CTNF 18/893,469 CTNF 94578 DETAILED ACTION Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status 07-03-aia AIA 15-10-aia 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 07-06 AIA 15-10-15 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. 07-07-aia AIA 07-07 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 – 07-08-aia AIA (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. 07-12-aia AIA (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. 07-15-aia AIA Claim(s) 1-2, 8, 17, & 19-20 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102 (a)(1) as being anticipated by US 2020/0202705A1 (“Sakai”) . As per claim 1 Sakai discloses A control device that controls operation of a mobile body, comprising a processor (see at least Sakai, para. [0026]: FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of the vehicle control system provided with the vehicle control device according to one embodiment. The vehicle control system 1 includes a plurality of vehicles 2 that is an example of the autonomous driving vehicle that can perform autonomous traveling, and a server 3 that is an example of the vehicle control device. ) , wherein the processor is configured to: specify, in a case where an abnormal state occurs in a plurality of mobile bodies that are performing automated driving autonomously or through remote control, at least one mobile body to be preferentially handled as a target mobile body, from among the plurality of mobile bodies, based on a state of the plurality of mobile bodies (see at least Sakai, para. [0028-0032]: The server 3 tracks the vehicle 2 based on a position of the vehicle 2, received therefrom. Then, for example, when the vehicle 2 notifies the server 3 that an abnormality has occurred, the server 3 prepares a travel instruction corresponding to the abnormality that has occurred, and transmits the prepared travel instruction to the vehicle 2 via the communication network 4 and the wireless base station 5…Thereafter, with reference to the traffic information at the current position of the vehicle 2 and the vehicle state in received from the vehicle 2, the server 3 detects a candidate of the abnormality that may have occurred in the vehicle 2 itself or around the vehicle 2, and causes a monitoring operator to check whether an abnormality has actually occurred with respect to the abnormality candidate…Moreover, the server 3 determines the priority according to the content of the abnormality (step S108). ) ; and perform control of taking necessary measures on the target mobile body (see at least Sakai, para. [0032-0034]: The ECU of the vehicle 2 controls traveling of the subject vehicle according to the travel instruction received from the server 3 (step S113). Upon receiving the travel instruction the ECU of the vehicle 2 immediately controls traveling of the subject vehicle according to the travel instruction. Therefore, even when the vehicle 2 first receives the travel instruction and then additionally receives a modified travel instruction, the ECU starts control of traveling of the subject vehicle according to the travel instruction first received. Then, when receiving modified travel instruction, the ECU controls traveling of the subject vehicle according to the modified travel instruction. ) . As per claim 2 Sakai discloses wherein: the automated driving performed through the remote control includes automated driving in which the plurality of mobile bodies travel by receiving a travel condition generated by the control device, not based on remote operations by an operator located at a remote location (see at least Sakai, para. [0026-0027]: FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of the vehicle control system provided with the vehicle control device according to one embodiment. The vehicle control system 1 includes a plurality of vehicles 2 that is an example of the autonomous driving vehicle that can perform autonomous traveling, and a server 3 that is an example of the vehicle control device. ) ; and the processor is configured to specify at least one mobile body that preferentially performs the automated driving autonomously or through the remote control as the target mobile body, from among the plurality of mobile bodies detected as being in the abnormal state (see at least Sakai, para. [0028-0032]: The server 3 tracks the vehicle 2 based on a position of the vehicle 2, received therefrom. Then, for example, when the vehicle 2 notifies the server 3 that an abnormality has occurred, the server 3 prepares a travel instruction corresponding to the abnormality that has occurred, and transmits the prepared travel instruction to the vehicle 2 via the communication network 4 and the wireless base station 5…Thereafter, with reference to the traffic information at the current position of the vehicle 2 and the vehicle state in received from the vehicle 2, the server 3 detects a candidate of the abnormality that may have occurred in the vehicle 2 itself or around the vehicle 2, and causes a monitoring operator to check whether an abnormality has actually occurred with respect to the abnormality candidate…Moreover, the server 3 determines the priority according to the content of the abnormality (step S108). ) , and perform control to cause the target mobile body to perform the automated driving autonomously or through the remote control (see at least Sakai, para. [0032-0034]: The ECU of the vehicle 2 controls traveling of the subject vehicle according to the travel instruction received from the server 3 (step S113). Upon receiving the travel instruction the ECU of the vehicle 2 immediately controls traveling of the subject vehicle according to the travel instruction. Therefore, even when the vehicle 2 first receives the travel instruction and then additionally receives a