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 .
Drawings
The drawings are objected to because “Activity” in Fig. 1 reads as “Acrivity”. 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.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 101
35 U.S.C. 101 reads as follows:
Whoever invents or discovers any new and useful process, machine, manufacture, or composition of matter, or any new and useful improvement thereof, may obtain a patent therefor, subject to the conditions and requirements of this title.
Claims 1-19 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 101 because the claimed invention is directed to non-statutory subject matter. The claim(s) as a whole, considering all claim elements both individually and in combination, do not amount to significantly more than an abstract idea. A streamlined analysis of claim 1 follows.
Regarding Claim 1, the claim recites an electronic device. Thus, the claim is directed to an apparatus, which is one of the statutory categories of invention (Step 1).
The claim is then analyzed to determine whether it is directed to any judicial exception (Step 2A, Prong One). The following limitations set forth a judicial exception:
obtain a first bioelectrical impedance through the first electrode body, obtain a second bioelectrical impedance through the second electrode body
identify one of the first bioelectrical impedance and the second bioelectrical impedance based on phases of each of the first bioelectrical impedance and the second bioelectrical impedance
obtain a total body water amount using the identified bioelectrical impedance,
provide the obtained total body water amount
These limitations describe a mathematical calculation and/or a mental process as the skilled artisan is capable of performing the recited limitations and making a mental assessment thereafter. Examiner also notes that nothing from the claims suggest that the limitations cannot be practically performed by a human with the aid of a pen and paper, or using a generic computer as a tool to perform mathematical calculations and/or mental process steps in real time. Examiner also notes that nothing from the claims suggests an undue level of complexity that the mathematical calculations and/or the mental process steps cannot be practically performed by a human with the aid of a pen and paper, or using a generic computer as a tool to perform mathematical calculations and/or mental process steps.
For example:
The plain meaning of the limitation “obtain a first bioelectrical impedance through the first electrode body, obtain a second bioelectrical impedance through the second electrode body” includes mental processes that can be performed in the human mind by observations, evaluations, judgments, and opinions, or by a human with the aid of a pen and paper, or using a generic computer as a tool to perform these mental process steps in real time.
The plain meaning of the limitation “identify one of the first bioelectrical impedance and the second bioelectrical impedance based on phases of each of the first bioelectrical impedance and the second bioelectrical impedance” includes mental processes that can be performed in the human mind by observations, evaluations, judgments, and opinions, or by a human with the aid of a pen and paper, or using a generic computer as a tool to perform these mental process steps in real time.
The plain meaning of the limitation “obtain a total body water amount using the identified bioelectrical impedance” includes mathematical calculations that can be performed by a human with the aid of a pen and paper, or using a generic computer as a tool to perform mathematical calculations steps in real time.
A human is capable of manually/mentally providing the obtained total body water amount, e.g. by voice to audibly say it, writing it down on pen and paper, using generic computer components to type it, etc.
Next, the claim as a whole is analyzed to determine whether any element, or combination of elements, integrates the identified judicial exception into a practical application (Step 2A, Prong Two).
The following limitations amount to insignificant extra-solution activity to the judicial exception, e.g. mere data gathering. See MPEP 2106.05(g).
a first electrode body configured to be in contact with a body and comprising a first current electrode and a second current electrode symmetrically arranged in a first direction and a first voltage electrode and a second voltage electrode symmetrically arranged in the first direction
a second electrode body configured to be in contact with the body and comprising a third current electrode and a fourth current electrode symmetrically arranged in a second direction and a third voltage electrode and a fourth voltage electrode symmetrically arranged in the second direction
The following limitations amount to a recitation of the words "apply it" (or an equivalent) and/or nothing more than mere instructions to implement the abstract idea on a generic computer. See MPEP 2106.05(f).
one or more processors configured to...
Therefore, these additional limitations do not integrate the judicial exception into a practical application.
Next, the claim as a whole is analyzed to determine whether any element, or combination of elements, amounts to significantly more than the identified judicial exception (Step 2B):
The following limitations do not amount to significantly more than the abstract idea for substantially similar reasons applied in Step 2A, Prong Two.
a first electrode body configured to be in contact with a body and comprising a first current electrode and a second current electrode symmetrically arranged in a first direction and a first voltage electrode and a second voltage electrode symmetrically arranged in the first direction
a second electrode body configured to be in contact with the body and comprising a third current electrode and a fourth current electrode symmetrically arranged in a second direction and a third voltage electrode and a fourth voltage electrode symmetrically arranged in the second direction
one or more processors configured to...
The following limitations is/are considered to be well-understood, routine, and conventional (WURC).
“a first electrode body configured to be in contact with a body and comprising a first current electrode and a second current electrode symmetrically arranged in a first direction and a first voltage electrode and a second voltage electrode symmetrically arranged in the first direction; a second electrode body configured to be in contact with the body and comprising a third current electrode and a fourth current electrode symmetrically arranged in a second direction and a third voltage electrode and a fourth voltage electrode symmetrically arranged in the second direction” is/are considered to be well-understood, routine, and conventional based on the disclosure of this structure in multiple references, including the following: US 20220273187 A1 (See Figs. 10A, 12, and 13) ; US 10898100 B2 (See Figs. 4A-5); US 20040167422 A1 (Fig. 2); US 20120245436 A1 (Fig. 5); US 20170007151 A1 (Fig. 4); US 20200060574 A1 (Fig. 14). The Examiner notes that while the mere disclosure of a structure in prior art does not automatically satisfy the Berkheimer standard, the existence of this structure in multiple references supports the conclusion that this structure is -understood, routine, and conventional.
Independent Claim 10 is also not patent eligible for substantially similar reasons as it recites the same abstract idea(s) and additional element(s) as Claim 1 but as a process-type claim.
