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
Due to communications filed 3/26/26 the following is a non-final office action. Claims 1, 12, 13, 17, 19, 20-20 are amended. Claims 1-20 are pending in this application and are rejected as follows. The previous Office Action has been modified to reflect claim amendments.
Continued Examination Under 37 CFR 1.114
A request for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, including the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e), was filed in this application after final rejection. Since this application is eligible for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114. Applicant's submission filed on 3/26/26 has been entered.
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 a
judicial exception (I.e., a law of nature, a natural phenomenon, or an abstract idea) without significantly
more.
As per independent claim 1, this claim recites a method for selecting, filtering and displaying avatars based on user interactions, which describe the abstract idea of organizing and presenting information, and are concepts performed in the human mind (including an observation, evaluation, judgment, opinion), and managing personal behavior or relationships (including social activities, teaching, and following rules or instructions). The mere nominal recitation of a generic computer/computer network does not take the claim out of the "Mental Processes" grouping. Thus, the claim recites an abstract idea.
Furthermore, claim 1 is not integrated into a practical application. The additional elements of a “computer device”, “display”, and “user interactions” are recited at a high level of generality and are merely used to perform generic functions. The claim does not recite any improvement or computer functionality or any other technology. Simply implementing the abstract idea on a generic computer is not a practical application of the abstract idea.
Finally, claim 1 does not recite an inventive concept. The claims do not include additional elements that amount to significantly more than the abstract idea. The recited components are well-understood, routine and conventional, and are used to implement the abstract idea on a generic computer. Thus, even when viewed as a whole, nothing in the claim adds significantly more (i.e., an inventive concept) to the abstract idea. The claim is ineligible.
As per dependent claim 2, this claim recites receiving a trigger operation through clicking, moving or selecting a menu option on an object identifier and based on the trigger, selecting and displaying an associated avatar. These limitations are directed to the abstract idea of organizing, selecting, and presenting information based on user input, which can be performed mentally and thus constitute an abstract idea. The additional elements of a session interface and object identifier, and a display are generic computer components performing well-understood, routing and conventional functions and do not integrate the abstract idea into a practical application or provide significantly more.
As per dependent claim 3, this claim discloses selecting an avatar to be blocked based on user interactions through clicking, moving or menu selection, which constitutes the abstract idea of organizing and modifying displayed information based on user input. The additional elements are generic computer components performing well-understood, routing and conventional functions and do not integrate the abstract idea into a practical application or provide significantly more.
As per dependent claim 4, this claim discloses evaluating social attribute information and based on a present condition, selecting an avatar to display, which constitutes the abstract idea of analyzing information and presenting results based on that analysis. The additional elements are generic computer components performing well-understood, routing and conventional functions and do not integrate the abstract idea into a practical application or provide significantly more.
As per dependent claim 5, this claim discloses configuring an avatar for display based on social attribute information meeting a present condition. This amounts to collecting, analyzing and evaluating user activity data and making a determination based on that data, which falls within the category of certain methods of organizing human activity and mental processes. The additional elements of an avatar, social object and social session are generic computer computer-related concepts that merely implement the abstract idea on a computer, and do not integrate the abstract idea into a practical application or provide significantly more.
As per dependent claim 6, this claim discloses configuring avatar for display based on interaction frequency metrics (liking commenting, visiting and messaging frequencies) exceeding a threshold. This constitutes collecting and analyzing social interaction data and making a determination based on that analysis, which falls into the mental processes and certain methods of human activity groupings, an abstract idea. The additional elements merely specify particular types of interaction data and thresholds, which are routing data analysis techniques, are generic computer components performing well-understood, routing and conventional functions and do not integrate the abstract idea into a practical application or provide significantly more.
As per dependent claim 7, this claim discloses configuring an avatar for display based on message-related conditions, including message order, message flow and time differences between messages exchanged among social objects. This constitutes collecting, comparing and analyzing communication data and making a determination based on that analysis, which falls into the mental processes and certain methods of human activity groupings, an abstract idea. The additional elements of a social object, avatar and social session are generic computer components performing well-understood, routing and conventional functions, and further represent routine data evaluation techniques without making any improvement to computer functionality or other technology. These claims do not integrate the abstract idea into a practical application or provide significantly more.
As per dependent claim 8, this claim discloses displaying avatars in a target area of an interface, including defining display region and controlling visibility based on default settings or user-triggered operations. This constitutes organizing and presenting information and managing user interface behavior, which falls into the mental processes and certain methods of human activity groupings, an abstract idea. The additional elements of a session interface, target area and avatars are generic computer components performing well-understood, routing and conventional functions, and further represent routine data evaluation techniques without making any improvement to computer functionality or other technology. These claims do not integrate the abstract idea into a practical application or provide significantly more.
As per dependent claim 9, this claim discloses displaying avatars in a target area according to a display order and allowing dynamic adjustment to the order. This constitutes organizing and presenting information based on specific rules, which falls into the mental processes and certain methods of human activity groupings, an abstract idea. The additional elements of a session interface, target area and avatars are generic computer components performing well-understood, routing and conventional functions, and further represent routine data evaluation techniques without making any improvement to computer functionality or other technology. These claims do not integrate the abstract idea into a practical application or provide significantly more.
As per dependent claim 10, this claim discloses placing avatars in display positions based on the number of available positions relative to the number of avatars and updating the displayed avatars based on a switching operation. This constitutes organizing, selecting and displaying information which falls into the mental processes and certain methods of human activity groupings, an abstract idea. The additional elements of avatars, display positions and target area are generic computer components performing well-understood, routing and conventional functions, and further represent routine data evaluation techniques without making any improvement to computer functionality or other technology. These claims do not integrate the abstract idea into a practical application or provide significantly more.
As per dependent claim 11, this claim discloses defining positional relationships between a target area and a session area, and specifying that avatar display and message flow display are specifying that avatar display and message flow display are independent. This constitutes organizing, and presenting information within a user interface according to spatial rules, which falls into the mental processes and certain methods of human activity groupings, an abstract idea. The additional elements of target area, session area, avatar display and message flow are generic computer interface components performing well-understood, routing and conventional functions, and do not improve computer functionality or other technology. These claims do not integrate the abstract idea into a practical application or provide significantly more.
As per dependent claim 12, this claim discloses displaying an avatar in a different manner by highlighting it based on configuration information including enlarging the avatar, changing its color, adding a prompt, or positioning it in a target location. This constitutes organizing, and presenting information according to display rules, which falls into the mental processes and certain methods of human activity groupings, an abstract idea. The additional elements of avatar and spatial interface are generic computer interface components performing well-understood, routing and conventional functions, and do not improve computer functionality or other technology. These claims do not integrate the abstract idea into a practical application or provide significantly more.
As per dependent claim 13, this claim discloses displaying an avatar in the service interface and upon triggering an operation, displaying an associated interface corresponding to the avatar. This constitutes presenting information and navigating between interfaces based on user interaction, which falls into the mental processes and certain methods of human activity groupings, an abstract idea. The additional elements of a social client, service interface, avatar and interface pages are generic computer interface components performing well-understood, routing and conventional functions, and do not improve computer functionality or other technology. These claims do not integrate the abstract idea into a practical application or provide significantly more.
