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and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114.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 03/05/2026 has been entered.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to claim(s) 1, 15, 16 have been considered but are moot because the new ground of rejection does not rely on any reference applied in the prior rejection of record for any teaching or matter specifically challenged in the argument.
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) 1-16 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over US 2015/0141113 by Melnick et al. in view of US 9,483,982 by Reddy et al.
Regarding claim 1, Melnick et al. discloses a video display ambient lighting synchronisation device comprising:
a device housing (fig. 1);
an integral streaming media playback module housed within the device housing and configured to stream media from a streaming media service via a data interface (fig. 2, 9, paragraph 0042 teaches “Electronic gaming system 200 may include video/multimedia server 202, which may be coupled to network 224 via a network link 214. Network 224 may be the Internet, a private network, and/or a network cloud. One or more video streams may be received at video/multimedia server 202 from other electronic gaming devices 100. Video/multimedia server 202 may transmit one or more of these video streams to a mobile phone 230, electronic gaming device 100, a remote electronic gaming device at a different location in the same property 216, a remote electronic gaming device at a different location 218, a laptop 222, and/or any other remote electronic device 220. Video/multimedia server 202 may transmit these video streams via network link 214 and/or network 224.”, paragraph 0071 teaches “Display 318 may show video streams from one or more content sources. Display 318 may encompass first display screen 102, second display screen 104, third display screen 106, side display screen 108, and/or another screen used for displaying video content.”, paragraph 0116 teaches “In FIG. 9, another flow diagram for game play 900 is shown, according to one embodiment. The method may include generating one or more presentations (step 902). The method may include synchronizing one or more ambient light presentations to the one or more generated presentations (step 904). The method may include presenting the one or more synchronized ambient light presentations and the synchronized one or more generated presentations (step 906). The method may include obtaining one or more player inputs (step 908).”);
a control interface configured for controlling playback of the streaming media playback module (in addition to discussion above, paragraph 0089 teaches “Synchronization module 428 may match, interrelate, and/or synchronize one or more presentations with each other, one or more ambient lighting shows with each other, one or more presentations with one or more ambient lighting shows, and/or any combination thereof.”, paragraph 0116 teaches “The method may include modifying the one or more synchronized ambient light presentations and/or the synchronized one or more generated presentations based on one or more player inputs (step 910). In one example, a flash light presentation may be presented on one or more displays on electronic gaming machine while one or more ambient light shows which are based on the flash light presentation may be generated by one or more light emitters and one or more light sensors. In this example, the one or more ambient light shows may be synchronized with the flash light presentation so that the one or more ambient light shows appear to be an extension of the flash light presentation. Further, a player may provide input on where the flash light should be pointed to (e.g., trying to find a treasure chest, etc.). Therefore, the flash light presentation would be modified based on this player input along with the one or more ambient light shows. It should be noted that the flash light presentation and the one or more ambient light shows could still be synchronized together after one or more player inputs.”);
a strip controller housed within the device housing (fig. 1); and
a video output port configured to connect to digital display with LED lights positioned to provide ambient lighting operably interfacing the streaming media playback module, wherein the video output port outputs video signals from the streaming media playback module and the strip controller outputs LED strip control signals to the LED lights according to the video signals (in addition to discussion above, fig. 5, paragraph 0093-0094 teaches “The one or more ambient light sensors, the one or more light emitter strips, and/or the one or more light emitters may be flush with a surface, protruding from a surface, concaved with a surface, and/or any combination thereof…. In various examples, the size and/or orientation of the light emitter strips may be any size, orientation, and/or shape. For example, a light emitter strip may run the entire outer diameter of cabinet 522 and/or pedestal 524 (see FIG. 5E). In another example, there may be any number (e.g., 1-N) of light emitter strips. In addition, the light emitter strip may be half the size of cabinet 522. In addition, the light emitter strip may be the entire size or more of cabinet 522 (see FIG. 5C)..”, paragraph 0149 teaches “In a hardware implementation, for example, a processing unit may be implemented within one or more application specific integrated circuits ("ASICs"), digital signal processors ("DSPs"), digital signal processing devices ("DSPDs"), programmable logic devices ("PLDs"), field programmable gate arrays ("FPGAs"), processors, controllers, micro-controllers, microprocessors, electronic devices, other devices units designed to perform the functions described herein, or combinations thereof.”).
Melnick et al. fails to disclose a video output port configured to connect to a separate, external digital display.
