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 .
Status of claims
Claims 1, 13, 15,22 and 24 are amended.
Claims 1-9, 12-16, 18-22 and 24 are pending.
No new claim is added.
Response to arguments
With respect to Applicant’s remarks filed on 12/15/2025; Applicant's “Amendments and Remarks” have been fully considered. Applicant’s remarks will be addressed in sequential order as they were presented.
Applicant remarks:
Nimura does not discloses “topological index”
Nimura does not disclose a scenario query engine configured to “Search the topological index”
Office Action does not allege “Searching the topological index to locate the corresponding nodes”.
Office action does not interpret how the cited passages discloses a geometric indexing.
Office Action does not allege “ identifying….that could be returned via a descriptor”.
Office Action does not explain how it is interpreting the cited passage to discuss a geometric index.
Nimura does not disclose “generating for lane each..” for claims 22 and 24
Office Response:
Regarding topological indexing, Nimura teaches lane network divides section that generate static driving trajectory in the static layout, each node point is set for each lane located at the boundary and a link where each link connects lane node. Nimura further teaches that lane network constructed and searched based on Dijkstra algorithm the lane cost for each lane link.
Nimura discloses navigation device 1 which is similar to scenario query engine.
Regarding searching the topological index, Nimura teaches in step S46, the CPU determines that is it possible generate new trajectory to avoid the influencing factor and return to the static trajectory. road condition acquisition means acquires, as the road conditions, distances from the vehicle to objects present around the vehicle and a driving trajectory is generated based on the obtained road condition.
Regarding geometric indexing, Nimura teaches a high precision map information that divided into rectangular shape which stored in the server device. The high precision map information includes the lane shapes of the road, lane boundaries, center lines, information on parking lot (see para[0051]), shape of the curved road (similar as constrain) (see para[0030]).
Nimura teaches road network data including nodes and link that indicate a road network (see para[0029]) and planned driving route acquisition uses high-precision map information including land marking to planned the driving route along the road which the vehicle will travel (See para[0038]).
See above explanation for geometric indexing. The Final office action adds the explanation with the cited passage).
See the above explanation for geometric indexing, searching the topological indexing, scenario query engine.
Therefore, Examiner maintains the 35.U.S.C 103 rejection and repeat the rejection as before with additional citation for the convenience.
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.
(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 1-4, 7-8, 16, 18-19, 22 and 24 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102 (a)(1) as being anticipated by WO2021059601A1 to Nimura et al. (herein after “Nimura”).
Regarding claim 1, Nimura teaches A computer system comprising:
at least one hardware processor (see Nimura a vehicle control ECU 40) ; and computer storage coupled to the at least one hardware processor and configured to store (see Nimura para[0028] internal storage devices such as a flash memory 24 that stores programs read from the ROM 23.):
a static road layout (see Nimura para[0053] and [0054] the static driving trajectory generation process is a process of generating a static driving trajectory, which is a driving trajectory that is recommended for the vehicle to drive on roads included in the planned driving route), and
computer-readable instructions which upon execution cause the at least one hardware processor to implement (see Nimura para[0001] The present invention relates to a driving assistance device and a computer program for assisting driving of a vehicle.):
a topological indexing component configured to generate an in-memory topological index of the static road layout, the topological index in the form of a graph of nodes and edges, wherein each node corresponds to a road structure element of the static road layout embodied in memory as addressable memory locations (See Nimura para[0038] a RAM 52 that is used as working memory) , and the edges encode topological relationships between the road structure elements embodied as in-memory points to corresponding memory addresses (See Nimura RAM 52)(see Nimura para[0071]-[0074] As shown in FIG. 8, the lane network divides the section that generates the static driving trajectory ahead in the traveling direction of the vehicle into a plurality of sections (groups), figure 7 and 8):
a geometric indexing component configured to generate at least one in-memory geometric index of the static road layout for mapping geometric constraints to road structure elements of the static road layout (see Nimura para[0051]-[0052] Here, the high precision map information 15 is divided into rectangular shapes (for example, 500 m×1 km) as shown in FIG. 5 and stored in the high precision map DB 13 of the server device 4, para[0030] ); and
a scenario query engine (see Nimura navigation device 1) configured to receive a geometric query (see Nimura para[0031] receives the traffic information), search the geometric index to locate at least one static road element satisfying one or more geometric constraints of the geometric query (See para[0099] In S46, the CPU 51 determines whether or not it is possible to generate a new trajectory for the host vehicle to avoid the influencing factor and return to the static travel trajectory (i.e., to overtake), and return a rescriptor of the at least one road structure element(s) (see Nimura figure 7 and 8), that allows the road structure element(s) to be located in the static road layout directly from the descriptor (See Nimura paras[0007], [0130] information regarding lane markings which directly or indirectly identifies the shape of the lane) ,
wherein the scenario query engine is configured to receive a topological query comprising a descriptor of at least one road structure element, search the topological index to locate the corresponding node(s), identify at least one other node satisfying the topological query based on the topological relationships encoded in the edges of the topological index, and return a descriptor of the other node(s) satisfying the topological query (see Nimura figure 7 and 8, paras[0053]-[0054] Here, the static driving trajectory generation process is a process of generating a static driving trajectory, which is a driving trajectory that is recommended for the vehicle to drive on roads included in the planned driving route), wherein the descriptor of the other node(s) allows the corresponding road structure element(s) to be located in the static road layout directly from the descriptor (similar as see Nimura para[0029] road network data including nodes and link that indicate a road network , see para[0038] planned driving route acquisition uses high-precision map information including land marking to planned the driving route along the road which the vehicle will travel) .
