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 .
Response to Amendment
The following addresses Applicant’s remarks/amendments 06 July 2026.
Claims 1-5, 9-11, and 18-19 were amended; no claims were cancelled; no new claims were added; therefore, claims 1-19 are pending in the current application and will be addressed below.
Response to Argument
Applicant’s arguments filed 06 July 2026 with respect to claims 1-19 have been fully considered but are moot because the arguments do not apply to the specific combination of references being used in the current rejection.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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, 4, and 10 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kotzur et al (US 10,753,740 B2) in view of Rosengaus et al. (US 2013/0096873 A1) and AWE XR (herein after AWE) (AWE XR. (2013, June 17). AWE.tv Demo of the AR Sandbox with Oliver Kreylos, UC Davis [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g6fSS3cynDo).
Regarding Claim 1, Kotzur teaches a surveying system ([Col. 2, ll. 43-45] a surveying instrument and a surveying measurement method) comprising
a height measuring device ([Col. 3, ll. 22-23] The surveying instrument can also comprise a height measurement appliance) and
a high-low measuring device and measuring unevenness information of a construction surface with respect to a construction finished surface ([Col. 8, ll. 35-39] Besides the target point aiming and measurement setup of such a total station 1, it is also equipped with a tilt sensor 30… measure the tilt of the total station 1, preferably in direction of the line of sight and perpendicular to the line of sight),
wherein said height measuring device is installed at a floor surface as a reference ([Col. 3, ll. 11-16] The surveying instrument is to be stationed at ground coordinates and in a stationing height above ground… Such stationing can e.g. be established by means of a support for the device like a tripod or the like), and is configured to set a horizontal reference plane and to measure a height of an object with respect to said horizontal reference plane ([Col. 4, ll. 49-60] The target point correction unit can therein be configured to derive and apply the target point correction in a substantially horizontal x-y plane and in a substantially vertical z direction….The control unit can be configured to derive the corrected target point coordinates with additionally correcting the target direction according to the tilt value from the tilt sensor in such a way, that a corrected target direction is referenced to level),
wherein said high-low measuring device comprises
said object ([Col. 13, ll. 33-35] the instrument 1b is used to survey the target point 20, here embodied at a surveying pole Examiner Note: Fig. 5, reproduced below, shows the target point 20 affixed to the surveying pole (object)),
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a distance measurement sensor which is provided in a known relationship with said object and measures a distance to a construction surface ([Col. 13, ll. 40-52] the target point coordinates measured by 8b, are applied with a location displacement x,y,z of the instrument center coordinates from 6a to 6b, resulting in corrected target point coordinates 25 referenced to the instrument center coordinates 6a without tilt, as indicated by the virtual corrected measurement 8c. The resulting corrected target point 20c which coordinates are provided by the instrument 1 are those of the real target point 20 with respect to the thereby virtually fixed center point 6a of the instrument. According to the invention, the location displacement x,y,z of the instrument center coordinates are therein derived based on the tilt value 12 and the instruments stationing height 11),
an arithmetic control module ([Col. 12, ll. 66-67] the target coordinates can be corrected in a post processing software),
Kotzur is not relied upon as teaching wherein said high-low measuring device is installed at a construction floor surface, a distance measurement sensor that measures a distance to a construction surface planarly, a projecting device for projecting unevenness information, wherein said arithmetic control module is configured to set a construction finished surface at a predetermined height with respect to said horizontal reference plane and to calculate deviation of said construction surface with respect to said construction finished surface as unevenness information based on a distance information of said construction surface measured by said distance measurement sensor and a set height of the construction finished surface, and wherein said projecting device is configured to project said unevenness information onto said construction surface in real time.
However, Rosengaus teaches a high-low measuring device and measuring unevenness information of a construction surface with respect to a construction finished surface ([0049] Other measurements (e.g., surface flatness, floor sloping, etc.) can be accomplished),
wherein said high-low measuring device is installed at a construction floor surface ([Abstract] Systems and methods for acquiring information for a construction site are provided. One system includes a base unit position within a construction site by a user).
Kotzur and Rosengaus are considered to be analogous to the claimed invention because the are both in the same field of surveying and construction measurement systems. Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the surveying system of Kotzur to include the high-low measuring device installed at a construction floor surface of Rosengaus with a reasonable expectation of success. This modification would have been motivated by the desire to measure surface flatness or floor sloping in real time during construction operations. By integrating Rosengaus’s teaching of a high-low measuring device installed at a construction floor surface into Kotzur’s surveying system, the system can provide unevenness information and surface measurements with respect to a construction finished surface. A person of ordinary skill in the art would recognize that combining these features would yield the predictable result of accurate structural monitoring and comprehensive surveying capability under varied field conditions.
