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 Amendment
The amendment filed on 12/23/2025 has been entered. Claims 2-21 remain pending in the application.
Double Patenting
The nonstatutory double patenting rejection is based on a judicially created doctrine grounded in public policy (a policy reflected in the statute) so as to prevent the unjustified or improper timewise extension of the “right to exclude” granted by a patent and to prevent possible harassment by multiple assignees. A nonstatutory double patenting rejection is appropriate where the conflicting claims are not identical, but at least one examined application claim is not patentably distinct from the reference claim(s) because the examined application claim is either anticipated by, or would have been obvious over, the reference claim(s). See, e.g., In re Berg, 140 F.3d 1428, 46 USPQ2d 1226 (Fed. Cir. 1998); In re Goodman, 11 F.3d 1046, 29 USPQ2d 2010 (Fed. Cir. 1993); In re Longi, 759 F.2d 887, 225 USPQ 645 (Fed. Cir. 1985); In re Van Ornum, 686 F.2d 937, 214 USPQ 761 (CCPA 1982); In re Vogel, 422 F.2d 438, 164 USPQ 619 (CCPA 1970); In re Thorington, 418 F.2d 528, 163 USPQ 644 (CCPA 1969).
A timely filed terminal disclaimer in compliance with 37 CFR 1.321(c) or 1.321(d) may be used to overcome an actual or provisional rejection based on nonstatutory double patenting provided the reference application or patent either is shown to be commonly owned with the examined application, or claims an invention made as a result of activities undertaken within the scope of a joint research agreement. See MPEP § 717.02 for applications subject to examination under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA as explained in MPEP § 2159. See MPEP § 2146 et seq. for applications not subject to examination under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA . A terminal disclaimer must be signed in compliance with 37 CFR 1.321(b).
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Claim(s) 2-21 is/are rejected on the ground of nonstatutory double patenting as being unpatentable over claim(s) 1 of U.S. Patent No. 12143622 in view of Chuang et al. (US 20180249154) (hereinafter Chuang).
Regarding claim 2,
Instant Application
U.S. Patent No. 12143622 Claim 1
A method for video decoding in a decoder, the method comprising:
A method for video decoding in a decoder, the method comprising:
determining whether an area of a current block in a current picture of a coded video bitstream is greater than a threshold;
determining whether an area of a current block in a current picture of a coded video bitstream is greater than a threshold;
constructing a first motion vector predictor list including first motion vector predictors when the area of the current block is greater than the threshold;
constructing a first motion vector predictor list including first motion vector predictors when the area of the current block is greater than the threshold;
constructing a second motion vector predictor list including second motion vector predictors when the area of the current block is less than the threshold; and
constructing a second motion vector predictor list including second motion vector predictors when the area of the current block is less than the threshold; and
reconstructing the current block based on the constructed one of the first motion vector predictor list and the second motion vector predictor list,
reconstructing the current block based on the constructed one of the first motion vector predictor list and the second motion vector predictor list,
wherein the first motion vector predictor list includes at least one of a first type of motion vector predictor and a second type of motion vector predictor, the first type of motion vector predictor being a spatial or temporal motion vector predictor type, the second type of motion vector predictor being a history-based motion vector predictor (HMVP) type, and
wherein the first motion vector predictor list includes at least a first type of motion vector predictor and a second type of motion vector predictor, the first type of motion vector predictor being a spatial or temporal motion vector predictor type, the second type of motion vector predictor being a history-based motion vector predictor (HMVP) type, and
the second motion vector predictor list does not include the first type of motion vector predictor.
the second motion vector predictor list does not include the first type of motion vector predictor.
Although claim 1 of U.S. Patent No. 12143622 does not specify at least one of a first type of motion vector and a second type of motion vector predictor, Chuang paragraph 60 teaches at least one of a first type of motion vector and a second type of motion vector predictor. Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the invention disclosed by claim 1 of U.S. Patent No. 12143622 with the at least one of a first type of motion vector and a second type of motion vector predictor of Chuang in order to more broadly define an inclusion of at least one of a first type of motion vector and a second type of motion vector predictor in a candidate list.
Claim(s) 11 and 20 is/are rejected for the same reasons as claim 2.
Claim(s) 3-10, 12-19, and 21 is/are rejected for their dependence on claim(s) 2, 11, and 20.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claim(s) 2-21 is/are rejected under non-statutory double patenting rejections as detailed above, but would be allowable if those rejections were overcome, due to containing subject matter allowable for similar reasons noted in parent application 18/189,096 (US 12143622).
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter: Claim 2 contains the limitations regarding the constructions of first and second lists of motion vector predictors based on the area of the current block, where if the area is greater than the threshold, the first list is constructed with at least one of spatial, temporal, and history based motion vector predictors, and if the area is less than the threshold, the second list is constructed to exclude temporal or spatial motion vector predictors. At the time of the effective filing date of the application, these limitations had not been fully anticipated and it would not have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to combine elements of the prior art to meet this limitation. Independent claim(s) 11 and 20 contain(s) allowable subject matter for the same reasons as claim 2. Claim(s) The claim(s) depending on these claim(s) contain allowable subject matter for the reasons concerning these claim(s).
The closest prior art, Takehara et al. (US 20170188043), Chuang et al. (US 20180249154), Nakamura et al. (US 20140205014), Zhao et al. (US 20170280162), Bici et al. (US 20170150174), Zhang et al. ("CE4: History-based Motion Vector Prediction [Test 4.4.7]"), Tamse et al. (US 20210392336), Kotra et al. (US 20210360228) either singularly or in combination fail to anticipate or render obvious the above described limitations. While the prior art teaches history based motion vector prediction and basic applications of them, the prior art is silent regarding using the area of a current block to determine the inclusion or exclusion of temporal and spatial motion vector predictors to a list that will include history based motion vector predictors regardless of current block area, nor does it contain teachings that would suggest or lead one of ordinary skill in the art to apply conditional block area threshold determinations to constructing motion vector predictor lists when history based motion vector predictors are included.
Conclusion
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.
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/MATTHEW DAVID KIM/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2483
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