As per dependent claim 14, this claim discloses managing the display of avatars based on a display management operation including displaying avatars synchronously, hiding all or some avatars and redisplaying hidden avatars. This constitutes organizing and controlling presentation of information according to rules, which falls into the mental processes and certain methods of human activity groupings, an abstract idea. The additional elements of avatars and display operations and interface pages are generic computer interface components performing well-understood, routing and conventional functions, and do not improve computer functionality or other technology. These claims do not integrate the abstract idea into a practical application or provide significantly more.
As per dependent claim 15, this claim discloses updating and displaying an avatar in a session interface based on changes in configuration information. This constitutes collecting updated data, applying rules based on the data, and presenting a result, which falls into the mental processes and certain methods of human activity groupings, an abstract idea. The additional elements of avatars and a session interface are generic computer interface components performing well-understood, routing and conventional functions, and do not improve computer functionality or other technology. These claims do not integrate the abstract idea into a practical application or provide significantly more.
As per dependent claim 16, this claim discloses displaying, deleting and changing the display state of avatars in a session interface based on configuration information including switching between resident and non-resident display modes. This constitutes updating and managing displayed information according to rules, which falls into the mental processes and certain methods of human activity groupings, an abstract idea. The additional elements of avatars and a session interface are generic computer interface components performing well-understood, routing and conventional functions, and do not improve computer functionality or other technology. These claims do not integrate the abstract idea into a practical application or provide significantly more.
As per dependent claim 17, this claim discloses interacting with a social object based on an interaction operation performed on an avatar corresponding to the social object. This constitutes receiving a user input, identifying an associated entity, and performing an interaction based on the input, which falls into the mental processes and certain methods of human activity groupings, an abstract idea. The additional elements of avatars and a social object are generic computer interface components performing well-understood, routing and conventional functions, and do not improve computer functionality or other technology. These claims do not integrate the abstract idea into a practical application or provide significantly more.
As per dependent claim 18, this claim discloses displaying an interaction option list based on a user interaction with an avatar, selecting an option from the list. This constitutes receiving a user input, identifying an associated entity, and performing an interaction based on the input, which falls into the mental processes and certain methods of human activity groupings, an abstract idea. The additional elements of avatars, a social object and an interaction option list are generic computer interface components performing well-understood, routing and conventional functions, and do not improve computer functionality or other technology. These claims do not integrate the abstract idea into a practical application or provide significantly more.
As per independent claim 19, this claim recites an apparatus for selecting, filtering and displaying avatars based on user interactions, which describe the abstract idea of organizing and presenting information, and are concepts performed in the human mind (including an observation, evaluation, judgment, opinion), and managing personal behavior or relationships (including social activities, teaching, and following rules or instructions). The mere nominal recitation of a generic computer/computer network does not take the claim out of the "Mental Processes" grouping. Thus, the claim recites an abstract idea.
Furthermore, claim 19 is not integrated into a practical application. The additional elements of a “memory”, “processor”, and “user interactions” are recited at a high level of generality and are merely used to perform generic functions. The claim does not recite any improvement or computer functionality or any other technology. Simply implementing the abstract idea on a generic computer is not a practical application of the abstract idea.
Finally, claim 19 does not recite an inventive concept. The claims do not include additional elements that amount to significantly more than the abstract idea. The recited components are well-understood, routine and conventional, and are used to implement the abstract idea on a generic computer. Thus, even when viewed as a whole, nothing in the claim adds significantly more (i.e., an inventive concept) to the abstract idea. The claim is ineligible.
As per independent claim 20, this claim recites a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing instructions that when executed by one or more processors causes the one or more processors to select, filter and displaying avatars based on user interactions, which describe the abstract idea of organizing and presenting information, and are concepts performed in the human mind (including an observation, evaluation, judgment, opinion), and managing personal behavior or relationships (including social activities, teaching, and following rules or instructions). The mere nominal recitation of a generic computer/computer network does not take the claim out of the "Mental Processes" grouping. Thus, the claim recites an abstract idea.
Furthermore, claim 20 is not integrated into a practical application. The additional elements of a “non-transitory computer-readable medium”, “display”, and “user interactions” are recited at a high level of generality and are merely used to perform generic functions. The claim does not recite any improvement or computer functionality or any other technology. Simply implementing the abstract idea on a generic computer is not a practical application of the abstract idea.
Finally, claim 20 does not recite an inventive concept. The claims do not include additional elements that amount to significantly more than the abstract idea. The recited components are well-understood, routine and conventional, and are used to implement the abstract idea on a generic computer. Thus, even when viewed as a whole, nothing in the claim adds significantly more (i.e., an inventive concept) to the abstract idea. The claim is ineligible.
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, 14-15, 17-20 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over YAN
(CN 114598674 B), and further in view of LU (CN 116561439 A), and further in view of Hamilton (US
20110055726 A1), and further in view of Charlton et al (US 11544883 A1).
As per claim 1, YAN discloses:
displaying on a display a session interface of a social session comprising N social objects, N being an
integer greater than 1, (YAN, (CN 114598674 B) FIG. 5h shows a schematic diagram of another social
page provided by one exemplary embodiment of the invention. As shown in FIG. 5h, the social page
5080 comprises a number of statistical result 5081, number statistical result 5081 carries sharing option
5082, when the target user triggers the sharing option 5082; the counting module is used for counting
the number of people participating in the social session participating in the N people, in one
embodiment, the counting module distributes a counter for each social session participated by N
people); [Here, the social page represents the display since a display is necessary to display
information];
each social object having an avatar, (YAN, (CN 114598674 B) : In one embodiment, according to the
number order of the M user, in the session page in the form of a message flow to display M number of
report icons. Specifically, when the user i in the M user triggers the number entrance in the session
page, the first i-1 number icon in the session page is associated with the identification (user name
and/or avatar) of the ith report icon and user i.);
displaying, on the display, the session interface comprising N social objects and the avatar
interface comprising the M avatars, (YAN, (CN 114598674 B), In one embodiment, the display unit
displays M number of the icons in the session page, specifically for: according to the number order of
the M users, displaying M number of report icons in the form of message flow in the session page; S402,
the target terminal device displays M number of report icons in the session page. M number of report
icons is sent by M users in N users participating in the social conversation through triggering the report
number entrance. wherein the M number of the number icon in the ith number icon is sent by the user i
of the M user, the ith number icon carrying the user i the number order (such as the ith number icon
displayed in the number of the number of the user i), the M number of the number of the number icon
displayed in the session page can be the same, can also be different, M number of report icons displayed
in the session page in the manner of message flow;
with the avatar interface section overlaying a part of the social interface, (YAN, (CN 114598674 B): In yet
another embodiment, the session page is further displayed with a superposition prompt; the
superposition prompt is corresponding to the report number inlet; when the superposition prompt is
triggered, the number entrance corresponding to the superposition prompt is triggered. The overlay
prompt relates to one or more report icons. at this time, in the session page displayed in the M number
of the number icon is the ith number icon is the user i triggers the superposition prompt, any one of the
number icon designated by the user i is associated with the superposition prompt, or randomly specified
any one of the report icon associated with the superposition prompt. Further, the session page is further
displayed with at least one report icon, overlapping prompt displayed in at least one report icon of the
latest display of the associated position of the icon. FIG. 3f shows a flowchart of an exemplary
embodiment of the present application provided by superimposing a prompt participation in the
number. As shown in FIG. 3f, the session page 3130 is displayed with the number icon 3131, the number
icon 3132 and the superposition prompt 3133, the number map 3132 is the current display of the latest
display of the number icon (i.e., the current number order row in the last number icon). the
superposition prompt 3133 is displayed at the associated position of the number icon 3132, when the
user triggers the superposition prompt 3133, and the superposition prompt 3133 corresponding to the
number entrance is triggered; as shown in the session page 3140, displaying the number icon 3134 in
the session page, and the user identifier 3135 associated with the number icon 3134, the number icon
3134 can be the user specified by the superposition prompt 3133 associated with the number icon, It is
also possible to randomly select the number icon associated with the superposition prompt 3133, that
is, the number icon 3134 can be any one of the at least one report icon associated with the
superposition prompt 3133, and the user identifier 3135 is the identifier of the user who sends the
report icon 3134).
