DETAILED ACTION
1. This office action is a response to amendments submitted on 08/12/2026.
2. Applicant's arguments after amendments with respect to the rejection under 101 and 112 and are persuasive, therefor, the rejection under 101 and 112 have been withdrawn. Applicant's arguments after amendments with respect to rejection under 103 have been considered and but they are not persuasive.
See response to applicants’ arguments at the end of the action.
3. Claims 1-7, 9-17 and 19-21 are presented for examination.
Claim Rejections – 35 USC § 103
4. 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.
5. Claims 1-8, 9-17 and 18-21 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being anticipated/unpatentable by JIA et al. (EP 3228568 A1) in view of CHEN et al. (CN 111232778 A).
In regards to claim 1 and its corresponding method claim 11, JIA shows (Figs. 1-5) and discloses a radar-based sensor device (30, 62) for removing elevator car specific artefacts (implicitly) from radar data obtained from inside an elevator car (22) (see pars. 31-49, 56 and Figs. 1-5), the radar- based sensor device (100) comprises comprising:
a sensor unit (30, 62) and
a processing unit (32),
wherein at least the sensor unit (30, 62) is arranged inside the elevator car (22) and is configured to transmit radar signals, and
wherein the processing unit (32) is configured to:
obtain the radar data representing reflected radar signals from the sensor unit (i.e. the data capture module 64 and the processing module 66 can be specific to, or embedded in, the multiple sensors 62, 62' to acquire and process the data therefrom. In one example, the multiple sensors 62, 62', through the data capture module 64 and the processing module 66, are operable to obtain depth map data, see pars. 33-35); and
remove elevator car specific artefacts (implicitly) from the obtained radar data based on predefined elevator car specific data (see pars. 31-39, 45-49, 56, i.e. implicitly as the comparison of a first computed object's location to a second computed object's location. The predefined elevator car specific data comprises 3D location data of interior surfaces of the elevator car 22 or of the elevator door 24 in relation to the sensor unit 30, 62. The processing unit 32 is configured to determine an entering space based on the predefined elevator car specific data comprising the 3D location data of the elevator door 24 in relation to the sensor unit 30, 62, and remove from the radar data reflected radar signals indicating at least one object entering and/or exiting the elevator car, i.e. morphological operations may be used to remove isolated small foreground regions (e.g., which can also be "noise") and to segment moving objects, called blobs, for further analysis);
implicitly/inherently (emphasis added) discloses wherein the processing unit (22) is further configured to: obtain elevator related information from at least one other sensor device (30/60) and/or an elevator control system, system; and use the obtained elevator related information to activate the transmission of the radar signals (30/60), to inactivate the transmission of the radar signals, and/or as additional information in the removal of the elevator related artefacts (i.e. data capture module 64 and the processing module 66 can be specific to, or embedded in, the multiple sensors 62, 62' to acquire and process the data therefrom. In one example, the multiple sensors 62, 62', through the data capture module 64 and the processing module 66. Moreover, as shown in step 110, wherein the first state is a state in which the doors of the elevator car are not fully closed; the sensor unit is a radar. Namely, JIA also discloses obtaining from a sensor device a motion status of the elevator car (Thus, the door status can be expressed as an operating status of the elevator car since the door cannot be opened at a flat stop) and/or a motion status of the elevator car door; the sensor unit is a radar. On this basis, the person skilled in the art will readily envision that the processing unit is further configured to: obtain elevator-related information from at least one other sensor device and/or an elevator control system, and use the obtained elevator-related information to activate transmission of radar signals, deactivate transmission of radar signals, and/or as additional information to remove elevator-related artifacts; the elevator-related information comprises a motion status of an elevator car and/or a motion status of an elevator door; the sensor unit is one of an impulse radar, a pulsed radar, an ultra-wide band radar, a stepped frequency continuous wave radar, or a frequency modulated continuous wave radar);
Although JIA implicitly discloses remove elevator car specific artefacts (implicitly) from the obtained radar data based on predefined elevator car specific data, it is not explicitly disclosed.
