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 .
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.
Claim(s) 1, 2, 3, 11, & 15 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over paper of Xuan Zhang, “Stud Pose Detection Based on Photometric Stereo and Lightweight YOLOv4”, 27 December 2021 hereafter Zhang in view of Ramani US 20210134065 in further view of paper of Nicholas J. Durr, “System for Clinical Photometric Stereo Endoscopy”, 2014 hereafter Durr in further view of paper of Frank Verbiest, “Photometric Stereo with Coherent Outlier Handling and Confidence Estimation”, 2008 hereafter Verbiest.
With respect to claim 1, Zhang teaches an image processing apparatus comprising:
execution of the instructions causes the one or more processors (fig 1, computer) to:
obtain a normal map (fig 1, normal map) indicating a spatial distribution of “surface normal” (pg. 34, col 1, ¶ 3) on a surface of an object “reflection of the stud” (pg. 33, col 2, ¶ 2, lines 6-7);
obtain a direction vector (fig 1, vector map) of a light source according to a variation in orientation of the object; and
perform processing for detecting a linear feature (fig 1, stud) on the surface based on the normal map and the direction vector “normal maps of studs are obtained…vector map” (pg. 35, col 1, ¶ 3, lines 4-7).
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Zhang does not teach one or more processors coupled to the one or more memories.
Ramani, in the same field of endeavor as Zhang of stereo imaging (0029), teaches instructions stored on the memory for execution by the processor, the programmed instructions being configured to cause the processor to perform a task of imaging an object (claim 19). At the time prior to the effective filing date of the invention it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to combine memory with Zhang’s processor to automatically cause the processor to perform steps of imaging an object since it is a known technique for the improvement of imaging with a reasonable expectation of success.
The combination does not specifically teach indicating a spatial distribution of normal.
Durr, in the same field of endeavor as Zhang of Photometric normal maps, teaches a normal map is made up of light of several vectors, wherein red, blue, and green lights represent normal vectors relative to the surface of an object (fig 3, captions). Examiner notes one of ordinary skill would recognize red, blue, and green colors on a normal map would represent the spatial distribution of normal vectors on the surface of an object. At the time prior to the effective filing date of the invention it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill to indicate a spatial distribution of normal light via Zhang’s normal map to accurately reconstruct the topology of an object.
The combination does not teach a virtual light source.
Verbiest, in the same field of endeavor as Zhang of Photometric normal maps (pg. 3, ¶ 3, lines 1-3 Verbiest), teaches capturing images of normal map (fig 5) from a virtual light source (pg. 5, ¶ 3, lines 1-5) (fig 5, caption). At the time prior to the effective filing of the invention it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill to combine a virtual light with the combination’s processor as a known technique for producing a normal map.
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With respect to claim 2 according to claim 1, the image processing apparatus wherein the processing for detecting a linear feature on the surface includes processing for detecting a linear protrusion/recess “automatically labelling the studs” (pg. 33, col 1, ¶ 2, lines 8-10 Durr) on the surface.
With respect to claim 3 according to claim 1, the image processing apparatus wherein execution of the instructions further causes the one or more processors “microcontroller program” to obtain the normal map based on a plurality of captured images “eight stud images” obtained by imaging the object with each of a plurality of light sources sequentially lit “LEDs are lit in the clockwise” (pg. 34, col 2, ¶ 4, lines 2-6).
With respect to claim 11 according to claim 1, the image processing apparatus wherein the variation in orientation is an inclination of the object (fig 1, Zhang).
With respect to claim 15, Zhang teaches a computer configured to:
obtain a normal map (fig 1, normal map) indicating a spatial distribution of “surface normal” (pg. 34, col 1, ¶ 3) on a surface of an object “reflection of the stud” (pg. 33, col 2, ¶ 2, lines 6-7);
obtain a direction vector (fig 1, vector map) of a light source according to a variation in orientation of the object; and
perform processing for detecting a linear feature (fig 1, stud) on the surface based on the normal map and the direction vector “normal maps of studs are obtained…vector map” (pg. 35, col 1, ¶ 3, lines 4-7).
Zhang does not teach storing computer executable instructions that, when executed, cause a computer:
Ramani, in the same field of endeavor as Zhang of stereo imaging (0029), teaches instructions stored on the memory for execution by the processor, the programmed instructions being configured to cause the processor to perform a task of imaging an object (claim 19). At the time prior to the effective filing date of the invention it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to combine memory with Zhang’s processor to automatically cause the processor to perform steps of imaging an object since it is a known technique for the improvement of imaging with a reasonable expectation of success.
The combination does not specifically teach indicating a spatial distribution of normal.
