The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
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 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.
DETAILED ACTION
DOUBLE PATENTING
The nonstatutory double patenting rejection is based on a judicially created doctrine grounded in public policy (a policy reflected in the statute) so as to prevent the unjustified or improper timewise extension of the “right to exclude” granted by a patent and to prevent possible harassment by multiple assignees. A nonstatutory double patenting rejection is appropriate where the conflicting claims are not identical, but at least one examined application claim is not patentably distinct from the reference claim(s) because the examined application claim is either anticipated by, or would have been obvious over, the reference claim(s). See, e.g., In re Berg, 140 F.3d 1428, 46 USPQ2d 1226 (Fed. Cir. 1998); In re Goodman, 11 F.3d 1046, 29 USPQ2d 2010 (Fed. Cir. 1993); In re Longi, 759 F.2d 887, 225 USPQ 645 (Fed. Cir. 1985); In re Van Ornum, 686 F.2d 937, 214 USPQ 761 (CCPA 1982); In re Vogel, 422 F.2d 438, 164 USPQ 619 (CCPA 1970); In re Thorington, 418 F.2d 528, 163 USPQ 644 (CCPA 1969).
A timely filed terminal disclaimer in compliance with 37 CFR 1.321(c) or 1.321(d) may be used to overcome an actual or provisional rejection based on nonstatutory double patenting provided the reference application or patent either is shown to be commonly owned with the examined application, or claims an invention made as a result of activities undertaken within the scope of a joint research agreement. See MPEP § 717.02 for applications subject to examination under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA as explained in MPEP § 2159. See MPEP § 2146 et seq. for applications not subject to examination under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA . A terminal disclaimer must be signed in compliance with 37 CFR 1.321(b).
The filing of a terminal disclaimer by itself is not a complete reply to a nonstatutory double patenting (NSDP) rejection. A complete reply requires that the terminal disclaimer be accompanied by a reply requesting reconsideration of the prior Office action. Even where the NSDP rejection is provisional the reply must be complete. See MPEP § 804, subsection I.B.1. For a reply to a non-final Office action, see 37 CFR 1.111(a). For a reply to final Office action, see 37 CFR 1.113(c). A request for reconsideration while not provided for in 37 CFR 1.113(c) may be filed after final for consideration. See MPEP §§ 706.07(e) and 714.13.
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Claims 1-19 are rejected on the ground of nonstatutory double patenting as being unpatentable over claims 1-21 of U.S. Patent No. 12,185,923. Although the claims at issue are not identical, they are not patentably distinct from each other because the overlapping subject matter of U.S. Patent No. 12,185,923 regarding a universal laryngoscope blade reads on the subject matter of the instant application regarding a universal laryngoscope blade.
Instant Application
U.S. Issued Patent 12,185,923
1. A universal laryngoscope blade comprising:
a blade body shaped to provide a direct view of a larynx, the blade body including a first end and a second end, the second end being configured for insertion into the larynx; and
a blade fitting disposed at the first end of the blade body, the blade fitting including a body and a hinge slot extending into the body at an angle from a front of the body towards a central region of the body, and the hinge slot terminating at a semicircular bearing surface;
wherein the blade fitting is removably connectable to, one at a time, each of a hook-on fitting of a conventional handle and a hook-on fitting of a fiber-illuminated handle, the hook-on fitting of the conventional handle having at least one physical dimension that is different from at least one physical dimension of the hook-on fitting of the fiber-illuminated handle; and
wherein the hinge slot is dimensioned to receive in abutment with the semicircular bearing surface, one at a time, a hinge pin of the hook-on fitting of the conventional handle and a hinge pin of the hook-on fitting of the fiber-illuminated handle, where the hinge pin of the hook-on fitting of the conventional handle has a diameter that is less than a diameter of the hinge pin of the hook-on fitting of the fiber-illuminated handle.
9. The universal laryngoscope blade according to claim 1, further comprising a viewer connected to the blade body, the viewer being configured to function independently from each of the conventional handle and the fiber-illuminated handle.
10. The universal laryngoscope blade according to claim 9, wherein the viewer is configured to emit light independently from each of the conventional handle and the fiber- illuminated handle,
11. The universal laryngoscope blade according to claim 9, wherein the viewer is configured to capture at least one image independently from each of the conventional handle and the fiber-illuminated handle.
12. The universal laryngoscope blade according to claim 9, wherein the viewer includes a lamp configured to emit light into the larynx.
13. The universal laryngoscope blade according to claim 12, wherein the viewer further includes a camera configured to capture at least one image of the larynx.
2. The universal laryngoscope blade according to claim 1, wherein the blade fitting further includes at least one side lock provided on a side of the body, the at least one side lock is configured to lock the body of the blade fitting within, one at a time, a seat of the hook-on fitting of the conventional handle and a seat of the hook-on fitting of the fiber-illuminated handle.
