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 .
Response to Arguments
The restriction requirement from the most recent action has been withdrawn.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b):
(b) CONCLUSION.—The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph:
The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention.
Claims 1-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention.
Regarding claims 1, 15, and 18, the language is unclear about the “upper portion of the applicator body”. Is upper referring to a distal/proximal location in relation to the body or is it somewhere on the surface of the body along the circumference? Similarly, is the stimulation element “underneath the applicator plate” somewhere on the surface of the applicator plate or more proximal in relation to the applicator plate? Does the electrical power source being below the applicator plate mean somewhere on the surface of the applicator plate or more proximal in relation to the applicator plate? Further clarification is needed.
The dependent claims fail to remedy the issue, and therefore are also rejected.
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.
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.
Claim(s) 1-4, 7-10, and 18 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Ignon (US 8048089 B2) in view of Sedic (US 10307330 B1).
Regarding claim 1, Ignon discloses a therapy applicator head (eg. Fig. 2A-B applicator with main body 30 and tip 34), the therapy applicator head comprising: a housing container comprising an applicator body (eg. Fig. 2A-B, main body 30); an applicator plate provided in an upper portion of the applicator body, the applicator plate inclined at a predetermined angle (eg. Fig. 2A-B, flat surface distal end 102 at an angle, Col. 6, Ln. 38-50); one or more stimulation elements located underneath the applicator plate (eg. Col. 5, Ln. 9-35, Col. 18, Ln. 14-51); and a rechargeable electrical power source located below the applicator plate (eg. Fig. 18-19 Col. 19, Ln. 35-56), the rechargeable electrical power source configured to supply electrical power to the one or more electrical components such as valves/pumps (eg. Fig. 18-19 Col. 19, Ln. 35-56), wherein the applicator plate further comprises a dispensing hole located in an uphill portion on an upper surface of the applicator plate, the dispensing hole configured to be fluidically connected to a serum container through a fluidic channel (eg. Fig. 3 Col. 7, Ln. 45 – Col. 8, Ln. 20), and wherein, in use, a serum contained in the serum container is configured to flow downhill from the dispensing hole and along the inclined applicator plate (eg. Col. 13, Ln. 15-40, Col. 15, Ln. 25 – Col. 16, Ln 45). Ignon does not explicitly disclose a rechargeable electrical power supply for stimulation elements.
Sedic teaches a skincare device that uses rechargeable batteries to power light sources for light stimulation therapy (eg. Col. 9, Ln. 60 – Col. 10, Ln. 40).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have combined the invention of Ignon to have the rechargeable power source provide power to stimulation elements as taught by Sedic because stimulation elements in the art commonly need a power source for them to work by default and it would provide the predictable result of providing power to provide a cordless option for the device if desired.
Regarding claim 2, the combined invention of Ignon and Sedic discloses the applicator plate is made from a thermally conducting material and/or an electrically conducting material (eg. Ignon, Sedic, Col. 5, Ln. 60 – Col. 6, Ln. 38, Col. 8, Ln. 39 – Col. 9, Ln. 22, Col. 13, Ln. 44 – Col. 14, Ln. 24).
Regarding claim 3, the combined invention of Ignon and Sedic discloses the predetermined angle of the applicator plate is adjustable (eg. Ignon, Col. 6, Ln. 10-50, one of ordinary skill could change an angle of the plate to suit design choices, see MPEP 2144.05).
Regarding claim 4, the combined invention of Ignon and Sedic discloses least two charging terminals provided on the upper surface of the applicator plate, the at least two charging terminals configured to receive electrical power to charge the rechargeable electrical power source (eg. Ignon, Col. 19, Ln. 35-56, AC power supply with positive and negative).
Regarding claim 7, the combined invention of Ignon and Sedic discloses the housing container comprises a first engaging arrangement configured to engage with a second engaging arrangement of the serum container, the second engaging arrangement complementary to the first engaging arrangement, to fasten the housing container to the serum container (eg. Fig. 18-19, Col. 19, Ln. 35 – Col. 20, Ln. 10).
Regarding claim 8, the combined invention of Ignon and Sedic discloses the one or more stimulation elements are selected from a group consisting of irradiation sources, heating elements, cooling elements, vibratory elements, ultrasonic wave generators, electrodes, and combinations thereof (eg. Ignon, Col. 5, Ln. 9-21, Col. 18, Ln. 14-38).
Regarding claim 9, the combined invention of Ignon and Sedic discloses the irradiation sources are configured to emit electromagnetic radiation in wavelengths ranging between 300 nm and 1200 nm (eg. Ignon, Col. 5, Ln. 9-21, Col. 18, Ln. 14-38).
Regarding claim 10, the combined invention of Ignon and Sedic discloses a user interface configured to receive control input signals to modify operational characteristics of the one or more stimulation elements (eg. Ignon, Col. 2, Ln. 8-17, Col. 17, Ln. 45-63 and Sedic, Col. 11, Ln. 55 – Col. 12, Ln. 25).