YAN does not disclose:
the avatar being an image configured for interacting with other social objects through an
interaction behavior;
However, (LU CN 116561439 A) discloses: (6) Virtual image: In general, it refers to a virtual
character image for internet social interaction, and the expression, the spirit and the dress of the virtual
character image can be individually set. In this embodiment, the avatar refers to an avatar for
performing social interaction in a virtual social scene on behalf of a social object.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of the invention to
include the above limitations as taught by LU in the systems of YAN, since the claimed invention is
merely a combination of old elements, and in the combination each element merely would have
performed the same function as it did separately, and one of ordinary skill in the art would have
recognized that the results of the combination were predictable.
YAN does not disclose the following limitations, however Hamilton discloses:
receiving one or more first user interactions for displaying M avatars to-be-displayed of N avatars, M
being an integer less than or equal to N, (HAMILTON: (CN 114598674 B): Similarly, the session message
1012 is sent by the user m in the "XX group chat", and the user m is any user other than the user n. in the N users (i.e., m is a positive integer, m is not equal to n, and m is less than or equal to N; ALSO SEE
"[0036] Next, if the predetermined threshold is triggered, alternative representation tool 53 takes steps
to self-heal server 14 to prevent failure in overload conditions. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 5,
alternative representation tool 53 comprises a rendering component 84 configured to provide an
alternative representation of the virtual content renderable in the virtual universe to reduce the load on
server 14 in the case that the load on server 14 exceeds the predefined threshold. In one embodiment,
to provide an alternative representation, rendering component 84 is configured to modify the definition
of the virtual content renderable in the virtual universe. As mentioned above, the virtual content of VU
12 may be defined in terms of a virtual reality modeling language, wherein the definition of the virtual
content comprises programming data necessary for executing the objects, texts, and scripts within
virtual universe 12. Rendering component 84 is configured to automatically annotate the definition of
the virtual content renderable in the virtual universe with metadata that identifies how to modify the
virtual content renderable in the virtual universe. For example, when authoring the world, metadata is
added to the definition that explicitly states how an object, or class of objects is to be displayed to the
user.);
receiving one or more second user interactions for blocking the display of K avatars of N avatars, K being
an integer less than or equal to N, and the K avatars being different than the M avatars, (Hamilton (US
20110055726 A1) discloses: "Claim 12. The alternative representation tool according to claim 11, the
blocking component configured to selectively move avatars to a different region based on at least one of
the following removal rules: random removal, removal based on the order of entrance into region, and
removal of avatars within a region who appear to be idle; Claim 13. The alternative representation tool
according to claim 8 further comprising a selection component configured to pre-select objects within a
region of the virtual universe that are to be eliminated in the case that the load on the server exceeds a
predefined threshold");
obtaining configuration information, the configuration information being information on M avatars to-
be-displayed, and information on a manner in which to display the M avatars wherein the information on the manner in which to display the M avatars comprises indication of a first avatar to be displayed among the M avatars (Hamilton: [0036] Next, if the predetermined threshold is triggered, alternative
representation tool 53 takes steps to self-heal server 14 to prevent failure in overload conditions.
Specifically, as shown in FIG. 5, alternative representation tool 53 comprises a rendering component 84
configured to provide an alternative representation of the virtual content renderable in the virtual
universe to reduce the load on server 14 in the case that the load on server 14 exceeds the predefined
threshold. In one embodiment, to provide an alternative representation, rendering component 84 is
configured to modify the definition of the virtual content renderable in the virtual universe. As
mentioned above, the virtual content of VU 12 may be defined in terms of a virtual reality modeling
language, wherein the definition of the virtual content comprises programming data necessary for
executing the objects, texts, and scripts within virtual universe 12. Rendering component 84 is
configured to automatically annotate the definition of the virtual content renderable in the virtual
universe with metadata that identifies how to modify the virtual content renderable in the virtual
universe. For example, when authoring the world, metadata is added to the definition that explicitly
states how an object, or class of objects is to be displayed to the user. As will be further described
herein, rendering engine 42 receives an alternative representation of virtual content in VU 12 and
renders it for display to the user of computer 20.);
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of the invention to include the
above limitations as taught by Hamilton in the systems of YAN, (CN 114598674 since the claimed invention is merely a combination of old elements, and in the combination each element merely
would have performed the same function as it did separately, and one of ordinary skill in the art would
have recognized that the results of the combination were predictable.
YAN does not disclose:
displaying, on the display, the first avatar as a part of the avatar interface section overlaid on the part of the social interface, wherein the first avatar is displayed in a different manner than other avatars among the M avatars, and wherein displaying on the social interface is independent of displaying on the avatar interface section.
