DETAILED ACTION
Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status
The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
Response to Amendment
In response to the non-final office action dated 05/28/2025, applicant has amended claims 1, 4, 6, 9, 12, 14, 17 and 20. Claims 1-20 are currently pending in the application.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
The text of those sections of Title 35, U.S. Code not included in this action can be found in a prior Office action.
Claim(s) 1-3, 8-11, and 16-19 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being clearly anticipated by Riedmiller et al (U.S. Pub No. 20160196830, hereinafter Riedmiller).
Regarding claim 1, Riedmiller teaches a method (See Riedmiller Abstract, methods for generating an encoded audio bitstream) comprising: generating an audio stream including a first substream as first audio data (See Riedmiller ¶ [0051], each independent substream can consist of up to eight dependent substreams, first dependent substream) and a second substream as second audio data (See Riedmiller ¶ [0051], each independent substream can consist of up to eight dependent substreams, second dependent substream); generating a first loudness parameter associated with playback of the first substream (See Riedmiller ¶ [0180], Loudness processing value of corresponding audio data); generating a second loudness parameter associated with playback of the second substream (See Riedmiller ¶ [0180], Loudness processing value of corresponding audio data); and generating an audio package (See Riedmiller Fig 4, encoded audio bitstream frame) including an identification corresponding to the first audio data (See Riedmiller ¶ [0055], each payload includes a header with a specific payload identifier), an identification corresponding to the second audio data (See Riedmiller ¶ [0055], each payload includes a header with a specific payload identifier), a codec dependent container including a parameter associated with the codec used to compress the first audio data and the second audio data (See Riedmiller fig 7 & ¶ [0041], E-AC-3 frame divided in sections including a Bitstream Information (BSI) section containing most of the metadata and Audio Blocks (AB0 – AB5) which contain data compressed audio content and can also include metadata), and a codec agnostic container including the first loudness parameter and the second loudness parameter (See Riedmiller Fig 6 & ¶ [0032], DIALNORM parameter used for loudness processing within BSI frame).
Regarding claim 2, Riedmiller teaches the method of claim 1, wherein the audio package is a first audio package (See Riedmiller Fig 4, encoded audio bitstream frame), the method further comprising: merging the first audio package with a second audio package to generate a third audio package (See Riedmiller ¶ [0051], each independent substream can consist of up to eight dependent substreams, independent substream including first and second dependent substream), the second audio package including a third substream as third audio data (See Riedmiller ¶ [0051], each independent substream can consist of up to eight dependent substreams, third dependent substream) and a third loudness parameter associated with playback of the third substream (See Riedmiller ¶ [0180], Loudness processing value of corresponding audio data); generating a normalization parameter associated with playback of the first substream, the second substream, and the third substream; and adding the normalization parameter to the codec agnostic container (See Riedmiller ¶ [0118-0119], loudness processing state metadata included in frame payload).
Regarding claim 3, Riedmiller teaches the method of claim 2, wherein, the merging of the first audio package with the second audio package includes mixing the first substream, the second substream, and the third substream as a fourth substream (See Riedmiller ¶ [0051], each independent substream can consist of up to eight dependent substreams, independent substream including first, second, and third dependent substream), the normalization parameter is a target loudness associated with playback of the fourth substream (See Riedmiller ¶ [0118-0119], loudness processing state metadata included in frame payload); and the fourth substream replaces the first substream, the second substream, and the third substream in an audio presentation (See Riedmiller ¶ [0051], each independent substream can consist of up to eight dependent substreams, independent substream including first, second, and third dependent substream).
Regarding claim 8, Riedmiller teaches the method of claim 3, wherein if the first substream is associated with a surround speaker (See Riedmiller ¶ [0050], dependent substream indicative of standard format speaker channels including surround) and the second substream is associated with a top speaker (See Riedmiller ¶ [0050], dependent substream indicative of standard format speaker channels including center. Top speaker has no standard definition), the method further comprises: separately mixing the first substream and the second substream (See Riedmiller ¶ [0051], independent substream may be associated with up to eight dependent substreams).