However, CHEN discloses an elevator car number counting method, wherein, comprising a radar data when the elevator car is in the first state, real-time obtaining the radar detected object, wherein the first state is the door of the elevator car status is not closed completely, and to remove elevator car specific artefacts from the obtained radar data based on predefined elevator car specific data, (see Description, i.e. data in data information of the speed and distance of S122, removing the target speed is zero, and for extracting the target point cloud data. Specifically, because the passenger target detected by the radar is to enter or go out from the elevator car, so the effective object is a moving target, the target of the movement with a certain speed, and the speed is not 0 and metal wall and the speed of elevator car stationary object is usually 0. At the same time, by removing data points of the in data information of the distance and speed of the target speed is 0 and it can weaken the metal wall of elevator car stationary object to influence caused by detecting effective target; sensitivity data after data point can also be the removing speed is 0 of the obtained to detect to obtain the radar detection target).
Thus, given the teaching of JIAN and CHEN, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filling date of the claimed invention to modify the circuit/system of JIA first explicitly perform activation or deactivation of sensors upon system needs or upon sensing reading and to explicitly execute data extraction or undesirably data objects on the radar/sensor information as an accurate dynamic radar data of an object for analysis, thereby reducing the number statistical error, consequently improving the system reliability.
In regards to claims 2 and 12, JIA shows (Figs. 1-5) and discloses wherein the predefined elevator car specific data comprises 3D location data of interior surfaces of the elevator car (22) in relation to the sensor unit (30/62), 3D location data of an elevator door (24) in relation to the sensor unit (30/62) and/or [movement data of an elevator door (24), (see pars. 37-38).
In regards to claims 3 and 13, JIA shows (Figs. 1-5) and discloses wherein the removing of the elevator car specific artefacts comprises that the processing unit (32) is configured to: define a sensing space (see Figs. 2-5, i.e. The multiple sensors 62, 62' can be, in one example, an eye-safe line-scan LIDAR in which the field-of-view (FOV) can be, for example, about 180 degrees, which can horizontally cover the entire area of a lobby or other area adjacent to the elevator doors 24) based on the predefined elevator car specific data comprising the 3D location data of the interior surfaces of the elevator car (22) in relation to the sensor unit (30/62) and the 3D location data of the elevator door (24) in relation to the sensor unit, and remove from the radar data radar signals reflected outside the sensing space, (see pars. 31-39, 45-49, 56, and Figs. 2-5).
In regards to claims 4 and 14, JIA shows (Figs. 1-5) and discloses wherein the removing of the elevator car specific artefacts comprises that the processing unit (32) is configured to: determine/defining an entering space based on the predefined elevator car specific data comprising the 3D location data of the elevator door (24) in relation to the sensor unit, and remove from the radar data reflected radar signals indicating at least one object entering and/or exiting the elevator car (22) outside the entering space (see pars. 31-39, 45-49, 56, and Figs. 2-5).
In regards to claims 5 and 15, JIA shows (Figs. 1-5) and discloses wherein the removing of the elevator car specific artefacts comprises that the processing unit (32) is configured to: remove from the radar data reflected radar signals indicating a movement of the elevator door (22) based on the predefined elevator car specific data comprising the movement data of the elevator door (24), (see pars. 31-43, 45-49, 56, and Figs. 2-5, i.e. After background subtraction and foreground detection, morphological operations may be used to remove isolated small foreground regions (e.g., which can also be "noise") and to segment moving objects, called blobs, for further analysis. However, a 3D extension of 2D connected components may be inappropriate since the 3D data still has self-occlusion, e.g., "shadows" in an occupancy grid. An approach to this filtering may include extension of a 2D connected components process to include an "unknown" category in the occupancy grid for 3D morphological filtering. Next, size filtering can be performed as a function of range which may remove objects below a predetermined size. The objects can then be segmented in 3D based on depth discontinuity. It is possible that some objects after depth discontinuity segmentation will be relatively small, e.g., someone almost entirely occluded by another person will appear as a small blob. This approach can be used to track such small objects so they can be classified rather than filtering them out. Morphological filtering can be used to remove a blob if selected characteristics, such as height, width, aspect ratio, volume, acceleration, velocity, and/or other spatiotemporal characteristics are outside a detection threshold (e.g., dynamically calculated threshold, static threshold, or the like).
