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 .
Response to Amendment
Applicant submitted amendments and remarks on December 30, 2025. Therein, Applicant submitted substantive arguments. Claims 1-5, 7, 9- 10, 12, and 18 have been amended. Claims 21-22 were added. Claims 6, 8, 17, and 19 were cancelled.
Applicant has made adequate amendments to claims 1-10 in order to eliminate the terms “acquisition unit”, “parking area selection unit”, “output processing unit”, “imaging unit”, and “detection unit” that could be interpreted under 35 U.S.C. 112(f). Therefore, these claim interpretations are withdrawn. Subsequently, the associated rejections of claims 1-10 under 35 U.S.C. 112(a) and 35 U.S.C. 112(b) are also withdrawn.
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 and 12 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 101 because the claim invention is directed toward an abstract idea with significantly more.
Regarding claim 1,
101 Analysis – Step 1
Claim 1 is directed toward a parking guidance system which uses camera devices, display devices, and a central processing unit in order acquire route structure information and selection information related to parking areas, select a parking area that allows access to a facility through a route with a structure which is user appropriate and based on a congestion level, and output a display device including a selected parking area as a guidance destination (a machine). Therefore, claim 1 is within a least one of the four statutory categories.
101 Analysis – Step 2A, Prong I
Regarding Prong I of the Step 2A analysis in the 2019 PEG, the claims are to be analyzed to determine whether they recite subject matter that falls within one of the follow groups of abstract ideas: a) mathematical concepts, b) certain methods of organizing human activity, and/or c) mental processes.
Independent claim 1 includes limitations that recite an abstract idea (emphasized below) and will be used as a representative claim for the remainder of the 101 rejection. Claim 1 recites:
A parking guidance system comprising:
a plurality of camera devices configured to capture images of at least one of an exterior of
a vehicle and an interior of the vehicle
a plurality of display devices connected to the plurality of imaging devices to receive the
images captured by the plurality of imaging devices, respectively
each of the plurality of display devices being connected to a parking guidance device,
each of the plurality of display devices being configured to transmit, to the parking guidance device, a content request and an attribute information,
each of the plurality of display devices being configured to receive a content from the parking guidance device and to display the content;
each of the plurality of display devices comprising a control unit configured to control
operations of the plurality of display devices:
the control unit further comprising: a central processing unit configured to execute a program to cause the central processing unit to:
detect an attribute of a user riding in a vehicle from the at least one of an exterior of a vehicle and an interior of the vehicle in the image captured by each of the plurality of imaging devices;
acquire route structure information indicating a structure on a route for a user of a facility to move from each of a plurality of parking areas to the facility, and selection information indicating information for selecting at least one parking area from among the plurality of parking areas;
acquire as the selection information, congestion information indicating a congestion level of each of the plurality of parking areas;
select, from among the plurality of parking areas, a parking area that allows access to the facility through a route with a structure which is suitable for the user in terms of the attribute as detected, based on the acquired route structure information and the congestion information indicating a congestion level of each of the plurality of parking areas selection information selection information;
select the parking area according to whether the congestion level indicated by the acquired congestion information is high or low;
and output, to a display device, a content indicating the selected parking area as a guidance destination.
The examiner submits that the foregoing bolded limitation constitutes a “mental process” because under its broadest reasonable interpretation, the claim covers performance of the limitation in the human mind. For example, “acquire” and “select” in the context of this claim encompasses a person (user) looking at information collected and forming a simple judgment.
Accordingly, the claim recites at one abstract idea.
101 Analysis - Step 2A, Prong II
Regarding Prong II of the Step 2A analysis in the 2019 PEG, the claims are to be analyzed to determine whether the claim, as a whole, integrates the abstract into the practical application. As noted in the 2019 PEG, it must be determined whether any additional elements in the claim beyond the abstract idea integrate the exception into a practical application in a manner that imposes a meaningful limit on the judicial exception. The courts have indicated that additional elements merely using a computer to implement an abstract idea, adding insignificant extra solution activity, or generally linking use of a judicial exception to a particular technological environment or field of use do not integrate a judicial exception into a “practical application.” In the present case, a central processing unit is provided for the purpose of implementing the abstract ideas. However, these features are mere computers and do not give practical application to the acquisition and selection steps.
101 Analysis – Step 2B
Regarding Step 2B of the 2019 PEG, as noted above, representative independent claim 1 does
not include additional elements (considered both individually and as an ordered combination) that are
sufficient to amount to significantly more than the judicial exception for the same reasons to those
discussed above with respect to determining that the claim does not integrate the abstract idea into a
practical application. As discussed above with respect to integration of the abstract idea into a practical
application, there are no additional limitations that amount to significantly more.
Dependent claims 2-5, 7, and 9-10 do not recite any further limitations that cause the claim to be patent eligible. Rather, the limitations of the dependent claim are directed toward additional aspects of the judicial exception and/or well-understood, routine, and conventional additional elements that do not integrate the judicial exception into a practical application.
Claim 2 uses the limitations of “acquire as the selection information, weather
information indicating a weather at the facility and the plurality of parking areas” and “select the parking area according to whether or not the route is a route provided with a structure corresponding to the weather indicated by the acquired weather information”, which amounts to data gathering and is a form of insignificant extra-solution activity.
Claim 3 uses the limitation of “select a parking area that allows access to the facility through a route provided with at least a roof”, which amounts to data gathering and is a form of insignificant extra-solution activity.
Claim 4 uses the limitations of “acquire attribute information indicating an attribute
of the user as the selection information” and “select the parking area according to
whether or not the route is a route provided with a structure corresponding to the attribute of the
user indicated by the acquired attribute information”, which amounts to data gathering and is a form of insignificant extra-solution activity.
Claim 5 uses the limitation of “select a parking area that allows access to the facility through a route with a barrier-free structure”, which amounts to data gathering and is a form of insignificant extra-solution activity.
