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and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114.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 08/10/2026 has been entered.
Response to Amendment
This Office Action is in response to the amendment filed 08/10/2026. Claims 21-50 are acknowledged as pending with claims 21-26, 28, 31-36, 38, 43, and 45 being currently amended and claims 47-50 being new.
The rejections under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) and 103 are withdrawn as having been overcome by the amendment. New rejections necessitated by the amendment are presented below.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to the rejections under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) and 103 have been considered but are moot because the new ground of rejection does not rely on any reference applied in the prior rejection of record for any teaching or matter specifically challenged in the argument.
Claim Objections
Claims 31 is objected to because of the following informalities:
In claim 31, lines 40-42 and 43-45 recite identical limitations
Appropriate correction is required.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b):
(b) CONCLUSION.—The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph:
The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention.
Claims 47-48 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention.
Claim 47 recites the limitation “modifying the physical output actions of at least a portion of the selected first scene, the selected second scene or both comprises…modifying a physical output action of the first scene, the second scene, or both” in lines 1-4. Because one of the listed alternatives, i.e., the limitation recited in line 4, precisely recites the generic language recited in lines 1-2, it is unclear how the physical output actions are being modified. For examination purposes, the claim will be read as though the specified limitation recited in line 4 is retracted.
The dependent claim not specifically addressed above is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) as indefinite due to its dependence from an indefinite claim.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 103 which forms the basis for all obviousness rejections set forth in this Office action:
A patent for a claimed invention may not be obtained, notwithstanding that the claimed invention is not identically disclosed as set forth in section 102, if the differences between the claimed invention and the prior art are such that the claimed invention as a whole would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to a person having ordinary skill in the art to which the claimed invention pertains. Patentability shall not be negated by the manner in which the invention was made.
Claim(s) 21-23, 25-27, 31-33, 35-37, and 41-50 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Wong et al. (US 8,483,873) in view of Yokoo et al. (US 2003/0191560).
Regarding claim 21, Wong et al. teaches a method for operating an animal device (Figs. 11-14; Abstract), comprising:
(a) operating, by the animal device (Fig. 1, robotic life form 20; Col. 2, lines 23-26 and lines 36-45), a plurality of actuators (Fig. 4, servo actuators 82, 86, 88, 90, 92, 98, 100, 108, 110, 112, 116, 118, 120, and 130; Col. 3, lines 21-57; Col. 4, lines 17-18) to perform physical output actions of a first scene (Abstract; Figs. 10A-10K and Col. 7, lines 45-51 and Col. 4, lines 19-35 and Col. 13, lines 24-29 , wherein external sensors 400 provide input to and selection of various input modes 402, each input mode 402 prompts a “triggered mode” which activates the servo actuators and/or speaker to perform associated animations; For example, as shown in Fig. 10E, when the robotic life form 20 senses the temperature is near or below a lower temperature, a too cold 554 input mode is triggered which activates a sneeze/shake “triggered” mode 556, as a result, the head and neck servo actuators 88 and 89, respectively, are activated to move the head and a sneezing sound is produced from the speaker 130 while the robotic life form 20 opens its mouth 30; Col. 11, lines 21-42, to summarize, the “triggered mode” is being construed as the “scene”), wherein the first scene is selected by the animal device from a stored set of possible scenes of a scene type (Figs. 10A-10K, wherein input modes 402 is being construed as the “scene type”) based on one or more inputs received from a user (Fig. 6, animation, motion and sound library files 632; Col. 13, lines 10-34; Figs. 10A-10K catalogues the various “trigger modes” according to various input modes 402 based on inputs from external sensors 400), wherein the first scene (for example, Fig. 10E, sneeze/shake “triggered” mode 556), comprises instructions for operating the plurality of actuators to actuate at least two body parts of the animal device to perform physical output actions (Col. 11, lines 35-42; Col. 13, lines 24-29, wherein the actuators perform the animations according to the triggered mode), and wherein the at least two body parts comprise two or more of a mouth (Fig. 4, mouth servo actuators 86 and speaker 130; Col. 3, lines 23-24; Col. 4, lines 17-18), eyebrows (Fig. 4, eye servo actuators 82; Col. 3, lines 21-24), ears, a head region (Fig. 4, head servo actuator 88 and neck servo actuator 90; Col. 3, lines 25-28), a tail region (Fig. 4, tail up-down servo actuator 118 and tail side-to-side servo actuator 120; Col. 3, lines 49-51), or a body region (Fig. 4, torso twist servo actuator 92; Col. 3, lines 29-48);
(b) receiving, by the animal device, one or more additional inputs from the user (Abstract; Fig. 4, touch sensors 42, 44, 46, 48, 62, 64, 68, 72, 74, and 78, camera 124, IR sensors 112, microphones 128, Col. 4, lines 19-22, wherein the robotic life form 20 includes a plurality of external sensors that receive various inputs from the user and/or the robotic life form’s surroundings; Figs. 10A-10K, wherein the robotic life form 20 recognizes a plethora of input information from the sensors, the sensor input triggers the input mode 204 and the subsequent “triggered mode”);
(c) determining, by the animal device, a scene type (Figs. 10A-10K, input mode 402) based on the one or more additional inputs (Figs. 10A-10K, external inputs 400), wherein the animal device maps the one or more additional inputs to the scene type based on properties of the one or more additional inputs (Figs. 10A-10K, external inputs 400 and input modes 402; Fig. 6; Col. 7, lines 20-23; Col. 13, lines 10-22);
(d) accessing, by the animal device, a stored set of possible scenes (Fig. 6, animations, motion and sound library files 632; Figs. 10A-10K, “triggered mode”) in the determined scene type (Figs. 10A-10K, input modes 402) for the animal device to perform, wherein the stored set of possible scenes in the scene type comprises different scenes (Col. 13, lines 10-34) that the animal device is configured to perform in response to the one or more additional inputs (Figs. 10A-10K, wherein the various external sensos 400 provide input to the various input modes 402, each input mode 402 triggers a “triggered modes” wherein actuators are activated according to the triggered mode to perform the associated animations/actions);
(e) selecting, by the animal device, a second scene (Fig. 10H, for example, backward/turn mode 580) from the stored set of possible scenes (Fig. 10H, “triggered mode”) of the scene type (Fig. 10H, front obstacle input mode 578), wherein the second scene comprises instructions for operating the plurality of actuators to actuate the at least two body parts of the animal device to perform physical output actions (Col. 12, lines 17-26; Col. 3, lines 26-28 and 31-48; Col. 13, lines 24-29);
(g) operating, by the animal device, the plurality of actuators according to the instructions of the second scene (Fig. 10H Col. 12, lines 17-26; Col. 3, lines 26-28 and 31-48) to perform the physical output actions (Col. 13, lines 27-29 and lines 60-61, “associated ground animation such as walking”; Claims 7-11) thereby creating a sequence comprising at least the first scene and the second scene (Col. 6, lines 59-65).
