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 .
Priority
Receipt is acknowledged of certified copies of papers required by 37 CFR 1.55.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statements (IDS) submitted on 4/16/25 and 9/30/24 are in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner.
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).
The filing of a terminal disclaimer by itself is not a complete reply to a nonstatutory double patenting (NSDP) rejection. A complete reply requires that the terminal disclaimer be accompanied by a reply requesting reconsideration of the prior Office action. Even where the NSDP rejection is provisional the reply must be complete. See MPEP § 804, subsection I.B.1. For a reply to a non-final Office action, see 37 CFR 1.111(a). For a reply to final Office action, see 37 CFR 1.113(c). A request for reconsideration while not provided for in 37 CFR 1.113(c) may be filed after final for consideration. See MPEP §§ 706.07(e) and 714.13.
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Claims 1-2, 7-8 and 14-15 provisionally rejected on the ground of nonstatutory double patenting as being unpatentable over claims 1-2, 7-8 and 14-15 of copending Application No. (18/761,707). Although the claims at issue are not identical, they are not patentably distinct from each other because both sets of claims recite the same subject matter with colorable differences.
Claim 1 of the present application discloses:
An encoding method, wherein the method comprises: obtaining 2" groups of code stream blocks, wherein any at least one group of the 2" groups of code stream blocks comprises a control block and a data block, and n is an integer greater than 1; and performing a first encoding on the 2" groups of code stream blocks to obtain a target code block, wherein the target code block comprises a type determined based on the control blocks in the 2" groups of code stream blocks and a data unit determined based on the control blocks and the data blocks in the 2" groups of code stream blocks.
Claim 1 of the copending application 18/761,707 discloses the same subject matter with colorable differences. For instance, both sets of claims recite an encoding method that comprises, inter alia, groups of code stream block that comprises a control block, a data block, a target code block having a type and a data unit. However, claim 1 of the present application fails to teach that the data unit is obtained by performing the first encoding on the data block which would have been obvious to any artisan working knowledge in the art for the further improve the coding and decoding efficiency of the system.
Claim 2 of the present application recites:
The method according to claim 1, wherein the type indicates that the target code block is a data code block; and the data unit is obtained by performing the first encoding on the data blocks in the 2" groups of code stream blocks in a sequence of the 2" groups of code stream blocks.
This limitation is identical to the limitation of claim 2 of the copending application.
Claim 7 of the present application recites:
An encoding apparatus, wherein the apparatus comprises: a memory storing instructions; and a processor coupled to the memory to execute the instructions to:
obtain 2" groups of code stream blocks, wherein any at least one group of the 2n groups of code stream blocks comprises a control block and a data block, and n is an integer greater than 1; and
perform a first encoding on the 2" groups of code stream blocks to obtain a target code block, wherein the target code block comprises a type determined based on the control blocks in the 2" groups of code stream blocks and a data unit determined based on the control blocks and data blocks in the 2" groups of code stream blocks.
Claim 1 of the copending application 18/761,707 discloses the same subject matter with colorable differences. For instance, both sets of claims recite an encoding method that comprises, inter alia, a processor, a memory, groups of code stream block that comprises a control block, a data block, a target code block having a type and a data unit. However, claim 7 of the present application fails to teach that the data unit is obtained by performing the first encoding on the data block which would have been obvious to any artisan working knowledge in the art for the further improve the coding and decoding efficiency of the system.
Claim 8 of the application recites:
The apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the type indicates that the target code block is a data code block; and the data unit is obtained by performing the first encoding on the data blocks in the 2" groups of code stream blocks in a sequence of the 2" groups of code stream blocks.
This limitation is identical to the limitation of claim 8 of the copending application.
Claim 14 of the present application recites:
A decoding apparatus, wherein the apparatus comprises: a memory storing instructions; and a processor coupled to the memory to execute the instructions to: obtain a target code block, wherein the target code block comprises comprising a type and a data unit; and perform a first decoding on the target code block based on the type and the data unit of the target code block, to obtain 2" groups of code stream blocks,
wherein at least one any group of code stream blocks comprises a control block and a data block that are obtained based on the type and the data unit, and n is an integer greater than 1.
Claim 14 of the present application recites the same subject matter with colorable differences. For instance, both sets of claims recite a decoder, a processor, a memory a target code block which comprises, inter alia, a type and a data unit, a control block. However, claim 14 of the present application fails to teach performing a decoding on the data unit in a decoding manner which will have been obvious to any artisan having working knowledge in the art for the benefit to recover the coded data in its original format.
Claim 15 of the present application recites:
The apparatus according to claim 14, wherein the type indicates that the target code block is a data code block;
and a data block comprised in group i of code stream blocks in the 2" groups of code stream blocks is obtained by performing the first decoding on content, in the data unit, that corresponds to the group i of code stream blocks and that has a length of 8m-;and whereinm is a positive integer, and i is an integer greater than or equal to 1 and less than or equal to 2", or i is an integer greater than or equal to 0 and less than or equal to 2"-1.
This limitation is identical to the limitation of claim 14 of the copending application.
This is a provisional nonstatutory double patenting rejection because the patentably indistinct claims have not in fact been patented.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 2-6, 9-13 and 16-20 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.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Zhang (US 2023/0396360), Yang (US 2016/0182084), Volpert (US 7,382,878) disclose data encoding and decoding system.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to PEGUY JEAN PIERRE whose telephone number is (571) 272-1803. The examiner can normally be reached from 8:00-6:30 PM Monday-Thursday. The examiner’s fax phone number is (571) 273-1803. The Examiner email address is peguy.jeanpierre@uspto.gov. If attempts to reach the Examiner are unsuccessful, the Examiner’s supervisor Dameon E. Levi can be reached at (571) 272-2105.
/PEGUY JEAN PIERRE/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2845