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 .
Examiner Notes that the fundamentals of the rejections are based on the broadest reasonable interpretation of the claim language. Applicant is kindly invited to consider the reference as a whole. References are to be interpreted as by one of ordinary skill in the art rather than as by a novice. See MPEP 2141. Therefore, the relevant inquiry when interpreting a reference is not what the reference expressly discloses on its face but what the reference would teach or suggest to one of ordinary skill in the art.
Status of the Claims
This is a Final Office Action in response to Applicant’s amendment of 02 February 2026. Claims 1-10 and 12-20 are pending and have been considered as follows.
Response to Amendment and/or Argument
Applicant’s amendments and/or arguments with respect to the Claim Rejections of Claim 9 under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) as set forth in the office action 19 November 2025 have been considered and are persuasive. Therefore, the Claim Rejections of Claim 9 under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) as set forth in the office action 19 November 2025 have been withdrawn.
Applicant’s arguments with respect to claim(s) 1, 19 and 20 under 35 U.S.C. 103 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 § 103
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 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.
The factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness.
Claim(s) 1-7 and 19-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Ohishi et al. (US 2022/0405955 A1 hereinafter Ohishi) in view of Vaghefinazari et al. (US 2018/0348886 A1 hereinafter Vaghefinazari).
Regarding Claim 1 (similarly claims 19-20), Ohishi teaches A method, comprising:
processing an inquiry to identify an object outside a vehicle, the inquiry being made by an occupant of the vehicle; (see at least Fig. 4-14 [0060-0151]: S1-S3, the request information obtaining unit obtains request information from a passenger in the vehicle requesting object information to be provided.)
determining a direction of occupant focus at a time of receiving the inquiry; (see at least Fig. 4-14 [0060-0151]: S4, the image obtaining unit obtains captured image IM generated by the imaging unit from the in-vehicle terminal via the communication unit at the time when the passenger in the vehicles speaks the words requesting information. The area extracting unit extracts an area of interest on which a line of sight is focused in the captured image IM.)
setting one or more search areas extending from the vehicle in response to the inquiry and based on the direction of occupant focus; (see at least Fig. 4-14 [0060-0151]: S4-S5, the area extracting unit extracts an area of interest on which a line of sight is focused in the captured image IM by image recognition. S6A1/C1, the control unit determines whether or not the number of areas of interest extracted at S5 is plural. S6A2/C2, the object recognizing unit then recognizes one or more objects respectively included in the areas of interests.
wherein the one or more search areas comprise a first search area extending from the vehicle toward a first side of a road upon which the vehicle is travelling and a second search area extending from the vehicle toward a second side of the road opposite to the first side of the road, the first search area extends beyond the first side of the road by a first distance, the second search area extends beyond the second side of the road by a second distance, (see at least Fig. 5, 8, 13 [0049-0151]: The area extracting unit extracts an area of interest on which a line of sight is focused. The system can determine plural areas of interest Ar1 to Ar3 to identify object(s) of interest. As shown in the figures, the areas of interests extends from the vehicle toward a first and second sides of the road by a first and second distance. )
causing one or more geographical fences corresponding to the one or more search areas to be set with respect to the vehicle on a geographical map in response to the inquiry; (see at least Fig. 4-14 [0060-0151]: the object recognizing unit estimates a position of the vehicle on the basis of the output data of the vehicle sensor unit and the map data stored in the map database. The object recognizing unit obtains facility information including a facility position that is approximately the same as the position of the object from the map database. )
searching map data associated with the geographical map to identify a candidate object of interest within the one or more geographical fences; (see at least Fig. 4-14 [0060-0151]: the object recognizing unit estimates a position of the vehicle on the basis of the output data of the vehicle sensor unit and the map data stored in the map database. The object recognizing unit obtains facility information including a facility position that is approximately the same as the position of the object from the map database. )
searching a database for information about the candidate object of interest within the one or more geographical fences; (see at least Fig. 4-14 [0060-0151]: the object recognizing unit estimates a position of the vehicle on the basis of the output data of the vehicle sensor unit and the map data stored in the map database. The object recognizing unit obtains facility information including a facility position that is approximately the same as the position of the object from the map database. ) and
generating an output in response to the inquiry comprising the information about the candidate object. (see at least Fig. 4-14 [0060-0151]: S7/7C, the information providing unit reads object information corresponding to the object(s) recognized in step 6 from the object information database and transmits the object information to the in vehicle terminal. The control unit then controls operation of at least any oof the voice output unit and display unit and informs the passenger in the vehicle of the object information by at least any of voice, text and image.)
