DETAILED ACTION
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 101
35 U.S.C. 101 reads as follows:
Whoever invents or discovers any new and useful process, machine, manufacture, or composition of matter, or any new and useful improvement thereof, may obtain a patent therefor, subject to the conditions and requirements of this title.
Claim 14 rejected under 35 U.S.C. 101 because the claimed invention is directed to non-statutory subject matter. The claim(s) does/do not fall within at least one of the four categories of patent eligible subject matter due to a program. A program fails to be within one of the four categories of patent eligible subject matter.
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 of this title, if the differences between the claimed invention and the prior art are such that the claimed invention as a whole would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to a person having ordinary skill in the art to which the claimed invention pertains. Patentability shall not be negated by the manner in which the invention was made.
Claims 1-11, 13-15 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103(a) as being unpatentable over Fujii (US 20190205010), in view of Bakken (US 20170192649).
Regarding Claim 1, 13-15, Fujii discloses a computer in an electronic device with a display, wherein the electronic device is configured for providing a telephone connection to a second electronic device, the comprising the steps: - providing a telephone connection to the second electronic device; - displaying an end call icon on the touch-sensitive display while providing the telephone connection to the second electronic device, wherein in case the telephone connection is terminated by the second electronic device: after termination of the telephone connection, in which the end call icon was displayed during the telephone connection, does not initiate a new telephone call (Paragraph 0175; Figures 12a, 12b). Examiner submits that after the end call icon is pressed and once the call is terminated, the end call icon remains on the screen in a different changed color. Since the end call icon remains on the screen in the same location after call termination, this does not allow the user to immediately initiate a new call.
Fujii does not disclose touch-sensitive display; within a determined time range a detection of the touch-sensitive display being touched in a display area. However, Bakken discloses touch-sensitive display; within a determined time range a detection of the touch-sensitive display being touched in a display area (paragraph 0023-0024; Figures 2 and 3). It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention was made to modify Fujii to incorporate touch-sensitive display; within a determined time range a detection of the touch-sensitive display being touched in a display area, as disclosed in Bakken, for the purpose of increasing the versatility and functionality of the display device of Fujii, and so that the user of Fujii can make better informed decisions on which icons of Figure 12 to activate/press and to avoid unintentional icon selection upon incorporating time range functionality of Bakken, and since both Fujii and Bakken identically disclose multiple icons on a display as disclosed in Figure 12 of Fujii and Paragraph 0023/Figure 2 of Bakken.
Regarding Claim 2, Fujii discloses wherein the following steps are executed before the step of providing a telephone connection to the second electronic device: - detecting a selection of a telephone call icon that is displayed on the touch- sensitive display;- displaying a telephone menu associated with the selection of the telephone call icon on the touch-sensitive display; - detecting a selection of a contact or telephone number that is displayed on the touch-sensitive display; - initiating a telephone call to the second electronic device associated with the selected contact or telephone number for the purpose of providing a telephone connection to the second electronic device (Paragraphs 0175; 0165-0178; Figure 12).
Regarding Claim 3, Fujii discloses wherein the telephone menu associated with the telephone call icon displays a call history of recent telephone connections to different contacts or telephone numbers, wherein the different contacts or telephone numbers are arranged as a list (Paragraphs 0175; 0165-0178; Figure 12).
Regarding Claim 4, Fujii discloses wherein only a detection of the touch-sensitive display being touched in the display area in which the end call icon was displayed during the telephone connection, does not initiate a new telephone connection, wherein a detection of the touch-sensitive display being touched outside the display area in which the end call icon was displayed during the telephone connection, does select the operation associated with the icon that is displayed on the area where the touch-sensitive display is touched (Paragraphs 0175; 0165-0178; Figure 12).
Regarding Claim 5, Bakken discloses wherein the determined time range after termination of the telephone connection is set to a value of 0 seconds to 5 seconds, in particular 0 seconds to 2 seconds, preferably 0 seconds to 0.7 seconds (paragraph 0023-0024; Figures 2 and 3).
Regarding Claim 6, Fujii discloses wherein after termination of the telephone connection by the second electronic device, the touch-sensitive display displays the telephone menu that was displayed before providing the telephone connection to the second electronic device, wherein at least in the display area where the end call icon was displayed, a selection of a contact or telephone number of the updated telephone menu that is displayed on the touch-sensitive display could be made impossible during the determined time range (Paragraphs 0175; 0165-0178; Figure 12).
Regarding Claim 7, Fujii discloses wherein after termination of the telephone connection by the second electronic device, the touch-sensitive display displays the telephone menu that was displayed before providing the telephone connection to the second electronic device, wherein further selection of an operation is not possible during the determined time range after termination of the telephone connection (Paragraphs 0175; 0165-0178; Figure 12).
Regarding Claim 8, Fujii discloses wherein if - the displayed telephone menu is a call history of recent telephone connections to different contacts or telephone numbers including the telephone connection that was just terminated and - it is detected that the touch-sensitive display is touched in a display area in which the end call icon was displayed during the last telephone connection,- then instead of directly initiating a new telephone connection to one of the contacts or telephone numbers displayed in the call history, a confirmation request appears that requests further confirmation to initiate a new telephone connection (Paragraphs 0175; 0165-0178; Figure 12).
Regarding Claim 9, Fujii discloses wherein after termination of the telephone connection by the second electronic device, the end call icon is still displayed for the determined time range (Paragraphs 0175; 0165-0178; Figure 12).
Regarding Claim 10, Fujii discloses wherein after termination of the telephone connection by the second electronic device, a telephone menu is displayed that does not allow direct initiation of a further telephone connection (Paragraphs 0175; 0165-0178; Figure 12).
Regarding Claim 11, Bakken discloses wherein the determined time range after termination of the telephone connection, is not caused by a delay due to lack of computing power, but is foreseen intentionally (paragraph 0023-0024; Figures 2 and 3).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to ANKUR JAIN whose telephone number is (571)272-9747. The examiner can normally be reached on Monday-Friday 10:00-6:00
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/ANKUR JAIN/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2649