DETAILED ACTION
This office action is responsive to the amendment and request for continued examination filed July 16, 2026. Claims 1-4 were amended. Claims 1-15 are pending.
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 .
Continued Examination Under 37 CFR 1.114
A request for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, including the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e), was filed in this application after final rejection. Since this application is eligible for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114. Applicant's submission filed on July 16, 2026, has been entered.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to the rejection of claim(s) 1-13 under 35 USC 103 in view of Schmid et al. (US 4,280,359) and Bittenson (US 2013/0261681 A1); and claims 13-15 under 35 USC 103 in view of Schmid, Bittenson, and Pedicini (US 2019/0183555 A1); have been considered but are moot because the new ground of rejection does not rely on any reference applied in the prior rejection of record for any teaching or matter specifically challenged in the argument. The newly presented rejection is necessitated by the amendment of July 16, 2026.
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.
Claim(s) 1-14 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Bleicher et al. (US 4,487,272).
Examiner notes Bleicher refers to similar components between drawings with the same final two numerals, changed by intervals of 100. E.g. element 35 is similar to 135 in two different drawings. Examiner understands the housing and structures of fig. 1 to be common to all embodiments.
Regarding claim 1, Bleicher teaches an instrument capable of use in an orthopedic surgical setting as at figs. 1 and 5 arranged and configured to transmit a forward and a reverse energy, the orthopedic surgical impactor comprising:
a housing 2 as at fig. 1;
a motor comprising an output shaft 13 positioned within the housing 2;
a power supply 9 configured to supply power to the motor;
a trigger assembly 8 configured to activate the motor; and
a mechanical mechanism for converting rotary motion from the motor to reciprocating linear motion of a sliding hammer 54/56 (details of mechanism at fig. 5; hammer seen in fig. 1) so that the sliding hammer 54/56 contacts an impact surface of 6, the mechanical mechanism including a swashplate 148 and a wobble shaft 124 seen best at figs. 5 and 6, the wobble shaft 124 comprising:
a first end 140 directly coupled to the output shaft 13 of the motor (140 being a driving pinion which interacts with pinion 22 formed on 13), and
a second end comprising a shaft portion 133 configured to engage with an internal bore of the swashplate at 148 as seen in fig. 5, and
a bend (between extent of portions 140 and 133) defined by a fixed angle (angle alpha indicated in fig. 6) and positioned between the first end 140 and the second end 133, wherein a central axis of the second end is offset from a central axis of the first end by the fixed angle of the bend (angle alpha).
Regarding claim 2, the wobble shaft 124 is coupled to the swashplate 148, the swashplate 148 is coupled to the sliding hammer (portion 151 of 148 is coupled to bolt 55 which interacts with 52 which drives the ‘floating piston’ arrangement of hammer 54/56) so that, in use, rotation of the motor rotates the output shaft 13, which rotates the wobble shaft 124, which converts the rotation into linear motion of the sliding hammer 54/56 via interaction of the wobble shaft 124 and the swashplate 148.
Regarding claim 3, the second end 133 of the wobble shaft 148 is coupled to the swashplate 148 as at fig. 5.
Regarding claim 4, the first end 140 of the wobble shaft includes an internal cavity (pinion) arranged and configured to receive the output shaft 13 of the motor (pinion 22 received within pinion 140).
Regarding claim 5, the internal bore of the swashplate 148 is arranged and configured to receive the shaft portion of the second end 133 of the wobble shaft 124.
Regarding claim 6, the swashplate 148 includes an intermediate ball bearing assembly 135 (disposed between an inner surface of the internal bore of the swashplate 148 and an outer surface of the second end 133 of the wobble shaft 124 (demonstrated clearly in figs. 2 and 5).
Regarding claim 7, the swashplate 148 includes a leg 151 extending therefrom, the leg 151 being operatively coupled to the sliding hammer (via bolt 55, and contact with floating arrangement cup-shaped piston 52).
Regarding claim 8, the sliding hammer 54/56 is part of an internal hammer assembly including the sliding hammer 54/56, an impact mechanism housing 16 (seen in fig. 1), and a coupling mechanism 55/52.
Regarding claim 9, the impact mechanism housing 16 is coupled to an end of the motor via coupling through the intermediary components (51, 124, 13).
Regarding claim 10, the impact mechanism housing 16 includes a longitudinal slot formed in an outer surface thereof, the longitudinal slot arranged and configured to enable the leg 151 of the swashplate 148 to extend therethrough so that the leg can operatively engage the sliding hammer 54/56 via the coupling mechanism 55/52 – examiner understands fig. 1 to be demonstrating a slot formed in 16 (down in the figure, right as laid out on the page) through which the arm 51 extends; some opening at that location must inherently exist for 51 to be able to pass therethrough).
Regarding claim 11, the coupling mechanism 55/52 is a plunger 52 (cup-shaped piston) and a pin 55 (bolt).
Regarding claim 12, the device includes a distal connector 5 including a coupling mechanism including an internal cavity as seen at fig. 1 is arranged and capable of receiving a properly configured shaft an inferred surgical tool. The coupling mechanism further including a pair of spring- loaded fingers to engage the shaft surgical tool (spring seen in fig. 1 causing spring-loaded balls to move to retain 6).
Regarding claim 13, a control mechanism 45 (figs. 2 and 3) is arranged and configured to adjust one the forward and reverse energy (when 45 is actuated, shaft 124 is moved out of engagement with pinion 22 to stop reciprocating motion).
Regarding claim 14, the control mechanism includes multiple modes of operation to enable a user to vary the forward and reverse energy (engaged and disengaged).
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(s) 13-15 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Bleicher in view of Wache (US 5,036,925).
Regarding claims 13-15, Bleicher teaches the limitations of claim 1, as above.
Wache teaches a control mechanism at an elastic coupling between the swashplate and wobble shaft 30. Element 14 is shown to be elastic, such that it deforms responsive to load (note angle beta changing in various amounts of load). Such deformation controls force of output by varying output motion amount of the finger of the swashplate, and ultimately, resulting motion at the ram 22.
It would have been obvious to modify Bleicher’s connection between shaft 124 and swashplate 148 by including an elastic member at this location as taught by Wache in order to permit control of output force at the hammer. One would have done so by making portion 163 of Bleicher of an elastic material. Different amounts of force applied by a user, differing motions by the user of the tool, different materials being impacted, etc., are considered to have resulted in different modes, causing different output strokes which could read on any of the types of outputs claimed.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to David Bates whose telephone number is (571)270-7034. The examiner can normally be reached Monday through Friday, 10AM-6PM
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/DAVID W BATES/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3799