However, Charlton et al (US 11544883 A1) discloses: SEE Figs 8a-8b. (16) According to some example embodiments, a first user can display an object using an image sensor of a client device (e.g., smartphone). The object is recognized as a scannable code linked to a second user's social media account or avatar user account (e.g., Bitmoji® account). A first avatar for the first user is then arranged to appear interacting with a second avatar of the second user. The arrangement of the two interacting avatars may be preconfigured based on...their relationship on a social media platform. In some example embodiments, when the object is recognized as linked to a given user's account, social media content (e.g., user images) is integrated into a image display as augmented reality elements; (57) FIG. 8A shows a client device 800 displaying a user interface 805 for implementing augmented reality using coded user data; (58) FIG. 8B shows the client device 800 with the user interface 805 displaying augmented reality elements, according to some example embodiments. After the image feature is scanned and the coding is used to identify a corresponding user and user profile on the application server 112, the coded vision system 250 uses user data stored in the user profile (e.g., stored in database 120) to generate overlay content for the live feed. In the example shown, image post data (e.g., images from ephemeral messages 502 published by the user over social media) are used to populate one or more bubbles 815. The one or more bubbles 815 are part of an animation sequence that depicts the bubbles as emanating from the image feature 810, according to some example embodiments; (66) At operation 1130, the coded vision system 250 requests the content 1135 by directing a request to the URL. In response, the app engine 1111 sends the content 1135 to the client device 102, and the client device 102 prepares to render the content at operation 1140. At operation 1145, if the content does not require a combined depiction (e.g., a “friendmoji” that shows two avatars interacting with each other), the coded vision system 250 displays the content (e.g. applies a video effect to the live feed) at operation 1150. On the other hand, if, at operation 1145, the content does require a combined depiction, then at operation 1155, the coded vision system 250 sends a request to a server target (e.g., an action engine 760 executed on app engine 1111 having an address “/bitmoji/image”), requesting the combined depiction content...In some example embodiments, the contented displayed at operation 1150 includes one or more of:...overlay content using images from ephemeral messages 502...).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of the invention to include the above limitations as taught by Charlton et al in the systems of YAN, (CN 114598674 since the claimed invention is merely a combination of old elements, and in the combination each element merely would have performed the same function as it did separately, and one of ordinary skill in the art would have recognized that the results of the combination were predictable.
As per claim 2, YAN discloses:
wherein any one of the N social objects is represented as an i" social object, and i is an integer
less than or equal to N, (YAN, (CN 114598674 B): Similarly, the session message 1012 is sent by the user
m in the "XX group chat", and the user m is any user other than the user n in the N users (i.e., m is a
positive integer, m is not equal to n, and m is less than or equal to N).;
wherein an object identifier of the i social object is displayed in the session interface; and
In addition, at least one of the following may be included in the session page: an option button 103, a
session object identification.
wherein obtaining the configuration information comprises:
receiving a trigger operation performed on the object identifier of the i® social object; and configuring
the avatar of the iTh social object as an avatar to-be-displayed based on the trigger operation, (YAN, (CN
114598674 B) In addition, at least one of the following may be included in the session page: an option
button 103, a session object identification The option button 103 may be a configuration button of the
session page, and the user clicks the option button 103 to open the option panel, and each element of
the session page is configured in the option panel, such as the background of the configuration session
page, the configuration message prompting mode, and the configuration of the user's avatar. The
session object identification 104 is used to indicate an object that is currently in session with the user n,
for example, the session object identification 104 in FIG. 1 is used to represent a group of social sessions
in which the user n is currently participating ("XX group chat" as shown in FIG. 1). The return button 105
is used to exit the session page and return to the upper level page of the session page (e.g., the contact
list page). The message input box 106 is used for receiving the session message input by the target user;
when the target user clicks the message input box 106, the target user can trigger the display");
wherein the trigger operation comprises any one of the following: clicking the object identifier
of the i social object; moving the object identifier of the i social object in the session interface; touching
and holding the object identifier of the i® social object; and calling out a menu through the object
identifier of the i® social object, and selecting a to-be-displayed option from the menu, (The function
selection column 107 includes functions that support use in a social session process, such as a voice
recording function (when the voice recording function is triggered, the terminal device used by the user
n is called to collect voice information of the surrounding environment, and the voice information is
encapsulated as one or more session messages), an image shooting function (for sending the image or
video shot by the user n; or for sending a picture or video stored in the terminal device used by the user
n), a red packet function (for sending a red packet to the object indicated by the session object
identification 104) or the like);
As per claim 3, YAN does not disclose:
Wherein the one or more second user interactions comprises any one of the following: clicking the j"
avatar; moving the avatar in the session interface; touching and holding the avatar; and calling out a
menu through the j" avatar, and selecting an option that needs to be blocked from the menu.
However, Hamilton (US 20110055726 A1) discloses: "Claim 12. The alternative representation tool
according to claim 11, the blocking component configured to selectively move avatars to a different
region based on at least one of the following removal rules: random removal, removal based on the
order of entrance into region, and removal of avatars within a region who appear to be idle; Claim 13.
The alternative representation tool according to claim 8 further comprising a selection component
configured to pre-select objects within a region of the virtual universe that are to be eliminated in the
case that the load on the server exceeds a predefined threshold".
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of the invention to include the
above limitations as taught by (LU, (CN 116563496) in the systems of YAN, (CN 114598674 since the
claimed invention is merely a combination of old elements, and in the combination each element merely
would have performed the same function as it did separately, and one of ordinary skill in the art would
have recognized that the results of the combination were predictable.
As per claim 8, YAN does not disclose:
wherein displaying the M avatars in the session interface according to the configuration
information comprises: displaying the M avatars in a target area of the session interface, the target area
comprising any one of the following: any area obtained by dividing the session interface; and an area
presented following the session interface but independent of the session interface; and wherein the
target area is directly displayed by default; or the target area is hidden by default, and is triggered to be
displayed based on an area evocation operation.
However, LU (CN 116561439) discloses: "A In one embodiment, an interactive operation of a
target social object for a first virtual social scene may be an operation of controlling a virtual
control The virtual control 3011 may be displayed at any location in the first live room. By controlling
the virtual control 3011, the virtual image can be controlled to perform displacement movement in the
room, it can be understood that the displacement movement in the room refers to the virtual
movement of the virtual image in the page, specifically, the moving direction and moving speed of the
virtual image can be controlled, moving to the appointed position of the social object on the page. when
the virtual control is triggered by the target social object, the computer device receives the interactive
operation of the target social object aiming at the first virtual social scene so as to display the target
virtual image corresponding to the target social object in the first live scene room After the target
avatar is displayed in the first live-action room, the target social object can control the avatar to move to
the appointed position by triggering the virtual control".
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of the invention to
include the above limitations as taught by LU in the systems of YAN, since the claimed invention is
merely a combination of old elements, and in the combination each element merely would have
performed the same function as it did separately, and one of ordinary skill in the art would have
recognized that the results of the combination were predictable.
As per claim 9, YAN discloses:
wherein the target area comprises a plurality of display positions, and wherein displaying the M
avatars in the target area of the session interface comprises: respectively placing the M avatars at
display positions in the target area for display, a display order of the M avatars in the target area
comprising a random order or a fixed order; and the display order of the M avatars in the target area
supporting dynamic adjustment, (It should be noted that, if the target user is determined as the initiator
(such as the target user sent by the target user to information the target user is the initiator of the
round report number, or target user is the first number of the target user sending the number icon of
the user, namely the target user number order is 1). then the target terminal device displays result in
the session page view prompting entrance, result checking prompting entrance is used for prompting
the target user to check the counting result. result checking the prompt entrance is continuously
displayed in the target user of the session page, until the target user triggers the result checking prompt
entrance or closing the result checking prompt entrance. Specifically, the result checking prompting
entrance comprises a closing key, when the closing key is selected, closing the result checking prompting
entrance in the session page. result checking the specific display position of the prompt entrance can be
set according to the actual condition).
