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and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114.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 2/10/2026 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.
Claims 1-2 and 5-6 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Borggaard (US 2015/0219755 A1; ids), Rohling (2008, IEEE), and Ray (US 2019/0361113 A1; previously cited).
Regarding claim 1, Borggaard teaches a method comprising:
emitting a sound by a first device [[abstract] methods and systems for determining distance between two or more mobile devices utilizing a sound emitted from each device such as a chirp … each device may determine or receive an indication of a time reference for each instance the device emits or detects a chirp; [0031] the indication may be, for example, a time stamp, sample time, or the like sent by the processor of the device or a start recording signal from an application on the device that is coordinating chirping as described above];
receiving a first recorded sound [[0013] the remote server or other device may be provided only audio files that include or are believed to include one or more chirps, and an indication of the sample rate of the audio file, which often may be encoded or embedded within the audio file itself] and a second recorded sound at the first device [[0021] audio recorded by the microphone may be analyzed, for example by the mobile device; [0038] conventional triangulation techniques may be used to determine a location and/or rotation of the third device], the first recorded sound comprising a recording of the emitted sound by a second device [[0030] whether the determination of the distance between the first mobile device 310 and the second mobile device 320 is performed locally, such as by the first mobile device 310, or remotely, such as by a server 330, the first mobile device may obtain an indication of a first distance between the first mobile device and the second mobile device … [i]f the first mobile device performs the distance calculation, it may transmit an indication of the distance to the second mobile device 318];
determining, by the first device, whether the first device is closer to the second device or the third device based on the [first distance] and the [second distance] [[abstract] distance between the two or more devices may be determined; [0014] based on this information alone, however, it is unclear whether device C is to the “right” or “left” of device B relative to device A. … Device C may be moved slightly to the left or right and the process may be repeated. Distance calculations may be performed to determine relative orientation of Device C to Device A.].
Borggaard does not explicitly teach and yet Rohling teaches determining, by the first device, a first intermediate frequency (IF) signal based on the emitted [sound] and the first recorded [sound] [[sec. II linear frequency modulation]; [pg. 3] modulated signal consists of two linear frequency modulated up-chirp signals which are transmitted in an intertwined way … received signal is again down converted into base band]; determining, by the first device, a first distance between the first device and the second device based on a (i) a frequency of the first IF signal, (ii) a duration of the emitted [sound], and (iii) a bandwidth of the emitted [sound] [[eq. 1] shows that target range is related to chirp frequency, chirp duration, and system bandwidth; when prior art eq. 1 is rearranged algebraically it appears to be identical to the equation shown in instant para. 0073],
determining, by the first device, a second IF signal based on the emitted [sound] and the second recorded [sound] [[pg. 3] chirp signals]; determining, by the first device, a second distance between the first device [[pg. 1, col. 2] target range R] and the third device [[pg. 1, col. 2] characteristic for all automotive radar applications that almost always multiple targets will be observed] based on a (i) a frequency of the second IF signal, (ii) a duration of the emitted [sound], and (iii) a bandwidth of the emitted [sound] [[eq. 1] as previously described and in similar manner to the calculation of the first distance from the first intermediate frequency signal].
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It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective filing date of the invention to combine the triangulation using an audio file processed by a remote server or another device as taught by Borggaard, with the chirp ranging distance determination as taught by Rohling so that range may be deduced from a frequency modulated continuous wave system (Rohling) [[pg. 1, sec. pure linear frequency modulation cw principle]].
Borggaard does not explicitly teach and yet Ray teaches wherein the first IF signal includes a frequency that is based on a difference between instantaneous frequencies of the sound and the first recorded sound [[fig. 1] shows difference between transmitted and received ramp signals; [0043]].
It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective filing date of the invention to combine the triangulation using an audio file processed by a remote server or another device as taught by Borggaard, with determination of difference between transmitted and received ramp signals as taught by Ray so that the beat frequencies may be used to solve for target velocity and range (Ray) [[0043]].
Regarding claim 2, Borggaard does not explicitly teach and yet Rohling teaches the method of claim 1, wherein: the emitted sound comprises one or more frequency-modulated continuous-wave (FMCW) chirps [pg. 1, sec. II frequency modulation continuous wave (CW); [fig. 1] shows an up and down chirp which are also described in and around [eq. 7]]; the duration of the emitted sound comprises a duration of the FMCW chirps [[pg. 1, col. 2] discusses chirp duration]; and the bandwidth of the emitted sound comprises a bandwidth of the FMCW chirps [[pg. 1, col. 2] discusses system bandwidth].