Independent Claim 19 is also not patent eligible for substantially similar reasons as it recites the same abstract idea(s) and additional element(s) as Claim 1 but as another apparatus-type claim (A non-transitory computer-readable recording medium).
Dependent Claims 2-6, 8, 11-15, and 17 also fail to add subject matter qualifying as significantly more to the abstract independent claims as they merely further limit the abstract idea.
Dependent Claims 2-9 and 16-18 also fail to add subject qualifying as significantly more to the abstract independent claims as they recite limitations that do not integrate the claims into a practical application for substantially similar reasons as set forth above.
Dependent Claims 2-9 and 16-18 also fail to add subject matter integrating the judicial exception or qualifying as significantly more to the abstract independent claims as they do not recite significantly more than the identified abstract idea for substantially similar reasons as set forth above.
Therefore, Claims 1-19 are not patent eligible under 35 U.S.C. § 101.
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.
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.
Claims 1-3, 9-12, and 18-19 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Rutkove et al (US 20220273187 A1, cited in applicant’s IDS, hereinafter Rutkove) in view of Jung et al (US 20200029870 A1, cited in applicant’s IDS, hereinafter Jung).
Regarding Claim 1, Rutkove discloses an electronic device (Element 10, Fig. 1) comprising:
a first electrode body (See Fig. 10A, electrodes along axis line 24) configured to be in contact with a body (See Figs. 6C, 6H, and 11) and comprising a first current electrode and a second current electrode (Elements 20a and 20f, Fig. 10; Table 1, [0069]) symmetrically arranged in a first direction (See Fig. 10A; “electrodes 18 may include a plurality of conductive elements 20 spaced apart and arranged along a first axis 24”, [0064]) and a first voltage electrode and a second voltage electrode (Elements 20b and 20e, see Fig. 10; Table 1, [0069]) symmetrically arranged in the first direction (See Fig. 10A; “electrodes 18 may include a plurality of conductive elements 20 spaced apart and arranged along a first axis 24”, [0064]);
a second electrode body (See Fig. 10A, electrodes along axis line 26) configured to be in contact with the body (See Figs. 6C, 6H, and 11) and comprising a third current electrode and a fourth current electrode (Elements 20g and 20h, Fig. 10A; Table 1, [0069]) symmetrically arranged in a second direction (“a plurality of conductive elements 20 spaced apart and arranged along a second axis 26 perpendicular to the first axis 14”, [0064]) and a third voltage electrode and a fourth voltage electrode (Elements 20i and 20k, Fig. 10A; Table 1, [0069]) symmetrically arranged in the second direction (“a plurality of conductive elements 20 spaced apart and arranged along a second axis 26 perpendicular to the first axis 14”, [0064]); and
one or more processors configured to (“The data may be analyzed on the device via a suitable processor”, [0047]):
obtain a first bioelectrical impedance through the first electrode body (“For example, in configuration 1, conductive elements 20a and 20f may be used to apply an alternating current through the body and conductive elements 20b and 20e may be used to measure the differential voltage across them”, [0070]),
obtain a second bioelectrical impedance through the second electrode body (“In general, any pair of current elements may combine with another pair of voltage elements to form a configuration. Although only four configurations are listed in the table above, other configurations are also contemplated”, [0070]; configuration 4 in Table 1 corresponds to the second electrode body),
identify one of the first bioelectrical impedance and the second bioelectrical impedance based on phases of each of the first bioelectrical impedance and the second bioelectrical impedance (“The device 10 may measure bioimpedance data (e.g., impedance, resistance, phase angle, etc.) using the four electrode configurations at the four different frequencies and indicate that the measurement is complete”, [0073]; “These health parameters 35 may be determined as a function of the measured data (resistance, phase angle, etc.) at some or all of the frequencies at some or all of the electrode configurations”, [0074]; to calculate these health parameters as a function of phase angle at the first and second electrode configurations, the of phase angle at the first and second electrode configurations must be known), and
obtain a total muscle fatigue and recovery metric using the identified bioelectrical impedance (“For example, in an experiment conducted with three healthy men between the ages of 30-35, parameters such as reactance and phase at 50 kHz increased in value slightly during exercise (5-15% increase compared to baseline), then dropped dramatically (20-50% reduction compared to baseline) within 30 minutes of exercise, and then returned gradually to values near baseline (within 10% of baseline) over the course of 8-48 hours. These results are both unexpected and important as they provide a simple, noninvasive way of measuring and tracking muscle fatigue and recovery”, [0015]).
Rutkove discloses the claimed invention except for expressly disclosing the one or more processors configured to:
obtain a total body water amount using the identified bioelectrical impedance, and
provide the obtained total body water amount.
However, Jung, which also discloses an electronic device (Element 100, Fig. 1), teaches the one or more processors configured to:
obtain a total body water amount using the identified bioelectrical impedance (“The apparatus may further include a processor configured to: determine biometric information of the object of interest based on the received optical signal and the depth-specific bioelectrical impedance”, [0021]; “The biometric information may include a body fat mass, a fat-free mass, a muscle mass, a skeletal muscle mass, a basal metabolic rate, an intracellular water mass, an extracellular water mass, a body water mass”, [0022]), and
provide the obtained total body water amount (“According to an embodiment, the output component 1140 may output the data utilized by the apparatus 1100 or the processing result data of the apparatus 1100 using an audible method, a visual method, a tactile method, and the like. For example, the output component 1140 may include a display, a speaker, a vibrator, and the like”, [0118]).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Rutkove with Jung wherein the processors are configured to: obtain a total body water amount using an identified bioelectrical impedance (e.g., before or after the exercise taught in Rutkove), and provide the obtained total body water amount, because all of the claimed elements were known in the prior art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, and one with ordinary skill in the art could have combined all the claimed elements by known methods, and the result would have been obvious (i.e. using bioimpedance to determine body water amounts) were known in the prior art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, and one with ordinary skill in the art could have combined all the claimed elements by known methods, and the result would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art.
