DETAILED ACTION
Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status
The present application is being examined under the pre-AIA first to invent provisions.
Continued Examination Under 37 CFR 1.114
A request for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, including the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e), was filed in this application after final rejection. Since this application is eligible for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114. Applicant's submission filed on 12/30/2025 has been entered.
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments, filed 12/30/2025, have been fully considered but they are not entirely persuasive.
Applicant argues that the image/video display field of endeavor is too broadly defined and Gannon is not in this field of endeavor. Examiner respectfully disagrees.
Applicant's arguments here amount to a general allegation that the claims define a patentable invention without specifically pointing out how the references are not in Applicant’s field of endeavor. Furthermore, image/video display is a subset of the telecommunications industry.
The Richards, Meiby, Chang and Gannon references are in the same image/video display field of endeavor (Richards: [0023]-[0024]; The sensory data may also be shown on a handheld display 40 mounted on housing 12, display 40 comprising a monitor having a screen so that the user can view the output of one or more sensing devices. The displayed sensory data may include, for example, an image of an object viewed by a camera, data reflecting the type and/or qualities of a gas or other sensed medium, medical information, or other information sensed by a sensing device; Meiby: [0041]-[0043]; [0048]; As illustrated in FIG. 1, a number of objects 52, such as icons 54, can be displayed on the display screen 20. Each icon can represent an application program, a utility program, a command, a file, and/or other types of objects stored on and/or accessible by the device 10; In some embodiments as shown in FIG. 3, an image 62A' of the marker 62A of FIG. 2 can be superimposed onto the keypad 60 or display 20, and the movement of the marker 62A can be interpreted as selection pointers by the user input management system 40, e.g., to select one of the keys 61A; Chang: [0033]; [0035]; "highlighting" may refer to applying a graphical effect to a graphical object (e.g., text, an image, an icon, a menu item, a link, etc.) on a display screen; the device may include a display 102, which shows graphical feature 104 and graphical feature 106; Gannon: Fig 6; computer display, image processing; [0033]; imaging system 110 includes an imaging device processor assembly 14). These references are also directed towards solving the problem involved in Applicant’s claim 1 of a display device for communication and imaging (Richards: abstract; A portable sensor includes (i) a housing; (ii) one or more sensing devices, such as a video camera and/or a gas sensor (iii) a transmitter, electrically coupled to the sensing device(s) for transmitting a signal generated by the sensing devices; [0023]-[0024]; Meiby: [0072]; The communication module 32 can include a transceiver typically having a transmitter circuit and a receiver circuit, which respectively transmit outgoing radio frequency signals (e.g., to the network 5, a router or directly to another terminal) and receive incoming radio frequency signals (e.g., from the network 5, a router or directly to another terminal), such as voice and data signals, via an antenna. The communication module 32 may include a short range transmitter and receiver, such as a Bluetooth transmitter and receiver; [0041]-[0043]; [0048]; Chang: [0046]; Network interface 308 may include any transceiver-like mechanism that enables device 200 to communicate with other devices and/or systems. For example, network interface 308 may include mechanisms for communicating via a network, such as the Internet, a terrestrial wireless network (e.g., a WLAN), a satellite-based network, a WPAN, etc. Additionally or alternatively, network interface 308 may include a modem, an Ethernet interface to a LAN, and/or an interface/connection for connecting device 200 to other devices (e.g., a Bluetooth interface); [0033]; [0035]; Gannon: [0007]; data collected within the terminals is communicated to a host computer situated on a hardwired backbone via a wireless link; a radio or optical transceiver for communicating with a host computer via a base station; [0036]; computer or network apparatus; [0022] Fig 2-3; Imaging module 112 includes a first board 14a carrying such things as an image sensor 32 typically provided by an image sensor chip and aiming light sources 18, an imager processor, memory, etc. and a second circuit board 14b for carrying such things as illumination light sources 16; Fig 6; computer, host processor, network, network computer).
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b):
(b) CONCLUSION.—The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph:
The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention.
Claims 1-15, 17-22, 24-25 and 27-53 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention.