3. The universal laryngoscope blade according to claim 2, wherein a center point of the at least one side lock is spaced rearwardly from a virtual center point of the semicircular bearing surface by a horizontal distance component and spaced below the virtual center point of the semicircular bearing surface by a vertical distance component.
4. The universal laryngoscope blade according to claim 3, wherein the horizontal distance component is 13.0 mm and the vertical distance component is 0.8 mm.
5. The universal laryngoscope blade according to claim 2, wherein the at least one side lock is configured to engage with, one at a time, at least one lock slot of the hook-on fitting of the conventional handle and at least one lock slot of the hook-on fitting of the fiber- illuminated handle.
6. The universal laryngoscope blade according to claim 1, wherein the blade fitting further includes a hinge lock disposed within a surface of the hinge slot, wherein the hinge lock is configured to lock within the hinge slot, one at a time, the hinge pin of the hook-on fitting of the conventional handle and the hinge pin of the hook-on fitting of the fiber-illuminated handle.
8. The universal laryngoscope blade according to claim 1, wherein the blade fitting includes a body having a thickness that is configured to be received within, one at a time, a seat of the hook-on fitting of the conventional handle and a seat of the hook-on fitting of the fiber- illuminated handle, the seat of the hook-on fitting of the conventional handle having a width that is less than a width of the seat of the hook-on fitting of the fiber-illuminated handle.
7. The universal laryngoscope blade according to claim 1, wherein a bottom of the body of the blade fitting is free of functional elements.
14. The universal laryngoscope blade according to claim 9, further comprising a power source configured to be in electrical communication with the viewer for supplying power to the viewer when the laryngoscope blade is engaged to one of the conventional handle and the fiber-illuminated handle in an operating position.
15. The universal laryngoscope blade according to claim 14, wherein the blade fitting includes a first electrical contact in electrical communication with the power source and a second electrical contact in electrical communication with the viewer, wherein the first electrical contact is configured to be in electrical communication with the second electrical contact via an electrically conductive hinge pin of one of the conventional handle and the fiber-illuminated handle when the laryngoscope blade is in the operating position.
16. The universal laryngoscope blade according to claim 14, further comprising at least one cable that provides electronic communication between an external device and the viewer.
17. The universal laryngoscope blade according to claim 13, wherein the viewer further includes a transceiver configured to wirelessly transmit at least one image to an external device.
18. The universal laryngoscope blade according to claim 17, wherein the viewer further includes a processor configured to control the lamp, the camera, and the transceiver.
19. The universal laryngoscope blade according to claim 18, wherein the viewer further includes a power source configured to supply power to the lamp, the camera, the transceiver, and the processor.
1. A universal laryngoscope blade comprising: a blade body shaped to provide a direct view of a larynx, the blade body including a first end and a second end, the second end being configured for insertion into the larynx;
a viewer connected to the blade body, the viewer being configured to function independently from each of a conventional handle and a fiber-illuminated handle; and
a blade fitting disposed at the first end of the blade body, wherein the blade fitting is removably connectable to, one at a time, each of a hook-on fitting of the conventional handle and a hook-on fitting of the fiber-illuminated handle, the hook-on fitting of the conventional handle having at least one physical dimension that is different from at least one physical dimension of the hook-on fitting of the fiber-illuminated handle;
wherein the blade fitting includes a body and a hinge slot extending into the body at an angle from a front of the body towards a central region of the body and terminating at a semicircular bearing surface having a virtual center point, the body having a thickness that is configured to be received within, one at a time, a seat of the hook-on fitting of the conventional handle and a seat of the hook-on fitting of the fiber-illuminated handle, the seat of the hook-on fitting of the conventional handle having a width that is less than a width of the seat of the hook-on fitting of the fiber-illuminated handle, and
wherein the blade fitting further includes a hinge lock disposed within a surface of the hinge slot and configured to lock within the hinge slot, one at a time, a hinge pin of the hook-on fitting of the conventional handle and a hinge pin of the hook-on fitting of the fiber-illuminated handle.
2. The universal laryngoscope blade according to claim 1, wherein the thickness of the body is between 12.74 and 12.84 mm.3. The universal laryngoscope blade according to claim 1, further comprising a power source configured to be in electrical communication with the viewer for supplying power to the viewer when the laryngoscope blade is engaged to one of the conventional handle and the fiber-illuminated handle in an operating position.9. The universal laryngoscope blade according to claim 1, wherein the hinge lock is spaced forwardly from the virtual center point of the semicircular bearing surface by a distance between 0.86 and 0.90 mm.
