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 .
Drawings
The drawings are objected to as failing to comply with 37 CFR 1.84(p)(5) because they do not include the following reference sign(s) mentioned in the description: 291. Corrected drawing sheets in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(d) are required in reply to the Office action to avoid abandonment of the application. Any amended replacement drawing sheet should include all of the figures appearing on the immediate prior version of the sheet, even if only one figure is being amended. Each drawing sheet submitted after the filing date of an application must be labeled in the top margin as either “Replacement Sheet” or “New Sheet” pursuant to 37 CFR 1.121(d). If the changes are not accepted by the examiner, the applicant will be notified and informed of any required corrective action in the next Office action. The objection to the drawings will not be held in abeyance.
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 1-15 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 1 recites the limitations "the type of content" and “the first content” in line 5. There is insufficient antecedent basis for these two limitations in the claim.
Claim 3 recites the limitation "the requested opening video" line 3. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim. Note: There was a request for “data” not for “an opening video”.
Claim 4 recites the limitation "the second service" in line 2. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim.
Claim 5 recites the limitation "the second service" in line 3. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim.
Claim 6 recites the limitations "the type of content" and “the result” in line 2. There is insufficient antecedent basis for these two limitations in the claim.
Claim 7 recites the limitations "the type of the currently playing content" in line 2; “the second content” in lines 2 – 3; and “the identification” in line 3. There is insufficient antecedent basis for these limitations in the claim.
Claim 8 recites the limitations "the type", “the content” and “the image file” in line 2 and “the second service” in line 3. There is insufficient antecedent basis for these limitations in the claim.
Claim 9 recites the limitations "the…second nudge service data" in line 2 and “the…second format”. There is insufficient antecedent basis for these limitations in the claim.
Claim 10 recites the limitations "the library" and “the first timer” in line 2; “the opening video” and “the server” in line 3; “the capture data”, “the second format” and “the server” in line 4; “the second nudge service data” in line 5 and “the currently playing scree” in lines 5 – 6. There is insufficient antecedent basis for these limitations in the claim.
Claim 12 recites the limitations "the content playing command”. There is insufficient antecedent basis for these limitations in the claim.
Claim 13 recites the limitation "the second format" in line 2. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim.
Claim 14 recites the limitations "the type of the content" in line 1 and “the second content” in line 2. There is insufficient antecedent basis for these limitations in the claim.
Claim 15 recites the limitations "the content being played" in line 3; “the type of the content” in line 4 and “the content” in line 6. There is insufficient antecedent basis for these limitations in the claim.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claim 10 is objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if all other rejections for this claim were overcome and it was rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
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) 1 – 4, 12 and 15 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by LI, US Pub. 2018/0262809 A1 (hereinafter Li).
In regards to Claim 1, Li discloses a display device comprising:
a memory (Li: [0052] – [0054], where a device comprises a memory);
a controller configured to control a first service to generate an image file of a first format for a screen of content being played according to a content playback command, and output first nudge service data when the type of content being played is the first content based on the image file of the first format (Li: [0211], where the system comprises a controller and a computer-readable storage medium; [0114], where the image information of the current screen is monitored, where, for example, a logo [first type] of the current playing program will be at the bottom-left or bottom-right corner of the screen, but the logo will disappear once the advertising is displayed; [0101], where a station logo image from top-left corner of the screen can be extracted and matched with the station logo image by image matching algorithms; [0007], where a TV signal switching instruction is received; Fig. 6 and [0117], where a prompt message for switching TV signals is displayed); and
a display configured to output the first nudge service data on a portion of the screen of the content (Li: Fig. 6 and [0117], where the prompt message is displayed on the display module 400 of the device).
Regarding Claim 2, Li discloses the display device according to claim 1, wherein the controller is configured to control to remove a first timer preset for the first service to release a first thread (Li: Fig. 3 and [0161], where the advertising period is obtained from the program list to predetermine the time point of advertising; [0165], where a duration of the advertising spots can be acquired; [0114], where the logo will disappear once entering an advertising), and to set a second timer to generate a second thread (Li: [0168], where the current program remaining time can be determined; [0208], where a left duration of the current broadcasting TV program can be determined and displayed).
Regarding Claim 3, Li discloses the display device according to claim 2, wherein the controller is configured to control to request data for an opening video from the first service to a server and to download data for the requested opening video from the server (Li: [0124], where the first step is to acquire broadcast TV signals and play them; [0132], where VOD pathway of the video program is extracted from the network media repository; [0136], starting to play corresponding video program).
