Prosecution Insights
Last updated: July 17, 2026
Application No. 18/278,337

VEHICLE COMMUNICATION DEVICE AND DISPLAY APPARATUS FOR VEHICLE INCLUDING THE SAME

Final Rejection §103
Filed
Aug 22, 2023
Priority
Dec 03, 2021 — nonprovisional of PCTKR2021018251
Examiner
JIN, SELENA MENG
Art Unit
3667
Tech Center
3600 — Transportation & Electronic Commerce
Assignee
LG Electronics Inc.
OA Round
2 (Final)
44%
Grant Probability
Moderate
3-4
OA Rounds
3m
Est. Remaining
69%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 44% of resolved cases
44%
Career Allowance Rate
58 granted / 131 resolved
-7.7% vs TC avg
Strong +25% interview lift
Without
With
+25.1%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Typical timeline
3y 2m
Avg Prosecution
19 currently pending
Career history
156
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
2.8%
-37.2% vs TC avg
§103
95.3%
+55.3% vs TC avg
§102
0.7%
-39.3% vs TC avg
§112
0.4%
-39.6% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 131 resolved cases

Office Action

§103
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 Arguments Applicant’s arguments with respect to the rejections of claims 21-38 and 40 under 35 U.S.C. §103 have been fully considered and are persuasive. Therefore, the rejection has been withdrawn. However, upon further consideration, a new ground(s) of rejection is made in view of further limiting amendments made to the claims, changing the scope of the claimed invention. 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. Claims 21-23, 26-30, 37, and 40 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Walrand in view of US 20200374152 A1, filed December 5th, 2019, hereinafter “Reghunath”, further in view of US 20200219469 A1, filed January 4th, 2019, hereinafter “Mittal”. Regarding claim 21, Walrand teaches A vehicle communication device. See at least pg. 6336, figure 1. comprising: a plurality of communication modules configured to be disposed at a plurality of areas of a vehicle. See at least pg. 6336, ¶1-5 of Section 2 and figure 1, and pg. 6337, figure 2. The vehicle networks illustrated in figures 1 and 2 have two and four communication modules, respectively, representing two and four zones of the vehicle. and further configured to (i) receive, from a plurality of sensor devices configured to be disposed at the plurality of areas of the vehicle, one or more signals and (ii) transmit one or more signals of the received one or more signals to an outside of the plurality of communication modules. See at least pgs. 6336-6337, ¶1-2 and ¶8-9 of Section 2, wherein the communication devices of the vehicle network represent Ethernet switches that receive signals from camera sensors associated with the respective zones of the Ethernet switches, and transmit signals to an Ethernet switch associated with the central, main processor of the vehicle. For example, as illustrated in figure 1, the cameras associated with the front of the vehicle transmit data to the front Ethernet switch, and the cameras associated with the rear of the vehicle transmit data to the rear internet switch. The front and rear Ethernet switches transmit signals to the center Ethernet switch, which is associated with the main processor of the car. and a device configured to be disposed between the plurality of areas of the vehicle and further configured to receive a signal from the plurality of communication modules. See at least pgs. 6336-6337, ¶1-4 and ¶8-9 of Section 2, wherein the vehicle network has a star architecture, and the plurality of Ethernet switches transmit signals to an Ethernet switch associated with the central, main processor of the vehicle. wherein each communication module among the plurality of communication modules comprises: a first connector configured to receive one or more signals from one or more devices among the plurality of sensor devices at a first communication speed, a second connector configured to communicate with the signal processing device at a second communication speed greater than the first communication speed, and a first switch disposed between the first connector and the second connector and configured to perform switching between the first connector and the second connector. See at least pgs. 6336-6337, ¶1-2 and ¶8-9 of Section 2 and figure 2. The plurality of communication modules (the core switches illustrated in figure 2) have first connectors (ports) configured to receive signals from camera sensor devices at a speed of 5 Gb/s. The modules additionally have second connectors (ports) to transmit signals to the central switch at a higher speed of 10 Gb/s. See at least pg. 6337, ¶4-7 of Section II.A, wherein the switches perform packet switching. Per pg. 21, lines 15-23 of Applicant’s Specification, the first switch is an Ethernet switch. wherein the each communication module is configured to transmit sensor data from the plurality of sensor devices to the signal processing device. See at least pg. 6337, Section II.A, and figure 2, wherein the switches of the modules process the received packet data from sensor devices before transmitting the packets to an Ethernet switch associated with the central, main processor of the vehicle. Walrand remains silent on a signal processing device configured to perform signal processing, wherein the signal processing device is configured to execute a hypervisor and execute a plurality of virtual machines on the hypervisor, and wherein only a first virtual machine among the plurality of virtual machines is configured to receive and process the sensor data from the each communication module, and write at least one of the processed sensor data to a shared memory based on the hypervisor. As discussed above, Walrand discusses the plurality of communication modules transmitting signals to a