Rosengaus is not relied upon as teaching a distance measurement sensor that measures a distance to a construction surface planarly, a projecting device for projecting unevenness information, and wherein said arithmetic control module is configured to set a construction finished surface at a predetermined height with respect to said horizontal reference plane and to calculate deviation of said construction surface with respect to said construction finished surface as unevenness information based on a distance information of said construction surface measured by said distance measurement sensor and a set height of the construction finished surface, and wherein said projecting device is configured to project said unevenness information onto said construction surface in real time.
However, AWE teaches a distance measurement sensor that measures a distance to a construction surface planarly ([1:24] Examiner Note: As shown in the image captured at 1:24 in the video, reproduced below, the distance measurement sensor is detecting a distance to a construction surface planarly, as the projection onto the construction surface displays said measurements),
a projecting device for projecting unevenness information ([1:24] Examiner Note: The projection shown in the image captured at 1:24 in the video shows a topographic map projected onto the construction surface with contour lines detailing the unevenness information), and
wherein said arithmetic control module is configured to set a construction finished surface at a predetermined height with respect to said horizontal reference plane and to calculate deviation of said construction surface with respect to said construction finished surface as unevenness information based on a distance information of said construction surface measured by said distance measurement sensor and a set height of the construction finished surface ([1:20-1:42] “Build a mountain. what happens if you build a mountain? How do the colors change? How do the colors indicate elevation? If you build something tall it’s going to be white on top. If you dig low it’s going to be green at the bottom. And then you can talk about, well, how do the contour lines work? They show areas of equal elevation and then if the contour lines are spaced very far apart that means that your terrain is shallow. And if they’re very close to each other that means that your terrain is steep” Examiner Note: The set height of the construction finished surface is the white area between the red and green regions shown in the image taken at 1:24 of the video. Because the system knows to what “up and down” are relative, it can display certain regions as red because they’re above the set height of the finished surface and display other regions as green because they’re below the set height of the finished surface), and
wherein said projecting device is configured to project said unevenness information onto said construction surface in real time ([1:19 and 1:24] Examiner Note: As shown by the differences in the shape of the construction surface and the details of the topographic map projection, the map is updated in real time as the unevenness changes due to changes in the construction surface).
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Kotzur (as previously modified by Rosengaus) and AWE are considered to be analogous to the claimed invention because they are both in the field of surveying and measurement. Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the surveying system of Kotzur (as previously modified by Rosengaus) to include the planar distance measurement sensor and real-time topographical projection device of AWE with a reasonable expectation of success. This modification would have been motivated by the desire to provide intuitive, real-time visual feedback of surface elevation deviations and contour lines directly onto a construction surface. By integrating AWE’s teaching of projecting unevenness information onto a construction surface in real time into Kotzur (as previously modified by Rosengaus)’s system the system can dynamically display topological map contours corresponding to elevation changes and deviations from a set reference height. A person of ordinary skill in the art would recognize that combining these features would yield the predictable result of enhanced visual analysis of surface topography and improved accuracy in monitoring construction grading.
Regarding Claim 2, Kotzur is not relied upon as teaching that said height measuring device is adapted to form a horizontal reference plane with a known height, said object is a photodetector for detecting said horizontal reference plane, and said arithmetic control module is configured to calculate a height of a measurement reference position of said distance measurement sensor with respect to said horizontal reference plane based on a detection result of said photodetector and to calculate the unevenness information of said construction surface based on a measurement result of said distance measurement sensor and a height of said construction finished surface.
However, AWE teaches that said height measuring device is adapted to form a horizontal reference plane with a known height, said object is a photodetector for detecting said horizontal reference plane, and said arithmetic control module is configured to calculate a height of a measurement reference position of said distance measurement sensor with respect to said horizontal reference plane based on a detection result of said photodetector and to calculate the unevenness information of said construction surface based on a measurement result of said distance measurement sensor and a height of said construction finished surface ([1:20-1:42] “Build a mountain. what happens if you build a mountain? How do the colors change? How do the colors indicate elevation? If you build something tall it’s going to be white on top. If you dig low it’s going to be green at the bottom. And then you can talk about, well, how do the contour lines work? They show areas of equal elevation and then if the contour lines are spaced very far apart that means that your terrain is shallow. And if they’re very close to each other that means that your terrain is steep” [3:16-3:30] “We have the projection and capture system. So, we have a Microsoft Connect camera up here which just is set up so it can scan the entire sand surface. And I’m going to drain the water for a moment and uh it can give us it can give us a fairly accurate 3D model of the sand surface that we built.” Examiner Note: the horizontal reference plane with a known height is shown because the system knows to highlight valleys in green and raised portions in red and white. The Microsoft connect camera detects the horizontal reference plane by creating a 3D model of the sand surface, calculating and displaying the unevenness information of the construction surface based on the measurements of the sensors and height of the construction surface).
