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 .
Election/Restrictions
Applicant’s election without traverse of Species I in the reply filed on December 29, 2025 is acknowledged.
Claims 5-16 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to a nonelected species, there being no allowable generic or linking claim.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
The following is a quotation of the appropriate paragraphs of 35 U.S.C. 102 that form the basis for the rejections under this section made in this Office action:
A person shall be entitled to a patent unless –
(a)(1) the claimed invention was patented, described in a printed publication, or in public use, on sale, or otherwise available to the public before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claim(s) 1-2 and 4 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by US Patent Pub No 2016/0050491 A1 to Ahgren et al. (“Ahgren”).
As to claim 1, Ahgren discloses an earphone to be worn by a user (user terminal with external input and output audio devices, see pg. 2, ¶ 0026; pg. 4, ¶ 0039), comprising: a communication interface capable of performing data communication with an own user terminal communicably connected to at least one another user terminal via a network (see figures 1-4; pgs. 1-2, ¶ 0018 - ¶ 0023, ¶ 0026); a first microphone configured to collect a speech voice of at least one another user located near the user during a conference (see figure 3; pgs. 2-3, ¶ 0028 - ¶ 0030); a buffer configured to accumulate collected audio data of the speech voice of the other user, which is collected by the first microphone (see pg. 1, ¶ 0004); and a signal processing unit configured to execute, by using audio-processed data of the other user speech voice transmitted from the other user terminal to the own user terminal via the network during the conference and the collected audio data accumulated in the buffer, cancellation processing for canceling a component of the speech voice of the other user included in the audio-processed data (echo cancelling using microphone signal and signal to be output via speakers during voice call, see figures 3-6; pgs. 2-3, ¶ 0028 - ¶ 0031; pg. 4, ¶ 0040 - ¶ 0051).
As to claim 2, Ahgren further discloses wherein the signal processing unit is configured to execute delay processing for a certain time on the collected audio data, and execute the cancellation processing using the audio-processed data and the collected audio data after the delay processing (see pg. 4, ¶ 0043, ¶ 0047 - ¶ 0049).
As to claim 4, Ahgren further discloses further comprising: a speaker configured to output the audio-processed data after the cancellation processing (see figure 5a; pg. 4, ¶ 0043).
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.
Claim(s) 3 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Ahgren.
As to claim 3, Ahgren discloses the earphone according to claim 2.
Ahgren further discloses wherein the certain time is a time required for the communication interface to receive the audio-processed data from the other user terminal via the network and the own user terminal (see pg. 4, ¶ 0048), but does not expressly disclose the time required being an average time. However Ahgren discloses performing well-known adaptive delay estimation methods to account for changing network conditions (see pg. 4, ¶ 0048). The use of an average time is therefore considered obvious given the teachings of Ahgren, as it is merely one of various straightforward possibilities from which the skilled person would select when providing adaptive delay estimation to account for changing network conditions, particularly when multiple different time delays are acquired by the system (see pg. 4, ¶ 0048).
Conclusion
8. Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to SABRINA DIAZ whose telephone number is (571)272-1621. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 9am-5pm.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Ahmad Matar can be reached at 5712727488. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/SABRINA DIAZ/Examiner, Art Unit 2693
/AHMAD F. MATAR/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2693