DETAILED ACTION
Acknowledgements
This Office Action is in response to Applicant’s correspondence filed on 5/13/25.
The Examiner notes that citations to United States Patent Application Publication paragraphs are formatted as [####], #### representing the paragraph number.
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 1-2, 4-10 are currently pending.
Claims 1-2, 4-10 are rejected as set forth below.
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 .
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112(d)
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(d):
(d) REFERENCE IN DEPENDENT FORMS.—Subject to subsection (e), a claim in dependent form shall contain a reference to a claim previously set forth and then specify a further limitation of the subject matter claimed. A claim in dependent form shall be construed to incorporate by reference all the limitations of the claim to which it refers.
The following is a quotation of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, fourth paragraph:
Subject to the following paragraph [i.e., the fifth paragraph of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112], a claim in dependent form shall contain a reference to a claim previously set forth and then specify a further limitation of the subject matter claimed. A claim in dependent form shall be construed to incorporate by reference all the limitations of the claim to which it refers.
Claim 4 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(d) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, 4th paragraph, as being of improper dependent form for failing to further limit the subject matter of the claim upon which it depends, or for failing to include all the limitations of the claim upon which it depends. Specifically, claim 4 is dependent on cancelled claim 3. Applicant may cancel the claim(s), amend the claim(s) to place the claim(s) in proper dependent form, rewrite the claim(s) in independent form, or present a sufficient showing that the dependent claim(s) complies with the statutory requirements.
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)(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.
Claim(s) 1-2, 4-9 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by United States Patent Application Publication No. 20220287909 to Solana.
As per claim(s) 1, Solana teaches:
A wearable haptic device comprising: a garment for wearing on a user; a set of electronic elements (14, 15, 20, 22) attached to the garment (10), the electronic elements comprising a set of haptic elements (14, 22); a control receptacle (42) attached to the garment and communicatively connected to the electronic elements; and a control module (15) removably connectable to the control receptacle, the control module configured for controlling the electronic elements, said controlling by the control module comprising generating haptic feedback from the haptic elements to the user; (Fig 1-3, [0084]-[0085], As shown in FIGS. 1-3, in a preferred embodiment, the garment assembly 10 generally includes an outer or first sleeve member 12, one or more vibration assemblies 14 and a control module 15. As shown in FIG. 4, in a preferred embodiment, the garment assembly 10 includes an inner or second sleeve member 16 that is positioned or disposed in the sleeve interior 18 of the first sleeve member 12. The vibration assemblies 14 and the other associated components, such as the wires 20 are sandwiched between the first sleeve member 12 and the second sleeve member 16. In another embodiment, instead of a full inner sleeve, patches or panels can be utilized to sandwich the vibration assemblies therebetween. The vibration assemblies 14 preferably include a plurality of vibration motors 22 in a cluster or arrangement.”)
wherein the control module is removable from the control receptacle and replaceable with another control module; ([0093], “As shown in FIG. 1, in a preferred embodiment, the control module 15 and the various components thereof are housed in a pocket 42 or other securing member. The pocket 42 can cover some or all of the control module 15. The entire control module can be removable or the docking station can be permanently attached (via stitching, welding or the like) to one or both of the inner and outer sleeves and the battery can be removable or replaceable.”)
wherein the control module is configured for gaming applications. ([0046], “In some embodiments, the haptic feedback and actuation of the vibration motors may be integrated with gaming software (e.g., augmented reality (AR), virtual reality (VR), mixed reality (MR), and the like), virtual worlds, or other platforms, and configured to simulate movement and physical contact for any sound or activity-driven haptic applications.”)
As per claim(s) 2, Solana teaches:
wherein the control module is configured for therapeutic applications. ([0106], “FIG. 16 is a flow diagram depicting a method of providing therapeutic effect using a garment assembly 10 or 50 utilizing the intelligence engine in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure.”)
As per claim(s) 4, Solana teaches:
wherein the control module is configured for tracking movement of the user. ([0045], “In a preferred embodiment, the garment assembly can include one or more sensors, gyroscopes, accelerometers, movement sensors, or other like data collection components that are configured to collect data and provide, determine, and/or then store information related to actions, biomechanics or movements of the wearer of the garment assembly.”)
