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. Status of Claims The following is a non-final, first office action in response to the communication filed 0 6 / 16 /202 3 . Claims 1- 8 are currently pending and have been examined. Priority Applicant’s claim for the benefit of a prior-filed application under 35 U.S.C. 119(e) or under 35 U.S.C. 120, 121, 365(c), or 386(c) is acknowledged. Benefit is given to the priority document JP2022-112959 and the effective filing date of 0 7 / 14 /202 2 . Information Disclosure Statement The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 0 6 / 16 /202 6 is in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement has been 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 . Claims 1 , 7, and 8 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over US - 11041957 -B2 (hereinafter “ Uehara ”) in view of Nagai (US - 8736819 -B2 ; hereinafter “ Nagai ”) . Regarding claim 1 , U ehara discloses : A laser scanning control device for controlling laser scanning that is performed by a laser scanning apparatus having a light reception unit (“the detector… translates the reflected light into data points that form the point clouds,” [0035] Uehara); the laser scanning control device comprising a processor or circuitry configured to (“the scanning module 220 controls the LiDAR sensor,” [0025] Uehara) : make the laser scanning apparatus execute first laser scanning and second laser scanning (“Acquire First Point Cloud” and “Acquire Second Point Cloud,” Fig. 5 Uehara) ; the first laser scanning being performed under conditions in which distance measurement accuracy is reduced by light reflected back from a reflection prism, and the second laser scanning being performed under conditions in which distance measurement accuracy is not reduced by light reflected back from the reflection prism, Uehara does not explicitly disclose that the first laser scanning is performed under conditions in which distance measurement accuracy is reduced by light reflected back from a reflection prism, nor that the second laser scanning is performed under conditions in which distance measurement accuracy is not reduced by light reflected back from the reflection prism ; however, Nagai discloses laser distance measurement using a reflective prism (“a photodetecting unit… receiving and detecting a reflected distance measuring light… prism mode measurement,” [0012] Nagai) and further discloses that the amount of reflected light may differ extensively (“the amount of the reflection light… may differ extensively,” [0009] Nagai) , wherein excessive reflected light results in saturation of the received signal and reduced measurement accuracy, and Nagai further discloses adjusting the light amount (“a light amount adjuster… adjusts the light amount,” [0009] Nagai) , wherein adjusting the light amount reduces the effect of excessive reflected light and improves measurement accuracy, and U ehara discloses adjusting an intensity of light during scanning (“Control LiDAR To Emit Pulse At Second Intensity,” Fig. 5 Uehara) , wherein the adjusted intensity corresponds to performing the second laser scanning under conditions in which distance measurement accuracy is not reduced (“Control LiDAR To Emit Pulse At Second Intensity,” Fig. 5 Uehara) ; determine a state of saturation of the light reception unit, with respect to a laser-scanned point cloud obtained in the first laser scanning (“ maximum detection threshold 440 represents a point at which a pixel of the detector 310 that is sensing the signal 410 becomes saturated ,” [0036] U ehara ) , and adjust an intensity of light to be received by the light reception unit in the second laser scanning, based on a result of determining the state of saturation (“Control LiDAR To Emit Pulse At Second Intensity,” Fig. 5 Uehara) . It would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine U ehara with Nagai to modify the laser scanning of U ehara to operate in reflective prism environments, as taught by Nagai , wherein excessive reflected light causes saturation and reduced measurement accuracy during a first scanning condition, and to further adjust light intensity during a second laser scanning, as taught by U ehara in view of Nagai , such that the effect of excessive reflected light is reduced and measurement accuracy is improved . Regarding claim 7 , A laser scanning control method for controlling laser scanning that is performed by a laser scanning apparatus having a light reception unit, the method comprising (Fig. 5 Uehara) : U ehara discloses a scanning control method (“Acquire First Point Cloud” and “Acquire Second Point Cloud,” Fig. 5 Uehara ) ; making the laser scanning apparatus execute first laser scanning and second laser scanning, U ehara discloses first and second scanning (“Acquire First Point Cloud” and “Acquire Second Point Cloud,” Fig. 5 Uehara ) ; the first laser scanning being performed under conditions in which distance measurement accuracy is reduced by light reflected back from a reflection prism, and the second laser scanning being performed under conditions in which distance measurement accuracy is not reduced by light reflected back from the reflection prism, Uehara does not explicitly disclose the first laser scanning being performed under conditions in which