In regards to claims 6 and 16, JIA shows (Figs. 1-5) and discloses wherein the elevator car specific artefacts are caused by at least one elevator car specific artefact source comprising the elevator door (24) and/or at least one interior surface of the elevator car (22).
In regards to claims 7 and 17, JIA shows (Figs. 1-5) and discloses wherein the predefined elevator car (22) specific data is defined during a learning phase (implicit) before an actual operation of the radar-based sensor device (30/62) and/or repeatedly during the actual operation of the radar-based sensor device (see pars. 31-39, 45-49, 56, and Figs. 2-5, i.e. each data scan can be converted to a binary map and these maps then used to learn a background mathematical model of the lobby, e.g. by using processes designed or modified for depth data such as a Gaussian Mixture Mathematical model (GMM) process, principal component analysis (PCA) process, a codebook process, or a combination including at least one of the foregoing. The multiple sensors 62, 62' can be, in another example, be a 2D eye-safe time-of-flight depth sensor or structured light sensor which outputs a 3D volumetric scan of the surrounding environment… mathematical approach to computing a transformation matrix for calibration varies by which parameters need to be estimated. Common to each approach is (i) manual initiation of a calibration mode, for instance by an installer, or automatic detection of the need for calibration (ii) automatically gathering sufficient information by simultaneous measurement with the multiple sensors of a moving object, e.g., a person walking in the common FoVs 100, (iii) automatically computing the unknown calibration parameters by use of a mathematical model of the moving object, e.g., a person has an elliptical cross-section such that a hemi-ellipse is visible to each sensor, E1 E2 (Figures 4 and 5), and (iv) an automatically exiting calibration mode).
In regards to claims 9 and 19, JIA shows (Figs. 1-5) and discloses wherein the elevator related information comprises a movement status of the elevator car (22) and/or a movement status of an elevator door (24), while CHEN further discloses receiving the radar signal of the set frequency section; the controller calculates and processes the reflected radar signal; extracting the target reflection signal of the target reflection object; the controller further determines the position of the elevator car based on the target reflection signal according to the radar distance measurement principle (see Description) .
In regards to claims 10 and 20, JIA shows (Figs. 1-5) and discloses wherein the sensor unit (30/62) is one of an impulse radar, a pulsed radar, an ultra-wide band (UWB) radar, a stepped frequency continuous wave (CW) radar, or a frequency modulated continuous wave (FMCW) radar (par. 35, i.e. Various depth sensing sensor technologies and devices include, but are not limited to, a structured light measurement, phase shift measurement, time of flight measurement, stereo triangulation device, sheet of light triangulation device, light field cameras, coded aperture cameras, computational imaging techniques, simultaneous localization and mapping (SLAM), imaging radar, imaging sonar, laser radar, scanning LIDAR, flash LIDAR, Passive Infrared (PIR) sensor, and small Focal Plane Array (FPA), or a combination comprising at least one of the foregoing. Different technologies can include active (transmitting and receiving a signal) or passive (only receiving a signal) and may operate in a band of the electromagnetic or acoustic spectrum such as visual, infrared, etc. The use of depth sensing can have specific advantages over conventional 2D imaging. The use of infrared sensing can have specific benefits over visible spectrum imaging such that alternatively, or additionally, the sensor can be an infrared sensor with one or more pixels of spatial resolution, e.g., a Passive Infrared (PIR) sensor or an IR Focal Plane Array (FPA).
Hence, it would have been an obvious matter of design choice to use one of multiple option on radar field since the applicant has not disclosed that solves any stated problem or is for any particular purpose and it appears that the invention would perform equally well with any of the options recited by JIA.
In regards to claim 31, JIA shows (Figs. 1-5) and discloses a computer program embodied on a non- transitory computer readable medium and comprising instructions which, when the program is executed by a computer, cause the computer to claim 11 (pars. 33-36,40-42, i.e. The control system 32 can include a control module 40 with a processor 42, a memory 44, and an interface 46. The control module 40 can include a portion of a central control, a stand-alone unit, or other system such as a cloud-based system. The processor 42 can include any type of microprocessor or other processor having desired performance characteristics. The memory 44 may include any type of computer readable medium that stores the data and control processes disclosed herein. That is, the memory 44 is an example computer storage media that can have embodied thereon computer-useable instructions such as a process that, when executed, can perform a desired method. The interface 46 of the control module 40 can facilitate communication between the control module 40 and other systems).