Wong et al. fails to teach (f) determining, by the animal device, a transition comprising instructions to: (A) modify the physical output actions of at least a portion of the first scene to transition out of the first scene, (B) modify the physical output actions of at least a portion of the second scene to transition into the second scene, and (C) combine the physical output actions of the at least the portion of the first scene and the physical output actions of the at least the portion of the second scene to create a smooth transition between the first scene and the second scene; and (g) operating, by the animal device, the plurality of actuators according to the instructions of the transition to perform the physical output actions of the transition, thereby creating a sequence comprising at least the transition.
Yokoo et al. teaches an analogous method for operating an animal device comprising
(f) determining, by the animal device, a transition (paras. 0139-0142, “transition plan”) comprising instructions to:
(A) modify the physical output actions of at least a portion of the first scene (para. 0191, “lying posture”, a “lying posture” i.e., “current posture”, is being construed as the first scene) to transition out of the first scene (para. 0196, wherein the pet-type robot 23 may draw its limbs back toward the truck from a lying posture; paras. 0212-0220, wherein the pet-type robot 23 shifts from a current posture, i.e., lying, to a basic posture, i.e., sitting, by moving the head portion, limb portions, and tail portion; Fig. 20, current posture of the head NDh0, current posture of the limb portion NDf0),
(B) modify the physical output actions of at least a portion of the second scene (para. 0191, “standing posture”, a “standing posture”, i.e., “target posture”, is being construed as the second scene) to transition into the second scene (para. 0194, target posture or motion; para. 0196, wherein after the pet-type robot 23 draws its limbs back toward its trunk, the pet-type robot 23 initiates the motion of standing up; paras. 0212-0220, wherein the pet-type robot 23 shifts from a basic posture/motion, i.e., sitting, to a target posture/motion, i.e., standing, by moving the head portion, limb portions, and tail portion; Fig. 20, basic posture/motion of the head NDAB, basic posture of the limb portion NDfb, target motion a4), and
(C) combine the physical output actions of the at least the portion of the first scene and the physical output actions of the at least the portion of the second scene to create a smooth transition between the first scene and the second scene (paras. 0217-0218 and 0224); and
(g) operating, by the animal device, the plurality of actuators according to the instructions of the transition and the second scene to perform the physical output actions of the transition (paras. 0213 and 0219-0220, wherein a “basic posture”, i.e., “sitting posture”, is being construed as the transition) and the second scene (paras. 0217-0220 and 0227-0228, wherein the control mechanisms section 93 generates a control signal for driving the actuators), thereby creating a sequence comprising at least the first scene, the transition, and the second scene (Fig. 20; paras. 0199, 0217-0218, wherein the pet-type robot 23 sequentially transitions from a current posture to a basic posture and finally to a target posture).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to someone of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to have modified the method of Wong et al. with the transition step of Yokoo et al. Implementing a transition between actions preserves the pet-type robot’s balance through the sequential actions, thereby preventing the robot from falling or executing disjointed movements (Yokoo et al., paras. 0211, 0223, and 0226).
Regarding claim 22, Wong et al., in view of Yokoo et al., teaches the method according to claim 21 as stated above wherein the one or more inputs, the one or more additional inputs, or both comprise sensor input data (Wong et al., Fig. 2, input triggers 200; Col. 4, lines 19-20; Fig. 6, input ports 620; Col. 13, lines 10-22), the sensor input data comprising at least one of: touch sensor data (Wong et al., Col. 7, lines 24-28; Fig. 4, head touch sensors 42, cheek touch sensors 44, chin touch sensors 46, torso touch sensors 48, tail touch sensors 62, shoulder touch sensors 64, thigh touch sensors 68, ground foot touch sensors 72 and 74; Col. 2, lines 49-67 and Col. 3, lines 1-20; Fig. 10A, touch sensor 404), audio sensor data (Wong et al., Fig. 4, microphone 128; Col. 4, lines 14-17; Fig. 10F), light sensor data (Wong et al., Fig. 10G; Fig. 4, camera 124 and IR sensors 122; Col. 3, lines 58-67 and Col. 4, lines 1-2), mechanical actuator sensor data (Wong et al., Fig. 10B; Col. 16, lines 46-67), or biometric sensor data.