distance measurement accuracy is reduced by light reflected back from a reflection prism, and the second laser scanning being performed under conditions in which distance measurement accuracy is not reduced by light reflected back from the reflection prism ; however, Nagai discloses prism-based reflection (“a photodetecting unit… receiving and detecting a reflected distance measuring light… prism mode measurement,” [0012] Nagai) and variability in reflection (“the amount of the reflection light… may differ extensively,” [0009] Nagai) and adjustment (“a light amount adjuster… adjusts the light amount,” [0009] Nagai) ; determining a state of saturation of the light reception unit, with respect to a laser-scanned point cloud obtained in the first laser scanning, U ehara discloses saturation (“maximum detection threshold 440 represents a point at which a pixel of the detector 310 that is sensing the signal 410 becomes saturated,” [0036] Uehara ) ; and adjusting an intensity of light to be received by the light reception unit in the second laser scanning, based on a result of determining the state of saturation, U ehara discloses adjustment (“Control LiDAR To Emit Pulse At Second Intensity,” Fig. 5 Uehara ) . It would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to implement the system as a method. Regarding claim 8 , A non-transitory computer recording medium storing computer executable instructions for controlling laser scanning that is performed by a laser scanning apparatus having a light reception unit, U ehara discloses processor-executed control (“the scanning module 220 controls the LiDAR,” [0026] U ehara ); the computer executable instructions being made to, when read and executed by a computer processor, cause the computer processor to: U ehara discloses execution of instructions (“the scanning module 220 controls the LiDAR,” [0026] Uehara) ; make the laser scanning apparatus execute first laser scanning and second laser scanning, U ehara discloses first and second scans (“Acquire First Point Cloud” and “Acquire Second Point Cloud,” Uehara Fig. 5) ; the first laser scanning being performed under conditions in which distance measurement accuracy is reduced by light reflected back from a reflection prism, and the second laser scanning being performed under conditions in which distance measurement accuracy is not reduced by light reflected back from the reflection prism, U ehara does not explicitly disclose the first laser scanning being performed under conditions in which distance measurement accuracy is reduced by light reflected back from a reflection prism, and the second laser scanning being performed under conditions in which distance measurement accuracy is not reduced by light reflected back from the reflection prism ; however, Nagai discloses reflective prism operation (“a photodetecting unit… receiving and detecting a reflected distance measuring light… prism mode measurement,” [0012] Nagai) and adjustment (“a light amount adjuster… adjusts the light amount,” [0009] Nagai ) ; determine a state of saturation of the light reception unit, with respect to a laser-scanned point cloud obtained in the first laser scanning, U ehara discloses saturation (“maximum detection threshold 440 represents a point at which a pixel of the detector 310 that is sensing the signal 410 becomes saturated,” [0036] Uehara ) ; and adjust an intensity of light to be received by the light reception unit in the second laser scanning, based on a result of determining the state of saturation, U ehara discloses adjustment (“Control LiDAR To Emit Pulse At Second Intensity,” Fig. 5 Uehara ) . It would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to implement the method as instructions on a non-transitory medium. Claims 2- 4 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over US 20210132197-A1 (hereinafter “Wachter”) . Regarding claim 2 , The laser scanning control device according to claim 1, wherein the state of saturation is determined based on an output waveform that is output from the light reception unit, Wachter discloses waveform output (“Transmit waveforms 215A-215C may be indicative of intensity levels of respective light pulses 115A-115C emitted from the LIDAR device 101 of FIG. 2A, and receive waveforms 225A-225C may be indicative of intensity levels of respective light pulses,” [0058] Wachter) and waveform analysis (“the shape of a light pulse may be described using its rising edge timing, falling edge timing, peak amplitude, pulse width, or any combination thereof,” [0061] Wachter) . It would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to determine saturation using waveform characteristics. Regarding claim 3 , The laser scanning control device according to claim 2, wherein the state of saturation is determined based on a length on a time axis of a maximum value part of the output waveform output from the light reception unit, Wachter discloses measuring temporal characteristics of a received waveform (“ The LIDAR system may determine the pulse width of a light pulse reflected by a surface within the environment, may compare the determined pulse width with a reference pulse width ,” [ 00 41 ]) , wherein the pulse width corresponds to a length on a time axis of a maximum value portion of the waveform, and Wachter