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
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.
Claim 1-17 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.
4. Claim 1, lines 7-8 (and similarly claims 9 and 17) recite the term “to controller”. It is unclear whether the term “to controller” is referring to “a controller” which is subsequently introduced or a different controller altogether. For the purposes of examination, it will be interpreted as being the same controller. Applicant is reminded to introduce a claim element before referring to it.
5. Claims 2-8 and 10-16 are rejected at least because they depend from a claim(s) which is indefinite.
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.
Claims 1-16 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Tran et al. (US Pub.: 2019/0247650 A1, – Applicant Cited).
Regarding claim 1, Tran discloses an electrical muscle stimulation (EMS) suit apparatus (e.g. Fig. 1A; paragraph 0056), the apparatus comprising:
a garment comprising an elastic material that is configured to conform to a user’s body (e.g. Fig. 1A; paragraph 0018; paragraph 0056);
a plurality of electrode assemblies on an inner face of the garment (e.g. Fig. 1A; paragraphs 0021, 0056), the electrode assemblies each configured to sit flush against the user’s skin (e.g. paragraphs 0021, 0056);
a plurality of sensors distributed on, in, or over the garment (e.g. paragraphs 0021,0056);
a plurality of electrical connectors electrically coupling the electrode assemblies to controller for applying EMS (e.g. paragraphs 0018, 0056);
and a controller configured to control the application of energy to individual electrodes assemblies of the plurality of electrode assemblies (e.g. paragraphs 0020-0021), wherein the controller is configured to receive sensor data from the plurality of sensors and to identify a type of exercise being performed by the user (e.g. paragraphs 0083, 0096), and to set a subset of the plurality of electrode assemblies to activate based on the identified type of exercise (e.g. paragraphs 0083, – identifying a desired task and actuating only the electrodes needed to perform the desired task, 0096, – discloses desired tasks include different activities that actuate specific muscle groups).
Regarding claim 2, Tran teaches the apparatus of claim 1 as discussed above, and Tran further teaches wherein the controller comprises a trained machine learning agent configured to identify the type of exercise being performed by the user (e.g. paragraphs 0083, – capturing muscle signals associated with a predetermined task and training a learning machine to associate the muscle signals with the task, 0096).
Regarding claim 3, Tran teaches the apparatus of claim 1 as discussed above, and Tran further teaches wherein the controller is further configured to recommend or adjust the energy applied by the subset of the plurality of electrode assemblies based on the type of exercise identified (e.g. paragraph 0083).
Regarding claim 4, Tran teaches the apparatus of claim 3 as discussed above, and Tran further teaches wherein the controller comprises a trained machine learning agent configured to recommend or adjust the energy applied by the subset of the plurality of electrode assemblies and based on sensor data from the plurality of sensors (e.g. paragraph 0083).
Regarding claim 5, Tran teaches the apparatus of claim 3 as discussed above, and Tran further teaches wherein the controller comprises a trained machine learning agent configured to recommend or adjust the energy applied by the subset of the plurality of electrode assemblies and based on user-specific data (e.g. paragraph 0083).
Regarding claim 6, Tran teaches the apparatus of claim 1 as discussed above, and Tran further teaches wherein the user-specific data comprises one or more of: user past performance, user height, user weight, user BMI, user physical condition, user age, user biometric data from the plurality of sensors (e.g. paragraphs 0060, 0083, – user past performance).
Regarding claim 7, Tran teaches the apparatus of claim 1 as discussed above, and Tran further teaches wherein the garment comprises one or more of: a shirt, vest, pants, or shorts (e.g. Fig. 1A; paragraph 0018).
Regarding claim 8, Tran teaches the apparatus of claim 1 as discussed above, and Tran further teaches wherein the plurality of sensors comprises one or more of: motion sensors, bioimpedance sensors, and position sensors (e.g. paragraphs 0021, 0041).
Regarding claim 9, Tran discloses an electrical muscle stimulation (EMS) suit apparatus (e.g. Fig. 1A; paragraph 0056), the apparatus comprising:
a garment comprising an elastic material that is configured to conform to a user's body (e.g. Fig. 1A; paragraph 0018; paragraph 0056);
a plurality of electrode assemblies on an inner face of the garment (e.g. Fig. 1A; paragraphs 0021, 0056), the electrode assemblies each configured to sit flush against the user’s skin (e.g. paragraphs 0021, 0056);
a plurality of sensors distributed on, in, or over the garment (e.g. paragraphs 0021, 0056);
a plurality of electrical connectors electrically coupling the electrode assemblies to controller for applying EMS (e.g. paragraphs 0018, 0056);
and a controller configured to control the application of energy to individual electrodes assemblies of the plurality of electrode assemblies (e.g. paragraphs 0020-0021), wherein the controller comprises a trained machine learning agent configured to recommend and/or adjust the energy applied by the plurality of electrode assemblies based on data from the plurality of sensors (e.g. paragraphs 0083, 0096).
