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 .
Detailed Action
The instant application having Application No. 18/076,289 has claims 21-40 pending filed on 12/06/2022; there is 1 independent claim and 19 dependent claims, all of which are ready for examination by the examiner.
Response to Arguments
This Office Action is in response to applicant’s communication filed on December 1, 2025 in response to PTO Office Action dated August 13, 2025. The Applicant’s remarks and amendments to the claims and/or specification were considered with the results that follow.
Claim Rejections
Double Patenting
Obviousness Type Double Patenting Rejection
Applicant argues on page 14 in regards to the claims 21-40, “The Applicant elects not to file a terminal disclaimer at this time, but reserves the right to file such a disclaimer and/or traverse the double patenting rejections when all other substantive rejections have been withdrawn and the claims are in an otherwise allowable state.”
Examiner respectfully disagrees with arguments on page 14 in regards to the independent claims 21-40. As per MPEP 804.1 “A nonstatutory provisional double patenting rejection should be made and maintained by the examiner until the rejection has been obviated or is no longer applicable except as: A complete response to a nonstatutory double patenting (NSDP) rejection is either a reply by applicant showing that the claims subject to the rejection are patentably distinct from the reference claims, or the filing of a terminal disclaimer in accordance with 37 CFR 1.321 in the pending application(s) with a reply to the Office action.” Since the applicant has not shown that the claims subject to the rejection are patentably distinct from the reference claims, nor a terminal disclaimer has been filed in accordance with 37 CFR 1.321, the provisional obviousness-type double patenting rejection for the claims 21-40 is maintained.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
35 USC § 103 Rejection of claims 21-40
Applicant's arguments filed on 12/01/2025 with respect to the claims 21-40 with respect to the PTO Office Action dated August 13, 2025 have been fully considered and are persuasive.
Double Patenting
The nonstatutory double patenting rejection is based on a judicially created doctrine grounded in public policy (a policy reflected in the statute) so as to prevent the unjustified or improper timewise extension of the “right to exclude” granted by a patent and to prevent possible harassment by multiple assignees. A nonstatutory obviousness-type double patenting rejection is appropriate where the conflicting claims are not identical, but at least one examined application claim is not patentably distinct from the reference claim(s) because the examined application claim is either anticipated by, or would have been obvious over, the reference claim(s). See, e.g., In re Berg, 140 F.3d 1428, 46 USPQ2d 1226 (Fed. Cir. 1998); In re Goodman, 11 F.3d 1046, 29 USPQ2d 2010 (Fed. Cir. 1993); In re Longi, 759 F.2d 887, 225 USPQ 645 (Fed. Cir. 1985); In re Van Ornum, 686 F.2d 937, 214 USPQ 761 (CCPA 1982); In re Vogel, 422 F.2d 438, 164 USPQ 619 (CCPA 1970); and In re Thorington, 418 F.2d 528, 163 USPQ 644 (CCPA 1969).
A timely filed terminal disclaimer in compliance with 37 CFR 1.321(c) or 1.321(d) may be used to overcome an actual rejection based on a nonstatutory double patenting ground provided the conflicting application or patent either is shown to be commonly owned with this application, or claims an invention made as a result of activities undertaken within the scope of a joint research agreement.
The USPTO Internet website contains terminal disclaimer forms which may be used. Please visit www.uspto.gov/patent/patents-forms. The filing date of the application in which the form is filed determines what form (e.g., PTO/SB/25, PTO/SB/26, PTO/AIA /25, or PTO/AIA /26) should be used. A web-based eTerminal Disclaimer may be filled out completely online using web-screens. An eTerminal Disclaimer that meets all requirements is auto-processed and approved immediately upon submission.
Claims 21-40 are rejected on the ground of nonstatutory double patenting as being unpatentable over claims 1-20 of U.S. Patent Application No. 16/146,531 now U.S. Patent No. 11538045.
Although the claims at issue are not identical, they are not patentably distinct from each other because they are obvious variants. It would have been obvious to those one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to modify US Application Number 16146531 (now US patent 11538045) to include the limitations for carrying out the steps implemented by the System of claims 21-40 of the instant Application.
