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 .
Election/Restrictions
Claims 1-12 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to a nonelected inventions, there being no allowable generic or linking claim. Election was made without traverse in the reply filed on 07/31/2026.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statements (IDS) submitted on 11/05/2024, 02/26/2025, 01/15/2026, and 06/11/2026 are in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statements are being considered by the examiner.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b):
(b) CONCLUSION.—The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph:
The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention.
Claims 23-25 and 30 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention.
Claim 23 recites the limitation "the location data of each of the plurality of second tags”. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim. The limitation is being treated as a new element (location data of each of the plurality of second tags).
Claims 24-25 are rejected as dependent on claim 23.
Claim 30 recites the limitation "registering a location of the tag based on the comparison.” The bolded element has improper antecedence and is being interpreted as “registering the location of the tag based on the comparison”.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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 the appropriate paragraphs of 35 U.S.C. 102 that form the basis for the rejections under this section made in this Office action:
A person shall be entitled to a patent unless –
(a)(1) the claimed invention was patented, described in a printed publication, or in public use, on sale, or otherwise available to the public before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claim(s) 13, 16-18, 20-22, 26, and 29-31 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Nilsson (US20230074046A1).
Regarding claim 13, Nilsson teaches “A method, comprising: registering, by an application executing at a computer system in an inventory system, a tag identifier received from a tag in an inventory environment with location data indicating a location of the tag based on a visual attribute of the tag; (Nilsson, Paragraphs 11, 82, and 50, “The method further comprises capturing, by the camera, an image containing the at least one electronic label, detecting an identifier of each of the at least one electronic label by analyzing the optical output in the image, and determining a position for each of the at least one electronic label based on the position of the at least one electronic label in the image.”; “The system may further comprise an electronic label 320. The electronic label 320 may be adapted to receive the control signal 380 and may be adapted to change its optical output in response to said control signal 380, the electronic label 320 being arranged in the field of view of the camera. There may be a plurality of electronic labels 320 present. Hence, at least one electronic label 320 may be present. The at least one electronic label 320 may comprise an optical output device 340. The optical output device 340 may comprise at least one of a LED, a display and any other visual device. The at least one electronic label 320 may comprise a receiver 325. The receiver 325 may be arranged to receive at least one of a Radio Frequency, RF, signal, a wireless, WIFI, signal, an Infrared, IR, signal, a Bluetooth, BT, signal, a Near-Field communication, NFC, signal, a Radio Frequency identification, RFID, signal, an optical signal, a sound signal or any signal suitable for communication.”; “Storing the position and the identifier may be performed by the camera and/or the server. Storing the position and the identifier of the electronic label may provide a facilitated inventory control. This, since it may provide the possibility of comparing future determined position and identity with previously determined position and identity.” Note that the storing for future determinations amounts to the registering of the data prior to future iterations of the scanning, as will be relevant in the subsequent limitations. Further note that the method is performed by a control unit executing processing steps (Paragraphs 61, 66, and 83), amounting to an application executing at a computer system.)
“initiating, by the application, a scan of the tag to obtain tag data from the tag and to capture an image depicting the tag by transmitting a signal to the tag after registering the tag identifier with the location data of the tag;” (Nilsson, Paragraph 136, “The method 100 may comprise the steps of transmitting 110 a control signal from the camera, receiving 120, by the respective receiver, the control signal from the camera, controlling 130 the at least one electronic label to change its optical output based on the control signal, capturing 140, by the camera, an image containing the at least one electronic label, detecting 150 an identifier of each of the at least one electronic label by analyzing the optical output in the image, and determining 160 a position for each of the at least one electronic label based on the position of the at least one electronic label in the image.” Note that, as explained above, these scans are performed multiple times for comparing future position/identity data with past position/identity data. Therefore, a current scan is performed/initiated after the prior scan (registering step).)
