DETAILED ACTION
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 .
Claims status: amended claims: 1, 8, 11; canceled claim: 6; the rest is unchanged.
Continued Examination Under 37 CFR 1.114
A request for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, including the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e), was filed in this application after final rejection. Since this application is eligible for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114. Applicant's submission filed on 06/30/2026 has been entered.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments have been considered but are moot because the new ground of rejection does not rely on any combination of references applied in the prior rejection of record for any teaching or matter specifically challenged in the argument. A new secondary reference is currently being used in the present rejection.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of 35 U.S.C. 112(a):
(a) IN GENERAL.—The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor or joint inventor of carrying out the invention.
The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112:
The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor of carrying out his invention.
Claims 1-7, 11-15 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(a) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), first paragraph, as failing to comply with the written description requirement. The claim(s) contains subject matter which was not described in the specification in such a way as to reasonably convey to one skilled in the relevant art that the inventor or a joint inventor, or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the inventor(s), at the time the application was filed, had possession of the claimed invention.
Claim 1 recites “different materials of the specimen are differentiated based upon photon counts within the separate energy bins by comparing per-pixel values against a calibrated stored table of densities of different material”. However, the specification lacks support for the claimed limitation.
Claim 11 recites “different materials of the specimen are differentiated based upon photon counts within the separate energy bins by comparing per-pixel values against a calibrated stored table of densities of different materials”. However, the specification lacks support for the claimed limitation.
Claims 2-7 & 12-15 are rejected on the same basis as independent claims 1 & 11 for dependency reasons.
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.
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.
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.
Claims 1-5, 7-15 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Butani et al. (US 2021/0199603 A1; pub. Jul. 1, 2021) in view of Gilat-Schmidt et al. (US 2024/0374225 A1; pub. Nov. 14, 2024).
Regarding claim 1, Butani et al. disclose in a first embodiment: A cabinet x-ray image system for obtaining x-ray images and colorized or grey scale density x-ray images of a specimen, the system comprising: a cabinet defining an interior chamber wherein the cabinet comprises a walled enclosure surrounding the interior chamber (para. [0072]), a door configured to cover the interior chamber, a sampling chamber for containing the specimen (para. [0015], [0072]); wherein confined within the cabinet are: an optical camera configured to capture a real-time optical image of the specimen (para. [0010], [0013]) an x-ray system including: a multispectral x-ray source (abstract, para. [0041]); an x-ray detector including a photon-counting detector (abstract, para. [0041]); and a specimen platform (abstract); a display (para. [0015]); a controller configured to: selectively energize the multispectral x-ray source to emit x-rays through the specimen to the photon counting detector (para. [0016]); create a density x-ray image of the specimen wherein the densities of the different areas of the specimen are displayed via Analog Digital Units (para. [0101]-[0103]); and a real-time image at substantially the same orientation when the x-ray source is energized (para. [0010], [0041]); and selectively display the density x-ray image of the specimen on the display (para. [0016]), receive video data from the optical camera and determine an orientation of the specimen based on the received video data (para. [0011]).
In the first embodiment Butani et al. are silent about: an x-ray detector including a photon-counting detector configured to detect and individually count discrete photon events according to one or more preset energy thresholds; control the optical camera and the photon counting detector to collect a projection x-ray image of the specimen including concurrently capturing a standard x-ray image, a photon-counting image, wherein different materials of the specimen are differentiated based upon photon counts within the separate energy bins by comparing per-pixel values against a calibrated stored table of densities of different materials; wherein the density of different areas of the specimen is determined from discrete photon-event counts classified into separate energy bins according to the one or more pre-set energy thresholds and wherein different materials are differentiated based upon photon counts within the separate energy bins.
In a further embodiment Butani et al. disclose: control the optical camera and the photon counting detector to collect a projection x-ray image of the specimen including concurrently capturing a standard x-ray image, a photon-counting image, and a real-time image when the x-ray source is energized (para. [0041], [0045], [0123]), motivated by the benefits for detecting different densities of the sample (Butani et al. para. [0123]).
In light of the benefits for detecting different densities of the sample as taught by Butani et al., it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the two embodiments of Butani et al.
In a similar field of endeavor Gilat-Schimdt et al. disclose: an x-ray detector including a photon-counting detector configured to detect and individually count discrete photon events according to one or more preset energy thresholds (para. [0036], [0057]); wherein different materials of the specimen are differentiated based upon photon counts within the separate energy bins by comparing per-pixel values against a calibrated stored table of densities of different materials (para. [0036]-[0037], [0057]); wherein the density of different areas of the specimen is determined from discrete photon-event counts classified into separate energy bins according to the one or more pre-set energy thresholds (para. [0036]-[0037], [0057]) motivated by the benefits for improved diagnostic accuracy (Gilat-Schimdt et al. para. [0038]).
In light of the benefits for improved diagnostic accuracy as taught by Gilat-Schimdt et al., it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the apparatus of Butani et al. with the teachings of Gilat-Schimdt et al.
Regarding claim 2, Butani et al. disclose: the specimen platform is configured for excised tissue, organ or bone specimens (para. [0004]).
Regarding claim 3, Butani et al. disclose: the specimen platform is configured for any organic or inorganic specimen that fits inside an x-ray cabinet (para. [0004]).
