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 .
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments filed with respect to the claim amendments overcoming the previously presented 35 USC 102 and 103 rejections have been fully considered and are persuasive. The rejections presented in the previous office action dated 2/27/2026 have been withdrawn. However, as necessitated by the amendments, new rejections are presented below in view of Pang et al. (CN 104605911 A).
Claim Objections
Claim 47 is objected to because of the following informalities: in line 4, “movement or the reciprocating arm” should read “movement [[or]] of the reciprocating arm”. Appropriate correction is required.
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) 28-29, 34-42, 47 and 48 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Pang et al. (CN 104605911 A; a copy of which is attached to this action; an English transition is also attached to this action). Citations are taken from the English translation attached to this action.
Regarding claim 28, Pang discloses a surgical instrument comprising: a handle (1,8; fig. 7); an elongated shaft assembly (unnumbered, but shaft shown extending from handle in fig. 7) extending distally from the handle, and a plurality of fasteners received in the instrument ([0018]). Although the location of the fasteners within the instrument of Pang is not illustrated, it is very well known in the clip/clamp applier art to house the fasteners in the shaft portion of a clip applier in order to allow them to be ejected out the distal end of the shaft portion proximate tissue, and thus such a modification would have been considered obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art. The instrument of Pang also includes a trigger (8) movably coupled to the handle, the trigger movable between an actuated position and an unactuated position (figs. 7, 8), wherein the handle includes a fastener level indicator system (fig. 2) configured to indicate a number of fasteners of the plurality of fasteners that remain within the instrument (see [0032], [0065]), the fastener level indicator system comprising: an indicator comprising a gear cylinder (41,42, or both); and an actuator (3, 5, 6; fig. 1) including a portion (3) positioned at least partially within the gear cylinder and a portion (5) that extends radially out from the gear cylinder (see fig. 2, 4-6, note that 52 of 5 is received around 32 of 3), wherein the actuator is operatively coupled to the trigger and the indicator such that movement of the trigger from the unactuated position to the actuated position causes the portion positioned at least partially within the gear cylinder and the portion that extends radially out from the gear cylinder to rotate and change a position of the indicator by rotating the indicator in response to rotation of the portion positioned at least partially within the gear cylinder and the portion that extends radially out from the gear cylinder. In particular, movement of trigger 8 causes movement of limit assembly 17, which allows blocks 7 to move under action of a spring, which then applies a force to rotate the portion (drive rod 5) of the actuator that extends radially out from the gear cylinder, which causes rotation of the portion (wheel base 3) of the actuator that is at least partially within the gear cylinder (see examples 2 and 3 of Pang).
Regarding the claimed “fastener deployment system”, Pang discloses a “push pin assembly” and a “transmission assembly” in [0058]), but it is unclear whether either of these structures is responsible for deployment of the fastener from the elongated shaft assembly. However, one skilled in the art would understand that actuation of the trigger (8) deploys a fastener from the device since Pang discloses that actuation of the trigger actuates the indicator used to count how many fasteners remain in the instrument. Thus, it would have been obvious to include structure (claimed “a fastener deployment system”) that converts movement of the trigger from the unactuated position (fig. 7) to the actuated position (fig. 8) into deployment of the fastener from the elongated shaft assembly for the predictable result of deploying a fastener from the end of the device proximate the tissue (i.e., opposite the handle end) each time the indicator is actuated by the trigger, thereby ensuring that the number of remaining fasteners displayed by the indicator is accurate.
Regarding claim 29, the actuator comprises a first tooth (62 or 63), and wherein the gear cylinder includes internal gear teeth (412) located on an interior of the gear cylinder, the first tooth configured to engage the internal gear teeth such that the indicator is configured to rotate in response to a movement of the actuator when the first tooth is engaged with the internal gear teeth.
Regarding claim 34, the fastener level indicator system further comprises a window formed in the handle, wherein a viewable portion of the indicator is configured to be viewed through the window (not numbered; see figs. 2, 7-8; as understood in view of example 2, which discloses a “display window” for observing the counting of the counting device).
Regarding claim 35, the viewable portion of the indicator is configured to indicate the number of fasteners of the plurality of fasteners that remain within the elongated shaft assembly based on the position of the indicator (see [0032], [0065]).