“and triggering, by the application, activation of a light emitting diode (LED) on the tag to indicate whether a reader device is in a read range of the tag, wherein a visual feature of the LED indicates whether the reader device is in the read range of the tag, and wherein the signal is used to activate the LED on the tag.” (Nilsson, Paragraph 136, “The method 100 may comprise the steps of transmitting 110 a control signal from the camera, receiving 120, by the respective receiver, the control signal from the camera, controlling 130 the at least one electronic label to change its optical output based on the control signal, capturing 140, by the camera, an image containing the at least one electronic label, detecting 150 an identifier of each of the at least one electronic label by analyzing the optical output in the image, and determining 160 a position for each of the at least one electronic label based on the position of the at least one electronic label in the image.”; Paragraph 82 recites that the optical output device may be an LED.; Paragraph 87 describes that the LED indicates whether the reader device is in the read range of the tag: “The camera 310 may, by the transceiver 315, transmit a signal arranged to be received by the at least one of the control unit 330, the electronic label 320 and the server 350. The signal transmitted from the camera may comprise at least one of a control signal, an image, a determined position, a determined identifier or any data relating to the electronic labels. The transceiver 315 may have a limited range and the at least one electronic label 320 arranged within the limited range may receive the control signal. Electronic labels being out of range may not receive the control signal and hence, may not change its optical output.” Accordingly, a lack of optical output change indicates that the tag is outside of the read range, and an optical output change indicates that the tag is within the read range. Additionally, the reader device is mapped to the device that includes the camera (Paragraphs 70-71).)
Regarding claim 16, Nilsson teaches “The method of claim 13,
“wherein initiating, by the application, the scan of the tag comprises: transmitting, by the application, the signal to the tag; and receiving, by the application, the tag data from the tag, wherein the tag data comprises the tag identifier.” (Nilsson, Paragraph 136, “The method 100 may comprise the steps of transmitting 110 a control signal from the camera, receiving 120, by the respective receiver, the control signal from the camera, controlling 130 the at least one electronic label to change its optical output based on the control signal, capturing 140, by the camera, an image containing the at least one electronic label, detecting 150 an identifier of each of the at least one electronic label by analyzing the optical output in the image, and determining 160 a position for each of the at least one electronic label based on the position of the at least one electronic label in the image.”)
Regarding claim 17, Nilsson teaches “The method of claim 13,
“determining, by the application, the location data based on a signal strength of a signal carrying the tag data received from the tag; and storing, by the application, the location data based on the signal strength in a data store in the inventory system.” (Nilsson, Paragraphs 136 and 50, “The method 100 may comprise the steps of transmitting 110 a control signal from the camera, receiving 120, by the respective receiver, the control signal from the camera, controlling 130 the at least one electronic label to change its optical output based on the control signal, capturing 140, by the camera, an image containing the at least one electronic label, detecting 150 an identifier of each of the at least one electronic label by analyzing the optical output in the image, and determining 160 a position for each of the at least one electronic label based on the position of the at least one electronic label in the image.”; “Storing the position and the identifier may be performed by the camera and/or the server. Storing the position and the identifier of the electronic label may provide a facilitated inventory control. This, since it may provide the possibility of comparing future determined position and identity with previously determined position and identity.” Note that the optical output has a signal strength, and location is determined only when the signal strength is high enough to be detectable. Therefore location determination is performed, in part, based on the signal strength.)
Regarding claim 18, Nilsson teaches “The method of claim 13,”
“further comprising re-calibrating, by the application, the tag by periodically capturing and storing, by the application, periodic images depicting the tag and the LED on the tag, and receiving, by the application, the tag data from the tag.” (As described in the rejection of claim 13, the scans are performed repeatedly over time such that past scan data may be compared to future scan data (see Paragraph 50). This amounts to periodical re-calibrating via the same steps of claim 13 including imaging the tag and the LED on the tag and receiving the tag data (for updating identifier-position data). These periodic images are necessarily stored, at least temporarily, in order for the system to extract tag data.)
Regarding claim 20, Nilsson teaches “The method of claim 13,”
“wherein the visual feature of the LED is a predefined color of the LED.” (Nilsson, Paragraph 100, “As previously disclosed, the change in optical output may comprise at least one of a distinct temporal pattern of optical changes, displaying a visual reference, such as at least one of a barcode, a QR code, a number, a letter and the combination thereof or changing a color output of the electronic label 320.” Note that the optical output is mapped to the LED, as described in Paragraph 82.)
