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 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b):
(b) CONCLUSION.—The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph:
The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention.
Claims 8 and 13-15 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention.
Regarding claim 8, in line 7 the limitation "a plurality of light receiver sensors" has unclear antecedent basis. It is unclear how these plurality of light receiver sensors relate to the plurality of light receiver sensors set forth in line 6. For examination purposes, this limitation will be interpreted as referring to the previously set forth plurality of light receiver sensors.
Regarding claim 8, in line 15 the limitation "a selected PPG channel" has unclear antecedent basis. It is unclear how this selected PPG channel relates to the selected PPG channel set forth in line 14. For examination purposes, this limitation will be interpreted as referring to the previously set forth selected PPG channel.
Regarding claim 13, claim 13 recites the limitation “a portion of the PPG channels includes illumination of at least one infrared LED and at least one visible light LED”. It is unclear what this limitation in the claims is requiring because it is unclear what “a portion of the PPG channels” is referring to. Does this require that at least one PPG channel have at least one IR LED and at least one visible light LED? Or does this require that collectively a plurality of channels together have at least one IR LED and at least one visible light LED? Something else? Based on a comparison of claim 14 and claim 20, it seems like either definition is possible. Clarification is required. For examination purposes, a reference disclosing that among a plurality of optical channels, there is at least one IR LED and at least one visible light LED, will be interpreted as meeting these limitations in the claims.
Regarding claim 14, claim 14 recites the limitation “where at least a portion of the PPG channels includes illumination of at least two infrared LEDs and at least two visible light LEDs”. It is unclear what this limitation in the claims is requiring because it is unclear what “a portion of the PPG channels” is referring to. Does this require that at least one PPG channel have at least two IR LEDs and at least two visible light LEDs? Or does this require that collectively a plurality of channels together have at least two IR LEDs and at least two visible light LEDs? Something else? Based on a comparison of claim 14 and claim 20, it seems like either definition is possible. Clarification is required. For examination purposes, a reference disclosing that among a plurality of optical channels, there are at least two IR LEDs and at least two visible light LEDs, will be interpreted as meeting these limitations in the claims.
Regarding claim 15, the term “approximately” is a relative term which renders the claim indefinite. The term “approximately” is not defined by the claim, the specification does not provide a standard for ascertaining the requisite degree, and one of ordinary skill in the art would not be reasonably apprised of the scope of the invention. Therefore, it is unclear how far apart the receiving sensors must be in order to be on “approximately opposing” sides.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status.
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.
(a)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claims 1, 3-9, 11-12, 16, 18-19 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) and (a)(2) as being anticipated by Kangas et al. (US20240122548, hereafter Kangas).
Regarding claim 1, Kangas discloses a wearable device (Kangas, Para 1; “The following relates to wearable devices and data processing, including techniques for adaptive sensors of a wearable device.”) comprising:
a plurality of photoplethysmogram (“PPG”) (Kangas, Para 10; “Wearable devices, such as a wearable ring device, may be used to collect, monitor, and track physiological data associated with a user based on sensor measurements performed by the wearable device. Examples of physiological data may include […] photoplethysmography (PPG) data”) channels, wherein each of the plurality of PPG channels comprise at least one light emitter and at least one light receiver sensor (Kangas, Para 19; “For example, the wearable device may collect physiological data associated with a blood oxygen saturation of a user associated with the wearable device using a first light-emitting diode on the first light-emitting component and the photodetector (e.g., the first optical channel). However, the system associated with the wearable device may determine a measurement quality of each optical channel supported by the wearable device, such that the system may determine that a second optical channel or a third optical channel may result in a higher measurement quality than a measurement quality of the first optical channel.”) (Kangas, Para 11; “the set of sensors may be arranged around the wearable device such that multiple measurement paths, which may be referred to as optical channels or optical paths, may be produced between a pair of sensors to collect physiological data associated with a heart rate of the user and to perform blood oxygen saturation measurements.”) (Kangas, Para 16; “For example, a wearable device (e.g., wearable ring device) may support a set of light-emitting components, including a first light-emitting component and a second light-emitting component, located on an inner surface of a wearable device. Additionally, the wearable device may support one or more photodetectors located on the inner surface, including a first photodetector located between the first light-emitting component and the second light-emitting component”);
