26DETAILED 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 .
Status of Claims
Applicant filed remarks on 04/16/2026. Claim 6 was amended, claim 7 was cancelled and claim 21 was newly added. Claims 1-6 and 8-21 are presented and pending examination.
Response to Arguments
Regarding the claim rejections under 35 USC 102 and 103: Applicant's arguments filed 04/16/2026 with respect to Sun et al. (US 9308914 B1) in view of Singh (US 20180231976 A1) have been fully considered but they are not persuasive.
Regarding claims 1 and 14, The applicant argues that “Sun does not disclose activating one of a plurality of vehicle drive assist system components from a deactivated state based on the driver data and on the external environment data without manual intervention of the driver, and that the activated vehicle drive assist system component is activated prior to operation of the activated vehicle drive assist system component, as recited in Applicant’s independent claims 1 and 14”.
However, the examiner respectfully disagrees, this argument is not persuasive. Sun discloses:
The integrated use of both driver data and external environment data by the controller :“The driver assistance controller activates the driver assistance features when the driver status monitor detects the abnormal situation with the activation switch set to deactivate. … The driver assistance controller performs the one or more driver assistance features for controlling the vehicle based on a target behavior, where the target behavior is defined based on the environment surrounding the vehicle.” [Abstract]).
The environmental sensors that supply the external environment data:“The environmental surrounding module 26 receives environmental data from the environmental sensors 14 to detect an environment surrounding the vehicle. The environmental sensors 14 detect, for example, an approaching object, a crossing pedestrian, a preceding vehicle, and/or unintended departure from the traveling lane. … The environmental sensors 14 include a camera 36, a radar 38, and/or a sonar 40.” [Col. 5, lines 1–4 and 9–10]).
Automatic activation based on driver data from the DSM and the ordering of activation prior to operation:“Firstly, the routine 500 sets a flag to “0” to initialize the status at step 501 and determines whether the activation switch 22 is turned on by the driver in step 502. … If the activation switch 22 is not turned on (S 502: No), then a driver status determination is executed in step 504. At step 505, the routine 500 determines whether the abnormal situation is determined. If the abnormal situation is determined (S 505: Yes), the routine 500 activates the driver assistance features automatically at step 506 and subsequently sets the flag to “2” at step 507. … After the flagging at steps 503 and 507, the driver assistance features are performed at step 509.” [Col. 9, lines 3–18, describing the FIG. 5 routine]).
Confirming that the performance/operation step uses the external environment data:“At step 701, the routine acquires the environmental data from the environmental sensors 36, 38, and 40. Subsequently, the routine 700 performs the driver assistance features such as PCS, ACC, and/or LKA selectively or simultaneously at steps 702, 703, and 704.”[ description of FIG. 7 / step S509]).
The examiner’s interpretation of the claim language “activate … based on the driver data and on the external environment data” is satisfied by the disclosed controller that (1) uses driver data from the DSM to trigger automatic activation from a deactivated state (S506) without manual intervention and (2) immediately thereafter uses external environment data to define the target behavior and perform the activated features (S509 / FIG. 7). The activation at S506 occurs prior to the operation at S509.
The applicant also argues that Sun does not disclose providing an indication to the driver, stating:
“Thus, the flag in Sun does not provide an indication to the driver that one of the driver assistance features is activated. Thus, Sun also does not disclose providing an indication to the driver when the activation of one of the plurality of drive assist system components is activated, as recited in Applicant’s claims 12 and 18”.
However, the examiner respectfully disagrees, this argument is not persuasive. Sun teaches the flag that indicates the activation state :“The activation module 32 has a flag indicating how the driver assistance feature is activated. The flag “0” indicates the status is initialized. The flag “1” indicates the driver assistance feature is activated manually by the driver via the activation switch 22. The flag “2” indicates the driver assistance feature is activated automatically by the system based on the driver status.”[Col. 6, lines 9–13]). The setting of the flag to “2” at step S507 (and the corresponding performance of the features) constitutes the system’s indication that one of the plurality of vehicle drive assist system components has been activated. Under the broadest reasonable interpretation, this satisfies the “indication to the driver” limitations.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status.
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 1-4, 6, 8-16 and 18-21 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Sun et al. (US 9308914 B1), hereinafter referred to as Sun.
