DETAILED 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 .
Continued Examination Under 37 CFR 1.114
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and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114.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 February 17, 2026 has been entered.
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.
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, 10, 12, 14, 15, 39-41, and 44-53 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Maze et al. (US Publication No. 2018/0352219) in view of Aksu et al. (US Publication No. 2021/0105492).
As to claim 1, Maze teaches a method of encapsulating an image in an ISOBMFF-based media file, the method comprising:
obtaining an image (see e.g., [0001] for storage of image data, such as still images, bursts of still images or video data in a media container with descriptive metadata, [0009] for image bursts being sequences of still pictures captured by a camera and stored as a single representation, [0017] for derived images being obtained by applying one or more specified operations, such as rotation or clipping, to other images or set of images. An image is obtained from a camera in order to be stored.);
generating an image item [information item for full picture] representing the image [full picture] (see e.g., [0025] for an information item being defined for the full picture 101 and [0276] for the pictures with the related information being described as information items. An information item representing a full picture is generated.);
generating region item information [information item for tile image and ImageSpatialRelationBox] comprising geometry descriptive data [ImageSpatialRelationBox], the region item information being associated with the image item and the geometry descriptive data describing a geometry [height, width, horizontal offset, vertical offset] of a region [tile] in the image represented by the image item with which the region item information is associated (see e.g., [0025] for an information item being defined for the full picture 101 in addition to respective information items for each tile picture (102, 103, 104 and 105), those information items being stored in a box called ‘ItemInfoBox’ (iinf), and the box (106), called ‘ItemReferenceBox’, from the ISO BMFF standard being used for indicating that a ‘tile’ relationship (107) exists between the information item of the full picture and the four information items corresponding to the tile pictures (108), [0276] for providing for each item, descriptive metadata represented as “IteminfoEntry,” [0331] for a new descriptor called for example “SimplelmageMetaData” supporting spatial description of image items, along with other properties such as clean aperture or sample aspect ratio and this applying to any sub-image (tile or independent image) intended to be composed in a bigger image or at the reverse extracted from a bigger image, [0332] for class SimpleImageMetaData including ImageSpacialRelationBox, [0335]-[0341] for ImageSpatialRelationBox syntax with associated semantics: horizontal_display_offset specifies the horizontal offset of the image, vertical_display_offset specifies the vertical offset of the image, display_width specifies the width of the image, and display_height specifies the height of the image, and [0347] for this new descriptor being used as description of an image (tile or single image) by defining an association between the item information representing the image and the item information representing the descriptor. An information item and ImageSpatialRelationBox are generated for a tile. This generated information about the tile is associated with the full image. The ImageSpatialRelationBox describes height, width, horizontal offset, vertical offset of a tile image within the full image. The information item for the full image represents the full image as well as the tiles constituting the full image.); and
generating the ISOBMFF-based media file [encapsulated data file] including the image, the image item, and the region item information (see e.g., [0030]-[0034] for according to a first aspect of the invention there being provided a method of encapsulating an encoded bitstream representing one or more images, the method comprising: providing tile picture item information identifying a portion of the bit stream representing a tile of a single image; and outputting said bistream together with said provided information as an encapsulated data file and [0270] for encapsulation of tiles into ISOBMFF file format. The encapsulated data file is generated in a ISOBMFF file format, which includes the image and image information items.).
Maze does not specifically disclose generating at least one annotation data structure comprising data associated with the region of the image, the at least one annotation data structure being associated with the region item information; and generating the ISOBMFF-based media file including the at least one annotation data structure. However, Aksu teaches
generating at least one annotation data structure [ItemPropertyContainerBox] comprising data [properties] associated with the region of the image [item], the at least one annotation data structure being associated with the region item information [item listing] (see e.g., [0069] for files conforming to the ISOBMFF containing non-timed objects, referred to as items and the meta box listing and characterizing any number of items that can be referred and each one of them can be associated with a file name and can be uniquely identified with the file by item identifier (item_id) which is an integer value and [0074] for the ItemPropertiesBox enabling the association of any item with an ordered set of item properties, item properties being small data records, and the ItemPropertiesBox consisting of two parts: an ItemPropertyContainerBox that contains an implicitly indexed list of item properties, and one or more ItemPropertyAssociationBox(es) that associate items with item properties. An ItemPropertyContainerBox is generated comprising properties associated with the item. The ItemPropertyContainerBox is associated with the item listing.); and
generating the ISOBMFF-based media file including the at least one annotation data structure (see e.g., [0069] for files conforming to the ISOBMFF containing any non-timed objects, referred to as items, in a meta box (fourCC: ‘meta’), which may also be called MetaBox, [0072] for the following boxes being contained within the root-level ‘meta’ box and being used as described hereinafter, and [0074] for the ItemPropertiesBox enabling the association of any item with an ordered set of item properties, item properties being small data records, and the ItemPropertiesBox consisting of two parts: an ItemPropertyContainerBox that contains an implicitly indexed list of item properties, and one or more ItemPropertyAssociationBox(es) that associate items with item properties. The generated ISOBMFF-based media file includes the ItemPropertyContainerBox.).
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 image information of Maze to generate at least one annotation data structure comprising data associated with the region of the image, the at least one annotation data structure being associated with the region item information; and generate the ISOBMFF-based media file including the at least one annotation data structure, as taught by Aksu, for the benefit increasing space savings of a media file by enabling a set of properties to be associated with a plurality of items (see e.g., Aksu, [0074]).
