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 § 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.
The factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness.
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.
Claim(s) 1-2 and 18-19 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Burr et al. (US 2012/0268303)(“Burr”), and further in view of Arseneau (US 2012/0143036) and Frach et al. (US 8,395,127)(“Frach”).
With regards to claim 1 and 20, Burr discloses a medical imaging system (FIG. 1; [0008]; PET system) and circuit (FIG. 2C) for using/providing a plurality of time windows ([0027]; one or more time windows)([0091]; multiple time windows) in signal integration [0091], the medical imaging system comprising:
a gamma-ray detector including a crystal array ([0003]; “Each positron interacts with an electron of the object, is annihilated and produces two gamma rays at 511 keV, which travel at substantially 180 degrees apart. The two gamma rays then cause a scintillation event at a scintillation crystal of the PET detector, which detects the gamma rays thereby.”) and a photosensor array ([0005]; multiple photosensors 2000)([0047]; “ The photosensor output signal is output by a photosensor such as a photomultiplier tube (PMT), a silicon photomultiplier (SiPM), an avalanche photodiode (APD), etc.”), the photosensor array configured to generate electrical signals in response to receiving incident scintillation light ([0048]; “A photosensor such as a PMT detects scintillation light and outputs an analog signal…”) emitted from the crystal array in response to a gamma-ray interaction occurring in the crystal [0003];
a set of digital readout channels ([0031]; A pair of ADCs that process independent channels)[0074][0083] configured to acquire the electrical signals and generate a set of digital signals indicating information relating to the gamma-ray interaction ([0048]; “An event is reflected in the analog photosensor output signal, which is input to the ADC to produce a digital signal. When analyzing the signal, the leading edge of the event is important, at least because the information in the leading edge can be used to extract event timing information,…”), each channel of the set of digital readout channels includes an analog-to-digital converter ([0027]; “The system includes at least one analog-to-digital converter (ADC)…”); and
a window generator configured to generate a plurality of time windows ([0027]; “ Also included the system is a decimation unit that defines one or more time windows…”) [0090] and a single analog-to-digital conversion (ADC) start signal [0058]; “…. an extra sample of (t, V) is obtained on the leading edge of the event of the sampled analog signal. This extra sample can be used by the dump control/decimation section 6 in the determination of the time window, and it can be used in subsequent processing steps to better estimate the arrival time of the event. For example, the extra sample can be used in subsequent processing steps, which would be performed on an output signal, to improve the estimate of the arrival time of the event pulse, particularly when a slower ADC sampling rate is used.”), wherein
based on the generated single ADC start signal, the analog-to-digital converters are configured to perform respective analog-to-digital conversions on the generated set of integrated signals in a synchronized way to generate the set of digital signals [0052][0065][0088].
Burr discloses a scintillation crystal used two detect two gamma rays [0003]. Further, the reference teaches that the presence of multiple pulses, multiple time windows from different pulses might overlap. To remedy these situations, the system can have a first additional output that is the integral of the signal over a programmable integration time [0091].
Burr do not specifically disclose or teach;
a crystal array,
a charge integrator and
the charge integrators are configured to perform respective charge integrations to generate a set of integrated signals.
In the same field of endeavor, Arseneau discloses methods and systems for determining the integrated value of scintillation events in positron emission tomography (PET) and single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) nuclear medicine imaging systems [0001]. Arseneau discloses “The event detection device 520 … energy digital signals at, …. delay the energy waveform to align with the top and left waveforms for energy, top, and left integrators 535, 540 and 545, respectively, to operate on the same or substantially the same number of samples and phase relationship. The integration control device 530 starts and stops the energy, top, and left integrators …, 540, 545 to take into account the delay between event detection and when the event is in the top and left ADC output signals 510, 515. The integration detection device 530 also processes bad event dumping and pileup timing of the …, top, and left integrators …, 540, 545. ([0029][0030]). Further, “The top, left and the re-sampled energy signals are digitally integrated to get the total sum output from each input. The energy, top, and left integrators 535, 540, 545 sum the waveform samples when instructed by the integration control device 530. The energy, top, and left integrators 535, 540, 545 also sum the determined baseline values and subtracts them from the integrated total sum output before passing them on.” [0031]. Further, [0032] discloses “A pileup correction device 550 receives and corrects the event integrated values for pileup and then passed on to a position calculation device 555. Such position calculation device 555 takes the corrected top and left integrated sums and divides them by the corrected integrated energy sum to get the position in two dimensions…” (Also, see [0004] and [0033] concerning the use energy windows in relation to scintillation crystal/s.)