The nonstatutory double patenting rejection is based on a judicially created doctrine grounded in public policy (a policy reflected in the statute) so as to prevent the unjustified or improper timewise extension of the “right to exclude” granted by a patent and to prevent possible harassment by multiple assignees. A nonstatutory obviousness-type double patenting rejection is appropriate where the conflicting claims are not identical, but at least one examined application claim is not patentably distinct from the reference claim(s) because the examined application claim is either anticipated by, or would have been obvious over, the reference claim(s). See, e.g., In re Berg, 140 F.3d 1428, 46 USPQ2d 1226 (Fed. Cir. 1998); In re Goodman, 11 F.3d 1046, 29 USPQ2d 2010 (Fed. Cir. 1993); In re Longi, 759 F.2d 887, 225 USPQ 645 (Fed. Cir. 1985); In re Van Ornum, 686 F.2d 937, 214 USPQ 761 (CCPA 1982); In re Vogel, 422 F.2d 438, 164 USPQ 619 (CCPA 1970); and In re Thorington, 418 F.2d 528, 163 USPQ 644 (CCPA 1969).
A timely filed terminal disclaimer in compliance with 37 CFR 1.321(c) or 1.321(d) may be used to overcome an actual rejection based on a nonstatutory double patenting ground provided the conflicting application or patent either is shown to be commonly owned with this application, or claims an invention made as a result of activities undertaken within the scope of a joint research agreement.
The USPTO Internet website contains terminal disclaimer forms which may be used. Please visit www.uspto.gov/patent/patents-forms. The filing date of the application in which the form is filed determines what form (e.g., PTO/SB/25, PTO/SB/26, PTO/AIA /25, or PTO/AIA /26) should be used. A web-based eTerminal Disclaimer may be filled out completely online using web-screens. An eTerminal Disclaimer that meets all requirements is auto-processed and approved immediately upon submission.
Claims 21-40 are rejected on the ground of nonstatutory double patenting as being unpatentable over claims 1-20 of U.S. Patent Application No. 16/146,531 now U.S. Patent No. 11538045 (primary reference application) in view of Application No. 15/929,991 (secondary reference application and now abandoned). The claims of the Application No. 16/146,531 (primary reference application) contain almost every element of the claims of the instant application except for “detecting, by a depth sensor, a distance within the video information between an object location of the object representation and an avatar location of the avatar”. The Claim 1 of the Application No. 15/929,991 (secondary reference application and now abandoned) contain the elements “receiving a first visual dataset corresponding to a three dimensional shape of a first user in a real-world environment, the first visual dataset captured by a first user device; rendering a three dimensional virtual scene that includes a first three dimensional avatar, the first three dimensional avatar rendered based on the first visual dataset; receiving one or more measurements taken by one or more sensors in the real-world environment of the first user”. Although the claims at issue are not identical, they are not patentably distinct from each other because they are obvious variants. It would have been obvious to those of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to take the claims of US Application No. 15/929,991 (now abandoned) and modify US Application Number 16/146,531 now U.S. Patent No. 11538045 (primary reference application) to include the limitations for carrying out the steps implemented by the System of claims 21-40 of the instant Application. One would be motivated as a first computing device receives visual and/or distance information about a first user captured by a first capture device, the first computing device generates a three-dimensional first avatar corresponding to the first user (representing a user) based on the visual and/or distance information about a first user that was captured by a first capture device (US Application No. 15/929,991, Paragraph [0043]).
Claims 21-40 of the instant application are compared to claims 1 - 20 of US application Number 16146531 (now patent 11538045) in the following table:
Instant Application
Application Number 16146531
(Now US Patent 11538045)
Claim 21
Claim 1
A method comprising:
A method for determining a commentary rating for a community member's commentary about a subject media content event, the method comprising:
capturing, by a video camera, video information that includes an object representation of a physical object and an avatar representing a user;
identifying the physical object that is visible in the received video information;
receiving video information acquired by a 360° video camera
determining an attribute associated with object representation based on the video information;
determining an attribute associated with the identified physical object, wherein the determined attribute is one of a word or a phrase that describes a characteristic of the identified physical object;
detecting, by a depth sensor, a distance within the video information between an object location of the object representation and an avatar location of the avatar;
determining a range of the physical object from the community member who is generating the commentary, wherein the determined range is defined by a distance;
comparing the determined attribute of the object representation with a plurality of predefined physical object attributes stored in a database, wherein each one of the plurality of predefined physical object attributes is associated with a quality value corresponding to a quality of commentary relative to a subject media content event of interest;
comparing the determined attribute of the identified physical object with a plurality of predefined physical object attributes stored in a database, wherein each one of the plurality of predefined physical object attributes describe the characteristic of a particular one of a plurality of physical objects by using a word or a phrase, wherein each one of the plurality of predefined physical object attributes is associated with a quality value, and wherein the quality value corresponds to the quality of commentary relative to the subject media content event of interest
in response to identifying one of the plurality of predefined physical object attributes that matches the determined physical attribute, associating the quality value of the identified one of the plurality of predefined physical object attributes with the object representation;
in response to identifying one of the plurality of predefined physical object attributes that matches the determined physical attribute, associating the quality value of the identified one of the plurality of predefined physical object attributes with the identified physical object
and determining a commentary rating for the commentary by weighting the associated quality value such that a weight of the associated quality value is higher when a positional distance value of the distance between the object representation and the avatar is smaller and the associated quality value is lower when the positional distance value of the distance between the object representation and the avatar is larger.
