DETAILED ACTION
This action is in response to Applicant’s amendment filed on April 27, 2026.
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 § 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) 1-9 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Tsuang et al. (U.S. Patent No. 9877751).
Tsuang et al. a pedicle screw comprising: a nail body (100); a positioning part (210) having a first side (211) and a second side (213) opposite to the first side, the first side being disposed at an end of the nail body (Figure 2); and a holding part (200) disposed on the second side of the positioning part (Figure 2), the holding part having left and right ends exhibiting a symmetrical arc shape (Indicated by the arrows in the following figure); wherein a top portion of the back side of the holding part of the pedicle screw is configured to be directly overlap and stack on a top portion of a front side of a holding part of one or more adjacent pedicle screws along a common surgical access corridor. It is noted that ‘a top portion of a front side of a holding part of one or more adjacent pedicle screws” is only functionally claimed and Tsuang et al. only need to be capable of performing the claimed function. Since the top portion of a front side of a holding part of an adjacent pedicle screw does not require any specific structure or even the same structure as the claimed pedicle screw, it is considered that the device of Tsuang et al. would be able to used in the claimed fashion with another style pedicle screw with a holding part.
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Regarding claim 2, the nail body includes a screw shape (see above).
Regarding claim 3. The pedicle screw of claim 1, wherein the positioning part is rotatable with respect to the nail body (Column 5, Lines 20-24).
Regarding claim 4, the arc shape includes a shape similar to a scimitar sword or a sickle (as seen above, the arc portion has a sickle shape).
Regarding claim 5, the positioning part and the holding part are integrated with each other (via an annular notch 230).
Regarding claim 6, the positioning part and the holding part are detacably assembled with each (element 230).
Regarding claim 7, the holding part has a fixed length arrangement (See figure above) or a variable length arrangement.
Regarding claim 8, the positioning part (210) includes an accommodation space (214).
Regarding claim 9, the holding part (200) is formed in both of a front side and a back side thereof with an opening (223) communicating with the accommodation space (Figure 1, 2), and the opening passes through the front side and the back side of the holding part (Figure 1, 2), in which the front side of the holding part is positioned in an inner side of the arc shape and the back side of the holding part is positioned in an outer side of the arc shape (as seen in figures 1 and 2, the front side the side facing out of the page, and the back side is the other side which is on the outer side of the arc shape pointed to in the figure previously provided.
Response to Arguments
In response to Applicant’s amendment, the Examiner as addressed them in the rejection above. Notably, the amendment adds functional language that does not overcome the art of record. The holding portion of the pedicle screw in the functional limitation is not required to have the same structure as the claimed pedicle screw and thus the device of Tsuang et al. would be capable of being stacked in the claimed fashion given the pedicle screw and holding member, i.e Tsuang et al. 2019/0290332.
Conclusion
Applicant's amendment necessitated the new ground(s) of rejection presented in this Office action. Accordingly, THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. See MPEP § 706.07(a). Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to ANDREW YANG whose telephone number is (571)272-3472. The examiner can normally be reached 9:00 - 9:00 M-F.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Kevin Truong can be reached at 571-272-4705. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/ANDREW YANG/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3775
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