a non-transitory computer-readable memory having computer instructions stored thereon (Kangas, Para 210; “A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing code is described. The code may include instructions executable by a processor to acquire physiological data from a user via a plurality of optical channels of a wearable device”);
a processor in communication with the plurality of PPG channels and the computer-readable memory, wherein the computer instructions, when executed by the processor, causes the processor to perform operations comprising (Kangas, Para 231; “The functions described herein may be implemented in hardware, software executed by a processor, firmware, or any combination thereof. If implemented in software executed by a processor, the functions may be stored on or transmitted over as one or more instructions or code on a computer-readable medium”):
generating respective PPG signals of the plurality of PPG channels (Kangas, Para 153; “For example, the wearable application 420 may be configured as or otherwise support a means for acquiring physiological data from a user via a plurality of optical channels of a wearable device, wherein each optical channel comprises a light-emitting component and a photodetector.”) (Kangas, Claim 1; “acquiring physiological data from a user via a plurality of optical channels of a wearable device, wherein each optical channel comprises a light-emitting component and a photodetector;”);
establishing one or more selection parameters to choose a selected PPG channel (Kangas, Para 153; “The wearable application 420 may be configured as or otherwise support a means for determining respective measurement quality metrics and respective power consumption metrics associated with the plurality of optical channels based at least in part on the physiological data.”) (Kangas, Claim 1; “determining respective measurement quality metrics and respective power consumption metrics associated with the plurality of optical channels based at least in part on the physiological data;”);
choosing the selected PPG channel from the plurality of PPG channels based on which of the respective PPG signals best fits the one or more selection parameters; and transmitting data associated with the PPG signal of the selected PPG channel (Kangas, Para 153; “The wearable application 420 may be configured as or otherwise support a means for selecting one or more optical channels of the plurality of optical channels of the wearable device based at least in part on a comparison of the respective measurement quality metrics and the respective power consumption metrics associated with the plurality of optical channels. The wearable application 420 may be configured as or otherwise support a means for acquiring additional physiological data using the one or more optical channels based at least in part on the selecting.”) (Kangas, Claim 1; “selecting one or more optical channels of the plurality of optical channels of the wearable device based at least in part on a comparison of the respective measurement quality metrics and the respective power consumption metrics associated with the plurality of optical channels; and acquiring additional physiological data using the one or more optical channels based at least in part on the selecting.”) (Kangas, Para 64; “The processing module 230-a of the ring may be configured to transmit/receive data to/from the user device 106 via the communication module 220-a.”).
Regarding claim 3, Kangas discloses all of the limitations of claim 1 as discussed above.
Kangas further discloses wherein the one or more selection parameters includes a power consumption of a PPG signal generated by the selected PPG channel (Kangas, Para 104; “That is, one or more components of the system 200 may measure a measurement quality metric associated with each optical channel, a power consumption associated with each light-emitting component, a power consumption associated with each photodetector, or any combination thereof. Subsequently, the wearable device 104 may select which optical channel will be used to perform physiological data measurements based on the measurement quality metrics, the power consumption metrics, or both, associated with the respective optical channels”).
Regarding claim 4, Kangas discloses all of the limitations of claim 1 as discussed above.
Kangas further discloses wherein the one or more selection parameters includes an amplitude of a PPG signal generated by the selected PPG channel (Kangas, Para 104; “Thus, a controller associated with the ring 104, such as a server 110, a processing module 230, an acquisition module 260, or a communication module 220, among other examples, may select one or more optical channels based on a measurement (e.g., signal) quality metric (e.g., perfusion index or signal amplitude) associated with each optical channel”).
Regarding claim 5, Kangas discloses all of the limitations of claim 1 as discussed above.