central processor of the vehicle, but remains silent as to what the central processor does with the received signals. Reghunath teaches a signal processing device configured to perform signal processing. See at least [0011] and [0016]-[0017], wherein signals from one or more cameras are transmitted to a signal processing system 100, which processes the signals for display on a plurality of rear-seat entertainment screens of the vehicle. wherein the signal processing device is configured to execute a hypervisor and execute a plurality of virtual machines on the hypervisor. See at least [0023]-[0026], wherein the signal processing system 100 includes a processor on which a hypervisor 152 is executed. See at least [0025] and figure 1, wherein first processor 150, second processor 154a, and third processor 154b are all separate virtual machines running on a single processor with a hypervisor. See at least [0025] and figure 1, wherein first processor 150, second processor 154a, and third processor 154b are all separate virtual machines running on a single processor with a hypervisor. wherein a first virtual machine among the plurality of virtual machines is configured to receive and process the sensor data from the each communication module, and write at least one of the processed sensor data to a shared memory based on the hypervisor. See at least [0027] and figure 1, wherein the first virtual machine 150 maintains a shared memory 108 using supervisory software 152. See at least [0023], wherein supervisory software 152 is a hypervisor. See at least [0017]-[0018], wherein camera sensor data is written and retrieved from shared memory 108. One having ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, would have found it obvious to modify Walrand with Reghunath’s signal processing device. It would have been obvious to modify because doing so enables vehicles to process content to display on multiple displays while minimizing latency, as recognized by Reghunath (see at least [0010]-[0012]). Mittal teaches wherein only a first virtual machine among the plurality of virtual machines is configured to receive and process the sensor data. See at least [0052], [0066]-[0068], and figure 4, wherein the hypervisor comprises two virtual machines, a first VM 205 and a second VM 207. First VM 205 runs operating system 209, which receives data from cameras and radar sensors of the vehicle. The second VM 207 does not receive the sensor data. One having ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, would have found it obvious to further modify Walrand with Mittal’s technique of having only one virtual machine receive and process sensor data for display. It would have been obvious to modify because doing so enables vehicles to perform signal processing for display control without requiring additional hardware or increased design complexity, as recognized by Mittal (see at least [0002]-[0005]). Regarding claim 22, Walrand, Reghunath, and Mittal in combination teach all of the limitations of claim 21 as discussed above, and Walrand additionally teaches wherein: the each communication module further comprises a processor electrically connected to the first switch, and the processor is configured to process the one or more signals from the sensor devices and transmit the processed one or more signals to the signal processing device via the second connector. See at least pg. 6336, ¶7 of Section II, wherein the Ethernet switches are associated with Ethernet ECUs, similar to ECUs in a controller area network. See at least pgs. 6336-6337, ¶1-2 and ¶8-9 of Section 2, wherein the communication devices of the vehicle network represent Ethernet switches that receive signals from camera sensors associated with the respective zones of the Ethernet switches, and transmit signals to an Ethernet switch associated with the central, main processor of the vehicle. See at least pg. 6337, Section II.A, wherein the switches process the received packet data from sensor devices before transmitting the packets. Regarding claim 23, Walrand, Reghunath, and Mittal in combination teach all of the limitations of claim 21 as discussed above, and Walrand additionally teaches wherein the each communication module is configured to transmit, to the signal processing device, one or more signals from one or more sensor devices disposed at each area corresponding to the each communication module among the plurality of areas. See at least pgs. 6336-6337, ¶1-9 of Section II, wherein each of the communication modules transmits the signals it receives from camera devices to the central communication module. The camera devices are located in the zones of the vehicle associated with each communication module. Regarding claim 26, Walrand, Reghunath, and Mittal in combination teach all of the limitations of claim 21 as discussed above, and Walrand additionally teaches wherein the plurality of communication modules comprise: a first communication module configured to receive, from one or more first sensor devices disposed in a first area among the plurality of areas, one or more first signals and transmit the one or more first signals to the signal processing device, and a second communication module configured to receive, from one or more second sensor devices disposed in a second area among the plurality of areas, one or more second signals and transmit the one or more second signals to the signal processing device. See at least pgs. 6336-6337, ¶1-9 of Section II and figure 1, wherein two communication modules transmit the signals they receive from camera devices to the central communication module. The camera devices are located in the front and rear zones of the vehicle associated with the first and second communication module, respectively. Regarding claim 