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 .
Status of Claims
Claims 1-20 of U.S. Application No. 18/472,957 filed on 09/22/2023 were examined. Examiner filed a non-final office action on 05/16/2025.
Applicant files remarks and amendments on 08/15/2025. Claims 1-6, 9-11, and 16 have been amended. Claims 1-20 are pending and presented for examination.
Response to Arguments
Regarding the claim rejections under 35 USC 101: Applicant's arguments filed 08/15/2025 have been fully considered and they are persuasive. The previously given claim rejections under 35 USC 101 are withdrawn.
Regarding the claim rejections under 35 USC 103: Applicant's arguments filed 08/15/2025 with respect to Grunkemeyer et al. (US 20220144122 A1) in view of Krishnan (US 9725069 B2) have been fully considered but they 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
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.
Claims 1-3, 5-10 and 12-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Grunkemeyer et al. (US 20220144122 A1) in view of Madonia (US20050253699A1), hereinafter referred to as Grunkemeyer and Madonia respectively.
Regarding claim 1, Grunkemeyer discloses A system for presenting content comprising:
at least one processor included in the vehicle and in communication with the at least one sensor, the display (“These and other input devices (i.e., “I/O devices”) are connected to the processor(s) 606 through an interface 646 such as a touch-screen controller and/or a universal serial bus (“USB”) interface that couples user input to the system bus 610, although other interfaces such as a parallel port, a game port or a wireless interface or a serial port may be used. The touch screen 648 can be coupled to the system bus 610 via a video interface 650, such as a video adapter to receive image data or image information for display via the touch screen 648. Although not shown, the processor-based device can include other output devices, such as speakers, vibrator, haptic actuator or haptic engine, and the like.” [0098]),
and memory containing instructions that, when executed (“The system includes one or more processors and a memory device that stores instructions thereon that when executed by the one or more processors,” [0011]), cause the at least one processor to:
and upon detection of an accessory of a plurality of accessories associated with the vehicle by the at least one sensor (“In another aspect of some embodiments, the device state poller system detects that an electric vehicle has been at home for several minutes, parked but not plugged in” [0088]);
and in response to determining that the component is not detected (“If the electric vehicle does not begin charging, a demand flexibility device state poller can notify the driver to plug in their car.” [0049]), present first content on the display (“the plan follower system sends notifications to the electrical device operator's cell phone or tablet device indicating when load shifting is occurring.” [0087]);
and in response to determining that the component is detected, present second content on the display (“In another aspect of some embodiments, the device state poller system detects that an electric vehicle has been at home for several minutes, parked but not plugged in, and sends a notification to the operator to plug in the electric vehicle.” [0088]).
Grunkemeyer does not explicitly teach at least one sensor
present default content on the display
replace the default content on the display with contextual content corresponding to the accessory, wherein different content corresponds to different accessories of the plurality of accessories
a display included in the vehicle configured to present a graphical user interface (GUI) outside of the vehicle
However, Madonia does teach at least one sensor (“In another embodiment, I/O communication port 44 receives sensor signals from internal or external sensors 56.” [0026]);
present default content on the display (“Public service can transmit emergency service information and alerts, which are in turn displayed on the exterior of vehicles having display 12.” [0030]);
replace the default content on the display with contextual content corresponding to the accessory, wherein different content corresponds to different accessories of the plurality of accessories (“In another embodiment, display 12 can send information back to control circuit 40. For example, display 12 may include a touch screen, wherein the driver enters an entry code by touching screen 24. The entry code is sent to control circuit 40 which sends a control signal to vehicle control 58. Vehicle control 58 can perform any function or operation such as causing the door to be unlocked.” [0033]).
a display configured to present a graphical user interface (GUI) to a user outside of the vehicle (“Integrated display 12 provides real-time information for viewing external to vehicle 10. The displayed images can be readily changed either with or without interaction with the occupants of vehicle 10. Display 12 is programmable, stylistic, and visually attractive with respect to vehicle 10.
