DETAILED ACTION
The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA . 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 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.
Applicant’s submission filed on 03/03/2026 has been entered. Claims 1, 8, and 16 were amended. Claims 1-20 are pending in the application.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 103 which forms the basis for all obviousness rejections set forth in this Office action:
A patent for a claimed invention may not be obtained, notwithstanding that the claimed invention is not identically disclosed as set forth in section 102, if the differences between the claimed invention and the prior art are such that the claimed invention as a whole would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to a person having ordinary skill in the art to which the claimed invention pertains. Patentability shall not be negated by the manner in which the invention was made.
Claim(s) 1, 8, and 16 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Ohlsson et al. (US 2021/0359915) in view of Fu et al. (US 2022/0392141) and Bermano et al. (US 2017/0024907).
Regarding claim 1, Ohlsson teaches/suggests: A computer-implemented method, the computer-implemented method comprising:
sampling a plurality of nodes, wherein each node of the plurality of nodes represents a pore in the nodes represent the pores and the edges represent the smaller channels connecting the pores”);
generating one or more edges connecting a node in the plurality of nodes to one or more different nodes selected from the plurality of nodes (Ohlsson [0044] “Graphs may be used to represent the micro-scale channels of porous media, in which the nodes represent the pores and the edges represent the smaller channels connecting the pores”);
generating, based on the plurality of nodes and the one or more edges, a graph comprising the plurality of nodes and the one or more edges (Ohlsson [0044] “Graphs may be used to represent the micro-scale channels of porous media, in which the nodes represent the pores and the edges represent the smaller channels connecting the pores”);
calculating, for each edge of the one or more edges in the graph, an edge weight associated with the edge (Ohlsson [0048] “A graph structure can be extended by assigning a weight to each edge of the graph”);
Ohlsson does not teach/suggest simulating skin wrinkles. Nor does Ohlsson teach/suggest:
sampling, from a three-dimensional (3D) representation of a facial structure, a plurality of nodes;
wherein each edge of the one or more edges represents a candidate wrinkle in the facial structure;
generating a wrinkle graph based on the plurality of nodes, the one or more edges, and one or more edge weights associated with the one or more edges.
Fu, however, teaches/suggests simulating skin wrinkles (Fu [0059] “a UV coordinate map of the face 312 may be determined based on the generated 3D face mesh 512A ... The initial texture map of the face 312 may include texture information and color information from skin” [0066] “The microgeometry skin details may include texture information for various skin components, such as pores, ridges, freckles, and furrows). Before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, it would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art to modify the graph of Ohlsson to represent the microgeometry skin details (skin wrinkles) of Fu for simulation. As such, Ohlsson as modified by Fu teaches/suggests:
sampling, from a three-dimensional (3D) representation of a facial structure, a plurality of nodes (Ohlsson [0044] “Graphs may be used to represent the micro-scale channels of porous media, in which the nodes represent the pores and the edges represent the smaller channels connecting the pores” Fu [0059] “a UV coordinate map of the face 312 may be determined based on the generated 3D face mesh 512A ... The initial texture map of the face 312 may include texture information and color information from skin”);
wherein each edge of the one or more edges represents a candidate wrinkle in the facial structure (Ohlsson [0044] “Graphs may be used to represent the micro-scale channels of porous media, in which the nodes represent the pores and the edges represent the smaller channels connecting the pores” Fu [0066] “The microgeometry skin details may include texture information for various skin components, such as pores, ridges, freckles, and furrows);
generating a wrinkle graph based on the plurality of nodes, the one or more edges, and one or more edge weights associated with the one or more edges (Ohlsson [0044] “Graphs may be used to represent the micro-scale channels of porous media, in which the nodes represent the pores and the edges represent the smaller channels connecting the pores” [0048] “A graph structure can be extended by assigning a weight to each edge of the graph” Fu [0066] “The microgeometry skin details may include texture information for various skin components, such as pores, ridges, freckles, and furrows).
Ohlsson further discloses in [0048]: “The weights may alternatively or additionally represent the strength of the relationships or connections between nodes.” Ohlsson as modified by Fu does not teach/suggest calculating … based at least on one or more primary wrinkle orientations associated with one or more regions of skin included in the 3D representation. Bermano, however, teaches/suggests primary wrinkle orientations (Bermano [0129] “The eyelid is represented by a template mesh L, which consists of regularly sampled vertices v.sub.i,j along a horizontal direction j corresponding to the dominant main wrinkle orientation and the orthogonal vertical direction i”). Before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, it would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art to modify the edge weights of Ohlsson as modified by Fu to be calculated based on the dominant main wrinkle orientation as taught/suggested by Bermano to give more strength to such orientation.