Claim 1 recites the limitation “illuminating at least part of the captured image.” The image was previously captured by a digital camera. It is unclear how an image previously captured by a digital camera can be illuminated. Thus the scope of the claim is indefinite. The dependent claims inherit this deficiency by virtue of their dependency.
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) A patent may not be obtained though the invention is not identically disclosed or described as set forth in section 102 , if the differences between the subject matter sought to be patented and the prior art are such that the subject matter as a whole would have been obvious at the time the invention was made to a person having ordinary skill in the art to which said subject matter pertains. Patentability shall not be negatived by the manner in which the invention was made.
Claims 1-3, 7, 11-25, 28, 37-43 and 49-53 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Richards et al. (US 2004/0050188) in view of Meiby (US 2010/0149100), Chang et al. (US 2010/0130129) and Gannon et al. (US 2007/0228306).
Regarding claim 1,
Richards teaches:
A method by a handheld device (Richards: Fig 1; [0022]; hand held portable sensor 10) comprising:
capturing, by a digital camera in the device, an image in a non-visible spectrum (Richards: [0023]-[0024]; sensor devices 10, 20; [0030]; infrared and ultraviolet camera; [0010]; [0033]; [0047]);
emitting, by a light source in the device, light, for illuminating at least part of the captured image (Richards: Fig 1, 3-4; light source 30; [0028]-[0029]);
processing, by a digital image processor in the device, the captured image (Richards: [0031]-[0036]; image data; PDA, internal circuit board 95, processes sensor information; [0041]-[0043]; The Richards internal circuit board 95 / PDA “use integrated imaging software or other software designed to be used with other types of sensing devices to process the sensor information and send either the raw data, the processed information, or both to the receiving station via the transmitter 50” (Richards: [0036]). Furthermore, “[s]ensing device 20 (and/or device 22, 23), display 40, transmitter 50, light source 30, and power source 75 are all electrically coupled to the circuit board 95, which is designed so that information from the sensing device(s) can be shown on the display 40 and/or transmitted to a remote location using transmitter 50” (Richards: [0042]; Fig 3));
identifying, by the digital image processor in the device, one or more elements in the captured image that include a part of human body (Richards: [0033]-[0035]; highlight image portion to emphasize particular area, such as a pipe; This highlight occurs on interactive display 40, which may be part of the PDA, replacing or coupled to circuit board 95 (Richards [0036]; [0041]-[0042]); Identifying a leaky gas pipe is identifying an element (Richards [0033]-[0034]); Richards: [0045]; leaving sensor on desk or hallway, which would include imaging people; [0049] medical sensing device and use with sensor/camera; [0007]; video camera; [0030]; video of objects; [0032]; medical information of image);
transmitting, by a cellular transmitter in the device, the captured image over a cellular network (Richards: [0040]-[0046]; cellular transmitter 50; [0023]; [0031]; [0033]-[0036]; transmitting images and receiving remote feedback; The Richards “[t]ransmitter 50 may comprise a variety of different types of wireless transmission equipment, such as that developed under the IEEE 802.11, IEEE 802.11a and IEEE 802.11b wireless transmission standards, such as a wireless Ethernet card or digital cellular telephone equipment. Currently, such equipment might include, but is not limited to, Cellular Digital Packet Data (CDPD), Digital Broadcast Satellites, Switched Broadband, Local Multipoint Distribution Service (LMDS), Local Multipoint Communication Systems (LMCS), microwave and/or other wireless communication means. Transmitter 50 may comprise or be incorporated into a PDA” (Richards: [0040]));
displaying, by a display in the device, a visual image based on the captured image that includes marking of the one or more identified elements (Richards: [0032]-[0035]; highlight image displayed; [0043]; In Richards, “a user operating the sensor 10, equipped with a sensing device 20 in the form of a video camera, can highlight a portion of the image on the display 40 to emphasize a particular area” (Richards: [0033]). “For instance, when the first sensing device 20 is a video camera, an inspector holding the sensor 10 may provide input to display 40 by circling or otherwise highlighting (e.g., with a stylus or other device) the image of a leaking pipe that appears in the screen of the display 40 and is leaking gas” (Richards: [0034]). “Thus, in an embodiment in which display 40 is interactive, display 40 is configured to receive input from a user operating the portable sensor (such as by highlighting of an image of an object viewed in the display)” (Richards: [0035]). The local image of a leaky pipe being displayed is highlighted);
storing, in a memory in the device, the captured image (Richards: [0045]; PDA storage); and
and treating the part of the human body (Richards: [0013]; transmit the image of a patient in an ambulance to a remote hospital, including relevant vital statistics on the patient, such as blood pressure, heart rate, electrocardiogram information, etc. for treatment; [0049]; medical sensing device to record blood pressure, heart rate and respiration).