modified travel instruction, the ECU starts control of traveling of the subject vehicle according to the travel instruction first received. Then, when receiving modified travel instruction, the ECU controls traveling of the subject vehicle according to the modified travel instruction. ) . As per claim 8 Sakai discloses wherein the target mobile body includes a mobile body presently positioned outdoors (see at least Sakai, para. [0027]: The vehicle 2 may be, for example, a vehicle used for a taxi service or a ride share service, or a vehicle usable only by a specific user. Alternatively, the vehicle 2 may be used or transporting luggage. The vehicle 2 autonomously travels along a travel route to a travel destination, such as a location at which a user on board exits from the vehicle 2 or a location at which the user scheduled to board the vehicle hoards the vehicle 2. ) . As per claim 17 Sakai discloses wherein the processor is configured to: specify at least one mobile body to be preferentially collected by driving of an operator on board as the target mobile body, from among the plurality of mobile bodies detected as being in the abnormal state (see at least Sakai, para. [0025]: In addition, examples of the travel instruction include an instruction to designate a lane (for example, a travel lane, a passing lane, or a climbing lane) on which the autonomous driving vehicle should travel, an instruction to designate the upper or lower limit of the vehicle speed, an instruction to maintain the current vehicle speed, an instruction to decelerate by a designated speed, an instruction to stop the autonomous driving vehicle, an instruction to stat t the stopped autonomous driving vehicle, an instruction to maintain an inter-vehicle distance with a vehicle traveling ahead, and an instruction to perform manual driving by a user on board (hereinafter, sometimes referred to as an “occupant”). ) ; and notify the operator of instruction of collecting the target mobile body, together with information necessary for collecting (see at least Sakai, para. [0032]: Then, the server 3 notifies the instruction terminal of the content of the notified or sensed abnormality, and the content of the transmitted travel instruction (step S109). Here, when the abnormality is notified or sensed in associated with a plurality of vehicles 2, the server 3 notifies the content of the travel instruction and the like to the instruction terminal in the order from the vehicle 2 with the highest priority. ) . As per claim 19 Sakai discloses A method by which a computer controls a mobile body performing automated driving autonomously or through remote control not based on remote operations by an operator located at a remote location (see at least Sakai, para. [0026]: FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of the vehicle control system provided with the vehicle control device according to one embodiment. The vehicle control system 1 includes a plurality of vehicles 2 that is an example of the autonomous driving vehicle that can perform autonomous traveling, and a server 3 that is an example of the vehicle control device. ) , the method comprising: specifying, in a case where an abnormal state occurs in a plurality of mobile bodies that are performing the automated driving autonomously or through the remote control, at least one mobile body to preferentially perform the automated driving autonomously or through the remote control as a target mobile body, from among the plurality of mobile bodies (see at least Sakai, para. [0028-0032]: The server 3 tracks the vehicle 2 based on a position of the vehicle 2, received therefrom. Then, for example, when the vehicle 2 notifies the server 3 that an abnormality has occurred, the server 3 prepares a travel instruction corresponding to the abnormality that has occurred, and transmits the prepared travel instruction to the vehicle 2 via the communication network 4 and the wireless base station 5…Thereafter, with reference to the traffic information at the current position of the vehicle 2 and the vehicle state in received from the vehicle 2, the server 3 detects a candidate of the abnormality that may have occurred in the vehicle 2 itself or around the vehicle 2, and causes a monitoring operator to check whether an abnormality has actually occurred with respect to the abnormality candidate…Moreover, the server 3 determines the priority according to the content of the abnormality (step S108). ) ; and performing control to cause the target mobile body to perform the automated driving autonomously or through the remote control (see at least Sakai, para. [0032-0034]: The ECU of the vehicle 2 controls traveling of the subject vehicle according to the travel instruction received from the server 3 (step S113). Upon receiving the travel instruction the ECU of the vehicle 2 immediately controls traveling of the subject vehicle according to the travel instruction. Therefore, even when the vehicle 2 first receives the travel instruction and then additionally receives a modified travel instruction, the ECU starts control of traveling of the subject vehicle according to the travel instruction first received. Then, when receiving modified travel instruction, the ECU controls traveling of the subject vehicle according to the modified travel instruction. ) . As per claim 20 Sakai discloses A method by which a computer controls a mobile body performing automated driving autonomously or through remote control not based on remote operations by an operator located at a remote location (see at least Sakai, para. [0026]: FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of the vehicle control system provided with the vehicle control device according to one embodiment. The vehicle control system 1 includes a plurality of vehicles 2 