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 § 112
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b):
(b) CONCLUSION.—The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph:
The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention.
Claim 12 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention. Claim 12 recites “the state where the application is not permitted to use the LAN”. However, claim 1, from which claim 12 depends does not introduce a state where the application is not permitted to use the LAN. Consequently, claim 12 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) for lack of antecedent basis. The Examiner notes that claim 12 may be intended to depend from claim 11 which introduces a state where the application is not permitted to use the LAN. In the furtherance of compact prosecution, an attempt will be made to interpret the claim in its current form for the purposes of prior art rejection.
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.
Claim(s) 1-5, 8, and 11-14 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Shen et al. (“Can Systems Explain Permissions Better? Understanding Users’ Misperceptions under Smartphone Runtime Permission Model”, copy provided, see PTO-892) in view of Williams Sound (“WaveCAST IOS Private Address”, copy provided, see PTO-892).
Regarding claim 1, Shen et al. (“Can Systems Explain Permissions Better? Understanding Users’ Misperceptions under Smartphone Runtime Permission Model”) discloses:
A method for an information processing apparatus that executes an application, the method comprising:
receiving selection of a function to be executed from among functions provided by the application from a user (page 3 corresponding to section 2.1 “Permissions & Permission Groups”, page 5 corresponding to 3.3.1 “Survey Structure”, and Figure 4 on page 6, the user selects a function such as “Connect Calendar”); and
in a case where the selection of the function is received in a state where the application is not permitted to use a capability, and in a case where the selected function is a function that uses the capability, displaying a screen regarding permission to use the capability (page 3 corresponding to section 2.1 “Permissions & Permission Groups”, page 5 corresponding to 3.3.1 “Survey Structure”, and Figure 4 on page 6, for example, when the user selects the “Connect Calendar” function, the system prompts the user to allow the app to access the calendar, see below)
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Shen et al. does not explicitly disclose:
Wherein the capability being requested is local area network (LAN) access
Williams Sound (“WaveCAST IOS Private Address”) discloses:
in a state where the application is not permitted to use a local area network (LAN), and in a case where the function is a function that uses the LAN, displaying a screen regarding permission to use the LAN (The system prompts the user regarding LAN access such that the app can perform the function of finding and connecting to devices on the LAN – see below)
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Before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to combine the system of Williams Sound with the system of Shen et al. such that the system would be configured such that the capability being requested is local area network (LAN) access as described in Williams Sound. The suggestion/motivation would have been in order to implement a system capable of “us[ing] local wifi for [additional functionality such as] audio streaming” (see the Williams Sound reference).
Regarding claim 2, the combination of Shen et al. and Williams Sound discloses the method of the parent claim (claim 1).
Williams Sound additionally discloses:
wherein the screen is displayed based on a state where the selected function is a function that uses the LAN (The system prompts the user regarding LAN access such that the app can perform the function of finding and connecting to devices on the LAN – see below)
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Before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to combine the system of Williams Sound with the system of Shen et al. such that the system would be configured such that the capability being requested is local area network (LAN) access and the screen is displayed based on a state where the selected function is a function that uses the LAN as described in Williams Sound. The suggestion/motivation would have been in order to implement a system capable of “us[ing] local wifi for [additional functionality such as] audio streaming” (see the Williams Sound reference).
Regarding claim 3, the combination of Shen et al. and Williams Sound discloses the method of the parent claim (claim 1).
Shen et al. additionally discloses:
wherein in a case where the selected function is a function that does not use the LAN, control is performed not to display the screen (page 3 corresponding to section 2.1 “Permissions & Permission Groups”, page 5 corresponding to 3.3.1 “Survey Structure”, and Figure 4 on page 6, for example, when the user selects the “Connect Calendar” function, the system prompts the user to allow the app to access the calendar, see below. This is a function (calendar) that does not use the LAN and therefore a content appropriate permission screen for the calendar is shown.)
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Regarding claim 4, the combination of Shen et al. and Williams Sound discloses the method of the parent claim (claim 1).
Williams Sound additionally discloses:
wherein the function that uses the LAN is a function of searching for an external apparatus via the LAN (The system prompts the user regarding LAN access such that the app can perform the function of finding (“searching for”) and connecting to devices on the LAN – see below)
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Before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to combine the system of Williams Sound with the system of Shen et al. such that the system would be configured such that the capability being requested is local area network (LAN) access and the function that uses the LAN is a function of searching for an external apparatus via the LAN as described in Williams Sound. The suggestion/motivation would have been in order to implement a system capable of “us[ing] local wifi for [additional functionality such as] audio streaming” (see the Williams Sound reference).
