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 .
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.
Continued Examination Under 37 CFR 1.114
A request for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, including the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e), was filed in this application after final rejection. Since this application is eligible for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114. Applicant's submission filed on 04 February 2026 has been entered.
Specification
The amendments to the Specification received 04 February 2026 are accepted.
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.
Claims 1-3, 5-14, 16-25, and 27-33 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Tan et al. (hereinafter “Tan” US 2009 / 0326406) in view of Beck et al. (hereinafter “Beck” US 2010 / 0317958) and further in view of Morita et al. (hereinafter “Morita” US 2012 / 0209134).
(It should be noted that the Tan, Beck, and Morita references were all submitted by the applicant via Information Disclosure Statement received 18 December 2024).
As pertaining to Claim 1, Tan discloses (see Fig. 2 and Fig. 4) a band for a wrist-wearable device (i.e., a wristwatch or armband; see (200) in Fig. 2 and Page 2, Para. [0014]-[0015]), the band (200) comprising:
multiple pairs of sensors (see (215, 220, 225, 230, 235, 240) in Fig. 2; and see Page 6, Para. [0063] and [0066]-[0067] and Fig. 3, for example) arranged along a circumference (see Fig. 2) of the band (200) configured to be worn on a wrist (i.e., as a wristwatch or armband) of a user, each respective pair of sensors (i.e., see (405, 410) and (415, 420) in Fig. 4, for example) configured to be positioned over a distinct portion of the wrist of the user (again, see Fig. 2) while the band (200) is worn by the user, and each respective pair of sensors (again, see (405, 410) and (415, 420) in Fig. 4) comprising a first electrode (see (405, 415)) and a second electrode (see (410, 420)) positioned opposite to each other in a direction perpendicular to the circumference of the band (200; again, see Fig. 2), wherein the first electrode and the second electrode (again, see (405, 415) and (410, 420)) of each respective pair of sensors are configured to sense electrical signals travelling through the wrist of the user and each respective pair of sensors (again, see (405, 410) and (415, 420) in Fig. 4) outputs an unprocessed signal based on the sensed electrical signals (see Page 5, Para. [0060] and Page 6 through Page 7, Para. [0063] and [0073]);
electrical signal-processing circuitry (see (425, 430), (435, 440), and (445) in Fig. 4, for example) configured to amplify (see (425, 430)) and filter (see (435, 440)) each respective unprocessed signal received from each of the multiple pairs of sensors (again, see (405, 415) and (410, 420)) to produce processed signals (see Page 6 through Page 7, Para. [0073]-[0075]); and
wherein the electrical signal-processing circuitry (see (425, 430), (435, 440), and (445) in Fig. 4, for example) is configured to provide the processed signals to one or more processors (see (450) in Fig. 4 in combination with (145) in Fig. 1) via one or more communicative pathways (i.e., see the pathway between (405, 410) and (450) and/or the pathway between (415, 420) and (450) in Fig. 4; and see Page 7, Para. [0075]).
Tan does not explicitly disclose a shared ground electrode configured to provide a reference voltage and communicatively coupled to the electrical signal-processing circuitry.
However, in the same field of endeavor, Beck discloses (see Fig. 2a) a wearable device (100) for sensing neuromuscular signals using multiple pairs of sensors (i.e., EMG sensor pairs; see pairs of (102a, 102b, 102c, 102d, 102e, 102f) and Page 1, Para. [0009]) with each respective pair of sensors comprising a first electrode (see any (102)) and a second electrode (see any other (102)), and electrical signal-processing circuitry configured to amplify and filter the neuromuscular signals, along with a shared ground electrode (104) configured to provide a reference voltage (i.e., a common ground voltage) and communicatively coupled to the electrical signal-processing circuitry in order to reject unwanted electric signals, or noise, to thereby improve neuromuscular signal detection (see Page 2 through Page 3, Para. [0034]-[0037] and [0040]).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teachings of Tan with the teachings of Beck in order to provide a shared ground electrode configured to provide a reference voltage and communicatively coupled to the electrical signal-processing circuitry, as suggested by Beck, in the band for the wrist-wearable device of Tan, in order to reject unwanted electric signals, or noise, to thereby improve signal detection.
Further, Tan discloses that multiple pairs of sensors (see (215, 220, 225, 230, 235, 240) in Fig. 2) are arranged along a circumference (see Fig. 2) of the band (200). Tan further discloses (see Fig. 3 and Fig. 4) that each respective pair of sensors comprises a first electrode (see (405, 415) in Fig. 4) and a second electrode (see (410, 420) in Fig. 4) positioned opposite to each other (see Fig. 3) in a direction perpendicular to the circumference of the band (200; again, see Fig. 2). That is, Tan provides a visual description of the disclosed multiple pairs of sensors to include an array of sensors (405, 410, 415, 420) arranged two dimensionally (see Fig. 3) along the circumference of the band (200; see Fig. 2). However, neither Tan nor Beck explicitly shows the multiple pairs of sensors arranged in a radial direction along the circumference of the band with the first electrode and the second electrode positioned opposite to each other in the direction perpendicular to the radial direction along the circumference of the band. As such, neither Tan nor Beck explicitly discloses that processed signals are produced from a first electrode and a second electrode that are positioned opposite to each other in the direction perpendicular to the radial direction along the circumference of the band.