that is an example of the autonomous driving vehicle that can perform autonomous traveling, and a server 3 that is an example of the vehicle control device. ) , the method comprising: specify, in a case where an abnormal state occurs in a plurality of mobile bodies being performing the automated driving autonomously or through the remote control, at least one mobile body for which the automated driving based on the remote operations by the operator is to be preferentially started as a target mobile body, from among the plurality of mobile bodies (see at least Sakai, para. [0028-0032]: The server 3 tracks the vehicle 2 based on a position of the vehicle 2, received therefrom. Then, for example, when the vehicle 2 notifies the server 3 that an abnormality has occurred, the server 3 prepares a travel instruction corresponding to the abnormality that has occurred, and transmits the prepared travel instruction to the vehicle 2 via the communication network 4 and the wireless base station 5…Thereafter, with reference to the traffic information at the current position of the vehicle 2 and the vehicle state in received from the vehicle 2, the server 3 detects a candidate of the abnormality that may have occurred in the vehicle 2 itself or around the vehicle 2, and causes a monitoring operator to check whether an abnormality has actually occurred with respect to the abnormality candidate…Moreover, the server 3 determines the priority according to the content of the abnormality (step S108). ) ; and performing control of starting the automated driving based on the remote operations by the operator for the target mobile body (see at least Sakai, para. [0032-0034]: The ECU of the vehicle 2 controls traveling of the subject vehicle according to the travel instruction received from the server 3 (step S113). Upon receiving the travel instruction the ECU of the vehicle 2 immediately controls traveling of the subject vehicle according to the travel instruction. Therefore, even when the vehicle 2 first receives the travel instruction and then additionally receives a modified travel instruction, the ECU starts control of traveling of the subject vehicle according to the travel instruction first received. Then, when receiving modified travel instruction, the ECU controls traveling of the subject vehicle according to the modified travel instruction. ) . Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103 07-20-aia AIA 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. 07-20-02-aia AIA This application currently names joint inventors. In considering patentability of the claims the examiner presumes that the subject matter of the various claims was commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the claimed invention(s) absent any evidence to the contrary. Applicant is advised of the obligation under 37 CFR 1.56 to point out the inventor and effective filing dates of each claim that was not commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the later invention in order for the examiner to consider the applicability of 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(2)(C) for any potential 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) prior art against the later invention. 07-23-aia AIA 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. 07-21-aia AIA Claim (s) 3-4 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Sakai, in view of US 2022/0084398A1 (“Zhang”) . As per claim 3 Sakai does not explicitly disclose wherein the target mobile body includes a mobile body, for which a distance from a present position to a location at which a downstream process is performed is equal to or less than a distance determined in advance Zhang teaches wherein the target mobile body includes a mobile body, for which a distance from a present position to a location at which a downstream process is performed is equal to or less than a distance determined in advance (see at least Zhang, para. [0039]: FIG. 3A depicts a road link 301a bifurcates into a downstream road link 301b and a downstream road link 301c at an intersection point. In this embodiment, the system 100 can define a distance threshold d1 for vehicle trace points in a buffer area (e.g., a circle area 303a) around the intersection point to filter away the vehicle trace points in the circle area 303a. By way of example, the distance threshold can be determined based on a predicted error associated with map-matching a probe point to a road link. In other words, the location of a probe point falling within the circle area303a may not be known with enough certainty (e.g., certainty beyond the distance threshold or probe map matching error) to be able to determine on which of the road links 301a, 301b, or 301c the probe point should be map matched. ) . It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Sakai to incorporate the teaching of wherein the target mobile body includes a mobile body, for which a distance from a present position to a location at which a downstream process is performed is equal to or less than a distance determined in advance of Zhang, with a reasonable expectation of success, for detecting and/or verifying a traffic incident (e.g., a road closure) on one of nearby paths that are susceptible to location sensor errors digital map errors, and/or map mis-matching errors (see at least Zhang, para. [0003]). As per claim 4 Sakai does not explicitly disclose wherein the target mobile body includes a mobile body, for which a distance from a present position to a location at which an upstream process is performed is equal to or less than a distance determined in advance Zhang teaches wherein the target mobile body includes a mobile body, for which a distance from a present position to a location at which an upstream process is performed is equal to