Regarding claim 21, Nilsson teaches “The method of claim 13,”
“further comprising receiving, by the application, tag data from a plurality of tags comprising a first tag and a plurality of second tags, wherein the tag is the first tag,” (Nilsson, Paragraphs 26-28, “According to an embodiment, the change of optical output of the at least one electronic label includes a distinct temporal pattern of optical changes for each label. The capturing, by the camera, may comprise capturing images by the camera at points in time such that the distinct temporal pattern of optical changes is distinguishable in the images. The detecting an identifier of the at least one electronic label by analyzing the optical output in the image may comprise detecting the distinct temporal pattern of optical changes. By a distinct temporal pattern of optical changes it may be meant that the optical changes are changing in a distinct way characteristic for a certain electronic label. Thus, the electronic label may be identified using the distinct temporal pattern of optical changes. This may provide an improved identification of the at least one electronic label. This may also provide identification of multiple electronic labels simultaneously since if there are several electronic label they change their optical output respectively according to a distinct temporal pattern for each electronic label. By identifying multiple electronic labels simultaneously less time may be required. Consequently, less power may be needed in order to identify the electronic labels since the electronic labels may need to change their optical output for a shorter time period. This may also provide less processing power since relatively simple image detection and image processing may be used in order to detect the electronic labels in the captured image.”
“wherein the first tag includes the visual attribute of a known size and a chip,” (Nilsson, Paragraph 82, “The system may further comprise an electronic label 320. The electronic label 320 may be adapted to receive the control signal 380 and may be adapted to change its optical output in response to said control signal 380, the electronic label 320 being arranged in the field of view of the camera. There may be a plurality of electronic labels 320 present. Hence, at least one electronic label 320 may be present. The at least one electronic label 320 may comprise an optical output device 340. The optical output device 340 may comprise at least one of a LED, a display and any other visual device. The at least one electronic label 320 may comprise a receiver 325. The receiver 325 may be arranged to receive at least one of a Radio Frequency, RF, signal, a wireless, WIFI, signal, an Infrared, IR, signal, a Bluetooth, BT, signal, a Near-Field communication, NFC, signal, a Radio Frequency identification, RFID, signal, an optical signal, a sound signal or any signal suitable for communication.” The receiver is mapped to the chip and the optical output device is mapped to the visual attribute of a known size.)
“and wherein the application is executed at the reader device or a management system external to the inventory environment.” (Nilsson, Paragraphs 83-84, “The system may further comprise a control unit 330. The control unit 330 may be adapted to communicate with the camera 310 and configured to detect an identifier of the electronic label 320 by analyzing the optical output in the image and configured to determine a position of the electronic label 320 based on the position of the electronic label 320 in the image. The control unit 330 may be arranged separately from the camera 310 or arranged within the camera 310. In other words, the camera 310 may comprise the control unit 330.” Accordingly, the control unit which executes the application is part of the reader device (mobile device comprising the camera as described in Paragraphs 70-71).)
Regarding claim 22, Nilsson teaches “The method of claim 21,”
“wherein the plurality of second tags exclude visual attributes.” (The claim does not provide limitations on what these “visual attributes” are, therefore they can be mapped to any visual feature not present on the plurality of second tags (i.e. stickers, sentences, scratches, etc.). The plurality of second tags of Nilsson do not have said visual attributes (stickers, sentences, scratches, etc.).)
Regarding claim 26, Nilsson teaches “The method of claim 13,”
“wherein the visual attribute of the tag comprises at least one of an arrangement of one or more light emitting diodes (LEDs) to create a pattern, a color of the one or more LEDs when lit, a brightness of the one or more LEDs when lit, a background color of the tag, or one or more quick response (QR) codes printed on the tag.” (Nilsson, Paragraphs 82 and 100, “The system may further comprise an electronic label 320. The electronic label 320 may be adapted to receive the control signal 380 and may be adapted to change its optical output in response to said control signal 380, the electronic label 320 being arranged in the field of view of the camera. There may be a plurality of electronic labels 320 present. Hence, at least one electronic label 320 may be present. The at least one electronic label 320 may comprise an optical output device 340. The optical output device 340 may comprise at least one of a LED, a display and any other visual device. The at least one electronic label 320 may comprise a receiver 325. The receiver 325 may be arranged to receive at least one of a Radio Frequency, RF, signal, a wireless, WIFI, signal, an Infrared, IR, signal, a Bluetooth, BT, signal, a Near-Field communication, NFC, signal, a Radio Frequency identification, RFID, signal, an optical signal, a sound signal or any signal suitable for communication.”; “As previously disclosed, the change in optical output may comprise at least one of a distinct temporal pattern of optical changes, displaying a visual reference, such as at least one of a barcode, a QR code, a number, a letter and the combination thereof or changing a color output of the electronic label 320.”)
