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 .
Claim Rejections – 35 U.S.C. § 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.
Claims 1–4, 7, and 10–20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. § 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by ThermoFisher Scientific, Attune™ NxT Software User Guide, Publication No. 100024236, Revision F.0 (Dec. 29, 2016) (“Attune NxT”).
Claim 1
Attune NxT discloses:
A method, executed by an electronic processing device, for navigating data visualizations within a user interface, the method comprising:
“The Attune™ NxT Software is a flexible data acquisition and analysis tool that uses a browser view to . . . manage and process recorded data” from an acoustic focusing cytometer. Attune NxT 12. It is executed by “a PC workstation running the Attune™ NxT Software on a Windows® 7 (Service Pack 1) 64-bit platform.” Attune NxT 12.
providing particle data to the user interface;
A user may click the “New Experiment” button to create a new instance of using the flow cytometer, Attune NxT 40, which allows the user to operate the flow cytometer on a sample. See Attune NxT 303–306 (detailing how the Experiment dialog drives the machine to acquire data from a sample). Then, the user may select one of the “Plot” buttons in the workspace tab to plot the acquired data. Attune NxT 44 and 75–76 (describing the different types of plots).
receiving, from the user interface, a plurality of coordinates for a gate related to the particle data;
“The Gating Tools allow you to isolate a region in a selected plot for analysis. The Gating Tools are available when the Workspace view (page 63) is displayed, unless otherwise specified.” Attune NxT 45. Several of the gates mentioned on page 45 involve multiple coordinates. As just a few examples, “[r]ectangular gates have eight control points,” Attune NxT 80, “Oval gates have four control points,” Attune NxT 81, and polygon gates may have up to 40 different points. Attune NxT 82.
receiving, from the user interface, a configuration for a current view of the particle data;
“Plot options such as titles, axis labels, axis scaling, resolution, and colors used to display data points can be customized using the Customize panel.” Attune NxT 75.
in response to determining the gate is off-plot for the current view based on the plurality of coordinates for the gate and the configuration for the current view, adding a selectable indicator to the current view of the particle data representing the gate;
“It is also possible for a gate to exist outside of the plot limits, if the scale type or scale range of a plot has been modified after the gate has been defined. If the gate is partially off the visible plot scale range and the gate coordinates exist within the plot scale type, the displayed gate is clipped at the plot axis or plot boundary. If the gate is partially off the visible plot scale range and the gate coordinates do not exist within the plot scale type (e.g, changing from Linear scale to Log scale with negative coordinates), the displayed gate is shown with the undefined gate coordinates and the vertices depicting the undefined coordinates are filled with red.” Attune NxT 85. “If the gate is completely off plot, the gate is displayed adjacent to the plot axis with a default size for the off plot parameter, so that the presence of the off-plot gate can be ascertained.” Attune NxT 85.
and in response to receiving a selection of the selectable indicator, modifying the current view of the particle data to display the gate.
“Double clicking a gate that is either partially or completely off-scale expands the plot scale range as required, so that the gate is displayed on scale.” Attune NxT 85.
Claim 2
Attune NxT discloses the method of claim 1,
wherein the selectable indicator is positioned within the current view based on a direction that the gate is off-plot for the current view.
“If the gate is completely off plot, the gate is displayed adjacent to the plot axis with a default size for the off plot parameter, so that the presence of the off-plot gate can be ascertained.” Attune NxT 85.
Claim 3
Attune NxT discloses the method of claim 1,
wherein the selecting indicator includes an icon representing a direction that the gate is off-plot for the current view within the current view.
“If the gate is completely off plot, the gate is displayed adjacent to the plot axis with a default size for the off plot parameter, so that the presence of the off-plot gate can be ascertained.” Attune NxT 85.
Claim 4
Attune NxT discloses the method of claim 1,
wherein modifying the current view of the particle data includes modifying a minimum and a maximum of at least one axis.
“Double clicking a gate that is either partially or completely off-scale expands the plot scale range as required, so that the gate is displayed on scale.” Attune NxT 85. Naturally, the term “range” in this context refers to the distance between the minimum and maximum.
Claim 7
Attune NxT discloses the method of claim 1,
wherein modifying the current view of the particle data includes changing a scale of the current view to a HyperLog in response to the gate existing in a negative sale and the current view is using a log scale.
