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 .
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted was filed after the mailing date. The submission is in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner.
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.
The factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness.
Claim(s) 1-4, 6-10 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kessler et al. (“Kessler”) (US 20190278733 A1) in view of Hawkes et al. (“Hawkes”) (US 20180152780 A1).
Regarding Claim 1, Kessler teaches:
An audio transmission system performing time-division multiplexing on audio data of N channels (N is an integral number equal to or larger than 1) [Figure 1 shows system, ¶0030 audio distributed to slave over channels, see ¶0135, multiple channels for audio transmission ] for each reference period [¶0064 superframe structure corresponding to reference period] and transmitting multiplexed audio data [¶0064 audio data transmitted], the N channels representing a number of channels determined in advance in accordance with a preset mode [¶0057, number of TDM channels over bus 106 determined in advance and stored as TDM mode], the audio transmission system comprising:
a master circuit [Figure 1, master node 102];
one or more slave circuits connected to the master circuit via one or more transmission lines by daisy chain topology [Figure 1, slave nodes 0-2 connected via daisy chain on bus 106];
and a signal processing circuit [Figure 2 shows circuit 120, included in each node as in ¶0050],
wherein each piece of audio data of the N channels corresponds to a different one of the one or more slave circuits [¶0135 “multiple channels may be “packed” within a single audio stream and distributed independently to different slave nodes 104 along the bus 106”], the each piece of audio data of the N channels being assigned to a different one of N transmission/reception periods obtained by time-dividing the reference period [¶0140 different slots assigned to different slaves corresponding to “a different one of N transmission/reception periods obtained by time-dividing the reference period”], each of the one or more slave circuits includes a register to store a mode value representing the preset mode [¶0057 TDM mode register in node 120 store value of TDM channels], the master circuit writes the mode value onto the register included in the each of the one or more slave circuits [¶0099-104, registers for controlling TDM transmission/reception programmed by the master node, wherein value ¶0057 TDM mode written into registers of slave nodes], the each of the one or more slave circuits generates a bit clock in accordance with the mode value stored in the register, the bit clock being synchronized with a clock of data to be transmitted or received via the one or more transmission lines [¶0057 in slave device “A TDM mode (TDM MODE) register in the node transceiver 120 may store a value of how many TDM channels fit between consecutive SYNC pulses on a TDM transmit or receive pin. Together with knowledge of the channel size, the node transceiver 120 may automatically set the BCLK rate to match the amount of bits within the sampling time (e.g., 48 kHz).”], and serially transmits or receives a corresponding piece of audio data out of pieces of audio data of the N channels to/from the master circuit in the transmission/reception period assigned to the corresponding piece of audio data, either one of the master circuit and the one or more slave circuits function as an audio transmitter to transmit audio data, and the other one function as an audio receiver to receive audio data [¶0030, ¶0108 data inserted by slave device into audio signals, and may be transmitted to master or may receive audio data from master],
Kessler teaches slave devices receiving time-divided audio but does not teach that they limit the level.
Hawkes teaches a slave device in the form of a speaker system with signal processing circuit, wherein the signal processing circuit limits a level of audio data of the N channels to be equal to or smaller than a predetermined value in a case where a level of audio data received by the audio receiver is larger than a threshold value [¶0012, ¶0021, master/slave device being speakers limit to 85 decibels, wherein ¶0019 audio received by way of wireless channels].
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to specify in Kessler’s slave devices a means for controlling the level of the audio information as in Hawkes who teaches that setting a threshold for a decibel level of audio allows to protect listener’s hearing ¶0108.
Regarding claim 2, Kessler-Hawkes teaches:
The audio transmission system according to claim 1, wherein the master circuit transmits a synchronization signal synchronized with the reference period to the each of the one or more slave circuits via the one or more transmission lines, and the each of the one or more slave circuits generates the bit clock in accordance with the mode value stored in the register and the synchronization signal [¶0042 “the master node 102 may periodically send a synchronization control frame downstream […] The synchronization control frame may allow the slave nodes 104 to identify the beginning of each superframe (reference period) and also, in combination with physical layer encoding/signaling, may allow each slave node 104 to derive its internal operational clock from the bus ”].
