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 .
DETAILED ACTION
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 11/11/2025 is in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner.
Response to Amendment
The amendment filed 11/11/2025, has been entered. Claims 1-16, 18-33, 35, and 36 are pending in the application. Applicant’s amendments to the claims have overcome each and every objection and 35 U.S.C. 101 rejection previously set forth in the Non-Final Action mailed August 13th, 2025.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to claim(s) 1-16, 18-33, 35, and 36 have been considered but are moot because the new ground of rejection does not rely on any reference applied in the prior rejection of record for any teaching or matter specifically challenged in the argument.
Claim Interpretation
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(f):
(f) Element in Claim for a Combination. – An element in a claim for a combination may be expressed as a means or step for performing a specified function without the recital of structure, material, or acts in support thereof, and such claim shall be construed to cover the corresponding structure, material, or acts described in the specification and equivalents thereof.
The following is a quotation of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph:
An element in a claim for a combination may be expressed as a means or step for performing a specified function without the recital of structure, material, or acts in support thereof, and such claim shall be construed to cover the corresponding structure, material, or acts described in the specification and equivalents thereof.
The claims in this application are given their broadest reasonable interpretation using the plain meaning of the claim language in light of the specification as it would be understood by one of ordinary skill in the art. The broadest reasonable interpretation of a claim element (also commonly referred to as a claim limitation) is limited by the description in the specification when 35 U.S.C. 112(f) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph, is invoked.
As explained in MPEP § 2181, subsection I, claim limitations that meet the following three-prong test will be interpreted under 35 U.S.C. 112(f) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph:
(A) the claim limitation uses the term “means” or “step” or a term used as a substitute for “means” that is a generic placeholder (also called a nonce term or a non-structural term having no specific structural meaning) for performing the claimed function;
(B) the term “means” or “step” or the generic placeholder is modified by functional language, typically, but not always linked by the transition word “for” (e.g., “means for”) or another linking word or phrase, such as “configured to” or “so that”; and
(C) the term “means” or “step” or the generic placeholder is not modified by sufficient structure, material, or acts for performing the claimed function.
Use of the word “means” (or “step”) in a claim with functional language creates a rebuttable presumption that the claim limitation is to be treated in accordance with 35 U.S.C. 112(f) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph. The presumption that the claim limitation is interpreted under 35 U.S.C. 112(f) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph, is rebutted when the claim limitation recites sufficient structure, material, or acts to entirely perform the recited function.
Absence of the word “means” (or “step”) in a claim creates a rebuttable presumption that the claim limitation is not to be treated in accordance with 35 U.S.C. 112(f) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph. The presumption that the claim limitation is not interpreted under 35 U.S.C. 112(f) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph, is rebutted when the claim limitation recites function without reciting sufficient structure, material or acts to entirely perform the recited function.
Claim limitations in this application that use the word “means” (or “step”) are being interpreted under 35 U.S.C. 112(f) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph, except as otherwise indicated in an Office action. Conversely, claim limitations in this application that do not use the word “means” (or “step”) are not being interpreted under 35 U.S.C. 112(f) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph, except as otherwise indicated in an Office action.
In light of the above statutory basis, the following claim limitations are being interpreted under 35 U.S.C. 112(f):
“means for receiving, from a V2X-capable device, one or more V2X messages indicating at least one detected event associated with a road on which the V2X-capable vehicle is travelling”, in Claim 35
“and means for determining a viable driving trajectory for the V2X-capable vehicle from a plurality of potential driving trajectories of the V2X-capable vehicle based, at least in part, on the at least one detected event”, in Claim 35
As these claims are interpreted under 35 U.S.C. 112(f), they are being interpreted to cover the corresponding structure described in the specification of the application as performing the claimed function, and equivalents thereof. The specification discloses transceivers for providing means for receiving and processors for providing means of determining, as listed in paragraphs [0105] and [0113] of the specification. The transceivers and processors listed are adequate structure for performing the claimed limitations, and thus, no 35 U.S.C. 112 rejections are given, and no further action is required by the applicant with respect to the 35 U.S.C. 112(f) interpretation.
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.
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(s) 1-3, 11, 14, 16, 18-20, 28, 31, 33, 35, and 36 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kim, et al., hereinafter Kim (U.S. Patent Application Pub. No. 2019/0077402) in view of Fuchs, et al., hereinafter Fuchs (U.S. Patent Application Pub. No. 2021/0146922).
Regarding Claim 1, Kim teaches: A method of wireless communication performed by a vehicle-to-everything (V2X)-capable vehicle (Kim, Para. 0014 and 0166-0171 – a vehicle having a “communication apparatus configured to perform V2X communication with an external device outside of the vehicle”; wherein the “communication apparatus” includes a “V2X communication unit” configured to “perform wireless communication”), comprising:
receiving, from a V2X-capable device, one or more V2X messages indicating at least one detected event associated with a road on which the V2X-capable vehicle is travelling (Kim, Para. 0177-0179 and 0316-0320 – receiving “vehicle driving information” from the “V2X communication unit”, where the vehicle driving information “may include information received from a other vehicle” including “a type, location, and movement of an object in the vicinity of the vehicle”, “a probability for the vehicle 100 to collide with an object”, “a type of the road on which the vehicle 100 is travelling”, etc., or detected event; where the “other vehicle” may “broadcast V2V data” to the vehicle and the “V2V data” may be “a Basic Safety Message (BSM)” and may include “surrounding situation information”, etc.);
determining a viable driving trajectory for the V2X-capable vehicle from a plurality of potential driving trajectories of the V2X-capable vehicle based, at least in part, on the at least one detected event (Kim, Para. 0322-0324 and 0331-0336 – where a processor may “set a recommended path for the vehicle” based on “data of interest”, where the “data of interest” is selected from the “V2V data”, as described above; where the “recommended path” is selected from multiple lanes such that a “processor 850 may determine which lane the vehicle 100 needs to travel”, such that the multiple lanes are a plurality of potential trajectories);
performing a driving maneuver according to the viable driving trajectory (Kim, Para. 0322-0324, 0331-0336, and 0475 – where a processor may “set a recommended path for the vehicle” based on “data of interest”, where if a vehicle is in an “autonomous mode”, a processor “may control the vehicle 100 to travel along the recommended path”).
Kim does not teach transmitting at least the viable driving trajectory to one or more other V2X-capable vehicles, roadside infrastructure, or any combination thereof.
However, Fuchs teaches transmitting at least the viable driving trajectory to one or more other V2X-capable vehicles, roadside infrastructure, or any combination thereof (Fuchs, Fig. 4 and Para. 0057-0067 – wherein the “fellow vehicle 104” transmits trajectory information, including a selected fellow trajectory, in a “fellow data packet 202” to the “vehicle 100”, and based on the fellow data packet 202, the vehicle 100 re-calculates and selects “new reference trajectory 110”, which is transmitted back to the fellow vehicle 104 in “data packet 120”; the process described here follows an initial transmission of data packets including trajectory information between the fellow vehicle 104 and vehicle 100 to “coordinate an optimal common maneuver” between the vehicles).
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Fuchs, Fig. 4
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the method of Kim to include transmitting at least the viable driving trajectory to one or more other V2X-capable vehicles, as taught by Fuchs, in order to provide other V2X-capable vehicles with the viable driving trajectory of the vehicle to allow other vehicles to plan accordingly and prevent any potential road incidents by coordinating to select the “optimal common maneuver (with the lowest total effort)” for both vehicles (Fuchs, Para. 0067).