Regarding claim 9, Riedmiller teaches a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium (See Riedmiller ¶ [0233], storage media) comprising instructions stored thereon (See Riedmiller ¶ [0232], software instructions) that, when executed by at least one processor (See Riedmiller Fig 2, processor 103), are configured to cause a computing system to: generate an audio stream including a first substream as first audio data (See Riedmiller ¶ [0051], each independent substream can consist of up to eight dependent substreams, first dependent substream) and a second substream as second audio data (See Riedmiller ¶ [0051], each independent substream can consist of up to eight dependent substreams, second dependent substream); generate a first loudness parameter associated with playback of the first substream (See Riedmiller ¶ [0180], Loudness processing value of corresponding audio data); generate a second loudness parameter associated with playback of the second substream (See Riedmiller ¶ [0180], Loudness processing value of corresponding audio data); and generate an audio package (See Riedmiller Fig 4, encoded audio bitstream frame) including an identification corresponding to the first audio data, an identification corresponding to the second audio data (See Riedmiller ¶ [0055], each payload includes a header with a specific payload identifier), a codec dependent container including a parameter associated with the codec used to compress the first audio data and the second audio data (See Riedmiller fig 7 & ¶ [0041], E-AC-3 frame divided in sections including a Bitstream Information (BSI) section containing most of the metadata and Audio Blocks (AB0 – AB5) which contain data compressed audio content and can also include metadata), and a codec agnostic container including the first loudness parameter and the second loudness parameter (See Riedmiller Fig 6 & ¶ [0032], DIALNORM parameter used for loudness processing within BSI frame).
Regarding claim 10, Riedmiller teaches the non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 9, wherein the audio package is a first audio package (See Riedmiller Fig 4, encoded audio bitstream frame), and the instructions are further configured to cause the computing system to: merge the first audio package with a second audio package to generate a third audio package (See Riedmiller ¶ [0051], each independent substream can consist of up to eight dependent substreams, independent substream including first and second dependent substream), the second audio package including a third substream as third audio data (See Riedmiller ¶ [0051], each independent substream can consist of up to eight dependent substreams, third dependent substream) and a third loudness parameter associated with playback of the third substream (See Riedmiller ¶ [0180], Loudness processing value of corresponding audio data); generate a normalization parameter associated with playback of the first substream, the second substream, and the third substream; and add the normalization parameter to the codec agnostic container (See Riedmiller ¶ [0118-0119], loudness processing state metadata included in frame payload).
Regarding claim 11, Riedmiller teaches the non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 10, wherein, the merging of the first audio package with the second audio package includes mixing the first substream, the second substream, and the third substream as a fourth substream (See Riedmiller ¶ [0051], each independent substream can consist of up to eight dependent substreams, independent substream including first, second, and third dependent substream), the normalization parameter is a target loudness associated with playback of the fourth substream (See Riedmiller ¶ [0118-0119], loudness processing state metadata included in frame payload); and the fourth substream replaces the first substream, the second substream, and the third substream in an audio presentation (See Riedmiller ¶ [0051], each independent substream can consist of up to eight dependent substreams, independent substream including first, second, and third dependent substream).
Regarding claim 16, Riedmiller teaches the non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 11, wherein if the first substream is associated with a surround speaker (See Riedmiller ¶ [0050], dependent substream indicative of standard format speaker channels including surround) and the second substream is associated with a top speaker (See Riedmiller ¶ [0050], dependent substream indicative of standard format speaker channels including center. Top speaker has no standard definition), wherein the instructions are further configured to cause the computing system to: separately mixing the first substream and the second substream (See Riedmiller ¶ [0051], independent substream may be associated with up to eight dependent substreams).