Regarding claim 2, Nimura teaches wherein each node of the topological index represents a lane of the static road layout, wherein each edge is a directional edge from a node representing a first lane to a node representing a second lane, and denotes a permitted lane change from the first lane to the second lane (see Nimura para[0074] A node point (hereinafter referred to as a lane node) 75 is set for each lane located on the boundary of each divided section. Furthermore, links (hereinafter referred to as lane links) 76 that connect the lane nodes 75 are set.).
Regarding claim 3, Nimura teaches wherein the topological query comprises a descriptor of a starting lane and a destination lane (see Nimura figure 7 and 8) , and the scenario query engine is configured to determine a sequence of lanes from the starting lane to the destination lane corresponding to a path through the graph from the node representing the starting lane to the node representing the destination lane (see Nimura para[0039] The operation unit 34 is operated when inputting a departure point as a travel start point and a destination point as a travel end point, and has a plurality of operation switches (not shown) such as various keys and buttons. And figure 7 and 8).
Regarding claim 4, Nimura teaches wherein each directional edge is associated with a lane change cost, the sequence of lanes having a lowest overall lane change cost (see Nimura para[0058] Specifically, the cost of each of the static driving trajectory and at least one dynamic driving trajectory from the vehicle's current position to the end of the section including "factors that affect the vehicle's driving" is calculated, and the driving trajectory with the lowest cost is selected.).
Regarding claim 7, Nimura teaches wherein the static road layout includes a bidirectional drivable lane (see Nimura figures 7 and 8), which is represented by two separate nodes in the topological index representing different driving directions along the bidirectional drivable lane (see Nimura see figure 8 where 75 is node and 76 is link).
Regarding claim 8, Nimura teaches wherein the geometric query is:
a containment query providing a location, wherein the scenario query engine (see Nimura para[0016] FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating a method for calculating a static driving trajectory within an intersection. 10 is a flowchart of a sub-processing program of a speed plan generation process. F) is configured to use a spatial index to return a descriptor of a road structure element containing the provided location (see Nimura para[0030] Furthermore, the high-precision map DB 13 stores data representing, for each link that makes up a road, the width, gradient, cant, bank, road surface condition, shape complement point data for specifying the link shape between nodes (for example, the shape of the curve in the case of a curved road), data representing merging sections, road structure,) , or a null result if no road element contains the location; or
a containment query providing a location and a required road structure element type (see Nimura para[0008] Furthermore, the "information regarding lane markings" may be information that identifies the type and arrangement of the lane markings themselves that separate lanes), wherein the scenario query engine is configured to use the spatial index to return a descriptor of a lane of the required road structure element type containing the provided location, or a null result if no road structure element of the required road structure element type contains the location (see Nimura para[0030] the radius of curvature, intersections, T-junctions, corner entrances and exits, and the like; data representing, for road attributes, downhill roads, uphill roads, and the like; and data representing, for road types, general roads such as national highways, prefectural roads, and narrow streets, as well as toll roads such as national expressways, urban expressways, motorways, general toll roads, and toll bridges. In particular, in this embodiment, in addition to the number of lanes on the road, information is also stored that identifies the traffic divisions in the direction of travel for each lane and the connections between roads (specifically, which lanes are connected to which roads at branching points).)