Regarding claim 29, Nilsson teaches “The method of claim 13,”
“further comprising storing, by the application, the visual attribute of the tag in association with the tag identifier at a data store prior to the tag entering the inventory environment.” (Nilsson, Paragraphs 26-27 describe that an association between the visual attribute of the tag and the tag identifier is known by the device (stored at a data store) so that the device can determine the identifier based on the visual attribute. Additionally, “the inventory environment” is being mapped to the current shelf or display, or current placement within a shelf or display, where the tag is located. Since the products with tags are frequently moved throughout the facility (see Paragraphs 2-3), positions are continuously determined from one inventory environment (shelf/display/room) to another inventory environment. Therefore, the associated visual attribute-identifier data is stored (and used for position determinations) prior to the tag entering the current inventory environment (i.e. when the tag was in a different, previous inventory environment such as another shelf, display, or room).)
Regarding claim 30, Nilsson teaches “The method of claim 29,”
“further comprising: comparing, by the application, the visual attribute of the tag depicted in an image with the visual attribute of the tag stored at the data store to identify the tag identifier for the tag depicted in the image; and registering a location of the tag based on the comparison.” (Nilsson, Paragraphs 26-27, 11, and 114 “According to an embodiment, the change of optical output of the at least one electronic label includes a distinct temporal pattern of optical changes for each label. The capturing, by the camera, may comprise capturing images by the camera at points in time such that the distinct temporal pattern of optical changes is distinguishable in the images. The detecting an identifier of the at least one electronic label by analyzing the optical output in the image may comprise detecting the distinct temporal pattern of optical changes. By a distinct temporal pattern of optical changes it may be meant that the optical changes are changing in a distinct way characteristic for a certain electronic label. Thus, the electronic label may be identified using the distinct temporal pattern of optical changes. This may provide an improved identification of the at least one electronic label.”; “The method further comprises capturing, by the camera, an image containing the at least one electronic label, detecting an identifier of each of the at least one electronic label by analyzing the optical output in the image, and determining a position for each of the at least one electronic label based on the position of the at least one electronic label in the image.”; “The server 350 may be arranged to transmit the position and the identifier of the electronic label 320 to the storage means 360. The storage means 360 may be arranged to store the determined position and the determined identity or identifier of the electronic label 320.”)
Regarding claim 31, Nilsson teaches “The method of claim 29,”
“wherein the visual attribute of the tag stored at the data store indicates at least one of a pattern of a quick response (QR) code, a light emitting diode (LED) pattern, a color of one or more LEDs, a brightness of the one or more LEDs, or a background color of the tag.” (Nilsson, Paragraph 82 describes the optical output device as an LED. Paragraph 94 further recites, “FIG. 1 b illustrates a change in optical output of the electronic label 320. The electronic label 320 may be controlled to change its optical output based on the control signal. The change in optical output may be achieved by the optical output device 340 changing its optical output. The camera may capture an image containing the at least one electronic label 320. The camera may capture a plurality of images containing the at least one electronic label 320. By a plurality of images, it may be meant a video stream and/or several still images captured at separate points in time. Hence, the camera may capture at least one image containing the at least one electronic label 320. The change of optical output of the at least one electronic label 320 may comprise a distinct temporal pattern of optical changes. The change in optical output of the at least one electronic label 320 may comprise displaying a visual reference, such as at least one of a barcode, a QRcode, a number, a letter and the combination thereof. The change in optical output may comprise changing the color output of the electronic label 320.”)
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) 14, 15, 27, 28, and 32 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Nilsson in view of Hulth (US20170103515A1).
