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 .
Notice to Applicants
This communication is in response to the Application filed on 3/11/2024.
Claims 3-22 are pending. Claim 1 and 2 have been cancelled.
Claim Objections
Claim 1 is objected to because of the following informalities:
In claim 1, line 2, “the speed of an object” should be changed to “a speed of an object”.
In claim 1, line 11, “a speed of the object” should be changed to “the speed of the object”.
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.
Claim 6, 7, 9, 14, 18 and 20 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 6 recites the limitation "the imaging sensor" in line 3. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim. Clarification/explanation is required.
Claim 7 recites the limitation "the imaging sensor" in line 3. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim. Clarification/explanation is required.
Claim 9 recites the limitation "the imaging sensor" in line 6. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim. Clarification/explanation is required.
Claim 14 recites the limitation "the imaging sensor" in line 5. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim. Clarification/explanation is required.
With respect to claim 18, arguments analogous to those presented for claim 6, are applicable.
With respect to claim 20, arguments analogous to those presented for claim 9, are applicable.
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.
This application currently names joint inventors. In considering patentability of the claims the examiner presumes that the subject matter of the various claims was commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the claimed invention(s) absent any evidence to the contrary. Applicant is advised of the obligation under 37 CFR 1.56 to point out the inventor and effective filing dates of each claim that was not commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the later invention in order for the examiner to consider the applicability of 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(2)(C) for any potential 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) prior art against the later invention.
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 3, 4, 9, 13, 15, 16, 20 and 22 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Deng et al. (U.S Publication No. 2017/0048441) (hereafter, "Deng") in view of OH (KR 101408118B1).
Regarding claim 3, Deng teaches a computer-implemented method for determining the speed of an object ([0021] the processor 106 may calculate a speed of the selected object as well as a speed threshold in response to one or more of the plurality of frames 118, 120, 122), the computer-implemented method comprising: a) signaling an imaging sensor exposure using a first time period ([0022] The processor 106 may then use a determined illuminance and the target exposure value to set an exposure time for one or more next frames) … c) identifying two of the at least two instances of the object in the image frame ([0023] The processor 106 may determine a first bounding box 142 around the object 140 in the first frame 118 and a second bounding box 144 around the object 140 in the second frame 120. The processor 106 may determine the bounding boxes 142, 144 by using object detection and recognition techniques to identify the object 140 and determining the bounding boxes 142, 144 as bounding boxes centered around the object 140. If the object 140 moves relative to the camera 112 within the image capture plane of the camera 112 between T0 and T1, the bounding boxes 142, 144 may have different positions in the image capture plane); d) determining a speed of the object ([0021] the processor 106 may calculate a speed of the selected object as well as a speed threshold in response to one or more of the plurality of frames 118, 120, 122) using (1) a pixel difference between the two instances of the object identified in image frame and ([0023] The processor 106 may determine a first speed 126 of the object at the first time by determining a pixel difference between a first position of the object 140 in the first frame 118 and a second position of the object 140 in the second frame 120 (e.g., by determining a difference between coordinates of the first bounding box 142 and coordinates of the second bounding box 144)).
Deng does not expressly teach b) activating a secondary shutter at least twice within the first time period to generate an image frame having at least two instances of the object … (2) a time difference between the secondary shutter activations corresponding to the two instances of the object identified in the image frame.
However, OH teaches b) activating a secondary shutter at least twice within the first time period to generate an image frame having at least two instances of the object ([0071] the camera control unit (170) opens the shutter twice in succession for at least two consecutive shots faster than the inherent output speed of the image sensor (e.g., 2 ms). The second shutter opens before the second light turns on; [0075] FIG. 5 is an example diagram showing a photograph taken when a subject (e.g., a golf ball) moves at 85 m/s; [0082] the number of times continuous shooting can be performed within the above-mentioned unique shooting time is described as 2, but the number of times continuous shooting can be performed may increase further depending on requirements such as the internal memory capacity of the image sensor unit (110), exposure interval, and unique shooting time) … (2) a time difference between the secondary shutter activations corresponding to the two instances of the object identified in the image frame ([0058] the time difference for acquiring high-speed images can be controlled by controlling the lighting on/off time interval of the lighting ... the time difference of high-speed images shot continuously when a trigger signal is generated can be controlled; [0059] the camera control unit (170) has the effect of enabling continuous shooting at a speed (e.g., 0.4 ms) faster than the shooting time determined by the image sensor's unique output speed (e.g., 2 ms) through time difference control of high-speed video using the lighting; [0054] The above image processing unit (150) calculates physical characteristic information such as the moving speed ... of the moving subject based on the image information acquired through the high-speed shooting and the characteristic information (e.g., subject characteristic information) of the initially shot image (e.g., still image); [0048] the subject movement detection unit (130) detects the movement of the subject by using the degree of change in the pixel value of the subject and the degree of change in the outer background of the subject).