Kangas further discloses wherein the at least one light emitter comprises one or more of an infrared LED and/or a visible light LED (Kangas, Para 78; The number and ratio of transmitters and receivers included in the PPG system 235 may vary. Example optical transmitters may include light-emitting diodes (LEDs). The optical transmitters may transmit light in the infrared spectrum”) (Kangas, Para 221; “In some examples of the method, apparatuses, and non-transitory computer-readable medium described herein, each of the first set of three light-emitting components and the second set of three light-emitting components comprises a first light-emitting component configured to emit green light, a second light-emitting component configured to emit red light, and a third light-emitting component configured to emit infrared light.”).
Regarding claim 6, Kangas discloses all of the limitations of claim 1 as discussed above.
Kangas further discloses wherein the wearable device is a ring (Kangas, Figure 2; showing this) (Kangas, Para 26; “Example wearable devices 104 may include wearable computing devices, such as a ring computing device (hereinafter “ring”) configured to be worn on a user's 102 finger”).
Regarding claim 7, Kangas discloses all of the limitations of claim 6 as discussed above.
Kangas further discloses wherein the at least one light emitter of the plurality of PPG channels are spatially arranged along the ring to emit light towards a finger of a user (Kangas, Figure 3) (Kangas, Para 109; “The wearable device 300 shown in FIG. 3 illustrates an example of a wearable device 104. The wearable device 104 may include one or more photodetectors 310, such as a photodetector 310-a (e.g., PD1), a photodetector 310-b (e.g., PD2), and a photodetector 310-c (e.g., PD3), and one or more light-emitting components (e.g., LEDs 315), such as an LED 315-a (e.g., LED1) and an LED 315-b (e.g., LED2), among other electronic components. In some implementations, one or more photodetectors 310, one or more LEDs 315, or both, may be combined as a single component or may be separate components. In some cases, as depicted in cross sectional view 305-a and cross sectional view 305-b, a set of photodetectors 310, a set of LEDs 315, or both, may be located at radial positions within an inner circumference of the ring 104.”) (Kangas, Para 34; “As such, utilizing LEDs and other sensors within a ring 104”).
Regarding claim 8, Kangas discloses photoplethysmogram (“PPG”) (Kangas, Para 1; “The following relates to wearable devices and data processing, including techniques for adaptive sensors of a wearable device.”) ring configured to be worn on a finger of a user (Kangas, Para 26; “Example wearable devices 104 may include wearable computing devices, such as a ring computing device (hereinafter “ring”) configured to be worn on a user's 102 finger”), the PPG ring comprising:
a ring body including an inner body and an outer body (Kangas, Figure 2; showing this) (Kangas, Para 26; “Example wearable devices 104 may include wearable computing devices, such as a ring computing device (hereinafter “ring”) configured to be worn on a user's 102 finger”);
a flexible circuit disposed between the inner body and the outer body of the ring body (Kangas, Para 57; “The ring 104 may include one or more substrates (not illustrated). The device electronics and battery 210 may be included on the one or more substrates. For example, the device electronics and battery 210 may be mounted on one or more substrates. Example substrates may include one or more printed circuit boards (PCBs), such as flexible PCB (e.g., polyimide). In some implementations, the electronics/battery 210 may include surface mounted devices (e.g., surface-mount technology (SMT) devices) on a flexible PCB. In some implementations, the one or more substrates (e.g., one or more flexible PCBs) may include electrical traces that provide electrical communication between device electronics. The electrical traces may also connect the battery 210 to the device electronics”), wherein the flexible circuit comprises a plurality of light emitters to selectively transmit light and a plurality of light receiver sensors arranged along the inner surface to detect the transmitted light, wherein the plurality of light emitters and a plurality of light receiver sensors define a plurality of PPG channels (Kangas, Para 19; “For example, the wearable device may collect physiological data associated with a blood oxygen saturation of a user associated with the wearable device using a first light-emitting diode on the first light-emitting component and the photodetector (e.g., the first optical channel). However, the system associated with the wearable device may determine a measurement quality of each optical channel supported by the wearable device, such that the system may determine that a second optical channel or a third optical channel may result in a higher measurement quality than a measurement quality of the first optical channel.”) (Kangas, Para 11; “the set of sensors may be arranged around the wearable device such that multiple measurement paths, which may be referred to as optical channels or optical paths, may be produced between a pair of sensors to collect physiological data associated with a heart rate of the user and to perform blood oxygen saturation measurements.”) (Kangas, Para 16; “For example, a wearable device (e.g., wearable ring device) may support a set of light-emitting components, including a first light-emitting component and a second light-emitting component, located on an inner surface of a wearable device. Additionally, the wearable device may support one or more photodetectors located on the inner surface, including a first photodetector located between the first light-emitting component and the second light-emitting component”);