Richards fails to teach:
emitting light in the non-visible spectrum;
an Ultra-Wide-band (UWB) transceiver, an UWB antenna in the device and an UWB connection;
Meiby teaches:
emitting, by a light source in the device, light, for illuminating at least part of the captured image (Meiby: [0063]);
identifying, by the digital image processor in the device, one or more elements in the captured image that include a part of human body (Meiby: [0051]-[0054]; recognition of user’s hand/finger);
a cellular transceiver and a cellular antenna (Meiby: Fig 6; [0037]; [0060]; [0069]; [0072]: transceiver and antenna in cellular network).
a camera, infrared images and storing images (Meiby; [0044]-[0047]; [0052]; [0067]).
At the time of invention, it would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art to combine the teachings of Meiby with Richards. Using the Meiby cellular transceiver and antenna would benefit the Richards teachings by further ensuring that data is received at a remote location. Additionally, this is the application of a known technique, using a cellular transceiver and antenna, to a known device ready for improvement, the Richards device, to yield predictable results.
Chang teaches:
an Ultra-Wide-band (UWB) transceiver, an UWB antenna in the device and an UWB connection (Chang: [0043]-[0045]; UWB communication; transceiver; antenna; [0020]; [0028]);
operating in the Industrial-Scientific-Medical band (Chang: [0002]; [0020]; ISM);
At the time of invention, it would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art to combine the teachings of Chang with Richards in view of Meiby. Using UWB communication, as in Chang, would benefit the Richards in view of Meiby teachings by allowing for more communication options among devices, for example those close to a user.
Gannon teaches:
emitting, by a light source in the device, light in the non-visible spectrum, for illuminating at least part of the captured image (Gannon: [0033]; infrared LEDs);
At the time of invention, it would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art to combine the teachings of Gannon with Richards in view of Meiby and Chang. Using an infrared light source as in Gannon would benefit the Richards in view of Meiby and Chang teachings by allowing for enhanced analysis in an infrared environment according to user preference. A user might prefer to have enhanced analysis in an infrared environment, as in Gannon, relative to infrared environments of Richards and Meiby.
The Richards, Meiby, Chang and Gannon references are in the same image/video display field of endeavor (Richards: [0023]-[0024]; The sensory data may also be shown on a handheld display 40 mounted on housing 12, display 40 comprising a monitor having a screen so that the user can view the output of one or more sensing devices. The displayed sensory data may include, for example, an image of an object viewed by a camera, data reflecting the type and/or qualities of a gas or other sensed medium, medical information, or other information sensed by a sensing device; Meiby: [0041]-[0043]; [0048]; As illustrated in FIG. 1, a number of objects 52, such as icons 54, can be displayed on the display screen 20. Each icon can represent an application program, a utility program, a command, a file, and/or other types of objects stored on and/or accessible by the device 10; In some embodiments as shown in FIG. 3, an image 62A' of the marker 62A of FIG. 2 can be superimposed onto the keypad 60 or display 20, and the movement of the marker 62A can be interpreted as selection pointers by the user input management system 40, e.g., to select one of the keys 61A; Chang: [0033]; [0035]; "highlighting" may refer to applying a graphical effect to a graphical object (e.g., text, an image, an icon, a menu item, a link, etc.) on a display screen; the device may include a display 102, which shows graphical feature 104 and graphical feature 106; Gannon: Fig 6; computer display, image processing; [0033]; imaging system 110 includes an imaging device processor assembly 14). These references are also directed towards solving the problem involved in Applicant’s claim 1 of a display device for communication and imaging (Richards: abstract; A portable sensor includes (i) a housing; (ii) one or more sensing devices, such as a video camera and/or a