Kotzur (as previously modified by Rosengaus and AWE) and AWE are considered to be analogous to the claimed invention because they are both in the same field of surveying and measurement systems. Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the surveying system of Kotzur (as previously modified by Rosengaus and AWE) to include the height measuring device adapted to form a horizontal reference plane, photodetector, and arithmetic control module configuration of AWE with a reasonable expectation of success. This modification would have been motivated by the desire to accurately track elevation baselines and calculate reference positions and unevenness relative to a known horizontal plane. By integrating AWE’s teaching of utilizing a camera to detect reference planes and calculate unevenness information into Kotzur (as previously modified by Rosengaus and AWE)’s system, the system can calculate a height of a measurement reference position with respect to a horizontal reference plane and determine construction surface unevenness based on sensor measurements and finished surface height. A person of ordinary skill in the art would recognize that combining these features would yield the predictable result of precise height referencing and automated calculation of surface elevation deviations.
Regarding Claim 4, Kotzur is not relied upon as teaching that said high-low measuring device further comprises a tilt sensor, and said arithmetic control module is configured to correct said unevenness information based on a detection result of said tilt sensor.
However, Rosengaus teaches that said high-low measuring device further comprises a tilt sensor, and said arithmetic control module is configured to correct said unevenness information based on a detection result of said tilt sensor ([0049] the base unit can now measure the position of any object within its accessible space just as it measured the position of a new tag. This enables the measurement functions described further herein to be performed. Other measurements (e.g., surface flatness, floor sloping, etc.) can be accomplished by measuring multiple points and fitting surfaces to them [0069] In some embodiments, the measurement unit includes one or more devices configured to determine an azimuth direction of the base unit in a coordinate system of the measurement unit. For example, the measurement unit may include one or more sensors that are configured to detect light from the base unit and a computer subsystem configured to determine an angle of illumination used by the base unit. In one such example, as shown in FIG. 12, the measurement unit may include one or more tight sensors 1208, which may include any suitable light sensors known in the art. The angle of illumination measured by the measurement unit may then be used to correct the x, y, and z coordinates determined by the base unit. For example, the angle of illumination information may be transmitted from the measurement unit to the base unit and used by the computer subsystem of the base unit to correct the position of the measurement unit determined by the base unit).
Kotzur (as previously modified by Rosengaus and AWE) and Rosengaus are considered to be analogous to the claimed invention because they are both in the field of surveying and construction measurement systems. Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the surveying system of Kotzur (as previously modified by Rosengaus and AWE) to include the tilt sensor and arithmetic control module configuration of Rosengaus with a reasonable expectation of success. This modification would have been motivated by the desire to correct coordinate and unevenness information based on tilt measurements to ensure accuracy. By integrating Rosengaus’s teaching of a tilt sensor configured to correct coordinates and unevenness information into Kotzur (as previously modified by Rosengaus and AWE)’s system, the system can correct unevenness information based on a detection result of the tilt sensor. A person of ordinary skill in the art would recognize that combining these features would yield the predictable result of compensated measurements and enhanced positional precision under tilting conditions.
Regarding Claim 10, Kotzur teaches said high-low measuring device further comprises a tilt sensor, and said arithmetic control module is configured to correct said high-low information based on a detection result of said tilt sensor ([Col. 5, ll. 25-34] determining a tilt value of the base of the surveying instrument with respect to a direction of gravity or level by a tilt sensor and deriving the target point coordinates in form of target point coordinates of one or more of the target points based on the target direction and target distance by a control unit, deriving the spatial location displacement of a instrument center due to a tilt movement of the surveying instrument with respect to an initial instrument center location at setup).
Claims 3 and 11 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kotzur et al (US 10,753,740 B2), Rosengaus et al. (US 2013/0096873 A1), and AWE XR (herein after AWE) (AWE XR. (2013, June 17). AWE.tv Demo of the AR Sandbox with Oliver Kreylos, UC Davis [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g6fSS3cynDo) in further view of Forster et al. (US 2022/0326381 A1) and Fujimoto (US 2017/0226708 A1).
