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 .
Double Patenting
2. 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. See 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); and, 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) may be used to overcome an actual or provisional rejection based on a nonstatutory double patenting ground provided the conflicting application or patent is shown to be commonly owned with this application. See 37 CFR 1.130(b). Effective January 1, 1994, a registered attorney or agent of record may sign a terminal disclaimer. A terminal disclaimer signed by the assignee must fully comply with 37 CFR 3.73(b).
Claims 1-20 rejected on the ground of nonstatutory obviousness-type double patenting as being unpatentable over independent claims of the following: U.S. Patent No. 12,166,818. Although the conflicting claims are not identical, they are not patentably distinct from each other because independent claims of U.S. Patent No. 12,166,818, and independent claims of the present application share the following:
Pending Application 18/936,453
U.S. Patent No. 12,166,818
A level of detail management method comprising: receiving, by a distributed message exchange platform, one or more publishing requests to publish one or more media content items, wherein at least one of the media content items is a user graphical representation; publishing the one or more media content items to at least one portion of the virtual environment, wherein at least one of the published media content items is the user graphical representation;
measuring a distance within the virtual environment between the published user graphical representation representing a subscribing client device and one or more other published media content items published to the virtual environment;
calculating priority data based on the measured distance, wherein a level of priority of the priority data is inversely proportional to the measured distance; receiving a subscription request from the subscribing client device, to subscribe to the one or more other published media content items;
adjusting, by a level of detail management module, a level of detail of a viewing field of the published user graphical representation based on the level of priority;
and sending the adjusted level of detail along with the subscribed media content item to the subscribing client device
A level of detail management method comprising: receiving from a publishing client device, by a distributed message exchange platform distributed across a plurality of computers, one or more publishing requests to publish one or more media content items, wherein at least one of the media content items is a user graphical representation of a publishing client device user, wherein the user graphical representation comprises a position and orientation within a virtual environment that is received by the distributed message exchange platform;
publishing the one or more media content items to at least one cell representing at least one area of interest from at least one portion of the virtual environment;
measuring a distance within the virtual environment between a user graphical representation representing a subscribing client device and the one or more published media content items;
calculating priority data based on the measured distance, wherein a level of priority of the priority data is inversely proportional to the measured distance; receiving a subscription request from the subscribing client device, to subscribe to the one or more published media content items;
adjusting, by a level of detail management module, a level of detail of a viewing field per user graphical representation in the corresponding cell based on the level of priority;
and sending the adjusted level of detail along with the subscribed media content item to the subscribing client device
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Amal Zenati whose telephone number is 571-270-1947. The examiner can normally be reached on 8:00 -5:00 M-F.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Ahmad Matar can be reached on 571- 272- 7488. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571- 273-8300.
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/AMAL S ZENATI/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2693
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