Regarding claim 16, Nimura teaches wherein the descriptor of the road structure element(s)(see Nimura para [0030] the number of lanes on the road, points where the number of lanes decreases, points where the road width narrows, and railroad crossings; data representing, for corners, the radius of curvature, intersections, T-junctions, corner entrances and exits, and the like; data representing, for road attributes, downhill roads, uphill roads, and the like; and data representing, for road types, general roads such as national highways, prefectural roads, and narrow streets, as well as toll roads such as national expressways, urban expressways, motorways, general toll roads, and toll bridges) allows the road structure element(s) to be located in the static road layout (see Nimura the high precision map information 15 ) directly from the descriptor, wherein the static road layout is encoded in a specification confirming to a structured scenario description format, the descriptor allowing the road structure element(s) to be located in the specification (see Nimura para[0030] The high-precision map information 15 is map information that stores more detailed information, particularly regarding roads and parking lots on which the vehicle will be traveling, and in this embodiment, it includes information regarding, for example, the lane shape of the road (road shape and curvature for each lane, lane width, etc.) and the dividing 04-08-2025 - Page 18 lines drawn on the road (center lines of the road, lane boundary lines, outer lines of the road, guiding lines, etc.).).
Regarding claim 18, Nimura teaches comprising a second application programming interface ( See Nimura programmed method, not second/application programming interface) configured to receive a descriptor of a road structure element (see Nimura para[0018] The server device 4 and the navigation device 1 are configured to be able to send and receive electronic data to and from each other via a communication network 6 ); para [0030] the number of lanes on the road, points where the number of lanes decreases, points where the road width narrows, and railroad crossings; data representing, for corners, the radius of curvature, intersections, T-junctions, corner entrances and exits, and the like), use the descriptor to locate road structure element (see Nimura para[0030]) in the static road layout, extract a piece of information about the road structure element from the static road layout, and return a response comprising the extracted piece of information (see Nimura para[0033] a data recording unit 32 in which various types of data are recorded, a navigation ECU 33 that performs various calculation processes based on input information, an operation unit 34 that accepts operations from the user,).
Regarding claim 19, Nimura teaches wherein the computer system is configured to generate an in-memory representation of the specification (see Nimura at least para[0108] The dynamic driving trajectory generated in S49 is then stored in the flash memory 54 or the like as support information to be used for automatic driving support.), a piece of information being extracted from the in-memory representation of the specification(see Nimura para[0028] a RAM 22 used as a working memory when the CPU 21 performs various arithmetic processing, a ROM 23 in which control programs, etc. are recorded, and internal storage devices such as a flash memory 24 that stores programs read from the ROM 23).
Regarding claim 22, Nimura teaches A computer-implemented method of processing (see Nimura a vehicle control ECU 40) a query on a static road layout (see Nimura the high precision map information 15 ; para[0053] and [0054] the static driving trajectory generation process is a process of generating a static driving trajectory, which is a driving trajectory that is recommended for the vehicle to drive on roads included in the planned driving route),the method comprising:
in an indexing phase: see Nimura para[0023] the server device 4 executes a route search in response to a request from the navigation device 1; para[0013] it is possible to generate a vehicle driving trajectory that takes into account restrictions within the road, etc., based on information regarding road dividing lines; dividing lines considered as indexing):
generating, in memory, a lane graph of the static road layout (see Nimura the high precision map information 15), the static road layout ((see Nimura the high precision map information 15 ) comprising a network of multiple lanes (see Nimura para[0003] In addition, when driving with automated driving assistance, a recommended driving trajectory is generated in advance on the road on which the vehicle will be traveling based on the vehicle's planned driving route and map information, etc., and the vehicle is controlled to travel along the generated driving trajectory), the method comprising:
generating, for lane each of the multiple lanes, a node (see Nimura figure 8) of the lane graph representing the lane (see Nimura [0003] In addition, when driving with automated driving assistance, a recommended driving trajectory is generated in advance on the road on which the vehicle will be traveling based on the vehicle's planned driving route and map information, etc., and the vehicle is controlled to travel along the generated driving trajectory);
wherein the node of the lane graph is embodied in memory as an addressable memory location; (See Nimura para[0038] a RAM 52 that is used as working memory) ,
identifying a set of permitted lane changes in the network of the static road network layout (see Nimura para[0030] in addition to the number of lanes on the road, information is also stored that identifies the traffic divisions in the direction of travel for each lane and the connections between roads ) and, for each permitted lane change from a first lane to a second lane, generating a directional edge from the node representing the first lane to the node representing the second lane(see Nimura para[0074] A node point (hereinafter referred to as a lane node) 75 is set for each lane located on the boundary of each divided section. Furthermore, links (hereinafter referred to as lane links) 76 that connect the lane nodes 75 are set.);
, wherein the directional edge is embodied as an in-memory point to a corresponding memory address(See Nimura RAM 52)(see Nimura para[0071]-[0074] As shown in FIG. 8, the lane network divides the section that generates the static driving trajectory ahead in the traveling direction of the vehicle into a plurality of sections (groups), figure 7 and 8):
calculating a lane change cost for each lane change (see Nimura para[0058] Specifically, the cost of each of the static driving trajectory and at least one dynamic driving trajectory from the vehicle's current position to the end of the section including "factors that affect the vehicle's driving" is calculated, and the driving trajectory with the lowest cost is selected.); and