Regarding Claim 3, Kotzur teaches that said height measuring device is a surveying instrument which is provided at a known height ([Col. 3, ll. 11-12] The surveying instrument is to be stationed at ground coordinates and in a stationing height above ground).
Kotzur is not relied upon as teaching that the height measuring device is configured to communicate measurement results to said high-low measuring device and has a tracking function, said high-low measuring device is configured to receive measurement results from said height measuring device, said object is a prism, and said arithmetic control module is configured to acquire the height information of said prism with respect to said construction finished surface from said high-low measuring device, to calculate a height of said measurement reference position of said distance measurement sensor with respect to said construction finished surface based on said height information of said prism and a known relationship between said prism and said distance measurement sensor, and to calculate the unevenness information of said construction surface based on a measurement result of said distance measurement sensor and the height of said measurement reference position of said distance measurement sensor.
However, Forster teaches that the height measuring has a tracking function ([0002] The present invention relates to a positional tracking system and method, and more particularly to optics-based positional tracking systems and methods for locating objects and locations in a construction jobsite).
Kotzur (as previously modified by Rosengaus and AWE) and Forster are considered to be analogous to the claimed invention because they are both in the same field of surveying and positional tracking systems for construction job sites. Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the surveying system of Kotzur (as previously modified by Rosengaus and AWE) to include the tracking function and communication features of Forster with a reasonable expectation of success. This modification would have been motivated by the desire to continuously track measurement objects and transmit measurement results automatically between system components. By integrating Forster’s teaching of an optics-based positional tracking system with a tracking function into Kotzur (as previously modified by Rosengaus and AWE)’s system, the system can communicate measurement results to the high-low measuring device and track target positions dynamically. A person of ordinary skill in the art would recognize that combining these features would yield the predictable result of automated tracking and seamless data communication during surveying operations.
Forster is not relied upon as teaching that the height measuring device is configured to communicate measurement results to said high-low measuring device, said high-low measuring device is configured to receive measurement results from said height measuring device, said object is a prism, and said arithmetic control module is configured to acquire the height information of said prism with respect to said construction finished surface from said high-low measuring device, to calculate a height of said measurement reference position of said distance measurement sensor with respect to said construction finished surface based on said height information of said prism and a known relationship between said prism and said distance measurement sensor, and to calculate the unevenness information of said construction surface based on a measurement result of said distance measurement sensor and the height of said measurement reference position of said distance measurement sensor.
However, Fujimoto teaches that the height measuring device is configured to communicate measurement results to said high-low measuring device, said high-low measuring device is configured to receive measurement results from said height measuring device, said object is a prism, and said arithmetic control module is configured to acquire the height information of said prism with respect to said construction finished surface from said high-low measuring device, to calculate a height of said measurement reference position of said distance measurement sensor with respect to said construction finished surface based on said height information of said prism and a known relationship between said prism and said distance measurement sensor, ([0117] when the laser surveying instrument 2 starts acquiring the position information (distance, horizontal angle, elevation angle) of the paving machine 3 (the target 7) by measuring the target (prism) 7 of the paving machine 3, the vertical-axis error Δθ related to the elevation angle is excluded with respect to the elevation angle Av thereof, and the position information (distance, horizontal angle) including the elevation angle Av with increased preciseness is transmitted through the communicating part 37 to the paving machine 3. As a result, the paving machine 3 utilizes the transmitted position information to provide the height control of the concrete placement surface with high accuracy).
Kotzur (as previously modified by Rosengaus, AWE, and Forster) and Fujimoto are considered to be analogous to the claimed invention because they are both in the same field of surveying and automated paving or construction control systems. Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the surveying system of Kotzur (as previously modified by Rosengaus, AWE, and Forster) to include the communication of measurement results to a high-low measuring device, prism target configuration, and arithmetic control module of Fujimoto with a reasonable expectation of success. This modification would have been motivated by the desire to transmit accurate position and height information from a surveying instrument to machinery for precise height control of a surface. By integrating Fujimoto’s teaching of acquiring position information using a prism target and communicating it to a machine into Kotzur (as previously modified by Rosengaus, AWE, and Forster)’s system, the system can acquire height information of the prism with respect to a construction finished surface, calculate the height of the measurement reference position based on the known relationship with the prism, and calculate unevenness information. A person of ordinary skill in the art would recognize that combining these features would yield the predictable result of a high-precision automated elevation control and real-time surface profiling during construction operations.
Fujimoto is not relied upon as teaching said arithmetic control module is configured to calculate the unevenness information of said construction surface based on a measurement result of said distance measurement sensor and the height of said measurement reference position of said distance measurement sensor.