a non-transitory computer-readable memory having computer instructions stored thereon (Kangas, Para 210; “A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing code is described. The code may include instructions executable by a processor to acquire physiological data from a user via a plurality of optical channels of a wearable device”);
a processor in communication with the plurality of PPG channels and the computer-readable memory, wherein the computer instructions, when executed by the processor, causes the processor to perform operations comprising (Kangas, Para 231; “The functions described herein may be implemented in hardware, software executed by a processor, firmware, or any combination thereof. If implemented in software executed by a processor, the functions may be stored on or transmitted over as one or more instructions or code on a computer-readable medium”):
generating respective PPG signals of the plurality of PPG channels (Kangas, Para 153; “For example, the wearable application 420 may be configured as or otherwise support a means for acquiring physiological data from a user via a plurality of optical channels of a wearable device, wherein each optical channel comprises a light-emitting component and a photodetector.”) (Kangas, Claim 1; “acquiring physiological data from a user via a plurality of optical channels of a wearable device, wherein each optical channel comprises a light-emitting component and a photodetector;”);
establishing one or more selection parameters to choose a selected PPG channel (Kangas, Para 153; “The wearable application 420 may be configured as or otherwise support a means for determining respective measurement quality metrics and respective power consumption metrics associated with the plurality of optical channels based at least in part on the physiological data.”) (Kangas, Claim 1; “determining respective measurement quality metrics and respective power consumption metrics associated with the plurality of optical channels based at least in part on the physiological data;”);
choosing the selected PPG channel from the plurality of PPG channels based on which of the respective PPG signals best fits the one or more selection parameters; and transmitting data associated with the PPG signal of the selected PPG channel (Kangas, Para 153; “The wearable application 420 may be configured as or otherwise support a means for selecting one or more optical channels of the plurality of optical channels of the wearable device based at least in part on a comparison of the respective measurement quality metrics and the respective power consumption metrics associated with the plurality of optical channels. The wearable application 420 may be configured as or otherwise support a means for acquiring additional physiological data using the one or more optical channels based at least in part on the selecting.”) (Kangas, Claim 1; “selecting one or more optical channels of the plurality of optical channels of the wearable device based at least in part on a comparison of the respective measurement quality metrics and the respective power consumption metrics associated with the plurality of optical channels; and acquiring additional physiological data using the one or more optical channels based at least in part on the selecting.”) (Kangas, Para 64; “The processing module 230-a of the ring may be configured to transmit/receive data to/from the user device 106 via the communication module 220-a.”).
Regarding claim 9, Kangas discloses all of the limitations of claim 8 as discussed above.
Kangas further discloses wherein the one or more selection parameters includes a power consumption of a PPG signal generated by the selected PPG channel (Kangas, Para 104; “That is, one or more components of the system 200 may measure a measurement quality metric associated with each optical channel, a power consumption associated with each light-emitting component, a power consumption associated with each photodetector, or any combination thereof. Subsequently, the wearable device 104 may select which optical channel will be used to perform physiological data measurements based on the measurement quality metrics, the power consumption metrics, or both, associated with the respective optical channels”).
Regarding claim 11, Kangas discloses all of the limitations of claim 9 as discussed above.
Kangas further discloses choosing the selected PPG channel based on an amplitude in the respective PPG signals as a function of power consumption prioritization (Kangas, Para 104; “Thus, a controller associated with the ring 104, such as a server 110, a processing module 230, an acquisition module 260, or a communication module 220, among other examples, may select one or more optical channels based on a measurement (e.g., signal) quality metric (e.g., perfusion index or signal amplitude) associated with each optical channel a power consumption associated with each light-emitting component, a power consumption associated with each photodetector, physiological data (e.g., temperature data, accelerometer data, contact pressure data, or any combination thereof), or any combination thereof.”).