Regarding Claim 2, Modified Rutkove discloses the electronic device of claim 1, wherein the one or more processors are configured to identify the first bioelectrical impedance (“For example, in an experiment conducted with three healthy men between the ages of 30-35, parameters such as reactance and phase at 50 kHz ...dropped dramatically (20-50% reduction compared to baseline) within 30 minutes of exercise, and then returned gradually to values near baseline (within 10% of baseline) over the course of 8-48 hours”, [0015), based on the phase corresponding to the first bioelectrical impedance being lower than the phase corresponding to the second bioelectrical impedance (“For example, in an experiment conducted with three healthy men between the ages of 30-35, parameters such as reactance and phase at 50 kHz increased in value slightly during exercise (5-15% increase compared to baseline)”, [0015]).
Regarding Claim 3, modified Rutkove discloses the electronic device of claim 2, wherein the one or more processors are configured to identify a muscle activity degree based on the second bioelectrical impedance (“For example, in an experiment conducted with three healthy men between the ages of 30-35, parameters such as reactance and phase at 50 kHz increased in value slightly during exercise (5-15% increase compared to baseline)”, [0015]), wherein the muscle activity degree corresponds to the activity degree of muscle cells included in a local area on the body with which the electronic device is in contact (“The devices and methods of the current disclosure enable the calculation of health related parameters (e.g., parameters indicative of fat content, such as, e.g., fat percentage and muscle quality (MQ)) for a specific body region (e.g., arms, legs, and/or core) or muscle (e.g., biceps, abdominal muscle, etc.) by measuring the bioimpedance of that region of the body directly”, [0007]).
Regarding Claim 9, modified Rutkove discloses the electronic device of claim 1, wherein the electronic device comprises a wearable device (“In some embodiments, the device may be wireless, hand-held, portable, wearable, or incorporated in a garment configured to be worn by a user”, [0009]) comprising a display on a front surface (Element 12, Fig. 1), wherein each of the first electrode body and the second electrode body is disposed at a rear surface of the wearable device (See Fig. 2), and wherein the one or more processors provide the total water amount through the display (See Fig. 2; the muscle mass and fat mass were modified to also be total body water in Claim 1).
Regarding Claim 10, Rutkove discloses a method of controlling an electronic device (Element 10, Fig. 1; “The devices and methods of the current disclosure enable the calculation of health related parameters (e.g., parameters indicative of fat content, such as, e.g., fat percentage and muscle quality (MQ)) for a specific body region (e.g., arms, legs, and/or core) or muscle (e.g., biceps, abdominal muscle, etc.) by measuring the bioimpedance of that region of the body directly”, [0007]) comprising a first electrode body (See Fig. 10A, electrodes along axis line 24) and a second electrode body (See Fig. 10A, electrodes along axis line 26) in contact with a body (See Figs. 6C, 6H, and 11), the method comprising:
obtaining a first bioelectrical impedance through the first electrode body (“For example, in configuration 1, conductive elements 20a and 20f may be used to apply an alternating current through the body and conductive elements 20b and 20e may be used to measure the differential voltage across them”, [0070]) comprising a first current electrode and a second current electrode (Configuration 1: Elements 20a and 20f, Fig. 10; Table 1, [0069]) symmetrically arranged in a first direction (See Fig. 10A; “electrodes 18 may include a plurality of conductive elements 20 spaced apart and arranged along a first axis 24”, [0064]) and a first voltage electrode and a second voltage electrode (Elements 20b and 20e, see Fig. 10; Table 1, [0069]) symmetrically arranged in the first direction (See Fig. 10A; “electrodes 18 may include a plurality of conductive elements 20 spaced apart and arranged along a first axis 24”, [0064]);
obtaining a second bioelectrical impedance through the second electrode body (“In general, any pair of current elements may combine with another pair of voltage elements to form a configuration. Although only four configurations are listed in the table above, other configurations are also contemplated”, [0070]; configuration 4 in Table 1 corresponds to the second electrode body) comprising a third current electrode and a fourth current electrode (Elements 20g and 20h, Fig. 10A; Table 1, [0069]) symmetrically arranged in a second direction (“a plurality of conductive elements 20 spaced apart and arranged along a second axis 26 perpendicular to the first axis 14”, [0064]) and a third voltage electrode and a fourth voltage electrode (Elements 20i and 20k, Fig. 10A; Table 1, [0069]) symmetrically arranged in the second direction (“a plurality of conductive elements 20 spaced apart and arranged along a second axis 26 perpendicular to the first axis 14”, [0064]);
identifying one of the first bioelectrical impedance and the second bioelectrical impedance based on phases of each of the first bioelectrical impedance and the second bioelectrical impedance (“The device 10 may measure bioimpedance data (e.g., impedance, resistance, phase angle, etc.) using the four electrode configurations at the four different frequencies and indicate that the measurement is complete”, [0073]; “These health parameters 35 may be determined as a function of the measured data (resistance, phase angle, etc.) at some or all of the frequencies at some or all of the electrode configurations”, [0074]; to calculate these health parameters as a function of phase angle at the first and second electrode configurations, the of phase angle at the first and second electrode configurations must be known); and
obtain a total muscle fatigue and recovery metric using the identified bioelectrical impedance (“For example, in an experiment conducted with three healthy men between the ages of 30-35, parameters such as reactance and phase at 50 kHz increased in value slightly during exercise (5-15% increase compared to baseline), then dropped dramatically (20-50% reduction compared to baseline) within 30 minutes of exercise, and then returned gradually to values near baseline (within 10% of baseline) over the course of 8-48 hours. These results are both unexpected and important as they provide a simple, noninvasive way of measuring and tracking muscle fatigue and recovery”, [0015]).