Regarding claims 1 and 14, Sun discloses an automatic driver assist system for a vehicle comprising:
a first sensor configured to detect driver data relating to a current state of a driver of the vehicle (“The driver-facing camera 48 may be mounted at the meter console to capture the driver's face, especially the driver's eyes.” See at least [Col.4 ln 37-45]);
a second sensor configured to capture external environment data relating to an external environment of the vehicle (“The radar 38 may be millimeter-wave/laser radar mounted in a front bumper. The sonar 40 may be one or more ultrasonic sensors embedded in a rear bumper.” See at least [Col.4 ln 20-27]);
and a controller configured to activate one of a plurality of vehicle drive assist system components from a deactivated state based on the driver data and on the external environment data without manual intervention of the driver, the activated vehicle drive assist system component being configured to assist the driver in operation of the vehicle (“a method for controlling an advanced driver assistance system of a vehicle for performing one or more driver assistance features includes steps of detecting, monitoring, receiving, performing, and activating. The determining step determines an environment surrounding the vehicle. The monitoring step monitors the driver and determines an abnormal situation of the driver. The receiving step receives a signal from an activation switch operable by the driver for activating or deactivating the driver assistance features. The performing step performs the one or more driver assistance features for controlling the vehicle based on a target behavior, where the target behavior is defined based on the environment surrounding the vehicle. The activating step activates one or more driver assistance features when the activation switch is set to deactivate and the abnormal situation is determined.” See at least [Col.2 ln 1-16])
the activated vehicle drive assist system component being activated prior to operation of the activated vehicle drive assist system component; (See Sun, col. 4-5, lines 63-67 & 1-19: “If the activation switch 22 is not turned on (S 502 : No), then a driver status determination is executed in step 504 . At step 505 , the routine 500 determines whether the abnormal situation is determined. If the abnormal situation is determined (S 505 : Yes), the routine 500 activates the driver assistance features automatically at step 506 and subsequently sets the flag to “2” at step 507 . … After the flagging at steps 503 and 507 , the driver assistance features are performed at step 509 . The routine 500 returns to step 501 and repeats until the vehicle system is shut down.”; see also Sun, col. 6, lines 42-49: “FIG. 7 shows a flowchart for a routine 700 that performs the driver assistance features which is executed at step 509 in FIG. 5 . At step 701 , the routine acquires the environmental data from the environmental sensors 36 , 38 , and 40 . Subsequently, the routine 700 performs the driver assistance features such as PCS, ACC, and/or LKA selectively or simultaneously at steps 702 , 703 , and 704 and the routine 700 goes to the end.”).
Regarding claims 2, 15 and 19, Sun discloses wherein the controller is further configured to deactivate the one of the plurality of vehicle drive assist system components based on the driver data (“The determining step determines an environment surrounding the vehicle. The monitoring step monitors the driver and determines an abnormal situation of the driver. The receiving step receives a signal from an activation switch operable by the driver for activating or deactivating the driver assistance features. The performing step performs the one or more driver assistance features for controlling the vehicle based on a target behavior, where the target behavior is defined based on the environment surrounding the vehicle. The activating step activates one or more driver assistance features when the activation switch is set to deactivate and the abnormal situation is determined.” See at least [Col.2 ln 1-16]).
Regarding claims 3 and 20, Sun discloses wherein the driver data includes an attention level of the driver (“The driver-facing camera 48 may be mounted at the meter console to capture the driver's face, especially the driver's eyes. The driver status module 34 processes data received from the driver-facing camera 48 and monitors whether the driver looks away from the road based on the driver's gaze direction. If the driver looks away, the driver status module 34 determines the abnormal situation. The driver status module 34 may also determine whether the driver is drowsy or alert based on how much the driver's eye opens and for how long.” See at least [Col.4 ln 37-45]).
Regarding claims 4 and 16, Sun discloses the automatic driver assist system according to The automatic driver assist system according to wherein the controller is further configured to bring the vehicle to a stop when the first sensor detects the attention level of the driver is less than a predetermined threshold for a predetermined amount of time (“The PCS prevents the vehicle from hitting an object detected within the surrounding of the vehicle. When the environmental sensor 38, 38, 40 detect the object approaching the vehicle or a pedestrian crossing in front of the vehicle, the vehicle target operation module 30 calculates a time-to-collision (TTC) of the object. If the TTC falls below a predefined threshold, the vehicle target operation module 30 actuates the brake 44 to decelerate or stop the vehicle. This kind of driver assistance feature may also be known as a forward collision warning (FCW) which provides the alert to the driver without actuating the brake 42 automatically.” See at least [Col.5 ln 13-23]).
Regarding claims 6 and 18, Sun discloses wherein the controller is further configured to provide a visual or an audible indication to the driver when the one of the plurality of vehicle drive assist system components is activated (“The HMIs 20 notifies the driver of a possible safety concern or notifies the driver of whether and how the driver assistance feature is working. The HMIs 20 include a display for providing a visible alert, a speaker for providing an audible alert, and a vibration motor for providing a haptic alert to the driver.” See at least [Col.3-4 ln 62-67 & 1-2]).