gas sensor (iii) a transmitter, electrically coupled to the sensing device(s) for transmitting a signal generated by the sensing devices; [0023]-[0024]; Meiby: [0072]; The communication module 32 can include a transceiver typically having a transmitter circuit and a receiver circuit, which respectively transmit outgoing radio frequency signals (e.g., to the network 5, a router or directly to another terminal) and receive incoming radio frequency signals (e.g., from the network 5, a router or directly to another terminal), such as voice and data signals, via an antenna. The communication module 32 may include a short range transmitter and receiver, such as a Bluetooth transmitter and receiver; [0041]-[0043]; [0048]; Chang: [0046]; Network interface 308 may include any transceiver-like mechanism that enables device 200 to communicate with other devices and/or systems. For example, network interface 308 may include mechanisms for communicating via a network, such as the Internet, a terrestrial wireless network (e.g., a WLAN), a satellite-based network, a WPAN, etc. Additionally or alternatively, network interface 308 may include a modem, an Ethernet interface to a LAN, and/or an interface/connection for connecting device 200 to other devices (e.g., a Bluetooth interface); [0033]; [0035]; Gannon: [0007]; data collected within the terminals is communicated to a host computer situated on a hardwired backbone via a wireless link; a radio or optical transceiver for communicating with a host computer via a base station; [0036]; computer or network apparatus; [0022] Fig 2-3; Imaging module 112 includes a first board 14a carrying such things as an image sensor 32 typically provided by an image sensor chip and aiming light sources 18, an imager processor, memory, etc. and a second circuit board 14b for carrying such things as illumination light sources 16; Fig 6; computer, host processor, network, network computer).
Regarding claim 2,
Richards in view of Meiby, Chang and Gannon teaches:
The method according to claim 1, wherein the device comprises a single casing housing the digital camera, the digital image processor, the UWB antenna, the display, and the UWB transceiver (Richards: Fig 1-3; hand held portable sensor 10; housing 12; abstract; [0009]-[0010]; [0022]; [0026]; Meiby: Fig 1-2; housing 12; [0041]; [0055]; Fig 6; [0061]; [0033]-[0036]; [0066]; [0074]; Chang: [0020]; [0028]; [0043]-[0045]).
Regarding claim 3,
Richards in view of Meiby, Chang and Gannon teaches:
The method according to claim 2, further comprising powering the device from a battery in the single casing (Richards: Fig 3; power source 75; [0041]; Fig 1-3; hand held portable sensor 10; housing 12; abstract; [0009]-[0010]; [0022]; [0026]; Meiby: Fig 1-2; housing 12; [0041]; [0055]; Fig 6; [0061]; [0033]-[0036]; [0066]; [0074]).
Regarding claim 7,
Richards in view of Meiby, Chang and Gannon teaches:
The method according to claim 1, wherein the non-visible spectrum is in an infrared or ultraviolet spectrum (Richards: [0010]; [0030]; [0047]; Meiby: [0052]; Gannon; [0033]).
Regarding claim 11,
Richards in view of Meiby, Chang and Gannon teaches:
The method according to claim 1, wherein the identifying comprises identifying an element in the captured image having a different temperature (Richards: [0010]; [0030]; [0047]; Meiby: [0052]; Meiby [0052] teaches imaging infrared heat signals. Richards [0010], [0030] and [0047] teaches infrared imagery. Infrared light is emitted according to temperature).
Regarding claim 12,
Richards in view of Meiby, Chang and Gannon teaches:
The method according to claim 1, wherein the identifying comprises identifying an element based on a distinct infrared signature of the element (Richards: [0010]; [0030]; [0047]; Meiby: [0052]; Meiby [0052] teaches imaging infrared heat signals. Richards [0010], [0030] and [0047] teaches infrared imagery. Infrared light is emitted according to temperature.).
Regarding claim 13,
Richards in view of Meiby, Chang and Gannon teaches:
The method according to claim 1, wherein the identifying comprises identifying of plurality of elements in the captured image Richards: [0014]; [0033]-[0034]; Meiby: [0051]; Richards [0014] and [0033]-[0034] teaches identifying a pipe, a leak and gas. Meiby [0051] teaches identifying plural elements such as fingertips).