“If the gate is partially off the visible plot scale range and the gate coordinates do not exist within the plot scale type (e.g, changing from Linear scale to Log scale with negative coordinates), the displayed gate is shown with the undefined gate coordinates and the vertices depicting the undefined coordinates are filled with red,” and “Double clicking a gate that is either partially or completely off-scale expands the plot scale range as required, so that the gate is displayed on scale.” Attune NxT 85. See also Attune NxT 93 (explaining that “The Hyperlog™ scale uses log-linear hybrid transformations to display compensated flow cytometry data that frequently contain negative values due to compensation.”).
Claims 10–12
The additional elements that claim 10 adds to claim 1 are all optional, because they are contingent upon the unmet condition precedent of “receiving a selection of the selectable indicator.” In other words, claim 10 does not require “displaying a list including an icon for each of one or more gates,” it merely says what will happen if a selection of the selectable indicator is received. “The broadest reasonable interpretation of a method (or process) claim having contingent limitations requires only those steps that must be performed and does not include steps that are not required to be performed because the condition(s) precedent are not met,” and the prior art does not need to disclose optional elements in order to anticipate a claim or render it obvious. MPEP § 2111.04 (subsection II.). Accordingly, it is sufficient that the prior rat teaches the method of claim 1, since that is the only element required by claim 10.
Claims 11 and 12 each provide further limitations on the element deemed optional in claim 10. Accordingly, the prior art does not need to disclose the additional (optional) elements of claims 11 and 12 to reach a finding of anticipation.
Claims 13–16
Claims 13–16 recite a non-transitory computer readable medium that store instructions that are executable to perform exactly the same method as recited in claims 1–3. Claim 16 recites a non-transitory computer readable medium that stores instructions that are executable to perform one or more of claims 4 and 5. The findings for the rejection of claims 1–4 include findings for both the method, and the embodiment of software stored in a computer, executable to perform the same. Therefore, claims 13–16 are rejected over all of the same findings and rationale as provided above for claims 1–4.
Claims 17–20
Claims 17 and 20 recite the surrounding computer system that uses substantially the same computer readable medium as recited in claims for the 13 and 16. Therefore, claims 17 and 20 are rejected over all of the same findings set forth in the rejections of claims 13 and 16 above (which incorporate the findings from claims 1 and 4 by reference).
Claims 18 specifies that the particle data includes flow cytometry data, and claim 19 specifies that the flow cytometry data is captured via an imaging device. Attune NxT likewise discloses that “[t]his user guide describes how to use the Attune™ NxT Software to acquire and analyze data using the Attune™ NxT Acoustic Focusing Cytometer,” Attune NxT 9, thereby disclosing the additional elements of claims 18 and 19. Further details of the cytometer are discussed in chapters 10, 11, and 14–17.
Claim Rejections – 35 U.S.C. § 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.
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.
I. Attune NxT teaches at least claims 5 and 6.
Claim(s) 5 and 6 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Attune NxT.
Claim 5
Attune NxT teaches the method of claim 1, and further teaches both changing between different types of plot charts, including when multiple gates are active, as well as explicitly informing the user when changing the plot type causes a gate to fall off the plot (as well as the remedies for off-plot gates provided by the software). See Attune NxT 86 (“If the change in scale type results in a gate being off plot, the gate behaves as described above in “Off-plot gates, page 85”).
In other words, the only difference between the invention of claim 5 and prior art is that claim 5 automatically performs “changing a chart type” in response to the user selecting the selectable indicator, whereas the prior art informs the user that the chart type is the culprit of a gate being off-plot, leaving it to the user to manually change the chart type via a separate mechanism.
It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the known off-plot behavior in Attune NxT with the known option of “changing a chart type,” and/or to substitute the known functionality of “[d]ouble clicking a gate that is either partially or completely off-scale expands the plot scale range” with changing the plot type instead of expanding the range.
The rationale supporting this conclusion of obviousness is that “providing an automatic or mechanical means to replace a manual activity which accomplished the same result” is a prima facie rationale for obviousness. See MPEP § 2144.04 (subsection III.) (citing In re Venner, 262 F.2d 91, 95, 120 USPQ 193, 194 (CCPA 1958)). Here, the prior art already taught software that informed a user when a gate was off-plot due to the plot type, and allowed the user to manually change the plot type (e.g., via a different menu). Claim 5 merely automates the manual activity of changing the plot type by providing it as an option or a response to selecting the off-plot indicator.
Accordingly, the invention of claim 5 would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claim 6
Attune NxT teaches the method of claim 5,
wherein changing a chart type includes at least one selected from a group consisting of changing from a histogram to a biplot and changing from a biplot to a histogram.
The broadest reasonable interpretation of “biplot” includes density plots. See Spec. ¶ 43. Likewise, the types of plots that Attune NxT makes available for switching include both Histogram plots and Density plots. Attune NxT 75–76.