and determining a commentary rating for the commentary by weighting the associated quality value inversely proportional to said distance.
Claim 22
Claim 2
wherein determining the attribute associated with the object representation comprises:
wherein determining the attribute associated with the identified physical object comprises:
determining that the attribute of the object representation is a person.
determining that the attribute of the identified physical object is a person
Claim 23
Claim 3
wherein determining the distance between the person and the avatar further comprises:
wherein determining the range of the person from the community member who is generating the commentary comprises:
receiving first range and orientation information corresponding to a first range and orientation between the user and the video camera;
receiving first range and orientation information corresponding to a first range and orientation between the community member who is generating the commentary and the 360° video camera;
receiving second range and orientation information corresponding to a second range and orientation between the person and the video camera;
receiving second range and orientation information corresponding to a second range and orientation between the person and the 360° video camera;
determining the first range and orientation between the user and the video camera based on the first range and orientation information;
determining the first range and orientation between the community member who is generating the commentary and the 360° video camera based on the first range and orientation information;
determining the second range and orientation between the person and the video camera based on the second range and orientation information;
determining the second range and orientation between the person and the 360° video camera based on the second range and orientation information;
and determining the distance between the person and the avatar based on the determined first range and orientation information and the second range and orientation information.
and determining the range from the person from the community member who is generating the commentary based on the determined first range and orientation information and the second range and orientation information.
Claim 24
Claim 4
wherein determining the attribute associated with the object representation comprises:
wherein determining the attribute associated with the identified physical object comprises:
determining that the attribute of the object representation is a person;
determining that the attribute of the identified physical object is a person
and determining a facial expression of the person, wherein the determined facial expression is defined by a facial expression attribute;
and determining a facial expression of the person, wherein the determined facial expression is defined by a facial expression attribute;
wherein comparing the determined attribute of the object representation with a plurality of predefined physical object attributes comprises:
wherein comparing the determined attribute of the identified physical object with a plurality of predefined physical object attributes comprises:
comparing the determined facial expression attribute with a plurality of predefined facial expression attributes stored in the database;
comparing the determined facial expression attribute with a plurality of predefined facial expression attributes stored in the database;
“and wherein associating the quality value of the identified one of the plurality of predefined physical object attributes with the object representation comprises:
and wherein associating the quality value of the identified one of the plurality of predefined physical object attributes with the identified physical object comprises:
associating the quality value of the identified facial expression attribute with the identified person.
associating the quality value of the identified facial expression attribute with the identified person.
Claim 25
Claim 5
wherein determining the attribute associated with the object representation comprises:
wherein determining the attribute associated with the identified physical object comprises:
determining that the attribute of the object representation is a person;
determining that the attribute of the identified physical object is a person;
and determining a gesture being made by the person, wherein the determined gesture is defined by a gesture attribute;
and determining a gesture being made by the person, wherein the determined gesture is defined by a gesture attribute;
wherein comparing the determined attribute of the object representation with a plurality of predefined physical object attributes comprises:
wherein comparing the determined attribute of the identified physical object with a plurality of predefined physical object attributes comprises:
comparing the determined gesture attribute with a plurality of predefined gesture attributes stored in the database;
comparing the determined gesture attribute with a plurality of predefined gesture attributes stored in the database;
and wherein associating the quality value of the identified one of the plurality of predefined physical object attributes with the object representation comprises:
and wherein associating the quality value of the identified one of the plurality of predefined physical object attributes with the identified physical object comprises:
associating the quality value of the identified gesture attribute with the identified person.
associating the quality value of the identified gesture attribute with the identified person.
