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 the Applicant’s arguments
The previous rejection is withdrawn. Applicant’s amendments are entered. Applicant’s remarks are also entered into the record. A new search was made necessitated by the applicant’s amendments.
A new reference was found. A new rejection is made herein.
Applicant’s arguments are now moot in view of the new rejection of the claims.
Claim 1 and the independent claims are amended to recite and Williams is silent but GRONAU teaches “…detecting, by the processor, that the vehicle is in a locked state after stopping;…. (see paragraph 242-246 and 247-248 and 249 where the neural network processor and algorithm can detect that the vehicle 1 is stopped and 2 is locked and 3. They forgot the baby in the car seat when the windows are closed and there is a peril and 4. That the car seat is back in the vehicle and the belt on the car seat is also locked)
stepping, by the processor, down a frequency of capturing a subsequent image based on an output of the machine learning model in response to detecting that a person or an animal is not present in the image”. (see block 462 when everyone has left the vehicle the neural network processor confirms that everyone has left and then stops the camera from imaging and stops the tracking of the passengers since no one is in the vehicle and see paragraph 242-246 and 247-248 and 249 where the neural network processor and algorithm can detect that the vehicle 1 is stopped and 2 is locked and 3. They forgot the baby in the car seat when the windows are closed and there is a peril and 4. That the car seat is back in the vehicle and the belt on the car seat is also locked and see paragraph 216 where the passengers are counted and when everyone left then the neural network processor can determine it is over and that the imaging and the tracking can stop to save power; If an identification that one or more of the vehicle doors was opened then at step 460 a binary decision can be made regarding the updated passengers' number in the vehicle and optionally their current position and/or location. If one or more of the vehicle passengers left the vehicle then at step 462 a passenger counter is subtracted by one and optionally the monitoring system stop tracking the identified passenger. If it is identified that none of the passengers left the vehicle then the process proceeds to step 450 and an identification that one of the passengers changed his position (e.g. leaning and/or bending) is provided.)
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the present disclosure to combine the teachings of GRONAU with the disclosure of WILLIAMS with a reasonable expectation of success since GRONAU teaches that the neural network processor and camera can count the number of passengers. When the vehicle stops and the parents are detected as leaving the processor can determine that 1. The vehicle is locked. 2 the vehicle has stopped. 3. The doors opened and the parents left and there is a baby in the car seat and locked in the car seat with a belt. The processor can then determine that the windows are also up. The neural network can then provide an alarm to save the baby. See paragraph 242-249. Also, if everyone leaves the neural network can detect that no one is left and the processor can count that no passengers are left and then stop the tracking and stop the imaging to save power. See block 444-462.
Gronau discloses “…13. A method comprising: monitoring an internal temperature of an interior of a vehicle; determining the internal temperature exceeds a first predefined threshold;” “..opening a window of the vehicle in response to
“...the internal temperature exceeding the first predefined threshold; after opening the window, determining the internal temperature exceeds a second predefined threshold higher than the first predefined threshold; and “
“... operating a HVAC system of the vehicle to regulate the internal temperature”. ;…. (see paragraph 242-246 and 247-248 and 249 where the neural network processor and algorithm can detect that the vehicle 1 is stopped and 2 is locked and 3. They forgot the baby in the car seat when the windows are closed and there is a peril and 4. That the car seat is back in the vehicle and the belt on the car seat is also locked) (see block 462 when everyone has left the vehicle the neural network processor confirms that everyone has left and then stops the camera from imaging and stops the tracking of the passengers since no one is in the vehicle and see paragraph 242-246 and 247-248 and 249 where the neural network processor and algorithm can detect that the vehicle 1 is stopped and 2 is locked and 3. They forgot the baby in the car seat when the windows are closed and there is a peril and 4. That the car seat is back in the vehicle and the belt on the car seat is also locked and see paragraph 216 where the passengers are counted and when everyone left then the neural network processor can determine it is over and that the imaging and the tracking can stop to save power; If an identification that one or more of the vehicle doors was opened then at step 460 a binary decision can be made regarding the updated passengers' number in the vehicle and optionally their current position and/or location. If one or more of the vehicle passengers left the vehicle then at step 462 a passenger counter is subtracted by one and optionally the monitoring system stop tracking the identified passenger. If it is identified that none of the passengers left the vehicle then the process proceeds to step 450 and an identification that one of the passengers changed his position (e.g. leaning and/or bending) is provided.) (see paragraph 136-140 where the vehicle’s air conditioning can be turned on and the windows opened to cool the cabin).
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.
This application currently names joint inventors. In considering patentability of the claims the examiner presumes that the subject matter of the various claims was commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the claimed invention(s) absent any evidence to the contrary. Applicant is advised of the obligation under 37 CFR 1.56 to point out the inventor and effective filing dates of each claim that was not commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the later invention in order for the examiner to consider the applicability of 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(2)(C) for any potential 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) prior art against the later invention.
Claims 1, 8 and 21 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. sec. 103 as being unpatentable as obvious in view of U.S. Patent Application Pub. No.: US 20190176837 A1 to Williams and assigned to TESLA™ and which was filed in 12-8-17 and in view of Untied States Patent Application Pub. No.: US 2014/0133694 A1 to Mishra et al. that was filed in 2013 and in view of United States Patent Application Pub. No.: US20220114817A1 to Gronau filed in 2019 (hereinafter “Gronau”).