Still, in the same field of endeavor, Morita discloses (see Fig. 1) a wrist-wearable band comprising multiple pairs of sensors (SN1, …, SN6) arranged in a radial direction (i.e., a direction around the wrist of the user) along a circumference of the band configured to be worn on the wrist of a user, wherein each respective pair of sensors (again, see (SN1, …, SN6)) is configured to be positioned over a distinct portion of the wrist of the user, and each respective pair of sensors (again, see (SN1, …, SN6)) comprises a first electrode (i.e., an electrode positioned closer to the hand of the user) and a second electrode (i.e., an electrode positioned closer to the elbow of the user) positioned opposite to each other in a direction (i.e., a direction along the length of the arm of the user) perpendicular to the radial direction (i.e., the direction around the wrist of the user) along the circumference of the band, wherein the first electrode (i.e., an electrode positioned closer to the hand of the user) and a second electrode (i.e., an electrode positioned closer to the elbow of the user) of each respective pair of sensors (again, see (SN1, …, SN6)) are configured to sense electrical signals travelling through the wrist of the user and each respective pair of sensors (again, see (SN1, …, SN6)) outputs an unprocessed signal based on the electrical signals (see (U1); and see Page 6 through Page 7, Para. [0099] and [0101]-[0104]). It is a goal of Morita to provide a wrist-wearable band that is capable of monitoring flexing and movement of a user’s wrist to classify hand motions, and subsequently allow for interface control based on those hand motions, in a manner that enables real-time high-accuracy classification of gestures for a plurality of hand motions with little training data (see Page 2, Para. [0024]-[0028]).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teachings of Tan and Beck with the teachings of Morita, such that the multiple pairs of sensors, as disclosed by Tan and Beck, are arranged in a radial direction along the circumference of the band with the first electrode and the second electrode positioned opposite to each other in the direction perpendicular to the radial direction along the circumference of the band, as shown by Morita, such that that processed signals are produced from a first electrode and a second electrode that are positioned opposite to each other in the direction perpendicular to the radial direction along the circumference of the band, in order to provide a wrist-wearable device that is capable of monitoring flexing and movement of a user’s wrist to classify hand motions, and subsequently allow for interface control based on those hand motions, in a manner that enables real-time high-accuracy classification of gestures for a plurality of hand motions with little training data.
As pertaining to Claim 2, Tan discloses (see Fig. 2 and Fig. 4) that the processed signals comprise information indicating a movement of a wrist, a hand, and/or fingers of the user (see Page 3, Para. [0032] and Page 8, Para. [0085]).
As pertaining to Claim 3, Tan discloses (see Fig. 2 and Fig. 4) that the one or more processors (see (450) in Fig. 4 in combination with (145) in Fig. 1) are configured to determine a gesture of the user at least in part based on the movement of an index finger and a thumb of the user (see Page 3, Para. [0032]; Page 4, Para. [0044]; and Page 8, Para. [0085]).
As pertaining to Claim 5, Tan discloses (see Fig. 2 and Fig. 4) that the one or more processors (see (450) in Fig. 4 in combination with (145) in Fig. 1) are configured to determine a gesture of the user at least in part based on the movement of the wrist of the user (again, see Page 3, Para. [0032]; Page 4, Para. [0044]; and Page 8, Para. [0085] along with Page 14, Para. [0156]).
As pertaining to Claim 6, Tan discloses (see Fig. 2 and Fig. 4) that the one or more communicative pathways (i.e., see the pathway between (405, 410) and (450) and/or the pathway between (415, 420) and (450) in Fig. 4) comprise a bus (i.e., a channel) having a first communicative pathway (i.e., see the pathway between (405, 410) and (450)), a second communicative pathway (i.e., see the pathway between (415, 420) and (450)), and a third communicative pathway (i.e., see a pathway between another (405, 410) or (415, 420) and (450) for another pair of sensors associated with the sensor node),
the multiple pairs of sensors (again, see (215, 220, 225, 230, 235, 240) in Fig. 2 and corresponding respective pairs of sensors (405, 410) and/or (415, 420) in Fig. 4) comprise a first pair (i.e., see (405, 410) in Fig. 4), a second pair (i.e., see (415, 420) in Fig. 4), and a third pair (i.e., see another (405, 410) or (415, 420) for the sensor node), and
the first pair (i.e., see (405, 410) in Fig. 4) is electrically connected to a specific processor (i.e., see (450)) of the one or more processors (see (450) in Fig. 4 in combination with (145) in Fig. 1) by the first communicative pathway (i.e., see the pathway between (405, 410) and (450)), the second pair (i.e., see (415, 420) in Fig. 4) is electrically connected to the specific processor (i.e., see (450)) by the second communicative pathway (i.e., see the pathway between (415, 420) and (450)), and the third pair (i.e., see another (405, 410) or (415, 420) for the sensor node) is electrically connected to the specific processor (i.e., see (450)) by the third communicative pathway (i.e., see a pathway between another (405, 410) or (415, 420) and (450) for another pair of sensors associated with the sensor node; again, see Page 6 through Page 7, Para. [0073]-[0075]; and note that each sensor node (215, 220, 225, 230, 235, 240) in Fig. 2 can comprise “two (or more)” pairs of sensors).
As pertaining to Claim 7, Tan discloses (see Fig. 2 and Fig. 4) that the one or more processors (see (450) in Fig. 4 in combination with (145) in Fig. 1) comprise a central processor (i.e., a control module (145)) configured to determine a gesture of the user from the processed signals (see Page 3, Para. [0032]; Page 5, Para. [0049]; and Page 6, Para. [0066]).
As pertaining to Claim 8, Tan discloses (see Fig. 2 and Fig. 4) that at least one of the one or more processors (see (450) in Fig. 4 in combination with (145) in Fig. 1) is configured to output a flag (i.e., a recognition) that identifies the determined gesture (see Page 3, Para. [0032]; Page 5, Para. [0049]; and Page 6, Para. [0066]; and Page 7, Para. [0083]).