As per claim 10, YAN does not disclose: wherein respectively placing the M avatars at the display
positions in the target area for display comprises: respectively placing, based on a quantity of display
positions in the target area being greater than or equal to M, the M avatars at the display positions in
the target area for display; and placing, based on the quantity of display positions in the target area
being less than M, some avatars in the M avatars at the display positions of the target area for display,
and updating, in based on a switching operation, the display positions to switch display of the M avatars.
However, LU (CN 116561439 A) discloses: "(3) The live room in the social service page displayed
by the computer device 10 supports switching, for example, the target social object may switch the live
room in the social service page by a room switching operation (e.g., a sliding up and down operation is
performed in the social service page). For example: the live scene room can be automatically switched
according to the display time length of the live scene room displayed in the social service page; For
example: it also can automatically switch the live-view room or close the live-view room when the live-
view room displayed in the social service page has no social interaction operation for a long time.
through the mechanism that the live room supports switching, the social service page can be
dynamically, adjusting the recommendation content in time, which not only gives the content
interactive recommendation experience of the target social object video stream mode, but also guides
the target social object to participate in more virtual social scenes for social interaction, so as to improve
the social interaction rate".
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of the invention to
include the above limitations as taught by LU in the systems of YAN, since the claimed invention is
merely a combination of old elements, and in the combination each element merely would have
performed the same function as it did separately, and one of ordinary skill in the art would have
recognized that the results of the combination were predictable.
As per claim 11, YAN does not disclose:
"wherein the session interface comprises a session area, and the session area is configured for
displaying a message flow of the social session; a position relationship between the target area and the
session area comprises any one of the following: the target area and the session area are two areas that
are independent of each other; there is an intersection between the target area and the session area;
the target area is located in the session area; the session area is located in the target area; and the
display of the avatar in the target area and the display of the message flow in the session area are
independent of each other and do not affect each other".
However, LU (CN 116561439 A) discloses: "if the target social object is not interested in the first
virtual social scene and does not want to be added to the first virtual social scene to perform social
interaction, the target social object cannot perform any interaction operation, at this time, the target
virtual image corresponding to the target social object will not be displayed in the first realistic room. At
this time, the target social object can be used as a bystander, and the multi-party input session message
can be viewed, and the social session stream 301 as shown in FIG. 3a can be viewed, at the same time,
The target social object may also view the avatar of one or more social objects displayed in the page
area 3051".
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of the invention to
include the above limitations as taught by LU in the systems of YAN, since the claimed invention is
merely a combination of old elements, and in the combination each element merely would have
performed the same function as it did separately, and one of ordinary skill in the art would have
recognized that the results of the combination were predictable.
As per claim 14 YAN does not disclose:
managing, based on a display management operation on a displayed avatar, the display of the M
avatars, wherein the managing comprises any one of the following: synchronously displaying the M
avatars, synchronously hiding the M avatars, hiding some avatars in the M avatars, and redisplaying
hidden avatars in the M avatars.
However, LU (CN 116561439) discloses: "The social session message may also be displayed
around the virtual image corresponding to the social object sending the social session message, that is,
when the social session message sent by the target social object in the first virtual social scene is
received, displaying the social session message around the target avatar in the first live-action room, the
surrounding of the target avatar can be, for example, the distance between the area where the social
session message is displayed and the area where the target avatar is located is within a preset distance
range, The distance between the area where the social session message is displayed and the area where
the target avatar is located can be the distance between the central points of the two areas, or the
distance between the closest edges between the two areas and so on. Referring to FIG. 3a, the social
service page 300 includes a social session flow 301 and a message input field 302, and the target social
object can input a social session message in the message input field 302, when the input social session
message is sent, the first live-action room will display the target virtual image corresponding to the
target social object. In addition, the social session message will be displayed in the social session stream
301. In one embodiment, the social session message sent by the target social object may also be
displayed around the target avatar corresponding to the target social object, as shown in FIG. 3a. The
target social object (such as Lee) displayed in the social session stream 301 sends the social session
message (the social message is "I have come" three words), In the first virtual social scene, it is
synchronously displayed around the target virtual image 3012 corresponding to the little plum (a text
box with the content of "I have come" is displayed above the target virtual image 3012"
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of the invention to
include the above limitations as taught by LU in the systems of YAN, since the claimed invention is
merely a combination of old elements, and in the combination each element merely would have
performed the same function as it did separately, and one of ordinary skill in the art would have
recognized that the results of the combination were predictable.
As per claim 15, YAN does not disclose:
updating and displaying, based on changes to the configuration information, an avatar in the
session interface according to changed configuration information. In one embodiment, the first live room is a subject customized room; The processing module 502 is specifically configured to: outputting the options related to the customized theme; In response to the triggering of the option, the display form of the target avatar is updated to a form matching the triggered option.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of the invention to
include the above limitations as taught by LU in the systems of YAN, since the claimed invention is
merely a combination of old elements, and in the combination each element merely would have
performed the same function as it did separately, and one of ordinary skill in the art would have
recognized that the results of the combination were predictable.
As per claim 16, YAN discloses:
wherein updating and displaying, based on changes to the configuration information, the avatar
in the session interface according to the changed configuration information comprises: displaying, each
time one to-be-displayed avatar is newly configured in the configuration information, the newly
configured avatar in the session interface; deleting, each time one avatar that needs to be blocked is
newly configured in the configuration information, the avatar that has been displayed and needs to be
blocked in the session interface; and changing, each time a display manner of the avatar is changed in
the configuration information, the avatar that has been displayed in the session interface from resident
display to non- resident display according to the change, or from non-resident display to resident
display, (The social session can be divided into a separate session and a group chat session, the so-called
separate session refers to a session between two users. The so-called group chat session refers to a
session between two or more users. a session message generated among the users participating in the
same social session is displayed in a session page in a message stream manner; The session page is
displayed in a terminal device used by each user participating in the social session. The application
mainly relates to a group chat session, the group chat session refers to a social session in which N users
join together, N is an integer and N is more than 2. FIG. 1 shows a schematic diagram of a session page
provided by an exemplary embodiment of the present application. If any one of the N users is denoted
as user n (n is a positive integer and n terminal device of the user n. The session message 1011 shown in
FIG. 1 is a user identifier 1021 sent by the user n, which is displayed in association with the session
message 1011, as well as the user identifier 1021 of the user n. Wherein, the session message 1011
includes at least one of a text message and an image message, and the user identifier 1021 includes a
user name and/or a user portrait; Similarly, the session message 1012 is sent by the user m in the "XX
group chat", and the user m is any user other than the user n in the N users (i.e., m is a positive integer,
m is not equal to n, and m is less than or equal to N). The user identifier 1022 of the user m is also
displayed in association with the session message 1012. In addition, at least one of the following may be
included in the session page: an option button 103, a session object identification 104, a return button
105, a message input box 106, a function selection column 107, an expression panel 108, an icon type
selection column 109, a deletion button 110 and a transmission button 111. The option button 103 may
be a configuration button of the session page, and the user clicks the option button 103 to open the
option panel, and each element of the session page is configured in the option panel, such as the
background of the configuration session page, the configuration message prompting mode, and the
configuration of the user's avatar. The session object identification 104 is used to indicate an object that
is currently in session with the user n, for example, the session object identification 104 in FIG. 1 is used
to represent a group of social sessions in which the user n is currently participating ("XX group chat" as
shown in FIG. 1). The return button 105 is used to exit the session page and return to the upper level
page of the session page (e.g., the contact list page). The message input box 106 is used for receiving the
session message input by the target user; when the target user clicks the message input box 106, the
target user can trigger the display input keyboard, the target user can input the editing session message
in the input keyboard, the message input box 106 will according to the input instruction obtained in the
input keyboard, The text information corresponding to the input instruction is displayed in the message
input box 106 in real time).
