Response to Amendment
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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 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) 1-4, 6-10, 15, and 17-20 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Bae et al. (US 20180099661 A1) in view of Fujitani et al. (US 20210300337 A1).
In regard to claim 1, Bae teaches a signal processing apparatus (Bae, Fig. 2, a parking assistance apparatus 100) comprising: circuitry configured to set multiple stop position candidates as candidates of a stop position of a moving body in a free space around a subject moving body based on free space information related to the free space (Bae, Figs. 9-10; Para. 145, in the vehicle surrounding area, an area from a parking lot boundary B1 to a first predetermined distance d1 can be set as a first parking area AA1, and an area from the first parking area AA1 to a second predetermined distance d2 can be set as a first no parking area UA1. Also, in the vehicle surrounding area, an area designated by a no parking sign can be set as a second no parking area UA2 and the area surrounding the building entrance can be set as a third no parking area UA3); Para. 148-149, the processor 170 can detect an empty parking space defined by the virtual parking lines, determine the empty parking space as a candidate parking space and control the display unit 180 to display the candidate parking space; the processor 170 can receive an input selecting one of the candidate parking spaces from the user through the input unit 110 and set the selected candidate parking space as a target parking space), calculate an exit moving path for at least either a moving body already stopped in the free space or moving bodies to be stopped at the stop position candidates to exit from the free space (Bae, Para. 146, the processor 170 can determine or identify the driving corridor area based on the parking area AA, the movement direction D and the movement path of the host vehicle, the parking lot boundary B1, or/and another vehicle 510 in the vehicle surrounding area, and set the driving corridor area as a no parking area UA), delete, from the multiple stop position candidates, a stop position candidate that is arranged on the exit moving path (Bae, Para. 197, the processor 170 can set at least one of a driving corridor area UA, a parking lot entrance surrounding area, a parking lot exit surround area, a building entrance surround area, a pedestrian corridor area, and a no parking sign designation area as the no parking area UA, in the vehicle surrounding area outside the parking line, and set the remaining area as the parking area AA).
Bae does not teach choose a recommended stop position recommended as the stop position of the subject moving body from the remaining stop position candidates, and control movement of the subject moving body to the recommended stop position based on a moving path calculated to the recommended stop position.
However, Fujitani teaches choose a recommended stop position recommended as the stop position of the subject moving body from the remaining stop position candidates (Fujitani, Fig. 7; Para. 91, parking assist apparatus 5A may cause a recommendation mark or the like indicating that the parking space candidate B is a recommended parking space candidate along with the parking space candidate B to be displayed while displaying the parking space candidate B) and control movement of the subject moving body to the recommended stop position based on a moving path calculated to the recommended stop position (Fujitani, Para. 93, parking assist apparatus 5A causes automatic parking in the parking space candidate A existing behind the subject vehicle to be interrupted, and causes a recommendation mark or the like indicating that the parking space candidate B is a recommended parking space candidate along with the parking space candidate B to be displayed; Para. 94, parking assist apparatus 5A can change the recommended parking space candidate considering the movement of the moving object around the subject vehicle. This allows the driver to actively select the other parking space candidate B where parking of the subject vehicle is allowed even immediately before or after starting the automatic parking in the parking space candidate A. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the parking time of the subject vehicle from being greatly extended).
Bae and Fujitani are analogous art because they both pertain to parking assistance system.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to someone of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to include system generated recommendation based on situation around the subject vehicle (as taught by Fujitani) resulting in predictable result of assisting in selecting one of the candidate parking spaces.
In regard to claim 2, Combination of Bae and Fujitani teach the signal processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the circuitry is further configured to present to a user, at least either the multiple stop position candidates or the recommended stop position in the free space Bae teaches (Bae, Fig. 11B, Para. 158, a display area DA illustrated in FIG. 11B can include an image showing a portion of the generated virtual parking lines VL and the vehicle surrounding area displayed on the display unit 180).