As to claim 10, Maze teaches a method of reading an ISOBMFF-based media file, the method comprising:
reading [parsing/decoding], in an ISOBMFF-based media file (see e.g., [0036] for parsing syntax elements, [0059] for said encapsulated data file being decodable, and [0270] for encapsulation of tiles into ISOBMFF file format),
region item information [information item for tile image and ImageSpatialRelationBox] comprising geometry descriptive data [ImageSpatialRelationBox] describing a geometry [height, width, horizontal offset, vertical offset] of a region [tile] of an image [full picture], the region item information being associated with an image item [information item for full picture] representing the image comprising the region (see e.g., [0025] for an information item being defined for the full picture 101 in addition to respective information items for each tile picture (102, 103, 104 and 105), those information items being stored in a box called ‘ItemInfoBox’ (iinf), and the box (106), called ‘ItemReferenceBox’, from the ISO BMFF standard being used for indicating that a ‘tile’ relationship (107) exists between the information item of the full picture and the four information items corresponding to the tile pictures (108), [0276] for providing for each item, descriptive metadata represented as “IteminfoEntry,” [0331] for a new descriptor called for example “SimplelmageMetaData” supporting spatial description of image items, along with other properties such as clean aperture or sample aspect ratio and this applying to any sub-image (tile or independent image) intended to be composed in a bigger image or at the reverse extracted from a bigger image, [0332] for class SimpleImageMetaData including ImageSpacialRelationBox, [0335]-[0341] for ImageSpatialRelationBox syntax with associated semantics: horizontal_display_offset specifies the horizontal offset of the image, vertical_display_offset specifies the vertical offset of the image, display_width specifies the width of the image, and display_height specifies the height of the image, and [0347] for this new descriptor being used as description of an image (tile or single image) by defining an association between the item information representing the image and the item information representing the descriptor. An information item and ImageSpatialRelationBox are parsed/decoded for a tile. This information about the tile is associated with the full image. The ImageSpatialRelationBox describes height, width, horizontal offset, vertical offset of a tile image within the full image. The information item for the full image represents the full image as well as the tiles constituting the full image.)
the associated image item (see e.g., [0025] for an information item being defined for the full picture 101 in addition to respective information items for each tile picture (102, 103, 104 and 105), [0036] for parsing syntax elements, [0059] for said encapsulated data file being decodable, and [0270] for encapsulation of tiles into ISOBMFF file format. The full picture is parsed.); and
processing [display/play] the image (see e.g., [0056] for said outputting being performed to a display module for display and [0059] for said encapsulated data file being decodable and playable).
Maze does not specifically disclose at least one annotation data structure associated with the region item information, the at least one annotation data structure comprising data associated with the region of the image. However, Aksu teaches
at least one annotation data structure [ItemPropertyContainerBox] associated with the region item information [item listing], the at least one annotation data structure comprising data [properties] associated with the region of the image [item] (see e.g., [0069] for files conforming to the ISOBMFF containing non-timed objects, referred to as items and the meta box listing and characterizing any number of items that can be referred and each one of them can be associated with a file name and can be uniquely identified with the file by item identifier (item_id) which is an integer value and [0074] for the ItemPropertiesBox enabling the association of any item with an ordered set of item properties, item properties being small data records, and the ItemPropertiesBox consisting of two parts: an ItemPropertyContainerBox that contains an implicitly indexed list of item properties, and one or more ItemPropertyAssociationBox(es) that associate items with item properties. An ItemPropertyContainerBox comprises properties associated with the item. The ItemPropertyContainerBox is associated with the item listing.).
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 image information of Maze to include at least one annotation data structure associated with the region item information, the at least one annotation data structure comprising data associated with the region of the image, as taught by Aksu, for the benefit increasing space savings of a media file by enabling a set of properties to be associated with a plurality of items (see e.g., Aksu, [0074]).
As to claim 12, Maze teaches a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing instructions of a computer program for implementing a method according to claim 1 (see e.g., [0141] for computer programs and computer program products comprising instructions for implementing methods according to the invention, when loaded and executed on computer means of a programmable apparatus).
As to claim 14, Maze teaches a device for encapsulating an image in an ISOBMFF-based media file, the device comprising a processor configured for (see e.g., [0118]-[0120] for there being provided a device configured to implement a method and the device comprising a processing unit):
obtaining an image (see e.g., [0001] for storage of image data, such as still images, bursts of still images or video data in a media container with descriptive metadata, [0009] for image bursts being sequences of still pictures captured by a camera and stored as a single representation, [0017] for derived images being obtained by applying one or more specified operations, such as rotation or clipping, to other images or set of images. An image is obtained from a camera in order to be stored.);
generating an image item [information item for full picture] representing the image [full picture] (see e.g., [0025] for an information item being defined for the full picture 101 and [0276] for the pictures with the related information being described as information items. An information item representing a full picture is generated.);
generating region item information [information item for tile image and ImageSpatialRelationBox] comprising geometry descriptive data [ImageSpatialRelationBox], the region item information being associated with the image item and the geometry descriptive data describing a geometry [height, width, horizontal offset, vertical offset] of a region [tile] in the image represented by the image item with which the region item information is associated (see e.g., [0025] for an information item being defined for the full picture 101 in addition to respective information items for each tile picture (102, 103, 104 and 105), those information items being stored in a box called ‘ItemInfoBox’ (iinf), and the box (106), called ‘ItemReferenceBox’, from the ISO BMFF standard being used for indicating that a ‘tile’ relationship (107) exists between the information item of the full picture and the four information items corresponding to the tile pictures (108), [0276] for providing for each item, descriptive metadata represented as “IteminfoEntry,” [0331] for a new descriptor called for example “SimplelmageMetaData” supporting spatial description of image items, along with other properties such as clean aperture or sample aspect ratio and this applying to any sub-image (tile or independent image) intended to be composed in a bigger image or at the reverse extracted from a bigger image, [0332] for class SimpleImageMetaData including ImageSpacialRelationBox, [0335]-[0341] for ImageSpatialRelationBox syntax with associated semantics: horizontal_display_offset specifies the horizontal offset of the image, vertical_display_offset specifies the vertical offset of the image, display_width specifies the width of the image, and display_height specifies the height of the image, and [0347] for this new descriptor being used as description of an image (tile or single image) by defining an association between the item information representing the image and the item information representing the descriptor. An information item and ImageSpatialRelationBox are generated for a tile. This generated information about the tile is associated with the full image. The ImageSpatialRelationBox describes height, width, horizontal offset, vertical offset of a tile image within the full image. The information item for the full image represents the full image as well as the tiles constituting the full image.); and
generating the ISOBMFF-based media file [encapsulated data file] including the image, the image item, and the region item information (see e.g., [0030]-[0034] for according to a first aspect of the invention there being provided a method of encapsulating an encoded bitstream representing one or more images, the method comprising: providing tile picture item information identifying a portion of the bit stream representing a tile of a single image; and outputting said bistream together with said provided information as an encapsulated data file and [0270] for encapsulation of tiles into ISOBMFF file format. The encapsulated data file is generated in a ISOBMFF file format, which includes the image and image information items.).