Reddy et al. discloses a video output port configured to connect to a separate, external digital display (col. 4 lines 45-52 teaches “The television backlighting apparatus 110 is intended for use in conjunction with a television 104 compatible with receiving a High-Definition Multimedia Interface (HDMI) data stream from an HDMI source 102. The HDMI source 102 is typically a cable TV set-top box, a Blu-ray player, a media player, a gaming console, or other device capable of outputting an HDMI video and audio signal.”).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filling date of the claimed invention to incorporate the ability to include a video output port configured to connect to a separate, external digital display, as taught by Reddy et al. into the system of Melnick et al., because such incorporation would allow more options to output video for display in the playback device, thus increase user flexibility of the system.
Regarding claim 2, the device further comprising a microcontroller operably interfacing the streaming media playback module (in addition to discussion above, Melnick et al., paragraph 0149 teaches “In a hardware implementation, for example, a processing unit may be implemented within one or more application specific integrated circuits ("ASICs"), digital signal processors ("DSPs"), digital signal processing devices ("DSPDs"), programmable logic devices ("PLDs"), field programmable gate arrays ("FPGAs"), processors, controllers, micro-controllers, microprocessors, electronic devices, other devices units designed to perform the functions described herein, or combinations thereof.”).
Regarding claim 3, the device wherein a wireless interface operably interfaces the microcontroller and wherein a serial bus interface operably interfaces the microcontroller and the streaming media playback module and wherein the microcontroller is configured with wireless router access credentials and content is streamed to the streaming media playback module via the serial bus interface and the wireless interface (in addition to discussion above, Melnick et al., paragraph 0052 teaches “Network 224 may be a local area network, a casino premises network, a wide area network, a virtual private network, an enterprise private network, the Internet, or any combination thereof. Hardware components, such as network interface cards, repeaters and hubs, bridges, switches, routers, firewalls, or any combination thereof may also be part of network 224.”).
Regarding claim 4, the device wherein a wireless interface operably interfaces the microcontroller and wherein the microcontroller is configured to receive control signals from an electronic device via the wireless interface (in addition to discussion above, Melnick et al., paragraph 0148 teaches “As used herein, the term "mobile device" refers to a device that may from time to time have a position that changes. Such changes in position may comprise of changes to direction, distance, and/or orientation. In particular examples, a mobile device may comprise of a cellular telephone, wireless communication device, user equipment, laptop computer, other personal communication system ("PCS") device, personal digital assistant ("PDA"), personal audio device ("PAD"), portable navigational device, or other portable communication device. A mobile device may also comprise of a processor or computing platform adapted to perform functions controlled by machine-readable instructions.”).
Regarding claim 5, the device wherein the microcontroller is configured to control the strip controller according to the control signals (in addition to discussion above, Melnick et al., paragraph 0149 teaches “In a hardware implementation, for example, a processing unit may be implemented within one or more application specific integrated circuits ("ASICs"), digital signal processors ("DSPs"), digital signal processing devices ("DSPDs"), programmable logic devices ("PLDs"), field programmable gate arrays ("FPGAs"), processors, controllers, micro-controllers, microprocessors, electronic devices, other devices units designed to perform the functions described herein, or combinations thereof.”).
Regarding claim 6, the device wherein the control signals comprise at least one of colour, brightness and operational mode control of the controller (in addition to discussion above, Melnick et al., paragraph 0094 teaches “In FIG. 5B, first light emitter strip 528 may be assembled from metal, a plastic body, a rubber body (and/or any other material and/or any combination thereof). Further, a clear plastic and/or glass cover may be utilized to emit light. In another example, light emitter strip may include one or more light emitters 530. In one example, the light emitters may be multi-color LEDs (any/or any other lighting source) containing red, green, and blue elements whose intensity can be mixed to produce any color. These LEDs may have a diffused white lens that blends the colors without any additional diffusers or reflectors. The LEDs may be chosen for their viewing angle (e.g., wide, narrow, and/or any combination thereof). In one example, the length of first light emitter strip 528 may be half the size of cabinet 522 and/or pedestal 524. In various examples, the size and/or orientation of the light emitter strips may be any size, orientation, and/or shape. For example, a light emitter strip may run the entire outer diameter of cabinet 522 and/or pedestal 524 (see FIG. 5E). In another example, there may be any number (e.g., 1-N) of light emitter strips. In addition, the light emitter strip may be half the size of cabinet 522. In addition, the light emitter strip may be the entire size or more of cabinet 522 (see FIG. 5C). In other examples, the light emitter strip's length may be 1%, 2%, 5%, 8%, 10%, 12.5%, 15%, 20%, 25%, 40%, 65%, 75%, 80%, 82%, etc. of cabinet 522 and/or pedestal 524. In various examples, the light emitter strip's orientation may be vertical, horizontal, diagonal, and/or any combination thereof. In various examples, the light emitter strip may be an S shape, a line shape (see FIG. 5B), a T shape, a L shape (see FIG. 5C), an O shape, a P shape, a Z shape, a Y shape, an elliptical shape, etc.”).