In regard to claim 3, Combination of Bae and Fujitani teach the signal processing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the circuitry is further configured to present a reason for recommending the recommended stop position (Fujitani, Fig. 9; Para. 107, the evaluation values and the like of the respective parking space candidates are displayed. In this way, the evaluation values of the respective parking space candidates calculated based on the contents set on the setting screen for setting the parking conditions are displayed with being composed with actual images of the parking space candidates. This screen enables presenting, to the driver, the evaluation values reflecting the states of the other vehicles (the parking vehicle(s), the preceding vehicle(s), and the succeeding vehicle(s)) and the like).
In regard to claim 4, Combination of Bae and Fujitani teach the signal processing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the circuitry is further configured to present a reason why the stop position candidates not chosen as the recommended stop position by the choosing section are not recommended as the stop position of the subject moving body (Fujitani, Fig. 9; Para. 107, the evaluation values and the like of the respective parking space candidates are displayed. In this way, the evaluation values of the respective parking space candidates calculated based on the contents set on the setting screen for setting the parking conditions are displayed with being composed with actual images of the parking space candidates. This screen enables presenting, to the driver, the evaluation values reflecting the states of the other vehicles (the parking vehicle(s), the preceding vehicle(s), and the succeeding vehicle(s)) and the like).
In regard to claim 6, Combination of Bae and Fujitani teach the signal processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the free space information includes information representing a position and orientation of a moving body already stopped in the free space (Bae, Fig. 13A; Para. 166, When another vehicle 510 parked in the vehicle surrounding area is detected, the processor 170 extracts a boundary surface 510L of the another vehicle 510 based on a vehicle movement direction D and a parking pattern of the parked vehicle 510, determines an area inside the boundary line BL as a parking area AA based on the boundary line BL extending from the boundary surface 510L of the parked vehicle 510), and the circuitry is further configured to set the stop position candidates depending on the position and orientation of the moving body already stopped in the free space (Bae, Fig. 13B; Para. 169, since the another vehicle 510 has been parked according to the right angle parking method based on the lateral direction of the host vehicle 700, virtual parking lines VL for the right angle parking method can be generated. Thereafter, virtual parking lines VL can be drawn based on the parking spot of the another vehicle 510 for the right angle parking method, in order to form a candidate parking space (e.g., spaces on the left or right of the parked car 510)).
In regard to claim 7, Combination of Bae and Fujitani teach the signal processing apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the circuitry is further configured to set the stop position candidates which are arranged in parallel with the orientation of the moving body already stopped in the free space (Bae, Fig. 15C; Para. 176, since the other vehicles 510 are parked according to the parallel parking method based on the lateral direction of the vehicle 700, when the parking area AA is located outside the another vehicle 510 located at the outermost position, virtual parking lines VL for the parallel parking method can be generated to form a candidate parking space).
In regard to claim 8, Combination of Bae and Fujitani teach the signal processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the circuitry is further configured to choose the recommended stop position based on preference information regarding a user (Fujitani, Para. 112, when the congestion level of the block A near the entrance of the second floor is 50% and the congestion level of the block B near the exit of the second floor is 20%, the block closer to the entrance of the floor can be displayed as a recommended block, for example, even if the congestion level thereof is high, depending on the preference of the driver).
In regard to claim 9, Combination of Bae and Fujitani teach the signal processing apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the preference information represents a preference of the user about at least either a size of a space around the subject moving body or a moving path of the user to a facility associated with the free space (Fujitani, Para. 112, parking assist apparatus 5A can grasp a congestion level of a three-dimensional parking lot of a department store where the driver frequently visits by using information indicating a congestion level for each floor, information indicating a congestion level for each parking block in each floor, and/or the like, which are delivered from the three-dimensional parking lot. When the congestion levels of blocks A and B on the second floor are different from each other, an evaluation criterion for the congestion level for each block may be set. For example, when the congestion level of the block A near the entrance of the second floor is 50% and the congestion level of the block B near the exit of the second floor is 20%, the block closer to the entrance of the floor can be displayed as a recommended block, for example, even if the congestion level thereof is high, depending on the preference of the driver).
