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 .
Response to Amendment
The Amendments filed 06/08/2026 responsive to the Office Action filed 04/24/2026 has been entered. Claims 1, 4, 5, 7, 10, 11, 14, 17 and 18 have been amended. Claim 20 has been canceled. Claims 1-10 and 19 maintain withdrawn. Claims 1-19 are pending in this application.
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments, filed 06/08/2026 in page 6, with respect to the rejection of claim 18 under 102 have been fully considered. Due to the amendments, the rejection of claim 18 under 102 has been withdrawn.
Applicant's arguments, filed 06/08/2026 in pages 6-8, with respect to the rejection of claim 11 under 103 have been fully considered but are not persuasive.
Applicant argues that “Haverinen is relied upon as teaching forming a metal mold using an inner ring-shaped housing 410 and outer ring-shaped housing 405 (Pa [0102]). However, the inner and outer ring- shaped housings are separate and distinct elements which "may be coupled, or attached...based on a filler material" (Pa [0109]), not a unitary element. Indeed, as cited in the outstanding Action, within Haverinen there is an inner ring-shaped housing 410 constructed from a first material and an outer ring-shaped housing constructed from a second material. Therefore, Haverinen fails to disclose or fairly teach at least "a unitary metal mold" as claimed.” (page 7)
These arguments are found to be unpersuasive because:
The written description merely discloses that the metal mold includes the inner and outer walls, but does not disclose that the metal mold is a unitary element without coupling separate elements. (See the rejection under 112(b) below).
Applicant further argues that “it does not appear that a person of ordinary skill in the art would enjoy a reasonable expectation of success in employing the teachings of Freimuth's cold pressing within the method of Haverinen. At the time of the claimed invention, it does not appear established on the record that a person of ordinary skill would know that both Haverinen's inner housing 410 and outer housing 405 could be manufactured by cold-pressing with a reasonable expectation of success… Either the punch or the die would become trapped along the overhanging lip (the re-entrant geometry) whereupon locating components 420 reside, as labelled in the portion of Fig. 4 of Haverinen reproduced above.” (page 7).
These arguments are found to be unpersuasive because:
Applicant’s allegation that “Either the punch or the die would become trapped along the overhanging lip (the re-entrant geometry) whereupon locating components 420 reside, as labelled in the portion of Fig. 4 of Haverinen reproduced above” is groundless. Besides, the claim does not preclude further processing for making a plurality of apertures 415 in the inner ring-shaped housing 410 after cold pressing. Unless the claim recites a sole cold pressing to form the metal mold including a plurality of apertures or a specific punching method to form a plurality of apertures after cold pressing, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to form the outer ring-shaped housing and the inner ring-shaped housing using a cold-forming process for the purpose of reducing the energy required to manufacture the metal housings, simplifying the manufacturing setup required to make the metal housings, obtaining a better surface finish and/or better reproducibility, and minimizing contamination problems.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of 35 U.S.C. 112(a):
(a) IN GENERAL.—The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor or joint inventor of carrying out the invention.
The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112:
The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor of carrying out his invention.
Claims 11-18 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(a) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), first paragraph, as failing to comply with the written description requirement. The claim(s) contains subject matter which was not described in the specification in such a way as to reasonably convey to one skilled in the relevant art that the inventor or a joint inventor, or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the inventor(s), at the time the application was filed, had possession of the claimed invention.
Claims 11 and 18 recite the limitation “a unitary metal mold” in line 3 of each claim. While Applicant alleged that it is supported by the written description at least from Pa [0108], [0126] (See the Applicant Arguments/Remarks, page 6), the written description discloses that
In Pa [0108];
“Wearable devices manufactured using the method of FIG. 5 have a casing formed by the metal mold. In this way, the inner and outer walls of the resulting wearable device are formed by the same component. The resulting wearable device may not need any further support structures in addition to the casing formed by the metal mold and the polymer material inside the metal mold. The metal mold provides a tough outer shell for the wearable device.”
In Pa [0126];
“FIG. 9 illustrates a frame 900 of molds that supports a method of manufacturing wearable devices in accordance with various embodiments of the present disclosure. The frame 900 is a donut baking tray like object comprising multiple molds. FIG. 9 shows six molds 901a-901f in the frame 900 but any number of molds can be used. The molds 901 may be for example similar to the mold 700 of FIG. 7 or the mold 800 of FIG. 8.”
Namely, the written description merely discloses that the metal mold includes the inner and outer walls, but does not disclose that the metal mold is a unitary element without coupling separate elements.
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.
The factual inquiries set forth in Graham v. John Deere Co., 383 U.S. 1, 148 USPQ 459 (1966), that are applied for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness.
