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 .
In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to 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.
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and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114.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 11/24/2025 has been entered.
Status of Claims
This Office Action is in response to the amendments filed on 11/24/2025. Claims 1-20 are presently pending and are presented for examination.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments, see pages 7-9 of 10, filed 11/24/2025, with respect to amended independent claims 1, 12, and 20 have been considered but are moot because the new ground of rejection does not rely on any reference applied in the prior rejection of record for any teaching or matter specifically challenged in the argument.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 103 which forms the basis for all obviousness rejections set forth in this Office action:
A patent for a claimed invention may not be obtained, notwithstanding that the claimed invention is not identically disclosed as set forth in section 102, if the differences between the claimed invention and the prior art are such that the claimed invention as a whole would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to a person having ordinary skill in the art to which the claimed invention pertains. Patentability shall not be negated by the manner in which the invention was made.
The factual inquiries set forth in Graham v. John Deere Co., 383 U.S. 1, 148 USPQ 459 (1966), that are applied for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness.
This application currently names joint inventors. In considering patentability of the claims the examiner presumes that the subject matter of the various claims was commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the claimed invention(s) absent any evidence to the contrary. Applicant is advised of the obligation under 37 CFR 1.56 to point out the inventor and effective filing dates of each claim that was not commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the later invention in order for the examiner to consider the applicability of 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(2)(C) for any potential 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) prior art against the later invention.
Claims 1-8 and 10-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Woolliscroft et al. (US-2021/0221357; hereinafter Woolliscroft; already of record) in view of Rohlfs et al. (US-2009/0259365; hereinafter Rohlfs; already of record) and Kim (US-2018/0162384; hereinafter Kim-84), and further in view of Kim (US-2023/0227102; hereinafter Kim-02).
Regarding claim 1, Woolliscroft discloses a vehicle parking assist system (see Woolliscroft at least [0004]) comprising:
a transceiver configured to receive [information] (see Woolliscroft at least [0673] “The receiver means 1310 may be in the form of a radio unit 1310. The radio unit 1310 may comprise a receiver for receiving radio signals 1305 from the mobile device 1390. In some embodiments the radio unit 1310 may also comprise a transmitter, or may be a transceiver 1310 configured to receive radio signals 1305 transmitted from the mobile device 1390 and transmit signals to the mobile device 1390...”);
a memory configured to store vehicle information (see Woolliscroft at least [0667] "The system 1300 comprises environment sensing means 1330 for determining information about an environment of the vehicle 1110. In particular, the environment sensing means 1330 is provided for determining a location of one or more features in a vicinity of the vehicle 1110. The environment sensing means 1330 is arranged to output an environment signal indicative of the determined features. The environment signal may be environment data which may be stored in a memory. The environment sensing means may comprise one or more sensing devices, such as imaging devices, such as cameras, or other sensing devices such as LIDAR, ultrasonic devices, sonar devices etc. Signals output by each of the sensing devices may be used to form a representation of the environment of the vehicle 1110 which is stored in the memory for use by other systems of the vehicle 1110."); and
a processor communicatively coupled to the transceiver and the memory (see Woolliscroft at least Fig 2 and Fig 3; processor 1210, memory 1220; transceiver 1310), wherein the processor is configured to:
generate, based on the [information] and the vehicle information, [parking commands] (see Woolliscroft at least [0669]-[0671] "The controller 1210 of the system 1300 here comprises defined manoeuvre means... The one or more actuators 1350 are provided for effecting movement of the vehicle 1110. The actuators may comprise one or more of a power steering mechanism arranged to provide steering of wheels of the vehicle 1110 in dependence on signals received from the controller 1210... The powertrain is arranged to provide power, or torque, to cause movement in the longitudinal axis of the vehicle 1110 i.e. forward or backward movement of the vehicle 1100 in dependence on the manoeuvre signal received from the controller 1210. The motive control means 1320 is arranged to control the application of torque to one or more wheels of the vehicle 1110 to move the vehicle 1110 in the longitudinal axis of the vehicle i.e. to move the vehicle generally forwards or backwards... To achieve control of the steering, the controller 1210 may communicate with the motive control means 1320. Thus the one or more actuators 1350 can control a direction and movement of the vehicle to perform the defined manoeuvre. The defined manoeuvre is performed in dependence on the environment signal provided by the environment sensing means 1330. The one or more defined manoeuvres which may be performed by the vehicle 1110 under control of the controller 1210 may comprise a parking manoeuvre such as a parking-in manoeuvre, wherein the vehicle 1110 is controlled to arrive at a parked position." and [0687] “It will be understood in the scenarios shown in FIGS. 7a, 7b and 7c that the defined manoeuvre may be a manoeuvre of the vehicle 2110 which is performed automatically by the vehicle 2110 i.e. under control of one or more systems of the vehicle 2110. The defined manoeuvre may be considered to be performed automatically by the vehicle 2110, or at least semi autonomously. As shown, in FIGS. 7a, 7b and 7c the defined manoeuvre may be a parking manoeuvre to control the vehicle 2110 to drive into a parking place.”);