In regards to Claim 2, Kim teaches the method of Claim 1, and Kim further teaches wherein determining the viable driving trajectory (Kim, Para. 0322-0324 and 0331-0336 – where a processor may “set a recommended path for the vehicle”) comprises:
determining non-viable driving trajectories of the plurality of potential driving trajectories based, at least in part, on the at least one detected event (Kim, Para. 0322-0324, 0331-0336, and 0372-0375 – “set a recommended path”, where the path is “lane-level”, and where the path is based on a “risk level for each lane of the multilane road”, such that the multiple lanes are a plurality of potential trajectories, and when a vehicle is in a “safe mode”, lanes having a “risk level” that is too high are not set as the “recommended path”, such that they are non-viable; where the “recommended path” is set based on “data of interest”, where the “data of interest” is selected from the “V2V data” and includes “a type, location, and movement of an object in the vicinity of the vehicle”, “a probability for the vehicle 100 to collide with an object”, “a type of the road on which the vehicle 100 is travelling”, etc., or detected event); and
removing the non-viable driving trajectories from the plurality of potential driving trajectories to determine a set of remaining driving trajectories of the plurality of potential driving trajectories, wherein the viable driving trajectory for the V2X-capable vehicle is a remaining driving trajectory of the set of remaining driving trajectories (Kim, Para. 0372-0375 – “set a recommended path”, or viable driving trajectory, where the path is “lane-level”, and where the path is based on a “risk level for each lane of the multilane road”, such that the multiple lanes are a plurality of potential trajectories, and when a vehicle is in a “safe mode”, “the processor 850 may set a path, which has the lowest risk level among multiple lanes, as a recommended lane, based on respective risk levels for the multiple lanes”, such that lanes, or trajectories, with high risk are non-viable; where it is known that a set may contain one element, such that the single “recommended path” constitutes a set of remaining driving trajectories).
In regards to Claim 3, Kim in view of Fuchs teaches the method of Claim 2, but Kim does not teach further comprising: transmitting the set of remaining driving trajectories to one or more other V2X-capable vehicles, roadside infrastructure, or any combination thereof.
However, Fuchs teaches further comprising: transmitting the set of remaining driving trajectories to one or more other V2X-capable vehicles (Fuchs, Fig. 4 and Para. 0055, 0057-0067 – wherein the “vehicle 100”, based on received “fellow data packet 202” from fellow vehicle 104, re-calculates and selects “new reference trajectory 110”, which is transmitted back to the fellow vehicle 104 in “data packet 120” along with “the remaining trajectories 108” and data associated with the remaining trajectories; the “data packet 120” contains “information about trajectories 108 of the trajectory set 106”), roadside infrastructure, or any combination thereof.
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Fuchs, Fig. 4
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the method including the above limitations of Kim in view of Fuchs to further include comprising: transmitting the set of remaining driving trajectories to one or more other V2X-capable vehicles, as taught by Fuchs, in order to allow other vehicles to plan their viable driving trajectories based on the vehicle’s trajectory to avoid any potential collisions.
In regards to Claim 11, Kim teaches the method of Claim 1, and Kim further teaches further comprising: receiving one or more driving trajectories from the one or more other V2X-capable vehicles (Kim, Para. 0316-0320 – where an “other vehicle” may “broadcast V2V data” including “information about a set path” from the other vehicle to the receiving vehicle), the roadside infrastructure, or any combination thereof, wherein the viable driving trajectory is determined further based on the one or more driving trajectories (Kim, Para. 0316-0324 and 0331-0336 – where a processor may “set a recommended path for the vehicle” based on “data of interest”, where the “data of interest” is selected from the “V2V data”, including “information about a set path”; where the “recommended path” is selected from multiple lanes such that a “processor 850 may determine which lane the vehicle 100 needs to travel”, such that the multiple lanes are a plurality of potential trajectories).
In regards to Claim 14, Kim teaches the method of Claim 1, and Kim further teaches wherein the V2X-capable device comprises: a second V2X-capable vehicle (Kim, Para. 0177-0179 and 0316-0320 – receiving “vehicle driving information” from the “V2X communication unit”, where the vehicle driving information “may include information received from a other vehicle” in the form of a “V2V data”), or a roadside unit (RSU).
In regards to Claim 16, Kim teaches the method of Claim 1, and Kim further teaches wherein the at least one detected event comprises: hard breaking of another vehicle on the road on which the V2X-capable vehicle is travelling, wrong way driving on the road on which the V2X-capable vehicle is travelling, a stationary vehicle on the road on which the V2X-capable vehicle is travelling, a traffic condition warning associated with the road on which the V2X-capable vehicle is travelling (Kim, Para. 0063, 0175-0179 and 0316-0320 – receiving “vehicle driving information”, where the vehicle driving information “may include information received from a other vehicle” or a “server of the intelligence traffic system” including “information about an environment or situation” such as “traffic condition information”), a signal violation warning associated with the road on which the V2X-capable vehicle is travelling, a road work warning associated with the road on which the V2X-capable vehicle is travelling, a collision risk warning associated with the road on which the V2X-capable vehicle is travelling (Kim, Para. 0177-0179 and 0316-0320 – receiving “vehicle driving information”, where the vehicle driving information “may include information received from a other vehicle” including “a probability for the vehicle 100 to collide with an object”, etc.; where the “other vehicle” may “broadcast V2V data” to the vehicle and the “V2V data” may be “a Basic Safety Message (BSM)” and may include “surrounding situation information”, etc.), a hazardous location associated with the road on which the V2X-capable vehicle is travelling, slippery road conditions of the road on which the V2X-capable vehicle is travelling, precipitation, low visibility, strong winds, or any combination thereof.
Regarding Claim 18, Kim teaches: A vehicle-to-everything (V2X)-capable vehicle (Kim, Para. 0014 and 0166-0171 – a vehicle having a “communication apparatus configured to perform V2X communication with an external device outside of the vehicle”; wherein the “communication apparatus” includes a “V2X communication unit” configured to “perform wireless communication”), comprising:
one or more memories (Kim, Para. 0081 and 0253 – “a memory”);
one or more transceivers (Kim, Para. 0014 – “a communication apparatus configured to perform V2X communication with an external device outside of the vehicle”, or transceiver); and
one or more processors communicatively coupled to the one or more memories and the one or more transceivers (Kim, Para. 0014 and 0253 – “a processor” configured to “receive V2V data from one or more other vehicles through the communication apparatus” and where the “memory” stores “various data for the overall operation of the vehicle 100, such as programs for the processing or control of the controller”), the one or more processors, either alone or in combination, configured to:
receive, via the one or more transceivers, from a V2X-capable device, one or more V2X messages indicating at least one detected event associated with a road on which the V2X-capable vehicle is travelling (Kim, Para. 0177-0179 and 0316-0320 – receiving “vehicle driving information” from the “V2X communication unit”, where the vehicle driving information “may include information received from a other vehicle” including “a type, location, and movement of an object in the vicinity of the vehicle”, “a probability for the vehicle 100 to collide with an object”, “a type of the road on which the vehicle 100 is travelling”, etc., or detected event; where the “other vehicle” may “broadcast V2V data” to the vehicle and the “V2V data” may be “a Basic Safety Message (BSM)” and may include “surrounding situation information”, etc.);
determine a viable driving trajectory for the V2X-capable vehicle from a plurality of potential driving trajectories of the V2X-capable vehicle based, at least in part, on the at least one detected event (Kim, Para. 0322-0324 and 0331-0336 – where a processor may “set a recommended path for the vehicle” based on “data of interest”, where the “data of interest” is selected from the “V2V data”, as described above; where the “recommended path” is selected from multiple lanes such that a “processor 850 may determine which lane the vehicle 100 needs to travel”, such that the multiple lanes are a plurality of potential trajectories);
the “V2X communication unit”)
perform a driving maneuver according to the viable driving trajectory (Kim, Para. 0322-0324, 0331-0336, and 0475 – where a processor may “set a recommended path for the vehicle” based on “data of interest”, where if a vehicle is in an “autonomous mode”, a processor “may control the vehicle 100 to travel along the recommended path”).