Claim 7 uses the limitation of “select a parking area with a low congestion level preferentially over a parking area with a high congestion level”, which amounts to data gathering and is a form of insignificant extra-solution activity.
Claim 9 uses the limitations of “detect a sign displayed on the vehicle from the image
of the exterior of the vehicle” and “detect the attribute of the user riding in the vehicle from the
detected sign”, which amounts to data gathering and is a form of insignificant extra-solution activity.
Claim 10 uses the limitations of “detect the user riding in the vehicle from the image of
the interior of the vehicle” and “detect an attribute of the detected user”, which amounts to data gathering and is a form of insignificant extra-solution activity.
Regarding claim 12,
101 Analysis – Step 1
Claim 12 is directed toward a parking guidance method which uses comprises the steps of capturing images of an exterior or interior of a vehicle, receiving images captured by the plurality of imaging devices, transmitting content request and attribute information by the display device, receiving content from a parking guidance device by the plurality of display devices, displaying content by plurality of display devices, detecting an attribute of a user riding in a vehicle from at least an exterior or interior of a vehicle captured by each of the plurality of imaging devices, acquiring route structure information and selection information related to parking areas, selecting information of at least one parking area from the plurality of parking areas, acquiring congestion level information for each parking area, selecting a parking area that allows access to a facility through a route with a structure which is user and attribute appropriate, and outputting to a display device which includes a selected parking area as a guidance destination (a process). Therefore, claim 12 is within a least one of the four statutory categories.
101 Analysis – Step 2A, Prong I
Regarding Prong I of the Step 2A analysis in the 2019 PEG, the claims are to be analyzed to determine whether they recite subject matter that falls within one of the follow groups of abstract ideas: a) mathematical concepts, b) certain methods of organizing human activity, and/or c) mental processes.
Independent claim 12 includes limitations that recite an abstract idea (emphasized below) and will be used as a representative claim for the remainder of the 101 rejection. Claim 12 recites:
A parking guidance method comprising:
capturing, by a plurality of camera devices, images of at least one of an exterior of a vehicle and an interior of the vehicle;
receiving, a plurality of display devices connected to the plurality of imaging devices, the images captured by the plurality of imaging devices, respectively;
transmitting, by the plurality of display devices, to a parking guidance device, a content request and an attribute information;
receiving, by the plurality of display devices, a content from the parking guidance device;
displaying the content by the plurality of display devices;
detecting an attribute of a user riding in a vehicle from the at least one of an exterior of a vehicle and an interior of the vehicle in the image captured by each of the plurality of imaging devices;
acquiring route structure information indicating a structure on a route for a user of a facility to move from each of a plurality of parking areas to the facility, and selection information indicating information for selecting at least one parking area from among the plurality of parking areas;
acquiring as the selection information, congestion information indicating a congestion level of each of the plurality of parking areas;
selecting, from among the plurality of parking areas, a parking area that allows access to the facility through a route with a structure suitable for the user in terms of the attribute as detected, based on the acquired route structure information and the acquired selection information;
select the parking area according to whether the congestion level indicated by the acquired congestion information is high or low;
and outputting to a display device, a content indicating the selected parking area as a guidance destination.
The examiner submits that the foregoing bolded limitation constitutes a “mental process” because under its broadest reasonable interpretation, the claim covers performance of the limitation in the human mind. For example, “capturing”, “receiving”, “transmitting”, “displaying”, “detecting”, “acquiring”, “selecting” in the context of this claim encompasses a person (user) looking at information collected and forming a simple judgment.
Accordingly, the claim recites at one abstract idea.
101 Analysis - Step 2A, Prong II
Regarding Prong II of the Step 2A analysis in the 2019 PEG, the claims are to be analyzed to determine whether the claim, as a whole, integrates the abstract into the practical application. As noted in the 2019 PEG, it must be determined whether any additional elements in the claim beyond the abstract idea integrate the exception into a practical application in a manner that imposes a meaningful limit on the judicial exception. The courts have indicated that additional elements merely using a computer to implement an abstract idea, adding insignificant extra solution activity, or generally linking use of a judicial exception to a particular technological environment or field of use do not integrate a judicial exception into a “practical application.” In the present case, therefore since there are no additional limitations beyond the above-noted abstract idea above, there is no integration into a practical application.
101 Analysis – Step 2B
Regarding Step 2B of the 2019 PEG, as noted above, representative independent claim 12 does
not include additional elements (considered both individually and as an ordered combination) that are
sufficient to amount to significantly more than the judicial exception for the same reasons to those
discussed above with respect to determining that the claim does not integrate the abstract idea into a
practical application. As discussed above with respect to integration of the abstract idea into a practical
application, there are no additional limitations that amount to significantly more.
Dependent claims 13-16 and 18 do not recite any further limitations that cause the claim to be patent eligible. Rather, the limitations of the dependent claim are directed toward additional aspects of the judicial exception and/or well-understood, routine, and conventional additional elements that do not integrate the judicial exception into a practical application.
Claim 13 uses the limitations of “acquiring as the selection information, weather information indicating a weather at the facility and the plurality of parking areas” and “selecting the parking area according to whether or not the route is a route provided with a structure corresponding to the weather indicated by the acquired weather information”, which amounts to data gathering and is a form of insignificant extra-solution activity.
Claim 14 uses the limitation of “selecting a parking area that allows access to the facility through a route provided with at least a roof”, which amounts to data gathering and is a form of insignificant extra-solution activity.
Claim 15 uses the limitations of “acquiring attribute information indicating an attribute of the user as the selection information” and “selecting the parking area according to whether or not the route is a route provided with a structure corresponding to the attribute of the user indicated by the acquired attribute information” which amounts to data gathering and is a form of insignificant extra-solution activity.
Claim 16 uses the limitation of “selecting a parking area that allows access to the facility through a route with a barrier-free structure”, which amounts to data gathering and is a form of insignificant extra-solution activity.