Regarding claim 10, Tran teaches the apparatus of claim 9 as discussed above, and Tran further teaches wherein the controller is configured to identify the type of exercise being performed by the user based on the plurality of sensors (e.g. paragraphs 0083, 0096).
Regarding claim 11, Tran teaches the apparatus of claim 10 as discussed above, and Tran further teaches wherein the trained machine learning agent is configured to recommend or adjust the energy applied by the subset of the plurality of electrode assemblies based on user-specific data and exercise type (e.g. paragraphs 0083, 0096).
Regarding claim 12, Tran teaches the apparatus of claim 9 as discussed above, and Tran further teaches wherein the controller is configured to automatically or semi-automatically adjust the energy applied by the plurality of electrode assemblies based on the recommendation of the trained machine learning agent (e.g. paragraph 0083).
Regarding claim 13, Tran teaches the apparatus of claim 9 as discussed above, and Tran further teaches wherein the trained machine learning agent is configured to recommend or adjust the energy applied by the subset of the plurality of electrode assemblies based on data from the plurality of sensors and based on user-specific data (e.g. paragraphs 0083, 0096).
Regarding claim 14, Tran teaches the apparatus of claim 13 as discussed above, and Tran further teaches wherein the user-specific data comprises one or more of: user past performance, user height, user weight, user BMI, user physical condition, user age, user biometric data from the plurality of sensors (e.g. paragraphs 0060, 0083, – user past performance).
Regarding claim 15, Tran teaches the apparatus of claim 9 as discussed above, and Tran further teaches wherein the garment comprises one or more of: a shirt, vest, pants, or shorts (e.g. Fig. 1A; paragraph 0018).
Regarding claim 16, Tran teaches the apparatus of claim 9 as discussed above, and Tran further teaches wherein the plurality of sensors comprises one or more of: motion sensors, bioimpedance sensors, and position sensors (e.g. paragraphs 0021, 0041).
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 17 is rejected under 35 U.S.C 103 as being unpatentable over Tran and further in view of Shi et al. (US Pub.: 2008/0319514 A1).
Regarding claim 17, Tran teaches an electrical muscle stimulation (EMS) suit apparatus (e.g. Fig. 1A; paragraph 0056), the apparatus comprising:
a garment comprising an elastic material that is configured to conform to a user’s body (e.g. Fig. 1A; paragraph 0018; paragraph 0056);
a plurality of electrode assemblies on an inner face of the garment (e.g. Fig. 1A, paragraphs 0021, 0056), the electrode assemblies each configured to sit flush against the user’s skin (e.g. paragraphs 0021, 0056);
a plurality of electrical connectors electrically coupling the electrode assemblies to controller for applying EMS (e.g. paragraphs 0018, 0056); and a controller (e.g. paragraphs 0020-0021).
However, Tran does not explicitly teach a controller comprising a compliance monitoring module, where the compliance monitoring module is configured to track the application of energy to the user’s skin over a compliance period and to output compliance data based.
Shi, in a same field of endeavor of electrical stimulation devices, discloses a controller comprising a compliance monitoring module (e.g. Fig. 10 – compliance voltage sensing control circuit 605), where the compliance monitoring module is configured to track the application of energy to the user’s skin over a compliance period and to output compliance data based (e.g. abstract; paragraphs 0044, 0071).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to someone of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the apparatus of Tran to incorporate a controller comprising a compliance monitoring module, where the compliance monitoring module is configured to track the application of energy to the user's skin over a compliance period and to output compliance data based, as taught and suggested by Shi, for the purpose of ensuring proper circuit performance while reducing power consumption (Shi, paragraph 0002).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to DANIEL TEHRANI whose telephone number is (571)270-0697. The examiner can normally be reached 9:00am-5:00pm.
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, Benjamin Klein can be reached at 571-270-5213. 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.
/D.T./Examiner, Art Unit 3792
/Benjamin J Klein/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3792