Response to Arguments
6. Applicant's arguments filed on 08/12/2026 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive. The examiner believes that the prior arts made of record still read on the added limitations.
In response to applicant’s argument regarding the claims as amended that Jia does not disclose the alternatives "use the obtained elevator related information to activate the transmission of the radar signals or to inactivate the transmission of the radar signals," or “obtain elevator related information from at least one other sensor device and/or an elevator control system; use the obtained elevator related information to activate the transmission of the radar signals”, or to inactivate the transmission of the radar signals, neither the other cited art disclose or suggest these features, the examiner respectfully disagrees.
Firs of all, the examiner respectfully reminds the applicant that the claims and only the claims form the metes and bounds of the invention. “Office personnel are to give the claims their broadest reasonable interpretation in light of the supporting disclosure. In re Morris, 127 F.3d 1048, 1054-55, 44USPQ2d 1023, 1027-28 (Fed. Cir. 1997). Moreover, limitations appearing in the specification but not recited in the claim are not read into the claim. In re Prater, 415 F.2d, 1393, 1404-05, 162 USPQ 541, 550-551 (CCPA 1969)”. (Refer to Manual of Patent Examining Procedure, Eighth Edition Revision 8: July 2010).
The Examiner still considers the prior-art of JIA as modified by CHEN each clearly having all structures and components as claimed. Thus all the limitations of the claims will be considered met so long as the device of the prior art meets all structural limitations. The prior art apparatus as identified in the rejected claims are also capable of performing all the claimed intended use and/or desired functional language. Therefore, all the limitations as claimed are still met or anticipated by the prior arts as pointed out in the previous office actions and in this final office action. It is well settled that anticipation law requires distinction be made between invention described or taught and invention claimed. It does not require that the reference "teach" what subject patent application teaches, it is only necessary that the claim under attack, as construed by the Court, "read on" something disclosed in the reference, i.e., all limitations of the claim are found in reference, or are "fully met" by it. Kalman v. Kimberly Clark Corp., 218 USPQ 781,789 (CAFC 1983). Moreover, the Claims are drawn to an apparatus must distinguish from prior art in terms of structure rather than function. In re Danlv, 120 USPQ 528 (CCPA 1959) and MPEP 2114.
For example, KIA not only implicitly but inherently (emphasis added) discloses wherein the processing unit (22) is further configured to: obtain elevator related information from at least one other sensor device (30/60) and/or an elevator control system, system; and use the obtained elevator related information to activate the transmission of the radar signals (30/60), to inactivate the transmission of the radar signals, and/or as additional information in the removal of the elevator related artefacts (i.e. data capture module 64 and the processing module 66 can be specific to, or embedded in, the multiple sensors 62, 62' to acquire and process the data therefrom. In one example, the multiple sensors 62, 62', through the data capture module 64 and the processing module 66. Moreover, as shown in step 110, wherein the first state is a state in which the doors of the elevator car are not fully closed; the sensor unit is a radar.
Namely, JIA also discloses obtaining from a sensor device a motion status of the elevator car.
Thus, the door status can be expressed as an operating status of the elevator car since the door cannot be opened at a flat stop and/or a motion status of the elevator car door; the sensor unit is a radar. On this basis, the person skilled in the art will readily envision that the processing unit is further configured to: obtain elevator-related information from at least one other sensor device and/or an elevator control system, and use the obtained elevator-related information to activate transmission of radar signals, deactivate transmission of radar signals, and/or as additional information to remove elevator-related artifacts; the elevator-related information comprises a motion status of an elevator car and/or a motion status of an elevator door; the sensor unit is one of an impulse radar, a pulsed radar, an ultra-wide band radar, a stepped frequency continuous wave radar, or a frequency modulated continuous wave radar). In other words, When motion cccurs, the moving object causes a frequency shift in the returning waves (the Doppler Effect). The sensor instantly processes this shift and activates the output switch (e.g., turns on a security light or triggers an alarm)… When Mmotion stops the radio/communication waves bounce back at a completely stable, unchanging frequency. Because the sensor's software is looking for changes in frequency, it marks the area as clear. Then, the deactivation delay, when the sensor does not instantly shut off the connected device the in millisecond (or preset threshold) it relies no new motion frequency shifts are detected during that window, the output deactivates.