As pertaining to Claim 9, Morita discloses (see Fig. 1) an inertial measurement unit (i.e., an acceleration sensor) configured to output an inertial signal (i.e., an acceleration signal),
wherein the one or more processors (see (H1)) are configured to determine a gesture (i.e., a hand motion classification) of the user from the processed signals (again, see (SN1, …, SN6)) and the inertial signal (i.e., the acceleration signal; see Page 22, Para. [0323]-[0325]; again, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teachings of Tan and Beck with the teachings of Morita in order to provide a wrist-wearable device that is capable of monitoring flexing and movement of a user’s wrist to classify hand motions, and subsequently allow for interface control based on those hand motions, in a manner that enables real-time high-accuracy classification of gestures for a plurality of hand motions with little training data; further, Morita suggests that additionally incorporating inertial measurements into the wrist-wearable device of Tan and Beck can provide for an increased number of gesture classifications).
As pertaining to Claim 10, Tan discloses (see Fig. 2 and Fig. 4) that at least one of the one or more processors (see (450) in Fig. 4 in combination with (145) in Fig. 1) is configured to receive the processed signals via a wireless communicative pathway (see Page 6, Para. [0064]).
As pertaining to Claim 11, Tan discloses (see Fig. 2 and Fig. 4) that at least one of the one or more processors (see (450) in Fig. 4 in combination with (145) in Fig. 1) is configured to transmit information associated with a gesture of the user to an external device (see (150, 155) in Fig. 1; and see Page 5, Para. [0049]).
As pertaining to Claim 12, Tan discloses (see Fig. 2 and Fig. 4 in combination with Fig. 10) a non-transitory computer-readable medium (i.e., a general purpose computer; see (1000) in Fig. 10; and see Page 14 through Page 15, Para. [0164]-[0165] and [0167]-[0168]) storing instructions (see (1060, 1020) in Fig. 10) that, when executed by one or more processors (see (1010) in Fig. 10 corresponding to (450) in Fig. 4 in combination with (145) in Fig. 1) of a band for a wrist-wearable device (i.e., a wristwatch or armband; see (200) in Fig. 2 and Page 2, Para. [0014]-[0015]), cause the one or more processors (see (450) in Fig. 4 in combination with (145) in Fig. 1) to:
receive, via one or more communicative pathways (i.e., see a pathway between (405, 410) and (450) and/or a pathway between (415, 420) and (450) in Fig. 4), processed signals from electrical signal-processing circuitry (see (425, 430), (435, 440), and (445) in Fig. 4, for example), wherein the electrical signal-processing circuitry (again, see (425, 430), (435, 440), and (445) in Fig. 4, for example) is configured to amplify (see (425, 430)) and filter (see (435, 440)) each respective unprocessed signal received from each of a respective multiple pairs of sensors (see (215, 220, 225, 230, 235, 240) in Fig. 2 corresponding to (405, 415) and (410, 420) in Fig. 4) to produce processed signals (see Page 5, Para. [0060]; and see Page 6 through Page 7, Para. [0063], [0066]-[0067], and [0073]-[0075]); and
determine a gesture of a user at least in part based on the processed signals (see Page 3, Para. [0032]; Page 4, Para. [0044]; and Page 8, Para. [0085]),
wherein the multiple pairs of sensors (again, see (215, 220, 225, 230, 235, 240) in Fig. 2 corresponding to (405, 415) and (410, 420) in Fig. 4) are arranged along a circumference (see Fig. 2) of the band (200) configured to be worn on a wrist (i.e., as a wristwatch or armband) of the user, each respective pair of sensors (i.e., see (405, 410) and (415, 420) in Fig. 4, for example) is configured to be positioned over a distinct portion of the wrist of the user (again, see Fig. 2) while the band (200) is worn by the user, each respective pair of sensors (again, see (405, 410) and (415, 420) in Fig. 4) comprising a first electrode (see (405, 415)) and a second electrode (see (410, 420)) positioned opposite to each other in a direction perpendicular to the circumference of the band (200; again, see Fig. 2), and the first electrode and the second electrode (again, see (405, 415) and (410, 420)) of each respective pair of sensors are configured to sense electrical signals travelling through the wrist of the user, and each respective pair of sensors (i.e., see (405, 410) and (415, 420) in Fig. 4, for example) outputs an unprocessed signal based on the sensed electrical signals (again, see Page 5, Para. [0060]; and see Page 6 through Page 7, Para. [0066]-[0067] and [0073]-[0075]).
Tan does not explicitly disclose a shared ground electrode configured to provide a reference voltage and communicatively coupled to the electrical signal-processing circuitry.
However, in the same field of endeavor, Beck discloses (see Fig. 2a) a wearable device (100) for sensing neuromuscular signals using multiple pairs of sensors (i.e., EMG sensor pairs; see pairs of (102a, 102b, 102c, 102d, 102e, 102f) and Page 1, Para. [0009]) with each respective pair of sensors comprising a first electrode (see any (102)) and a second electrode (see any other (102)), and electrical signal-processing circuitry configured to amplify and filter the neuromuscular signals, along with a shared ground electrode (104) configured to provide a reference voltage (i.e., a common ground voltage) and communicatively coupled to the electrical signal-processing circuitry in order to reject unwanted electric signals, or noise, to thereby improve neuromuscular signal detection (see Page 2 through Page 3, Para. [0034]-[0037] and [0040]).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teachings of Tan with the teachings of Beck in order to provide a shared ground electrode configured to provide a reference voltage and communicatively coupled to the electrical signal-processing circuitry, as suggested by Beck, in the band for the wrist-wearable device of Tan, in order to reject unwanted electric signals, or noise, to thereby improve signal detection.