As per claim(s) 5, Solana teaches:
wherein the control module comprises a battery for powering the electronic elements. ([0093], “As shown in FIG. 6, in a preferred embodiment, the control module 15 preferably includes a battery 34 that is received in a docking station 36.”)
As per claim(s) 6, Solana teaches:
a battery attached to the garment for powering the electronic elements. ([0093])
As per claim(s) 7, Solana teaches:
wherein the electronic elements comprise a set of lighting elements, wherein said controlling by the control module comprises emitting light from the lighting elements. ([0030], “The control module or assembly may include a plurality of buttons or switches thereon for controlling the vibration modules. For example, the control module may include a button that turns the device on and off, button(s) for controlling the time or duration, button(s) for changing modes, and button(s) for controlling the vibration devices and turning them on and/or off for various body parts and LED lights related thereto (such as charging indicator(s) and time light indicator(s)).”)
As per claim(s) 8, Solana teaches:
wherein the electronic elements comprise a set of thermal elements, wherein said controlling by the control module comprises heating or cooling using the thermal elements. ([0008], “See also U.S. patent application Ser. No. 17/554,305 (the “'305 application”), filed Dec. 17, 2021, the entirety of which is incorporated by reference herein, which teaches a temperature controlled and vibrating therapeutic garment, wrap assembly or sleeve member/assembly that includes vibrating motors (e.g., see vibration motors 70 in FIG. 7 of the '305 application) and one or more temperature control modules.”)
As per claim(s) 9, Solana teaches:
wherein the garment comprises a compression sleeve for wearing on an arm of the user. ([0043], “The garment can be embodied in sock(s), arm sleeve(s), calf sleeve(s), full leg sleeve(s), t-shirts, shirts, dresses, jackets, bodysuits, sports bras, undergarments, headbands, hats, headwear, gloves, pants, shorts, shoes, insoles, running shorts (with a stretchable under layer that includes the vibration motors and normal/loose shorts over the under layer), as well as other garments. In some embodiments, the garment may be worn in any location or region of the user's body, including the user's limbs, head, feet, shoulders, legs, etc.”)
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.
Claim 10 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over United States Patent Application Publication No. 20220287909 to Solana in view of United States Patent Application Publication No. 20120100938 to McKinley.
As per claim 10, Solana does not explicitly teach, but McKinley teaches:
wherein the garment comprises a glove for wearing on a hand of the user, wherein the glove is joined to the compression sleeve; ([0030], “The apparatus comprises a glove portion, the glove portion capable of being worn by a hand of a user and the sleeve portion capable of being disposed on a portion of a user's arm when in use; a first tension band disposed on at least the glove portion, wherein the tension band pulls a finger of a user dorsally when worn by the user; a sleeve portion disposed on at least a portion of the user's arm, wherein the sleeve portion is connected to the glove portion.”)
One of ordinary skill in the art would have recognized that applying the known technique of McKinley to the known invention of Solana would have yielded predictable results and resulted in an improved invention. It would have been recognized that the application of the technique would have yielded predictable results because the level of ordinary skill in the art demonstrated by the references applied shows the ability to incorporate such garment attachment features into a similar invention. Further, it would have been recognized by those of ordinary skill in the art that modifying the garment so the arm compression sleeve is attached to the glove results in an improved invention because applying said technique allows the garment to be easily worn over the arm and the hand, thus improving the overall usability of the invention.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure:
United States Patent Application Publication No. 20180303704 to Idris discloses a therapeutic apparel article configured with a supple wearable fabric article that can be configured over limb or nub of an amputated limb. The therapeutic apparel article is configured with a plurality of nodes for detachably attaching vibrating devices thereto. In addition, a control unit having a power source may be detachably attached to the wearable fabric article. A conductive network may extend from the control unit and/or the power source to provide electrical power to the nodes and the vibrating devices attached. A user may attach vibrating devices to various nodes of the wearable fabric article as desired. In addition, the vibrating devices and the control unit can be detached from the wearable fabric article to enable the wearable fabric article to be washed.
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/JAY HUANG/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3619