Claim 26
Claim 6
wherein a plurality of physical objects are visible in the video information, the method further comprising:
wherein a plurality of physical objects are visible in the received video information, the method further comprising:
determining that the attribute of the identified plurality of the physical objects is a person;
determining that the attribute of the identified plurality of the physical objects is a person;
determining a number of a plurality of people that are within a predefined range threshold of the user and that are within a predefined angle of view in front of the user;
determining a number of the plurality of people that are within a predefined range threshold of the community member who is generating the commentary and that are within a predefined angle of view in front of the community member who is generating the commentary;
comparing a plurality of predefined numbers of people with the determined number of the identified plurality of people that are within the predefined range threshold of the user and that are within the predefined angle of view in front of the user, wherein each of the predefined numbers of people are associated with a quality value;
comparing a plurality of predefined numbers of people with the determined number of the identified plurality of people that are within the predefined range threshold of the community member who is generating the commentary and that are within the predefined angle of view in front of the community member who is generating the commentary, wherein each of the predefined numbers of people are associated with a quality value;
and in response to identifying the predefined number that matches the determined number of the identified plurality of people that are within the predefined range threshold of the user and that are within the predefined angle of view in front of the user, associating the quality value of the identified predefined number of people with the commentary;
and in response to identifying the predefined number that matches the determined number of the identified plurality of people that are within the predefined range threshold of the community member who is generating the commentary and that are within the predefined angle of view in front of the community member who is generating the commentary, associating the quality value of the identified predefined number of people with the commentary;
and determining the commentary rating for the commentary based on the associated quality value that corresponds to the determined number of the plurality of people.
and determining the commentary rating for the commentary based on the associated quality value that corresponds to the determined number of the plurality of people.
Claim 27
Claim 7
wherein determining the attribute associated with the object representation comprises:
wherein determining the attribute associated with the identified physical object comprises:
determining that the attribute of the object representation is a person;
determining that the attribute of the identified physical object is a person;
and determining a name of the person;
and determining a name of the person;
wherein comparing the determined physical attribute of the object representation with a plurality of predefined physical object attributes comprises:
wherein comparing the determined physical attribute of the identified physical object with a plurality of predefined physical object attributes comprises
comparing the determined name with a plurality of predefined names of people that are known to the user;
comparing the determined name with a plurality of predefined names of people that are known to the community member who is generating the commentary;
and the method further comprising: in response to identifying one of the plurality of predefined names that matches the determined name of the person, associating a relevance value of the identified one of the plurality of predefined names with the identified name of the person, wherein the relevance value is associated with a degree of interpersonal relationship between the identified person and the user;
and the method further comprising: in response to identifying one of the plurality of predefined names that matches the determined name of the person, associating a relevance value of the identified one of the plurality of predefined names with the identified name of the person, wherein the relevance value is associated with a degree of interpersonal relationship between the identified person and the community member who is generating the commentary;
and determining the commentary rating for the commentary based on the associated relevance value and the quality value.
and determining the commentary rating for the commentary based on the associated relevance value and the quality value.
Claim 28
Claim 8
wherein determining the attribute associated with the object representation comprises:
wherein determining the attribute associated with the identified physical object comprises:
determining that the attribute of the object representation is an inanimate physical object, wherein the determined attribute is defined by a word or phrase that describes the inanimate physical object;
determining that the attribute of the identified physical object is an inanimate physical object, wherein the determined attribute is defined by a word or phrase that describes the inanimate physical object;
wherein comparing the determined attribute of the object representation with a plurality of predefined physical object attributes comprises:
wherein comparing the determined attribute of the identified physical object with a plurality of predefined physical object attributes comprises:
comparing the attribute with a plurality of predefined inanimate physical object attributes stored in the database, wherein each one of the predefined inanimate physical object attributes are defined by a word or a phrase that describes the associated one of a plurality of inanimate physical objects;
comparing the attribute with a plurality of predefined inanimate physical object attributes stored in the database, wherein each one of the predefined inanimate physical object attributes are defined by a word or a phrase that describes the associated one of a plurality of inanimate physical objects;
and identifying one of the plurality of predefined inanimate physical object attributes that matches the attribute;
and identifying one of the plurality of predefined inanimate physical object attributes that matches the attribute;
wherein associating the quality value of the identified one of the plurality of predefined physical object attributes with object representation comprises:
wherein associating the quality value of the identified one of the plurality of predefined physical object attributes with the identified physical object comprises:
associating the quality value of the identified predefined inanimate physical object attributes with the identified inanimate physical object.
associating the quality value of the identified predefined inanimate physical object attributes with the identified inanimate physical object.