In another embodiment, display 12 can send information back to control circuit 40. For example, display 12 may include a touch screen, wherein the driver enters an entry code by touching screen 24. The entry code is sent to control circuit 40 which sends a control signal to vehicle control 58. Vehicle control 58 can perform any function or operation such as causing the door to be unlocked.” [0032-0033]). Both Grunkemeyer and Madonia teach methods of vehicle access management. However, Madonia explicitly teaches at least one sensor included in a vehicle, present default content on the display; replace the default content on the display with contextual content corresponding to the accessory, wherein different content corresponds to different accessories of the plurality of accessories and a display included in the vehicle configured to present a graphical user interface (GUI) outside of the vehicle.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the remote access method of Grunkemeyer to also include at least one sensor included in a vehicle, present default content on the display; replace the default content on the display with contextual content corresponding to the accessory, wherein different content corresponds to different accessories of the plurality of accessories and a display included in the vehicle configured to present a graphical user interface (GUI) outside of the vehicle, as taught by Madonia, with a reasonable expectation of success. Doing so improves gaining access to securable compartments of the vehicle without compromising security (With regard to this reasoning, see at least [Madonia, 0032-0033]).
Regarding claims 2 and 10, Grunkemeyer discloses The system of claim 1, wherein the accessory comprises a component associated with a vehicle operator, and wherein the accessory is one of: a mobile communication device, a keyfob, an RFID device, or a watch (“In the system for adaptive polling, the processor-based device may, for example, take the form of a smartphone or wearable smart glasses, which includes one or more processors 606, a system memory 608 and a system bus 610 that couples various system components including the system memory 608 to the processor(s) 606.” [0090]).
Regarding claim 3, Grunkemeyer discloses The system of claim 1, wherein the accessory comprises an electrical vehicle (EV) charger. (“For an electric vehicle, device states include driving or stationary, length of time driving, length of time stationary, parked, stopped at traffic light, disconnected from a charging unit, connected to a charging unit, charging at a charging unit, not charging at a charging unit.” [0034]).
Regarding claims 4 and 11, Grunkemeyer discloses system of claim 1,
Grunkemeyer does not explicitly teach wherein the contextual content includes a battery status of the vehicle and the instructions direct the at least one processor to: upon the detection of the accessory, open a charge port of the vehicle.
However, Madonia does teach wherein the contextual content includes a battery status of the vehicle and the instructions direct the at least one processor to: upon the detection of the accessory, open a charge port of the vehicle (“For example, display 12 may include a touch screen, wherein the driver enters an entry code by touching screen 24. The entry code is sent to control circuit 40 which sends a control signal to vehicle control 58. Vehicle control 58 can perform any function or operation such as causing the door to be unlocked.” [0033]). Both Grunkemeyer and Madonia teach methods of vehicle access management. However, Madonia explicitly teaches wherein the contextual content includes a battery status of the vehicle and the instructions direct the at least one processor to: upon the detection of the accessory, open a charge port of the vehicle
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the remote access method of Grunkemeyer to also include wherein the contextual content includes a battery status of the vehicle and the instructions direct the at least one processor to: upon the detection of the accessory, open a charge port of the vehicle, as taught by Madonia, with a reasonable expectation of success. Doing so improves gaining access to securable compartments of the vehicle without compromising security (With regard to this reasoning, see at least [Madonia, 0032-0033]).
Regarding claims 5, 12 and 17, Grunkemeyer discloses The system of claim 1, wherein the default content includes at least one of: an image, a video, an animation, a notification, text, or an interactive user interface (“The touch screen 648 can be coupled to the system bus 610 via a video interface 650, such as a video adapter to receive image data or image information for display via the touch screen 648.” [0098]).
Regarding claims 6, 13 and 18, Grunkemeyer discloses The system of claim 1, wherein the contextual content includes at least one of: an image, a video, an animation, a notification, text, an interactive user interface. (“The touch screen 648 can be coupled to the system bus 610 via a video interface 650, such as a video adapter to receive image data or image information for display via the touch screen 648.” [0098]).
