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 .
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to claim(s) 2-6, 8-15, and 17-23 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) 2-6, 8-15, and 17-23 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over George-Svahn et al. (US 11,699,439 B2), hereinafter referred to as George-Svahn, in view of Saddler et al. (US 2018/0308486 A1), hereinafter referred to as Saddler, and further in view of Missig et al. (US 2014/0218372 A1), hereinafter referred to as Missig.
Regarding claim 2, George-Svahn teaches:
A method of operating a head-mounted device, the method comprising:
while a digital assistant is in an inactive mode, receiving, at a sensor of the head-mounted device, a first input via a visual modality, wherein the first input comprises an indication of a gaze of a user of the head-mounted device (col. 4 lines 26-35, and col. 9 lines 40-56, where a current gaze is detected using a gaze sensor of 3D glasses);
processing, by the head-mounted device, the first input to detect a wake instruction, wherein the wake instruction is detected based at least in part on the gaze of the user (col. 9 lines 40-56, and col. 10 lines 4-18, where the assistant wakes and enters a listening mode after detecting the attention of a user via the gaze detection);
in response to detecting the wake instruction, transitioning the digital assistant system to a listening mode (col. 9 lines 40-56, and col. 10 lines 4-18, where the assistant wakes and enters a listening mode after detecting the attention of a user via the gaze detection);
receiving, at the head-mounted device, a second input via a second modality, wherein the second input comprises a user request (col. 5 lines 16-21, where the device receives user speech using a sound sensor, and lines 51-60, where the speech is determined to be a question or another type of statement);
providing the user request to the digital assistant (col. 5 lines 16-21, where the digital assistant detects the speech using the sensor);
receiving, from the digital assistant, a response to the user request (col. 8 lines 47-64, where the speaker is responded to by the digital assistant); and
presenting, via the head-mounted device, the response to the user request (col. 5 lines 61-64, where a response is provided, and col. 1 lines 25-33, where responses are provided using voice channel).
George-Svahn does not teach:
wherein the digital assistant is associated with a companion application executing on a companion device that is communicatively coupled to the head-mounted device, and wherein the companion application is allowed by the companion device to access a computing capacity lower than a threshold capacity while the digital assistant is in the inactive mode;
and indicating to the companion device via non-visual feedback, provided via the head-mounted device, that the digital assistant is in the listening mode, wherein the companion application is allowed by the companion device to access an increased computing capacity that is greater than the threshold capacity while the digital assistant is in the listening mode;
Saddler teaches:
wherein the digital assistant is associated with a companion application executing on a companion device that is communicatively coupled to the head-mounted device (para [0050-51], [0208], where the digital system client portion is distributed across the user device and the second user device, the two devices connected via direct communication connection such as Bluetooth),
and indicating to the companion device via non-visual feedback, provided via the head-mounted device, that the digital assistant is in the listening mode (Fig. 10B, 12A element 1204, para [0281-282], [0308], where continuous white noise is audibly output in an active mode of the assistant),
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system of George-Svahn by using the companion device of Saddler (Saddler para [0050-51]) with the head mounted device of George-Svahn (George-Svahn Fig. 2), to allow the device having limited communication capabilities or battery power to access services provided by the server using the companion device having greater communication capabilities or batter power (Saddler para [0051]).
Missig teaches:
wherein the companion application is allowed by the companion device to access a computing capacity lower than a threshold capacity while the digital assistant is in the inactive mode (para [0134], where the device is in a suspended state or shut down to avoid consuming computing resources, the threshold being any capacity between the active and inactive levels);
wherein the companion application is allowed by the companion device to access an increased computing capacity that is greater than the threshold capacity while the digital assistant is in the listening mode (para [0134], where the digital assistant is activated and consumes computing resources, the threshold being any capacity between the active and inactive levels);
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system of George-Svahn in view of Saddler by tracking the computing resources of Missig (Missig para [0134]) when considering the state of the digital assistant of George-Svahn in view of Saddler (George-Svahn col. 9 lines 40-56, and col. 10 lines 4-18), in order to avoid consumption of the computing resources when the assistant is not required by the user (Missig para [0134]).
Regarding claim 3, George-Svahn in view of Saddler and Missig teaches:
The method of claim 2, wherein the second modality is different from the visual modality (George-Svahn col. 5 lines 16-21, where the device receives user speech using a sound sensor).