II. Attune NxT and Doeweling teach claims 8 and 9.
Claim(s) 8 and 9 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Attune NxT as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2016/0379386 A1 (“Doeweling”).
Claim 8
Attune NxT teaches the method of claim 1, and further teaches informing the user when there are a plurality of off-plot gates. See Attune NxT 85 (providing examples where two different gates—the “Beads” gate and the “R2” gate—are both off-plot, and informing the user with a dual tooltip.
The difference between Attune NxT and claim 8, therefore, is that Attune NxT doesn’t seem to provide a distinct option for modifying the current view of the particle data to display a plurality of gates. The user is simply invited to double click off-plot gates one at a time.
However, providing a user-selectable option to rescale a view in order to fit a plurality (or all) off-screen objects into the view was a known technique in the art prior to the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
For example, Doeweling teaches that when a layer full of objects is added to a digital map, and “some or all of the elements [are] off-screen,” “A zoom-out control 310 can be selected to zoom the displayed map segment so that all elements included in the added layer are visible on the map segment.” Doeweling ¶ 34.
It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to apply the known technique of zooming to fit a view to all off-screen objects to the known off-screen plot feature in the Attune NxT software. In accordance with MPEP § 2143 (subsection (I.)(D.)), the relevant factual findings and their supporting evidence are as follows:
(1) The prior art contained a “base” device and method upon which the claimed invention can be seen as an “improvement.” The evidence for this finding was provided in the rejection of claim 1 and the first half of claim 8, above, via the citations to the Attune NxT manual.
(2) The prior art contained a known technique that is applicable to the base device and method. The evidence for this finding—Doeweling ¶ 34—was also provided above.
(3) One of ordinary skill in the art would have recognized that applying the known technique would have yielded predictable results and resulted in an improved system. The evidence for this finding is that Doeweling explicitly laid out the problem that this technique solves, and it is just as applicable to the Attune NxT software, i.e., that users sometimes add data to a visualization that falls outside of the current display of that visualization, and when they do, “they are unaware of the exact location of that data, and must change the currently displayed map segment, abandon their current task, or carry out a series of calculations to determine distance and location of that data.” Doeweling ¶ 22. Thus, Doeweling’s technique solves this problem.
For these reasons, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to apply Doeweling’s known technique to Attune NxT.
Claim 9
Attune NxT teaches the method of claim 1,
wherein the selectable indicator includes an axis expansion indicator
“A tooltip for the off-plot gate will display ‘Double click to expand range.’” Attune NxT 85.
The difference between Attune NxT and claim 8, therefore, is that Attune NxT doesn’t seem to provide a distinct option for modifying the current view of the particle data to display all of the gates. The user is simply invited to double click off-plot gates one at a time.
However, providing a user-selectable option to rescale a view in order to fit all off-screen objects into the view was a known technique in the art prior to the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
For example, Doeweling teaches that when a layer full of objects is added to a digital map, and “some or all of the elements [are] off-screen,” “A zoom-out control 310 can be selected to zoom the displayed map segment so that all elements included in the added layer are visible on the map segment.” Doeweling ¶ 34.
It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to apply the known technique of zooming to fit a view to all off-screen objects to the known off-screen plot feature in the Attune NxT software. In accordance with MPEP § 2143 (subsection (I.)(D.)), the relevant factual findings and their supporting evidence are as follows:
(1) The prior art contained a “base” device and method upon which the claimed invention can be seen as an “improvement.” The evidence for this finding was provided in the rejection of claim 1 and the first half of claim 8, above, via the citations to the Attune NxT manual.
(2) The prior art contained a known technique that is applicable to the base device and method. The evidence for this finding—Doeweling ¶ 34—was also provided above.
(3) One of ordinary skill in the art would have recognized that applying the known technique would have yielded predictable results and resulted in an improved system. The evidence for this finding is that Doeweling explicitly laid out the problem that this technique solves, and it is just as applicable to the Attune NxT software, i.e., that users sometimes add data to a visualization that falls outside of the current display of that visualization, and when they do, “they are unaware of the exact location of that data, and must change the currently displayed map segment, abandon their current task, or carry out a series of calculations to determine distance and location of that data.” Doeweling ¶ 22. Thus, Doeweling’s technique solves this problem.
For these reasons, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to apply Doeweling’s known technique to Attune NxT.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Justin R. Blaufeld whose telephone number is (571)272-4372. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 9:00am - 4:00pm ET.
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Justin R. Blaufeld
Primary Examiner
Art Unit 2151
/Justin R. Blaufeld/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2151
Prosecution Insights