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 .
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 101
35 U.S.C. 101 reads as follows:
Whoever invents or discovers any new and useful process, machine, manufacture, or composition of matter, or any new and useful improvement thereof, may obtain a patent therefor, subject to the conditions and requirements of this title.
Claims 1-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 101 because the claimed invention is directed to an abstract idea without significantly more.
Step 1
Claims 1-16 and 19-20 are directed to a device (machine); claims 17-18 are directed to a method (process).
Step 2A, Prong One
Regarding claims 1, 17 and 19, the recited steps are directed to a mental process of performing concepts in a human mind or by a human using a pen and paper. See MPEP § 2106.04(a)(2)(Ill). The limitation(s) of “output the cough event” (claims 1 and 19) and “outputting, by the processor, the cough event” is/are a process that, as drafted, covers performance of the limitation by a human mind (including an observation, evaluation, judgment, opinion) under the broadest reasonable standard interpretation. For example, these limitations are nothing more than reading numbers off of a chart or screen and marking down a conclusion on a paper via a keyboard.
Step 2A, Prong Two
The judicial exception is not integrated into a practical application. In particular, claim 1 also recites “a motion sensor configured to generate acceleration measurements along a plurality of axes; and a processor coupled to the motion sensor, the processor configured to: detect a head movement event based on the acceleration measurements, the head movement event indicating cough head movement by a user; detect a vocal activity event based on the acceleration measurements, the vocal activity event indicating cough vocal activity by the user;” and “detect a cough event in response to detection of the head movement event and the vocal activity event”. Claim 17 also recites “generating, by a motion sensor, acceleration measurements along a plurality of axes; detecting, by a processor coupled to the motion sensor, a head movement event based on the acceleration measurements, the head movement event indicating cough head movement by a user; detecting, by the processor, a vocal activity event based on the acceleration measurements, the vocal activity event indicating cough vocal activity by the user;” and “detecting, by the processor, a cough event in response to detecting the head movement event and the vocal activity event”. Claim 19 also recites “an accelerometer configured to generate acceleration measurements; and a processor coupled to the accelerometer, the processor configured to: determine time domain features of the acceleration measurements; detect a head movement event based on the time domain features, the head movement event indicating cough head movement by a user; convert the acceleration measurements to a frequency domain; detect a vocal activity event based on the acceleration measurements in the frequency domain, the vocal activity event indicating cough vocal activity by the user;” and “detect a cough event in response to detection of the head movement event and the vocal activity event”. The detecting, determining and converting amount to nothing more than the pre-solution activity of data gathering. The motion sensor, processor and accelerometer are recited at a high-level of generality and amount to nothing more than parts of a generic computer. Merely including instructions to implement an abstract idea on a computer does not integrate a judicial exception into practical application.
Step 2B
The claims do not include additional elements that are sufficient to amount to significantly more than the judicial exception. As discussed above with respect to integration of the abstract idea into a practical application, the additional elements of detecting, determining and converting amount to nothing more than mere pre-solution activity of data gathering, which does not amount to an inventive concept. The additional elements recited above are well known in the field of data gathering and processing. Moreover, simply appending well-understood, routine, conventional activities previously known to the industry, specified at a high level of generality, to the judicial exception, e.g., a claim to an abstract idea requiring no more than a generic computer to perform generic computer functions that are well-understood, routine and conventional activities previously known to the industry, is discussed in Alice Corp., 573 U.S. at 225, 110 USPQ2d at 1984. See MPEP § 2106.05(d). In this case, elements of general computer are being used to implement the abstract idea of outputting a cough event.
Regarding dependent claims 2-16, 18 and 20, the limitations of claims 1, 17 and 19 further define the limitations already indicated as being directed to the abstract idea.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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 the appropriate paragraphs of 35 U.S.C. 102 that form the basis for the rejections under this section made in this Office action:
A person shall be entitled to a patent unless –
(a)(1) the claimed invention was patented, described in a printed publication, or in public use, on sale, or otherwise available to the public before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claims 1-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Frank et al (U.S. 2021/0280322). Frank discloses (par. 0011) a motion sensor (par. 0099) configured to generate acceleration measurements along a plurality of axes; and a processor (par. 0097) coupled to the motion sensor, the processor configured to: detect a head movement event based on the acceleration measurements, the head movement event indicating cough head movement by a user; detect a vocal activity event based on the acceleration measurements, the vocal activity event indicating cough vocal activity by the user; detect a cough event in response to detection of the head movement event and the vocal activity event; and output the cough event (par. 0012).
