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 .
● This action is responsive to the following communication: A response filed on 8/25/2025.
● Claims 1-18 are currently pending, wherein claims 17-18 have been withdrawn due to non-elected invention.
Election/Restrictions
● Claims 17-18 withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to a nonelected invention, there being no allowable generic or linking claim. Election was made without traverse in the reply filed on 8/25/2025.
Information Disclosure Statement
● The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 9/30/2022 & 8/06/2025 are in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner.
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.
Claim(s) 1-16 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Song (US 20190206415) in view of Iwase et al (US 20110023691).
Regarding claim 1, Song discloses an audio signal processing method comprising: receiving an audio signal (figs. 1-4) and an input target data (target reference audio, figs. 1, 4); determining a predetermined reference input value (reference input audio value, e.g., 90 db, pars. 38-45) of the input target data; calculating a relative input value with (e.g. calculating relative input value such as ratio-to-noise ratio, pars. 72-74) respect to the predetermined reference input value; superimposing (superimposing the audio signals, abstract, pars. 28-29, 37) the audio signal with the predetermined reference input value on a first frequency domain (frequency domain, par. 39) of the audio signal; and outputting (figs. 4-5) the superimposed audio signal.
Song fails to expressly teach and/or suggest superimposing audio signals from different frequency-domains.
Iwase, in the same field of endeavor for audio processing, teaches a methods/steps for superimposing audio signals from different frequency (pars. 115, 145, 169).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention by modifying audio processing of Song to include steps of superimposing audio signals from different frequency as taught by Iwase to improve audio performance (abstract, pars. 26, Iwase).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to combine Song with Iwase to obtain the invention as specified in claim 1.
Regarding claim 2, Song further discloses the audio signal processing method according to claim 1, wherein a level of the predetermined reference input value periodically fluctuates between a maximum value and a minimum value (range, pars. .33-36)
Regarding claim 3, Song further discloses the audio signal processing method according to claim 2, wherein the level of the predetermined reference input value changes between the maximum value and the minimum value (range, pars. 33-36) over a predetermined time (predetermined time, pars. 26-29)
Regarding claim 4, Iwase further discloses the audio signal processing method according to claim 1, wherein the input target data includes color information (pars. 54-57).
Regarding claim 5, Iwase further discloses the audio signal processing method according to claim 4, wherein the input target data is an illumination signal (camera’s illumination, par. 245).
Regarding claim 6, Iwase further discloses the audio signal processing method according to claim 1, wherein the first frequency domain and the second frequency domain are in inaudible regions (inaudible region, par. 70).
Regarding claim 7, Iwase further discloses the audio signal processing method according to claim 1, wherein a center frequency of each of the first frequency domain and the second frequency domain coincides with a frequency resolution (frequency resolution, pars. 120-121) of the audio signal.
Regarding claim 8, *** further discloses the audio signal processing method according to claim 1, further comprising: separating (audio sound components extraction, pars. 77-79) components of the first frequency domain and the second frequency domain from the superimposed audio signal and reproducing the audio signal.
Regarding claims 9-16 recite limitations that are similar and in the same scope of invention as to those in claims 1-8 above; therefore, claims 9-16 are rejected for the same rejection rationale/basis as described in claims 1-8.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to THIERRY L PHAM whose telephone number is (571)272-7439. The examiner can normally be reached M-F, 11-6.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Hai Phan, can be reached at 571-272-6338. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/THIERRY L PHAM/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2654