cause, based on the [parking commands], a vehicle first movement to park a vehicle in a parking space (see Woolliscroft at least [0670]-[0671] "...The motive control means 1320 is arranged to control the application of torque to one or more wheels of the vehicle 1110 to move the vehicle 1110 in the longitudinal axis of the vehicle i.e. to move the vehicle generally forwards or backwards. The torque may comprise driving torque i.e. applied in a direction of desired movement such as forwards. The torque may also comprise braking torque i.e. applied to resist the driving torque. In at least some embodiments both driving torque and braking torque may be applied simultaneously in order to provide low-speed movement of the vehicle 1110. The braking torque may also be applied at least partly after the driving torque in order to effect accurate movement of the vehicle 1110. To achieve control of the steering, the controller 1210 may communicate with the motive control means 1320. Thus the one or more actuators 1350 can control a direction and movement of the vehicle to perform the defined manoeuvre. The defined manoeuvre is performed in dependence on the environment signal provided by the environment sensing means 1330. The one or more defined manoeuvres which may be performed by the vehicle 1110 under control of the controller 1210 may comprise a parking manoeuvre such as a parking-in manoeuvre, wherein the vehicle 1110 is controlled to arrive at a parked position.") …
obtain a first trigger event (see Woolliscroft at least [0654] "…In some scenarios a subsequent performance of a defined manoeuvre, such as to unpark the vehicle 1110, may be performed with a different availability of modes…” and [0674] "The mobile device 1390 may be an electronic key fob associated with the vehicle 1110, such as may be used to gain entry and to actuate or power up the vehicle 1110. The mobile device 1390 may, in other embodiments, be an electronic device associated with the person responsible for the vehicle 1100 such as a mobile telephone. tablet, watch, wearable electronic device or other computing device associated with the person. The mobile device 1390 is capable of receiving a user input indicating the person's desire to move the vehicle 1110. The user input may be provided in the form of a button or key press, activation of a graphically displayed icon, a gesture or voice command. Other forms of user input may also be envisaged.");
generate, responsive to obtaining the first trigger event and based on [parking commands], [exit commands] (see Woolliscroft at least [0654] "…In some scenarios a subsequent performance of a defined manoeuvre, such as to unpark the vehicle 1110, may be performed with a different availability of modes. For example, where a defined manoeuvre may be performed to the defined manoeuvre completed position of FIG. 1(a) with the occupant located either in or out of the vehicle 1110, if the adjacent object 1140 is moved or replaced by a further object whereby the separation 1190 is reduced such that the vehicle aperture member 1188 cannot be adequately opened, then the occupant-in-vehicle mode or modes may not be available.") …
cause, based on the [exit commands], a vehicle second movement to exit the vehicle from the parking space (see Woolliscroft at least [0654] "…In some scenarios a subsequent performance of a defined manoeuvre, such as to unpark the vehicle 1110, may be performed with a different availability of modes. For example, where a defined manoeuvre may be performed to the defined manoeuvre completed position of FIG. 1(a) with the occupant located either in or out of the vehicle 1110, if the adjacent object 1140 is moved or replaced by a further object whereby the separation 1190 is reduced such that the vehicle aperture member 1188 cannot be adequately opened, then the occupant-in-vehicle mode or modes may not be available.").
However, Woolliscroft does not explicitly disclose the following:
…receive parking space information…
…generate … a first instruction for controlling a movement of a first vehicle wheel and a second instruction for independently controlling a movement of a second vehicle wheel…
…cause, based on the first instruction and the second instruction, a vehicle first movement to park a vehicle, wherein the first movement comprises a post-entry lateral adjustment produced by independent control of the first vehicle wheel and the second vehicle wheel to laterally reposition the vehicle relative to an object within the parking space…
…generate … based on the first instruction and the second instruction, a third instruction for controlling the movement of the first vehicle wheel and a fourth instruction for independently controlling the movement of the second vehicle wheel, wherein the third instruction and the fourth instruction correspond to a reverse ordering of the wheel-control instructions used during the post-entry lateral adjustment…
…the third instruction and the fourth instruction...