Kim does not teach transmit at least the viable driving trajectory to one or more other V2X-capable vehicles, roadside infrastructure, or any combination thereof.
However, Fuchs teaches transmit at least the viable driving trajectory to one or more other V2X-capable vehicles, roadside infrastructure, or any combination thereof (Fuchs, Fig. 4 and Para. 0057-0067, and 0095 – wherein the “fellow vehicle 104” transmits trajectory information, including a selected fellow trajectory, in a “fellow data packet 202” to the “vehicle 100”, and based on the fellow data packet 202, the vehicle 100 re-calculates and selects “new reference trajectory 110”, which is transmitted back to the fellow vehicle 104 in “data packet 120”; the process described here follows an initial transmission of data packets including trajectory information between the fellow vehicle 104 and vehicle 100 to “coordinate an optimal common maneuver” between the vehicles via “V2V communication”).
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Fuchs, Fig. 4
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the V2X-capable vehicle of Kim to include transmit at least the viable driving trajectory to one or more other V2X-capable vehicles, as taught by Fuchs, in order to provide other V2X-capable vehicles with the viable driving trajectory of the vehicle to allow other vehicles to plan accordingly and prevent any potential road incidents by coordinating to select the “optimal common maneuver (with the lowest total effort)” for both vehicles (Fuchs, Para. 0067).
In regards to Claim 19, Kim teaches the V2X-capable vehicle of Claim 19, and Kim further teaches wherein the one or more processors configured to determine the viable driving trajectory comprises the one or more processors (Kim, Para. 0322-0324 and 0331-0336 – where a processor may “set a recommended path for the vehicle”), either alone or in combination, configured to:
determine non-viable driving trajectories of the plurality of potential driving trajectories based, at least in part, on the at least one detected event (Kim, Para. 0322-0324, 0331-0336, and 0372-0375 – “set a recommended path”, where the path is “lane-level”, and where the path is based on a “risk level for each lane of the multilane road”, such that the multiple lanes are a plurality of potential trajectories, and when a vehicle is in a “safe mode”, lanes having a “risk level” that is too high are not set as the “recommended path”, such that they are non-viable; where the “recommended path” is set based on “data of interest”, where the “data of interest” is selected from the “V2V data” and includes “a type, location, and movement of an object in the vicinity of the vehicle”, “a probability for the vehicle 100 to collide with an object”, “a type of the road on which the vehicle 100 is travelling”, etc., or detected event); and
remove the non-viable driving trajectories from the plurality of potential driving trajectories to determine a set of remaining driving trajectories of the plurality of potential driving trajectories, wherein the viable driving trajectory for the V2X-capable vehicle is a remaining driving trajectory of the set of remaining driving trajectories (Kim, Para. 0372-0375 – “set a recommended path”, or viable driving trajectory, where the path is “lane-level”, and where the path is based on a “risk level for each lane of the multilane road”, such that the multiple lanes are a plurality of potential trajectories, and when a vehicle is in a “safe mode”, “the processor 850 may set a path, which has the lowest risk level among multiple lanes, as a recommended lane, based on respective risk levels for the multiple lanes”, such that lanes, or trajectories, with high risk are non-viable; where it is known that a set may contain one element, such that the single “recommended path” constitutes a set of remaining driving trajectories).
In regards to Claim 20, Kim teaches the V2X-capable vehicle of Claim 19, but Kim does not teach wherein the one or more processors, either alone or in combination, are further configured to: transmit, via the one or more transceivers, the set of remaining driving trajectories to one or more other V2X-capable vehicles, roadside infrastructure, or any combination thereof.
However, Fuchs teaches wherein the one or more processors, either alone or in combination, are further configured to: transmit the set of remaining driving trajectories to one or more other V2X-capable vehicles (Fuchs, Fig. 4 and Para. 0055, 0057-0067 – wherein the “vehicle 100”, based on received “fellow data packet 202” from fellow vehicle 104, re-calculates and selects “new reference trajectory 110”, which is transmitted back to the fellow vehicle 104 in “data packet 120” along with “the remaining trajectories 108” and data associated with the remaining trajectories; the “data packet 120” contains “information about trajectories 108 of the trajectory set 106”), roadside infrastructure, or any combination thereof.
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Fuchs, Fig. 4
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the V2X-capable vehicle including the above limitations of Kim in view of Fuchs to further include wherein the one or more processors, either alone or in combination, are further configured to: transmit the set of remaining driving trajectories to one or more other V2X-capable vehicles, as taught by Fuchs, in order to allow other vehicles to plan their viable driving trajectories based on the vehicle’s trajectory to avoid any potential collisions.
In regards to Claim 28, Kim teaches the V2X-capable vehicle of Claim 1, and Kim further teaches wherein the one or more processors (Kim, Para. 0014 and 0253 – “a processor”), either alone or in combination, are further configured to: receive, via the one or more transceivers, one or more driving trajectories from the one or more other V2X-capable vehicles (Kim, Para. 0316-0320 – where an “other vehicle” may “broadcast V2V data” including “information about a set path” from the other vehicle to the receiving vehicle), the roadside infrastructure, or any combination thereof, wherein the viable driving trajectory is determined further based on the one or more driving trajectories (Kim, Para. 0316-0324 and 0331-0336 – where a processor may “set a recommended path for the vehicle” based on “data of interest”, where the “data of interest” is selected from the “V2V data”, including “information about a set path”; where the “recommended path” is selected from multiple lanes such that a “processor 850 may determine which lane the vehicle 100 needs to travel”, such that the multiple lanes are a plurality of potential trajectories).
In regards to Claim 31, Kim teaches the V2X-capable vehicle of Claim 18, and Kim further teaches wherein the V2X-capable device comprises: a second V2X-capable vehicle (Kim, Para. 0177-0179 and 0316-0320 – receiving “vehicle driving information” from the “V2X communication unit”, where the vehicle driving information “may include information received from a other vehicle” in the form of a “V2V data”), or a roadside unit (RSU).
In regards to Claim 33, Kim teaches the V2X-capable vehicle of Claim 18, and Kim further teaches wherein the at least one detected event comprises: hard breaking of another vehicle on the road on which the V2X-capable vehicle is travelling, wrong way driving on the road on which the V2X-capable vehicle is travelling, a stationary vehicle on the road on which the V2X-capable vehicle is travelling, a traffic condition warning associated with the road on which the V2X-capable vehicle is travelling (Kim, Para. 0063, 0175-0179 and 0316-0320 – receiving “vehicle driving information”, where the vehicle driving information “may include information received from a other vehicle” or a “server of the intelligence traffic system” including “information about an environment or situation” such as “traffic condition information”), a signal violation warning associated with the road on which the V2X-capable vehicle is travelling, a road work warning associated with the road on which the V2X-capable vehicle is travelling, a collision risk warning associated with the road on which the V2X-capable vehicle is travelling (Kim, Para. 0177-0179 and 0316-0320 – receiving “vehicle driving information”, where the vehicle driving information “may include information received from a other vehicle” including “a probability for the vehicle 100 to collide with an object”, etc.; where the “other vehicle” may “broadcast V2V data” to the vehicle and the “V2V data” may be “a Basic Safety Message (BSM)” and may include “surrounding situation information”, etc.), a hazardous location associated with the road on which the V2X-capable vehicle is travelling, slippery road conditions of the road on which the V2X-capable vehicle is travelling, precipitation, low visibility, strong winds, or any combination thereof.