Regarding claim 7, the device wherein the microcontroller is configured to control the streaming media playback module according to the control signals (in addition to discussion above, Melnick et al., paragraph 0028 teaches “Input device 112 may be mechanical buttons, electronic buttons, mechanical switches, electronic switches, optical switches, a slot pull handle, a keyboard, a keypad, a touch screen, a gesture screen, a joystick, a pointing device (e.g., a mouse), a virtual (on-screen) keyboard, a virtual (on-screen) keypad, biometric sensor, or any combination thereof. Input device 112 may be utilized to make a wager, to select one or more ambient light functionalities, to obtain player's point balances, to obtain any player point data, to control any object, to select one or more pattern gaming options, to obtain data relating to historical payouts, to select a row and/or column to move, to select a row area to move, to select a column area to move, to select a symbol (or image) to move, to modify electronic gaming device 100 (e.g., change sound level, configuration, font, language, etc.), to select a movie or song, to select live multi-media streams, to request services (e.g., drinks, slot attendant, manager, etc.), to select two-dimensional ("2D") game play, to select three-dimensional ("3D") game play, to select both two-dimensional and three-dimensional game play, to change the orientation of games in a three-dimensional space, to move a symbol (e.g., wild, multiplier, etc.), and/or any combination thereof. These selections may occur via any other input device (e.g., a touch screen, voice commands, etc.). Input device 112 may be any control panel.”).
Regarding claim 8, the device wherein the control signals comprise at least one of playback control and audio control of the streaming media playback device (in addition to discussion above, Melnick et al., paragraph 0028 teaches “… to modify electronic gaming device 100 (e.g., change sound level, configuration, font, language, etc.), to select a movie or song, to select live multi-media streams, to request services (e.g., drinks, slot attendant, manager, etc.), to select two-dimensional ("2D") game play, to select three-dimensional ("3D") game play, to select both two-dimensional and three-dimensional game play, to change the orientation of games in a three-dimensional space, to move a symbol (e.g., wild, multiplier, etc.), and/or any combination thereof. These selections may occur via any other input device (e.g., a touch screen, voice commands, etc.). Input device 112 may be any control panel.”, paragraph 0032 teaches “Identification device 118 may be utilized to determine an identity of a player. Based on information obtained by identification device 118, electronic gaming device 100 may be reconfigured. In another example, the language, sound level, music, placement of multi-media streams, one or more game functionalities (e.g., game type 1, game type 2, game type 3, etc.) may be presented, a repeat payline gaming option may be presented, a pattern gaming option may be presented, historical gaming data may be presented, a row rearrangement option may be presented, a column rearrangement option may be presented, a row area rearrangement option may be presented, a column area rearrangement option may be presented, a two-dimensional gaming option may be presented, a three-dimensional gaming option may be presented, and/or the placement of gaming options may be modified based on player preference data. For example, the player may only want to play games that include ambient light gaming options only. Therefore, only games which include ambient light gaming options would be presented to the player. In another example, the player may only want to play games that include historical information relating to game play. Therefore, only games which include historical gaming data would be presented to the player. These examples may be combined.”).
Regarding claim 9, the device further comprising an infrared interface operably interfacing the streaming media playback module (in addition to discussion above, Melnick et al., paragraph 0034 teaches “First display screen 102 may be a liquid crystal display ("LCD"), a cathode ray tube display ("CRT"), organic light-emitting diode display ("OLED"), plasma display panel ("PDP"), electroluminescent display ("ELD"), a light-emitting diode display ("LED"), or any other display technology. First display screen 102 may be used for displaying primary games or secondary (bonus) games, to display that the electronic gaming machine supports universal player cards, to display one or more warnings relating to game security, advertising, player attractions, electronic gaming device 100 configuration parameters and settings, game history, accounting meters, events, alarms, and/or any combination thereof. Second display screen 104, third display screen 106, side display screen 108, and any other screens may utilize the same technology as first display screen 102 and/or any combination of technologies.”).
Regarding claim 10, the device wherein the device comprises a serial bus interface for the streaming media playback module (in addition to discussion above, Melnick et al., paragraph 0052 teaches “Network 224 may be a local area network, a casino premises network, a wide area network, a virtual private network, an enterprise private network, the Internet, or any combination thereof. Hardware components, such as network interface cards, repeaters and hubs, bridges, switches, routers, firewalls, or any combination thereof may also be part of network 224.”).