Regarding claim 14, Nilsson teaches “The method of claim 13,”
While Nilsson teaches that registering, by the application, the tag identifier of the tag with the location data indicating the location of the tag comprises: initiating, by the application, a prior scan of the tag at a first time to read the tag identifier from the tag, (Nilsson, Paragraph 136, “The method 100 may comprise the steps of transmitting 110 a control signal from the camera, receiving 120, by the respective receiver, the control signal from the camera, controlling 130 the at least one electronic label to change its optical output based on the control signal, capturing 140, by the camera, an image containing the at least one electronic label, detecting 150 an identifier of each of the at least one electronic label by analyzing the optical output in the image, and determining 160 a position for each of the at least one electronic label based on the position of the at least one electronic label in the image.” Note that as indicated in the rejection of claim 13, the scans are performed repeatedly, amounting to at least a scan at a first time.), Nilsson does not expressly disclose doing so according to a predefined schedule.
Hulth discloses scanning product positions according to a predefined schedule (Hulth, Paragraphs 238-239, “Estimation of the product positions may for example be performed more often than the estimation of the position and orientation of the fixture 110. Estimation of the position and orientation of the fixture 110 may for example be performed once a week or once a month, while the estimation of the product positions may for example be performed one or more times a day.”)
It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the time of the effective filing date of the claimed invention of the instant application to perform the scans of Nilsson on a predefined schedule as taught by Hulth.
The motivation for doing so would have been to routinely keep track of inventory to compensate for rapid changes in inventory position, as described in Paragraph 2 of Hulth: “Products in a retail store may be arranged at respective product positions along fixtures such as shelves, racks or other displays. The product positions may for example be selected to maximize sales by promoting certain products and/or to improve logistics of the store. Product positions for at least some products may be changed quite often and it may be difficult to maintain an updated record of the actual product positions.” Further, one skilled in the art could have combined the elements as described above by known methods with no change in their respective functions, and the combination would have yielded nothing more than predictable results. Therefore, it would have been obvious to combine Nilsson with the above teaching of Hulth to fully disclose “wherein registering, by the application, the tag identifier of the tag with the location data indicating the location of the tag comprises: initiating, by the application, a prior scan of the tag at a first time according to a predefined schedule to read the tag identifier from the tag;”.
Nilsson in view of Hulth further disclose, “capturing, by a camera in the reader device, an image depicting the tag and the LED on the tag at the first time according to the predefined schedule;” (Nilsson, Paragraph 136, “The method 100 may comprise the steps of transmitting 110 a control signal from the camera, receiving 120, by the respective receiver, the control signal from the camera, controlling 130 the at least one electronic label to change its optical output based on the control signal, capturing 140, by the camera, an image containing the at least one electronic label, detecting 150 an identifier of each of the at least one electronic label by analyzing the optical output in the image, and determining 160 a position for each of the at least one electronic label based on the position of the at least one electronic label in the image.” Also note that as described above, the LED is mapped to the optical output device on the tag which generates the optical output.)
While Nilsson in view of Hulth implies that the application determines location data based on the position of the LED on the tag (see above), this is not expressly stated. However, Hulth further describes product position determination based on LED position (Hulth 181, The position 301 of an electronic label 112 may be detected based on a single image or based on multiple images. If the electronic label 112 is the only one comprising an activated LED, then a single image may be sufficient to distinguish the electronic label 112. However, even an activated LED may be difficult to distinguish based on a single image. People in the store may for example temporarily block the view of the camera 130, or some parts of the fixture may appear as bright as the activated light source 203 of the electronic label 112 in a particular image. The position of the electronic label 112 may therefore be detected by analyzing a difference between before and after the change of optical output. The processing section 140 may for example receive an image captured before the change of optical output has been initiated and an image captured after the change of optical output has been initiated. By comparing these two images, the flashing of the light source 203 may be more easily detected.”)
It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the time of the effective filing date of the claimed invention of the instant application to perform the location determination of Nilsson in view of Hulth based on the LED position, as further taught by Hulth.
The motivation for doing so would have been to more accurately determine the location information. Nilsson describes that position can be determined generically by “at least one of image recognition, comparison to reference images or any method known in the art” (Paragraph 108). Hulth closes this gap by specifying a particular position determination method, which uses equipment and materials (i.e. cameras and LED on an electronic label) already supplied by Nilsson. Further, one skilled in the art could have combined the elements as described above by known methods with no change in their respective functions, and the combination would have yielded nothing more than predictable results. Therefore, it would have been obvious to combine Nilsson in view of Hulth with the above additional teaching of Hulth to fully disclose, “determining, by the application, the location data of the tag based on a position of the LED on the tag;”
Nilsson in view of Hulth further disclose, “and storing, by the application, the tag identifier with the location data at a data store in the inventory system.” (Nilsson, Paragraph 50, “Storing the position and the identifier may be performed by the camera and/or the server. Storing the position and the identifier of the electronic label may provide a facilitated inventory control. This, since it may provide the possibility of comparing future determined position and identity with previously determined position and identity.”)
