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 .
Status of Claims
Claims 1-20 are presented for examination in this application. The application filing date on 10/01/2024. Claims 1, 9 and 17 are independent.
Examiner notes
(A). Drawings submitted on 10/01/2024 comply with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.121(d),
(B). IDS submitted on 09/26/2025 have been fully considered by the Examiner.
(C). Limitations have been provided with the Bold fonts in order to distinguish from the cited part of the reference (Italic).
(D). Examiner has cited particular columns, line numbers, references, or figures in the references applied to the claims above for the convenience of the applicant. Although the specified citations are representative of the teachings of passages and figures may apply as well. It is respectfully requested from the applicant in preparing responses to fully consider the reference in entirety, as potentially teaching all or part of the claimed invention. See MPEP § 2141.02 VI and 2123.
The examiner requests, in response to this Office action, support be shown for language added to any original claims on amendment and any new claims. That is, indicate support for newly added claim language by specifically pointing to page(s) and line number(s) in the specification and/or drawing figure(s). This will assist the examiner in prosecuting the application.
When responding to this office action, Applicant is advised to clearly point out the patentable novelty which he or she thinks the claims present, in view of the state of the art disclosed by the references cited or the objections made. He or she must also show how the amendments avoid such references or objections See 37 CFR 1.111 (c).
Claim Objections
Claims 5 and 8 are objected to because of the following informalities:
Claims 5 and 8:
Line 2, after “back office”, insert --server--.
Appropriate correction is required.
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 of this title, 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.
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 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.
Claim 1 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being obvious over Fox et al. (US 20210208870A1, hereinafter Fox) in view of Harata et al. (US 20240338204 A1) , Sy et al. (US 20250255675 A1, hereinafter Sy) and Shaw et al. (US 7356678 B2, hereinafter Shaw).
As to claim 1, Fox discloses a distributed network system, comprising:
a back office server having a first telematics network (par. 0061 “FIG. 1C is an illustration of the architecture in a vehicle communications network (e.g., in vehicle 104-a, 104-b, 104-c, 104-d, or 104-e). For example, a telematic control unit (TCU) 134 may be integrated into the network to perform various tracking features for the vehicle. In some embodiments, TCU 134 may include an integrated or separate telecommunications transceiver (e.g., cellular, WiFi, satellite, etc.), a global positioning system (GPS) transceiver, and a controller for interfacing with other components of the vehicle communications network. The network may also include a gateway 136, which may be the central point of communications with an outside network (e.g., server 102)…) and
a population of host systems in wireless communication with the back office server (abstract, … updating [i.e. population] Electronic Control Unit (ECU) software in a vehicle [i.e. host system]. Operations may include receiving, at a controller in a vehicle, a wireless transmission indicating a need to update software running on at least one ECU in the vehicle … . Further, par. 0103, … vehicle 104-b may receive a wireless transmission indicating a need to update software running on ECU 112 in vehicle 104-b. Processor 114 may monitor an operational status of vehicle 104-b to determine whether vehicle 104-b is in a first mode of operation in which an ECU software update is prohibited. Vehicle 104-b may be in the first mode of operation when vehicle 104-b cannot establish a stable connection with server 102.), each respective host system of the population of host systems including a second telematics network (par. 0044, FIG. 10 is an exemplary flowchart showing a process for generating an update package for updating [i.e. population] software on an ECU in a vehicle in accordance with disclosed embodiments. Further, par.0061, FIG. 1C is an illustration of the architecture in a vehicle [i.e. host system] communications network (e.g., in vehicle 104-a, 104-b, 104-c, 104-d, or 104-e). For example, a telematic [i.e. second telemetric] control unit (TCU) 134 may be integrated into the network to perform various tracking features for the vehicle. …), the second telematics network having: an electronic control unit (ECU) operable for communicating remotely with the back office server (par. 0013, … sending a message to the remote server when the vehicle is in the second mode of operation; receiving the ECU software update in reply to the message; and installing the ECU software update on the at least one ECU in the vehicle when the vehicle is in the second mode of operation. … ); and
one or more devices controlled by corresponding software code (par. 0062, FIG. 2 is an illustration depicting an exemplary ECU software update process carried out by server 102 to update software [i.e. software code] of an exemplary ECU 112. In some embodiments, the process may be performed locally in a vehicle rather than at the server 102 (e.g., through an orchestrator in the vehicle [i.e. device] that manages [i.e. control] ECUs 118). As shown in FIG. 2, server 102 may access information regarding both a new version of the ECU software (may be referred to as software update 202) );
wherein the back office server is configured, in response to a configuration signal,
