DETAILED ACTION
Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status
1. The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
Continued Examination Under 37 CFR 1.114
2. A request for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, including the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e), was filed in this application after final rejection. Since this application is eligible for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114. Applicant's submission filed on 04/17/2026 has been entered.
Response to Arguments
3. Applicant’s arguments (see Remarks dated 04/17/2026) 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.
Specification
4. The specification is objected to because of the following informalities:
Each instance of “projected member” should presumably read “project[[ed]]ion member”; if not, the language of claims 1 and 10-11 should be amended to align with the specification
Appropriate correction is required.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
5. The text of those sections of Title 35, U.S. Code not included in this action can be found in a prior Office action.
6. Claims 1-3 and 6-13 are rejected under 35 USC 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Suzuki et al. (JP 2016210212 A).
Regarding claim 1, Suzuki discloses a display control device that controls a head-up display (HUD) device mounted on a vehicle ([0022], “automotive HUD device 200…includes… a display control means”) and projecting an image onto a projection member provided in the vehicle to thereby allow a driver to visually recognize a virtual image of the image ([0009], “Projection light…is reflected by the windshield 302…[t]hereby, the driver 300 can visually recognize a…virtual image”), the display control device comprising a control unit ([0022], “image control device 250 as a display control means”) programmed to:
monitor a viewpoint position of the driver ([0042], “driver camera 150 as a viewpoint position detection unit”) within an eye box ([0047], “imaging region of the driver camera 150 (near the head of the driver 300)”);
update an image pre-distortion parameter ([0051], “position of the virtual image…is moved”) in accordance with the viewpoint position of the driver in the eye box ([0051], “image control device 250 recognizes the head position of the driver 300… captured by the driver camera 150”);
pre-distort an image ([0016]) to be displayed on a display unit (Fig. 3, 210) using the image pre-distortion parameter so that distortion of the virtual image of the image is counteracted ([0016], “laser light is…corrected for distortion…to draw an intermediate image”);
when a viewpoint lost state is detected, the viewpoint lost state being a state in which a position of at least one of right and left viewpoints of the driver is unclear, maintain, during the viewpoint lost state, the image pre-distortion parameter updated immediately before entering the viewpoint lost state ([0062], “when the head position can not be recognized…723 is maintained at the previous display position”), and
when the position of the at least one of the right and left viewpoints is re-detected after entering the viewpoint lost state, refrain from pre-distorting the image to be displayed on the display unit using the image pre-distortion parameter corresponding to the re-detected viewpoint position ([0072], “when the situation where the recognition result of the head position satisfies the abnormality condition exceeds the specified time…723 are not displayed”).
Regarding claim 2, Suzuki discloses wherein the control unit compares a period of the viewpoint lost state with a threshold value, and if the period of the viewpoint lost state is shorter than the threshold value ([0088], “detection result of the viewpoint position detection means no longer satisfies the predetermined abnormality condition”), the control unit performs a control to lengthen a period during which pre-distorting the image to be displayed on the display unit using the image pre-distortion parameter corresponding to the re-detected viewpoint position is refrained from as compared to a case where the period of the viewpoint lost state is longer than the threshold value ([0072], “when…the recognition result of the head position satisfies the abnormality condition exceeds the specified time…image portions [are] maintained at the immediately preceding display position”).
Regarding claim 3, Suzuki discloses wherein the control unit compares a period of the viewpoint lost state with a threshold value, and if the period of the viewpoint lost state is shorter than the threshold value, the control unit performs a control to shorten a period during which pre-distorting the image to be displayed on the display unit using the image pre-distortion parameter corresponding to the re-detected viewpoint position is refrained from as compared to a case where the period of the viewpoint lost state is longer than the threshold value ([0011], “if the distance to the virtual image G is 5 m or more…the focus adjustment time to the virtual image G is shortened”).
Regarding claim 6, Suzuki discloses a low-speed state determination unit that determines whether a speed of the vehicle is in a low-speed state, wherein the control unit lengthens a period during which pre-distorting the image to be displayed on the display unit using the image pre-distortion parameter corresponding to the re-detected viewpoint position is refrained when the vehicle is in the low-speed state including a stopped state, as compared to a period during which pre-distorting the image to be displayed on the display unit using the image pre-distortion parameter corresponding to the re-detected viewpoint position is refrained from in a state where the vehicle is in a state faster than the low-speed state ([0064], “head position…can not be taken at an abnormally high speed”).