27, Walrand, Reghunath, and Mittal in combination teach all of the limitations of claim 21 as discussed above, and Walrand additionally teaches wherein the plurality of communication modules comprise: a first communication module configured to receive, from one or more first sensor devices disposed in a first area among the plurality of areas, one or more first signals and transmit the one or more first signals to the signal processing device, a second communication module configured to receive, from one or more second sensor devices disposed in a second area among the plurality of areas, one or more second signals and transmit the one or more second signals to the signal processing device, a third communication module configured to receive, from one or more third sensor devices disposed in a third area among the plurality of areas, one or more third signals and transmit the one or more third signals to the signal processing device, and a fourth communication module configured to receive, from one or more fourth sensor devices disposed in a fourth area among the plurality of areas, one or more fourth signals and transmit the one or more fourth signals to the signal processing device. See at least pgs. 6336-6337, ¶1-9 of Section II and figure 2, wherein each of the four communication modules transmit the signals they receive from each of the associated four camera devices to the central communication module. The camera devices are located in the four corner zones of the vehicle associated with the four communication modules, respectively. Regarding claim 28, Walrand, Reghunath, and Mittal in combination teach all of the limitations of claim 21 as discussed above, and Walrand additionally teaches wherein the each communication module is configured to output a vehicle control signal for controlling a door of the vehicle while the vehicle travels. See at least pg. 6336, ¶1-2 of Section II and figure 1, wherein the communication modules are connected to ECUs that control the door of the vehicle. Additionally, see at least pg. 6336, ¶2 and pg. 6341, ¶1 of Section VIII, wherein the signals transmitted by the communication modules include control signals. Walrand remains silent on a seat. Reghunath teaches a seat. See at least [0010], [0016]-[0017], and [0060], wherein the display screens of rear-seat entertainment displays are controlled. One having ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, would have found it obvious to modify Walrand with Reghunath’s rear-seat entertainment display control. It would have been obvious to modify because doing so enables vehicles to process content to display on multiple displays while minimizing latency, as recognized by Reghunath (see at least [0010]-[0012]). Regarding claim 29, Walrand, Reghunath, and Mittal in combination teach all of the limitations of claim 21 as discussed above, and Walrand additionally teaches wherein each of the plurality of sensor devices comprises a camera, a lidar, a radar, or a position sensor. See at least pg. 6337, ¶1 of Section II.A, wherein the sensor devices include a camera or a radar. See at least pg. 6339, ¶2 of Section V, wherein the sensor device additionally include lidars. Regarding claim 30, Walrand, Reghunath, and Mittal in combination teach all of the limitations of claim 21 as discussed above, and Walrand remains silent on wherein: the signal processing device comprises a processor configured to perform signal processing for a first display and a second display that are configured to be located in the vehicle, the processor is configured to execute first, second, and third virtual machines on a hypervisor in the processor, the second virtual machine is configured to be operated for the first display, the third virtual machine is configured to be operated for the second display, and the first virtual machine is configured to set a shared memory based on the hypervisor for transmission of data to the second virtual machine and the third virtual machine. Reghunath teaches wherein: the signal processing device comprises a processor configured to perform signal processing for a first display and a second display that are configured to be located in the vehicle. See at least [0023], [0027], and figure 1, wherein the signal processing device 100 includes a main processor 150, which includes host processors 154a-c. The host processors perform signal processing to generate content to display on first display 116a, second display 116b, and third display 116c. the processor is configured to execute first, second, and third virtual machines on a hypervisor in the processor. See at least [0025] and figure 1, wherein first processor 150, second processor 154a, and third processor 154b are all separate virtual machines running on a single processor with a hypervisor. the second virtual machine is configured to be operated for the first display, the third virtual machine is configured to be operated for the second display. See at least [0027], [0060], and figure 1, wherein second virtual machine 154a and third virtual machine 154b control the first display 116a and second display 116b, respectively. and the first virtual machine is configured to set a shared memory based on the hypervisor for transmission of data to the second virtual machine and the third virtual machine. See at least [0027] and figure 1, wherein the first virtual machine 150 maintains a shared memory 108 using supervisory software 152. See at least [0023], wherein supervisory software 152 is a hypervisor. See at least [0019], wherein data from the shared memory 108 is transmitted to channels associated with the second and third virtual machines 154a-b. One having ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, would have found it obvious to modify Walrand with