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. 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)(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. (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 1-7 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102 (a)(1) and (a)(2) as being anticipated by Eaton et al. (U . S. patent 5,938,616, hereinafter “Eaton”). Regarding claim 1, Eaton teaches an endoscope comprising: A control portion including a housing (figure 1 element 22 shown by the right arrow in the first image below ) and an actuator (figure 1 element 2 8 shown by the middle arrow in the image below ) A n insertion tube (figure 1 element 12 shown by the left arrow in the image below ) configured for insertion into a cavity of a patient to perform at least one of visual inspection and a therapeutic intervention (col. 5 lines 51-55) , w herein the actuator is configured to articulate an articulating end of the insertion tube (col 1. Lines 58-62) A first alignment indicator (figure 4 element 82 shown with an arrow in the second image below ) on the housing A second alignment indicator (figure 4 element 80 circled in the second image below ) on the actuator, wherein when the second alignment indicator on the actuator is aligned with the first alignment indicator on the housing, the insertion tube is articulated in a neutral position allowing insertion and removal of the insertion tube from the cavity of the patient (col. 4 lines 16-20) Regarding claim 2, Eaton teaches an endoscope wherein the actuator includes a first articulation knob (figure 4 element 28 shown by the left arrow below ) and a second articulation knob (figure 4 element 30 shown by the right arrow below ) that are mounted coaxially. Regarding claim 3, Eaton teaches an endoscope wherein the first articulation knob includes the second alignment indicator (figure 4 element 80 on element 28), and the second articulation knob includes a third alignment indicator (figure 4 element 80 on element 30 ) . Regarding claim 4, Eaton teaches an endoscope wherein the insertion tube is in the neutral position when the second alignment indicator on the first articulation knob and the third alignment indicator on the second articulation knob are aligned with the first alignment indicator on the housing (column 4 lines 16-20). Regarding claim 5, Eaton teaches an endoscope wherein the actuator includes a first articulation knob and a second articulation knob, and the first articulation knob includes the second alignment indicator (figure 4 element 80 on element 28 labeled “ Second ” ) and a third alignment indicator (figure 4 the raised edge on element 28 labeled “ Third ” ) , and one of the housing and the second articulation knob includes a fourth alignment indicator (figure 4 the raised edge on 30 labeled “ Fourth ” ) . Regarding claim 6, Eaton teaches an endoscope wherein the insertion tube is in the neutral position when the second alignment indicator on the first articulation knob is aligned with the first alignment indicator (figure 4 element 82) on the housing (figure 4 circled below) and the third alignment indicator on the first articulation knob is aligned with the fourth alignment indicator on the second articulation knob (figure 4 shown by arrows below) . Regarding claim 7, Eaton teaches an endoscope wherein the first alignment indicator and the second alignment indicator are visually different than the third alignment indicator and the fourth alignment indicator. As seen in figure 4, the first and second alignment indicators circled below are visually different than the third and fourth indicators pointed to by arrows below. 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. 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 . 2266950 3098165 Claim 8 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Eaton in view of Gorringe et al. (U.S. Patent Publication 2921/0353132, hereinafter “Gorringe”) . While Eaton teaches the elements of claim 1, it fails to teach an endoscope wherein the actuator comprises a lever. Gorringe teaches an endoscope wherein the actuator (figure 2 element 118) comprises a lever. The two knob actuators of Eaton are said in the specification to respectively deflect the distal end in two transverse planes (col. 2 40-44), while Gorringe’s lever actuator controls angular movement of the distal end from -270 to +270 degrees from neutral (paragraph 48). It would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Eaton with the lever actuator of Gorringe in order to add angular rotation capability to the endoscope ’s distal end . Conclusion Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to FILLIN "Examiner name" \* MERGEFORMAT DAYTON BARKER whose telephone number is FILLIN "Phone number" \* MERGEFORMAT (571)272-0912 . The examiner can normally be reached FILLIN "Work Schedule?" \* MERGEFORMAT N/A . 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, FILLIN "SPE Name?" \* MERGEFORMAT Michael Carey can be reached at FILLIN "SPE Phone?" \* MERGEFORMAT 5712707235 . The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300. Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000. /DAYTON HYUN JIN BARKER/ Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3795 /MICHAEL J CAREY/ Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3795