Regarding claim 7, Suzuki discloses wherein the control unit changes a period during which pre-distorting the image to be displayed on the display unit using the image pre-distortion parameter corresponding to the re-detected viewpoint position is refrained in accordance with a vehicle speed of the vehicle, and in this case, when a speed of the vehicle is within a range of equal to or higher than a first speed value U1 (U1 > 0) and equal to or lower than a second speed value U2 that is higher than the first speed value, the control unit performs a control to reduce the period during which pre-distorting the image to be displayed on the display unit using the image pre-distortion parameter corresponding to the re-detected viewpoint position is refrained from with respect to the vehicle speed as the vehicle speed becomes fast ([0064], “head position…can not be taken at an abnormally high speed”), or performs a control to moderate a degree of reduction when the vehicle speed is in a range close to the first speed value and to make the degree of reduction steeper as the vehicle speed becomes away from the first speed value, or performs a control to moderate the degree of reduction when the vehicle speed is in a range close to the first speed value, to make the degree of reduction further steeper as the vehicle speed becomes away from the first speed value, and to moderate the degree of reduction as the vehicle speed approaches the second speed value.
Regarding claim 8, Suzuki discloses wherein when adjusting a position of the eye box in accordance with a height position of the viewpoint of the driver ([0078]), the head-up display device does not move an optical member (Fig. 3, 211) and changes a reflection position of display light of the image in the optical member (Fig. 3, when 208 tilts).
Regarding claim 9, Suzuki discloses wherein a virtual image display surface corresponding to an image display surface of the display unit is arranged so as to be superimposed on a road surface in front of the vehicle (Fig. 3, surface of 302 which faces a user), or is arranged at an angle with respect to the road surface in such a manner that a distance between a near end portion that is an end portion of the virtual image display surface on a side closer to the vehicle and the road surface is smaller, and a distance between a far end portion that is an end portion of the virtual image display surface on a side further from the vehicle and the road surface is larger.
Regarding claim 10, Suzuki discloses a head-up display device ([0009], “automotive HUD device 200”) comprising:
the display control device ([0022], “automotive HUD device 200…includes… a display control means”);
a display unit that displays an image (Fig. 3, 210); and
an optical system (Fig. 3) including an optical member (Fig. 3, 211) that reflects and projects display light of the image onto the projection member (Fig. 3, 211 reflects and projects light onto 302).
Regarding claim 11, Suzuki discloses a display control device that controls a head-up display (HUD) device mounted on a vehicle ([0022], “automotive HUD device 200…includes… a display control means”) and projecting an image onto a projection member provided in the vehicle to thereby allow a driver to visually recognize a virtual image of the image ([0009], “Projection light…is reflected by the windshield 302…[t]hereby, the driver 300 can visually recognize a…virtual image”), the display control device comprising a control unit ([0022], “image control device 250 as a display control means”) programmed to:
monitor a viewpoint position of the driver ([0042], “driver camera 150 as a viewpoint position detection unit”) within an eye box ([0047], “imaging region of the driver camera 150 (near the head of the driver 300)”);
update an image pre-distortion parameter ([0051], “position of the virtual image…is moved”) in accordance with the viewpoint position of the driver in the eye box ([0051], “image control device 250 recognizes the head position of the driver 300… captured by the driver camera 150”);
pre-distort an image ([0016]) to be displayed on a display unit (Fig. 3, 210) using the image pre-distortion parameter so that distortion of the virtual image of the image is counteracted ([0016], “laser light is…corrected for distortion…to draw an intermediate image”);
when a viewpoint lost state is detected, the viewpoint lost state being a state in which a position of at least one of right and left viewpoints of the driver is unclear, maintain, during the viewpoint lost state, the image pre-distortion parameter updated immediately before entering the viewpoint lost state ([0062], “when the head position can not be recognized…723 is maintained at the previous display position”), and
when the position of the at least one of the right and left viewpoints is re-detected after entering the viewpoint lost state, refrain, for a predetermined time period ([0058], “a sampling cycle to obtain luminance image data for recognizing the head position (time interval between imaging frames when recognizing the head position in each imaging frame)”), from pre-distorting the image to be displayed on the display unit using the image pre-distortion parameter corresponding to the re-detected viewpoint position ([0072], “when the situation where the recognition result of the head position satisfies the abnormality condition exceeds the specified time…723 are not displayed”).
