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
Applicant’s arguments filed on 06/09/2026 have been fully considered but are moot in view of a new grounds of rejection.
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, 5, and 10-12 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Wilson et al. (US 2023/0008419).
In re claim 1, Wilson discloses a sterile disposable interface (FIG. 2V1-FIG. 2V3; [0118; 0120; 0121]) for percutaneous instruments [0132], the sterile disposable interface comprising:
an insertion rail (306);
a carriage (304, shown in greater detail in FIG. 2U1 and FIG. 2U2),
wherein the carriage is attached to the insertion rail (FIG. 2V1-FIG. 2V3);
a moving component (308) in proximity to the insertion rail and the carriage (FIG. 2T1);
a carriage position sensor (290, shown in greater detail in FIG. 2O); and
a sterile barrier (imaginary line drawn across the top of 290 in FIG. 2V1-FIG. 2V3) located between the moving component and the carriage position sensor (FIG. 2V1-FIG. 2V3; FIG. 2T1; [0121]),
wherein the carriage position sensor is configured to sense, across the sterile barrier, motion of the moving component [0116; 0142], and to thereby determine a position of the carriage relative to a position of the insertion rail as the carriage moves along the insertion rail ([0116; 0142]; downward pointed arrow in FIG. 2V2 indicates movement of “carriage” along “insertion rail”).
In re claim 2, Wilson discloses, further comprising an instrument adapter (FIG. 2U1: 322).
In re claim 3, Wilson discloses, further comprising an instrument guide (portion of 282 that engages “instrument”, shown in greater detail in FIG. 2Q2: 286).
In re claim 5, Wilson discloses, wherein the sterile disposable interface is *configured to laterally disengage (see V shape gap, 320, shown in FIG. 2U1) from a percutaneous instrument (344) at the carriage.
*Examiner notes that the limitation “configured to laterally disengage from a percutaneous instrument at the carriage” comprises functional language and is given patentable weight only in how it materially alters or adds structure to the apparatus of the claims. See MPEP 2114. The prior art need only be able to perform this function in order to anticipate the claimed invention. It is clear that the system of Wilson could be operated in the claimed manner if desired.
In re claim 10, Wilson discloses, wherein the sterile barrier comprises a sterile drape [0118, 0128, 0129].
In re claim 11, Wilson discloses, wherein
the moving component comprises a magnet ([0142]: “encoder magnet” that is coupled to “helical screw”, i.e., [0116]: a “helical groove” (310) of “moving component” (308)) and
the carriage position sensor is configured to determine the position of the carriage by sensing a magnetic field from the magnet across the sterile barrier ([0116]: apparent as encoder has a “magenetic engagement” with the “moving component” described in further detail in [0142]);
In re claim 12, Wilson discloses,
wherein the moving component further comprises a helical screw (310) and
wherein the magnet is coupled to the helical screw ([0116; 0142]: apparent as “screw” spins the “encoder magnet”)
Claim 4 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Wilson et al. (US 2023/0008419), in view of Ruiz Morales (US 2009/0024142).
In re claim 4, Wilson does not disclose, further comprising a homing switch.
Ruiz Morales discloses a robotic surgical system that, like Wilson, is used for performing minimally invasive surgical procedures (abstract). The robotic surgical system determines an absolute position of a slider carriage (FIG. 19: 430) through an automated homing procedure [0130]. As discussed in Ruiz Morales, the automated homing procedure is performed using a series of limit switches (426, 428).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the sterile disposable interface of Wilson to include a homing switch, as taught by Ruiz Morales. One would have been motivated to make this modification because homing is a known way to determine an absolute coordinate of a component in a robotic surgical system (Ruiz Morales, [0130]).
Claims 6 and 7 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Wilson et al. (US 2023/0008419), in view of Orban III et al. (US 8,998,799).
In re claim 6, Wilson does not disclose, further comprising a top lock.
Orban III discloses an analogous sterile disposable interface (FIGS. 11J-11K) for percutaneous instruments (24, col. 9, lines 29-38) that comprises a carriage break (col. 11, lines 29-31). As disclosed by Orban III, the carriage break is configured to keep a carriage in a proximal position (i.e., “top”) during instrument installation (col. 11, lines 29-31).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the sterile disposable interface of Wilson to further comprise a carriage break, as taught by Orban III. One would have been motivated to make this modification because doing so would provide an operator with a way to lock/stop the carriage (Orban III, col. 11, lines 29-31). Accordingly, such a modification would yield the sterile disposable interface “further comprising a top lock”, as the carriage break functions to “lock” the carriage in a “top” position (see Orban III, col. 11, lines 29-31).
In re claim 7, Wilson does not disclose, further comprising a carriage break.
For substantially the same reasons as described above it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the sterile disposable interface of Wilison to further comprise a carriage break, as taught by Orban III.
Claim 8 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Wilson et al. (US 2023/0008419), in view of Mishra et al. (US 2024/0173089).
In re claim 8, Orban III does not disclose, further comprising a *rotation lock.
Mishra discloses an analogous surgical instrument adapter (404) that attaches to a surgical guide (500). Mishra further discloses the surgical instrument adapter including a clamp (404a) that is configured to rotationally or axially lock the surgical guide in a position [0057].
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the sterile disposable interface of Wilson to further comprise a rotation lock, as taught by Mishra. One would have been motivated to make this modification to prevent the surgical guide from moving during the surgical operation (Mishra, [0047]).
*As best understood, a rotation lock is being interpreted as a structure that provides resistance to rotation (instant specification, [0046]).
Claim 9 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable Wilson et al. (US 2023/0008419), in view of Balter et al. (US 2022/0383555).
In re claim 9, Wilson does not disclose, further comprising an adjustment button.
Balter discloses a robotic surgical assembly (FIG. 1, FIG. 2) that like Wilson includes a rail (46a) which is configured to move a carriage (52; [0053]: “instrument drive unit”) along a longitudinal axis. The robotic surgical assembly also includes a series of buttons (FIG. 1: 53) that an operator can use to manually adjust a position of the carriage [0054].
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the sterile disposable interface of Wilson to further comprise an adjustment button, as taught by Balter. One would have been motivated to make this modification to provide the operator with a way to manually adjust the position of the carriage (Balter, [0054]).
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.
Contact
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to OLIVIA WALKER whose telephone number is (571)272-7052. The examiner can normally be reached M-F: 7-4pm CT.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, David Hamaoui can be reached at (571)-270-5625. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/OLIVIA WALKER/Examiner, Art Unit 3796
/DAVID HAMAOUI/SPE, Art Unit 3796
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