Rutkove discloses the claimed invention except for expressly disclosing the method comprising:
obtaining a total body water amount using the identified bioelectrical impedance; and
providing the obtained total body water amount.
However, Jung, which also discloses a method (See Abstract) of controlling an electronic device (Element 100, Fig. 1), teaches the method comprising:
obtaining a total body water amount using the identified bioelectrical impedance (“The apparatus may further include a processor configured to: determine biometric information of the object of interest based on the received optical signal and the depth-specific bioelectrical impedance”, [0021]; “The biometric information may include a body fat mass, a fat-free mass, a muscle mass, a skeletal muscle mass, a basal metabolic rate, an intracellular water mass, an extracellular water mass, a body water mass”, [0022]), and
providing the obtained total body water amount (“According to an embodiment, the output component 1140 may output the data utilized by the apparatus 1100 or the processing result data of the apparatus 1100 using an audible method, a visual method, a tactile method, and the like. For example, the output component 1140 may include a display, a speaker, a vibrator, and the like”, [0118]).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Rutkove with Jung wherein the method comprises: obtaining a total body water amount using an identified bioelectrical impedance (e.g., before or after the exercise taught in Rutkove), and providing the obtained total body water amount, because all of the claimed elements were known in the prior art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, and one with ordinary skill in the art could have combined all the claimed elements by known methods, and the result would have been obvious (i.e. using bioimpedance to determine body water amounts) were known in the prior art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, and one with ordinary skill in the art could have combined all the claimed elements by known methods, and the result would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art.
Regarding Claim 11, modified Rutkove discloses the method of claim 10, wherein the identifying comprises identifying the first bioelectrical impedance (“For example, in an experiment conducted with three healthy men between the ages of 30-35, parameters such as reactance and phase at 50 kHz ...dropped dramatically (20-50% reduction compared to baseline) within 30 minutes of exercise, and then returned gradually to values near baseline (within 10% of baseline) over the course of 8-48 hours”, [0015), based on the phase corresponding to the first bioelectrical impedance being lower than the phase corresponding to the second bioelectrical impedance (“For example, in an experiment conducted with three healthy men between the ages of 30-35, parameters such as reactance and phase at 50 kHz increased in value slightly during exercise (5-15% increase compared to baseline)”, [0015]).
Regarding Claim 12, modified Rutkove discloses the method of claim 11, wherein the method further comprises identifying a muscle activity degree based on the second bioelectrical impedance (“For example, in an experiment conducted with three healthy men between the ages of 30-35, parameters such as reactance and phase at 50 kHz increased in value slightly during exercise (5-15% increase compared to baseline)”, [0015]), wherein the muscle activity degree corresponds to the activity degree of muscle cells included in a local area on the body with which the electronic device is in contact (“The devices and methods of the current disclosure enable the calculation of health related parameters (e.g., parameters indicative of fat content, such as, e.g., fat percentage and muscle quality (MQ)) for a specific body region (e.g., arms, legs, and/or core) or muscle (e.g., biceps, abdominal muscle, etc.) by measuring the bioimpedance of that region of the body directly”, [0007]).
Regarding Claim 18, modified Rutkove discloses the method of claim 10, wherein the electronic device comprises a wearable device (“In some embodiments, the device may be wireless, hand-held, portable, wearable, or incorporated in a garment configured to be worn by a user”, [0009]) comprising a display on a front surface (Element 12, Fig. 1), wherein each of the first electrode body and the second electrode body is disposed at a rear surface of the wearable device (See Fig. 2), and wherein the providing comprises providing the total water amount through the display See Fig. 2; the muscle mass and fat mass were modified to also be total body water in Claim 10).
Regarding Claim 19, Rutkove discloses a program ([0049]) which, when executed, causes an electronic device (Element 10, Fig. 1) to perform a control method of a display device (Element 12, Fig. 2) wherein the control method of an electronic device comprising a first electrode body (See Fig. 10A, electrodes along axis line 24) and a second electrode body (See Fig. 10A, electrodes along axis line 26) configured to be in contact with a body (See Figs. 6C, 6H, and 11) includes:
obtaining a first bioelectrical impedance through the first electrode body (“For example, in configuration 1, conductive elements 20a and 20f may be used to apply an alternating current through the body and conductive elements 20b and 20e may be used to measure the differential voltage across them”, [0070]) comprising a first current electrode and a second current electrode (Configuration 1: Elements 20a and 20f, Fig. 10; Table 1, [0069]) symmetrically arranged in a first direction (See Fig. 10A; “electrodes 18 may include a plurality of conductive elements 20 spaced apart and arranged along a first axis 24”, [0064]) and a first voltage electrode and a second voltage electrode (Elements 20b and 20e, see Fig. 10; Table 1, [0069]) symmetrically arranged in the first direction (See Fig. 10A; “electrodes 18 may include a plurality of conductive elements 20 spaced apart and arranged along a first axis 24”, [0064]);
obtaining a second bioelectrical impedance through the second electrode body (“In general, any pair of current elements may combine with another pair of voltage elements to form a configuration. Although only four configurations are listed in the table above, other configurations are also contemplated”, [0070]; configuration 4 in Table 1 corresponds to the second electrode body) comprising a third current electrode and a fourth current electrode (Elements 20g and 20h, Fig. 10A; Table 1, [0069]) symmetrically arranged in a second direction (“a plurality of conductive elements 20 spaced apart and arranged along a second axis 26 perpendicular to the first axis 14”, [0064]) and a third voltage electrode and a fourth voltage electrode (Elements 20i and 20k, Fig. 10A; Table 1, [0069]) symmetrically arranged in the second direction (“a plurality of conductive elements 20 spaced apart and arranged along a second axis 26 perpendicular to the first axis 14”, [0064]);
identifying one of the first bioelectrical impedance and the second bioelectrical impedance based on phases of each of the first bioelectrical impedance and the second bioelectrical impedance (“The device 10 may measure bioimpedance data (e.g., impedance, resistance, phase angle, etc.) using the four electrode configurations at the four different frequencies and indicate that the measurement is complete”, [0073]; “These health parameters 35 may be determined as a function of the measured data (resistance, phase angle, etc.) at some or all of the frequencies at some or all of the electrode configurations”, [0074]; to calculate these health parameters as a function of phase angle at the first and second electrode configurations, the of phase angle at the first and second electrode configurations must be known); and
obtaining a total muscle fatigue and recovery metric using the identified bioelectrical impedance (“For example, in an experiment conducted with three healthy men between the ages of 30-35, parameters such as reactance and phase at 50 kHz increased in value slightly during exercise (5-15% increase compared to baseline), then dropped dramatically (20-50% reduction compared to baseline) within 30 minutes of exercise, and then returned gradually to values near baseline (within 10% of baseline) over the course of 8-48 hours. These results are both unexpected and important as they provide a simple, noninvasive way of measuring and tracking muscle fatigue and recovery”, [0015]).