Reghunath’s signal processing device comprising a processor, first display, second display, hypervisor, and virtual machines. It would have been obvious to modify because doing so enables vehicles to process content to display on multiple displays while minimizing latency, as recognized by Reghunath (see at least [0010]-[0012]). Regarding claim 37, Walrand, Reghunath, and Mittal in combination teach all of the limitations of claim 30 as discussed above, and Walrand additionally teaches wherein the first virtual machine is configured to: receive vehicle sensor data, position information data, or camera image data from at least one of the plurality of communication modules. See at least pg. 6337, ¶1 of Section II.A, wherein the sensor devices include a camera or a radar. See at least pg. 6339, ¶2 of Section V, wherein the sensor device additionally include lidars. Walrand remains silent on process the received data, and provide the processed data to the second virtual machine or the third virtual machine. Reghunath teaches process the received data, and provide the processed data to the second virtual machine or the third virtual machine. See at least [0017], wherein received camera data is processed and provided to memory 104. See at least [0018], wherein the contents of memory 104 are provided to shared buffer 108. See at least [0019], wherein data from the shared memory 108 is transmitted to channels associated with the second and third virtual machines 154a-b. One having ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, would have found it obvious to modify Walrand with Reghunath’s method of processing received data and providing the processed data to the second or third virtual machines. It would have been obvious to modify because doing so enables vehicles to process content to display on multiple displays while minimizing latency, as recognized by Reghunath (see at least [0010]-[0012]). Regarding claim 40, Walrand teaches A display apparatus for a vehicle, the display apparatus comprising: a first display. See at least pg. 6336, ¶1-2 of Section 2, wherein camera signals are sent to a display device for a driver of the vehicle. a vehicle communication device. See at least pg. 6336, figure 1. comprising: (i) a device that includes a processor. See at least pgs. 6336-6337, ¶1-4 and ¶8-9 of Section 2, wherein the vehicle network has a star architecture, and the plurality of Ethernet switches transmit signals to an Ethernet switch associated with the central, main processor of the vehicle. (ii) a plurality of communication modules configured to be disposed at a plurality of areas of the vehicle. See at least pg. 6336, ¶1-5 of Section 2 and figure 1, and pg. 6337, figure 2. The vehicle networks illustrated in figures 1 and 2 have two and four communication modules, respectively, representing two and four zones of the vehicle. and further configured to receive, from a plurality of sensor devices configured to be disposed at the plurality of areas of the vehicle, one or more signals and transmit one or more signals of the received one or more signals to an outside of the plurality of communication modules. See at least pgs. 6336-6337, ¶1-2 and ¶8-9 of Section 2, wherein the communication devices of the vehicle network represent Ethernet switches that receive signals from camera sensors associated with the respective zones of the Ethernet switches, and transmit signals to an Ethernet switch associated with the central, main processor of the vehicle. For example, as illustrated in figure 1, the cameras associated with the front of the vehicle transmit data to the front Ethernet switch, and the cameras associated with the rear of the vehicle transmit data to the rear internet switch. The front and rear Ethernet switches transmit signals to the center Ethernet switch, which is associated with the main processor of the car. wherein the signal processing device is configured to be disposed between the plurality of areas and further configured to receive one or more signals from the plurality of communication modules. See at least pgs. 6336-6337, ¶1-4 and ¶8-9 of Section 2, wherein the vehicle network has a star architecture, and the plurality of Ethernet switches transmit signals to an Ethernet switch associated with the central, main processor of the vehicle. and wherein each communication module among the plurality of communication modules comprises: a first connector configured to receive one or more signals from one or more sensor devices among the plurality of sensor devices at a first communication speed, a second connector configured to communicate with the signal processing device at a second communication speed greater than the first communication speed, and a switch disposed between the first connector and the second connector and configured to perform switching between the first connector and the second connector. See at least pgs. 6336-6337, ¶1-2 and ¶8-9 of Section 2 and figure 2. The plurality of communication modules (the core switches illustrated in figure 2) have first connectors (ports) configured to receive signals from camera sensor devices at a speed of 5 Gb/s. The modules additionally have second connectors (ports) to transmit signals to the central switch at a higher speed of 10 Gb/s. See at least pg. 6337, ¶4-7 of Section II.A, wherein the switches perform packet switching. Per pg. 21, lines 15-23 of Applicant’s Specification, the first switch is an Ethernet switch. wherein the each communication module is configured to transmit sensor data from the plurality of sensor devices to the signal processing device. See at least pg. 6337, Section II.A, and figure 2, wherein the switches of the modules process the received packet data from sensor devices before transmitting the packets to an