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 .
Claims 1-3 are currently amended.
Claims 1-5 are being examiner in this Office Action.
Specification
The disclosure is objected to because of the following informalities:
Page 11 Paragraph 3, connection member is given the reference numeral 460 when in previous iterations it is given the reference numeral 430.
Reference numeral 431 is used to refer to “a catching portion”, “a cut surface”, and “a notch portion”.
Appropriate correction is required.
Claim Objections
Claims 3-4 are objected to because of the following informalities:
Claim 3 recites the limitation “a force-applying member is configured to”, this should read “a force-applying member .
Appropriate correction is required.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b):
(b) CONCLUSION.—The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph:
The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention.
Claims 1-5 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention.
Claim 1 recites the limitation “a connection member which is movable in an axial direction of the wheel member”, it is unclear which axial direction the connection member is moveable in. Examiner interprets the connection member is moveable in a direction parallel to the direction the plunger slides within the reservoir.
The term “in close contact” in claim 4 is a relative term which renders the claim indefinite. The term “close contact” is not defined by the claim, the specification does not provide a standard for ascertaining the requisite degree, and one of ordinary skill in the art would not be reasonably apprised of the scope of the invention.
All remaining claims are rejected by virtue of their dependence on a rejected claim.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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 (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) 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.
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.
(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) 1-5 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Dilanni et al. (Pub. No. US 20140127048 A1, herein Dilanni).
Regarding Claim 1, Dilanni discloses a medical liquid injection device (Fig. 1), comprising:
a reservoir assembly (Fig. 7) storing medical liquid in a storage space defined by a reservoir (130, Paragraph [0031]) and a plunger (136) moving linearly within the reservoir (Fig. 8, Paragraph [0031]),
a needle assembly (180) fluidly connected to the reservoir assembly to discharge stored medical liquid (Paragraph [0026]), and
a driving unit (150) configured to transmit a driving force generated by a driving module (160) to the plunger (Paragraph [0030]),
wherein the driving unit comprises:
a rod member (152) coupled to the plunger and moving linearly with the plunger (Figs 7-9, Paragraph [0031]),
a wheel member (156) rotating by the driving force (“When the reservoir 130 is filled and the plunger 136 moves to the opposite (retracted) end of the reservoir 130 (FIG. 9), the clutch mechanism 160 remains disengaged to allow the tube nut 154 to pass into an elongated cylindrical bore (along the drive axis) of a hub of the drive wheel 156. The clutch mechanism 160 may then be engaged (FIGS. 10-12) such that rotation of the drive wheel 156 causes the clutch mechanism 160 to rotate the tube nut 154, which causes the leadscrew 152 to advance the plunger into the reservoir 130 to deliver the fluid from the reservoir 130” – Paragraph [0031]), and
a connection member (154) which is movable in an axial direction of the wheel member (“the clutch mechanism 160 remains disengaged to allow the tube nut 154 to pass into an elongated cylindrical bore (along the drive axis) of a hub of the drive wheel 156.” – Paragraph [0031]) and has a catching portion (outer diameter of 154) whose rotation with respect to the wheel member is limited around the axial direction (via clutch spring 162, “the inside diameter of the clutch spring 162 is smaller than the outside diameter of the tube nut 154 when the clutch spring 162 is unloaded, thereby engaging or gripping the tube nut 154 and allowing the drive wheel 156 to rotate the tube nut 154.” – Paragraph [0032]).
Regarding Claim 2, Dilanni discloses the medical liquid injection device of claim 1,
wherein the rod member and the connection member are screw-coupled together (“A second threaded member in the form of an elongated shaft such as a tube nut 154 with internal threads threadably engages the leadscrew 152” – Paragraph [0030]), and
wherein the connection member is slidably inserted into a through-hole formed in the wheel member (“the clutch mechanism 160 remains disengaged to allow the tube nut 154 to pass into an elongated cylindrical bore (along the drive axis) of a hub of the drive wheel 156” – Paragraph [0031]) and rotates together with the wheel member (“The clutch mechanism 160 may then be engaged (FIGS. 10-12) such that rotation of the drive wheel 156 causes the clutch mechanism 160 to rotate the tube nut 154, which causes the leadscrew 152 to advance the plunger into the reservoir 130 to deliver the fluid from the reservoir 130” – Paragraph [0031]).
Regarding Claim 3, Dilanni discloses the medical liquid injection device of claim 1, further comprising:
a force-applying member (162) is configured to fit around the connection member (“the inside diameter of the clutch spring 162 is smaller than the outside diameter of the tube nut 154 when the clutch spring 162 is unloaded, thereby engaging or gripping the tube nut 154 and allowing the drive wheel 156 to rotate the tube nut 154.” – Paragraph [0032]) and disposed between the reservoir assembly and the wheel member (Fig. 8).
Regarding Claim 4, Dilanni discloses the medical liquid injection device of claim 3, wherein the force-applying member is in close contact with an outer periphery of the connection member and generates a resisting force in the connection member when the connection member moves (“the inside diameter of the clutch spring 162 is smaller than the outside diameter of the tube nut 154 when the clutch spring 162 is unloaded, thereby engaging or gripping the tube nut 154 and allowing the drive wheel 156 to rotate the tube nut 154.” – Paragraph [0032]).
Regarding Claim 5, Dilanni discloses the medical liquid injection device of claim 1, wherein the wheel member has a through-hole (cylindrical bore of 156 in Fig. 8) into which the connection member is inserted (Fig. 8), and the through-hole has a shape corresponding to the catching portion (“the clutch mechanism 160 remains disengaged to allow the tube nut 154 to pass into an elongated cylindrical bore (along the drive axis) of a hub of the drive wheel 156.” – Paragraph [0031]).
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Holman et al (US 5104380 A) is considered relevant prior art with regards to a medical liquid injection device comprising a reservoir, a plunger, a needle assembly, and a connection member having a catching portion.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Mark Golovan whose telephone number is (571)272-2119. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Friday 7:30am-4:30pm Alt. Fri off.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Chelsea Stinson can be reached at 571-270-1744. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/MARK GOLOVAN/ Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3783
/CHELSEA E STINSON/ Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3783
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