Further, Tan discloses that multiple pairs of sensors (see (215, 220, 225, 230, 235, 240) in Fig. 2) are arranged along a circumference (see Fig. 2) of the band (200). Tan further discloses (see Fig. 3 and Fig. 4) that each respective pair of sensors comprises a first electrode (see (405, 415) in Fig. 4) and a second electrode (see (410, 420) in Fig. 4) positioned opposite to each other (see Fig. 3) in a direction perpendicular to the circumference of the band (200; again, see Fig. 2). That is, Tan provides a visual description of the disclosed multiple pairs of sensors to include an array of sensors (405, 410, 415, 420) arranged two dimensionally (see Fig. 3) along the circumference of the band (200; see Fig. 2). However, neither Tan nor Beck explicitly shows the multiple pairs of sensors arranged in a radial direction along the circumference of the band with the first electrode and the second electrode positioned opposite to each other in the direction perpendicular to the radial direction along the circumference of the band. As such, neither Tan nor Beck explicitly discloses that processed signals are produced from a first electrode and a second electrode that are positioned opposite to each other in the direction perpendicular to the radial direction along the circumference of the band.
Still, in the same field of endeavor, Morita discloses (see Fig. 1) a wrist-wearable band comprising multiple pairs of sensors (SN1, …, SN6) arranged in a radial direction (i.e., a direction around the wrist of the user) along a circumference of the band configured to be worn on the wrist of a user, wherein each respective pair of sensors (again, see (SN1, …, SN6)) is configured to be positioned over a distinct portion of the wrist of the user, and each respective pair of sensors (again, see (SN1, …, SN6)) comprises a first electrode (i.e., an electrode positioned closer to the hand of the user) and a second electrode (i.e., an electrode positioned closer to the elbow of the user) positioned opposite to each other in a direction (i.e., a direction along the length of the arm of the user) perpendicular to the radial direction (i.e., the direction around the wrist of the user) along the circumference of the band, wherein the first electrode (i.e., an electrode positioned closer to the hand of the user) and a second electrode (i.e., an electrode positioned closer to the elbow of the user) of each respective pair of sensors (again, see (SN1, …, SN6)) are configured to sense electrical signals travelling through the wrist of the user and each respective pair of sensors (again, see (SN1, …, SN6)) outputs an unprocessed signal based on the electrical signals (see (U1); and see Page 6 through Page 7, Para. [0099] and [0101]-[0104]). It is a goal of Morita to provide a wrist-wearable band that is capable of monitoring flexing and movement of a user’s wrist to classify hand motions, and subsequently allow for interface control based on those hand motions, in a manner that enables real-time high-accuracy classification of gestures for a plurality of hand motions with little training data (see Page 2, Para. [0024]-[0028]).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teachings of Tan and Beck with the teachings of Morita, such that the multiple pairs of sensors, as disclosed by Tan and Beck, are arranged in a radial direction along the circumference of the band with the first electrode and the second electrode positioned opposite to each other in the direction perpendicular to the radial direction along the circumference of the band, as shown by Morita, such that that processed signals are produced from a first electrode and a second electrode that are positioned opposite to each other in the direction perpendicular to the radial direction along the circumference of the band, in order to provide a wrist-wearable device that is capable of monitoring flexing and movement of a user’s wrist to classify hand motions, and subsequently allow for interface control based on those hand motions, in a manner that enables real-time high-accuracy classification of gestures for a plurality of hand motions with little training data.
As pertaining to Claim 13, Tan discloses (see Fig. 2 and Fig. 4) that the processed signals comprise information indicating a movement of a wrist, a hand, and/or fingers of the user (see Page 3, Para. [0032] and Page 8, Para. [0085]).
As pertaining to Claim 14, Tan discloses (see Fig. 2 and Fig. 4) that the gesture is determined at least in part based on a movement of an index finger and a thumb of the user (see Page 3, Para. [0032]; Page 4, Para. [0044]; and Page 8, Para. [0085]).
As pertaining to Claim 16, Tan discloses (see Fig. 2 and Fig. 4) that the gesture is determined at least in part based on a movement of the wrist of the user (again, see Page 3, Para. [0032]; Page 4, Para. [0044]; and Page 8, Para. [0085] along with Page 14, Para. [0156]).
As pertaining to Claim 17, Tan discloses (see Fig. 2 and Fig. 4) that the one or more communicative pathways (i.e., see the pathway between (405, 410) and (450) and/or the pathway between (415, 420) and (450) in Fig. 4) comprise a bus (i.e., a channel) having a first communicative pathway (i.e., see the pathway between (405, 410) and (450)), a second communicative pathway (i.e., see the pathway between (415, 420) and (450)), and a third communicative pathway (i.e., see a pathway between another (405, 410) or (415, 420) and (450) for another pair of sensors associated with the sensor node),
the multiple pairs of sensors (again, see (215, 220, 225, 230, 235, 240) in Fig. 2 and corresponding respective pairs of sensors (405, 410) and/or (415, 420) in Fig. 4) comprise a first pair (i.e., see (405, 410) in Fig. 4), a second pair (i.e., see (415, 420) in Fig. 4), and a third pair (i.e., see another (405, 410) or (415, 420) for the sensor node), and
the first pair (i.e., see (405, 410) in Fig. 4) is electrically connected to a specific processor (i.e., see (450)) of the one or more processors (see (450) in Fig. 4 in combination with (145) in Fig. 1) by the first communicative pathway (i.e., see the pathway between (405, 410) and (450)), the second pair (i.e., see (415, 420) in Fig. 4) is electrically connected to the specific processor (i.e., see (450)) by the second communicative pathway (i.e., see the pathway between (415, 420) and (450)), and the third pair (i.e., see another (405, 410) or (415, 420) for the sensor node) is electrically connected to the specific processor (i.e., see (450)) by the third communicative pathway (i.e., see a pathway between another (405, 410) or (415, 420) and (450) for another pair of sensors associated with the sensor node; again, see Page 6 through Page 7, Para. [0073]-[0075]; and note that each sensor node (215, 220, 225, 230, 235, 240) in Fig. 2 can comprise “two (or more)” pairs of sensors).
