corresponding to a second energy range [Figure 2 & 4; when the first raw data and the second raw data are obtained, the CT image processing apparatus may reconstruct the first raw data and the second raw data and obtain VMIs (for example, a first image 200 and a second image 201) corresponding to different energy levels, para 0077], the second energy range including an energy range different from a first energy range [the CT image processing apparatus 100 a 1 may obtain a first image to a third image 410, 411, and 412 corresponding to the three energy ranges 401, 402, and 403 by reconstructing the first to third raw data, respectively, 0095]; [correcting a quantity of motion of the region of interest included in reconstructed image data] containing data corresponding to at least the first energy range [the CT image processing apparatus 100 a 1 may obtain a first image to a third image 410, 411, and 412 corresponding to the three energy ranges 401, 402, and 403 by reconstructing the first to third raw data, respectively, para 0095].
It would have been obvious to someone of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Ye’s reference by incorporating the teachings of Lee to better detect absorbing material corresponding to different energy levels, as recognized by Lee [¶0076].
Further, one skilled in the art could have combined the elements as described above with known method with no change in their respective functions, and the combination would have yielded nothing more than predictable results. Therefore, it would have been obvious to combine Lee with Ye to obtain the invention as specified in claim 12.
Claims 3 and 7–8 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Ye (US 2014/0212011 A1) in view of Lee (US 2021/0110583 A1), as applied above, and further in view of Walker et al. (US 2004/0102688 A1) (hereafter, “Walker”).
Regarding claim 3, which claim 1 is incorporated, Ye in combination with Lee fails to explicitly disclose wherein the second energy range includes a part of the first energy range, the energy range different from the first energy range is a higher energy range than the first energy range.
However, Walker teaches wherein the second energy range includes a part of the first energy range [several methods for acquiring dual-energy computed tomography data have been proposed. Two scans, each using distinct x-ray spectra and covering the same anatomy, can be performed in series ... , para 0033], the energy range different from the first energy range is a higher energy range than the first energy range [detect regions of photon energy spectrum: the low-energy and the high-energy (the examiner interprets the high-energy to be a higher energy range) portions of the incident x-ray spectrum, para 0029].
It would have been obvious to someone of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Ye’s reference in view of Lee by incorporating the teachings of Walker to determine effective attenuation, as recognized by Walker [¶0044].
Further, one skilled in the art could have combined the elements as described above with known method with no change in their respective functions, and the combination would have yielded nothing more than predictable results. Therefore, it would have been obvious to combine Walker with Ye and Lee to obtain the invention as specified in claim 3.
Regarding claim 7, which claim 1 is incorporated, Ye in combination with Lee fails to explicitly disclose wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to correct reconstructed image data corresponding to the first energy range as a target.
However, Walker teaches wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to correct reconstructed image data corresponding to the first energy range as a target [Figure 4; also includes reconstructing 68 low and high-energy cross-sectional images 70 and 71, respectively ... combining 76 the low energy images at even projections 74 with the low energy image at odd projections 70 to create a complete set of low energy image data 78, para 0043, 0045].
It would have been obvious to someone of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Ye’s reference in view of Lee by incorporating the teachings of Walker to reduce artifacts, as recognized by Walker [¶0042].
Further, one skilled in the art could have combined the elements as described above with known method with no change in their respective functions, and the combination would have yielded nothing more than predictable results. Therefore, it would have been obvious to combine Walker with Ye and Lee to obtain the invention as specified in claim 7.
Regarding claim 8, which claim 1 is incorporated, Ye in combination with Lee fails to explicitly disclose wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to correct first reconstructed image data corresponding to the first energy range and second reconstructed image data corresponding to the second energy range as a target.
However, Walker teaches wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to correct first reconstructed image data corresponding to the first energy range [combining 76 the low energy images at even projections 74 with the low energy image at odd projections 70 to create a complete set of low energy image data 78 ... the transformed low energy images 74 (reconstructed from even projections) are reprojected 82 into Radon space and combined 80 with the original low energy projections (at odd projections) to create a complete-set (both odd and even projections) of view-aliasing-artifact-compensated projection data 84 at the low energy, para 0045] and second reconstructed image data corresponding to the second energy range as a target [combining 90 the high energy image (reconstructed from even projections) with the high energy image at odd projections to create a complete set of high energy image data 92 ... the transformed high energy images 75 (reconstructed from even projections) are reprojected 96 into Radon space and combined 94 with the original high energy projections (at even projections) to create a complete-set (both odd and even projections) of view-aliasing-artifact-compensated projection data 98 at the high energy, para 0046].
It would have been obvious to someone of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Ye’s reference in view of Lee by incorporating the teachings of Walker to reduce artifacts, as recognized by Walker [¶0042].
Further, one skilled in the art could have combined the elements as described above with known method with no change in their respective functions, and the combination would have yielded nothing more than predictable results. Therefore, it would have been obvious to combine Walker with Ye and Lee to obtain the invention as specified in claim 8.
Claim 9 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Ye (US 2014/0212011 A1) in view of Lee (US 2021/0110583 A1), as applied above, and further in view of Toth et al. (US 2011/0142312 A1) (hereafter, “Toth”).
Regarding claim 9, which claim 1 is incorporated, Ye in combination with Lee fails to explicitly disclose wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to correct an energy integration image based on the first energy range and the second energy range as a target.
However, Toth teaches wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to correct an energy integration image [Figure 2; technique 200 includes acquiring high and low kVp projection data or datasets at step 202 ... and determining at step 204 whether to apply a low kVp signal mitigation or correction step, para 0038] based on the first energy range and the second energy range as a target [a dual-energy image is generated at step 214 using the acquired high kVp projection data and the adjusted low kVp projection data, according to known methods for dual-energy image reconstruction, para 0039].
It would have been obvious to someone of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Ye’s reference in view of Lee by incorporating the teachings of Toth to resolve the energy dependence of the material being imaged, as recognized by Toth [¶0004].
Further, one skilled in the art could have combined the elements as described above with known method with no change in their respective functions, and the combination would have yielded nothing more than predictable results. Therefore, it would have been obvious to combine Toth with Ye and Lee to obtain the invention as specified in claim 9.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
WO2005/009206 discloses multispectral X-ray imaging system that uses a wideband source and filtration assembly to select for M sets of spectral data. Spectral characteristics may be dynamically adjusted in synchrony with scan excursions where an X-ray source, detector array, or body may be moved relative to one another in acquiring T sets of measurement data. The system may be used in projection imaging and/or CT imaging. Processed image data, such as a CT reconstructed image, may be decomposed onto basis functions for analytical processing of multispectral image data to facilitate computer assisted diagnostics. The system may perform this diagnostic function in medical applications and/or security applications.
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 SHEFALI D. GORADIA whose telephone number is (571)272-8958. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Thursday 8AM-6PM, Friday 8AM-12PM.
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SHEFALI D. GORADIA
Primary Patent Examiner
Art Unit 2676
/SHEFALI D GORADIA/Primary Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2676
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