Rohlfs, in the same field of endeavor, teaches the following:
…receive parking space information (see Rohlfs at least [0042] "...Control unit 40 is arranged such that it is able to receive and evaluate distance information from distance-determination unit 56. Using the received distance information, the control unit determines a driving direction recommendation in which motor vehicle 1 preferably is to be moved when maneuvering for the purpose of aligning motor vehicle 1...")…
…generate … a first instruction for controlling a movement of a first vehicle wheel and a second instruction for … controlling a movement of a second vehicle wheel (see Rohlfs at least [0016] "More specifically, a semi-automatic park-steer assist system of a motor vehicle is provided for aiding in an alignment of the motor vehicle in a parking space, which includes a device detecting an activation signal, for a device for determining a change direction in which an alignment of the motor vehicle is to be modified, and a control unit which, in an active state of the park-steer assist system, controls at least one actuator such that steerable wheels of the motor vehicle are turned in the change direction when the drive direction is set to forward, and the steerable wheels are maximally turned counter to the change direction when the set drive direction is reverse. A driver who, for example, has parked his vehicle in a parking space in a single pass but whose vehicle is still not in parallel alignment with the longitudinal edge of the parking space, is now confronted with the task of aligning the motor vehicle in the parking space. If the park-steer assist system is subsequently activated, it must determine the direction in which the orientation of the motor vehicle is to be changed." and [0018] "...Once the driver engages the forward gear and the forward drive direction is therefore selected, the control unit of the park-steer assist system turns the wheels, for instance maximally in the direction of the change direction (i.e., to the right). The driver is now able to move the motor vehicle forward. If the length of the parking space is insufficient so that the motor vehicle is not yet fully aligned at the end of this forward driving movement, then the driver will engage the reverse gear. The selected drive direction now is reverse. The park-steer assist system thereupon controls the at least one actuator such that the steerable wheels of the motor vehicle are turned counter to the change direction (to the left, in this case), e.g., at the maximum steering angle…")…
…cause, based on the first instruction and the second instruction, a vehicle first movement to park a vehicle (see Rohlfs at least [0016])…
…generate … based on the first instruction and the second instruction, a third instruction for controlling the movement of the first vehicle wheel and a fourth instruction for … controlling the movement of the second vehicle wheel (see Rohlfs at least [0016] "More specifically, a semi-automatic park-steer assist system of a motor vehicle is provided for aiding in an alignment of the motor vehicle in a parking space, which includes a device detecting an activation signal, for a device for determining a change direction in which an alignment of the motor vehicle is to be modified, and a control unit which, in an active state of the park-steer assist system, controls at least one actuator such that steerable wheels of the motor vehicle are turned in the change direction when the drive direction is set to forward, and the steerable wheels are maximally turned counter to the change direction when the set drive direction is reverse. A driver who, for example, has parked his vehicle in a parking space in a single pass but whose vehicle is still not in parallel alignment with the longitudinal edge of the parking space, is now confronted with the task of aligning the motor vehicle in the parking space. If the park-steer assist system is subsequently activated, it must determine the direction in which the orientation of the motor vehicle is to be changed." and [0018] “The park-steer assist system also may be used for pulling the motor vehicle out. A motor vehicle which is parked in a parallel manner in a parking space on the right side of the road should change its alignment to the left in this instance. As soon as the park assist system has detected an activation signal and recognized left as the change direction, it will turn the motor vehicle wheels to the left, for example at a maximum steering angle, if a forward drive direction is detected. In contrast, if the reverse gear is engaged, then the wheels are turned in the opposite direction, i.e., to the right, at a maximum steering angle, for instance. By single- or multiple-pass maneuvering, the alignment of the vehicle may be modified in the direction of the change direction, so that the motor vehicle is subsequently able to be driven out of the parking space... The park-steer assist system may, for instance, automatically receive an activation signal from a park assist system, which parks the motor vehicle in the parking space in a single pass or which offers assistance for this purpose, although the motor vehicle is not aligned along a setpoint alignment at the end of this parking operation…”), wherein the third instruction and the fourth instruction correspond to a reverse ordering of the wheel-control instructions used during [parking] (see Rohlfs at least [0016]-[0018]; park and un-park commands issued)…
…the third instruction and the fourth instruction (see Rohlfs at least [0016])...
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the parking assist system as disclosed by Woolliscroft with specific wheel commands such as taught by Rohlfs with a reasonable expectation of success to allow for refined operations such as parking or leaving a parking space in a single pass, rather than having to make several attempts (see Rohlfs at least [0014]).