Regarding claim 18, the combined invention of Ignon and Sedic discloses a method of using a therapy applicator head, the method comprising: providing the therapy applicator head (eg. Ignon Fig. 2A-B applicator with main body 30 and tip 34), the therapy applicator head comprising: a housing container comprising an applicator body (eg. Ignon, Fig. 2A-B, main body 30), an applicator plate provided in an upper portion of the applicator body (eg. Ignon, Fig. 2A-B, flat surface distal end 102 at an angle, Col. 6, Ln. 38-50), the applicator plate inclined at a predetermined angle (eg. Ignon, Fig. 2A-B, flat surface distal end 102 at an angle, Col. 6, Ln. 38-50), one or more stimulation elements located underneath the applicator plate (eg. Ignon, Col. 5, Ln. 9-35, Col. 18, Ln. 14-51), a rechargeable electrical power source located below the applicator plate, the rechargeable electrical power source configured to supply electrical power to the one or more stimulation elements (eg. Ignon, Fig. 18-19 Col. 19, Ln. 35-56), and at least two charging terminals provided on an upper surface of the applicator plate, the at least two charging terminals configured to receive electrical power to charge the rechargeable electrical power source (eg. Ignon, Fig. 18-19 Col. 19, Ln. 35-56 and eg. Sedic, Col. 9, Ln. 60 – Col. 10, Ln. 40); fastening the housing container to a serum container (eg. Ignon, Col. 19, Ln. 35-56, Fig. 18-19, Col. 5, Ln. 35 – Col. 6, Ln. 10, Col. 14, Ln. 4 – Col. 15, Ln. 2, manifold system holding containers), the housing container comprising a first engaging arrangement configured to engage with a second engaging arrangement of the serum container, the second engaging arrangement complementary to the first engaging arrangement (eg. Ignon, Col. 19, Ln. 35-56, Fig. 18-19, Col. 5, Ln. 35 – Col. 6, Ln. 10, Col. 14, Ln. 4 – Col. 15, Ln. 2, Col. 9, Ln. 17-60, manifold system holding containers, screws/threading and other commonly used attachment mechanisms may be used, see MPEP 2144.05), wherein the applicator plate further comprises a dispensing hole on the upper surface of the applicator plate (eg. Col. 7, Ln. 45 – Col. 8, Ln. 20), the dispensing hole fluidically connected to the serum container through a fluidic channel; applying the applicator plate to a body portion of a user (eg. Ignon, Col. 7, Ln. 45 – Col. 8, Ln. 20, Col. 10, Ln. 55-67), as a result wherein, a serum stored in the serum container is applied, to the body portion of the user, through the fluidic channel (eg. Ignon, Col. 7, Ln. 45 – Col. 8, Ln. 20, Col. 10, Ln. 55-67); and activating the one or more stimulation elements (eg. Ignon, Col. 5, Ln. 9-35, Col. 18, Ln. 14-51 and Sedic, Col. 9, Ln. 60 – Col. 10, Ln. 40) through a user interface configured to receive control input signals to modify operational characteristics of the one or more stimulation elements (eg. Col. 17, Ln. 45-64).
Claim(s) 5-6, 15-17, and 19-20 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Ignon (US 8048089 B2) in view of Sedic (US 10307330 B1), further in view of Greuel (US 9045358 B2).
Regarding claims 5 and 19, the combined invention of Ignon and Sedic discloses the invention of claim 4, but does not disclose a removable cap configured to be fastened onto the housing container, wherein the removable cap comprises enclosed therewithin at least two power terminals configured to make contact with the at least two respective charging terminals, to supply electrical power to the at least two charging terminals from an external power source.
Greuel teaches a cylinder with a removable cap with a built in UV radiation light for disinfecting the contents inside (eg. Fig. 1, cap 14, Col. 5, Ln. 40 – Col. 6, Ln. 40).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have combined the invention of Ignon and Sedic that uses silicone covers (eg. Col. 22, Ln. 13-47, silicone covers, one of ordinary skill would use any covers or caps appropriate to cover the charging terminals since covers for those are common in the art for preventing shorting and other damage to the electronics) with the UV cap as taught by Greuel since caps and coverings are common in the art and the UV light would provide the predictable result of sterilizing the contact surface to prevent infections.
Regarding claims 6 and 20, the combined invention of Ignon, Sedic, and Greuel discloses the removable cap and the one or more stimulation elements comprise an Ultraviolet (UV) light source configured to sterilize the upper surface of the applicator plate (eg. Greuel, cap 14, Col. 5, Ln. 40 – Col. 6, Ln. 40).