storing the lane change cost for each edge (see Nmura figure 10; para [0016] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing the relationship between the number of lane changes and lane cost)in association with the edge (see Nimura para[0051] the high precision map information 15 is divided into rectangular shapes (for example, 500 m×1 km) as shown in FIG. 5 and stored in the high precision map DB 13 of the server device 4);
and in a runtime phase: (see Nimura para[0111] Here, the path cost is calculated taking into consideration at least one of (a) travel time)
receiving a query indicating a starting lane and a destination lane;(see Nimura para[0117] In such a case, a new static driving trajectory may be generated starting from the end point of the dynamic driving trajectory)
using the lane graph to determine a route from the starting lane to the destination lane as a sequence of lanes corresponding to a path through the lane graph from the node representing the starting lane to the node representing the destination lane (see Nimura figures 7 and 8), having a lowest overall lane change cost; and
outputting a response to the query (see Nimura para[0033] a speaker 36 that outputs audio guidance related to the route guidance, a DVD drive 37 that reads DVDs, which are storage media, and a communication module 38 that communicates with an information center such as a probe center or a VICS center), the response comprising a descriptor of the route( see Nimura para[0033] he navigation device 1 according to this embodiment includes a current position detection unit 31 that detects the current position of the vehicle in which the navigation device 1 is installed).
Regarding claim 24, Nimura teaches A computer-readable medium embodying computer-readable instructions configured, when executed on one or more hardware processors, to a method comprising: see Nimura a vehicle control ECU 40) a query on a static road layout (see Nimura the high precision map information 15 ; para[0053] and [0054] the static driving trajectory generation process is a process of generating a static driving trajectory, which is a driving trajectory that is recommended for the vehicle to drive on roads included in the planned driving route),
in an indexing phase (see Nimura para[0023] the server device 4 executes a route search in response to a request from the navigation device 1; para[0013] it is possible to generate a vehicle driving trajectory that takes into account restrictions within the road, etc., based on information regarding road dividing lines; dividing lines considered as indexing):
generating, in memory, a lane graph of the static road layout (see Nimura the high precision map information 15), the static road layout ((see Nimura the high precision map information 15 ) comprising a network of multiple lanes (see Nimura para[0003] In addition, when driving with automated driving assistance, a recommended driving trajectory is generated in advance on the road on which the vehicle will be traveling based on the vehicle's planned driving route and map information, etc., and the vehicle is controlled to travel along the generated driving trajectory), the method generating the lane graph comprising (See Nimura para[0015] to generate an appropriate driving plan using materials that can be obtained for each distance from the vehicle.):
generating, for lane each of the multiple lanes, a node (see Nimura figure 8) of the lane graph representing the lane (see Nimura [0003] In addition, when driving with automated driving assistance, a recommended driving trajectory is generated in advance on the road on which the vehicle will be traveling based on the vehicle's planned driving route and map information, etc., and the vehicle is controlled to travel along the generated driving trajectory);
wherein the node of the lane graph is embodied in memory as an addressable memory location; (See Nimura para[0038] a RAM 52 that is used as working memory) ,
identifying a set of permitted lane changes in the static road network layout (see Nimura para[0030] in addition to the number of lanes on the road, information is also stored that identifies the traffic divisions in the direction of travel for each lane and the connections between roads ) and, for each permitted lane change from a first lane to a second lane, generating a directional edge from the node representing the first lane to the node representing the second lane(see Nimura para[0074] A node point (hereinafter referred to as a lane node) 75 is set for each lane located on the boundary of each divided section. Furthermore, links (hereinafter referred to as lane links) 76 that connect the lane nodes 75 are set.);
wherein the directional edge is embodied as an in-memory point to a corresponding memory address(See Nimura RAM 52)(see Nimura para[0071]-[0074] As shown in FIG. 8, the lane network divides the section that generates the static driving trajectory ahead in the traveling direction of the vehicle into a plurality of sections (groups), figure 7 and 8):
calculating a lane change cost for each lane change (see Nimura para[0058] Specifically, the cost of each of the static driving trajectory and at least one dynamic driving trajectory from the vehicle's current position to the end of the section including "factors that affect the vehicle's driving" is calculated, and the driving trajectory with the lowest cost is selected.); and
storing the lane change cost for each edge (see Nmura figure 10; para [0016] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing the relationship between the number of lane changes and lane cost)in association with the edge (see Nimura para[0051] the high precision map information 15 is divided into rectangular shapes (for example, 500 m×1 km) as shown in FIG. 5 and stored in the high precision map DB 13 of the server device 4); and in a runtime phase (see Nimura para[0111] Here, the path cost is calculated taking into consideration at least one of (a) travel time)
receiving a query indicating a starting lane and a destination lane;(see Nimura para[0117] In such a case, a new static driving trajectory may be generated starting from the end point of the dynamic driving trajectory)
using the lane graph to determine a route from the starting lane to the destination lane as a sequence of lanes corresponding to a path through the lane graph from the node representing the starting lane to the node representing the destination lane (see Nimura figures 7 and 8), having a lowest overall lane change cost; and
outputting a response to the query (see Nimura para[0033] a speaker 36 that outputs audio guidance related to the route guidance, a DVD drive 37 that reads DVDs, which are storage media, and a communication module 38 that communicates with an information center such as a probe center or a VICS center), the response comprising a descriptor of the route( see Nimura para[0033] he navigation device 1 according to this embodiment includes a current position detection unit 31 that detects the current position of the vehicle in which the navigation device 1 is installed).