It would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to one having ordinary skill in the art to modify the method and device of Deng to incorporate the step/system of triggering the shutter multiple times during an exposure time to capture the subject in several positions within one frame and calculating a speed of the subject by using time difference between high-speed captures and the degree of change in the pixel value of the subject taught by OH.
The suggestion/motivation for doing so would have been to improve the accuracy of physical characteristic information of a fast-moving subject ([0105] the present invention enables a high-speed photographing system having the same or similar specifications as a camera using an expensive high-speed image sensor by using a relatively inexpensive low-speed image sensor, and further enables accurate acquisition of physical characteristic information of a subject moving faster than the speed of the subject that can be acquired using a plurality of cameras in the past, and further enables more accurate acquisition of image information of a fast-moving subject, and further enables detection of the movement of a subject and high-speed image shooting through a single camera by changing the image sensor driving method, and has the effect of enabling acquisition of physical characteristic information of a subject by a camera system alone). Further, one skilled in the art could have combined the elements as described above by known method with no change in their respective functions, and the combination would have yielded nothing more than predicted results. Therefore, it would have been obvious to combine Deng with OH to obtain the invention as specified in claim 3.
Regarding claim 4, the combination of Deng and OH teaches all the limitations of claim 3 above. OH teaches wherein the imaging sensor exposure has a duration of less than 1 ms ([0074] With the above two shutter openings, two images are captured consecutively in a very short time (e.g., 0.4 ms)).
Regarding claim 9, the combination of Deng and OH teaches all the limitations of claim 3 above. OH teaches wherein the first time period begins right before a start of a first of n activations of the secondary shutter, where n is at least 2, and ([0071] the camera control unit (170) opens the shutter twice in succession for at least two consecutive shots faster than the inherent output speed of the image sensor (e.g., 2 ms). The second shutter opens before the second light turns on) a corresponding imaging sensor activation ends right after a last of the n activations of the secondary shutter ([0080] after turning on the light with the shutter open, the shutter is closed when the light is in the turned off state, and immediately before the first lighting cycle (T1) ends, the light is turned on again with the shutter open) whereby the imaging sensor is active during all n consecutive activations of the secondary shutter during the first time period ([0071] the camera control unit (170) opens the shutter twice in succession for at least two consecutive shots faster than the inherent output speed of the image sensor (e.g., 2 ms)).
Regarding claim 13, the combination of Deng and OH teaches all the limitations of claim 3 above. OH teaches wherein the two of the at least two instances of the object identified in the image frame are separated by at least a size of the object ([0085] That is, as shown in Fig. 6, when the subject's movement speed increases or the camera's field of view narrows while 6 shots are possible, the number of shots may decrease to 4 or 2, and also, when the subject's movement speed decreases or the camera's field of view widens, the number of shots may increase to 8; FIG. 6 shows two instances of the object are separated by at least a size of the object).
With respect to claim 15, arguments analogous to those presented for claim 3, are applicable.
With respect to claim 16, arguments analogous to those presented for claim 4, are applicable.
With respect to claim 20, arguments analogous to those presented for claim 9, are applicable.
With respect to claim 22, arguments analogous to those presented for claim 13, are applicable.
Claim 6, 7 and 18 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Deng et al. (U.S Publication No. 2017/0048441) (hereafter, "Deng") in view of OH (KR 101408118B1) and further in view of Ardo et al. (U.S Publication No. 2019/0141251) (hereafter, "Ardo").
Regarding claim 6, the combination of Deng and OH teaches all the limitations of claim 3 above.
The combination of Deng and OH does not expressly teach wherein the secondary shutter is arranged between (1) a zoomed camera including the imaging sensor and (2) an adjustment mechanism for adjusting a narrow field of view of the zoomed camera.
However, Ardo teaches wherein the secondary shutter is arranged between (1) a zoomed camera including the imaging sensor and ([0042] As shown in FIG. 2, camera 110 may include a housing 202, shutter 204, lens assembly 206, sensor array 208; [0044] Shutter 204 provides an opening for light to reach lens assembly 206; [0045] lens assembly 206 may include a set of magnification lenses for performing an optical zoom) (2) an adjustment mechanism for adjusting a narrow field of view of the zoomed camera ([0042] As shown in FIG. 2, camera 110 may include a housing 202, shutter 204, lens assembly 206, sensor array 208, chassis 210, actuators 212, and controller 214; [0045] lens assembly 206 may include a set of magnification lenses for performing an optical zoom; [0043] housing 202 contains shutter 204, lens assembly 206, sensor array 208, and chassis 210 … housing 202 may include actuators 212 and controller 214; [0049] actuators 212 may change, for example, the magnification of lens assembly 206, modify the location of image plane of lens assembly 206 by repositioning one or more of the lenses, and/or change the size of the opening of shutter 204 to admit more or less light).