4. The universal laryngoscope blade according to claim 3, wherein the blade fitting includes a first electrical contact in electrical communication with the power source and a second electrical contact in electrical communication with the viewer, wherein the first electrical contact is configured to be in electrical communication with the second electrical contact via an electrically conductive hinge pin of one of the conventional handle and the fiber-illuminated handle when the laryngoscope blade is in the operating position.7. The universal laryngoscope blade according to claim 1, wherein the hinge slot is dimensioned to receive in abutment with the semicircular bearing surface, one at a time, a hinge pin of the hook-on fitting of the conventional handle and a hinge pin of hook-on fitting of the fiber-illuminated handle, the hinge pin of the hook-on fitting of the conventional handle having a diameter that is less than a diameter of the hinge pin of the hook-on fitting of the fiber-illuminated handle.
10. The universal laryngoscope blade according to claim 1, wherein the blade fitting further includes at least one side lock provided on a side of the body, the at least one side lock is configured to lock the body of the blade fitting within, one at a time, the seat of the hook-on fitting of the conventional handle and the seat of the hook-on fitting of the fiber-illuminated handle.
5. The universal laryngoscope blade according to claim 4, wherein the first electrical contact is in electrical communication with the power source via a first electrical wire, and wherein the second electrical contact is in electrical communication with the viewer via a second electrical wire.
6. The universal laryngoscope blade according to claim 3, wherein a bottom of the body of the blade fitting is free of functional elements.8. The universal laryngoscope blade according to claim 1, wherein a diameter of the semicircular bearing surface is greater than 4.58 mm.11. The universal laryngoscope blade according to claim 10, wherein a center point of the at least one side lock is spaced rearwardly from the virtual center point of the semicircular bearing surface by a horizontal distance component and spaced below the virtual center point of the semicircular bearing surface by a vertical distance component, the horizontal distance component being 13.0 mm and the vertical distance component being 0.8 mm.12. The universal laryngoscope blade according to claim 10, wherein the at least one side lock is configured to engage with, one at a time, at least one lock slot of the hook-on fitting of the conventional handle and at least one lock slot of the hook-on fitting of the fiber-illuminated handle.13. The universal laryngoscope blade according to claim 1, wherein the universal laryngoscope blade is disposable.14. The universal laryngoscope blade according to claim 1, wherein the universal laryngoscope blade is reusable.15. The universal laryngoscope blade according to claim 1, wherein the viewer is configured to emit light independently from each of the conventional handle and the fiber-illuminated handle.16. The universal laryngoscope blade according to claim 1, wherein the viewer is configured to capture at least one image independently from each of the conventional handle and the fiber-illuminated handle.17. The universal laryngoscope blade according to claim 1, wherein the hook-on fitting of the conventional handle is dimensioned to conform to ISO standard 7376 for conventional handles and the hook-on fitting of the fiber-illuminated handle is dimensioned to conform to ISO standard 7376 for fiber-illuminated handles.18. The universal laryngoscope blade according to claim 1, wherein the viewer includes: a lamp configured to emit light into the larynx; a camera configured to capture at least one image of the larynx; and at least one cable that provides electronic communication between an external device, and the lamp and the camera.19. The universal laryngoscope blade according to claim 1, wherein the viewer includes: a lamp configured to emit light into the larynx; a camera configured to capture at least one image of the larynx; a transceiver configured to wirelessly transmit the at least one image to an external device; a processor configured to control the lamp, the camera, and the transceiver; and a power source configured to supply power to the lamp, the camera, the transceiver, and the processor.21. The universal laryngoscope blade according to claim 1, further comprising a power source configured to be in electrical communication with the hinge lock when the blade fitting is connected to one of the conventional handle and the fiber-illuminated handle in an operating position.
Specification
The lengthy specification has not been checked to the extent necessary to determine the presence of all possible minor errors. Applicant's cooperation is requested in correcting any errors of which applicant may become aware in the specification.
The title of the invention is not descriptive. A new title is required that is clearly indicative of the invention to which the claims are directed.
The following title is suggested: Universal Laryngoscope Blade Having Fiber-Illuminated Handle Hook-On Fitting.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
The text of those sections of Title 35, U.S. Code not included in this action can be found in a prior Office action.
Claims 1-and 6-8 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Fayyaz (Foreign Patent GB 2491189) and in further views of Lai (U.S. Publication 2016/0128548), Vivenzio (U.S. Patent 6,213,937), and Cranton et al. (U.S. Patent 7,824,331, hereinafter “Cranton”).