Regarding claim 15, the combined invention of Ignon, Sedic, and Greuel discloses a therapy applicator head, the therapy applicator head comprising (eg. Ignon Fig. 2A-B applicator with main body 30 and tip 34): a housing container comprising an applicator body (eg. Ignon, Fig. 2A-B, main body 30); an applicator plate provided in an upper portion of the applicator body (eg. Ignon, Fig. 2A-B, flat surface distal end 102 at an angle, Col. 6, Ln. 38-50); one or more stimulation elements located underneath the applicator plate (eg. Ignon, Col. 5, Ln. 9-35, Col. 18, Ln. 14-51); a rechargeable electrical power source located below the applicator plate (eg. Ignon, Fig. 18-19 Col. 19, Ln. 35-56), the rechargeable electrical power source configured to supply electrical power to the one or more stimulation elements (eg. Ignon, Fig. 18-19 Col. 19, Ln. 35-56 and eg. Sedic, Col. 9, Ln. 60 – Col. 10, Ln. 40); at least two charging terminals provided on an upper surface of the applicator plate, the at least two charging terminals configured to receive electrical power to charge the rechargeable electrical power source source (eg. Ignon, Col. 19, Ln. 35-56, AC power supply with positive and negative); and a removable cap configured to be fastened onto the housing container, wherein the removable cap comprises enclosed therewithin at least two power terminals configured to make contact with the at least two respective charging terminals provided on the upper surface of the applicator plate, to supply electrical power to the at least two charging terminals from an external power source (eg. Fig. 1, cap 14, Col. 5, Ln. 40 – Col. 6, Ln. 40).
Regarding claim 16, the combined invention Ignon, Sedic, and Greuel discloses the applicator plate inclined at a predetermined angle, the predetermined angle of the applicator plate being adjustable (eg. Ignon, Col. 6, Ln. 10-50, one of ordinary skill could change an angle of the plate to suit design choices, see MPEP 2144.05).
Regarding claim 17, the combined invention Ignon, Sedic, and Greuel discloses the removable cap and the one or more stimulation elements comprise an Ultraviolet (UV) light source configured to sterilize the upper surface of the applicator plate. (eg. Greuel, cap 14, Col. 5, Ln. 40 – Col. 6, Ln. 40).
Claim(s) 11-13 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Ignon (US 8048089 B2) in view of Sedic (US 10307330 B1), further in view of Gavini (US 2016/0354559 A1).
Regarding claim 11, the combined invention of Ignon and Sedic discloses a processor; a memory unit operably connected with a processor (eg. Ignon, Col. 17, Ln. 45-65); but does not disclose a pressure sensor mechanically coupled to the applicator plate, wherein the memory unit comprises machine-readable instructions, the machine-readable instructions when executed by the processor, enable the processor to: receive a pressure input from the pressure sensor, indicative of a predetermined amount of pressure applied onto the applicator plate, and allow the serum to be dispensed from the dispensing hole in response to sensing the predetermined amount of pressure.
Gavini teaches a handheld fluid delivery device that activates via a pressure sensor when contact is made with the skin (eg. Para. 3, 57).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have combined the invention of Ignon and Sedic with the pressure sensor activation as taught by Gavini as pressure sensor activation mechanisms are commonly used in the art and would provide the predictable result of increasing efficiency of only activating a treatment when there is contact with the skin.
Regarding claim 12, the combined invention of Ignon, Sedic, and Gavini discloses the processor is further enabled to operate an electronically controlled valve to allow the serum to be dispensed from the dispensing hole (eg. Col. Ignon, 5, Ln. 44-60, Col. 8, Ln. 49-62, Col. 18, Ln. 57 – Col. 19, Ln. 9).
Regarding claim 13, the combined invention of Ignon, Sedic, and Gavini discloses the processor is further enabled to operate an electronically controlled pump to allow the serum to be dispensed from the dispensing hole (eg. Col. Ignon, 5, Ln. 44-60, Col. 8, Ln. 49-62, Col. 18, Ln. 57 – Col. 19, Ln. 9).
Claim(s) 14 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Ignon (US 8048089 B2) in view of Sedic (US 10307330 B1), further in view of Gavini (US 2016/0354559 A1), further in view of Bernstein (US 91139836 B2).
Regarding claim 14, the combined invention of Ignon, Sedic, and Gavini discloses the invention of claim 11, but does not disclose a skin condition sensor mechanically coupled to the applicator plate, wherein the processor is further enabled to: receive skin condition data from the skin condition sensor, and in correlation with the skin condition data, perform one or more of: modifying operational characteristics of the one or more stimulation elements, and allowing a predetermined amount of serum to be dispensed from the dispensing hole.
Bernstein teaches a device for scanning skin conditions and providing therapies (eg. Abstract, Col. 1, Ln. 59 – Col. 2, Ln. 38, Col. 6, Ln. 7-25, sensor 295, Col. 10, Ln. 61 – Col. 13, Ln. 19, Col. 47, Ln. 50 – Col. 48, Ln. 13).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have combined the invention of Ignon, Sedic, and Gavini with the skin condition sensor mechanism as taught by Bernstein since both inventions relate to treating skin conditions and would further enhance the processor controlled pumps/valves in Ignon to provide the predictable result of identifying and treating only affected tissue.
Conclusion
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/MICHAEL J LAU/ Examiner, Art Unit 3796
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