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 .
Continued Examination Under 37 CFR 1.114
A request for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, including the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e), was filed in this application after final rejection. Since this application is eligible for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114. Applicant's submission filed on 09/05/25 has been entered.
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 1-20 are rejected on the ground of nonstatutory double patenting as being unpatentable over 1-10, 12-13, 16, 19-20 of U.S. Patent No. 12,069,321 in view of Hinds et al. (Hinds) (US 2019/0028691).
For example:
Claim 1 of U.S. Patent No. 12,069,321 corresponds to Claim 1 of the instant application and discloses every limitation except “at least one of the plurality of scene graphs representing at least an untimed media and, of the untimed media and a timed media, any of just the untimed media and a combination of the timed media and the untimed media”.
Claim 1 of the instant application
A method of displaying video content, executable by a processor, comprising:
Claim 1 of U.S. Patent No. 12,069,321.
A method of displaying video content, executable by a processor, comprising:
creating an interface to a presentation engine to enable real-time rendering of a plurality of objects, wherein the plurality of objects are logically organized together through a plurality of scene graphs comprising, in a media interchange format, scene graph information comprising a collection of nodes comprising a first node, a second node, a third node, and a fourth node,
creating an interface to a presentation engine to enable real-time rendering of a plurality of objects, wherein the plurality of objects are logically organized together through a plurality of scene graphs and the plurality of scene graphs are organized into a media interchange format and comprise, in the media interchange format, scene graph information comprising a collection of nodes comprising a first node, a second node, a third node, and a fourth node,
wherein the first node comprises an audio object, wherein the second node comprises a tactile object, the third node comprises an olfactory object, and the fourth node comprises a gustatory object;
wherein the first node comprises an audio object, wherein the second node comprises a tactile object, the third node comprises an olfactory object, and the fourth node comprises a gustatory object;
updating geometry information of the plurality of scene graphs through the interface to a representation engine,
at least one of the plurality of scene graphs representing at least an untimed media and, of the untimed media and a timed media, any of just the untimed media and a combination of the timed media and the untimed media.
updating geometry information of the plurality of scene graphs through the interface to a representation engine;
streaming the plurality of objects based on multi-resolution or multi-tesselation of heterogenous visual geometric objects in each of the scene graphs, including the at least one of the scene graphs representing at least the untimed media.
streaming, based on the media interchange format into which the scene graphs are organized and of which the geometry information is updated, the plurality of objects based on multi-resolution or multi-tessellation of heterogenous visual geometric objects in each of the scene graphs
by at least distributing, based on the scene graph information, a base-layer representation and subsequently one or more enhancement layers configured to refine the base-layer representation.
In an analogous art, Hinds discloses a system for rendering a presentation utilizing scene graphs (paragraph 107, 125, 131-132), the scene graph representing
at least an untimed media (“For example, such non-time-based use cases include: mixed-reality telepresence; education; interactive games; and industrial design”, Table 1; paragraph 107, 117-122) and, of the untimed media and a timed media, any of just the untimed media (Table 1, paragraph 107, 117) and a combination of the timed media and the untimed media (time-based and non-time-based media (“Furthermore, the variety of applications targeted by the cable industry will require support for both time-based and non-time-based visual media”, Table 1, paragraph 107, 109, 122) so as to provide access to non-time-based interactive content, such as games and education (paragraph 107).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify U.S. Patent No. 12,069,321 to include at least one of the plurality of scene graphs representing at least an untimed media and, of the untimed media and a timed media, any of just the untimed media and a combination of the timed media and the untimed media, as taught in combination with Hinds, for the typical benefit of providing access to non-time-based interactive content, such as games and education (paragraph 107).
Similarly, claim 2 of the instant application corresponds to claim 1 of U.S. Patent No. 12,069,321.
Claim 3 of the instant application corresponds to claim 2 of U.S. Patent No. 12,069,321.
Claim 4 of the instant application corresponds to claim 3 of U.S. Patent No. 12,069,321.
Claim 5 of the instant application corresponds to claims 4-7 of U.S. Patent No. 12,069,321.
Claim 6 of the instant application corresponds to claim 8-10 of U.S. Patent No. 12,069,321.
Claim 7 of the instant application corresponds to claim 12-13, 16 of U.S. Patent No. 12,069,321.
Claim 8 of the instant application corresponds to claim 19 of U.S. Patent No. 12,069,321, , except “at least one of the plurality of scene graphs representing at least an untimed media and, of the untimed media and a timed media, any of just the untimed media and a combination of the timed media and the untimed media.
In an analogous art, Hinds discloses a system for rendering a presentation utilizing scene graphs (paragraph 107, 125, 131-132), the scene graph representing
at least an untimed media (“For example, such non-time-based use cases include: mixed-reality telepresence; education; interactive games; and industrial design”, Table 1; paragraph 107, 117-122) and, of the untimed media and a timed media, any of just the untimed media (Table 1, paragraph 107, 117) and a combination of the timed media and the untimed media (time-based and non-time-based media (“Furthermore, the variety of applications targeted by the cable industry will require support for both time-based and non-time-based visual media”, Table 1, paragraph 107, 109, 122) so as to provide access to non-time-based interactive content, such as games and education (paragraph 107).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify U.S. Patent No. 12,069,321 to include at least one of the plurality of scene graphs representing at least an untimed media and, of the untimed media and a timed media, any of just the untimed media and a combination of the timed media and the untimed media, as taught in combination with Hinds, for the typical benefit of providing access to non-time-based interactive content, such as games and education (paragraph 107).