(par. 0105, … the operational status of vehicle 104-b to determine whether vehicle 104-b transitions into a second mode of operation in which the ECU software update is permitted. In some embodiments, processor 114 may continue to monitor the operational status of vehicle 104-b repeatedly according to a preestablished interval (e.g., every 10 minutes). Processor 114 may determine that vehicle 104-b is in the second mode of operation when, for example, vehicle 104-b enters one of the predetermined safe operating conditions, such as traveling at a speed below a threshold level, operating a low-power or a power-down status, operating in a preselected environmental condition, idling, or the like. Processor 114 may also determine that vehicle 104-b is in the second mode of operation when vehicle 104-b can establish a stable connection with server 102),
Fox does not explicitly disclose the following limitations but,
Harata discloses server is configured, in response to a configuration signal, to transmit an over-the-air (OTA) software update (par. 0091 … … the common system 3 generates a package, necessary data is transmitted and received to and from an original equipment manufacturer (OEM) back office 4 which is an external server system and a key management center 5. The OEM back office 4 includes a first server 6 to a fourth server 9, and the like. These servers 6 to 9 are similar to those illustrated in FIG. 53, and are systems for manufacturing information management system, customer management system, telematics contract, and short message service (SMS) distribution, respectively. The key management center 5 includes a fifth server 10 that is a system that issues and manages a key used for the OTA … );
wherein the ECU is configured, in response to the OTA software update, to (par. 0090, … FIG. 1, an OTA center 1 which is a center apparatus of the present embodiment includes a distribution system 2 and a common system 3. In the common system 3, a distribution package including an update program and data of the ECU to be distributed to a vehicle 31 which is a vehicle is generated and managed, and the generated distribution package is distributed to the vehicle 31 via the distribution system 2 by wireless communication, that is, by an OTA).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of the ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system disclosed by Fox to include server is configured, in response to a configuration signal, to transmit an over-the-air (OTA) software update, wherein the ECU is configured, in response to the OTA software update, as disclosed by Harata, for the purpose of phase of “vehicle configuration information synchronization”, the vehicle configuration information is transmitted to the OTA (see paragraph 0112 of Harata).
Sy discloses a remote calibration tool (par. 0192, … The remote server RS can also communicate software updates, calibration settings … );
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of the ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system disclosed by Fox to include a remote calibration tool, as disclosed by Sy, for the purpose to enable the user to continually see the alignment guide AG to perform the calibration process (see paragraph 0103 of Sy).
Shaw discloses selectively mask or unmask a software partition of the corresponding software code to respectively disable or enable a function of the one or more device (Col. 8, ll. 41-51, the route enable mask 144 of the routing device 112 is updated to include the destination address of cell 104D (STEP 1120). This may require adding the destination addresses of cells 104A, 104B, and 104C to the route enable mask 144D associated with port between cell 104D and the routing device 112 and updating the route enable masks 144A, 144B, and 144C associated with respective ports of the routing device 112 and the cells 104A, 104B, and 104C. After the route enable masks 144 are updated, cell 104D joins the partition 1 Note: software update herein considered as a software partition).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of the ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system disclosed by Fox to include selectively mask or unmask a software partition of the corresponding software code to respectively disable or enable a function of the one or more device, as disclosed by Shaw, for the purpose to enable the user to continually see the alignment guide AG to perform the calibration process (see col. 7, ll. 37-39 of Sy).
Claim 2 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being obvious over Fox et al., Sy et al. and Shaw et al. as applied to claim 1 in the above and further in view of Robert et al. (WO 2020191453 A1, hereinafter Robert).
As to claim 2, Fox as modified by Sy and Shaw does not explicitly disclose the following limitations but,
Harata discloses the distributed network system wherein the ECU is configured, in response to the OTA software update (par. 0090, … In the common system 3, a distribution package including an update program and data of the ECU to be distributed to a vehicle 31 which is a vehicle is generated and managed, and the generated distribution package is distributed to the vehicle 31 via the distribution system 2 by wireless communication, that is, by an OTA),
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of the ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system disclosed by Fox to include the distributed network system wherein the ECU is configured, in response to the OTA software update, as disclosed by Harata, for the purpose of phase of distributed from a server to an onboard device by Over The Air (OTA), and the update program is rewritten on the vehicle side. (see paragraph 0003 of Harata).