Ethernet switch associated with the central, main processor of the vehicle. Walrand remains silent on a second display; a signal processing device configured to perform signal processing for the first display and the second display; wherein the signal processing device is configured to perform signal processing, wherein the signal processing device is configured to execute a hypervisor and execute a plurality of virtual machines on the hypervisor, and wherein only a first virtual machine among the plurality of virtual machines is configured to receive and process the sensor data from the each communication module, and write at least one of the processed sensor data to a shared memory based on the hypervisor. As discussed above, Walrand discusses the plurality of communication modules transmitting signals to a central processor of the vehicle, but remains silent as to what the central processor does with the received signals. Reghunath teaches a second display; a signal processing device configured to perform signal processing for the first display and the second display; wherein the signal processing device is configured to perform signal processing. See at least [0011], [0016]-[0017], and figure 1, wherein signals from one or more cameras are transmitted to a signal processing system 100, which processes the signals for display on a plurality of rear-seat entertainment screens 116a-d of the vehicle. wherein the signal processing device is configured to execute a hypervisor and execute a plurality of virtual machines on the hypervisor. See at least [0023]-[0026], wherein the signal processing system 100 includes a processor on which a hypervisor 152 is executed. See at least [0025] and figure 1, wherein first processor 150, second processor 154a, and third processor 154b are all separate virtual machines running on a single processor with a hypervisor. See at least [0025] and figure 1, wherein first processor 150, second processor 154a, and third processor 154b are all separate virtual machines running on a single processor with a hypervisor. wherein a first virtual machine among the plurality of virtual machines is configured to receive and process the sensor data from the each communication module, and write at least one of the processed sensor data to a shared memory based on the hypervisor. See at least [0027] and figure 1, wherein the first virtual machine 150 maintains a shared memory 108 using supervisory software 152. See at least [0023], wherein supervisory software 152 is a hypervisor. See at least [0017]-[0018], wherein camera sensor data is written and retrieved from shared memory 108. One having ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, would have found it obvious to modify Walrand with Reghunath’s second display and signal processing device. It would have been obvious to modify because doing so enables vehicles to process content to display on multiple displays while minimizing latency, as recognized by Reghunath (see at least [0010]-[0012]). Mittal teaches wherein only a first virtual machine among the plurality of virtual machines is configured to receive and process the sensor data. See at least [0052], [0066]-[0068], and figure 4, wherein the hypervisor comprises two virtual machines, a first VM 205 and a second VM 207. First VM 205 runs operating system 209, which receives data from cameras and radar sensors of the vehicle. The second VM 207 does not receive the sensor data. One having ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, would have found it obvious to further modify Walrand with Mittal’s technique of having only one virtual machine receive and process sensor data for display. It would have been obvious to modify because doing so enables vehicles to perform signal processing for display control without requiring additional hardware or increased design complexity, as recognized by Mittal (see at least [0002]-[0005]). Claims 24-25 and 31 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Walrand, Reghunath, and Mittal as applied to claims above, and further in view of US 20200374152 A1, filed 10/23/2019, hereinafter “Ceekala”. Regarding claim 24, Walrand, Reghunath, and Mittal in combination teach all of the limitations of claim 21 as discussed above, and Walrand additionally teaches wherein: the signal processing device comprises a second switch configured to be operated based on the second communication speed. See at least pgs. 6336-6337, ¶8-9 of Section II, wherein the signal processing device, the main processor, comprises a second switch which receives the 10 Gb/s data transmitted by the first switches of the plurality of communication modules. Walrand remains silent on the second switch is configured to be operated as a master device, and the first switch in the each communication module is configured to be operated as a slave device based on the first communication speed or the second communication speed. Ceekala teaches the second switch is configured to be operated as a master device, and the first switch in the each communication module is configured to be operated as a slave device based on the first communication speed or the second communication speed. See at least [0198]-[0199] and figure 15A, wherein the system includes master network entities and slave network entities. Additionally, see at least [0160], [0175], and [0178], where master/slave relationships have established communication links with set communication speeds. In combination with Walrand’s teaching, as discussed above, of first and second switches that operated based on first and second communication speeds, this limitation is taught in its entirety. One having ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, would have found it obvious to further modify Walrand with Ceekala’s