DETAILED ACTION
The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
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.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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.
Claims 1-2, 4-10 and 15-16 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by US 8694157 B2 to Wenderow et al. (Wenderow).
Wenderow discloses:
Regarding claim 1:
A method of robotically controlling interventional devices (), the method comprising:
driving a first interventional device (guide wire or the guide catheter as indicated in column 4, lines 35-50) of an interventional device assembly (14) in response to movement of a joystick (23) of a controller (16), wherein the first interventional device is linked to the joystick (23) such that movement of the joystick (23) causes responsive movement of the first interventional device (column 4, lines 41-48);
receiving a user input (user using the graphical user interface (GUI) to adjust which joystick operates the guide wire (first interventional device) and the working catheter or the guide catheter (second interventional device); column 11, line 54 - column 12, lines 2); and
in response to receiving the user input (user operating the GUI as indicated in column 11, line 54 - column 12, lines 2), linking a second interventional device (the working catheter or the guide catheter as mentioned in column 4, lines 41-48) of the interventional device assembly (14) to the joystick (23) so that movement of the joystick (23) causes responsive movement of the second interventional device (column 11, line 54 - column 12, lines 2 indicates the GUI can change the control of the joystick 23 from controlling the guide wire or the guide catheter to the working catheter or the guide catheter).
Regarding claim 2:
The method of Claim 1, further comprising driving the second interventional device (the working catheter or the guide catheter as mentioned in column 4, lines 41-48) using the joystick (23) after linking the second interventional device to the joystick (23)(as indicated in column 11, line 54 - column 12, lines 2).
Regarding claim 4:
The method of Claim 1, wherein the first interventional device (guide wire as indicated in column 4, lines 35-50) comprises a guidewire and the second interventional device (the working catheter or the guide catheter as mentioned in column 4, lines 41-48) comprises a guide catheter.
Regarding claim 5:
The method of Claim 1, wherein the first interventional device (guide wire or the guide catheter as indicated in column 4, lines 35-50) comprises a guide catheter or a procedure catheter and the second interventional device (the working catheter as mentioned in column 4, lines 41-48) comprises an access catheter.
Regarding claim 6:
The method of Claim 1, wherein the user input comprises actuation of a button (GUI 160) of the controller (16), wherein the controller (16) is configured to link the second interventional device (the working catheter or the guide catheter as mentioned in column 4, lines 41-48) to the joystick (23) while the button is actuated (as indicated in column 11, line 54 - column 12, lines 2).
Regarding claim 7:
The method of Claim 1, wherein driving the first interventional device (guide wire as indicated in column 4, lines 35-50) of the interventional device assembly (14) in response to movement of the joystick (23) comprises driving the first interventional device of the interventional device assembly (14) in response to movement of the joystick (23) along a first axis (can be driven to advance or retract as indicated in column 4, line 43-45), wherein the method further comprises rotating the first interventional device of the interventional device assembly (14) in response to movement of the joystick (23) along a second axis different from the first axis (can be driven to rotate as indicated in column 4, line 43-45).
Regarding claim 8:
The method of Claim 7, wherein the second axis is perpendicular to the first axis (advancing or retracting the guide wire through a vein maybe perpendicular to the axis of rotation of a portion of the guide wire as shown in figure 7).
Regarding claim 9:
The method of Claim 7, wherein the first interventional device (guide wire as indicated in column 4, lines 35-50) is a guidewire.
Regarding claim 10:
The method of Claim 7, wherein the first interventional device (guide wire, guide catheter or working catheter as indicated in column 4, lines 35-50) is an access catheter.
Regarding claim 15:
The method of Claim 1, wherein the controller (16) is in communication with a control system (40 as shown in figure 3 that includes a processor; column 8, lines 56-67) having one or more hardware processors.
Regarding claim 16:
The method of Claim 15, wherein the one or more hardware processors are configured to control movement of the first interventional device (guide wire as indicated in column 4, lines 35-50) and the second interventional device (the working catheter or the guide catheter as mentioned in column 4, lines 41-48) in response to user inputs (as shown in figure 2 with the controller 40 connected to the controls 16 and the system 12) using the controller (16).
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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.
Claim(s) 11 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over US 8694157 B2 to Wenderow et al. (Wenderow) as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of WO 2019197673 A1 to Cazeneuve et al. (Cazeneuve).
Regarding claim 11:
Wenderow fails to disclose:
The method of Claim 1, wherein driving the first interventional device of the interventional device assembly in response to movement of the joystick of the controller comprises advancing the first interventional device to achieve supra-aortic access.
Cazeneuve teaches:
A controlled device that included a catheter (1) that can be advanced to reach the supra aortic trunk (page 12, lines 5-6) to perform cardiac ablations (page 2, lines 5-10).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Wenderow to use the system to achieve supra-aortic access as taught by Cazeneuve to perform cardiac ablations (Cazeneuve, page 2, lines 5-10).
Claim(s) 12-14 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over US 8694157 B2 to Wenderow et al. (Wenderow) as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of WO 2020061240 A1 to Stepanauskas et al. (Stepanauskas).
Regarding claim 12:
Wenderow fails to disclose:
The method of Claim 1, further comprising driving the second interventional device to a treatment site for performing a neurovascular procedure in response to movement of the joystick.
Stepanauskas teaches:
A method that includes a robotic catheter procedure that can include a neurovascular procedure (figure 7) that can be used to remove a clot (¶0004 and ¶0043).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Wenderow to further include using the intervention device of Wenderow to perform a neurovascular procedure as taught by Stepanauskas to remove a clot (Stepanauskas, ¶0004 and ¶0043).
Regarding claim 13:
All limitations of the claim are taught by the 35 USC 103 rejection of claim 12 by Wenderow and Stepanauskas:
The method of Claim 12, further comprising performing the neurovascular procedure (see the procedure of Stepanauskas incorporated into Wenderow) in response to a user input on the controller (see the joystick control of Wenderow).
Regarding claim 14:
All limitations of the claim are taught by the 35 USC 103 rejection of claim 12 by Wenderow and Stepanauskas:
The method of Claim 13, wherein performing the neurovascular procedure comprises aspirating a clot (see the neurovascular procedure including removing a clot as taught by Stepanauskas incorporated into Wenderow).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claim 3 is objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. The following is pertinent prior art:
US-7727185-B2
Weitzner
See the input device 96 to the inner and outer catheter 85/84
US-9320479-B2
Wenderow
See the joysticks 23/25/29
WO-2009137410-A1
Wenderow
See the joystick 152
WO-2011109282-A1
MURPHY
See the joysticks 23/25/29
WO-2012050877-A1
MURPHY
See the joysticks 23/25/29
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to WESLEY HARRIS whose telephone number is (571)272-3665. The examiner can normally be reached M to F, 9am-5pm.
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/WESLEY G HARRIS/Examiner, Art Unit 3783
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