Regarding Claim 35, Kim teaches: A vehicle-to-everything (V2X)-capable vehicle (Kim, Para. 0014 and 0166-0171 – a vehicle having a “communication apparatus configured to perform V2X communication with an external device outside of the vehicle”; wherein the “communication apparatus” includes a “V2X communication unit” configured to “perform wireless communication”), comprising:
means for receiving, from a V2X-capable device, one or more V2X messages indicating at least one detected event associated with a road on which the V2X-capable vehicle is travelling (Kim, Para. 0177-0179 and 0316-0320 – receiving “vehicle driving information” from the “V2X communication unit”, where the vehicle driving information “may include information received from a other vehicle” including “a type, location, and movement of an object in the vicinity of the vehicle”, “a probability for the vehicle 100 to collide with an object”, “a type of the road on which the vehicle 100 is travelling”, etc., or detected event; where the “other vehicle” may “broadcast V2V data” to the vehicle and the “V2V data” may be “a Basic Safety Message (BSM)” and may include “surrounding situation information”, etc.);
means for determining a viable driving trajectory for the V2X-capable vehicle from a plurality of potential driving trajectories of the V2X-capable vehicle based, at least in part, on the at least one detected event (Kim, Para. 0322-0324 and 0331-0336 – where a processor may “set a recommended path for the vehicle” based on “data of interest”, where the “data of interest” is selected from the “V2V data”, as described above; where the “recommended path” is selected from multiple lanes such that a “processor 850 may determine which lane the vehicle 100 needs to travel”, such that the multiple lanes are a plurality of potential trajectories);
means for performing a driving maneuver according to the viable driving trajectory (Kim, Para. 0322-0324, 0331-0336, and 0475 – where a processor may “set a recommended path for the vehicle” based on “data of interest”, where if a vehicle is in an “autonomous mode”, a processor “may control the vehicle 100 to travel along the recommended path”).
Kim does not teach means for transmitting at least the viable driving trajectory to one or more other V2X-capable vehicles, roadside infrastructure, or any combination thereof.
However, Fuchs teaches means for transmitting at least the viable driving trajectory to one or more other V2X-capable vehicles, roadside infrastructure, or any combination thereof (Fuchs, Fig. 4 and Para. 0057-0067, and 0095 – wherein the “fellow vehicle 104” transmits trajectory information, including a selected fellow trajectory, in a “fellow data packet 202” to the “vehicle 100”, and based on the fellow data packet 202, the vehicle 100 re-calculates and selects “new reference trajectory 110”, which is transmitted back to the fellow vehicle 104 in “data packet 120”; the process described here follows an initial transmission of data packets including trajectory information between the fellow vehicle 104 and vehicle 100 to “coordinate an optimal common maneuver” between the vehicles via “V2V communication”).
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Fuchs, Fig. 4
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the V2X-capable vehicle of Kim to include means for at least the viable driving trajectory to one or more other V2X-capable vehicles, as taught by Fuchs, in order to provide other V2X-capable vehicles with the viable driving trajectory of the vehicle to allow other vehicles to plan accordingly and prevent any potential road incidents by coordinating to select the “optimal common maneuver (with the lowest total effort)” for both vehicles (Fuchs, Para. 0067).
Regarding Claim 36, Kim teaches: A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing computer-executable instructions that, when executed (Kim, Para. 0483 – “code that can be written on a computer-readable medium in which a program is recorded and thus read by a computer” where “the computer may include a processor or a controller”) by a vehicle-to-everything (V2X)-capable vehicle (Kim, Para. 0014 and 0166-0171 – a vehicle having a “communication apparatus configured to perform V2X communication with an external device outside of the vehicle”), cause the V2X-capable vehicle to::
receive, from a V2X-capable device, one or more V2X messages indicating at least one detected event associated with a road on which the V2X-capable vehicle is travelling (Kim, Para. 0177-0179 and 0316-0320 – receiving “vehicle driving information” from the “V2X communication unit”, where the vehicle driving information “may include information received from a other vehicle” including “a type, location, and movement of an object in the vicinity of the vehicle”, “a probability for the vehicle 100 to collide with an object”, “a type of the road on which the vehicle 100 is travelling”, etc., or detected event; where the “other vehicle” may “broadcast V2V data” to the vehicle and the “V2V data” may be “a Basic Safety Message (BSM)” and may include “surrounding situation information”, etc.);
determine a viable driving trajectory for the V2X-capable vehicle from a plurality of potential driving trajectories of the V2X-capable vehicle based, at least in part, on the at least one detected event (Kim, Para. 0322-0324 and 0331-0336 – where a processor may “set a recommended path for the vehicle” based on “data of interest”, where the “data of interest” is selected from the “V2V data”, as described above; where the “recommended path” is selected from multiple lanes such that a “processor 850 may determine which lane the vehicle 100 needs to travel”, such that the multiple lanes are a plurality of potential trajectories);
perform a driving maneuver according to the viable driving trajectory (Kim, Para. 0322-0324, 0331-0336, and 0475 – where a processor may “set a recommended path for the vehicle” based on “data of interest”, where if a vehicle is in an “autonomous mode”, a processor “may control the vehicle 100 to travel along the recommended path”).
Kim does not teach transmit at least the viable driving trajectory to one or more other V2X-capable vehicles, roadside infrastructure, or any combination thereof.
However, Fuchs teaches transmit at least the viable driving trajectory to one or more other V2X-capable vehicles, roadside infrastructure, or any combination thereof (Fuchs, Fig. 4 and Para. 0057-0067 – wherein the “fellow vehicle 104” transmits trajectory information, including a selected fellow trajectory, in a “fellow data packet 202” to the “vehicle 100”, and based on the fellow data packet 202, the vehicle 100 re-calculates and selects “new reference trajectory 110”, which is transmitted back to the fellow vehicle 104 in “data packet 120”; the process described here follows an initial transmission of data packets including trajectory information between the fellow vehicle 104 and vehicle 100 to “coordinate an optimal common maneuver” between the vehicles).
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Fuchs, Fig. 4
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the non-transitory computer-readable medium of Kim to include transmitting at least the viable driving trajectory to one or more other V2X-capable vehicles, as taught by Fuchs, in order to provide other V2X-capable vehicles with the viable driving trajectory of the vehicle to allow other vehicles to plan accordingly and prevent any potential road incidents by coordinating to select the “optimal common maneuver (with the lowest total effort)” for both vehicles (Fuchs, Para. 0067).
Claim(s) 4-10 and 21-27 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kim in view of Fuchs, and further in view of Dicle, et al., hereinafter Dicle (U.S. Patent Application Pub. No. 2023/0322266).
In regards to Claim 4, Kim in view of Fuchs teaches the method of Claim 1, and Kim further teaches wherein determining the viable driving trajectory comprises: determining non-viable driving trajectories of the plurality of potential driving trajectories based, at least in part, on the at least one detected event (Kim, Para. 0322-0324, 0331-0336, and 0372-0375 – “set a recommended path”, where the path is “lane-level”, and where the path is based on a “risk level for each lane of the multilane road”, such that the multiple lanes are a plurality of potential trajectories, and when a vehicle is in a “safe mode”, lanes having a “risk level” that is too high are not set as the “recommended path”, such that they are non-viable; where the “recommended path” is set based on “data of interest”, where the “data of interest” is selected from the “V2V data” and includes “a type, location, and movement of an object in the vicinity of the vehicle”, “a probability for the vehicle 100 to collide with an object”, “a type of the road on which the vehicle 100 is travelling”, etc., or detected event) but Kim does not teach reallocating nodes from the non-viable driving trajectories to remaining driving trajectories of the plurality of potential driving trajectories, wherein the viable driving trajectory for the V2X-capable vehicle is a remaining driving trajectory of the plurality of potential driving trajectories, wherein each node represents a position on a potential driving trajectory through a macro action of one or more macro actions, and wherein each macro action represents a portion of a lane of a road on which the V2X-capable vehicle is travelling.