As per claim 17, YAN does not disclose: wherein any one of the M avatars is represented as a j"
avatar, j is an integer and j is less than or equal to M, and the social processing method further
comprises: interacting with, based on an interaction operation performed by a target social object on
the j" avatar, a social object corresponding to the j" avatar, (Abstract: The embodiment of the
application discloses a social interaction method, device, device and storage medium, program product,
the social interaction method comprises: displaying a social service page; responding to the interactive
operation of the target social object aiming at the first virtual social scene, displaying the target virtual
image corresponding to the target social object in the first live scene room. The embodiment of the
invention can improve the immersion and interest of social interaction).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of the invention to
include the above limitations as taught by LU in the systems of YAN, since the claimed invention is
merely a combination of old elements, and in the combination each element merely would have
performed the same function as it did separately, and one of ordinary skill in the art would have
recognized that the results of the combination were predictable.
As per claim 18, YAN does not disclose: wherein interacting with the social object
corresponding to the j avatar comprises: displaying an interaction option list based on the interaction
operation performed by the target social object on the j" avatar, wherein the interaction option list
comprises one or more interaction options, and the one or more interaction options comprise one of
the following: a special reminder option, a separate session option, a relationship adding option, a
virtual space option, and a mini program interaction option; and selecting the interaction option from
the interaction option list, and performing interaction indicated by the selected interaction option
between the target social object and the social object corresponding to the j® avatar,
However Lu discloses: (In another embodiment, the first virtual social scene includes M virtual images
for social interaction; Then, the interaction operation of the target social object for the first virtual social
scene can be the interaction operation initiated for the reference virtual image in the M virtual images
in the first virtual social scene, the reference virtual image can be any virtual image in the M virtual
images, it also can be a special virtual image, for example, the reference virtual image can be the virtual
image corresponding to the social object for creating the first live room, after the interaction operation
initiated by the reference virtual image is generated, in response to the interaction operation initiated
by the target social object to the reference virtual image in M virtual images, displaying the target virtual
image corresponding to the target social object in the first live scene room. when the target social object
initiates an interactive operation for any virtual image in the first virtual social scene, the computer
device 10 receives the interactive operation of the target social object for the first virtual social scene, so
that the target virtual image corresponding to the target social object can be displayed in the first live
scene room, The target virtual image can be the virtual image defined by the target social object.
optionally, when the target social object clicks on any one of the M virtual images in the first virtual
social scene, the interactive panel can be triggered to display, the interactive panel can comprise a
plurality of interactive options, such as selecting action or checking data, When the target social object
selects any one interactive option, the target virtual image corresponding to the target social object can
be displayed in the first live scene room. Please refer to FIG. 3c, which is a schematic diagram of an
interactive operation initiated by a target social object to a virtual image provided by the embodiment
of the application, as shown in FIG. 3c, an interactive panel307 corresponding to the virtual image 306 is
displayed in the social service page, and the interactive panel 307 contains viewing data, calling and gifts
three interactive options, when the target social object selects the interactive option calling calling
calling ", the virtual image 306 executes the object action corresponding to the calling calling calling ",
because the target social object initiates an interactive operation to the virtual image 306, A virtual
image 308 corresponding to the target social object is displayed in the first live scene room).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of the invention to
include the above limitations as taught by LU in the systems of YAN, since the claimed invention is
merely a combination of old elements, and in the combination each element merely would have
performed the same function as it did separately, and one of ordinary skill in the art would have
recognized that the results of the combination were predictable.
As per claim 19, this claim discloses limitations similar to those disclosed in independent claim 1
and is therefore rejected for similar reasons.
As per claim 20, this claim discloses limitations similar to those disclosed in independent claim 1
and is therefore rejected for similar reasons.
Claim(s) 4, 5, 7 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over YAN, (CN
114598674 B), and further in view of LU (CN 116561439 A), and further in view of Hamilton (US
20110055726 A1), and further in view of Charlton et al (US 11544883 A1), and further in view of LU, (CN 116563496).
As per claim 4, YAN does not disclose: wherein any one of the N social objects is represented as
an i" social object, and is an integer is less than or equal to N; and wherein obtaining the configuration
information comprises: obtaining social attribute information of the i" social object; and configuring an
avatar of the i" social object as a to-be-displayed avatar in a case that the social attribute information of
the i® social object meets a preset condition, wherein the social attribute information of the i® social
object comprises at least one of the following: a social activity level of the i social object in the social
session; an interaction frequency between the i® social object and each of the other social objects in the
social session; and an interaction relationship between the i® social object and each of the other social
objects in the social session.
However, LU, (CN 116563496), discloses: "However, In an embodiment, the social service
interface further comprises an interface communication area, the interface communication area
comprises a preset interactive content selection area, the preset interactive content selection area is
used for displaying the preset interactive content; a display module, which is further configured to: if the
virtual image has virtual property, displaying the preset interactive content related to the virtual
property in the preset interactive content selection region; or displaying the preset interactive content
corresponding to the attribute of the virtual image in the preset interactive content selection area; or
displaying the preset interactive content corresponding to the operation activity in the preset interactive
content selection area when the operation activity exists in the three-dimensional exploration space".
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of the invention to
include the above limitations as taught by LU, (CN 116563496), in the systems of YAN, (CN 114598674
B), since the claimed invention is merely a combination of old elements, and in the combination each
element merely would have performed the same function as it did separately, and one of ordinary skill
in the art would have recognized that the results of the combination were predictable.
As per claim 5, YAN discloses:
wherein the social attribute information of the i social object comprises: a social activity level of
the i social object in the social session, (YAN, (CN 114598674 Embodiments of the application relate
to social sessions. The social session refers to a social communication activity initiated between two or
more users using social software, a social website, or a social function in various applications);
YAN does not disclose:
wherein configuring the avatar of the iTh social object as the to-be-displayed avatar based on the social
attribute information of the i" social object meeting the preset condition comprises: configuring the
avatar of the i social object as the to-be-displayed avatar based on the social activity level of the i" social
object in the social session being greater than an activity threshold, wherein the social activity level of
the i social object in the social session comprises at least one of the following: a quantity of messages
transmitted by the iTh social object in the social session in a preset time period; joining duration of the i"
social object that joins the social session; online duration of the i" social object; and a quantity of times
that the i® social object participates in a social topic in the social session.