Regarding claim 8, Sun discloses the automatic driver assist system according to The automatic driver assist system according to wherein the one of the plurality of vehicle drive assist system components is configured to assist lateral control of the vehicle (“The vehicle target operation module 30 receives the environmental data and the operation data to calculate a target behavior suitable for the environment. Depending on the target behavior, the vehicle target operation module 30 controls the vehicle actuators 18 and performs the driver assistance features by generating accelerating force, decelerating force, and/or steering force to steer the vehicle wheels. The driving assistance features assist the driver automatically or semi-automatically with driving the vehicle safely so as to approach the target behavior. As shown in FIG. 3, the vehicle actuators 18 include a throttle 42 of an engine, a brake 44 of wheels, and a steering 46 of front wheels.” See at least [Col.3 ln 47-57]).
Regarding claim 9, Sun discloses the automatic driver assist system according to The automatic driver assist system according to wherein the one of the plurality of vehicle drive assist system components is configured to assist longitudinal control of the vehicle (“The vehicle target operation module 30 receives the environmental data and the operation data to calculate a target behavior suitable for the environment. Depending on the target behavior, the vehicle target operation module 30 controls the vehicle actuators 18 and performs the driver assistance features by generating accelerating force, decelerating force, and/or steering force to steer the vehicle wheels. The driving assistance features assist the driver automatically or semi-automatically with driving the vehicle safely so as to approach the target behavior. As shown in FIG. 3, the vehicle actuators 18 include a throttle 42 of an engine, a brake 44 of wheels, and a steering 46 of front wheels.” See at least [Col.3 ln 47-57]).
Regarding claim 10, Sun discloses wherein the attention level of the driver includes at least one of a visual attention level, a control level and a drowsiness level of the driver (“The driver-facing camera 48 may be mounted at the meter console to capture the driver's face, especially the driver's eyes. The driver status module 34 processes data received from the driver-facing camera 48 and monitors whether the driver looks away from the road based on the driver's gaze direction. If the driver looks away, the driver status module 34 determines the abnormal situation. The driver status module 34 may also determine whether the driver is drowsy or alert based on how much the driver's eye opens and for how long.” See at least [Col.4 ln 37-45]).
Regarding claim 11, Sun discloses wherein the automatic driver assist system is configured to be set on or off through a vehicle interface (“The driver may activate or deactivate each of the driver assistance features individually via the activation switch 22 which may be disposed at the steering wheel. When the activation switch 22 is turned on, the activation module 32 determines that the driver has activated the driving assistant features. The activation module 32 informs the vehicle target operation module 30 to activate the driving assistance features. Conversely, when the activation switch 22 is turned off, the activation module 32 determines that the driver has not activated the driving assistant features.” See at least [Col.4 ln 3-15] and “the vehicle target operation module 30 may further control the HMIs 20 at the same time or prior to actuating the vehicle actuators 18.” See at least [Col.3 ln 62-67]).
Regarding claim 12, Sun discloses wherein the controller is further configured to provide an indication to the driver when the activation of the one of the plurality of vehicle drive assist system components is being activated (“The activation module 32 has a flag indicating how the driver assistance feature is activated. The flag “0” indicates the status is initialized. The flag “1” indicates the driver assistance feature is activated manually by the driver via the activation switch 22. The flag “2” indicates the driver assistance feature is activated automatically by the system based on the driver status.” See at least [Col.4 ln 20-26]).
Regarding claim 13, Sun discloses wherein each of the plurality of vehicle drive assist system components is configured to be set on or off through a vehicle interface to allow or prevent activation by the controller(“The driver may activate or deactivate each of the driver assistance features individually via the activation switch 22 which may be disposed at the steering wheel. When the activation switch 22 is turned on, the activation module 32 determines that the driver has activated the driving assistant features. The activation module 32 informs the vehicle target operation module 30 to activate the driving assistance features. Conversely, when the activation switch 22 is turned off, the activation module 32 determines that the driver has not activated the driving assistant features.” See at least [Col.4 ln 3-15] and “the vehicle target operation module 30 may further control the HMIs 20 at the same time or prior to actuating the vehicle actuators 18.” See at least [Col.3 ln 62-67]).