Maze does not specifically disclose generating at least one annotation data structure comprising data associated with the region of the image, the at least one annotation data structure being associated with the region item information; and generating the ISOBMFF-based media file including the at least one annotation data structure. However, Aksu teaches
generating at least one annotation data structure [ItemPropertyContainerBox] comprising data [properties] associated with the region of the image [item], the at least one annotation data structure being associated with the region item information [item listing] (see e.g., [0069] for files conforming to the ISOBMFF containing non-timed objects, referred to as items and the meta box listing and characterizing any number of items that can be referred and each one of them can be associated with a file name and can be uniquely identified with the file by item identifier (item_id) which is an integer value and [0074] for the ItemPropertiesBox enabling the association of any item with an ordered set of item properties, item properties being small data records, and the ItemPropertiesBox consisting of two parts: an ItemPropertyContainerBox that contains an implicitly indexed list of item properties, and one or more ItemPropertyAssociationBox(es) that associate items with item properties. An ItemPropertyContainerBox is generated comprising properties associated with the item. The ItemPropertyContainerBox is associated with the item listing.); and
generating the ISOBMFF-based media file including the at least one annotation data structure (see e.g., [0069] for files conforming to the ISOBMFF containing any non-timed objects, referred to as items, in a meta box (fourCC: ‘meta’), which may also be called MetaBox, [0072] for the following boxes being contained within the root-level ‘meta’ box and being used as described hereinafter, and [0074] for the ItemPropertiesBox enabling the association of any item with an ordered set of item properties, item properties being small data records, and the ItemPropertiesBox consisting of two parts: an ItemPropertyContainerBox that contains an implicitly indexed list of item properties, and one or more ItemPropertyAssociationBox(es) that associate items with item properties. The generated ISOBMFF-based media file includes the ItemPropertyContainerBox.).
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 image information of Maze to generate at least one annotation data structure comprising data associated with the region of the image, the at least one annotation data structure being associated with the region item information; and generate the ISOBMFF-based media file including the at least one annotation data structure, as taught by Aksu, for the benefit increasing space savings of a media file by enabling a set of properties to be associated with a plurality of items (see e.g., Aksu, [0074]).
As to claim 15, Maze teaches a device for reading [parsing/decoding] an ISBOMFF-based media file (see e.g., [0036] for parsing syntax elements, [0059] for said encapsulated data file being decodable, and [0270] for encapsulation of tiles into ISOBMFF file format), the device comprising a processor configured for:
reading, in an ISOBMFF-based media file (see e.g., [0118]-[0120] for there being provided a device configured to implement a method and the device comprising a processing unit),
region item information [information item for tile image and ImageSpatialRelationBox] comprising geometry descriptive data [ImageSpatialRelationBox] describing a geometry [height, width, horizontal offset, vertical offset] of a region [tile] of an image [full picture], the region item information being associated with an image item [information item for full picture] representing the image comprising the region (see e.g., [0025] for an information item being defined for the full picture 101 in addition to respective information items for each tile picture (102, 103, 104 and 105), those information items being stored in a box called ‘ItemInfoBox’ (iinf), and the box (106), called ‘ItemReferenceBox’, from the ISO BMFF standard being used for indicating that a ‘tile’ relationship (107) exists between the information item of the full picture and the four information items corresponding to the tile pictures (108), [0276] for providing for each item, descriptive metadata represented as “IteminfoEntry,” [0331] for a new descriptor called for example “SimplelmageMetaData” supporting spatial description of image items, along with other properties such as clean aperture or sample aspect ratio and this applying to any sub-image (tile or independent image) intended to be composed in a bigger image or at the reverse extracted from a bigger image, [0332] for class SimpleImageMetaData including ImageSpacialRelationBox, [0335]-[0341] for ImageSpatialRelationBox syntax with associated semantics: horizontal_display_offset specifies the horizontal offset of the image, vertical_display_offset specifies the vertical offset of the image, display_width specifies the width of the image, and display_height specifies the height of the image, and [0347] for this new descriptor being used as description of an image (tile or single image) by defining an association between the item information representing the image and the item information representing the descriptor. An information item and ImageSpatialRelationBox are parsed/decoded for a tile. This information about the tile is associated with the full image. The ImageSpatialRelationBox describes height, width, horizontal offset, vertical offset of a tile image within the full image. The information item for the full image represents the full image as well as the tiles constituting the full image.)
the associated image item (see e.g., [0025] for an information item being defined for the full picture 101 in addition to respective information items for each tile picture (102, 103, 104 and 105), [0036] for parsing syntax elements, [0059] for said encapsulated data file being decodable, and [0270] for encapsulation of tiles into ISOBMFF file format. The full picture is parsed.); and
processing [display/play] the image (see e.g., [0056] for said outputting being performed to a display module for display and [0059] for said encapsulated data file being decodable and playable).