In regard to claim 1 , 8 and 21, Williams discloses “...1. A method comprising:
Detecting by a processor a vehicle has stopped; (see FIG. 310B and 310A and FIG. 3f where the user’s expression indicates a slumped over condition; and see FIG. 4a where the facial recognition is identified in block 410 in in FIG. 4c the user is not in a normal sate in block 438 then the audio can be played in block 440 and if non responsive then the driver can activate an emergency mode and proceed to the hospital).;
recording an image of an interior of the vehicle;
classifying the image by the processor using a machine learning model that can detect one or more of a person or an animal; ; (see FIG. 310B and 310A and FIG. 3f where the user’s expression indicates a slumped over condition; and see FIG. 4a where the facial recognition is identified in block 410 in in FIG. 4c the user is not in a normal sate in block 438 then the audio can be played in block 440 and if non responsive then the driver can activate an emergency mode and proceed to the hospital).; (see paragraph 33 where a machine learning is provided and see FIG. 3f where a user is detected in the seat as element 312 a and slumped over from the sensor 112; see also FIG. 3d where a facial recognition is used to determine if the driver and the passenger are in the front seats of the vehicle) (see paragraph 34 where the ERS mode is activated and no response is received from the driver (e.g., the first user 116A) within the user specified or pre-defined time period, the in-vehicle electronic device 114 may be configured to communicate a self-diagnostic test start signal to an on-board diagnostics (OBD) system of the vehicle 102. The self-diagnostic test is done to determine whether the vehicle 102 is damaged or okay-to-drive in an autonomous mode or auto pilot (AP) mode. In cases where the vehicle 102 is damaged, the vehicle 102 remains parked, a health emergency alert signal is communicated to the medical emergency center 106. In cases where the vehicle 102 is diagnosed as okay-to-drive but the driver is unresponsive to the audio alert, the in-vehicle electronic device 114 may communicate an autonomous mode start signal to an engine control module (ECM) of the vehicle 102. This may cause the vehicle 102 to automatically drive itself to a nearest hospital or an emergency service provider, such as the medical emergency center 106; see paragraph 33 The vehicle audio system may be activated and an audio alert, (e.g., "Are you OK, or shall I alert emergency services?") may be outputted via one of the plurality of speakers of the vehicle audio system. This may occur when the driver is suspected to be in distressed state. Thereafter, the in-vehicle electronic device 114 may be configured to activate an emergency response (ERS) mode in the vehicle 102. The in-vehicle electronic device 114 may be configured to communicate a health emergency alert signal to the medical emergency center 106 if no response is received from the driver within a user specified or pre-defined time period. The health emergency alert signal may be referred to as emergency call systems, or simply eCall. eCall is an emergency response system known in the art. Typically, when vehicle crash sensors are triggered, the eCall system detects that the occupants are in distress and automatically calls emergency services to alert of possible injuries. The eCall system also transmits vehicle location (e.g., GPS coordinates) to the medical emergency center 106 (e.g., an emergency response team).. )
(see paragraph 33-37 and FIG. 4c where in block 438, the driver is indicated as not being normal state and then if not responsive an emergency is declared on the way to the destination and then an alert signal is provided; see FIG. 310B and 310A and FIG. 3f where the user’s expression indicates a slumped over condition; and see FIG. 4a where the facial recognition is identified in block 410 in in FIG. 4c the user is not in a normal sate in block 438 then the audio can be played in block 440 and if non responsive then the driver can activate an emergency mode and proceed to the hospital).; (see paragraph 34 where the ERS mode is activated and no response is received from the driver (e.g., the first user 116A) within the user specified or pre-defined time period, the in-vehicle electronic device 114 may be configured to communicate a self-diagnostic test start signal to an on-board diagnostics (OBD) system of the vehicle 102. The self-diagnostic test is done to determine whether the vehicle 102 is damaged or okay-to-drive in an autonomous mode or auto pilot (AP) mode. In cases where the vehicle 102 is damaged, the vehicle 102 remains parked, a health emergency alert signal is communicated to the medical emergency center 106. In cases where the vehicle 102 is diagnosed as okay-to-drive but the driver is unresponsive to the audio alert, the in-vehicle electronic device 114 may communicate an autonomous mode start signal to an engine control module (ECM) of the vehicle 102. This may cause the vehicle 102 to automatically drive itself to a nearest hospital or an emergency service provider, such as the medical emergency center 106. )
PNG
media_image1.png
681
651
media_image1.png
Greyscale
The primary reference is silent but MISHRA teaches “...and stepping by the processor down a frequency of capturing a subsequent image in response to detecting that a person or an animal is not present in the image”. (see paragraph 50 where the remote control device 115 uses an image capture module 305 to capture a captured image. The frequency of the captured image may be set to a default value that may be modified by the user. In order to save power, the image capture module 305 may capture the captured image whenever the motion is sensed by a motion sensor of the remote control device 115. Furthermore, the captured image may be generated by the remote control device 115 only when the user's gesture is a predetermined gesture. The captured image is transmitted to the electronic device 120 for additional processing. The electronic device 120 provides the menu to the identified display device 105A and may also provide the menu to the remote control device 115. The menu may be displayed on the display 430 of the remote control device 115. The control command of the menu, which is selected by the user, may be directly transmitted to the display device 105A, or may be transmitted to the electronic device 120 based on the function of the display device 105A and then be transmitted to the display device 105A. The communication may be performed wirelessly through, for example, Wi-Fi or Bluetooth. For example, the display 430, such as a touch screen display, displays a menu received from the electronic device 120, and receives a control command selected by the user. )”. The applicant argues that the limitations of “...stepping down the frequency of capturing images in response to detecting that a person or animal is not present in the image” is not shown in any reference in the prior art. See page 4.
This is shown in the applicant’s specification as originally filed at paragraph 36-37 as “...[0036] In block 110, the method analyzes the result of the ML classification. The classification analyzed in block 110 generally comprises either a positive classification (i.e., a passenger is detected in a vehicle) or a negative classification (i.e., no passengers were detected). In some embodiments, the classification is further associated with a confidence level. In this scenario, the method may only use positive classifications with a confidence level above a pre-configured threshold. This threshold may be stored in a vehicle or user profile or rules setting.
[0037] In block 112, upon detecting a negative classification (i.e., no passengers detected), the method steps down an interval. In one embodiment, this interval controls when the method should stop (or pause) capturing images. Specifically, in some embodiments, it is a waste of computing resources and energy to continuously capture images in a vehicle when no beings are locked inside. For example, when a driver parks their car for the day at work. As another example, parking a car during the evening after returning from work would result in a significant length (e.g., fourteen hours) of recording and processing time”.
The claims require 1. Detecting if one or more of a person OR an animal is in the image.
The claims then require 2. Stepping down the frequency of the images when a person or an animal is not in the image.
Mishra is relevant. The reference discloses in paragraph 50 that the captured image is only detected when the user makes a gesture that is a predetermined gesture or if a motion sensor of the device provides that it detects motion. If there is no person there no motion is detected and the image capture model does not generate any images to save power.
Therefore, MISHRA provides 1. Detecting if one or more of a person OR an animal is in the image. There is no person in the image and no motion and no image is captured. No animals are detected either.
MISHRA provides 2. Stepping down the frequency of the images when a person or an animal is not in the image. As provided in paragraph 50 when there is no motion (no person or animal moving) then no images are taken. This is for power savings.
If a dog is left in the combined references then an action would be taken .However, if there is no dog in mishara, no motion is detected and the camera stops taking images. This is exactly the same configuration as the applicant’s claim 1. The same results are also provided.
Additionally, the applicant invention is not detected a person or an animal and then stepping down a frequency of the image capture device. However, in MISHRA an animal is never detected and the power savings provides the reduction in the frequency of images so the limitation is met anyway.
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the present disclosure to combine the disclosure off WILLIAMS to TESLA with the teachings of MISHRA with a reasonable expectation of success since MISHRA teaches that a user can increase the capture rate or decrease the frequency of the capture rate based on a default rate or alternatively only when a person with a gesture is detected and then when no gesture is detected it can ramp it down for power savings. See paragraph 50 of MISHRA.