Claim 18 uses the limitation of “selecting a parking area with a low congestion level preferentially over a parking area with a high congestion level”, which amounts to data gathering and is a form of insignificant extra-solution activity.
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.
The factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness.
Claims 1-5, 7, 9-16, 18, and 21-22 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Scofield, et al. (U.S. Patent No. 8791838) in view of Kim, et al. (U.S. Patent No. 12033508).
Regarding claim 1, Scofield, et al. teaches: A parking guidance system comprising: (Fig. 4, Col. 8, lines 47-48: "…exemplary system for parking based route navigation [parking guidance system].")
acquire route structure information indicating a structure on a route for a user of a facility to move from each of a plurality of parking areas to the facility, (navigation component (420), Fig. 4, Col. 8, lines 50-54: "A navigation component (420) may be configured to search a parking database (e.g., comprising a list of available parking spots) for a parking spot associated with the destination [acquire route structures associated with parking areas]" ; Col. 9, lines 18-22: "Parking database (704) may comprise parking information related to parking garages, parking lots, parking meters, and/or parking spots, etc. [examples of structures] […] determine a physical status of a spot, such as whether the spot is occupied or vacant, for example [example information given to user - determine best spot to move to on route].")
and selection information indicating information for selecting at least one parking area from among the plurality of parking areas; (Fig. 4, Col. 8, lines 50-54: "A navigation component (420) may be configured to search a parking database (e.g., comprising a list of available parking spots) for a parking spot associated with the destination. Additionally, navigation component (420) may be configured to receive parking information from the parking database [receiving selection information to select parking spot from plurality of parking areas].")
and output, to a display device, a content indicating the selected parking area as a guidance destination (display component (450), Fig. 4, Col. 9, lines 13-17: "A display component (450) [output processing unit] may comprise a traveler interface (452) [display device], and the display component may be configured to display turn by turn directions for the traveler (498), selections, and/or options when multiple routes, parking spots, etc. may be chosen [content indicating parking area is guidance destination].").
Scofield, et al. does not teach a plurality of camera devices configured to capture images of at least one of an exterior of a vehicle and an interior of the vehicle; a plurality of display devices connected to the plurality of imaging devices to receive the images captured by the plurality of imaging devices, respectively, each of the plurality of display devices being connected to a parking guidance device, each of the plurality of display devices being configured to transmit, to the parking guidance device, a content request and an attribute information, each of the plurality of display devices being configured to receive a content from the parking guidance device and to display the content; each of the plurality of display devices comprising a control unit configured to control operations of the plurality of display device the control unit further comprising: a central processing unit configured to execute a program to cause the central processing unit to: detect an attribute of a user riding in a vehicle from the at least one of an exterior of a vehicle and an interior of the vehicle in the image captured by each of the plurality of imaging devices; acquire as the selection information, congestion information indicating a congestion level of each of the plurality of parking areas; select, from among the plurality of parking areas, a parking area that allows access to the facility through a route with a structure which is suitable for the user in terms of the attribute as detected, based on the acquired route structure information and the congestion information indicating a congestion level of each of the plurality of parking areas selection information selection information; select the parking area according to whether the congestion level indicated by the acquired congestion information is high or low.
In a similar field of endeavor (image capturing for parking guidance), Kim, et al. teaches: a plurality of camera devices configured to capture images of at least one of an exterior of a vehicle and an interior of the vehicle; (Col. 38, lines 10-12: "…the sensors (1503) may include image sensors such as high dynamic range cameras and/or non-visual sensors [multiple cameras]." ; Col. 12, lines 6-8: "The image capturing unit (110) may capture an image in at least one situation of parking, stopping, and driving of the vehicle [camera device]." ; Col. 12, lines 25-27: "In addition, the captured image may include an image of at least one of the front, the rear, the sides, and the interior of the vehicle [image of exterior and interior of vehicle].")
a plurality of display devices connected to the plurality of imaging devices to receive the images captured by the plurality of imaging devices, respectively, (Col. 13, lines 51-55: "The display unit (140) may display various information processed by the image capturing apparatus (100) [image display device] for a vehicle. As an example, the display unit may display a "live view image", which is an image captured in real time by the image capturing unit (110)" ; Col. 29, lines 26-27: "The display unit (441) may output data that may be visually recognized by the user of the user terminal apparatus (400) [image display unit].")
each of the plurality of display devices being connected to a parking guidance device, (Col. 25, lines 7-11: "…the control unit (340) may provide the vehicle parking location guidance service that displays an optimal moving route and a distance from a current location of the user to a parking location [device being connected to parking guidance device]" ; Col. 29, lines 27-32: "In particular, the display unit (441) may display a user interface corresponding to the parking lot guidance service according to the execution of the "parking lot guidance service providing application" according to an embodiment of the present invention [display device being connected to parking guidance device].")
each of the plurality of display devices being configured to transmit, to the parking guidance device, a content request and an attribute information, (Col. 20, lines 43-48: "The communication unit (310) may be provided for the server (300) for providing a parking lot guidance service to communicate with other devices. Specifically, the communication unit (310) may transmit and receive data to and from at least one of the image capturing apparatus (100) for a vehicle and the user terminal apparatus (400) [transmit content request to and from parking lot guidance device]." ; Col. 12, lines 28-32: "image capturing unit (110) may include an infrared camera capable of monitoring a driver's face or pupil, and the control unit (195) may determine a driver's state including whether or not the driver is drowsy by monitoring the driver's face or pupil through the infrared camera [attribute information]")
each of the plurality of display devices being configured to receive a content from the parking guidance device and to display the content; (Col. 20, lines 43-48: "The communication unit (310) may be provided for the server (300) for providing a parking lot guidance service to communicate with other devices. Specifically, the communication unit (310) may transmit and receive data to and from at least one of the image capturing apparatus (100) for a vehicle and the user terminal apparatus (400) [transmit content request to and from parking lot guidance device].")
