DETAILED ACTION
Status
This Office Action is responsive to claims filed on 06/21/2023. Please note Claims 1-19 are pending and have been examined.
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 .
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submission is in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
The following is a quotation of the appropriate paragraphs of 35 U.S.C. 102 that form the basis for the rejections under this section made in this Office action:
A person shall be entitled to a patent unless –
(a)(1) the claimed invention was patented, described in a printed publication, or in public use, on sale or otherwise available to the public before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claims 1-4, 7, 8, 18 and 19 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by TILTON (US 20170326457 A1, cited on IDS 6/21/2023).
Regarding Claim 1, TILTON discloses an information processing system, comprising: processing circuitry ([0103] “Various implementations of the systems and techniques described here can be realized in digital electronic circuitry, integrated circuitry, specially designed ASICs (application specific integrated circuits), computer hardware, firmware, software, and/or combinations thereof.”) configured to
dynamically change a setting value of a first control parameter or a second control parameter ([0033] “In some embodiments, users of co-presence virtual environments can define safe spaces around their avatar to prevent other avatars from getting too close to them, and safe spaces can further define the restricted space for a given avatar in the co-presence virtual environment.”), the first control parameter being for controlling proximation distance or collision among a plurality of virtual reality mediums in a three-dimensional (3D) virtual space, and the second control parameter being for controlling a position travelable by the plurality of virtual reality mediums in the 3D virtual space ([0033] “For example, the safe space can prevent or restrain the other avatar from moving near the avatar.” [0034] “For example, when entering a restricted space the co-presence manager can relocate the user outside of the restricted space but within the co-presence virtual environment”); and
control, in a case in which the setting value is changed, a position or an orientation of the plurality of the virtual reality mediums based on the setting value ([0034] “In some embodiments, the co-presence manager provides co-presence virtual environment modification data that changes the location of the user and the user's avatar responsive to the user entering restricted space.”).
Regarding Claim 2, TILTON discloses the information processing system according to Claim 1, wherein the plurality of virtual reality mediums include a plurality of avatars (Figs. 3A, [0062] “As shown in FIG. 3A, three other avatars, avatar 315, avatar 320, and avatar 325 are in co-presence virtual environment 300.”), the first control parameter controls the proximation distance or collision among the plurality of avatars ([0033] “For example, the safe space can prevent or restrain the other avatar from moving near the avatar.”), and the processing circuitry is further configured to monitor a value of a predetermined parameter relating to the 3D virtual space, and dynamically change the setting value based on a monitoring result of the value of the predetermined parameter ([0033] “In some embodiments, user's can define safe spaces on an application basis. For example, users can define a first set of safe spaces in a co-presence virtual environment for a fighting simulation, and second set of safe spaces in a co-presence virtual environment for business meetings. Further, users can define a global set of safe space preferences that define a user's default safe space if the user has not overridden them for a specific co-presence virtual environment application. In some embodiments, a co-presence manager component receives safe space data corresponding to a user when the user's computing device joins the co-presence virtual environment managed by the co-presence manager.”).
Regarding Claim 3, TILTON discloses the information processing system according to Claim 2, wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to execute control relating to proximation distance or collision among the plurality of avatars based on the setting value of the first control parameter and position information of the plurality of avatars ([0034] “For example, when entering a restricted space the co-presence manager can relocate the user outside of the restricted space but within the co-presence virtual environment, or the co-presence manager can remove the user and its avatar from the co-presence virtual environment entirely by placing them in alternative virtual environment.”).
Regarding Claim 4, TILTON discloses the information processing system according to Claim 3, wherein, when executing the control relating to proximation distance or collision among the plurality of avatars, the processing circuitry is further configured to execute a determination processing relating to proximation distance or collision among the plurality of avatars and prevent a collision between the plurality of avatars or a proximation distance between the plurality of avatars to be less than a threshold from occurring based on a result of the determination processing ([0034] “For example, when entering a restricted space the co-presence manager can relocate the user outside of the restricted space but within the co-presence virtual environment, or the co-presence manager can remove the user and its avatar from the co-presence virtual environment entirely by placing them in alternative virtual environment.”).
Regarding Claim 7, TILTON discloses the information processing system according to Claim 3, wherein the predetermined parameter includes a third parameter that represents or suggests an attribute of the plurality of avatars, and in a case in which one of the avatars has a predetermined attribute, the processing circuitry dynamically changes the setting value of the first control parameter such that control processing is turned on or off with respect to the one of the avatars ([0073] “There may be some applications where users do not want to have their safe spaces turned on. For example, a co-presence virtual environment can include a simulated boxing match. In such an embodiment, users may want to turn off their safe spaces because contact between avatars would be necessary for a boxing match. Accordingly, the disclosed embodiments may allow users to selectively turn off their safe spaces in certain situations. For example, VR user devices may generate a user interface that includes safe space preference settings. Using the user interface, the user can adjust the size of their safe spaces or disable one or all them for a particular application. After safe space preferences are modified, the VR user device can communicate the safe space preferences information to the co-presence manager.”).
Regarding Claim 8, TILTON discloses the information processing system according to Claim 3, wherein the predetermined parameter includes a fourth parameter that represents or suggests an action attribute or a motion mode of the plurality of avatars, and in a case in which the action attribute or the motion mode relates to an action or a motion of the plurality of avatars for a group event, the processing circuitry dynamically changes the setting value of the first control parameter such that control processing is turned off ([0073] “There may be some applications where users do not want to have their safe spaces turned on. For example, a co-presence virtual environment can include a simulated boxing match. In such an embodiment, users may want to turn off their safe spaces because contact between avatars would be necessary for a boxing match. Accordingly, the disclosed embodiments may allow users to selectively turn off their safe spaces in certain situations. For example, VR user devices may generate a user interface that includes safe space preference settings. Using the user interface, the user can adjust the size of their safe spaces or disable one or all them for a particular application. After safe space preferences are modified, the VR user device can communicate the safe space preferences information to the co-presence manager.”).
Regarding Claim 18, it recites similar limitations of claim 1 but in a method form. The rationale of claim 1 rejection is applied to reject claim 18.
Regarding Claim 19, it recites similar limitations of claim 1 but in a medium form. The rationale of claim 1 rejection is applied to reject claim 19.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 5, 6, 9-17 are objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to CHONG WU whose telephone number is (571)270-5207. The examiner can normally be reached MON-FRI: 9AM-5PM EST.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Xiao Wu can be reached at 571-272-7761. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/CHONG WU/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2613