Claims 1 and 8 and 21 and the independent claims are amended to recite and Williams is silent but GRONAU teaches “…detecting, by the processor, that the vehicle is in a locked state after stopping;…. (see paragraph 242-246 and 247-248 and 249 where the neural network processor and algorithm can detect that the vehicle 1 is stopped and 2 is locked and 3. They forgot the baby in the car seat when the windows are closed and there is a peril and 4. That the car seat is back in the vehicle and the belt on the car seat is also locked)
stepping, by the processor, down a frequency of capturing a subsequent image based on an output of the machine learning model in response to detecting that a person or an animal is not present in the image”. (see block 462 when everyone has left the vehicle the neural network processor confirms that everyone has left and then stops the camera from imaging and stops the tracking of the passengers since no one is in the vehicle and see paragraph 242-246 and 247-248 and 249 where the neural network processor and algorithm can detect that the vehicle 1 is stopped and 2 is locked and 3. They forgot the baby in the car seat when the windows are closed and there is a peril and 4. That the car seat is back in the vehicle and the belt on the car seat is also locked and see paragraph 216 where the passengers are counted and when everyone left then the neural network processor can determine it is over and that the imaging and the tracking can stop to save power; If an identification that one or more of the vehicle doors was opened then at step 460 a binary decision can be made regarding the updated passengers' number in the vehicle and optionally their current position and/or location. If one or more of the vehicle passengers left the vehicle then at step 462 a passenger counter is subtracted by one and optionally the monitoring system stop tracking the identified passenger. If it is identified that none of the passengers left the vehicle then the process proceeds to step 450 and an identification that one of the passengers changed his position (e.g. leaning and/or bending) is provided.)
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the present disclosure to combine the teachings of GRONAU with the disclosure of WILLIAMS with a reasonable expectation of success since GRONAU teaches that the neural network processor and camera can count the number of passengers. When the vehicle stops and the parents are detected as leaving the processor can determine that 1. The vehicle is locked. 2 the vehicle has stopped. 3. The doors opened and the parents left and there is a baby in the car seat and locked in the car seat with a belt. The processor can then determine that the windows are also up. The neural network can then provide an alarm to save the baby. See paragraph 242-249. Also, if everyone leaves the neural network can detect that no one is left and the processor can count that no passengers are left and then stop the tracking and stop the imaging to save power. See block 444-462.
Claims 2 and 22 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. sec. 103 as being unpatentable as obvious in view of U.S. Patent Application Pub. No.: US 20190176837 A1 to Williams and assigned to TESLA™ and which was filed in 12-8-17 and in view of Mishra and in view of U.S. Patent No.: US9593521B2 to Breed that was filed in 2012 and Gronau.
In regard to claim 2 and 22, Williams is silent but Breed teaches “…2. The method of claim 1, wherein detecting the vehicle has stopped comprises monitoring a speed of the vehicle and determining the speed is at or close to zero”. (see col. 71, lines 25-46) (see col. 62, lines 55-65; and col. 21, lines 30-45).
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the present disclosure to combine the disclosure off WILLIAMS to TESLA with the teachings of BREED with a reasonable expectation of success since BREED teaches that a user can be detected as being stopped and the user trapped inside and the air conditioning can be turned on to save the child and drop the temperature to an unsafe level. See Col. 71, lines 1-30 of BREED.
Claims 3 and 23 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. sec. 103 as being unpatentable as obvious in view of U.S. Patent Application Pub. No.: US 20190176837 A1 to Williams and assigned to TESLA™ and which was filed in 12-8-17 and in view of Mishra and in view of German Patent Pub. DE 19805089 to Nagasaka (hereinafter “Nagasaka”) and Gronau.
In regard to claim 3 and 23, Nagasaka discloses “...3. The method of claim 1, wherein detecting the vehicle has stopped comprises detecting a signal indicating a brake of the vehicle has been depressed. (see paragraph 49 where in the event the sensor finds the brake depressed then the brakes pressure is provided based on sensor 10 and the brakes are applied) (see paragraph 41 where a brake pedal depression sensor may detect the force acting on the brake pedal)
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the present disclosure to combine the disclosure off WILLIAMS to TESLA with the teachings of NAGASAKA with a reasonable expectation of success since NAGASAKA teaches that a brake depression can be determined via a sensor and a force on the depression sensor to ensure the brake is reliably detected.
PNG
media_image2.png
752
690
media_image2.png
Greyscale
Claims 4 and 24 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. sec. 103 as being unpatentable as obvious in view of U.S. Patent Application Pub. No.: US 20190176837 A1 to Williams and assigned to TESLA™ and which was filed in 12-8-17 and in view of Mishra and in view of U.S. Patent No.: US9994150B2 to Appukutty et al. that is assigned to FORD and Gronau.
In regard to claim 4 and 24, Appukutty teaces “..4. The method of claim 1, wherein detecting the vehicle has stopped comprises detecting a signal from a transmission control unit indicating the vehicle has been placed in park”. (see block 706 and the camera is on at block 704 as a child is detected and see power training module and 24 and the abstract where the device can determine the vehicle is in park and then take images of the child seat monitoring device 12)
PNG
media_image3.png
810
858
media_image3.png
Greyscale
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the present disclosure to combine the disclosure off WILLIAMS to TESLA with the teachings of APPUKUTTY with a reasonable expectation of success since APPUKUTTY teaches that a user can be detected as being stopped and the child trapped inside and the gear selector being in park. The child can be detected as being latched inside and then the device can provide an alarm that the child is forgotten in the car seat. See FIG. 1 block 12-32.
Claims 5 and 25 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. sec. 103 as being unpatentable as obvious in view of U.S. Patent Application Pub. No.: US 20190176837 A1 to Williams and assigned to TESLA™ and which was filed in 12-8-17 and in view of Mishra and Gronau.
In regard to claim 5 and 25 , Mishra teaches “...5. The method of claim 1, further comprising initially setting by the processor the frequency to an initial time period after detecting the vehicle has stopped”. (see paragraph 50)
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the present disclosure to combine the disclosure off WILLIAMS to TESLA with the teachings of MISHRA with a reasonable expectation of success since MISHRA teaches that a user can increase the capture rate or decrease the frequency of the capture rate based on a default rate or alternatively only when a person with a gesture is detected and then when no gesture is detected it can ramp it down for power savings. See paragraph 50 of MISHRA.
Claims 6 and 26 rejected under 35 U.S.C. sec. 103 as being unpatentable as obvious in view of U.S. Patent Application Pub. No.: US 20190176837 A1 to Williams and assigned to TESLA™ and which was filed in 12-8-17 and in view of Mishra and in view of United States Patent No.: 10,306,135 B2 to Velipasalar that was filed in 2012 and Gronau.
In regard to claim 6 and 26, Velipasalar teaches “...6. The method of claim 1, further comprising exponentially increasing by the processor the frequency as subsequent images are classified as not containing the person or animal”. (see claims 1-10 and 23-24 where the count of images can be increased when the user is detected as falling as opposed to lying down)”.
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the present disclosure to combine the disclosure off WILLIAMS to TESLA with the teachings of Velipasalar with a reasonable expectation of success since Velipasalar teaches that a user can increase the capture rate or increase the frequency of the capture rate based on an event that is desired such as a failing. This can provide increased detection during these relevant events.
Claims 7 and 27 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. sec. 103 as being unpatentable as obvious in view of U.S. Patent Application Pub. No.: US 20190176837 A1 to Williams and assigned to TESLA™ and which was filed in 12-8-17 and in view of Mishra and Gronau.