As pertaining to Claim 18, Tan discloses (see Fig. 2 and Fig. 4) that the one or more processors (see (450) in Fig. 4 in combination with (145) in Fig. 1) comprise a central processor (i.e., a control module (145)) configured to determine the gesture of the user from the processed signals (see Page 3, Para. [0032]; Page 5, Para. [0049]; and Page 6, Para. [0066]).
As pertaining to Claim 19, Tan discloses (see Fig. 2 and Fig. 4) instructions that, when executed, cause the one or more processors (see (450) in Fig. 4 in combination with (145) in Fig. 1) to output a flag (i.e., a recognition) that identifies the determined gesture (see Page 3, Para. [0032]; Page 5, Para. [0049]; and Page 6, Para. [0066]; and Page 7, Para. [0083]).
As pertaining to Claim 20, Morita discloses (see Fig. 1) instructions, that when executed, cause the one or more processors (see (H1)) to determine the gesture (i.e., a hand motion classification) of the user from the processed signals (again, see (SN1, …, SN6)) and an inertial signal (i.e., an acceleration signal) output by an inertial measurement unit (i.e., an acceleration sensor; see Page 22, Para. [0323]-[0325]; again, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teachings of Tan and Beck with the teachings of Morita in order to provide a wrist-wearable device that is capable of monitoring flexing and movement of a user’s wrist to classify hand motions, and subsequently allow for interface control based on those hand motions, in a manner that enables real-time high-accuracy classification of gestures for a plurality of hand motions with little training data; further, Morita suggests that additionally incorporating inertial measurements into the wrist-wearable device of Tan and Beck can provide for an increased number of gesture classifications).
As pertaining to Claim 21, Tan discloses (see Fig. 2 and Fig. 4) instructions that, when executed, cause the one or more processors (see (450) in Fig. 4 in combination with (145) in Fig. 1) to transmit the processed electrical signals via a wireless communicative pathway (see Page 6, Para. [0064]).
As pertaining to Claim 22, Tan discloses (see Fig. 2 and Fig. 4) instructions that, when executed, cause the one or more processors (see (450) in Fig. 4 in combination with (145) in Fig. 1) to transmit information associated with a gesture of the user to an external device (see (150, 155) in Fig. 1; and see Page 5, Para. [0049]).
As pertaining to Claim 23, Tan discloses (see Fig. 2 and Fig. 4) a method of operating a band for a wrist-wearable device (i.e., a wristwatch or armband; see (200) in Fig. 2 and Page 2, Para. [0014]-[0015]), the method comprising:
sensing, via multiple pairs of sensors (see (215, 220, 225, 230, 235, 240) in Fig. 2 corresponding to (405, 415) and (410, 420) in Fig. 4), electrical signals travelling through a wrist of a user, wherein the multiple pairs of sensors (again, see (215, 220, 225, 230, 235, 240) in Fig. 2 corresponding to (405, 415) and (410, 420) in Fig. 4) are arranged along a circumference (see Fig. 2) of the band (200) worn on the wrist (i.e., as a wristwatch or armband) of the user, each respective pair of sensors (i.e., see (405, 410) and (415, 420) in Fig. 4, for example) is positioned over a distinct portion of the wrist of the user (again, see Fig. 2) while the band (200) is worn by the user, each respective pair of sensors (again, see (405, 410) and (415, 420) in Fig. 4) comprises a first electrode (see (405, 415)) and a second electrode (see (410, 420)) positioned opposite to each other in a direction perpendicular to the circumference of the band (200; again, see Fig. 2), and the first electrode and the second electrode (again, see (405, 415) and (410, 420)) of each respective pair of sensors are configured to sense at least a portion of the electrical signals travelling through the wrist of the user, and each respective pair of sensors (i.e., see (405, 410) and (415, 420) in Fig. 4, for example) outputs an unprocessed signal based on the sensed electrical signals (see Page 5, Para. [0060]; and see Page 6 through Page 7, Para. [0063], [0066]-[0067], and [0073]-[0075]); and
outputting, from each of the multiple pairs of sensors (again, see (405, 415) and (410, 420)), respective unprocessed signals generated at least in part based on the sensed electrical signals;
amplifying and filtering, by electrical signal-processing circuitry (see (425, 430), (435, 440), and (445) in Fig. 4, for example), each respective unprocessed signal received from each of the multiple pairs of sensors (again, see (405, 415) and (410, 420)) to produce processed signals (again, see Page 6 through Page 7, Para. [0073]-[0075]); and
providing the processed signals to one or more processors (see (450) in Fig. 4 in combination with (145) in Fig. 1) via one or more communicative pathways (i.e., see the pathway between (405, 410) and (450) and/or the pathway between (415, 420) and (450) in Fig. 4; and see Page 7, Para. [0075]).
Tan does not explicitly disclose a shared ground electrode providing a reference voltage to the electrical signal-processing circuitry.
However, in the same field of endeavor, Beck discloses (see Fig. 2a) a wearable device (100) for sensing neuromuscular signals using multiple pairs of sensors (i.e., EMG sensor pairs; see pairs of (102a, 102b, 102c, 102d, 102e, 102f) and Page 1, Para. [0009]) with each respective pair of sensors comprising a first electrode (see any (102)) and a second electrode (see any other (102)), and electrical signal-processing circuitry configured to amplify and filter the neuromuscular signals, along with a shared ground electrode (104) configured to provide a reference voltage (i.e., a common ground voltage) and communicatively coupled to the electrical signal-processing circuitry in order to reject unwanted electric signals, or noise, to thereby improve neuromuscular signal detection (see Page 2 through Page 3, Para. [0034]-[0037] and [0040]).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teachings of Tan with the teachings of Beck in order to provide a shared ground electrode providing a reference voltage to the electrical signal-processing circuitry, as suggested by Beck, in the band for the wrist-wearable device of Tan, in order to reject unwanted electric signals, or noise, to thereby improve signal detection.