Maze does not specifically disclose at least one annotation data structure associated with the region item information, the at least one annotation data structure comprising data associated with the region of the image. However, Aksu teaches
at least one annotation data structure [ItemPropertyContainerBox] associated with the region item information [item listing], the at least one annotation data structure comprising data [properties] associated with the region of the image [item] (see e.g., [0069] for files conforming to the ISOBMFF containing non-timed objects, referred to as items and the meta box listing and characterizing any number of items that can be referred and each one of them can be associated with a file name and can be uniquely identified with the file by item identifier (item_id) which is an integer value and [0074] for the ItemPropertiesBox enabling the association of any item with an ordered set of item properties, item properties being small data records, and the ItemPropertiesBox consisting of two parts: an ItemPropertyContainerBox that contains an implicitly indexed list of item properties, and one or more ItemPropertyAssociationBox(es) that associate items with item properties. An ItemPropertyContainerBox comprises properties associated with the item. The ItemPropertyContainerBox is associated with the item listing.).
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 image information of Maze to include at least one annotation data structure associated with the region item information, the at least one annotation data structure comprising data associated with the region of the image, as taught by Aksu, for the benefit increasing space savings of a media file by enabling a set of properties to be associated with a plurality of items (see e.g., Aksu, [0074]).
As to claim 39, the limitations of parent claim 1 have been discussed above. Maze teaches wherein:
the region item information is related to a plurality of regions of the image (see e.g., [0025] for an information item being defined for the full picture 101 in addition to respective information items for each tile picture (102, 103, 104 and 105), those information items being stored in a box called ‘ItemInfoBox’ (iinf), and the box (106), called ‘ItemReferenceBox’, from the ISO BMFF standard being used for indicating that a ‘tile’ relationship (107) exists between the information item of the full picture and the four information items corresponding to the tile pictures (108). The information item for the tile image is related to a plurality of information items for tile images of the full picture.); and
the geometry descriptive data describes the geometry of each of the plurality of regions of the image (see e.g., [0331] for a new descriptor called for example “SimplelmageMetaData” supporting spatial description of image items, along with other properties such as clean aperture or sample aspect ratio and this applying to any sub-image (tile or independent image) intended to be composed in a bigger image or at the reverse extracted from a bigger image, [0332] for class SimpleImageMetaData including ImageSpacialRelationBox, and [0335]-[0341] for ImageSpatialRelationBox syntax with associated semantics: horizontal_display_offset specifies the horizontal offset of the image, vertical_display_offset specifies the vertical offset of the image, display_width specifies the width of the image, and display_height specifies the height of the image. The ImageSpacialRelationBox describes the height, width, horizontal offset, vertical offset of each of the plurality of sub-images of the full picture.).
Maze does not specifically disclose wherein the at least one annotation data structure is associated with at least one region of the plurality of regions of the image. However, Aksu teaches
wherein the at least one annotation data structure is associated with at least one region of the plurality of regions of the image (see e.g., [0069] for files conforming to the ISOBMFF containing non-timed objects, referred to as items and the meta box listing and characterizing any number of items that can be referred and each one of them can be associated with a file name and can be uniquely identified with the file by item identifier (item_id) which is an integer value and [0074] for the ItemPropertiesBox enabling the association of any item with an ordered set of item properties, item properties being small data records, and the ItemPropertiesBox consisting of two parts: an ItemPropertyContainerBox that contains an implicitly indexed list of item properties, and one or more ItemPropertyAssociationBox(es) that associate items with item properties. The ItemPropertyContainerBox is associated with at least one item of the plurality of items.).
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 image information of Maze wherein the at least one annotation data structure is associated with at least one region of the plurality of regions of the image, as taught by Aksu, for the benefit increasing space savings of a media file by enabling a set of properties to be associated with a plurality of items (see e.g., Aksu, [0074]).
As to claim 40, the limitation of parent claims 1 and 39 have been discussed above. Maze does not specifically disclose wherein a first annotation data structure is associated with a first region of the plurality of regions of the image, and a second annotation data structure is associated with a second region of the plurality of regions. However, Aksu teaches
wherein a first annotation data structure is associated with a first region of the plurality of regions of the image, and a second annotation data structure is associated with a second region of the plurality of regions (see e.g., [0069] for files conforming to the ISOBMFF containing non-timed objects, referred to as items and the meta box listing and characterizing any number of items that can be referred and each one of them can be associated with a file name and can be uniquely identified with the file by item identifier (item_id) which is an integer value and [0074] for the ItemPropertiesBox enabling the association of any item with an ordered set of item properties, item properties being small data records, and the ItemPropertiesBox consisting of two parts: an ItemPropertyContainerBox that contains an implicitly indexed list of item properties, and one or more ItemPropertyAssociationBox(es) that associate items with item properties. A first ItemPropertyContainerBox is associated with a first item of the plurality of items and a second ItemPropertyContainerBox is associated with a second item of the plurality of items.).
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 image information of Maze wherein a first annotation data structure is associated with a first region of the plurality of regions of the image, and a second annotation data structure is associated with a second region of the plurality of regions, as taught by Aksu, for the benefit increasing space savings of a media file by enabling a set of properties to be associated with a plurality of items (see e.g., Aksu, [0074]).