However, Dicle teaches reallocating nodes from the non-viable driving trajectories to remaining driving trajectories of the plurality of potential driving trajectories, wherein the viable driving trajectory for the V2X-capable vehicle is a remaining driving trajectory of the plurality of potential driving trajectories (Dicle, Fig. 6F and Para. 0098 and 0141 – where, for example, higher level states, or nodes, such as 624A and 624C-D are determined to have a lower “score” than the state/node 624B, thus those trajectories are non-viable, and the nodes before, such as the root state 620 and first-level states 622A, explored/propagated to simulate the remaining “simulated trajectory”, or reallocated to the viable driving trajectory), wherein each node represents a position on a potential driving trajectory through a macro action of one or more macro actions (Dicle, Fig. 6F and Para. 0091 and 0102-0104 – where each state is linked by an “edge” which represents “an action, potential action, or simulated action that can be taken by the vehicle”, and where each state, or node, represents “the vehicle state”, including “location data of the vehicle” in the current state along a simulated trajectory), and wherein each macro action represents a portion of a lane of a road on which the V2X-capable vehicle is travelling (Dicle, Para. 0028 – where routes are “each associated with (e.g., prescribe) a sequence of actions (also known as a trajectory) connecting states along which an AV can navigate” and where the actions can be “precise actions or states such as, for example, specific target lanes or precise locations within the lane areas”).
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Dicle, Fig. 6F
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have further modified the method including the above limitations of Kim in view of Fuchs to include reallocating nodes from the non-viable driving trajectories to remaining driving trajectories of the plurality of potential driving trajectories, wherein the viable driving trajectory for the V2X-capable vehicle is a remaining driving trajectory of the plurality of potential driving trajectories, wherein each node represents a position on a potential driving trajectory through a macro action of one or more macro actions, and wherein each macro action represents a portion of a lane of a road on which the V2X-capable vehicle is travelling, as taught by Dicle, in order to improve accuracy when determining a potential driving trajectory by considering all nodes at lane-level precision.
In regards to Claim 5, Kim in view of Fuchs teaches the method of Claim 1, but Kim does not teach wherein determining the viable driving trajectory comprises: building a search tree of the plurality of potential driving trajectories, wherein each of the plurality of potential driving trajectories corresponds to a subtree of the search tree.
However, Dicle teaches wherein determining the viable driving trajectory comprises: building a search tree of the plurality of potential driving trajectories (Dicle, Para. 0101 – using “a Monte Carlo Tree Search (MCTS) to evaluate simulated trajectories and simulated states”), wherein each of the plurality of potential driving trajectories corresponds to a subtree of the search tree (Dicle, Figs. 6C and 6E, Para. 0101-0102, 0133-0136 – where the Monte Carlo Tree Search, represented as a “tree diagram” simulates a plurality of “states” connected to an initial “scene state” by “actions”, such that when the tree search evaluation is propagated, a “simulated trajectory” is formed by a plurality of actions and states).
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Dicle, Fig. 6C
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Dicle, Annotated Fig. 6E
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have further modified the method including the above limitations of Kim in view of Fuchs to include wherein determining the viable driving trajectory comprises: building a search tree of the plurality of potential driving trajectories, wherein each of the plurality of potential driving trajectories corresponds to a subtree of the search tree, as taught by Dicle, in order to utilize a search tree method to improve the safety and accuracy when finding a driving trajectory for a vehicle.
In regards to Claim 6, Kim in view of Fuchs and Dicle teaches the method of Claim 5, and Kim in view of Fuchs and Dicle further teaches wherein: each subtree of the search tree comprises one or more macro actions (Dicle, Fig. 6F and Para. 0091 and 0102-0104 – where each state is linked by an “edge” which represents “an action, potential action, or simulated action that can be taken by the vehicle”, and where each state, or node, represents “the vehicle state”, including “location data of the vehicle” in the current state along a simulated trajectory), each macro action represents a portion of a lane of a road on which the V2X-capable vehicle is travelling and is associated with one or more nodes, and each node represents a position on a potential driving trajectory through the portion of the lane of the road represented by the corresponding macro action (Dicle, Para. 0028 – where routes are “each associated with (e.g., prescribe) a sequence of actions (also known as a trajectory) connecting states along which an AV can navigate” and where the actions can be “precise actions or states such as, for example, specific target lanes or precise locations within the lane areas”).
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Dicle, Fig. 6F
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the method including the above limitations of Kim in view of Fuchs and Dicle to further include wherein: each subtree of the search tree comprises one or more macro actions, each macro action represents a portion of a lane of a road on which the V2X-capable vehicle is travelling and is associated with one or more nodes, and each node represents a position on a potential driving trajectory through the portion of the lane of the road represented by the corresponding macro action, as taught by Dicle, in order to improve accuracy when determining a potential driving trajectory by considering all nodes at lane-level precision.
In regards to Claim 7, Kim in view of Fuchs and Dicle teaches the method of Claim 5, and Kim in view of Fuchs and Dicle further teaches wherein determining the viable driving trajectory comprises: determining subtrees of the search tree corresponding to non-viable driving trajectories of the plurality of potential driving trajectories based, at least in part, on the at least one detected event (Dicle, Fig. 6F and Para. 0098, 0111, and 0141 – where, for example, higher level states, or nodes, such as 624A and 624C-D are determined to have a lower “score” than the state/node 624B, thus those trajectories are non-viable; where for example the “score” is based on “the likelihood of a collision”, or an event); and removing the subtrees of the search tree corresponding to the non-viable driving trajectories from the plurality of potential driving trajectories to determine a set of subtrees of the search tree corresponding to a set of remaining driving trajectories of the plurality of potential driving trajectories, wherein the viable driving trajectory for the V2X-capable vehicle corresponds to a remaining subtree of the set of subtrees of the search tree (Dicle, Fig. 6F and Para. 0098 and 0136-0141 – where, for example, higher level states, or nodes, such as 624A and 624C-D are determined to have a lower “score” than the state/node 624B, thus those trajectories are non-viable, and thus the subtrees following the lower scored state, such as the trajectories of state 624A, are “ignored” or removed, while the higher scored, or remaining, simulated trajectories are explored).
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Dicle, Fig. 6F
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the method including the above limitations of Kim in view of Fuchs and Dicle to further include wherein determining the viable driving trajectory comprises: determining subtrees of the search tree corresponding to non-viable driving trajectories of the plurality of potential driving trajectories based, at least in part, on the at least one detected event; and removing the subtrees of the search tree corresponding to the non-viable driving trajectories from the plurality of potential driving trajectories to determine a set of subtrees of the search tree corresponding to a set of remaining driving trajectories of the plurality of potential driving trajectories, wherein the viable driving trajectory for the V2X-capable vehicle corresponds to a remaining subtree of the set of subtrees of the search tree, as taught by Dicle, in order to improve accuracy when determining a potential driving trajectory by considering all nodes at lane-level precision and reduce computational time.