Regarding claim 2, Frank discloses (par. 0011) the device is a multi-sensor device that includes the motion sensor and the processor.
Regarding claim 3, Frank discloses (par. 0880) the motion sensor includes a bone conduction accelerometer configured to generate the acceleration measurements.
Regarding claim 4, Frank discloses (par. 0474) the processor is configured to: determine acceleration values based on the acceleration measurements, the acceleration values being indicative of the acceleration measurements along the plurality of axes, the head movement event being detected based on the acceleration values, the vocal activity event being detected based on the acceleration values.
Regarding claim 5, Frank discloses (par. 0395) the processor is configured to: filter the acceleration values with a band pass filter; and down sample the filtered acceleration values.
Regarding claim 6, Frank discloses (par. 0495) the processor is configured to: determine time domain features of the down sampled filtered acceleration values; and detect the head movement event in case the time domain features satisfy one or more determined conditions.
Regarding claim 7, Frank discloses (par. 0495) the time domain features include at least an auto correlation calculation.
Regarding claim 8, Frank discloses (par. 0495) the processor is configured to: convert the acceleration values to a frequency domain; and determine magnitude values of the acceleration values in the frequency domain.
Regarding claim 9, Frank discloses (par. 0495) the processor is configured to: determine frequency domain features of the magnitude values of the acceleration values in the frequency domain; and detect the vocal activity event in case the frequency domain features satisfy one or more determined conditions.
Regarding claim 10, Frank discloses (par. 0189) the frequency domain features include at least an energy calculation and a maximum energy bin calculation.
Regarding claim 11, Frank discloses (par. 0189) the frequency domain features include a maximum energy bin calculation.
Regarding claim 12, Frank discloses (par. 0738) the processor is configured to: validate the cough event in case the cough event is detected for a determined time duration and detected a determined amount of time after a previous cough event.
Regarding claim 13, Frank discloses (par. 0495) the processor is configured to: determine acceleration values based on the acceleration measurements; filter the acceleration values with a band pass filter; down sample the filtered acceleration values; determine time domain features of the down sampled filtered acceleration values; and detect the head movement event based on the time domain features.
Regarding claim 14, Frank discloses (par. 0104) the time domain features include an envelope calculation, and the head movement event is detected with a neural network.
Regarding claim 15, Frank discloses (par 0495) the processor is configured to: determine acceleration values based on the acceleration measurements; convert the acceleration values along the axis to a frequency domain; determine magnitude values of the acceleration values in the frequency domain; and detect the vocal activity event based on the magnitude values.
Regarding claim 16, Frank discloses (par. 0104) the vocal activity is detected with a neural network.
Regarding claim 17, Frank discloses (par. 0011) generating, by a motion sensor (par. 0099), acceleration measurements along a plurality of axes; detecting, by a processor (par. 0097) coupled to the motion sensor, a head movement event based on the acceleration measurements, the head movement event indicating cough head movement by a user; detecting, by the processor, a vocal activity event based on the acceleration measurements, the vocal activity event indicating cough vocal activity by the user; detecting, by the processor, a cough event in response to detecting the head movement event and the vocal activity event; and outputting, by the processor, the cough event (par. 0012).
Regarding claim 18, Frank discloses (par. 0738) validating, by the processor, the cough event in case the cough event is detected for a determined time duration and detected a determined amount of time after a previous cough event.
Regarding claim 19, Frank discloses (par. 0011) an accelerometer (par. 0099) configured to generate acceleration measurements; and a processor (par. 0097) coupled to the accelerometer, the processor configured to: determine time domain features of the acceleration measurements; detect a head movement event based on the time domain features, the head movement event indicating cough head movement by a user; convert the acceleration measurements to a frequency domain; detect a vocal activity event based on the acceleration measurements in the frequency domain, the vocal activity event indicating cough vocal activity by the user; detect a cough event in response to detection of the head movement event and the vocal activity event; and output the cough event (par. 0012).
Regarding claim 20, Frank discloses (par. 0738) the processor is configured to: validate the cough event in case the cough event is detected for a determined time duration and detected a determined amount of time after a previous cough event.
Conclusion
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/DEBORAH L MALAMUD/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3792