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 .
DETAILED ACTION
This action is in response to communications filed on 12/9/2025. Claims 1 & 5 have been amended. Claims 6-14 have been newly added. No other claims have been amended, added, or canceled. Accordingly, claims 1- 14 are pending.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to claims 1- 14 have been considered but are moot because the new ground of rejection does not rely on any reference applied in the prior rejection of record for any teaching or matter specifically challenged in the argument.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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.
Claims 1-9 & 11-14 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Makoto et al. (hereinafter Makoto, JP2009061798A).
Makoto discloses:
1: An information processing device comprising:
a communication unit that communicates with a vehicle (see Makoto at least fig. 1-8 in particular fig. 1 and Abstract & Description; vehicle sharing system accessible via network);
a database that stores setting values associated with an attribute of a user of the vehicle (see Makoto at least fig. 1-8 in particular fig. 1-2 and Abstract & Description; information storage means for reading out environmental information, and in-vehicle environment); and
a control unit including a processor configured to (see Makoto at least fig. 1-8 in particular fig. 1- 2 and Abstract & Description; ECU controller):
acquire reservation information including a schedule of the user and the attribute of the user (see Makoto at least fig. 1-8 in particular fig. 1- 2 and Abstract & Description; reservation user and reservation schedule database),
extract one or more of the setting values from the database using the attribute of the user (see Makoto at least fig. 1-8 in particular fig. 1- 2 and Abstract & Description; in-vehicle environment, seat position, steering position, door mirror etc.),
create profile information, the profile information indicating as parameter values the one or more of the setting values correlated associated with the attribute and for performing setting of a device provided in the vehicle by being downloaded to the vehicle (see Makoto at least fig. 1-8 in particular fig. 1- 6 and Abstract & Description; in-vehicle environment, seat position, steering position, door mirror etc.), and
transmit the profile information to the vehicle via the communication unit according to the schedule (see Makoto at least fig. 1-8 in particular fig. 1- 6 and Abstract & Description; communication module receives transmitted in-vehicle environment information).
2: wherein the control unit transmits the profile information to the vehicle upon detecting that the vehicle has been started during a period of the schedule indicated by the reservation information (see Makoto at least fig. 1-8 in particular fig. 1- 6 and Abstract & Description; reservation management unit for user in reserved period of time/current time).
3: wherein: the control unit further acquires history information that indicates a driving record of the user; and the control unit adjusts the profile information based on the acquired history information (see Makoto at least fig. 1-8 in particular fig. 1- 6 and Abstract & Description; in-vehicle environment, seat position, steering position, door mirror etc.).
4: wherein: the driving record includes a record of a type of a device previously used by the user and a setting value set by the user for the device of the type; and the control unit compares a type of a device for which setting is performed using one or more parameter values indicated by the profile information with the type of the device included in the driving record, and adjusts the profile information according to a comparison result (see Makoto at least fig. 1-8 in particular fig. 1- 6 and Abstract & Description; in-vehicle environment--seat position, steering position, door mirror etc.—plurality of vehicles).
5: A vehicle comprising: an information processing device comprising:
a communication unit that communicates with the vehicle (see Makoto at least fig. 1-8 in particular fig. 1 and Abstract & Description; vehicle sharing system accessible via network);
a database storing setting values associated with an attribute of a user of the vehicle (see Makoto at least fig. 1-8 in particular fig. 1-2 and Abstract & Description; information storage means for reading out environmental information, and in-vehicle environment); and
a control unit including a processor configured to (see Makoto at least fig. 1-8 in particular fig. 1- 2 and Abstract & Description; ECU controller):
acquire reservation information including a schedule of the user and the attribute of the user, extract one or more of the setting values from the database using the attribute of the user, create profile information, the profile information indicating as parameter values the one or more of the setting values associated with the attribute, transmit the profile information to the vehicle via the communication unit according to the schedule (see Makoto at least fig. 1-8 in particular fig. 1- 2 and Abstract & Description; reservation user and reservation schedule database);
a vehicle communication unit that communicates with the information processing device (see Makoto at least fig. 1-8 in particular fig. 1 and Abstract & Description; vehicle sharing system accessible via network); and
a vehicle control unit that receives the profile information transmitted from the information processing device via the vehicle communication unit, wherein the vehicle control unit adjusts settings of a device provided in the vehicle by reflecting parameter values indicated by the profile information in the device (see Makoto at least fig. 1-8 in particular fig. 1- 6 and Abstract & Description; in-vehicle environment, seat position, steering position, door mirror etc.).