Regarding claim 3, Kessler-Hawkes teaches:
The audio transmission system according to claim 2, wherein the each of the one or more slave circuits changes a frequency of the bit clock in accordance with the mode value stored in the register [¶0057 “A TDM mode (TDM MODE) register in the node transceiver 120 may store a value of how many TDM channels fit between consecutive SYNC pulses on a TDM transmit or receive pin. Together with knowledge of the channel size, the node transceiver 120 may automatically set the BCLK rate to match the amount of bits within the sampling time (e.g., 48 kHz).” Thus a previous rate may be changed based on the TDM mode information as this information in synchronization signal sent periodically ¶0042].
Regarding claim 4, Kessler-Hawkes teaches:
The audio transmission system according to claim 3, wherein the master circuit functions as the audio receiver, the each of the one or more slave circuits functions as the audio transmitter [Kessler ¶0030 audio data may be transmitted by slave to master, see “These communication systems enable downstream traffic (e.g., from a master node to a last slave node), upstream traffic (e.g., to a master node from a slave node)” ¶0040 includes audio signals], and the signal processing circuit limits the level of audio data of the N channels to be equal to or smaller than a predetermined value in a case where a level of a piece of audio data of the N channels received by the master circuit is larger than the threshold value [Hawkes ¶0012, ¶0021, master/slave device being speakers limit to 85 decibels for audio that is louder than threshold, wherein ¶0019 audio received by way of wireless channels see rationale for combination as in claim 1].
Regarding claim 6, Kessler-Hawkes-Zhang teaches:
The audio transmission system according to claim 5, further comprising a communication circuit that transmits/receives data to/from an information processing device [Kessler host 110, via bus I2C, ¶0057 send data to the host] via a communication bus, wherein the communication circuit acquires, from the output circuit, audio data of at least one channel out of audio data of the N channels, and transmits the audio data acquired from the output circuit to the information processing device via the communication bus [Kessler ¶0057 sends data processed by master device to information processing device being host over bus I2C, ¶0064 may be audio data].
Regarding claim 7, Kessler-Hawkes teaches:
The audio transmission system according to claim 4, further comprising microphones, wherein the each piece of audio data of the N channels represents audio collected by one of the microphones [Kessler ¶0106-107, peripheral devices connected to slave devices are microphones, audio data inserted by into transmissions to master node see ¶0108].
Regarding claim 8, Kessler-Hawkes teaches:
The audio transmission system according to claim 7, further comprising one or more analog-to-digital converters, wherein each of the one or more analog-to-digital converters corresponds to one or more of the microphones [Kessler ¶0184], performs analog-to-digital conversion on an audio signal output from each of the corresponding one or more of the microphones at each sampling timing to generate one or more pieces of audio data [Kessler ¶0184] synchronized with the bit clock at each sampling timing [Kessler ¶0135 shows supported sampling rate], and gives one or more pieces of the generated audio data to a corresponding one of the one or more slave circuits [Kessler Figure 1 shows peripheral device 108 which may be microphone ¶0108 providing to slave devices].
Regarding claim 9, Kessler-Hawkes teaches:
The audio transmission system according to claim 3, wherein the master circuit functions as the audio transmitter, each of the one or more slave circuits functions as the audio receiver [¶0030 master may be downstream device sending to slaves], the signal processing circuit is provided correspondingly to each of the one or more slave circuits [Figure 2, signal processing circuitry ¶0050], and the signal processing circuit limits a level of audio data received by a corresponding one of the one or more slave circuits to be equal to or smaller than a predetermined value in a case where the level of the received audio data is larger than the threshold value [Hawkes ¶0012, ¶0021, master/slave device being speakers limit to 85 decibels, wherein ¶0019 audio received by way of wireless channels see rationale for combination as in claim 1].
Regarding claim 10, Kessler-Hawkes teaches:
The audio transmission system according to claim 9, further comprising one or more output circuits that are provided correspondingly to the one or more slave circuits, wherein the signal processing circuits performs audio signal processing on the audio data received by the corresponding slave circuit [¶0119, ¶0126 includes signal processing chips, and ¶0129, audio output circuit in 1300 which may be slave, ], and each of the one or more output circuits receives audio data from the signal processing circuit of a corresponding one of the one or more slave circuits, performs digital-to-analog conversion on the received audio data to generate an audio signal, and causes a speaker to output the generated audio signal [¶0044-46 DAC and speaker components for processing and playing audio signal].