master and slave network devices that operate based on communication speed. It would have been obvious to modify because doing so enables vehicles to operate multiple displays while minimizing cost and congestion, as recognized by Ceekala (see at least [0168]-[0169]). Regarding claim 25, Walrand, Reghunath, and Mittal in combination teach all of the limitations of claim 21 as discussed above, and Walrand remains silent on wherein the first connector is configured to perform serial communication, and the second connector is configured to perform parallel communication. While Walrand does not explicitly teach performing serial communication, Walrand does disclose the first connector performing Ethernet communication, which Applicant gives as an example of serial communication in page 22 of the Specification. Ceekala teaches wherein the first connector is configured to perform serial communication, and the second connector is configured to perform parallel communication. See at least [0035], wherein device 123 receives information in a serial (or parallel) format, and outputs data in a parallel format. One having ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, would have found it obvious to further modify Walrand with Ceekala’s technique of a network device receiving information in a serial format and outputting information in a parallel format. It would have been obvious to modify because doing so enables vehicles to operate multiple displays while minimizing cost and congestion, as recognized by Ceekala (see at least [0168]-[0169]). Regarding claim 31, Walrand, Reghunath, and Mittal in combination teach all of the limitations of claim 30 as discussed above, and Walrand remains silent on wherein the first virtual machine is configured to set the shared memory based on the hypervisor for transmission of same data to the second virtual machine and the third virtual machine. Reghunath teaches wherein the first virtual machine is configured to set the shared memory based on the hypervisor for transmission of data to the second virtual machine and the third virtual machine. See at least [0027] and figure 1, wherein the first virtual machine 150 maintains a shared memory 108 using supervisory software 152. See at least [0023], wherein supervisory software 152 is a hypervisor. See at least [0019], wherein data from the shared memory 108 is transmitted to channels associated with the second and third virtual machines 154a-b. One having ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, would have found it obvious to modify Walrand with Reghunath’s hypervisor, shared memory, and virtual machines. It would have been obvious to modify because doing so enables vehicles to process content to display on multiple displays while minimizing latency, as recognized by Reghunath (see at least [0010]-[0012]). Ceekala teaches same data. See at least [0042], wherein the same packet is routed to more than one display, so the plurality of displays play back the same video stream. One having ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, would have found it obvious to further modify Walrand with Ceekala’s technique of transmitting the same data to first and second displays. It would have been obvious to modify because doing so enables vehicles to operate multiple displays while minimizing cost and congestion, as recognized by Ceekala (see at least [0168]-[0169]). Claims 32-36 and 38 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Walrand, Reghunath, Mittal, and Ceekala as applied to claims above, and further in view of US 20130218412 A1, filed 03/14/2013, hereinafter “Ricci”. Regarding claim 32, Walrand, Reghunath, and Mittal in combination teach all of the limitations of claim 30 as discussed above, and Walrand additionally remains silent on wherein the first virtual machine is configured to transmit, to the second virtual machine and the third virtual machine, information regarding the shared memory comprising key data for data access after setting the shared memory. Reghunath teaches wherein the first virtual machine is configured to transmit, to the second virtual machine and the third virtual machine, information regarding the shared memory comprising data for data access to the input and output client interface after setting the shared memory. See at least [0060]-[0064], wherein client devices 154a-b access their accessible portions of the shared memory based on association data indicating which virtual machines 154 are allowed access to the data. The association data for each portion of the allocated shared memory is determined by the first virtual machine 150 after allocation of the shared memory. One having ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, would have found it obvious to modify Walrand with Reghunath’s security manager. It would have been obvious to modify because doing so enables vehicles to process content to display on multiple displays while minimizing latency, as recognized by Reghunath (see at least [0010]-[0012]). Ricci teaches key data. See at least [0211], wherein private key cryptography is used to authenticate a client device’s request. One having ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, would have found it obvious to further modify Walrand with Ricci’s key data. It would have been obvious to modify because doing so enables vehicle components to communicate with enhanced safety, security, and processing, as recognized by Ricci (see at least [0011]-[0012]). Regarding claim 33, Walrand, Reghunath, and Mittal in combination teach all of the limitations of claim 30 as discussed above, and Walrand remains silent on wherein: the first virtual machine comprises an input and output server interface and a security manager, and each of the second virtual machine