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 .
This is the first office action for application number 18/714,858, AN ARRANGEMENT FOR SUPPORTING A SURGICAL ROBOT, filed on May 30, 2024.
Drawings
The drawings are objected to as failing to comply with 37 CFR 1.84(p)(5) because they include the following reference character(s) not mentioned in the description: "200" and "214" both in Fig. 4A. Corrected drawing sheets in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(d), or amendment to the specification to add the reference character(s) in the description in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(b) 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. 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.
The drawings are objected to under 37 CFR 1.83(a). The drawings must show every feature of the invention specified in the claims. Therefore, a plurality of compartments and one or more internal membranes separating each compartment, cited in claim 6; and a mechanism to apply a mechanical vibration to the solid particles, cited in claim 10 must be shown or the feature(s) canceled from the claim(s). No new matter should be entered.
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 Objections
Claims 1, 2-11, 13, 15-19, and 21-23 are objected to because of the following informalities: in claim 1, line 15 and in claim 22, lines 1 and 13, "stabilising" should be changed to --stabilizing--; in line 1 of claims 2-11, 15-19, and 21 "An" should be changed to --The--; in line 4 of claim 13, "pressurisation" should be changed to --pressurization--; and in line 1 of claim 23, "A" should be changed to --The--. Appropriate correction is required.
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.
This application currently names joint inventors. In considering patentability of the claims the examiner presumes that the subject matter of the various claims was commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the claimed invention(s) absent any evidence to the contrary. Applicant is advised of the obligation under 37 CFR 1.56 to point out the inventor and effective filing dates of each claim that was not commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the later invention in order for the examiner to consider the applicability of 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(2)(C) for any potential 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) prior art against the later invention.
Claim(s) 1, 2, 6, 7, 13, 15, and 16 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2022/0194665 to Gull in view of U.S. Patent No. 7,988,106 to Carnevali. Gull discloses an arrangement (120) for supporting and configured to support an object, such as a surgical robot, the arrangement comprising: a planar member (144) on which the object is supported; a bladder (124) coupled to a bottom surface of the planar member, the bladder comprising an external membrane (122) having a surface which opposes the bottom surface of the planar member, and which is configured to comply with an uneven surface that it is in contact with; an internal cavity defined by the external membrane, the internal cavity holding a plurality of solid particles (126) and being configured to hold a plurality of fluid particles; wherein the bladder is coupled to the bottom surface of the planar member by an upper surface of the external membrane, and wherein the shape of the upper surface of the external membrane matches the shape of the bottom surface of the planar member; the arrangement being further configured to apply a first pressure to a first end of the bladder that is different to a second pressure that is applied to a second end of the bladder (depending on how the weight of the object is distributed on the planar member); and wherein the plurality of solid particles are independent granular particles; wherein the plurality of solid particles form a plurality of layers of particles.
Gull discloses the claimed invention except for the limitation of an opening in the external membrane, the opening being configured to enable the extraction of one or more of the fluid particles so as to cause an increased frictional engagement between the plurality of solid particles, thereby stabilizing the object on the uneven surface; wherein the internal cavity further comprises a plurality of compartments and one or more internal membranes separating each compartment from its adjoining compartments, the one or more internal membranes being permeable to the fluid particles but impermeable to the solid particles; wherein the one or more bladders further comprise a reinforcement material attached to the external membrane, the reinforcement material being configured to maintain the shape of the bladder as its level of pressurization is varied.
Carnevali teaches an arrangement (10) for supporting configured to support an object, the arrangement comprising: a planar member (24) on which the object is supported; a bladder coupled to a bottom surface of the planar member, the bladder comprising an external membrane (34) having a surface which opposes the bottom surface of the planar member, and which is configured to comply with an uneven surface (1) that it is in contact with; an internal cavity (50) defined by the external membrane, the internal cavity holding a plurality of solid particles (20 & 46) and being configured to hold a plurality of fluid particles; and an opening (58) in the external membrane, the opening being configured to enable the extraction of one or more of the fluid particles so as to cause an increased frictional engagement between the plurality of solid particles, thereby stabilizing the surgical robot on the uneven surface; wherein the internal cavity further comprises a plurality of compartments (50 & 52, Fig. 6) and one or more internal membranes (54) separating each compartment from its adjoining compartments, the one or more internal membranes being permeable to the fluid particles but impermeable to the solid particles; and wherein the one or more bladders further comprise a reinforcement material (14) attached to the external membrane, the reinforcement material being configured to maintain the shape of the bladder as its level of pressurization is varied.
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the bladder in Gull to have included an opening, a plurality of compartments separated by an internal membrane, and having a reinforcement material as taught by Carnevali for the purposes of adjusting the conformity of the bladder to accommodate different supporting surfaces, providing an alternative, mechanically equivalent means for forcibly conform to different complex contours of the supporting surface, and providing a malleable structure to assist in molding the bladder to the supporting surface.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 3-5, 8-11, 17-19, and 21 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.
Claims 22 and 23 are allowed.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter: the limitations of a method for stabilizing a surgical robot on an uneven surface by stopping the motion of the robot, lowering a linear lifting column coupled to a bladder that contacts and conforms to the surface, included in independent claim 22 and in combination with the other elements cited in the claim, which is not found in the prior art.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2023/0415330 to Grant is directed to a base for supporting a surgical robot, including a first planar member. U.S. Patent No. 10,067,409 to Elias is directed to a camera supporting base including a mounting platform and pliable mass surrounding the mounting platform. U.S. Patent No. 9,452,797 to Kim et al. is directed to a support module including a rigid body, a space formation body, and a plurality of hard particles located within the enclosed space for the stability of a walking robot. U.S. Patent No. 6,986,308 to King et al. is directed to a tray having a smooth upper surface and a yielding bottom portion filled with granular and/or soft material that conforms to the configuration of a surface. U.S. Patent No. 6,840,487 to Carnevali is directed to a weighted mounting platform. U.S. Patent No. 6,581,888 to Castillo is directed to an apparatus for stabilization of an object on a flat or irregular surface, including a base portion having a flexible outer covering that surrounds a flexible weighted mass.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to ANITA M KING whose telephone number is (571)272-6817. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 7:30am-4:00pm.
Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Terrell Mckinnon can be reached at 571-272-4797. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000.
/ANITA M KING/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3632 March 3, 2026