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 .
Claim Objections
Claim 2 is objected to because of the following informalities: the word “as” in line 3 should be changed to “is”. Appropriate correction is required.
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.
Claim(s) 1,2,5,8,9,11-13,19,20 and 22 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Furman (US 2018/0369036) in view of Moseley (ZA 2020/04481, which is the same as US 12239581).
Regarding claim 1, Furman discloses a patient transport apparatus for supporting a patient and a patient treatment device (see figures 13-16H), the patient transport apparatus comprising:
a seat assembly (434) having a front end (edge away from the back rest section 532, see figure 15B) and a rear end (opposite the front end) with a seat frame (534) and defining a patient support surface (surface of the seat) for supporting the patient;
a fowler assembly (432,532) having a fowler frame (532) coupled to a rear end of the seat frame (see figure 13) and being moveable relative to the seat assembly (as it pivot relative to the seat assembly, see figure 15A), the fowler assembly further defining the patient support surface (432) for supporting the patient, and the fowler assembly including a fowler actuator (662) to move the fowler frame relative to the seat frame between a plurality of patient support configurations (lying flat, as shown in figure 15A or, a seating position, as shown in figure 13); and
Furman further discloses a handle (526) having a grasping portion however, Furman does not mention a support frame assembly coupled to the fowler frame and configured for supporting the patient treatment device, the support frame assembly including,
a handle extending from the fowler frame and having a grasping portion spaced from the fowler frame, and a mounting member coupled to the handle adjacent the grasping portion of the handle and extending toward the fowler assembly, the mounting member defining a brace surface shaped for supporting the patient treatment device, the brace surface spaced from the grasping portion of the handle for permitting a user to grab the grasping portion while supporting the patient treatment device.
However, Moseley discloses a patient transport apparatus with a support frame assembly (18.3, 84,126) coupled to a fowler frame (12.3) and configured for supporting a patient treatment device (92), the support frame assembly including,
a handle (126) extending from the fowler frame and having a grasping portion (where the user grasps the handle) spaced from the fowler frame, and
a mounting member (94) coupled to the handle adjacent the grasping portion (see figure 3) of the handle and extending toward the fowler assembly, the mounting member defining a brace surface (round surface around the patient treatment device) shaped for supporting the patient treatment device (see figure 3), the brace surface spaced from the grasping portion of the handle for permitting a user to grab the grasping portion while supporting the patient treatment device (see figure 3).
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the current invention to modify Furman by adding the support frame, handle and mounting member to the fowler assembly in Furman, in order to be able to utilize the empty space in the rear of the fowler frame in between the fowler and the handle, to mount a patient treatment device, wherein mounting a patient treatment device would enable patients in need of said treatment device to utilize the patient transport apparatus. Additionally it would have been obvious to add the support frame, handle and mounting member to the fowler assembly in Furman, in order to enhance the utility of the patient transport apparatus as more patients would be able to utilize it due to it being able to carry a patient treatment device.
Regarding claim 2, wherein the combination of Furman and Moseley ends with, the mounting member has a first brace edge (see Moseley figure 21 below and compare it to figure 3 in Moseley) proximal the grasping portion of the handle defining a first end of the brace surface, and wherein the mounting member is a second brace edge (see Moseley figure 21 below and compare it to figure3 in Moseley) distal the grasping portion of the handle defining a second end of the brace surface.
Regarding claim 5, wherein the combination of Furman and Moseley has the brace surface defines a recess (see figure 21 in Moseley as the brace has a recess in between the first brace edge and the second brace edge).
Regarding claim 8, wherein the combination of Furman and Moseley ends with the grasping portion of the handle (84 in Moseley) extends along a grasping axis and wherein the mounting member (94 in Moseley) extends perpendicularly from the grasping axis (see figure 3 in Moseley).
Regarding claim 9, wherein the combination of Furman and Moseley ends with the support frame assembly further comprises one or more straps for securing the patient treatment device to the mounting member (as the brace can be seen as a strap mounted onto the support frame, see figure 3 in Moseley).
Regarding claim 11, the strap is the combination of Furman and Moseley is indirectly attached to the handle (see figure 3 in Moseley).