Regarding claim 17, Riedmiller teaches an apparatus (See Riedmiller Abstract, apparatus for generating an encoded audio bitstream) comprising at least one processor (See Riedmiller Fig 2, processor 103) and at least one memory (See Riedmiller ¶ [0233], storage media) including computer program code (See Riedmiller ¶ [0232], software instructions), the at least one memory and the computer program code configured to, with the at least one processor, cause the apparatus to: generate an audio stream including a first substream as first audio data (See Riedmiller ¶ [0051], each independent substream can consist of up to eight dependent substreams, first dependent substream) and a second substream as second audio data (See Riedmiller ¶ [0051], each independent substream can consist of up to eight dependent substreams, second dependent substream); generate a first loudness parameter associated with playback of the first substream (See Riedmiller ¶ [0180], Loudness processing value of corresponding audio data); generate a second loudness parameter associated with playback of the second substream (See Riedmiller ¶ [0180], Loudness processing value of corresponding audio data); and generate an audio package (See Riedmiller Fig 4, encoded audio bitstream frame) including an identification corresponding to the first audio data (See Riedmiller ¶ [0055], each payload includes a header with a specific payload identifier), an identification corresponding to the second audio data (See Riedmiller ¶ [0055], each payload includes a header with a specific payload identifier), a codec dependent container including a parameter associated with the codec used to compress the first audio data and the second audio data (See Riedmiller fig 7 & ¶ [0041], E-AC-3 frame divided in sections including a Bitstream Information (BSI) section containing most of the metadata and Audio Blocks (AB0 – AB5) which contain data compressed audio content and can also include metadata), and a codec agnostic container including the first loudness parameter and the second loudness parameter (See Riedmiller Fig 6 & ¶ [0032], DIALNORM parameter used for loudness processing within BSI frame).
Regarding claim 18, Riedmiller teaches the apparatus of claim 17, wherein the audio package is a first audio package (See Riedmiller Fig 4, encoded audio bitstream frame), wherein the computer program code is further configured to cause the apparatus to: merging the first audio package with a second audio package to generate a third audio package (See Riedmiller ¶ [0051], each independent substream can consist of up to eight dependent substreams, independent substream including first and second dependent substream), the second audio package including a third substream as third audio data (See Riedmiller ¶ [0051], each independent substream can consist of up to eight dependent substreams, third dependent substream) and a third loudness parameter associated with playback of the third substream (See Riedmiller ¶ [0180], Loudness processing value of corresponding audio data); generating a normalization parameter associated with playback of the first substream, the second substream, and the third substream; and adding the normalization parameter to the codec agnostic container (See Riedmiller ¶ [0118-0119], loudness processing state metadata included in frame payload).
Regarding claim 19, Riedmiller teaches the apparatus of claim 18, wherein, the merging of the first audio package with the second audio package includes mixing the first substream, the second substream, and the third substream as a fourth substream (See Riedmiller ¶ [0051], each independent substream can consist of up to eight dependent substreams, independent substream including first, second, and third dependent substream), the normalization parameter is a target loudness associated with playback of the fourth substream (See Riedmiller ¶ [0118-0119], loudness processing state metadata included in frame payload); and the fourth substream replaces the first substream, the second substream, and the third substream in an audio presentation (See Riedmiller ¶ [0051], each independent substream can consist of up to eight dependent substreams, independent substream including first, second, and third dependent substream).
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
The text of those sections of Title 35, U.S. Code not included in this action can be found in a prior Office action.
Claim(s) 4-7, 12-15, and 20 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Riedmiller et al (U.S. Pub No. 20160196830, hereinafter Riedmiller) as applied to claims above, and further in view of Seo (U.S. Pub No. 20170147282, hereinafter Seo).
Regarding claim 4, Riedmiller teaches the method of claim 3, wherein the mixing of the first substream, the second substream, and the third substream as the fourth substream includes: determining a target sampling rate associated with playback of the first substream, the second substream, and the third substream (See Riedmiller ¶ [0037-0038], bitstream sampling rate).
Riedmiller does not explicitly teach determining whether the substream sampling rates differ from the target sampling rate and if so, re-sampling the substream sampling rates to match the target sampling rate.
Seo teaches determining whether the substream sampling rates differ from the target sampling rate (See Seo ¶ [0050], determines if sampling rate of audio data matches a sampling rate supported by the computing system) and if so, re-sampling the substream sampling rates to match the target sampling rate (See Seo ¶ [0050], sampling rate correction by up-sampling which includes re-sampling at an increased sampling rate).