Regarding claim 12, Kangas discloses all of the limitations of claim 9 as discussed above.
Kangas further discloses wherein at least a portion of the plurality of light emitters comprises one or more of an infrared LED and/or a visible light LED, and the plurality of light emitters are configured to transmit infrared and/or visible light through one or more openings defined in the inner body (Kangas, Para 78; The number and ratio of transmitters and receivers included in the PPG system 235 may vary. Example optical transmitters may include light-emitting diodes (LEDs). The optical transmitters may transmit light in the infrared spectrum”) (Kangas, Para 221; “In some examples of the method, apparatuses, and non-transitory computer-readable medium described herein, each of the first set of three light-emitting components and the second set of three light-emitting components comprises a first light-emitting component configured to emit green light, a second light-emitting component configured to emit red light, and a third light-emitting component configured to emit infrared light.”) (Kangas, Figure 3) (Kangas, Para 109; “The wearable device 300 shown in FIG. 3 illustrates an example of a wearable device 104. The wearable device 104 may include one or more photodetectors 310, such as a photodetector 310-a (e.g., PD1), a photodetector 310-b (e.g., PD2), and a photodetector 310-c (e.g., PD3), and one or more light-emitting components (e.g., LEDs 315), such as an LED 315-a (e.g., LED1) and an LED 315-b (e.g., LED2), among other electronic components. In some implementations, one or more photodetectors 310, one or more LEDs 315, or both, may be combined as a single component or may be separate components. In some cases, as depicted in cross sectional view 305-a and cross sectional view 305-b, a set of photodetectors 310, a set of LEDs 315, or both, may be located at radial positions within an inner circumference of the ring 104.”) (Kangas, Para 34; “As such, utilizing LEDs and other sensors within a ring 104”).
Regarding claim 16, Kangas discloses a method of selecting a photoplethysmogram (“PPG”) channel (Kangas, Para 187; “FIG. 8 shows a flowchart illustrating a method 800 that supports techniques for adaptive sensors of a wearable device in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure.”), the method comprising:
receiving respective PPG signals of a plurality of PPG channels, wherein the PPG signals were generated based on one or more pairs of light emitters and light receiver sensors (Kangas, Para 153; “For example, the wearable application 420 may be configured as or otherwise support a means for acquiring physiological data from a user via a plurality of optical channels of a wearable device, wherein each optical channel comprises a light-emitting component and a photodetector.”) (Kangas, Claim 1; “acquiring physiological data from a user via a plurality of optical channels of a wearable device, wherein each optical channel comprises a light-emitting component and a photodetector;”);
establishing one or more selection parameters to choose a selected PPG channel (Kangas, Para 153; “The wearable application 420 may be configured as or otherwise support a means for determining respective measurement quality metrics and respective power consumption metrics associated with the plurality of optical channels based at least in part on the physiological data.”) (Kangas, Claim 1; “determining respective measurement quality metrics and respective power consumption metrics associated with the plurality of optical channels based at least in part on the physiological data;”);
choosing the selected PPG channel from the plurality of PPG channels based on which of the respective PPG signals best fits the one or more selection parameters; and transmitting data associated with the PPG signal of the selected PPG channel (Kangas, Para 153; “The wearable application 420 may be configured as or otherwise support a means for selecting one or more optical channels of the plurality of optical channels of the wearable device based at least in part on a comparison of the respective measurement quality metrics and the respective power consumption metrics associated with the plurality of optical channels. The wearable application 420 may be configured as or otherwise support a means for acquiring additional physiological data using the one or more optical channels based at least in part on the selecting.”) (Kangas, Claim 1; “selecting one or more optical channels of the plurality of optical channels of the wearable device based at least in part on a comparison of the respective measurement quality metrics and the respective power consumption metrics associated with the plurality of optical channels; and acquiring additional physiological data using the one or more optical channels based at least in part on the selecting.”) (kangas, Para 64; “The processing module 230-a of the ring may be configured to transmit/receive data to/from the user device 106 via the communication module 220-a.”).