As to claim 41, the limitations of parent claim 1 have been discussed above. Maze teaches
wherein the geometry of the region of the image is a point, a 3d box or a rectangle or an ellipse or a sphere or a polygon or a polyline (see [0335]-[0341] for ImageSpatialRelationBox syntax with associated semantics: horizontal_display_offset specifies the horizontal offset of the image, vertical_display_offset specifies the vertical offset of the image, display_width specifies the width of the image, and display_height specifies the height of the image. The ImageSpatialRelationBox includes information indicating a rectangle or a polygon.).
As to claim 44, the limitations of parent claim 1 have been discussed above. Maze teaches
wherein at least one region item information associated with the image item are grouped, the group [ItemInfoBox] is associated with the image item by an item reference information [ItemReferenceBox] (see e.g., [0025] for an information item being defined for the full picture 101 in addition to respective information items for each tile picture (102, 103, 104 and 105), those information items being stored in a box called ‘ItemInfoBox’ (iinf), and the box (106), called ‘ItemReferenceBox’, from the ISO BMFF standard being used for indicating that a ‘tile’ relationship (107) exists between the information item of the full picture and the four information items corresponding to the tile pictures (108). At least one information item for a tile image is grouped in an ItemInfoBox. The information items of the ItemInfoBox are associated with the full picture by an ItemReferenceBox.).
As to claim 45, the limitations of parent claim 1 have been discussed above. Maze teaches
wherein the region item information is associated with the image item by an item reference information [ItemReferenceBox] (see e.g., [0025] for an information item being defined for the full picture 101 in addition to respective information items for each tile picture (102, 103, 104 and 105), those information items being stored in a box called ‘ItemInfoBox’ (iinf), and the box (106), called ‘ItemReferenceBox’, from the ISO BMFF standard being used for indicating that a ‘tile’ relationship (107) exists between the information item of the full picture and the four information items corresponding to the tile pictures (108). The information item for a tile image is associated with the information item for the full picture by an ItemReferenceBox.).
Maze does not specifically disclose wherein the region item information is associated with the at least one generated annotation data structure by an association information in an association container. However, Aksu teaches
wherein the region item information is associated with the at least one generated annotation data structure by an association information in an association container [ItemPropertyAssociationBox] (see e.g., [0069] for files conforming to the ISOBMFF containing non-timed objects, referred to as items and the meta box listing and characterizing any number of items that can be referred and each one of them can be associated with a file name and can be uniquely identified with the file by item identifier (item_id) which is an integer value and [0074] for the ItemPropertiesBox enabling the association of any item with an ordered set of item properties, item properties being small data records, and the ItemPropertiesBox consisting of two parts: an ItemPropertyContainerBox that contains an implicitly indexed list of item properties, and one or more ItemPropertyAssociationBox(es) that associate items with item properties. The item listing is associated with the ItemPropertyContainerBox by an ItemPropertyAssociationBox.).
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 image information of Maze wherein the region item information is associated with the at least one generated annotation data structure by an association information in an association container, as taught by Aksu, for the benefit increasing space savings of a media file by enabling a set of properties to be associated with a plurality of items (see e.g., Aksu, [0074]).
As to claim 46, the limitations of parent claims 1 and 45 have been discussed above. Maze does not specifically disclose wherein: the association container is an item property association box; and the region item information is associated with the at least one generated annotation data structure as item properties. However, Aksu teaches wherein:
the association container is an item property association box (see e.g., [0069] for files conforming to the ISOBMFF containing non-timed objects, referred to as items and the meta box listing and characterizing any number of items that can be referred and each one of them can be associated with a file name and can be uniquely identified with the file by item identifier (item_id) which is an integer value and [0074] for the ItemPropertiesBox enabling the association of any item with an ordered set of item properties, item properties being small data records, and the ItemPropertiesBox consisting of two parts: an ItemPropertyContainerBox that contains an implicitly indexed list of item properties, and one or more ItemPropertyAssociationBox(es) that associate items with item properties); and
the region item information is associated with the at least one generated annotation data structure as item properties [file name, item identifier] (see e.g., [0069] for files conforming to the ISOBMFF containing non-timed objects, referred to as items and the meta box listing and characterizing any number of items that can be referred and each one of them can be associated with a file name and can be uniquely identified with the file by item identifier (item_id) which is an integer value and [0074] for the ItemPropertiesBox enabling the association of any item with an ordered set of item properties, item properties being small data records, and the ItemPropertiesBox consisting of two parts: an ItemPropertyContainerBox that contains an implicitly indexed list of item properties, and one or more ItemPropertyAssociationBox(es) that associate items with item properties. The item listing is associated with the ItemPropertyContainerBox as item properties, such as file name and item identifier.).
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 image information of Maze wherein: the association container is an item property association box; and the region item information is associated with the at least one generated annotation data structure as item properties, as taught by Aksu, for the benefit increasing space savings of a media file by enabling a set of properties to be associated with a plurality of items (see e.g., Aksu, [0074]).