Regarding claim 5, the combination of Shen et al. and Williams Sound discloses the method of the parent claim (claim 1).
Williams Sound additionally discloses:
wherein the function that uses the LAN is a function of transmitting data to an external apparatus via the LAN (The system prompts the user regarding LAN access such that the app can perform the function of connecting to devices on the LAN – see below– connecting to a data implies at least a small amount of data transmitted)
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Before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to combine the system of Williams Sound with the system of Shen et al. such that the system would be configured such that the capability being requested is local area network (LAN) access and the function that uses the LAN is a function of transmitting data to an external apparatus via the LAN as described in Williams Sound. The suggestion/motivation would have been in order to implement a system capable of “us[ing] local wifi for [additional functionality such as] audio streaming” (see the Williams Sound reference).
Regarding claim 8, the combination of Shen et al. and Williams Sound discloses the method of the parent claim (claim 1).
Williams Sound additionally discloses
wherein the screen includes a display item for permitting the application to use the LAN (The system prompts the user regarding LAN access such that the app can perform the function of finding and connecting to devices on the LAN – see below – the user can click “OK” to permit the application to use the LAN)
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Before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to combine the system of Williams Sound with the system of Shen et al. such that the system would be configured such that the capability being requested is local area network (LAN) access and the screen included a display item for permitting the application to use the LAN as described in Williams Sound. The suggestion/motivation would have been in order to implement a system capable of “us[ing] local wifi for [additional functionality such as] audio streaming” (see the Williams Sound reference).
Regarding claim 11, the combination of Shen et al. and Williams Sound discloses the method of the parent claim (claim 1).
Williams Sound additionally discloses
wherein the screen displays a display item for not permitting the application to use the LAN, and the state where the application is not permitted to use the LAN is a state where the item for not permitting the application to use the LAN has been selected by the user (The system prompts the user regarding LAN access such that the app can perform the function of finding and connecting to devices on the LAN – see below – the user can click “Don’t Allow” to not permit the application to use the LAN)
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Before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to combine the system of Williams Sound with the system of Shen et al. such that the system would be configured such that the capability being requested is local area network (LAN) access and the screen displays a display item for not permitting the application to use the LAN, and the state where the application is not permitted to use the LAN is a state where the item for not permitting the application to use the LAN has been selected by the user as described in Williams Sound. The suggestion/motivation would have been in order to implement a system capable of “us[ing] local wifi for [additional functionality such as] audio streaming” (see the Williams Sound reference).
Regarding claim 12, the combination of Shen et al. and Williams Sound discloses the method of the parent claim (claim 1).
Williams Sound additionally discloses
wherein the state where the application is not permitted to use the LAN includes a state where the application is not permitted to use the LAN and a state where the application has not yet been permitted to use the LAN (The system prompts the user regarding LAN access such that the app can perform the function of finding and connecting to devices on the LAN – see below – the user can click “Don’t Allow” to not permit the application to use the LAN)
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Before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to combine the system of Williams Sound with the system of Shen et al. such that the system would be configured such that the capability being requested is local area network (LAN) access and the state where the application is not permitted to use the LAN includes a state where the application is not permitted to use the LAN and a state where the application has not yet been permitted to use the LAN as described in Williams Sound. The suggestion/motivation would have been in order to implement a system capable of “us[ing] local wifi for [additional functionality such as] audio streaming” (see the Williams Sound reference).
Regarding claim 13, arguments analogous to claim 1 are applicable. The memory and processor executing instructions are implicitly disclosed by the discussion of the Android and iOS operating systems running on their respective hardware performing the described functions in association with an application throughout the disclosure. Further, the sections cited supra in regards to claim 1 relate to warnings displayed on hardware through these operating systems necessarily implies executed instructions
Regarding claim 14, arguments analogous to claim 1 are applicable. The computer readable medium executing instructions is implicitly disclosed by the discussion of the Android and iOS operating systems running on their respective hardware performing the described functions in association with an application throughout the disclosure. Further, the sections cited supra in regards to claim 1 relate to warnings displayed on hardware through these operating systems necessarily implies executed instructions from a computer readable medium.
Claim(s) 6 and 7 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Shen et al. in view of Williams Sound, in further view of Amano (U.S.P.G. Pub. No. 2016/0203393).
Regarding claim 6, the combination of Shen et al. and Williams Sound discloses the method of the parent claim (claim 3).