Rutkove discloses the claimed invention except for expressly disclosing a non-transitory computer-readable recording medium including a program which, when executed, causes an electronic device to perform a control method of a display device wherein the control method of an electronic device includes:
obtaining a total body water amount using the identified bioelectrical impedance, and
providing the obtained total body water amount.
However, Jung, which also discloses a control method of an electronic device (See Abstract), teaches a non-transitory computer-readable recording medium including a program which, when executed, causes an electronic device (Element 120, Fig. 2) to perform a control method (“The embodiments can be implemented as computer readable instructions in a computer readable recording medium. Code and code segments constituting computer programs can be easily inferred by a skilled computer programmer in the art. The computer readable recording medium may include a non-transitory computer readable medium”, [0038]), wherein the control method of an electronic device includes:
obtaining a total body water amount using the identified bioelectrical impedance (“The apparatus may further include a processor configured to: determine biometric information of the object of interest based on the received optical signal and the depth-specific bioelectrical impedance”, [0021]; “The biometric information may include a body fat mass, a fat-free mass, a muscle mass, a skeletal muscle mass, a basal metabolic rate, an intracellular water mass, an extracellular water mass, a body water mass”, [0022]), and
providing the obtained total body water amount (“According to an embodiment, the output component 1140 may output the data utilized by the apparatus 1100 or the processing result data of the apparatus 1100 using an audible method, a visual method, a tactile method, and the like. For example, the output component 1140 may include a display, a speaker, a vibrator, and the like”, [0118]).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Rutkove with Jung by adding a non-transitory computer-readable recording medium including a program which, when executed, causes an electronic device to perform a control method, wherein the control method comprises: obtaining a total body water amount using an identified bioelectrical impedance (e.g., before or after the exercise taught in Rutkove), and providing the obtained total body water amount, because all of the claimed elements were known in the prior art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, and one with ordinary skill in the art could have combined all the claimed elements by known methods, and the result would have been obvious (i.e. using bioimpedance to determine body water amounts) were known in the prior art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, and one with ordinary skill in the art could have combined all the claimed elements by known methods, and the result would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art.
Claims 4 and 13 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Rutkove in view of Jung, and further in view of McNair (US 10405810 B1, hereinafter McNair).
Regarding Claim 4, modified Rutkove discloses the electronic device of claim 1, wherein the one or more processors are configured to (“device 10 may be configured to initiate measurements automatically when the device 10 senses that the electrodes are making proper contact with a user's skin... The data may be analyzed on the device via a suitable processor”, [0047]):
identify a phase change corresponding to the first bioelectrical impedance by obtaining the first bioelectrical impedance at a time interval (“For example, in an experiment conducted with three healthy men between the ages of 30-35, parameters such as reactance and phase at 50 kHz ...dropped dramatically (20-50% reduction compared to baseline) within 30 minutes of exercise”, [0015]) through the first electrode body (“For example, in configuration 1, conductive elements 20a and 20f may be used to apply an alternating current through the body and conductive elements 20b and 20e may be used to measure the differential voltage across them”, [0070]),
identify a phase change corresponding to the second bioelectrical impedance by obtaining the second bioelectrical impedance at a time interval (“For example, in an experiment conducted with three healthy men between the ages of 30-35, parameters such as reactance and phase at 50 kHz increased in value slightly during exercise (5-15% increase compared to baseline)”, [0015]) through the second electrode body (“In general, any pair of current elements may combine with another pair of voltage elements to form a configuration. Although only four configurations are listed in the table above, other configurations are also contemplated”, [0070]; configuration 4 in Table 1 corresponds to the second electrode body), based on a phase change corresponding to the first bioelectrical impedance being lower than a phase change corresponding to the second bioelectrical impedance (“parameters such as reactance and phase at 50 kHz increased in value slightly during exercise (5-15% increase compared to baseline), then dropped dramatically (20-50% reduction compared to baseline) within 30 minutes of exercise, and then returned gradually to values near baseline (within 10% of baseline) over the course of 8-48 hours”, [0015]).
Modified Rutkove discloses the claimed invention except for expressly disclosing the time interval to be a preset time interval; and
wherein the one or more processors are configured to obtain a fluctuation of the total body water amount based on the first bioelectrical impedance obtained at the preset time interval, and
provide a fluctuation of the total body water amount.
However, it has been held that optimizations within prior art conditions or through routine experimentation is obvious. "[W]here the general conditions of a claim are disclosed in the prior art, it is not inventive to discover the optimum or workable ranges by routine experimentation." In re Aller, 220 F.2d 454, 456, 105 USPQ 233, 235 (CCPA 1955). See MPEP 2144.05(II). It is well known that obtaining data at different preset time intervals can allow for isolating parameters of interest. Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to further modify Rutkove and make the time intervals preset time intervals.