6: wherein the attribute of the user includes physical characteristics of the user (see Makoto at least fig. 1-8 in particular fig. 1- 6 and Abstract & Description; in-vehicle environment, seat position, steering position, door mirror etc.).
7: wherein the attribute of the user is a height of the user, and the setting values stored in the database are set value groups of driving positions of the vehicle packaged in advance for each height value (see Makoto at least fig. 1-8 in particular fig. 1- 6 and Abstract & Description; in-vehicle environment, seat position, steering position, door mirror etc.).
8: wherein the attribute of the user includes a height and weight of the user; and the processor is further configured to estimate a body shape of the user from the height and the weight of the user, and adjust the extracted one or more of the setting values based on the estimated body shape (see Makoto at least fig. 1-8 in particular fig. 1- 6 and Abstract & Description; in-vehicle environment, seat position, steering position, door mirror etc.).
9: wherein the attribute of the user further includes a sex of the user, and one of the parameter values is obtained by multiplying a value in one of the set value groups for the height of the user by a predetermined factor for each sex (see Makoto at least fig. 1-8 in particular fig. 1- 6 and Abstract & Description; in-vehicle environment, seat position, steering position, door mirror etc.).
11: wherein the information processing device adjusts the setting of the device without communicating with an electronic key of the user (see Makoto at least fig. 1-8 in particular fig. 1- 6 and Abstract & Description; in-vehicle environment--seat position, steering position, door mirror etc.—reservation device—mobile phone or personal computer).
12: wherein the information processing device is further configured to transmit, to a terminal device, the profile information and a message inquiring whether to adjust the setting of the device based on the profile information (see Makoto at least fig. 1-8 in particular fig. 1- 6 and Abstract & Description; reservation user, reservation schedule database and in-vehicle environment information).
13: wherein the information processing device is further configured to: receive a change request for the profile information from the user; change the profile information based on the change request; and transmit the changed profile information to the vehicle (see Makoto at least fig. 1-8 in particular fig. 1- 6 and Abstract & Description; reservation user, reservation schedule database and in-vehicle environment information).
14: wherein the setting of the device is performed prior to the user getting into on the vehicle (see Makoto at least fig. 1-8 in particular fig. 1- 6 and Abstract & Description; reservation user, reservation schedule database and in-vehicle environment information, current reservation status, reservation management unit for user in reserved period of time/current time).
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 10 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Makoto.
As per claim 10, Makoto discloses the claimed invention except for wherein the attribute of the user further includes an age of the user, and one of the parameter values is obtained by multiplying a value in one of the set value groups for the height of the user by a predetermined factor for each age. It would have been an obvious matter of design choice to as the attribute of the user further includes an age of the user, and one of the parameter values is obtained by multiplying a value in one of the set value groups for the height of the user by a predetermined factor for each age, since applicant has not disclosed that including the age of the user solves any stated problem or is for any particular purpose and it appears that the invention would perform equally well with using the user’s other physical parameters as disclosed above.
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 MACEEH ANWARI whose telephone number is 571-272-7591. The examiner can normally be reached on Monday-Friday 7:30-5:00 PM ES.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Angela Ortiz can be reached on 571-272-1206. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/MACEEH ANWARI/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3663
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