However, while Woolliscroft discloses commands for generating vehicle movement and Rohlfs teaches instructions for providing motion to vehicle wheels, neither reference explicitly disclose or teach the following:
…independently controlling a movement of a … vehicle wheel…
…the first movement comprises a post-entry lateral adjustment produced by independent control of the first vehicle wheel and the second vehicle wheel to laterally reposition the vehicle relative to an object within the parking space…
…the wheel-control instructions used during the post-entry lateral adjustment…
Kim-84, in the same field of endeavor, teaches the following:
…
…the first movement comprises a post-entry lateral adjustment produced by … control of the first vehicle wheel and the second vehicle wheel to laterally reposition the vehicle relative to an object within the parking space (see Kim-84 at least Fig 5A-5C and [0045] which teaches the lateral realignment of a vehicle in a parking space upon encountering an obstacle)…
…the wheel-control instructions used during the post-entry lateral adjustment (see Kim-84 at least Fig 5A-5C and [0045])…
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the parking assist system as disclosed by Woolliscroft with lateral movement while in a parking space such as taught by Kim-84 with a reasonable expectation of success so as to provide realignment in order to avoid nearby obstacles in a parking spot (see Kim-84 at least [0005]-[0007]).
While Kim-84 implies individualized wheel controls, neither Woolliscroft nor Rohlfs nor Kim-84 explicitly disclose or teach the following:
…independently controlling a movement of a … vehicle wheel…
Kim-02, in the same field of endeavor, teaches the following:
…independently controlling a movement of a … vehicle wheel (see Kim-02 at least [0044] "…FIG. 2 illustrates a case in which the autonomous driving module calculates the turning radius on the basis of the steering angle of the front wheel and applies the turning radius to the four-wheel independent steering system.")…
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the parking assist system as disclosed by Woolliscroft with independent wheel controls such as taught by Kim-02 with a reasonable expectation of success for the sake of providing required turning radiuses in specific parking scenarios (see Kim-02 at least [0067]).
Regarding claim 2, Woolliscroft in view of Rohlfs and Kim-84 and Kim-02 teach the vehicle parking assist system of claim 1, wherein the memory is further configured to store the first instruction, the second instruction, the third instruction, and the fourth instruction (see Rohlfs at least [0018] "...In addition, the device for determining the change direction may also include a memory in which the information about a path traced so far or a previous parking operation, for instance, has been stored. For example, if a motor vehicle is parked in parallel on a right side of the road and left there, then it may be concluded from this information that the motor vehicle is to be backed out toward the left in a new startup of the motor vehicle and an activation of the park-steer assist system..."), wherein controlling the movement of the first vehicle wheel comprises rotating the first vehicle wheel at a first angle, and wherein independently controlling the movement of the second vehicle wheel comprises rotating the second vehicle wheel at a second angle that is different than the first angle (see Kim-02 at least Fig 2, [0054] "Meanwhile, in the related art, a ratio Kss between front and rear wheel angles is derived in a state in which all the body slip angle β, the yaw angle w.sub.z, and the yaw rate {dot over (ω)}.sub.z converge to ‘0’..." and [0058] "The front/rear-wheel-angle-ratio calculation unit 110 may calculate a ratio Kss between front and rear wheel angles that allows a body slip angle to converge to ‘0’ and allows a yaw angle and a yaw rate to follow target values. That is, the front/rear-wheel-angle-ratio calculation unit 110 enables the four-wheel independent steering system 100 to exhibit higher vehicle control performance by maintaining the yaw angle and the yaw rate at target levels or changing dynamic situations in the state in which the body slip angle converges to ‘0’.").
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the memory as disclosed by Woolliscroft with the storage of information such as previous wheel commands such as taught by Rohlfs with a reasonable expectation of success for the sake of tracking vehicle controls so that additional controls can be appropriately implemented when necessary (see Rohlfs at least [0018]).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the parking assist system as disclosed by Woolliscroft with independent wheel movements such as taught by Kim-02 with a reasonable expectation of success for reasons similar to those provided above in claim 1.