Regarding claim 15, Nilsson teaches “The method of claim 13,”
“wherein registering, by the application, the tag identifier of the tag with the location data indicating the location of the tag comprises: initiating, by the application, a prior scan of the tag to read the tag identifier from the tag; capturing, by a camera in the reader device, an image depicting the tag and the LED on the tag;” (Nilsson, Paragraph 136, “The method 100 may comprise the steps of transmitting 110 a control signal from the camera, receiving 120, by the respective receiver, the control signal from the camera, controlling 130 the at least one electronic label to change its optical output based on the control signal, capturing 140, by the camera, an image containing the at least one electronic label, detecting 150 an identifier of each of the at least one electronic label by analyzing the optical output in the image, and determining 160 a position for each of the at least one electronic label based on the position of the at least one electronic label in the image.” Also note that as described above, the LED is mapped to the optical output device on the tag which generates the optical output.)
While Nilsson implies that the application determines location data based on the position of the LED on the tag (see above), this is not expressly stated. However, Hulth teaches product position determination based on LED position (Hulth 181, The position 301 of an electronic label 112 may be detected based on a single image or based on multiple images. If the electronic label 112 is the only one comprising an activated LED, then a single image may be sufficient to distinguish the electronic label 112. However, even an activated LED may be difficult to distinguish based on a single image. People in the store may for example temporarily block the view of the camera 130, or some parts of the fixture may appear as bright as the activated light source 203 of the electronic label 112 in a particular image. The position of the electronic label 112 may therefore be detected by analyzing a difference between before and after the change of optical output. The processing section 140 may for example receive an image captured before the change of optical output has been initiated and an image captured after the change of optical output has been initiated. By comparing these two images, the flashing of the light source 203 may be more easily detected.”)
It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the time of the effective filing date of the claimed invention of the instant application to perform the location determination of Nilsson based on the LED position, as further taught by Hulth.
The motivation for doing so would have been to more accurately determine the location information. Nilsson describes that position can be determined generically by “at least one of image recognition, comparison to reference images or any method known in the art” (Paragraph 108). Hulth closes this gap by specifying a particular position determination method, which uses equipment and materials (i.e. cameras and LED on an electronic label) already supplied by Nilsson. Further, one skilled in the art could have combined the elements as described above by known methods with no change in their respective functions, and the combination would have yielded nothing more than predictable results. Therefore, it would have been obvious to combine Nilsson with the above teaching of Hulth to fully disclose, “determining, by the application, the location data of the tag based on a position of the LED on the tag;”
Nilsson in view of Hulth further disclose, “comparing, by the application, a visual attribute of the LED on the tag with a pre- stored visual attribute of a plurality of LEDs on a plurality of different tags stored at a data store in the inventory system to determine the tag identifier corresponding to the visual attribute of the LED of the tag;” (Nilsson, Paragraphs 26-28, “According to an embodiment, the change of optical output of the at least one electronic label includes a distinct temporal pattern of optical changes for each label. The capturing, by the camera, may comprise capturing images by the camera at points in time such that the distinct temporal pattern of optical changes is distinguishable in the images. The detecting an identifier of the at least one electronic label by analyzing the optical output in the image may comprise detecting the distinct temporal pattern of optical changes. By a distinct temporal pattern of optical changes it may be meant that the optical changes are changing in a distinct way characteristic for a certain electronic label. Thus, the electronic label may be identified using the distinct temporal pattern of optical changes. This may provide an improved identification of the at least one electronic label. This may also provide identification of multiple electronic labels simultaneously since if there are several electronic label they change their optical output respectively according to a distinct temporal pattern for each electronic label. By identifying multiple electronic labels simultaneously less time may be required. Consequently, less power may be needed in order to identify the electronic labels since the electronic labels may need to change their optical output for a shorter time period. This may also provide less processing power since relatively simple image detection and image processing may be used in order to detect the electronic labels in the captured image.” Accordingly, multiple tags each have respective visual attributes that correspond to known (pre-stored) visual attributes that correspond to respective identifiers. The observed visual attributes are compared to the known visual attributes to determine identifier.)
