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 .
Claims 1-20 have been examined.
Specification
Applicant is reminded of the proper language and format for an abstract of the disclosure.
The language should be clear and concise and should not repeat information given in the title. It should avoid using phrases which can be implied, such as, “The disclosure concerns,” “The disclosure defined by this invention,” “The disclosure describes,” etc. In addition, the form and legal phraseology often used in patent claims, such as “means” and “said,” should be avoided.
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 1-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Gomes (US Patent Application Publication 2018/0353825) in view of Cook (US Patent 6,056,674).
1. Gomes discloses a computer-implemented method of wireless sport scoring, the method comprising:
detecting, by a sensor of a first user device, a scoring event between a first user and a second user (Par. 0022: “configured to detect contact between fencing opponents during a match”);
transmitting, by a wireless transmitter of the first user device, a signal indicating the scoring event to a scoring system (Par. 0022: “These “contact events”, or voltage spikes caused by the opponents making contact, are then recorded and transmitted as data to a receiver”);
recording, in a memory of the first user device, a record of the scoring event (Par. 0022: “These “contact events”, or voltage spikes caused by the opponents making contact, are then recorded”).
However, Gomes does not explicitly disclose the step of based on detecting a wired connection between the first user device and the scoring system, transmitting, by a wired transmitter of the first user device, the record of the scoring event to the scoring system.
Cook discloses a similar method of wireless sport scoring wherein the system comprises a sensor which includes a transmitter connected to a sensor which transmits data to a remote computer (e.g. wirelessly) and wherein the equipment comprises upload and download ports to transmit data back and forth with the computer (e.g. wired; Col 6, Lines 5-9). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of the effective filing date of the invention to modify the method of transmission of Gomes to include the wired uploading and downloading as taught by Cook to provide a direct connection and therefore direct transfer of information/data with regards to a sporting event.
2. Gomes discloses the method of claim 1, further comprising assigning an identification number (Par. 0033: “touch type code”) to the scoring event by the first user device based on the detecting.
3. Gomes discloses the method of claim 2, wherein the signal indicating the scoring event includes the identification number (Par. 0033).
4. Gomes discloses the method of claim 2, wherein the record of the scoring event includes the identification number (Par. 0033).
5. Gomes discloses the method of claim 1, wherein the signal indicating the scoring event includes a timestamp indicating when the scoring event was detected (Par. 0025).
6. Gomes discloses the method of claim 1, wherein the record of the scoring event includes a timestamp indicating when the scoring event was detected (Par. 0022).
7. Gomes discloses the method of claim 1, further comprising:
recording, in a memory of the scoring system, a central record of the scoring event; and
reconciling, by the scoring system, the central record with the record received from the first user device (Par. 0046).
8. Gomes discloses the method of claim 7, further comprising updating the central record based on the reconciliation (Par. 0046).
9. Gomes discloses the method of claim 1, wherein the wireless transmitter of the first user device transmits the signal indicating the scoring event to the scoring system in real-time (Par. 0012: Examiner considers the minimal latency/time delay of 100 ms to reasonably constitute a real-time transmission).
10. Gomes discloses a system comprising:
a scoring system (SA) comprising a memory, a wired receiver and a wireless receiver (Fig 4);
a first user device (11-13) comprising:
a sensor for detecting a scoring event between a first user and a second user (Par. 0022);
a memory configured to store a record of the scoring event (Par. 0022);
a wireless transmitter (11) configured to transmit a signal indicating the scoring event to the scoring system; and
wherein the scoring system is configured to recording, in the memory of the scoring system, a central record of the scoring event and to reconcile the central record with the record received from the first user device (Par. 0046).
However, Gomes does not explicitly disclose a wired transmitter configured to transmit the record of the scoring event to the scoring system, based on detecting a wired connection between the first user device and the scoring system.
Cook discloses a similar sport scoring system wherein the system comprises a sensor which includes a transmitter connected to a sensor which transmits data to a remote computer (e.g. wirelessly) and wherein the equipment comprises upload and download ports to transmit data back and forth with the computer (e.g. wired; Col 6, Lines 5-9). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of the effective filing date of the invention to modify the system of Gomes to include the wired uploading and downloading as taught by Cook to provide a direct connection and therefore direct transfer of information/data with regards to a sporting event.
11. Gomes discloses the system of claim 10, wherein the scoring system is configured to update the central record based on the reconciliation (Par. 0046).
12. Gomes discloses the system of claim 10, wherein the first user device is configured to assign an identification number to the scoring event based on the detecting (Par. 0033: “touch type code”).
13. Gomes discloses the system of claim 12, wherein the signal indicating the scoring event includes the identification number (Par. 0033).
14. Gomes discloses the system of claim 12, wherein the record of the scoring event includes the identification number (Par. 0033).
15. Gomes discloses the system of claim 10, wherein the signal indicating the scoring event includes a timestamp indicating when the scoring event was detected (Par. 0025).
16. Gomes discloses the system of claim 10, wherein the record of the scoring event includes a timestamp indicating when the scoring event was detected (Par. 0022).
17. Gomes discloses a computer program product for wireless sport scoring comprising a computer readable storage medium having program instructions embodied therewith, the program instructions executable by a processor to cause the processor to perform a method comprising:
detecting, by a sensor of a first user device, a scoring event between a first user and a second user (Par. 0022: “configured to detect contact between fencing opponents during a match”);
transmitting, by a wireless transmitter of the first user device, a signal indicating the scoring event to a scoring system (Par. 0022: “These “contact events”, or voltage spikes caused by the opponents making contact, are then recorded and transmitted as data to a receiver”);
recording, in a memory of the first user device, a record of the scoring event (Par. 0022: “These “contact events”, or voltage spikes caused by the opponents making contact, are then recorded”);
However, Gomes does not explicitly disclose the step of based on detecting a wired connection between the first user device and the scoring system, transmitting, by a wired transmitter of the first user device, the record of the scoring event to the scoring system.
Cook discloses a similar method of wireless sport scoring wherein the system comprises a sensor which includes a transmitter connected to a sensor which transmits data to a remote computer (e.g. wirelessly) and wherein the equipment comprises upload and download ports to transmit data back and forth with the computer (e.g. wired; Col 6, Lines 5-9). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of the effective filing date of the invention to modify the method of transmission of Gomes to include the wired uploading and downloading as taught by Cook to provide a direct connection and therefore direct transfer of information/data with regards to a sporting event.
18. Gomes discloses the computer program product of claim 17, further comprising assigning an identification number (Par. 0033: “touch type code”) to the scoring event by the first user device based on the detecting.
19. Gomes discloses the computer program product of claim 18, wherein the signal indicating the scoring event includes the identification number (Par. 0033).
20. Gomes discloses the computer program product of claim 18, wherein the record of the scoring event includes the identification number (Par. 0033).
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Hart, Yen et al, Morehouse et al, Johnson et al, and Djurisic all disclose similar systems for wireless scoring of a sporting event.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JOSHUA T KENNEDY whose telephone number is (571)272-8297. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 7a-4:30p MST.
Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, LoAn Jimenez can be reached at (571) 272-4966. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000.
/JOSHUA T KENNEDY/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3784 1/9/2026