Prosecution Insights
Last updated: July 17, 2026
Application No. 18/943,970

IMAGE ANALYSIS METHOD AND RELATED SURVEILLANCE APPARATUS

Non-Final OA §103
Filed
Nov 12, 2024
Priority
Nov 13, 2023 — TW 112143646
Examiner
HSIEH, PING Y
Art Unit
Tech Center
Assignee
Vivotek Inc.
OA Round
1 (Non-Final)
79%
Grant Probability
Favorable
1-2
OA Rounds
1y 0m
Est. Remaining
94%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 79% — above average
79%
Career Allowance Rate
758 granted / 959 resolved
+19.0% vs TC avg
Strong +16% interview lift
Without
With
+15.5%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Typical timeline
2y 9m
Avg Prosecution
28 currently pending
Career history
989
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
1.5%
-38.5% vs TC avg
§103
81.3%
+41.3% vs TC avg
§102
8.6%
-31.4% vs TC avg
§112
0.5%
-39.5% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 959 resolved cases

Office Action

§103
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 § 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. The factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows: 1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art. 2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue. 3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art. 4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness. Claim(s) 1-5, 7-9, 11-15, 17-19 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Gonen (U.S. PG-PUB NO. 2024/0387141) in view of Rossek (U.S. PG-PUB NO. 2024/0047174) and further in view of Friedrich (EP 4075126). -Regarding claim 1, Gonen discloses an image analysis method performed in a surveillance apparatus comprising an image receiver (camera assembly 130, FIG. 1) and an operation processor (control system 135, FIG. 1), the image analysis method comprising: the operation processor controlling the image receiver to receive a plurality of image frames, wherein the plurality of image frames comprises a first image frame and at least one second image frame (plurality of frames, paragraph 79), each of the first image frame and the at least one second image frame comprises a first feature block (one or more target crystals in the initial image, paragraph 88), and a definition of the first feature block of the first image frame (the diffraction score may represent a resolution of the specimen that was captured in terms of Angstroms, paragraph 91); and the operation processor determines the first feature block of the first image frame meets a preset condition (the completeness parameter may be compared to a threshold (e.g., 65%, 70%, or 75%) to determine whether sufficient diffraction data is present, paragraph 82, 85). Gonen is silent to teaching that different from a definition of the first feature block of the at least one second image frame. However, the claimed limitation is well known in the art as evidenced by Rossek. In the same field of endeavor, Rossek teaches different from a definition of the first feature block of the at least one second image frame (Kikuchi images obtained at different positions of the active surface 53, interpolating sup-pixel intensity distributions or calculating super-resolution Kikuchi images based on Kikuchi images obtained from slightly different perspectives, paragraph 65). Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skills in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teaching of Gonen with the teaching of Rossek in order to provide more accurate the determination of the material properties. The combination is silent to teaching that the operation processor taking the first feature block of the first image frame and the first feature block of the at least one second image frame as training samples for training an image analysis model. However, the claimed limitation is well known in the art as evidenced by Friedrich. In the same field of endeavor, Friedrich teaches the operation processor taking the first feature block of the first image frame and the first feature block of the at least one second image frame as training samples for training an image analysis model (training samples, paragraph 131-132). Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skills in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teaching of the combination with the teaching of Friedrich in order to reduce the influence of noise and to accurately estimate the actual wave amplitude from sparse intensity patterns. -Regarding claim 2, the combination further discloses the first image frame and the at least one second image frame are generated by capturing a same object at different time points, or by different image capturing apparatuses (Gonen, paragraph 78-79). -Regarding claim 3, the combination further discloses the preset condition is that the definition of the first feature block of the first image frame is greater than a preset threshold (Gonen, paragraph 82-85). -Regarding claim 4, the combination further discloses the definition of the first feature block of the first image frame is greater than the definition of the first feature block of the at least one second image frame (Gonen, intensity value, paragraph 91). -Regarding claim 5, the combination further discloses the operation processor controlling the image receiver to receive a third image frame comprising a second feature block and further utilizing the image analysis model for analyzing the second feature block to generate an image prediction result (Gonen, paragraph 79; Friedrich, paragraph 107). -Regarding claim 7, the combination further discloses the image prediction result refers to generation of a third feature block based on the second feature block, and a definition of the third feature block is greater than a definition of the second feature block (Rossek, paragraph 65). -Regarding claim 8, the combination further discloses a resolution of the first image frame, a resolution of the at least one second image frame and a resolution of the third image frame are identical to one another (Gonen, paragraph 56). -Regarding claim 9, the combination further discloses the operation processor taking the first feature block of the first image frame and the first feature block of the at least one second image frame as the training samples for training the image analysis model when the operation processor determines the first feature block of the first image frame meets the preset condition, comprising: the operation processor performing image processing on the first feature block of the first image frame according to at least one image information of the first feature block of the at least one second image frame, wherein the at least one image information of the first feature block of the at least one second image frame comprises a viewing angle information, an image size information and/or an image distortion information of the first feature block of the at least one second image frame; and the operation processor taking the processed first feature block of the first image frame and the first feature block of the at least one second feature block as the training samples for training the image analysis model (Rossek, calculating super-resolution Kikuchi images based on Kikuchi images obtained