each of the plurality of display devices comprising a control unit configured to control operations of the plurality of display devices; (Col. 29, lines 48-54: "particular, when various data are received from the image capturing apparatus (100) for a vehicle, the communication apparatus (200) for a vehicle and/or the server (300) for providing a parking lot guidance service through the communication unit (410), the control unit (450) may process the received data to generate a user interface, and control the display unit (441) to display the generated user interface [display device consisting of control unit configured to control operations].")
the control unit further comprising: a central processing unit configured to execute a program to cause the central processing unit to: (Col. 29, lines 57-59: "The control unit (450) may execute applications that provide advertisements, the Internet, games, moving images, and the like. In various embodiments, the control unit (450) may include one processor core or include a plurality of processor cores [central processing unit configured to execute program from memory].")
detect an attribute of a user riding in a vehicle from the at least one of an exterior of a vehicle and an interior of the vehicle in the image captured by each of the plurality of imaging devices; (Col. 12, lines 28-32: "…the image capturing unit (110) may include an infrared camera capable of monitoring a driver's face or pupil [captured image from imaging unit], and the control unit (195) [detection unit] may determine a driver's state including whether or not the driver is drowsy by monitoring the driver's face or pupil through the infrared camera [attribute of user from captured image].")
acquire as the selection information, congestion information indicating a congestion level of each of the plurality of parking areas; (Col. 26, lines 44-51: "As an example, the control unit (340) may generate the total number of parking slots [each of plurality of parking areas], a degree of congestion [congestion information], […] based on the parking lot model configured in the parking lot model generation unit (320), match the generated information to the parking lot model, and store the matched information in the storage unit (330) [acquire for selection information].")
select, from among the plurality of parking areas, a parking area that allows access to the facility through a route with a structure which is suitable for the user in terms of the attribute as detected, based on the acquired route structure information and the congestion information indicating a congestion level of each of the plurality of parking areas selection information selection information; (Col. 12, lines 28-32: "…the image capturing unit (110) may include an infrared camera capable of monitoring a driver's face or pupil [captured image from imaging unit], and the control unit (195) [detection unit] may determine a driver's state including whether or not the driver is drowsy by monitoring the driver's face or pupil through the infrared camera [attribute of user from captured image]." ; Col. 27, lines 6-11: "In this case, the control unit (340) may provide the total number of parking slots, a degree of congestion, a main congestion time, fee information, operating hours, electric vehicle charging station information, and the like, to the user terminal apparatus (400) connected to the server (300) for providing a parking lot guidance service.")
select the parking area according to whether the congestion level indicated by the acquired congestion information is high or low (Col. 26, lines 52-59: "In this case, the control unit (340) may calculate a degree of congestion by comparing a value obtained by dividing the number of occupied parking slots in the parking lot by the total number of parking slots in the parking lot with a preset value, and determine, for example, that a range of 0-30% is a low degree of congestion [low congestion information], […] and a range of 60-100% is a high degree of congestion [high congestion information]." ; Col. 27, lines 47-52: "As an example, when a degree of congestion is high or the vehicle cannot be parked in the expected parking lot of the vehicle at the expected parking time, the control unit (340) may guide another parking lot linked to the expected parking lot to the user terminal apparatus (400) [selecting parking area based on congestion level] ").
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of the ordinary skill of the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Scofield, et al. to include the teaching of Kim, et al. based on a reasonable expectation of success and motivation to improve the process of providing a model of a parking lot layout using vehicle-based imaging for the purpose of providing parking lot guidance to a user (Kim et al. Col. 1, line 66 to Col. 2, lines 1-14).
Regarding claim 2, Scofield, et al., and Kim, et al. remain as applied to claim 1, and in a further embodiment, teach: The parking guidance system of claim 1, wherein the central processing unit is configured to execute a program to cause the central processing unit to: acquire as the selection information, weather information indicating a weather at the facility and the plurality of parking areas, (Scofield, et al. Col. 5, lines 55-59: "Accordingly, one aspect provides for parking criteria based on current weather conditions. That is, for example, if the weather is rainy, a traveler may be directed to a parking spot that comprises cover and/or covered walkways to the destination [weather is a function of selection criteria for parking area].")
select the parking area according to whether or not the route is a route provided with a structure corresponding to the weather indicated by the acquired weather information (Scofield, et al. Col. 6, lines 49-55: "To this end, parking inferences may comprise inferences based upon current weather conditions, for example. That is, for example, if it is snowing at the destination, the hierarchical order may be rearranged such that cover takes precedence over cost (e.g., rank a $10 covered spot higher than an $8 uncovered spot) at least because the parking inference may be based upon current weather [selection of route dependent on corresponding weather conditions at destination].").
Regarding claim 3, Scofield, et al., and Kim, et al. remain as applied to claim 2, and in a further embodiment, teach: The parking guidance system of claim 2 wherein the central processing unit is configured to execute a program to cause the central processing unit to select, when the acquired weather information indicates a weather condition under which a route provided with at least a roof is preferable, (Scofield, et al. Col. 5, lines 55-59: "Accordingly, one aspect provides for parking criteria based on current weather conditions. That is, for example, if the weather is rainy, a traveler may be directed to a parking spot that comprises cover and/or covered walkways to the destination [weather condition includes roof, or "covered" conditions].")
select a parking area that allows access to the facility through a route provided with at least a roof (Scofield, et al. Col. 6, lines 49-55: "To this end, parking inferences may comprise inferences based upon current weather conditions, for example. That is, for example, if it is snowing at the destination, the hierarchical order may be rearranged such that cover takes precedence over cost (e.g., rank a $10 covered spot higher than an $8 uncovered spot) at least because the parking inference may be based upon current weather [selection of roof, or "covered" condition takes higher priority in selection unit based on current weather condition].").