It may be alleged that Ohishi does not explicitly teach adjusting a size or shape of the one or more search areas based on the direction of the occupant focus, wherein the one or more search areas comprise a first search area extending from the vehicle toward a first side of a road upon which the vehicle is travelling and a second search area extending from the vehicle toward a second side of the road opposite to the first side of the road, the first search area extends beyond the first side of the road by a first distance, the second search area extends beyond the second side of the road by a second distance, and the first distance is equal to the second distance;
Vaghefinazari is directed to system and method for point of interest searches, Vaghefinazari teaches adjusting a size or shape of the one or more search areas based on the direction of the occupant focus, wherein the one or more search areas comprise a first search area extending from the vehicle toward a first side of a road upon which the vehicle is travelling and a second search area extending from the vehicle toward a second side of the road opposite to the first side of the road, the first search area extends beyond the first side of the road by a first distance, the second search area extends beyond the second side of the road by a second distance, and the first distance is equal to the second distance; (see at least Fig. 3-5 [0042-0060]: The target region is generated to align with the direction vector (as shown in Fig. 4B), the target region has an elongated triangular shape that follows the direction of the direction vector and has one corner anchored at the location of the vehicle. The triangular shape is a particularly convenient shape because it can be defined as a geo-fence with three pairs of lat/long coordinates (i.e. defining the vertices of the triangle) and the target region may be some other shapes corresponds to the direction vector where the target region can extend further from the vehicle when the vehicle is traveling at a faster speed. The triangular target region can be adjusted by changing the length of the triangle in the direction of the direction vector and/or changing the angle of the triangle at the corner corresponding to the vehicle.)
Examiner notes that while neither Ohishi or Vaghefinazari explicitly discloses that the first and second distances are equal, the combined teachings render the limitation “adjusting a size or shape of the one or more search areas based on the direction of the occupant focus, wherein the one or more search areas comprise a first search area extending from the vehicle toward a first side of a road upon which the vehicle is travelling and a second search area extending from the vehicle toward a second side of the road opposite to the first side of the road, the first search area extends beyond the first side of the road by a first distance, the second search area extends beyond the second side of the road by a second distance, and the first distance is equal to the second distance” obvious. Prior art Ohishi establishes left and right side search areas relative to the road that the vehicle is traveling on, treating both sides as analogous spatial regions, while prior art Vaghefinazari teaches that the size and extent of a search region are controlled by adjustable parameters tied to the occupant’s focus and vehicle conditions (i.e. target region has an elongated triangular shape that follows the direction of the direction vector and has one corner anchored at the location of vehicle). Accordingly, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Ohishi’s information providing system that searches areas of interest for both side of the road to incorporate the technique of controlling size and extent of a search region by adjustable parameters tied to occupant’s focus and vehicle conditions as taught by Vaghefinazari with reasonable expectation of success in order to implement a single, common distance parameter governing how far a search area extends beyond the road boundary that results in equal distance for either side because applying the same extension distance to analogous left and right regions simplifies computation while ensuring consistent behavior of the vehicle system.
Regarding Claim 2, the combination of Ohishi in view of Vaghefinazari teaches The method of claim 1,
Ohishi further teaches wherein the direction of the occupant focus is based on a detected pointing motion made by the occupant of the vehicle. (see at least Fig. 8)
Regarding Claim 3, the combination of Ohishi in view of Vaghefinazari teaches The method of claim 1,
Ohishi further teaches wherein the direction of the occupant focus is based on a detected gaze of the occupant of the vehicle. (see at least Fig. 4-14 [0060-0151]: S4, the image obtaining unit obtains captured image IM generated by the imaging unit from the in-vehicle terminal via the communication unit at the time when the passenger in the vehicles speaks the words requesting information. The area extracting unit extracts an area of interest on which a line of sight is focused in the captured image IM.)
Regarding Claim 4, the combination of Ohishi in view of Vaghefinazari teaches The method of claim 1,
Ohishi does not explicitly teach wherein the one or more search areas are each a triangle, with an apex of each triangle being at the vehicle.
Vaghefinazari is directed to system and method for point of interest searches, Vaghefinazari teaches wherein the one or more search areas are each a triangle, with an apex of each triangle being at the vehicle. (see at least Fig. 3-5 [0042-0060]: The target region is generated to align with the direction vector (as shown in Fig. 4B), the target region has an elongated triangular shape that follows the direction of the direction vector and has one corner anchored at the location of the vehicle. The triangular shape is a particularly convenient shape because it can be defined as a geo-fence with three pairs of lat/long coordinates (i.e. defining the vertices of the triangle) and the target region may be some other shapes corresponds to the direction vector where the target region can extend further from the vehicle when the vehicle is traveling at a faster speed. The triangular target region can be adjusted by changing the length of the triangle in the direction of the direction vector and/or changing the angle of the triangle at the corner corresponding to the vehicle.)
