DETAILED ACTION
Status of the Claims
Claims 1-8 are pending.
Specification
The title of the invention is not sufficiently descriptive. A new title is required that is clearly indicative of the invention to which the claims are directed. See MPEP § 606.01.
Claim Rejections - 35 U.S.C. § 101
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. § 101:
Whoever invents or discovers any new and useful process, machine, manufacture, or composition of matter, or any new and useful improvement thereof, may obtain a patent therefor, subject to the conditions and requirements of this title.
Claims 1-7 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. § 101 because the claimed invention is directed to non-statutory subject matter.
Claim 1 is directed to an apparatus comprising several “units.” The units do not appear to be necessarily hardware components. Accordingly, the recited apparatus is computer software per se, and is not a process, a machine, a manufacture, or a composition of matter as defined in 35 U.S.C. § 101. See MPEP § 2106.03(I).
Claims 2-7, which depend on claim 1, merely further define the processes performed by the aforementioned units or recite additional non-hardware components. Thus, these claims also fail to recite statutory subject matter.
Claim Rejections - 35 U.S.C. § 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 1-3 and 8 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. § 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Mita, US 2008/0192024 A1.
Regarding claim 1, Mita discloses an information processing device connected to a touch-operable display device, comprising:
A detection unit that detects a position of an operator with respect to a screen of the display device. Mita teaches determining if an operator is in the driver position or passenger position. Mita fig. 17 (step S3), ¶ 67.
A display control unit that repositions operable objects displayed on the screen so as to be closer to a position of the operator detected by the detection unit, and displays the objects on the screen. Mita teaches displaying a GUI with icons positioned on an edge corresponding to the detected position of the operator. Mita figs. 10, 17 (steps S6, S9), ¶¶ 70, 73.
Regarding claim 2, which depends on claim 1, Mita discloses wherein the detection unit detects whether the operator is located closer to a first edge of the screen or closer to a second edge opposite to the first edge; and the display control unit repositions the objects to be closer to the first edge and displays the objects on the screen when it is detected that the operator is located closer to the first edge of the screen, and the display control unit repositions the objects to be closer to the second edge and displays the objects on the screen when it is detected that the operator is located closer to the second edge of the screen. Mita fig. 10, 17, ¶¶ 67, 70, 73.
Regarding claim 3, which depends on claim 1, Mita discloses wherein[:]
The display device is installed in a vehicle; a row of seats including a left seat and a right seat arranged in the same row is provided in the vehicle; the screen is located in front of the row of seats and is formed to extend in a vehicle width direction of the vehicle. Mita fig. 4, ¶ 45.
The detection unit detects whether the operator is located in the left seat or located in the right seat; and the display control unit repositions the objects to be closer to the left seat and displays the object on the screen when it is detected that the operator is located in the left seat, and the display control unit repositions the objects to be closer to the right seat and displays the object on the screen when it is detected that the operator is located in the right seat. Mita fig. 10, 17, ¶¶ 67, 70, 73.
Claim 8 is drawn to instructions stored in a medium that implement the method recited in claim 1. Accordingly, this claim is rejected for substantially the same reasons as indicated in the above rejection of the corresponding claim.
Claim Rejections - 35 U.S.C. § 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.
Claim 4 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. § 103 as being unpatentable over Mita, US 2008/0192024 A1, in view of Wunderlich et al., US 2017/0249718 A1.
Regarding claim 4, which depends on claim 1, Mita does not explicitly disclose, but Wunderlich discloses: a setting unit for setting a user of the object from among a plurality of candidates; and a determination unit that determines the objects to be displayed on the screen according to the set user; wherein the display control unit displays the objects determined by the determination unit on the screen. Wunderlich teachers determining an identity of the operator and selecting the displayed contents of the UI accordingly. Wunderlich ¶ 37.
It would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to a person with ordinary skill in the art to modify Mita’s process of repositioning objects according to a position of an operator with Wunderlich’s process of selecting objects based on an operator’s identity. Such a modification would provide allow for personalization of the user interface, thus increasing the utility of the information processing device. See Wunderlich ¶ 19.
Conclusion
Although particular portions of the prior art may have been cited in support of the rejections, the specified citations are merely representative of the teachings. Other passages and figures in the cited prior art may apply. Accordingly, Applicant should consider the entirety of the cited prior art for potentially teaching all or part of the claims.
The following prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant’s disclosure:
Wood et al., US 2024/0036642 A1, describes a process for adjusting a vehicle display based on the position of the user.
Nam et al., US 2015/0185999 A1, describes repositioning a GUI area according to a position of a driver of a vehicle.
Shimotani et al., US 2011/0164063 A1, describes repositioning display objects according to the detected position of a user’s finger.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Asher D Kells whose telephone number is (571)270-7729. The examiner can normally be reached Mon. - Fri., 8 a.m. - 4 p.m..
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Asher D. Kells
Primary Examiner
Art Unit 2171
/Asher D Kells/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2171
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