DETAILED ACTION
Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status
The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed August 21, 2025 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive. The applicant has updated the office action to reflect that candidate lists are derived by the processed described in claim 1 (¶ 128).
Specification
The title of the invention is not descriptive. A new title is required that is clearly indicative of the invention to which the claims are directed.
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.
Claim(s) 1, 4, 5, and 12 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by Sim et al (US 2022/0279187, hereafter Sim).
As per claim 1, Sim discloses a video decoding apparatus, comprising:
a matrix reference pixel derivation unit circuit configured to derive, as a reference image, an image obtained by downsampling an image adjacent to a top side and a left side of a target block (¶ 77 and 80);
a mode derivation unit circuit configured to derive a candidate list of prediction modes used for a target block according to the reference image and a size of the target block (¶ 74 - 77);
a prediction processing parameter derivation unit circuit configured to derive a prediction processing parameter used to derive a prediction image according to the candidate list, a matrix intra prediction mode indicator, and the size of the target block (¶ 74 – 77; the derived prediction processing parameter is MipSizeId and ¶ 128; For example, the number of available MIP modes may vary with the size of a block to which MIP is applied, and therefore a separate candidate MIP mode list may be managed for each MipSizeId={0, 1, 2}.);
a matrix prediction image derivation unit circuit configured to derive a prediction image based on an element of the reference image and the prediction processing parameter; and a matrix prediction image interpolation unit circuit configured to derive the prediction image or an image obtained by interpolating the prediction image as a prediction image, wherein the mode derivation unit circuit derives a candidate list having the number of elements equal to or less than half the total number of prediction modes defined for the size of the target block (¶ 74 – 77), and
wherein the mode derivation circuit derives the candidate list based on (1) a feature value derived from pixel values included in the reference image by using an arithmetic operation of any one of an average, a difference, and an absolute value, or (2) a magnitude relationship between the feature value and a threshold (¶ 77 – 80 and 128).
As per claim 4, Sim discloses the video decoding apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the mode derivation unit circuit derives the candidate list by using a prediction mode or a quantization parameter of a neighboring block (¶ 95).
Regarding claim 5, arguments analogous to those presented for claim 1 are applicable for claim 5.
Regarding claim 12, arguments analogous to those presented for claim 1 are applicable for claim 12.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claim(s) 13 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
THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. 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 CHIKAODILI E ANYIKIRE whose telephone number is (571)270-1445. The examiner can normally be reached 8 am - 4:30 pm.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, David Czekaj can be reached at 571-272-7327. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/CHIKAODILI E ANYIKIRE/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2487
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