In regard to claim 10, Combination of Bae and Fujitani teach the signal processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the circuitry is further configured to communicate with a server that manages a moving body to be stopped in the free space, and set the stop position candidates based on management information acquired from the server (Fujitani, Fig. 3-4; Para. 62-63, The information transmitted from the external device 20 may include, for example, information delivered from the management server, vehicle information transmitted from another vehicle, and/or the like. The information delivered from the management server may include, for example, an image captured by a camera installed in the parking lot, movement detection information detected by a motion sensor installed in the parking lot, and/or the like. If a communication device is built in these devices, moving route calculator 62f can directly receive and use the information delivered from these devices).
In regard to claim 15, Combination of Bae and Fujitani teach the signal processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the circuitry is further configured to decide as the stop position of the subject moving body, a position chosen by the user from the multiple stop position candidates (Bae, Para. 148-149, the processor 170 can detect an empty parking space defined by the virtual parking lines, determine the empty parking space as a candidate parking space and control the display unit 180 to display the candidate parking space. The processor 170 can receive an input selecting one of the candidate parking spaces from the user through the input unit 110 and set the selected candidate parking space as a target parking space).
In regard to claim 17, Combination of Bae and Fujitani teach the signal processing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the circuitry is further configured to present a moving path to a position chosen by the user from the multiple stop position candidates (Bae, Para. 149, the processor 170 designs a parking path for directing the vehicle from a current position to the target parking space and controls the vehicle to follow the parking path by controlling the steering, engine power, braking, or the like of the vehicle, thus performing automatic parking).
In regard to claim 18, Combination of Bae and Fujitani teach the signal processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the circuitry is further configured to acquire the free space information (Bae, Para. 88, the sensor unit 155 can detect an object around the vehicle and acquire information about a vehicle surrounding environment for automatic parking. Specifically, the sensor unit 155 can detect one or more boundary lines of the parking lot by detecting a curb or the like, and acquire information about various entrances, a parking pattern of another vehicle or vehicles, a “no-parking” sign, or the like, as environmental information on the vehicle surrounding environment) based on an image acquired by capturing an image of a surrounding of the subject moving body (Bae, Para. 98, The processor 170 can synthesize images captured in all directions and provide an around view image or surrounding view image as viewed from the top of the vehicle. Upon generating the around view image, boundary portions between the image regions occur. Such boundary portions can be subjected to image blending and/or stitching for natural display)
In regard to claim 19, the claim is interpreted and rejected for the same reasons as stated in the rejection of claim 1 as stated above.
In regard to claim 20, the claim is interpreted and rejected for the same reasons as stated in the rejection of claim 1 as stated above.
Claim(s) 11-13 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Bae et al. (US 20180099661 A1) in view of Fujitani et al. (US 20210300337 A1) and further in view of Bostick et al. (US 20170092130 A1).
In regard to claim 11, Combination of Bae and Fujitani do not specifically teach the signal processing apparatus according to claim 10, wherein the management information includes at least either a size of a moving body stopped in the free space in a past time or preference information regarding a user of a moving body stopped in the free space in a past time.
However, Bostick teaches wherein the management information includes at least either a size of a moving body stopped in the free space in a past time or preference information regarding a user of a moving body stopped in the free space in a past time (Bostick, Fig. 4, Parking selection server 210; Para. 81, The driver profile repository 305 may include a data storage device (e.g., storage system 34 of FIG. 1) that stores a driver profile identifying preferences for a driver associated with a particular vehicle. These preferences may include criteria for parking spaces form which parking spaces may be scored and selected for the driver. The preferences may be provided in advance by the driver via a web portal using a computing device, e.g., a desktop computing device, a laptop computing device, a smart phone, a tablet, etc. For example, the driver profile repository 305 may store preferences indicating whether the driver requires a handicap space, whether the driver prefers closer spaces or farther spaces, e.g., if the driver prefers to walk, if the driver prefers spaces that permits the driver to pull forward into the space and pull forward out of the space, etc. In embodiments the driver profile repository 305 may store attributes of parking spaces historically selected for the user and/or attributes of parking spaced in which the user/driver has historically parked).
Bae, Fujitani, and Bostick are analogous art because they all pertain to parking assistance system.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to someone of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to include server with driver profiles (as taught by Bostick) in order to provide better recommendation in selecting parking space.
