DETAILED ACTION
This action is in response to the RCE and Amendment dated 01 June 2026. Claims 1, 11, 19-23, 25-29 and 31 are amended. Claims 24 and 30 have been cancelled. No claims have been added. Claims 1, 11, 19-23, 25-29 and 31 remain pending and have been considered below.
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 .
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 08 June 2026 has been received, entered into the record, and considered. The submission is in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 20, 22, 26 and 28 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.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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.
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.
Claims 1, 11, 21, 23, 27, 29 and 31 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Cui et al. (US 2022/0394190 A1, foreign priority date: 15 November 2019) in view of Kimura (US 2016/0277679 A1).
As for independent claim 1, Cui teaches a device comprising:
a display; communication circuitry; a camera; at least one processor; and memory storing instructions, that executed by the at least one processor, cause the mobile electronic device to: [(e.g. see Cui paragraph 0030) ”an electronic device is provided, including a processor, a memory, and one or more cameras. The memory, the one or more cameras are coupled to the processor, the memory is configured to store computer program code, the computer program code includes computer instructions, and when the processor reads the computer instructions from the memory, the electronic device is enabled to perform the following operations”].
display, on the display, a first preview image with a first magnification obtained through the camera [(e.g. see Cui paragraph 0150 and Fig. 3(2)) ”As shown in FIG. 3(2), the photographing interface of the camera generally includes a first viewfinder frame 302, a photographing control, and other functional controls (“Wide Aperture”, “Portrait”, “Photo”, “Video”, and the like). The first viewfinder frame 302 may be configured to preview an image (or picture) captured by the camera … The photographing interface may further include a zoom magnification indication 303. Usually, a default zoom magnification of the mobile phone is a basic zoom magnification, and is “1×””].
display superimposedly, on the display, a visual object indicating a plurality of magnifications associated with the camera over the first preview image [(e.g. see Cui paragraph 0161 and Fig. 3(4)) ”The user may also change the zoom magnification used by the mobile phone by dragging a slider on a zoom ruler 304 on the photographing interface”]. Examiner notes that, as depicted in Fig. 3(4), a plurality of magnification selections are presented.
in response to a first touch input on the visual object, change the first magnification associated with the camera to a second magnification less than a designated value in a first magnification range [(e.g. see Cui paragraphs 0159, 0165 and Fig. 4(1)) ”the user may adjust the zoom magnification used by the mobile phone by operating a zoom magnification indicator 303 on the photographing interface. For example, when a zoom magnification currently used by the mobile phone is “1×”, the user may tap the zoom magnification indication 303 for one or more times, so that the zoom magnification used by the mobile phone is changed to “5×”, that is, the mobile phone displays a photographing interface shown in FIG. 4(1) … when the zoom magnification used by the mobile phone is relatively high, for example, when the zoom magnification is greater than or equal to a first preset magnification (for example, “10×”), in addition to displaying a preview image (or a preview picture) in a first viewfinder frame on the photographing interface of the mobile phone, a preview image (or a preview picture) in a second viewfinder frame may be further displayed”]. Examiner notes that the 5x zoom magnification is less than the first preset magnification (10x zoom magnification).
based on the second magnification associated with the camera being less than the designated value, display, on the display, a second preview image corresponding to the first preview image with the second magnification without displaying a guide map [(e.g. see Cui paragraph 0159 and Figs. 4(1) and 4(2)) ”For example, when a zoom magnification currently used by the mobile phone is “1×”, the user may tap the zoom magnification indication 303 for one or more times, so that the zoom magnification used by the mobile phone is changed to “5×”, that is, the mobile phone displays a photographing interface shown in FIG. 4(1). On the photographing interface shown in FIG. 4(1), a viewfinder range of an image previewed in a first viewfinder frame 401 is clearly smaller than a viewfinder range in a first viewfinder frame 302 in FIG. 3(2), but a size of a photographed object (for example: a bird) previewed in the first viewfinder frame 401 is greater than that of a photographed object previewed in the first viewfinder frame 302”]. Examiner notes that, as depicted in Figs. 4(1) and 4(2), the superimposed preview viewfinder frame (numeral 405) is not displayed while the current magnification (5x) is below the first preset magnification (10x).
in response to a second touch input on the visual object change the second magnification associated with the camera to a third magnification greater or equal to the designated value in the first magnification range [(e.g. see Cui paragraphs 0168 and Figs. 3(4) and 4(2)) ”the user may also change the zoom magnification used by the mobile phone by dragging a slider on a zoom ruler 304 on the photographing interface … the current zoom magnification displayed on the photographing interface of the mobile phone is “5×”, and in this case, only the first viewfinder frame 401 is displayed on the photographing interface. When an indication that the user increases the zoom magnification (for example, the zoom magnification is increased to “10×”) is detected, the mobile phone displays a photographing interface shown in FIG. 4(2)”].
