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 .
Status
The filing on 12/12/2025 amended claims 1, 8 and 9. Claims 1-9 are rejected on new grounds of rejections necessitated by the amendments of claims 1-9.
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and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114.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 12/12/2025 has been entered.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 103 which forms the basis for all obviousness rejections set forth in this Office action:
A patent for a claimed invention may not be obtained, notwithstanding that the claimed invention is not identically disclosed as set forth in section 102, if the differences between the claimed invention and the prior art are such that the claimed invention as a whole would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to a person having ordinary skill in the art to which the claimed invention pertains. Patentability shall not be negated by the manner in which the invention was made.
Claim(s) 1-9 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kawaguchi (US 20120182416 A1).
Regarding claim 1, Kawaguchi teaches a display method (Fig. 1-26) comprising: displaying a first image (test pattern; [0078]) including a first portion and a second portion different from the first portion on a screen by a projector (100; S14); the first image (resolution chart, e.g., resolution chart, see below) containing a background (blank/white) and a character on the background (blank/white), the first portion including at least a part of the character, the second portion including only a part of the background (blank/white) without including any part of the character; storing information representing a first shape which is a shape of the first portion when the screen is seen from a first direction (S24, S34, S44, S54); and when the shape of the first portion as seen from the first direction changes to a shape different from the first shape, displaying, by the projector (100), a second image obtained by performing correction on the first image (test pattern) to make the shape of the first portion as seen from the first direction closer to the first shape (S31, S32), and not performing the correction on the second portion on the screen (Fig. 6).
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Kawaguchi does not teach “correcting on the screen the first portion that includes at least a part of the character and not correcting on the screen the second portion that includes only a part of the background without including any part of the character.”
Choosing a test pattern such that applying the correction to the test pattern results in the first portion of test pattern that includes at least a part of the character being corrected and the second portion of test pattern that includes only a part of the background without including any part of the character not being corrected is a matter of design choice that does not have any effect on the functionality of the reference invention; hence it is prima facie obvious.
Regarding claim 2, Kawaguchi further teaches the storing includes: acquiring a first captured image by capturing the first portion from the first direction (S34); and generating the information representing the first shape based on the first captured image (S35, S31; Fig. 6).
Regarding claim 3, Kawaguchi further teaches the displaying the second image (SS33) includes: acquiring a second captured image (S34) by capturing the first portion from the first direction after acquiring the first captured image; and determining a correction amount (S31) for the correction by comparing the first shape with the shape of the first portion based on the second captured image (Fig. 6).
Regarding claim 4, Kawaguchi further teaches the determining the correction amount includes: dividing an area containing the first portion of the first image (test pattern) into two or more rectangular areas (Fig. 9-13); and determining the correction amounts for respective correction points in the respective rectangular areas by the comparing (S31; [0104]).
Regarding claim 5, Kawaguchi further teaches comprising receiving input to designate the first portion (distorted region; [0104]).
Regarding claim 6, Kawaguchi further teaches determining the first portion by extracting a contour contained in the first image (resolution chart) (test pattern; [0104]-[0108]; Fig. 9-11).
Regarding claim 7, Kawaguchi further teaches the first portion and the second portion are in a same layer in the first image (resolution chart) (test pattern; Fig. 9-11).
Regarding claim 8, Kawaguchi teaches a projector (100) comprising: an optical device (50); and a control device (20) controlling the optical device (50), wherein the control device (20) executes displaying a first image (test pattern) including a first portion and a second portion different from the first portion on a screen using the optical device (50; S14), the first image (resolution chart, e.g., resolution chart) containing a background (blank/white) and a character on the background (blank/white), the first portion including at least a part of the character, the second portion including only a part of the background (blank/white) without including any part of the character; storing information representing a first shape which is a shape of the first portion when the screen is seen from a first direction (S24, S34, S44, S54), and when the shape of the first portion as seen from the first direction changes to a shape different from the first shape, displaying, using the optical device (50), a second image obtained by performing correction on the first image (test pattern) to make the shape of the first portion as seen from the first direction closer to the first shape (S31, S32), and not performing the correction on the second portion on the screen (Fig. 6).
Kawaguchi does not teach “correcting on the screen the first portion that includes at least a part of the character and not correcting on the screen the second portion that includes only a part of the background without including any part of the character.”
Choosing a test pattern such that applying the correction to the test pattern results in the first portion of test pattern that includes at least a part of the character being corrected and the second portion of test pattern that includes only a part of the background without including any part of the character not being corrected is a matter of design choice that does not have any effect on the functionality of the reference invention; hence it is prima facie obvious.
Regarding claim 9, Kawaguchi teaches a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium ([0072], [0075], [0077]) storing a program for causing a processing device to execute: displaying a first image (test pattern; [0078]) containing a first portion and a second portion different from the first portion on a screen by a projector (100; S14), the first image (resolution chart, e.g., resolution chart) containing a background (blank/white) and a character on the background (blank/white), the first portion including at least a part of the character, the second portion including only a part of the background (blank/white) without including any part of the character; storing information representing a first shape which is a shape of the first portion when the screen is seen from a first direction (S24, S34, S44, S54); and when the shape of the first portion as seen from the first direction changes to a shape different from the first shape, displaying, by the projector (100), a second image obtained by performing correction on the first image (test pattern) to make the shape of the first portion as seen from the first direction closer to the first shape (S31, S32), and not performing the correction on the second portion on the screen (Fig. 6).
Kawaguchi does not teach “correcting on the screen the first portion that includes at least a part of the character and not correcting on the screen the second portion that includes only a part of the background without including any part of the character.”
Choosing a test pattern such that applying the correction to the test pattern results in the first portion of test pattern that includes at least a part of the character being corrected and the second portion of test pattern that includes only a part of the background without including any part of the character not being corrected is a matter of design choice that does not have any effect on the functionality of the reference invention; hence it is prima facie obvious.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to claim(s) s 1, 8, and 9 have been fully considered but are moot in view of the new ground/s of rejection/s necessitated by the amendment/s of claims 1, 8, and 9.
Conclusion
The prior art references cited in PTO-892 are made of record and considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to BAO-LUAN Q LE whose telephone number is (571)270-5362. The examiner can normally be reached on Monday-Friday; 9:00AM-5:00PM.
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/BAO-LUAN Q LE/
Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2882
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