Regarding claim 4, George-Svahn in view of Saddler and Missig teaches:
The method of claim 3, wherein the second modality is a voice modality, the second input comprises speech of the user, and the user request is determined based at least in part on the speech of the user (George-Svahn col. 5 lines 16-21, where the device receives user speech using a sound sensor, and lines 51-60, where the speech is determined to be a question or another type of statement).
Regarding claim 5, George-Svahn in view of Saddler and Missig teaches:
The method of claim 2, wherein the digital assistant is installed on the companion device, and the head-mounted device communicates with the companion device via a direct wireless connection between the head-mounted device and the companion device (Saddler para [0050-51], [0208], where the digital system client portion is distributed across the user device and the second user device, the two devices connected via direct communication connection such as Bluetooth).
Regarding claim 6, George-Svahn in view of Saddler and Missig teaches:
The method of claim 5, wherein the digital assistant installed on the companion device communicates with a remote server, and the user request is processed, at least in part, at the remote server (Saddler para [0050-51], where the digital assistant client on the second user device communicates with the digital assistant server, which processes the information and returns relevant data).
Regarding claim 8, George-Svahn in view of Saddler and Missig teaches:
The method of claim 2, wherein the non-visual feedback persists, to provide continuous feedback, while the digital assistant is in the listening mode (Saddler Fig. 10B, 12A element 1204, para [0281-282], [0308], where continuous white noise is audibly output in an active mode of the assistant).
Regarding claim 9, George-Svahn in view of Saddler and Missig teaches:
The method of claim 5, wherein, when the digital assistant is in the inactive mode, the digital assistant executes as a background application of the companion device (Missig para [0134], where the assistant in a suspended state is woken up after receiving a voice input).
Regarding claim 10, George-Svahn in view of Saddler and Missig teaches:
The method of claim 2,
wherein the presented response comprises at least one of: an audio output or a visual output (George-Svahn col. 5 lines 61-64, where a response is provided, and col. 1 lines 25-33, where responses are provided using voice channel).
Regarding claim 11, George-Svahn teaches:
A non-transitory computer-readable medium comprising storing instructions for operating a head-mounted device that, when executed by one or more processors of a computing system (Claim 18, where processors and a computer program product are used), cause the computing system to:
while a digital assistant is in an inactive mode, receive, at a sensor of the head-mounted device, a first input via a visual modality, wherein the first input comprises an indication of a gaze of a user of the head-mounted device (col. 4 lines 26-35, and col. 9 lines 40-56, where a current gaze is detected using a gaze sensor of 3D glasses);
process, by the head-mounted device, the first input to detect a wake instruction, wherein the wake instruction is detected based at least in part on the gaze of the user (col. 9 lines 40-56, and col. 10 lines 4-18, where the assistant wakes and enters a listening mode after detecting the attention of a user via the gaze detection);
in response to detecting the wake instruction, transition the digital assistant to a listening mode (col. 9 lines 40-56, and col. 10 lines 4-18, where the assistant wakes and enters a listening mode after detecting the attention of a user via the gaze detection);
receive, at the head-mounted device, a second input via a second modality, wherein the second input comprises a user request (col. 5 lines 16-21, where the device receives user speech using a sound sensor, and lines 51-60, where the speech is determined to be a question or another type of statement);
provide the user request to the digital assistant (col. 5 lines 16-21, where the digital assistant detects the speech using the sensor);
receive, from the digital assistant, a response to the user request (col. 8 lines 47-64, where the speaker is responded to by the digital assistant); and
present, via the head-mounted device, the response to the user request (col. 5 lines 61-64, where a response is provided, and col. 1 lines 25-33, where responses are provided using voice channel).
George-Svahn does not teach:
wherein the digital assistant is associated with a companion application executing on a companion device that is communicatively coupled to the head-mounted device, and wherein the companion application is allowed by the companion device to access a computing capacity lower than a threshold capacity while the digital assistant is in the inactive mode;
and indicate to the companion device via non-visual feedback, provided via the head-mounted device, that the digital assistant is in the listening mode, wherein the companion application is allowed by the companion device to access an increased computing capacity that is greater than the threshold capacity while the digital assistant is in the listening mode;
Saddler teaches:
wherein the digital assistant is associated with a companion application executing on a companion device that is communicatively coupled to the head-mounted device (para [0050-51], [0208], where the digital system client portion is distributed across the user device and the second user device, the two devices connected via direct communication connection such as Bluetooth),
and indicate to the companion device via non-visual feedback, provided via the head-mounted device, that the digital assistant is in the listening mode (Fig. 10B, 12A element 1204, para [0281-282], [0308], where continuous white noise is audibly output in an active mode of the assistant),
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system of George-Svahn by using the companion device of Saddler (Saddler para [0050-51]) with the head mounted device of George-Svahn (George-Svahn Fig. 2), to allow the device having limited communication capabilities or battery power to access services provided by the server using the companion device having greater communication capabilities or batter power (Saddler para [0051]).
