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 .
Response to Amendment
The Amendment filed 06/23/2025 has been entered. Claims 1-6 and 8 have been amended. Claims 1-12 are pending in this application.
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed 06/23/2025 have been fully considered but they are moot because the new ground of rejection relies on a reference not used in the previous rejection.
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 (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) 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) 1-3, and 7-12 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Shiraishi et al. (US 20190384870 A1), hereinafter Shiraishi, in view of Funabashi et al. (US 20150207745 A1), hereinafter Funabashi.
For claim 1,
Shiraishi teaches a communication control device that controls communication with a plurality of vehicles, the communication control device comprising: a server located outside of the plurality of vehicles, the server comprising: a communication unit that performs communication between the server and the plurality of vehicles, the communication including acquisition of vehicle data with the plurality of vehicles ([FIG. 1A] server located outside of vehicle, [Abstract] digital twin receives data from the real-world vehicle via a communication unit, [0007] digital twin system monitors multiple vehicles);
a database that stores data for forming, on a virtual space, a digital twin that is time-synchronized with a real space, based on the vehicle data acquired by the communication unit ([0017] memory storing digital data (database) and a digital twin is generated based on data stored in the memory, [0005] digital twin is updated in real-time based on sensor data so the digital twin can describe the real-time condition of the vehicle, [0083] communication unit within the digital twin server for collecting data);
Shiraishi does not teach a control unit configured to determine, on the digital twin formed by the database, whether there exists a first vehicle of which a distance from a surrounding object is less than a first threshold value on the digital twin, and in response to the determination, the control unit increases the frequency of the communication performed with the first vehicle than when the distance between the first vehicle and the surrounding object is equal to or greater than the first threshold value.
However, Funabashi teaches a control unit configured to determine, on the digital twin formed by the database, whether there exists a first vehicle of which a distance from a surrounding object is less than a first threshold value on the digital twin, and in response to the determination, the control unit increases the frequency of the communication performed with the first vehicle than when the distance between the first vehicle and the surrounding object is equal to or greater than the first threshold value ([0134] a control device for the driver assist related process may be a control device separated and different from the on-board device (external to the plurality of vehicles), [FIG. 6] and [0072] the transmission interval is adjusted based on distance for any vehicle and is controlled by the controller, [0076] distance is calculated by the distance calculation section of the controller).
Therefore, 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 method of Shiraishi for controlling communication with a digital twin and a plurality of vehicles with the method of Funabashi for using a control unit to calculate the distance between a vehicle and an object and increasing the communication frequency with the vehicle as the distance is less than a threshold to allow for safe, efficient, and cheaper testing using a digital twin.
For claim 2, Shiraishi and Funabashi teach claim 1.
Shiraishi does not explicitly teach, while Funabashi further teaches wherein when the control unit determines on the digital twin that there is a speed of a second vehicle of which a speed is equal to or higher than a second threshold value on the digital twin, the control unit increases the a frequency of the communication performed with the second vehicle than when the speed of the second vehicle is lower than the second threshold value ([0134] a control device for the driver assist related process may be a control device separated and different from the on-board device (external to the plurality of vehicles), [FIG. 5] and [0072] the transmission interval is adjusted based on speed for any vehicle and is controlled by the controller).
Therefore, 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 method of Shiraishi for controlling communication with a digital twin and a plurality of vehicles with the method of Funabashi for using a control unit to calculate the speed of a vehicle and increasing the communication frequency with the vehicle as the speed is greater than a threshold to allow for safe, efficient, and cheaper testing using a digital twin.
For claim 3, Shiraishi and Funabashi teach claim 2.
Shiraishi does not explicitly teach, while Funabashi further teaches wherein when the first vehicle and the second vehicle are the same, the control unit increases the frequency of the communication is higher when the control unit determines that the distance from the surrounding object is less than the first threshold value than when the speed is equal to or higher than the second threshold value ([0134] a control device for the driver assist related process may be a control device separated and different from the on-board device (external to the plurality of vehicles), [FIGs. 5-6] and [0072] the transmission interval is adjusted based on speed and distance for any vehicle and is controlled by the controller).
Therefore, 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 method of Shiraishi for controlling communication with a digital twin and a plurality of vehicles with the method of Funabashi for using a control unit to calculate the speed of a vehicle and its distance from objects, increasing the communication frequency with the vehicle as the speed is greater than a threshold and the distance is less than a threshold to allow for safe, efficient, and cheaper testing using a digital twin.