further discloses that waveform characteristics are derived from the detected signal (“the shape of a light pulse may be described using its rising edge timing, falling edge timing, peak amplitude, pulse width, or any combination thereof,” [0061] Wachter) , wherein the waveform corresponds to the output waveform from the light reception unit . It would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to determine saturation based on a length on a time axis of a maximum value part of the output waveform as taught by Wachter because pulse width represents the duration of high signal intensity and is a known indicator of detector saturation, thereby improving the accuracy of saturation detection . Regarding claim 4 , Wachter discloses : The laser scanning control device according to claim 3, wherein a relationship between the length on the time axis of the maximum value part of the output waveform and a degree of the adjustment is obtained in advance, Wachter discloses stored relationships (“ a reference pulse width may be determined for each of a plurality of amplitude values of light pulses. Each of the determined reference pulse widths may be stored, along with its amplitude and pulse characteristics, in a look-up table (LUT) or other memory provided within or otherwise accessible by the LIDAR device or system ,” [00 4 2] Wachter ) . It would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to use predefined relationships. Claims 5 and 6 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over US-20210132197-A1 (hereinafter “ Wachter ”) in view of US-11041957-B2 (hereinafter “Uehara”) . Regarding claim 5 , The laser scanning control device according to claim 3, wherein, in a case in which the length on the time axis of the maximum value part of the output waveform is relatively long, the intensity of light to be received by the light reception unit is relatively greatly attenuated, Wachter discloses measuring pulse width (“use the retrieved pulse width and/or pulse characteristics to determine an amount of pulse elongation of the received light pulse,” [0042] Watcher), wherein a longer pulse width corresponds to a longer duration of a high-level signal portion; however, Wachter does not explicitly disclose attenuating the intensity of light to be received by the light reception unit based on the pulse width ; U ehara discloses adjusting emission intensity (“Control LiDAR To Emit Pulse At Second Intensity,” Fig. 5 Uehara) , wherein the intensity of light is adjusted to control received signal levels. It would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to attenuate the intensity of light when the pulse width is relatively long because a longer duration of high signal level indicates increased received energy, and adjusting intensity as taught by U ehara provides a known technique for controlling signal strength. Regarding claim 6 , The laser scanning control device according to claim 3, wherein a relationship between a state in which distance measurement accuracy is not reduced and the length on the time axis of the maximum value part of the output waveform is preliminarily known, and the intensity of light to be received by the light reception unit is adjusted in the second laser scanning, based on this relationship, Wachter discloses predefined waveform relationships (“a reference pulse width may be determined for each of a plurality of amplitude values of light pulses. Each of the determined reference pulse widths may be stored, along with its amplitude and pulse characteristics, in a look-up table (LUT) or other memory provided within or otherwise accessible by the LIDAR device or system,” [0042] Wachter ) and waveform evaluation (“the shape of a light pulse may be described using its rising edge timing, falling edge timing, peak amplitude, pulse width, or any combination thereof,” [0061] Wachter ) , wherein relationships between waveform characteristics and signal conditions are known; however, Wachter does not explicitly disclose adjusting the intensity of light to be received in a second laser scanning based on the relationship; Uehara discloses adjusting intensity during a second scan (“Control LiDAR To Emit Pulse At Second Intensity,” Fig. 5 Uehara ) , wherein the adjustment occurs in a second laser scanning operation. It would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to adjust the intensity of light in a second laser scanning based on a known relationship between waveform characteristics and signal conditions because Wachter provides the relationship and U ehara provides a known mechanism for performing intensity adjustment during a second scan . Conclusion Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to FILLIN "Examiner name" \* MERGEFORMAT Dominick J. Cabrera whose telephone number is FILLIN "Phone number" \* MERGEFORMAT (571) 317-1401 . The examiner can normally be reached FILLIN "Work Schedule?" \* MERGEFORMAT Monday - Friday, 8 AM - 4 PM . 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, FILLIN "SPE Name?" \* MERGEFORMAT Vladimir Magloire can be reached at FILLIN "SPE Phone?" \* MERGEFORMAT (571) 270-5144 . 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. /DOMINICK JACOB CABRERA/ Examiner, Art Unit 3648 /VLADIMIR MAGLOIRE/ Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3648