This application currently names joint inventors. In considering patentability of the claims the examiner presumes that the subject matter of the various claims was commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the claimed invention(s) absent any evidence to the contrary. Applicant is advised of the obligation under 37 CFR 1.56 to point out the inventor and effective filing dates of each claim that was not commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the later invention in order for the examiner to consider the applicability of 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(2)(C) for any potential 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) prior art against the later invention.
Claims 11-13 and 15-18 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Haverinen et al. (US 2024/0081012) in view of Freimuth (US 2025/0392032).
With respect to claim 11, Haverinen teaches a method of manufacturing a ring sensor device (“a method 700 that supports a process for manufacturing a wearable ring form factor”, Pa [0134]), the method comprising:
forming a metal mold (“The inner ring-shaped housing 410 may be constructed from a first material (e.g., a first metallic material), and the outer ring-shaped housing 405 may be constructed from a second material (e.g., a second metallic material)”, Pa [0102]), the metal mold having an outer annular wall (“an outer ring-shaped housing”) and an inner annular wall (“an inner ring-shaped housing”);
placing a strip of flexible base material in a bent form into the metal mold so that a first surface of the strip faces the inner annular wall of the metal mold (“coupling a PCB to an inner ring-shaped housing”, Pa [0135]; “The PCB 425 may be a flexible PCB”, Pa [0106]), wherein the strip of flexible base material comprises at least one sensor unit on the first surface of the flexible base material, wherein the sensor unit is configured to acquire physiological data from a user (“The PCB 425 may be a flexible PCB that includes a plurality of sensors or electrical components (e.g., a sensor 430)”, Pa [0106]; “some wearable devices may be configured to house one or more sensors configured to acquire physiological data from a user.”, Pa [0011]); and
filling the mold with polymer material, the polymer material attaching to the strip of flexible base material and holding the strip of flexible base material in place facing the inner annular wall of the mold (“injecting a filler material through the additional aperture of the outer ring-shaped housing to fill a cavity defined at least in part by the inner ring-shaped housing and the outer ring-shaped housing with the filler material”, Pa [0137]; “the outer ring-shaped housing 405 may be coupled, or attached, to the inner ring-shaped housing 410 based on a filler material that may be injected into the ring wearable device 440 through an aperture of the outer ring-shaped housing 405. In other words, in some implementations, the filler material may be configured to bind the outer ring-shaped housing 405 to the PCB 425 and/or the inner ring-shaped housing 410.”, Pa [0109]);
wherein the metal mold forms a metal casing of the ring sensor device (“the ring wearable assembly 400 may include an outer ring-shaped housing 405, an inner ring-shaped housing 410”, Pa [0102]).
Haverinen further teaches that the inner ring-shaped housing 410 may be manufactured via a metal insert molding process or a non-metal insert molding process (Pa [0104]), but is silent to forming a metal mold by cold pressing metal material.
Freimuth relates to a method of manufacturing a communications component for an attachment assembly of an oral care device (Abstract), and teaches that the method comprises forming the cold-formed metal ring using a cold-forming process, and advantages of using a cold-forming process to form the metal ring is that no heating is required, thus reducing the energy required to manufacture the metal ring, and simplifying the manufacturing setup required to make the metal ring (e.g., equipment for handling molten metal material is not required), and other advantages of cold-forming the metal ring include that a better surface finish and/or better reproducibility may be obtained, contamination problems may be minimized, and the like (Pa [0036]).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to modify Haverinen with the teachings of Freimuth to form the outer ring-shaped housing and the inner ring-shaped housing using a cold-forming process for the purpose of reducing the energy required to manufacture the metal housings, simplifying the manufacturing setup required to make the metal housings, obtaining a better surface finish and/or better reproducibility, and minimizing contamination problems.
With respect to claim 12, Haverinen as applied to claim 11 above further teaches that the polymer material is epoxy (“the filler material may include a transparent epoxy material.”, Pa [0100]).
With respect to claim 13, Haverinen as applied to claim 11 above further teaches arranging one or more openings in the inner annular wall of the metal mold for the sensor unit (“coupling the PCB 425 to the inner ring-shaped housing 410 by aligning the sensors of the PCB 425 with the plurality of apertures 415 of the inner ring-shaped housing 410.”, Pa [0108]).
With respect to claim 15, Haverinen as applied to claim 11 above further teaches that the sensor unit comprises an optical sensor comprising an optical transmitter unit and an optical receiver unit (“The ring 104 may include a PPG system 235. The PPG system 235 may include one or more optical transmitters that transmit light. The PPG system 235 may also include one or more optical receivers that receive light transmitted by the one or more optical transmitters.”, Pa [0066]).