Robert discloses to temporarily disable a diagnostic trouble code (DTC) associated with the function of the one or more devices (par. 0671, … the communications module 86 temporarily disables the DTC from receiving communications from outside the DTC (to prevent the communications module 86 being accessed in the next step while it holds keys … ).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of the ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system disclosed by Fox to include to temporarily disable a diagnostic trouble code (DTC) associated with the function of the one or more devices, as disclosed by Robert, for the purpose of preventing the communications module being accessed in the next step (see paragraph 0671 of Robert).
Claim 5 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being obvious over Fox et al. ,Harata et al,, Sy et al. and Shaw et al. as applied to claim 1 in the above and further in view OE et al. (US 20190108752 A1, hereinafter OE).
As to claim 5, Fox discloses the set of host system updates including an updated status of the software partition (par. 0029, … the wireless transmission indicating the need to update the software comprises an indication of whether the update is with or without an override status, and the method may further comprise: updating the ECU software regardless of whether the vehicle is in the first mode of operation when the update is received with the override status. Note: software update herein considered as a software partition).
Fox as modified by Harata, Sy and Shaw does not explicitly disclose the following limitations but,
OE discloses the distributed network system wherein the ECU is configured to selectively upload a set of host system updates to the back office (par. 0056, the ECU 20 acquires vehicle information including information relating to a state (vehicle state) of the vehicle 5, information relating to a state (occupant state) of an occupant of the vehicle 5, and information relating to a state (surrounding state) surrounding the vehicle 5 from the in-vehicle electronic equipment group 60, such as various sensors, various actuators, and various ECUs mounted in the vehicle 5. Then, the ECU 20 uploads the acquired vehicle information or information obtained by performing predetermined processing on the vehicle information to the center server 100 through the DCM 30),
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of the ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system disclosed by Fox to include to the distributed network system wherein the ECU is configured to selectively upload a set of host system updates to the back office, as disclosed by OE, for the purpose of performing predetermined processing on the vehicle information to the center server (see paragraph 0056 of OE).
Claim 6 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being obvious over Fox et al., Harata et al,, Sy et al. and Shaw et al as applied to claim 1 in the above and further in view Dhullipala et al. (US 20200225051 A1, hereinafter Dhullipala) and Davis et al (US 20210264252 A1, hereinafter Davis).
As to claim 6, Fox as modified by Sy and Shaw does not explicitly disclose the following limitations but,
Dhullipala discloses the distributed network system (par. 0018, … FIG. 1, there is shown a non-limiting example of a communication system 10 that may be used together with examples of the system disclosed herein and/or to implement examples of the methods disclosed herein. Communication system 10 generally includes a fleet of vehicles 12, a wireless carrier system 14, a land network 16) wherein the back office server includes a graphical use interface (GUI) as part of the first telematics network (par. 0054, … In optional step 470, in one or more alternative embodiments, server 54 will generate executable instructions that can be read by at least telematics unit 24. Moreover, upon being read and executed by telematics unit 24, these software instructions will cause the telematics unit 24 to generate a GUI user interface exhibited on the display of the infotainment unit. …), and
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of the ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system disclosed by Fox to include wherein the back office server includes a graphical use interface (GUI) as part of the first telematics network, as disclosed by Dhullipala, for the purpose of providing the air quality preference to a software app installed onto their smart phone and the smart phone will transmit the air quality preference to telematics unit 24 and/or server 54. (see paragraph 0047 of Dhullipala).
Davis discloses wherein the remote calibration tool is accessible to a user of the back office server via the GUI (par. 0039, … interact with a GUI elements generated on a screen of the display device 42 to navigate to a GUI screen including a software optimization or calibration option. In response to operator selection of the calibration option, the controller architecture 32 may then generate a software solution request and transmit this request to the server end 12. …).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of the ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system disclosed by Fox to include wherein the remote calibration tool is accessible to a user of the back office server via the GUI, as disclosed by Davis, for the purpose of interacting with a graphical user interface (see paragraph 0013 of Davis).
Claim 7 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being obvious over Fox et al., Harata et al,, Sy et al. and Shaw et al. as applied to claim 1 in the above and further in view Lewis et al. (US 20110320089 A1, hereinafter Lewis) and Parkinson et al (US 5907512 A, hereinafter Parkinson).
