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 .
Information Disclosure Statements
The information disclosure statements filed November 13, 2023 (3) and December 2, 2025 have been entered and the references cited therein have been considered by the examiner.
Election/Restrictions
Applicant’s election without traverse of Invention II (claims 7-15) in the reply filed on January 5, 2026 is acknowledged. Accordingly, claims 1-6 and 16-20 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to a nonelected invention, there being no allowable generic or linking claim. Election was made without traverse in the reply filed on January 5, 2026.
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 second plurality of wires comprising a plurality of exposed portions (claim 11) must be shown or the feature(s) canceled from the claim(s). No new matter should be entered.
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.
Specification
The specification is objected to as failing to provide proper antecedent basis for the claimed subject matter. See 37 CFR 1.75(d)(1) and MPEP § 608.01(o). Correction of the following is required: Paragraph 0088 does not describe the second plurality of wires comprising a plurality of exposed portions (claim 11).
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)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claim(s) 7-12 and 14 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by MacAdam et al. (U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2008/0281391).
In regard to claims 7, 10, 11 and 14, MacAdam et al. teach an electrophysiology system comprised of a catheter 10 with a braided conductive member 28 at the distal end (see Fig. 1). Braided conductive member 28 is formed from a plurality of interlaced, electrically conductive filaments 34 (wires) and can be formed in a teardrop shape with a blunt distal end and a tapered proximal end (see para. 0057 and Figs. 4 and 5). Figure 1 shows that the braided conductive member 28 has a first plurality of filaments 34 that are interwoven or interlaced with a second plurality of filaments 34. Each of the filaments 34 (which includes the first plurality and the second plurality) may be electrically isolated from each other by an insulation coating and a portion of the insulation on the filaments can be removed, thus forming an electrode gap with the electrode disposed therein and allowing each of the filaments 34 to form an isolated electrode or sensor (see para. 0058). In regard to claim 8, Figure 12 shows that the first plurality of filaments 34 is non-overlapping with each other and the second plurality of filaments 34 is non-overlapping with each other and at least a portion of the first plurality of filaments 34 overlap with at least a portion of the second plurality of filaments 34. In regard to claim 9, MacAdam et al. teach that a wire may run from each of the filaments 34 to a connector portion 16 that communicates with controller 8 via cable 6 (which is inherently insulated) to provide for mapping and ablation (see para. 0060). In regard to claim 12, Figures 4 and 5 show that each of the filaments 34 has a gathered first end and a second end gathered proximate the tapered proximal end.
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.
The factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 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.
Claim(s) 13 and 15 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over MacAdam et al. (U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2008/0281391).
In regard to claim 13, MacAdam et al. teach that a number of filaments 34 may be grouped together for mapping and ablation and discloses the use of a switch box or multiplexer to configure the signals being received by filaments 34 or ablation energy send to filaments 34 (see para. 0060). In such a scenario, it would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art at the effective filing date of the invention to group the first plurality of filaments 34 to a first main wire and the second plurality of filaments 34 to a second main wire as a means to differentiate the two pluralities based on their grouping or configuration. In regard to claim 15, MacAdam et al. teach that the insulation may be removed in a preferential manner so that a particular portion of the circumferential surface of a filament 34 is exposed (see para. 0058). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the effective filing date of the invention that this broad disclosure includes scenarios where the filaments 34 overlap each other such that they are over or under the electrode area on one or more of the other filaments 34.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to BEVERLY MEINDL FLANAGAN whose telephone number is (571)272-4766. The examiner can normally be reached Mon-Fri 7:30AM to 5:00PM.
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, Linda Dvorak can be reached at 571-272-4764. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/BEVERLY M FLANAGAN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3794