McNair, which also discloses an electronic device (See Fig. 7A; see Element 141, Fig. 1), teaches wherein the one or more processors are configured to obtain a fluctuation of the total body water amount (“Accordingly, at a high level, this disclosure describes, among other things, methods and systems for monitoring subjects to quantitatively determine whether or not a significant change in their total body water (TBW) or status of hydration is occurring or has occurred, indicating an abnormal hydration status”, 3:35-40) based on the first bioelectrical impedance (“Accordingly, at a high level, this disclosure describes, among other things, methods and systems for monitoring subjects to quantitatively determine whether or not a significant change in their total body water (TBW) or status of hydration is occurring or has occurred, indicating an abnormal hydration status”, 3:44-46) obtained at the preset time interval (“Embodiments of monitor 141 comprise one or more sensor components operable to acquiring biometric information about a user, such as physiological data associated with the subject's hydration status (fluid retention), and that may be acquired continuously, periodically, as one or more time series”, 12:62-67), and
provide a fluctuation of the total body water amount (“In some embodiments, interface 142 may also be used to display a subject's hydration status, forecast, or related information”, 12:30-32).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to further modify Rutkove with McNair, because fluctuations in total body water leading to health issues can occur without the user’s knowledge (See McNair, 1:15-30).
Regarding Claim 13, modified Rutkove discloses the method of claim 10, wherein the obtaining the first bioelectrical impedance comprises identifying a phase change corresponding to the first bioelectrical impedance by obtaining the first bioelectrical impedance at a preset time interval (“For example, in an experiment conducted with three healthy men between the ages of 30-35, parameters such as reactance and phase at 50 kHz ...dropped dramatically (20-50% reduction compared to baseline) within 30 minutes of exercise”, [0015]) through the first electrode body (“For example, in configuration 1, conductive elements 20a and 20f may be used to apply an alternating current through the body and conductive elements 20b and 20e may be used to measure the differential voltage across them”, [0070]),
wherein the obtaining the second bioelectrical impedance comprises identifying a phase change corresponding to the second bioelectrical impedance by obtaining the second bioelectrical impedance at a preset time interval (“For example, in an experiment conducted with three healthy men between the ages of 30-35, parameters such as reactance and phase at 50 kHz increased in value slightly during exercise (5-15% increase compared to baseline)”, [0015]) through the second electrode body (“In general, any pair of current elements may combine with another pair of voltage elements to form a configuration. Although only four configurations are listed in the table above, other configurations are also contemplated”, [0070]; configuration 4 in Table 1 corresponds to the second electrode body),
wherein identifying one of the first bioelectrical impedance and the second bioelectrical impedance comprises based on a phase change corresponding to the first bioelectrical impedance being lower than a phase change corresponding to the second bioelectrical impedance, identifying the first bioelectrical impedance (“parameters such as reactance and phase at 50 kHz increased in value slightly during exercise (5-15% increase compared to baseline), then dropped dramatically (20-50% reduction compared to baseline) within 30 minutes of exercise, and then returned gradually to values near baseline (within 10% of baseline) over the course of 8-48 hours”, [0015]).
Modified Rutkove discloses the claimed invention except for expressly disclosing the time interval to be a preset time interval; and
wherein the obtaining the total body water amount comprises obtaining a fluctuation of the total body water amount based on the first bioelectrical impedance obtained at the preset time interval, and
wherein the providing comprises providing a fluctuation of the total body water amount.
However, it has been held that optimizations within prior art conditions or through routine experimentation is obvious. "[W]here the general conditions of a claim are disclosed in the prior art, it is not inventive to discover the optimum or workable ranges by routine experimentation." In re Aller, 220 F.2d 454, 456, 105 USPQ 233, 235 (CCPA 1955). See MPEP 2144.05(II). It is well known that obtaining data at different preset time intervals can allow for isolating parameters of interest. Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to further modify Rutkove and make the time intervals preset time intervals.
McNair, which also discloses a method of controlling an electronic device (See 1:62-2:3), teaches wherein the obtaining the total body water amount comprises obtaining a fluctuation of the total body water amount (“Accordingly, at a high level, this disclosure describes, among other things, methods and systems for monitoring subjects to quantitatively determine whether or not a significant change in their total body water (TBW) or status of hydration is occurring or has occurred, indicating an abnormal hydration status”, 3:35-40) based on the first bioelectrical impedance (“Accordingly, at a high level, this disclosure describes, among other things, methods and systems for monitoring subjects to quantitatively determine whether or not a significant change in their total body water (TBW) or status of hydration is occurring or has occurred, indicating an abnormal hydration status”, 3:44-46) obtained at the preset time interval (“Embodiments of monitor 141 comprise one or more sensor components operable to acquiring biometric information about a user, such as physiological data associated with the subject's hydration status (fluid retention), and that may be acquired continuously, periodically, as one or more time series”, 12:62-67), and
wherein the providing comprises providing a fluctuation of the total body water amount (“In some embodiments, interface 142 may also be used to display a subject's hydration status, forecast, or related information”, 12:30-32).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to further modify Rutkove with McNair, because fluctuations in total body water leading to health issues can occur without the user’s knowledge (See McNair, 1:15-30).
Claims 5-6 and 14-15 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Rutkove in view of Jung and McNair, and further in view of Park et al (US 20230144358 A1, cited in applicant’s IDS, hereinafter Park).