Regarding claim 18, Kangas discloses all of the limitations of claim 16 as discussed above.
Kangas further discloses wherein the one or more selection parameters includes a power consumption of a PPG signal generated by the selected PPG channel (Kangas, Para 104; “That is, one or more components of the system 200 may measure a measurement quality metric associated with each optical channel, a power consumption associated with each light-emitting component, a power consumption associated with each photodetector, or any combination thereof. Subsequently, the wearable device 104 may select which optical channel will be used to perform physiological data measurements based on the measurement quality metrics, the power consumption metrics, or both, associated with the respective optical channels”).
Regarding claim 19, Kangas discloses all of the limitations of claim 16 as discussed above.
Kangas further discloses wherein the one or more light emitters comprises one or more of an infrared LED and/or a visible light LED (Kangas, Para 78; The number and ratio of transmitters and receivers included in the PPG system 235 may vary. Example optical transmitters may include light-emitting diodes (LEDs). The optical transmitters may transmit light in the infrared spectrum”) (Kangas, Para 221; “In some examples of the method, apparatuses, and non-transitory computer-readable medium described herein, each of the first set of three light-emitting components and the second set of three light-emitting components comprises a first light-emitting component configured to emit green light, a second light-emitting component configured to emit red light, and a third light-emitting component configured to emit infrared light.”).
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status.
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.
Claims 2, 10, and 17 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kangas and Montlosier (US20250255500).
Regarding claim 2, Kangas discloses all of the limitations of claim 1 as discussed above.
Kangas further discloses wherein the one or more selection parameters includes a quality of a PPG signal generated by the selected PPG channel (Kangas, Para 104; “Thus, a controller associated with the ring 104, such as a server 110, a processing module 230, an acquisition module 260, or a communication module 220, among other examples, may select one or more optical channels based on a measurement (e.g., signal) quality metric (e.g., perfusion index or signal amplitude) associated with each optical channel a power consumption associated with each light-emitting component, a power consumption associated with each photodetector, physiological data (e.g., temperature data, accelerometer data, contact pressure data, or any combination thereof), or any combination thereof.”).
Kangas does not clearly and explicitly disclose wherein the quality is determined using a noise to signal ratio.
In an analogous wearable PPG device field of endeavor Montlosier discloses wherein PPG signal quality is determined using a noise to signal ratio (Montlosier, Para 25; “In one embodiment, the processing unit is configured to receive the at least one physiological signal acquired from the at least one first sensor and to compute at least one metric of the physiological signal, said at least one metric being chosen among one of the following: perfusion index, signal-to-noise ratio, motion, skewness, kurtosis, entropy, zero crossing rate, systolic wave detector, relative power, or a combination thereof. These quality metrics advantageously provide information about the quality of the physiological signal. This information may be used to adjust the third predefined pressure if needed.”).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Kangas wherein the quality is determined using a noise to signal ratio as taught by Montlosier in order to use a known and well understood method of assessing signal quality that would be familiar with users.
Such a modification amounts to the mere combination of known prior art parts to yield predictable results, which has previously been held to involve no more than routine skill in the art. KSR Int'l Co. v. Teleflex Inc., 550 U.S. 398, 415-421, 82 USPQ2d 1385, 1395-97 (2007).
Regarding claim 10, Kangas discloses all of the limitations of claim 9 as discussed above.
Kangas further discloses choosing the selected PPG channel based on the quality in the respective PPG signals as a function of power consumption prioritization (Kangas, Para 104; “Thus, a controller associated with the ring 104, such as a server 110, a processing module 230, an acquisition module 260, or a communication module 220, among other examples, may select one or more optical channels based on a measurement (e.g., signal) quality metric (e.g., perfusion index or signal amplitude) associated with each optical channel a power consumption associated with each light-emitting component, a power consumption associated with each photodetector, physiological data (e.g., temperature data, accelerometer data, contact pressure data, or any combination thereof), or any combination thereof.”).