Regarding claim 4, Scofield, et al., and Kim, et al. remain as applied to claim 1, and in a further embodiment, teach: The parking guidance system of claim 1, wherein the central processing unit is configured to execute a program to cause the central processing unit to: acquire attribute information indicating an attribute of the user as the selection information, (Scofield, et al. Col. 5, lines 43-45: "In another embodiment, parking criteria may be entered as a set of user preferences, for example [attribution information is selected based on choices by user].")
and select the parking area according to whether or not the route is a route provided with a structure corresponding to the attribute of the user indicated by the acquired attribute information (Scofield, et al. Col. 5, lines 51-55: "In one embodiment, parking spots may be selected (e.g., via a user preference) based on whether the parking spot is covered (e.g., a covered garage) and/or whether the parking spot provides covered walkways to the traveler's destination, for example [user preference attribute - route is provided with a structure, e.g., "covered"].").
Regarding claim 5, Scofield, et al., and Kim, et al. remain as applied to claim 4, and in a further embodiment, teach: The parking guidance system of claim 4, wherein the central processing unit is configured to execute a program to cause the central processing unit to: select, when the acquired attribute information indicates the user who prefers a route with a barrier-free structure, (Scofield, et al. Col. 5, lines 51-55: "In one embodiment, parking spots may be selected (e.g., via a user preference) based on whether the parking spot is covered (e.g., a covered garage) and/or whether the parking spot provides covered walkways to the traveler's destination, for example [user preference of "covered garage" condition, or barrier-free structure for easy access between parking site and facility].")
a parking area that allows access to the facility through a route with a barrier-free structure (Scofield, et al. Col. 6, lines 49-55: "To this end, parking inferences may comprise inferences based upon current weather conditions, for example. That is, for example, if it is snowing at the destination, the hierarchical order may be rearranged such that cover takes precedence over cost (e.g., rank a $10 covered spot higher than an $8 uncovered spot) at least because the parking inference may be based upon current weather [selection of roof, or "covered" condition allows access from parking site to facility through barrier-free structure].").
Regarding claim 7, Scofield, et al., and Kim, et al. remain as applied to claim 1, and in a further embodiment, teach: The parking guidance system of claim 1, wherein the central processing unit is configured to execute a program to cause the central processing unit to: select a parking area with a low congestion level preferentially over a parking area with a high congestion level (Kim, et al. Col. 27, lines 47-52: "As an example, when a degree of congestion is high or the vehicle cannot be parked in the expected parking lot of the vehicle at the expected parking time, the control unit (340) may guide another parking lot linked to the expected parking lot to the user terminal apparatus (400) [parking area is configured to select low congestion level over high congestion area].").
Regarding claim 9, Scofield, et al., and Kim, et al. remain as applied to claim 1, and in a further embodiment, teach: The parking guidance system of claim 1, wherein the central processing unit is configured to: execute a program to cause the central processing unit to: detect a sign displayed on the vehicle from the image of the exterior of the vehicle, (Kim, et al. Col. 26, lines 2-5: "…the control unit (340) may detect a license plate of the vehicle c that has generated the impact to the first vehicle a from the parking lot image of the parking data [detection of sign, e.g., "license plate" from exterior of vehicle using image data].")
and detect the attribute of the user riding in the vehicle from the detected sign (Kim, et al. Col. 25, lines 47-50: "…and the image capturing apparatus (100) for a vehicle of the first vehicle a may notify the server (300) [image capturing apparatus connects with parking guidance system]" ; Kim, et al. Col. 12, lines 28-32: "…the image capturing unit (110) may include an infrared camera capable of monitoring a driver's face or pupil [captured image from imaging unit], [...] may determine a driver's state including whether or not the driver is drowsy by monitoring the driver's face or pupil through the infrared camera [attribute of user from captured image].").
Regarding claim 10, Scofield, et al., and Kim, et al. remain as applied to claim 1, and in a further embodiment, teach: The parking guidance system of claim 1, wherein the central processing unit is configured to execute a program to cause the central processing unit to: detect the user riding in the vehicle from the image of the interior of the vehicle, (Kim, et al. Col. 12, lines 25-27: "… and the interior of the vehicle [can capture interior of vehicle]." ; Kim, et al. Col. 12, lines 28-32: "In addition, the image capturing unit (110) may include an infrared camera capable of monitoring a driver's face or pupil [captured image from imaging unit], and the control unit (195) [detection unit] may determine a driver's state [detecting user riding in vehicle]")
and detect an attribute of the detected user (Kim, et al. Col. 12, lines 30-32: "and the control unit (195) [detection unit] may determine a driver's state [detecting user riding in vehicle] including whether or not the driver is drowsy by monitoring the driver's face or pupil through the infrared camera [attribute of detected user].").
Regarding claim 11, Scofield, et al., and Kim, et al. remain as applied to claim 9, and in a further embodiment, teach: The parking guidance system of claim 9, further comprising: a display processing unit configured to display the image of the exterior of the vehicle on the display device (Kim, et al. Fig. 2, Col. 13, lines 51-55: "The display unit (140) [display processing unit] may display various information processed by the image capturing apparatus (100) for a vehicle. As an example, the display unit may display a "live view image", which is an image captured in real time by the image capturing unit (110) [displays images captured by imaging capturing unit, (e.g. "imaging unit")]"; Kim, et al. Col. 12, lines 25-27: "In addition, the captured image may include an image of at least one of the front, the rear, the sides [image capture of exterior of vehicle]").
