CTNF 19/000,714 CTNF 87923 DETAILED ACTION Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status 07-03-aia AIA 15-10-aia 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 07-20-aia AIA 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. 07-21-aia AIA Claim (s) 1, 7, 8, 12, 13, 16, 18 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Zhou (CN-214375219-U) in view of Niakan (CN-113498565-A) . Regarding claim 1 Zhou discloses A coil unit (¶ 1 under Technical Field ) that is disposed at a measurement position of a subject (¶ 5 under Background ), the coil unit comprising: one or more loop-shaped coil elements (¶ 4 under Background ); Zhou does not disclose “a coil unit cover which includes a first sheet covering one surface of the coil element and a second sheet covering the other surface of the coil element and in which one or more first through-holes penetrating the first sheet and the second sheet are formed; and a first fastening member that fastens an edge of the first sheet in the first through-hole and an edge of the second sheet in the first through-hole”. Niakan, however, teaches a coil unit cover which includes a first sheet covering one surface of the coil element and a second sheet covering the other surface of the coil element and in which one or more first through-holes penetrating the first sheet and the second sheet are formed (¶ 14 under Detailed Description , 100A & 100B & Fig. 6 Ref 600); and a first fastening member that fastens an edge of the first sheet in the first through-hole and an edge of the second sheet in the first through-hole (¶ 42 under Detailed Description ). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to include the “first and second covering layers with through-holes” as taught by Niakan in the unit of Zhou. The justification for this modification would be to have a bottom and top sheathing to cover and protect the coils. Regarding claim 7 Zhou in view of Niakan teach the coil unit according to claim 1, wherein a ventilation hole that penetrates the first fastening member in a direction from an inside of the coil unit cover to the first through-hole is formed in the first fastening member (¶ 14 under Detailed Description, the plating through hole connects a plurality of insulating layers ). Regarding claim 8 Zhou in view of Niakan teach the coil unit according to claim 1, Niakan, applied to claim 8, further teaches wherein one or more first protrusions are formed on at least one of a surface on a side of the first sheet or a surface on a side of the second sheet in the first fastening member along a circumferential direction of the first through-hole (¶ 14 under Detailed Description, the plating through hole connects a plurality of insulating layers ). Regarding claim 12 Zhou in view of Niakan teach the coil unit according to claim 1, Niakin, applied to claim 12, further teaches further comprising: one or more second through-holes each of which penetrates the first sheet and the second sheet and is formed at a position corresponding to a position of an overlap portion in which the coil elements adjacent to each other overlap (Diagram 6, & ¶ 1 – 10 under Detailed Description ). Regarding claim 13 Zhou in view of Niakan teach the coil unit according to claim 12, Niakan, applied to claim 13 further teaches further comprising: a second fastening member that fastens an edge of the first sheet in the second through-hole and an edge of the second sheet in the second through-hole (Diagram 6, & ¶ 1 – 10 under Detailed Description ). Regarding claim 16 Zhou in view of Niakan teach the coil unit according to claim 1, Niakan, applied to claim 16, further teaches wherein the first sheet and the second sheet have a structure in which the first sheet and the second sheet are at least partially connected to each other (¶ 24 under Detailed Description ). Regarding claim 18 Zhou discloses A coil unit cover (¶ 1 under Technical Field ) which is used in a coil unit disposed at a measurement position of a subject (¶ 5 under Background, the coil is situated on a position of the patient that is measurable ) and in which one or more loop-shaped coil elements are accommodated (¶ 4 under Background ), the coil unit cover comprising: Zhou does not disclose “a first sheet that covers one surface of the coil element; and a second sheet that covers the other surface of the coil element, wherein one or more first through-holes penetrating the first sheet and the second sheet are formed, and the coil unit cover further includes a first fastening member that fastens an edge of the first sheet in the first through-hole and an edge of the second sheet in the first through-hole”. Niakan, however, teaches a first sheet that covers one surface of the coil element; and a second sheet that covers the other surface of the coil element, wherein one or more first through-holes penetrating the first sheet and the second sheet are formed (¶ 14 under Detailed Description , 100A & 100B & Fig. 6 Ref 600), and the coil unit cover further includes a first fastening member that fastens an edge of the first sheet in the first through-hole and an edge of the second sheet in the first through-hole ((¶ 42 under Detailed Description ). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to include the “first and second covering layers with through-holes” as taught by Niakan in the unit of Zhou. The justification for this modification would be to have a bottom and top sheathing to cover and protect the coils . 07-21-aia AIA Claim( s) 2, 6, 9, 10, 14, 15 i s/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Z hou (CN-214375219-U) in view of Niakan (CN-113498565-A) in view of Satoshi (JP-6211306-B2). R egarding claim 2 Zhou in view of Niakan teach the coil unit according to claim 1, Zhou in view of Niakan do not teach “wherein the first fastening member includes a first member that is attached to the first sheet, and a second member that is attached to the second sheet”. Satoshi, however, discloses wherein the first fastening member includes a first member that is attached to the first sheet, and a second member that is attached to the second sheet (¶ 7 under Claims & Diagrams 3 & 4, the one connecting member is attached to the one element; the other connecting element is attached to the other element). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to include the “two fastening members attached to different sheets” as taught by Satoshi in the unit of Zhou in view of Niakan. The justification for this modification would be to have a quick way of sealing the top and bottom covers. Regarding claim 6 Zhou in view of Niakan teach the coil unit according to claim 1, Zhou in view of Niakan do not explicitly teach “wherein the first fastening member has a structure in which a recessed shape and a protruding shape are fitted to each other to fasten the first sheet and the second sheet”. Satoshi, however, teaches wherein the first fastening member has a structure in which a recessed shape and a protruding shape are fitted to each other to fasten the first sheet and the second sheet (¶ 7 under Claims & Diagrams 3 & 4). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to include the “protruding/recessed connectors” as taught by Satoshi in the unit of Zhou in view of Niakan. The justification for this modification would be to an efficient way of connecting the upper and lower cover. Regarding claim 9 Zhou in view of Niakan teach the coil unit according to claim 1, Satoshi, however, teaches Zhou in view of Niakan do not teach “wherein the first fastening member includes a second protrusion on at least one of a surface on a side of the first sheet or a surface on a side of the second sheet, and the second protrusion is made of a material which is relatively softer than a material of the first fastening member”. Satoshi, however, teaches “wherein the first fastening member includes a second protrusion on at least one of a surface on a side of the first sheet or a surface on a side of the second sheet (¶ 6 under DESCRIPTION-OF-EMBODIMENTS ), and the second protrusion is made of a material which is relatively softer than a material of the first fastening member (¶ 6 under DESCRIPTION-OF-EMBODIMENTS)” . It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to include the “fastening members and soft material” as taught by Satoshi in the unit of Zhou in view of Niakan. The justification for this modification would be to have a way to connect the upper and lower covers and have a seal between them as well. Regarding claim 10 Zhou in view of Niakan teach the coil unit according to claim 1, Zhou in view of Niakan do not teach “wherein at least one of an outer surface of the first sheet or an outer surface of the second sheet includes a third protrusion that is disposed at a position where the first fastening member is disposed and that extends along a direction in which the first fastening members are arranged”. Satoshi, however, teaches wherein at least one of an outer surface of the first sheet or an outer surface of the second sheet includes a third protrusion that is disposed at a position where the first fastening member is disposed and that extends along a direction in which the first fastening members are arranged (¶ 6 under DESCRIPTION-OF-EMBODIMENTS). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to include the “the third protrusion and fastening members” as taught by Satoshi in the unit of Zhou in view of Niakan. The justification for this modification would be to have a way to seal the top cover to the bottom cover. Regarding claim 14 Zhou in view of Niakan teach the coil unit according to claim 1, Zhou in view of Niakan do not teach “further comprising: one or more third through-holes each of which penetrates the first sheet and the second sheet and is formed at a position corresponding to a position of a non-overlap portion in which the coil elements adjacent to each other do not overlap”. Satoshi, however, discloses further comprising: one or more third through-holes each of which penetrates the first sheet and the second sheet and is formed at a position corresponding to a position of a non-overlap portion in which the coil elements adjacent to each other do not overlap (Diagram 1 & 2, ¶ 6 under DESCRIPTION-OF-EMBODIMENTS). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to include the “through holes positioned where the coils don’t overlap” as taught by Satoshi in the unit of Zhou in view of Niakan. The justification for this modification would be to many through holes to connect the bottom cover with the top cover. Regarding claim 15 Zhou in view of Niakan in view of Satoshi teach the coil unit according to claim 14, Satoshi, applied to claim 15, further teaches a third fastening member that fastens an edge of the first sheet in the third through-hole and an edge of the second sheet in the third through-hole (diagrams 1 & 2, ¶ 1—7 under Description of Embodiments ) . 07-21-aia AIA Claim (s) 3 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Zhou (CN-214375219-U) in view of Niakan (CN-113498565-A) in view of Satoshi (JP-6211306-B2) in view of Zhu (CN-113354266-A) . Regarding claim 3 Zhou in view of Niakan in view of Satoshi teach the coil unit according to claim 2, Zhou in view of Niakan in view of Satoshi do not teach “wherein the first member and the second member have a thickness equal to or larger than a thickness of the coil element”. Zhu, however, teaches wherein the first member and the second member have a thickness equal to or larger than a thickness of the coil element (¶ 46 under Specific Implementation Examples ) It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to include the “cover thickness equal to or greater than the coil’s thickness” as taught by Zhu in the unit of Zhou in view of Niakan in view of Satoshi. The justification for this modification would be to make very think covers for maximum space utilization . 