Regarding claim 14,
Richards in view of Meiby, Chang and Gannon teaches:
The method according to claim 13, wherein the plurality of elements share a same characteristic (Richards: [0007]; [0013]-[0014]; [0033]-[0034]; [0030]; [0032]; [0045]; [0049]; Meiby: [0051]; Richards [0014] and [0033]-[0034] teaches identifying a pipe, a leak and gas, which share a characteristic of being about a gas leak, of being in the same room and of being in the same underlying image. Meiby [0051] teaches identifying plural elements such as fingertips, which share a characteristic of being about a hand, of being in the same room and of being in the same underlying image).
Regarding claim 15,
Richards in view of Meiby, Chang and Gannon teaches:
The method according to claim 13, wherein the plurality of elements are of a same type (Richards: [0007]; [0013]-[0014]; [0033]-[0034]; [0030]; [0032]; [0045]; [0049]; Meiby: [0051]; Richards [0014] and [0033]-[0034] teaches identifying a pipe, a leak and gas, which share a type of being about a gas leak, of being in the same room, of being part of a diagnostic and of being in the same underlying image. Meiby [0051] teaches identifying plural elements such as fingertips, which share a type of being about a hand, of being in the same room, of being part of a same determination and of being in the same underlying image).
Regarding claim 17,
Richards in view of Meiby, Chang and Gannon teaches:
The method according to claim 1, wherein the captured image includes part of a human skin (Richards: [0007]; [0013]-[0014]; [0033]-[0034]; [0030]; [0032]; [0049]; [0045]; leaving sensor on desk or hallway, which would include imaging people; [0049] medical sensing device and use with sensor/camera; [0007]; video camera; [0030]; video of objects; [0032]; medical information of image; Meiby: [0051]-[0054]; recognition of user’s hand/finger).
Regarding claim 18,
Richards in view of Meiby, Chang and Gannon teaches:
The method according to claim 17, wherein the identifying comprises identifying of individual hairs or a hairy area in the captured image (Richards: [0007]; [0013]-[0014]; [0033]-[0034]; [0030]; [0032]; [0049]; [0045]; leaving sensor on desk or hallway, which would include imaging people; [0049] medical sensing device and use with sensor/camera; [0007]; video camera; [0030]; video of objects; [0032]; medical information of image; [0033]-[0035]; highlight image portion to emphasize particular area; Meiby: [0051]-[0054]; recognition of user’s hand/finger).
Regarding claim 19,
Richards in view of Meiby, Chang and Gannon teaches:
The method according to claim 1, wherein the display comprises a flat screen and is silicon-based (Richards: Fig 2; [0023]; Meiby: [0063]; Richards Fig 2 and [0023] teaches a display 40 based on silicon circuits and glass. Meiby [0063] teaches a liquid crystal display based on silicon circuits and glass).
Regarding claim 20,
Richards in view of Meiby, Chang and Gannon teaches:
The method according to claim 19, wherein the flat screen is based on LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) or TFT (Thin-Film Transistor) (Meiby: [0063]).
Regarding claim 21,
Richards in view of Meiby, Chang and Gannon teaches:
The method according to claim 1, wherein the digital image processor comprises software and a processor, and wherein the processing and the identifying comprise executing the software by the processor (Richards: [0036]; Meiby: [0033]-[0034]; [0047]; [0066]; [0074]; Richards [0036] teaches a PDA with integrated imaging processing software. Meiby [0033]-[0034], [0047], [0066] and [0074] teaches a CRM with instructions, a computer to execute them and other hardware/software to perform functions).
Regarding claim 22,
Richards in view of Meiby, Chang and Gannon teaches:
The method according to claim 1, further comprising adjusting color balance, gamma or luminance; filtering pattern noise; filtering noise using Wiener filter; zooming; changing zoom factors; recropping; applying enhancement filters; applying smoothing filters; applying subject-dependent filters; applying coordinate transformations; or applying mathematical algorithms to generate greater pixel density, adjusting color balance, contrast and / or luminance (Richards: [0030]; zoom, infrared, ultraviolet and low light level operational modes; Meiby: [0063]; switching video formats with different resolutions and pixel group sizes).