Regarding claim 11, the device wherein the device further comprises a video input and a video switch, the video switch operably interfacing the streaming media playback module, the video input and the video output and wherein input selection of the video switch is controllable to output video from the video input and the streaming media playback module (in addition to discussion above, Melnick et al., paragraph 0028 teaches “Input device 112 may be mechanical buttons, electronic buttons, mechanical switches, electronic switches, optical switches, a slot pull handle, a keyboard, a keypad, a touch screen, a gesture screen, a joystick, a pointing device (e.g., a mouse), a virtual (on-screen) keyboard, a virtual (on-screen) keypad, biometric sensor, or any combination thereof. Input device 112 may be utilized to make a wager, to select one or more ambient light functionalities, to obtain player's point balances, to obtain any player point data, to control any object, to select one or more pattern gaming options, to obtain data relating to historical payouts, to select a row and/or column to move, to select a row area to move, to select a column area to move, to select a symbol (or image) to move,”, paragraph 0052 teaches “Network 224 may be a local area network, a casino premises network, a wide area network, a virtual private network, an enterprise private network, the Internet, or any combination thereof. Hardware components, such as network interface cards, repeaters and hubs, bridges, switches, routers, firewalls, or any combination thereof may also be part of network 224.”).
Regarding claim 12, the device wherein the device comprises a pair of video inputs operably interfacing the video switch (in addition to discussion above, Melnick et al., paragraph 0028 teaches “Input device 112 may be mechanical buttons, electronic buttons, mechanical switches, electronic switches, optical switches, a slot pull handle, a keyboard, a keypad, a touch screen, a gesture screen, a joystick, a pointing device (e.g., a mouse), a virtual (on-screen) keyboard, a virtual (on-screen) keypad, biometric sensor, or any combination thereof. Input device 112 may be utilized to make a wager, to select one or more ambient light functionalities, to obtain player's point balances, to obtain any player point data, to control any object, to select one or more pattern gaming options, to obtain data relating to historical payouts, to select a row and/or column to move, to select a row area to move, to select a column area to move, to select a symbol (or image) to move,”).
Regarding claim 13, the device further comprising a microcontroller operably interfacing the video switch and wherein the microcontroller is configured to control the input selection of the video switch (in addition to discussion above, Melnick et al., paragraph 0028 teaches “Input device 112 may be mechanical buttons, electronic buttons, mechanical switches, electronic switches, optical switches, a slot pull handle, a keyboard, a keypad, a touch screen, a gesture screen, a joystick, a pointing device (e.g., a mouse), a virtual (on-screen) keyboard, a virtual (on-screen) keypad, biometric sensor, or any combination thereof. Input device 112 may be utilized to make a wager, to select one or more ambient light functionalities, to obtain player's point balances, to obtain any player point data, to control any object, to select one or more pattern gaming options, to obtain data relating to historical payouts, to select a row and/or column to move, to select a row area to move, to select a column area to move, to select a symbol (or image) to move,”, paragraph 0148-0149).
Regarding claim 14, the device wherein a wireless interface operably interfaces the microcontroller and wherein the microcontroller is configured to receive control signals from an electronic device via the wireless interface to control the input selection of the video switch (as discussed above in claim 13).
Claim 15 is rejected for the same reason as discussed in the corresponding claim 1 above.
