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 action is in response to the application filed on 06/25/24.
Claims 1-20 are pending and have been examined.
Priority
Receipt is acknowledged of certified copies of papers required by 37 CFR 1.55.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 10/21/25 is in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner.
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) 1-2, 8-9 and 20 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Yoshii (2019/0167368).
Regarding claim 1, Yoshii discloses a deflection joint structure (Fig. 6) for achieving a deflection of a deflection component relative (10) to a fixed component (61), comprising: a first connecting portion (31) provided on the deflection component; a second connecting portion (32) provided on the fixed component (61); a joint portion (34), a part (34a) of the joint portion being provided in the first connecting portion (31), and another part (34B) of the joint portion being provided in the second connecting portion (32), wherein the joint portion comprises: a plurality of rolling components (36A-36D, Fig. 6; 76A-76D, Fig. 11) arranged along a middle space in the joint portion (space between 37A, 37B and 34; Fig. 6) so as to form a contact space for providing an operating component (i.e. cable), wherein at least in a case of the deflection, at least one of the plurality of rolling components generates a rolling friction with the operating component in the contact space (Figs. 8-10).
Regarding claim 2, Yoshii discloses wherein the first connecting portion comprises: a deflection block (31Aa) provided above a part region of the joint portion; a deflection seat (31Ab) provided below a part region of the joint portion; and wherein a first setting space is formed between the deflection block and the deflection seat (Fig. 6).
Regarding claim 8, Yoshii discloses wherein the joint portion comprises: a block guard plate (37A) provided on a side of the plurality of rolling components; a seat guard plate (37B) provided on the other side of the plurality of rolling components and forming the middle space of the joint portion (Fig. 6).
Regarding claim 9, Yoshii discloses wherein the block guard plate comprises: a first joint column (33A) corresponding to a block joint hole (34A) of a deflection block of the first connecting portion, wherein the first joint column (34A) is provided at an end portion of the block guard plate (37Aa) close to the first connecting portion (31); a second joint column (33B) corresponding to a first defining groove (34B) of a block deflection element of the second connecting portion (61), wherein the second joint column (33B) is provided at the other end portion (37Ab) of the block guard plate close to the second connecting portion (61).
Regarding claim 20, Yoshii also discloses a medical device (forceps 10; Figs. 1-4).
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) 19 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Yoshii (2019/0167368) in view of Fontayne (5,485,952).
Regarding claim 19, Yoshii discloses a medical device (end effector with jaws and/or forceps 10; figs. 1-4) comprising a deflection joint structure (as described above in par. 5), but fails to disclose wherein the medical is a stapler. Fontayne teaches the concept of a stapler comprising a deflection joint structure with a deflection component (i.e. roller 214) generating friction with an operating component (78, 80; Fig. 9) for the purposes of operating the stapler with high degree of precision. It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skills in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have provided Yoshii’s medical device as a stapler in order to effectively perform surgical procedures of fastening body tissue with high degree of precision.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 3-7 and 10-18 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.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter:
Regarding claim 3, wherein the deflection block comprises: a block deflection hole penetrating an end portion of the deflection block away from the deflection component; a block joint hole provided at the end portion close to the deflection component; and a block connecting column provided on a side of the end portion opposite to the block deflection hole.
Regarding claim 4, wherein wherein the deflection seat comprises: a seat deflection hole penetrating an end portion of the deflection seat away from the deflection component; a seat joint hole provided at the end portion close to the deflection component; a seat connecting hole provided on a side of the end portion opposite to the seat deflection hole.
Regarding claim 10, wherein the seat guard plate comprises: a third joint column corresponding to a seat joint hole of a deflection seat of the first connecting portion, a fourth joint column corresponding to a second defining groove of a seat deflection element of the second connecting portion, wherein the fourth joint is provided at the other end portion of the seat guard plate close to the second connecting portion.
Regarding claim 11, a driving element perpendicular to an end surface of an end portion of the fixed component close to the second connecting portion and movably connected to the first connecting portion, so as to drive the deflection component to deflect relative to the fixed component when extending or retracting relative to the second connecting portion
Regarding claim 18, wherein the plurality of rolling components are respectively arranged in an arc shape at two side edges of the joint portion, along an extension direction of the operating component in the contact space and on two sides of the contact space.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to MICHELLE LOPEZ whose telephone number is (571)272-4464. The examiner can normally be reached Monday thru Friday 8:30 am to 4:30 pm.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Anna Kinsaul can be reached at (571) 270 - 1926. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/MICHELLE LOPEZ/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3731
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