Regarding claim 23, Wong et al., in view of Yokoo et al., teaches the method according to claim 21 as stated above wherein the one or more inputs, the one or more additional inputs, or both comprise a petting input (Wong et al., Col. 7, lines 24-55; Fig. 10A, input modes 406, 408, 410, 414, and 416), the method further comprising:
detecting, by a touch sensor of the animal device, a set of touch inputs received by the animal device over a time period (Wong et al., Col. 7, lines 24-37); and
selecting one or more scenes (Wong et al., Fig. 10A, “follow touch head motion” 412) based on the petting input (Wong et al., Col. 7, lines 45-52).
Regarding claim 25, Wong et al., in view of Yokoo et al., teaches the method according to claim 21 as stated above wherein the one or more inputs, the one or more additional inputs, or both comprise a voice recognition input (Wong et al., Fig. 12; Col. 14, lines 1-20), the method further comprising:
detecting, by an audio sensor of the animal device, the voice recognition input based on audio input received at the audio sensor (Wong et al., Col. 10, lines 23-29; Col. 13, lines 10-14; Fig. 10F, input modes 504, 506, 510, 514, 518, 522, 526, 530, 534, 538); and
selecting one or more scenes (Wong et al., Fig. 10F, “triggered mode(s)”) based on the voice recognition input (Wong et al., Col. 10, lines 23-67 and Col. 11, lines 1-8).
Regarding claim 26, Wong et al., in view of Yokoo et al., teaches the method according to claim 25 as stated above wherein operating the plurality of actuators (Wong et al., Fig. 4, servo actuators 82, 86, 88, 90, 92, 98, 100, 108, 110, 112, 116, 118, 120, and 130; Col. 3, lines 21-57; Col. 4, lines 17-18) to perform output actions of each selected scene comprises:
performing a mechanical output action and an audio output action (Wong et al., Col. 11, lines 36-42) based on one or more scenes (Wong et al., Fig. 10E, sneeze/shake mode 556).
Regarding claim 27, Wong et al., in view of Yokoo et al., teaches the method according to claim 21 as stated above further comprising:
monitoring for an input at a set of sensors of the animal device (Wong et al., Fig. 5, time lap 224, which is the time interval between external triggers, external triggers 200; Col. 4, lines 19-20 and lines 32-33);
determining a lack of an input after a predetermined time period threshold (Wong et al., Fig. 5, time lap is expired 232; Col. 4, lines 35-36); and
determining a sleep scene based on the lack of input (Wong et al., Fig. 5, sleep or rest animation 234; Col. 4, lines 36-37).
Regarding claim 31, Wong et al. teaches a system (Fig. 6) comprising:
a set of sensors for receiving inputs from a user (Col. 7, lines 24-28; Fig. 4, head touch sensors 42, cheek touch sensors 44, chin touch sensors 46, torso touch sensors 48, tail touch sensors 62, shoulder touch sensors 64, thigh touch sensors 68, ground foot touch sensors 72 and 74; Col. 2, lines 49-67 and Col. 3, lines 1-20; Fig. 10A, touch sensor 404; Fig. 4, microphone 128; Col. 4, lines 14-17; Fig. 10F; Fig. 10G; Fig. 4, camera 124; Col. 3, lines 66-67 and Col. 4, lines 1-2; Fig. 10B; Col. 16, lines 46-67);
a plurality of actuators for causing an animal device (Fig. 1, robotic life form 20; Col. 2, lines 23-26 and lines 36-45) to perform physical output actions (Fig. 4, servo actuators 82, 86, 88, 90, 92, 98, 100, 108, 110, 112, 116, 118, 120, and 130; Col. 3, lines 21-57; Col. 4, lines 17-18); and
a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium (Col. 15, lines 53-55) storing instructions that (Fig. 3, artificial intelligence software module 202), when executed, cause a processor (Fig. 6, microprocessor control unit (MCU) 206) to:
(a) operate the plurality of actuators (Fig. 4, servo actuators 82, 86, 88, 90, 92, 98, 100, 108, 110, 112, 116, 118, 120, and 130; Col. 3, lines 21-57; Col. 4, lines 17-18) to perform physical output actions of a first scene (Abstract; Figs. 10A-10K and Col. 7, lines 45-51 and Col. 4, lines 19-35 and Col. 13, lines 24-29 , wherein external sensors 400 provide input to and selection of various input modes 402, each input mode 402 prompts a “triggered mode” which activates the servo actuators and/or speaker to perform associated animations; For example, as shown in Fig. 10E, when the robotic life form 20 senses the temperature is near or below a lower temperature, a too cold 554 input mode is triggered which activates a sneeze/shake “triggered” mode 556, as a result, the head and neck servo actuators 88 and 89, respectively, are activated to move the head and a sneezing sound is produced from the speaker 130 while the robotic life form 20 opens its mouth 30; Col. 11, lines 21-42, to summarize, the “triggered mode” is being construed as the “scene”), wherein the first scene is selected by the processor from a stored set of possible scenes of a scene type (Figs. 10A-10K, wherein input modes 402 is being construed as the “scene type”) based on one or more inputs received from the user (Fig. 6, animation, motion and sound library files 632; Col. 13, lines 10-34; Figs. 10A-10K catalogues the various “trigger modes” according to various input modes 402 based on inputs from external sensors 400), wherein the first scene (for example, Fig. 10E, sneeze/shake “triggered” mode 556) comprises instructions for operating the plurality of actuators to actuate at least two body parts of the animal device to perform physical output actions (Col. 11, lines 35-42; Col. 13, lines 24-29, wherein the actuators perform the animations according to the triggered mode), wherein the at least two body parts comprise two or more of a mouth (Fig. 4, mouth servo actuators 86 and speaker 130; Col. 3, lines 23-24; Col. 4, lines 17-18), eyebrows (Fig. 4, eye servo actuators 82; Col. 3, lines 21-24), ears, a head region (Fig. 4, head servo actuator 88 and neck servo actuator 90; Col. 3, lines 25-28), a tail region (Fig. 4, tail up-down servo actuator 118 and tail side-to-side servo actuator 120; Col. 3, lines 49-51), or a body region (Fig. 4, torso twist servo actuator 92; Col. 3, lines 29-48);
(b) receive one or more additional inputs from the user via the set of sensors (Abstract; Fig. 4, touch sensors 42, 44, 46, 48, 62, 64, 68, 72, 74, and 78, camera 124, IR sensors 112, microphones 128, Col. 4, lines 19-22, wherein the robotic life form 20 includes a plurality of external sensors that receive various inputs from the user and/or the robotic life form’s surroundings; Figs. 10A-10K, wherein the robotic life form 20 recognizes a plethora of input information from the sensors, the sensor input triggers the input mode 204 and the subsequent “triggered mode”);