Regarding claim 4, Butani et al. disclose: the cabinet x-ray image system further includes: an optical camera configured to capture an optical image of the specimen; and the controller is further configured to: control the optical camera system to capture and collect the optical image of the specimen; and selectively display the density x-ray image and the optical image of the specimen on the display (para. [0007], [0013], [0016]).
Regarding claim 5, Butani et al. disclose: the density x-ray image and the optical image of the specimen are displayed overlaid (para. [0042]).
Regarding claim 7, Butani et al. disclose: the different areas of the specimen of the density x-ray image are displayed in different grey scale, different color or different shades of color (para. [0101]-[0102]).
Regarding claim 8, Butani et al. and Gilat-Schimdt et al. disclose: A method for obtaining x-ray images and colorized or grey scale density x-ray images of a specimen using a cabinet x-ray image system, wherein the cabinet x-ray image system comprises: a cabinet defining an interior chamber wherein the cabinet comprises a walled enclosure surrounding the interior chamber, a door configured to cover the interior chamber and a sampling chamber for containing the specimen, wherein confined within the cabinet are: an optical camera configured to capture a real time optical image of the specimen; an x-ray system including: an x-ray source; an x-ray detector including a photon-counting detector; and a specimen platform; and a display; the method comprising: using the photon-counting detector to detect and individually count discrete photon events according to one or more energy thresholds; using a controller to: selectively energize the multispectral x-ray source to emit x-rays through the specimen to the counting detector; control the optical camera and counting detector to collect a projection x-ray image of the specimen including concurrently capturing a standard x-ray image, a photon-counting image, and a real-time image at substantially the same orientation when the x-ray source is energized; receive video data from the optical camera and determine an orientation of the specimen based on the received video data; wherein the density of different areas of the specimen is determined from discrete photon-event counts classified into separate energy bins according to the one or more pre-set energy thresholds; create a density x-ray image of the specimen wherein the densities of the different areas of the specimen are displayed via Analog Digital and selectively display the density x-ray image of the specimen on the display (the claim contains the same substantive limitations as claim 1, therefore the claim is rejected on the same basis).
Regarding claim 9, Butani et al. disclose: the controller is further configured to:
control the optical camera system to capture and collect the optical image of the specimen; and
selectively display the density x-ray image and the optical image of the specimen on the display; and the method further includes
controlling the optical camera system to capture and collect the optical image of the specimen; and
selectively displaying the density x-ray image and the optical image of the specimen on the display (para. [0119]).
Regarding claim 10, Butani et al. disclose: the density x-ray image and the optical image of the specimen are displayed overlaid (para. [0007]).
Regarding claim 11, Butani et al. and Gilat-Schimdt et al. disclose: A method for obtaining x-ray images and colorized or grey scale density x-ray images of a specimen using a cabinet x-ray image system, wherein the cabinet X- ray image system comprises: a cabinet defining an interior chamber wherein the cabinet comprises a walled enclosure surrounding the interior chamber, a door configured to cover the interior chamber and a sampling chamber for containing the specimen, wherein confined within the cabinet are: an x-ray system including: a multispectral x-ray source; an x-ray detector including a photon-counting detector configured to detect and individually count discrete photon events according to one or more pre- set energy thresholds; and a specimen platform; a display; the method comprising: using the photon-counting detector to detect and individually count discrete photon events according to one or more energy thresholds; using a controller to: selectively energize the multispectral x-ray source to emit x-rays through the specimen to the photon-counting detector; and control the optical camera and the counting detector to collect a projection x-ray image of the specimen including concurrently capturing a standard x-ray image, a photon-counting image, and a real-time image at substantially the same orientation when the x-ray source is energized; data receive video data from the optical camera and determine an orientation of the specimen based on the received video data; wherein the density of different areas of the specimen is determined from discrete photon-event counts classified into separate energy bins according to the one or more pre-set energy thresholds; wherein different materials of the specimen are differentiated based upon photon counts within the separate energy bins by comparing per-pixel values against a calibrated stored table of densities of different materials; create a density x-ray image of the specimen wherein the densities of the different areas of the specimen are displayed via Analog Digital and selectively display the density x-ray image of the specimen on the display (the claim contains the same substantive limitations as claim 1, therefore the claim is rejected on the same basis).
Regarding claim 12, Butani et al. disclose the controller is further configured to: control the optical camera system to capture and collect the optical image of the specimen (para. [0041]); and selectively display the density x-ray image and the optical image of the specimen on the display (para. [0016]); and the method further includes controlling the optical camera system to capture and collect the optical image of the specimen (para. [0041]); and selectively displaying the density x-ray image and the optical image of the specimen on the display (para. [0016]).
Regarding claim 13, Butani et al. disclose: the x-ray detector utilized performs photon-counting (para. [0019]).
Regarding claim 14, Butani et al. disclose: the photon-counting detector may be photomultipliers, Geiger counters, single-photon avalanche diodes, superconducting nanowire single-photon detectors, transition edge sensors, CCD, scintillation counters, and hybrid pixel photon counting detectors (para. [0054]).
Regarding claim 15, Butani et al. disclose: the different areas of the specimen that are photon-counted are displayed in different grey scale, different color or different shades of color (para. [0016]).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to MAMADOU FAYE whose telephone number is (571)270-0371. The examiner can normally be reached Mon – Fri 9AM-6PM.
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/MAMADOU FAYE/Examiner, Art Unit 2884
/UZMA ALAM/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2884
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