DETAILED ACTION
Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status
The present application is being examined under the pre-AIA first to invent provisions.
Priority
Acknowledgement is made of applicant's claim for foreign application number JP 2011-051484 filed on 3/9/11.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 9/5/24 is/are in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner.
Specification
The lengthy specification has not been checked to the extent necessary to determine the presence of all possible minor errors. Applicant's cooperation is requested in correcting any errors of which applicant may become aware in the specification.
Drawings
The drawings were received on 9/5/24. These drawings are acceptable.
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 USPTO Internet website contains terminal disclaimer forms which may be used. Please visit www.uspto.gov/patent/patents-forms. The filing date of the application in which the form is filed determines what form (e.g., PTO/SB/25, PTO/SB/26, PTO/AIA /25, or PTO/AIA /26) should be used. A web-based eTerminal Disclaimer may be filled out completely online using web-screens. An eTerminal Disclaimer that meets all requirements is auto-processed and approved immediately upon submission. For more information about eTerminal Disclaimers, refer to www.uspto.gov/patents/process/file/efs/guidance/eTD-info-I.jsp.
Claims 1-3 are rejected on the ground of nonstatutory double patenting as being unpatentable over claim 1 of U.S. Patent No. 10,587,882. Although the claims at issue are not identical, they are not patentably distinct from each other because limitations of the instant claims are found in the patented claims.
It would have been obvious to one skilled in the art at the time of the invention was made to modify the cited steps as indicated in claim 1 of the instant US application since the omission/addition/alteration of the cited limitations would not have changed the process according to which the process of decoding and input stream. Therefore, the ordinary skilled artisan would have been also motivated to modify claim 1 of the cited instant US application by altering the step of code stream of patent 10,587,882. Claim 2-3 of the instant application are analogous to double patenting of claim 1 of patent No. 10,587,882 for the same reason as discussed above. The cited altering elements would not interfere with the functionality of the steps previously claimed and would perform the same function. In re Karlson, 136, USPQ 184 (CCPA 1963).
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 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)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claim(s) 3 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by Han et al. (US 2011/0150072).
Regarding claim 3, Han discloses a non-transitory computer readable medium storing a bitstream (see 210 in fig. 7; e.g. see ¶ [0037]. Note: Claim 3 is directed to a non-transitory computer readable medium storing a bitstream. The bitstream including information. The claim then recites steps for obtaining the information. These steps do not add any further structure or functional limitation to storing the “bitstream”. Hence, these steps do not add patentable weight to the claim),
Allowable Subject Matter
Claim(s) 1-3 is/are allowed upon overcoming the above rejection.
The following is an Examiner’s statement of reasons for allowance: Claim(s) 1-3 discloses an image decoding device that decodes an image in an inputted code stream, the inputted code stream comprises syntaxes of coding units, which are in the coding units, respectively, a syntax of a current coding unit includes mode information indicating whether a first mode or a second mode is applied for the current coding unit, and the syntax of the coding units is outside of a syntax of the prediction unit, said device comprising: a memory having a program stored therein; and a processor configured to execute the program stored on said memory to cause the image decoding device to: perform coefficient code string analyzing that, (1) when the inputted code stream is a first code string including information based on an encoded residual coefficient, decodes the first code string to output a residual coefficient, and (2) when the inputted code stream is a second code string including an encoded differential image, decodes the second code string to output the differential image; perform predictive residual decoding that, when the residual coefficient is outputted, performs an inverse quantizing process and an inverse orthogonal transformation process on the outputted residual coefficient to output a residual decoded image; perform predictive decoding that generates a predictive image, on a prediction unit-by-prediction unit basis, for the current coding unit corresponding to the inputted code string based on prediction information, wherein the prediction unit is included in the current coding unit; perform header code analyzing of the mode information included in the syntax of the current coding unit, which is in the current coding unit and outside of a syntax of the prediction unit, to determine whether the mode information included in the syntax of the current coding unit indicates whether the first mode or the second mode has been applied to the current coding unit; and perform adding that, (1) when the syntax of the current coding unit indicates the first mode, adds the residual decoded image and the predictive image to each other to generate and output a reconstructed image and, (2) when the syntax of the current coding unit indicates the second mode, adds the differential image and the predictive image to each other to generate and output a reconstructed image without the inverse quantization process and the inverse orthogonal transformation process being performed.
The closest prior arts Han and Sole Royals fail to anticipate or render the above underlined limitation obvious.
Any comments considered necessary by applicant must be submitted no later than the payment of the issue fee and, to avoid processing delays, should preferably accompany the issue fee. Such submissions should be clearly labeled “Comments on Statement of Reasons for Allowance.”
Citation of Pertinent Art
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
1. Han et al. (US 2011/0150072), discloses variable decoding with mode indication.
2. Sole Royals et al. (US 2012/0224640), discloses decoding with syntax indication.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to RICHARD T TORRENTE whose telephone number is (571)270-3702. The examiner can normally be reached M-F: 6:45-3:15 pm.
Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Jay Patel can be reached at (571) 272-2988. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/RICHARD T TORRENTE/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2485