or less than a distance determined in advance (see at least Zhang, para. [0066-0068]: In one embodiment, in step 505, the incident detection module 405 can filter the sensor databased on the threshold distances d1 and d2. By way of example, given all the vehicle location datapoints that are map-matched to Link 2 (e.g., the ramp), the incident detection module 405 can exclude those location data points whose distance from the ramp start are shorter than a distance thresholdd1. In addition, the incident detection module 405 can exclude those location data points whose distance from the ramp end are shorter than a distance threshold d2. These distance thresholds d1,d2 in FIG. 6A can be defined either as a fix value or as the total length of the ramp multiplied by a ratio(e.g., ratio is configurable). This means only the vehicle location data points in the downstream of d1and upstream of d2 are extracted. If no vehicle location data points in-between d1 and d2, the incident detection module 405 can take the ) . It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Sakai to incorporate the teaching of wherein the target mobile body includes a mobile body, for which a distance from a present position to a location at which an upstream process is performed is equal to or less than a distance determined in advance of Zhang, with a reasonable expectation of success, for detecting and/or verifying a traffic incident (e.g., a road closure) on one of nearby paths that are susceptible to location sensor errors digital map errors, and/or map mis-matching errors (see at least Zhang, para. [0003]) . 07-21-aia AIA Claim (s) 5 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Sakai, in view of US 2023/0260378A1 (“Goossens”) . As per claim 5 Sakai does not explicitly disclose wherein the target mobile body includes the mobile body, for which a time since a present time until a set expected shipping datetime is equal to or less than a time determined in advance. Goossens teaches wherein the target mobile body includes the mobile body, for which a time since a present time until a set expected shipping datetime is equal to or less than a time determined in advance (see at least Goossens, para. [0012]: To avoid these issues, a processing unit of the autonomous vehicle may detect when the autonomous vehicle is delayed based on one or more timers or thresholds or in jeopardy of missing a . Once the autonomous vehicle has waited beyond this threshold time, the autonomous vehicle or another device associated with the warehouse's operations (e.g., orchestration server, worker computers, worker mobile devices) may trigger an annunciator of the autonomous vehicle (e.g., flashing lights, sounding a siren, presenting a notification on a user interface), trigger one or more annunciators situated around the warehouse, or transmit notifications to client devices of the warehouse (e.g., worker computers, worker mobile devices, orchestrator device, other autonomous vehicles). The annunciator intends to notify nearby workers who can address a problem quickly or help expedite the autonomous vehicle's next job. The annunciator may be located on the autonomous vehicle (e.g., a light(s) positioned on the autonomous vehicle), on shelving near the autonomous vehicle, and/or on other fixtures or structure of the warehouse. The annunciator may indicate an urgency due to a , a battery, a critically battery, or other condition. ) . It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Sakai to incorporate the teaching of wherein the target mobile body includes the mobile body, for which a time since a present time until a set expected shipping datetime is equal to or less than a time determined in advance of Goossens, with a reasonable expectation of success, in order to reduce the delay in a current shipment, and helps avoid problems in later shipments (see at least Goossens, para. [0003]) . 07-21-aia AIA Claim (s) 6, 11, 14-16, & 18 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Sakai, in view of US 2021/0029510A1 (“Arai”) . As per claim 6 Sakai does not explicitly disclose wherein the target mobile body includes a mobile body, for which no stationary object is present on an expected travel route Arai teaches wherein the target mobile body includes a mobile body, for which no stationary object is present on an expected travel route (see at least Arai, para. [0143]: As illustrated in FIG. 9, image 32 b displayed by display device 30 includes images 35 to 37 respectively for vehicles M1, etc. For example, image 35 is an image based on image data captured by one or more cameras in vehicle M1 (an example of an attention vehicle) whose monitoring priority level is high. Likewise, images 36 and 37 are each an image based on image data captured by one or more cameras in a vehicle (an example of other vehicle), such as vehicle M2, etc., whose monitoring priority level is lower than that of vehicle M1. Thus, the presentation information may include information for displaying image 35 of vehicle M1 whose monitoring priority level is high in a larger area than each of images 36 and 37 of vehicle M2, etc. whose monitoring priority levels are lower than that of vehicle M1. ) . It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Sakai to incorporate the teaching of wherein the target mobile body includes a mobile body, for which no stationary object is present on an expected travel route of Arai, with a reasonable expectation of success, in order to reduce a monitoring load on a monitor (see at least Arai, para. [0012]). As per claim 11 Sakai discloses wherein: automated driving in which the plurality of mobile bodies travels by receiving a travel condition generated by the control device, not based on the remote operations by the operator (see at least