Regarding claim 24,
Richards in view of Meiby, Chang and Gannon teaches:
The method according to claim 1, wherein the light source is mechanically mounted for illuminating of at least part of the captured image (Richards: Fig 1; light source 30; [0028]-[0029]; Meiby: [0063]; auxiliary lighting; lighting panel).
Regarding claim 25,
Richards in view of Meiby, Chang and Gannon teaches:
The method according to claim 1, wherein the light source comprises, or consists of, a LED (Light Emitting Diode) (Richards: Fig 1, 3; light source 30; [0028]-[0029]).
Regarding claim 28,
Richards in view of Meiby, Chang and Gannon teaches:
The method according to claim 1, wherein the digital camera comprises, or consists of, a digital video camera that generates a digital video data according to a digital video format (Richards: abstract; [0032]-[0034]; Meiby: [0002]; [0062]; [0067]).
Regarding claim 37,
Richards in view of Meiby, Chang and Gannon teaches:
The method according to claim 1, further comprising transmitting, by a WPAN (Wireless Personal Area Network) transceiver and a WPAN antenna in the device, the captured image over a WPAN network (Chang: [0043]-[0045]).
Regarding claim 38,
Richards in view of Meiby, Chang and Gannon teaches:
The method according to claim 37, wherein the WPAN network substantially conform to, or is based on, ZigBee according to IEEE 802.15.4 standard (Chang: [0043]-[0045]).
Regarding claim 39,
Richards in view of Meiby, Chang and Gannon teaches:
The method according to claim 37, wherein the WPAN network substantially conform to, or is based on, Bluetooth according to IEEE 802.15.1 standard (Chang: [0043]-[0045]).
Regarding claim 40,
Richards in view of Meiby, Chang and Gannon teaches:
The method according to claim 1, further comprising transmitting, by a WLAN (Wireless Local Area Network) transceiver and a WLAN antenna in the device, the captured image over a WLAN network (Richards: [0040]-[0046]; [0023]; [0031]; [0033]-[0036;]; Meiby: [0037]; [0059]-[0060]; [0068]-[0069]; [0071]-[0072]; Chang: [0041]-[0045]).
Regarding claim 41,
Richards in view of Meiby, Chang and Gannon teaches:
The method according to claim 40, wherein the WLAN is according to, or is based on, standard WLAN (Wireless Local Area Network) (Richards: [0040]-[0046]; [0023]; [0031]; [0033]-[0036;]; Meiby: [0037]; [0059]-[0060]; [0068]-[0069]; [0071]-[0072]; Chang: [0041]-[0045]).
Regarding claim 42,
Richards in view of Meiby, Chang and Gannon teaches:
The method according to claim 41, wherein the WLAN substantially conforms to, or is based on, IEEE 802.11 standard, and is using an Industrial, Scientific and Medical (ISM) frequency spectrum band Richards: [0040]-[0046]; [0023]; [0031]; [0033]-[0036;]; Meiby: [0037]; [0059]-[0060]; [0068]-[0069]; [0071]-[0072]; Chang: [0002]; [0020]; [0043]-[0044]).
Regarding claim 43,
Richards in view of Meiby, Chang and Gannon teaches:
The method according to claim 1, further comprising taking care of a human body part (Richards: [0045]; leaving sensor on desk or hallway, which would include imaging people; [0049] medical sensing device and use with sensor/camera; [0007]; video camera; [0030]; video of objects; [0032]; medical information of image; taking care of human safety, which includes body parts; taking care of safety which takes care of the brain; user’s bodily contact with device; [0013]; transmit the image of a patient in an ambulance to a remote hospital, including relevant vital statistics on the patient, such as blood pressure, heart rate, electrocardiogram information, etc. for treatment; [0049]; medical sensing device to record blood pressure, heart rate and respiration; Meiby: [0044]; [0051]-[0054]; recognition of user’s hand/finger; taking care of user’s identity/brain/intent; user’s bodily contact with device).
Regarding claim 49,
Richards in view of Meiby, Chang and Gannon teaches:
The method according to claim 1, wherein the digital camera comprises an optical lens for focusing a received light, and a photosensitive image sensor array disposed approximately at an image focal point plane of the optical lens (Richards: [0027]-[0030]; [0044]; Meiby: [0044]; [0051];[ 0062]; Gannon: abstract; [0020]-[0021]; [0030]).
