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 .
Priority
Receipt is acknowledged of certified copies of papers required by 37 CFR 1.55.
Drawings
The drawings are objected to under 37 CFR 1.83(a). The drawings must show every feature of the invention specified in the claims. Therefore, the first port of the support member and the first and second port of the light guide column, the near infrared light source, the photodiode, and the micro-control unit as set forth in claim 1, the acquisition tentacles coated with a conductive gel as set forth in claim 3, the inner wall of the light guide column coated with a reflective coating as set forth in claim 5, the preset reference electrode and the preset right-leg driving electrode as set forth in claim 6, the output port of the right-leg driving electrode module as set forth in claim 12, and the Wi-Fi module, Zigbee module Bluetooth module as set forth in claim 17 must be shown or the feature(s) canceled from the claim(s). No new matter should be entered.
Also, specific circuit elements( resistor and capacitor elements etc.) set forth in the specification and the claims are not clearly enumerated and visible within the drawings.
Corrected drawing sheets in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(d) are required in reply to the Office action to avoid abandonment of the application. Any amended replacement drawing sheet should include all of the figures appearing on the immediate prior version of the sheet, even if only one figure is being amended. The figure or figure number of an amended drawing should not be labeled as “amended.” If a drawing figure is to be canceled, the appropriate figure must be removed from the replacement sheet, and where necessary, the remaining figures must be renumbered and appropriate changes made to the brief description of the several views of the drawings for consistency. Additional replacement sheets may be necessary to show the renumbering of the remaining figures. Each drawing sheet submitted after the filing date of an application must be labeled in the top margin as either “Replacement Sheet” or “New Sheet” pursuant to 37 CFR 1.121(d). If the changes are not accepted by the examiner, the applicant will be notified and informed of any required corrective action in the next Office action. The objection to the drawings will not be held in abeyance.
Claim Objections
Claims 9 and 17 are objected to because of the following informalities: in claim 9, lines 7-9, “the other common end of the sixth resistor (R9) and the second capacitor (C3) connected in parallel is connected to one end of the seventh resistor (R6),” is unclear and in claim 17, lines 6-7, “so that the EEG data and the functional near infrared data of the user's brain is used to be converted into an EEG and a functional near infrared spectrogram respectively the data processing device.” Is unclear. Appropriate correction is required.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 101
35 U.S.C. 101 reads as follows:
Whoever invents or discovers any new and useful process, machine, manufacture, or composition of matter, or any new and useful improvement thereof, may obtain a patent therefor, subject to the conditions and requirements of this title.
Claims 1-14 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 101 because Section 33(a) of the America Invents Act reads as follows:
Notwithstanding any other provision of law, no patent may issue on a claim directed to or encompassing a human organism.
Claims 1-14 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 101 and section 33(a) of the America Invents Act as being directed to or encompassing a human organism. See also Animals - Patentability, 1077 Off. Gaz. Pat. Office 24 (April 21, 1987) (indicating that human organisms are excluded from the scope of patentable subject matter under 35 U.S.C. 101). Regarding claim 1, line 6, “the acquisition tentacles are in contact with a user's scalp to acquire the user's EEG signal;” positively claims the user’s scalp in contact with the acquisition tentacles. The acquisition tentacles should be “ adapted to be ” or “configured to be” in contact with the user’s scalp.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b):
(b) CONCLUSION.—The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph:
The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention.
Claims 1-19 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention.
The claims are narrative in form, replete with unclear language and include claimed elements that are not clearly set forth or shown in the drawings.
Regarding claim 1, line 12, “the first port of the light guide column” lacks antecedent basis. The claim sets forth “ a first port of the support member” and a “second port of the light guide column” but does not set forth “ a first port of the light guide column”.
Regarding claim 4, lines 5-6, “the voltage signal output by the transimpedance amplifier” is unclear. Claim 1 sets forth that “a transimpedance amplifier connected to the photodiode and configured to convert the current signal into an analog voltage signal” but claim 1 never actually seems to “output” a voltage signal.
Regarding claim 6, the scope of the claim is not clear since it is unclear if “the preset reference electrode”, “the preset right-leg driving electrode” are intended to be positively claimed as part of the device.