As to claim 7, Fox as modified by Sy and Shaw does not explicitly disclose the following limitations but,
Lewis discloses the distributed network system wherein ECU is configured, in response to the OTA software update including an updated software version (par. 0012, FIG. 4 illustrates an over-the-air updating method where no updates are available according to one or more embodiments shown and described herein. Further, par. 0024, FIG. 4, in some instances, an update may not be available for a vehicle (e.g., the vehicle may have the most recent software versions and calibration data). At step 70, the DCM 16 may contact the update servers 18 via the cellular network 20 to determine whether a configuration update is available. At step 74, the DCM 16 may provide ECU software/calibration version information. … ),
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of the ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system disclosed by Fox to include the distributed network system wherein ECU is configured, in response to the OTA software update including an updated software version, as disclosed by Lewis, for the purpose of sending current ECU update version information and VIN number information to the update servers (see paragraph 0022 of Lewis).
Parkinson discloses to selectively unmask the software partition of the corresponding software code to enable the function of the one or more devices (col. 5, ll. 45-48, if a Mask Write DRAM is used, the mask function can be used to selectively enable the parity bits depending on what combination of the four 9 bit wide blocks are being accessed. Further, col. 7, ll. 13-30, The computer has masked and unmasked modes of operation, whereby the computer addresses bytes of memory having a first plurality of working bits in the masked mode. A further portion of RAM is provided, and the further portion of the RAM has a mask enable feature which permits selectively enabling segments, so that in an unmasked mode, plural segments are addressable, and in masked modes).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of the ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system disclosed by Fox to include to selectively unmask the software partition of the corresponding software code to enable the function of the one or more devices, as disclosed by Parkinson, for the purpose of making working bits in the masked mode (see col. 7, ll. 15-16 of Parkinson).
Claim 8 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being obvious over Fox et al., Harata et al,, Sy et al. and Shaw et al. (US 7356678 B2, hereinafter Shaw) as applied to claim 1 in the above and further in view Itatsu et al. (US 20210397433 A1, hereinafter Itatsu).
As to claim 8, Fox as modified by Harata et al,, Sy et al. and Shaw et al. does not explicitly disclose the following limitations but,
Itatsu discloses the distributed network system wherein the ECU of each respective host system is identically configured (par. 0068, … the setting of the vehicle [i.e. host system] interior communication unit 23, and therefore it is preferable to use the serial number or the MAC address as the identification information for identifying the on-board ECU 3. Alternatively, the identification information may include, in addition to the serial number and the MAC address, the ECU part number (the part number, the model number) of the on-board ECU 3. As a result of including the ECU part number in the identification information, it is possible to determine the identity of the on-board ECU 3 as a part. That is to say, when two pieces of configuration information are compared with each other, if the ECU part numbers are the same despite the serial numbers or the MAC addresses being different, it means that the on-board ECUs 3 that have these pieces of configuration information are identical as parts (in terms of the part number and the model number). … ), and wherein the back office is configured to transmit the OTA software update to a subset of the host systems in the population of host systems based on the configuration signal (par. 0044, … The program providing device S1 corresponds to the external server located outside the vehicle. In the program providing device S1, a program or data for controlling an on-board ECU 3, created by the manufacturer or the like of the on-board ECU 3, is stored in the storage unit S11 (the predetermined storage area). The program or data is transmitted to the vehicle C as an update program as described below, and is used to update a program or data for an on-board ECU 3 provided in the vehicle C. The program providing device S1 (the external server [i.e. back office server]) with such a configuration is also referred to as an OTA (Over The Air) server … ).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of the ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system disclosed by Fox to include the distributed network system wherein the ECU of each respective host system is identically configured, and wherein the back office is configured to transmit the OTA software update to a subset of the host systems in the population of host systems based on the configuration signal, as disclosed by Itatsu, for the purpose of providing to the server with such a configuration so that it referred to as an OTA (Over The Air) server. (see paragraph 0044 of Itatsu).
Claim 9 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being obvious over Fox et al. in view of Harata et al. and Shaw et al..