For claim 7, it is rejected on the same basis as claim 1.
For claim 8,
Shiraishi teaches a method executed by a computer of a communication control device, the communication control device including a database storing data for forming, on a virtual space, a digital twin that is time-synchronized with a real space, to control communication between the computer and a plurality of vehicles, the computer being located outside of the plurality of vehicles, the method comprising ([FIG. 2], [0014] and [0167] a computer system of one or more computers, [Abstract] digital twin receives data from the real-world vehicle via a communication unit, [0007] digital twin system monitors multiple vehicles([0017] memory storing digital data (database) and a digital twin is generated based on data stored in the memory, [0005] digital twin is updated in real-time based on sensor data so the digital twin can describe the real-time condition of the vehicle, [0083] communication unit within the digital twin server for collecting data).
Shiraishi does not teach a step of predicting a distance between a first vehicle of the plurality of vehicles and a surrounding object on the digital twin;
a step of predicting a speed of a second vehicle on the digital twin;
a step of increasing, when it is predicted on the digital twin that the distance from a surrounding object to the first vehicle is less than a first threshold value, a frequency of the communication performed with the first vehicle than when the distance between the first vehicle and the surrounding object is equal to or greater than the first threshold value; and
a step of increasing, when it is predicted on the digital twin that the speed of the second vehicle is equal to or higher than a second threshold value, the frequency of the communication performed with the second vehicle than when the speed of the second vehicle is lower than the second threshold value.
However, Funabashi teaches a step of predicting a distance between a first vehicle of the plurality of vehicles and a surrounding object on the digital twin ([0134] a control device for the driver assist related process may be a control device separated and different from the on-board device (external to the plurality of vehicles), [0076] distance is calculated, for any vehicle, by the distance calculation section of the controller);
a step of predicting a speed of a second vehicle on the digital twin ([FIG. 14] and [0100] speed of the vehicle is specified by the speed specifying section of the controller);
a step of increasing, when it is predicted on the digital twin that there is a first vehicle of which a the distance from a surrounding object to the first vehicle is less than a first threshold value on the digital twin, a frequency of the communication performed with the first vehicle than when the distance between the first vehicle and the surrounding object is equal to or greater than the first threshold value ([0134] a control device for the driver assist related process may be a control device separated and different from the on-board device (external to the plurality of vehicles), [FIG. 6] and [0072 ]the transmission interval is adjusted based on distance for any vehicle and is controlled by the controller, [0076] distance is calculated by the distance calculation section of the controller); and
a step of increasing, when it is predicted on the digital twin that there is a second vehicle of which a the speed of the second vehicle is equal to or higher than a second threshold value on the digital twin, the frequency of the communication performed with the second vehicle than when the speed of the second vehicle is lower than the second threshold value ([0134] a control device for the driver assist related process may be a control device separated and different from the on-board device (external to the plurality of vehicles), [FIG. 5] and [0072] the transmission interval is adjusted based on speed for any vehicle and is controlled by the controller).
Therefore, 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 method of Shiraishi for controlling communication with a digital twin and a plurality of vehicles with the method of Funabashi for calculating the speed of a vehicle and its distance from objects, increasing the communication frequency with the vehicle as the speed is greater than a threshold or the distance is less than a threshold to allow for safe, efficient, and cheaper testing using a digital twin.
For claim 9, Shiraishi and Funabashi teach claim 1.
Shiraishi further teaches wherein the server is a cloud computer, and the database stores data related to current and past vehicle states acquired and updated from a plurality of vehicles in real time ([0116] server is a cloud server, [0117] and [0123] memory stores vehicle data sets as well as data received by the server from the real-world vehicles and updates the digital twin with this data).
For claim 10, Shiraishi and Funabashi teach claim 1.
Shiraishi does not explicitly teach, while Funabashi further teaches wherein the frequency of communication includes a downlink frequency to the vehicle and an uplink frequency from the vehicle, and the downlink frequency and the uplink frequency can be controlled in accordance with the distance ([FIG. 6] and [0072] the transmission interval is adjusted based on distance for any vehicle and is controlled by the controller, communication between the server and a vehicle implies a downlink frequency to the vehicle and an uplink frequency from the vehicle).
Therefore, 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 method of Shiraishi for controlling communication with a digital twin and a plurality of vehicles with the method of Funabashi for calculating the distance between a vehicle and an object and controlling the communication frequency with the vehicle as the distance is less than a threshold to allow for safe, efficient, and cheaper testing using a digital twin.