Further, Tan discloses that multiple pairs of sensors (see (215, 220, 225, 230, 235, 240) in Fig. 2) are arranged along a circumference (see Fig. 2) of the band (200). Tan further discloses (see Fig. 3 and Fig. 4) that each respective pair of sensors comprises a first electrode (see (405, 415) in Fig. 4) and a second electrode (see (410, 420) in Fig. 4) positioned opposite to each other (see Fig. 3) in a direction perpendicular to the circumference of the band (200; again, see Fig. 2). That is, Tan provides a visual description of the disclosed multiple pairs of sensors to include an array of sensors (405, 410, 415, 420) arranged two dimensionally (see Fig. 3) along the circumference of the band (200; see Fig. 2). However, neither Tan nor Beck explicitly shows the multiple pairs of sensors arranged in a radial direction along the circumference of the band with the first electrode and the second electrode positioned opposite to each other in the direction perpendicular to the radial direction along the circumference of the band. As such, neither Tan nor Beck explicitly discloses that processed signals are produced from a first electrode and a second electrode that are positioned opposite to each other in the direction perpendicular to the radial direction along the circumference of the band.
Still, in the same field of endeavor, Morita discloses (see Fig. 1) a wrist-wearable band comprising multiple pairs of sensors (SN1, …, SN6) arranged in a radial direction (i.e., a direction around the wrist of the user) along a circumference of the band configured to be worn on the wrist of a user, wherein each respective pair of sensors (again, see (SN1, …, SN6)) is configured to be positioned over a distinct portion of the wrist of the user, and each respective pair of sensors (again, see (SN1, …, SN6)) comprises a first electrode (i.e., an electrode positioned closer to the hand of the user) and a second electrode (i.e., an electrode positioned closer to the elbow of the user) positioned opposite to each other in a direction (i.e., a direction along the length of the arm of the user) perpendicular to the radial direction (i.e., the direction around the wrist of the user) along the circumference of the band, wherein the first electrode (i.e., an electrode positioned closer to the hand of the user) and a second electrode (i.e., an electrode positioned closer to the elbow of the user) of each respective pair of sensors (again, see (SN1, …, SN6)) are configured to sense electrical signals travelling through the wrist of the user and each respective pair of sensors (again, see (SN1, …, SN6)) outputs an unprocessed signal based on the electrical signals (see (U1); and see Page 6 through Page 7, Para. [0099] and [0101]-[0104]). It is a goal of Morita to provide a wrist-wearable band that is capable of monitoring flexing and movement of a user’s wrist to classify hand motions, and subsequently allow for interface control based on those hand motions, in a manner that enables real-time high-accuracy classification of gestures for a plurality of hand motions with little training data (see Page 2, Para. [0024]-[0028]).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teachings of Tan and Beck with the teachings of Morita, such that the multiple pairs of sensors, as disclosed by Tan and Beck, are arranged in a radial direction along the circumference of the band with the first electrode and the second electrode positioned opposite to each other in the direction perpendicular to the radial direction along the circumference of the band, as shown by Morita, such that that processed signals are produced from a first electrode and a second electrode that are positioned opposite to each other in the direction perpendicular to the radial direction along the circumference of the band, in order to provide a wrist-wearable device that is capable of monitoring flexing and movement of a user’s wrist to classify hand motions, and subsequently allow for interface control based on those hand motions, in a manner that enables real-time high-accuracy classification of gestures for a plurality of hand motions with little training data.
As pertaining to Claim 24, Tan discloses (see Fig. 2 and Fig. 4) that the processed signals comprise information indicating a movement of a wrist, a hand, and/or fingers of the user (see Page 3, Para. [0032] and Page 8, Para. [0085]).
As pertaining to Claim 25, Tan discloses (see Fig. 2 and Fig. 4) that a gesture is determined at least in part based on a movement of an index finger and a thumb of the user (see Page 3, Para. [0032]; Page 4, Para. [0044]; and Page 8, Para. [0085]).
As pertaining to Claim 27, Tan discloses (see Fig. 2 and Fig. 4) that a gesture is determined at least in part based on a movement of the wrist of the user (again, see Page 3, Para. [0032]; Page 4, Para. [0044]; and Page 8, Para. [0085] along with Page 14, Para. [0156]).
As pertaining to Claim 28, Tan discloses (see Fig. 2 and Fig. 4) that the one or more communicative pathways (i.e., see the pathway between (405, 410) and (450) and/or the pathway between (415, 420) and (450) in Fig. 4) comprise a bus (i.e., a channel) having a first communicative pathway (i.e., see the pathway between (405, 410) and (450)), a second communicative pathway (i.e., see the pathway between (415, 420) and (450)), and a third communicative pathway (i.e., see a pathway between another (405, 410) or (415, 420) and (450) for another pair of sensors associated with the sensor node),
the multiple pairs of sensors (again, see (215, 220, 225, 230, 235, 240) in Fig. 2 and corresponding respective pairs of sensors (405, 410) and/or (415, 420) in Fig. 4) comprise a first pair (i.e., see (405, 410) in Fig. 4), a second pair (i.e., see (415, 420) in Fig. 4), and a third pair (i.e., see another (405, 410) or (415, 420) for the sensor node), and
the first pair (i.e., see (405, 410) in Fig. 4) is electrically connected to a specific processor (i.e., see (450)) of the one or more processors (see (450) in Fig. 4 in combination with (145) in Fig. 1) by the first communicative pathway (i.e., see the pathway between (405, 410) and (450)), the second pair (i.e., see (415, 420) in Fig. 4) is electrically connected to the specific processor (i.e., see (450)) by the second communicative pathway (i.e., see the pathway between (415, 420) and (450)), and the third pair (i.e., see another (405, 410) or (415, 420) for the sensor node) is electrically connected to the specific processor (i.e., see (450)) by the third communicative pathway (i.e., see a pathway between another (405, 410) or (415, 420) and (450) for another pair of sensors associated with the sensor node; again, see Page 6 through Page 7, Para. [0073]-[0075]; and note that each sensor node (215, 220, 225, 230, 235, 240) in Fig. 2 can comprise “two (or more)” pairs of sensors).