07-21-aia AIA Claim (s) 4 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Zhou (CN-214375219-U) in view of Niakan (CN-113498565-A) in view of Lin (CN-209709656-U) . Zhou in view of Niakan teach the coil unit according to claim 1, Zhou in view of Niakan do not teach “wherein the first fastening member has an annular shape that covers an inner periphery of the first through-hole”. Lin, however, teaches wherein the first fastening member has an annular shape that covers an inner periphery of the first through-hole (¶ 2 under Specific implementation methods ). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to include the “fastening member with annular shape” as taught by Lin in the unit of Zhou in view of Niakan. The justification for this modification would be to efficient way of connecting the top and bottom covers that saves space . 07-21-aia AIA Claim (s) 5 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Zhou (CN-214375219-U) in view of Niakan (CN-113498565-A) in view of Lin (CN-209709656-U) in view of Chiu (US-20120037522-A1) . Regarding claim 5 Zhou in view of Niakan in view of Lin teach the coil unit according to claim 4, Zhou in view of Niakan in view of Lin do not teach “wherein the first fastening member has a structure in which a hard portion having relatively high stiffness and a soft portion having relatively low stiffness are arranged along a circumferential direction of the first through-hole, and the hard portion has a structure for fastening the first sheet and the second sheet”. Chiu, however, teaches wherein the first fastening member has a structure in which a hard portion having relatively high stiffness and a soft portion having relatively low stiffness are arranged along a circumferential direction of the first through-hole, and the hard portion has a structure for fastening the first sheet and the second sheet ([0036]). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to include the “soft and hard sealing portions” as taught by Chiu in the unit of Zhou in view of Niakan. The justification for this modification would be to seal the top and bottom covers . 07-21-aia AIA Claim (s) 11 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Zhou (CN-214375219-U) in view of Niakan (CN-113498565-A) in view of Wang (CN-207940792-U) . Regarding claim 11 Zhou in view of Niakan teach the coil unit according to claim 1, Zhou in view of Niakan do not teach “wherein the first through-hole is formed at a position corresponding to a position of a hollow portion of the coil element”. Wang, however, teaches wherein the first through-hole is formed at a position corresponding to a position of a hollow portion of the coil element (¶ 2 under Invention Content ). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to include the “through-hole portion corresponding to center of the coil” as taught by Wang in the unit of Zhou in view of Niakan. The justification for this modification would be to put the through hole in the middle of the coil so as to not interfere with the electrical functioning of the coil . 07-21-aia AIA Claim (s) 17 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Zhou (CN-214375219-U) in view of Niakan (CN-113498565-A) in view of DeCharms (WO-2006055582-A2) . Regarding claim 17 Zhou discloses A magnetic resonance imaging apparatus (¶ 1 under Technical Field ) comprising: Zhou does not disclose “a coil unit that is disposed at a measurement position of the subject, wherein the coil unit includes one or more loop-shaped coil elements, a coil unit cover which includes a first sheet covering one surface of the coil element and a second sheet covering the other surface of the coil element and in which one or more first through-holes penetrating the first sheet and the second sheet are formed, and a first fastening member that fastens an edge of the first sheet in the first through-hole and an edge of the second sheet in the first through-hole”. Niakan, however, discloses a coil unit that is disposed at a measurement position of the subject, wherein the coil unit includes one or more loop-shaped coil elements (¶ 14 under Detailed Description , 100A & 100B & Fig. 6 Ref 600), a coil unit cover which includes a first sheet covering one surface of the coil element and a second sheet covering the other surface of the coil element and in which one or more first through-holes penetrating the first sheet and the second sheet are formed (¶ 14 under Detailed Description , 100A & 100B & Fig. 6 Ref 600), and a first fastening member that fastens an edge of the first sheet in the first through-hole and an edge of the second sheet in the first through-hole (¶ 42 under Detailed Description ) Zhou in view of Niakan do not teach “a measurement device that measures a subject; and” DeCharms, however, teaches a measurement device that measures a subject ([00112]). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to include the “measurement device of the subject and coil” as taught by DeCharms in the apparatus of Zhou in view of Niakan. The justification for this modification would be to measures a location to put the local coil to achieve highest possible SNR. Conclusion Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to FREDERICK WENDEROTH whose telephone number is (571)270-1945. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 7 a.m. - 4 p.m. Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice. If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Walter Lindsay can be reached at 571-272-1674. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300. Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000. /Frederick Wenderoth/ Examiner, Art Unit 2852 /WALTER L LINDSAY JR/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2852 Application/Control Number: 19/000,714 Page 2 Art Unit: 2852 Application/Control Number: 19/000,714 Page 3 Art Unit: 2852
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