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 .
Election/Restrictions
Applicant’s election without traverse of Species B in the reply filed on 12/14/2025 is acknowledged.
Claims 1-4 have been cancelled by applicant amendment filed 12/14/2025 as directed to non-elected Species A.
Claims 5-20 are currently pending and considered below.
Priority
Applicant’s claim for the benefit of a prior-filed application under 35 U.S.C. 119(e) or under 35 U.S.C. 120, 121, 365(c), or 386(c) is acknowledged.
This application claims the benefit of US Provisional 63/452,629, filed on 03/16/2023.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 03/14/2024 is in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement has been considered by the examiner.
Drawings
The drawings are objected to under 37 CFR 1.83(a). The drawings must show every feature of the invention specified in the claims. Therefore, the following must be shown or the feature(s) canceled from the claim(s). No new matter should be entered.
A sock secured to a curved skeletal structure (claim 1)
NOTE – The elected Species B of Figs. 6A-8 discloses and illustrates a semi-rigid skeleton shin structure 60, not a sock secured to a curved skeletal structure as is illustrated for non-elected Species A. See 35 U.S.C. 112(a) rejection below.
A vibration device (claim 15)
At least one temporarily securable weight (claim 20)
Corrected drawing sheets in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(d) are required in reply to the Office action to avoid abandonment of the application. Any amended replacement drawing sheet should include all of the figures appearing on the immediate prior version of the sheet, even if only one figure is being amended. The figure or figure number of an amended drawing should not be labeled as “amended.” If a drawing figure is to be canceled, the appropriate figure must be removed from the replacement sheet, and where necessary, the remaining figures must be renumbered and appropriate changes made to the brief description of the several views of the drawings for consistency. Additional replacement sheets may be necessary to show the renumbering of the remaining figures. Each drawing sheet submitted after the filing date of an application must be labeled in the top margin as either “Replacement Sheet” or “New Sheet” pursuant to 37 CFR 1.121(d). If the changes are not accepted by the examiner, the applicant will be notified and informed of any required corrective action in the next Office action. The objection to the drawings will not be held in abeyance.
Specification
The abstract of the disclosure is objected to because line 8, “that rotates and flexes or rotates” should read ---that flexes or rotates---. A corrected abstract of the disclosure is required and must be presented on a separate sheet, apart from any other text. See MPEP § 608.01(b).
The disclosure is objected to because of the following informalities:
Par. [0042], “89 antenna” should read ---68 antenna--- to properly reflect the reference characters in the drawings.
Par. [0064], line 4, “lower hook-and-loop 74” should read ---lower hook-and-loop 73--- to properly reflect the reference characters in the drawings.
Par. [0065], line 3, “The sensors that recognize” should read ---The sensors recognize---
Appropriate correction is required.
Claim Objections
Claims 5, 17, and 19-20 objected to because of the following informalities:
Claim 5, line 1, “A calf secured punching targets comprising” should read ---Calf secured punching targets comprising---
Claim 17, line 1, “includes” should read ---comprising---
Claim 19, lines 1-2, “wherein said calf secured punching targets include” should read ---further comprising---
Claim 20, line 1, “include” should read ---comprising---
Claim 20, line 2, “temporally” should read ---temporarily---
Appropriate correction is required.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of 35 U.S.C. 112(a):
(a) IN GENERAL.—The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor or joint inventor of carrying out the invention.
Claims 5-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(a) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), first paragraph, as failing to comply with the written description requirement. The claim(s) contains subject matter which was not described in the specification in such a way as to reasonably convey to one skilled in the relevant art that the inventor or a joint inventor, or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the inventor(s), at the time the application was filed, had possession of the claimed invention.
Claim 5 recites a combination of limitations that is not adequately described in the specification and which fails to comply with the written description requirement. Broadly, claim 5 claims calf secured punching targets comprising “a sock secured to a curved skeletal structure,” the curved skeletal structure having at least two targets having separate sensors for detecting impact, and a controller. However, the specification discloses two separate and mutually exclusive embodiments of the invention. The first embodiment illustrated in Figs. 1-5 includes a sock (40, 41) secured to a curved skeletal structure (31, 34) and having a target (50) selectively secured to the curved skeletal structure (Species A of the restriction requirement mailed on 10/14/2025, non-elected by applicant). The second embodiment illustrated in Figs. 6A-8 includes a semi-rigid skeleton shin structure (60) with a hook-and-loop securing system (71, 72, 73, 74) for securing the invention to a calf of a user and having targets (61-64, 70) each having separate sensors (81-84) for detecting impact, and a controller (80) (Species B of the restriction requirement mailed on 10/14/2025, elected by applicant). While the semi-rigid skeleton shin structure could reasonably be considered a curved skeletal structure, there is inadequate written description for the combination of the semi-rigid skeleton shin structure from the second embodiment with the sock of the first embodiment.
Claims 6-20 are similarly rejected by virtue of dependency on claim 5.
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.
Claims 5-20 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.
Claim 5 recites “said detected impact” in line 8. It is unclear if this limitation is referring to the detected impact from a particular one of the sensors of the at least two targets or to the detected impact of each sensor of the at least two targets. Claims 6-20 are similarly rejected by virtue of dependency on claim 5.
Claim 10 recites “a separate wireless device” in line 2. It is unclear if this limitation is referring to the previously recited phone, computer or tablet of claim 5 or a materially different and new separate wireless device.
Claim 12 recites “wherein said separate wireless device is a cell phone, computer or tablet.” Following the rejection above to claim 10, it is unclear if the separate wireless device is referring to the previously recited phone, computer or tablet of claim 5 or a materially different and new separate wireless device that is a cell phone, computer or tablet.
Claim 13 recites “said cell phone, said computer or said tablet” in lines 1-2. It is unclear if these limitations are referring to the phone, computer, or tablet of claim 5 or the cell phone, computer or tablet of claim 12.
Claim 16 recites “said target” in line 4. It is unclear which target of the at least two targets this limitation is referring to.
Examiner’s Comment
No prior art rejection has been made with respect to claims 5-20, however claims 5-20 have been rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(a) for failing to comply with the written description requirement.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Margareten (US 11,642,582), McFarlane (US 11,938,391), Morin et al. (US 11,839,804), Santiago (US 8,696,422), and Katsuta (JP 2014061013 A) each disclose art in the field of punching targets with force/impact detection that are considered relevant to the instant application.
Kamara (US 2023/0079575) teaches a smart shin guard that measures force detected by motion sensors.
Hunter et al. (US 11,497,964) teaches various sports equipment including a multitude of sensors for measuring factors related to the specific sport activity performed, including pressure sensors to detect impact.
Allen et al. (US 10,086,251) teaches player-worn sports equipment including sensors to detect impact.
Comi (WO 2019/158977 A1) teaches a device for monitoring soccer performance including force detected from the impact of a foot with a soccer ball.
Paglierani et al. (WO 2017/081555 A1) teaches a shin guard for detecting impact with a soccer ball.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to KATHLEEN FISK whose telephone number is (571)272-1042. The examiner can normally be reached 8AM-4PM M-F (Central).
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, LoAn Jimenez can be reached at (571) 272-4966. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/KATHLEEN M FISK/Examiner, Art Unit 3784
/LOAN B JIMENEZ/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3784