in response to identifying that the third magnification is greater than or equal to the designated value in the first magnification range, display superimposedly over a third preview image corresponding to the second preview image with the third magnification, in a designated area of the display, the guide map including a guide box indicating a location of the third preview image on the guide map [(e.g. see Cui paragraphs 0165, 0168, 0169 and Fig. 4(2)) ”when the zoom magnification used by the mobile phone is relatively high, for example, when the zoom magnification is greater than or equal to a first preset magnification (for example, “10×”), in addition to displaying a preview image (or a preview picture) in a first viewfinder frame on the photographing interface of the mobile phone, a preview image (or a preview picture) in a second viewfinder frame may be further displayed. The preview image in the second viewfinder frame may assist the user in determining a viewfinder range of the first viewfinder frame … When an indication that the user increases the zoom magnification (for example, the zoom magnification is increased to “10×”) is detected, the mobile phone displays a photographing interface shown in FIG. 4(2). On the photographing interface shown in FIG. 4(2), in addition to a first viewfinder frame 403, a second viewfinder frame 405 is further displayed. It can be learned that a primary preview image displayed in the first viewfinder frame 403 is a part of an auxiliary preview image displayed in the second viewfinder frame 405. For example, the primary preview image is an image in a central area (or an approximately central area) of the auxiliary preview image. An image in the second viewfinder frame 405 may include a first marker frame 406, to prompt the user a location of an image in the first viewfinder frame 403 in the image in the second viewfinder frame 405 … as shown in FIG. 4(2), the first viewfinder frame 403 and the second viewfinder frame 405 may partially overlap. For example, the first viewfinder frame 403 may occupy most or all of a display area of the screen of the mobile phone. The second viewfinder frame 405 may be superimposed on the first viewfinder frame 403”].
capture, using the camera, a still image corresponding to the third preview image based on a third user input [(e.g. see Cui paragraph 0150) ”The user may determine, based on the image (or picture) in the first viewfinder frame 302, an occasion for indicating the mobile phone to perform a photographing operation. The user indicating the mobile phone to perform a photographing operation may be, for example, an operation in which the user taps a photographing control, or an operation in which the user presses a volume key”].
wherein the guide box is fixed to a central area on the guide map [(e.g. see Cui paragraph 0168 and Figs. 4(2) and 5(2)) ”in addition to a first viewfinder frame 403, a second viewfinder frame 405 is further displayed. It can be learned that a primary preview image displayed in the first viewfinder frame 403 is a part of an auxiliary preview image displayed in the second viewfinder frame 405. For example, the primary preview image is an image in a central area (or an approximately central area) of the auxiliary preview image. An image in the second viewfinder frame 405 may include a first marker frame 406, to prompt the user a location of an image in the first viewfinder frame 403 in the image in the second viewfinder frame 405”].
Cui does not specifically teach and the guide box having a size which varies in response to a magnification change in the first magnification range or while the size of the guide box varies corresponding to the magnification change in the first magnification range. However, in the same field of invention, Kimura teaches:
and the guide box having a size which varies in response to a magnification change in the first magnification range [(e.g. see Kimura paragraphs 0045 and Fig. 8) ”A guide box 403 indicating the current image capturing range is displayed on the panoramic image, and the user can intuitionally grasp a range within the whole image capturing capable range of the camera 101, which currently corresponds to the image capturing range of the live video displayed on the video display portion 401. When the user changes one of the pan, tilt, and zoom of the camera 101 by operating a corresponding one of the sliders 402a, 402b, and 402c, the display position of the guide box 403 moves on the panoramic image or the size of the guide box 403 changes accordingly”].
while the size of the guide box varies corresponding to the magnification change in the first magnification range [(e.g. see Kimura paragraphs 0045 and Fig. 8) ”A guide box 403 indicating the current image capturing range is displayed on the panoramic image, and the user can intuitionally grasp a range within the whole image capturing capable range of the camera 101, which currently corresponds to the image capturing range of the live video displayed on the video display portion 401. When the user changes one of the pan, tilt, and zoom of the camera 101 by operating a corresponding one of the sliders 402a, 402b, and 402c, the display position of the guide box 403 moves on the panoramic image or the size of the guide box 403 changes accordingly”].
Therefore, considering the teachings of Cui and Kimura, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to add and the guide box having a size which varies in response to a magnification change in the first magnification range and while the size of the guide box varies corresponding to the magnification change in the first magnification range, as taught by Kimura, to the teachings of Cui because it allows a user to intuitionally grasp a range within the whole image capturing capable range of the camera (e.g. see Kimura paragraph 0045).
As for independent claim 11, Cui and Kimura teach a method. Claim 11 discloses substantially the same limitations as claim 1. Therefore, it is rejected with the same rational as claim 1.
