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 .
Detailed Action
This is in response to non-provisional application filed 11/18/2024.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 13-20 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.
Claim 13 recites wherein the attachment member comprises a housing including a closed proximal end and an open distal end and a length defined therebetween, wherein an edge of the open distal end is sealed into engagement with an interior of the second portion, thereby isolating an interior of the housing from a remainder of the first and second portions of the tissue penetrating device, and thereby creating the sterile field external of the attachment member. Claim 20 recites wherein the housing of the attachment member comprises a flexible wall configured to expand and compress in a longitudinal direction along a length of the housing from a distal end to a proximal end to accommodate oscillation.
The Office agrees the art of record fails to teach or suggest these features.
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) 1-10 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by 2011/0196404 (Dietz et al.)
Regarding claims 1-10, Dietz et al. discloses as shown in Figure 2, a tissue treating device, the device comprising: a body comprising a first portion and a second portion, wherein the second portion comprises a tissue penetrating element (blade 200, see paragraph [0081]) that extends from a distal end of the body and is oscillated by a motor (motor 190, see paragraph [0081]) housed within the body and operably associated with the tissue penetrating element; and a feedback sensor (in-line force sensor (not shown), such as a piezoelectric sensor, see paragraph [0081]) operably associated with the device that transmits feedback to a processor (processor in computer shown in Figure 1) that provides an operator as to a status of a tissue that has been penetrated one or more times by the tissue penetrating element, wherein the feedback sensor is configured to directly or indirectly detect resistance of the tissue that has been penetrated by the tissue penetrating element, wherein the feedback sensor is configured to sense at least one of a pressure force associated with the tissue, an electrical current associated with operation of the motor, and an output of the motor associated with a rotation speed of a drive shaft of the motor, wherein the feedback sensor is selected from the group consisting of a piezoelectric sensor, a current sensor, and a tachometer or rotary encoder, wherein the processor is capable of correlating the detected tissue resistance with a level of tissue disruption and determines a level of completeness of a treatment of the tissue based, at least in part, on the correlation, wherein the processor outputs the status of the tissue to a display (display of computer shown in Figure 1), wherein the display is either provided locally on the tissue treating device or provided remotely on a separate device, wherein the status of the tissue comprises at least one of tissue resistance, power or force required to overcome tissue resistance, and a level of completeness of the treatment of the tissue, wherein the processor is either provided locally within the tissue treating device or provided remotely on a separate device, wherein the feedback sensor transmits feedback to the processor in real-time, or near real-time and the processor provides an operator as to a status of the tissue in real-time, or near real-time.
Claim(s) 11, 12 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by 2010/0217245 (Prescott)
Regarding claims 11, 12 Prescott discloses as shown in Figure 1, a tissue penetrating device, the device comprising: a first portion housing a motor; and a second portion housing at least a distal portion of a tissue penetrating element (medical tool 24, see paragraph [0027]), wherein the tissue penetrating element is operably coupled to the motor (motor 14, see paragraph [0027]) via a magnetic coupling (see paragraph [0027], which coupling resides on a single side of a sterile field, wherein the magnetic coupling comprises an attachment member (tool magnet 22, see paragraph [0027]) housed within the second portion.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to RICHARD G LOUIS whose telephone number is 571-270-1965. The examiner can normally be reached on Monday – Friday, 9:30 – 6:00 pm.
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/RICHARD G LOUIS/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3771