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 § 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) 1-6 and 8-13 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Ben Shalom et al., US 2015/0210278, in view of Kim et al., US 2018/0041724.
In regard to claim 1, Ben Shalom et al., US 2015/0210278, discloses a camera system for a vehicle, the camera system being configured for both human vision and machine vision functionality, the camera system comprising:
an image sensor defining (see figure 1, element 120) an array of photovoltaic cells each configured to detect light and output an unfiltered array of light samples (see para 82 and 85);
a clear and color pixels configured to color filter the unfiltered array of light samples and output an array of color samples (see para 348), ; and
a control system (se figure 1, element 110) configured to:
apply a first interpretation technique to the array of color samples to obtain a human vision image (see para 155: color analysis);
apply a different second interpretation technique to the array of color samples to obtain a machine vision image having a reduced color space and improved transmittance compared to the human vision image, wherein the second interpretation technique involves utilizing each clear value as a luminance value in the determination of red/green/blue values for each color sample (see para 348); and
output the human vision and machine vision images to respective vehicle systems for use by an autonomous driving feature (see figure 5A, step 530 and para 145).
The ben Shalom reference does not specifically disclose a red/green/clear/blue (RGCB) color filter array (CFA) configured to color filter the unfiltered array of light samples and output an array of color samples and image processing that outputs the human vision and machine vision images to respective vehicle systems for user display.
Kim et al., US 2018/0041724, discloses an imaging device with a red/green/clear/blue (RGCB) color filter array (CFA) configured to color filter the unfiltered array of light samples and output an array of color samples (see column 19, lines 31-57); and imaging processing that outputs the human vision and machine vision images to respective vehicle systems for user display (see figure 1, element 160 and para 55 and par 71).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention (AIA ) to have been motivated to modify Ben Shalom et al., US 2015/0210278, in view of Kim et al., US 2018/0041724, to have a red/green/clear/blue (RGCB) color filter array (CFA) configured to color filter the unfiltered array of light samples and output an array of color samples; and image processing that outputs the human vision and machine vision images to respective vehicle systems for user display, in order to for the user to easily be able to see the images in real time.
In regard to claim 2, Ben Shalom et al., US 2015/0210278, in view of Kim et al., US 2018/0041724, discloses the camera system of claim 1. The Kim reference discloses wherein the machine vision image is substantially similar to a red/yellow/yellow/cyan (RYYCy) filtered and reconstructed image from the array of light samples (see figure 1, element 160 and para 55 and par 71).
In regard to claim 3, Ben Shalom et al., US 2015/0210278, in view of Kim et al., US 2018/0041724, discloses the camera system of claim 1, wherein the autonomous driving feature includes object detection and classification (see Ben Shalom et al.: para 10 and 202).
In regard to claim 4, Ben Shalom et al., US 2015/0210278, in view of Kim et al., US 2018/0041724, discloses the camera system of claim 1, wherein the human vision image is substantially similar to a red/green/green/blue (RGGB) filtered and reconstructed image from the array of light sample (see Kim: para 159-160).
In regard to claim 5, Ben Shalom et al., US 2015/0210278, in view of Kim et al., US 2018/0041724, discloses the camera system of claim 1. Th Kim reference discloses wherein the camera system consists of the image sensor (see figure 6, element 610 and para 146) and the RGBC CFA (see para 157-150) and is configured to generate and output both the human vision and machine vision images (see para 170-173).
In regard to claim 6, Ben Shalom et al., US 2015/0210278, in view of Kim et al., US 2018/0041724, discloses the camera system of claim 1, wherein the image sensor is one of a charged-couple device (CCD) and a complimentary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) device with an active pixel array (see Kim: para 105-106 and 121-122: it is implied the image sensor of the Kim reference is a CCD or CMOS device since it has long and short exposure pixels).
In regard to claim 8, since Ben Shalom et al., US 2015/0210278, in view of Kim et al., US 2018/0041724, discloses the camera system and its operation as described above in claim 1, the method of claim 8 is also disclosed (see claim 1 above).
In regard to claim 9, since Ben Shalom et al., US 2015/0210278, in view of Kim et al., US 2018/0041724, discloses the camera system and its operation as described above in claim 2, the method of claim 9 is also disclosed (see claim 2 above).
In regard to claim 10, since Ben Shalom et al., US 2015/0210278, in view of Kim et al., US 2018/0041724, discloses the camera system and its operation as described above in claim 3, the method of claim 10 is also disclosed (see claim 3 above).
In regard to claim 11, since Ben Shalom et al., US 2015/0210278, in view of Kim et al., US 2018/0041724, discloses the camera system and its operation as described above in claim 4, the method of claim 11 is also disclosed (see claim 4 above).
In regard to claim 12, since Ben Shalom et al., US 2015/0210278, in view of Kim et al., US 2018/0041724, discloses the camera system and its operation as described above in claim 5, the method of claim 12 is also disclosed (see claim 5 above).
In regard to claim 13, since Ben Shalom et al., US 2015/0210278, in view of Kim et al., US 2018/0041724, discloses the camera system and its operation as described above in claim 6, the method of claim 13 is also disclosed (see claim 6 above).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 7 and 14 are objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. US 2022/0283442, discloses an imaging device that creates composite images of visible and infrared lights. US 2020/0154088, discloses an imaging device that produces visible and infrared image signals. US 10,275,855, discloses an imaging device that captures visible and infrared images.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to GEVELL V SELBY whose telephone number is (571)272-7369. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Thursday 6 AM - 3:30 PM; Friday 6-10 AM.
Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Lin Ye can be reached at 571-272-7372. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000.
/GEVELL V SELBY/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2638
gvs