and the third virtual machine comprises an input and output client interface. Reghunath teaches wherein: the first virtual machine comprises a security manager. See at least [0062]-[0064] and figure 5, wherein a security manager 502 associated with the first virtual machine 150 controls access to the shared memory for safety and security. One having ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, would have found it obvious to modify Walrand with Reghunath’s security manager. It would have been obvious to modify because doing so enables vehicles to process content to display on multiple displays while minimizing latency, as recognized by Reghunath (see at least [0010]-[0012]). Ceekala teaches an input and output interface, and each of the second virtual machine and the third virtual machine comprises an input and output client interface. See at least [0219], [0220], [0235], and figures 17A-B, wherein the system includes a local (client) interface 1710 and a system (server) interface 1750 which manage upstream and downstream communications. Additionally, see at least [0230]-[0231] and [0235]-[0237], wherein the upstream and downstream communications of the interfaces comprise input and output signals. One having ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, would have found it obvious to further modify Walrand with Ceekala’s local and system input and output interfaces. It would have been obvious to modify because doing so enables vehicles to operate multiple displays while minimizing cost and congestion, as recognized by Ceekala (see at least [0168]-[0169]). Ricci teaches a server. See at least [0155], wherein the computational device in the communication network includes a server. One having ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, would have found it obvious to further modify Walrand with Ricci’s server. It would have been obvious to modify because doing so enables vehicle components to communicate with enhanced safety, security, and processing, as recognized by Ricci (see at least [0011]-[0012]). Regarding claim 34, Walrand, Reghunath, Mittal, Ceekala, and Ricci in combination teach all of the limitations of claim 33 as discussed above, and Walrand additionally remains silent on wherein: the security manager is configured to allocate the shared memory, and the input and output client interface is configured to transmit a request for connection to the input and output server interface after allocation of the shared memory. Reghunath teaches wherein: the security manager is configured to allocate the shared memory. See at least [0062]-[0064] and figure 5, wherein a security manager 502 associated with the first virtual machine 150 controls access to the shared memory for safety and security. The first virtual machine controls the allocation or deallocation of memory in the shared memory. transmit after allocation of the shared memory. See at least [0058], wherein, after completion of allocating the shared memory, an indication is transmitted to the first virtual machine 150 or its associated hypervisor 152. One having ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, would have found it obvious to modify Walrand with Reghunath’s security manager. It would have been obvious to modify because doing so enables vehicles to process content to display on multiple displays while minimizing latency, as recognized by Reghunath (see at least [0010]-[0012]). Ceekala teaches and the input and output client interface is configured to transmit a request for connection to the input and output server interface. See at least [0039], wherein a command is sent to route, or connect, a stream to a local (client) display. See at least [0197], wherein commands are generated at local client devices and sent upstream through a system bus. One having ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, would have found it obvious to further modify Walrand with Ceekala’s local and system input and output interfaces. It would have been obvious to modify because doing so enables vehicles to operate multiple displays while minimizing cost and congestion, as recognized by Ceekala (see at least [0168]-[0169]). Regarding claim 35, Walrand, Reghunath, Mittal, Ceekala, and Ricci in combination teach all of the limitations of claim 33 as discussed above, and Walrand additionally remains silent on wherein: the input and output server interface is configured to transmit information regarding the shared memory comprising key data for data access to the input and output client interface after allocation of the shared memory, and the input and output client interface is configured to access the shared memory based on the key data. Reghunath teaches wherein: the input and output server interface is configured to transmit information regarding the shared memory comprising data for data access to the input and output client interface after allocation of the shared memory, and the input and output client interface is configured to access the shared memory based on the access data. See at least [0060]-[0064], wherein client devices 154a-b access their accessible portions of the shared memory based on association data indicating which virtual machines 154 are allowed access to the data. The association data for each portion of the allocated shared memory is determined by the first virtual machine 150 after allocation of the shared memory. One having ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, would have found it obvious to modify Walrand with Reghunath’s security manager. It would have been obvious to modify because doing so enables vehicles to process content to display on multiple displays while minimizing latency, as recognized by Reghunath (see at least [0010]-[0012]). Ricci teaches key data. See at