Regarding claim 50,
Richards in view of Meiby, Chang and Gannon teaches:
The method according to claim 49, wherein the digital camera further comprises an analog to digital (A/D) converter coupled to the photosensitive image sensor for generating a digital data representation of the image (Richards: [0027]-[0030]; [0044]; Meiby: [0034]; [0044]; [0051]; [0062]; Gannon: [0035]).
Regarding claim 51,
Richards in view of Meiby, Chang and Gannon teaches:
The method according to claim 49, wherein the photosensitive image sensor is based on Charge-Coupled Devices (CCD) or Complementary Metal-Oxide-Semiconductor (CMOS) (Meiby: [0062]; CCD, CMOS cameras; Gannon: [0033]).
Regarding claim 52,
Richards in view of Meiby, Chang and Gannon teaches:
The method according to claim 1, wherein the UWB is according to, or compatible with, IEEE 802.15.3 standard (Chang: [0043]-[0045]).
Regarding claim 53,
Richards in view of Meiby, Chang and Gannon teaches:
The method according to claim 1, wherein the UWB uses a wavelet, or wherein the UWB is based on emitting short pulses approaching a Gaussian monocycle with tightly controlled pulse- to-pulse intervals (Chang: [0043]-[0045]).
Claims 4-6 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Richards et al. (US 2004/0050188) in view of Meiby (US 2010/0149100), Chang et al. (US 2010/0130129), Gannon et al. (US 2007/0228306) and Nurminen et al. (US 2009/0049004).
Regarding claim 4,
Richards in view of Meiby, Chang and Gannon teaches:
The device according to claim 1, further configured to transmit the captured image over a cellular network (Richards:[0008]; [0023]; [0031]; [0033]-[0036]; [0040]-[0046]; (Meiby: Fig 6; [0002]; [0037]- [0038]; [0059]-[0060]; [0069]; [0072]).
Richards in view of Meiby, Chang and Gannon fails to teach:
a cellular network that uses, or is based on, 2.5G or 3G.
Nurminen teaches:
a cellular network that uses, or is based on, 2.5G or 3G (Nurminen:
[0037]; [0046]).
At the time of invention, it would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art to combine the teachings of Nurminen with Richards in view of Meiby, Chang and Gannon. Using a 2.5 G or 3 G as in Nurminen would benefit the Richards in view of Meiby, Chang and Gannon teachings by allowing for more standardized communication in a cellular network. Standardized communication in a cellular network allows for these standardized, widespread, cellular networks to be used.
Regarding claim 5,
Richards in view of Meiby, Chang, Gannon and Nurminen teaches:
The method according to claim 4, wherein the device is part of a cellular telephone handset (Richards: claims 22-23; [0008]; [0012]; [0040]; cellular telephone; PDA; Meiby: [0002]; [0037]-[0038]; [0059]-[0060]; cellular telephone).
Regarding claim 6,
Richards in view of Meiby, Chang, Gannon and Nurminen teaches:
The method according to claim 4, wherein the cellular network substantially conforms to, or based on, GSM (Global System for Mobile Communications), 3GSM, GPRS (General Packet Radio Service), CDMA (Code Division Multiple Access), EDGE (Enhanced Data Rates for GSM Evolution), Digital AMPS according to IS-136/TDMA, iDEN (Integrated Digital Enhanced Network), EVDO (Evolution Data Only), UMTS, DCS, or PCS (Meiby: [0069]).
Claims 27 and 29-35 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Richards et al. (US 2004/0050188) in view of Meiby (US 2010/0149100), Chang et al. (US 2010/0130129), Gannon et al. (US 2007/0228306) and Quigley et al. (US 2009/0217338).
Regarding claim 27,
Richards in view of Meiby, Chang and Gannon teaches:
The method according to claim 1,
Richards in view of Meiby, Chang and Gannon fails to teach:
further comprising compressing the captured image by a compressor, and wherein the transmitting comprises transmitting of the compressed captured image.
Quigley teaches:
further comprising compressing the captured image by a compressor, and wherein the transmitting comprises transmitting of the compressed captured image (Quigley: [0008]: H.264 video).