As to claim 9, Fox discloses a method for use with a distributed network system, the method comprising:
host system (par. 0044, FIG. 10 is an exemplary flowchart showing a process for generating an update package for updating [i.e. population] software on an ECU in a vehicle in accordance with disclosed embodiments. . Further, par.0061, FIG. 1C is an illustration of the architecture in a vehicle [i.e. host system] communications network (e.g., in vehicle 104-a, 104-b, 104-c, 104-d, or 104-e). For example, a telematic [i.e. second telemetric] control unit (TCU) 134 may be integrated into the network to perform various tracking features for the vehicle. …), the second telematics network being in wireless communication with the first telematics network of the back office server (par. 0013, … sending a message to the remote server when the vehicle is in the second mode of operation; receiving the ECU software update in reply to the message; and installing the ECU software update on the at least one ECU in the vehicle when the vehicle is in the second mode of operation. … )
Harata discloses in response to a configuration signal, transmitting an over-the-air (OTA) software update to one or more of host systems via a first telematics network of a back office server (par. 0091 … … the common system 3 generates a package, necessary data is transmitted and received to and from an original equipment manufacturer (OEM) back office 4 which is an external server system and a key management center 5. The OEM back office 4 includes a first server 6 to a fourth server 9, and the like. These servers 6 to 9 are similar to those illustrated in FIG. 53, and are systems for manufacturing information management system, customer management system, telematics contract, and short message service (SMS) distribution, respectively. The key management center 5 includes a fifth server 10 that is a system that issues and manages a key used for the OTA … );
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of the ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system disclosed by Fox to include in response to a configuration signal, transmitting an over-the-air (OTA) software update to one or more of host systems via a first telematics network of a back office server, as disclosed by Harata, for the purpose of phase of “vehicle configuration information synchronization”, the vehicle configuration information is transmitted to the OTA (see paragraph 0112 of Harata).
Shaw discloses selectively including selectively masking or unmasking an(Col. 8, ll. 41-51, the route enable mask 144 of the routing device 112 is updated to include the destination address of cell 104D (STEP 1120). This may require adding the destination addresses of cells 104A, 104B, and 104C to the route enable mask 144D associated with port between cell 104D and the routing device 112 and updating the route enable masks 144A, 144B, and 144C associated with respective ports of the routing device 112 and the cells 104A, 104B, and 104C. After the route enable masks 144 are updated, cell 104D joins the partition 1 Note: software update herein considered as a software partition),
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of the ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system disclosed by Fox to include selectively disabling or enabling a function of a device of a host system in response to receipt of the software update by the host system, as disclosed by Shaw, for the purpose to enable the user to continually see the alignment guide AG to perform the calibration process (see col. 7, ll. 37-39 of Sy).
Claim 10 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being obvious over Fox et al. , Harata et al. and Shaw et al as applied to claim 9 and further in view of Robert et al .
As to claim 10, Fox as modified by Shaw does not explicitly discloses the following limitation but,
Harat discloses server is configured, in response to a configuration signal, to transmit an over-the-air (OTA) software update (par. 0091 … … the common system 3 generates a package, necessary data is transmitted and received to and from an original equipment manufacturer (OEM) back office 4 which is an external server system and a key management center 5. The OEM back office 4 includes a first server 6 to a fourth server 9, and the like. These servers 6 to 9 are similar to those illustrated in FIG. 53, and are systems for manufacturing information management system, customer management system, telematics contract, and short message service (SMS) distribution, respectively. The key management center 5 includes a fifth server 10 that is a system that issues and manages a key used for the OTA … );
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of the ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system disclosed by Fox to include server is configured, in response to a configuration signal, to transmit an over-the-air (OTA) software update, as disclosed by Harata, for the purpose of phase of “vehicle configuration information synchronization”, the vehicle configuration information is transmitted to the OTA (see paragraph 0112 of Harata).
Robert discloses the method further comprising: temporarily disabling a diagnostic trouble code (DTC) associated with the function of the one or more devices, response to the OTA software update (par. 0671, … the communications module 86 temporarily disables the DTC from receiving communications from outside the DTC (to prevent the communications module 86 being accessed in the next step while it holds keys … . Further, par. 0049, … The encrypted data is transferred Over-The-Air (OTA) … ).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of the ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system disclosed by Fox to include to temporarily disable a diagnostic trouble code (DTC) associated with the function of the one or more devices, as disclosed by Robert, for the purpose of preventing the communications module being accessed in the next step (see paragraph 0671 of Robert).
Claim 13 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being obvious over Fox et al. , Harata et al. and Shaw et al as applied to claim 9 and further in view of OE et al.