It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective filing date of the invention to combine the triangulation using an audio file processed by a remote server or another device as taught by Borggaard, with the chirp ranging distance determination as taught by Rohling so that range may be deduced from a frequency modulated continuous wave system (Rohling) [[pg. 1, sec. pure linear frequency modulation cw principle]].
Regarding claim 5, Borggaard teaches the method of claim 1, wherein: the first device is a mobile device [[0021] mobile device 310 may be, for example, a smartphone, a tablet, or a laptop.]; and the second device is an acoustic device [[0021] mobile device 310 includes at least a processor, a microphone, and a speaker. In some configurations, more than one microphone may be utilized to receive an audio signal; [0044] distance calculations subsequent to the rotation of the first mobile device may reveal slight changes in the distances between the first device and the second and third mobile devices respectively].
Regarding claim 6, Borggaard teaches the method of claim 1, wherein: the first device communicates with the second device via a radio frequency (RF) module [[0017] A network interface 29 may provide a direct connection to a remote server … network interface 29 may provide such connection using wireless techniques]; and the recorded sound is received at the first device via the RF module [[0013] remote server or other device may be provided only audio files that include or are believed to include one or more chirps].
Claims 7-9, 12-16, and 19-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Borggaard (US 2015/0219755 A1), Rohling (2008, IEEE), and Ray (US 2019/0361113 A1) as applied to claims 1 and 8 above, and further in view of Maurer (US 2015/0279426 A1).
Regarding claims 7 and 14, Borggaard does not explicitly teach and yet Maurer teaches the method and electronic device of claims 1 and 8 further comprising presenting the determination of whether the first device is closer to the second device or the third device [[[0029] audio and video files … process the files for analysis and/or display; [0094] wearable devices 107 a, 107 b, 107 c, and 107 d are configured to determine a distance between each other and/or from the teacher computing device 109 and to report the distance to the teacher computing device 10].
It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective filing date of the invention to modify the remote server audio recording triangulation as taught by Borggaard, with the display of distance as taught by Maurer so that a teacher may view the distance to students.
Regarding claims 8 and 15, these claims are essentially an electronic device and a computer readable medium for performing the method of claim 1, and thus are rejected for the same reasons as applied to the same claim above. Additionally, Borggaard does not explicitly teach and yet Maurer teaches at least one display configured to show the determined distance [[0029] audio and video files … process the files for analysis and/or display; [0094] wearable devices 107 a, 107 b, 107 c, and 107 d are configured to determine a distance between each other and/or from the teacher computing device 109 and to report the distance to the teacher computing device 10]).
It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective filing date of the invention to modify the remote server audio recording triangulation as taught by Borggaard, with the display of distance as taught by Maurer so that a teacher may view the distance to students.
Regarding claim 9, Borggaard does not explicitly teach and yet Rohling teaches the electronic device of claim 8, wherein: the emitted sound comprises one or more frequency-modulated continuous-wave (FMCW) chirps [pg. 1, sec. II frequency modulation continuous wave (CW); [fig. 1] shows an up and down chirp which are also described in and around [eq. 7]]; the duration of the emitted sound comprises a duration of the FMCW chirps [[pg. 1, col. 2] discusses chirp duration]; and the bandwidth of the emitted sound comprises a bandwidth of the FMCW chirps [[pg. 1, col. 2] discusses system bandwidth].
It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective filing date of the invention to combine the triangulation using an audio file processed by a remote server or another device as taught by Borggaard, with the chirp ranging distance determination as taught by Rohling so that range may be deduced from a frequency modulated continuous wave system (Rohling) [[pg. 1, sec. pure linear frequency modulation cw principle]].
Regarding claims 12 and 19, Borggaard teaches the electronic device and computer readable medium of claims 8 and 15, wherein: the first device is a mobile device [[0021] mobile device 310 may be, for example, a smartphone, a tablet, or a laptop.]; and the second device is an acoustic device [[0021] mobile device 310 includes at least a processor, a microphone, and a speaker. In some configurations, more than one microphone may be utilized to receive an audio signal; [0044] distance calculations subsequent to the rotation of the first mobile device may reveal slight changes in the distances between the first device and the second and third mobile devices respectively].
Regarding claims 13 and 20, Borggaard teaches the electronic device and computer readable medium of claims 8 and 15, wherein: the first device communicates with the second device via a radio frequency (RF) module [[0017] A network interface 29 may provide a direct connection to a remote server … network interface 29 may provide such connection using wireless techniques]; and the recorded sound is received at the first device via the RF module [[0013] remote server or other device may be provided only audio files that include or are believed to include one or more chirps].