Regarding claim 3, Woolliscroft in view of Rohlfs and Kim-84 and Kim-02 teach the vehicle parking assist system of claim 2, wherein the processor is further configured to:
retrieve the first instruction and the second instruction from the memory (see Rohlfs at least [0018] "...As soon as it is determined in which direction the alignment is to be changed, the park-steer assist system then relieves the driver of the task of implementing steering movements of the wheels via the steering wheel. Once the driver engages the forward gear and the forward drive direction is therefore selected, the control unit of the park-steer assist system turns the wheels, for instance maximally in the direction of the change direction (i.e., to the right). The driver is now able to move the motor vehicle forward... The park-steer assist system may, for instance, automatically receive an activation signal from a park assist system, which parks the motor vehicle in the parking space in a single pass or which offers assistance for this purpose, although the motor vehicle is not aligned along a setpoint alignment at the end of this parking operation… In addition, the device for determining the change direction may also include a memory in which the information about a path traced so far or a previous parking operation, for instance, has been stored. For example, if a motor vehicle is parked in parallel on a right side of the road and left there, then it may be concluded from this information that the motor vehicle is to be backed out toward the left in a new startup of the motor vehicle and an activation of the park-steer assist system. The device for detecting a set drive direction may include a sensor, which is situated on an actuating lever or selector lever of a gearing or on an automatic transmission and detects the position of the actuating lever or selector lever. It is also possible to mount one sensor on the gearing.");
reverse the first instruction and the second instruction responsive to retrieving (see Rohlfs at least [0016] "More specifically, a semi-automatic park-steer assist system of a motor vehicle is provided for aiding in an alignment of the motor vehicle in a parking space, which includes a device detecting an activation signal, for a device for determining a change direction in which an alignment of the motor vehicle is to be modified, and a control unit which, in an active state of the park-steer assist system, controls at least one actuator such that steerable wheels of the motor vehicle are turned in the change direction when the drive direction is set to forward, and the steerable wheels are maximally turned counter to the change direction when the set drive direction is reverse. A driver who, for example, has parked his vehicle in a parking space in a single pass but whose vehicle is still not in parallel alignment with the longitudinal edge of the parking space, is now confronted with the task of aligning the motor vehicle in the parking space. If the park-steer assist system is subsequently activated, it must determine the direction in which the orientation of the motor vehicle is to be changed." and [0018] "...In addition, the device for determining the change direction may also include a memory in which the information about a path traced so far or a previous parking operation, for instance, has been stored. For example, if a motor vehicle is parked in parallel on a right side of the road and left there, then it may be concluded from this information that the motor vehicle is to be backed out toward the left in a new startup of the motor vehicle and an activation of the park-steer assist system..."); and
generate the third instruction and the fourth instruction based on reversed instructions (see Rohlfs at least [0016] "More specifically, a semi-automatic park-steer assist system of a motor vehicle is provided for aiding in an alignment of the motor vehicle in a parking space, which includes a device detecting an activation signal, for a device for determining a change direction in which an alignment of the motor vehicle is to be modified, and a control unit which, in an active state of the park-steer assist system, controls at least one actuator such that steerable wheels of the motor vehicle are turned in the change direction when the drive direction is set to forward, and the steerable wheels are maximally turned counter to the change direction when the set drive direction is reverse. A driver who, for example, has parked his vehicle in a parking space in a single pass but whose vehicle is still not in parallel alignment with the longitudinal edge of the parking space, is now confronted with the task of aligning the motor vehicle in the parking space. If the park-steer assist system is subsequently activated, it must determine the direction in which the orientation of the motor vehicle is to be changed.").
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the parking assist system as disclosed by Woolliscroft with specific wheel commands such as taught by Rohlfs with a reasonable expectation of success for reasons similar to those provided above in claim 1.
Regarding claim 4, Woolliscroft in view of Rohlfs and Kim-84 and Kim-02 teach the vehicle parking assist system of claim 1, wherein the parking space information comprises parking space availability (see Woolliscroft at least [0677] “...In at least some examples such non-performance or unavailability is communicated to the user (e.g. the user is notified that no suitable vehicle envelope or vacancy or only an unsuitable vehicle envelope or vacancy has been detected).”) and parking space structure information (see Woolliscroft at least [0985] "...The vehicle 10110 is shown in relation to a feature 10125 in a vicinity or the vehicle 10110. The feature 10125 is, in this example, an object which is a wall that is parallel to the longitudinal axis 10112 of the vehicle 10110 i.e. generally parallel to a side of the vehicle 10110, such as a left side here—in the defined manoeuvre completed position. The object is not limited to being a wall 10125 and may be, for example, a bollard, fence, barrier, or other object at or adjacent the vacancy 10172, such as to form a boundary thereof... As shown in FIG. 55b, the wall feature 10125 extends to provide a boundary of the vacancy 10172 on each opposite lateral side of the vacancy 10172, such as may be found in a garage, by way of example. It will be appreciated that in each scenario, although not shown, there may be a further boundary or limitation to the vacancy 10172, such as an end boundary (e.g. a portion of the wall feature 10125 defining an end garage wall).").