In regard to claim 7 and 27 ,Williams discloses “…7. The method of claim 1, wherein the machine learning model comprises a neural network trained on classified image data containing persons or animals”. (see paragraph 33 where a machine learning is provided and see FIG. 3f where a user is detected in the seat as element 312 a and slumped over from the sensor 112; see also FIG. 3d where a facial recognition is used to determine if the driver and the passenger are in the front seats of the vehicle) (see paragraph 34 where the ERS mode is activated and no response is received from the driver (e.g., the first user 116A) within the user specified or pre-defined time period, the in-vehicle electronic device 114 may be configured to communicate a self-diagnostic test start signal to an on-board diagnostics (OBD) system of the vehicle 102. The self-diagnostic test is done to determine whether the vehicle 102 is damaged or okay-to-drive in an autonomous mode or auto pilot (AP) mode. In cases where the vehicle 102 is damaged, the vehicle 102 remains parked, a health emergency alert signal is communicated to the medical emergency center 106. In cases where the vehicle 102 is diagnosed as okay-to-drive but the driver is unresponsive to the audio alert, the in-vehicle electronic device 114 may communicate an autonomous mode start signal to an engine control module (ECM) of the vehicle 102. This may cause the vehicle 102 to automatically drive itself to a nearest hospital or an emergency service provider, such as the medical emergency center 106; see paragraph 33 The vehicle audio system may be activated and an audio alert, (e.g., "Are you OK, or shall I alert emergency services?") may be outputted via one of the plurality of speakers of the vehicle audio system. This may occur when the driver is suspected to be in distressed state. Thereafter, the in-vehicle electronic device 114 may be configured to activate an emergency response (ERS) mode in the vehicle 102. The in-vehicle electronic device 114 may be configured to communicate a health emergency alert signal to the medical emergency center 106 if no response is received from the driver within a user specified or pre-defined time period. The health emergency alert signal may be referred to as emergency call systems, or simply eCall. eCall is an emergency response system known in the art. Typically, when vehicle crash sensors are triggered, the eCall system detects that the occupants are in distress and automatically calls emergency services to alert of possible injuries. The eCall system also transmits vehicle location (e.g., GPS coordinates) to the medical emergency center 106 (e.g., an emergency response team).. )
Claims 8 and 10-11 and 28 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. sec. 103 as being unpatentable as obvious in view of U.S. Patent Application Pub. No.: US 20190176837 A1 to Williams and assigned to TESLA™ and which was filed in 12-8-17 and in view of U.S. Patent No.: US9994150B2 to Appukutty et al. that is assigned to FORD and Gronau.
In regard to claim 8 and 28, Williams is silent but Appukutty teaches “...8. A method comprising:
detecting that a vehicle is in a locked state after stopping; activating a camera within the vehicle; (see FIIG. 8, where the engine is off and the vehicle is in park and the child camera is detected as being on in blocks 704-710 and col. 4, line 44 and col. 15, lines 1-17)”.
Williams discloses “… capturing, using the camera, a plurality of images of an interior of the vehicle over a period of time; and analyzing the plurality of images using a machine learning model to detect a presence of a person or animal within the interior” (see paragraph 33 where a machine learning is provided and see FIG. 3f where a user is detected in the seat as element 312 a and slumped over from the sensor 112; see also FIG. 3d where a facial recognition is used to determine if the driver and the passenger are in the front seats of the vehicle) (see paragraph 34 where the ERS mode is activated and no response is received from the driver (e.g., the first user 116A) within the user specified or pre-defined time period, the in-vehicle electronic device 114 may be configured to communicate a self-diagnostic test start signal to an on-board diagnostics (OBD) system of the vehicle 102. The self-diagnostic test is done to determine whether the vehicle 102 is damaged or okay-to-drive in an autonomous mode or auto pilot (AP) mode. In cases where the vehicle 102 is damaged, the vehicle 102 remains parked, a health emergency alert signal is communicated to the medical emergency center 106. In cases where the vehicle 102 is diagnosed as okay-to-drive but the driver is unresponsive to the audio alert, the in-vehicle electronic device 114 may communicate an autonomous mode start signal to an engine control module (ECM) of the vehicle 102. This may cause the vehicle 102 to automatically drive itself to a nearest hospital or an emergency service provider, such as the medical emergency center 106; see paragraph 33 The vehicle audio system may be activated and an audio alert, (e.g., "Are you OK, or shall I alert emergency services?") may be outputted via one of the plurality of speakers of the vehicle audio system. This may occur when the driver is suspected to be in distressed state. Thereafter, the in-vehicle electronic device 114 may be configured to activate an emergency response (ERS) mode in the vehicle 102. The in-vehicle electronic device 114 may be configured to communicate a health emergency alert signal to the medical emergency center 106 if no response is received from the driver within a user specified or pre-defined time period. The health emergency alert signal may be referred to as emergency call systems, or simply eCall. eCall is an emergency response system known in the art. Typically, when vehicle crash sensors are triggered, the eCall system detects that the occupants are in distress and automatically calls emergency services to alert of possible injuries. The eCall system also transmits vehicle location (e.g., GPS coordinates) to the medical emergency center 106 (e.g., an emergency response team).. )
Claim 8 and 28 and the independent claims are amended to recite and Williams is silent but GRONAU teaches “…activating the camera in response to detecting the locked state and analyzing the images using the machine learning model to detect a person or animal in the vehicle;…. (see paragraph 242-246 and 247-248 and 249 where the neural network processor and algorithm can detect that the vehicle 1 is stopped and 2 is locked and 3. They forgot the baby in the car seat when the windows are closed and there is a peril and 4. That the car seat is back in the vehicle and the belt on the car seat is also locked) (see block 462 when everyone has left the vehicle the neural network processor confirms that everyone has left and then stops the camera from imaging and stops the tracking of the passengers since no one is in the vehicle and see paragraph 242-246 and 247-248 and 249 where the neural network processor and algorithm can detect that the vehicle 1 is stopped and 2 is locked and 3. They forgot the baby in the car seat when the windows are closed and there is a peril and 4. That the car seat is back in the vehicle and the belt on the car seat is also locked and see paragraph 216 where the passengers are counted and when everyone left then the neural network processor can determine it is over and that the imaging and the tracking can stop to save power; If an identification that one or more of the vehicle doors was opened then at step 460 a binary decision can be made regarding the updated passengers' number in the vehicle and optionally their current position and/or location. If one or more of the vehicle passengers left the vehicle then at step 462 a passenger counter is subtracted by one and optionally the monitoring system stop tracking the identified passenger. If it is identified that none of the passengers left the vehicle then the process proceeds to step 450 and an identification that one of the passengers changed his position (e.g. leaning and/or bending) is provided.)
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the present disclosure to combine the teachings of GRONAU with the disclosure of WILLIAMS with a reasonable expectation of success since GRONAU teaches that the neural network processor and camera can count the number of passengers. When the vehicle stops and the parents are detected as leaving the processor can determine that 1. The vehicle is locked. 2 the vehicle has stopped. 3. The doors opened and the parents left and there is a baby in the car seat and locked in the car seat with a belt. The processor can then determine that the windows are also up. The neural network can then provide an alarm to save the baby. See paragraph 242-249. Also, if everyone leaves the neural network can detect that no one is left and the processor can count that no passengers are left and then stop the tracking and stop the imaging to save power. See block 444-462.