Claim(s) 5 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kessler et al. (“Kessler”) (US 20190278733 A1) in view of Hawkes et al. (“Hawkes”) (US 20180152780 A1) and Zhang et al. (“Zhang”) (US 20040095952 A1).
Regarding claim 5, Kessler-Hawkes teaches:
The audio transmission system according to claim 4, further comprising an output circuit, wherein the signal processing circuit performs audio signal processing on the each piece of audio data of the N channels received by the master circuit [¶0119, ¶0129, master node being 1300 includes means for producing audio output via speakers, 1308, ], and the output circuit receives the each piece of audio data of the N channels from the signal processing circuit, to generate audio signals of N channels [¶0108, slave devices insert audio data to be received by master, wherein ¶0119, ¶0129 master includes output circuit receiving data], and causes a speaker to output each of the generated audio signals of N channels [¶0129 device 1300 may be master].
Kessler teaches master but does not expressly teach the master with DAC however Zhang teaches master that performs digital-to-analog conversion on respective pieces of audio data of the N channels to generate audio signals of N channels [¶0051 master and slave may be any of devices in Figure 6, 604, including DAC and audio controller].
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to specify a DAC converter in the master circuit as in Zhang. Kessler teaches a master circuit receiving audio data and transferring it to an output circuit and speaker and it would have been obvious to specify a DAC as in Zhang as it is a known combination in the art according to conventional techniques for implementing inter-integrated circuit bus for less expensive alternatives to other multiplexed options ¶0006.
Claim(s) 11-12 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kessler et al. (“Kessler”) (US 20190278733 A1) in view of Lin et al. (“Lin”) (US 20140105321 A1).
Regarding claim 11, Kessler teaches:
An audio transmission system performing time-division multiplexing on audio data of N channels (N is an integral number equal to or larger than 1) [Figure 1 shows system, ¶0030 audio distributed to slave over channels, see ¶0135, multiple channels for audio transmission ] for each reference period [¶0064 superframe structure corresponding to reference period] and transmitting multiplexed audio data [¶0064 audio data transmitted], the N channels representing a number of channels determined in advance in accordance with a preset mode [¶0057, number of TDM channels over bus 106 determined in advance and stored as TDM mode], the audio transmission system comprising: a master circuit [Figure 1, master node 102]; one or more slave circuits connected to the master circuit via one or more transmission lines by daisy chain topology [Figure 1, slave nodes 0-2 connected via daisy chain on bus 106]; wherein each piece of audio data of the N channels corresponds to a different one of the one or more slave circuits [¶0135 “multiple channels may be “packed” within a single audio stream and distributed independently to different slave nodes 104 along the bus 106”], the each piece of audio data of the N channels being assigned to a different one of N transmission/reception periods obtained by time-dividing the reference period [¶0140 different slots assigned to different slaves corresponding to “a different one of N transmission/reception periods obtained by time-dividing the reference period”], each of the one or more slave circuits includes a register to store a mode value representing the preset mode [¶0057 TDM mode register in node 120 store value of TDM channels], the master circuit writes the mode value onto the register included in the each of the one or more slave circuits [¶0099-104, registers for controlling TDM transmission/reception programmed by the master node, wherein value ¶0057 TDM mode written into registers of slave nodes], the each of the one or more slave circuits generates a bit clock in accordance with the mode value stored in the register, the bit clock being synchronized with a clock of data to be transmitted or received via the one or more transmission lines [¶0057 in slave device “A TDM mode (TDM MODE) register in the node transceiver 120 may store a value of how many TDM channels fit between consecutive SYNC pulses on a TDM transmit or receive pin. Together with knowledge of the channel size, the node transceiver 120 may automatically set the BCLK rate to match the amount of bits within the sampling time (e.g., 48 kHz).”], and serially transmits a corresponding piece of audio data out of pieces of audio data of the N channels to the master circuit in the transmission/reception period assigned to the corresponding piece of audio data [¶0030, ¶0108 data inserted by slave device into audio signals, and may be transmitted to master or may receive audio data from master].
Kessler teaches the daisy chain topology for transmitting audio data but not a stop circuit.