In view of Arseneau, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the medical imaging system of Burr with “charge” integrators that have the capability of integrating (energy or pulse) signals. The motivation is to gain integrated signals capable of being summed and used to correct overlapping pulses, time windows and pile-up.
Arseneau teaches that the PET detector can include scintillator crystals [0019][0020], however, the reference do not specifically disclose a crystal array.
In the same field of endeavor, Frach discloses radiation detectors for positron emission tomography (PET) (col. 1; lines 30-34). The reference teaches that the scintillator can be an array of crystals (col. 2; lines 49-50).
In view of Frach, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill within the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to use a crystal array within the PET detector of modified Burr. The crystal array allows the application of Anger logic to identify spatial coordinates of a detection event and the estimation of the energies of detected photons/particles.
With regards to claim 2, modified Burr discloses the system of claim 1, wherein the window generator is further configured to generate a plurality of candidate integration windows, as the generated plurality of time windows (Burr; [0027][0041][0090])(Arseneau; [0004][0033]), and
each charge integrator is configured to select a specific integration window from the generated plurality of candidate integration windows, and perform the respective charge integration during the selected specific integration window (Arseneau; [0004][0033])(Burr; [0041][0090]).
With regards to claim 18, modified Burr discloses the system of claim 1, wherein the window generator is further configured to output the generated single ADC start signal as a signal representing a master integration window, or as a latch signal indicating that signal integration is ongoing. (Arseneau; [0029][0030])
With regards to claim 19, modified Burr discloses the system of claim 1, wherein the set of digital readout channels (Burr; [0031][0074]) are further configured to generate a set of digital signals representing energy, position, depth-of-interaction, and/or timing information relating to the gamma-ray interaction, as the set of digital signals describing information relating to the gamma-ray interaction. (Burr; [0049][0089][0090])
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 3-10 and 11-17 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:
With regards to claim 3, modified Burr discloses the system of claim 2, wherein the apparatus further comprises a first register arranged accessible by the window generator (Burr; [0093])(Arseneau; [0037])(col. 9; lines 30-32) and a second register arranged within or accessible by the charge integrators (Arseneau; [0037]), the first register storing a plurality of predetermined time window waveforms integrators (Arseneau; [0029][0031][0037]), the second register storing respective integration window selections of the charge integrators (Arseneau; [0004][0037]).
Modified Burr do not specifically disclose;
the window generator is further configured to use a digital clock counter generate the plurality of candidate integration windows, based on the plurality of predetermined time window waveforms stored in the first register, and
each charge integrator is configured to select the specific integration window from the generated plurality of candidate integration windows, based on the respective integration window selections stored in the second register.
Claims 4-10 are objected due to being dependent on objected base claim 3.
With regards to claim 11, modified Burr do not specifically disclose the system of claim 1, wherein the window generator is further configured to generate a plurality of sub-windows, as the generated plurality of time windows, and
each charge integrator corresponds to a specific combination of the plurality of sub-windows, and performs the respective charge integration during an integration window formed by the corresponding specific combination of the plurality of sub-windows.
Claims 12-17 are objected due to being dependent on objected base claim 11.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Andreaco et al. (US 6,362,479)
Wang et al. (US 2012/0091348)
Mc Croskey et al. (US 5,841,140)
Labella et al. (US 2023/0358901)
Frach et al. (US 2014/0175294)
Frach et al. (US 2009/0236532)
Shaber (US 2016/0084703)
Hefetz et al. (US 2007/0023669)
Wong et al. (US 2004/0036025)
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to HUGH H MAUPIN whose telephone number is (571)270-1495. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 7:30 - 5:00 pm.
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/HUGH MAUPIN/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2884
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