Claim 29
Claim 9
receiving audio information acquired by the video camera;
receiving audio information acquired by the 360° video camera while the community member is generating the commentary;
identifying a sound that is in the received audio information;
identifying a sound that is in the received audio information;
determining an attribute associated with the identified sound, wherein the determined attribute is one of a word or a phrase that describes a characteristic of the identified sound;
determining an attribute associated with the identified sound, wherein the determined attribute is one of a word or a phrase that describes a characteristic of the identified sound;
comparing the determined attribute of the identified sound with a plurality of predefined sound attributes stored in the database, wherein each one of the plurality of predefined sound attributes describe the characteristic of a particular one of a plurality of sounds, wherein each one of the plurality of predefined sound attributes are associated with a quality value, and wherein the quality value corresponds to the quality of commentary relative to the subject media content event of interest;
comparing the determined attribute of the identified sound with a plurality of predefined sound attributes stored in the database, wherein each one of the plurality of predefined sound attributes describe the characteristic of a particular one of a plurality of sounds, wherein each one of the plurality of predefined sound attributes are associated with a quality value, and wherein the quality value corresponds to the quality of commentary relative to the subject media content event of interest;
in response to identifying one of the plurality of predefined sound attributes that matches the determined sound attribute, associating the quality value of the identified one of the plurality of sound attributes with the identified sound;
in response to identifying one of the plurality of predefined sound attributes that matches the determined sound attribute, associating the quality value of the identified one of the plurality of sound attributes with the identified sound;
and determining a commentary rating for the commentary based on the associated quality value.
and determining a commentary rating for the commentary based on the associated quality value
Claim 30
Claim 10
receiving audio information acquired by the video camera;
receiving audio information acquired by the 360° video camera while the community member is generating the commentary;
identifying a sound that is in the received audio information;
identifying a sound that is in the received audio information;
determining a plurality of spoken words from the identified sound;
determining a plurality of spoken words from the identified sound;
identifying a name of a person based on the identified spoken words, wherein the name of the person corresponds to the object representation in the video information;
identifying a name of a person based on the identified spoken words, wherein the name of the person corresponds to the identified physical object in the video information;
comparing the determined name with a plurality of predefined names of people known to the user;
comparing the determined name with a plurality of predefined names of people known to the community member who is generating the commentary;
in response to identifying one of the plurality of predefined names that matches the determined name of the person, associating a relevance value of the identified one of the plurality of predefined names with the identified name of the person, wherein the relevance value is associated with a degree of interpersonal relationship between the identified person and the user;
in response to identifying one of the plurality of predefined names that matches the determined name of the person, associating a relevance value of the identified one of the plurality of predefined names with the identified name of the person, wherein the relevance value is associated with a degree of interpersonal relationship between the identified person and the community member who is generating the commentary;
and determining the commentary rating for the commentary based on the associated relevance value and the quality value.
and determining the commentary rating for the commentary based on the associated relevance value and the quality value.
Claim 31
Claim 11
receiving audio information acquired by the video camera;
receiving audio information acquired by the 360° video camera while the community member is generating the commentary;
identifying a sound that is in the received audio information;
identifying a sound that is in the received audio information;
determining a plurality of spoken words from the identified sound;
determining a plurality of spoken words from the identified sound;
determining that the physical object, who is a person, is verbally disagreeing with or is verbally agreeing with the commentary of the user based on the identified spoken words;
determining that the physical object, who is a person, is verbally disagreeing with or is verbally agreeing with the commentary of the community member based on the identified spoken words;
in response to determining that the person is disagreeing, associating a first quality value with the commentary;
in response to determining that the person is disagreeing, associating a first quality value with the commentary;
in response to determining that the person is agreeing, associating a second quality value with the commentary, wherein the second quality value is higher than the first quality value;
in response to determining that the person is agreeing, associating a second quality value with the commentary, wherein the second quality value is higher than the first quality value;
and determining the commentary rating for the commentary based on the associated first quality value or the second quality value.
and determining the commentary rating for the commentary based on the associated first quality value or the second quality value.
