DETAILED ACTION
This communication is responsive to Amendment filed 04/07/2026.
Claims 1-20 are pending in this application. In the Amendment, claims 1, 8 and 15 are amended. This action is made Final.
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 Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to claims amended 04/07/2026 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 Rejections - 35 USC § 103
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 103 which forms the basis for all obviousness rejections set forth in this Office action:
A patent for a claimed invention may not be obtained, notwithstanding that the claimed invention is not identically disclosed as set forth in section 102, if the differences between the claimed invention and the prior art are such that the claimed invention as a whole would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to a person having ordinary skill in the art to which the claimed invention pertains. Patentability shall not be negated by the manner in which the invention was made.
Claims 1-3, 5-6, 8-10, 12-13, 15-17 and 19-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Jia (US 2017/0339263) in view of Wynne, IV et al. (“Wynne”, US 2016/0103593).
As per claim 1, Jia teaches a method comprising:
determining an interactive voice response component is active (Jia, Fig.9, para.126, S902- calling unit activated; para.61, 94-96, 116, 122 calling unit of automatic voice answering phone activated when dialed);
activating a plurality of functions for the displaying graphics corresponding to the options provided by the interactive voice response component (Jia, para.43-45, 69-71, 100, switch function), wherein the plurality of functions include:
identifying a plurality of options provided by the interactive voice response component with respect to the keypad in the user interface on the touchscreen of the device (Jia, para.80, 118, 120, 123, 130, visual menu unit displays menu option corresponding to key number);
displaying a graphic for each option from the plurality of options provided by the interactive voice response component (Jia, Fig.9, S908-visual menu display; para.61, 66, 81, 118, 121, 129, displaying module identifies text and graphically presents menu of options);
receiving a graphic selection for the plurality of options (Jia, para.79-80, 118, 122, 130-131; Fig.9, S910-selects a menu option); and
sending an option selection corresponding to the graphic selection to the interactive voice response component (Jia, Fig.9, S910-selects a menu option and sends to calling unit, S912-next-level menu displayed after key selection para.79-80, 118, 122, 130-131, sending module 54).
Although Jia teaches displaying a graphic for each option from the plurality of options (Jia, Fig.9, S908-visual menu display; para.61, 66, 81, 118, 121, 129, displaying module identifies text and graphically presents menu of options) and receiving a user selection of opening/closing graphic menu options (Jia, para.43-45, 69-71, 100, switch function), Jia does not teach displaying a toggle in a vicinity of a keypad in a user interface on a touchscreen of a device, wherein a user induced movement of the toggle activates a plurality of functions for displaying graphics; receiving the user induced movement of the toggle; and activating the plurality of functions for the displaying graphics. Wynne teaches a method of displaying graphic overlays by displaying a toggle in a user interface on a touchscreen of a device, wherein a user induced movement of the toggle activates a plurality of functions for displaying graphics; receiving the user induced movement of the toggle; and activating the plurality of functions for the displaying graphics (Wynne, Fig.4, para.63-66, toggle switch to show/hide overlays). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to include Wynne’s teaching with Jia’s method in order to only show overlays of interest and reduce the amount of unwanted data (Wynne, para.63-64).
As per claim 2, the method of Jia and Wynne teaches the method of claim 1, further comprising: receiving a user opt-in selection via a user selectable feature in the user interface (Jia, para.43-45, 69-71, 100, switch function achieved through acquiring unit; Fig.3, S202-indication information to display visual data), wherein the user opt-in selection displays the graphic for each option from the plurality of options provided by the interactive voice response component (Jia, para.43, 45, 71, 100, switch function, Fig.3, S202-indication information to display visual data).
As per claim 3, the method of Jia and Wynne teaches the method of claim 1, wherein the sending the option selection corresponding to the graphic selection to the interactive voice response component further comprises: converting the graphic selection into a key selection on the keypad in the user interface (Jia, para.130, visual menu unit converts selection into keypad number, Fig.9, S910); and performing the key selection on the keypad in the user interface (Jia, para.80, 131, Fig.9, S912-next-level menu displayed after key selection; second receiving module acquires key data and sending module sends key command).