Regarding claim 5, Woolliscroft in view of Rohlfs and Kim-84 and Kim-02 teach the vehicle parking assist system of claim 4, wherein the parking space information further comprises artifact location information and artifact movement information associated with artifacts present in the parking space (see Woolliscroft at least [0684] "In FIGS. 7a, 7b and 7c the vehicle 2110 is shown adjacent a vacancy 2172, where the defined manoeuvre would be performed with the vehicle 2110 performing a parking-in defined manoeuvre to enter the vacancy 2172. In FIG. 7a, the vehicle 2110 is shown in relation to a feature 2125 in a vicinity of the vehicle 2110. The feature 2125 is, in this example, an object which is a wall that is parallel to the longitudinal axis 2112 of the vehicle 2110 i.e. generally parallel to a side of the vehicle 2110, such as a left side here—in the defined manoeuvre completed position. The object is not limited to being a wall 2125 and may be, for example, a bollard, fence, barrier, or other object at or adjacent the vacancy 2172, such as to form a boundary thereof. As shown in FIGS. 7a, 7b and 7c, another feature 2140, in the form of a stationary vehicle bounds an end of the vacancy 2172. Likewise, another feature 2150, in the form of another stationary vehicle bounds an opposite end of the vacancy 2172. It will be appreciated that in each scenario, although not shown, there may be a further boundary or limitation to the vacancy 2172, (e.g. in FIGS. 7b and 7c there may be a wall feature similar to that 2125 of FIG. 7a). It will be appreciated that although shown here in plan view, the scenarios depicted are three dimensional." – movement information for feature/object can be deduced that feature/object is stationary).
Regarding claim 6, Woolliscroft in view of Rohlfs and Kim-84 and Kim-02 teach the vehicle parking assist system of claim 1, wherein the vehicle information comprises vehicle dimensions (see Woolliscroft at least [0288] "The control means may be arranged to provide a larger defined manoeuvre completed position tolerance range for a vehicle envelope with a larger vehicle envelope parameter. For example, the vehicle envelope parameter may be one or more dimensions, such as a separation to or between one or more features in the vicinity of the vehicle. Advantageously the defined manoeuvre completed position tolerance range may be larger when the vehicle envelope is larger, such as to allow a less precise defined manoeuvre completed position when there is a larger separation to one or more features in the vicinity of the vehicle. For example, where the vehicle envelope comprises a bigger parking space, there may be a larger tolerance range provided (e.g. the vehicle may be less precisely positioned in the space)." and [0655] "...For example, the control means is arranged to determine that a vacancy 1172 is of a sufficient dimension or dimensions to inherently comprise a vehicle envelope 1174 suitable for receiving the vehicle 1110 in the defined manoeuvre completed position in a first mode, such as the occupant-out-of-vehicle mode. The control means is arranged to determine whether the sufficient dimension or dimensions of the vacancy 1172 is/are great enough to allow receipt of the vehicle 1110 in the defined manoeuvre completed position with access to or via the one or more vehicle apertures, such that a second mode may also be suitable, such as the occupant-in-vehicle mode.") and vehicle usage behavior (see Woolliscroft at least [0808] "As shown here, the memory means 5220 can be used to store data from the input means 5230... Particularly where the moveable projection 5182 may be moved to a position affecting environment sensing (e.g. a collapsed position whereby a camera or sensor view may be impeded), then storing data on the features 5125, 5140 can allow the defined manoeuvre to be performed relative to the features 5125 5140—such as including based on historical data thereon. The data may be stored prior to and during performance of the defined manoeuvre, for use during the performance of the defined manoeuvre. In addition, or alternatively, the data may be stored for use during a subsequent defines manoeuvre. The subsequent defined manoeuvre may be shortly after the defined manoeuvre or considerably later. The data may be stored for use for a subsequent reversal of the defined manoeuvre... The data may be stored for use during a subsequent repetition of the defined manoeuvre, such as where the defined manoeuvre is repeated at a later time (e.g. on returning to a same location, such as a garage, parking lot, or the like, where a defined manoeuvre has previously been performed)...").