Kangas does not clearly and explicitly disclose wherein the quality is determined using a noise to signal ratio.
In an analogous wearable PPG device field of endeavor Montlosier discloses wherein PPG signal quality is determined using a noise to signal ratio (Montlosier, Para 25; “In one embodiment, the processing unit is configured to receive the at least one physiological signal acquired from the at least one first sensor and to compute at least one metric of the physiological signal, said at least one metric being chosen among one of the following: perfusion index, signal-to-noise ratio, motion, skewness, kurtosis, entropy, zero crossing rate, systolic wave detector, relative power, or a combination thereof. These quality metrics advantageously provide information about the quality of the physiological signal. This information may be used to adjust the third predefined pressure if needed.”).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Kangas wherein the quality is determined using a noise to signal ratio as taught by Montlosier in order to use a known and well understood method of assessing signal quality that would be familiar with users.
Such a modification amounts to the mere combination of known prior art parts to yield predictable results, which has previously been held to involve no more than routine skill in the art. KSR Int'l Co. v. Teleflex Inc., 550 U.S. 398, 415-421, 82 USPQ2d 1385, 1395-97 (2007).
Regarding claim 17, Kangas discloses all of the limitations of claim 16 as discussed above.
Kangas further discloses wherein the one or more selection parameters includes a quality of a PPG signal generated by the selected PPG channel (Kangas, Para 104; “Thus, a controller associated with the ring 104, such as a server 110, a processing module 230, an acquisition module 260, or a communication module 220, among other examples, may select one or more optical channels based on a measurement (e.g., signal) quality metric (e.g., perfusion index or signal amplitude) associated with each optical channel a power consumption associated with each light-emitting component, a power consumption associated with each photodetector, physiological data (e.g., temperature data, accelerometer data, contact pressure data, or any combination thereof), or any combination thereof.”).
Kangas does not clearly and explicitly disclose wherein the quality is determined using a noise to signal ratio.
In an analogous wearable PPG device field of endeavor Montlosier discloses wherein PPG signal quality is determined using a noise to signal ratio (Montlosier, Para 25; “In one embodiment, the processing unit is configured to receive the at least one physiological signal acquired from the at least one first sensor and to compute at least one metric of the physiological signal, said at least one metric being chosen among one of the following: perfusion index, signal-to-noise ratio, motion, skewness, kurtosis, entropy, zero crossing rate, systolic wave detector, relative power, or a combination thereof. These quality metrics advantageously provide information about the quality of the physiological signal. This information may be used to adjust the third predefined pressure if needed.”).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Kangas wherein the quality is determined using a noise to signal ratio as taught by Montlosier in order to use a known and well understood method of assessing signal quality that would be familiar with users.
Such a modification amounts to the mere combination of known prior art parts to yield predictable results, which has previously been held to involve no more than routine skill in the art. KSR Int'l Co. v. Teleflex Inc., 550 U.S. 398, 415-421, 82 USPQ2d 1385, 1395-97 (2007).
Claims 13-15 and 20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kangas and Park et al. (US20220104714, hereafter Park).
Regarding claim 13, Kangas discloses all of the limitations of claim 9 as discussed above.
Kangas does not clearly and explicitly disclose wherein at least a portion of the PPG channels includes illumination of at least one infrared LED and at least one visible light LED.
In an analogous PPG device organized into optical channels field of endeavor Park discloses wherein at least a portion of PPG channels includes illumination of at least one infrared LED and at least one visible light LED (Park, Para 56; “The first channel 211 and the second channel 212 may respectively include the first light source 211 a and the first light source 212 a configured to emit light of a first wavelength and the first light receiver 211 b and the first light receiver 212 b configured to detect light scattered or reflected from the object after light is emitted by the first light sources 211 a and 212 a onto the object. Further, the first channel 211 and the second channel 212 may respectively include a second light source 211 c and a second light resource 212 c configured to emit light of a second wavelength and a second light receiver 211 d and a second light receiver 212 d configured to detect light scattered or reflected from the object after light is emitted by the second light sources 211 c and 212 c onto the object. The first wavelength and the second wavelength may be different from each other, and may include, for example, an infrared wavelength, a green wavelength, a blue wavelength, and/or a red wavelength.”).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Kangas wherein at least a portion of the PPG channels includes illumination of at least one infrared LED and at least one visible light LED in order to improve accuracy of a plurality of acquired bioinformation by allowing use of a channel of multiple wavelengths as taught by Park (Park, Para 77).