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.
Claims 5,6 and 9 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatented over WO2021059601A1 to Nimura et al. (herein after “Nimura”) in view of US20200182633A1 to Shih Yuan Liu (herein after “Liu”).
Regarding claim 5, Nimura remains applied as claim 1. However, Nimura does not expressly disclose or otherwise teach wherein the directional edges comprise onward edges denoting permitted onward lane changes and transverse edges denoting permitted transverse lane changes. Nevertheless, in a related field of invention, Liu teaches wherein the directional edges comprise onward edges denoting permitted onward lane changes and transverse edges denoting permitted transverse lane changes (see Liu para [0015] Aspects of the disclosure combinable with any of the other aspects include the following features. The lane is a first lane. To generate the at least one trajectory involving the lane change, a second lane adjacent the first lane is identified. An edge from the ending node to a node representing a spatiotemporal location in the second lane is generated.).
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention with a reasonable expectation of success to combine Nimura’s drive assistance device with Liu’s Lane level route planning including onward and transverse edges to order to allow to the vehicle to travel is selected based on an initial vehicle trajectory of the vehicle (see para Liu abstract).
Regarding claim 6, Nimura remains applied as claim 1. Nimura teaches wherein the lane change cost of each onward edge from a node representing a first lane to a node representing a second lane is based on a longitudinal extent of the first lane (see Nimura figure 10, para[0077] For example, in Figure 10, we will explain an example of determining the location for lane changes for a section (group) in which a lane movement route is set that involves two lane changes from the leftmost lane) However, Nimura does not expressly disclose or otherwise teach wherein the lane change cost of each transverse edge from a node representing a first lane to a node representing a second lane is based on a lateral distance between the first lane and the second lane. Nevertheless, in a related field of invention, Liu teaches wherein the lane change cost of each transverse edge from a node representing a first lane to a node representing a second lane is based on a lateral distance between the first lane and the second lane (see Liu para[0148] The planning module 304 projects the pose to the closest baseline edge on the baseline graph with the distance defined as the lateral distance between the pose and the projected pose.).
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention with a reasonable expectation of success to combine Nimura’s drive assistance device with Liu’s Lane level route planning including onward and transverse edges to order to allow to the vehicle to travel is selected based on an initial vehicle trajectory of the vehicle (see para Liu abstract).
Regarding claim 9, Nimura remains applied as claims 1 and 8. Nimura teaches wherein the scenario query engine is configured to receive: (see Nimura para[0016] FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating a method for calculating a static driving trajectory within an intersection. 10 is a flowchart of a sub-processing program of a speed plan generation process. F) a distance query providing a location (see Nimura para[0015] As a result, it becomes possible to generate an appropriate driving plan using materials that can be obtained for each distance from the vehicle.), and return a descriptor of a closest road structure element to the location provided in the distance query (see Nimura para[0063] However, if the distance to the destination is short, the static driving trajectory to the destination may be generated all at once at the start of travel.) a distance query providing a location (see Nimura para[0015] As a result, it becomes possible to generate an appropriate driving plan using materials that can be obtained for each distance from the vehicle.),and a required road structure element type, and return a descriptor of a closest road structure element of the required road structure element type to the location provided in the distance query, the scenario query engine configured to identify the closest road structure element based on an assumption that the location provided in the distance query is not contained in any road structure element of the required road structure element type (see Nimura para[0130] In addition, in this embodiment, the high-precision map information held by the server device 4 includes both information about the lane shape of the road (road shape and curvature for each lane, lane width, etc.) and information about the dividing lines drawn on the road (center line of the road, lane boundary line, outer lane line of the road, guiding line, etc.), but it may also be configured to include only information about the dividing lines, or only information about the lane shape of the road. However, Nimura does not expressly disclose or otherwise teach the scenario query engine configured to identify the closest road structure element based on an assumption that the location provided in the distance query is not contained in any road structure element. Nevertheless, in a related field of invention, Liu teaches the scenario query engine configured to identify the closest road structure element based on an assumption that the location provided in the distance query is not contained in any road structure element (see Liu para[0073] For example, a lane could be interpreted based on an arbitrary path free of obstructions in an area that otherwise lacks features that would be interpreted as lane boundaries. In an example scenario, an AV could interpret a lane through an obstruction-free portion of a field or empty lot.).