(c) determine a scene type (Figs. 10A-10K, input mode 402) based on the one or more additional inputs (Figs. 10A-10K, external inputs 400), wherein the animal device maps the one or more additional inputs to the scene type based on properties of the one or more additional inputs (Figs. 10A-10K, external inputs 400 and input modes 402; Fig. 6; Col. 7, lines 20-23; Col. 13, lines 10-22);
(d) access a stored set of possible scenes (Fig. 6, animations, motion and sound library files 632; Figs. 10A-10K, “triggered mode”) in the determined scene type (Figs. 10A-10K, input modes 402) for the animal device to perform, wherein the stored set of possible scenes in the scene type comprises different scenes (Col. 13, lines 10-34) that the animal device is configured to perform in response to the one or more additional inputs (Figs. 10A-10K, wherein the various external sensos 400 provide input to the various input modes 402, each input mode 402 triggers a “triggered modes” wherein actuators are activated according to the triggered mode to perform the animations/actions);
(e) select a second scene (Fig. 10H, for example, backward/turn mode 580) from the stored set of possible scenes (Fig. 10H, “triggered mode”) of the scene type (Fig. 10H, front obstacle input mode 578), wherein the second scene comprises instructions for operating the plurality of actuators to actuate the at least two body parts of the animal device to perform physical output actions (Col. 12, lines 17-26; Col. 3, lines 26-28 and 31-48; Col. 13, lines 24-29);
(g) operating the plurality of actuators according to the instructions of the second scene to perform the physical output actions of the second scene, thereby creating a sequence of scenes comprising at least the first scene and the second scene.
Wong fails to teach wherein the processor is configured to (f) determine a transition comprising instructions to:(A) modify the physical output actions of at least a portion of the first scene to transition out of the first scene, (B) modify the physical output actions of at least a portion of the second scene to transition into the second scene, and (C) combine the physical output actions of the at least the portion of the first scene and the physical output actions of the at least the portion of the second scene to create a smooth transition between the first scene and the second scene; and operating the plurality of actuators according to the instructions of the transition to perform the physical output actions of the transition, (g) operating the plurality of actuators according to the instructions of the transition to perform the physical output actions of the transition, thereby creating a sequence of scenes comprising at least the transition.
Yokoo et al. teaches an analogous system wherein the processor is configured to:
(f) determine a transition (paras. 0139-0142, “transition plan”) comprising instructions to:
(A) modify the physical output actions of at least a portion of the first scene (para. 0191, “lying posture”, a “lying posture” i.e., “current posture”, is being construed as the first scene) to transition out of the first scene (para. 0196, wherein the pet-type robot 23 may draw its limbs back toward the truck from a lying posture; paras. 0212-0220, wherein the pet-type robot 23 shifts from a current posture, i.e., lying, to a basic posture, i.e., sitting, by moving the head portion, limb portion, and tail portion; Fig. 20, current posture of the head NDh0, current posture of the limb portion NDf0),
(B) modify the physical output actions of at least a portion of the second scene (para. 0191, “standing posture”, a “standing posture”, i.e., “target posture”, is being construed as the second scene) to transition into the second scene (para. 0194, target posture or motion; para. 0196, wherein after the pet-type robot 23 draws its limbs back toward its trunk, the pet-type robot 23 initiates the motion of standing up; paras. 0212-0220, wherein the pet-type robot 23 shifts from a basic posture/motion, i.e., sitting, to a target posture/motion, i.e., standing, by moving the head portion, limb portions, and tail portion; Fig. 20, basic posture/motion of the head NDAB, basic posture of the limb portion NDfb, target motion a4), and
(C) combine the physical output actions of the at least the portion of the first scene and the physical output actions of the at least the portion of the second scene to create a smooth transition between the first scene and the second scene (paras. 0217-0218 and 0224); and
operating the plurality of actuators according to the instructions of the transition and the second scene to perform the physical output actions of the transition (paras. 0213 and 0219-0220, wherein a “basic posture”, i.e., “sitting posture”, is being construed as the transition) and the second scene (paras. 0217-0220 and 0227-0228, wherein the control mechanisms section 93 generates a control signal for driving the actuators),
(g) operating the plurality of actuators according to the instructions of the transition and the second scene to perform the physical output actions of the transition (paras. 0213 and 0219-0220, wherein a “basic posture”, i.e., “sitting posture”, is being construed as the transition) and the second scene (paras. 0217-0220 and 0227-0228, wherein the control mechanisms section 93 generates a control signal for driving the actuators), thereby creating a sequence of scenes comprising at least the first scene, the transition, and the second scene (Fig. 20; paras. 0199, 0217-0218, wherein the pet-type robot 23 sequentially transitions from a current posture to a basic posture and finally to a target posture).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to someone of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to have modified the system of Wong et al. with the transition of Yokoo et al. Implementing a transition between actions preserves the pet-type robot’s balance through the sequential actions, thereby preventing the robot from falling or executing disjointed movements (Yokoo et al., paras. 0211, 0223, and 0226).