As such, Ohlsson as modified by Fu and Bermano teaches/suggests calculating … based at least on one or more primary wrinkle orientations associated with one or more regions of skin included in the 3D representation (Ohlsson [0048] “The weights may alternatively or additionally represent the strength of the relationships or connections between nodes” Bermano [0129] “The eyelid is represented by a template mesh L, which consists of regularly sampled vertices v.sub.i,j along a horizontal direction j corresponding to the dominant main wrinkle orientation and the orthogonal vertical direction i”).
Claim 8 recites limitation(s) similar in scope to those of claim 1, and is rejected for the same reason(s). Ohlsson as modified by Fu and Bermano further teaches/suggests one or more non-transitory computer-readable media storing instructions (Ohlsson [0107] “a non-transitory computer readable medium storing instructions”).
Claim 16 recites limitation(s) similar in scope to those of claim 1, and is rejected for the same reason(s). Ohlsson as modified by Fu and Bermano further teaches/suggests one or more memories storing instructions; and one or more processors for executing the instructions (Ohlsson [0107]-[0108] “a non-transitory computer readable medium storing instructions … A computer processor may be configured to access the data stored in the computer readable memory”).
Claim(s) 2, 9, and 17 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Ohlsson et al. (US 2021/0359915) in view of Fu et al. (US 2022/0392141) and Bermano et al. (US 2017/0024907) as applied to claims 1, 8, and 16 above, and further in view of McAuley et al. (US 2011/0082670).
Regarding claim 2, Ohlsson, Fu, and Bermano are silent regarding: The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein generating the one or more edges further comprises selecting the one or more different nodes via a k-nearest neighbor algorithm. McAuley, however, teaches/suggests selecting the one or more different nodes via a k-nearest neighbor algorithm (McAuley [0036] “after which edges and node, edge or third-order features are added automatically (for example, using a spanning tree to ensure that a connected graph is generated, or by connecting K-nearest neighbors)”). Before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, it would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art to modify the nodes of Ohlsson as modified by Fu and Bermano such that k-nearest neighbors are connected as taught/suggested by McAuley to generate the graph.
Claims 9 and 17 recite limitation(s) similar in scope to those of claims 2, and are rejected for the same reason(s).
Claim(s) 3, 10, and 18 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Ohlsson et al. (US 2021/0359915) in view of Fu et al. (US 2022/0392141) and Bermano et al. (US 2017/0024907) as applied to claims 1, 8, and 16 above, and further in view of Choi et al. (US 2011/0310114) and Sandeep et al. (US 2015/0371135).
Regarding claim 3, Ohlsson as modified by Fu and Bermano teaches/suggests: The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein calculating the edge weight further comprises:
selecting a node of the plurality of nodes (Ohlsson [0048] “The weights may alternatively or additionally represent the strength of the relationships or connections between nodes” [The selecting is an inherent and/or implicit feature of representing the strength between nodes.]);
sampling, from the one or more edges, an edge that begins or terminates at the selected node (Ohlsson [0048] “The weights may alternatively or additionally represent the strength of the relationships or connections between nodes” [The sampling is an inherent and/or implicit feature of representing the strength between nodes.]);
Ohlsson, Fu, and Bermano are silent regarding:
incrementally increasing the edge weight of the sampled edge.
Choi, however, teaches/suggests:
incrementally increasing the edge weight of the sampled edge (Choi [0087] “As the weight increases, the strength of the edge image is higher”).
Before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, it would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art to modify the edge weights of Ohlsson as modified by Fu and Bermano to be increased as taught/suggested by Choi to represent the strength between the nodes.
Ohlsson as modified by Fu, Bermano, and Choi does not teach/suggest:
incrementally increasing the edge weight of the sampled edge based on a deposit strength value.
Sandeep, however, teaches/suggests a deposit strength value (Sandeep [0022] “ants in an ant optimization algorithm may choose what node to visit next based on a combination of the pheromone deposits on the edges and the edge weight … ants may rarely deviate from the more optimal path because of the pheromone deposit strength”). Before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, it would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art to modify the edge weights of Ohlsson as modified by Fu, Bermano, and Choi to be increased based on the pheromone deposit of Sandeep for optimization. As such, Ohlsson as modified by Fu, Bermano, Choi, and Sandeep teaches/suggests:
incrementally increasing the edge weight of the sampled edge based on a deposit strength value (Choi [0087] “As the weight increases, the strength of the edge image is higher” Sandeep [0022] “ants in an ant optimization algorithm may choose what node to visit next based on a combination of the pheromone deposits on the edges and the edge weight … ants may rarely deviate from the more optimal path because of the pheromone deposit strength”).