Sakai, para. [0026-0027]: FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of the vehicle control system provided with the vehicle control device according to one embodiment. The vehicle control system 1 includes a plurality of vehicles 2 that is an example of the autonomous driving vehicle that can perform autonomous traveling, and a server 3 that is an example of the vehicle control device. ) . However Sakai does not explicitly the automated driving performed through the remote control includes automated driving in which the plurality of mobile bodies travels based on remote operations performed by an operator using an operator input device provided at a different location from the mobile body, and the processor is configured to specify at least one mobile body for which the automated driving based on the remote operations by the operator is to be preferentially started as the target mobile body, from among the plurality of mobile bodies detected as being in the abnormal state, and perform control of starting the automated driving based on the remote operations by the operator for the target mobile body. Arai teaches the automated driving performed through the remote control includes automated driving in which the plurality of mobile bodies travels based on remote operations performed by an operator using an operator input device provided at a different location from the mobile body (see at least Arai, para. [0069]: remote monitoring system (hereafter also simply referred to as "monitoring system") obtains a sensing result from a monitored vehicle via a communication means, and notifies the sensing result to a monitor. The monitor recognizes the state of the monitored vehicle and the state of the surroundings of the monitored vehicle based on the notified sensing result, and determines whether intervention of an operator is requested for the monitored vehicle. The monitor may examine an appropriate intervention method, including a method whereby the operator indirectly controls the monitored vehicle. In the case where the monitor determines that autonomous running of the monitored vehicle is difficult, the monitor requests the operator to perform remote operation. ) , and the processor is configured to specify at least one mobile body for which the automated driving based on the remote operations by the operator is to be preferentially started as the target mobile body, from among the plurality of mobile bodies detected as being in the abnormal state (see at least Arai, para. [0050]: Thus, the monitor can determine whether the vehicle is requested to be monitored, by checking the presentation information that takes into account the travel time and the work time. That is, the monitor can specify a vehicle to be preferentially monitored, from the perspective of the total time of the time for the vehicle to reach the second position from the current position and the time to complete monitoring or operation. For example, the monitor can secure, before the vehicle reaches the second position, a time required for monitoring or operation of the vehicle in the second position, and then monitor the vehicle. ) , and perform control of starting the automated driving based on the remote operations by the operator for the target mobile body (see at least Arai, para. [0050]: Thus, the monitor can determine whether the vehicle is requested to be monitored, by checking the presentation information that takes into account the travel time and the work time. That is, the monitor can specify a vehicle to be preferentially monitored, from the perspective of the total time of the time for the vehicle to reach the second position from the current position and the time to complete monitoring or operation. For example, the monitor can secure, before the vehicle reaches the second position, a time required for monitoring or operation of the vehicle in the second position, and then monitor the vehicle. & para. [0069]: remote monitoring system (hereafter also simply referred to as "monitoring system") obtains a sensing result from a monitored vehicle via a communication means, and notifies the sensing result to a monitor. The monitor recognizes the state of the monitored vehicle and the state of the surroundings of the monitored vehicle based on the notified sensing result, and determines whether intervention of an operator is requested for the monitored vehicle. The monitor may examine an appropriate intervention method, including a method whereby the operator indirectly controls the monitored vehicle. In the case where the monitor determines that autonomous running of the monitored vehicle is difficult, the monitor requests the operator to perform remote operation. ) . It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Sakai to incorporate the teaching of the automated driving performed through the remote control includes automated driving in which the plurality of mobile bodies travels based on remote operations performed by an operator using an operator input device provided at a different location from the mobile body, and the processor is configured to specify at least one mobile body for which the automated driving based on the remote operations by the operator is to be preferentially started as the target mobile body, from among the plurality of mobile bodies detected as being in the abnormal state, and perform control of starting the automated driving based on the remote operations by the operator for the target mobile body of Arai, with a reasonable expectation of success, in order to reduce a monitoring load on a monitor (see at least Arai, para. [0050]). As per claim 14 Sakai does not explicitly disclose wherein the target mobile body includes a mobile body capable of providing visual information to be used for the operator located at a