Missig teaches:
wherein the companion application is allowed by the companion device to access a computing capacity lower than a threshold capacity while the digital assistant is in the inactive mode (para [0134], where the device is in a suspended state or shut down to avoid consuming computing resources, the threshold being any capacity between the active and inactive levels);
wherein the companion application is allowed by the companion device to access an increased computing capacity that is greater than the threshold capacity while the digital assistant is in the listening mode (para [0134], where the digital assistant is activated and consumes computing resources, the threshold being any capacity between the active and inactive levels);
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system of George-Svahn in view of Saddler by tracking the computing resources of Missig (Missig para [0134]) when considering the state of the digital assistant of George-Svahn in view of Saddler (George-Svahn col. 9 lines 40-56, and col. 10 lines 4-18), in order to avoid consumption of the computing resources when the assistant is not required by the user (Missig para [0134]).
Regarding claim 12, George-Svahn in view of Saddler and Missig teaches:
The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 11, wherein the second modality is different from the visual modality (George-Svahn col. 5 lines 16-21, where the device receives user speech using a sound sensor).
Regarding claim 13, George-Svahn in view of Saddler and Missig teaches:
The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 12, wherein the second modality is a voice modality, the second input comprises speech of the user, and the user request is determined based at least in part on the speech of the user (George-Svahn col. 5 lines 16-21, where the device receives user speech using a sound sensor, and lines 51-60, where the speech is determined to be a question or another type of statement).
Regarding claim 14, George-Svahn in view of Saddler and Missig teaches:
The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 11, wherein the digital assistant is installed on the companion device, and the head-mounted device communicates with the companion device via a direct wireless connection between the head-mounted device and the companion device (Saddler para [0050-51], [0208], where the digital system client portion is distributed across the user device and the second user device, the two devices connected via direct communication connection such as Bluetooth).
Regarding claim 15, George-Svahn in view of Saddler and Missig teaches:
The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 14, wherein the digital assistant installed on the companion device communicates with a remote server, and the user request is processed, at least in part, at the remote server (Saddler para [0050-51], where the digital assistant client on the second user device communicates with the digital assistant server, which processes the information and returns relevant data).
Regarding claim 17, George-Svahn in view of Saddler and Missig teaches:
The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 11, wherein the non-visual feedback persists, to provide continuous feedback, while the digital assistant is in the listening mode (Saddler Fig. 10B, 12A element 1204, para [0281-282], [0308], where continuous white noise is audibly output in an active mode of the assistant).
Regarding claim 18, George-Svahn in view of Saddler and Missig teaches:
The non-transitory computer-readable medium claim 14, wherein, when the digital assistant is in the inactive mode, the digital assistant executes as a background application of the companion device (Missig para [0134], where the assistant in a suspended state is woken up after receiving a voice input).
Regarding claim 19, George-Svahn in view of Saddler and Missig teaches:
The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 11,
wherein the presented response comprises at least one of: an audio output or a visual output (George-Svahn col. 5 lines 61-64, where a response is provided, and col. 1 lines 25-33, where responses are provided using voice channel).
