DETAILED ACTION
The following is an initial Office Action upon examination of the above-identified application on the merits. Claims 1-8 are pending in this application.
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 .
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.
Priority
Receipt is acknowledged of certified copies of papers required by 37 CFR 1.55.
Information Disclosure Statement
The examiner has considered the information disclosure statements (IDS) submitted on 24 February 2025.
Drawings
Figure 1 should be designated by a legend such as --Prior Art-- because only that which is old is illustrated. See MPEP § 608.02(g). Corrected drawings in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(d) are required in reply to the Office action to avoid abandonment of the application. The replacement sheet(s) should be labeled “Replacement Sheet” in the page header (as per 37 CFR 1.84(c)) so as not to obstruct any portion of the drawing figures. 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.
The drawings are objected to as failing to comply with 37 CFR 1.84(p)(5) because they do not include the following reference sign(s) mentioned in the description: S10 [0024, 0026] is not shown in figures 4 and 6; S14 [0024] is not shown in figure 4; S20 and S24 [0025] are not shown in figure 5; S22 and S30 [0026] are not shown in figure 6.
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. 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 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.
(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) 1, 2, and 4-8 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1)/102(a)(2) as being anticipated by US Pub. No. 2022/0338965 A1 (USPN 12,239,499 B2) to WEISS et al.
As per claim 1, the WEISS et al. reference discloses an apparatus for processing a dental prosthesis, comprising: an intraoral scanner (see [0034], “intraoral scanner”) configured to obtain oral shape data (“scanning data”) by scanning (see [0035], “intraorally scanning”) an oral cavity of a patient (“patient”); a remote control unit (see [0034], “PC”) comprising CAD/CAM software (“CAD/CAM software”) configured to generate processing data (“construction data”) for a dental prosthesis (see [0035], “dental restoration”) from the obtained oral shape data (“scanning data”); and a prosthesis processing unit (“dental tool machine”) configured to perform processing preparation work (“preparing step (S4)”) for a prosthesis (“dental restoration”) and to process the dental prosthesis (“machining a dental restoration”) according to prosthesis processing data (“construction data”) transmitted from the remote control unit (“PC”), and having a user interface (see [0039], “user-interface”) through which a processing preparation command (“operator with guidance”) for performing the processing preparation work (“preparing step (S4)”) is directly entered (“manually equipped”).
As per claim 2, the WEISS et al. reference discloses the user interface (“user-interface”) comprises a processing preparation command input unit (see [0040], “another input means”) configured to allow a user to enter the processing preparation command (“operator with guidance”) to cause the prosthesis processing unit (“dental tool machine”) to performs the processing preparation work (“preparing step (S4)”) in response to processing preparation of the prosthesis processing unit (“dental tool machine”) having not been completed (“manually input”) and the processing data (“construction data”) having not been transmitted (“manually input”) from the remote control unit (“PC”).
As per claim 4, the WEISS et al. reference discloses the user interface (“user-interface”) further comprises: a workpiece mounting state check unit (see figure 1b, “workpiece insertion”) configured to provide a user with workpiece mounting state information (“workpiece insertion”) by displaying a state in which a workpiece (“workpiece”) to be processed into a prosthesis (“dental restoration”) is mounted on the prosthesis processing unit (“dental tool machine”); and a processing tool mounting state check unit (see figure 1b, “dental tool insertion”) configured to provide the user with processing tool mounting state information (“dental tool insertion”) by displaying a state in which a processing tool (“dental tool”) for processing the workpiece (“workpiece”) into a prosthesis (“dental restoration”) of a predetermined shape (see [0005], “shape”) is mounted on the prosthesis processing unit (“dental tool machine”).
As per claim 5, the WEISS et al. reference discloses a processing tool (“dental tool”) mounted on the prosthesis processing unit (“dental tool machine”) has four or more processing tools (see [0011], “one or more dental tools”) with different processing capabilities (see [0026], “one or more different dental tools”).