Regarding claim 12, Scofield, et al. teaches: A parking guidance method comprising: acquiring route structure information indicating a structure on a route for a user of a facility to move from each of a plurality of parking areas to the facility, (Fig. 2, Step (208), Col. 6, lines 8-21: "…Parking information may be returned at (208) based upon parking criteria (e.g., cost of a parking spot, distance of the parking spot from a destination, whether the parking spot is covered, whether the destination is accessible via walkways to protect the traveler from the elements [structure on route for user of facility/move from each of plurality of parking areas to facility], whether mass and/or public transit may be incorporated, estimated arrival time, estimated departure time, etc.)."
and selection information indicating information for selecting at least one parking area from among the plurality of parking areas; (Fig. 2, Step (206), Col. 5, lines 37-41: "At (206) in the example method (200), a parking database may be searched for a parking spot associated with the destination received at (204), for example. Search criteria (e.g., parking criteria) may be used to filter parking spots based on desirability, for example [selection information used to determine desired parking area from among other parking areas].")
selecting, from among the plurality of parking areas, a parking area that allows access to the facility through a route with a structure suitable for the user in terms of the attribute as detected, based on the acquired route structure information and the acquired selection information; (Fig. 2, Step (210), Col. 6, lines 28-37: "A selection algorithm may be employed at (210) to facilitate sorting and/or ranking of available parking spots based upon the parking information, parking database, and/or parking criteria [selected among group of parking areas from structure information and acquired selection information], […] if a traveler indicates a covered parking spot is desired (e.g., via selection of an associated option), parking spots associated with covered walkways to the destination may be ranked higher than parking spots associated with no covered walkways at least because an inference pertaining to weather may be drawn (e.g., based on selection of the covered spot preference) [routes with selected structures suitable for the user].")
and outputting to a display device, a content indicating the selected parking area as a guidance destination (Fig. 2, Step (212), Col. 7, lines 11-20: "…parking based route navigation to a parking spot (212) may comprise sending alerts to a traveler [outputting to a display device] based on a location associated with the traveler. […] In one embodiment, alerts may be sent and/or received to guide a traveler to a parking spot and/or to confirm that the traveler has parked in a reserved spot [selected parking area as guidance destination].").
Scofield, et al. does not teach capturing, by a plurality of camera devices, images of at least one of an exterior of a vehicle and an interior of the vehicle; receiving, a plurality of display devices connected to the plurality of imaging devices, the images captured by the plurality of imaging devices, respectively; transmitting, by the plurality of display devices, to a parking guidance device, a content request and an attribute information; receiving, by the plurality of display devices, a content from the parking guidance device; displaying the content by the plurality of display devices; detecting an attribute of a user riding in a vehicle from the at least one of an exterior of a vehicle and an interior of the vehicle in the image captured by each of the plurality of imaging devices; acquiring as the selection information, congestion information indicating a congestion level of each of the plurality of parking areas; select the parking area according to whether the congestion level indicated by the acquired congestion information is high or low.
In a similar field of endeavor (image capturing for parking guidance), Kim, et al. teaches: capturing, by a plurality of camera devices, images of at least one of an exterior of a vehicle and an interior of the vehicle; (Step (S1010), Col. 31, lines 61-67: "Referring to FIG. 10, each of a plurality of image capturing apparatuses (100) for a vehicle may obtain a parking lot image by performing image capturing (S1010). Here, the parking lot image may include an image captured during a period from a point in time when the vehicle enters the parking lot to a point in time when the vehicle exits from the parking lot [capturing exterior of vehicle].")
receiving, a plurality of display devices connected to the plurality of imaging devices, the images captured by the plurality of imaging devices, respectively; (Step (S1020), Col. 32, lines 1-5: "Then, each of the plurality of image capturing apparatuses (100) for a vehicle may generate at least one of parking lot location information, parking space information, surrounding parked vehicle information, and own vehicle location information (S1020) [receiving information related to imaging devices].")
transmitting, by the plurality of display devices, to a parking guidance device, a content request and an attribute information; (Step (S1010), Col. 32, lines 13-15: "transmit the generated parking lot data to the server 300 for providing a parking lot guidance service (S1030) [transmitting content request to parking guidance device]." ; Col. 12, lines 28-32: "image capturing unit (110) may include an infrared camera capable of monitoring a driver's face or pupil, and the control unit (195) may determine a driver's state including whether or not the driver is drowsy by monitoring the driver's face or pupil through the infrared camera [attribute information]")
receiving, by the plurality of display devices, a content from the parking guidance device; (Step (S1050), Col. 32, lines 22-29: "…the server (300) for providing a parking lot guidance service may match and store the generated parking lot model and parking lot data to each other (S1050). Specifically, in (S1050), the parking lot model and the corresponding parking lot location information, parking space information, surrounding parked vehicle information, own vehicle location information, time information, and parking lot image may be matched and stored to each other [receiving content from parking guidance device].")
displaying the content by the plurality of display devices; (Step (S1090), Col. 32, lines 57-60: "…the user terminal apparatus (400) may display a parking lot guidance service user interface corresponding to the parking lot guidance service provided by the server (300) for providing a parking lot guidance service (S1090) [displaying content].")
detecting an attribute of a user riding in a vehicle from the at least one of an exterior of a vehicle and an interior of the vehicle in the image captured by each of the plurality of imaging devices; (Col. 12, lines 28-32: "…the image capturing unit (110) may include an infrared camera capable of monitoring a driver's face or pupil [captured image from imaging unit inside vehicle], and the control unit (195) [detection unit] may determine a driver's state including whether or not the driver is drowsy by monitoring the driver's face or pupil through the infrared camera [attribute of user from captured image].")
acquiring as the selection information, congestion information indicating a congestion level of each of the plurality of parking areas; (Col. 26, lines 44-51: "As an example, the control unit (340) may generate the total number of parking slots [each of plurality of parking areas], a degree of congestion [congestion information], […] based on the parking lot model configured in the parking lot model generation unit (320), match the generated information to the parking lot model, and store the matched information in the storage unit (330) [acquire for selection information].")
select the parking area according to whether the congestion level indicated by the acquired congestion information is high or low; (Col. 26, lines 52-59: "In this case, the control unit (340) may calculate a degree of congestion by comparing a value obtained by dividing the number of occupied parking slots in the parking lot by the total number of parking slots in the parking lot with a preset value, and determine, for example, that a range of 0-30% is a low degree of congestion [low congestion information], […] and a range of 60-100% is a high degree of congestion [high congestion information]." ; Col. 27, lines 47-52: "As an example, when a degree of congestion is high or the vehicle cannot be parked in the expected parking lot of the vehicle at the expected parking time, the control unit (340) may guide another parking lot linked to the expected parking lot to the user terminal apparatus (400) [selecting parking area based on congestion level] ").