Regarding claim 9, lines 7-12, “the other end of the fifth resistor (R4)”, “the other common end of the sixth resistor (R9)”, “ the other end of the seventh resistor (R6)”, “the other common end of the sixth resistor (R9)” lack antecedent basis.
Regarding claim 13, line 3, “the other end”, “the other end of the twelfth resistor (R12)” lack antecedent basis.
The examiner interprets claim 15 to incorporate the device structure of claim 1. Therefore, the device in claim 1 already sets forth “an electroencephalogram (EEG) signal acquisition device”, which acquires the user’s “EEG signal”, claim 1 also sets forth a “a near-red signal acquisition device”, “a near infrared light source and a photodiode” which converts the received light into “a current signal”, “a transimpedance amplifier”, “a voltage signal”, “ a first and second analog-to-digital converter”, and “a micro-control unit” etc.
Regarding claim 15, throughout the claim also sets forth “an electroencephalogram (EEG) signal acquisition device”, which acquires the user’s “EEG signal”, claim 1 also sets forth a “a near-red signal acquisition device”, “a near infrared light source and a photodiode” which converts the received light into “a current signal”, “a transimpedance amplifier”, “a voltage signal”, “ a first and second analog-to-digital converter”, and “a micro-control unit” etc.. It is unclear if these elements set forth in claim 15 are additional elements to those forth in claim 1 or intended to refer to the elements already set forth in claim 1 and incorporated into claim 15.
Furthermore in claim 15, it is set forth that the first analog-to-digital converter transmits the first digital signal to a micro-control unit for processing to obtain EEG data of a user's brain and the second analog-to-digital converter transmits the second digital signal to the micro-control unit for processing to obtain functional near infrared data of the user's brain, but there does not seem to be a positive step where the micro-control unit actually processes the received digital signals to obtain the “the EEG data and the functional near infrared data” that is then analyzed in the last step of the claim.
Regarding claim 17, line 2, sets forth “after the micro-control unit converts the first digital signal and the second digital signal into the EEG data and the functional near infrared data of the user's brain” however this step is not positively done in claim 15.
Regarding claims 16-19, throughout the claims it is not clear to which elements the claims are referring, those elements positively set forth in claim 1 and incorporated into claim 15 or the additional elements positively set forth in claim 15.
Conclusion
Claims 1-15 would be allowable if rewritten or amended to overcome the rejection(s) under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), 2nd paragraph, set forth in this Office action.
The following is an examiner’s statement of reasons for allowance:
The prior art of record Von Luehmann et al.( US 20170281014) teaches both EEG and Near-Infrared Spectroscopy (fNIRS) biosignal acquisition device for the acquisition, in particular the concurrent or simultaneous acquisition, of optical and electrical biosignals. The optical and electrical biosignals are both received by an analog front end device for biosignals, with an opto-electric converter for converting the optical biosignals into electrical signals.
LUO et al.( 104146707) teaches a brain multi-mode data collection device and application. brain multi-mode data collection device comprises: a light source probe, a detection probe, a fixer and a head cover. the head is equipped with several said anchor, said light source probe and a detection probe are respectively connected on the retainer; the light source probe and detection probe are the same structure, the light source probe and detection probe respectively comprises shell body, brain electrical electrode and the fiber bundle, the brain electrical electrode are arranged on the said housing body, said optical fiber beam main body installed in the shell, an optical fiber bundle two ends extends out of the shell. In order to make the photoelectric synchronous detection can obtain the best brain data. The invention also claims the application of brain multimodal data detection probe. the arrangement mode can utilize limited space of scalp, expanding cerebral multimodal signal detection channel number to the maximum extent. [0008] the light source probe and detection probe are the same structure, the light source probe and detection probe respectively comprises shell, brain electrodes and fiber bundle; the brain electrical electrode are arranged on the said housing body, said optical fiber beam main body installed in the shell, an optical fiber bundle two ends extends out of the shell; when using, the brain electrical electrode connected via electrode leads and external brain wave amplifier; one end of the optical fiber beam of the source detector close to the scalp, near infrared light source is coupled with the outside at the other end, and one end of the optical fiber bundle by said detecting probe close to the scalp, the other end near infrared collecting amplifying system coupled with the external.
