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 .
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and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114.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 12/02/2025 has been entered.
Claim status
Claims 1-25 are pending; claims 1, 9, 17 and 25 are independent.
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed 11/17/2025 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive.
In response to applicant’s argument that no portion of Jones even remotely discloses or suggests “receiving, at a server node and from a leader node, first data identifying a first subset of digital assets, from a set of digital assets in the workspace” and “splitting, by the server node, the first data identifying the first subset of digital assets, into second data identifying a second subset of digital assets, from the set of digital assets in the workspace, and third data identifying a third subset of digital assets, from the set of digital assets in the workspace,” as recited by amended claims 1, 9, 17 and 25.
However, the examiner respectfully disagrees, first of all in in specification of instant application in Para 0041, stated that [[The devices 102, which are also referred to as client nodes, have displays on which a screen space is allocated for displaying events in a workspace. The screen space for a given user may comprise the entire screen of the display, a subset of the screen, a window to be displayed on the screen and so on]], so the workspace could be the entire screen, by comparing a workspace of Jones in figure 3B with para 0041 above, concluding that a workspace could be the entire screen including Sharer display 321 that contains two regions: a sharer taskbar region 322 and a sharer desktop region 323, the claim language not exclude the a taskbar region from the workspace or in other words no limited definition to workspace, but that it is enough for the claim language.
For the same reasons above rejection to claim 2-8, 10-16 and 17-24 still stands.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
5. 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) 1-25 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Santhakumar (US 2016/0328114), and further in view of Jones (US 2005/0132299).
Regarding claims 1, 9, 17 and 25, Santhakumar teaches a method of a server node sending data identifying digital assets in a workspace (fig. 6), a system (fig. 15) including one or more processors (fig. 15, # 1514) coupled to memory (fig. 15, # 1524), the memory loaded with computer instructions to send data identifying digital assets in a workspace, the instructions, when executed on the processors, implement, at a server node (fig. 15 and Paras 0154-0155), a non-transitory computer readable storage medium impressed with computer program instructions to send data identifying digital assets in a workspace, the instructions, when executed on a processor, implement operations, of a server node (Paras 0154-0156), comprising:
the method including:
receiving, at a server node and from a leader node, first data identifying a first subset of digital assets, from a set of digital assets in the workspace, wherein each digital asset of the first subset of digital assets has a location within mapped display coordinates of a display linked to the leader node (fig. 6, 620 and Para 0107, wherein the second client-side network node 619 “a leader node” can create events that are shared with other network nodes through a spatial event map on a server-side network node 615 “a server node”);
Santhakumar does not expressly disclose splitting, by the server node, the received first data identifying the first subset of digital assets, into second data identifying a second subset of digital assets, from the set of digital assets in the workspace, and third data identifying a third subset of digital assets, from the set of digital assets in the workspace, wherein: (1) each digital asset of the second subset of digital assets has a location outside of mapped display coordinates of a display linked to a follower node following the leader node, and (11) each digital asset of the third subset of digital assets has a location inside of the mapped display coordinates of the display linked to the follower node; and sending, by the server node to the follower node, the second data identifying the second subset of digital assets and the third data identifying the third subset of digital assets, wherein the second data identifying the second subset of digital assets allows display, on the display linked to the follower node, of only the digital assets within the third subset of digital assets and prevents an initial display, on the display linked to the follower node, of the second subset of digital assets.
However, Jones discloses splitting, by the server node, the received first data identifying the first subset of digital assets (fig. 3B, application sharing session 320) into second data identifying a second subset of digital assets (fig. 3B, a sharer taskbar region 322) and third data identifying a third subset of digital assets (fig. 3B, a sharer desktop region 323), wherein: (1) each digital asset of the second subset of digital assets has a location outside of mapped display coordinates of a display linked to a follower node following the leader node (fig. 3B, a session control area 326), and (11) each digital asset of the third subset of digital assets has a location inside of the mapped display coordinates of the display linked to the follower node (fig. 3B, the entire desktop region 323); and
sending, by the server node to the follower node, the second data identifying the second subset of digital assets and the third data identifying the third subset of digital assets, wherein the second data identifying the second subset of digital assets allows display, on the display linked to the follower node, of only the digital assets within the third subset of digital assets and prevents an initial display, on the display linked to the follower node, of the second subset of digital assets (fig. 3B and Paras 0034-0035, only the desktop region 323 of display 321 is shared and appears in window 334. Control area 326 is placed in taskbar region 322, which is not shared).
It would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to a person having ordinary skill in the art to have modified a method and a system of Santhakumar by applying the teaching of Jones to share by a sharer display device only the desktop region of display which appears in viewer display and not shared a control area of the sharer display device which is placed in taskbar region. Thus the sharer is able to use application sharing to share a view of the entire desktop region without restriction on the control area, as a known technique to yield to a predictable result.