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of the ordinary skill of the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Scofield, et al. to include the teaching of Kim, et al. based on a reasonable expectation of success and motivation to improve the process of providing a model of a parking lot layout using vehicle-based imaging for the purpose of providing parking lot guidance to a user (Kim et al. Col. 1, line 66 to Col. 2, lines 1-14).
Regarding claim 13, Scofield, et al., and Kim, et al. remain as applied to claim 12, and in a further embodiment, teach: Scofield, et al. teaches: The parking guidance method of claim 12, further comprising: acquiring as the selection information, weather information indicating a weather at the facility and the plurality of parking areas; (Scofield, et al. Step (206), Col. 5, lines 55-59: "Accordingly, one aspect provides for parking criteria based on current weather conditions. That is, for example, if the weather is rainy, a traveler may be directed to a parking spot that comprises cover and/or covered walkways to the destination [weather is a function of selection criteria for parking area].")
and selecting the parking area according to whether or not the route is a route provided with a structure corresponding to the weather indicated by the acquired weather information (Scofield, et al. Step (210), Col. 6, lines 49-55: "To this end, parking inferences may comprise inferences based upon current weather conditions, for example. That is, for example, if it is snowing at the destination, the hierarchical order may be rearranged such that cover takes precedence over cost (e.g., rank a $10 covered spot higher than an $8 uncovered spot) at least because the parking inference may be based upon current weather [selection of route dependent on corresponding weather conditions at destination].").
Regarding claim 14, Scofield, et al., and Kim, et al. remain as applied to claim 13, and in a further embodiment, teach: Scofield, et al. teaches: The parking guidance method of claim 13, further comprising: when the acquired weather information indicates a weather condition under which a route provided with at least a roof is preferable, (Scofield, et al. Step (206), Col. 5, lines 55-59: "Accordingly, one aspect provides for parking criteria based on current weather conditions. That is, for example, if the weather is rainy, a traveler may be directed to a parking spot that comprises cover and/or covered walkways to the destination [weather condition includes roof, or "covered" conditions].")
selecting a parking area that allows access to the facility through a route provided with at least a roof (Scofield, et al. Step (210), Col. 6, lines 49-55: "To this end, parking inferences may comprise inferences based upon current weather conditions, for example. That is, for example, if it is snowing at the destination, the hierarchical order may be rearranged such that cover takes precedence over cost (e.g., rank a $10 covered spot higher than an $8 uncovered spot) at least because the parking inference may be based upon current weather [selection of roof, or "covered" condition takes higher priority in selection unit based on current weather condition].").
Regarding claim 15, Scofield, et al., and Kim, et al. remain as applied to claim 12, and in a further embodiment, teach: The parking guidance method of claim 12, further comprising: acquiring attribute information indicating an attribute of the user as the selection information; (Scofield, et al. Step (206), Col. 5, lines 43-45: "In another embodiment, parking criteria may be entered as a set of user preferences, for example [attribution information is selected based on choices by user].")
and selecting the parking area according to whether or not the route is a route provided with a structure corresponding to the attribute of the user indicated by the acquired attribute information (Scofield, et al. Step (206), Col. 5, lines 51-55: "In one embodiment, parking spots may be selected (e.g., via a user preference) based on whether the parking spot is covered (e.g., a covered garage) and/or whether the parking spot provides covered walkways to the traveler's destination, for example [user preference attribute - route is provided with a structure, e.g., "covered"].").
Regarding claim 16, Scofield, et al., and Kim, et al. remain as applied to claim 15, and in a further embodiment, teach: Scofield, et al. teaches: The parking guidance method of claim 15, further comprising: when the acquired attribute information indicates the user who prefers a route with a barrier-free structure, (Scofield, et al. Step (206), Col. 5, lines 51-55: "In one embodiment, parking spots may be selected (e.g., via a user preference) based on whether the parking spot is covered (e.g., a covered garage) and/or whether the parking spot provides covered walkways to the traveler's destination, for example [user preference of "covered garage" condition, or barrier-free structure for easy access between parking site and facility].")
selecting a parking area that allows access to the facility through a route with a barrier-free structure (Scofield, et al. Step (210), Col. 6, lines 49-55: "To this end, parking inferences may comprise inferences based upon current weather conditions, for example. That is, for example, if it is snowing at the destination, the hierarchical order may be rearranged such that cover takes precedence over cost (e.g., rank a $10 covered spot higher than an $8 uncovered spot) at least because the parking inference may be based upon current weather [selection of roof, or "covered" condition allows access from parking site to facility through barrier-free structure].").
Regarding claim 18, Scofield, et al., and Kim, et al. remain as applied to claim 12, and in a further embodiment, teach: The parking guidance method of claim 12, further comprising: selecting a parking area with a low congestion level preferentially over a parking area with a high congestion level (Kim, et al. Step (S1050), Col. 32, lines 22-24: "Then, the server (300) for providing a parking lot guidance service may match and store the generated parking lot model and parking lot data to each other (S1050). Specifically, in (S1050), the parking lot model and the corresponding parking lot location information, parking space information [steps - organizing parking level data]" ; Kim, et al. Col. 27, lines 47-52: "As an example, when a degree of congestion is high or the vehicle cannot be parked in the expected parking lot of the vehicle at the expected parking time, the control unit (340) may guide another parking lot linked to the expected parking lot to the user terminal apparatus (400) [parking area is configured to select low congestion level over high congestion area].").