Regarding Claim 4, Li discloses the display device according to claim 3, wherein the controller is configured to control to transmit a request for generating an image file in the first format to the second service based on the second timer set in the first service (Li: [0101], where a station logo may be obtained by extracting a station logo image from top-left corner of the screen shot; Fig. 6 and [0164]-[0167], where a left duration of the current broadcasting TV program can be determined and included in the prompt message).
Regarding Claim 12, Li discloses the display device according to claim 1, wherein the content playing command is a command for one of a power-on request, an input switching request, and a channel change request (Li: [0091], where a broadcast TV program may be switched to on-demand programming).
In regards to Claim 15, Li discloses a method for providing a nudge service in a display device, comprising:
receiving a content playback command (Li: [0007], where a TV signal switching instruction is received);
generating an image file of a specific format for a screen of the content being played (Li: [0114], where the image information of the current screen is monitored, where, for example, a logo of the current playing program will be at the bottom-left or bottom-right corner of the screen, but the logo will disappear once the advertising is displayed; [0101], where a station logo image from top-left corner of the screen can be extracted and matched with the station logo image by image matching algorithms);
generating specific nudge service data according to the type of the content being played based on the generated image file of the specific format (Li: [0114], where the image information of the current screen is monitored, where, for example, a logo [first type] of the current playing program will be at the bottom-left or bottom-right corner of the screen, but the logo will disappear once the advertising is displayed; Fig. 6 and [0117], where a prompt message for switching TV signals is displayed); and
outputting the specific nudge service data on an area of a screen of the content (Li: Fig. 6 and [0117], where the prompt message is displayed on the display module 400 of the device).
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.
The factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness.
Claim(s) 5 – 9, 11 and 14 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Li in view of LEE et al., US Pub. 2022/0053242 A1 (hereinafter Lee).
Regarding Claim 5, discloses the display device according to claim 4. But Li fails to explicitly disclose, wherein the controller is configured to control to perform a dhash operation on an image file in the first format transmitted from the second service in the first service.
Lee from a similar endeavor teaches wherein the controller is configured to control to perform a dhash operation on an image file in the first format transmitted from the second service in the first service (Lee: [0192], where in response to a channel switch command, the controller may change content display by the display from an image of the 10th channel to an image of the 20th channel. When a duration time of the channel has elapsed, the controller may capture content of the 20th channel, perform a hash operation dhash on the capture image, and transmit the capture image to the metadata server).
Because a user must directly search for a product appearing in the content that they wish to purchase and the it may be difficult to find a product that matches the product in the content, there is a need for providing shopping information on products appearing in a current scene by recognizing content currently being viewed by the user and a playback time point, (Lee: [0005]-[0006]). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Li in view of Lee such that an image of Li such as a station logo image (Li:[0101]) could be captured and perform a hash operation dhash on the capture image so that it could be transmitted to the server, as disclosed by Lee, (Lee: [0192]). Thus, the user could be informed of shopping information related to content being viewed by the user and thereby improve accessibility to shopping information, (Lee: [0027]).
Regarding Claim 6, the combined teaching of Li and Lee discloses the display device according to claim 5, wherein the controller is configured to control to identify the type of content currently being played by comparing the result of the dhash operation on the image file in the first format in the first service with hash data pre-stored in a database (Lee: [0174], where the hash library may receive the capture image from the capture module and calculate a hash value of the received capture image and may transmit the calculated hash value to the metadata server and the playback time point of the content corresponding to the hash value by using the data stored in the hash database).
Regarding Claim 7, the combined teaching of Li and Lee discloses the display device according to claim 6, wherein the controller is configured to control to output second nudge service data when the type of the currently playing content is the second content as a result of the identification in the first service (Lee: [0188], where when receiving the command for selecting the shopping icon, the controller may display the shopping information; Fig. 8 and [0193], where when it is determined that content of a switched channel includes shopping information, the controller may display the shopping icon on the content).
Regarding Claim 8, the combined teaching of Li and Lee discloses the display device according to claim 7, wherein the controller is configured to control to identify the type of the content by identifying logo data in the image file of the first format transmitted from the second service in the first service (Li: [0100] – [0101], where station logo of a current broadcasting TV station may be obtained by analyzing a screen of the TV program of broadcast TV signals).
Regarding Claim 9, Li discloses the display device according to claim 1. But Li fails to explicitly disclose, wherein the controller is configured to control to output the first or second nudge service data by obtaining a capture image of the currently playing content in the first or second format at a predetermined interval when the currently playing content is identified in the first service.