Regarding claims 12 and 13, Suzuki discloses wherein, after refraining from pre-distorting the image to be displayed on the display unit using the image pre-distortion parameter corresponding to the re-detected viewpoint position, the control unit pre-distorts the image to be displayed on the display unit using the image pre-distortion parameter corresponding to the re-detected viewpoint position ([0088], “even if the driver’s viewpoint position can not be detected…the driver is provided again after the cause disappears; Display control can be continued in which the display position of the information image is changed to change the driver’s perceived distance”).
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
7. The text of those sections of Title 35, U.S. Code not included in this action can be found in a prior Office action.
8. Claims 4-5 are rejected under 35 USC 103 as being unpatentable over Suzuki.
Regarding claim 4, Suzuki fails to explicitly disclose wherein when an update cycle of the image pre-distortion parameter before the viewpoint lost state occurs and during the viewpoint lost state is defined as a first update cycle RT1 and an update cycle of the image pre-distortion parameter during a period during which pre-distorting the image to be displayed on the display unit using the image pre-distortion parameter corresponding to the re-detected viewpoint position is refrained from is disabled is defined as a second update cycle RT2, the control unit changes a parameter update cycle in such a manner that a time length of the first update cycle RT1 is less than that of the second update cycle RT2.
However, due to the nature of optics/optical engineering, the process of optical system design includes manipulation of variables such as sizes/arrangements of components, lens shapes/materials, image processing procedures, and other similar concerns, in order to allow an optical system to meet its particular utility (usually based on aberration elimination). This manipulation would normally be considered routine experimentation since the results are governed by known optics/physics equations and are known to be result-effective (unless the particular range of values meets secondary considerations).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was made to adjust the RT1 and/or RT2 values of Suzuki such that RT1 < RT2 was satisfied, since it has been held that where the general conditions of a claim are disclosed in the prior art, discovering the optimum or workable ranges involves only routine skill in the art, In re Aller, 105 USPQ 233 (C.C.P.A. 1955). In this case, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art as of the effective filing date of the invention to change the update cycles values of the system such that the expression was satisfied, motivated by optimizing power consumption.
Regarding claim 5, modified Suzuki discloses wherein after changing the parameter update cycle from the RT1 to the RT2, at an end timing of a period during which pre-distorting the image to be displayed on the display unit using the image pre-distortion parameter corresponding to the re-detected viewpoint position is refrained from, the control unit restores the parameter update cycle from the RT2 to the RT1 ([0058], sampling cycle), or at a timing when a predetermined time has further elapsed from the end timing of the period during which pre-distorting the image to be displayed on the display unit using the image pre-distortion parameter corresponding to the re-detected viewpoint position is refrained from, the control unit restores the parameter update cycle from the RT2 to the RT1, or the control unit starts changing the parameter update cycle starting from the end timing of the period during which pre-distorting the image to be displayed on the display unit using the image pre-distortion parameter corresponding to the re-detected viewpoint position is refrained from, and gradually restores the parameter update cycle from the RT2 to the RT1 with a lapse of time.
Conclusion
9. The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant’s disclosure.
Reference Lee (KR 101341584 B1) discloses at least the following limitations from independent claims 1 and 11:
a display control device (Abstract, vehicle display correction system; Fig. 1, 100) that controls a head-up display (HUD) device mounted on a vehicle (Abstract, “vehicle display correction system capable of correcting…a head-up display”) and projecting an image onto a projection member provided in the vehicle to thereby allow a driver to visually recognize a virtual image of the image ([0002], “head-up display is to project an image on a windshield…so that…information can be checked”), the display control device comprising a control unit ([0034], “100…may further include control unit 160”) programmed to:
monitor a viewpoint position of the driver within an eye box ([0068], “100…extracts the eye position (eye level) of the driver” within a field of view a camera);
update an image pre-distortion parameter in accordance with the viewpoint position of the driver in the eye box ([0055], “Based on the thus determined distortion rate, the correction unit 150 can correct the projection coordinates of the video image”); and
pre-distort an image to be displayed on a display unit using the image pre-distortion parameter so that distortion of the virtual image of the image is counteracted ([0001]-[0002], “correcting a distorted image of a head-up display…so that a virtual image is formed”).
10. Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Daniel Jeffery Jordan whose telephone number is 571-270-7641. The examiner can normally be reached 9:30a-6:00p.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Stephone Allen can be reached at 571-272-2434. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/D. J. J./Examiner, Art Unit 2872
/STEPHONE B ALLEN/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2872