Accordingly, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Ohishi’s system and method that determine area(s) and object(s) of interest based on user’s direction of focus to incorporate the technique of setting the one or more search areas as a triangle, with an apex of each triangle being at the vehicle as taught by Vaghefinazari with reasonable expectation of success to provide an efficient real-time querying of point of interests database in a moving vehicle.
Regarding Claim 5, the combination of Ohishi in view of Vaghefinazari teaches The method of claim 1,
Ohishi does not explicitly teach wherein the adjusting the size or shape of the one or more search areas is further based on a change in vehicle speed.
Vaghefinazari is directed to system and method for point of interest searches, Vaghefinazari teaches wherein the adjusting the size or shape of the one or more search areas is further based on a change in vehicle speed. (see at least Fig. 3-5 [0042-0060]: The target region is generated to align with the direction vector (as shown in Fig. 4B), the target region has an elongated triangular shape that follows the direction of the direction vector and has one corner anchored at the location of the vehicle. The triangular shape is a particularly convenient shape because it can be defined as a geo-fence with three pairs of lat/long coordinates (i.e. defining the vertices of the triangle) and the target region may be some other shapes corresponds to the direction vector where the target region can extend further from the vehicle when the vehicle is traveling at a faster speed. The triangular target region can be adjusted by changing the length of the triangle in the direction of the direction vector and/or changing the angle of the triangle at the corner corresponding to the vehicle.)
Accordingly, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Ohishi’s system and method that determine area(s) and object(s) of interest based on user’s direction of focus to incorporate the technique of adjusting the size or shape of the search areas based on a change of vehicle speed as taught by Vaghefinazari with reasonable expectation of success to provide an efficient real-time querying of point of interests database in a moving vehicle.
Regarding Claim 6, the combination of Ohishi in view of Vaghefinazari teaches The method of claim 1,
Ohishi does not explicitly teach wherein the adjusting the size or shape of the one or more search areas is further based on the vehicle change lanes.
Vaghefinazari is directed to system and method for point of interest searches, Vaghefinazari teaches wherein the adjusting the size or shape of the one or more search areas is further based on the vehicle change lanes. (see at least Fig. 3-5 [0042-0060]: The target region is generated to align with the direction vector (as shown in Fig. 4B), the target region has an elongated triangular shape that follows the direction of the direction vector and has one corner anchored at the location of the vehicle. The triangular shape is a particularly convenient shape because it can be defined as a geo-fence with three pairs of lat/long coordinates (i.e. defining the vertices of the triangle) and the target region may be some other shapes corresponds to the direction vector where the target region can extend further from the vehicle when the vehicle is traveling at a faster speed. The triangular target region can be adjusted by changing the length of the triangle in the direction of the direction vector and/or changing the angle of the triangle at the corner corresponding to the vehicle.)
Accordingly, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Ohishi’s system and method that determine area(s) and object(s) of interest based on user’s direction of focus to incorporate the technique of adjusting the size or shape of the one or more search areas is further based on the vehicle change lanes as taught by Vaghefinazari with reasonable expectation of success to provide an efficient real-time querying of point of interests database in a moving vehicle.
Regarding Claim 7, the combination of Ohishi in view of Vaghefinazari teaches The method of claim 1,
Ohishi does not explicitly teach wherein the adjusting the size or shape of the one or more search areas is further based on a change in a direction of movement of the vehicle.
Vaghefinazari is directed to system and method for point of interest searches, Vaghefinazari teaches wherein the adjusting the size or shape of the one or more search areas is further based on a change in a direction of movement of the vehicle. (see at least Fig. 3-5 [0042-0060]: The target region is generated to align with the direction vector (as shown in Fig. 4B), the target region has an elongated triangular shape that follows the direction of the direction vector and has one corner anchored at the location of the vehicle. The triangular shape is a particularly convenient shape because it can be defined as a geo-fence with three pairs of lat/long coordinates (i.e. defining the vertices of the triangle) and the target region may be some other shapes corresponds to the direction vector where the target region can extend further from the vehicle when the vehicle is traveling at a faster speed. The triangular target region can be adjusted by changing the length of the triangle in the direction of the direction vector and/or changing the angle of the triangle at the corner corresponding to the vehicle.)