In regards to Claim 8, Kim in view of Fuchs and Dicle teaches the method of Claim 7, and Kim in view of Fuchs and Dicle teaches further comprising: transmitting the set of subtrees of the search tree (Dicle, Figs. 6C and 6E, Para. 0098-0102, 0133-0141 – where the Monte Carlo Tree Search, represented as a “tree diagram” simulates a plurality of “states” connected to an initial “scene state” by “actions”, such that when the tree search evaluation is propagated, a “simulated trajectory” is formed by a plurality of actions and states; where higher scored, or remaining, simulated trajectories are explored to generate a “simulated trajectory”; Fuchs, Para. 0055 – “trajectories 108 of the trajectory set 106”) to one or more other V2X-capable vehicles (Fuchs, Para. 0055, 0057-0067 – wherein the “vehicle 100”, based on received “fellow data packet 202” from fellow vehicle 104, re-calculates and selects “new reference trajectory 110”, which is transmitted back to the fellow vehicle 104 in “data packet 120” along with “the remaining trajectories 108” and data associated with the remaining trajectories; the “data packet 120” contains “information about trajectories 108 of the trajectory set 106”), roadside infrastructure, or any combination thereof.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the method including the above limitations of Kim in view of Fuchs and Dicle to further include further comprising: transmitting the set to one or more other V2X-capable vehicles, as taught by Fuchs in view of Dicle, in order to allow other vehicles to plan their viable driving trajectories based on the vehicle’s trajectory to avoid any potential collisions.
In regards to Claim 9, Kim in view of Fuchs and Dicle teaches the method of Claim 5, and Kim in view of Fuchs and Dicle further teaches wherein determining the viable driving trajectory comprises: determining subtrees of the search tree corresponding to non-viable driving trajectories of the plurality of potential driving trajectories based, at least in part, on the at least one detected event (Dicle, Fig. 6F and Para. 0098, 0111, and 0141 – where, for example, higher level states, or nodes, such as 624A and 624C-D are determined to have a lower “score” than the state/node 624B, thus those trajectories are non-viable; where for example the “score” is based on “the likelihood of a collision”, or an event); and reallocating nodes from the subtrees of the search tree corresponding to the non-viable driving trajectories to remaining subtrees of the search tree, wherein the viable driving trajectory for the V2X-capable vehicle corresponds to a remaining subtree of the search tree (Dicle, Fig. 6F and Para. 0098 and 0141 – where, for example, higher level states, or nodes, such as 624A and 624C-D are determined to have a lower “score” than the state/node 624B, thus those trajectories are non-viable, and the nodes before, such as the root state 620 and first-level states 622A, explored/propagated to simulate the remaining “simulated trajectory”, or reallocated to the viable driving trajectory).
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Dicle, Fig. 6F
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the method including the above limitations of Kim in view of Fuchs and Dicle to include wherein determining the viable driving trajectory comprises: determining subtrees of the search tree corresponding to non-viable driving trajectories of the plurality of potential driving trajectories based, at least in part, on the at least one detected event; and reallocating nodes from the subtrees of the search tree corresponding to the non-viable driving trajectories to remaining subtrees of the search tree, wherein the viable driving trajectory for the V2X-capable vehicle corresponds to a remaining subtree of the search tree, as taught by Dicle, in order to improve accuracy when determining a potential driving trajectory by considering all nodes at lane-level precision.
In regards to Claim 10, Kim in view of Fuchs and Dicle teaches the method of Claim 5, and Kim in view of Fuchs and Dicle further teaches wherein the search tree comprises a Monte Carlo Tree Search (Dicle, Para. 0101 – using “a Monte Carlo Tree Search (MCTS) to evaluate simulated trajectories and simulated states”).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the method including the above limitations of Kim in view of Fuchs and Dicle to further include wherein the search tree comprises a Monte Carlo Tree Search, as taught by Dicle, in order to utilize a Monte Carl Tree Search to improve decision-making and resource allocation when determining a driving trajectory.
In regards to Claim 21, Kim in view of Fuchs teaches the V2X-capable vehicle of Claim 18, and Kim further teaches wherein the one or more processors configured to determine the viable driving trajectory comprises the one or more processors, either alone or in combination, configured to: determine non-viable driving trajectories of the plurality of potential driving trajectories based, at least in part, on the at least one detected event (Kim, Para. 0322-0324, 0331-0336, and 0372-0375 – “set a recommended path”, where the path is “lane-level”, and where the path is based on a “risk level for each lane of the multilane road”, such that the multiple lanes are a plurality of potential trajectories, and when a vehicle is in a “safe mode”, lanes having a “risk level” that is too high are not set as the “recommended path”, such that they are non-viable; where the “recommended path” is set based on “data of interest”, where the “data of interest” is selected from the “V2V data” and includes “a type, location, and movement of an object in the vicinity of the vehicle”, “a probability for the vehicle 100 to collide with an object”, “a type of the road on which the vehicle 100 is travelling”, etc., or detected event) but Kim does not teach reallocate nodes from the non-viable driving trajectories to remaining driving trajectories of the plurality of potential driving trajectories, wherein the viable driving trajectory for the V2X-capable vehicle is a remaining driving trajectory of the plurality of potential driving trajectories, wherein each node represents a position on a potential driving trajectory through a macro action of one or more macro actions, and wherein each macro action represents a portion of a lane of a road on which the V2X-capable vehicle is travelling.
However, Dicle teaches reallocate nodes from the non-viable driving trajectories to remaining driving trajectories of the plurality of potential driving trajectories, wherein the viable driving trajectory for the V2X-capable vehicle is a remaining driving trajectory of the plurality of potential driving trajectories (Dicle, Fig. 6F and Para. 0098 and 0141 – where, for example, higher level states, or nodes, such as 624A and 624C-D are determined to have a lower “score” than the state/node 624B, thus those trajectories are non-viable, and the nodes before, such as the root state 620 and first-level states 622A, explored/propagated to simulate the remaining “simulated trajectory”, or reallocated to the viable driving trajectory), wherein each node represents a position on a potential driving trajectory through a macro action of one or more macro actions (Dicle, Fig. 6F and Para. 0091 and 0102-0104 – where each state is linked by an “edge” which represents “an action, potential action, or simulated action that can be taken by the vehicle”, and where each state, or node, represents “the vehicle state”, including “location data of the vehicle” in the current state along a simulated trajectory), and wherein each macro action represents a portion of a lane of a road on which the V2X-capable vehicle is travelling (Dicle, Para. 0028 – where routes are “each associated with (e.g., prescribe) a sequence of actions (also known as a trajectory) connecting states along which an AV can navigate” and where the actions can be “precise actions or states such as, for example, specific target lanes or precise locations within the lane areas”).
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Dicle, Fig. 6F
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have further modified the V2X-capable vehicle including the above limitations of Kim in view of Fuchs to include reallocate nodes from the non-viable driving trajectories to remaining driving trajectories of the plurality of potential driving trajectories, wherein the viable driving trajectory for the V2X-capable vehicle is a remaining driving trajectory of the plurality of potential driving trajectories, wherein each node represents a position on a potential driving trajectory through a macro action of one or more macro actions, and wherein each macro action represents a portion of a lane of a road on which the V2X-capable vehicle is travelling, as taught by Dicle, in order to improve accuracy when determining a potential driving trajectory by considering all nodes at lane-level precision.
In regards to Claim 22, Kim in view of Fuchs teaches the V2X-capable vehicle of Claim 18, but Kim does not teach wherein the one or more processors configured to determine the viable driving trajectory comprises the one or more processors, either alone or in combination, configured to: build a search tree of the plurality of potential driving trajectories, wherein each of the plurality of potential driving trajectories corresponds to a subtree of the search tree.