Park is interpreted as meeting these limitations in the claims as best understood by the Examiner in view of the 112b deficiencies outlined above.
Regarding claim 14, Kangas as modified by Park above discloses all of the limitations of claim 13 as discussed above.
Kangas does not clearly and explicitly disclose where at least a portion of the PPG channels includes illumination of at least two infrared LEDs and at least two visible light LEDs.
Park further discloses where at least a portion of PPG channels includes illumination of at least two infrared LEDs and at least two visible light LEDs (Park, Para 56; “The first channel 211 and the second channel 212 may respectively include the first light source 211 a and the first light source 212 a configured to emit light of a first wavelength and the first light receiver 211 b and the first light receiver 212 b configured to detect light scattered or reflected from the object after light is emitted by the first light sources 211 a and 212 a onto the object. Further, the first channel 211 and the second channel 212 may respectively include a second light source 211 c and a second light resource 212 c configured to emit light of a second wavelength and a second light receiver 211 d and a second light receiver 212 d configured to detect light scattered or reflected from the object after light is emitted by the second light sources 211 c and 212 c onto the object. The first wavelength and the second wavelength may be different from each other, and may include, for example, an infrared wavelength, a green wavelength, a blue wavelength, and/or a red wavelength.”).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Kangas where at least a portion of the PPG channels includes illumination of at least two infrared LEDs and at least two visible light LEDs in order to improve accuracy of a plurality of acquired bioinformation by allowing use of a channel of multiple wavelengths as taught by Park (Park, Para 77).
Park is interpreted as meeting these limitations in the claims as best understood by the Examiner in view of the 112b deficiencies outlined above.
Regarding claim 15, Kangas as modified by Park above discloses all of the limitations of claim 13 as discussed above.
Kangas further discloses herein at least a portion of the light receiver sensors are arranged on approximately opposing sides of the inner body (Kangas, Figure 3; showing this with photodetectors 310a and 310c).
Kangas is interpreted as meeting these limitations in the claims as best understood by the Examiner in view of the 112b deficiencies outlined above.
Regarding claim 20, Kangas discloses all of the limitations of claim 16 as discussed above.
Kangas does not clearly and explicitly disclose wherein the plurality of PPG channels comprises at least one PPG channel with at least two infrared LEDs and at least one PPG channel with at least two visible light LEDs.
In an analogous PPG device organized into optical channels field of endeavor Park discloses at least one PPG channel with at least two infrared LEDs and at least one PPG channel with at least two visible light LEDs (Park, Para 56; “The first channel 211 and the second channel 212 may respectively include the first light source 211 a and the first light source 212 a configured to emit light of a first wavelength and the first light receiver 211 b and the first light receiver 212 b configured to detect light scattered or reflected from the object after light is emitted by the first light sources 211 a and 212 a onto the object. Further, the first channel 211 and the second channel 212 may respectively include a second light source 211 c and a second light resource 212 c configured to emit light of a second wavelength and a second light receiver 211 d and a second light receiver 212 d configured to detect light scattered or reflected from the object after light is emitted by the second light sources 211 c and 212 c onto the object. The first wavelength and the second wavelength may be different from each other, and may include, for example, an infrared wavelength, a green wavelength, a blue wavelength, and/or a red wavelength.”).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Kangas wherein the plurality of PPG channels comprises at least one PPG channel with at least two infrared LEDs and at least one PPG channel with at least two visible light LEDs in order to improve accuracy of a plurality of acquired bioinformation by allowing use of a channel of multiple wavelengths as taught by Park (Park, Para 77).
Conclusion
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/JOHN D LI/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3798
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