Lin teaches one or more stop circuits corresponding to the one or more slave circuits, and each of the one or more stop circuits causes a corresponding one of the one or more slave circuits to stop transmission of audio data to the master circuit in a case where a frequency of the bit clock generated by the corresponding slave circuit falls outside a frequency range set in advance [Figure 2 shows device 20 transmitting to host 30, corresponding to “slave circuit,” wherein ¶0028-30, slave device 24 determines clock frequency outside of frequency range, and resets the transmission interface device as in S6 of Figure 4, ¶0027, and returns to S4, thus by “returning” to a state of transmitting, the device had stopped transmitting during reset].
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to specify a stop circuit as in Lin. Kessler teaches a master circuit and slave circuit operating according to a clock and it would have been obvious to specify circuitry for stopping transmission during clock drift as in Lin who teaches this allows for automatically calibrating frequency of clocks and handle errors ¶0007.
Regarding claim 12, Kessler teaches:
A slave device in an audio transmission system, the audio transmission system including a master device and one or more slave devices connected to the master device via one or more transmission lines by daisy chain topology [Figure 1, master and slave device via daisy chain], the slave device comprising: a slave circuit [Figure 1, slave nodes 0-2 connected via daisy chain on bus 106]; wherein the audio transmission system performs time-division multiplexing on audio data of N channels (N is an integral number equal to or larger than 1) [Figure 1 shows system, ¶0030 audio distributed to slave over channels, see ¶0135, multiple channels for audio transmission ] for each reference period [¶0064 superframe structure corresponding to reference period] and transmits multiplexed audio data [¶0030 audio data may be transmitted by slave to master, see “These communication systems enable downstream traffic (e.g., from a master node to a last slave node), upstream traffic (e.g., to a master node from a slave node)” ¶0040 includes audio signals], the N channels representing a number of channels determined in advance in accordance with a preset mode [¶0057, number of TDM channels over bus 106 determined in advance and stored as TDM mode], the each piece of audio data of the N channels being assigned to a different one of N transmission/reception periods obtained by time-dividing the reference period [¶0140 different slots assigned to different slaves corresponding to “a different one of N transmission/reception periods obtained by time-dividing the reference period”], the slave circuit includes a register to store a mode value representing the preset mode [¶0057 TDM mode register in node 120 store value of TDM channels], the master circuit writes the mode value onto the register [¶0099-104, registers for controlling TDM transmission/reception programmed by the master node, wherein value ¶0057 TDM mode written into registers of slave nodes], the slave circuit generates a bit clock in accordance with the mode value stored in the register, the bit clock being synchronized with a clock of data to be transmitted or received via the one or more transmission lines [¶0057 in slave device “A TDM mode (TDM MODE) register in the node transceiver 120 may store a value of how many TDM channels fit between consecutive SYNC pulses on a TDM transmit or receive pin. Together with knowledge of the channel size, the node transceiver 120 may automatically set the BCLK rate to match the amount of bits within the sampling time (e.g., 48 kHz).”], and serially transmits a corresponding piece of audio data out of pieces of audio data of the N channels to the master circuit in the transmission/reception period assigned to the corresponding piece of audio data [¶0030, ¶0108 data inserted by slave device into audio signals, and may be transmitted to master or may receive audio data from master].
Kessler teaches the daisy chain topology for transmitting audio data but not a stop circuit.
Lin teaches one or more stop circuits corresponding to the one or more slave circuits, and each of the one or more stop circuits causes a corresponding one of the one or more slave circuits to stop transmission of audio data to the master circuit in a case where a frequency of the bit clock generated by the corresponding slave circuit falls outside a frequency range set in advance [Figure 2 shows device 20 transmitting to host 30, corresponding to “slave circuit,” wherein ¶0028-30, slave device 24 determines clock frequency outside of frequency range, and resets the transmission interface device as in S6 of Figure 4, ¶0027, and returns to S4, thus by “returning” to a state of transmitting, the device had stopped transmitting during reset].
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to specify a stop circuit as in Lin. Kessler teaches a master circuit and slave circuit operating according to a clock and it would have been obvious to specify circuitry for stopping transmission during clock drift as in Lin who teaches this allows for automatically calibrating frequency of clocks and handle errors ¶0007.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. JP 2014086857 A
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/JAY L VOGEL/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2478