It would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to one having ordinary skill in the art to modify the method and device of Deng and OH to incorporate the step/system of arranging the shutter between the zoomed camera and the actuators controlling the magnification of lens assembly which performing an optical zoom taught by Ardo.
The suggestion/motivation for doing so would have been to improve the image quality ([0001] As cameras and monitoring devices proliferate, manufacturers are designing and incorporating many features into such devices, to aid users to capture high-quality images; [0033] providing both digital zoom and optical zoom jointly, the camera may also avoid the abrupt transition from a digital zoom to an optical zoom (e.g., when additional digital zooming would otherwise degrade the image quality)). Further, one skilled in the art could have combined the elements as described above by known method with no change in their respective functions, and the combination would have yielded nothing more than predicted results. Therefore, it would have been obvious to combine Deng and OH with Ardo to obtain the invention as specified in claim 6.
Regarding claim 7, the combination of Deng and OH teaches all the limitations of claim 3 above. Ardo teaches wherein the secondary shutter is arranged between (1) a zoomed camera including the imaging sensor and ([0042] As shown in FIG. 2, camera 110 may include a housing 202, shutter 204, lens assembly 206, sensor array 208; [0044] Shutter 204 provides an opening for light to reach lens assembly 206; [0045] lens assembly 206 may include a set of magnification lenses for performing an optical zoom) (2) an adjustable mirror for adjusting a narrow field of view of the zoomed camera ([0042] As shown in FIG. 2, camera 110 may include a housing 202, shutter 204, lens assembly 206, sensor array 208, chassis 210, actuators 212, and controller 214; [0045] Lens assembly 206 may include different types of lenses (e.g., convex, concave, reflective, etc.) … lens assembly 206 may include a set of magnification lenses for performing an optical zoom; [0049] actuators 212 may change, for example, the magnification of lens assembly 206, modify the location of image plane of lens assembly 206 by repositioning one or more of the lenses, and/or change the size of the opening of shutter 204 to admit more or less light).
With respect to claim 18, arguments analogous to those presented for claim 6, are applicable.
Claim 8, 10 and 19 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Deng et al. (U.S Publication No. 2017/0048441) (hereafter, "Deng") in view of OH (KR 101408118B1) and further in view of KIM et al. (U.S Publication No. 2017/0257568) (hereafter, "KIM").
Regarding claim 8, the combination of Deng and OH teaches all the limitations of claim 3 above.
OH teaches wherein the secondary shutter is activated n times, where n is at least two, within the first time period, and ([0082] the number of times continuous shooting can be performed within the above-mentioned unique shooting time is described as 2, but the number of times continuous shooting can be performed may increase further depending on requirements such as the internal memory capacity of the image sensor unit (110), exposure interval, and unique shooting time).
OH does not expressly teach wherein a period between activations of the secondary shutter is equal to the first time period divided by n.
However, KIM teaches wherein a period between activations of the secondary shutter is equal to the first time period divided by n ([0014] The image acquirer may acquire high-speed images in a multiple exposure mode by repeatedly operating the first shutter and the second shutter N times at regular time intervals while one image frame is acquired).
It would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to one having ordinary skill in the art to modify the method and device of Deng and OH to incorporate the step/system of executing N shutter cycles at steady intervals to capture high-speed multi-exposure images taught by KIM.
The suggestion/motivation for doing so would have been to provide a cost-effective solution for a fast-moving object analysis by eliminating the need for external motion sensors and improving the precision of calculation of the object's velocity ([0003] Without using a separate motion recognition sensor, an expensive high-speed camera, or a separate flash lamp device, the apparatus and method may automatically recognize the movement of a sports ball, automatically capture high-speed images of the moving ball, and automatically analyze movement information, including a movement velocity and direction of the sports ball, the force and axis of rotation of the ball, and the like). Further, one skilled in the art could have combined the elements as described above by known method with no change in their respective functions, and the combination would have yielded nothing more than predicted results. Therefore, it would have been obvious to combine Deng and OH with KIM to obtain the invention as specified in claim 8.
Regarding claim 10, the combination of Deng and OH teaches all the limitations of claim 3 above. KIM teaches wherein a period between activations of the secondary shutter is greater than a duration of the imaging sensor exposure ([0014] The image acquirer may acquire high-speed images in a multiple exposure mode by repeatedly operating the first shutter and the second shutter N times at regular time intervals while one image frame is acquired).
With respect to claim 19, arguments analogous to those presented for claim 8, are applicable.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claim 5, 11, 12, 17 and 21 are objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
Claim 14 would be allowable if rewritten to overcome the rejection(s) under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), 2nd paragraph, set forth in this Office action and to include all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to DANIEL C. CHANG whose telephone number is (571)270-1277. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Thursday and Alternate Fridays 8:00-5:00.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Chan S. Park can be reached at (571) 272-7409. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/DANIEL C CHANG/Examiner, Art Unit 2669
/CHAN S PARK/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2669