Regarding claim 7, Woolliscroft in view of Rohlfs and Kim-84 and Kim-02 teach the vehicle parking assist system of claim 1, wherein the processor is further configured to:
obtain a second trigger event (see Woolliscroft at least [0671] "The one or more defined manoeuvres which may be performed by the vehicle 1110 under control of the controller 1210 may comprise a parking manoeuvre such as a parking-in manoeuvre, wherein the vehicle 1110 is controlled to arrive at a parked position." and [0674] "The mobile device 1390 may be an electronic key fob associated with the vehicle 1110, such as may be used to gain entry and to actuate or power up the vehicle 1110. The mobile device 1390 may, in other embodiments, be an electronic device associated with the person responsible for the vehicle 1100 such as a mobile telephone. tablet, watch, wearable electronic device or other computing device associated with the person. The mobile device 1390 is capable of receiving a user input indicating the person's desire to move the vehicle 1110. The user input may be provided in the form of a button or key press, activation of a graphically displayed icon, a gesture or voice command. Other forms of user input may also be envisaged."); and
generate the first instruction and the second instruction (see Rohlfs at least [0016]) responsive to obtaining the second trigger event (see Woolliscroft at least [0670]-[0671] "...The motive control means 1320 is arranged to control the application of torque to one or more wheels of the vehicle 1110 to move the vehicle 1110 in the longitudinal axis of the vehicle i.e. to move the vehicle generally forwards or backwards. The torque may comprise driving torque i.e. applied in a direction of desired movement such as forwards. The torque may also comprise braking torque i.e. applied to resist the driving torque. In at least some embodiments both driving torque and braking torque may be applied simultaneously in order to provide low-speed movement of the vehicle 1110. The braking torque may also be applied at least partly after the driving torque in order to effect accurate movement of the vehicle 1110. To achieve control of the steering, the controller 1210 may communicate with the motive control means 1320. Thus the one or more actuators 1350 can control a direction and movement of the vehicle to perform the defined manoeuvre. The defined manoeuvre is performed in dependence on the environment signal provided by the environment sensing means 1330. The one or more defined manoeuvres which may be performed by the vehicle 1110 under control of the controller 1210 may comprise a parking manoeuvre such as a parking-in manoeuvre, wherein the vehicle 1110 is controlled to arrive at a parked position." and [0674] "The mobile device 1390 may be an electronic key fob associated with the vehicle 1110, such as may be used to gain entry and to actuate or power up the vehicle 1110. The mobile device 1390 may, in other embodiments, be an electronic device associated with the person responsible for the vehicle 1100 such as a mobile telephone. tablet, watch, wearable electronic device or other computing device associated with the person. The mobile device 1390 is capable of receiving a user input indicating the person's desire to move the vehicle 1110. The user input may be provided in the form of a button or key press, activation of a graphically displayed icon, a gesture or voice command. Other forms of user input may also be envisaged.").
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to further modify the parking instructions such as disclosed by Woolliscroft with specific wheel commands such as further taught by Rohlfs with a reasonable expectation of success for reasons similar to those provided above in claim 1.
Regarding claim 8, Woolliscroft in view of Rohlfs and Kim-84 and Kim-02 teach the vehicle parking assist system of claim 1, wherein the processor is further configured to generate the third instruction and the fourth instruction (see Rohlfs at least [0016] and [0018]) based on the parking space information and the vehicle information (see Woolliscroft at least [0667] "The system 1300 comprises environment sensing means 1330 for determining information about an environment of the vehicle 1110. In particular, the environment sensing means 1330 is provided for determining a location of one or more features in a vicinity of the vehicle 1110. The environment sensing means 1330 is arranged to output an environment signal indicative of the determined features. The environment signal may be environment data which may be stored in a memory. The environment sensing means may comprise one or more sensing devices, such as imaging devices, such as cameras, or other sensing devices such as LIDAR, ultrasonic devices, sonar devices etc. Signals output by each of the sensing devices may be used to form a representation of the environment of the vehicle 1110 which is stored in the memory for use by other systems of the vehicle 1110.").
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to further modify the parking instructions such as disclosed by Woolliscroft with specific wheel commands such as further taught by Rohlfs with a reasonable expectation of success for reasons similar to those provided above in claim 1.
Regarding claim 10, Woolliscroft in view of Rohlfs and Kim-84 and Kim-02 teach the vehicle parking assist system of claim 1, wherein the vehicle parking assist system is located inside the vehicle ((see Woolliscroft at least [0040]-[0042] and [0667] "...Signals output by each of the sensing devices may be used to form a representation of the environment of the vehicle 1110 which is stored in the memory for use by other systems of the vehicle 1110.") and/or (see Rohlfs at least [0040] "FIG. 3 schematically shows a motor vehicle 1 equipped with a park-steer assist system 30…")).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to further modify the vehicle parking assist system as disclosed by Woolliscroft with a vehicle interior such as taught by Rohlfs with a reasonable expectation of success so as to allow for control assistance by a driver inside the vehicle (see Rohlfs at least [0015]).
