DETAILED ACTION
Double Patenting
The nonstatutory double patenting rejection is based on a judicially created doctrine grounded in public policy (a policy reflected in the statute) so as to prevent the unjustified or improper timewise extension of the “right to exclude” granted by a patent and to prevent possible harassment by multiple assignees. A nonstatutory double patenting rejection is appropriate where the conflicting claims are not identical, but at least one examined application claim is not patentably distinct from the reference claim(s) because the examined application claim is either anticipated by, or would have been obvious over, the reference claim(s). See, e.g., In re Berg, 140 F.3d 1428, 46 USPQ2d 1226 (Fed. Cir. 1998); In re Goodman, 11 F.3d 1046, 29 USPQ2d 2010 (Fed. Cir. 1993); In re Longi, 759 F.2d 887, 225 USPQ 645 (Fed. Cir. 1985); In re Van Ornum, 686 F.2d 937, 214 USPQ 761 (CCPA 1982); In re Vogel, 422 F.2d 438, 164 USPQ 619 (CCPA 1970); In re Thorington, 418 F.2d 528, 163 USPQ 644 (CCPA 1969).
A timely filed terminal disclaimer in compliance with 37 CFR 1.321(c) or 1.321(d) may be used to overcome an actual or provisional rejection based on nonstatutory double patenting provided the reference application or patent either is shown to be commonly owned with the examined application, or claims an invention made as a result of activities undertaken within the scope of a joint research agreement. See MPEP § 717.02 for applications subject to examination under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA as explained in MPEP § 2159. See MPEP § 2146 et seq. for applications not subject to examination under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA . A terminal disclaimer must be signed in compliance with 37 CFR 1.321(b).
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Claim 1-13 is/are rejected on the ground of nonstatutory double patenting as being unpatentable over claim 1-4, 6-8 and 10 of U.S. Patent No. 12,022,271.
Regarding claim 1-13,
Instant Application
US Patent 12,022,271
1. An audio processing method, comprising: obtaining, by a control system and via an interface system, one or more playback level limit thresholds for each loudspeaker of a plurality of loudspeakers; combining, by the control system, the one or more playback level limit thresholds to
obtain combined playback level limit thresholds; receiving, by the control system, audio data including one or more audio signals and associated spatial data, the spatial data including at least one of channel data or spatial metadata; performing, by the control system, dynamics processing on the audio using the combined playback level limit thresholds, to generate processed audio; rendering, by the control system, the processed audio for reproduction via a set of loudspeakers that includes at least some of the plurality of loudspeakers, to produce rendered audio signals; and providing, via the interface system, the rendered audio signals to the set of loudspeakers.
1. An audio processing method, comprising: obtaining, by a control system and via an interface system, individual loudspeaker dynamics processing configuration data for each of a plurality of loudspeakers of a listening environment, the individual loudspeaker dynamics processing configuration data including an individual loudspeaker dynamics processing configuration data set for each loudspeaker of the plurality of loudspeakers, wherein the individual loudspeaker dynamics processing configuration data includes a playback limit threshold data set for each loudspeaker of the plurality of loudspeakers; determining, by the control system, listening environment dynamics processing configuration data for the plurality of loudspeakers, wherein determining the listening environment dynamics processing configuration data is based on the individual loudspeaker dynamics processing configuration data set for each loudspeaker of the plurality of loudspeakers, wherein determining the listening environment dynamics processing configuration data involves averaging the playback limit thresholds across the plurality of loudspeakers; receiving, by the control system and via the interface system, audio data including one or more audio signals and associated spatial data, the spatial data including at least one of channel data or spatial metadata; performing dynamics processing, by the control system, on the audio data based on the listening environment dynamics processing configuration data, to generate processed audio data; rendering, by the control system, the processed audio data for reproduction via a set of loudspeakers that includes at least some of the plurality of loudspeakers, to produce rendered audio signals; and providing, via the interface system, the rendered audio signals to the set of loudspeakers.
2. The method of claim 1, wherein the one or more playback level limit thresholds comprise include playback level limits at a plurality of frequencies.