As pertaining to Claim 29, Tan discloses (see Fig. 2 and Fig. 4) that the one or more processors (see (450) in Fig. 4 in combination with (145) in Fig. 1) comprise a central processor (i.e., a control module (145)) configured to determine the gesture of the user from the processed signals (see Page 3, Para. [0032]; Page 5, Para. [0049]; and Page 6, Para. [0066]).
As pertaining to Claim 30, Tan discloses (see Fig. 2 and Fig. 4) instructions that, when executed, cause the one or more processors (see (450) in Fig. 4 in combination with (145) in Fig. 1) to output a flag (i.e., a recognition) that identifies the determined gesture (see Page 3, Para. [0032]; Page 5, Para. [0049]; and Page 6, Para. [0066]; and Page 7, Para. [0083]).
As pertaining to Claim 31, Morita discloses (see Fig. 1)that the one or more processors (see (H1)) are configured to determine a gesture (i.e., a hand motion classification) of the user from the processed signals (again, see (SN1, …, SN6)) and an inertial signal (i.e., an acceleration signal) output by an inertial measurement unit (i.e., an acceleration sensor; see Page 22, Para. [0323]-[0325]; again, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teachings of Tan and Beck with the teachings of Morita in order to provide a wrist-wearable device that is capable of monitoring flexing and movement of a user’s wrist to classify hand motions, and subsequently allow for interface control based on those hand motions, in a manner that enables real-time high-accuracy classification of gestures for a plurality of hand motions with little training data; further, Morita suggests that additionally incorporating inertial measurements into the wrist-wearable device of Tan and Beck can provide for an increased number of gesture classifications).
As pertaining to Claim 32, Tan discloses (see Fig. 2 and Fig. 4) that the one or more processors (see (450) in Fig. 4 in combination with (145) in Fig. 1) are configured to transmit the processed electrical signals via a wireless communicative pathway (see Page 6, Para. [0064]).
As pertaining to Claim 33, Tan discloses (see Fig. 2 and Fig. 4) that the one or more processors (see (450) in Fig. 4 in combination with (145) in Fig. 1) are configured to transmit information associated with a gesture of the user to an external device (see (150, 155) in Fig. 1; and see Page 5, Para. [0049]).
Claims 4, 15, and 26 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Tan in view of Beck in view of Morita and further in view of Ryhanen et al. (US 2009 / 0326833).
As pertaining to Claim 4, none of Tan, Beck, and Morita explicitly discloses that the one or more processors are configured to specifically determine that the gesture of the user corresponds to a scroll command.
However, in the same field of endeavor, Ryhanen discloses (see Fig. 11) a band (31) for a wrist-wearable device (see (34)), wherein the band (31) comprises (see Fig. 11 and Fig. 5) multiple pairs of sensors (see (7)) arranged in a radial direction along a circumference of the band (31), wherein each respective pair of sensors (7) comprises a first electrode (i.e., see (7a) or (7b) in Fig. 5 and/or see any (7) in Fig. 11) and a second electrode (i.e., see (7d) or (7e) in Fig. 5 and/or see any other (7) in Fig. 11), and wherein one or more processors are configured to determine that a gesture of the user corresponds to a scroll command (see Page 6, Para. [0094]-[0095]; and see Page 4, Para. [0062] and [0069]). It is a goal of Ryhanen to provide a wrist-wearable device that is capable of monitoring flexing and movement of a wearer’s wrist to allow for interface control based on hand gestures (see Page 1, Para. [0002]). Further, Ryhanen specifically points out that such interface control is particularly useful in providing a scrolling application (again, see Page 6, Para. [0095]).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teachings of Tan, Beck, and Morita with the teachings of Ryhanen, such that the one or more processors are configured to specifically determine that the gesture of the user corresponds to a scroll command, in order to provide a wrist-wearable device that is capable of monitoring flexing and movement of a wearer’s wrist to allow for interface control based on hand gestures, particularly as applied to a scrolling application, to provide the obvious benefit of improved functionality and device applicability.
As pertaining to Claim 15, none of Tan, Beck, and Morita explicitly discloses that the one or more processors are configured to specifically determine that the gesture of the user corresponds to a scroll command.
