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.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statements (IDS) submitted on November 05, 2024 and March 26, 2025 are in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statements are being considered by the examiner.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
The following is a quotation of the appropriate paragraphs of 35 U.S.C. 102 that form the basis for the rejections under this section made in this Office action:
A person shall be entitled to a patent unless –
(a)(1) the claimed invention was patented, described in a printed publication, or in public use, on sale, or otherwise available to the public before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claim(s) 1-4 and 8-10 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Hwang et al. KR1020200065453 (called Hwang hereinafter, applicant disclosed art and the examiner has provided a English machine translation).
Regarding independent claim 1, Hwang teaches an operation terminal (Fig. 2; para [0059-0060]; output unit 160 and input unit 170) for a magnetic resonance imaging apparatus (Figs. 1 and 2; magnetic resonance imaging device 100), the operation terminal comprising:
a processor (Fig. 2; operating unit 10) configured to:
acquire first information indicating a state of a magnet provided in the magnetic resonance imaging apparatus (para [0107]; state information of the magnet 110 determining if the magnet is cooled);
determine the state of the magnet on the basis of the first information (para [0107]; determine if the magnet is cooled);
output second information for prompting a user (para [0173-0176]) of the magnetic resonance imaging apparatus to perform a safety check operation (para [0173-0176]) in a case where the determined state of the magnet is a cooling-completed state (para [0173-0176]; a user is warned if the magnet does not satisfy a activation condition set of having the magnet temperature below a predetermined temperature and there is no detected magnetic field); and
instruct the magnetic resonance imaging apparatus to start excitation of the magnet in a case where the safety check operation by the user has been received (para [0173-0178]; a user confirms if the activation condition set has been achieved and activate the magnet of the magnetic resonance imaging device).
Regarding claim 2, Hwang teaches the operation terminal according to claim 1, and further teaches wherein the processor is configured to acquire, as the first information, at least one of a temperature of the magnet, a current flowing through the magnet, or a voltage between lead terminals of the magnet (para [0098-0099]).
Regarding claim 3, Hwang teaches the operation terminal according to claim 1, and further teaches wherein the processor is configured to determine which of a demagnetized state (para [0218]; magnet has been discharged), a cooling state (para [0109]), a cooling-completed state (para [0109]), an exciting state (para [0179]), and an excitation-completed state (para [0186-0188 and 0193]) the state of the magnet is.
Regarding claim 4, Hwang teaches the operation terminal according to claim 1, and further teaches wherein the processor is configured to receive, as the safety check operation, at least one of an operation through a screen of a display device or an operation by voice input (para [0059-0060 and 0175-0176]).
Regarding independent claim 8, Hwang teaches a method (para [0001]) for operating an operation terminal (Fig. 2; para [0059-0060]; output unit 160 and input unit 170) for a magnetic resonance imaging apparatus (Figs. 1 and 2; magnetic resonance imaging device 100), the operation terminal including a processor (Fig. 2; operating unit 10), the method comprising:
causing the processor to:
acquire first information indicating a state of a magnet provided in the magnetic resonance imaging apparatus (para [0107]; state information of the magnet 110 determining if the magnet is cooled);
determine the state of the magnet on the basis of the first information (para [0107]; determine if the magnet is cooled);
output second information for prompting a user (para [0173-0176]) of the magnetic resonance imaging apparatus to perform a safety check operation (para [0173-0176]) in a case where the determined state of the magnet is a cooling-completed state (para [0173-0176]; a user is warned if the magnet does not satisfy a activation condition set of having the magnet temperature below a predetermined temperature and there is no detected magnetic field); and
instruct the magnetic resonance imaging apparatus to start excitation of the magnet in a case where the safety check operation by the user has been received (para [0173-0178]; a user confirms if the activation condition set has been achieved and activate the magnet of the magnetic resonance imaging device).
Regarding claim 9, Hwang teaches a magnetic resonance imaging system (Fig. 1) comprising: the operation terminal according to claim 1 (see claim 1 above); and the magnetic resonance imaging apparatus, wherein the magnetic resonance imaging apparatus includes a superconducting magnet for generating a static magnetic field as the magnet (Fig. 2; para [0098-0099]; superconducting magnet 110).
Regarding claim 10, Hwang teaches the magnetic resonance imaging system according to claim 9, further comprising: a sensor that acquires the first information (para [0098-0099]).
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 103 which forms the basis for all obviousness rejections set forth in this Office action:
A patent for a claimed invention may not be obtained, notwithstanding that the claimed invention is not identically disclosed as set forth in section 102, if the differences between the claimed invention and the prior art are such that the claimed invention as a whole would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to a person having ordinary skill in the art to which the claimed invention pertains. Patentability shall not be negated by the manner in which the invention was made.
Claim(s) 7 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Hwang in view of McClure et al. US2007/0057786 (called McClure hereinafter).
Regarding claim 7, Hwang teaches the operation terminal according to claim 1, but fails to teach wherein the processor is configured to include at least one of first auxiliary information indicating detection results of the magnetic resonance imaging apparatus and a magnetic material in a vicinity of the magnetic resonance imaging apparatus or second auxiliary information, which is an image obtained by imaging the magnetic resonance imaging apparatus and the vicinity of the magnetic resonance imaging apparatus, in the second information and to output the second information in a case where the second information is output.
McClure teaches wherein the processor is configured to include at least one of first auxiliary information indicating detection results of the magnetic resonance imaging apparatus and a magnetic material in a vicinity of the magnetic resonance imaging apparatus (Fig. 4A and 4B; (para [0004 and 0045]; the output of the MRI device and detection of ferromagnetic threats in the vicinity of the MRI magnet) or second auxiliary information, which is an image obtained by imaging the magnetic resonance imaging apparatus and the vicinity of the magnetic resonance imaging apparatus, in the second information and to output the second information in a case where the second information is output.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one skilled in the art before the effective filing of the claimed invention to modify the structure as described by Hwang with the ferromagnetic detection system as described by McClure for the purpose of warning personnel when a ferromagnetic object is in the vicinity of the MRI magnet to prevent potential injury and/or damaging of equipment (para [0006]).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 5 and 6 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.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter:
Regarding claim 5, the prior arts of record taken alone or in combination fail to teach or suggest:
“wherein the processor is configured to: receive, as the safety check operation, a first operation, which is an operation indicating that the user has checked that there is no magnetic material in a vicinity of the magnetic resonance imaging apparatus and that there is no person in the vicinity of the magnetic resonance imaging apparatus, and a second operation which is an operation of issuing an instruction to start the excitation; instruct the magnetic resonance imaging apparatus to start the excitation in a case where the second operation has been received; and prompt the user to perform the first operation again, without instructing the magnetic resonance imaging apparatus to start the excitation, in a case where the second operation has been canceled.”
Claim 6 is indicated as allowable subject matter for depending on claim 5.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Tsujino et al. discloses “Magnetic resonance imaging system, magnetic resonance imaging apparatus, cooling control device, and cooling control method” (see US2022/0381857)
Chaitanya et al. discloses “Method and system for monitoring depletion of a coolant in a cooling system” (see US2022/0018916)
Zeller et al. discloses “Optimization of a chronological sequence in an MR control sequence” (see US2020/0408865)
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to DAVID B FREDERIKSEN whose telephone number is (571)272-8152. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 8am - 5pm.
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/DAVID B FREDERIKSEN/Examiner, Art Unit 2858
/HUY Q PHAN/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2858
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