Regarding claim 32, Wong et al., in view of Yokoo et al., teaches the system according to claim 31 as stated above wherein the one or more inputs, the one or more additional inputs, or both comprise sensor input data (Wong et al., Fig. 2, input triggers 200; Col. 4, lines 19-20; Fig. 6, input ports 620; Col. 13, lines 10-22), the sensor input data comprising at least one of: touch sensor data (Wong et al., Col. 7, lines 24-28; Fig. 4, head touch sensors 42, cheek touch sensors 44, chin touch sensors 46, torso touch sensors 48, tail touch sensors 62, shoulder touch sensors 64, thigh touch sensors 68, ground foot touch sensors 72 and 74; Col. 2, lines 49-67 and Col. 3, lines 1-20; Fig. 10A, touch sensor 404), audio sensor data (Wong et al., Fig. 4, microphone 128; Col. 4, lines 14-17; Fig. 10F), light sensor data (Wong et al., Fig. 10G; Fig. 4, camera 124; Col. 3, lines 66-67 and Col. 4, lines 1-2), mechanical actuator sensor data (Wong et al., Fig. 10B; Col. 16, lines 46-67), or biometric sensor data.
Regarding claim 33, Wong et al., in view of Yokoo et al., teaches the system according to claim 31 as stated above wherein the one or more inputs, the one or more additional inputs, or both comprise a petting input (Wong et al., Col. 7, lines 24-55; Fig. 10A, input modes 406, 408, 410, 414, and 416), the instructions further causing the processor (Wong et al., Fig. 6, microprocessor control unit 206) to:
detect, by a touch sensor of the animal device, a set of touch inputs received at the animal device over a time period (Wong et al., Col. 7, lines 24-37); and
select one or more scenes (Wong et al., Fig. 10A, “follow touch head motion” 412) based on the petting input (Wong et al., Col. 7, lines 45-52).
Regarding claim 35, Wong et al., in view of Yokoo et al., teaches the system according to claim 31 as stated above wherein the one or more inputs, the one or more additional inputs, or both comprise a voice recognition input (Wong et al., Fig. 12; Col. 14, lines 1-20), the instructions further causing the processor (Wong et al., Fig. 6, microprocessor control unit 206) to:
detect, by an audio sensor of the animal device, the voice recognition input based on audio input received at the audio sensor (Wong et al., Col. 10, lines 23-29; Col. 13, lines 10-14; Fig. 10F, input modes 504, 506, 510, 514, 518, 522, 526, 530, 534, 538); and
select one or more scenes (Wong et al., Fig. 10F, “triggered mode(s)”) based on the voice recognition input (Wong et al., Col. 10, lines 23-67 and Col. 11, lines 1-8).
Regarding claim 36, Wong et al., in view of Yokoo et al., teaches the system according to claim 35 as stated above wherein the instructions for operating the plurality of actuators (Wong et al., Fig. 4, servo actuators 82, 86, 88, 90, 92, 98, 100, 108, 110, 112, 116, 118, 120, and 130; Col. 3, lines 21-57; Col. 4, lines 17-18) further cause the processor (Wong et al., Fig. 6, microprocessor control unit 206) to:
perform a mechanical output action and an audio output action (Wong et al., Col. 11, lines 36-42) based on one or more scenes (Wong et al., Fig. 10E, sneeze/shake mode 556).
Regarding claim 37, Wong et al., in view of Yokoo et al., teaches the system according to claim 31 as stated above further comprising instructions that cause the processor (Wong et al., Fig. 6, microprocessor control unit 206) to:
monitor for an input at the set of sensors of the animal device (Wong et al., Fig. 5, time lap 224, which is the time interval between external triggers, external triggers 200; Col. 4, lines 19-20 and lines 32-33);
determine a lack of an input after a predetermined time period threshold (Wong et al., Fig. 5, time lap is expired 232; Col. 4, lines 35-36); and
determine a sleep scene based on the lack of input (Wong et al., Fig. 5, sleep or rest animation 234; Col. 4, lines 36-37).