Claim 32
Claim 12
receiving audio information acquired by the video camera;
receiving audio information acquired by the 360° video camera while the community member is generating the commentary;
identifying a sound that is in the received audio information;
identifying a sound that is in the received audio information;
determining an emotional state of the user based on the identified sound;
determining an emotional state of the community member based on the identified sound;
determining that the user is speaking truthfully or is not speaking truthfully based on the determined emotional state;
determining that the community member is speaking truthfully or is not speaking truthfully based on the determined emotional state;
in response to determining that the user is not speaking truthfully, associating a first quality value with the commentary;
in response to determining that the person is not speaking truthfully, associating a first quality value with the commentary;
in response to determining that the user is speaking truthfully, associating a second quality value with the commentary, wherein the second quality value is higher than the first quality value;
in response to determining that the person is speaking truthfully, associating a second quality value with the commentary, wherein the second quality value is higher than the first quality value
and determining the commentary rating for the commentary based on the associated first quality value or the second quality value.
and determining the commentary rating for the commentary based on the associated first quality value or the second quality value.
Claim 33
Claim 13
identifying a gesture being made by the user from the video information acquired by the video camera;
identifying a gesture being made by the community member from the video information acquired by the 360° video camera while the community member is generating the commentary;
determining an emotional state of the user based on the identified gesture;
determining an emotional state of the community member based on the identified gesture;
determining that the user is speaking truthfully or is not speaking truthfully based on the determined emotional state;
determining that the community member is speaking truthfully or is not speaking truthfully based on the determined emotional state;
in response to determining that the user is not speaking truthfully, associating a first quality value with the commentary;
in response to determining that the person is not speaking truthfully, associating a first quality value with the commentary;
in response to determining that the user is speaking truthfully, associating a second quality value with the commentary, wherein the second quality value is higher than the first quality value;
in response to determining that the person is speaking truthfully, associating a second quality value with the commentary, wherein the second quality value is higher than the first quality value
and determining the commentary rating for the commentary based on the associated first quality value or the second quality value.
and determining the commentary rating for the commentary based on the associated first quality value or the second quality value.
Claim 34
Claim 14
identifying a facial expression being made by the user from the video information acquired by the video camera;
identifying a facial expression being made by the community member from the video information acquired by the 360° video camera while the community member is generating the commentary;
determining an emotional state of the user based on the identified facial expression;
determining an emotional state of the community member based on the identified facial expression;
determining that the user is speaking truthfully or is not speaking truthfully based on the determined emotional state;
determining that the community member is speaking truthfully or is not speaking truthfully based on the determined emotional state;
in response to determining that the user is not speaking truthfully, associating a first quality value with the commentary;
in response to determining that the person is not speaking truthfully, associating a first quality value with the commentary;
in response to determining that the user is speaking truthfully, associating a second quality value with the commentary, wherein the second quality value is higher than the first quality value;
in response to determining that the person is speaking truthfully, associating a second quality value with the commentary, wherein the second quality value is higher than the first quality value
and determining the commentary rating for the commentary based on the associated first quality value or the second quality value.
and determining the commentary rating for the commentary based on the associated first quality value or the second quality value.
Claim 35
Claim 15
wherein the video information comprises a series of sequentially arranged image frames, and further comprising:
wherein the video information comprises a series of sequentially arranged image frames, and further comprising:
selecting one of the series of sequentially arranged image frames from the received video information;
selecting one of the plurality of image frames from the received video
information;
and analyzing the selected image frame to identify the physical object.
and analyzing the selected image frame to identify the physical object.
Claim 36
Claim 16
wherein the image frame is a first image frame, wherein the physical object is a person, and wherein after the physical object has been identified in the selected first image frame, the method further comprising:
wherein the image frame is a first image frame, wherein the physical object is a person, and wherein after the physical object has been identified in the selected first image frame, the method further comprising:
picking a second image frame that was acquired by the video camera after the
first image frame was acquired;
picking a second image frame that was acquired by the 360° video camera after the first image frame was acquired;
determining if the person identified in the first image frame is identifiable in the
second image frame;
determining if the person identified in the first image frame is identifiable in the
second image frame;
in response to determining that the person is not identifiable in the second image frame, associating a first quality value with the commentary;
in response to determining that the person is not identifiable in the second image frame, associating a first quality value with the commentary;
in response to determining that the person is also identifiable in the second image frame, associating a second quality value with the commentary, wherein the second quality value is higher than the first quality value;
in response to determining that the person is also identifiable in the second image frame, associating a second quality value with the commentary, wherein the second quality value is higher than the first quality value;
and determining the commentary rating for the commentary based on the associated first quality value or the second quality value.
and determining the commentary rating for the commentary based on the associated first quality value or the second quality value.