Claim 9 of the instant application corresponds to claim 19 of U.S. Patent No. 12,069,321.
Claim 10 of the instant application corresponds to claim 2, 19 of U.S. Patent No. 12,069,321.
Claim 11 of the instant application corresponds to claim 3, 19 of U.S. Patent No. 12,069,321.
Claim 12 of the instant application corresponds to claims 4-7, 19 of U.S. Patent No. 12,069,321.
Claim 13 of the instant application corresponds to claim 8-10, 19 of U.S. Patent No. 12,069,321.
Claim 14 of the instant application corresponds to claim 12-13, 16, 19 of U.S. Patent No. 12,069,321.
Claim 15 of the instant application corresponds to claim 20 of U.S. Patent No. 12,069,321, except “at least one of the plurality of scene graphs representing at least an untimed media and, of the untimed media and a timed media, any of just the untimed media and a combination of the timed media and the untimed media.
In an analogous art, Hinds discloses a system for rendering a presentation utilizing scene graphs (paragraph 107, 125, 131-132), the scene graph representing
at least an untimed media (“For example, such non-time-based use cases include: mixed-reality telepresence; education; interactive games; and industrial design”, Table 1; paragraph 107, 117-122) and, of the untimed media and a timed media, any of just the untimed media (Table 1, paragraph 107, 117) and a combination of the timed media and the untimed media (time-based and non-time-based media (“Furthermore, the variety of applications targeted by the cable industry will require support for both time-based and non-time-based visual media”, Table 1, paragraph 107, 109, 122) so as to provide access to non-time-based interactive content, such as games and education (paragraph 107).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify U.S. Patent No. 12,069,321 to include at least one of the plurality of scene graphs representing at least an untimed media and, of the untimed media and a timed media, any of just the untimed media and a combination of the timed media and the untimed media, as taught in combination with Hinds, for the typical benefit of providing access to non-time-based interactive content, such as games and education (paragraph 107).
Claim 16 of the instant application corresponds to claim 20 of U.S. Patent No. 12,069,321.
Claim 17 of the instant application corresponds to claim 2, 20 of U.S. Patent No. 12,069,321.
Claim 18 of the instant application corresponds to claim 3, 20 of U.S. Patent No. 12,069,321.
Claim 19 of the instant application corresponds to claims 4-10, 20 of U.S. Patent No. 12,069,321.
Claim 20 of the instant application corresponds to claim 12-13, 20 of U.S. Patent No. 12,069,321.
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed 09/05/25 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive.
On page 12, of applicant’s response, applicant states that
“And since the rejection did not make out a prima facie case of obviousness of "a combination of a timed media and the untimed media" features, the rejection seems to assert that "at least one of the plurality of scene graphs representing ... of an untimed media" would have been obvious from a combination of '691 and the claims of '321.”
And further that “But even if there were "untimed media" in general, the rejection's combination does not reasonably suggest the claimed features even if untimed media may exist in general since existence of a scene graph and existence of untimed media, which seems to be the extent of the factual findings of the rejection, does not imply "scene graphs including the at least one of the scene graphs representing at least the untimed media"”.
In response, it is noted that Hinds explicitly discloses the use of “scene graphs to organize the logical spatial representations of objects within a scene” (such as “to provide media support for full 6 DoF MR services” see paragraph 107, 125). Hinds also explicitly discloses “Furthermore, the variety of applications targeted by the cable industry will require support for both time-based and non-time-based visual media” (paragraph 107), with non-timed media (“For example, such non-time-based use cases include: mixed-reality telepresence; education; interactive games; and industrial design”, Table 1; paragraph 107, 117-122) and a combination of untimed and timed media (a performance which “may change over time” and which the user may also interact to affect the outcome; paragraph 122).
Therefore, applicant’s arguments are not convincing, as Hinds clearly discloses at least one of the plurality of scene graphs (“scene graphs to organize the logical spatial representations of objects within a scene”, “to provide media support for full 6 DoF MR services” see paragraph 107, 125) representing at least an untimed media (mixed-reality telepresence; education; interactive games; and industrial design”, Table 1; paragraph 107, 117-122) and, of the untimed media and a timed media, any of just the untimed media (mixed-reality telepresence; education; interactive games; and industrial design”, Table 1; paragraph 107, 117-122) and a combination of the timed media and the untimed media (virtual storytelling performance which “may change over time” and which the user may also interact to affect the outcome; paragraph 122).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 1-20 would be allowable upon timely filed terminal disclaimer in compliance with 37 CFR 1.321(c) or 1.321(d) so as to overcome the rejections based on nonstatutory double patenting.
Conclusion
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/James R Sheleheda/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2424
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