“and storing, by the application, the tag identifier with the location data at the data store.” (Nilsson, Paragraph 50, “Storing the position and the identifier may be performed by the camera and/or the server. Storing the position and the identifier of the electronic label may provide a facilitated inventory control. This, since it may provide the possibility of comparing future determined position and identity with previously determined position and identity.”)
Regarding claim 27, Nilsson teaches “The method of claim 13,”
While Nilsson teaches initiating, by the application, a prior scan of the tag at a first time to individually scan the tag and obtain tag data from the tag and obtaining, by a camera, an image depicting the tag to determine location data of the tag, (Nilsson, Paragraph 136, “The method 100 may comprise the steps of transmitting 110 a control signal from the camera, receiving 120, by the respective receiver, the control signal from the camera, controlling 130 the at least one electronic label to change its optical output based on the control signal, capturing 140, by the camera, an image containing the at least one electronic label, detecting 150 an identifier of each of the at least one electronic label by analyzing the optical output in the image, and determining 160 a position for each of the at least one electronic label based on the position of the at least one electronic label in the image.”) Nilsson does not teach scanning schedules and imaging according to intervals indicated in the scheduling.
Hulth discloses scanning product positions according to a predefined schedule on a daily interval (Hulth, Paragraphs 238-239, “Estimation of the product positions may for example be performed more often than the estimation of the position and orientation of the fixture 110. Estimation of the position and orientation of the fixture 110 may for example be performed once a week or once a month, while the estimation of the product positions may for example be performed one or more times a day.”)
It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the time of the effective filing date of the claimed invention of the instant application to perform the scan initiation and image collection of Nilsson on a predefined schedule at pre-defined intervals, as taught by Hulth.
The motivation for doing so would have been to routinely keep track of inventory to compensate for rapid changes in inventory position, as described in Paragraph 2 of Hulth: “Products in a retail store may be arranged at respective product positions along fixtures such as shelves, racks or other displays. The product positions may for example be selected to maximize sales by promoting certain products and/or to improve logistics of the store. Product positions for at least some products may be changed quite often and it may be difficult to maintain an updated record of the actual product positions.” Further, one skilled in the art could have combined the elements as described above by known methods with no change in their respective functions, and the combination would have yielded nothing more than predictable results. Therefore, it would have been obvious to combine Nilsson with the above teaching of Hulth to fully disclose “further comprising: initiating, by the application, a prior scan of the tag at a first time according to a predefined schedule to individually scan the tag and obtain tag data from the tag; and obtaining, by a camera, an image depicting the tag according to time intervals indicated in the predefined schedule to determine location data of the tag.”
Regarding claim 28, Nilsson in view of Hulth teaches “The method of claim 27,”
“wherein the predefined schedule indicates a frequency at which the reader device and the camera are to communicate with the tag.” (As the references are combined above (with rationale and motivation) in the rejection of claim 27, the commutations between the reader device and camera and the tag are performed according to the interval (frequency) of the predefined schedule for daily position tracking.)
Regarding claim 32, Nilsson teaches “The method of claim 13,”
While Nilsson teaches the LED on the tag (Paragraph 82), Nilsson does not expressly disclose “wherein the LED comprises one of a plurality of LEDs on the tag,”.
Hulth teaches a tag with a plurality of LEDs (Hulth, Paragraph 163, “The electronic label 112 may for example comprise one or more light sources 203, such as light emitting diodes (LEDs).”)
It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the time of the effective filing date of the claimed invention of the instant application to replace the singular LED of Nilsson with the plurality of LEDs of Hulth.
The motivation for doing so would have been to expand the available patterns for product identification. There are a finite number of temporal patterns that a singular LED can produce, whereas multiple LEDs expand upon these available patterns, thereby enabling scaling to manage greater numbers of products. Further, one skilled in the art could have substituted one known element for another, and the substitution would have yielded nothing more than predictable results. Therefore, it would have been obvious to combine Nilsson with the above teaching of Hulth to fully disclose “wherein the LED comprises one of a plurality of LEDs on the tag,”.