Regarding claim 20, George-Svahn teaches:
A system, comprising:
one or more processors (Claim 18, where processors are used); and
one or more non-transitory computer-readable media storing instructions for operating a head-mounted device that, when executed by at least one of the one or more processors (Claim 18, where a computer program product is used), cause the system to:
while a digital assistant is in an inactive mode, receive, at a sensor of the head-mounted device, a first input via a visual modality, wherein the first input comprises an indication of a gaze of a user of the head-mounted device (col. 4 lines 26-35, and col. 9 lines 40-56, where a current gaze is detected using a gaze sensor of 3D glasses);
process, by the head-mounted device, the first input to detect a wake instruction, wherein the wake instruction is detected based at least in part on the gaze of the user (col. 9 lines 40-56, and col. 10 lines 4-18, where the assistant wakes and enters a listening mode after detecting the attention of a user via the gaze detection);
in response to detecting the wake instruction, activate an transition the digital assistant to a listening mode (col. 9 lines 40-56, and col. 10 lines 4-18, where the assistant wakes and enters a listening mode after detecting the attention of a user via the gaze detection);
receive, at the head-mounted device, a second input via a second modality, wherein the second input comprises a user request (col. 5 lines 16-21, where the device receives user speech using a sound sensor, and lines 51-60, where the speech is determined to be a question or another type of statement);
provide the user request to the digital assistant (col. 5 lines 16-21, where the digital assistant detects the speech using the sensor);
receive, from the digital assistant, a response to the user request (col. 8 lines 47-64, where the speaker is responded to by the digital assistant); and
present, via the head-mounted device, the response to the user request (col. 5 lines 61-64, where a response is provided, and col. 1 lines 25-33, where responses are provided using voice channel).
George-Svahn does not teach:
wherein the digital assistant is associated with a companion application executing on a companion device that is communicatively coupled to the head-mounted device, and wherein the companion application is allowed by the companion device to access a computing capacity lower than a threshold capacity while the digital assistant is in the inactive mode;
and indicate to the companion device via non-visual feedback, provided via the head-mounted device, that the digital assistant is in the listening mode, wherein the companion application is allowed by the companion device to access an increased computing capacity that is greater than the threshold capacity while the digital assistant is in the listening mode;
Saddler teaches:
wherein the digital assistant is associated with a companion application executing on a companion device that is communicatively coupled to the head-mounted device (para [0050-51], [0208], where the digital system client portion is distributed across the user device and the second user device, the two devices connected via direct communication connection such as Bluetooth),
and indicate to the companion device via non-visual feedback, provided via the head-mounted device, that the digital assistant is in the listening mode (Fig. 10B, 12A element 1204, para [0281-282], [0308], where continuous white noise is audibly output in an active mode of the assistant),
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system of George-Svahn by using the companion device of Saddler (Saddler para [0050-51]) with the head mounted device of George-Svahn (George-Svahn Fig. 2), to allow the device having limited communication capabilities or battery power to access services provided by the server using the companion device having greater communication capabilities or batter power (Saddler para [0051]).
Missig teaches:
wherein the companion application is allowed by the companion device to access a computing capacity lower than a threshold capacity while the digital assistant is in the inactive mode (para [0134], where the device is in a suspended state or shut down to avoid consuming computing resources, the threshold being any capacity between the active and inactive levels);
wherein the companion application is allowed by the companion device to access an increased computing capacity that is greater than the threshold capacity while the digital assistant is in the listening mode (para [0134], where the digital assistant is activated and consumes computing resources, the threshold being any capacity between the active and inactive levels);
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system of George-Svahn in view of Saddler by tracking the computing resources of Missig (Missig para [0134]) when considering the state of the digital assistant of George-Svahn in view of Saddler (George-Svahn col. 9 lines 40-56, and col. 10 lines 4-18), in order to avoid consumption of the computing resources when the assistant is not required by the user (Missig para [0134]).
Regarding claim 21, George-Svahn in view of Saddler and Missig teaches:
The system of claim 20, wherein the second modality is a voice modality, the second input comprises speech of the user, and the user request is determined based at least in part on the speech of the user (George-Svahn col. 5 lines 16-21, where the device receives user speech using a sound sensor, and lines 51-60, where the speech is determined to be a question or another type of statement).
Regarding claim 22, George-Svahn in view of Saddler and Missig teaches:
The method of claim 8, wherein the non-visual feedback comprises audio feedback (Saddler Fig. 10B, 12A element 1204, para [0281-282], [0308], where continuous white noise is audibly output in an active mode of the assistant).
Regarding claim 23, George-Svahn in view of Saddler and Missig teaches:
The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 17, wherein the non-visual feedback comprises audio feedback (Saddler Fig. 10B, 12A element 1204, para [0281-282], [0308], where continuous white noise is audibly output in an active mode of the assistant).
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. US 2022/0068272 A1 para [0058] teaches the virtual assistant program running as a background process while monitoring audio data for a wake word.
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 BRYAN S BLANKENAGEL whose telephone number is (571)270-0685. The examiner can normally be reached 8:00am-5:30pm.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Richemond Dorvil can be reached at 571-272-7602. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/BRYAN S BLANKENAGEL/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2658
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