remote location to remotely operate the mobile body Arai teaches wherein the target mobile body includes a mobile body capable of providing visual information to be used for the operator located at a remote location to remotely operate the mobile body (see at least Arai, para. [0143]: As illustrated in FIG. 9, image 32 b displayed by display device 30 includes images 35 to 37 respectively for vehicles M1, etc. For example, image 35 is an image based on image data captured by one or more cameras in vehicle M1 (an example of an attention vehicle) whose monitoring priority level is high. Likewise, images 36 and 37 are each an image based on image data captured by one or more cameras in a vehicle (an example of other vehicle), such as vehicle M2, etc., whose monitoring priority level is lower than that of vehicle M1. Thus, the presentation information may include information for displaying image 35 of vehicle M1 whose monitoring priority level is high in a larger area than each of images 36 and 37 of vehicle M2, etc. whose monitoring priority levels are lower than that of vehicle M1. Image 35 is an example of a first image included in first information, and images 36 and 37 are each an example of a second image included in second information. That is, the presentation information may include information for displaying the first image in a larger area than the second image. ) . It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Sakai to incorporate the teaching of wherein the target mobile body includes a mobile body capable of providing visual information to be used for the operator located at a remote location to remotely operate the mobile body of Arai, with a reasonable expectation of success, in order to reduce a monitoring load on a monitor (see at least Arai, para. [0012]). As per claim 15 Sakai discloses wherein the target mobile body includes a mobile body located on a path along which the operator located at a remote location has caused the mobile body to travel based on the remote operations (see at least Sakai, para. [0024]: The vehicle state information includes, for example, the vehicle speed, whether any part of the vehicle is broken, and whether the air-bag works. When the instruction operator checks the content of the travel instruction, and determines that it is better to modify the content of the travel instruction or it is better to transmit an additional travel instruction, the vehicle control device prepares a modified or added travel instruction in response to an operation of the instruction operator, and transmits the modified or added travel instruction to the autonomous driving vehicles via the communication network. As such, the vehicle control device can appropriately control the autonomous driving vehicles even when any abnormality occurs around the autonomous driving vehicles or in the autonomous driving vehicles themselves. ) . As per claim 16 Sakai does not explicitly disclose wherein the target mobile body includes a mobile body with no object that hinders travel of the mobile body present around the mobile body in a case where travel of the mobile body based on remote operations by the operator located at a remote location is started Arai teaches wherein the target mobile body includes a mobile body with no object that hinders travel of the mobile body present around the mobile body in a case where travel of the mobile body based on remote operations by the operator located at a remote location is started (see at least Arai, para. [0143]: As illustrated in FIG. 9, image 32 b displayed by display device 30 includes images 35 to 37 respectively for vehicles M1, etc. For example, image 35 is an image based on image data captured by one or more cameras in vehicle M1 (an example of an attention vehicle) whose monitoring priority level is high. Likewise, images 36 and 37 are each an image based on image data captured by one or more cameras in a vehicle (an example of other vehicle), such as vehicle M2, etc., whose monitoring priority level is lower than that of vehicle M1. Thus, the presentation information may include information for displaying image 35 of vehicle M1 whose monitoring priority level is high in a larger area than each of images 36 and 37 of vehicle M2, etc. whose monitoring priority levels are lower than that of vehicle M1. ) . It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Sakai to incorporate the teaching of wherein the target mobile body includes a mobile body with no object that hinders travel of the mobile body present around the mobile body in a case where travel of the mobile body based on remote operations by the operator located at a remote location is started of Arai, with a reasonable expectation of success, in order to reduce a monitoring load on a monitor (see at least Arai, para. [0012]). As per claim 18 Sakai does not explicitly disclose wherein the target mobile body includes a mobile body with no object that hinders travel of the mobile body present in a case where travel of the mobile body based on driving by the operator on board the mobile body is started Arai teaches wherein the target mobile body includes a mobile body with no object that hinders travel of the mobile body present in a case where travel of the mobile body based on driving by the operator on board the mobile body is started (see at least Arai, para. [0143]: As illustrated in FIG. 9, image 32 b displayed by display device 30 includes images 35 to 37 respectively for vehicles M1, etc. For example, image 35 is an image based on image data captured by one or more cameras in vehicle M1 (an example of an attention vehicle) whose monitoring priority level is high. Likewise, images 36 and 37 are each an image based on image data captured by one or more cameras in a vehicle (an example of other vehicle), such as vehicle M2, etc., whose monitoring priority level is lower than that of vehicle M1. Thus, the presentation information may include information for displaying image 35 of vehicle M1 whose monitoring priority level is high in a larger area than each of images 36 and 37 of vehicle M2, etc. whose monitoring priority levels are lower than that of vehicle M1. ) . It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Sakai to incorporate the teaching of wherein the target mobile body includes a mobile body with no object that hinders travel of the mobile body present in a case where travel of the mobile body based on driving by the operator on board the mobile body is started of Arai, with a reasonable expectation of success, in order to reduce a monitoring load on a monitor (see at least Arai, para. [0012]) . 