As to claim 47, the limitations of parent claims 1 and 45 have been discussed above. Maze does not specifically disclose wherein: the association container is an item reference box; and the region item information is associated with the at least one generated annotation data structure as items. However, Aksu teaches wherein:
the association container is an item reference box [ItemPropertyAssociationBox] (see e.g., [0069] for files conforming to the ISOBMFF containing non-timed objects, referred to as items and the meta box listing and characterizing any number of items that can be referred and each one of them can be associated with a file name and can be uniquely identified with the file by item identifier (item_id) which is an integer value and [0074] for the ItemPropertiesBox enabling the association of any item with an ordered set of item properties, item properties being small data records, and the ItemPropertiesBox consisting of two parts: an ItemPropertyContainerBox that contains an implicitly indexed list of item properties, and one or more ItemPropertyAssociationBox(es) that associate items with item properties); and
the region item information is associated with the at least one generated annotation data structure as items (see e.g., [0069] for files conforming to the ISOBMFF containing non-timed objects, referred to as items and the meta box listing and characterizing any number of items that can be referred and each one of them can be associated with a file name and can be uniquely identified with the file by item identifier (item_id) which is an integer value and [0074] for the ItemPropertiesBox enabling the association of any item with an ordered set of item properties, item properties being small data records, and the ItemPropertiesBox consisting of two parts: an ItemPropertyContainerBox that contains an implicitly indexed list of item properties, and one or more ItemPropertyAssociationBox(es) that associate items with item properties. The item listing is associated with the ItemPropertyContainerBox as items.).
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 image information of Maze wherein: the association container is an item reference box; and the region item information is associated with the at least one generated annotation data structure as items, as taught by Aksu, for the benefit increasing space savings of a media file by enabling a set of properties to be associated with a plurality of items (see e.g., Aksu, [0074]).
As to claim 48, the limitations of parent claims 1 and 45 have been discussed above. Maze does not specifically disclose wherein: the association container is an item reference box; and the region item information is associated with a grouping data structure, the grouping data structure referencing the at least one generated annotation data structure as items. However, Aksu teaches wherein:
the association container is an item reference box [ItemPropertyAssociationBox] (see e.g., [0069] for files conforming to the ISOBMFF containing non-timed objects, referred to as items and the meta box listing and characterizing any number of items that can be referred and each one of them can be associated with a file name and can be uniquely identified with the file by item identifier (item_id) which is an integer value and [0074] for the ItemPropertiesBox enabling the association of any item with an ordered set of item properties, item properties being small data records, and the ItemPropertiesBox consisting of two parts: an ItemPropertyContainerBox that contains an implicitly indexed list of item properties, and one or more ItemPropertyAssociationBox(es) that associate items with item properties); and
the region item information is associated with a grouping data structure [entity group], the grouping data structure referencing the at least one generated annotation data structure as items (see e.g., [0069] for files conforming to the ISOBMFF containing non-timed objects, referred to as items and the meta box listing and characterizing any number of items that can be referred and each one of them can be associated with a file name and can be uniquely identified with the file by item identifier (item_id) which is an integer value, [0074] for the ItemPropertiesBox enabling the association of any item with an ordered set of item properties, item properties being small data records, and the ItemPropertiesBox consisting of two parts: an ItemPropertyContainerBox that contains an implicitly indexed list of item properties, and one or more ItemPropertyAssociationBox(es) that associate items with item properties, and [0076] for an entity group being a grouping of items and an entity group being used instead of item references. The item listing is associated with an entity group. The entity group references, in the ItemPropertyAssociationBox, the ItemPropertyContainerBox as items.).
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 image information of Maze wherein: the association container is an item reference box; and the region item information is associated with a grouping data structure, the grouping data structure referencing the at least one generated annotation data structure as items, as taught by Aksu, for the benefit increasing space savings of a media file by enabling a set of properties to be associated with a plurality of items (see e.g., Aksu, [0074]).
As to claim 49, the limitations of parent claim 10 have been discussed above. Maze teaches
wherein the region item information is associated with the image item by an item reference information [ItemReferenceBox] (see e.g., [0025] for an information item being defined for the full picture 101 in addition to respective information items for each tile picture (102, 103, 104 and 105), those information items being stored in a box called ‘ItemInfoBox’ (iinf), and the box (106), called ‘ItemReferenceBox’, from the ISO BMFF standard being used for indicating that a ‘tile’ relationship (107) exists between the information item of the full picture and the four information items corresponding to the tile pictures (108). The information item for a tile image is associated with the information item for the full picture by an ItemReferenceBox.).
Maze does not specifically disclose wherein the region item information is associated with the at least one read annotation data structure by an association information in an association container. However, Aksu teaches
wherein the region item information is associated with the at least one read annotation data structure by an association information in an association container [ItemPropertyAssociationBox] (see e.g., [0069] for files conforming to the ISOBMFF containing non-timed objects, referred to as items and the meta box listing and characterizing any number of items that can be referred and each one of them can be associated with a file name and can be uniquely identified with the file by item identifier (item_id) which is an integer value and [0074] for the ItemPropertiesBox enabling the association of any item with an ordered set of item properties, item properties being small data records, and the ItemPropertiesBox consisting of two parts: an ItemPropertyContainerBox that contains an implicitly indexed list of item properties, and one or more ItemPropertyAssociationBox(es) that associate items with item properties. The item listing is associated with the ItemPropertyContainerBox by an ItemPropertyAssociationBox.).
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 image information of Maze wherein the region item information is associated with the at least one read annotation data structure by an association information in an association container, as taught by Aksu, for the benefit increasing space savings of a media file by enabling a set of properties to be associated with a plurality of items (see e.g., Aksu, [0074]).
