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 .
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 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.
Status of Claims
Claims 1-7 are pending and under consideration for patentability.
Information Disclosure Statement
The Information Disclosure Statement (IDS) submitted on 28 April 2025 has been acknowledged and considered by the Examiner.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
The following is a quotation of the appropriate paragraphs of 35 U.S.C. 102 that form the basis for the rejections under this section made in this Office action:
A person shall be entitled to a patent unless –
(a)(1) the claimed invention was patented, described in a printed publication, or in public use, on sale, or otherwise available to the public before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
(a)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claims 1-3, 6, and 7 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) and 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by Bradley et al. (US 2011/0004215 A1).
Regarding claim 1, Bradley describes a medical burr ([0010]) comprising
a rotating unit that is formed to have a smaller diameter than a guide that extends long forward in a medical cutting instrument ([0047]: “an assembled rotary abrader 200 is shown…an inner tube assembly 100 is inserted into the outer tube 52 of outer assembly 50”), and rotates while extending inside the guide ([0046]: “a distal portion 116 forming an abrading element (or burr head) of diameter 117”)
a cutting unit formed at the tip of the rotating unit ([0046]), and further comprising a guide protector that surrounds the exposed portion of the burr (figure 18, hood 79)
wherein the guide protector includes a base that extends forward from the tip of the guide and surrounds the rotating unit (figure 18), and a protection unit formed at the tip of the base and surrounding the cutting unit, thereby making it possible to ensure the practitioner’s field of view and protect the non-cutting sites of the body through the guide protector ([0044]: “the polycarbonate hood 79 enhances visualization of the operational site…hood 79 also is provided to enhance aspiration and to protect tissue surrounding the operational site”)
Regarding claim 2, Bradley describes wherein the base is a flat plate or a concave-shaped plate that extends adjacent to the rotating unit (figures 2, 3, and 18, shape of hood 79 as shown), and can be made into a size of width that covers one surface of the rotating unit so as to protect the body site rather than an object being cut ([0044] - [0045], [0056]).
Regarding claim 3, Bradley describes wherein the protection unit is made to ensure the operator's field of vision so that the cutting blade of the cutting unit does not touch the non-cutting site of the body ([0044], [0050]).
Regarding claim 6, Bradley describes wherein the cutting unit has a drill shape (figure 10, shape of burr head 116), and the protection unit has a flat plate shape (figures 20, 24).
Regarding claim 7, Bradley describes wherein part of the guide protector is made of a material that is not damaged or worn even when coming into contact with the rotating unit or the cutting unit ([0044], polycarbonate).
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.
Claims 4 and 5 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Bradley in view of Lavallee et al. (US 2021/0113270 A1).
Regarding claim 4, Bradley describes the medical burr as claimed in claim 3, including wherein the protection unit has a curved surface shape and rises gently toward the cutting site (figures 25, 27), but Bradley does not explicitly disclose wherein the cutting unit has a spherical shape. However, Lavallee also describes a medical burr with a cutting unit of spherical shape ([0077]). As Lavallee is also directed towards medical burrs and is in a similar field of endeavor, it would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was filed to incorporate a spherical shape, similar to that described by Lavallee, when using the burr described by Bradley, as doing so advantageously allows the resulting burr to cut a larger number of shapes or contours within the patient.
Regarding claim 5, Lavallee describes wherein the cutting unit has a tip shape ([0077]), and Bradley describes wherein protection unit has a flat plate shape (figures 20, 24).
Statement on Communication via Internet
Communications via Internet e-mail are at the discretion of the applicant. Without a written authorization by applicant in place, the USPTO will not respond via Internet e-mail to any Internet correspondence which contains information subject to the confidentiality requirement as set forth in 35 U.S.C. 122. Where a written authorization is given by the applicant, communications via Internet e-mail, other than those under 35 U.S.C. 132 or which otherwise require a signature, may be used. USPTO employees are NOT permitted to initiate communications with applicants via Internet e-mail unless there is a written authorization of record in the patent application by the applicant. The following is a sample authorization form which may be used by applicant:
“Recognizing that Internet communications are not secure, I hereby authorize the USPTO to communicate with the undersigned and practitioners in accordance with 37 CFR 1.33 and 37 CFR 1.34 concerning any subject matter of this application by video conferencing, instant messaging, or electronic mail. I understand that a copy of these communications will be made of record in the application file.”
Please refer to MPEP 502.03 for guidance on Communications via Internet.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the Examiner should be directed to Ankit D. Tejani, whose telephone number is 571-272-5140. The Examiner may normally be reached on Monday through Friday, 8:30AM through 5:00PM EST. Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, Applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice. If attempts to reach the Examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Carl Layno, can be reached by telephone at 571-272-4949. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300. Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative or access to the automated information system, call 800-786-9199 (in USA or Canada) or 571-272-1000.
/Ankit D Tejani/
Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3796