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 § 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.
Section 33(a) of the America Invents Act reads as follows:
Notwithstanding any other provision of law, no patent may issue on a claim directed to or encompassing a human organism.
Claims 1-7 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 101 and section 33(a) of the America Invents Act as being directed to or encompassing a human organism. See also Animals - Patentability, 1077 Off. Gaz. Pat. Office 24 (April 21, 1987) (indicating that human organisms are excluded from the scope of patentable subject matter under 35 U.S.C. 101). The claims set forth the term “a handpiece that is held by a practitioner for treatment” which implies a practitioner is claimed as part of the apparatus; the examiner recommends amending the claim to set forth “a handpiece configured to be held by a practitioner”
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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.
Claim(s) 1-3, 6 are is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Hironic (KR 1020200101904) in view of LG (KR 1020180119866).
Hironic discloses a cosmetic and medical treatment apparatus comprising a handpiece (10) grippable by an operator; a cartridge unit (not numbered) detachably coupled to the handpiece body (110); an ultrasonic wave generation unit (120) which is disposed adjacent to a high-frequency wave generation unit (130) in the cartridge unit and radiates focused ultrasonic waves to the skin; and a control unit (150) for controlling the operation of the high-frequency wave generation unit (130) and the ultrasonic wave generation unit (120), wherein the ultrasonic wave unit (120) and the high-frequency wave unit (130) can be alternately operated (see paragraphs [0030], [0035]-[0040], [0053], and [0060] and figures 1-8 and 10).
Hironic fails to disclose in that a high-frequency wave generation unit of a beauty treatment device selectively applies a first current and a second current, and a control unit controls the high-frequency wave generation unit to generate a first current in a first treatment section and controls the high-frequency wave generation unit to generate a second current in a second treatment section after the first treatment section.
In the same field of endeavor LG discloses However, a skin care device (1) includes a first contact part (110) which can output a current such as high-frequency waves; and the output current can be controlled to increase stepwise from a second minimum current to a final current (see paragraphs [0045] and [0089]-[0097] and figures 1-3).
It would have been obvious to one skilled in the art at the time of the invention for a high-frequency wave generation unit of a beauty treatment device selectively applies a first current and a second current, and a control unit controls the high-frequency wave generation unit to generate a first current in a first treatment section and controls the high-frequency wave generation unit to generate a second current in a second treatment section after the first treatment section as disclosed by LG because doing so will allow the control unit output lowest current and gradually increases the output current in initial operation, so that unpleasant due to galvanic shock provided to a user can be prevented and maximal potency of the apparatus is exhibited.
With respect to claim 2, LG discloses wherein the output current of the first contact part (110) can be controlled to increase stepwise from a second minimum current to a final current (see paragraphs [0089]-[0097] and figures 1-3).
With respect to claim 3, Hironic discloses wherein the ultrasonic wave unit (120) and the high-frequency wave unit (130) can be alternately operated (see paragraph [0060] and figure 10).
With respect to claim 6, Hironic discloses wherein the high-frequency wave generation unit (130) can apply high frequency waves with a frequency of 1-2 MHz (see paragraph [0044] and figure 2).
Claim(s) 4-5 are is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Hironic (KR 1020200101904) in view of LG (KR 1020180119866), as applied to claim 1, in view of LG electronics (KR 1020220158207).
With respect to claim 4, Hironic in view of LG discloses the system as disclosed above, but fails to disclose to control the rf generator and focused ultrasound generator so that a penetration depth of the first current or the second current and an irradiation depth of the focused ultrasound are different from each other at the treatment area.
LG electronics discloses a beauty device includes a ultrasonic vibrator (23) that generates ultrasonic waves, and inner and outer electrodes (21, 22) that output high-frequency waves; and the high-frequency output causes heat to penetrate deeply down to the subcutaneous fat, while vibrations caused by the ultrasonic waves aretransmitted to the dermis (see paragraphs [0099]-[0107] and [0189]-[0193] and figures 3-5 and 12).
It would have been obvious to one skilled in the art at the time of the invention to control the rf generator and focused ultrasound generator so that a penetration depth of the first current or the second current and an irradiation depth of the focused ultrasound are different from each other at the treatment area.as disclosed by LG electronics because doing so will allow to improve penetration rate and therefore skin elasticity.
With respect to claim 5, Hironic discloses wherein the high-frequency wave generation unit (130) applies high-frequency waves to a depth of 1.5-4.5 mm from the skin surface, and the energy focusing depth of the high-frequency wave generation unit (130) overlaps the focal depth of the ultrasonic wave generation unit (132) (see paragraphs [0044]-[0046] and figure 2).
Claim(s) 7 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Hironic (KR 1020200101904) in view of LG (KR 1020180119866), as applied to claim 1, in view of Dermatech (KR 1020200002129).
Hironic in view of LG discloses the system as set forth above but fails to teach a position change detector for sensing at least one of movement, movement speed, movement acceleration, angular velocity, position, movement direction, inclination, and displacement of the handpiece or the cartridge.
Dermatech discloses wherein a sensing unit (120) of a skin care device (90) may further include a sensor, such as an acceleration sensor or a gyro sensor, for sensing the movement of the skin care device (90) when the skin care device (90) is used (see paragraphs [0026]-[003 l] and figures 1-3).
It would have been obvious to one skilled in the art at the time of the invention to have a position change detector for sensing at least one of movement, movement speed, movement acceleration, angular velocity, position, movement direction, inclination, and displacement of the handpiece or the cartridge as disclosed by dermatch because doing so will allow to precisely control the treatment.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JOSEPH M SANTOS RODRIGUEZ whose telephone number is (571)270-7782. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 8:30am to 5:30pm.
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, Anne M. Kozak can be reached at 571-270-0552. 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.
/JOSEPH M SANTOS RODRIGUEZ/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3797
Prosecution Insights