As to claim 13, Fox discloses the set of host system updates including an updated status of the software partition (par. 0029, … the wireless transmission indicating the need to update the software comprises an indication of whether the update is with or without an override status, and the method may further comprise: updating the ECU software regardless of whether the vehicle is in the first mode of operation when the update is received with the override status. Note: software update herein considered as a software partition).
Fox as modified by Harata and Shaw does not explicitly discloses the following limitation but,
OE discloses the method further comprising: selectively uploading a set of host system updates to the back office server via the ECU (par. 0056, the ECU 20 acquires vehicle information including information relating to a state (vehicle state) of the vehicle 5, information relating to a state (occupant state) of an occupant of the vehicle 5, and information relating to a state (surrounding state) surrounding the vehicle 5 from the in-vehicle electronic equipment group 60, such as various sensors, various actuators, and various ECUs mounted in the vehicle 5. Then, the ECU 20 uploads the acquired vehicle information or information obtained by performing predetermined processing on the vehicle information to the center server 100 through the DCM 30),
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of the ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system disclosed by Fox to include to the distributed network system wherein the ECU is configured to selectively upload a set of host system updates to the back office, as disclosed by OE, for the purpose of performing predetermined processing on the vehicle information to the center server (see paragraph 0056 of OE).
Claim 14 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being obvious over Fox et al., Harata et al, and Shaw et al. as applied to claim 9 in the above and further in view Dhullipala et al. (US 20200225051 A1, hereinafter Dhullipala).
As to claim 14, Fox as modified by Harata and Shaw does not explicitly disclose the following limitations but,
Dhullipala discloses the method further comprising: using a graphical use interface (GUI) of the back office server to access the first telematics network (par. 0054, … In optional step 470, in one or more alternative embodiments, server 54 will generate executable instructions that can be read by at least telematics unit 24. Moreover, upon being read and executed by telematics unit 24, these software instructions will cause the telematics unit 24 to generate a GUI user interface exhibited on the display of the infotainment unit. … );
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of the ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system disclosed by Fox to include using a graphical use interface (GUI) of the back office server to access the first telematics network, as disclosed by Dhullipala, for the purpose of providing the air quality preference to a software app installed onto their smart phone and the smart phone will transmit the air quality preference to telematics unit 24 and/or server 54. (see paragraph 0047 of Dhullipala).
Claim 15 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being obvious over Fox et al., Harata et al and Shaw et al. as applied to claim 9 in the above and further in view Lewis et al. and Parkinson et al.
As to claim 15, Fox as modified by Harata and Shaw does not explicitly disclose the following limitations but,
Lewis discloses the method further comprising: in response to the OTA software update including an updated software version using the ECU (par. 0012, FIG. 4 illustrates an over-the-air updating method where no updates are available according to one or more embodiments shown and described herein. Further, par. 0024, FIG. 4, in some instances, an update may not be available for a vehicle (e.g., the vehicle may have the most recent software versions and calibration data). At step 70, the DCM 16 may contact the update servers 18 via the cellular network 20 to determine whether a configuration update is available. At step 74, the DCM 16 may provide ECU software/calibration version information. … ),
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of the ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system disclosed by Fox to include the method further comprising: in response to the OTA software update including an updated software version, as disclosed by Lewis, for the purpose of sending current ECU update version information and VIN number information to the update servers (see paragraph 0022 of Lewis).
Parkinson discloses to selectively unmask the software partition of the corresponding software code to enable the function of the one or more devices (col. 5, ll. 45-48, if a Mask Write DRAM is used, the mask function can be used to selectively enable the parity bits depending on what combination of the four 9 bit wide blocks are being accessed. Further, col. 7, ll. 13-30, The computer has masked and unmasked modes of operation, whereby the computer addresses bytes of memory having a first plurality of working bits in the masked mode. A further portion of RAM is provided, and the further portion of the RAM has a mask enable feature which permits selectively enabling segments, so that in an unmasked mode, plural segments are addressable, and in masked modes).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of the ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system disclosed by Fox to include to selectively unmask the software partition of the corresponding software code to enable the function of the one or more devices, as disclosed by Parkinson, for the purpose of making working bits in the masked mode (see col. 7, ll. 15-16 of Parkinson).
Claim 16 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being obvious over Fox et al., Harata et al, and Shaw et al. as applied to claim 9 in the above and further in view Itatsu et al.