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 have included the sampling rate correction taught by Seo with the audio bitstream encoding method taught by Riedmiller. Sampling rate correction is well known in the art and plays a crucial role in audio processing to ensure accurate representation of signals.
Regarding claim 5, Riedmiller in view of Seo teaches the method of claim 4.
Riedmiller does not explicitly teach target sampling rate correction using up-sampling and down-sampling.
Seo teaches sampling rate correction using up-sampling (See Seo ¶ [0050], sampling rate correction by up-sampling) and down-sampling (See Seo ¶ [0050], sampling rate correction by down-sampling).
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 have included the sampling rate correction taught by Seo with the audio bitstream encoding method taught by Riedmiller. Both up-sampling and down-sampling are well known in the art and provide various benefits. Up-sampling increases the sampling rate allowing for better accuracy and reduced aliasing while down-sampling decreases the sampling rate which can reduce file size and processing time.
Regarding claim 6, Riedmiller teaches the method of claim 2, further comprising: determining a target sampling rate associated with playback of the first substream, the second substream, and the third substream (See Riedmiller ¶ [0037-0038], bitstream sampling rate).
Riedmiller does not explicitly teach determining whether the substream sampling rates differ from the target sampling rate and if so, re-sampling the substream sampling rates to match the target sampling rate.
Seo teaches determining whether the substream sampling rates differ from the target sampling rate (See Seo ¶ [0050], determines if sampling rate of audio data matches a sampling rate supported by the computing system) and if so, re-sampling the substream sampling rates to match the target sampling rate (See Seo ¶ [0050], sampling rate correction by up-sampling which includes re-sampling at an increased sampling rate).
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 have included the sampling rate correction taught by Seo with the audio bitstream encoding method taught by Riedmiller. Sampling rate correction is well known in the art and plays a crucial role in audio processing to ensure accurate representation of signals.
Regarding claim 7, Riedmiller in view of Seo teaches the method of claim 6.
Riedmiller does not explicitly teach target sampling rate correction using up-sampling and down-sampling.
Seo teaches sampling rate correction using up-sampling (See Seo ¶ [0050], sampling rate correction by up-sampling) and down-sampling (See Seo ¶ [0050], sampling rate correction by down-sampling).
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 have included the sampling rate correction taught by Seo with the audio bitstream encoding method taught by Riedmiller. Both up-sampling and down-sampling are well known in the art and provide various benefits. Up-sampling increases the sampling rate allowing for better accuracy and reduced aliasing while down-sampling decreases the sampling rate which can reduce file size and processing time.
Regarding claim 12, Riedmiller teaches the non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 11, wherein the mixing of the first substream, the second substream, and the third substream as a fourth substream includes: determining a target sampling rate associated with playback of the first substream, the second substream, and the third substream (See Riedmiller ¶ [0037-0038], bitstream sampling rate).
Riedmiller does not explicitly teach determining whether the substream sampling rates differ from the target sampling rate and if so, re-sampling the substream sampling rates to match the target sampling rate.
Seo teaches determining whether the substream sampling rates differ from the target sampling rate (See Seo ¶ [0050], determines if sampling rate of audio data matches a sampling rate supported by the computing system) and if so, re-sampling the substream sampling rates to match the target sampling rate (See Seo ¶ [0050], sampling rate correction by up-sampling which includes re-sampling at an increased sampling rate).
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 have included the sampling rate correction taught by Seo with the audio bitstream encoding method taught by Riedmiller. Sampling rate correction is well known in the art and plays a crucial role in audio processing to ensure accurate representation of signals.
Regarding claim 13, Riedmiller in view of Seo teaches the non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 12.
Riedmiller does not explicitly teach target sampling rate correction using up-sampling and down-sampling.
Seo teaches sampling rate correction using up-sampling (See Seo ¶ [0050], sampling rate correction by up-sampling) and down-sampling (See Seo ¶ [0050], sampling rate correction by down-sampling).