As per claim 6, the WEISS et al. reference discloses a method for processing a dental prosthesis using an apparatus for processing a dental prosthesis comprising an intraoral scanner (see [0034], “intraoral scanner”) configured to obtain oral shape data (“scanning data”) by scanning (see [0035], “intraorally scanning”) an oral cavity of a patient (“patient”); a remote control unit (see [0034], “PC”) comprising CAD/CAM software (“CAD/CAM software”) configured to generate processing data (“construction data”) for a dental prosthesis (see [0035], “dental restoration”) from the obtained oral shape data (“scanning data”); and a prosthesis processing unit (“dental tool machine”) configured to perform processing preparation work (“preparing step (S4)”) for a prosthesis (“dental restoration”) and to process the dental prosthesis (“machining a dental restoration”) according to prosthesis processing data (“construction data”) transmitted from the remote control unit (“PC”), and having a user interface (see [0039], “user-interface”) through which a processing preparation command (“operator with guidance”) for performing the processing preparation work (“preparing step (S4)”) is directly entered (“manually equipped”), the method comprising: in response to processing data (“construction data”) having not been transmitted (“manually input”) from the remote control unit (“PC”) to the prosthesis processing unit (“dental tool machine”), activating a processing preparation command input unit (see [0040], “another input means”) of the user interface (“user-interface”) mounted on the prosthesis processing unit (“dental tool machine”) so that a user is allowed to directly enter (“manually equipped”) a processing preparation command (“operator with guidance”) into the prosthesis processing unit (“dental tool machine”), and performing processing preparation work (“preparing step (S4)”) in the prosthesis processing unit (“dental tool machine”) when the user operates the processing preparation command input unit (“another input means”) and enters the processing preparation command (“operator with guidance”) into the prosthesis processing unit (“dental tool machine”); checking a processing preparation state (see [0045], “testing means”) of the prosthesis processing unit (“dental tool machine”) in response to the processing data (“construction data”) having been transmitted (see [0040], “communication means”) from the remote control unit (“PC”) to the prosthesis processing unit (“dental tool machine”); and starting processing of the dental prosthesis (“dental restoration”) in response to processing preparation (“preparing step (S4)”) of the prosthesis processing unit (“dental tool machine”) having been completed (“communicating”) in the checking (“testing means”).
As per claim 7, the WEISS et al. reference discloses in response to processing of one dental prosthesis (“dental restoration”) being completed and the user collecting the dental prosthesis (“dental restoration”), the prosthesis processing unit (“dental tool machine”) turns into in a state in which processing data (“construction data”) has not been transmitted (“manually input”), and the processing preparation command input unit (“another input means”) of the user interface (“user-interface”) mounted on the prosthesis processing unit (“dental tool machine”) is activated again.
As per claim 8, the WEISS et al. reference discloses in response to the user operating the reactivated processing preparation command input unit (“another input means”) and entering a processing preparation command (“operator with guidance”) into the prosthesis processing unit (“dental tool machine”), the prosthesis processing unit (“dental tool machine”) performs processing preparation work (“preparing step (S4)”) for the next processing (see [0045], “present, properly functioning and ready for use”).
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.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter:
As per claim 3, the prior art of record taken alone or in combination fails to teach the processing preparation comprises one or more selected from the group consisting of (i) checking whether a workpiece is mounted, and measuring a mounting position of the workpiece, (ii) checking whether a processing tool is mounted, and measuring a mounting position of the processing tool, (iii) checking a processing environment, and (iv) checking whether a door of the prosthesis processing unit is closed; especially in view of applicant’s use of the phrase “group consisting of.”
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
The following references are cited to further show the state of the art with respect to manufacturing dental restoration:
USPN 8,934,688 B2 to Jouhikainen
USPN 8,693,748 B2 to Jouhikainen
DE 112014001417 B4 to AZERNIKOV et al.
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/CRYSTAL J BARNES-BULLOCK/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2117 27 February 2026