As to claim 16, Fox as modified by Harata and Shaw does not explicitly disclose the following limitations but,
Itatsu disclose the method further comprising: transmitting the OTA software update from the back office server to a subset of a population of host systems based on the configuration signal (par. 0044, … The program providing device S1 corresponds to the external server located outside the vehicle. In the program providing device S1, a program or data for controlling an on-board ECU 3, created by the manufacturer or the like of the on-board ECU 3, is stored in the storage unit S11 (the predetermined storage area). The program or data is transmitted to the vehicle C as an update program as described below, and is used to update a program or data for an on-board ECU 3 provided in the vehicle C. The program providing device S1 (the external server [i.e. back office server]) with such a configuration is also referred to as an OTA (Over The Air) server … ).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of the ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system disclosed by Fox to include the method further comprising: transmitting the OTA software update from the back office server to a subset of a population of host systems based on the configuration signal, as disclosed by Itatsu, for the purpose of providing to the server with such a configuration so that it referred to as an OTA (Over The Air) server. (see paragraph 0044 of Itatsu).
Claim 17 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being obvious over Fox et al. in view of Harata et al. , Shaw et al. and Robert et al.
As to claim 17, Fox discloses a vehicle in communication with a back office server in a distributed network, the vehicle comprising:
an electronic control unit (ECU) operable for communicating with the back office server via a telematics system of the vehicle (par. 0013, … sending a message to the remote server when the vehicle is in the second mode of operation; receiving the ECU software update in reply to the message; and installing the ECU software update on the at least one ECU in the vehicle when the vehicle is in the second mode of operation. … . Further, par. 0061, FIG. 1C is an illustration of the architecture in a vehicle communications network (e.g., in vehicle 104-a, 104-b, 104-c, 104-d, or 104-e). For example, a telematic control unit (TCU) 134 may be integrated into the network to perform various tracking features for the vehicle. In some embodiments, TCU 134 may include an integrated or separate telecommunications transceiver (e.g., cellular, WiFi, satellite, etc.), a global positioning system (GPS) transceiver, and a controller for interfacing with other components of the vehicle communications network. The network may also include a gateway 136, which may be the central point of communications with an outside network (e.g., server 102) . …); and
one or more vehicle devices controlled by corresponding software code, wherein the ECU is configured to: server via the telematics system; and in response to the OTA software update from the back office server (par. 0105, … the operational status of vehicle 104-b to determine whether vehicle 104-b transitions into a second mode of operation in which the ECU software update is permitted. In some embodiments, processor 114 may continue to monitor the operational status of vehicle 104-b repeatedly according to a preestablished interval (e.g., every 10 minutes). Processor 114 may determine that vehicle 104-b is in the second mode of operation when, for example, vehicle 104-b enters one of the predetermined safe operating conditions, such as traveling at a speed below a threshold level, operating a low-power or a power-down status, operating in a preselected environmental condition, idling, or the like. Processor 114 may also determine that vehicle 104-b is in the second mode of operation when vehicle 104-b can establish a stable connection with server 102),
Harata discloses server is configured, in response to a configuration signal, to transmit an over-the-air (OTA) software update (par. 0091 … … the common system 3 generates a package, necessary data is transmitted and received to and from an original equipment manufacturer (OEM) back office 4 which is an external server system and a key management center 5. The OEM back office 4 includes a first server 6 to a fourth server 9, and the like. These servers 6 to 9 are similar to those illustrated in FIG. 53, and are systems for manufacturing information management system, customer management system, telematics contract, and short message service (SMS) distribution, respectively. The key management center 5 includes a fifth server 10 that is a system that issues and manages a key used for the OTA … );
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of the ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system disclosed by Fox to include server is configured, in response to a configuration signal, to transmit an over-the-air (OTA) software update, as disclosed by Harata, for the purpose of phase of “vehicle configuration information synchronization”, the vehicle configuration information is transmitted to the OTA (see paragraph 0112 of Harata).
Shaw discloses selectively mask or unmask a software partition of the corresponding software code to respectively disable or enable a function of the one or more vehicle devices (Col. 8, ll. 41-51, the route enable mask 144 of the routing device 112 is updated to include the destination address of cell 104D (STEP 1120). This may require adding the destination addresses of cells 104A, 104B, and 104C to the route enable mask 144D associated with port between cell 104D and the routing device 112 and updating the route enable masks 144A, 144B, and 144C associated with respective ports of the routing device 112 and the cells 104A, 104B, and 104C. After the route enable masks 144 are updated, cell 104D joins the partition 1 Note: software update herein considered as a software partition).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of the ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system disclosed by Fox to include selectively mask or unmask a software partition of the corresponding software code to respectively disable or enable a function of the one or more device, as disclosed by Shaw, for the purpose to enable the user to continually see the alignment guide AG to perform the calibration process (see col. 7, ll. 37-39 of Sy).
