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 .
Election/Restrictions
Applicant’s election without traverse of Group II, claims 21-38, in the reply filed on 6/22/2026 is acknowledged.
Claims 39-40 have been withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to a nonelected invention, there being no allowable generic or linking claim. Election was made without traverse in the reply filed on 6/22/2026.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
The following is a quotation of the appropriate paragraphs of 35 U.S.C. 102 that form the basis for the rejections under this section made in this Office action:
A person shall be entitled to a patent unless –
(a)(1) the claimed invention was patented, described in a printed publication, or in public use, on sale, or otherwise available to the public before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claims 21, 25-32, and 34-38 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Frantz (U.S. Patent No. 6,109,265).
Regarding independent claim 21, Figures 1-4 discloses applicant’s claimed oral appliance for treatment of sleep apnea in a user, the oral appliance comprising:
a first tray (12) configured for receiving first teeth of the user, the first tray (12) including a pair of posterior projections (13, 13’) extending outwardly from opposed lateral sides of the first tray (12);
a second tray (11) configured for receiving second teeth of the user, the second tray (11)
including a pair of anterior projections (14, 14’) extending outwardly from opposed lateral sides of the second tray (11); and
a pair of strut assemblies (elastic band B, column 4 lines 7-9 and a pair of elastic bands, column 11 line 5) pivotably joined to the first tray (12) and the second tray (11), wherein the pair of strut assemblies (elastic band B, column 4 lines 7-9) each comprise a first socket (24) and a second socket (24’), the first socket (24) coupled to one (14) of the pair of posterior projections (14, 14’) of the first tray (12) and the second socket (24’) coupled to one (13) of the pair of anterior projections (13, 13’) of the second tray (11).
Regarding claim 25, Frantz reference, presented above, discloses applicant’s claimed oral appliance comprising all features as recited in these claims, wherein the second socket of each of the pair of strut assemblies is configured to couple via a snap fit with one of the pair of posterior projections of the first tray or one of the pair of anterior projections of the second tray.
Regarding claim 26, Frantz reference, presented above, discloses applicant’s claimed oral appliance comprising all features as recited in these claims, wherein the first socket (23, 24) of each pair of the strut assemblies (elastic band B, column 4 lines 7-9) include a keyed opening (24) and one (14) of the pair of posterior projections (14, 14’) of the first tray (12) is configured to key into the keyed opening (24) of the first socket (23, 24) of each pair of the strut assemblies (16).
Regarding claim 27, Frantz reference, presented above, discloses applicant’s claimed oral appliance comprising all features as recited in these claims, wherein each (14) of the pair of posterior projections (14, 14’) of the first tray (12) have a shape of a sphere sliced by two parallel planes (see Figure 3c).
Regarding claim 28, Frantz reference, presented above, discloses applicant’s claimed oral appliance comprising all features as recited in these claims, wherein at least one of the first sockets (23, 24) of the pair of strut assemblies (elastic band B, column 4 lines 7-9) are permanently (occurrence shown in Figure 2) coupled to at least one of the pair of posterior projections (14, 14’) of the first tray (12).
Regarding claim 29, Frantz reference, presented above, discloses applicant’s claimed oral appliance comprising all features as recited in these claims, wherein at least one of the first sockets (23, 24) of the pair of strut assemblies (elastic band B, column 4 lines 7-9 and a pair of elastic bands, column 11 line 5) are removably (see Figures 1 & 4) coupled to at least one of the pair of posterior projections (14, 14’) of the first tray (12).
Regarding claim 30, Frantz reference, presented above, discloses applicant’s claimed oral appliance comprising all features as recited in these claims, wherein the pair of strut assemblies (elastic band B, column 4 lines 7-9 and a pair of elastic bands, column 11 line 5) includes a first strut assembly (elastic band B, left) and a second strut assembly (elastic band B, right), the first strut assembly (elastic band B, left) is formed as a first integrally fabricated structure (Figure 4), and the second strut assembly is formed as a second integrally fabricated structure (Figure 4).
Regarding claim 31, Frantz reference, presented above, discloses applicant’s claimed oral appliance comprising all features as recited in these claims, wherein the pair of strut assemblies (elastic band B, column 4 lines 7-9 and a pair of elastic bands, column 11 line 5) each include a first unitary body (22) connecting the first socket (23, 24) to the second socket (23’, 24’).
Regarding independent claim 32, Figures 1-4 discloses applicant’s claimed system for treatment of sleep apnea in a user, the oral appliance comprising:
a first tray (12) configured for receiving first teeth of the user, the first tray (12) including a posterior projection (14, 14’) extending outwardly from a lateral side of the first tray (12);
a second tray (11) configured for receiving second teeth of the user, the second tray (11)
including an anterior projection (13, 13’) extending outwardly from a lateral side of the second tray (11);
and
a strut assembly (elastic band B, column 4 lines 7-23) configured to pivotably join to at the first tray (12), wherein the strut assembly (elastic band B, column 4 lines 7-23) comprises a first socket (23, 24) and a second socket (23’, 24’), the first socket (23, 24) coupled to the posterior projection (14, 14’) of the first tray (12).
Regarding claim 34, Frantz reference, presented above, discloses applicant’s claimed oral appliance comprising all features as recited in these claims, wherein the first socket (23, 24) of the strut assembly (elastic band B, column 4 lines 7-9) includes a keyed opening (24) and the posterior projection (14, 14’) of the first tray (12) is configured to key into the keyed opening (24) of the first socket (12).
Regarding claim 35, Frantz reference, presented above, discloses applicant’s claimed oral appliance comprising all features as recited in these claims, wherein the posterior projection (14, 14’) of the first tray (12) has a shape substantially of a sphere having opposing
flattened surfaces (see Figure 3c).
Regarding claim 36, Frantz reference, presented above, discloses applicant’s claimed oral appliance comprising all features as recited in these claims, wherein the first socket (23, 24) is permanently (occurrence shown in Figure 2) coupled to the posterior projection (14, 14’) of the first tray (12).
Regarding claim 37, Frantz reference, presented above, discloses applicant’s claimed oral appliance comprising all features as recited in these claims, wherein the first socket (23, 24) of the strut assembly (elastic band B, column 4 lines 7-9) is removably coupled to the posterior projection (14, 14’) of the first tray (12).
Regarding claim 38, Frantz reference, presented above, discloses applicant’s claimed oral appliance comprising all features as recited in these claims, wherein strut assembly (elastic band B, column 4 lines 7-9) includes a first unitary body (22) connecting the first socket (24) to the second socket (24).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 22-24 and 33 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.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to CAMTU TRAN NGUYEN whose telephone number is (571)272-4799. The examiner can normally be reached 9am-5pm, Monday-Friday.
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/CAMTU T NGUYEN/Examiner, Art Unit 3786
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