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 .
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and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114.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 April 1, 2026 has been entered.
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed April 1, 2026 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive.
In response to applicant’s argument that Bellantoni does not teach the claimed device, a recitation of the intended use of the claimed invention must result in a structural difference between the claimed invention and the prior art in order to patentably distinguish the claimed invention from the prior art. If the prior art structure is capable of performing the intended use, then it meets the claim. In the instant case, although Bellantoni does not use the term ‘lumen’, Bellantoni discloses that the scalpets are hollow for cutting and taking out patches of skin (Bellantoni, C:4, L:10-20), and therefore configured to ‘transfer tissue away from the target site via the lumen’, since the tissue is cut into the hollow interior of the distal end of the scalpets and when the device is removed from the scalp, the tissue is then transferred away from the target site by being retained within the hollow interior of the scalpets and removed from the target site. Therefore, applicant’s arguments are not persuasive.
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.
Claims 65-84 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Bellantoni, deceased eat al (US 3867942).
Regular claim 65, Bellatoni discloses a device comprising: a scalpet assembly (31, 32, multiple scalpets, figure 9) comprising a housing (20) coupled to a scalpet array (31, 32, multiple scalpets, figure 9) including a plurality of scalpets (31), wherein each scalpet includes a cylindrical shaft (31, C:4, L:14, circular cutting edges, cylindrical, L:19-20) comprising a lumen (32, C:4, L:19-21) and a sharpened distal end (32’) configured as a circular scalpel (C:4, L:14) including a cutting surface configured to resect tissue at a target site, wherein the scalpet assembly is configured to transfer tissue away from the target site via the lumen (C:7, L:30-56);
a drive assembly (electric motor system, 22, 28, 28’) coupled to the plurality of scalpets and configured to impart a rotational force to rotate each scalpet around a central axis of the scalpet; and a drive shaft configured to couple the rotational force to the drive assembly (C:2, L:25-50).
Regular claim 66, Bellatoni discloses all of the limitations set forth in claim 65, wherein the plurality of scalpets comprise thin-wall tubing (32, the limitation ‘thin-wall tubing’ is sufficiently broad to encompass the reduced wall thickness defining the sharpened distal tip 32’) terminating in the sharpened distal end (32’).
Regular claim 67, Bellatoni discloses all of the limitations set forth in claim 65, wherein the plurality of scalpets is configured to receive the resected tissue (C:2, L:40-54, skin patches).
Regular claim 68, Bellatoni discloses all of the limitations set forth in claim 65, wherein the lumen of plurality of scalpets is configured to pass the resected tissue received via the sharpened distal end (C:2, L:40-54).
Regular claim 69, Bellatoni discloses all of the limitations set forth in claim 65, wherein the housing includes the drive assembly (figures 1-3).
Regular claim 70, Bellatoni discloses all of the limitations set forth in claim 65, wherein the drive assembly comprises a gear drive system (figure 3-4).
Regular claim 71, Bellatoni discloses all of the limitations set forth in claim 70, wherein the gear drive system comprises a plurality of gears coupled to the plurality of scalpets (27, 28, 28’, 29b-29f).
Regular claim 72, Bellatoni discloses all of the limitations set forth in claim 71, wherein a gear is attached to the scalpet shaft of each scalpet of the plurality of scalpets (figures 5-9).
Regular claim 73, Bellatoni discloses all of the limitations set forth in claim 72, wherein the gear is attached to a proximal region of the drive shaft (all of the components of the device are attached to one another, figure 1-4).
Regular claim 74, Bellatoni discloses all of the limitations set forth in claim 71, wherein the plurality of gears is intermeshed, wherein each scalpet rotates in unison with adjacent scalpets (abstract).
Regular claim 75, Bellatoni discloses all of the limitations set forth in claim 74, wherein the drive shaft includes a drive shaft gear intermeshed with the plurality of gears, wherein the plurality of scalpets rotates in unison with the drive shaft (C:4, L:15-37).
Regular claim 76, Bellatoni discloses all of the limitations set forth in claim 65, wherein the drive shaft is configured to move up and down relative to the target site (the drive shaft can be moved up and down relative to the target site manually via the housing).
Regular claim 77, Bellatoni discloses all of the limitations set forth in claim 65, wherein the drive shaft is configured to removably couple to a drive component of a carrier (31, the components of the device can be taken apart and therefore ‘removably coupled’, C:6, L:15-40).
Regular claim 78, Bellatoni discloses all of the limitations set forth in claim 77, wherein the carrier includes a pencil-style carrier (31 is elongated like a pencil).
Regular claim 79, Bellatoni discloses all of the limitations set forth in claim 77, wherein the carrier includes a surgical drill (shaft cores and rotates into the scalp).
Regular claim 80, Bellatoni discloses all of the limitations set forth in claim 79, comprising a carrier array (33) coupling configured to couple the scalpet assembly to the surgical drill (figure 6).
Regular claim 81, Bellatoni discloses all of the limitations set forth in claim 65, wherein the housing includes a port configured to couple to a source of vacuum (opening at distal end of 32’ can be coupled to a source of vacuum since this is a functional limitation).
Regular claim 82, Bellatoni discloses all of the limitations set forth in claim 81, wherein the vacuum is configured to evacuate the resected tissue from the target site via the plurality of scalpets and the housing (this limitation is only functionally recited in claim 82, and therefore if a vacuum was applied to the distal end of 32’, it would be capable of evacuating the resected tissue from the target site via applying the suction to the scalpets).
Regular claim 83, Bellatoni discloses all of the limitations set forth in claim 65, comprising a depth control device (33) coupled to the housing and configured to encompass at least a portion of the scalpet array, wherein the sharpened distal ends of the scalpet array are configured to protrude from the housing to resect the tissue at the target site (figure 5-6).
Regular claim 84, Bellatoni discloses all of the limitations set forth in claim 83, wherein a distal region of the depth control device is configured to form a seal when in contact with proximate tissue adjacent the target site (73, seals with shaft of scalpet array).
Conclusion
All claims are identical to or patentably indistinct from, or have unity of invention with claims in the application prior to the entry of the submission under 37 CFR 1.114 (that is, restriction (including a lack of unity of invention) would not be proper) and all claims could have been finally rejected on the grounds and art of record in the next Office action if they had been entered in the application prior to entry under 37 CFR 1.114. Accordingly, THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL even though it is a first action after the filing of a request for continued examination and the submission under 37 CFR 1.114. See MPEP § 706.07(b). Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to ANH TIEU DANG whose telephone number is (571)270-3221. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Thursday (9am-4pm EST).
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Darwin Erezo can be reached at (571) 272-4695. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/ANH T DANG/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3771
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