CTFR 18/922,415 CTFR 98528 Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status 07-03-aia AIA 15-10-aia The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA. DETAILED ACTION Response to Arguments Applicant’s arguments with respect to claim(s) 2/26/2026 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 07-06 AIA 15-10-15 In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA) for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status. 07-20-aia AIA The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 103 which forms the basis for all obviousness rejections set forth in this Office action: A patent for a claimed invention may not be obtained, notwithstanding that the claimed invention is not identically disclosed as set forth in section 102, if the differences between the claimed invention and the prior art are such that the claimed invention as a whole would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to a person having ordinary skill in the art to which the claimed invention pertains. Patentability shall not be negated by the manner in which the invention was made. 07-21-aia AIA Claim (s) 1-4 and 6 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Camp, et al. (U.S. Patent Application Pub. No. 2019/0049256) in view of Furukawa, et al. (U.S. Patent Application Pub. No. 2017/0015329) . Regarding Claim 1, Camp teaches: An estimation method of a road surface condition on which a vehicle is traveling (Camp, Para. 0003, 0007 – a “computer-implemented method” for determining “a slippery road event”, or road surface condition, based on information received from vehicles ), the estimation method being executed by an information processing device configured to communicate with the vehicle (Camp, Para. 0029, 0031-0032 – “a system capable of classifying false positive slippery road reports using mapping data” including “one or more vehicles” equipped with “a wireless communications device configured to transmit road reports (e.g., slippery road reports) and/or associated sensor data for detecting a slippery road event” ), the estimation method comprising: acquiring vehicle information including position information and travel information acquired from the vehicle, (Camp, Para. 0031-0032, 0069-0071, 0080-0081 – “ gathering location data”, or position information, and “driver behavior data”, or travel information, from “a group of drivers” of “one or more vehicles”, using various sensors ), the travel information including acceleration information (Camp, Para. 0069-0071 – where “driver behavior data”, or travel information, “collected from one or more vehicles” includes “sensor data” such as “acceleration, lateral acceleration” ), information on accelerator operation by a driver (Camp, Para. 0081, 0105 – “sensor data can include… accelerator position”, i.e. “use of an acceleration pedal” ), and information on brake operation by the driver while the vehicle is traveling (Camp, Para. 0081 – “sensor data can include… braking state”, i.e. “use of a brake pedal” ); registering the vehicle information in a database (Camp, Para. 0031-0032 – wherein the “mapping platform” receives “sensor data” and “reports” from the vehicles and stores the data “as map data in the road event database” and/or “geographic database” ); extracting a change in the acceleration information occurred when the vehicle is passing a point, by the information processing device comparing the travel information included in the acquired vehicle information with other travel information acquired from other vehicles and registered in the database regarding the same point (Camp, Para. 0036, 0050-0056, 0071, 0102 – recording a “slippery road report”, where the report is generated based on a determined “acceleration or deceleration of the vehicle” outside “a specific threshold window”, or travel information; where the “slippery road report” correlates to “a location of the detected road event (e.g., in coordinates such as latitude, longitude, and altitude if available)” that is an “area of interest” for a batch of “slippery road reports” from a “group of drivers” stored in the “geographic database” ); determining whether the change in the acceleration information is caused by a driving operation by the driver, based on the travel information at the point at which the change in the acceleration information is extracted in a case where the change in the acceleration information is extracted (Camp, Para. 0036, 0040-0042, 0050-0056, 0067 – determining whether a “slippery road report” at “an area of interest” is a “false positive slippery road report” based on expected “driver behavior”, or travel information, at the location of the report in an “area of interest”; for example, it may be determined that a “slippery road report” occurs at a location where a driver is “expected” to “brake or to accelerate from when approaching or leaving”, such that the report is caused by “driver behavior” rather than a slippery road/road