However, Rosengaus teaches that said arithmetic control module is configured to calculate the unevenness information of said construction surface based on a measurement result of said distance measurement sensor and the height of said measurement reference position of said distance measurement sensor ([0049] the base unit can now measure the position of any object within its accessible space just as it measured the position of a new tag. This enables the measurement functions described further herein to be performed. Other measurements (e.g., surface flatness, floor sloping, etc.) can be accomplished by measuring multiple points and fitting surfaces to them).
Kotzur (as previously modified by Rosengaus, AWE, Forster, and Fujimoto) and Rosengaus are considered to be analogous to the claimed invention because they are both in the field of surveying and construction measurement systems. Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the surveying system of Kotzur (as previously modified by Rosengaus, AWE, Forster, and Fujimoto) to include the arithmetic control module configuration of Rosengaus for calculating unevenness information based on distance measurements and reference heights with a reasonable expectation of success. This modification would have been motivated by the desire to evaluate surface flatness, floor sloping, and overall surface contours by processing multiple measurement points. By integrating Rosengaus’s teaching of calculating surface unevenness and flatness from measured points into Kotzur (as previously modified by Rosengaus, AWE, Forster, and Fujimoto)’s system, the system can compute unevenness information based on a measurement result of the distance measurement sensor and the height of the measurement reference position. A person of ordinary skill in the art would recognize that combining these features would yield the predictable result of automated surface evaluation and precise topographical mapping during construction.
Regarding Claim 11, Kotzur teaches said high-low measuring device further comprises a tilt sensor, and said arithmetic control module is configured to correct said unevenness information based on a detection result of said tilt sensor ([Col. 5, ll. 25-34] determining a tilt value of the base of the surveying instrument with respect to a direction of gravity or level by a tilt sensor and deriving the target point coordinates in form of target point coordinates of one or more of the target points based on the target direction and target distance by a control unit, deriving the spatial location displacement of a instrument center due to a tilt movement of the surveying instrument with respect to an initial instrument center location at setup).
Claim 5 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kotzur et al (US 10,753,740 B2), Rosengaus et al. (US 2013/0096873 A1), AWE XR (herein after AWE) (AWE XR. (2013, June 17). AWE.tv Demo of the AR Sandbox with Oliver Kreylos, UC Davis [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g6fSS3cynDo), Forster et al. (US 2022/0326381 A1), and Fujimoto (US 2017/0226708 A1), in even further view of Pettersson (US 2014/0320603 A1).
Regarding Claim 5, Kotzur teaches said high-low measuring device further comprises a tilt sensor, and said arithmetic control module is configured to correct said unevenness information based on a detection result of said tilt sensor ([Col. 5, ll. 25-34] determining a tilt value of the base of the surveying instrument with respect to a direction of gravity or level by a tilt sensor and deriving the target point coordinates in form of target point coordinates of one or more of the target points based on the target direction and target distance by a control unit, deriving the spatial location displacement of a instrument center due to a tilt movement of the surveying instrument with respect to an initial instrument center location at setup).
Kotzur is not relied upon as teaching that a tilt sensor constituted as a handheld type.
However, Pettersson teaches a tilt sensor constituted as a handheld type ({0029] The handheld optical measuring means 1 may have… an electrolytic tilt sensor for measuring inclinations).
Kotzur (as previously modified by Rosengaus, AWE, Forster, and Fujimoto) and Pettersson are considered to be analogous to the claimed invention because they are both in the field of surveying and optical measurement systems. Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the surveying system of Kotzur to include a handheld-type tilt sensor configuration of Pettersson with a reasonable expectation of success. This modification would have been motivated by the desire to measure inclinations and correct measurements using a portable, handheld device. By integrating Pettersson’s teaching of a handheld optical measuring means having an electrolytic tilt sensor into Kotzur’s system, the system can determine inclinations and correct unevenness information based on the tilt sensor detection results. A person of ordinary skill in the art would recognize that combining these features would yield the predictable result of improved mobility and accurate tilt-compensated measurement in field operations.
Claims 6, 7, 12, and 14 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kotzur et al (US 10,753,740 B2), Rosengaus et al. (US 2013/0096873 A1), and AWE XR (herein after AWE) (AWE XR. (2013, June 17). AWE.tv Demo of the AR Sandbox with Oliver Kreylos, UC Davis [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g6fSS3cynDo) in further view of Arksey (US 2014/0320603 A1).
