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
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.
Claims 1-7, 9, 11-17, and 19 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by US 2022/0168642 to Liu (hereinafter Liu).
Regarding claims 1 and 11, Liu teaches a display device, and display method for dynamically adjusting a ballistic path therefor, comprising:
a display panel (e.g., a display of a terminal device, such as a smartphone, tablet, laptop, AR or VR device, etc. in ¶ 61, such as touch screen display 1305 in Fig. 23);
a communication interface (e.g., peripheral interface 1303, RF circuit 1304, and/or sensor board 1310) electrically connected to an input device (e.g., an input device such as a keyboard or mouse in ¶ 82 and/or touch screen display 1305 and/or other input devices) and a host device (e.g., a different one of the peripheral interface 1303, RF circuit 1304, and/or sensor board 1310; and/or a server 2400 in Fig. 24) and configured to receive display data of a display image from the host device and to receive direction data and distance data from the input device (e.g., receive commands from the player); and
a controller (e.g., processor 1301 in Fig. 13) electrically connected to the display panel and the communication interface and configured to drive the display panel to display the display image according to the display data,
wherein the controller further displays a ballistic path image in the display image through the display panel (e.g., special effect line 515 in Fig. 15), and the controller dynamically adjusts the ballistic path image according to the direction data and the distance data (see Fig. 16 and ¶¶ 142-150 demonstrating the virtual item shooting along the ballistic path).
Regarding claims 2 and 12, Liu teaches wherein the display panel displays the ballistic path image through an on-screen display (OSD) in the display image (e.g., special effect line 515 in Fig. 15).
Regarding claims 3 and 13, Liu teaches wherein an adjustment direction of the ballistic path image is opposite to the direction data (e.g., The user can adjust the throwing path of the first virtual item by adjusting the plurality of parameters to obtain different landing points, thereby improving the controllability of the first virtual item in ¶ 161, which includes backing up the path such that it is closer to the avatar and hence opposite of the forward direction data).
Regarding claims 4 and 14, Liu teaches wherein a movement distance of a mouse movement suggestion path (e.g., when a mouse is used as an input device in ¶ 82) in the ballistic path image is equal to a distance represented by the distance data of the input device (e.g., when the user adjusts the throwing path as shown in ¶ 161 and Fig. 15).
Regarding claims 5 and 15, Liu teaches wherein the communication interface is further electrically connected to another input device, and in response to a shortcut key of the another input device being triggered, the controller displays the ballistic path image in the display image through the display panel (e.g., a button of a mouse or keyboard in ¶ 82).
Regarding claims 6 and 16, Liu teaches an image database (e.g., within server 2400; note that the server may be responsible for some or all of the work of the game in ¶ 58) electrically connected to the controller and configured to store a plurality of built-in ballistic path images, wherein the controller selects one of the built-in ballistic path images as the ballistic path image according to an object type of a shooting object in the display data (e.g., after receiving the landing point, the server calculates the use result of the first virtual item according to the landing point, and returns the use result to the first client. The use result includes the effect of the first virtual item in ¶ 164; note that the type of weapon chosen will determine the ballistic path in ¶¶ 147-150).
Regarding claims 7 and 17, Liu teaches an image database (e.g., within server 2400; note that the server may be responsible for some or all of the work of the game in ¶ 58) electrically connected to the controller and configured to store a plurality of built-in ballistic path images, wherein the controller selects one of the built-in ballistic path images as the ballistic path image according to a crosshair command provided by the host device (e.g., after receiving the landing point, the server calculates the use result of the first virtual item according to the landing point, and returns the use result to the first client. The use result includes the effect of the first virtual item in ¶ 164; note that the crosshair command corresponds to the landing point 513 in Fig. 15 because it defines where the projectile is aimed).
Regarding claims 9 and 19, Liu teaches wherein the communication interface is a hub (e.g., peripheral interface 1303, server 2400 itself, and/or system bus 2405).
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.
Claims 10 and 20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Liu in view of Official Notice.
Regarding claims 10 and 20, Liu teaches the invention substantially as described above, including a variety of computer types and input device types (such as a keyboard and mouse). Liu lacks in explicitly teaching that the hub comprises a first universal serial bus and a second universal serial bus, the first universal serial bus is configured to electrically connect the input device, and the second universal serial bus is configured to electrically connect the host device. The Examiner takes Official Notice that devices communicating via Universal Serial Bus (USB) were notoriously well known in the art before the effective date. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective date to modify the system of Lui to employ a hub using USB to connect the claimed devices in order to ensure compatibility across a wide variety of device types and manufacturers.
Claims 8 and 18 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Liu in view of US 20150057081 to Kelly et al. (hereinafter Kelly).
Regarding claims 8 and 18, Liu teaches the invention substantially as described above, including a variety of computing devices of various sizes (e.g., smartphone, laptop, VR, etc.), but lacks in explicitly teaching that the controller is a scaler. In a related disclosure, Kelly teaches a video switcher and touch router system for a gaming machine. Kelly teaches that a display manager may include a scaler ship in communication with the gaming controller, the secondary controller, and the touch screen game display such that the scaler chip of the display manger scales or shifts at least one of the first and second video signals to an altered size, which enables the video signal to be rendered on different size game screens (see ¶ 14). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective date to modify the system of Liu to include a controller that is a scaler, as taught or suggested by Kelly, in order to ensure that the game of Liu can be accurately played on a variety of screen sizes corresponding to the disclosed variety of gaming devices.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. For instance, US 20200387296 to Williams et al. teaches a customizable onscreen display timer in which a controller may include a rasterizer and a scaler to appropriately apply the set of customizable characteristics and the set of customizable non-display characteristics for the selected or detected resolution of the video stream (see ¶ 23). Furthermore, US 2022/0395747 to Yeh et al. teaches a display device connectable to an external operation device and a host, wherein a display controller may be a scaler (see ¶¶ 19 and 29 and Fig. 2).
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to WILLIAM H MCCULLOCH whose telephone number is (571)272-2818. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 9:30-5:30.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Peter Vasat can be reached at 571-270-7625. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/WILLIAM H MCCULLOCH JR/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3715
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