condition ); estimating that a change in the road surface condition is not occurring at the point in response to a determination that the change in the acceleration information is caused by the driving operation by the driver (Camp, Para. 0050-0056 – determining that a “slippery road report” is a “false positive slippery road report” when it is determined that an acceleration/deceleration is caused by expected driver behavior ); and estimating that the change in the road surface condition is occurring at the point in response to a determination that the change in the acceleration information is not caused by the driving operation by the driver (Camp, Para. 0042, 0050-0056 – determining that a “slippery road report” is “not a false positive” when it is determined that an acceleration/deceleration is not expected ), wherein, in the determining, the change in the acceleration information is determined not to be caused by the driving operation by the driver (Camp, Para. 0042, 0050-0056 – determining that a “slippery road report” is “not a false positive”, i.e. not “driver behavior” ) in a case where i) the change in the acceleration information is extracted, ii) the information on the accelerator operation indicates that the accelerator operation remains in an ON state, and iii) the information on the brake operation indicates that the brake operation remains in an OFF state . Camp does not specifically teach in a case where i) the change in the acceleration information is extracted, ii) the information on the accelerator operation indicates that the accelerator operation remains in an ON state, and iii) the information on the brake operation indicates that the brake operation remains in an OFF state. However, Furukawa teaches in a case where i) the change in the acceleration information is extracted (Furukawa, Para. 0072-0073 – identifying a “submergence determination condition” based on if a set of “conditions” are satisfied ), the “conditions” including a “(A1) The acceleration difference value Z(i) is larger than the predetermined threshold Zth1” ), ii) the information on the accelerator operation indicates that the accelerator operation remains in an ON state (Furukawa, Para. 0044, 0072-0073 – “conditions” including “(C) The vehicle 10 is traveling ahead and is accelerating”, which is only satisfied if “(c2) The accelerator pedal operation amount Acp is larger than 0 (that is Acp>0)”; where Acp is the “depression amount of the accelerator pedal… operated by the driver of the vehicle” ), and iii) the information on the brake operation indicates that the brake operation remains in an OFF state (Furukawa, Para. 0044, 0072-0073 – “conditions” including “(C) The vehicle 10 is traveling ahead and is accelerating”, which is only satisfied if “(c3) The brake pedal operation amount Bkp is 0 (that is, Bkp=0)”; where Bkp is the “depression amount of the brake pedal… operated by the driver of the vehicle” ). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the estimation method of Camp to include wherein, in a case where i) the change in the acceleration information is extracted, ii) the information on the accelerator operation indicates that the accelerator operation remains in an ON state, and iii) the information on the brake operation indicates that the brake operation remains in an OFF state, as taught by Furukawa , in order to “reduce the possibility that the road surface is erroneously determined” (Furukawa, Para. 0029). In regards to Claim 2, Camp in view of Furukawa teaches the estimation method of Claim 1, and Camp further teaches further comprising, in the extraction of the change in the acceleration information, comparing the travel information in which types of vehicles are in common (Camp, Para. 0071 – wherein when observing “driver behavior data” using “general population driver behavior data”, the mapping platform may select a similar group of drivers, for example “drivers of similar vehicle types”, in order to configure “false positive detection” for “slippery road reports” ). In regards to Claim 3, Camp in view of Furukawa teaches the estimation method of Claim 1, and Camp further teaches wherein: in the registering of the vehicle information in the database, the acquired vehicle information is associated with weather information and registered in the database (Camp, Para. 0042, 0057-0058 – acquiring “weather data” at locations of “slippery road events”, and correlating the “weather data” to the “slippery road events”; where weather data is stored within a “weather database” for use by the “mapping platform” ); and the estimation method further comprises, in response to the estimation that the change in the road surface condition is occurring, estimating the road surface condition based on the weather information (Camp, Para. 0042, 0056-0057, 0062-0063 – wherein when determining whether a “slippery road report” is “false”, a “false positive detector” utilizes the “weather data (e.g., determined