from slightly different perspectives, paragraph 65). -Regarding claim 11, Gonen discloses a surveillance apparatus comprising: an image receiver (camera assembly 130, FIG. 1); and an operation processor electrically connected to the image receiver (control system 135, FIG. 1); wherein the operation processor is configured to control the image receiver to obtain a plurality of image frames (plurality of frames, paragraph 79) and when the operation processor determines the first feature block of the first image frame meets a preset condition (the completeness parameter may be compared to a threshold (e.g., 65%, 70%, or 75%) to determine whether sufficient diffraction data is present, paragraph 82, 85); wherein the plurality of image frames comprises a first image frame and at least one second image frame (plurality of frames, paragraph 79), each of the first image frame and the at least one second image frame comprises a first feature block (one or more target crystals in the initial image, paragraph 88), and a definition of the first feature block of the first image frame (the diffraction score may represent a resolution of the specimen that was captured in terms of Angstroms, paragraph 91). Gonen is silent to teaching that different from a definition of the first feature block of the at least one second image frame. However, the claimed limitation is well known in the art as evidenced by Rossek. In the same field of endeavor, Rossek teaches different from a definition of the first feature block of the at least one second image frame (Kikuchi images obtained at different positions of the active surface 53, interpolating sup-pixel intensity distributions or calculating super-resolution Kikuchi images based on Kikuchi images obtained from slightly different perspectives, paragraph 65). Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skills in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teaching of Gonen with the teaching of Rossek in order to provide more accurate the determination of the material properties. The combination is silent to teaching that the operation processor taking the first feature block of the first image frame and the first feature block of the at least one second image frame as training samples for training an image analysis model. However, the claimed limitation is well known in the art as evidenced by Friedrich. In the same field of endeavor, Friedrich teaches the operation processor taking the first feature block of the first image frame and the first feature block of the at least one second image frame as training samples for training an image analysis model (training samples, paragraph 131-132). Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skills in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teaching of the combination with the teaching of Friedrich in order to reduce the influence of noise and to accurately estimate the actual wave amplitude from sparse intensity patterns. -Regarding claim 12, the combination further discloses the first image frame and the at least one second image frame are obtained from an object at different time points, or by different image capturing apparatuses (Gonen, paragraph 78-79). -Regarding claim 13, the combination further discloses the preset condition is that the definition of the first feature block of the first image frame is greater than a preset threshold (Gonen, paragraph 82-85). -Regarding claim 14, the combination further discloses the definition of the first feature block of the first image frame is greater than the definition of the first feature block of the at least one second image frame (Gonen, intensity value, paragraph 91). -Regarding claim 15, the combination further discloses the operation processor is further configured to control the image receiver to obtain a third image frame comprising a second feature block and further utilize the image analysis model for analyzing the second feature block to generate an image prediction result (Gonen, paragraph 79; Friedrich, paragraph 107). -Regarding claim 17, the combination further discloses the image prediction result refers to generating a third feature block based on the second feature block, and a definition of the third feature block is greater than a definition of the second feature block (Rossek, paragraph 65). -Regarding claim 18, the combination further discloses a resolution of the first image frame, a resolution of the at least one second image frame and a resolution of the third image frame are identical to one another (Gonen, paragraph 56). -Regarding claim 19, the combination further discloses the operation processor is further configured to perform image processing on the first feature block of the first image frame according to at least one image information of the first feature block of the at least one second image frame and use the processed first feature block of the first image frame and the first feature block of the at least one second feature block as the training samples for training the image analysis model, the at least one image information of the first feature block of the at least one second image frame comprises a viewing angle information, an image size information and/or an image distortion information of the first feature block of the at least one second image frame (Rossek, calculating super-resolution Kikuchi images based on Kikuchi images obtained from slightly different perspectives, paragraph 65). Claim(s) 6 and 16 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Gonen (U.S. PG-PUB NO. 2024/0387141) in view of Rossek (U.S. PG-PUB NO. 2024/0047174), Friedrich (EP 4075126) and further in view of Trimby (U.S. PG-PUB NO. 2023/0395350). -Regarding claim 6, the combination is silent to teaching that the image prediction result is a text recognition result, a number recognition result or a symbol recognition result.. However, the claimed limitation is well known in the art as evidenced by Trimby. In the same field of endeavor, Trimby teaches the image prediction result is a text recognition result, a number recognition result or a symbol recognition result (paragraph 89). Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skills in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teaching of the combination with the teaching of Trimby in order to provide geometric calibration parameters which are precisely relevant to the current location can therefore be used in the simulation of the template. -Regarding claim 16, the combination further discloses the image prediction result refers to a text recognition result, a number recognition result or a symbol recognition result (Trimby, paragraph 89). Allowable Subject Matter Claims 10 and 20 are objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims. Conclusion Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to PING Y HSIEH whose telephone number is (571)270-3011. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday, 9am-4pm. 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, Jennifer Mehmood can be reached at (571) 272-2976. 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. /PING Y HSIEH/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2664
Read full office action