However, LU (CN 116561439 A) discloses: " In one embodiment, after displaying the target
virtual image corresponding to the target social object in the first live scene room, the target virtual
image can be controlled to perform displacement movement, the first virtual social scene can include a
social activity area, when the target virtual image moves into the social activity are The activity page of
the social activity can be displayed so that the target avatar is added to the social activity through the
activity page. the activity page of the social activity can comprise the activity operation control
corresponding to the social activity, the target virtual image can be controlled to perform the social
activity in the activity page by triggering the activity operation control".
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of the invention to
include the above limitations as taught by LU (CN 116561439 A) in the systems of YAN, (CN 114598674
B), since the claimed invention is merely a combination of old elements, and in the combination each
element merely would have performed the same function as it did separately, and one of ordinary skill
in the art would have recognized that the results of the combination were predictable.
As per claim 7, YAN discloses:
configuring the avatar of the ith social object as the to-be-displayed avatar based on a latest
message transmitted by the ith social object in the social session being in a preset order range in a
message flow of the social session, or a time difference between a transmitting time point at which the
ith social object transmits a latest message in the social session and a transmitting time point at which a
target social object in the social session transmits a latest message being in a preset time range, wherein
the interaction relationship between the ith social object and each of the other social objects in the
social session comprises any one of the following: an order relationship between a message transmitted
by the ith social object in the social session and messages transmitted by each of the other social objects
in the social session; and a time difference relationship between a transmitting time point at which the
ith social object transmits the message in the social session and a transmitting time point at which each
of the other social objects transmits the message in the social session; and the target social object is an
object requesting the configuration information, and the target social object is any one of each of the
other social objects,
(In one embodiment, the display unit displays M number of the icons in the session
page, specifically for: according to the number order of the M users, displaying M number of report
icons in the form of message flow in the session page; S402, the target terminal device displays M
number of report icons in the session page. M number of report icons is sent by M users in N users
participating in the social conversation through triggering the report number entrance. wherein the M
number of the number icon in the ith number icon is sent by the user i of the M user, the ith number
icon carrying the user i the number order (such as the ith number icon displayed in the number of the
number of the user i), the M number of the number of the number icon displayed in the session page
can be the same, can also be different, M number of report icons displayed in the session page in the
manner of message flow);
YAN does not disclose the following, however, LU, (CN 116563496) discloses:
wherein the social attribute information of the il social object comprises: the interaction
relationship between the i social object and each of the other social objects in the social session; and
wherein configuring the avatar of the i" social object as the to-be-displayed avatar based on the social
attribute information of the iTh social object meeting the preset condition comprises, (LU, (CN
116563496): In an embodiment, the social service interface further comprises an interface
communication area, the interface communication area comprises a preset interactive content selection
area, the preset interactive content selection area is used for displaying the preset interactive content; a
display module, which is further configured to: if the virtual image has virtual property, displaying the
preset interactive content related to the virtual property in the preset interactive content selection
region; or displaying the preset interactive content corresponding to the attribute of the virtual image in
the preset interactive content selection area; or displaying the preset interactive content corresponding
to the operation activity in the preset interactive content selection area when the operation activity
exists in the three-dimensional exploration space).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of the invention to
include the above limitations as taught by (LU, (CN 116563496) in the systems of YAN, (CN 114598674
B), since the claimed invention is merely a combination of old elements, and in the combination each
element merely would have performed the same function as it did separately, and one of ordinary skill
in the art would have recognized that the results of the combination were predictable.
Claim(s) 6 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over YAN, (CN 114598674
B), and further in view of LU (CN 116561439 A), and further in view of and further in view of Hamilton (US 20110055726 A1), and further in view of Charlton et al (US 11544883 A1), and further in view of
LU, (CN 116563496), and further in view of CAO et al (CN 214709752 U).
As per claim 6, YAN does not disclose:
wherein the social attribute information of the i® social object comprises: an interaction frequency
between the i social object and each of the other social objects in the social session; and wherein
configuring the avatar of the i" social object as the to-be-displayed avatar based on the social attribute
information of the i" social object meeting the preset condition comprises: configuring the avatar of the
iTh social object as the to-be-displayed avatar based on the interaction frequency between the iTh social
object and each of the other social objects in the social session being greater than a frequency
threshold, wherein the interaction frequency between the i" social object and each of the other social
objects in the social session comprises at least one of the following: a frequency at which the i" social
object likes each of the other social objects; a frequency at which the i® social object comments on each
of the other social objects; a frequency at which the i® social object enters social space of each of the
other social objects to perform visiting; and a frequency at which the iTh social object performs message
exchange with each of the other social objects in the session interface.
However, CAO et al (CN 214709752 U) discloses: "Results Analysis 1. The panbee of the invention has
social property between individual and individual. in 22 tested bear bee, 21 exhibits obvious social
tendency, frequent and long time with the same honeycomb social interaction. analyzing the 22 social
condition of the tested bear bee; it can be seen from FIG. 5a and FIG. 5b, the tested bear bee at the
same time facing the first familiar social object (Nestmate 1) and blank social cage 6 (Empty), the tested
bear bee will have a large amount of time in the same nest bee (first familiar with social object) one side
to access, and with the same nest bee (first familiar with social object) for frequent interaction.
statistical result display, the tested bear bee access blank social cage 6 of the cumulant duration
(Cumulative Duration) is 2.35 ± 0.87s access to the same nest bee (first familiar with social object) one
side of the cumulative time is 46.6 10.83s counting and displaying the measured bear bee access two
sides of the accumulated time long significant difference (N=22, P < 0.01), the tested bear bee in the
same nest bee (first familiar social object) access time is obviously higher than the blank social cage 6.
the access frequency of the tested bear bee to the empty white social cage 6 and the same-nest bee
(the first familiar social object respectively is 2.14 + 0.65 times; 15.32 +/ - 1.92 times; counting and
displaying the interaction of the tested bear bee and the same nest bee (first familiar social object) and
the tested bear bee and the blank social interaction cage 6 interaction has very significant difference (P
< 0.01).".
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of the invention to include the
above limitations as taught by CAO et al in the systems of YAN, (CN 114598674 since the claimed
invention is merely a combination of old elements, and in the combination each element merely would
have performed the same function as it did separately, and one of ordinary skill in the art would have
recognized that the results of the combination were predictable.
Claim(s) 12, 13 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over YAN, (CN 114598674 B), and further in view of LU (CN 116561439 A), and further in view of and further in view of Hamilton (US 20110055726 A1), and further in view of Charlton et al (US 11544883 A1), and further in view of LU, (CN 116563496), and further in view of Bolger (US 20110055267 A1).