Regarding claims 7, 14 and 19, Grunkemeyer discloses The system of claim 1, wherein the display is external to a cabin of the vehicle (“Those skilled in the relevant art will appreciate that the described implementations, as well as other implementations, can be practiced with various processor-based system configurations, including handheld devices, such as smartphones and tablet computers, wearable devices, multiprocessor systems, microprocessor-based or programmable consumer electronics, personal computers (“PCs”), network PCs, minicomputers, mainframe computers, and the like.” [0089]).
Regarding claims 8, 15 and 20, Grunkemeyer discloses The system of claim 1, wherein the at least one sensor comprises one or more of a proximity sensor, a wireless Local Area Network (LAN) device, a wireless Wide Area Network (WAN) device, and Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) device (“These logical connections may facilitate any known method of permitting computers to communicate, such as through one or more LANs and/or WANs, such as the Internet, and/or cellular communications networks. Such networking environments are well known in wired and wireless enterprise-wide computer networks, intranets, extranets, the Internet, and other types of communication networks including telecommunications networks, cellular networks, paging networks, and other mobile networks.” [0099]).
Claims 9 and 16 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Grunkemeyer in view of Madonia and in further view of Krishnan (US 9725069 B2), hereinafter referred to as Grunkemeyer, Madonia and Krishnan respectively.
Regarding claims 9 and 16, Grunkemeyer discloses at least one processor in communication with the at least one sensor, the display(“These and other input devices (i.e., “I/O devices”) are connected to the processor(s) 606 through an interface 646 such as a touch-screen controller and/or a universal serial bus (“USB”) interface that couples user input to the system bus 610, although other interfaces such as a parallel port, a game port or a wireless interface or a serial port may be used. The touch screen 648 can be coupled to the system bus 610 via a video interface 650, such as a video adapter to receive image data or image information for display via the touch screen 648. Although not shown, the processor-based device can include other output devices, such as speakers, vibrator, haptic actuator or haptic engine, and the like.” [0098]),
and memory containing instructions that (“The system includes one or more processors and a memory device that stores instructions thereon that when executed by the one or more processors,” [0011]),
Grunkemeyer does not explicitly teach a display configured to present a graphical user interface (GUI) to a user outside of the vehicle;
However, Madonia does teach a display configured to present a graphical user interface (GUI) to a user outside of the vehicle (“Integrated display 12 provides real-time information for viewing external to vehicle 10. The displayed images can be readily changed either with or without interaction with the occupants of vehicle 10. Display 12 is programmable, stylistic, and visually attractive with respect to vehicle 10.
In another embodiment, display 12 can send information back to control circuit 40. For example, display 12 may include a touch screen, wherein the driver enters an entry code by touching screen 24. The entry code is sent to control circuit 40 which sends a control signal to vehicle control 58. Vehicle control 58 can perform any function or operation such as causing the door to be unlocked.” [0032-0033]). Both Grunkemeyer and Madonia teach methods of vehicle access management. However, Madonia explicitly teaches a display configured to present a graphical user interface (GUI) to a user outside of the vehicle.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the remote access method of Grunkemeyer to also include a display configured to present a graphical user interface (GUI) to a user outside of the vehicle, as taught by Madonia, with a reasonable expectation of success. Doing so improves gaining access to securable compartments of the vehicle without compromising security (With regard to this reasoning, see at least [Madonia, 0032-0033]).
Grunkemeyer does not explicitly teach A system for keyless vehicle compartment access comprising: a vehicle including: at least one sensor; a first securable compartment; a second securable compartment; at least one processor to: present, on the display, a first authentication screen; in response to receipt of a first indication of a successful authentication attempt via the first authentication screen; open the first securable compartment; present, on the display, a second authentication screen; and in response to receipt of a second indication of a successful authentication attempt via the second authentication screen; open the second securable compartment.
