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
Examiner acknowledges receipt of Applicant’s amendments and arguments filed 03/26/2026. The arguments set forth are addressed herein below.
Applicant’s amendments necessitated the new ground of rejection set forth herein; therefore, this action is made Final.
Claims 1–3, 10, 15–16, and 18–20 were amended
Claims 1-20 are now pending.
AIA Notice
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 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.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
The following is a quotation of the appropriate paragraphs of 35 U.S.C. 102 that form the basis for the rejections under this section made in this Office action:
A person shall be entitled to a patent unless –
(a)(1) the claimed invention was patented, described in a printed publication, or in public use, on sale or otherwise available to the public before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
(a)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claims 1-11, 14-15, and 18-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by U.S. Patent Application Publication 2023/0386121 to Singla et al.
Regarding Claim 1, (Currently amended) Singla discloses a method of providing interactive content to at least one two users, the method comprising:
providing a server having interactive content (FIG. 1–2; ¶¶ [0022]–[0023], [0026];
rendering, with a processor of the server, at least a portion of the interactive content for two or more users in a single rendering pass (filters per user (712), and rendering unit 214 generates per-user render-texture sets (714). ¶¶ [0032], [0046]–[0049]; FIG. 5) in a single server instance simultaneously, thereby providing rendered screen frames of the interactive content for the two or more users (¶¶ [0005], [0027], [0032]–[0033], [0049]; FIG. 5, 7, steps (706–714); ¶ [0088]); and
streaming, through at least one network connection, the rendered screen frames of the interactive content to the two or more users, whereby the rendered screen frames of the interactive content are displayed on two or more local computing devices corresponding to the two or more users, respectively (¶¶ [0033], [0050]; FIG. 5 (716) discloses streaming unit 216 streams the render-texture set to the respective devices over network 106).
Regarding Claim 2, (Currently amended) Singla discloses the method of claim 1, wherein interactive content further comprises a single authoritative virtual world, wherein the single authoritative virtual world is identical for the one two or more users (¶¶ [0030]–[0031], [0034]).
Regarding Claim 3, (Currently amended) Singla discloses the method of claim 1, wherein rendering the interactive content for the one two or more users in the single rendering pass in a single server instance simultaneously further comprises:
rendering the interactive content to a texture canvas, wherein the texture canvas is large enough for all rendered screen frames of the interactive content (paras. [0006]-[0007]), [0032]); and
partitioning the rendered screen frames of the interactive content into individual user screen frames, wherein the individual user screen frames correspond to different users and are adjustable for each specific user's perspective, whereby each user sees a screen frame from the specific user's perspective (paras. [0032]-[0035]).
Regarding Claim 4, (Original) Singla discloses the method of claim 3, further comprising encoding the individual user screen frames prior to streaming (¶¶ [0005], [0027], [0032]–[0033], [0049]; FIG. 5, 7, steps (706–714); ¶ [0088]).
Regarding Claim 5, (Original) Singla discloses the method of claim 3, further comprising displaying at least two of the individual user screen frames on a single display screen (¶¶ [0005], [0027], [0032]–[0033], [0049]; FIG. 5, 7, steps (706–714); ¶ [0088]).
Regarding Claim 6, (Original) Singla discloses the method of claim 5, wherein each individual user screen frame has a reduced viewpoint, wherein at least one of the at least two of the individual user screen frames displayed on the single display screen is smaller than another of the at least two of the individual user screen frames displayed on the single display screen (¶¶ [0005], [0027], [0032]–[0033], [0049]; FIG. 5, 7, steps (706–714); ¶ [0088]).
Regarding Claim 7, (Original) Singla discloses the method of claim 3, wherein the texture canvas is large enough for all rendered screen frames of the interactive content and for any individual user requested resolutions (¶¶ [0005], [0027], [0032]–[0033], [0049]; FIG. 5, 7, steps (706–714); ¶ [0088]).
Regarding Claim 8. (Original) Singla discloses the method of claim 3, wherein rendering the interactive content to the texture canvas further comprises rendering all overlay icons on the rendered screen frames before partitioning the rendered screen frames into individual user screen frames (¶¶ [0005], [0027], [0032]–[0033], [0049]; FIG. 5, 7, steps (706–714); ¶ [0088]).