Claims 10 and 18 recite limitation(s) similar in scope to those of claims 3, and are rejected for the same reason(s).
Claim(s) 4, 11, and 19 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Ohlsson et al. (US 2021/0359915) in view of Fu et al. (US 2022/0392141) and Bermano et al. (US 2017/0024907) as applied to claims 1, 8, and 16 above, and further in view of Kirovski et al. (US 2008/0312095).
Regarding claim 4, Ohlsson as modified by Fu and Bermano does not teach/suggest: The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the edge weight is associated with a depth of a wrinkle represented by the edge. Kirovski, in view of Fu, teaches/suggests the edge weight is associated with a depth of a wrinkle represented by the edge (Fu [0066] “The microgeometry skin details may include texture information for various skin components, such as pores, ridges, freckles, and furrows” Kirovski [0033] “each directed edge e.sub.ij between vertices v.sub.i and v.sub.j may be weighted by using a parameter l.sub.ij .epsilon. {Z*} that quantifies the depth of the overlap between the corresponding epitopes x.sub.i and x.sub.j”). Before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, it would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art to modify the edge weights of Ohlsson as modified by Fu and Bermano to be associated with the wrinkle depths as taught/suggested by Kirovski to quantify such depths.
Claims 11 and 19 recite limitation(s) similar in scope to those of claims 4, and are rejected for the same reason(s).
Claim(s) 5, 12, and 20 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Ohlsson et al. (US 2021/0359915) in view of Fu et al. (US 2022/0392141) and Bermano et al. (US 2017/0024907) as applied to claims 1, 8, and 16 above, and further in view of Arkhipov et al. (US 9563737).
Regarding claim 5, Ohlsson as modified by Fu and Bermano does not teach/suggest: The computer-implemented method of claim 1, further comprising determining a wrinkle shape for a wrinkle represented by an edge via a shape function based at least on a distance from a centerline of the wrinkle. Arkhipov, however, teaches/suggests a shape function based at least on a distance from a centerline (Arkhipov col. 14 ll. 1-14 “The first shape description of the first shape may include the width of shape 802 and the distance from the centerline of shape 802”). Before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, it would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art to modify the graph of Ohlsson as modified by Fu and Bermano to include the wrinkle shapes as taught/suggested by Arkhipov to describe such shapes.
As such, Ohlsson as modified by Fu, Bermano, and Arkhipov teaches/suggests determining a wrinkle shape for a wrinkle represented by an edge via a shape function based at least on a distance from a centerline of the wrinkle (Ohlsson [0044] “Graphs may be used to represent the micro-scale channels of porous media, in which the nodes represent the pores and the edges represent the smaller channels connecting the pores” Fu [0066] “The microgeometry skin details may include texture information for various skin components, such as pores, ridges, freckles, and furrows” Arkhipov col. 14 ll. 1-14 “The first shape description of the first shape may include the width of shape 802 and the distance from the centerline of shape 802”).
Claims 12 and 20 recite limitation(s) similar in scope to those of claims 5, and are rejected for the same reason(s).
Claim(s) 6 and 13 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Ohlsson et al. (US 2021/0359915) in view of Fu et al. (US 2022/0392141), Bermano et al. (US 2017/0024907), and Arkhipov et al. (US 9563737) as applied to claims 5 and 12 above, and further in view of Scheepers et al. (US 2005/0248582).
Regarding claim 6, Ohlsson, Fu, Bermano, and Arkhipov are silent regarding: The computer-implemented method of claim 5, further comprising generating a displacement texture map based on at least the wrinkle shape. Scheepers, however, teaches/suggests generating a displacement texture map (Scheepers [0042] “the overlay image may represent a surface base color, a texture map or displacement map (representing surface roughness, surface wrinkles, surface creases, and the like)”). Before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, it would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art to modify the texture map of Ohlsson as modified by Fu, Bermano, and Arkhipov to include the displacement map of Scheepers to represent the microgeometry skin details.
