UNITED STATES PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE

 

 

 

OFFICE ACTION

 

TO AVOID ABANDONMENT, WE MUST RECEIVE A PROPER RESPONSE TO THIS OFFICE ACTION WITHIN 6 MONTHS OF OUR MAILING OR E-MAILING DATE. 

 

 

Serial Number  76/581890

 

The assigned examining attorney has reviewed the referenced application and determined the following.

 

The Office records have been searched and no similar registered or pending mark has been found that would bar registration under Trademark Act Section 2(d), 15 U.S.C. §1052(d).  TMEP §704.02.

 

Identification of Goods

 

The wording “DEVICES FOR APPLYING PREDETERMINED PRESSURE TO A BODY PART TO TREAT HUMAN CONDITIONS AND AILMENTS” in the identification of goods is unacceptable.  The particular body part and specific types of human conditions and ailments which are treated by the applicant’s medical devices must be indicated in the identification of goods.  The applicant must amend the identification to specify the common commercial name of the goods. If there is no common commercial name for the products, the applicant must describe the products and their intended uses.  TMEP §1402.01.

 

The applicant may adopt the following identification of goods, if accurate: 

 

 “MEDICAL DEVICES FOR APPLYING PREDETERMINED PRESSURE TO [INSERT TYPE OF BODY PART AND TYPE OF CONDITION AND AILMENTS TREATED, E.G., THE HUMAN HEAD TO TREAT MIGRAINE PAIN AND CHRONIC TENSION HEADACHES], in International Class 010.”

 

TMEP §1402.01.

 

For assistance with identifying goods and/or services in trademark applications, please see the online searchable Manual of Acceptable Identifications of Goods and Services at http://tess2.gov.uspto.report/netahtml/tidm.html.

 

Please note that, while an application may be amended to clarify or limit the identification, additions to the identification are not permitted.  37 C.F.R. §2.71(a); TMEP §1402.06.  Therefore, the applicant may not amend to include any goods or services that are not within the scope of the goods or services recited in the present identification.

 

Standard Character Drawing Claim

 

It appears that the applicant has submitted a standard character drawing.

 

If this is the case, the applicant must submit the following standard character claim:  “The mark is presented in standard characters without claim to any particular font style, size, or color.”  37 C.F.R. §2.52(a).

 

In a standard character drawing, the mark on the drawing consists of only words, letters or numbers, but does not include any designs or claims as to particular font style, size, or color.  A registration for a mark using a standard character drawing affords protection not only for the standard character version of the mark, but for any possible renderings of the mark, as long as those renderings do not contain any design elements; i.e., a registered standard character drawing of the mark gives protection for display on the specimens in any lettering style.  A special-form drawing, on the other hand, shows the mark in stylized letters and/or with a design element and provides protection for only that specific rendering.  37 C.F.R. §2.52; Exam Guide 01-03, section I; See TMEP §§807.06 et seq. and TMEP §807.07 et seq.

 

Significance of the Mark

 

The applicant must specify whether “SEDMAX” has any significance in the medical devices field or medical industry, any geographical significance, or any meaning in a foreign language.  37 C.F.R. §2.61(b).

 

 

PLEASE NOTE:  The applicant is encouraged to telephone the trademark examining attorney to resolve the issues raised above.

 

 

 

NOTICE:  TRADEMARK OPERATION RELOCATING OCTOBER AND NOVEMBER  2004

 

The Trademark Operation is relocating to Alexandria, Virginia, in October and November 2004.  Effective October 4, 2004, all Trademark-related paper mail (except documents sent to the Assignment Services Division for recordation, certain documents filed under the Madrid Protocol, and requests for copies of trademark documents) must be sent to:

 

Commissioner for Trademarks

P.O. Box 1451

Alexandria, VA  22313-1451

 

Applicants, registration owners, attorneys and other Trademark customers are strongly encouraged to correspond with the USPTO online via the Trademark Electronic Application System (TEAS), at www.uspto.gov.

 

 

 

/Andrew Rhim/

Attorney-Adviser

Law Office 106

(703) 308-9106 ext. 147 (until 10/31/04)

(571) 272-9711 (beginning 11/1/04)

 

 

 

How to respond to this Office Action:

 

You may respond using the Office's Trademark Electronic Application System (TEAS) (visit http://www.gov.uspto.report/teas/index.html and follow the instructions therein), but you must wait until at least 72 hours after receipt of the e-mailed office action. PLEASE NOTE:  For those with applications filed pursuant to Section 66(a) of the Trademark Act, all responses to Office actions that include amendments to the identifications of goods and/or services must be filed on paper, using regular mail (or hand delivery) to submit such response. TEAS cannot be used under these circumstances. If the response does not include an amendment to the goods and/or services, then TEAS can be used to respond to the Office action.

 

To respond formally via regular mail, your response should be sent to the mailing Return Address listed above and include the serial number, law office and examining attorney’s name on the upper right corner of each page of your response.

 

To check the status of your application at any time, visit the Office’s Trademark Applications and Registrations Retrieval (TARR) system at http://tarr.gov.uspto.report/

 

For general and other useful information about trademarks, you are encouraged to visit the Office’s web site at http://www.gov.uspto.report/main/trademarks.htm

 

FOR INQUIRIES OR QUESTIONS ABOUT THIS OFFICE ACTION, PLEASE CONTACT THE ASSIGNED EXAMINING ATTORNEY.