07-21-aia AIA Claim (s) 7 & 9 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Sakai, in view of US 2020/0109954A1 (“Li”) . As per claim 7 Sakai does not explicitly disclose wherein the target mobile body includes a mobile body of a model planned to be preferentially produced. Li teaches wherein the target mobile body includes a mobile body of a model planned to be preferentially produced (see at least Li, para. [0318]: In some embodiments, the data derived from the map can also be distributed from a vehicle to one or more other vehicle. The vehicles herein may be the same type or different types. In this case, the vehicle, who distributes the data to other vehicles, can be a host vehicle which may be more powerful than other vehicles in terms of processing or storage capability. The other vehicles herein may be in the same geographic area as the host vehicle or in a different geographic area from the host vehicle. The other vehicle herein may communicate with the host vehicle using any suitable communication links, such as short-distance communication techniques. The number of the other vehicles can be any suitable number, for example, one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight or more. In some embodiments, the host can be selected from multiple or designated by the server. ) . It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Sakai to incorporate the teaching of wherein the target mobile body includes a mobile body of a model planned to be preferentially produced of Li, with a reasonable expectation of success, in order to improving the efficiency of data sensing (see at least Li, para. [0012]). As per claim 9 Sakai does not explicitly disclose wherein the target mobile body includes a mobile body presently positioned indoors. Li teaches wherein the target mobile body includes a mobile body presently positioned indoors (see at least Li, para. [0404]: In some embodiments, different sets or combinations of binocular cameras may be selectively activated as the is moving through different of environment (e.g., , outdoor, densely-built areas, open areas, different terrains, altitudes, etc.). ) . It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Sakai to incorporate the teaching of wherein the target mobile body includes a mobile body presently positioned indoors of Li, with a reasonable expectation of success, in order to improving the efficiency of data sensing (see at least Li, para. [0012]) . 07-21-aia AIA Claim (s) 10 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Sakai, in view of US 2022/0363291A1 (“Iwamoto”) . As per claim 10 Sakai discloses wherein the processor is configured to: perform control of starting the automated driving performed through the remote control for the target mobile body in a case where the target mobile body is a mobile body brought into the abnormal state while performing the autonomous driving (see at least Sakai, para. [0024]: The vehicle state information includes, for example, the vehicle speed, whether any part of the vehicle is broken, and whether the air-bag works. When the instruction operator checks the content of the travel instruction, and determines that it is better to modify the content of the travel instruction or it is better to transmit an additional travel instruction, the vehicle control device prepares a modified or added travel instruction in response to an operation of the instruction operator, and transmits the modified or added travel instruction to the autonomous driving vehicles via the communication network. As such, the vehicle control device can appropriately control the autonomous driving vehicles even when any abnormality occurs around the autonomous driving vehicles or in the autonomous driving vehicles themselves. ) . However Sakai does not explicitly disclose perform control of starting the autonomous driving for the target mobile body in a case where the target mobile body is a mobile body brought into the abnormal state while performing the automated driving through the remote control. Iwamoto teaches perform control of starting the autonomous driving for the target mobile body in a case where the target mobile body is a mobile body brought into the abnormal state while performing the automated driving through the remote control (see at least Iwamoto, para. [0059-0060]: When an abnormality occurs in the remote assistance system 4, the remote assistance cannot be provided to the autonomous driving vehicle 1, or the accuracy of the remote assistance is reduced. Then, when an abnormality is detected in the remote assistance system 4, the autonomous driving system 10 executes “retracting processing” for safely retracting the autonomous driving vehicle 1…FIG. 4 is a conceptual diagram used for describing an example of the retracting processing according to the present embodiment. A “target retracting position PE” is a target stop position when causing the autonomous driving vehicle 1 to stop by the retracting processing. The target retracting position PE may be set at a safe position on a road. ) . It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Sakai to incorporate the teaching of perform control of starting the autonomous driving for the target mobile body in a case where the target mobile body is a mobile body brought into the abnormal state while performing the automated driving through the remote control of Iwamoto, with a reasonable expectation of success, in order for the safety of the autonomous driving vehicle and vehicles in its vicinity can be improved (see at least Iwamoto, para. [0077]) . 