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, 3-6, and 13-15 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Deng (WO 2023/051008).
Regarding claim 1, Deng teaches An ear tip for retaining a hearing device or a hearing device part in an ear canal of a user wearing the hearing device or the hearing device part (Deng figure 1, ear cap 10), the ear tip comprising: a sealing element with a sound channel providing for a sound path between a sound inlet opening for receiving an acoustic signal from an output unit of the hearing device (Deng figure 2 and ¶0030, “The sleeve tube 11 includes a first tube body 111 connected to the sound guide tube,” bottom opening of tube body 111) or the hearing device part and a sound outlet opening for releasing the acoustic signal to the ear canal of the user wearing the hearing device or the hearing device part (Deng figures 1-2, opening of ear cap 10 formed by top of tube body 112), a first filtering element arranged in the sound channel between the sound inlet opening and the sound outlet opening (Deng ¶0072, “To prevent impurities …include a protruding structure”), the first filtering element comprising a plurality of protrusions which are arranged along a perimeter of a cross-section of the sound channel and which project inwardly and extend partially into the sound channel (Deng ¶0072, “The protruding structure is located on the inner ring wall of the second tube 112), wherein the plurality of protrusions partially obstructs the cross-section and leaves a partial area unobstructed (Deng ¶0072, “The flange can be an annular flange arranged circumferentially around the inner annular wall of the second tube 112, or it can be a plurality of point-like flanges distributed circumferentially at intervals along the inner annular wall of the second tube 112”), wherein the ear tip is integrally formed of a resilient single material (Deng ¶0036, “the second tube 112 and the first tube 111 can be integrally molded by injection molding” and ¶0037 “the material of the first tube 111 and the material of the second tube 112 can be the same or different”).
Regarding claim 3, Deng teaches wherein at least one of the protrusions has a shape of a circular ring segment in the cross-section (Deng ¶0072, “The flange can be an annular flange arranged circumferentially around the inner annular wall of the second tube 112, or it can be a plurality of point-like flanges distributed circumferentially at intervals along the inner annular wall of the second tube 112”).
Regarding claim 4, Deng teaches wherein all protrusions have a same shape in the cross-section (Deng figure 2, the 2 protrusion in the upper section of 112).
Regarding claim 5, Deng teaches wherein a maximal inward extension of each protrusion in a plane of the cross-section is less than ½ of a diameter of the sound channel in the plane in a corresponding direction (Deng figure 2, the 2 protrusion in the upper section of 112).
Regarding claim 6, Deng teaches wherein the plurality of protrusions is formed and arranged in such a manner that the unobstructed area has a 2-fold, 3-fold, or 4-fold rotational symmetry in a plane of the cross-section (Deng ¶0072, “The flange can be an annular flange arranged circumferentially around the inner annular wall of the second tube 112, or it can be a plurality of point-like flanges distributed circumferentially at intervals along the inner annular wall of the second tube 112”).
Regarding claim 13, Deng teaches The ear tip according to claim 1 formed in an injection or compression molding process (Deng ¶0036, “the second tube 112 and the first tube 111 can be integrally molded by injection molding” and ¶0037 “the material of the first tube 111 and the material of the second tube 112 can be the same or different”).
Regarding claim 14, Deng teaches An earpiece for a hearing device, comprising an ear tip according to claim 1 (Deng ¶0027, “headphone body”).
Regarding claim 15, Deng teaches A hearing device comprising an ear tip according to claim 1 (Deng ¶0027, “headphone body”).
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) 2 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Deng (WO 2023/051008) in view of Bondo (US 2011/0299712).
Regarding claim 2, Deng does not explicitly teach wherein the plurality of protrusions is formed and arranged to obstruct less than 75% of the cross-section of the sound channel.
Bondo teaches wherein the plurality of protrusions is formed and arranged to obstruct less than 75% of the cross-section of the sound channel (Bondo ¶0044, “By providing a dome-shaped filter, larger passages 116 can be provided, whereby the filter will allow sound to propagate through the filter more easily”).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to use the known technique of Bondo to improve the known ear tip of Deng to achieve the predictable result of improved sound propagation since such a modification would have involved a mere change in the size of a component to obtain the optimum value of sound propagation. A change in size is generally recognized as being within the level of ordinary skill in the art. In re Rose, 105 USPQ 237 (CCPA 1955). In re Boesch, 617 F.2d 272, 205 USPQ 215 (CCPA 1980).
Claim(s) 7-12 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Deng (WO 2023/051008) in view of Moller (EP 3817403).
Regarding claim 7, Deng does not explicitly teach a second filtering element, the second filtering element protruding from the sealing element and bridging the sound outlet opening of the sound channel.
Moller teaches a second filtering element, the second filtering element protruding from the sealing element and bridging the sound outlet opening of the sound channel (Moller figures 1a-1b, ¶0041, first and second filtering element 10 and 20).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to use the known technique of Moller to improve the known ear tip of Deng to achieve the predictable result of decreased occlusion effect.
Regarding claim 8, Deng in view of Moller teaches where the second filtering element comprises a cap which is arranged in front of the sound outlet opening (Moller figures 1A-1B, first filtering element 10) and two laterally oriented sound ports which are in fluid communication with the sound outlet opening such that the sound path follows a labyrinthic way (Moller figures 1A-1B and 2B, ¶0047 “the through holes 22 extend through the second wax filtering element 20 in a direction from one sound outlet 11 to the other sound outlet 11”).
Regarding claim 9, Deng in view of Moller teaches a first collecting element arranged between the first filtering element and the sound outlet opening (Moller figures 1A-1B, second filtering element 20).
Regarding claim 10, Deng in view of Moller teaches a second collecting element arranged between the first filtering element and the sound inlet opening (Moller figures 1A-1B, second filtering element 20 and ¶0047 fig 2B, multiple bar shape portions of second wax filtering element 20).
Regarding claim 11, Deng in view of Moller teaches herein the first and/or the second collecting element are arranged directly adjacent to the first filtering element (Moller figures 1A-1B, second filtering element 20 and ¶0047 fig 2B, multiple bar shape portions of second wax filtering element 20).
Regarding claim 12, Deng in view of Moller teaches wherein the first and/or the second collecting element comprises a cavity on an inner peripheral surface of the sound channel (Deng figure 2, the 2 protrusion in the upper section of 112).
Conclusion
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/NORMAN YU/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2693