As to Claims 1 and 6-8, Fayyaz discloses a universal laryngoscope blade comprising (1) in 4/7-20 and Fig. 1:
a blade body (3) with curved spatula section (5) shaped to provide a direct view of a larynx, the blade body including a first end (proximal end 7) and a second end (9) in 4/7-20 and Fig. 1, the second end being configured for insertion into the larynx; and
a blade fitting disposed at the first end of the blade body via (21) in 4/23-24 and Fig. 1, the blade fitting including a body and a hinge slot extending into the body at an angle from a front of the body towards a central region of the body, and the hinge slot terminating at a semicircular bearing surface;
wherein the blade fitting is removably connectable to, one at a time, each of a hook-on fitting of a conventional handle and a hook-on fitting of a fiber-illuminated handle, the hook-on fitting of the conventional handle having at least one physical dimension that is different from at least one physical dimension of the hook-on fitting of the fiber-illuminated handle given selective use of the light source in 5/8-13 and Fig. 3; and
wherein the hinge slot is dimensioned to receive in abutment with the semicircular bearing surface, one at a time, a hinge pin of the hook-on fitting of the conventional handle and a hinge pin of the hook-on fitting of the fiber-illuminated handle, where the hinge pin of the hook-on fitting of the conventional handle has a diameter (slot 23 in coupling arrangement 21 is provided for engagement with a handle) that is less than a diameter of the hinge pin of the hook-on fitting of the fiber-illuminated handle.
Fayyaz also discloses a viewer connected to the blade body (light source 30 in housing 24 of the blade 3; page 4, line 30-page 5, line 8; Figs. 1, 3), engaging the blade fitting of the first universal laryngoscope blade with the hook-on fitting of the conventional handle such that the first universal laryngoscope blade is provided in an operating position and ready-for-use (coupling arrangement 21 fixed via slot 23 to a projection of a handle; page 4, lines 22- 30; Figs. 1, 3)
However, Fayyaz does not positively disclose providing a second universal laryngoscope blade, providing the fiber-illuminated handle including a hook-on fitting comprising a seat with a width greater than the width of the seat of the conventional handle, and engaging the blade fitting of the second universal laryngoscope blade with the hook-on fitting of the fiber-illuminated handle such that the second universal laryngoscope blade is provided in an operating position and ready-for-use.
Lai teaches in the analogous field of endeavor of laryngoscopy, wherein a first blade (120) in [0031] and second blade (130) in [0031] are removably attached to a handle (110) in [0031] and Figs 1-4. This evidences the level of ordinary mechanical skill in recognizing that multiple laryngoscope blades as equivalent alternatives for providing the same predictable result of aiding visualization of a larynx in different configurations (“shapes”, “angles”, “disposable”, and “coupling features” in Claims 2, 3, 5, 6, and 8). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to the method of engaging a universal laryngoscope blade of Fayyaz with multiple blades as taught by Lai since it has been shown by Lai that multiple laryngoscope blade will fulfill the same function with predictable results.
Vivenzio teaches a fiberoptic laryngoscope 10 provided separately from a standard incandescent lamp laryngoscope 50. Each of the fiberoptic laryngoscope 10 and the standard incandescent lamp laryngoscope 50 comprise a handle connected to a blade assembly, and the handles are not interchangeable. The fiberoptic laryngoscope 10 includes a handle 12 attached to a laryngeal blade assembly 14 viaapin16. The pin 16 is provided at the upper portion of the handle 12 to connect the handle to the blade 14 and facilitate the operation of the device (Col 4, lines 15-34; Figs. 1-2). The blade 14 has a proximal end and a distal end as shown in Fig. 2, with a fiberoptic light pipe assembly 24 in the interior of the blade (Col 4, lines 35-50; Figs. 1-2). The spacing of the components corresponding to the fiberoptic laryngoscope and the standard lamp incandescent laryngoscope are constrained by ISO 7376- 1 and 7376-3, respectively (Col 5, lines 14-18; Figs. 1-2, 7).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to modify the device disclosed by Fayyaz with the handle configuration taught by Vivenzio for the benefit of providing easy attachment or detachment of a laryngeal blade assembly while maintaining a reliable connection (Vivenzio Col 3, lines 8-11).
Further, Cranton teaches a heel 14 for attaching to a laryngoscope blade to a handle. The heel acts as the foot of the blade 4 and may be utilized to connect the blade to a handle with specifications matching ISO 7376-1 or 7376-3 (Col 3, lines 25-28 and Col 4, lines 42-46).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to modify the device disclosed by Fayyaz to include an attachment that can be used with multiple handle types as taught by Cranton for the benefit of utilizing blades whose configuration makes it difficult for the blade tip to come into contact with the laryngoscope handle once the blade is fitted onto the laryngoscope handle (Cranton Col 3, lines 29-33).
Allowable Subject Matter
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter: As to Claim 2 and 9, the prior art does not disclose or fairly suggest, the side lock and viewer as particularly claimed in combination with the blade body of a universal laryngoscope blade. Claims 3-5 and 10-19 are dependent from claims 2 and 9 respectively and similarly allowable.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to WILLIAM B CHOU whose telephone number is (571) 270-3367. The examiner can normally be reached on M-F 9 am - 6 pm.
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/WILLIAM CHOU/
Examiner, Art Unit 3795
/MICHAEL J CAREY/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3795