slippery level) for a location and time of the slippery as an additional factor for classifying a slippery road report”; for example “the report can be classified as a false positive if the slippery level indicates that the road is dry (e.g., slippery level=0)” and “not a false positive when the slippery level indicates is not dry (e.g., slippery level >=1)” ). In regards to Claim 4, Camp in view of Furukawa teaches the estimation method of Claim 3, and Camp further teaches wherein the road surface condition is estimated further based on the position information (Camp, Para. 0036, 0040-0042, 0050-0057, 0067 – determining whether a “slippery road report” is a “false positive slippery road report” based on expected “driver behavior”, or travel information, at the location of the report in an “area of interest” by using a “map matching process” to match the location of the report to a map; for example, “places on the map where normal traffic is not expected to flow”, or “whether the road or location of the slippery road report was dry at the time of the report”, etc. ). In regards to Claim 6, Camp in view of Furukawa teaches the estimation method of Claim 4, and Camp further teaches further comprising: determining that weather is rainy or immediately after rain based on the weather information (Camp, Para. 0059-0063 – obtaining “weather data records” including a “precipitation intensity” indicating “light and heavy rain” ); determining whether the road surface condition is flooding based on the position information in response to the determination that the weather is rainy or immediately after rain (Camp, Table 1 and Para. 0059-0063 – determining the “slippery level or pavement conditions” based on the “weather data records”, for example, if a “precipitation intensity” is equal to or above a threshold and the “air temperature” is above 0° C, then the “slippery level” is 3, indicating “wet”, or flooded, conditions; where “weather data records” further include “water film depth’ ) . 07-21-aia AIA Claim (s) 7 and 9 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Camp in view of Furukawa, and further in view of Watson, et al. (U.S. Patent Application Pub. No. 2021/0312306) . In regards to Claim 7, Camp in view of Furukawa teaches the estimation method of Claim 4, but Camp in view of Furukawa does not teach further comprising acquiring information on seasons in addition to the position information and the weather information, wherein the vehicle information is registered in the database in association with the information on the seasons, and the road surface condition is further based on the information on the seasons. However, Watson teaches further comprising acquiring information on seasons in addition to the position information and the weather information, wherein the vehicle information is registered in the database in association with the information on the seasons, and the road surface condition is further based on the information on the seasons (Watson, Para. 0002, 0021-0024, 0027, 0033, 0035 – obtaining “local weather conditions” including “targeted information” for a “smaller geographic region”, for example, “a winter storm” in a specific “smaller geographic area” or “seasonal foliage”/“vegetation”, patterns affected by the “seasons”, such as “angle of the sun at a certain day or time of year” ). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have further modified the estimation method including the above limitations of Camp in view of Furukawa to include further comprising acquiring information on seasons in addition to the position information and the weather information, wherein the vehicle information is registered in the database in association with the information on the seasons, and the road surface condition is further based on the information on the seasons, as taught by Watson, in order to “accurately predict road surface condition” by taking into account seasonal changes affecting road surfaces (Watson, Para. 0021-0025). In regards to Claim 9, Camp in view of Furukawa and Watson teaches the estimation method of Claim 7, and Camp in view of Furukawa and Watson further teaches wherein the position information includes information that a predetermined number of deciduous trees or more are planted in a predetermined region from the point (Watson, Para. 0027, 0033, 0043-0046 – “a vegetation growth model 363 to determine a location, height, and size of vegetation near the road and shading caused by the vegetation or other dynamic objects”, vegetation including trees; where the model makes “biomass estimates” to determine “a road condition” for a “road segment of interest” ). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the estimation method including the above limitations of Camp in view of Furukawa and Watson to further include wherein the position information includes information that a predetermined number of deciduous trees or more are planted in a predetermined region from the point, as taught by Watson, in order to improve road condition determination accuracy by accounting for trees, which may affect road conditions . 