For claim 11, Shiraishi and Funabashi teach claim 2.
Shiraishi does not explicitly teach, while Funabashi further teaches wherein the frequency of communication includes a downlink frequency to the vehicle and an uplink frequency from the vehicle, and downlink frequency and the uplink frequency can be controlled in accordance with the speed [FIG. 5] and [0072] the transmission interval is adjusted based on speed for any vehicle and is controlled by the controller, communication between the server and a vehicle implies a downlink frequency to the vehicle and an uplink frequency from the vehicle).
Therefore, 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 method of Shiraishi for controlling communication with a digital twin and a plurality of vehicles with the method of Funabashi for specifying the speed of a vehicle and controlling the communication frequency with the vehicle as the speed is greater than a threshold to allow for safe, efficient, and cheaper testing using a digital twin.
For claim 12, Shiraishi and Funabashi teach claim 3.
Shiraishi does not explicitly teach, while Funabashi further teaches wherein the frequency of communication includes a downlink frequency to the vehicle and an uplink frequency from the vehicle, and downlink frequency and the uplink frequency can be controlled in accordance with the distance and the speed ([FIGs. 5-6] and [0072] the transmission interval is adjusted based on speed and distance for any vehicle and is controlled by the controller, communication between the server and a vehicle implies a downlink frequency to the vehicle and an uplink frequency from the vehicle).
Therefore, 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 method of Shiraishi for controlling communication with a digital twin and a plurality of vehicles with the method of Funabashi for using a control unit to calculate the speed of a vehicle and its distance from objects, increasing the communication frequency with the vehicle as the speed is greater than a threshold and the distance is less than a threshold to allow for safe, efficient, and cheaper testing using a digital twin.
Claim(s) 4-6 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Shiraishi and Funabashi, and further in view of Nakashima et al. (US 8428792 B2), hereinafter Nakashima.
For claim 4, Shiraishi and Funabashi teach claim 1.
Shiraishi and Funabashi do not teach wherein when a predetermined communication related to a third vehicle is requested, the control unit increases a frequency of the communication performed with the third vehicle than when the predetermined communication is not requested.
However, Nakashima teaches wherein when a predetermined communication related to a third vehicle is requested, the control unit increases a frequency of the communication performed with the third vehicle than when the predetermined communication is not requested ([COL.1, lines 44-52] the frequency of communication can be increased after a request).
Therefore, 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 method of Shiraishi and Funabashi for controlling communication with a digital twin and a plurality of vehicles with the method of Nakashima for increasing the communication frequency based on a request to make the communication less susceptible to the influence of outside factors (Nakashima [COL.1, lines 48-50]).
For claim 5, Shiraishi and Funabashi and Nakashima teach claim 4.
Shiraishi and Funabashi do not explicitly teach, while Nakashima further teaches wherein when the third vehicle is parked, the control unit continues to increase the frequency of the communication performed with the third vehicle until a predetermined time elapses after receiving a request ([COL.1, lines 44-52] the frequency of communication can be increased after a request, [FIG. 6] a timer for receiving communication).
Therefore, 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 method of Shiraishi and Funabashi for controlling communication with a digital twin and a plurality of vehicles with the method of Nakashima for increasing the communication frequency based on a request and a timer to make the communication less susceptible to the influence of outside factors (Nakashima [COL.1, lines 48-50]).
For claim 6, Shiraishi and Funabashi and Nakashima teach claim 4.
Shiraishi and Funabashi do not explicitly teach, while Nakashima further teaches wherein when the third vehicle is not parked, the control unit continues to increase the frequency of the communication performed with the third vehicle until a request ends ([COL.1, lines 44-52] the frequency of communication can be increased after a request and the vehicle may not be at rest, [FIG. 6] a timer for receiving communication controls when the request ends).
Therefore, 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 method of Shiraishi and Funabashi for controlling communication with a digital twin and a plurality of vehicles with the method of Nakashima for increasing the communication frequency based on a request and a timer to make the communication less susceptible to the influence of outside factors (Nakashima [COL.1, lines 48-50]).
Conclusion
Applicant's amendment necessitated the new ground(s) of rejection presented in this Office action. Accordingly, THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. See MPEP § 706.07(a). Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Benjamin T. Ranew whose telephone number is (571)272-2746. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Friday 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM EST. Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice. If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Ayman Abaza can be reached at (571) 270-0422. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/BENJAMIN T. RANEW/Examiner, Art Unit 2465
/AYMAN A ABAZA/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2465