Regarding Claim 5, modified Rutkove discloses the electronic device of claim 4. Modified Rutkove discloses the claimed invention except for expressly disclosing wherein the one or more processors are configured to, based on the phase change corresponding to the second bioelectrical impedance exceeding a threshold range, adjust and provide the total body water amount obtained based on the first bioelectrical impedance. However, Park, which also discloses an electronic device (Element 100, Fig. 1), teaches wherein the one or more processors (Element 310, Fig. 3) are configured to, based on the phase change corresponding to a second bioelectrical impedance exceeding a threshold range (“Phase Value Exceeding Threshold”, Step 817, Fig. 8), adjust and provide the total body water amount (“When the current flows, human body resistance is measured and used to calculate the total body water amount”, [0006]) obtained based on a first bioelectrical impedance (“Induce Remeasurement”, Step 817, Fig. 8). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to apply the teachings of Park to modified Rutkove, such that based on the phase change corresponding to the second bioelectrical impedance (which happens during an exercise period of modified Rutkove) exceeding a threshold range (as taught by Park), adjust and provide the total body water amount obtained based on the first bioelectrical impedance (which happens before or after peak exercise in modified Rutkove), for the advantage of avoiding faulty bioimpedance measurements and therefore inaccurate total body water calculations.
Regarding Claim 6, modified Rutkove discloses the electronic device of claim 5. Modified Rutkove discloses the claimed invention except for expressly disclosing wherein the one or more processors are configured to, based on the phase change corresponding to the second bioelectrical impedance exceeding the threshold range within the threshold time, ignore a fluctuation of the total body water amount according to the phase change corresponding to the first bioelectrical impedance during the threshold time. However, Park teaches wherein the one or more processors (Element 310, Fig. 3) are configured to, based on the phase change corresponding to the second bioelectrical impedance exceeding the threshold range (“Phase Value Exceeding Threshold”, Step 817, Fig. 8) within the threshold time (Step 807, Fig. 8), ignore all measurements and induce a remeasurement (“Induce Remeasurement”, Step 817, Fig. 8). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to apply the teachings of Park to modified Rutkove, such that wherein the one or more processors are configured to, based on the phase change corresponding to the second bioelectrical impedance exceeding the threshold range within the threshold time, ignore a measurement (i.e. ignore a fluctuation of the total body water amount according to the phase change corresponding to the first bioelectrical impedance during the threshold time), for the advantage of avoiding faulty bioimpedance measurements and therefore inaccurate total body water calculations.
Regarding Claim 14, modified Rutkove discloses the method of claim 13. Modified Rutkove discloses the claimed invention except for expressly disclosing wherein the obtaining the fluctuation of the total body water amount comprises, based on the phase change corresponding to the second bioelectrical impedance exceeding a threshold range, adjusting the total body water amount obtained based on the first bioelectrical impedance. However, Park, which also discloses a method of controlling an electronic device (See Abstract) teaches wherein the obtaining the total body water amount (“When the current flows, human body resistance is measured and used to calculate the total body water amount”, [0006]) comprises, based on the phase change corresponding to a second bioelectrical impedance exceeding a threshold range (“Phase Value Exceeding Threshold”, Step 817, Fig. 8), adjusting the total body water amount obtained based on the first bioelectrical impedance (“Induce Remeasurement”, Step 817, Fig. 8). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to apply the teachings of Park to modified Rutkove, such that the obtaining the fluctuation of the total body water amount (as taught by modified Rutkove) comprises, based on the phase change corresponding to the second bioelectrical impedance exceeding a threshold range (as taught by Park), adjusting the total body water amount obtained based on the first bioelectrical impedance (as taught by modified Rutkove), for the advantage of avoiding faulty bioimpedance measurements and therefore inaccurate total body water calculations.
Regarding Claim 15, modified Rutkove discloses the method of claim 14. Modified Rutkove discloses the claimed invention except for expressly disclosing wherein the obtaining the fluctuation of the total body water amount comprises, based on the phase change corresponding to the second bioelectrical impedance exceeding the threshold range within the threshold time, ignoring a fluctuation of the total body water amount according to the phase change corresponding to the first bioelectrical impedance during the threshold time. However, Park teaches wherein the obtaining the fluctuation of the total body water amount comprises, based on the phase change corresponding to the second bioelectrical impedance exceeding the threshold range (“Phase Value Exceeding Threshold”, Step 817, Fig. 8) within the threshold time (Step 807, Fig. 8), ignoring all measurements and induce a remeasurement (“Induce Remeasurement”, Step 817, Fig. 8). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to apply the teachings of Park to modified Rutkove, such that the obtaining the fluctuation of the total body water amount as already taught by modified Rutkove comprises, ignoring a measurement (i.e. the fluctuation of the total body water amount according to the phase change corresponding to the first bioelectrical impedance during the threshold time) when the phase change corresponding to the second bioelectrical impedance exceeds the threshold range within the threshold time, for the advantage of avoiding faulty bioimpedance measurements and therefore inaccurate total body water calculations.
Claims 7 and 16 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Rutkove in view of Jung, and further in view of Rutkove ‘463 (US 9974463 B2, cited in applicant’s IDS, hereinafter Rutkove ‘463).
Regarding Claim 7, modified Rutkove discloses the electronic device of claim 1. Modified Rutkove discloses the claimed invention except for expressly disclosing wherein the first bioelectrical impedance is obtained through the first voltage electrode and the second voltage electrode symmetrically arranged to correspond to a horizontal direction of a muscle cell included in a local area of the body with which the electronic device is in contact, wherein the second bioelectrical impedance is obtained through the third voltage electrode and the fourth voltage electrode symmetrically arranged to correspond to a vertical direction of the muscle cell, wherein the first direction corresponds to the horizontal direction of the muscle cell, and wherein the second direction corresponds to the vertical direction of the muscle cell. However, Rutkove ‘463, which also discloses an electronic device (See Figs. 1 and 4-5), teaches wherein the first bioelectrical impedance is obtained through the first voltage electrode and the second voltage electrode symmetrically arranged to correspond to a horizontal direction of a muscle cell included in a local area of the body with which the electronic device is in contact (See Fig. 8C; “As shown in the figures, the measured electrical parameters depend on the orientation of the measurement with respect to an axis of the muscle fibers, with 0° being aligned with the axis.”, 17:25-30), wherein the second bioelectrical impedance is obtained through the third voltage electrode and the fourth voltage electrode symmetrically arranged to correspond to a vertical direction of the muscle cell (See Fig. 8C; there is a measurement taken at about 90 degrees), wherein the first direction corresponds to the horizontal direction of the muscle cell (See Fig. 8C; “As shown in the figures, the measured electrical parameters depend on the orientation of the measurement with respect to an axis of the muscle fibers, with 0° being aligned with the axis.”, 17:25-30), and wherein the second direction corresponds to the vertical direction of the muscle cell (See Fig. 8C). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to further modify the electronic device of Rutkove with the configuration of Rutkove ‘463, to reduce a required measurement time (See 3:57-62 of Rutkove ‘463).