In regard to claim 12, Combination of Bae, Fujitani, and Bostick teach the signal processing apparatus according to claim 10, wherein the management information includes at least either a size of a moving body to be stopped in the free space in a future time or preference information regarding a user of a moving body to be stopped in the free space in a future time (Bostick, Fig. 4, Parking selection server 210; Para. 67, When a vehicle enters the parking facility, vehicle identification information may be obtained by the parking selection server 210. Based on obtaining the vehicle identification information, the parking selection server 210 may obtain a stored driver profile, and score the open parking spaces based on criteria identified in the driver profile and the attributes of the open parking spaces (at step 1.3). For example, as described herein, the driver profile may include criteria, such as vehicle size, driver needs, driver interests, driver preferences, attributes of parking spaces in which the driver has previously parked, etc. Additionally, or alternatively, the driver profile may identify driver activity, such as information identified in the driver's calendar, published shopping lists, social media activity, etc.).
In regard to claim 13, Combination of Bae, Fujitani, and Bostick teach the signal processing apparatus according to claim 10, wherein the circuitry is further configured to transmit to the server, a size of the subject moving body and preference information regarding a user of the subject moving body, along with information representing a free space where the subject moving body is to be stopped in a future time (Bostick, Para. 76-77, the user device 225 may communicate with the parking selection server 210 to provide driver profile information, such as driver preferences, interests, etc.; the vehicle interface system 230 may output vehicle identification information to parking selection server 210; Para. 67, Based on obtaining the vehicle identification information, the parking selection server 210 may obtain a stored driver profile, and score the open parking spaces based on criteria identified in the driver profile and the attributes of the open parking spaces (at step 1.3). For example, as described herein, the driver profile may include criteria, such as vehicle size, driver needs, driver interests, driver preferences, attributes of parking spaces in which the driver has previously parked, etc. Additionally, or alternatively, the driver profile may identify driver activity, such as information identified in the driver's calendar, published shopping lists, social media activity, etc.).
Claim(s) 16 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Bae et al. (US 20180099661 A1) in view of Fujitani et al. (US 20210300337 A1) and further in view of Hayakawa (US 20180315312 A1).
In regard to claim 16, Combination of Bae and Fujitani do not specifically teach the signal processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the circuitry is further configured to decide the recommended stop position as the stop position of the subject moving body.
However, the concept of setting the recommended parking space as the target parking space is well known in the art as also taught by Hayakawa. Hayakawa teaches setting a parking space suitable for parking of a subject vehicle among detected available parking spaces as a recommended available parking space in accordance with the traveling state of the subject vehicle, displaying the recommended available parking space on a display, setting the recommended available parking space displayed on the display as a target parking space for the subject vehicle on the basis of an operation by a driver or passenger, and performing automated control of the subject vehicle to park the subject vehicle into the target parking space (Hayakawa, Para. 5).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to someone of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to set the recommended parking space as the target parking space (as taught by Hayakawa) resulting in predictable result of presenting to the driver a recommended available parking space suitable for the automated driving.
Response to Arguments
Response to amended claims is considered above in claim Rejections.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claim 21 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.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter:
With regard to claim 21, Fujitani teaches the evaluation values and the like of the respective parking space candidates are displayed (even ones that are not recommended). In this way, the evaluation values of the respective parking space candidates calculated based on the contents set on the setting screen for setting the parking conditions are displayed with being composed with actual images of the parking space candidates. This screen enables presenting, to the driver, the evaluation values reflecting the states of the other vehicles (the parking vehicle(s), the preceding vehicle(s), and the succeeding vehicle(s)) and the like (Fig. 9; Para. 107) but does not teach the signal processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the circuitry is further configured to display a stop position candidate that is not recommended based on the stop position candidate blocking an exit moving path. Therefore, prior art of record neither anticipates nor renders obvious the claim limitations.
Conclusion
Applicant's amendment necessitated the new ground(s) of rejection presented in this Office action. Accordingly, THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. See MPEP § 706.07(a). Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any extension fee pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the date of this final action.
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/SHARMIN AKHTER/
Examiner, Art Unit 2689
/DAVETTA W GOINS/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2689