Claim 37
Claim 17
wherein the image frame is a first image frame, wherein the object representation is a first one of a plurality of people identified in the video information, wherein the plurality of people are identified in the first image frame, the method further comprising:
wherein the image frame is a first image frame, wherein the identified physical object is a first one of a plurality of people identified in the video information, wherein the other plurality of people are identified in the first image frame, the method further comprising:
picking a second image frame that was acquired by the video camera after the
first image frame was acquired;
picking a second image frame that was acquired by the 360° video camera after the first image frame was acquired;
determining if the plurality of people identified in the first image frame are
identifiable in the second image frame;
determining if the plurality of people identified in the first image frame are
identifiable in the second image frame;
in response to determining that the plurality of people are not in the second
image frame, concluding that the user is not speaking to an audience comprised of the plurality of people and then associating a first quality value with the commentary
in response to determining that the plurality of people are not in the second
image frame, concluding that the community member is not speaking to an audience comprised of the plurality of people and then associating a first quality value with the commentary
in response to determining that the plurality of people are also identifiable in the second image frame, concluding that the user is speaking to an audience comprised of the plurality of people and then associating a second quality value with the commentary, wherein the second quality value is higher than the first quality value;
in response to determining that the plurality of people are also identifiable in the second image frame, concluding that the community member is speaking to an audience comprised of the plurality of people and then associating a second quality value with the commentary, wherein the second quality value is higher than the first quality value;
and determining the commentary rating for the commentary based on the associated first quality value or the second quality value.
and determining the commentary rating for the commentary based on the associated first quality value or the second quality value.
Claim 38
Claim 18
weighting the quality value;
weighting the quality value;
wherein the commentary rating determined for the commentary of the user is defined on a relative basis as other commentary ratings generated by other community members.
wherein the commentary rating determined for the commentary of the community member is defined on a relative basis as other commentary ratings generated by other community members.
Claim 39
Claim 19
wherein a plurality of commentaries are stored, and wherein each of the stored plurality of commentaries pertains to one of a plurality of different subject media content events, the method further comprising:
wherein a plurality of commentaries are stored, and wherein each of the stored plurality of commentaries pertains to one of a plurality of different subject media content events, the method further comprising:
receiving a request from a device being operated by a community member,
wherein the request specifies the subject media content event, and wherein the community member is requesting commentaries for the subject media content event;
receiving a request from a device being operated by a community member,
wherein the request specifies the subject media content event, and wherein the community member is requesting commentaries for the subject media content event;
identifying a first plurality of commentaries from the stored plurality of
commentaries, wherein the first plurality of commentaries are associated with the specified subject media content event;
identifying a first plurality of commentaries from the stored plurality of
commentaries, wherein the first plurality of commentaries are associated with the specified subject media content event;
And selecting a second plurality of commentaries from the first plurality of
commentaries, wherein a predefined number of commentaries are selected for the second plurality of commentaries;
And selecting a second plurality of commentaries from the first plurality of
commentaries, wherein a predefined number of commentaries are selected for the second plurality of commentaries;
and wherein the selected second plurality of commentaries have a highest
commentary ratings from among the first plurality of commentaries.
and wherein the selected second plurality of commentaries have the highest
commentary ratings from among the first plurality of commentaries.