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention with a reasonable expectation of success to combine Nimura’s drive assistance device with Liu’s Lane level route planning including onward and transverse edges to order to allow to the vehicle to travel is selected based on an initial vehicle trajectory of the vehicle (see para Liu abstract).
Claim 14 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatented over WO2021059601A1 to Nimura et al. (herein after “Nimura”) in view of CN 108733803 A to Wang et al. (herein after “Wang”).
Regarding claim 14, Nimura remain applied as claims 1 and 8. However, Nimura does not expressly disclose or otherwise teach wherein the at least one spatial index comprises a bounding box index, containing bounding boxes of road structure elements or portions thereof for use in processing the containment query, each bounding box associated with a road structure element identifier. Nevertheless, in a related field of invention, Wang teaches wherein the at least one spatial index comprises a bounding box index (see Wang the boundary points of the partition areas are calculated, and a spatial two-dimensional R-tree index is established), containing bounding boxes of road structure elements or portions thereof for use in processing the containment query, each bounding box associated with a road structure element identifier (see Wang para[0021] bringing data regarded as interesting keyword space point p, are distributed on the road network G, each interest point p can be represented as and is the unique identifier of the p).
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention with a reasonable expectation of success to combine Nimura’s drive assistance device with Wang’s bounding boxes of road structure elements or portions thereof for use in processing the containment query in order to allow to design a multi-user spatial keyword query method that can be applied to road networks. (see para Wang [0004]).
Claims 12 and 15 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatented over WO2021059601A1 to Nimura et al. (herein after “Nimura”) in view of US 20210123762 A1 to Cajias et al. (herein after “Cajias”).
Regarding claim 12, Nimura remain applied as claims 1 and 8. Nimura teaches wherein the geometric indexing component is configured to generate one or more line segment indexes containing line segments that lie on borders between road structure elements (see Nimura para[0051] The highprecision map information 15 includes, for example, information about the lane shapes of roads and road markings (center lines, lane boundaries, outer road lines, guiding lines, etc.) drawn on the roads, Figure 8), each line segment stored in association with a road structure element identifier (see Nimura para[0076] When calculating a recommended driving path when changing lanes in step S25, the position where the lane change is to be made is first identified.). However, Nimura does not expressly disclose or otherwise teach wherein two copies of each line segment lying on a border between two road structure elements are stored in the one or more line segment indexes (see Cajias para[0041] Repeat this process recursively until you find a triangle with one side that is only contained by one triangle. This side is recorded as a feature side), in association with different road structure element identifiers of those two road structure elements, the one or more line segment indexes used to process the distance query (see Cajias para[0011] Step 1.2: Calculate the distance between each point in the point set and the first point, as well as the angle between the line connecting the two points and the positive x-axis. Sort the points by angle first, then by distance. The first, second, and last points are considered boundary points and are added to the result array; paras [0090]-[0091]).
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention with a reasonable expectation of success to combine Nimura’s drive assistance device with Cajias’s the scenario engine is configured to apply a filter encoding the required road structure element in order to allow to design a multi-user spatial keyword query method that can be applied to road networks in order to allow to bloom filter enabled information exchange between a data service and a client for updating map data of a geographic region in a map version agnostic manner (see Cajias para[0001]).