Lee from a similar endeavor discloses wherein the controller is configured to control to output the first or second nudge service data by obtaining a capture image of the currently playing content in the first or second format at a predetermined interval when the currently playing content is identified in the first service (Lee: Fig. 5 and [0119] – [0121], where shopping information of content may be displayed by overlapping the content. For example, the shopping information may include information on an image of a product appearing the content, a product name, a product price, etc.; [0122], where the shopping information may include information for a user to purchase the product appearing in the content; [0123], where the shopping information may be provided by dividing products appearing in the content by characters of the content; [0124], where the shopping information may also include music information and place information; [0144], the controller may count a duration time for channel switching; [016t5], where the ACR execution module may acquire an ID of the content).
Because a user must directly search for a product appearing in the content that they wish to purchase and the it may be difficult to find a product that matches the product in the content, there is a need for providing shopping information on products appearing in a current scene by recognizing content currently being viewed by the user and a playback time point, (Lee: [0005]-[0006]). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Li in view of Lee such that an image of Li such as a station logo image (Li:[0101]) could be captured and perform a hash operation dhash on the capture image so that it could be transmitted to the server, as disclosed by Lee, (Lee: [0192]). Thus, the user could be informed of shopping information related to content being viewed by the user and thereby improve accessibility to shopping information, (Lee: [0027]).
Regarding Claim 11, the combined teaching of Li and Lee discloses the display device according to claim 7, wherein the first nudge service data is sponsor nudge service data, and the second nudge service data is a general nudge service data set regardless of the currently playing content (Li: [0114], where the image information of the current screen is monitored, where, for example, a logo of the current playing program will be at the bottom-left or bottom-right corner of the screen, but the logo will disappear once the advertising is displayed; [0101], where a station logo image from top-left corner of the screen can be extracted and matched with the station logo image by image matching algorithms; Fig. 8 and [0135], where the controller may display a shopping icon 50 on the content).
Regarding Claim 14, the combined teaching of Li and Lee discloses the display device according to claim 7, wherein the type of the content is that the first content is a video on demand (VOD) video, and the second content is a live TV video (Li: [0091], where a broadcast TV program can be switched to on-demand programming; Lee: Fig.3 and {0093]-[0094], where user may access live TV by pressing the live button 233 for displaying live broadcast programs).
Claim(s) 13 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Li in view of Schmitz, US Pub. 2015/0365244 A1 (hereinafter Schmitz).
Regarding Claim 13, Li discloses the display device according to claim 12. But Li fails to explicitly disclose, wherein the image file of the first format is YUV image data, and the image file of the second format is JPG image data.
Schmitz, from a similar endeavor, teaches wherein the image file of the first format is YUV image data, and the image file of the second format is JPG image data (Schmitz: [0059], where a converter device 201 can transform a JPG-image in a YUV-image stream, and a converter device 202 converts a motion JPG-image sequence in a YUV-image stream).
It is well known in the art that image files can be converted from one format to another. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Li in view of Schmitz such that the format for the image data is both YUV and JPG as disclosed by Schmitz, (Schmitz: Fig. 2 and [0059]).
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Johnson et al., US Pub. 2015/0326945 A1 teach a content server receiving live media streams which are digital content representing live events. The live streams may be promoted as advertisement to users , thereby making users aware of a live event available to the users of the content server to view live via the live stream, ([0005]).
Nussel et al., US Pub. 2013/0014182 A1 teach that a “While you wait” type game may be presented to a user, such as while the user awaits a requested video download at a Web site and one or more ads may be presented with the game, ([0028]).
Hamsici et al., US Pub. 2017/0094133 A1 teach visual search systems where you start with a database of images and the first step is to train a vocabulary of visual words representative of the whole database and for each image, descriptors are extracted and compared to the vocabulary. A list of hash tags relevant to the images is generated, ([0041] and [0210]).
Examiner’s Note: The Examiner has cited particular paragraphs or columns and line numbers in the references applied to the claims above for the convenience of the applicant. Although the specified citations are representative of the teachings of the art and are applied to specific limitations within the individual claim, other passages and figures may apply as well. It is respectfully requested from the applicant in preparing responses, to fully consider the references in their entirety as potentially teaching all or part of the claimed invention, as well as the context of the passage as taught by the prior art or disclosed by the Examiner.
In the case of amending the claimed invention, Applicant is respectfully requested to indicate the portion(s) of the specification which dictate the structure relied on for proper interpretation and also to verify and ascertain the metes and bounds of the claimed invention.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Cynthia M FOGG whose telephone number is (571)272-2741. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 7:00-3:30.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Nathan Flynn can be reached at (571)272-1915. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/CYNTHIA M FOGG/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2421