Regarding Claim 9, (Original) The method of claim 3, further comprising mapping a region of individual user screen frames to a single viewport, thereby providing a composited screen frame (¶¶ [0005], [0027], [0032]–[0033], [0049]; FIG. 5, 7, steps (706–714); ¶ [0088]).
Regarding Claim 10, (Currently amended) Singla discloses the method of claim 9, wherein a first user of the one two or more users can simultaneously view on a display screen one of the individual user screen frames corresponding to the first user and another of the individual user screen frames corresponding to a second user (¶¶ [0005], [0027], [0032]–[0033], [0049]; FIG. 5, 7, steps (706–714); ¶ [0088]).
Regarding Claim 11, (Original) Singla discloses the method of claim 9, further comprising compositing the individual user screen frames: before additional information is added; or after additional information is added (¶¶ [0005], [0027], [0032]–[0033], [0049]; FIG. 5, 7, steps (706–714); ¶ [0088]).
Regarding Claim 14, (Original) Singla discloses the method of claim 13, further comprising setting up and managing spare host streaming nodes (¶¶ [0005], [0027], [0032]–[0033], [0049]; FIG. 5, 7, steps (706–714); ¶ [0088]).
Regarding Claim 15, (Currently amended) Singla discloses the method of claim 1, wherein the rendered screen frames of the interactive content streamed to the two or more local computing devices corresponding to the two or more users, respectively, further comprises playing audio associated with the rendered screen frames of the interactive content, wherein the audio is spatialized (Singla assigns a unique audio channel per user (¶¶ [0055], [0083]).
Regarding Claim 18, (Currently amended) Singla discloses the method of claim 1, wherein the two or more users use a web browser to access the rendered screen frames of the interactive content that are displayed on the one two or more local computing devices of the one two or more users, respectively (Singla discloses users accessing the environment using a device “such as a web browser, a smartphone, [or] a tablet.” ¶ [0034]).
Regarding Claim 19, it is rejected for the same reasons as Claim 1 and 3 above (¶¶ [0005], [0027], [0032]–[0033], [0049]; FIG. 5, 7, steps (706–714); ¶ [0088]).
Regarding Claim 20, (Currently amended) Singla discloses a system of providing interactive content to at least two users comprising:
a server having interactive content, the server having a processor and a non- transitory memory (figs. 1-2, server 102, interactive content 202, memory 204);
rendered screen frames derived from the interactive content by a rendering process with the processor of the server, wherein the rendering process renders at least a portion of the interactive content for two or more users in a single rendering pass filters per user (712), and rendering unit 214 generates per-user render-texture sets (714). ¶¶ [0032], [0046]–[0049]; FIG. 5) in a single server instance simultaneously, thereby providing the rendered screen frames of the interactive content for the two or more users ((¶¶ [0005], [0027], [0032]–[0033], [0049]; FIG. 5, 7, steps (706–714); ¶[0088]);
at least one network connection (106) between the server and local computing devices, wherein the rendered screen frames of the interactive content are streamed to the two or more users (¶ [0050]); and
a display device for each of the local computing devices, wherein the rendered screen frames of the interactive content are displayed on the display device of each of the local computing devices corresponding to the two or more users, and are adjustable for each specific user's perspective, whereby each user sees a screen frame from the specific user's perspective (¶¶ [0028], [0057]–[0059], [0068]).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 12-13, and 16-17 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.
Response to Arguments/Remarks
Applicant’s arguments filed 03/09/2026 have been fully considered and are found persuasive. The rejection of claims 1–20 under 35 U.S.C. §102(a)(2) over Holzer (US 2020/0213578) is withdrawn.
Conclusion
THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. 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 SHAUNA-KAY HALL whose telephone number is (571)270-1419. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 9:00AM-5:00PM.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Xuan Thai can be reached at (571) 272-7147. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/S.N.H/Examiner, Art Unit 3715
/XUAN M THAI/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3715
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