Regarding Claims 6 and 12, Kotzur is not relied upon as teaching that said distance measurement sensor is a distance measurement camera.
However, Arksey teaches said distance measurement sensor is a distance measurement camera ([0046] fixed arrays of cameras… positioned… so that the system can calculated distances by parallax and from frames taken).
Kotzur (as previously modified by Rosengaus and AWE) and Arksey are considered to be analogous to the claimed invention because they are both in the same field of surveying and optical distance measurement systems. Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the surveying system of Kotzur (as previously modified by Rosengaus and AWE) to include the distance measurement camera configuration of Arksey with a reasonable expectation of success. This modification would have been motivated by the desire to calculate distances efficiently using image frames and parallax from camera arrays. By integrating Arksey’s teaching of a distance measurement camera using fixed camera arrays to calculate distance by parallax into Kotzur (as previously modified by Rosengaus and AWE)’s system, the system can determine distances using an optical camera setup. A person of ordinary skill in the art would recognize that combining these features would yield the predictable result of enhanced contactless distance sensing and robust image-based measurement capabilities.
Regarding Claims 7 and 14, Kotzur is not relied upon as teaching that said distance measurement sensor is a parallax camera.
However, Arksey teaches said distance measurement sensor is a parallax camera ([0046] fixed arrays of cameras… positioned… so that the system can calculated distances by parallax and from frames taken).
Kotzur (as previously modified by Rosengaus and AWE) and Arksey are considered to be analogous to the claimed invention because they are both in the same field of surveying and optical distance measurement systems. Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the surveying system of Kotzur (as previously modified by Rosengaus and AWE) to include the parallax camera configuration of Arksey with a reasonable expectation of success. This modification would have been motivated by the desire to measure distances accurately and efficiently using image parallax from fixed camera arrays. By integrating Arksey’s teaching of a parallax camera utilizing fixed arrays of cameras to calculate distances from frames taken into Kotzur (as previously modified by Rosengaus and AWE)’s system, the system can determine distance measurements through stereoscopic parallax analysis. A person of ordinary skill in the art would recognize that combining these features would yield the predictable result of reliable image-based distance calculations and improved spatial data acquisition during surveying operations.
Claims 8 and 16 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kotzur et al (US 10,753,740 B2), Rosengaus et al. (US 2013/0096873 A1), and AWE XR (herein after AWE) (AWE XR. (2013, June 17). AWE.tv Demo of the AR Sandbox with Oliver Kreylos, UC Davis [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g6fSS3cynDo) in further view of Mӧrwald (US 2021/0056716 A1).
Regarding Claims 8 and 16, Kotzur is not relied upon as teaching that said distance measurement sensor is constituted of a projector for projecting a pattern for measuring distance and a camera provided to produce a parallax with respect to said projector.
However, Mӧrwald teaches said distance measurement sensor is constituted of a projector for projecting a pattern for measuring distance and a camera provided to produce a parallax with respect to said projector ([0069]-[0071] The following sensors and its parameters of the mobile scanner MS serve as examples for parameters to be optimized… laser direction of an Electronic Distance Measurement (EMD) sensors, position and angular offset between cameras and/or projectors).
Kotzur (as previously modified by Rosengaus and AWE) and Mӧrwald are considered to be analogous to the claimed invention because they are both in the same field of surveying and optical distance measurement systems. Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the surveying system of Kotzur (as previously modified by Rosengaus and AWE) to include the distance measurement sensor configuration of Mӧrwald, constituted of a projector for projecting a pattern for measuring distance and a camera provided to produce a parallax with respect to the projector, with a reasonable expectation of success. This modification would have been motivated by the desire to optimize sensor parameters, such as the position and angular offset between cameras and/or projectors, to achieve precise active optical distance profiling. By integrating Mӧrwald’s teaching of a projector-and-camera arrangement producing a parallax into Kotzur (as previously modified by Rosengaus and AWE)’s system, the system can determine distances using structured light projection and coordinated camera-projector parallax geometry. A person of ordinary skill in the art would recognize that combining these features would yield the predictable result of enhanced distance measurement accuracy and robust surface data acquisition.
Claims 9 and 18 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kotzur et al (US 10,753,740 B2), Rosengaus et al. (US 2013/0096873 A1), and AWE XR (herein after AWE) (AWE XR. (2013, June 17). AWE.tv Demo of the AR Sandbox with Oliver Kreylos, UC Davis [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g6fSS3cynDo) in further view of Ploetner (US 2022/0042794 A1).