Regarding claim 21, Sun discloses
a first sensor configured to detect driver data relating to a current state of a driver of the vehicle (“The driver-facing camera 48 may be mounted at the meter console to capture the driver's face, especially the driver's eyes.” See at least [Col.4 ln 37-45]);
a second sensor configured to capture external environment data relating to an external environment of the vehicle (“The radar 38 may be millimeter-wave/laser radar mounted in a front bumper. The sonar 40 may be one or more ultrasonic sensors embedded in a rear bumper.” See at least [Col.4 ln 20-27]);
and a controller configured to activate one of a plurality of vehicle drive assist system components from a deactivated state based on the driver data and on the external environment data without manual intervention of the driver, the activated vehicle drive assist system component being configured to assist the driver in operation of the vehicle, the activated vehicle drive assist system component being activated prior to operation of the activated vehicle drive assist system component (“a method for controlling an advanced driver assistance system of a vehicle for performing one or more driver assistance features includes steps of detecting, monitoring, receiving, performing, and activating. The determining step determines an environment surrounding the vehicle. The monitoring step monitors the driver and determines an abnormal situation of the driver. The receiving step receives a signal from an activation switch operable by the driver for activating or deactivating the driver assistance features. The performing step performs the one or more driver assistance features for controlling the vehicle based on a target behavior, where the target behavior is defined based on the environment surrounding the vehicle. The activating step activates one or more driver assistance features when the activation switch is set to deactivate and the abnormal situation is determined.” See at least [Col.2 ln 1-16]),
the controller being further configured to deactivate the one of the plurality of vehicle drive assist system components based on the driver data (“The determining step determines an environment surrounding the vehicle. The monitoring step monitors the driver and determines an abnormal situation of the driver. The receiving step receives a signal from an activation switch operable by the driver for activating or deactivating the driver assistance features. The performing step performs the one or more driver assistance features for controlling the vehicle based on a target behavior, where the target behavior is defined based on the environment surrounding the vehicle. The activating step activates one or more driver assistance features when the activation switch is set to deactivate and the abnormal situation is determined.” See at least [Col.2 ln 1-16]),
the controller is further configured to provide an indication to the driver when the activation of the one of the plurality of vehicle drive assist system components is being activated (“Depending on the target behavior, the vehicle target operation module 30 may further control the HMIs 20 at the same time or prior to actuating the vehicle actuators 18. The HMIs 20 notifies the driver of a possible safety concern or notifies the driver of whether and how the driver assistance feature is working. The HMIs 20 include a display for providing a visible alert, a speaker for providing an audible alert, and a vibration motor for providing a haptic alert to the driver. “ See at least [Col.3-4 ln 62-67 & 1-2]; “The activation module 32 has a flag indicating how the driver assistance feature is activated. The flag “0” indicates the status is initialized. The flag “1” indicates the driver assistance feature is activated manually by the driver via the activation switch 22. The flag “2” indicates the driver assistance feature is activated automatically by the system based on the driver status.” See at least [Col.4 ln 20-26]),
and the controller being configured to provide an indication to the driver when the activation of the one of the plurality of vehicle drive assist system components is being deactivated (“Depending on the target behavior, the vehicle target operation module 30 may further control the HMIs 20 at the same time or prior to actuating the vehicle actuators 18. The HMIs 20 notifies the driver of a possible safety concern or notifies the driver of whether and how the driver assistance feature is working. The HMIs 20 include a display for providing a visible alert, a speaker for providing an audible alert, and a vibration motor for providing a haptic alert to the driver. “ See at least [Col.3-4 ln 62-67 & 1-2]; “Conversely, if the abnormal situation does not exist or is no longer detected (S505: No), the routine verifies the driver assistance features is deactivated or suppressed automatically at step 508. In other words, if the driver assistance feature was previously activated due to the abnormal situation, the driver assistance feature is deactivated at step 508 because the driving safety feature is no longer needed.” See at least [Col.6 ln 9-16]).
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status.
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.
Claims 5 and 17 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Sun in view of Singh (US 20180231976 A1), hereinafter referred to as Sun and Singh respectively.
Regarding claims 5 and 17,
Sun does not explicitly teach wherein the controller is further configured to prevent another one of the plurality of vehicle drive assist system components from being activated based on the external environment data
However, Singh does teach wherein the controller is further configured to prevent another one of the plurality of vehicle drive assist system components from being activated based on the external environment data (“When driving assisted, in most cases at which the driver is highly attentive, the system's warnings and interventions may be felt more or less anxious or overprotective and may often bother the driver, which may lead to the driver disengaging the according DAS. For example, the driver may tend to shorten the distance to the vehicle at the same lane ahead, when preparing for an overtaking maneuver on a highway. An Adaptive Cruise Control (ACC) system may intervene by braking when underrunning the set desired distance to the vehicle ahead. This may not benefit the overtaking maneuver that the driver had in mind.” See at least [0055]).
Both Sun and Singh teach methods for driver assist control. However, Singh explicitly teaches wherein the controller is further configured to prevent another one of the plurality of vehicle drive assist system components from being activated based on the external environment data.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the driver assist control method of Sun to also include wherein the controller is further configured to prevent another one of the plurality of vehicle drive assist system components from being activated based on the external environment data, as taught by Singh, with a reasonable expectation of success. Doing so improves safety for operating a vehicle by providing valuable information that can be used to improve the driver assist features (With regard to this reasoning, see at least See at least [Singh, 0055]).
Conclusion
THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. 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 extension fee 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 AHMED ALKIRSH whose telephone number is (703) 756-4503. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 9:00 am-5:00 pm EST.
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/A.A./Examiner, Art Unit 3668
/MOHAMED ABDO ALGEHAIM/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3668
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