As such, Ohlsson as modified by Fu, Bermano, Arkhipov, and Scheepers teaches/suggests generating a displacement texture map based on at least the wrinkle shape (Arkhipov col. 14 ll. 1-14 “The first shape description of the first shape may include the width of shape 802 and the distance from the centerline of shape 802” Scheepers [0042] “the overlay image may represent a surface base color, a texture map or displacement map (representing surface roughness, surface wrinkles, surface creases, and the like)”).
Claim 13 recites limitation(s) similar in scope to those of claim 6, and is rejected for the same reason(s).
Claim(s) 7 and 14 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Ohlsson et al. (US 2021/0359915) in view of Fu et al. (US 2022/0392141) and Bermano et al. (US 2017/0024907) as applied to claims 1 and 8 above, and further in view of Du et al. (US 2016/0070967).
Regarding claim 7, Ohlsson as modified by Fu and Bermano does not teach/suggest: The computer-implemented method of claim 1, further comprising modifying a depth of a pore represented by a node included in the plurality of nodes. Du, however, teaches/suggests modifying a depth of a pore (Du [0043] “The pore depth may change with time and pressure, as indicated by changes in the pore diameter against the platen surface”). Before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, it would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art to modify the pores of Ohlsson as modified by Fu and Bermano such that their depths change with time as taught/suggested by Fu for realism.
As such, Ohlsson as modified by Fu, Bermano, and Du teaches/suggests modifying a depth of a pore represented by a node included in the plurality of nodes (Ohlsson [0044] “Graphs may be used to represent the micro-scale channels of porous media, in which the nodes represent the pores and the edges represent the smaller channels connecting the pores” Du [0043] “The pore depth may change with time and pressure, as indicated by changes in the pore diameter against the platen surface”).
Claim 14 recites limitation(s) similar in scope to those of claim 7, and is rejected for the same reason(s).
Claim(s) 15 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Ohlsson et al. (US 2021/0359915) in view of Fu et al. (US 2022/0392141) and Bermano et al. (US 2017/0024907) as applied to claim 8 above, and further in view of Tung (US 2019/0156564) and Catana Salazar et al. (US 2023/0051312).
Regarding claim 15, Ohlsson, Bermano, and Fu are silent regarding: The one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of claim 8, wherein the instructions further cause the one or more processors to perform the steps of:
deforming the 3D representation.
Tung, however, teaches/suggests:
deforming the 3D representation (Tung [0102]-[0103] “the partial deforming unit 41 deforms the 3D model M.sub.S, based on the vertex movement amount η.sub.i, to thereby generate a 3D model M.sub.D ... detailed shapes, such as clothes wrinkle and a bag, are reproduced on the 3D model M.sub.D”).
Before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, it would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art to modify the 3D face mesh of Ohlsson as modified by Fu and Bermano to be deformed as taught/suggested by Tung for the simulation.
Ohlsson, Fu, Bermano, and Tung are silent regarding:
generating, based on the wrinkle graph, a final displacement texture map; and
deforming the 3D representation based on the final displacement texture map.
Catana Salazar, however, teaches/suggests a final displacement texture map (Catana Salazar [0036] “determining 102 the displacement map may include mapping the 3D object model to a 2D space”). Before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, it would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art to modify the texture map of Ohlsson as modified by Fu, Bermano, and Tung to include the displacement map of Catana Salazar to represent the microgeometry skin details. As such, Ohlsson as modified by Fu, Bermano, Tung, and Catana Salazar teaches/suggests:
generating, based on the wrinkle graph, a final displacement texture map (Ohlsson [0044] “Graphs may be used to represent the micro-scale channels of porous media, in which the nodes represent the pores and the edges represent the smaller channels connecting the pores” Catana Salazar [0036] “determining 102 the displacement map may include mapping the 3D object model to a 2D space”); and
deforming the 3D representation based on the final displacement texture map (Tung [0102]-[0103] “the partial deforming unit 41 deforms the 3D model M.sub.S, based on the vertex movement amount η.sub.i, to thereby generate a 3D model M.sub.D ... detailed shapes, such as clothes wrinkle and a bag, are reproduced on the 3D model M.sub.D” Catana Salazar [0036] “determining 102 the displacement map may include mapping the 3D object model to a 2D space”).
Conclusion
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.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to ANH-TUAN V NGUYEN whose telephone number is 571-270-7513. The examiner can normally be reached on M-F 9AM-5PM ET. 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, JASON CHAN can be reached on 571-272-3022. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/ANH-TUAN V NGUYEN/
Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2619
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