Regarding claim 12, wherein the combination of Furman and Moseley ends with the mounting member (94) is selectively removable from the handle (as the patient treatment device/oxygen tank needs to be replaced when empty).
Regarding claim 16, wherein the combination of Furman and Moseley ends with 2 grasping portions on the handle as the person pushing the patient transport will push the patient transport by grasping the handle with both hands, hence, there is 2 grasping areas on the handle and the second grasping area can be between the first grasping area and the fowler frame.
Regarding claim 19, Furman further comprises, wherein the fowler frame is rotatable relative to the seat frame about a fowler axis (see figure 15A in Furman as the fowler frame pivots relative to the seat frame), and wherein the grasping portion of the handle (526) extends along a grasping axis parallel to the fowler axis.
Regarding claim 20, Furman further comprises: a front assembly (536) coupled to the front end of the seat frame and configured for movement between a plurality of front assembly positions (see figures 13 and 15A); a rear assembly (602a,602b) coupled to the rear end of the seat frame and configured for movement between a plurality of rear assembly positions (see figures 13 and 15A); a front actuator (610a) arranged to articulate the front assembly relative to the seat frame between the plurality of front assembly positions; and a rear actuator (610b) arranged to articulate the rear assembly relative to the seat frame between the plurality of rear assembly positions.
Regarding claim 22, Furman further discloses: wherein at least part of one or more of the seat assembly, the fowler assembly, and the support frame assembly defines a litter (see litter in figure 13); and further comprising: a base (424) having a head end and a foot end, the base including: a base frame (428) supporting a plurality of wheels (see wheels attached to member 428 in figure 13) arranged for movement about a floor surface, an intermediate frame (750a,750b) having a trolley (the patient transport apparatus of claim 1) configured to translate between a plurality of trolley positions including a trolley forward position where the trolley is arranged at the head end of the base (see figure 1 in Furman) and a trolley docking position where the trolley is arranged at the foot end of the base (by turning the litter around so that the patient support apparatus is at the other end), and a base lift device (622) to move the intermediate frame relative to the base frame between a plurality of vertical configurations including a maximum raised configuration (see figure 13) and a maximum lowered configuration (see figure 16A), wherein the litter is configured to be docked to and undocked from the trolley of the intermediate frame such that, when docked to the trolley, the litter is configured to slidably translate relative to the intermediate frame between a plurality of litter positions to facilitate docking and undocking the litter from the trolley (see figures 16A to 16H).
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Claim(s) 10 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Furman and Moseley as applied to claims 1 and 9 above, and further in view of Davis Hatfield (US 2012/0300439, Davis from now on). Furman or Moseley do not mention the material used to make the one or more straps. However, Davis discloses a strap (55) made of silicone or rubber (see Par. 0037). It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art to make the strap in the combination of Furman and Moseley out of silicone or rubber, in order to utilize a readily available material that is easy to handle and mold into a strap, wherein the strap would be able to secure the patient treatment device onto the patient transport.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 3,4,7,13-15,17 and 18 are 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.
Regarding claim 3, the art of record did not include “a first distance defined between the first brace edge and the grasping portion of the handle is less than a second distance defined between the second brace edge and the fowler frame”.
Regarding claim 7, the art of record did not include “the support frame further comprising a second mounting member and a second brace surface” in combination with what has been claimed in the rest of the body of claim 7.
Regarding claim 13, the art of record did not include “a first mounting body and a second mounting body, and wherein the first and second mounting bodies are configured to be coupled to each other”.
Regarding claim 17, the art of record did not include “the first and second grasping cavities” in combination with what has been claimed in the rest of the body of claim 17.
Regarding claim 18, the art of record did not include “the first grasping portion of the handle extends along a first grasping axis, and wherein the second grasping portion extends along a second grasping axis perpendicular to the first grasping axis”.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Marlon A Arce whose telephone number is (571)272-1341. The examiner can normally be reached 8AM - 4:30PM.
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/MARLON A ARCE/Examiner, Art Unit 3611 /VALENTIN NEACSU, Ph.D./Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3611
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