Regarding claim 11, Woolliscroft in view of Rohlfs and Kim-84 and Kim-02 teach the vehicle parking assist system of claim 1, wherein the first instruction, the second instruction, the third instruction, and the fourth instruction (see Rohlfs at least [0016]) comprise instructions associated with wheel rotation angle, wheel torque, and wheel speed (see Woolliscroft at least [0142] "The control means may be arranged to control the output means in dependence upon a location of the vehicle to selectively cause the vehicle wheel in the completed position to be angularly offset with respect to the feature in the vicinity of the vehicle. The control means may be arranged to determine whether or not the vehicle wheel should be angularly offset in dependence on the location. The control means may be arranged to determine a direction of angular offset such as a direction of rotation of the vehicle wheel, in dependence on the location..." and [0670] "...The powertrain is arranged to provide power, or torque, to cause movement in the longitudinal axis of the vehicle 1110 i.e. forward or backward movement of the vehicle 1100 in dependence on the manoeuvre signal received from the controller 1210. The motive control means 1320 is arranged to control the application of torque to one or more wheels of the vehicle 1110 to move the vehicle 1110 in the longitudinal axis of the vehicle i.e. to move the vehicle generally forwards or backwards... In at least some embodiments both driving torque and braking torque may be applied simultaneously in order to provide low-speed movement of the vehicle 1110...").
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to further modify the parking instructions such as disclosed by Woolliscroft with specific wheel commands such as further taught by Rohlfs with a reasonable expectation of success for reasons similar to those provided above in claim 1.
Regarding claim 12, Woolliscroft in view of Rohlfs and Kim-84 and Kim-02 teach the analogous material of that in claim 1 as recited in the instant claim and is rejected for similar reasons.
Regarding claim 13, Woolliscroft in view of Rohlfs and Kim-84 and Kim-02 teach the analogous material of that in claim 2 as recited in the instant claim and is rejected for similar reasons.
Regarding claim 14, Woolliscroft in view of Rohlfs and Kim-84 and Kim-02 teach the analogous material of that in claim 3 as recited in the instant claim and is rejected for similar reasons.
Regarding claim 15, Woolliscroft in view of Rohlfs and Kim-84 and Kim-02 teach the analogous material of that in claim 4 as recited in the instant claim and is rejected for similar reasons.
Regarding claim 16, Woolliscroft in view of Rohlfs and Kim-84 and Kim-02 teach the analogous material of that in claim 5 as recited in the instant claim and is rejected for similar reasons.
Regarding claim 17, Woolliscroft in view of Rohlfs and Kim-84 and Kim-02 teach the analogous material of that in claim 6 as recited in the instant claim and is rejected for similar reasons.
Regarding claim 18, Woolliscroft in view of Rohlfs and Kim-84 and Kim-02 teach the analogous material of that in claim 7 as recited in the instant claim and is rejected for similar reasons.
Regarding claim 19, Woolliscroft in view of Rohlfs and Kim-84 and Kim-02 teach the analogous material of that in claim 11 as recited in the instant claim and is rejected for similar reasons.
Regarding claim 20, Woolliscroft in view of Rohlfs and Kim-84 and Kim-02 teach the analogous material of that in claim 1 as recited in the instant claim and is rejected for similar reasons. Additionally, Woolliscroft discloses a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having instructions stored thereupon (see Woolliscroft at least [0549])…
Claim 9 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Woolliscroft in view of Rohlfs and Kim-84 and Kim-02, and further in view of Jung et al. (US-2019/0184981; hereinafter Jung; already of record).
Regarding claim 9, Woolliscroft in view of Rohlfs and Kim-84 and Kim-02 teach the vehicle parking assist system of claim 1. However, neither Woolliscroft nor Rohlfs nor Kim-84 nor Kim-02 explicitly disclose or teach the following:
…generate a training model for each vehicle wheel based on the first instruction and the second instruction…
…generate the third instruction and the fourth instruction based on the training model…
Jung, in the same field of endeavor, teaches the following:
…generate a training model for each vehicle wheel based on the first instruction and the second instruction (see Jung at least [0390] "The driving information may include park-in drive information for parking the vehicle in and park-out drive information for parking the parked vehicle out. The park-in drive information and park-out drive information may be trained (generated) by manual driving in the manual driving mode as described above.")…
…generate the third instruction and the fourth instruction based on the training model (see Jung at least [0390] "The driving information may include park-in drive information for parking the vehicle in and park-out drive information for parking the parked vehicle out. The park-in drive information and park-out drive information may be trained (generated) by manual driving in the manual driving mode as described above.")…
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the creation of instructions for the vehicle as taught by Woolliscroft in view of Rohlfs and PK with a training model such as taught by Jung with a reasonable expectation of success so as to provide continually improved data for the sake of implementing autonomous control (see Jung at least [0278]-[0280]).
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Yoon (US-2020/0118439) teaches a planning protocol for parking assistance.
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/S.P.R./Examiner, Art Unit 3663
/ABBY J FLYNN/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3663