Regarding Claims 9 and 18, Kotzur teaches distance measurement sensor is a laser length measuring device ([Col. 1, ll. 54-56] The shape sensor 21 measures the distance to a measurement point by emitting a laser).
Kotzur is not relied upon as teaching that said distance measurement sensor irradiates laser beams of a plurality of different colors and said arithmetic control module is configured to select a color of a laser beam in correspondence with the unevenness information.
However, Ploetner teaches said distance measurement sensor irradiates laser beams of a plurality of different colors ([0042] the inspection system 130 can include multiple laser devises that produce different wavelength laser beams (e.g., green laser beams and red laser beams)), and said arithmetic control module is configured to select a color of a laser beam in correspondence with the unevenness information (the routine 400 can select an appropriate wavelength laser beam…to enhance the contrast between the laser beam and the device case).
Kotzur (as previously modified by Rosengaus and AWE) and Ploetner are considered to be analogous to the claimed invention because they are both in the same field of surveying and laser inspection measurement systems. Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the surveying system of Kotzur (as previously modified by Rosengaus and AWE) to include the multi-colored laser beam configuration and corresponding selection control of Ploetner with a reasonable expectation of success. This modification would have been motivated by the desire to select appropriate wavelength laser beams to enhance contrast and visibility during surface inspection. By integrating Ploetner’s teaching of multiple laser devices producing different wavelength laser beams (such as green and red laser beams) and a routine selecting a wavelength in correspondence with surface/inspection conditions into Kotzur (as previously modified by Rosengaus and AWE)’s system, the system can irradiate laser beams in a plurality of different colors and select a color in correspondence with the unevenness information. A person of ordinary skill in the art would recognize that combining these features would yield the predictable result of improved measurement accuracy, enhanced visual contrast, and adaptive sensing under varying environmental conditions.
Claims 13 and 15 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kotzur et al (US 10,753,740 B2), Rosengaus et al. (US 2013/0096873 A1), and AWE XR (herein after AWE) (AWE XR. (2013, June 17). AWE.tv Demo of the AR Sandbox with Oliver Kreylos, UC Davis [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g6fSS3cynDo), Forster et al (US 2022/0326381 A1), and Fujimoto (US 2017/0226708 A1) in even further view of Arksey (US 2014/0320603 A1).
Regarding Claim 13, Kotzur is not relied upon as teaching that said distance measurement sensor is a distance measurement camera.
However, Arksey teaches said distance measurement sensor is a distance measurement camera ([0046] fixed arrays of cameras… positioned… so that the system can calculated distances by parallax and from frames taken).
Kotzur (as previously modified by Rosengaus, AWE, Forster, and Fujimoto) and Arksey are considered to be analogous to the claimed invention because they are both in the same field of surveying and optical distance measurement systems. Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the surveying system of Kotzur (as previously modified by Rosengaus, AWE, Forster, and Fujimoto) to include the distance measurement camera configuration of Arksey with a reasonable expectation of success. This modification would have been motivated by the desire to calculate distances efficiently using image frames and parallax from camera arrays. By integrating Arksey’s teaching of a distance measurement camera using fixed camera arrays to calculate distance by parallax into Kotzur (as previously modified by Rosengaus, AWE, Forster, and Fujimoto)’s system, the system can determine distances using an optical camera setup. A person of ordinary skill in the art would recognize that combining these features would yield the predictable result of enhanced contactless distance sensing and robust image-based measurement capabilities.
Regarding Claim 15, Kotzur is not relied upon as teaching that said distance measurement sensor is a parallax camera.
However, Arksey teaches said distance measurement sensor is a parallax camera ([0046] fixed arrays of cameras… positioned… so that the system can calculated distances by parallax and from frames taken).
Kotzur (as previously modified by Rosengaus, AWE, Forster, and Fujimoto) and Arksey are considered to be analogous to the claimed invention because they are both in the same field of surveying and optical distance measurement systems. Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the surveying system of Kotzur (as previously modified by Rosengaus, AWE, Forster, and Fujimoto) to include the parallax camera configuration of Arksey with a reasonable expectation of success. This modification would have been motivated by the desire to measure distances accurately and efficiently using image parallax from fixed camera arrays. By integrating Arksey’s teaching of a parallax camera utilizing fixed arrays of cameras to calculate distances from frames taken into Kotzur (as previously modified by Rosengaus, AWE, Forster, and Fujimoto)’s system, the system can determine distance measurements through stereoscopic parallax analysis. A person of ordinary skill in the art would recognize that combining these features would yield the predictable result of reliable image-based distance calculations and improved spatial data acquisition during surveying operations.