Accordingly, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Ohishi’s system and method that determine area(s) and object(s) of interest based on user’s direction of focus to incorporate the technique of adjusting the size or shape of the one or more search areas is further based on the change in vehicle direction of movement as taught by Vaghefinazari with reasonable expectation of success to provide an efficient real-time querying of point of interests database in a moving vehicle.
Claim(s) 8-10 and 12-13 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Ohishi in view of Vaghefinazari and Kitaura et al. (US 2015/0154461 A1 hereinafter Kitaura).
Regarding Claim 8, the combination of Ohishi in view of Vaghefinazari teaches The method of claim 1, wherein
The combination of Ohishi in view of Vaghefinazari does not explicitly teaches the one or more search areas further comprise one or more of: a third search area extending from the vehicle in a direction of movement of the vehicle; or
a fourth search area extending from the vehicle in a direction opposite to the direction of movement of the vehicle.
Kitaura is directed to a driving support apparatus that includes a line-of-data judgement unit configured to judge a type of line-of-sight data indicating a direction of the line of sight of a driver, Kitaura teaches the one or more search areas further comprise one or more of: a third search area extending from the vehicle in a direction of movement of the vehicle; (see at least Fig. 31).
Accordingly, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Fear’s system and method that determine a point of interest based on gaze information of a user and/or location of a vehicle to incorporate the technique of causing the setting of the one or more search areas to include one or more third area extending from the vehicle in a direction of movement of the vehicle as taught by Kitaura with reasonable expectation of success to increase accuracy in the estimation of the attentive watching state and the evaluation on the visual confirmation (Kitaura [0080]).
Regarding Claim 9, the combination of Ohishi in view of Vaghefinazari and Kitaura teaches The method of claim 8, further comprising:
the combination of Ohishi in view of Vaghefinazari does not explicitly teach causing the setting of the one or more search areas to include the one or more of the third area or the fourth search area based on the direction of the occupant focus.
Kitaura is directed to a driving support apparatus that includes a line-of-data judgement unit configured to judge a type of line-of-sight data indicating a direction of the line of sight of a driver, Kitaura teaches causing the setting of the one or more search areas to include the one or more of the third area or the fourth search area based on the direction of the occupant focus. (see at least Fig. 2-5 [0056-0100]: The line-of-data judgment unit 11 acquires the line-of-sight data output from the line-of-sight sensor 91 and determines the type of the acquired line-of-sight data. The validity of the line-of-sight data indicates whether the line-of-sight data acquired from the line-of-sight sensor 91 is accurate enough to use in estimating the driver's attentive watching state described below. In a case where the accuracy is high enough, the validity indicates that the line-of-sight data is “valid”, but otherwise the validity indicates that the line-of-sight data is “invalid”. The line-of-sight data judgment unit 11 determines the type of the line of sight for each piece of line-of-sight data based on a change in a value of line-of-sight data in a predetermined period of time, and the line-of-sight data judgment unit 11 applies a label indicating the determined type of the line of sight to each piece of line-of-sight data. The line-of-data judgment unit 11 classifies each piece of valid line-of-sight data into the fixation type, the smooth pursuit type, or the saccade type, and the line-of-data judgment unit 11 applies a label indicating the determined line-of-sight type. For invalid line-of-sight data, the classification of the line of sight data is not performed.
Accordingly, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Fear’s system and method that determine a point of interest based on gaze information of a user and/or location of a vehicle to incorporate the technique of causing the setting of the one or more search areas to include the one or more of the third area or the fourth search area based on the direction of the occupant focus as taught by Kitaura with reasonable expectation of success to increase accuracy in the estimation of the attentive watching state and the evaluation on the visual confirmation (Kitaura [0080]).
Regarding Claim 10, the combination of Ohishi in view of Vaghefinazari and Kitaura teaches The method of claim 8,
Ohishi further teaches wherein all of the first search area, the second search area, the third search area and the fourth search area are included among the search areas corresponding to the one or more geographical fences to identify the candidate object of interest. (see at least Fig. 7, 8, 13-14)
Regarding Claim 12, the combination of Ohishi in view of Vaghefinazari and Kitaura teaches The method of claim 8, further comprising:
the combination of Ohishi in view of Vaghefinazari does not explicitly teach processing a traffic rule to identify which side of the road the vehicle is allowed to legally travel, wherein the first side of the road is the side of the road the vehicle is allowed to legally travel, and the first search area is smaller than the second search area.