However, in the same field of endeavor, Ryhanen discloses (see Fig. 11) a band (31) for a wrist-wearable device (see (34)), wherein the band (31) comprises (see Fig. 11 and Fig. 5) multiple pairs of sensors (see (7)) arranged in a radial direction along a circumference of the band (31), wherein each respective pair of sensors (7) comprises a first electrode (i.e., see (7a) or (7b) in Fig. 5 and/or see any (7) in Fig. 11) and a second electrode (i.e., see (7d) or (7e) in Fig. 5 and/or see any other (7) in Fig. 11), and wherein one or more processors are configured to determine that a gesture of the user corresponds to a scroll command (see Page 6, Para. [0094]-[0095]; and see Page 4, Para. [0062] and [0069]). It is a goal of Ryhanen to provide a wrist-wearable device that is capable of monitoring flexing and movement of a wearer’s wrist to allow for interface control based on hand gestures (see Page 1, Para. [0002]). Further, Ryhanen specifically points out that such interface control is particularly useful in providing a scrolling application (again, see Page 6, Para. [0095]).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teachings of Tan, Beck, and Morita with the teachings of Ryhanen, such that the one or more processors are configured to specifically determine that the gesture of the user corresponds to a scroll command, in order to provide a wrist-wearable device that is capable of monitoring flexing and movement of a wearer’s wrist to allow for interface control based on hand gestures, particularly as applied to a scrolling application, to provide the obvious benefit of improved functionality and device applicability.
As pertaining to Claim 26, none of Tan, Beck, and Morita explicitly discloses that the one or more processors are configured to specifically determine that the gesture of the user corresponds to a scroll command.
However, in the same field of endeavor, Ryhanen discloses (see Fig. 11) a band (31) for a wrist-wearable device (see (34)), wherein the band (31) comprises (see Fig. 11 and Fig. 5) multiple pairs of sensors (see (7)) arranged in a radial direction along a circumference of the band (31), wherein each respective pair of sensors (7) comprises a first electrode (i.e., see (7a) or (7b) in Fig. 5 and/or see any (7) in Fig. 11) and a second electrode (i.e., see (7d) or (7e) in Fig. 5 and/or see any other (7) in Fig. 11), and wherein one or more processors are configured to determine that a gesture of the user corresponds to a scroll command (see Page 6, Para. [0094]-[0095]; and see Page 4, Para. [0062] and [0069]). It is a goal of Ryhanen to provide a wrist-wearable device that is capable of monitoring flexing and movement of a wearer’s wrist to allow for interface control based on hand gestures (see Page 1, Para. [0002]). Further, Ryhanen specifically points out that such interface control is particularly useful in providing a scrolling application (again, see Page 6, Para. [0095]).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teachings of Tan, Beck, and Morita with the teachings of Ryhanen, such that the one or more processors are configured to specifically determine that the gesture of the user corresponds to a scroll command, in order to provide a wrist-wearable device that is capable of monitoring flexing and movement of a wearer’s wrist to allow for interface control based on hand gestures, particularly as applied to a scrolling application, to provide the obvious benefit of improved functionality and device applicability.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to Claims 1-33 have been considered but are moot because the new ground of rejection does not rely on a combination of references applied in the prior rejection of record for any teaching or matter specifically challenged in the argument. The applicant has argued, initially during the Applicant-Initiated Interview of 20 January 2026 and reiterated herein, that none of the references relied upon by the examiner in the prior Office Action, namely Tan, Beck, and Ryhanen, teach or fairly suggest the claimed configuration of “multiple pairs of sensors arranged in a radial direction along a circumference of the band… and each respective pair of sensors comprising a first electrode and a second electrode positioned opposite to each other in a direction perpendicular to the radial direction along the circumference of the band, wherein the first electrode and the second electrode… are configured to sense electrical signals… and each respective pair of sensors outputs an unprocessed signal…” such that “electrical signal-processing circuitry” is “configured to amplify and filter each respective unprocessed signal…” (see Remarks at Pages 10 through 12). Respectfully, this argument is moot in so much as the combined teachings of Tan, Beck, and Morita, as newly relied upon in the above rejections, plainly suggest these features.
In this regard, the examiner respectfully points out that the teachings of Tan clearly provide for multiple pairs of sensors arranged in a radial direction along a circumference of a band (see Figure 2). Tan references each sensor (see (215, 220, 225, 230, 235, 240)) as a “sensor node” that includes at least one pair of electrodes (i.e., a first electrode and a second electrode; see Page 6 through Page 7, Para. [0073]). Examples of “sensor nodes” containing two pairs of electrodes are shown, by example, in Figure 3 in which sensor electrodes are positioned opposite to each other in some direction. Tan further discloses (see Figure 4) that the first electrode and the second electrode (see (405, 410), for example) of a pair of sensors are configured to sense electrical signals and each respective pair of sensors outputs an unprocessed signal such that electrical signal-processing circuitry is configured to amplify and filter each respective unprocessed signal (see (425, 435, 445, 450)). Tan does not explicitly show an arrangement in which the first electrode and the second electrode are positioned opposite to each other in a direction perpendicular to the radial direction along the circumference of the band. However, Morita clearly suggests this configuration (see Figure 1). In this regard, Morita suggests, for example, “six sensors” (SN1, …, SN6) each comprising a first electrode and a second electrode such that “six pairs” of electrodes are attached to “six sections on skin” to provide unprocessed signals (see Page 6 through Page 7, Para. [0101]). Morita plainly shows that a preferred arrangement of sensors includes the first electrode and the second electrode positioned opposite to each other in a direction perpendicular to the radial direction along the circumference of the band.
Therefore, for the reasons provided above, the rejection of Claims 1-33 is maintained.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Rekimoto (US 2004 / 0243342) and Linderman (US 2014 / 0309547), both submitted by the applicant via Information Disclosure Statement, disclose wrist-wearable devices for sensing neuromuscular signals using a small number of sensor pairs.
Bailey et al. (US 11,426,123) and Bailey et al. (US 2023 / 0073303) both disclose and claim subject matter that is relevant to the claimed invention.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JASON M MANDEVILLE whose telephone number is (571)270-3136. The examiner can normally be reached Mon - Fri 7:30AM-4:00PM.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Chanh Nguyen can be reached at 571-272-7772. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/JASON M MANDEVILLE/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2623