07-21-aia AIA Claim (s) 12-13 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Sakai, in view of Arai, in view of Zhang . As per claim 12 Sakai does not explicitly disclose wherein the target mobile body includes a mobile body, for which a distance from a present position to a location at which a downstream process is performed is equal to or less than a distance determined in advance Zhang teaches wherein the target mobile body includes a mobile body, for which a distance from a present position to a location at which a downstream process is performed is equal to or less than a distance determined in advance (see at least Zhang, para. [0039]: FIG. 3A depicts a road link 301a bifurcates into a downstream road link 301b and a downstream road link 301c at an intersection point. In this embodiment, the system 100 can define a distance threshold d1 for vehicle trace points in a buffer area (e.g., a circle area 303a) around the intersection point to filter away the vehicle trace points in the circle area 303a. By way of example, the distance threshold can be determined based on a predicted error associated with map-matching a probe point to a road link. In other words, the location of a probe point falling within the circle area303a may not be known with enough certainty (e.g., certainty beyond the distance threshold or probe map matching error) to be able to determine on which of the road links 301a, 301b, or 301c the probe point should be map matched. ) . It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Sakai to incorporate the teaching of wherein the target mobile body includes a mobile body, for which a distance from a present position to a location at which a downstream process is performed is equal to or less than a distance determined in advance of Zhang, with a reasonable expectation of success, for detecting and/or verifying a traffic incident (e.g., a road closure) on one of nearby paths that are susceptible to location sensor errors digital map errors, and/or map mis-matching errors (see at least Zhang, para. [0003]). As per claim 13 Sakai does not explicitly disclose wherein the target mobile body includes a mobile body, for which a distance from a present position to a location at which an upstream process is performed is equal to or less than a distance determined in advance Zhang teaches wherein the target mobile body includes a mobile body, for which a distance from a present position to a location at which an upstream process is performed is equal to or less than a distance determined in advance (see at least Zhang, para. [0066-0068]: In one embodiment, in step 505, the incident detection module 405 can filter the sensor databased on the threshold distances d1 and d2. By way of example, given all the vehicle location datapoints that are map-matched to Link 2 (e.g., the ramp), the incident detection module 405 can exclude those location data points whose distance from the ramp start are shorter than a distance thresholdd1. In addition, the incident detection module 405 can exclude those location data points whose distance from the ramp end are shorter than a distance threshold d2. These distance thresholds d1,d2 in FIG. 6A can be defined either as a fix value or as the total length of the ramp multiplied by a ratio(e.g., ratio is configurable). This means only the vehicle location data points in the downstream of d1and upstream of d2 are extracted. If no vehicle location data points in-between d1 and d2, the incident detection module 405 can take the ) . It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Sakai to incorporate the teaching of wherein the target mobile body includes a mobile body, for which a distance from a present position to a location at which an upstream process is performed is equal to or less than a distance determined in advance of Zhang, with a reasonable expectation of success, for detecting and/or verifying a traffic incident (e.g., a road closure) on one of nearby paths that are susceptible to location sensor errors digital map errors, and/or map mis-matching errors (see at least Zhang, para. [0003]). Conclusion Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to MOHAMED ABDO ALGEHAIM whose telephone number is (571)272-3628. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 8-5PM EST. 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, Fadey Jabr can be reached at 571-272-1516. 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. /MOHAMED ABDO ALGEHAIM/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3668 Application/Control Number: 18/893,469 Page 2 Art Unit: 3668 Application/Control Number: 18/893,469 Page 3 Art Unit: 3668 Application/Control Number: 18/893,469 Page 4 Art Unit: 3668 Application/Control Number: 18/893,469 Page 5 Art Unit: 3668 Application/Control Number: 18/893,469 Page 7 Art Unit: 3668 Application/Control Number: 18/893,469 Page 8 Art Unit: 3668 Application/Control Number: 18/893,469 Page 9 Art Unit: 3668 Application/Control Number: 18/893,469 Page 10 Art Unit: 3668 Application/Control Number: 18/893,469 Page 11 Art Unit: 3668 Application/Control Number: 18/893,469 Page 12 Art Unit: 3668
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