Claims 9 and 29-30 rejected under 35 U.S.C. sec. 103 as being unpatentable as obvious in view of U.S. Patent Application Pub. No.: US 20190176837 A1 to Williams and assigned to TESLA™ and which was filed in 12-8-17 and in view of U.S. Patent No.: US9994150B2 to Appukutty et al. that is assigned to FORD and Gronau.
In regard to claim 9 and 29, Williams is silent but Appukutty teaches “..9. The method of claim 8, wherein detecting the locked state comprises receiving a signal from a door lock control unit indicating doors of the vehicle have been locked. (see FIIG. 8, where the engine is off and the vehicle is in park and the child camera is detected as being on in blocks 704-710 and col. 4, line 44 and col. 15, lines 1-17)”.
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the present disclosure to combine the disclosure off WILLIAMS to TESLA with the teachings of APPUKUTTY with a reasonable expectation of success since APPUKUTTY teaches that a user can be detected as being stopped and the child trapped inside and the gear selector being in park. The child can be detected as being latched inside and then the device can provide an alarm that the child is forgotten in the car seat. See FIG. 1 block 12-32.
In regard to claim 10, and 30 Williams discloses “...10. The method of claim 8, further comprising pre-processing the plurality of images to remove artifacts before analyzing using the machine learning model”. (see paragraph 33 where a machine learning is provided and see FIG. 3f where a user is detected in the seat as element 312 a and slumped over from the sensor 112; see also FIG. 3d where a facial recognition is used to determine if the driver and the passenger are in the front seats of the vehicle) (see paragraph 34 where the ERS mode is activated and no response is received from the driver (e.g., the first user 116A) within the user specified or pre-defined time period, the in-vehicle electronic device 114 may be configured to communicate a self-diagnostic test start signal to an on-board diagnostics (OBD) system of the vehicle 102. The self-diagnostic test is done to determine whether the vehicle 102 is damaged or okay-to-drive in an autonomous mode or auto pilot (AP) mode. In cases where the vehicle 102 is damaged, the vehicle 102 remains parked, a health emergency alert signal is communicated to the medical emergency center 106. In cases where the vehicle 102 is diagnosed as okay-to-drive but the driver is unresponsive to the audio alert, the in-vehicle electronic device 114 may communicate an autonomous mode start signal to an engine control module (ECM) of the vehicle 102. This may cause the vehicle 102 to automatically drive itself to a nearest hospital or an emergency service provider, such as the medical emergency center 106; see paragraph 33 The vehicle audio system may be activated and an audio alert, (e.g., "Are you OK, or shall I alert emergency services?") may be outputted via one of the plurality of speakers of the vehicle audio system. This may occur when the driver is suspected to be in distressed state. Thereafter, the in-vehicle electronic device 114 may be configured to activate an emergency response (ERS) mode in the vehicle 102. The in-vehicle electronic device 114 may be configured to communicate a health emergency alert signal to the medical emergency center 106 if no response is received from the driver within a user specified or pre-defined time period. The health emergency alert signal may be referred to as emergency call systems, or simply eCall. eCall is an emergency response system known in the art. Typically, when vehicle crash sensors are triggered, the eCall system detects that the occupants are in distress and automatically calls emergency services to alert of possible injuries. The eCall system also transmits vehicle location (e.g., GPS coordinates) to the medical emergency center 106 (e.g., an emergency response team).. )
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the present disclosure to combine the disclosure off WILLIAMS to TESLA with the teachings of APPUKUTTY with a reasonable expectation of success since APPUKUTTY teaches that a user can be detected as being stopped and the child trapped inside and the gear selector being in park. The child can be detected as being latched inside and then the device can provide an alarm that the child is forgotten in the car seat. See FIG. 1 block 12-32.
Williams discloses “...11. The method of claim 8, wherein the machine learning model is specific to a particular vehicle make and model”. (see paragraph 33-37 where the learning model is specific to a tesla vehicle made by tesla and FIG. 4c where in block 438, the driver is indicated as not being normal state and then if not responsive an emergency is declared on the way to the destination and then an alert signal is provided; see FIG. 310B and 310A and FIG. 3f where the user’s expression indicates a slumped over condition; and see FIG. 4a where the facial recognition is identified in block 410 in in FIG. 4c the user is not in a normal sate in block 438 then the audio can be played in block 440 and if non responsive then the driver can activate an emergency mode and proceed to the hospital).; (see paragraph 34 where the ERS mode is activated and no response is received from the driver (e.g., the first user 116A) within the user specified or pre-defined time period, the in-vehicle electronic device 114 may be configured to communicate a self-diagnostic test start signal to an on-board diagnostics (OBD) system of the vehicle 102. The self-diagnostic test is done to determine whether the vehicle 102 is damaged or okay-to-drive in an autonomous mode or auto pilot (AP) mode. In cases where the vehicle 102 is damaged, the vehicle 102 remains parked, a health emergency alert signal is communicated to the medical emergency center 106. In cases where the vehicle 102 is diagnosed as okay-to-drive but the driver is unresponsive to the audio alert, the in-vehicle electronic device 114 may communicate an autonomous mode start signal to an engine control module (ECM) of the vehicle 102. This may cause the vehicle 102 to automatically drive itself to a nearest hospital or an emergency service provider, such as the medical emergency center 106. )
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the present disclosure to combine the disclosure off WILLIAMS to TESLA with the teachings of APPUKUTTY with a reasonable expectation of success since APPUKUTTY teaches that a user can be detected as being stopped and the child trapped inside and the gear selector being in park. The child can be detected as being latched inside and then the device can provide an alarm that the child is forgotten in the car seat. See FIG. 1 block 12-32.
Claim 12 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. sec. 103 as being unpatentable as obvious in view of U.S. Patent Application Pub. No.: US 20190176837 A1 to Williams and assigned to TESLA™ and which was filed in 12-8-17 and in view of U.S. Patent No.: US9994150B2 to Appukutty et al. that is assigned to FORD and Gronau.
