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 .
Priority
Receipt is acknowledged of certified copies of papers required by 37 CFR 1.55.
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.
Claim(s) 1, 14, 16 and 20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Lim et al. U.S. Publication No. (20230046031 A1).
With respect to claim 1, Lim et al. discloses a wearable device (100, figs.1A-1D) and [0041] comprising:
an angle sensor (120, 121) configured to measure an angle of a joint of a user [0048] and [0069, the wearable device 100 may measure (or sense) a left hip joint angle q_l and a right hip joint angle q_r of the user. For example, the wearable device 100 may measure the left hip joint angle q_l of the user through a left encoder and measure the right hip joint angle q_r of the user through a right encoder];
a driving module comprising a motor and/or circuitry, configured to generate a torque and provide the torque to the user [0045, the driver 110 may include a motor 114 and a motor driver circuit 112 for driving the motor 114] and [0059, the driver 110 may generate a torque, based on the control signal output by the controller 140. A torque value for generating the torque may be externally set or set by the controller 140. For example, to represent a magnitude of the torque value, the controller 140 may use a magnitude of a current of a signal transmitted to the driver 110. That is, as the magnitude of the current received by the driver 110 increases, the torque value may increase]; and
at least one processor (140, 142) and [0045, controller 142 may include a processor 142, a memory 144, and an input interface 146], comprising processing circuitry [0059], individually and/or collectively configured to:
obtain information for recognizing a disease of the user, and recognize a disease of the user based on the obtained information [0003], [0110]-[0111], [0115]-[0122] and [0137] [joint angle trajectories and asymmetry information are used to identify an affected and target leg having relatively insufficient and weakened muscular strength],
determine an exercise mode [0016], [0134, the resistive mode may be an exercise mode] and [0138]-[0139] of the wearable device based on the recognized disease [resistive mode is an exercise mode and is used when the user has asymmetric movement/affected leg to strengthen the leg], receive a first angle value based on the angle in the determined exercise mode from the angle sensor [0048, information on an angle of a joint measured by the sensor 120 may be transmitted to the controller 140],
determine a first torque value based on the received first angle value and values of parameters [0070],
control the driving module to generate a first torque based on the determined first torque value [0058]-[0059] and
when a start of a designated motion in the determined exercise mode is detected based on a second angle value obtained by measuring the angle, perform a control operation for generating a second torque so that the second torque generated by the driving module acts as a resistance to the designated motion [0130]-[0131], [0138]-[0139] and [in resistance mode, a negative gain/resistance force is provided to the affected leg swing; the swing/flexion section is the designated motion and is derived from the measured joint-angle trajectories].
With respect to claim 14, Lim et al. discloses a communication module, comprising communication circuitry, configured to communicate with at least one of a server or a user terminal, wherein at least one processor, comprising processing circuitry, is individually and/or collectively configured to receive the information for recognizing the disease of the user from at least one of the server or the user terminal through the communication module [0061] and [0063]-[0066].
With respect to claim 16, Lim et al. discloses a wearable device comprising:
a communication module [0061] and [0063]-[0066], comprising communication circuitry, configured to communicate [0061] and [0063]-[0066], with a user terminal [0065];
an angle sensor (120, 121) configured to measure an angle of a joint of a user [0048] and [0069, the wearable device 100 may measure (or sense) a left hip joint angle q_l and a right hip joint angle q_r of the user. For example, the wearable device 100 may measure the left hip joint angle q_l of the user through a left encoder and measure the right hip joint angle q_r of the user through a right encoder];
a driving module, comprising a motor and/or circuitry, configured to generate a torque and provide the torque to the user [0045, the driver 110 may include a motor 114 and a motor driver circuit 112 for driving the motor 114] and [0059, the driver 110 may generate a torque, based on the control signal output by the controller 140. A torque value for generating the torque may be externally set or set by the controller 140. For example, to represent a magnitude of the torque value, the controller 140 may use a magnitude of a current of a signal transmitted to the driver 110. That is, as the magnitude of the current received by the driver 110 increases, the torque value may increase]; and
at least one processor (140, 142) and [0045, controller 142 may include a processor 142, a memory 144, and an input interface 146 ], comprising processing circuitry [0059], individually and/or collectively configured to:
receive a control signal indicating an exercise mode [034, The resistive mode may be an exercise mode] of the wearable device from the user terminal through the communication module [0143] and [0061] and [0063]-[0066],
determine an exercise mode [0016], [0134, the resistive mode may be an exercise mode] and [0138]-[0139]of the wearable device based on the received control signal, receive a first angle value in the determined exercise mode from the angle sensor [0048, information on an angle of a joint measured by the sensor 120 may be transmitted to the controller 140],
determine a first torque value based on the received first angle value and values of parameters [0070],
control the driving module to generate a first torque corresponding to the determined first torque value [0058]-[0059] and
when a start of a designated motion in the determined exercise mode is detected based on a second angle value obtained by measuring the angle, perform a control operation for generating a second torque so that the second torque generated by the driving module acts as a resistance to the designated motion [0130]-[0131], [0138]-[0139] and [in resistance mode, a negative gain/resistance force is provided to the affected leg swing; the swing/flexion section is the designated motion and is derived from the measured joint-angle trajectories].
With respect to claim 20, regarding the method step claimed, to the extent that the prior art apparatus meets the structural limitations of the apparatus as claimed, it will inherently perform the method steps as claimed. Furthermore, it has been held that where the claimed and prior art products are identical or substantially identical in structure or composition, or are produced by identical or substantially identical processes, a prima facie case of anticipation has been established. In re King, 801 F.2d 1324, 231 USPQ 136 (Fed. Cir. 1986) and In re Best, 562 F.2d 1252, 1255, 195 USPQ 430, 433 (CCPA 1977); (under the principles of inherency, if a prior art device, in its normal and usual operation, would necessarily perform the method claimed, then the method claimed will be considered to be anticipated by the prior art device) see MPEP 2112.01(1), as such, Lim et al. discloses an operating method of a wearable device, the operating method comprising: obtaining information for recognizing a disease of a user and recognizing a disease of the user based on the obtained information; determining an exercise mode of the wearable device based on the recognized disease; determining a first torque value based on a first angle value obtained by measuring an angle of a joint of the user in the determined exercise mode and values of parameters; generating a first torque based on the determined first torque value and providing the first torque to the user; and when a start of a designated motion in the determined exercise mode is detected based on a second angle value obtained by measuring the angle of the joint, performing a control for generating a second torque so that the second torque acts as a resistance to the designated motion.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 2-13, 15 and 17-19 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.
Reasons for Allowance
The following is an examiner’s statement of reasons for allowance:
The closest prior art drawn to Lim et al. fails to show or make obvious the claimed combinations of elements particularly the limitations as set forth in dependent claims 2-13, 15 and 17-19 which recite features not taught or suggested by the prior art drawn to Lim et al., in combination with the other elements (or steps) of the apparatus and method recited in the claims.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to OPHELIA ALTHEA HAWTHORNE whose telephone number is (571)270-3860. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 8:00 AM-5:00 PM, EST.
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/OPHELIA A HAWTHORNE/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3786
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