Durr, in the same field of endeavor as Zhang of Photometric normal maps, teaches a normal map is made up of light of several vectors, wherein red, blue, and green lights represent normal vectors relative to the surface of an object (fig 3, captions). Examiner notes one of ordinary skill would recognize red, blue, and green colors on a normal map would represent the spatial distribution of normal vectors on the surface of an object. At the time prior to the effective filing date of the invention it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill to indicate a spatial distribution of normal light via Zhang’s normal map to accurately reconstruct the topology of an object.
The combination does not teach a virtual light source.
Verbiest, in the same field of endeavor as Zhang of Photometric normal maps (pg. 3, ¶ 3, lines 1-3 Verbiest), teaches capturing images of normal map (fig 5) from a virtual light source (pg. 5, ¶ 3, lines 1-5) (fig 5, caption). At the time prior to the effective filing of the invention it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill to combine a virtual light with the combination’s processor as a known technique for producing a normal map.
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Claim(s) 14 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Xuan Zhang, “Stud Pose Detection Based on Photometric Stereo and Lightweight YOLOv4”, 27 December 2021 hereafter Zhang in view of paper of Nicholas J. Durr, “System for Clinical Photometric Stereo Endoscopy”, 2014 hereafter Durr in further view of paper of Frank Verbiest, “Photometric Stereo with Coherent Outlier Handling and Confidence Estimation”, 2008 hereafter Verbiest.
With respect to claim 14, Zhang teaches an image processing method comprising:
obtaining a normal map (fig 1, normal map)indicating a spatial distribution on a surface “surface normal” (pg. 34, col 1, ¶ 3) of an object;
obtaining a direction vector (fig 1, vector map) of a light source according to a variation in orientation of the object; and
performing processing for detecting a linear feature (fig 1, stud) on the surface based on the normal map and the direction vector “normal maps of studs are obtained…vector map” (pg. 35, col 1, ¶ 3, lines 4-7).
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Zhang does not specifically teach indicating a spatial distribution of normal.
Durr, in the same field of endeavor as Zhang of Photometric normal maps, teaches a normal map is made up of light of several vectors, wherein red, blue, and green lights represent normal vectors relative to the surface of an object (fig 3, captions). Examiner notes one of ordinary skill would recognize red, blue, and green colors on a normal map would represent the spatial distribution of normal vectors on the surface of an object. At the time prior to the effective filing date of the invention it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill to indicate a spatial distribution of normal light via Zhang’s normal map to accurately reconstruct the topology of an object.
The combination does not teach a virtual light source.
Verbiest, in the same field of endeavor as Zhang of Photometric normal maps (pg. 3, ¶ 3, lines 1-3 Verbiest), teaches capturing images of normal map (fig 5) from a virtual light source (pg. 5, ¶ 3, lines 1-5) (fig 5, caption). At the time prior to the effective filing of the invention it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill to combine a virtual light with the combination’s processor as a known technique for producing a normal map.
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Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 4-10, 12, & 13 are objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten to include all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims or to include the limitation(s) and any intervening claims into the base claim. The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter:
As to claim 4, the prior art of record, taken alone or in combination, fails to disclose or render obvious “obtain a luminance distribution on the surface based on the normal map and the direction vector; and perform the detection processing based on the luminance distribution”, in combination with the rest of the limitations of claim 4.
As to claim 7, the prior art of record, taken alone or in combination, fails to disclose or render obvious “in a case where the variation in orientation is greater than or equal to a threshold, change the direction vector of the virtual light source according to the variation in orientation”, in combination with the rest of the limitations of claim 7.
As to claim 8, the prior art of record, taken alone or in combination, fails to disclose or render obvious “in a case where the variation in orientation is less than a threshold and an angle formed by a direction vector of a first virtual light source and a direction vector of a second virtual light source adjacent to the direction vector of the first virtual light source is less than a threshold, obtain the direction vector”, in combination with the rest of the limitations of claim 8.
As to claim 9, the prior art of record, taken alone or in combination, fails to disclose or render obvious “in a case where the variation in orientation is less than a threshold and an angle formed by a direction vector of a first virtual light source and a direction vector of a second virtual light source adjacent to the direction vector of the first virtual light source is greater than or equal to a threshold, change the direction”, in combination with the rest of the limitations of claim 9.
As to claim 10, the prior art of record, taken alone or in combination, fails to disclose or render obvious “change a vector of an irradiation direction set in advance as an irradiation direction of light to be irradiated on the surface for detection of a linear protrusion/recess on the surface, according to the variation in orientation”, in combination with the rest of the limitations of claim 10.
As to claim 12, the prior art of record, taken alone or in combination, fails to disclose or render obvious “the variation in orientation is an angle of rotation of the object on one plane”, in combination with the rest of the limitations of claim 12.
As to claim 13, the prior art of record, taken alone or in combination, fails to disclose or render obvious “the variation in orientation includes an angle of rotation of the object on a first plane and an angle of rotation of the object on a second plane”, in combination with the rest of the limitations of claim 13.
Conclusion
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/MAURICE C SMITH/Examiner, Art Unit 2877