Hence, it is a common and obvious performance in the sensor field that this activation or deactivation is implicitly executed.
Moreover, JIA although not explicitly discloses about remove elevator car specific artefacts from the obtained radar data based on predefined elevator car specific data (see pars. 31-39, 45-49, 56, i.e. implicitly as the comparison of a first computed object's location to a second computed object's location. The predefined elevator car specific data comprises 3D location data of interior surfaces of the elevator car 22 or of the elevator door 24 in relation to the sensor unit 30, 62. The processing unit 32 is configured to determine an entering space based on the predefined elevator car specific data comprising the 3D location data of the elevator door 24 in relation to the sensor unit 30, 62, and remove from the radar data reflected radar signals indicating at least one object entering and/or exiting the elevator car, i.e. morphological operations may be used to remove isolated small foreground regions (e.g., which can also be "noise") and to segment moving objects, called blobs, for further analysis);
However, the examiner in light of a clearer evidence and compact prosecution brought CHEN to further shows and disclose an elevator car number counting method, wherein, comprising a radar data when the elevator car is in the first state, real-time obtaining the radar detected object, wherein the first state is the door of the elevator car status is not closed completely, and to remove elevator car specific artefacts from the obtained radar data based on predefined elevator car specific data, (see Description, i.e. data in data information of the speed and distance of S122, removing the target speed is zero, and for extracting the target point cloud data. Specifically, because the passenger target detected by the radar is to enter or go out from the elevator car, so the effective object is a moving target, the target of the movement with a certain speed, and the speed is not 0 and metal wall and the speed of elevator car stationary object is usually 0. At the same time, by removing data points of the in data information of the distance and speed of the target speed is 0 and it can weaken the metal wall of elevator car stationary object to influence caused by detecting effective target; sensitivity data after data point can also be the removing speed is 0 of the obtained to detect to obtain the radar detection target).
The Examiner has full latitude to interpret each claim in the broadest reasonable sense. The Examiner will reference prior art using terminology familiar to one of ordinary skill in the art. Such an approach is broad in concept and can be either explicit or implicit in meaning.
Examiner’s Notes are/if provided with the cited references to prior art to assist the applicant to better understand the nature of the prior art, application of such prior art and, as appropriate, to further indicate other prior art that maybe applied in other office actions. Such comments are entirely consistent with the intent and spirit of compact prosecution. However, and unless otherwise stated, the citations are self-explanatory to one skilled in the art and do not need any further explanation. Moreover, the Examiner’s Notes are not prior art but a link to prior art that one of ordinary skill in the art would find inherently or obviously appropriate.
Unless otherwise annotated, as aforementioned, Examiner’s statements are to be interpreted in reference to that of one of ordinary skill in the art. Statements made in reference to the condition of the disclosure constitute, on the face of it, the basis and such would be obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, establishing thereby an inherent or obviousness prima facie case or statement(s).
Examiner cites particular columns and line numbers in the references as applied to the claims above for the convenience of the applicant. Although the specified citations are representative of the teachings in the art and are applied to the specific limitations within the individual claim, other passages and figures may apply as well. It is respectfully requested that, in preparing responses, the applicant fully consider the references in its entirety as potentially teaching all or part of the claimed invention, as well as the context of the passage as taught by the prior art or disclosed by the examiner and the additional related prior arts made of record that are considered pertinent to applicant’s disclosure to further show the general state of the art.
Conclusion
7. 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 extension fee 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 date of this final action.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JORGE CARRASQUILLO whose telephone number is (571)270-7879. The examiner can normally be reached on Monday to Friday, 8:30am - 5:00pm, Alternate Fridays off.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Eduardo Colon-Santana can be reached on (571) 272-2060. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/JORGE L CARRASQUILLO/
Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2846