Regarding claim 16, a method comprising:
connecting an LED strip with LED lights positioned on or around a digital display to provide ambient lighting, to a strip controller housed within a device housing of a video display ambient lighting synchronisation device (fig. 5B, paragraph 0094 teaches “The LEDs may be chosen for their viewing angle (e.g., wide, narrow, and/or any combination thereof). In one example, the length of first light emitter strip 528 may be half the size of cabinet 522 and/or pedestal 524. In various examples, the size and/or orientation of the light emitter strips may be any size, orientation, and/or shape. For example, a light emitter strip may run the entire outer diameter of cabinet 522 and/or pedestal 524 (see FIG. 5E). In another example, there may be any number (e.g., 1-N) of light emitter strips.”));
connecting the digital display to a video output (fig. 5A); and
operating a streaming media playback module housed within the device housing to stream content through a port in the streaming media playback module, configured to connect to the digital display and the LED lights (in addition to discussion above, fig. 5, paragraph 0093-0094 teaches “The one or more ambient light sensors, the one or more light emitter strips, and/or the one or more light emitters may be flush with a surface, protruding from a surface, concaved with a surface, and/or any combination thereof…. In various examples, the size and/or orientation of the light emitter strips may be any size, orientation, and/or shape. For example, a light emitter strip may run the entire outer diameter of cabinet 522 and/or pedestal 524 (see FIG. 5E). In another example, there may be any number (e.g., 1-N) of light emitter strips. In addition, the light emitter strip may be half the size of cabinet 522. In addition, the light emitter strip may be the entire size or more of cabinet 522 (see FIG. 5C)..”, paragraph 0149 teaches “In a hardware implementation, for example, a processing unit may be implemented within one or more application specific integrated circuits ("ASICs"), digital signal processors ("DSPs"), digital signal processing devices ("DSPDs"), programmable logic devices ("PLDs"), field programmable gate arrays ("FPGAs"), processors, controllers, micro-controllers, microprocessors, electronic devices, other devices units designed to perform the functions described herein, or combinations thereof.”), wherein:
the video output port outputs video signals from the streaming media playback module and the strip controller outputs LED strip control signals to the LED lights according to the video signals (in addition to discussion above, paragraph 0042 teaches “Electronic gaming system 200 may include video/multimedia server 202, which may be coupled to network 224 via a network link 214. Network 224 may be the Internet, a private network, and/or a network cloud. One or more video streams may be received at video/multimedia server 202 from other electronic gaming devices 100. Video/multimedia server 202 may transmit one or more of these video streams to a mobile phone 230, electronic gaming device 100, a remote electronic gaming device at a different location in the same property 216, a remote electronic gaming device at a different location 218, a laptop 222, and/or any other remote electronic device 220. Video/multimedia server 202 may transmit these video streams via network link 214 and/or network 224.”, paragraph 0071 teaches “Display 318 may show video streams from one or more content sources. Display 318 may encompass first display screen 102, second display screen 104, third display screen 106, side display screen 108, and/or another screen used for displaying video content.”, paragraph 0094 teaches “In FIG. 5B, first light emitter strip 528 may be assembled from metal, a plastic body, a rubber body (and/or any other material and/or any combination thereof). Further, a clear plastic and/or glass cover may be utilized to emit light. In another example, light emitter strip may include one or more light emitters 530. In one example, the light emitters may be multi-color LEDs (any/or any other lighting source) containing red, green, and blue elements whose intensity can be mixed to produce any color. These LEDs may have a diffused white lens that blends the colors without any additional diffusers or reflectors. The LEDs may be chosen for their viewing angle (e.g., wide, narrow, and/or any combination thereof). In one example, the length of first light emitter strip 528 may be half the size of cabinet 522 and/or pedestal 524. In various examples, the size and/or orientation of the light emitter strips may be any size, orientation, and/or shape. For example, a light emitter strip may run the entire outer diameter of cabinet 522 and/or pedestal 524 (see FIG. 5E). In another example, there may be any number (e.g., 1-N) of light emitter strips. In addition, the light emitter strip may be half the size of cabinet 522. In addition, the light emitter strip may be the entire size or more of cabinet 522 (see FIG. 5C). In other examples, the light emitter strip's length may be 1%, 2%, 5%, 8%, 10%, 12.5%, 15%, 20%, 25%, 40%, 65%, 75%, 80%, 82%, etc. of cabinet 522 and/or pedestal 524. In various examples, the light emitter strip's orientation may be vertical, horizontal, diagonal, and/or any combination thereof. In various examples, the light emitter strip may be an S shape, a line shape (see FIG. 5B), a T shape, a L shape (see FIG. 5C), an O shape, a P shape, a Z shape, a Y shape, an elliptical shape, etc.”).
Melnick et al. fails to disclose the digital display is separated from the device housing.
Reddy et al. discloses the digital display is separated from the device housing (col. 4 lines 45-52 teaches “The television backlighting apparatus 110 is intended for use in conjunction with a television 104 compatible with receiving a High-Definition Multimedia Interface (HDMI) data stream from an HDMI source 102. The HDMI source 102 is typically a cable TV set-top box, a Blu-ray player, a media player, a gaming console, or other device capable of outputting an HDMI video and audio signal.”).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filling date of the claimed invention to incorporate the ability to include the digital display is separated from the device housing, as taught by Reddy et al. into the system of Melnick et al., because such incorporation would allow more options to output video for display in the playback device, thus increase user flexibility of the system.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to NIGAR CHOWDHURY whose telephone number is (571)272-8890. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 9AM-5PM.
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, Thai Tran can be reached at 571-272-7382. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000.
/NIGAR CHOWDHURY/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2484