Regarding claim 21, Scofield, et al., and Kim, et al. remain as applied to claim 1, and in a further embodiment, teach: The parking guidance system of claim 1, wherein the central processing unit is configured to execute a program to cause the central processing unit to: receive a distance information indicating a distance from a position of the display device to each parking lot of the plurality of parking lots; (Scofield, et al. Col. 9, lines 18-19: "Parking database (704) may comprise parking information related to parking garages, parking lots [information about parking lots]" ; Scofield, et al. Col. 6, lines 15-17: "Parking information may be returned at (208) based upon parking criteria […] distance of the parking spot from a destination [distance from position of display device to each parking lot within plurality of parking lots]")
and select, among the plurality of parking lots, a parking lot closest to a current position of the user based on the distance information (Scofield, et al. At (206) in the example method (200), a parking database may be searched for a parking spot associated with the destination received at (204), for example. Search criteria (e.g., parking criteria) may be used to filter parking spots based on desirability, for example [selecting procedure]. […] A traveler may indicate a desired walking distance (e.g., a parking radius indicative of a distance and/or proximity from the parking spot to the destination not to be exceeded when searching for the spot) [parking lot closest to current position of user based on distance information].").
Regarding claim 22, Scofield, et al., and Kim, et al. remain as applied to claim 12, and in a further embodiment, teach: The parking guidance method of claim 12, further comprising: receiving a distance information indicating a distance from a position of the display device to each parking lot of the plurality of parking lots; (Scofield, et al. Col. 9, lines 18-19: "Parking database (704) may comprise parking information related to parking garages, parking lots [information about parking lots]" ; Scofield, et al. Col. 6, lines 15-17: "Parking information may be returned at (208) based upon parking criteria […] distance of the parking spot from a destination [distance from position of display device to each parking lot within plurality of parking lots]")
and selecting, among the plurality of parking lots, a parking lot closest to a current position of the user based on the distance information (Scofield, et al. Fig. 2, Step (206), Col. 5, lines 37-48: "At (206) in the example method (200), a parking database may be searched for a parking spot associated with the destination received at (204), for example. Search criteria (e.g., parking criteria) may be used to filter parking spots based on desirability, for example [selecting procedure]. […] A traveler may indicate a desired walking distance (e.g., a parking radius indicative of a distance and/or proximity from the parking spot to the destination not to be exceeded when searching for the spot) [parking lot closest to current position of user based on distance information].").
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to claims 1 and 12 have been considered but are moot because the new ground of rejection does not rely on any reference applied in the prior rejection of record for any teaching or matter specifically challenged in the argument.
Applicant asserted that amended claims 1 and 12 was patentable over Scofield (U.S. Patent No. 8791838) because the references did not meet the claim limitation “detect an attribute of a user riding in a vehicle from the at least one of an exterior of a vehicle and an interior of the vehicle in the image captured by each of the plurality of imaging devices”. Please note that Kim, et al. (U.S. Patent No. 12033508) was cited in order to teach these features. In Kim, et al., the image capturing unit (110) has the capability to detect the features of the attributes of “…a driver's face or pupil”, or “…a driver's state including whether or not the driver is drowsy by monitoring the driver's face or pupil through the infrared camera” (Col. 12, lines 28-32). Subsequently, it would have been obvious to combine Kim, et al. with Scofield, et al. because Scofield, et al. teaches a parking guidance system (Col. 8, lines 47-48) which can output parking guidance as a function of a specified route (Col. 9, lines 13-17, Col. 8, lines 50-54).
Applicant also asserted that amended claim 1 was patentable over Scofield (U.S. Patent No. 8791838) because the references did not meet the claim limitation “select, from among the plurality of parking areas, a parking area that allows access to the facility through a route with a structure which is suitable for the user in terms of the attribute as detected, based on the acquired route structure information and the congestion information indicating a congestion level of each of the plurality of parking areas selection information selection information”. Please note that Kim, et al. (U.S. Patent No. 12033508) was cited in order to teach these features. In Kim, et al., the image capturing unit (110) has the capability to detect the features of the attributes of “…a driver's face or pupil”, or “…a driver's state including whether or not the driver is drowsy by monitoring the driver's face or pupil through the infrared camera” (Col. 12, lines 28-32). As a result, this information is provided to the control unit (340) in conjunction with information about “…the total number of parking slots, a degree of congestion, a main congestion time, fee information, operating hours” in order to provide “…a parking lot guidance service” in conjunction with the analysis of the overall data (Col. 27, lines 6-11). Subsequently, it would have been obvious to combine Kim, et al. with Scofield, et al. because Scofield, et al. teaches a parking guidance system (Col. 8, lines 47-48) which can output parking guidance as a function of a specified route (Col. 9, lines 13-17, Col. 8, lines 50-54).
Therefore, it can be concluded that since the combination of Scofield, et al. and Kim, et al. reads on the claim limitations “detect an attribute of a user riding in a vehicle from the at least one of an exterior of a vehicle and an interior of the vehicle in the image captured by each of the plurality of imaging devices” and “select, from among the plurality of parking areas, a parking area that allows access to the facility through a route with a structure which is suitable for the user in terms of the attribute as detected, based on the acquired route structure information and the congestion information indicating a congestion level of each of the plurality of parking areas selection information selection information” as stated in amended claim 1 and 12, the arguments presented by the Applicant are not persuasive, and the rejection is maintained.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Kim, et al. (U.S. Patent No. 10737689) teaches an automatic parking assistance function with respect to the display of an image around a vehicle and a congestion level within a parking region of the vehicle’s surroundings.
Applicant is considered to have implicit knowledge of the entire disclosure once a reference has been cited. Therefore, any previously cited figures, columns and lines should not be considered to limit the references in any way. The entire reference must be taken as a whole; accordingly, the Examiner contends that the art supports the rejection of the claims and the rejection is maintained.
Applicant's amendment necessitated the new ground(s) of rejection presented in this Office action. Accordingly, THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. See MPEP § 706.07(a). Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action.
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/TORRENCE S MARUNDA II/ Examiner, Art Unit 3663
/ANGELA Y ORTIZ/ Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3663
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