At the time of invention, it would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art to combine the teachings of Quigley with Richards in view of Meiby, Chang and Gannon. Using H.264 compression as in Quigley would benefit the Richards in view of Meiby, Chang and Gannon teachings by reducing data size.
Regarding claims 29-35,
Richards in view of Meiby, Chang and Gannon teaches:
The method according to claim 28, comprising a digital video format (Meiby: [0002]; [0062]; [0067]).
Richards in view of Meiby, Chang and Gannon fails to teach:
29. The method according to claim 28, wherein the digital video format is according to, or is based on, one out of: TIFF (Tagged Image File Format), RAW format, AVI, DV, MOV, WMV, MP4, DCF (Design Rule for Camera Format), ITU-T H.261, ITU-T H.263, ITU-T H.264, ITU-T CCIR 601, ASF, Exif (Exchangeable Image File Format), and DP*OF (Digital Print Order Format) standards.
30. The method according to claim 28, further comprising compressing the digital video data by a video compressor, and wherein the transmitting comprises transmitting of the compressed digital video data.
31. The method according to claim 30, wherein the compression is based on intraframe compression.
32. The method according to claim 30, wherein the compression is based on interframe compression.
33. The method according to claim 30, wherein the compression is lossy compression.
34. The method according to claim 30, wherein the compression is non-lossy compression.
35. The method according to claim 30, wherein the compression is according to, or based on, a standard compression algorithm which is one out of JPEG (Joint Photographic Experts Group) and MPEG (Moving Picture Experts Group), ITU-T H.261, ITU-T H.263, ITU-T H.264, and ITU-T CCIR 601.
Quigley teaches:
29. The method according to claim 28, wherein the digital video format is according to, or is based on, one out of: TIFF (Tagged Image File Format), RAW format, AVI, DV, MOV, WMV, MP4, DCF (Design Rule for Camera Format), ITU-T H.261, ITU-T H.263, ITU-T H.264, ITU-T CCIR 601, ASF, Exif (Exchangeable Image File Format), and DP*OF (Digital Print Order Format) standards.
30. The method according to claim 28, further comprising compressing the digital video data by a video compressor, and wherein the transmitting comprises transmitting of the compressed digital video data.
31. The method according to claim 30, wherein the compression is based on intraframe compression.
32. The method according to claim 30, wherein the compression is based on interframe compression.
33. The method according to claim 30, wherein the compression is lossy compression.
34. The method according to claim 30, wherein the compression is non-lossy compression.
35. The method according to claim 30, wherein the compression is according to, or based on, a standard compression algorithm which is one out of JPEG (Joint Photographic Experts Group) and MPEG (Moving Picture Experts Group), ITU-T H.261, ITU-T H.263, ITU-T H.264, and ITU-T CCIR 601.
(Quigley: [0008]: H.264 video).
At the time of invention, it would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art to combine the teachings of Quigley with Richards in view of Meiby, Chang and Gannon. Using H.264 compression as in Quigley would benefit the Richards in view of Meiby, Chang and Gannon teachings by reducing data size.
Claim 36 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Richards et al. (US 2004/0050188) in view of Meiby (US 2010/0149100), Chang et al. (US 2010/0130129), Gannon et al. (US 2007/0228306) and Hahn et al. (US 7,593,573).
Regarding claim 36,
Richards in view of Meiby, Chang and Gannon teaches:
The method according to claim 1 (as shown above),
Richards in view of Meiby, Chang and Gannon fails to teach:
wherein the identifying is based on, or uses, pattern recognition.
Hahn teaches:
wherein the identifying is based on, or uses, pattern recognition (Hahn: col 2, line 41-46).
At the time of invention, it would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art to combine the teachings of Hahn with Richards in view of Meiby, Chang and Gannon. Using pattern recognition, as in Hahn, would benefit the Richards in view of Meiby, Chang and Gannon teachings by further enhancing object and gas leak detections (Richards: [0014]; [0033]-[0034]).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 8-10 and 44-48 would be allowable if rewritten to overcome the rejection(s) under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), 2nd paragraph, set forth in this Office action and to include all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
Conclusion
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/JAMES M PONTIUS/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2488