DUAN et al.( 106037667) teaches a brain and collecting the near infrared spectrum combined device, comprising a supporting body covering the head, and several fixing seat is set on the supporting body, the fixed seat is respectively fixed with brain electrical electrode and near infrared probe from near infrared transmitting probe and a near infrared detection probe, the near infrared probe by integrating EEG electrode and EEG electrode form an integrative structure or by selectively coupled on the fixed seat of the EEG electrode form a split structure; said support body is provided with a fixing locating hole, the fixing seat is a cylinder, the outer surface of the cylinder is provided with a fixing groove for fixing the supporting body; the invention has rational structure, fixing seat can be simultaneously compatible near infrared probe and the brain electrical electrode, which can actualize all sites simultaneously in the same area the EEG and near infrared signal collection, improving brain wave collecting device and density of near infrared and expands the application range, it can meet the requirements of different research and application.
The closest prior art of record above does not reasonably teach alone or in combination the subject matter of the independent claim(s) including a cap; an electroencephalogram (EEG) signal acquisition device which comprises a support member and a plurality of acquisition tentacles as acquisition electrodes; the support member is a hollow cylinder, the acquisition tentacles are disposed along a circumference of a first port of the support member, and the first port is connected to the cap; the acquisition tentacles are in contact with a user's scalp to acquire the user's EEG signal; a near-red signal acquisition device which comprises a light guide column, a near infrared light source and a photodiode; the light guide column is a transparent hollow cylinder with a diameter smaller than that of the support member; the light guide column is disposed within an inner periphery of the support member, the near infrared light source and the photodiode are disposed at a second port of the light guide column, and the first port of the light guide column is fixed on the cap; after near infrared light emitted by the near infrared light source arrives at the user's cerebral cortex through the light guide column; the photodiode receives near infrared light not absorbed by oxyhemoglobin and deoxyhemoglobin of the user's cerebral cortex which is scattered and arrives at the photodiode through the light guide column, and converts the unabsorbed near infrared light into a current signal; a transimpedance amplifier connected to the photodiode and configured to convert the current signal into an analog voltage signal; a first analog-to-digital converter connected to the EEG signal acquisition device and configured to convert the EEG signal into a first digital signal; a second analog-to-digital converter connected to the transimpedance amplifier and configured to convert the analog voltage signal into a second digital signal; and a micro-control unit connected to the first analog-to-digital converter and the second analog-to-digital converter, and configured to receive the first digital signal output by the first analog-to-digital converter and the second digital signal output by the second analog-to-digital converter.
Any comments considered necessary by applicant must be submitted no later than the payment of the issue fee and, to avoid processing delays, should preferably accompany the issue fee. Such submissions should be clearly labeled “Comments on Statement of Reasons for Allowance.”
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Chance(US 5987351) teaches in vivo examination using a spectrophotometer that generates optical radiation and characterizes biological tissue by detecting photons that have migrated in the tissue, an array of optical fibers that transmit radiation between the spectrophotometer and biological tissue.
LI( US 20190307352) teaches a control method and device based on brain signal, and a human-machine interaction device, which periodically acquire EEG signals and cerebral oxygen signals within a target period, generate an electroencephalogram (EEG) wave curve representing changes of the EEG signals and a cerebral oxygen wave curve representing changes of the cerebral oxygen signals respectively within the target period.
Mitra et al.( US 20170172447) teaches a sensor module includes a main electrode base. The sensor module also includes a plurality of pins protruding from the main electrode base. The plurality of pins is arranged such that, when applied on a subject, the pins make contact with skin of the subject or are in close proximity with the skin of the subject. The main electrode base comprises electronic circuitry for near infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) measurements and electronic circuitry for electroencephalography (EEG) measurements, both connected to the plurality of pins. The plurality of pins includes electrically conductive pins. The plurality of pins also includes at least one source waveguide pin configured for light emitting purposes or at least one detector waveguide pin configured for light detection purposes.
ASKARI et al.( WO 2019000088) teaches Electroencephalography (EEG) device for monitoring patient using near infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) and EEG.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to BRIAN L CASLER whose telephone number is (571)272-4956. The examiner can normally be reached M-Th 6:30 to 4:30.
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/BRIAN L CASLER/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3791