least [0211], wherein private key cryptography is used to authenticate a client device’s request. One having ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, would have found it obvious to further modify Walrand with Ricci’s key data. It would have been obvious to modify because doing so enables vehicle components to communicate with enhanced safety, security, and processing, as recognized by Ricci (see at least [0011]-[0012]). Regarding claim 36, Walrand, Reghunath, Mittal, Ceekala, and Ricci in combination teach all of the limitations of claim 33 as discussed above, and Walrand additionally remains silent on wherein the input and output server interface is configured to: receive information regarding a first buffer in the shared memory, write, based on the first buffer being empty according to the received information regarding the first buffer, first data in the first buffer in the shared memory, and transmit buffer information of the first buffer to the input and output client interfaces in the second virtual machine and the third virtual machine. Reghunath teaches receive information regarding a first buffer in the shared memory. See at least [0018], wherein information on a shared buffer 108 is obtained by DMA engine 106 of subsystem 102. write, based on the first buffer being empty according to the received information regarding the first buffer, first data in the first buffer in the shared memory. See at least [0031], wherein DMA 106 fetches first data to store (write) in the first portion of the shared memory buffer. The process of storing the data only occurs if the associated portion of the shared memory buffer is available. and transmit buffer information of the first buffer to the input and output client interfaces in the second virtual machine and the third virtual machine. See at least [0019], [0027], and [0036]-[0037], wherein the data in the shared memory buffer is transmitted to client virtual machines 154a-b. One having ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, would have found it obvious to modify Walrand with Reghunath’s technique of receiving buffer information, writing data in the buffer based on the received information indicating availability, and transmitting the buffer information to the second and third virtual machines. It would have been obvious to modify because doing so enables vehicles to process content to display on multiple displays while minimizing latency, as recognized by Reghunath (see at least [0010]-[0012]). Regarding claim 38, Walrand, Reghunath, and Mittal in combination teach all of the limitations of claim 30 as discussed above, and Walrand remains silent on wherein the first virtual machine is configured to: receive wheel speed sensor data of the vehicle from at least one of the plurality of communication modules, process the received wheel speed sensor data, and transmit the processed wheel speed sensor data to at least one of the second virtual machine or the third virtual machine. Reghunath teaches wherein the first virtual machine is configured to: process the received data, and provide the processed data to the second virtual machine or the third virtual machine. See at least [0017], wherein received camera data is processed and provided to memory 104. See at least [0018], wherein the contents of memory 104 are provided to shared buffer 108. See at least [0019], wherein data from the shared memory 108 is transmitted to channels associated with the second and third virtual machines 154a-b. One having ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, would have found it obvious to modify Walrand with Reghunath’s method of processing received data and providing the processed data to the second or third virtual machines. It would have been obvious to modify because doing so enables vehicles to process content to display on multiple displays while minimizing latency, as recognized by Reghunath (see at least [0010]-[0012]). Ricci teaches receive wheel speed sensor data of the vehicle from at least one of the plurality of communication modules. See at least [0107], wherein the sensors of the vehicle include wheel speed sensors. In combination with Walrand’s technique, discussed above, of the plurality of communication modules receiving sensor data, this limitation is taught in its entirety. One having ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, would have found it obvious to further modify Walrand with Ricci’s wheel speed sensor data. It would have been obvious to modify because doing so enables vehicle components to communicate with enhanced safety, security, and processing, as recognized by Ricci (see at least [0011]-[0012]). 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 Selena M. Jin whose telephone number is (408)918-7588. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Thursday and alternate Fridays, 7:30-4:30 PT. 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, Faris Almatrahi can be reached at (313) 446-4821. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300. Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000. /S.M.J./ Examiner, Art Unit 3667 /FARIS S ALMATRAHI/ Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3667
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Prosecution Timeline

Aug 22, 2023
Application Filed
Nov 07, 2025
Non-Final Rejection mailed — §103
Feb 09, 2026
Response Filed
Jun 17, 2026
Final Rejection mailed — §103 (current)

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Prosecution Projections

3-4
Expected OA Rounds
44%
Grant Probability
69%
With Interview (+25.1%)
3y 2m (~3m remaining)
Median Time to Grant
Moderate
PTA Risk
Based on 131 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allowance rate.

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