2. The audio processing method of claim 1, wherein the playback limit threshold data set includes playback limit thresholds for each of a plurality of frequencies.
3. The method of claim 1, wherein the combining of playback level limit thresholds involves taking a minimum across playback level thresholds of each loudspeaker of the plurality of loudspeakers.
3. The audio processing method of claim 1, … determining minimum playback limit thresholds across the plurality of loudspeakers and interpolating between the minimum playback limit thresholds and the averaged playback limit thresholds.
4. The method of claim 1, wherein the combining of playback level limit thresholds involves an averaging process across the playback level limit thresholds of each loudspeaker of the plurality of loudspeakers.
3. The audio processing method of claim 1, … averaging the playback limit thresholds to obtain averaged playback limit thresholds across the plurality of loudspeakers, determining minimum playback limit thresholds across the plurality of loudspeakers and interpolating between the minimum playback limit thresholds and the averaged playback limit thresholds.
5. The method of claim 4, wherein the averaging process involves determining a weighted average.
4. The audio processing method of claim 3, wherein averaging the playback limit thresholds involves determining a weighted average of the playback limit thresholds.
6. The method of claim 5, wherein the weighted average is derived as a function of the rendering.
6. The audio processing method of claim 5, … wherein the weighted average of the playback limit thresholds is based, at least in part, on activation of loudspeakers by the rendering process as a function of audio signal proximity to the spatial zones.
7. The method of claim 1, wherein the rendering involves spatial rendering.
6. The audio processing method of claim 5, …rendering process as a function of audio signal proximity to the spatial zones.
8. The method of claim 7, wherein the limiting of audio program stream involves limiting differently in different spatial zones.
7. The audio processing method of claim 5, wherein the weighted average is based, at least in part, on a loudspeaker participation value for each loudspeaker in each of the spatial zones.
9. The method of claim 8, wherein playback level thresholds of each spatial zone are derived through combinations of playback level limit thresholds of each loudspeaker of the plurality of loudspeakers.
6. The audio processing method of claim 5, … each of the spatial zones corresponding to a subset of the listening environment, wherein the weighted average of the playback limit thresholds is based, at least in part, on activation of loudspeakers…
10. The method of claim 9, wherein the playback level thresholds of each spatial zone are derived through a weighted average of the playback level limit thresholds of each loudspeaker of the plurality of loudspeakers.
6. The audio processing method of claim 5, …each of the spatial zones corresponding to a subset of the listening environment, wherein the weighted average of the playback limit thresholds is based, at least in part, on activation of loudspeakers by the rendering process as a function of audio signal proximity to the spatial zones.
11. The method of claim 10, wherein the weighting associated with a given loudspeaker for a given spatial zone is derived from a loudspeaker participation factor associated with that spatial zone.
8. The audio processing method of claim 7, wherein each loudspeaker participation value is based, at least in part, on one or more nominal spatial positions within each of the spatial zones.
12. The method of claim 11, wherein the loudspeaker participation factor is derived from loudspeaker activations corresponding to the rendering of one or more nominal spatial positions assigned to the spatial zone of a limiter.
10. The audio processing method of claim 8, wherein each loudspeaker participation value is based, at least in part, on an activation of each loudspeaker corresponding to rendering of audio data at each of the one or more nominal spatial positions within each of the spatial zones.
13. The method of claim 1, which further involves limiting the rendered audio signals according to one or more playback level limit thresholds associated with a corresponding loudspeaker.
1. An audio processing method, comprising: …dynamic processing on the audio using the combined playback level limit thresholds, to generate processed audio; rendering, by the control system, the processed audio for reproduction via a set of loudspeakers that includes at least some of the plurality of loudspeakers, to produce rendered audio signals; and providing, via the interface system, the rendered audio signals to the set of loudspeakers.
Although the claims at issue are not identical, they are not patentably distinct from each other because the instant application is claiming a broader version of the claims of the patent application.
Conclusion
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WILLIAM A. JEREZ LORA
Examiner
Art Unit 2695
/WILLIAM A JEREZ LORA/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2695
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