DETAILED ACTION
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)(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.
Claims 1,8 and 19-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by U.S Patent No. 11,425,516 B1 to Gavish et al. (hereinafter “Gavish”)
Regarding claim 1, Gavish discloses an audio signal processing method, applied to an electronic device (Fig.2), the method comprising:
displaying a hearing test control in a human-computer interaction interface (Fig. 1 step 110 and column 11, lines 27-35; an app or internet browser window (Fig. 2, on mobile app 22) for conducting a hearing test is opened. Then, in step 120 the device utilized for the hearing test is identified);
outputting a first test audio signal in response to a trigger operation on the hearing test control (Fig.1 and column 11, lines 45-53; environmental sounds may be recorded e.g. by utilizing (optionally upon request) a microphone of the user's mobile device, computer and/or hearing aid. If the sound levels of the environment are not detrimental to the conducting of the hearing test, the next step of the method is the hearing test itself, which includes providing sounds at different frequencies to the hearing aid or to the headphones (step 150) and requesting the user's response thereto (step 160));
displaying a first hearing test result of a target object in response to a feedback operation on the first test audio signal; and transmitting, to an audio device in response to a configuration operation on the audio device (Fig.1 and column 11, lines 45-59; a suitable set of hearing aid parameters may be determined based on the feedback of the user to the transmitted sounds, the recorded environmental sounds/noise and on one or more of: the type of hearing device utilized for the test, a brand of the hearing aid, or the one or more features of the headphones);
a first hearing assistance policy generated according to the first hearing test result, wherein the first hearing assistance policy is configured to be applied to the audio device to output a first audio signal adapted to the first hearing test result (Fig. 1 step 170 and column 11, lines 45-59; a suitable set of hearing aid parameters may be determined based on the feedback of the user to the transmitted sounds, the recorded environmental sounds/noise and on one or more of: the type of hearing device utilized for the test, a brand of the hearing aid, or the one or more features of the headphones).
Regarding claim 8, Gavish discloses the method according to claim 1, wherein the method further comprises:
detecting a sound pressure level of an environment in which the target object is located; and turning to the operation of outputting a first test audio signal in a case that an average sound pressure level of the environment within a set duration is less than a sound pressure level threshold (column 6 , lines 8-25 and column 11, lines 45-53; the microphone may record sounds resulting from leakage of sounds transmitted to the user, in which case the actual sound level reaching the user is lower than that transmitted, thus negatively influencing the results of the hearing test).
Regarding claim 19, Gavish discloses an audio signal processing apparatus, the apparatus comprising: a memory, configured to store an executable instruction; and at least one processor, configured to execute the executable instruction stored in the memory (column 11, line 60 through column 12 , line 3; the user's mobile phone 220 including a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having stored thereon program code, the program code executable by the hardware processor, here mobile app 222 configured to execute the method), to implement:
displaying a hearing test control in a human-computer interaction interface (Fig. 1 step 110 and column 11, lines 27-35; an app or internet browser window (Fig. 2, on mobile app 22) for conducting a hearing test is opened. Then, in step 120 the device utilized for the hearing test is identified);
outputting a first test audio signal in response to a trigger operation on the hearing test control (Fig.1 and column 11, lines 45-53; environmental sounds may be recorded e.g. by utilizing (optionally upon request) a microphone of the user's mobile device, computer and/or hearing aid. If the sound levels of the environment are not detrimental to the conducting of the hearing test, the next step of the method is the hearing test itself, which includes providing sounds at different frequencies to the hearing aid or to the headphones (step 150) and requesting the user's response thereto (step 160));
displaying a first hearing test result of a target object in response to a feedback operation on the first test audio signal (Fig.1 and column 11, lines 45-59; a suitable set of hearing aid parameters may be determined based on the feedback of the user to the transmitted sounds, the recorded environmental sounds/noise and on one or more of: the type of hearing device utilized for the test, a brand of the hearing aid, or the one or more features of the headphones); and
transmitting, to an audio device in response to a configuration operation on the audio device, a first hearing assistance policy generated according to the first hearing test result, wherein the first hearing assistance policy is configured to be applied to the audio device to output a first audio signal adapted to the first hearing test result (Fig. 1 step 170 and column 11, lines 45-59; a suitable set of hearing aid parameters may be determined based on the feedback of the user to the transmitted sounds, the recorded environmental sounds/noise and on one or more of: the type of hearing device utilized for the test, a brand of the hearing aid, or the one or more features of the headphones).
Regarding claim 20, Gavish discloses a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium, storing an executable instruction, when executed by at least one processor (column 11, line 60 through column 12, line 3; the user's mobile phone 220 including a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having stored thereon program code, the program code executable by the hardware processor, here mobile app 222 configured to execute the method), causing the at least one processor to perform:
displaying a hearing test control in a human-computer interaction interface (Fig. 1 step 110 and column 11, lines 27-35; an app or internet browser window (Fig. 2, on mobile app 22) for conducting a hearing test is opened. Then, in step 120 the device utilized for the hearing test is identified);
outputting a first test audio signal in response to a trigger operation on the hearing test control (Fig.1 and column 11, lines 45-53; environmental sounds may be recorded e.g. by utilizing (optionally upon request) a microphone of the user's mobile device, computer and/or hearing aid. If the sound levels of the environment are not detrimental to the conducting of the hearing test, the next step of the method is the hearing test itself, which includes providing sounds at different frequencies to the hearing aid or to the headphones (step 150) and requesting the user's response thereto (step 160));
displaying a first hearing test result of a target object in response to a feedback operation on the first test audio signal (Fig.1 and column 11, lines 45-59; a suitable set of hearing aid parameters may be determined based on the feedback of the user to the transmitted sounds, the recorded environmental sounds/noise and on one or more of: the type of hearing device utilized for the test, a brand of the hearing aid, or the one or more features of the headphones); and
transmitting, to an audio device in response to a configuration operation on the audio device, a first hearing assistance policy generated according to the first hearing test result, wherein the first hearing assistance policy is configured to be applied to the audio device to output a first audio signal adapted to the first hearing test result (Fig. 1 step 170 and column 11, lines 45-59; a suitable set of hearing aid parameters may be determined based on the feedback of the user to the transmitted sounds, the recorded environmental sounds/noise and on one or more of: the type of hearing device utilized for the test, a brand of the hearing aid, or the one or more features of the headphones).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 2-7 ,9-10 and 12-18 are objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to AKELAW A TESHALE whose telephone number is (571)270-5302. The examiner can normally be reached 9 am -6pm.
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AKELAW TESHALE
Primary Examiner
Art Unit 2694
/AKELAW TESHALE/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2694