Williams discloses “...12. The method of claim 8, further comprising transmitting an alert upon detecting the presence of the person or animal within the interior. (see paragraph 33-37 and FIG. 4c where in block 438, the driver is indicated as not being normal state and then if not responsive an emergency is declared on the way to the destination and then an alert signal is provided; see FIG. 310B and 310A and FIG. 3f where the user’s expression indicates a slumped over condition; and see FIG. 4a where the facial recognition is identified in block 410 in in FIG. 4c the user is not in a normal sate in block 438 then the audio can be played in block 440 and if non responsive then the driver can activate an emergency mode and proceed to the hospital).; (see paragraph 34 where the ERS mode is activated and no response is received from the driver (e.g., the first user 116A) within the user specified or pre-defined time period, the in-vehicle electronic device 114 may be configured to communicate a self-diagnostic test start signal to an on-board diagnostics (OBD) system of the vehicle 102. The self-diagnostic test is done to determine whether the vehicle 102 is damaged or okay-to-drive in an autonomous mode or auto pilot (AP) mode. In cases where the vehicle 102 is damaged, the vehicle 102 remains parked, a health emergency alert signal is communicated to the medical emergency center 106. In cases where the vehicle 102 is diagnosed as okay-to-drive but the driver is unresponsive to the audio alert, the in-vehicle electronic device 114 may communicate an autonomous mode start signal to an engine control module (ECM) of the vehicle 102. This may cause the vehicle 102 to automatically drive itself to a nearest hospital or an emergency service provider, such as the medical emergency center 106. )
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the present disclosure to combine the disclosure off WILLIAMS to TESLA with the teachings of APPUKUTTY with a reasonable expectation of success since APPUKUTTY teaches that a user can be detected as being stopped and the child trapped inside and the gear selector being in park. The child can be detected as being latched inside and then the device can provide an alarm that the child is forgotten in the car seat. See FIG. 1 block 12-32.
Claim 13 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. sec. 103 as being unpatentable as obvious in view of U.S. Patent Application Pub. No.: US 20190176837 A1 to Williams and assigned to TESLA™ and which was filed in 12-8-17 and in view of United States Pub. Patent Application No.: US 20114/0309864 A1 to Ricci (hereinafter “Ricci”) and in view of U.S. Patent No.: 6,275,231 B1 to Obradovich that was filed in 1997 and in view of Japanese Patent Pub. No.: JP2008296777A to Hori that was filed in 2007.
Williams is silent as to but Ricci teaches13. A method comprising: monitoring an internal temperature of an interior of a vehicle; determining the internal temperature exceeds a first predefined threshold;” (See paragraph 237 and 321-325, and 520 to 521)
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of the effective filing date of the invention to combine the teachings of Ricci with the disclosure of Williams to determine if one or more sensors within the internal environment of the vehicle exceeds a level and then to take action if a health crisis occurs via an alert for increased safety. See paragraphs 321 to 325 and 520 to 521.
Obradovich teaches “..opening a window of the vehicle in response to (see col. 15, line 25-45 where when the vehicle arrives at the toll plaza and the vehicle approaches a zero speed, then the vehicle windows are completely opened)
and to control a suspension of the vehicle to adjust a height of a vehicle body. (see col. 6, lines 30-40 where when there is a raised surface ahead with the toll then the vehicle height can be adjusted to prevent the vehicle bottom from scraping the floor); It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the present disclosure to combine the disclosure off WILLIAMS to TESLA with the teachings of OBRADOVICH with a reasonable expectation of success since OBRADOVICH teaches that a window can be automatically lowered or raised based on events and in response to events for user convenience.
Horii teaches “...the internal temperature exceeding the first predefined threshold; after opening the window, determining the internal temperature exceeds a second predefined threshold higher than the first predefined threshold; and “ ( See specification that recties “...In general, the indoor environment such as the temperature (room temperature) in the passenger compartment 14 when the vehicle 10 is parked changes under the influence of the environment outside the vehicle. For example, in the vehicle 10 parked under a hot sun with a high outside temperature, the temperature in the vehicle compartment 14 increases as the parking time becomes longer, and the environment in the vehicle compartment 14 deteriorates. If an occupant remains in the passenger compartment 14 under such an environment, poor physical condition or the like is caused.
Further, in the vehicle 10, the power slide door device 20 is provided, so that the slide door 12 can be opened and closed very easily. For this reason, passengers and animals in the passenger compartment 14 are left. There is a high possibility that the slide door 12 is closed without being noticed and released from the vehicle 10.
At this time, it is determined that the infant Cc that cannot be evacuated to the outside of the vehicle by its own force remains in the vehicle 10, thereby prohibiting the closing operation of the slide door 12, and the infant Cc is left in the vehicle 10. It is possible to prevent the occurrence of poor physical condition, and to prevent the infant Cc from being left in the passenger compartment 14 and causing poor physical condition.
In the present embodiment, the imaging device 64 is used to detect the occupant and the infant Cc, but any configuration can be applied to the detection method of the occupant and the infant Cc. For example, when the presence / absence of the child seat 72 and the attachment position are known, an infrared sensor that detects heat generated by the occupant can be used instead of the imaging device 64.
At this time, it is confirmed whether or not there is an occupant for each of the child seat 72 and the other seats, that is, whether or not there is a response to the infrared sensor. When there is a response of the infrared sensor on the child seat 72, the infant Cc gets on When there is a response to the infrared sensor in the other seats, it can be determined that a person other than the infant Cc is on board, thereby determining the presence or absence of the infant Cc and the presence or absence of a passenger other than the infant Cc. it can.
Further, as the occupant detection means, a seat switch may be provided in each of the driver seat, the passenger seat, and the rear seat, and the presence or absence of the occupant seating may be detected by the seat switch. At this time, the seat switch determines whether or not the child seat 72 is attached, and when the child seat 72 is attached, the presence or absence of the infant Cc is determined from only the child seat 72 and the change in weight when the infant Cc is placed on the child seat 72. The configuration can be applied. Accordingly, it is possible to determine whether or not there is another occupant as well as whether or not the infant Cc is on board using the seat switch as the occupant detection means.
Furthermore, in the present embodiment, the closing operation of the sliding door 12 is prohibited when only the infant Cc is in the vehicle. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and at least the sliding door 12 is fully closed to be in the locked state. Anything that prohibits it is acceptable. That is, when the locked state is prohibited, the slide door 12 becomes a half-door state, and locking becomes difficult. As a result, the vehicle 10 is locked and the occupant (driver) cannot leave the vehicle 10, so that the infant Cc can be prevented from being left on the vehicle 10.
In the present embodiment, the vehicle 10 that opens and closes the entrance 18 with the slide door 12 has been described as an example. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the swing of a slide door, a front hinge door, or the like that is opened and closed by a manual operation. It may be applied to the door. At this time, it is sufficient that at least the sliding door and the swing door are prohibited from being fully locked. Thereby, when it is going to close a swing door, it will be in the half door state which is difficult to lock, and it can prevent that a crew member leaves from a vehicle in the state where baby Cc is on board”.)
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the present disclosure to combine the disclosure off WILLIAMS to TESLA with the teachings of HORI with a reasonable expectation of success since HORI teaches that a user can be detected as being stopped and the child trapped inside and the temperature can be detected as being too high and an emergency condition can be provided based on the door locked and the child buckled in the seat and forgotten.
Williams disclose “... operating a HVAC system of the vehicle to regulate the internal temperature”. (see paragraph 74).
Claims 14-16 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. sec. 103 as being unpatentable as obvious in view of U.S. Patent Application Pub. No.: US 20190176837 A1 to Williams and assigned to TESLA™ and which was filed in 12-8-17 and in view of United States Pub. Patent Application No.: US 20114/0309864 A1 to Ricci (hereinafter “Ricci”) and in view of U.S. Patent No.: 6,275,231 B1 to Obradovich that was filed in 1997 and in view of Japanese Patent Pub. No.: JP2008296777A to Hori that was filed in 2007.