With respect to claim 16, Haverinen as applied to claim 11 above further teaches that the physiological data comprises heart rate data, blood oxygen saturation data, or both (“The processing module 230-a may determine a variety of physiological parameters based on the user's pulse waveform, such as a user's respiratory rate, heart rate, HRV, oxygen saturation, and other circulatory parameters.”, Pa 0066).
With respect to claim 17, Haverinen as applied to claim 11 above further teaches that the ring sensor device is configured to be worn around a body part of the user, wherein the body part of the user is a wrist, an ankle, an arm, a leg, a finger or an ear lobe (Pa [0022], [0023]).
With respect to claim 18, Haverinen teaches a method of manufacturing a wearable device (“a method 700 that supports a process for manufacturing a wearable ring form factor”, Pa [0134]), the method comprising:
forming a metal mold (“The inner ring-shaped housing 410 may be constructed from a first material (e.g., a first metallic material), and the outer ring-shaped housing 405 may be constructed from a second material (e.g., a second metallic material)”, Pa [0102]), the metal mold having an outer annular wall (“an outer ring-shaped housing”) and an inner annular wall (“an inner ring-shaped housing”);
placing a strip of flexible base material in a bent form into the metal mold so that a first surface of the strip faces the inner annular wall of the metal mold (“coupling a PCB to an inner ring-shaped housing”, Pa [0135]; “The PCB 425 may be a flexible PCB”, Pa [0106]), wherein the strip of flexible base material comprises at least one sensor unit on the first surface of the flexible base material, wherein the sensor unit is configured to acquire physiological data from a user (“The PCB 425 may be a flexible PCB that includes a plurality of sensors or electrical components (e.g., a sensor 430)”, Pa [0106]; “some wearable devices may be configured to house one or more sensors configured to acquire physiological data from a user.”, Pa [0011]); and
filling the metal mold with polymer material, the polymer material attaching to the strip of flexible base material and holding the strip of flexible base material in place facing the inner annular wall of the metal mold (“injecting a filler material through the additional aperture of the outer ring-shaped housing to fill a cavity defined at least in part by the inner ring-shaped housing and the outer ring-shaped housing with the filler material”, Pa [0137]; “the outer ring-shaped housing 405 may be coupled, or attached, to the inner ring-shaped housing 410 based on a filler material that may be injected into the ring wearable device 440 through an aperture of the outer ring-shaped housing 405. In other words, in some implementations, the filler material may be configured to bind the outer ring-shaped housing 405 to the PCB 425 and/or the inner ring-shaped housing 410.”, Pa [0109]);
wherein the metal mold forms a metal casing of the wearable device (“the ring wearable assembly 400 may include an outer ring-shaped housing 405, an inner ring-shaped housing 410”, Pa [0102]).
Haverinen further teaches that the inner ring-shaped housing 410 may be manufactured via a metal insert molding process or a non-metal insert molding process (Pa [0104]), but is silent to forming a metal mold by cold pressing metal material.
Freimuth relates to a method of manufacturing a communications component for an attachment assembly of an oral care device (Abstract), and teaches that the method comprises forming the cold-formed metal ring using a cold-forming process, and advantages of using a cold-forming process to form the metal ring is that no heating is required, thus reducing the energy required to manufacture the metal ring, and simplifying the manufacturing setup required to make the metal ring (e.g., equipment for handling molten metal material is not required), and other advantages of cold-forming the metal ring include that a better surface finish and/or better reproducibility may be obtained, contamination problems may be minimized, and the like (Pa [0036]).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to modify Haverinen with the teachings of Freimuth to form the outer ring-shaped housing and the inner ring-shaped housing using a cold-forming process for the purpose of reducing the energy required to manufacture the metal housings, simplifying the manufacturing setup required to make the metal housings, obtaining a better surface finish and/or better reproducibility, and minimizing contamination problems.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claim 14 is 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.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter:
With respect to claim 14, the closest prior art (Haverinen et al., US 2024/0081012), which has been cited in the rejection, does not explicitly teach cold pressing a frame of multiple metal molds; filling the multiple metal molds; and after filling the multiple metal molds, detaching the filled molds from the frame to manufacture multiple wearable devices on one go. The other prior art (Freimuth, US 2025/0392032), which has been cited in the rejection as well, teaches a cold-forming process to form the metal ring, but does not explicitly teach or suggest the claimed steps for manufacturing a wearable device.
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 YUNJU KIM whose telephone number is (571)270-1146. The examiner can normally be reached 8:00-4:00 EST M-Th; Flexing Fri.
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/YUNJU KIM/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1742
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