However, Krishnan does teach A system for keyless vehicle compartment access (“and keyless system 150 may be configured to provide remote key fob functions.” [Col.9 ln 40-41]) comprising:
a vehicle including: at least one sensor (“The system includes a vehicle latch having an electronically powered lock, and an exterior vehicle handle having a sensor (e.g. capacitive sensor) that is configured to detect the presence of a user's hand adjacent the handle.” [Col.1 ln 40-45]);
a first securable compartment (“The system further includes an exterior keypad or other suitable input device that is configured to permit manual entry of a security code by a user. The exterior keypad may be positioned on, for example, an exterior surface of a vehicle door.” [Col.1 ln 58-65]);
a second securable compartment (“Thus, it will be understood that vehicle 1A actually has a plurality of inner zones 230, one for each vehicle door and/or tailgate/hatch. Thus, the smartphone user closest to the driver door will not allow another person to open the passenger door first. Once the driver or any outer door is opened by the user, the vehicle can be programmed (e.g. by a user) to either only unlock that door or all doors.” [Col.11 ln 50-67]);
when executed, cause the at least one processor to:
present, on the display, a first authentication screen (“A mobile wireless device such as a cell phone (“smartphone”) 100 may include software (an “App”) that provides an input feature such as an icon 30 on touchscreen 31 of cell phone 100. Pushing/contacting icon 30 causes cell phone 100 to generate wireless signal 136 that is received by receiver 28 of control module 22, and the control module 22 then causes powered lock 26 to receive power from main (first) vehicle battery 36 to unlock the latch 8.” [Col.4 ln 35-43]);
in response to receipt of a first indication of a successful authentication attempt via the first authentication screen (“The control and communication system is also configured to unlock the electrically powered latch if an authorized wireless identification signal is received from an authorized wireless mobile cellular device and if the capacitive sensor detects a user's hand engaging the exterior vehicle handle.” [Col.2 ln 30-50]);
open the first securable compartment (“Once the driver or any outer door is opened by the user, the vehicle can be programmed (e.g. by a user) to either only unlock that door or all doors.” [Col.11 ln 50-67]);
present, on the display, a second authentication screen (“A mobile wireless device such as a cell phone (“smartphone”) 100 may include software (an “App”) that provides an input feature such as an icon 30 on touchscreen 31 of cell phone 100. Pushing/contacting icon 30 causes cell phone 100 to generate wireless signal 136 that is received by receiver 28 of control module 22, and the control module 22 then causes powered lock 26 to receive power from main (first) vehicle battery 36 to unlock the latch 8.” [Col.4 ln 35-43]);
and in response to receipt of a second indication of a successful authentication attempt via the second authentication screen (“The control and communication system is configured to activate the keyless vehicle ignition system upon receiving a signal from the user input feature if an authorized wireless identification signal is received from an authorized wireless mobile cellular device.” [Col.2 ln 30-50]);
open the second securable compartment (“Once the driver or any outer door is opened by the user, the vehicle can be programmed (e.g. by a user) to either only unlock that door or all doors.” [Col.11 ln 50-67]). Both Grunkemeyer and Krishnan teach methods for adding the ability to open securable compartments of the vehicle. However, Krishnan explicitly a system for keyless vehicle compartment access comprising: a vehicle including: at least one sensor; a first securable compartment; a second securable compartment; at least one processor to: present, on the display, a first authentication screen; receive a first indication of a successful authentication attempt; open the first securable compartment; present, on the display, a second authentication screen; receive a second indication of a successful authentication attempt; and open the second securable compartment.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the remote access method of Grunkemeyer to also include a system for keyless vehicle compartment access comprising: a vehicle including: at least one sensor; a first securable compartment; a second securable compartment; at least one processor to: present, on the display, a first authentication screen; receive a first indication of a successful authentication attempt; open the first securable compartment; present, on the display, a second authentication screen; receive a second indication of a successful authentication attempt; and open the second securable compartment, as taught by Krishnan, with a reasonable expectation of success. Doing so improves gaining access to securable compartments of the vehicle without compromising security (With regard to this reasoning, see at least [Krishnan, Col.1 ln 13-35]).
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.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to AHMED ALKIRSH whose telephone number is (703) 756-4503. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 9:00 am-5:00 pm EST.
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AHMED ALKIRSHExaminer, Art Unit 3668
/Fadey S. Jabr/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3668