07-21-aia AIA Claim (s) 8 and 10 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Camp in view of Furukawa and Watson, and further in view of Xu, et al. (Chinese Patent Application Pub. No. 115983504 A) . In regards to Claim 8, Camp in view of Furukawa and Watson teaches the estimation method of Claim 7, but Camp in view of Furukawa and Watson does not teach wherein the road surface condition is estimated to be deposition of fallen leaves on a road on which the vehicle is traveling in a case where the information on the seasons is a fallen leaves season. However, Xu teaches wherein the road surface condition is estimated to be deposition of fallen leaves on a road on which the vehicle is traveling in a case where the information on the seasons is a fallen leaves season (Xu, Para. 0077-0079, 0084 – predicting “the location of fallen leaves on a map in the area” and “different densities of fallen leaves per unit area” based on “seasonal factors, roadside tree factors, and weather factors that can affect leaf fall”; for example, in “autumn, sycamore trees produce a large number of fallen leaves” ). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have further modified the estimation method including the above limitations of Camp in view of Furukawa and Watson to include wherein the road surface condition is estimated to be deposition of fallen leaves on a road on which the vehicle is traveling in a case where the information on the seasons is a fallen leaves season, as taught by Xu, in order to improve road condition determination accuracy by accounting for fallen leaves, which may affect road conditions. In regards to Claim 10, Camp in view of Furukawa, Watson, and Xu teaches the estimation method of Claim 8, and Camp in view of Furukawa, Watson, and Xu further teaches wherein the position information includes information that a predetermined number of deciduous trees or more are planted in a predetermined region from the point (Watson, Para. 0027, 0033, 0043-0046 – “a vegetation growth model 363 to determine a location, height, and size of vegetation near the road and shading caused by the vegetation or other dynamic objects”, vegetation including trees; where the model makes “biomass estimates” to determine “a road condition” for a “road segment of interest” ). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the estimation method including the above limitations of Camp in view of Furukawa, Watson, and Xu to further include wherein the position information includes information that a predetermined number of deciduous trees or more are planted in a predetermined region from the point, as taught by Watson, in order to improve road condition determination accuracy by accounting for trees, which may affect road conditions . Conclusion 07-96 AIA The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Nguyen (U.S. Patent No. 10,262,477) teaches a system for determining road conditions includes an input interface and a processor, where the processor is configured to determine vehicle maneuver data based at least in part on the sensor data and determine a road slipperiness value based at least in part on the vehicle maneuver data . Foster, et al. (U.S. Patent Application Pub. No. 2023/0140569) teaches a high precision digital map which is updated by an in-vehicle control computer with detected roadway data, including roadway conditions data, where the in-vehicle control computer can be configured to estimate the road traction between the drive wheels of the autonomous vehicle and the road surface. 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 HELEN LI whose telephone number is (703)756-4719. The examiner can normally be reached Monday through Friday, from 9am to 5pm eastern. Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice. If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Hunter Lonsberry can be reached at (571) 272-7298. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300. Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000. /H.L./Examiner, Art Unit 3665 /HUNTER B LONSBERRY/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3665 Application/Control Number: 18/922,415 Page 2 Art Unit: 3665 Application/Control Number: 18/922,415 Page 3 Art Unit: 3665 Application/Control Number: 18/922,415 Page 4 Art Unit: 3665 Application/Control Number: 18/922,415 Page 5 Art Unit: 3665 Application/Control Number: 18/922,415 Page 6 Art Unit: 3665 Application/Control Number: 18/922,415 Page 7 Art Unit: 3665 Application/Control Number: 18/922,415 Page 8 Art Unit: 3665 Application/Control Number: 18/922,415 Page 9 Art Unit: 3665 Application/Control Number: 18/922,415 Page 10 Art Unit: 3665 Application/Control Number: 18/922,415 Page 11 Art Unit: 3665 Application/Control Number: 18/922,415 Page 12 Art Unit: 3665
Prosecution Insights