As to claim 50, the limitations of parent claims 10 and 49 have been discussed above. Maze does not specifically disclose wherein: the association container is an item property association box; and the region item information is associated with the at least one generated annotation data structure as item properties. However, Aksu teaches wherein:
the association container is an item property association box (see e.g., [0069] for files conforming to the ISOBMFF containing non-timed objects, referred to as items and the meta box listing and characterizing any number of items that can be referred and each one of them can be associated with a file name and can be uniquely identified with the file by item identifier (item_id) which is an integer value and [0074] for the ItemPropertiesBox enabling the association of any item with an ordered set of item properties, item properties being small data records, and the ItemPropertiesBox consisting of two parts: an ItemPropertyContainerBox that contains an implicitly indexed list of item properties, and one or more ItemPropertyAssociationBox(es) that associate items with item properties); and
the region item information is associated with the at least one generated annotation data structure as item properties [file name, item identifier] (see e.g., [0069] for files conforming to the ISOBMFF containing non-timed objects, referred to as items and the meta box listing and characterizing any number of items that can be referred and each one of them can be associated with a file name and can be uniquely identified with the file by item identifier (item_id) which is an integer value and [0074] for the ItemPropertiesBox enabling the association of any item with an ordered set of item properties, item properties being small data records, and the ItemPropertiesBox consisting of two parts: an ItemPropertyContainerBox that contains an implicitly indexed list of item properties, and one or more ItemPropertyAssociationBox(es) that associate items with item properties. The item listing is associated with the ItemPropertyContainerBox as item properties, such as file name and item identifier.).
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 image information of Maze wherein: the association container is an item property association box; and the region item information is associated with the at least one generated annotation data structure as item properties, as taught by Aksu, for the benefit increasing space savings of a media file by enabling a set of properties to be associated with a plurality of items (see e.g., Aksu, [0074]).
As to claim 51, the limitations of parent claims 10 and 49 have been discussed above. Maze does not specifically disclose wherein: the association container is an item reference box; and the region item information is associated with the at least one annotation data structure generated as items. However, Aksu teaches wherein:
the association container is an item reference box [ItemPropertyAssociationBox] (see e.g., [0069] for files conforming to the ISOBMFF containing non-timed objects, referred to as items and the meta box listing and characterizing any number of items that can be referred and each one of them can be associated with a file name and can be uniquely identified with the file by item identifier (item_id) which is an integer value and [0074] for the ItemPropertiesBox enabling the association of any item with an ordered set of item properties, item properties being small data records, and the ItemPropertiesBox consisting of two parts: an ItemPropertyContainerBox that contains an implicitly indexed list of item properties, and one or more ItemPropertyAssociationBox(es) that associate items with item properties); and
the region item information is associated with the at least one annotation data structure generated as items (see e.g., [0069] for files conforming to the ISOBMFF containing non-timed objects, referred to as items and the meta box listing and characterizing any number of items that can be referred and each one of them can be associated with a file name and can be uniquely identified with the file by item identifier (item_id) which is an integer value and [0074] for the ItemPropertiesBox enabling the association of any item with an ordered set of item properties, item properties being small data records, and the ItemPropertiesBox consisting of two parts: an ItemPropertyContainerBox that contains an implicitly indexed list of item properties, and one or more ItemPropertyAssociationBox(es) that associate items with item properties. The item listing is associated with the ItemPropertyContainerBox as items.).
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 image information of Maze wherein: the association container is an item reference box; and the region item information is associated with the at least one annotation data structure generated as items, as taught by Aksu, for the benefit increasing space savings of a media file by enabling a set of properties to be associated with a plurality of items (see e.g., Aksu, [0074]).
As to claim 52, the limitations of parent claim 10 have been discussed above. Maze teaches wherein:
the region item information is related to a plurality of regions of the image (see e.g., [0025] for an information item being defined for the full picture 101 in addition to respective information items for each tile picture (102, 103, 104 and 105), those information items being stored in a box called ‘ItemInfoBox’ (iinf), and the box (106), called ‘ItemReferenceBox’, from the ISO BMFF standard being used for indicating that a ‘tile’ relationship (107) exists between the information item of the full picture and the four information items corresponding to the tile pictures (108). The information item for the tile image is related to a plurality of information items for tile images of the full picture.); and
the geometry descriptive data describes the geometry of each of the plurality of regions of the image (see e.g., [0331] for a new descriptor called for example “SimplelmageMetaData” supporting spatial description of image items, along with other properties such as clean aperture or sample aspect ratio and this applying to any sub-image (tile or independent image) intended to be composed in a bigger image or at the reverse extracted from a bigger image, [0332] for class SimpleImageMetaData including ImageSpacialRelationBox, and [0335]-[0341] for ImageSpatialRelationBox syntax with associated semantics: horizontal_display_offset specifies the horizontal offset of the image, vertical_display_offset specifies the vertical offset of the image, display_width specifies the width of the image, and display_height specifies the height of the image. The ImageSpacialRelationBox describes the height, width, horizontal offset, vertical offset of each of the plurality of sub-images of the full picture.).
Maze does not specifically disclose wherein the at least one annotation data structure is associated with at least one region of the plurality of regions of the image. However, Aksu teaches
wherein the at least one annotation data structure is associated with at least one region of the plurality of regions of the image (see e.g., [0069] for files conforming to the ISOBMFF containing non-timed objects, referred to as items and the meta box listing and characterizing any number of items that can be referred and each one of them can be associated with a file name and can be uniquely identified with the file by item identifier (item_id) which is an integer value and [0074] for the ItemPropertiesBox enabling the association of any item with an ordered set of item properties, item properties being small data records, and the ItemPropertiesBox consisting of two parts: an ItemPropertyContainerBox that contains an implicitly indexed list of item properties, and one or more ItemPropertyAssociationBox(es) that associate items with item properties. The ItemPropertyContainerBox is associated with at least one item of the plurality of items.).
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 image information of Maze wherein the at least one annotation data structure is associated with at least one region of the plurality of regions of the image, as taught by Aksu, for the benefit increasing space savings of a media file by enabling a set of properties to be associated with a plurality of items (see e.g., Aksu, [0074]).
