Detailed Action
The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
Claims 1-12 of U.S. Application 18/651,826 filed on May 01, 2024 are presented for examination.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 05/01/2024 has been considered by the examiner.
Priority
Receipt is acknowledged of certified copies of papers submitted under 35 U.S.C. 119(a)-(d), which papers have been placed of record in the file.
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 of this title, 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.
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.
Claims 1, 4-6, 8, 9, and 11 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Uchida et al (USPGPub 20190025399) in view of Reykowski et al (USPGPub 20200408862).
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Prior Art: Reykowski
Regarding claim 1, Uchida discloses a magnetic resonance imaging apparatus (1) comprising: a main apparatus (10); and a coil apparatus (20) that is separate from the main apparatus (shown in figs 1-26), wherein the main apparatus comprises a first timer (from 122) configured to operate on a clock (par 145 discloses 10 transmitting first clock signal), the coil apparatus comprises: processing circuitry (using circuitry of 20 as shown in fig 2) configured to: regenerate (demodulating) the clock from a first wireless signal (from 122) transmitted by the main apparatus (par 48 discloses transmitting the signal); and detect a timing (using 209) where a second wireless signal (from 201) transmitted by the main apparatus is received (par 78 discloses 201 generates from an oscillator externally. Therefore would be apart of the main unit and a second signal); and a second timer (third clock signal) configured to operate on the clock, and a synchronized imaging operation (using 131 shown in at least fig chart 6 and par 46 discloses using processor to find imaging of Q) is performed by correcting at least one of the first timer provided to the main apparatus and the second timer provided to the coil apparatus in accordance with the timing (pars 63-67 discloses correcting at least the third signal and par 154 the first clock and second clock is corrected). Uchida does not fully disclose synchronization clock.
However, Reykowski discloses synchronization clock (abstract discloses wireless clock synchronization signal). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine Uchida in view of Reykowski in order to enhance efficiency of the MRI device while saving cost.
Regarding claim 4, Uchida discloses wherein the main apparatus holds a first timer value of the first timer at a timing of transmitting the second wireless signal (using 129 as a shown way to store information which includes timing value).
Regarding claim 5, Uchida discloses wherein the coil apparatus holds a second timer value of the second timer at a timing of receiving the second wireless signal (pars 52 and 81 discloses storing values including information. Therefore, holds second timer values).
Regarding claim 6, Uchida discloses wherein one of the first timer and the second timer is corrected based on a difference between a timer value of the first timer and a timer value of the second timer (abstract discloses shift correction based on the two clock signals).
Regarding claim 8, Uchida discloses wherein the second wireless signal is a wireless signal at a frequency that is included in a frequency band of Larmor frequency used for imaging (par 44 discloses frequency at a Lamor frequency. Therefore, the second signal would also be in a Lamor frequency).
Regarding claim 9, Uchida discloses wherein the first wireless signal is a wireless signal in a frequency band used for a wireless local area network (LAN) (par 167 discloses using LAN. Therefore, the signal would be able to use on LAN system).
Regarding claim 11, Uchida discloses wherein the main apparatus transmits the second wireless signal as a radio frequency (RF) pulse signal (par 165 discloses for RP pulse generation and claim 1 discloses for RF), the coil apparatus further comprises an RF receiver coil (203) configured to receive the second wireless signal, and the processing circuitry detects the timing by detecting an envelope of the second wireless signal received by the RF receiver coil (par 71 disclose envelope detection).
Claim 2 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Uchida et al (USPGPub 20190025399) in view of Reykowski et al (USPGPub 20200408862) in further view of Adolf et al (USPGPub 20150022206).
Regarding claim 2, Uchida in view of Reykowski does not fully disclose wherein the main apparatus resets the first timer at a timing of transmitting the second wireless signal.
However, Adolf discloses wherein the main apparatus resets the first timer at a timing of transmitting the second wireless signal (pars 50-54 discloses resetting the timer). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine Uchida in view of Reykowski in further view of Adolf in order to help calculate the SAR based on if the current gets sampled.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 3, 7, 10, and 12 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 claim 3, the prior art of record taken alone or in combination fail to teach or suggest a magnetic resonance imaging apparatus comprising: wherein the coil apparatus resets the second timer at a timing of receiving the second wireless signal in combination with the other limitation of the claim.
Regarding claim 7, the prior art of record taken alone or in combination fail to teach or suggest a magnetic resonance imaging apparatus comprising: wherein the processing circuitry: further detects whether the regenerated synchronization clock is out of synchronization; and when the synchronization clock is out of synchronization, corrects at least one of the first timer and the second timer in accordance with the timing detected by the processing circuitry, after the synchronization clock is synchronized again in combination with the other limitation of the claim.
Regarding claim 10, the prior art of record taken alone or in combination fail to teach or suggest a magnetic resonance imaging apparatus comprising: wherein the second wireless signal is transmitted with weaker signal intensity than signal intensity of the wireless signal at the Larmor frequency used for the imaging in combination with the other limitation of the claim.
Regarding claim 12, the prior art of record taken alone or in combination fail to teach or suggest a magnetic resonance imaging apparatus comprising: wherein the main apparatus further comprises processing circuitry configured to: generate the synchronization clock; generate the first wireless signal based on the synchronization clock and then transmit the first wireless signal to the coil apparatus by wireless communication; and generate the second wireless signal based on the synchronization clock and then transmit the second wireless signal to the coil apparatus by wireless communication in combination with the other limitation of the claim.
Prior Art
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Nakanishi et al (US Pat No. 8502540): discloses MRI with sync clock generated signals.
Tomiha et al (USPGPub 20150253394): discloses MRI with transmitting unit.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to DOMINIC E HAWKINS whose telephone number is (571)272-2647. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 7:30am-5:00pm EST.
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/DOMINIC E HAWKINS/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2858