Claim 40
Claim 20
wherein a plurality of commentaries are stored, and wherein each of the stored plurality of commentaries pertains to one of a plurality of different subject media content events, the method further comprising:
wherein a plurality of commentaries are stored, and wherein each of the stored plurality of commentaries pertains to one of a plurality of different subject media content events, the method further comprising:
receiving a request from a device being operated by a community member,
wherein the request specifies the subject media content event, and wherein the community member is requesting commentaries for the subject media content event;
receiving a request from a device being operated by a community member,
wherein the request specifies the subject media content event, and wherein the community member is requesting commentaries for the subject media content event;
in response to receiving the request, determining whether one of the physical
objects identified in the video information acquired by the video camera is a person that is known to the requesting community member;
in response to receiving the request, determining whether one of the physical
objects identified in the video information acquired by the 360° video camera is a person that is known to the requesting community member;
in response to identifying the person that is known to the requesting community member, associating a relevance value associated with the person that is known to the requesting community member, wherein the relevance value is associated with a degree of interpersonal relationship between the person that is known to the requesting community member and the requesting community member;
in response to identifying the person that is known to the requesting community member, associating a relevance value associated with the person that is known to the requesting community member, wherein the relevance value is associated with a degree of interpersonal relationship between the person that is known to the requesting community member and the requesting community member;
adjusting the commentary rating for the commentary based on the associated relevance value and the quality value;
adjusting the commentary rating for the commentary based on the associated relevance value and the quality value;
identifying a first plurality of commentaries from the stored plurality of commentaries, wherein the first plurality of commentaries are associated with the specified subject media content event;
identifying a first plurality of commentaries from the stored plurality of commentaries, wherein the first plurality of commentaries are associated with the specified subject media content event;
and selecting a second plurality of commentaries from the first plurality of commentaries;
and selecting a second plurality of commentaries from the first plurality of commentaries;
wherein a predefined number of commentaries are selected for the second plurality of commentaries;
wherein a predefined number of commentaries are selected for the second plurality of commentaries;
and wherein the selected second plurality of commentaries have a highest commentary ratings from among the first plurality of commentaries.
and wherein the selected second plurality of commentaries have the highest commentary ratings from among the first plurality of commentaries.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 21-40 are allowable subject to the applicant overcoming the non-statutory obviousness-type double patenting rejection.
Independent Claim 21
The prior arts made of Schneiderman et al (US PGPUB 20140188997), Chaney Roxy (US PGPUB 20200294298), Adarsh et al (US PGPUB 20090144272) and Fedorovskaya et al (US PGPUB 20140002644) teach “A method comprising” Schneiderman (Paragraph [0004]), “capturing, by a video camera, video information that includes an object representation of a physical object and an avatar representing a user” Chaney (Paragraph [0027] and Paragraph [0034]), “determining an attribute associated with object representation based on the video information” Schneiderman (Paragraph [0088] and Paragraph [0089]), “detecting, by a depth sensor, a distance within the video information between an object location of the object representation and an avatar location of the avatar” Chaney (Paragraph [0027], Paragraph [0034] and Paragraph [0043]), “comparing the determined attribute of the object representation with a plurality of predefined physical object attributes stored in a database” Schneiderman (Paragraph [0035], Paragraph [0037] and Paragraph [0055]), “in response to identifying one of the plurality of predefined physical object attributes that matches the determined physical attribute” Schneiderman (Paragraph [0037]), “associating the quality value of the identified one of the plurality of predefined physical object attributes with the object representation” Adarsh (Paragraph [0042]), but fail to teach the following claimed features in combination with the overall claimed limitations when interpreted in light of the specifications:
(Independent Claim 21) "... wherein each one of the plurality of predefined physical object attributes is associated with a quality value corresponding to a quality of commentary relative to the subject media content event of interest; ... determining a commentary rating for the commentary by weighting the associated quality value such that a weight of the associated quality value is higher when a positional distance value of the distance between the object representation and the avatar is smaller and the associated quality value is lower when the positional distance value of the distance between the object representation and the avatar is larger”.
The dependent claims 22-40 depend from allowable base claim 21, thus they are at least allowable for the same reasons as noted supra.
The prior art made of record of Schneiderman et al (US PGPUB 20140188997), Chaney Roxy (US PGPUB 20200294298), Adarsh et al (US PGPUB 20090144272) and Fedorovskaya et al (US PGPUB 20140002644), Flinn et al (US PGPUB 20160364651), Twyman et al (US PGPUB 20170344809), Newell et al (US PGPUB 20170026669) and Oehrle et al (US PGPUB 20180189691) neither anticipate nor render obvious the above-recited combinations for at least the reasons specified and as shown in Applicant’s Arguments filed on 12/01/2025.
Conclusion
THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. See MPEP § 706.07(a). Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to KAMAL K DEWAN whose telephone number is (571)272-2196. The examiner can normally be reached on Mon-Fri 8:00 AM – 5:00 PM (EST). If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, TONY MAHMOUDI can be reached on 571-272-4078. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/Kamal K Dewan/
Examiner, Art Unit 2163
/TONY MAHMOUDI/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2163
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