Kitaura is directed to a driving support apparatus that includes a line-of-data judgement unit configured to judge a type of line-of-sight data indicating a direction of the line of sight of a driver, Kitaura teaches processing a traffic rule to identify which side of the road the vehicle is allowed to legally travel, wherein the first side of the road is the side of the road the vehicle is allowed to legally travel, and the first search area is smaller than the second search area. (see at least Fig. 6-15 [0065-0100]: The area-of-interest setting unit 13 sets the area of interest depending on the driving situation and the subject of evaluation determined by the driving situation determination unit 12. The driving situation determination unit 12 determines the current driving situation of the vehicle based on the acquired vehicle state information and the surrounding state information. Examples of driving situations include “driving straight on express way”, “driving along a curved road”, “driving along a congested road (straight)”, “stopping at an intersection (before making a right turn)”, “going to change a lane (to right)”, “going to drive backward”, and the like, which are predefined driving situations in which a driver is supposed to make a visually confirming behavior. The area-of-interest setting unit 13 may set a rectangle (a two-dimensional shape) with a predetermined size at the traffic signal position and may set the area of interest by being given by a quadrangular pyramid (three-dimensional shape) formed by a set of lines extending from the driver's point of view to respective points on each side of the rectangle. Also in this case, the greater the distance between the position of driver's point of view and the traffic signal position, the smaller the angle of view of the area of interest with respect to the driver's point of view.))
Accordingly, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the teachings of Ohishi and Vaghefinazari to incorporate the technique of processing a traffic rule to identify which side of the road the vehicle is allowed to legally travel, wherein the first side of the road is the side of the road the vehicle is allowed to legally travel, and the first search area is smaller than the second search area as taught by Kitaura with reasonable expectation of success to increase accuracy in the estimation of the attentive watching state and the evaluation on the visual confirmation (Kitaura [0080]).
Regarding Claim 13, the combination of Ohishi in view of Vaghefinazari and Kitaura teaches The method of claim 8,
the combination of Ohishi in view of Vaghefinazari does not explicitly teach wherein the third search area and the fourth search area are larger than at least one of the first search area or the second search area.
Kitaura is directed to a driving support apparatus that includes a line-of-data judgement unit configured to judge a type of line-of-sight data indicating a direction of the line of sight of a driver, Kitaura teaches wherein the third search area and the fourth search area are larger than at least one of the first search area or the second search area. (see at least Fig. 6-15 [0065-0100]: The area-of-interest setting unit 13 sets the area of interest depending on the driving situation and the subject of evaluation determined by the driving situation determination unit 12. The driving situation determination unit 12 determines the current driving situation of the vehicle based on the acquired vehicle state information and the surrounding state information. Examples of driving situations include “driving straight on express way”, “driving along a curved road”, “driving along a congested road (straight)”, “stopping at an intersection (before making a right turn)”, “going to change a lane (to right)”, “going to drive backward”, and the like, which are predefined driving situations in which a driver is supposed to make a visually confirming behavior. The area-of-interest setting unit 13 may set a rectangle (a two-dimensional shape) with a predetermined size at the traffic signal position and may set the area of interest by being given by a quadrangular pyramid (three-dimensional shape) formed by a set of lines extending from the driver's point of view to respective points on each side of the rectangle. Also in this case, the greater the distance between the position of driver's point of view and the traffic signal position, the smaller the angle of view of the area of interest with respect to the driver's point of view.))
Accordingly, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the teachings of Ohishi and Vaghefinazari to incorporate the technique of setting the third search area and the fourth search area larger than at least one of the first search area or the second search area as taught by Kitaura with reasonable expectation of success to increase accuracy in the estimation of the attentive watching state and the evaluation on the visual confirmation (Kitaura [0080]).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 14-18 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.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter:
Regarding claim 14, the combination of Ohishi, Vaghefinazari, and Kitaura taken either individually or in combination with each other or other prior art of records fail to teach or render obvious of:
detecting a first distance between the first side of the road and the vehicle; and
detecting a second distance between the second side of the road and the vehicle, wherein the adjusting the size or shape of the one or more search areas comprises:
in response to determining the first distance is greater than the second distance, increasing a size of the first search area from the first default size such that the first search area is larger than the first default size and the second default size of the second search area.
Similarly, dependent claims 15-18 recite limitations similar to those indicated above for claim 14, and are considered allowable for the same reasons.
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 DANA F ARTIMEZ whose telephone number is (571)272-3410. The examiner can normally be reached M-F: 9:00 am-3:30 pm EST.
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/DANA F ARTIMEZ/ Examiner, Art Unit 3667
/FARIS S ALMATRAHI/ Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3667
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