As for dependent claim 27, Cui and Kimura teach the device as described in claim 1 and Cui further teaches:
wherein the instructions, that executed by the at least one processor, further cause the electronic device to: while the guide map is displayed in the designated area of the display, in response to a magnification associated with the camera being reduced to less than the designated value based on a touch input on the visual object, remove display of the guide map from the designated area of the display [(e.g. see Cui paragraphs 0161, 0165) ”the user may also change the zoom magnification used by the mobile phone by dragging a slider on a zoom ruler 304 on the photographing interface … when the zoom magnification used by the mobile phone is relatively high, for example, when the zoom magnification is greater than or equal to a first preset magnification (for example, “10×”), in addition to displaying a preview image (or a preview picture) in a first viewfinder frame on the photographing interface of the mobile phone, a preview image (or a preview picture) in a second viewfinder frame may be further displayed. The preview image in the second viewfinder frame may assist the user in determining a viewfinder range of the first viewfinder frame. For ease of differentiation, the preview image (or the preview picture) displayed in the first viewfinder frame is referred to as a primary preview image (or a primary preview picture), and the preview image (or the preview picture) displayed in the second viewfinder frame is referred to as an auxiliary preview image (an auxiliary preview picture)”]. Examiner notes that, as depicted in Figs. 4(1) and 4(2), reducing the zoom magnification level from 10x (Fig. 4(2)) to 5x (Fig. 4(1)) removes the superimposed viewfinder frame (numeral 405).
As for dependent claim 29, Cui and Kimura teach the device as described in claim 1 and Cui further teaches:
wherein the instructions, that executed by the at least one processor, further cause the electronic device to: receive a drag touch input on the display for changing a location of the guide map image; and in response to the drag touch input, change the location of the guide map image [(e.g. see Cui paragraph 0169) ”For example, the first viewfinder frame 403 may occupy most or all of a display area of the screen of the mobile phone. The second viewfinder frame 405 may be superimposed on the first viewfinder frame 403, and is located at an edge position, for example, a lower left corner, a lower right corner, an upper left corner, or an upper right corner, in the first viewfinder frame 403. In this way, the second viewfinder frame does not block a central area of the first viewfinder frame, thereby avoiding blocking an area concerned by the user. Certainly, the user may freely move a display position of the second viewfinder frame by performing an operation such as dragging, so that sometimes the user needs to view image content at an edge position in the first viewfinder frame, or meet use habits of different users, use habits of the user at different times, or the like”].
As for dependent claim 21, Cui and Kimura teach the method as described in claim 11; further, claim 21 discloses substantially the same limitations as claim 27. Therefore, it is rejected with the same rational as claim 27.
As for dependent claim 23, Cui and Kimura teach the method as described in claim 11; further, claim 23 discloses substantially the same limitations as claim 29. Therefore, it is rejected with the same rational as claim 29.
As for independent claim 31, Cui and Kimura teach a non-transitory computer-readable storage media. Claim 31 discloses substantially the same limitations as claim 1. Therefore, it is rejected with the same rational as claim 1.
Claims 19 and 25 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Cui et al. (US 2022/0394190 A1, foreign priority date: 15 November 2019) in view of Kimura (US 2016/0277679 A1), as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of Kurokawa (US 2010/0245630 A1).
As for dependent claim 25, Cui and Kimura teach the device as described in claim 1, but do not specifically teach wherein the instructions, that executed by the at least one processor, further cause the mobile electronic device to: in response to a change in a proportion of a preview image displayed on the display, change a proportion of the guide map displayed in the designated area, so as to correspond to the changed proportion of the preview image. However, in the same field of invention, Kurokawa teaches:
wherein the instructions, that executed by the at least one processor, further cause the mobile electronic device to: in response to a change in a proportion of a preview image displayed on the display, change a proportion of the guide map displayed in the designated area, so as to correspond to the changed proportion of the preview image [(e.g. see Kurokawa paragraph 0050 and Fig. 7) ”Moreover, as the example shown in FIG. 7, the through-image being imaged may be reduced and the guidance screen 50 may be displayed next to the through-image so as not to overlap. As described above, the size (ratio to the through-image) and the position of the guidance screen 50 may be changed arbitrarily by user operation”]. Examiner notes that, as depicted in Fig. 7, in the non-overlapping embodiment, any change to the size of the image or guidance screen will result in a corresponding size change to the image or guidance screen.
Therefore, considering the teachings of Cui, Kimura and Kurokawa, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to add wherein the instructions, that executed by the at least one processor, further cause the mobile electronic device to: in response to a change in a proportion of a preview image displayed on the display, change a proportion of the guide map displayed in the designated area, so as to correspond to the changed proportion of the preview image, as taught by Kurokawa, to the teachings of Cui and Kimura because it enables the user to easily confirm an imaging subject by preventing the user from losing sight thereof (e.g. see Kurokawa paragraph 0009).
As for dependent claim 19, Cui and Kimura teach the method as described in claim 11; further, claim 19 discloses substantially the same limitations as claim 25. Therefore, it is rejected with the same rational as claim 25.
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments, filed 01 June 2026, have been fully considered but they are not persuasive.
Applicant argues that [“Kurokawa, Tutvid and Cho do not disclose, or even suggest, each and every element of [amended] claim 1.” (Pages 11-14).].
The argument described above, in paragraph number 9, with respect to the newly added limitations to the independent claims has been considered, but is moot in view of the new grounds of rejection.
Contact Information
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to CHRISTOPHER J FIBBI whose telephone number is (571)-270-3358. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Thursday (8am-6pm).
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/CHRISTOPHER J FIBBI/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2174
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