DETAILED ACTION
The following Office Action is in response to the Amendment filed on May 15, 2026. Claims 14-26 are currently pending.
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
Concerning the “Remarks” on pages 6-8 of the Applicant’s Response filed on May 15, 2026, with regards to the amendments to claims 15, 24, and 26, the amendments to the claims have obviated the necessity of the objections to the claims. Therefore, the objections to the claims are withdrawn.
Response to Arguments
Concerning the “Remarks” on pages 6-8 of the Applicant’s Response filed on May 15, 2026, with regards to the rejection of claim 14, the applicant’s arguments have been fully considered, but they are not persuasive. The applicant argues that the Saenz Villalobos reference does not teach the limitation of “a first locking mechanism configured to selectively lock the distal portion of the first extending member against proximal movement relative to the adapter during release of the first releasable link”, arguing the Saenz Villalobos reference instead teaches a complete and functional proximal locking system integrated into the handle. However, the examiner asserts that the applicant has too narrowly interpreted the claim limitation. The applicant assumes that the limitation “configured to selectively lock the distal portion of the extending member against proximal movement relative to the adapter” must describe the specific positioning of the locking mechanism being at the distal end, but the examiner asserts that the limitation is a functional limitation that instead describes the manner in which the locking mechanism locks, not the position. The locking mechanism of the Saenz Villalobos reference locks the extending member such that the extending member cannot move relative to the adapter ([¶ 0084]). This locking would lock the entirety of the extending member, both a distal portion and a proximal portion, against proximal movement or distal movement relative to the adapter. Thus, even though the locking mechanism of the Saenz Villalobos reference is positioned at a proximal end within the handle, it still locks the distal portion of the extending member from proximal movement despite not being positioned at the distal end given it locks the entirety of the extending member. Therefore, the rejections of the claims under 35 U.S.C. §102(a)(1) stand.
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) 14-16 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Saenz Villalobos et al. (US 2023/0277194, hereinafter Saenz Villalobos).
Concerning claim 14, the Saenz Villalobos et al. prior art reference teaches a system for clipping tissue (Figures 1-17; 100), comprising: an adapter (Figure 1; 110) including a proximal portion (Figure 2; 153) configured to be mounted over a distal end of an insertion device (Figure 2; 106) and a distal portion extending distally from the proximal portion (Figure 2; 155); a clip configured to be mounted over the distal portion of the adapter (Figure 1; 102), the clip including first and second jaws (Figure 1; 114) configured to move between an insertion configuration, in which the first and second jaws extend about the adapter and are separated from one another to receive tissue therebetween ([¶ 0017]), and an initial deployed configuration, in which the clip is moved distally off of the adapter so that the first and second jaws are drawn toward one another to grip tissue received therebetween ([¶ 0017]); a first extending member releasably coupled to the clip and movably connected to the adapter (Figure 1; extending member = inner sheath 122| [¶ 0054]), the extending member extending from a proximal portion configured to remain, in an operative configuration, outside a patient’s body to a distal portion configured to be coupled to a distal end of the insertion device ([¶ 0019]); a first control wire slidably received within the first extending member (Figure 1; control wire = extending member 112) and extending to a distal end releasably coupled to the clip via a first releasable link (Figure 6; 116) being configured to release when the first control wire is subject to a force exceeding a predetermined threshold value ([¶ 0050]), and a first locking mechanism configured to selectively lock the distal portion of the first extending member against proximal movement relative to the adapter during release of the first releasable link ([¶ 0084], inner sheaths may be locked to remain stationary, therein selectively locking against all movement including proximal movement).
Concerning claim 15, the Saenz Villalobos reference teaches the system of claim 14, wherein the first extending member includes a recess (Figure 10; coil holder 182 may be interpreted as being part of the first extending member, wherein coil holder includes recess 186) and wherein the first locking mechanism includes a locking member (Figure 10; 190) configured to be pushed into the recess of the first extending member when the first extending is moved distally to a locking position (Figure 11).
Concerning claim 16, the Saenz Villalobos reference teaches the system of claim 15, wherein the first locking mechanism includes a first biasing member abutting the first locking member (Figure 14; 178), the first biasing member being biased to urge the locking member against the first extending member so that, when the first extending member is moved to the locking position, the first biasing member pushes the first locking member into the recess of the first extending member ([¶ 0087]).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 17-26 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.
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 MARTIN TRUYEN TON whose telephone number is (571)270-5122. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Friday; EST 10:00 AM - 6:30 PM.
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/MARTIN T TON/Examiner, Art Unit 3771 7/15/2026
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