Regarding claim 36, the viewable portion of the indicator is an upper surface of the gear cylinder (see figs. 2, 7, 8).
Regarding claim 37, Pang discloses a method of operating a surgical instrument, the method comprising: moving a trigger (8) of the surgical instrument from an unactuated position (fig. 7) to an actuated position (fig. 8) to deploy a fastener of a plurality of fasteners (titanium clamps) from the surgical instrument wherein moving the trigger rotates an actuator (3, 5, 6; fig. 1); and moving an indicator (41/42) of the surgical instrument from a first position to a second position to indicate a number of fasteners of the plurality of fasteners that remain within the instrument (see [0032], [0065]), wherein the indicator comprises a gear cylinder (41/42), wherein the actuator includes a portion (3) that is positioned at least partially within the gear cylinder and a portion (5) that extends radially out from the gear cylinder, and wherein moving the indicator from the first position to the second position comprises rotating, in response to the movement of the trigger, the portion of the actuator positioned at least partially within the gear cylinder and the portion that extends radially out from the gear cylinder; and moving, in response to the rotation of the portion of the actuator that extends radially out from the gear cylinder and the portion positioned at least partially within the gear cylinder, the indicator with the actuator. In particular, actuation of trigger (8) causes movement of push block (7) and protruding structure (71), which abuts against protrusion 51 of portion 5 of the actuator, there by rotating portion (5) and portion (3) of the actuator, noting (32) of portion 3 is received in (52) of portion (5) (see figs. 1, 4-6; [0064]). Although Pang does not expressly disclose that the fasteners are deployed from the elongate shaft assembly (unnumbered shaft assembly illustrated in figs. 7-9), one skilled in the art would have found it obvious to deploy the fasteners from the distal end of the elongate shaft assembly opposite the handle as deployment of fasteners from the distal end of the elongate shaft assembly is very well known in the clip/clamp applier art and allows the fasteners to be deployed from the end of the device closest to the tissue while the user actuates the device from the opposite end via the handle.
Regarding claim 38, moving the indicator further comprises moving a viewable portion of the indicator relative to a window of the surgical instrument, the viewable portion configured to be viewed through the window ([0059] - “display window”).
Regarding claim 39, the viewable portion of the indicator is configured to indicate the number of fasteners of the plurality of fasteners that remain within the elongated shaft assembly based on the position of the indicator (see [0032], [0065]).
Regarding claim 40, the viewable portion of the indicator is an upper surface of the gear cylinder (fig. 2, 7, 8).
Regarding claim 41, moving the indicator further comprises moving a reciprocating arm (7,71) operatively coupled to the trigger and the indicator to rotate the indicator ([0058], [0062]-[0063]).
Regarding claim 42, moving the indicator further comprises moving the actuator (3,5) operatively coupled to the reciprocating arm (7,71) and the gear cylinder (41,42) to rotate the gear cylinder [0064]).
Regarding claim 47, the instrument further comprising a reciprocating arm (7,71) configured to move in response to movement of the trigger and including a cam track (surface of 7/71 that engages 51) wherein the portion (5) of the actuator that extends radially out from the gear cylinder includes a pin (51; fig. 4), wherein movement or the reciprocating arm causes movement of the pin that rotates the indicator.
Regarding claim 48, movement of the trigger causes linear reciprocating movement of the reciprocating arm (see figs. 7,8).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 30-33, 43-46, 49 and 50 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 claims 30-33 and 43-46, Pang fails to disclose or fairly suggest, in combination with the remaining claims, that the first tooth (62/63; fig. 5) that engages with the internal gear teeth (412) of the gear cylinder is disposed on a resilient arm. The arm (6; fig. 5) on which the first tooth (62 or 63) of Pang is disposed is not resilient. Rather, the arm is moved via a resilient spring (64; fig. 1), and there is no indication in the disclosure that the arm itself is resilient. Regarding claims 49 and 50, the reciprocating arm (7,71) of Pang does not include a cam slot operably coupled to pin (51) of the actuator (5). as claimed.
Conclusion
Applicant's amendment necessitated the new ground(s) of rejection presented in this Office action. Accordingly, THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. See MPEP § 706.07(a). 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.
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KSH 8/10/2026
/KATHLEEN S HOLWERDA/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3771
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