However, Dicle teaches wherein the one or more processors configured to determine the viable driving trajectory comprises the one or more processors, either alone or in combination, configured to: build a search tree of the plurality of potential driving trajectories (Dicle, Para. 0101 – using “a Monte Carlo Tree Search (MCTS) to evaluate simulated trajectories and simulated states”), wherein each of the plurality of potential driving trajectories corresponds to a subtree of the search tree (Dicle, Figs. 6C and 6E, Para. 0101-0102, 0133-0136 – where the Monte Carlo Tree Search, represented as a “tree diagram” simulates a plurality of “states” connected to an initial “scene state” by “actions”, such that when the tree search evaluation is propagated, a “simulated trajectory” is formed by a plurality of actions and states).
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Dicle, Fig. 6C
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Dicle, Annotated Fig. 6E
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have further modified the V2X-capable vehicle including the above limitations of Kim in view of Fuchs to include wherein determining the viable driving trajectory comprises: building a search tree of the plurality of potential driving trajectories, wherein each of the plurality of potential driving trajectories corresponds to a subtree of the search tree, as taught by Dicle, in order to utilize a search tree method to improve the safety and accuracy when finding a driving trajectory for a vehicle.
In regards to Claim 23, Kim in view of Fuchs and Dicle teaches the V2X-capable vehicle of Claim 22, and Kim in view of Fuchs and Dicle further teaches wherein: each subtree of the search tree comprises one or more macro actions (Dicle, Fig. 6F and Para. 0091 and 0102-0104 – where each state is linked by an “edge” which represents “an action, potential action, or simulated action that can be taken by the vehicle”, and where each state, or node, represents “the vehicle state”, including “location data of the vehicle” in the current state along a simulated trajectory), each macro action represents a portion of a lane of a road on which the V2X-capable vehicle is travelling and is associated with one or more nodes, and each node represents a position on a potential driving trajectory through the portion of the lane of the road represented by the corresponding macro action (Dicle, Para. 0028 – where routes are “each associated with (e.g., prescribe) a sequence of actions (also known as a trajectory) connecting states along which an AV can navigate” and where the actions can be “precise actions or states such as, for example, specific target lanes or precise locations within the lane areas”).
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Dicle, Fig. 6F
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the V2X-capable vehicle including the above limitations of Kim in view of Fuchs and Dicle to further include wherein: each subtree of the search tree comprises one or more macro actions, each macro action represents a portion of a lane of a road on which the V2X-capable vehicle is travelling and is associated with one or more nodes, and each node represents a position on a potential driving trajectory through the portion of the lane of the road represented by the corresponding macro action, as taught by Dicle, in order to improve accuracy when determining a potential driving trajectory by considering all nodes at lane-level precision.
In regards to Claim 24, Kim in view of Fuchs and Dicle teaches the V2X-capable vehicle of Claim 22, and Kim in view of Fuchs and Dicle further teaches herein the one or more processors configured to determine the viable driving trajectory comprises the one or more processors, either alone or in combination, configured to: determine subtrees of the search tree corresponding to non-viable driving trajectories of the plurality of potential driving trajectories based, at least in part, on the at least one detected event (Dicle, Fig. 6F and Para. 0098, 0111, and 0141 – where, for example, higher level states, or nodes, such as 624A and 624C-D are determined to have a lower “score” than the state/node 624B, thus those trajectories are non-viable; where for example the “score” is based on “the likelihood of a collision”, or an event); and remove the subtrees of the search tree corresponding to the non-viable driving trajectories from the plurality of potential driving trajectories to determine a set of subtrees of the search tree corresponding to a set of remaining driving trajectories of the plurality of potential driving trajectories, wherein the viable driving trajectory for the V2X-capable vehicle corresponds to a remaining subtree of the set of subtrees of the search tree (Dicle, Fig. 6F and Para. 0098 and 0136-0141 – where, for example, higher level states, or nodes, such as 624A and 624C-D are determined to have a lower “score” than the state/node 624B, thus those trajectories are non-viable, and thus the subtrees following the lower scored state, such as the trajectories of state 624A, are “ignored” or removed, while the higher scored, or remaining, simulated trajectories are explored).
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Dicle, Fig. 6F
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the method including the above limitations of Kim in view of Fuchs and Dicle to further include wherein the one or more processors configured to determine the viable driving trajectory comprises the one or more processors, either alone or in combination, configured to: determine subtrees of the search tree corresponding to non-viable driving trajectories of the plurality of potential driving trajectories based, at least in part, on the at least one detected event; and remove the subtrees of the search tree corresponding to the non-viable driving trajectories from the plurality of potential driving trajectories to determine a set of subtrees of the search tree corresponding to a set of remaining driving trajectories of the plurality of potential driving trajectories, wherein the viable driving trajectory for the V2X-capable vehicle corresponds to a remaining subtree of the set of subtrees of the search tree, as taught by Dicle, in order to improve accuracy when determining a potential driving trajectory by considering all nodes at lane-level precision and reduce computational time.
In regards to Claim 25, Kim in view of Fuchs and Dicle teaches the V2X-capable vehicle of Claim 24, and Kim in view of Fuchs and Dicle teaches wherein the one or more processors, either alone or in combination, are further configured to: transmit the set of subtrees of the search tree (Dicle, Figs. 6C and 6E, Para. 0098-0102, 0133-0141 – where the Monte Carlo Tree Search, represented as a “tree diagram” simulates a plurality of “states” connected to an initial “scene state” by “actions”, such that when the tree search evaluation is propagated, a “simulated trajectory” is formed by a plurality of actions and states; where higher scored, or remaining, simulated trajectories are explored to generate a “simulated trajectory”; Fuchs, Para. 0055 – “trajectories 108 of the trajectory set 106”) to one or more other V2X-capable vehicles (Fuchs, Para. 0055, 0057-0067 – wherein the “vehicle 100”, based on received “fellow data packet 202” from fellow vehicle 104, re-calculates and selects “new reference trajectory 110”, which is transmitted back to the fellow vehicle 104 in “data packet 120” along with “the remaining trajectories 108” and data associated with the remaining trajectories; the “data packet 120” contains “information about trajectories 108 of the trajectory set 106”), roadside infrastructure, or any combination thereof.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the method including the limitations of Kim in view of Fuchs and Dicle to further include wherein the one or more processors, either alone or in combination, are further configured to: transmit the set of subtrees of the search tree to one or more other V2X-capable vehicles, as taught by Fuchs and Dicle, in order to allow other vehicles to plan their viable driving trajectories based on the vehicle’s trajectory to avoid any potential collisions.
In regards to Claim 26, Kim in view of Fuchs and Dicle teaches the V2X-capable vehicle of Claim 22, and Kim in view of Fuchs and Dicle further teaches wherein the one or more processors configured to determine the viable driving trajectory comprises the one or more processors, either alone or in combination, configured to: determine subtrees of the search tree corresponding to non-viable driving trajectories of the plurality of potential driving trajectories based, at least in part, on the at least one detected event (Dicle, Fig. 6F and Para. 0098, 0111, and 0141 – where, for example, higher level states, or nodes, such as 624A and 624C-D are determined to have a lower “score” than the state/node 624B, thus those trajectories are non-viable; where for example the “score” is based on “the likelihood of a collision”, or an event); and reallocate nodes from the subtrees of the search tree corresponding to the non-viable driving trajectories to remaining subtrees of the search tree, wherein the viable driving trajectory for the V2X-capable vehicle corresponds to a remaining subtree of the search tree (Dicle, Fig. 6F and Para. 0098 and 0141 – where, for example, higher level states, or nodes, such as 624A and 624C-D are determined to have a lower “score” than the state/node 624B, thus those trajectories are non-viable, and the nodes before, such as the root state 620 and first-level states 622A, explored/propagated to simulate the remaining “simulated trajectory”, or reallocated to the viable driving trajectory).