Regarding claims 2, 10 and 18, Santhakumar in view of Jones teaches the method of claim 1, the system of claim 9 and the non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 17, wherein a size of the display linked to the leader node is at least four times larger than a size of the display linked to the follower node (fig. 12 and Paras 0127 and 0507, Santhakumar).
Regarding claims 3, 11 and 19, Santhakumar in view of Jones teaches the method of claim 1, the system of claim 9 and the non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 17, wherein the leader node is used by a leader participant presenting collaboration data to a follower participant using the follower node (fig. 6, 620 and Para 0107, wherein the second client-side network node 619 “a leader node” can create events that are shared with other network nodes through a spatial event map on a server-side network node 615 “a server node”, Santhakumar).
Regarding claims 4, 12 and 20, Santhakumar in view of Jones teaches the method of claim 1, the system of claim 9 and the non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 17, wherein the data sent to the follower node, allows a reduction in a size of the displayed digital assets, when displaying the digital assets on the display linked to the follower node (Paras 0069-0070, Santhakumar).
Regarding claims 5, 13 and 21, Santhakumar in view of Jones teaches the method of claim 4, the system of claim 12 and the non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 20, wherein the reduction in the size of the digital assets reduces the size of the digital assets by ½ times the size of the digital assets as displayed on the display linked to the leader node (Para 0069, Santhakumar).
Regarding claims 6, 14 and 22, Santhakumar in view of Jones teaches the method of claim 1, the system of claim 9 and the non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 17, further including: generating, by the server node and from the first data identifying the first subset of digital assets in the workspace, the second data identifying the second subset of digital assets by removing, from the first data identifying the first subset of digital assets, the third data identifying the third subset of digital assets; and sending, from the server node to the follower node, the second data identifying the second subset of digital assets (fig. 3B and Paras 0034-0035, only the desktop region 323 of display 321 is shared and appears in window 334. Control area 326 is placed in taskbar region 322, which is not shared, Jones).
Regarding claims 7, 15 and 23, Santhakumar in view of Jones teaches the method of claim 6, the system of claim 14 and the non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 22, method of claim 6, further including: receiving, at the server node, an update event from the follower node indicating a pan operation in response to an input received at the follower node, wherein the pan operation updates at least a portion of the digital assets on the display linked to the follower node (Paras 0014, 0109 and 0241 Santhakumar);
Santhakumar in view of Jones generating, by the server and from the first data identifying the first subset of digital assets in the workspace, fourth data identifying a fourth subset of digital assets, from the set of digital assets in the workspace, and fifth data identifying a fifth subset of digital assets, from the set of digital assets in the workspace, wherein, as a result of the update event: (i) each digital asset of the fourth subset of digital assets has a location outside of the mapped display coordinates of the display linked to the follower node, and (ii) each digital asset of the fifth subset of digital assets has a location inside of the mapped display coordinates of the display linked to the follower node; and sending, from the server node and to the follower node, the fourth data identifying the fourth subset of digital assets and the fifth data identifying the fifth subset of digital assets (fig. 3B and Paras 0034-0035, only the desktop region 323 of display 321 is shared and appears in window 334. Control area 326 is placed in taskbar region 322, which is not shared, Jones).
Regarding claims 8, 16 and 24, Santhakumar in view of Jones teaches the method of claim 1, the system of claim 9 and the non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 17, wherein the first data identifying the first subset of digital assets further includes toolbar data identifying a toolbar including user interface elements, the toolbar data further identifying a source location and a source dimension of the toolbar as displayed on the display linked to the leader node, the method further including: determining a target location and a target dimension of the toolbar for display on the display linked to the follower node, wherein the target location maps inside the mapped display coordinates of the display linked to the follower node and the target location and the target dimension prevent overlap of the toolbar with digital assets displayed in the display linked to the follower node (fig. 3B and Paras 0034-0035, only the desktop region 323 of display 321 is shared and appears in window 334. Control area 326 is placed in taskbar region 322, which is not shared, Jones).
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Jakobovits (US 2019/0121498), relates to apparatuses, methods, and systems for digital collaboration, which facilitate multiple simultaneous users having access to global workspace data, and more particularly to creating and accessing shared viewport markers that allow all users of digital collaboration systems to open viewports represented by the shared viewport markers.
Burckel (US 2022/0179552), relates to software and/or hardware, referred to as Tapistry, or the software/hardware/facility throughout the rest of this application, and more particularly for delivering an unstructured cognitive platform across one or more devices for human-computer interaction and interfaces.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to SAIFELDIN E ELNAFIA whose telephone number is (571)270-5852. The examiner can normally be reached 9-5.
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/S.E.E/Examiner, Art Unit 2625 12/13/2025
/WILLIAM BODDIE/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2625