As to claim 53, the limitation of parent claims 10 and 52 have been discussed above. Maze does not specifically disclose wherein a first annotation data structure is associated with a first region of the plurality of regions of the image, and a second annotation data structure is associated with a second region of the plurality of regions. However, Aksu teaches
wherein a first annotation data structure is associated with a first region of the plurality of regions of the image, and a second annotation data structure is associated with a second region of the plurality of regions (see e.g., [0069] for files conforming to the ISOBMFF containing non-timed objects, referred to as items and the meta box listing and characterizing any number of items that can be referred and each one of them can be associated with a file name and can be uniquely identified with the file by item identifier (item_id) which is an integer value and [0074] for the ItemPropertiesBox enabling the association of any item with an ordered set of item properties, item properties being small data records, and the ItemPropertiesBox consisting of two parts: an ItemPropertyContainerBox that contains an implicitly indexed list of item properties, and one or more ItemPropertyAssociationBox(es) that associate items with item properties. A first ItemPropertyContainerBox is associated with a first item of the plurality of items and a second ItemPropertyContainerBox is associated with a second item of the plurality of items.).
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 image information of Maze wherein a first annotation data structure is associated with a first region of the plurality of regions of the image, and a second annotation data structure is associated with a second region of the plurality of regions, as taught by Aksu, for the benefit increasing space savings of a media file by enabling a set of properties to be associated with a plurality of items (see e.g., Aksu, [0074]).
Claims 42 and 43 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Maze et al. (US Publication No. 2018/0352219) in view of Aksu et al. (US Publication No. 2021/0105492) as applied to claims 1, 10, 12, 14, 15, 39-41, and 44-53 above, and further in view of Harris (US Publication No. 2013/0162678).
As to claim 42, the limitations of parent claim 1 have been discussed above. Maze in view of Aksu does not specifically disclose wherein the geometry of the region of the image is a mask. However, Harris teaches
wherein the geometry of the region of the image is a mask (see e.g., [0032] for the image processing application 120 can save a foreground image or a foreground region of interest (e.g., a selection mask, a rectangle, or some other geometry)).
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 image information of Maze in view of Aksu wherein the geometry of the region of the image is a mask, as taught by Harris, for the benefit of selecting individual pixels (see e.g., Harris, [0032]).
As to claim 43, the limitations of parent claims 1 and 42 have been discussed above. Maze teaches
wherein the geometry of the region is comprised in an image item [ImageSpatialRelationBox] associated with the region item information by an item reference information [spatial image relation] (see e.g., [0331] for a new descriptor called for example “SimplelmageMetaData” supporting spatial description of image items, along with other properties such as clean aperture or sample aspect ratio and this applying to any sub-image (tile or independent image) intended to be composed in a bigger image or at the reverse extracted from a bigger image, [0332] for class SimpleImageMetaData including ImageSpacialRelationBox, [0335]-[0341] for ImageSpatialRelationBox syntax with associated semantics: horizontal_display_offset specifies the horizontal offset of the image, vertical_display_offset specifies the vertical offset of the image, display_width specifies the width of the image, and display_height specifies the height of the image, and [0347] for this new descriptor being used as description of an image (tile or single image) by defining an association between the item information representing the image and the item information representing the descriptor and this association being done with a new reference type; ‘simr’ to indicate “spatial image relation. The spatial image relation is generated, which associates the information item for the tile image with the ImageSpatialRelationBox included within the SimplelmageMetaData.)
Maze in view of Aksu does not specifically disclose wherein the geometry of the region of the image is a mask. However, Harris teaches
wherein the geometry of the region of the image is a mask (see e.g., [0032] for the image processing application 120 can save a foreground image or a foreground region of interest (e.g., a selection mask, a rectangle, or some other geometry)).
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 image information of Maze in view of Aksu wherein the geometry of the region of the image is a mask, as taught by Harris, for the benefit of selecting individual pixels (see e.g., Harris, [0032]).
Response to Amendment
The 35 U.S.C. 112(b) rejection of claims 10 and 49-51 has been withdrawn in light of Applicant’s amendment to independent claim 10.
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed February 17, 2026 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive.
On page 9 of Applicant’s Response, Applicant argues:
In other words, according to Maze, geometry descriptive data may be generated to describe a geometry of a region of an image but in such a case, the image comprising the region described by the geometry is not the image represented by the image item as claimed but another image, i.e., a full image including the image of the image item as claimed (e.g., see Maze, § [0349]- [0351]). On the contrary, the claimed feature is directed to describing a region in the image of the image item with which the region item information comprising the geometry descriptive data is associated.
Examiner respectfully disagrees with Applicant’s arguments. The claimed “image item” may in fact represent the full image. In response to Applicant's argument that the references fail to show certain features of the invention, it is noted that the features upon which applicant relies (i.e., the image item only representing a region of the image, but not the full image) are not recited in the rejected claims. Although the claims are interpreted in light of the specification, limitations from the specification are not read into the claims. See In re Van Geuns, 988 F.2d 1181, 26 USPQ2d 1057 (Fed. Cir. 1993). Claim 1 recites “generating an image item representing an image,” as well as “a region in the image represented by the image item.” Applicant’s argument that in Maze, “the image comprising the region described by the geometry is not the image represented by the image item as claimed but another image, i.e., a full image including the image of the image item as claimed” implies that the claimed “image item” only constitutes a portion of the image, but not the full image. However, claim 1 explicitly recites that the “image item” represents “an image,” not exclusively one region of the image.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Perez et al. (US Publication No. 2015/0127648) for “[a] region detection system is applied to the image media content for generating key-points as the centre of a region with a predetermined geometry” (see [0006]).
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to DARA J GLASSER whose telephone number is (571)270-3666. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Thursday, 10:00am-2:00pm.
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09-04-2026
/DARA J GLASSER/Examiner, Art Unit 2161
/APU M MOFIZ/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2161
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