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 .
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, 7, 8 and 14 and 17 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Liu et al., U.S. Patent Publication Number 2011/0096136 A1.
Regarding claim 1, Liu discloses a method for generating an image, comprising: obtaining M original images of a target scene captured by M image acquisition devices, wherein each image acquisition device of the M image acquisition devices provides a different viewpoint of the target scene (paragraph 0017, obtaining local panoramic images and audios, photographing images through a panoramic camera from different perspectives), and M is a positive integer greater than or equal to 8 (paragraph 0054, multi-camera array (panoramic camera in the multi-camera array mode); FIG. 4(E), which illustrates 9 cameras); performing, for each original image of the M original images, an image deformation process on the original image, based on depth information of the original image and internal and external parameters of the image acquisition device, to obtain a deformed image (paragraph 0055, estimate the internal parameters (such as focal length, principal point, and distortion) of multiple cameras and the inter-camera location parameters (such as spin matrix, and translation vector); paragraph 0059, feature extraction algorithm such as Scale-Invariant Feature Transform (SIFT) algorithm; coordinate transformation), wherein, in the image deformation process, pixel points of some regions in the original image are offset and mapped to other position in the deformed image, to change an image structure of the original image (paragraph 0059, two images can be spliced together through coordinate transformations, and the pixels in the overlap are aligned; use cylindrical coordinate transformation to convert the planar coordinates into cylindrical coordinates; in the cylindrical coordinates, the pixels are aligned through image translation); and performing a splicing process on M deformed images subjected to the image deformation process, to obtain an omni-directional stereo panoramic image (paragraph 0054, multiple images are photographed and spliced digitally to obtain a panoramic image; paragraph 0059, two images can be spliced together through coordinate transformation, and the pixels in the overlap are aligned; use cylindrical coordinate transformation convert the planar coordinates into cylindrical coordinates).
Regarding claim 7, Liu discloses wherein view frustums of respective image acquisition devices of the M image acquisition devices are fitted to each other, and the original images are RGB depth images (paragraph 0061, the panoramic camera is made up of several ordinary color cameras; FIG. 4E cameras fitted to each other).
Regarding claims 8, 14 and 15. They are rejected based upon similar rational as above.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 4-6, 11-13 and 18-20 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:
The prior art cited fails to disclose wherein performing, for each original image of the M original images, the image deformation process on the original image, based on depth information of the original image and internal and external parameters of the image acquisition device, to obtain the deformed image comprises: converting pixel coordinates of each mesh vertex of the original image into camera three-dimensional coordinates in the omni-directional stereo camera coordinate system, based on the depth information and the internal and external parameters of the image acquisition device; converting the camera three-dimensional coordinates in the omni-directional stereo camera coordinate system into spherical three-dimensional coordinates in the omni-directional stereo spherical coordinate system, and generating a three-dimensional mesh model based on the spherical three-dimensional coordinates; and performing a mesh smoothing process on the three-dimensional mesh model, and flattening the three-dimensional mesh model subjected to the mesh smoothing process, to obtain an omni-directional stereo flat mesh model as the deformed image.
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed 06/12/2026 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive.
Applicant argues the prior art cited, Liu, fails to disclose an image deformation process which changes the image structure of the original image. Examiner responds Liu discloses paragraph 0059, feature extraction algorithm such as Scale-Invariant Feature Transform (SIFT) algorithm; coordinate transformation and further discloses paragraph 0059, two images can be spliced together through coordinate transformations, and the pixels in the overlap are aligned; use cylindrical coordinate transformation to convert the planar coordinates into cylindrical coordinates; in the cylindrical coordinates, the pixels are aligned through image translation. Examiner therefore responds Liu discloses an image transformation, i.e. image translation.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Lei et al., U.S. Patent Publication Number 2015/0294640 A1
Lei discloses paragraph 0014, a first sub-processing module, configured to capture the horizontal pixel points with the maximum number of the display window of the preset size according to the preset abscissa to acquire horizontal pixel points of the display window of the preset size, and adopt vertical longitudinal points of a resolution of the original video image as vertical longitudinal pixel points of the display window of the preset size.
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 nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) 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 mailing date of this final action.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Motilewa Good-Johnson whose telephone number is (571)272-7658. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Friday 6am-2:30pm.
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MOTILEWA . GOOD JOHNSON
Primary Examiner
Art Unit 2616
/MOTILEWA GOOD-JOHNSON/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2619
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