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 .
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 02/29/2024. The submission is in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner.
Election/Restrictions
Applicant’s election without traverse of invention (I) and species (2) drawn to claims 9-15, and withdrawn claims 1-8 and 16-20 directed to non-elected inventions and species in the reply filed on 05/12/2026 is acknowledged.
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.
Claim(s) 9, 11, 12 and 14 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being obvious over Dalene et al (US 2017/0202495), in view of Ryu et al (KR 20250052835, an English translated version is relied herein).
As to claims 9 and 11, Dalene teaches a wearable system (system shown in fig.1-2, abstract), comprising:
a sensor (sensor 12, par.48, fig.2-12) comprised of an emitter (light source 204, par.48, fig.2) coupled to a detector (light detector 206, par.48, fig.2) via a flexible printed circuit board (PCB) (flexible circuit 202 electrically connects the light source 204 to the connector 200 and the light detectors 206, par.48, as best seen in fig.2 and 6),
the flexible PCB including conductive traces (flexible circuit 202 portion of the connector includes a plurality of layers (e.g., see FIGS. 7-13), including a top electrical trace layer 212, par.1); and
a material (top cover 210 and/or bottom layer 222, flexible circuit 202 portion of the connector includes a plurality of layers, par.51-52, fig.7-13) molded over the wave-shaped flexible PCB adapted to maintain a first distance between the emitter and detector when not under tension (layers 210 and/or 222 maintains the distance between emitter 204 and detector 206, as they are made from rigid/semi-rigid material, par.51-56, as best seen in fig.2-12).
As to claims 9 and 11, Dalene teaches the invention substantially as claimed above, but failed to explicitly teach the circuit board is wave-shaped flexible printed circuit board. However, at the time the invention was made, it would have been an obvious matter of design choice to a person of ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was made to design flexible circuit 202 in a wavy shape because the Applicant has not disclosed that this wavy shape provides an advantage, is used for a particular purpose, or solves a stated problem. One of ordinary skill in the art, furthermore, would have expected PCB of Dalene’s invention and the Applicant’s invention, to perform equally well with either the straight shape flexible PCB taught by Dalene’s invention or the claimed wave-shaped flexible PCB because both flexible PCB would perform the same function of connecting the light emitter and detector in a flexible manner to be wrapped around body parts.
Still, regarding claims 9 and 11, Dalene teaches the invention substantially as claimed above, but failed to explicitly teach the material is made from elastic material to maintain a first distance between the emitter and detector when not under tension, wherein tension increases the first distance to a second distance.
Nevertheless, Ryu teaches an analogous bio-sensor, such as, such as a photoplethysmography (PPG) sensor (300, abstract, page 5, sec.13, fg.3), wherein sensor modules are connected via a bridge, and each bridge may include a flexible circuit board and an outer shell. The outer shell may include a soft material (e.g., an elastomer) that surrounds the flexible circuit board. Ino ther words, the bridge may be bendable because it includes soft components (page 5, sec.14, fg.3), to maintain a first distance between the emitter and detector when not under tension, wherein tension increases the first distance to a second distance (the characteristics of the elastic material would inherently maintain the distance between the sensors when not in tension, and increase the distance between the sensors when in tension).
Since elastic material molded and/or covering flexible PCB is well-known in the art, so it would have been obvious to one having an ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to include elastic material, and/or make top/bottom layers covering PCB taught by Dalene’s invention, from an elastic material, as taught by Ryu’s invention to be softer while bending and/or wrapping around body parts.
As to claim 12, Dalene teaches the wearable system, wherein the emitter and the detector are electrically coupled to each other by the conductive traces (emitter 204 and detector 206 are connected to tracers 212, par.54-55, as best seen in fig.6, 9 and 10), where there are no other electric couplers than the conductive traces therebetween (as best seen in fig.6, 9 and 10, there are no other electric traces between 204 and 206).
As to claim 14, Dalene teaches the wearable system, wherein the emitter is a light emitting diode (light sources 204 (e.g. LEDs), par.47) and the detector is a photodetector (light detectors 206 (e.g., photodiodes), par.47).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to MAY A ABOUELELA whose telephone number is (571)270-7917. The examiner can normally be reached 8-5.
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/MAY A ABOUELELA/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3791
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