Regarding Claim 16, modified Rutkove discloses the method of claim 10. Modified Rutkove discloses the claimed invention except for expressly disclosing wherein the first bioelectrical impedance is obtained through the first voltage electrode and the second voltage electrode symmetrically arranged to correspond to a horizontal direction of a muscle cell included in a local area of the body with which the electronic device is in contact, wherein the second bioelectrical impedance is obtained through the third voltage electrode and the fourth voltage electrode symmetrically arranged to correspond to a vertical direction of the muscle cell, wherein the first direction corresponds to the horizontal direction of the muscle cell, and wherein the second direction corresponds to the vertical direction of the muscle cell.
However, Rutkove ‘463, which also discloses a method (see Abstract) for controlling an electronic device (See Figs. 1 and 4-5), teaches wherein the first bioelectrical impedance is obtained through the first voltage electrode and the second voltage electrode symmetrically arranged to correspond to a horizontal direction of a muscle cell included in a local area of the body with which the electronic device is in contact (See Fig. 8C; “As shown in the figures, the measured electrical parameters depend on the orientation of the measurement with respect to an axis of the muscle fibers, with 0° being aligned with the axis.”, 17:25-30), wherein the second bioelectrical impedance is obtained through the third voltage electrode and the fourth voltage electrode symmetrically arranged to correspond to a vertical direction of the muscle cell (See Fig. 8C; there is a measurement taken at about 90 degrees), wherein the first direction corresponds to the horizontal direction of the muscle cell (See Fig. 8C; “As shown in the figures, the measured electrical parameters depend on the orientation of the measurement with respect to an axis of the muscle fibers, with 0° being aligned with the axis.”, 17:25-30), and wherein the second direction corresponds to the vertical direction of the muscle cell (See Fig. 8C). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to further modify the method of Rutkove with the configuration of Rutkove ‘463, to reduce a required measurement time (See 3:57-62 of Rutkove ‘463).
Claims 8 and 17 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Rutkove in view of Jung, and further in view of the Non-Patent Literature (NPL) to Dehegan et al (“Is bioelectrical impedance accurate for use in large epidemiological studies?”, hereinafter Dehegan).
Regarding Claim 8, modified Rutkove discloses the electronic device of claim 1, further comprising:
a third electrode body remotely disposed in each of the first electrode body and the second electrode body (Elements 20C-20d, 20j-20i), wherein the one or more processors are configured to:
obtain a third bioelectrical impedance through the third electrode body (See “Configuration 3”, Table 1, [0069]).
Modified Rutkove discloses the claimed invention except for expressly disclosing wherein the one or more processors are configured to:
based on a phase corresponding to the third bioelectrical impedance being relatively lower than phases each corresponding to the first bioelectrical impedance and the second bioelectrical impedance, obtain the total body water amount based on the third bioelectrical impedance.
However, Dehagan teaches that bioimpedance measurements should not be taken during or after exercise to reduce measurement error. One of ordinary skill in the art could have combined the teachings of modified Rutkove (obtaining a total body water amount from an identified bioimpedance) and Dehagan (avoiding identifying a bioimpedance measurement within several hours of moderate to intensive exercise, which also would lead to a low phase) such that the one or more processors are configured to: based on a phase corresponding to the third bioelectrical impedance being relatively lower than phases each corresponding to the first bioelectrical impedance and the second bioelectrical impedance, obtain the total body water amount based on the third bioelectrical impedance, for the advantages of reducing measurement error.
Regarding Claim 17, modified Rutkove discloses the method of claim 10, wherein the electronic device further comprises a third electrode body remotely disposed in each of the first electrode body and the second electrode body (Elements 20C-20d, 20j-20i), wherein the method further comprises:
obtaining a third bioelectrical impedance through the third electrode body (See “Configuration 3”, Table 1, [0069]). Modified Rutkove discloses the claimed invention except for expressly disclosing wherein the obtaining a total body water amount comprises, based on a phase corresponding to the third bioelectrical impedance being relatively lower than phases each corresponding to the first bioelectrical impedance and the second bioelectrical impedance, obtaining the total body water amount based on the third bioelectrical impedance.
However, Dehagan teaches that bioimpedance measurements should not be taken during or after exercise to reduce measurement error. One of ordinary skill in the art could have combined the teachings of modified Rutkove (obtaining a total body water amount from an identified bioimpedance) and Dehagan (avoiding identifying a bioimpedance measurement within several hours of moderate to intensive exercise, which also would lead to a low phase) such that the one or more processors are configured to: based on a phase corresponding to the third bioelectrical impedance being relatively lower than phases each corresponding to the first bioelectrical impedance and the second bioelectrical impedance, obtain the total body water amount based on the third bioelectrical impedance, for the advantages of reducing measurement error.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
See Shiokawa (US 20050192511 A1, [0002]).
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/JONATHAN E. COOPER/Examiner, Art Unit 3791
/JACQUELINE CHENG/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3791
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