Regarding claim 16, Borggaard does not explicitly teach and yet Rohling teaches the computer readable medium of claim 15, wherein: the emitted sound comprises one or more frequency-modulated continuous-wave (FMCW) chirps [pg. 1, sec. II frequency modulation continuous wave (CW); [fig. 1] shows an up and down chirp which are also described in and around [eq. 7]]; the duration of the emitted sound comprises a duration of the FMCW chirps [[pg. 1, col. 2] discusses chirp duration]; and the bandwidth of the emitted sound comprises a bandwidth of the FMCW chirps [[pg. 1, col. 2] discusses system bandwidth].
It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective filing date of the invention to combine the triangulation using an audio file processed by a remote server or another device as taught by Borggaard, with the chirp ranging distance determination as taught by Rohling so that range may be deduced from a frequency modulated continuous wave system (Rohling) [[pg. 1, sec. pure linear frequency modulation cw principle]].
Claims 3-4 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Borggaard (US 2015/0219755 A1), Rohling (2008, IEEE), and Ray (US 2019/0361113 A1) as applied to claim 2 above, and further in view of Camwell (US 2008/0013403 A1).
Regarding claim 3, Borggaard does not explicitly teach and yet Camwell teaches the method claim 2, further comprising: determining a signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) of the recorded sound; and responsive to the SNR being less than a specified threshold, adjusting the duration of the FMCW chirps [[0048] If a TDR first return echo is below the SNR system threshold, other methods may be employed to increase the magnitude, including increasing output level (as exemplified above), increasing the duration of the chirp and average the signal, increasing the number of chirps according to a particular pattern, and correlate the return signal to this pattern, and the like; [0051] an acoustic pulse or similar signal where the cyclic energy is substantially within one of the drillstring passbands is launched from acoustic transmitter/receiver (transceiver)].
It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to combine the triangulation as taught by Borggaard, with the determining of signal to noise ratio, comparison to a threshold, and adjusting of the duration or number of chirps as taught by Camwell so that the magnitude of the signal is increased so it may be more easily detected (Camwell) [0048].
Regarding claim 4, Borggaard does not explicitly teach and yet Camwell teaches the method of claim 2 above, further comprising: determining a signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) of the recorded sound; and responsive to the SNR being less than a specified threshold, adjusting a number of chirps in the FMCW chirps [0048; 0051].
It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to combine the triangulation as taught by Borggaard, with the determining of signal to noise ratio, comparison to a threshold, and adjusting of the duration or number of chirps as taught by Camwell so that the magnitude of the signal is increased so it may be more easily detected (Camwell) [0048].
Claims 10-11 and 17-18 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Borggaard (US 2015/0219755 A1), Rohling (2008, IEEE), and Ray (US 2019/0361113 A1) as applied to claims 9 and 16 above, and further in view of Camwell (US 2008/0013403 A1).
Regarding claims 10 and 17, Borggaard does not explicitly teach and yet Camwell teaches the electronic device and computer readable medium of claims 9 and 16 above, further comprising: determining a signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) of the recorded sound; and responsive to the SNR being less than a specified threshold, adjusting the duration of the FMCW chirps [[0048] If a TDR first return echo is below the SNR system threshold, other methods may be employed to increase the magnitude, including increasing output level (as exemplified above), increasing the duration of the chirp and average the signal, increasing the number of chirps according to a particular pattern, and correlate the return signal to this pattern, and the like; [0051] an acoustic pulse or similar signal where the cyclic energy is substantially within one of the drillstring passbands is launched from acoustic transmitter/receiver (transceiver)].
It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to combine the triangulation as taught by Borggaard, with the determining of signal to noise ratio, comparison to a threshold, and adjusting of the duration or number of chirps as taught by Camwell so that the magnitude of the signal is increased so it may be more easily detected (Camwell) [0048].
Regarding claims 11 and 18, Borggaard does not explicitly teach and yet Camwell teaches the electronic device and computer readable medium of claims 9 and 16, further comprising: determining a signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) of the recorded sound; and responsive to the SNR being less than a specified threshold, adjusting a number of chirps in the FMCW chirps [0048; 0051].
It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to combine the triangulation as taught by Borggaard, with the determining of signal to noise ratio, comparison to a threshold, and adjusting of the duration or number of chirps as taught by Camwell so that the magnitude of the signal is increased so it may be more easily detected (Camwell) [0048].
Claim 21 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Borggaard (US 2015/0219755 A1), Rohling (2008, IEEE), and Ray (US 2019/0361113 A1) as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of Tsai (US 2011/0312279 A1).