Hori teaches “...14. The method of claim 13, further comprising continuing to monitor the internal temperature while the HVAC system is operating”. (In addition, changes in the environment inside the passenger compartment 14 are greatly influenced by the environment outside the vehicle, such as outside air temperature and solar radiation. From here, environmental condition detection means such as an outside air temperature sensor for detecting the outside air temperature and a solar radiation sensor for detecting the amount of solar radiation are provided, and when it is determined from the detection result of the environment condition detection means that the environment in the vehicle interior deteriorates, the slide The closing operation of the door 12 may be prohibited.)
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the present disclosure to combine the disclosure off WILLIAMS to TESLA with the teachings of HORI with a reasonable expectation of success since HORI teaches that a user can be detected as being stopped and the child trapped inside and the temperature can be detected as being too high and an emergency condition can be provided based on the door locked and the child buckled in the seat and forgotten.
Hori teaches “...15. The method of claim 13, wherein opening the window comprises identifying and opening a window closest to a location where a person or animal is detected within the interior”. (See abstract where the sliding door is opened and maintained open close to the detected infant)
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the present disclosure to combine the disclosure off WILLIAMS to TESLA with the teachings of HORI with a reasonable expectation of success since HORI teaches that a user can be detected as being stopped and the child trapped inside and the temperature can be detected as being too high and an emergency condition can be provided based on the door locked and the child buckled in the seat and forgotten.
Hori teaches “...16. The method of claim 13, further comprising closing the window when the internal temperature falls below the first predefined threshold after operating the HVAC system”.( (see specification where the window is allowed to be partially closed and partially open when the temperature is high and the infant is left in the car and the sliding door is prevented from being closed; According to this invention, opening and closing of windows, entrances, and the like can be opened and closed by moving the opening and closing body in the opening direction and the closing direction. When the opening / closing body is moved and the opening is closed, the vehicle is parked by the parking detection means, and the passenger in the vehicle compartment detected by the occupant detection means is determined to be an infant by the determination means. The prohibiting means prohibits at least the opening from being fully closed.
As a result, it is possible to prevent the passenger compartment from being hermetically sealed in the state where the infant is left in the passenger compartment.
In addition, as an infant determined by the determination means, a child of an age that seems to be difficult to open and close the door and the window glass with at least his own power can be applied. In addition, the determination means may determine from the physique based on the average body type (average physique) such as the average height and the average sitting height of the corresponding age, and it is determined by whether or not a child seat is used. There may be.
According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided drive means for moving the opening / closing body in the opening direction and closing direction of the opening, request detecting means for detecting an opening request and a closing request for the opening by the opening / closing body, and the request detection. Opening and closing control means for opening and closing the opening by operating the driving means based on a detection result of the means, and when the request detection means detects a closing request of the opening and closing body, the prohibiting means, The operation of the opening / closing control means is controlled based on the detection result of the parking detection means and the determination result of the determination means. )
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the present disclosure to combine the disclosure off WILLIAMS to TESLA with the teachings of HORI with a reasonable expectation of success since HORI teaches that a user can be detected as being stopped and the child trapped inside and the temperature can be detected as being too high and an emergency condition can be provided based on the door locked and the child buckled in the seat and forgotten.
Claims 17-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. sec. 103 as being unpatentable as obvious in view of U.S. Patent Application Pub. No.: US 20190176837 A1 to Williams and assigned to TESLA™ and which was filed in 12-8-17 and in view of United States Pub. Patent Application No.: US 20114/0309864 A1 to Ricci (hereinafter “Ricci”) and in view of U.S. Patent No.: 6,275,231 B1 to Obradovich that was filed in 1997 and in view of Japanese Patent Pub. No.: JP2008296777A to Hori that was filed in 2007 and in view of United States Patent Application Pub. No.: US20070030146A1 to Shepherd.
Shepherd teaches “...17. The method of claim 13, further comprising alerting emergency services if the internal temperature cannot be regulated within a third predefined threshold range after operating the HVAC system” (see abstract and claim 12 where the temperature may change and this can cause a 911 call after an accident).
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the present disclosure to combine the disclosure off WILLIAMS to TESLA with the teachings of SHEPHERD with a reasonable expectation of success since SHEPHERD teaches that a device can monitor and accident and a high force and a blunt force and then a high temperature. Then the device can provide an identification of the device and then a GPS location for emergency services to rescue the individuals in the accident.
Shepherd teaches “...18. The method of claim 17, further comprising: waiting arrival of emergency responders; determining if it is safe to open a door of the vehicle based on vehicle surroundings; and opening the door upon determining it is safe and detecting the emergency responders are present”. (see claim 20 where the emergency services can arrive and provide a cancellation signal to halt the transmission of the emergency signal)
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the present disclosure to combine the disclosure off WILLIAMS to TESLA with the teachings of SHEPHERD with a reasonable expectation of success since SHEPHERD teaches that a device can monitor and accident and a high force and a blunt force and then a high temperature. Then the device can provide an identification of the device and then a GPS location for emergency services to rescue the individuals in the accident.
Shepherd teaches “...19. The method of claim 13, wherein the HVAC system is operated to regulate the internal temperature to a setting specified by an owner of the vehicle” (see paragraph 27-29 where the device can provide the location identification information and a gps location and the identity of the owner of the device). (see abstract and claim 12 where the temperature may change and this can cause a 911 call after an accident).
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the present disclosure to combine the disclosure off WILLIAMS to TESLA with the teachings of SHEPHERD with a reasonable expectation of success since SHEPHERD teaches that a device can monitor and accident and a high force and a blunt force and then a high temperature. Then the device can provide an identification of the device and then a GPS location for emergency services to rescue the individuals in the accident.
It is inherent in all vehicle air conditioning units that a user can control the unit’s temperature.