As per claim 12, YAN does not disclose: wherein the configuration information further includes a
display manner of the M avatars; the display manner comprises resident display; and wherein displaying
the M avatars in the session interface according to the configuration information comprises:
highlighting, according to the configuration information in the session interface, an avatar of the M
avatars that needs the resident display, wherein the highlighting comprises any one or more of the
following: enlarging and displaying the avatar that needs the resident display; displaying the avatar that
needs the resident display in a target color; adding a resident prompt for the avatar that needs the
resident display; and displaying the avatar that needs the resident display at a target position.
However, Bolger (US 20110055267 A1) discloses: "[0044] The values derived along each comparison
path are then summed or otherwise combined to derive a relevancy value for a current object in regard
to the avatar as indicated at 360. These values are then compared at comparator 370 and placed in an
ordered list 380 in descending order of magnitude of the relevancy value. The objects in the list can then
be read out in order for rendering or retrieval (e.g. of a cached rendering, as alluded to above), the
image generated by image generator 390 and the image presented to the resident on display 395.
Accordingly, the object most relevant to the avatar will be rendered and a view thereof presented to the
avatar first, followed by other objects in decreasing order of relevancy"
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of the invention to include the
above limitations as taught by Bolger in the systems of YAN, (CN 114598674 B), since the claimed
invention is merely a combination of old elements, and in the combination each element merely would
have performed the same function as it did separately, and one of ordinary skill in the art would have
recognized that the results of the combination were predictable.
As per claim 13, YAN does not disclose: wherein the session interface is located in a social client, and
the social processing method further comprises: displaying the avatar that needs the resident display in
a service interface of the social client; and displaying, based on the avatar that needs the resident
display displayed in the service interface being triggered, an associated interface of the triggered avatar,
wherein the service interface comprises any one of the following: a homepage of the social client, a
session list page of the social client, a function page of the social client, and a social relationship chain
list page of the social client; and the associated interface of the triggered avatar comprises any one of
the following: a session interface between a social object corresponding to the triggered avatar and a
trigger object, a session interface of a social group to which the social object corresponding to the
triggered avatar belongs, and a corresponding session interface in a case that the triggered avatar is
configured as resident display.
However, LU, (CN 116563496) discloses
In one embodiment, the display module 1001 is further configured to: in the process of the virtual image
performing social interaction, prompting the social relationship between the social object corresponding
to the virtual image and the interactive object in the three-dimensional search space; Wherein, the
social relationship comprises any one or more of the following: social friend, common social circle,
common object label.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of the invention to
include the above limitations as taught by LU, (CN 116563496) in the systems of YAN, (CN 114598674 B),
since the claimed invention is merely a combination of old elements, and in the combination each
element merely would have performed the same function as it did separately, and one of ordinary skill
in the art would have recognized that the results of the combination were predictable.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments, see arguments/remarks, filed 2/17/26, with respect to the 35 USC 112 rejection have been fully considered and are persuasive. The 35 USC 112 rejection of claims 13 and 17 has been withdrawn.
Applicant's arguments filed 2/17/26 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive.
Applicant argues that claim 1 does not recite an abstract idea since, according to applicant, the limitations can not be performed in the human mind. Applicant specifically argues that the limitations define how based on a first user input and a second user input, a subset of avatars are selected for display and blocked from being displayed on an avatar interface while all N social objects are displayed on a session interface, where the avatar interface overlays on the session interface with both being displayed. However, Examiner respectfully disagrees that this language overcomes the 101 rejection. Claiming the inability to perform the present limitations in the human mind is not a measure of eligibility. The claim recites receiving user inputs, applying criteria, and selecting a subset of avatars for display while excluding others. Such limitations amount to evaluation, selection, and filtering of information, which fall within the abstract idea category of mental processes and/or certain methods of organizing human activity, even when performed by a computer. Furthermore, the limitations directed to selecting a subset of avatars based on a first user input and a second user input merely describe result-oriented data processing, where inputs are received and information to displayed is determined. The claim does not recite a specific technological mechanism or improvement in how the selection is performed, but instead recites the desired outcome of filtering and presenting information. Also, disclosing that a subset of avatars is displayed while others are blocked from display constitutes data filtering and presentation, which is a form of organizing and displaying information without improving any technology, an abstract idea. In addition, the limitations directed to displaying a session interface and an avatar interface, and overlaying the avatar interface on the session interface, amount to presentation of information and arrangement of user interface elements. The claim does not recite any improvement to computer functionality, display technology, or graphical user interface technology. The overlay is merely a generic display technique that specifies what information is displayed and how it is arranged, not a technical improvement in how the display operates. As a whole, the additional elements do not integrate the abstract idea into a practical application. Instead, they merely implement the abstract idea using generic computer components performing well-understood, routine, and conventional functions, including receiving input, processing data, and displaying results.
Furthermore, the claim does not include any additional elements, individually or in combination, that amount to significantly more than the abstract idea. The recited processor, memory, and display functions are generic and perform conventional activities. The claim therefore is still rejected under 35 USC 101.
Applicant’s arguments, see arguments/remarks, filed 2/17/26, with respect to the rejection(s) of claim(s) 1-3, 14-15, 17-20 rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over YAN (CN 114598674 B), and further in view of LU (CN 116561439 A), and further in view of Hamilton (US 20110055726 A1), have been fully considered and are persuasive. Therefore, the rejection has been withdrawn. However, upon further consideration, a new ground(s) of rejection is made further in view of Charlton et al (US 11544883 A1).
Similarly, claims 4, 5, 7 is/are now rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over YAN, (CN 114598674 B), and further in view of LU (CN 116561439 A), and further in view of Hamilton (US
20110055726 A1), and further in view of Charlton et al (US 11544883 A1), and further in view of LU, (CN 116563496).
Similarly, Claim(s) 6 is/are now rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over YAN, (CN 114598674 B), and further in view of LU (CN 116561439 A), and further in view of and further in view of Hamilton (US 20110055726 A1), and further in view of Charlton et al (US 11544883 A1), and further in view of LU, (CN 116563496), and further in view of CAO et al (CN 214709752 U).
Similarly, claim(s) 12, 13 is/are now rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over YAN, (CN 114598674 B), and further in view of LU (CN 116561439 A), and further in view of and further in view of Hamilton (US 20110055726 A1), and further in view of Charlton et al (US 11544883 A1), and further in view of LU (CN 116563496), and further in view of Bolger (US 20110055267 A1).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Akiba Robinson whose telephone number is 571-272-6734 and email is Akiba.Robinsonboyce@USPTO.gov. The examiner can normally be reached on Monday-Thursday 6:30am-4:30pm.
If attempts to reach the Examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the Examiner's supervisor, Nathan Uber can be reached on 571-270-3923. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
Any inquiry of a general nature or relating to the status of this application or proceeding should be directed to the receptionist whose telephone number is (703) 305-3900.
April 13, 2026
/AKIBA K ROBINSON/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3628
Prosecution Insights