Regarding claim 41, Wong et al., in view of Yokoo et al., teaches the method according to claim 21 as stated above wherein the scene type comprises one or more of: starting scene types, main awake scene types (Wong et al., Fig. 10K, wakeup input mode 606), waking up scene types, sleep scene types (Wong et al., Fig. 10F, “go to sleep” input mode 518), touch scene types (Wong et al., Fig. 10A, input modes 406, 408, 410, 414, 416, 418, and 420), speed-dependent petting scene types, body position scene types (Wong et al., Fig. 10B, input modes 432, 436, 438, 440, 442, 444, 446, 448, 450, 452, and 454), speak scene types (Wong et al., Fig. 10F, input modes 504, 506, 510, 514, 518, 522, 526, 530, 534, and 538), howl scene types, hush scene types, excited scene types, or movement scene types (Wong et al., Fig. 10H, input modes 578 and 582).
Regarding claim 42, Wong et al., in view of Yokoo et al., teaches the method according to claim 21 as stated above wherein the one or more additional inputs comprise an active user input (Wong et al., Figs. 5 and 10A-10k, illustrate the various external triggers provided by the sensors that are recognized by the robotic life form 20; For example, as shown in Fig. 14, a touch trigger input 852 may be initiated by the human owner; Col. 1, lines 30-37).
Regarding claim 43, Wong et al., in view of Yokoo et al., teaches the method according to claim 21 as stated above wherein the one or more inputs, the one or more additional inputs, or both comprise a lack of user input (Wong et al., Fig. 5, external triggers 200; Col. 4, lines 19-37).
Regarding claim 44, Wong et al., in view of Yokoo et al., teaches the method according to claim 21 as stated above wherein the second scene comprises a different scene type than the first scene (Wong et al., Figs. 10A-k; Col. 7, lines 20-51, wherein “the external sensors 400, individually identified in FIG. 4 (e.g. 42, 44, 48 etc.), provide input to and selection of various input modes 402” and the various input modes 402 instruct a specific “triggered mode” which activates the corresponding output drive system 228 to drive the actuators or speaker to perform an animation according to the “triggered mode”; therefore, if different external triggers are detected, a “triggered mode”, which is different to the one initiated before, may be selected; see Figs. 11-14, wherein the inputs received from the plurality of sensors determines the particular output actions/animations performed by the autonomous robotic life form 20).
Regarding claim 45, Wong et al., in view of Yokoo et al., teaches the method according to claim 21 as stated above wherein the second scene comprises a same scene type as the first scene (Wong et al., Figs. 10A-k; Col. 7, lines 20-51, wherein “the external sensors 400, individually identified in FIG. 4 (e.g. 42, 44, 48 etc.), provide input to and selection of various input modes 402” and the various input modes 402 instruct a specific “triggered mode” which activates the corresponding output drive system 228 to drive the actuators or speaker to perform an animation according to the “triggered mode”; therefore, if identical external triggers are detected, a subsequent “triggered mode” may be the same as the one initiated before; see Figs. 11-14, wherein the inputs received from the plurality of sensors determines the particular output actions/animations performed by the autonomous robotic life form 20).
Regarding claim 46, Wong et al., in view of Yokoo et al., teaches the method according to claim 21 as stated above wherein the body region is configured to perform one or more of breathing (Wong et al., Fig. 10E, panting mode 552; Col. 11, lines 26-32), walking, or turning (Wong et al., Col. 12, lines 17-26; Fig. 10H, backward/turn mode 580).
Regarding claim 47, as best understood in light of the rejections under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) above, Wong et al., in view of Yokoo et al., teaches the method according to claim 21 as stated above wherein modifying the physical output actions of at least a portion of the selected first scene, the selected second scene, or both comprises
modifying a speed of a physical output action;
modifying a position of a physical output action (Yokoo et al., para. 0192; para. 0191, “lying posture”, a “lying posture”, i.e., “current posture”, is being construed as the first scene; para. 0196, wherein the pet-type robot 23 may draw its limbs back toward the truck from a lying posture; paras. 0212-0220, wherein the pet-type robot 23 shifts from a current posture, i.e., lying, to a basic posture, i.e., sitting, by moving the head portion, limb portion, and tail portion; Fig. 20, current posture of the head NDh0, current posture of the limb portion NDf0; para. 0191, “standing posture”, a “standing posture”, i.e., “target posture”, is being construed as the second scene; para. 0194, target posture or motion; para. 0196, wherein after the pet-type robot 23 draws its limbs back toward its trunk, the pet-type robot 23 initiates the motion of standing up; paras. 0212-0220, wherein the pet-type robot 23 shifts from a basic posture/motion, i.e., sitting, to a target posture/motion, i.e., standing, by moving the head portion, limb portions, and tail portion; Fig. 20, basic posture/motion of the head NDAB, basic posture of the limb portion NDfb, target motion a4);
modifying a physical output action of the first scene, the second scene, or both;
linear smoothing of a physical output action;
acceleration of a physical output action;
deceleration of a physical output action; or any combination thereof.