The combination of Shen et al. and Williams Sound does not explicitly disclose
wherein the function that does not use the LAN is a function of transmitting data to an external apparatus via a cloud.
Amano (U.S.P.G. Pub. No. 2016/0203393) discloses:
wherein the function that does not use the LAN is a function of transmitting data to an external apparatus via a cloud (paragraph [0026], the system can use cloud services to communicate with a printer connected via an external network)
Before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to combine the system of Amano with the combination of Shen and Williams Sound such that the system would be configured to have the function that does not use the LAN be a function of transmitting data to an external apparatus via a cloud as described by Amano. The suggestion/motivation would have been in order to implement a system capable of allowing “users [to] use computer processing performed by the server group as a service via the network….[such as] a service called a cloud print service” (paragraph [0006] of the Amano reference).
Regarding claim 7, the combination of Shen et al. and Williams Sound discloses the method of the parent claim (claim 1).
The combination of Shen et al. and Williams Sound does not explicitly disclose
wherein the application is an application that transmits a print job to a printing apparatus
Amano discloses:
wherein the application is an application that transmits a print job to a printing apparatus (paragraph [0026], the system can use cloud services to communicate with a printer connected via an external network)
Before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to combine the system of Amano with the combination of Shen and Williams Sound such that the system would be configured to have the function that does not use the LAN be a function of transmitting data to an external apparatus via a cloud as described by Amano. The suggestion/motivation would have been in order to implement a system capable of allowing “users [to] use computer processing performed by the server group as a service via the network….[such as] a service called a cloud print service” (paragraph [0006] of the Amano reference).
Claim(s) 9 and 10 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Shen et al. in view of Williams Sound, in further view of Codex (“Device Manager”, copy provided, see PTO-892).
Regarding claim 9, the combination of Shen et al. and Williams Sound discloses the method of the parent claim (claim 1).
As previously noted, Williams Sound discloses:
Wherein the capability being requested is local area network (LAN) access (The system prompts the user regarding LAN access such that the app can perform the function of finding and connecting to devices on the LAN – see below)
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The combination of Shen et al. and Williams Sound does not explicitly disclose:
wherein the screen is a screen for making a setting for permitting the application to use a capability and includes a display item for transitioning to a settings screen of an operating system (OS).
Codex (“Device Manager”, copy provided, see PTO-892) discloses:
wherein the screen is a screen for making a setting for permitting the application to use a capability and includes a display item for transitioning to a settings screen of an operating system (OS) (pages 7-8, the application requires full disk access permissions and the operation system has a prompt for allowing the user to transition to an operating system settings screen/interface; on that screen, the user can then allow for providing access to the application)
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Before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to combine the system of Codex with the combination of Shen et al. and Williams Sound such that the system would have been configured to include a screen for making a setting for permitting the application to use a capability and includes a display item for transitioning to a settings screen of an operating system (OS) as described in Codex. The suggestion/motivation would have been in order to implement a system capable of providing an alert that “User Action [is] required” (page 7 of the Codex reference) such that the user can easily understand what operations they need to perform to ensure proper functionality.
Regarding claim 10, the combination of Shen et al., Williams Sound, and Codex discloses the method of the parent claim (claim 9).
As previously noted, Williams Sound discloses:
Wherein the capability being requested is local area network (LAN) access (The system prompts the user regarding LAN access such that the app can perform the function of finding and connecting to devices on the LAN – see below)
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The combination of Shen et al. and Williams Sound does not explicitly disclose:
wherein the state where the application is not permitted to use the capability is a state where a display item for permitting the application to use the capability is disabled on the settings screen of the OS.
Codex additionally discloses:
wherein the state where the application is not permitted to use the capability is a state where a display item for permitting the application to use the capability is disabled on the settings screen of the OS (pages 7-8, the application requires full disk access permissions and the operation system has a prompt for allowing the user to transition to an operating system settings screen/interface; on that screen, the user can then allow for providing access to the application and the slider is set to the leftward position if the capability is disabled for application)
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Before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to combine the system of Codex with the combination of Shen et al. and Williams Sound such that the system would have been configured to include a screen for making a setting for permitting the application to use a capability and includes a display item for transitioning to a settings screen of an operating system (OS) as described in Codex. The suggestion/motivation would have been in order to implement a system capable of providing an alert that “User Action [is] required” (page 7 of the Codex reference) such that the user can easily understand what operations they need to perform to ensure proper functionality.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JOHN R WALLACE whose telephone number is (571)270-1577. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday from 8:30-5 PM.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Benny Tieu can be reached at 571-272-7490. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/JOHN R WALLACE/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2682
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