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 1-13 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. These claims are directed to an apparatus, but the claims are drafted in processing steps.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 101
35 U.S.C. 101 reads as follows:
Whoever invents or discovers any new and useful process, machine, manufacture, or composition of matter, or any new and useful improvement thereof, may obtain a patent therefor, subject to the conditions and requirements of this title.
Claims 1-19 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 101 because the claimed invention is directed to an abstract idea without significantly more. Step 1: The claims are directed to a method, and an apparatus which falls within one of the statutory categories of invention. Step 2A, Prong One: Independent claim(s) 1, 14 & 19, recite(s) acquiring, and determining and cause. The claims and background of the application do not put any limits on the plain meanings of determining, causing/displaying, acquiring. Independent claim 19 recites a storage unit, circuitry, input unit and display and is recited at a high level of generality, i.e. as a generic processor and memory performing generic functions. The broadest reasonable interpretation of the steps is that those steps fall with the mental process grouping of abstract ideas because they cover concepts performed in the human mind, selection by a human and/or can be presented using a piece of paper, including acquiring, causing/displaying and determining. Step 2A, Prong Two: The claims recite a storage unit, circuitry, input unit and display. This judicial exception is not integrated into a practical application because these limitations do not impose any meaningful limits on the claims. Again, the a storage unit, circuitry, input unit and display perform their generic functions and is recited at a high level of generality. With these limitations, the a storage unit, circuitry, input unit and display are used as a tool to perform the generic function of processing and storing data and displaying information. Therefore, in these limitations the a storage unit, circuitry, input unit and display are used to perform an abstract idea, as discussed above in Step, 2A, Prong One, such that it amounts to no more than mere instructions to apply the exception using a generic processor and memory. Even when viewed in combination, these additional elements do not integrate the recited judicial exception into a practice application, and the claim is directed to the judicial exception. Step 2B: As explained in the Step 2A, Prong Two, these additional elements. The additional elements of a a storage unit, circuitry, input unit and display in the limitations are at best mere instructions to “apply” the abstract ideas, which cannot provide an inventive concept. See MPEP 2106.05(f). The additional elements were both found to be insignificant extra-solution activity in Step 2A, Prong Two, because they were determined to be insignificant limitations as necessary data processing or storing and displaying. As discussed in Step 2A, Prong Two above, the recitations of “a storage unit, circuitry, input unit and display are recited at a high level of generality. These elements amount to processing information and storing and causing/displaying information and are well-understood, routine and conventional activity. Therefore, even when considered in combination, these additional elements represent mere instructions to implement an abstract idea or other exception with a processor and memory and insignificant extra-solution activity, which do not provide an inventive concept. Further, these claims do not make an improvement in the function of the structural elements. These elements are merely used as a tool to perform the recited abstract idea. So, these claims are ineligible.
Citation of Pertinent Prior Art
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
MORITASU (U.S. Publication Number 2020/0098106) teaches a medical information processing apparatus.
GOTO et al. (U.S. Publication Number 2021/0358126) teaches a trained model, learning method, learning program, medical information acquisition device, medical information acquisition method, and medical information acquisition program.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to KESHA FRISBY whose telephone number is (571)272-8774. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 730AM-4PM.
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/KESHA FRISBY/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3715
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