Regarding claim 48, as best understood in light of the rejections under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) above, Wong et al., in view of Yokoo et al., teaches the method according to claim 47 as stated above wherein the modifying of the physical output actions of at least a portion of the selected first scene, the selected second scene, or both depends at least in part on one or more of the first scene (Yokoo et al., paras. 0212-0220, wherein the pet-type robot 23 shifts from a current posture, i.e., lying, to a basic posture, i.e., sitting, by moving the head portion, limb portions, and tail portion, the “current posture”, i.e., lying posture, is being construed as the first scene; Fig. 20, current posture of the head NDh0, current posture of the limb portion NDf0), the scene type of the first scene, the second scene (Yokoo et al., paras. 0212-0220, wherein the pet-type robot 23 shifts from a basic posture/motion, i.e., sitting, to a target posture/motion, i.e., standing, by moving the head portion, limb portions, and tail portion, the “target posture”, i.e., standing posture, is being construed as the second scene; Fig. 20, basic posture/motion of the head NDAB, basic posture of the limb portion NDfb, target motion a4) , or the scene type of the second scene.
Regarding claim 49, Wong et al., in view of Yokoo et al., teaches the method according to claim 21 as stated above wherein the transition further comprises instructions to execute a transition action (Yokoo et al., Fig. 20; paras. 0213, 0215, and 0219-0220, wherein the “basic posture” is being construed as the transition action) different from the physical output actions of the at least the portion of the selected first scene (Yokoo et al., paras. 0212-0220, wherein the pet-type robot 23 shifts from a current posture, i.e., lying, to a basic posture, i.e., sitting, by moving the head portion, limb portions, and tail portion, the “current posture”, i.e., lying posture, is being construed as the first scene; Fig. 20, current posture of the head NDh0, current posture of the limb portion NDf0), the physical output actions of the at least the portion of the selected second scene (Yokoo et al., paras. 0212-0220, wherein the pet-type robot 23 shifts from a basic posture/motion, i.e., sitting, to a target posture/motion, i.e., standing, by moving the head portion, limb portions, and tail portion, the “target posture”, i.e., standing posture, is being construed as the second scene; Fig. 20, basic posture/motion of the head NDAB, basic posture of the limb portion NDfb, target motion a4), or both.
Regarding claim 50, Wong et al., in view of Yokoo et al., teaches the method according to claim 49 as stated above wherein the transition action is not directly linked to a response of the animal device to an input from the user (Yokoo et al., Fig. 8, posture transition mechanism section 92; para. 0140, where the posture transition mechanism section 92 generates a posture transition plan and para. 0211, wherein “a basic posture shared on the graphs of the whole body and the constituent parts is employed to make the posture transition plan”; paras. 0192-0194 and 0199-0200, specifically, para. 0199, “the posture transition mechanism section 92 holds a graph having registered therein the posture and motion that can be taken by the pet-type robot 23 and constituted by the posture and the motion for shifting the posture. The posture transition mechanism section 92 then searches for a path from the current posture to the target posture or the target motion on the graph”).
Claim(s) 24 and 34 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Wong et al., in view of Yokoo et al., further in view of Bucci et al. (US 2018/0311569).
Regarding claim 24, Wong et al., in view of Yokoo et al., teaches the method according to claim 23 as stated above. While Wong et al. further teaches wherein the scene type is based on the petting input (Col. 7, lines 24-55; Fig. 10A), Wong et al. in view of Yokoo et al. fails to specifically disclose the plurality of scenes of the scene type comprise a fast petting input and a slow petting input.
Bucci et al. taches an analogous robotic device and method wherein the plurality of scenes of the scene type comprises a fast petting input and a slow petting input (para. 0022; para. 0045, “direction of movement and the speed of movement could be derived”; para. 0052; Fig. 7).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to someone of ordinary skill in the art, before the
effective filing date of the claimed invention, to have modified the method of Wong et al., in view of Yokoo et al., with the slow and fast petting inputs of Bucci et al. Doing so provides the robotic device with the ability to learn temporal patterns and therefore discriminate user inputs (Bucci et al., para. 0022).
Regarding claim 34, Wong et al., in view of Yokoo et al., teaches the system according to claim 33 as stated above. While Wong et al. further teaches wherein the scene type is based on the petting input (Col. 7, lines 24-55; Fig. 10A); Wong et al. in view of Yokoo et al. fails to specifically disclose the plurality of scenes of the scene type comprise a fast petting input and a slow petting input.
Bucci et al. taches an analogous robotic device wherein the plurality of scenes of the scene type comprises a fast petting input and a slow petting input (para. 0022; para. 0045, “direction of movement and the speed of movement could be derived”; para. 0052; Fig. 7).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to someone of ordinary skill in the art, before the
effective filing date of the claimed invention, to have modified the system of Wong et al., in view of Yokoo et al., with the slow and fast petting inputs of Bucci et al. Doing so provides the robotic device with the ability to learn temporal patterns and therefore discriminate user inputs (Bucci et al., para. 0022).
Claim(s) 28-30 and 38-40 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Wong et al., in view of Yokoo et al., further in view of Hashiguchi et al. (US 2012/0048027).
Regarding claim 28, Wong et al., in view of Yokoo et al., teaches the method according to claim 21 as stated above. Wong et al. further teaches operating the plurality of actuators (Wong et al., Fig. 4, servo actuators 82, 86, 88, 90, 92, 98, 100, 108, 110, 112, 116, 118, 120, and 130; Col. 3, lines 21-57; Col. 4, lines 17-18); however, Wong et al. in view of Yokoo et al. fails to specifically teach receiving actuator sensor data during the performance of a first physical output action by the animal device during performance of a scene by the animal device; determining a status of the performance of the first physical output action based on mechanical and actuator sensor data captured by mechanical and actuator sensors; and operating the plurality of actuators to cause the animal device to perform a second physical output action based on the status of the performance of the first physical output action.
