Patent Application 18303058 - SINGLE-FIBER ILLUMINATED LASER PROBE WITH

Title: SINGLE-FIBER ILLUMINATED LASER PROBE WITH ADJUSTABLE COLOR

Application Information

Invention Title: SINGLE-FIBER ILLUMINATED LASER PROBE WITH ADJUSTABLE COLOR
Application Number: 18303058
Submission Date: 2025-05-22T00:00:00.000Z
Effective Filing Date: 2023-04-19T00:00:00.000Z
Filing Date: 2023-04-19T00:00:00.000Z
National Class: 606
National Sub-Class: 004000
Examiner Employee Number: 88332
Art Unit: 3792
Tech Center: 3700

Rejection Summary

102 Rejections: 0
103 Rejections: 1

Cited Patents

No patents were cited in this rejection.

Office Action Text

DETAILED ACTION

Status of Claims
The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
Claims 1-17 are pending.

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.
This application currently names joint inventors. In considering patentability of the claims the examiner presumes that the subject matter of the various claims was commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the claimed invention(s) absent any evidence to the contrary. Applicant is advised of the obligation under 37 CFR 1.56 to point out the inventor and effective filing dates of each claim that was not commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the later invention in order for the examiner to consider the applicability of 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(2)(C) for any potential 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) prior art against the later invention.
Claims 1-5 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Hiereth et al. (US 20190099612 A1, 2019-04-04) (hereinafter “Hiereth”) in view of Lucrecio et al. (US 20170059763 A1, 2017-03-02) (hereinafter “2017-03-02”).
Regarding claims 1-5, Hiereth teaches a surgical laser system, comprising :a laser source configured to emit a laser light (construed as “therapy beam,” as quoted below); an illumination source configured to emit a color-adjustable illumination light (construed as “illumination beam,” as quoted below); an optical fiber (e.g., 39, Fig. 3a) comprising a fiber core circumferentially surrounded by one or more cladding layers, wherein the fiber core is configured to transmit the laser light emitted from the laser source and the illumination light emitted from the illumination source, and wherein the one or more cladding layers are configured to transmit only the illumination light emitted from the illumination source; and an optical relay system (e.g., comprising 59, Fig. 3a; [0037], [0149]) configured to direct the laser light emitted from the laser source onto the fiber core and the illumination light emitted from the illumination source onto the fiber core and the one or more cladding layers. See, e.g., [0034] (“The electromagnetic wave for lighting or the illumination beam can have a homogeneous angular distribution for the purpose of homogeneous lighting/illumination and can be guided in the fiber core and/or in the inner cladding glass and can be reflected by the outer fiber cladding, while the therapy beam or the electromagnetic waves for therapy, for example, is guided exclusively in the core, i.e. reflected by the first fiber cladding.”); [0152] (“The double-clad fiber 39 contains a fiber core or a core fiber through which the therapy beam 44 is guided, which forms the therapy area 43 as a spot on the tissue surface, and a fiber cladding or cladding fiber. The illumination beam 45, which forms the observation area 41 as a spot on the tissue surface, is guided through the fiber core and the first fiber cladding.”). See also, e.g., Fig. 1, 2, 3a and associated text.
Hiereth does not teach that the illumination source comprising a plurality of light-emitting diodes (LEDs) arranged on a light scattering cell. Lucrecio teaches illumination source comprising a plurality of (red, green, and blue) light-emitting diodes (LEDs) arranged on a light scattering cell. See, e.g., [0061], Figs. 4c, 4e and associated text.
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate the teachings of Lucrecio with the invention taught by Hiereth such that the illumination source further comprises a plurality of light-emitting diodes (LEDs) arranged on a light scattering cell (as recited in claim 1); wherein the plurality of LEDs comprises a red LED, a green LED, and a blue LED (as recited in claim 2); wherein the light scattering cell comprises a Lambertian scattering cell (e.g., Fig. 4c of Lucrecio) (as recited in claim 3); wherein the light scattering cell comprises a three-dimensional Lambertian scattering cell comprising a plurality of walls at least partially defining an interior volume, wherein: one or more of the plurality of walls comprises an interior light scattering surface facing the interior volume; one or more of the plurality of walls comprises at least one of the plurality of LEDs arranged thereon and configured to emit the illumination light within the interior volume; and at least one of the plurality of walls comprises an aperture formed therein for transmitting the emitted illumination light from the interior volume toward the optical relay system (e.g., Fig. 4c of Lucrecio) (as recited in claim 4); wherein the plurality of LEDs comprises a red LED, a green LED, and a blue LED (as recited in claim 5) in order to allow for adjustability of the illumination beam.

Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 9-17 are allowed.
Claims 6-8 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.
The prior art of record does not teach or suggest the claimed invention of a surgical laser system of claim 4, further comprising a light recycling mirror disposed outside of the interior volume of the three-dimensional Lambertian scattering cell and adjacent to the aperture, the light recycling mirror configured to reflect peripheral light outside of a desired light beam angle back into the interior volume for recycling (as recited in claim 6); a surgical laser system of claim 1, wherein the second end is disposed within an light probe for insertion into an eye; and the second end comprises a beveled tip configured to transmit the laser light and the illumination light at an angle between 5 degrees and 20 degrees relative to an optical axis of the optical fiber (as recited in claim 8); a surgical laser system comprising the recited elements, including a red-green-blue (RGB) light-combining prism configured to combine monochromatic light emitted from a plurality of light-emitting diodes (LEDs) into the illumination light, the plurality of LEDs comprising at least a red LED, a green LED, and a blue LED; the plurality of LEDs comprising at least the red LED, the green LED, and the blue LED, the plurality of LEDs arranged around the RGB light-combining prism and configured to emit the monochromatic light; and a collimator mated to each of the plurality of LEDs and configured to direct the monochromatic light emitted from the LED toward the RGB light-combining prism (as recited in claim 9); a surgical laser system comprising the recited elements, including a filter assembly configured to transmit and adjust a color of the illumination light emitted by the illumination source, wherein the color of the illumination light emitted by the illumination source may be adjusted by changing a physical position or orientation of the filter assembly (as recited in claim 13).
For these reasons the claims are believed to be allowable over the art of record.

Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to SCOTT T LUAN whose telephone number is (571)270-1860. The examiner can normally be reached on 9am-5pm, M-F (generally).
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Gary Jackson, can be reached on 571-272-4697. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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Scott Luan, Ph.D.
/SCOTT LUAN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3792