Claim 17 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kotzur et al (US 10,753,740 B2), Rosengaus et al. (US 2013/0096873 A1), and AWE XR (herein after AWE) (AWE XR. (2013, June 17). AWE.tv Demo of the AR Sandbox with Oliver Kreylos, UC Davis [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g6fSS3cynDo), Forster et al (US 2022/0326381 A1), and Fujimoto (US 2017/0226708 A1) in even further view of Mӧrwald (US 2021/0056716 A1).
Regarding Claim 17, Kotzur is not relied upon as teaching that said distance measurement sensor is constituted of a projector for projecting a pattern for measuring distance and a camera provided to produce a parallax with respect to said projector.
However, Mӧrwald teaches said distance measurement sensor is constituted of a projector for projecting a pattern for measuring distance and a camera provided to produce a parallax with respect to said projector ([0069]-[0071] The following sensors and its parameters of the mobile scanner MS serve as examples for parameters to be optimized… laser direction of an Electronic Distance Measurement (EMD) sensors, position and angular offset between cameras and/or projectors).
Kotzur (as previously modified by Rosengaus, AWE, Forster, and Fujimoto) and Mӧrwald are considered to be analogous to the claimed invention because they are both in the same field of surveying and optical distance measurement systems. Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the surveying system of Kotzur (as previously modified by Rosengaus, AWE, Forster, and Fujimoto) to include the distance measurement sensor configuration of Mӧrwald, constituted of a projector for projecting a pattern for measuring distance and a camera provided to produce a parallax with respect to the projector, with a reasonable expectation of success. This modification would have been motivated by the desire to optimize sensor parameters, such as the position and angular offset between cameras and/or projectors, to achieve precise active optical distance profiling. By integrating Mӧrwald’s teaching of a projector-and-camera arrangement producing a parallax into Kotzur (as previously modified by Rosengaus, AWE, Forster, and Fujimoto)’s system, the system can determine distances using structured light projection and coordinated camera-projector parallax geometry. A person of ordinary skill in the art would recognize that combining these features would yield the predictable result of enhanced distance measurement accuracy and robust surface data acquisition.
Claim 19 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kotzur et al (US 10,753,740 B2), Rosengaus et al. (US 2013/0096873 A1), and AWE XR (herein after AWE) (AWE XR. (2013, June 17). AWE.tv Demo of the AR Sandbox with Oliver Kreylos, UC Davis [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g6fSS3cynDo), Forster et al (US 2022/0326381 A1), and Fujimoto (US 2017/0226708 A1) in even further view of Ploetner (US 2022/0042794 A1).
Regarding Claim 19, Kotzur teaches distance measurement sensor is a laser length measuring device ([Col. 1, ll. 54-56] The shape sensor 21 measures the distance to a measurement point by emitting a laser).
Kotzur is not relied upon as teaching that said distance measurement sensor irradiates laser beams of a plurality of different colors and said arithmetic control module is configured to select a color of a laser beam in correspondence with the unevenness information.
However, Ploetner teaches said distance measurement sensor irradiates laser beams of a plurality of different colors ([0042] the inspection system 130 can include multiple laser devises that produce different wavelength laser beams (e.g., green laser beams and red laser beams)), and said arithmetic control module is configured to select a color of a laser beam in correspondence with the unevenness information (the routine 400 can select an appropriate wavelength laser beam…to enhance the contrast between the laser beam and the device case).
Kotzur (as previously modified by Rosengaus, AWE, Forster, and Fujimoto) and Ploetner are considered to be analogous to the claimed invention because they are both in the same field of surveying and laser inspection measurement systems. Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the surveying system of Kotzur (as previously modified by Rosengaus, AWE, Forster, and Fujimoto) to include the multi-colored laser beam configuration and corresponding selection control of Ploetner with a reasonable expectation of success. This modification would have been motivated by the desire to select appropriate wavelength laser beams to enhance contrast and visibility during surface inspection. By integrating Ploetner’s teaching of multiple laser devices producing different wavelength laser beams (such as green and red laser beams) and a routine selecting a wavelength in correspondence with surface/inspection conditions into Kotzur (as previously modified by Rosengaus, AWE, Forster, and Fujimoto)’s system, the system can irradiate laser beams in a plurality of different colors and select a color in correspondence with the unevenness information. A person of ordinary skill in the art would recognize that combining these features would yield the predictable result of improved measurement accuracy, enhanced visual contrast, and adaptive sensing under varying environmental conditions.
Conclusion
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/E.H.H./Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3645
/HELAL A ALGAHAIM/SPE , Art Unit 3645
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