Williams discloses “..20. The method of claim 13, further comprising classifying an image of the interior using a machine learning model to detect a presence of a person or animal within the vehicle prior to opening the window. (see paragraph 33 where a machine learning is provided and see FIG. 3f where a user is detected in the seat as element 312 a and slumped over from the sensor 112; see also FIG. 3d where a facial recognition is used to determine if the driver and the passenger are in the front seats of the vehicle) (see paragraph 34 where the ERS mode is activated and no response is received from the driver (e.g., the first user 116A) within the user specified or pre-defined time period, the in-vehicle electronic device 114 may be configured to communicate a self-diagnostic test start signal to an on-board diagnostics (OBD) system of the vehicle 102. The self-diagnostic test is done to determine whether the vehicle 102 is damaged or okay-to-drive in an autonomous mode or auto pilot (AP) mode. In cases where the vehicle 102 is damaged, the vehicle 102 remains parked, a health emergency alert signal is communicated to the medical emergency center 106. In cases where the vehicle 102 is diagnosed as okay-to-drive but the driver is unresponsive to the audio alert, the in-vehicle electronic device 114 may communicate an autonomous mode start signal to an engine control module (ECM) of the vehicle 102. This may cause the vehicle 102 to automatically drive itself to a nearest hospital or an emergency service provider, such as the medical emergency center 106; see paragraph 33 The vehicle audio system may be activated and an audio alert, (e.g., "Are you OK, or shall I alert emergency services?") may be outputted via one of the plurality of speakers of the vehicle audio system. This may occur when the driver is suspected to be in distressed state. Thereafter, the in-vehicle electronic device 114 may be configured to activate an emergency response (ERS) mode in the vehicle 102. The in-vehicle electronic device 114 may be configured to communicate a health emergency alert signal to the medical emergency center 106 if no response is received from the driver within a user specified or pre-defined time period. The health emergency alert signal may be referred to as emergency call systems, or simply eCall. eCall is an emergency response system known in the art. Typically, when vehicle crash sensors are triggered, the eCall system detects that the occupants are in distress and automatically calls emergency services to alert of possible injuries. The eCall system also transmits vehicle location (e.g., GPS coordinates) to the medical emergency center 106 (e.g., an emergency response team).. )
Double Patenting
The nonstatutory double patenting rejection is based on a judicially created doctrine grounded in public policy (a policy reflected in the statute) so as to prevent the unjustified or improper timewise extension of the “right to exclude” granted by a patent and to prevent possible harassment by multiple assignees. A nonstatutory double patenting rejection is appropriate where the conflicting claims are not identical, but at least one examined application claim is not patentably distinct from the reference claim(s) because the examined application claim is either anticipated by, or would have been obvious over, the reference claim(s). See, e.g., In re Berg, 140 F.3d 1428, 46 USPQ2d 1226 (Fed. Cir. 1998); In re Goodman, 11 F.3d 1046, 29 USPQ2d 2010 (Fed. Cir. 1993); In re Longi, 759 F.2d 887, 225 USPQ 645 (Fed. Cir. 1985); In re Van Ornum, 686 F.2d 937, 214 USPQ 761 (CCPA 1982); In re Vogel, 422 F.2d 438, 164 USPQ 619 (CCPA 1970); In re Thorington, 418 F.2d 528, 163 USPQ 644 (CCPA 1969).
A timely filed terminal disclaimer in compliance with 37 CFR 1.321(c) or 1.321(d) may be used to overcome an actual or provisional rejection based on nonstatutory double patenting provided the reference application or patent either is shown to be commonly owned with the examined application, or claims an invention made as a result of activities undertaken within the scope of a joint research agreement. See MPEP § 717.02 for applications subject to examination under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA as explained in MPEP § 2159. See MPEP §§ 706.02(l)(1) - 706.02(l)(3) for applications not subject to examination under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA . A terminal disclaimer must be signed in compliance with 37 CFR 1.321(b).
The USPTO Internet website contains terminal disclaimer forms which may be used. Please visit www.uspto.gov/patent/patents-forms. The filing date of the application in which the form is filed determines what form (e.g., PTO/SB/25, PTO/SB/26, PTO/AIA /25, or PTO/AIA /26) should be used. A web-based eTerminal Disclaimer may be filled out completely online using web-screens. An eTerminal Disclaimer that meets all requirements is auto-processed and approved immediately upon submission. For more information about eTerminal Disclaimers, refer to www.uspto.gov/patents/process/file/efs/guidance/eTD-info-I.jsp.
Claims 1-30 are rejected under obviousness double patenting in view of claim 1 of U.S. Patent No.: 11,951,997 that recites “.. [a] method comprising: receiving signaling from a transmission control unit (TCU) of a vehicle, the signaling indicating that the vehicle has stopped, was placed in a parked state, and was locked after a driver of the vehicle exited the vehicle; activating at least one camera; adjusting a field of view of the at least one camera responsive to receiving the signaling; recording at least one image of an interior of the vehicle using the at least one camera in response to receiving the signaling while the vehicle is in the parked state; classifying the at least one image using a machine learning model; operating at least one subsystem of the vehicle in response to detecting that classifying indicates that a person or animal is present in the at least one image; and stepping down a frequency of classifying in response to detecting that classifying does not indicate that the person or the animal is present in the at least one image, the stepping down comprising one or both of lengthening an amount of time in between capturing later images of the interior of the vehicle and classifying the later images using the machine learning model, the amount of time determined as a fraction of a preconfigured value stored in a vehicle profile, wherein the stepping down is performed iteratively until the amount of time exceeds the preconfigured value.”.
The only difference is in claim of the present claims it recites detecting a vehicle has stopped and classifying an image using a machine learning model and then stepping down the frequency.
The claims are otherwise identical.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status.
The following is a quotation of the appropriate paragraphs of 35 U.S.C. 102 that form the basis for the rejections under this section made in this Office action:
A person shall be entitled to a patent unless –
(a)(1) the claimed invention was patented, described in a printed publication, or in public use, on sale, or otherwise available to the public before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
(a)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claim 13 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. sec. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by Gronau.
Gronau discloses “…13. A method comprising: monitoring an internal temperature of an interior of a vehicle; determining the internal temperature exceeds a first predefined threshold;” “..opening a window of the vehicle in response to
“...the internal temperature exceeding the first predefined threshold; after opening the window, determining the internal temperature exceeds a second predefined threshold higher than the first predefined threshold; and “
“... operating a HVAC system of the vehicle to regulate the internal temperature”. ;…. (see paragraph 242-246 and 247-248 and 249 where the neural network processor and algorithm can detect that the vehicle 1 is stopped and 2 is locked and 3. They forgot the baby in the car seat when the windows are closed and there is a peril and 4. That the car seat is back in the vehicle and the belt on the car seat is also locked) (see block 462 when everyone has left the vehicle the neural network processor confirms that everyone has left and then stops the camera from imaging and stops the tracking of the passengers since no one is in the vehicle and see paragraph 242-246 and 247-248 and 249 where the neural network processor and algorithm can detect that the vehicle 1 is stopped and 2 is locked and 3. They forgot the baby in the car seat when the windows are closed and there is a peril and 4. That the car seat is back in the vehicle and the belt on the car seat is also locked and see paragraph 216 where the passengers are counted and when everyone left then the neural network processor can determine it is over and that the imaging and the tracking can stop to save power; If an identification that one or more of the vehicle doors was opened then at step 460 a binary decision can be made regarding the updated passengers' number in the vehicle and optionally their current position and/or location. If one or more of the vehicle passengers left the vehicle then at step 462 a passenger counter is subtracted by one and optionally the monitoring system stop tracking the identified passenger. If it is identified that none of the passengers left the vehicle then the process proceeds to step 450 and an identification that one of the passengers changed his position (e.g. leaning and/or bending) is provided.) (see paragraph 136-140 where the vehicle’s air conditioning can be turned on and the windows opened to cool the cabin).
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JEAN PAUL CASS whose telephone number is (571)270-1934. The examiner can normally be reached Monday to Friday 7 am to 7 pm; Saturday 10 am to 12 noon.
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, Scott A. Browne can be reached at 571-270-0151. 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.
/JEAN PAUL CASS/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3666
Prosecution Insights