Regarding claim 21, Borggaard does not explicitly teach and yet Tsai the method of Claim 1, wherein the first device is configured to reduce or eliminate clock drift between the first device, the second device, and the third device [[abstract] range between communicating devices; [0032] RF-based ranging technology. Rather, this is merely provided as an example of an implementation featuring an RF ranging capability of communicating devices. However, many other approaches to providing ranging capability are available (e.g., infrared, laser, sound ranging, etc.), and claimed subject matter is not limited in scope to any particular approach; [0043] For purposes of explanation, one-way TOF technique, also known as time of arrival (TOA), may determine a range and/or changes therein using knowledge of the propagation rate (e.g., the transit time) of a signal in a wireless RF link. In another implementation, a delay between RF signals transmitted and received in a round trip propagation (e.g., the round trip TOF) may be measured, and range-related characteristics may be obtained using knowledge of the propagation speed of RF signals. In certain implementations, one or more wireless devices may maintain a local clock synchronized to a system clock established for signaling environment 300 (e.g., via mobile device 100, master device, etc.), for example, as a common time base for accurate TOF measurements. In an implementation where mobile device 100 and one or more reference nodes are assumed to be substantially unsynchronized, accurate TOF measurements may be obtained by calculating the round trip propagation delay at mobile device 100 or at a particular reference node and dividing the result by two, as one possible example. It should be appreciated that other techniques may be used, for example, to remove at least a portion of error associated with range-related measurements arising from a bias error associated with a local clock(s) (e.g., clock drift), signal propagation, etc. Of course, these are merely examples related to ranging techniques that may be implemented in connection with RF ranging-assisted local motion sensing, and claimed subject matter is not so limited].
It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to combine the triangulation as taught by Borggaard, with the synchronized or unsynchronized clocks as taught by Tsai so that at least a portion of the error associated with clock drift may be removed (Tsai) [0043].
Claim 22 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Borggaard (US 2015/0219755 A1), Rohling (2008, IEEE), and Ray (US 2019/0361113 A1) as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of Deng (US 2019/0063970 A1) and Franceschini (US 2016/0047892 A1).
Regarding claim 22, Borggaard does not explicitly teach and yet Deng teaches the method of claim 1, wherein the first device comprises:
a sound manager [[0005] use of variable frequency, or “chirp”, excitation signals for ultrasonic transducers has been reported]; and
a sound processor [[0084] controller 7 may be a microcontroller, a microprocessor, or any other suitable data processing apparatus] configured to provide control information for frequency-modulated continuous-wave chirp generation to adjust a duration or number of chirps in the emitted sound based on an estimated signal-to-noise ratio [[0080] in general, the greater the distance, the more acoustic attenuation will occur before a transmitted pulse reaches a receiving ultrasonic transducer. In order to maintain a given signal-to-noise ratio over a greater distance, more energy is needed in the drive pulse, for example, a higher drive voltage or an increase in the number of pulses. Flow meters may often be used for long term installations in locations where there is no mains electric connection available, and may need to operate using battery power or energy harvesting, so that the energy required for measurements is a consideration].
It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to combine the triangulation as taught by Borggaard, with the increasing of in the number of pulses as taught by Deng so that signal to noise ratio is improved (Deng) [[0080]].
Borggaard does not explicitly teach and yet Franceschini the first IF signal has a frequency based on a difference between the emitted sound and the first recorded sound; and the second IF signal has a frequency based on a difference between the emitted sound and the second recorded sound [[0005] Frequency-Modulated-Continuous-Wave (FMCW) radar is a type of radar system where a known stable frequency continuous wave varies up and down in frequency over a fixed period of time by a modulating signal. A frequency difference between the receive signal and the transmit signal increases with delay, and hence with distance. The radar system then mixes echoes from a target with the transmitted signal to produce a beat signal which will give the distance of the target after demodulation.; [0023] output of the mixer may be a beat signal (e.g., a difference signal), where the beat signal is the instantaneous frequency difference of the transmitted signal and the received signal. The mixer of radar 2, for example, may mix signal 16 and signal 18 to determine a beat signal corresponding to the instantaneous difference of signal 16 and 18. In some examples, the output of the mixer (e.g., the difference signal) may be a single frequency corresponding to the difference in two frequency ramps].
It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to combine the triangulation as taught by Borggaard, with calculating of a difference signal between a transmitted and received chirp signals because the difference or beat signal gives the distance (Franceschini) [[0005; 0023]].
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments, see pgs. 11-13, filed 1/12/2026, with respect to the rejection(s) of claim(s) 1 under 35 U.S.C. 103 have been fully considered and are persuasive. Therefore, the rejection has been withdrawn. However, upon further consideration, a new ground(s) of rejection is made in view of Ray (US 2019/0361113 A1) which was previously cited on 11/8/2023.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JONATHAN D ARMSTRONG whose telephone number is (571)270-7339. The examiner can normally be reached M - F 9am-5pm.
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/JONATHAN D ARMSTRONG/ Examiner, Art Unit 3645
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