Regarding claim 15, Nimura remain applied as claims 1 and 8. However, Nimura does not expressly disclose or otherwise teach wherein the spatial index comprises a bounding box index containing bounding boxes of road structure elements or portions thereof for use in processing the containment query, each bounding box associated with a road structure element identifier. Nevertheless, in a related field of invention, Cajias teaches wherein the spatial index comprises a bounding box index containing bounding boxes of road structure elements or portions thereof for use in processing the containment query each bounding box associated with a road structure element identifier (see Cajias para[0066] n various embodiments, a map tile range may be requested, which specifies a boundary of the bounding box. The bounding box includes all map area identifiers of the map areas that fall within and on the boundary of the bounding box. ) and wherein the scenario query engine is configured to apply a filter encoding the required road structure element type to the bounding box index, to filter out line segments that do not match the required road structure element type, the filtered bounding box index used to process the containment query (See Cajias para[0068] The process further comprises at step 405, generating a bloom filter, wherein the bloom filter encodes a plurality of digests; [0073] At step 505, the client 103 may generate a bloom filter that encodes a plurality of digests.).
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention with a reasonable expectation of success to combine Nimura’s drive assistance device with Cajias’s the scenario engine is configured to apply a filter encoding the required road structure element in order to allow to design a multi-user spatial keyword query method that can be applied to road networks in order to allow to bloom filter enabled information exchange between a data service and a client for updating map data of a geographic region in a map version agnostic manner (see Cajias para[0001]).
Claims 13 and 20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatented over WO2021059601A1 to Nimura et al. (herein after “Nimura”) in view of US 20210123762 A1 to Cajias et al. (herein after “Cajias”) and CN 112084548 A to Lu et al.(herein after “Lu”).
Regarding claim 13, Nimura remains applied as claims 1 and 8. Nimura teaches wherein the scenario query engine is configured to receive a distance query providing a location and a required road structure element type(see Nimura para[0008] Furthermore, the "information regarding lane markings" may be information that identifies the type and arrangement of the lane markings themselves that separate lanes), and return a descriptor of a closest road structure element of the required road structure element type to the location provided in the distance query (see Nimura para[0063] However, if the distance to the destination is short, the static driving trajectory to the destination may be generated all at once at the start of travel.),
and wherein the geometric indexing component is configured to generate one or more line segment indexes containing line segments (see Nimura para[0068] The lane shape and dividing line information acquired in S22 includes the number of lanes) that lie on borders between road structure elements, each line segment stored in association with a road structure element identifier (see Nimura para [0076] When calculating a recommended driving path when changing lanes in step S25, the position where the lane change is to be made is first identified.),
However, Nimura does not expressly disclose or otherwise teach to filter out line segments that do not match the required road structure element type, whereby a first copy of a line segment associated with a first road structure element identifier that does not match the required road structure element type is filtered-out but a second copy of that line segment associated with a second road structure element identifier that does match the required road structure element type is not-filtered out, the filtered one or more line segment indexes used to process the distance query. Nevertheless, in a related field of invention, Cajias teaches to filter out line segments that do not match the required road structure element type, whereby a first copy of a line segment associated with a first road structure element identifier that does not match the required road structure element type is filtered-out but a second copy of that line segment associated with a second road structure element identifier that does match the required road structure element type is not-filtered out, the filtered one or more line segment indexes used to process the distance query (see Cajias para[0068] The process further comprises at step 405, generating a bloom filter, wherein the bloom filter encodes a plurality of digests, based on the plurality of first map area identifiers and the corresponding first map area content. Among the plurality of first map area identifiers, it is identified whether at least a portion of the plurality of first map area identifiers is pre-cached and only the digests corresponding to the pre-cached map area identifiers are coded into the bloom filter.),
wherein two copies of each line segment lying on a border between two road structure elements are stored in the one or more line segment indexes, in association with different road structure element identifiers of those two road structure elements, the one or more line segment indexes used to process the distance query (see Cajias para[0011] Step 1.2: Calculate the distance between each point in the point set and the first point, as well as the angle between the line connecting the two points and the positive x-axis. Sort the points by angle first, then by distance. The first, second, and last points are considered boundary points and are added to the result array; paras [0090]-[0091]).
, and
wherein the scenario engine is configured to apply a filter encoding the required road structure element type to the one or more line segment indexes (see Cajias Abstract The method may further include generating a bloom filter, wherein the bloom filter encodes a plurality of digests based on the plurality of map area identifiers and the corresponding map area content),
the scenario query engine configured to identify the closest road structure element based (see Cajias para[0017] The latest version of the digital map of the geographic region in turn allows the determining of the shortest distance routes ).
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention with a reasonable expectation of success to combine Nimura’s drive assistance device with Cajias’s the scenario engine is configured to apply a filter encoding the required road structure element in order to allow to design a multi-user spatial keyword query method that can be applied to road networks in order to allow to bloom filter enabled information exchange between a data service and a client for updating map data of a geographic region in a map version agnostic manner (see Cajias para[0001]).