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 have included the sampling rate correction taught by Seo with the audio bitstream encoding method taught by Riedmiller. Both up-sampling and down-sampling are well known in the art and provide various benefits. Up-sampling increases the sampling rate allowing for better accuracy and reduced aliasing while down-sampling decreases the sampling rate which can reduce file size and processing time.
Regarding claim 14, Riedmiller teaches the non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 10, wherein the instructions are further configured to cause the computing system to: determine a target sampling rate associated with playback of the first substream, the second substream, and the third substream (See Riedmiller ¶ [0037-0038], bitstream sampling rate).
Riedmiller does not explicitly teach determining whether the substream sampling rates differ from the target sampling rate and if so, re-sampling the substream sampling rates to match the target sampling rate.
Seo teaches determining whether the substream sampling rates differ from the target sampling rate (See Seo ¶ [0050], determines if sampling rate of audio data matches a sampling rate supported by the computing system) and if so, re-sampling the substream sampling rates to match the target sampling rate (See Seo ¶ [0050], sampling rate correction by up-sampling which includes re-sampling at an increased sampling rate).
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 have included the sampling rate correction taught by Seo with the audio bitstream encoding method taught by Riedmiller. Sampling rate correction is well known in the art and plays a crucial role in audio processing to ensure accurate representation of signals.
Regarding claim 15, Riedmiller in view of Seo teaches the non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 14.
Riedmiller does not explicitly teach target sampling rate correction using up-sampling and down-sampling.
Seo teaches sampling rate correction using up-sampling (See Seo ¶ [0050], sampling rate correction by up-sampling) and down-sampling (See Seo ¶ [0050], sampling rate correction by down-sampling).
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 have included the sampling rate correction taught by Seo with the audio bitstream encoding method taught by Riedmiller. Both up-sampling and down-sampling are well known in the art and provide various benefits. Up-sampling increases the sampling rate allowing for better accuracy and reduced aliasing while down-sampling decreases the sampling rate which can reduce file size and processing time.
Regarding claim 20, Riedmiller teaches the apparatus of claim 18, wherein the computer program code is further configured to cause the apparatus to: determining a target sampling rate associated with playback of the first substream, the second substream, and the third substream (See Riedmiller ¶ [0037-0038], bitstream sampling rate).
Riedmiller does not explicitly teach determining whether the substream sampling rates differ from the target sampling rate and if so, re-sampling the substream sampling rates to match the target sampling rate.
Seo teaches determining whether the substream sampling rates differ from the target sampling rate (See Seo ¶ [0050], determines if sampling rate of audio data matches a sampling rate supported by the computing system) and if so, re-sampling the substream sampling rates to match the target sampling rate (See Seo ¶ [0050], sampling rate correction by up-sampling which includes re-sampling at an increased sampling rate).
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 have included the sampling rate correction taught by Seo with the audio bitstream encoding method taught by Riedmiller. Sampling rate correction is well known in the art and plays a crucial role in audio processing to ensure accurate representation of signals.
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed 08/26/2025 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive. Applicant’s argument page 1 lines 23-26 state that Riedmiller fails to teach subdivided audio content, in that regard the examiner disagrees. Figures 4-8 of Riedmiller all show various breakdowns of how data is subdivided within the data packets. Figure 7 specifically shows metadata (BSI frame) and audio content (AB) frame as subdivided containers as well as the audio content being further broken down into six separate audio blocks AB0-AB5. As such, the prior art of Riedmiller reads on the claim language as presented.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Schreiner et al (US Pub No. 20240284000) teaches processing a media stream using a predefined transport format.
Applicant's amendment necessitated the new ground(s) of rejection presented in this Office action. Accordingly, THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. See MPEP § 706.07(a). Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to TYLER LIEBGOTT whose telephone number is (703)756-1818. The examiner can normally be reached Mon-Fri 10-6:30 EST.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Fan Tsang can be reached at (571)272-7547. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/T.M.L./Examiner, Art Unit 2694
/FAN S TSANG/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2694