As per claim 5, the method of Jia and Wynne teaches the method of claim 1, further comprising: responsive to receiving a specific user input via the keypad in the user interface, sending a request to the interactive voice response component for available interactive voice response option pathways across a plurality of tiers with the plurality of options (Jia, para.11, 43, 45, 56-57, 71, 86-88, 100, switch function, Fig.3, S202-indication information to display visual data); and responsive to receiving the available interactive voice response option pathways from interactive voice response component, displaying an ontology tree for the plurality of tiers with the plurality of options in the user interface for the graphic selection (Jia, Fig.9, S908-visual menu display; para.81, 97, 123, 129, graphic menu display requirement).
As per claim 6, the method of Jia and Wynne teaches the method of claim 5, further comprising: receiving the graphic selection for an option from the plurality of options via the ontology tree in the user interface, wherein the option is positioned on a tier that is not a first tier in the ontology tree (Jia, para.123, user may jump to any level of menu).
Claims 8 and 15 are similar in scope to claim 1, and are therefore rejected under similar rationale.
Claims 9 and 16 are similar in scope to claim 2, and are therefore rejected under similar rationale.
Claims 10 and 17 are similar in scope to claim 3, and are therefore rejected under similar rationale.
Claims 12 and 19 are similar in scope to claim 5, and are therefore rejected under similar rationale.
Claims 13 and 20 are similar in scope to claim 6, and are therefore rejected under similar rationale.
Claims 4, 11 and 18 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Jia (US 2017/0339263) and Wynne, IV et al. (“Wynne”, US 2016/0103593) in view of Huang et al. (“Huang”, US 2020/0126584).
As per claim 4, the method of Jia and Wynne teaches the computer-implemented method of claim 1, further comprising: determining the graphic for each option from the plurality of options provided by the interactive voice response component from the plurality options based on incoming audio from the interactive voice response component (Jia, Fig.9, S906-speech recognition and conversion; para.65, 81, 105, 108-118, 128, speech recognition unit includes converting module; para.72, graphic matching audio taken from character library).
However, the method of Jia and Wynne does not explicitly teach utilizing a generative adversarial network (GAN) model to generate an image for the graphic for each option. Huang teaches a method of converting text from audio into images utilizing a generative adversarial network (GAN) model to generate an image (Huang, para.52, image based on text output information generated using GAN). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to include Huang’s teaching with the method of Jia and Wynne in order to recognize options quicker.
Claims 11 and 18 are similar in scope to claim 4, and are therefore rejected under similar rationale.
Claims 7 and 14 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Jia (US 2017/0339263) and Wynne, IV et al. (“Wynne”, US 2016/0103593) in view of Lavian et al. (US 2017/0289332).
As per claim 7, the method of Jia and Wynne teaches the method of claim 1, however does not teach responsive to receiving a specific user input via the keypad in the user interface, displaying a summary of an option from the plurality of options for a specific graphic associated with a specific key on the keypad. Lavian teaches a method of visual presentation of an IVR menu wherein responsive to receiving a specific user input in the user interface, displaying a summary of an option from the plurality of options for a specific graphic associated with a specific key on the keypad (Lavian, para.142, Fig.2D, tooltip). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to include Lavian’s teaching with the method of Jia and Wynne in order to provide further information about the option.
Claim 14 is similar in scope to claim 7, and is therefore rejected under similar rationale.
Conclusion
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.
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Strabbing et al. (US 2015/0346969) teaches a method of displaying graphical overlays using a toggle switch.
Srinivasan et al. (US 2019/0362409) teaches a method of displaying graphical overlays using a toggle switch.
Jones (US 2016/0227133) teaches a method of displaying graphical overlays using a toggle switch.
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/S.M./
Sajeda MuhebbullahExaminer, Art Unit 2174
/WILLIAM L BASHORE/ Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2174
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