Hashiguchi et al. teaches an analogous robotic device and method further comprising:
receiving actuator sensor data during the performance of a first physical output action by the animal device during performance of a scene by the animal device (paras. 0138-0141; Fig. 9, step 1130);
determining a status of the performance of the first physical output action based on mechanical and actuator sensor data captured by mechanical and actuator sensors (paras. 0143-0144; Fig. 9, steps 1140 and 1150; paras. 0142 and 1048, “sensors 1122”); and
operating the plurality of actuators to cause the animal device to perform a second physical output action based on the status of the performance of the first physical output action (para. 0144; Fig. 9, step 1160, wherein the robot controller is configured terminate the arms’ (1103L and 1103R) operation if an abnormality is detected; paras. 0099-0102).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to someone of ordinary skill in the art, before the
effective filing date of the claimed invention, to have modified the method of Wong et al., in view of Yokoo et al., with the operational step of receiving actuator sensor data, determining a status of the performance of the first physical output, and operating the plurality of actuators of Hashiguchi et al. This modification incorporates a predetermined operational flow that ensures the device operates in accordance with a specific set of instructions originating from the control system. Furthermore, according to the sensors, mechanical data may be collected from the actuators in use (Hashiguchi et al., paragraphs 0128-0151).
Regarding claim 29, a modified Wong et al., in view of Yokoo et al., further in view of Hashiguchi et al. teaches the method according to claim 28 as stated above wherein the second physical output action is a modified version of the first physical output action for completion of the scene (Hashiguchi et al., para. 0099-0102, when an abnormality of the actuators is detected, the grip torque compensating unit adds grip compensation torque to the arms 1103L and 1103R).
Regarding claim 30, a modified Wong et al., in view of Yokoo et al., further in view of Hashiguchi et al. teaches the method according to claim 28 as stated above wherein determining the status of the comprises:
measuring strain and temperature associated with the mechanical and actuator sensors (Hashiguchi et al., paragraphs 0111 and 0115); and
determining the status of the performance of the first physical output action based on the strain and temperature measurements (Hashiguchi et al., paragraphs 0142-0144).
Regarding claim 38, Wong et al., in view of Yokoo et al., teaches the system according to claim 31 as stated above. Wong et al. further teaches wherein the instructions for operating the plurality of actuators (Wong et al., Fig. 4, servo actuators 82, 86, 88, 90, 92, 98, 100, 108, 110, 112, 116, 118, 120, and 130; Col. 3, lines 21-57; Col. 4, lines 17-18); however, Wong et al. in view of Yokoo et al. fails to specifically teach wherein the instructions for operating the plurality of actuators further cause the processor to: receive actuator sensor data during the performance of a first physical output action by the animal device during performance of a scene by the animal device; determine a status of the performance of the first physical output action based on mechanical and actuator sensor data captured by mechanical and actuator sensors; and operate the plurality of actuators to cause the animal device to perform a second physical output action based on the status of the performance of the first physical output action.
Hashiguchi et al. teaches an analogous robotic device wherein the instructions for operating the plurality of actuators further cause the processor to:
receive actuator sensor data during the performance of a first physical output action by the animal device during performance of a scene by the animal device (paras. 0138-0141; Fig. 9, step 1130);
determine a status of the performance of the first physical output action based on mechanical and actuator sensor data captured by mechanical and actuator sensors (paras. 0143-0144; Fig. 9, steps 1140 and 1150; paras. 0142 and 1048, “sensors 1122”); and
operate the plurality of actuators to cause the animal device to perform a second physical output action based on the status of the performance of the first physical output action (para. 0144; Fig. 9, step 1160, wherein the robot controller is configured terminate the arms’ (1103L and 1103R) operation if an abnormality is detected; paras. 0099-0102).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to someone of ordinary skill in the art, before the
effective filing date of the claimed invention, to have modified the system of Wong et al., in view of Yokoo et al., with the instructions for the processor to receive actuator sensor data, determine a status of the performance of the first physical output, and operate the plurality of actuators of Hashiguchi et al. This modification incorporates a predetermined operational flow that ensures the device operates in accordance with a specific set of instructions originating from the control system. Furthermore, according to the sensors, mechanical data may be collected from the actuators in use (Hashiguchi et al., paragraphs 0128-0151).
Regarding claim 39, a modified Wong et al., in view of Yokoo et al., further in view of Hashiguchi et al. teaches the system according to claim 38 as stated above wherein the second physical output action is a modified version of the first physical output action for completion of the scene (Hashiguchi et al., para. 0099-0102, when an abnormality of the actuators is detected, the grip torque compensating unit adds grip compensation torque to the arms 1103L and 1103R).
Regarding claim 40, a modified Wong et al., in view of Yokoo et al., further in view of Hashiguchi et al. teaches the system according to claim 38 as stated above wherein the instructions for determining the status of the performance of the first physical output action further cause the processor to:
measure strain and temperature associated with a set of mechanical and actuator sensors of the set of sensors (Hashiguchi et al., paragraphs 0111 and 0115); and
determine the status of the performance of the first physical output action based on the strain and temperature measurements (Hashiguchi et al., paragraphs 0142-0144).
Conclusion
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/B.R.L./Examiner, Art Unit 3791
/JENNIFER ROBERTSON/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3791
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