However, Nimura does not expressly disclose or otherwise teach on an assumption that the location provided in the distance query is not contained in any road structure element of the required road structure element type. Nevertheless, in a related field of invention, Lu teaches on an assumption that the location provided in the distance query is not contained in any road structure element of the required road structure element type (see Lu para[0101] The points are merged with the extracted ordered point set, and after deduplication, unconstrained Delaunay triangulation is performed).
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention with a reasonable expectation of success to combine Nimura’s drive assistance device with Lu’s an assumption that the location provided in the distance query is not contained in any road structure element of the required road structure element type in order to allow to conduct effective stability evaluation on complex slope models and cannot meet engineering requirements (see Lu para[0005]).
Regarding claim 20, Nimura, Cajias and Lu remain applied as claims 13. Nimura teaches wherein the computer system is configured to generate an in-memory representation of a specification (see Nimura at least para[0108] The dynamic driving trajectory generated in S49 is then stored in the flash memory 54 or the like as support information to be used for automatic driving support.),, a piece of information being extracted from the in-memory representation of the specification (see Nimura para[0028] a RAM 22 used as a working memory when the CPU 21 performs various arithmetic processing, a ROM 23 in which control programs, etc. are recorded, and internal storage devices such as a flash memory 24 that stores programs read from the ROM 23).
However, Nimura does not expressly disclose or otherwise teach wherein the in-memory representation of the specification is used to apply the filter, the road structure element identifiers in the one or more-line segment indexes. Nevertheless, in a related field of invention, Cajias teaches wherein the in-memory representation of the specification is used to apply the filter (see Cajias para[0026] generate a bloom filter, wherein the bloom filter encodes a plurality of digests based on the plurality of map area identifiers ), the road structure element identifiers in the one or more line segment indexes (see Cajias road segment data; see Cajias Abstract The method comprises identifying a bounding box specifying a region of a map and obtaining a plurality of map area identifiers and the corresponding map area content based on the bounding box) or a bounding box index are used to locate identified road structure in the in-memory representation of the specification for applying the filter (see Cajias para[0066] The bounding box includes all map area identifiers of the map areas that fall within and on the boundary of the bounding box. In some embodiments, the boundary of the bounding box (e.g., the map area corresponding to the bounding box) may have a polygonal shape or polyhedron (e.g. in case of 3D). According to some embodiments, the bounding box may be generated based on a route. In some embodiments, the boundary (or shape) of the bounding box may encompass the route.).
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention with a reasonable expectation of success to combine Nimura’s drive assistance device with Cajias’s the scenario engine is configured to apply a filter encoding the required road structure element in order to allow to design a multi-user spatial keyword query method that can be applied to road networks in order to allow to bloom filter enabled information exchange between a data service and a client for updating map data of a geographic region in a map version agnostic manner (see Cajias para[0001]).
Claim 21 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatented over WO2021059601A1 to Nimura et al. (herein after “Nimura”) in view of US20200182633A1 to Liu (herein after “Liu”) and CN 112084548 A to Lu et al.(herein after “Lu”).
Regarding claim 21, Nimura and Liu remain applied as claim 9. However, Nimura does not expressly disclose or otherwise teach wherein the one or more-line segment indexes comprise an inner boundary line segment index and an outer boundary line segment index. Nevertheless, in a related field of invention, Lu teaches wherein the one or more line segment indexes comprise an inner boundary line segment index and an outer boundary line segment index (see Lu para [0034] Step 4.1.1: Provide an outer boundary segment set, an inner boundary segment set, and an inner constraint segment set, extract ordered point sets from each set, and insert discrete points into the outer boundary), wherein the inner boundary line segment index used to locate a closest inner boundary line segment of the required road structure element type (see Lu para[0031]Step 3.3.1. Encrypt the intersection coordinate set, select the two closest points from the encrypted points to form a base edge, and then use the Delaunay criterion to find a third point that meets the requirements to construct a new triangle), the outer boundary line segment index is used to locate a closest outer boundary line segment of the required road structure element type (see Lu para[0046] find t is the shortest side length of the triangle), the closest inner and outer boundary line segments compared to the provided location to determine which is closest to the provided location(see Lu para [0082]Starting from point p<sub>2</sub>, determine the positions of all points in the point set and the directed line segments of the second and last points in the result array; one can easily find the shortest distance).
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention with a reasonable expectation of success to combine Nimura’s drive assistance device with Lu’s an assumption that the location provided in the distance query is not contained in any road structure element of the required road structure element type in order to allow to conduct effective stability evaluation on complex slope models and cannot meet engineering requirements (see Lu para[0005]).
Conclusion
THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
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/NAZIA AFRIN/Examiner, Art Unit 3666
/SCOTT A BROWNE/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3666