Nilsson in view of Hulth further disclose “and wherein one or more pre-stored visual attributes of the tag comprise at least one of the LED when lit, a color of the LED, a brightness of the LED, or a pattern of the plurality of LEDs.” (Nilsson, Paragraph 82 describes the optical output device as an LED. Paragraph 94 further recites, “FIG. 1 b illustrates a change in optical output of the electronic label 320. The electronic label 320 may be controlled to change its optical output based on the control signal. The change in optical output may be achieved by the optical output device 340 changing its optical output. The camera may capture an image containing the at least one electronic label 320. The camera may capture a plurality of images containing the at least one electronic label 320. By a plurality of images, it may be meant a video stream and/or several still images captured at separate points in time. Hence, the camera may capture at least one image containing the at least one electronic label 320. The change of optical output of the at least one electronic label 320 may comprise a distinct temporal pattern of optical changes. The change in optical output of the at least one electronic label 320 may comprise displaying a visual reference, such as at least one of a barcode, a QRcode, a number, a letter and the combination thereof. The change in optical output may comprise changing the color output of the electronic label 320.” Note that the change in optical output (visual attribute) is pre-stored by both the reader device (which determines identifier based on the optical output) and the electronic label itself which is pre-programmed with the unique optical output (Paragraph 96).)
Allowable Subject Matter
Claim 19 is 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. Claims 23-25 are rejected under 35 USC 112(b), but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims, and amended to overcome the rejections.
Allowable Subject Matter
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter: With respect to claims 19 and 23 (and respective dependent claims), in addition to other limitations in the claims, the Prior Art of Record fails to teach, disclose or render obvious the applicant' s invention as claimed, in particular:
Claim 19 recites: “The method of claim 13, further comprising registering, by the application, a second tag identifier received from a second tag in the inventory environment with the location data indicating the location of the tag based on a rule, wherein the rule indicates that location data for all tags in an area including the location of the tag and a signal strength-based location of the second tag is to be set to the location data of the tag.”
Claim 23 recites: “The method of claim 21, further comprising:
determining, by the application, location data for each of the plurality of tags based on a received signal strength indicator (RSSI) for each of the plurality of tags, wherein the location data comprises three dimensional coordinates of each of the plurality of tags;
storing, by the application, the location data of each of the plurality of tags with the tag data received from each of the plurality of tags; capturing, by a camera communicatively coupled to the application, an image depicting the plurality of tags in an area within the inventory environment;
identifying, by the application, the first tag in the image based on the visual attribute of the first tag depicted in the image;
determining, by the application, first location data of the first tag using the visual attribute of the first tag depicted in the image;
determining, by the application, that the plurality of second tags are within the area in which the first tag is located; and
updating, by the application, the location data of each of the plurality of second tags to be the first location data of the first tag.”
Nilsson teaches an imaging-based identification strategy for inventory management wherein cameras capture images of electronic labels and determine position and identifier for subsequent storage. Hulth teaches an imaging-based identification strategy for determining and tracking positions of fixtures and products arranged on the fixtures. Lee (US20180162640A1) teaches inventory management using RFID or tag-based identification of products and storage locations, and lights illuminated to identify particular storage location for product retrieval. Mohseni (WO2021138451A1) teaches a wine tracker application for analyzing camera output data for wine bottle recognition and location determination. Sample (Optical localization of passive UHF RFID tags with integrated LEDs) teaches combining RFID tags with LEDs for object localization, wherein the RFID measurement coarsely locates tagged items, and the LED data is used for a robot to obtain more precise location data and grasp the tagged items. Regarding claim 19, Hulth does disclose identifying both location of a product on a fixture and the location of the fixture, but they are identified independently and never set to the same location. The limitations of claim 19 also do not appear to be an obvious modification, as the invention of Nilsson identifies product location independently for each product. Regarding claim 23, none of the above references describe using RSSI-based location determination for all the tags prior to using the visual attribute-based location determination of only the first tag, then setting multiple second tag locations to be the location of a first tag. While Sample does disclose using RFID (with signal strength estimation) prior to LED-based identification, these are used in tandem for a course identification followed by a fine identification rather than setting all tag locations to a first tag location. None of the above references disclose the bolded elements above.
Conclusion
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/AARON JOSEPH SORRIN/Examiner, Art Unit 2672
/SUMATI LEFKOWITZ/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2672
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