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Dicle, Fig. 6F
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the V2X-capable vehicle including the above limitations of Kim in view of Fuchs and Dicle to further include wherein the one or more processors configured to determine the viable driving trajectory comprises the one or more processors, either alone or in combination, configured to: determine subtrees of the search tree corresponding to non-viable driving trajectories of the plurality of potential driving trajectories based, at least in part, on the at least one detected event; and reallocate nodes from the subtrees of the search tree corresponding to the non-viable driving trajectories to remaining subtrees of the search tree, wherein the viable driving trajectory for the V2X-capable vehicle corresponds to a remaining subtree of the search tree, as taught by Dicle, in order to improve accuracy when determining a potential driving trajectory by considering all nodes at lane-level precision.
In regards to Claim 27, Kim in view of Fuchs and Dicle teaches the V2X-capable vehicle of Claim 22, and Kim in view of Fuchs and Dicle further teaches wherein the search tree comprises a Monte Carlo Tree Search (Dicle, Para. 0101 – using “a Monte Carlo Tree Search (MCTS) to evaluate simulated trajectories and simulated states”).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the V2X-capable vehicle including the above limitations of Kim in view of Fuchs and Dicle to further include wherein the search tree comprises a Monte Carlo Tree Search, as taught by Dicle, in order to utilize a Monte Carl Tree Search to improve decision-making and resource allocation when determining a driving trajectory.
Claim(s) 12-13 and 29-30 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kim in view of Fuchs, and further in view of Wendland, et al., hereinafter Wendland (U.S. Patent Application Pub. No. 2021/0300402).
In regards to Claim 12, Kim in view of Fuchs teaches the method of Claim 1, and Kim teaches the V2X-capable vehicle (Kim, Para. 0014 and 0166-0171 – a vehicle having a “communication apparatus configured to perform V2X communication with an external device outside of the vehicle”), but Kim does not teach wherein the at least one detected event is blocked from view of perception sensors of the vehicle.
However, Wendland teaches wherein the at least one detected event is blocked from view of perception sensors of the vehicle (Wendland, Para. 0047-0049 – where a vehicle 1 is moving on a road, and another vehicle 10 is “hidden” by a forest from the “detection device” of the vehicle 1, where the other vehicle acts as an obscured object, or event, and presents a “risk of collision”, and sends, “for example, using vehicle-to-X communication, car-to-X communication or car-to-car communication, data from the other vehicle 10” to the vehicle 1).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the method including the above limitations of Kim in view of Fuchs to include wherein the at least one detected event is blocked from view of perception sensors of the vehicle, as taught by Wendland, in order to inform the vehicle of events that may increase risk to the vehicle when determining a viable driving trajectory.
In regards to Claim 13, Kim in view of Fuchs and Wendland teaches the method of Claim 12, and Kim further teaches wherein the perception sensors of the V2X-capable vehicle (Kim, Para. 0014 and 0166-0171 – a vehicle having a “communication apparatus configured to perform V2X communication with an external device outside of the vehicle”) comprise: one or more radar sensors, a lidar sensor, one or more cameras, or any combination thereof (Kim, Para. 0133 – an “object detection apparatus 300 may include a camera 310, a radar 320, a lidar 330, an ultrasonic sensor 340, an infrared sensor 350, and a detection processor 370”).
In regards to Claim 29, Kim in view of Fuchs teaches the V2X-capable vehicle of Claim 18, and Kim teaches the V2X-capable vehicle (Kim, Para. 0014 and 0166-0171 – a vehicle having a “communication apparatus configured to perform V2X communication with an external device outside of the vehicle”), but Kim does not teach wherein the at least one detected event is blocked from view of perception sensors of the vehicle.
However, Wendland teaches wherein the at least one detected event is blocked from view of perception sensors of the vehicle (Wendland, Para. 0047-0049 – where a vehicle 1 is moving on a road, and another vehicle 10 is “hidden” by a forest from the “detection device” of the vehicle 1, where the other vehicle acts as an obscured object, or event, and presents a “risk of collision”, and sends, “for example, using vehicle-to-X communication, car-to-X communication or car-to-car communication, data from the other vehicle 10” to the vehicle 1).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the V2X-capable vehicle including the above limitations of Kim in view of Fuchs to include wherein the at least one detected event is blocked from view of perception sensors of the vehicle, as taught by Wendland, in order to inform the vehicle of events that may increase risk to the vehicle when determining a viable driving trajectory.
In regards to Claim 30, Kim in view of Fuchs and Wendland teaches the method of Claim 29, and Kim further teaches wherein the perception sensors of the V2X-capable vehicle (Kim, Para. 0014 and 0166-0171 – a vehicle having a “communication apparatus configured to perform V2X communication with an external device outside of the vehicle”) comprise: one or more radar sensors, a lidar sensor, one or more cameras, or any combination thereof (Kim, Para. 0133 – an “object detection apparatus 300 may include a camera 310, a radar 320, a lidar 330, an ultrasonic sensor 340, an infrared sensor 350, and a detection processor 370”).
Claim(s) 15 and 32 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kim in view of Fuchs, and further in view of Pfadler, et al., hereinafter Pfadler (U.S. Patent Application Pub. No. 2022/0076575).
In regards to Claim 15, Kim in view of Fuchs teaches the method of Claim 1, but Kim does not teach wherein the one or more V2X messages are one or more decentralized environmental notification messages (DENMs).
However, Pfadler teaches wherein the one or more V2X messages are one or more decentralized environmental notification messages (DENMs) (Pfadler, Para. 0066 – where “V2X vehicles send status messages”, where the “event-messages” are “Decentralized Environmental Notification Message, DENM” messages).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the method including the above limitations of Kim in view of Fuchs to include wherein the one or more V2X messages are one or more decentralized environmental notification messages (DENMs), as taught by Pfadler, in order to utilizes decentralized environmental notification messages to receive information of critical road conditions and improve vehicle safety when determining a vehicle trajectory.
In regards to Claim 32, Kim in view of Fuchs teaches the V2X-capable vehicle of Claim 1, but Kim does not teach wherein the one or more V2X messages are one or more decentralized environmental notification messages (DENMs).
However, Pfadler teaches wherein the one or more V2X messages are one or more decentralized environmental notification messages (DENMs) (Pfadler, Para. 0066 – where “V2X vehicles send status messages”, where the “event-messages” are “Decentralized Environmental Notification Message, DENM” messages).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the V2X-capable vehicle including the above limitations of Kim in view of Fuchs to include wherein the one or more V2X messages are one or more decentralized environmental notification messages (DENMs), as taught by Pfadler, in order to utilizes decentralized environmental notification messages to receive information of critical road conditions and improve vehicle safety when determining a vehicle trajectory.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Lehmann, et al. (U.S. Patent Application Pub. No. 2018/0321689) teaches a method of decentralized coordination of driving maneuvers of at least two motorized transportation vehicles including transferring a planned trajectory and a desired trajectory from a first vehicle to a second vehicle, wherein the planned trajectory of the second vehicle is adapted in response.
Schiegg, et al. (U.S. Patent Application Pub. No. 2022/0392341) teaches a method of providing a maneuver message for coordinating a maneuver between a road user and at least one further road user in a communication network including determining at least one possible trajectory and generating a maneuver message including the at least one possible trajectory, and sending the maneuver message via the communication network.
De Francesco, et al. (U.S. Patent Application Pub. No. 2022/0063674) teaches techniques for improving the trajectory estimates for an object in an environment including receiving information indicating a presence of an object operating in an environment and updating the trajectory of the object based on the expected route of the object.
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.
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/H.L./Examiner, Art Unit 3665
/HUNTER B LONSBERRY/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3665