Robert discloses including temporarily disabling or enabling a diagnostic trouble code (DTC) associated with the function of the one or more vehicle devices (par. 0671, … the communications module 86 temporarily disables the DTC from receiving communications from outside the DTC (to prevent the communications module 86 being accessed in the next step while it holds keys … ).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of the ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system disclosed by Fox to include to temporarily disable a diagnostic trouble code (DTC) associated with the function of the one or more devices, as disclosed by Robert, for the purpose of preventing the communications module being accessed in the next step (see paragraph 0671 of Robert).
Claim 20 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being obvious over Fox et al. . Harata et al. , Shaw et al. and Robert et al as applied to claim 17 and further in view of OE et al.
As to claim 20, Fox discloses the vehicle wherein the ECU is configured to:
the set of host system updates including an updated status of the software partition (par. 0029, … the wireless transmission indicating the need to update the software comprises an indication of whether the update is with or without an override status, and the method may further comprise: updating the ECU software regardless of whether the vehicle is in the first mode of operation when the update is received with the override status. Note: software update herein considered as a software partition).
Fox as modified by Harata, Shaw and Robert does not explicitly disclose the following limitations but,
OE discloses selectively upload a set of host system updates to the back office server (par. 0056, the ECU 20 acquires vehicle information including information relating to a state (vehicle state) of the vehicle 5, information relating to a state (occupant state) of an occupant of the vehicle 5, and information relating to a state (surrounding state) surrounding the vehicle 5 from the in-vehicle electronic equipment group 60, such as various sensors, various actuators, and various ECUs mounted in the vehicle 5. Then, the ECU 20 uploads the acquired vehicle information or information obtained by performing predetermined processing on the vehicle information to the center server 100 through the DCM 30),
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of the ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system disclosed by Fox to include to the distributed network system wherein the ECU is configured to selectively upload a set of host system updates to the back office, as disclosed by OE, for the purpose of performing predetermined processing on the vehicle information to the center server (see paragraph 0056 of OE).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 3-4, 11-12 and 18-19 are objected to as being dependent upon rejected independent claims 1, 9 and 17, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of independent claims 1, 9 and 17.
Conclusion
Prior arts made of record are considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. See MPEP § 707.05 (C) For Examples:
I. Yoshimi et al. (US 20240311135 A1) discloses: “ A center device that manages data to be written in an electronic control device and performs, by an application program, functions to transmit update data to a vehicle by wireless communication is provided. An application program implementing at least one of the functions adopts a serverless architecture. The application program is activated upon occurrence of an event and is dynamically allocated with a resource in an on-demand manner for execution of a code of the application program. The resource is released when the execution of the code is terminated. The center device is configured to receive vehicle configuration information and determine whether there is campaign information; generate campaign notification information; manage a generation state of the campaign notification information; and distribute the campaign notification information.” (please see abstract).
II. Zymeri et al. (US 20170123784 A1) discloses: “the OTA scenario. Coordination layer 33 corresponds principally to the workshop person, who ensures vehicle state 50 for a robust and correct update, for example ensuring that sufficient power supply is present by connecting an external reserve battery to vehicle 10 (vehicle update client 14, which passively and actively monitors actual and target states of the vehicle system environment and for example checks before the update whether the battery state corresponds to the duration of a pending update, and continuously checks this during the update), or, for each relevant control device, by carrying out the overwriting of the flash memory (flashing) individually or using a central workshop diagnostic tester, to which however the correct data are provided (vehicle update client 14, which delegates and interacts the actual update installation 36 to relevant software update clients 12, 13), and, after each flash or installation step at an individual ECU, checking whether the overwriting and the installation 36 have taken place without error (vehicle update client 14, which knows and actively influences the actual-target states 51 of the ECUs and software update clients 12, 13 involved in the update before, during, and after the update and after each installation 36).” (please see [0072]).
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to MOHAMMAD H KABIR whose telephone number is (571)270-1341. The examiner can normally be reached M-F, 8:00 am - 5:00 pm.
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/Mohammad Kabir/
Examiner, Art Unit 2192
/S. Sough/SPE, Art Unit 2192
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