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 § 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.
The factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness.
Claim 1 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Shoji (JP 2951935 B1) in view of Fleer et al. (EP 0273259 A1).
[AltContent: arrow][AltContent: textbox (Circumferential gap)][AltContent: arrow][AltContent: textbox (Pusher piece)][AltContent: arrow][AltContent: textbox (Pusher)][AltContent: rect][AltContent: ][AltContent: textbox (Tapered portion peripheral surface of the cylindrical slide member)][AltContent: arrow][AltContent: textbox (Insertion direction)][AltContent: arrow][AltContent: textbox (Elastic biasing member)][AltContent: arrow][AltContent: arrow][AltContent: textbox (Shuck mechanism)][AltContent: arrow][AltContent: textbox (Dental handpiece)][AltContent: arrow][AltContent: arrow][AltContent: textbox (Plurality of divided movable pieces)][AltContent: textbox (Cylindrical slide member)][AltContent: textbox (Hollow cylindrical sleeve)][AltContent: arrow]
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Regarding claim 1, Shoji discloses a dental handpiece configured to rotatably drive a dental treatment tool mounted in a chuck mechanism, the dental hand piece including:
the chuck mechanism in which the dental treatment tool is mounted so as to be attachable and detachable (see page 3, line 18), wherein the chuck mechanism includes:
a hollow cylindrical sleeve (20) into which the dental treatment tool is inserted so as to be rotatably supported (see abstract – “A rotary cylinder is provided in a head case, and a chuck cylinder is fixed to an inner wall of the rotary shaft”);
a cylindrical slide member (41) housed in the hollow cylindrical sleeve (20) so as to be movable in an axial direction of the hollow cylindrical sleeve (see annotated Fig. 1 above and page 3, lines 24-26 - where the element 41 is a spring that moves in the longitudinal direction when pressing applied to the upper lid 13);
a plurality of divided movable pieces (32a-d ) disposed in the hollow cylindrical sleeve (20) at different circumferential positions to each other (see annotated Fig. 1 and 2 above – where due to each of strips 32a-d is formed between a slit 33, each strip is considered divided from each other, and due to each strip moves radially to hold the dental treatment tool, it is also considered to be movable, forming a plurality of divided movable pieces), each of the plurality of divided movable pieces (32a-d) including an outer peripheral surface that comes into contact with an inner peripheral surface of the cylindrical slide member (41) (see Fig. 1 and 2 above – where the outer peripheral sural surface is in direct contact with the inside surface of the cylindrical slide member), and
an inner peripheral surface that comes into contact with an outer peripheral surface of the dental treatment tool inserted into the hollow cylindrical sleeve (20) (see Fig. 2 above), and the dental treatment tool being held between the plurality of divided movable pieces (see page 3, lines 24-28);
an elastic biasing member (44) configured to bias the cylindrical slide member (41) forward in an insertion direction of the dental treatment tool (see annotated Fig. 1 above); and
a stopper unit configured to restrict forward axial movement of the plurality of divided movable pieces in the insertion direction, at least a part of the stopper unit being partially fixed to the hollow cylindrical sleeve (20) (see page 3, lines 1-2 - the lower portion 31 of the plurality of divided movable pieces is directly in contact with the sleeve 20), and
wherein the outer peripheral surface of each of the plurality of divided movable pieces and the inner peripheral surface of the cylindrical slide member contact with each other via a tapered fitting portion having a gradient in the axial direction, the tapered fitting portion being provided on at least one of the outer peripheral surface of the plurality of divided movable pieces and the inner peripheral surface of the cylindrical slide member (see annotated Fig. 1 above),
the dental handpiece further including:
a pusher (13) is disposed forward of the divided movable pieces in the insertion from the chuck mechanism (see annotated Fig. 1 above),
wherein the pusher (13) includes a push piece (43) that extends toward the cylindrical slide member through a circumferential gap between the plurality of divided movable pieces (see annotated Fig. 1 above), and
wherein in a case where the pusher (13) is pressed down rearward in the insertion direction of the dental treatment tool, the push piece pushes back the cylindrical slide member rearward in the insertion direction, so that chucking of the dental treatment tool by the divided movable pieces is released (see page 3, lines 18-34).
However, Shoji does not disclose that the pusher includes a plurality of push pieces extending toward the cylindrical slide member through respective circumferential gaps between the plurality of divided movable pieces, and a distal end of each push piece is in contact with the cylindrical slide member.
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Fleer et al. teaches dental handpiece includes a pusher (see Fig. 8 above) includes a plurality of push pieces (34) that extends toward the cylindrical slide member through a circumferential gap between the plurality of divided movable pieces (see annotated Fig. 9 above), that when the pusher is pressed down in the insertion direction of the dental treatment tool, the push piece pushes (34) radially outward the cylindrical slide member rearward in the insertion direction, so that chucking of the dental treatment tool by the divided movable pieces (25) is released (see Fig. 7-9 above and page 4, lines 20-38).
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the cylindrical slide member and the pusher piece of Shoji, with the pusher inclining a plurality of push pieces and the respective circumferential gaps between the plurality of divided movable pieces of Fleer, in order to provide another option of a clamping mechanism with only three parts, with better contact surfaces with the dental treatment tool to keep it in place during rotation.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to claim 1 have been considered but are moot because the new ground of rejection does not rely on any reference applied in the prior rejection of record for any teaching or matter specifically challenged in the argument.
Conclusion
Applicant's amendment necessitated the new ground(s) of rejection presented in this Office action. Accordingly, THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. See MPEP § 706.07(a). Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to MIRAYDA ARLENE APONTE whose telephone number is (571)270-1933. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 8-5.
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/MIRAYDA A APONTE/Examiner, Art Unit 3772 /ERIC J ROSEN/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3772