Prosecution Timeline

Nov 12, 2024
Application Filed
Jul 02, 2026
Non-Final Rejection mailed — §103 (current)

Precedent Cases

Applications granted by this same examiner with similar technology

Patent 12683590
TUNING DEVICE, SYSTEM AND METHOD
2y 8m to grant Granted Jul 14, 2026
Patent 12671473
METHODS, DEVICES, AND SYSTEMS FOR BLIND ADAPTIVE BEAMFORMING OF NARROWBAND SIGNALS WITH AN UNCALIBRATED ANTENNA ARRAY USING MACHINE LEARNING
2y 10m to grant Granted Jun 30, 2026
Patent 12665682
CALIBRATION OF NON-CO-LOCATED POLARIZED ANTENNA ARRAYS
2y 12m to grant Granted Jun 23, 2026
Patent 12659053
OPTICAL PATH POINTING APPARATUS, OPTICAL PATH POINTING METHOD, AND OPTICAL PATH POINTING SYSTEM
2y 11m to grant Granted Jun 16, 2026
Patent 12658954
METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR INCREASING RFID READ RANGE IN DAISY CHAIN CONFIGURATION
2y 5m to grant Granted Jun 16, 2026
Study what changed to get past this examiner. Based on 5 most recent grants.

Strategy Recommendation AI-generated — please review before filing

Get a prosecution strategy drawn from examiner precedents, rejection analysis, and claim mapping.
Typically takes 5-10 seconds — AI-generated, attorney review required before filing

Prosecution Projections

1-2
Expected OA Rounds
79%
Grant Probability
94%
With Interview (+15.5%)
2y 9m (~1y 0m remaining)
Median Time to Grant
Low
PTA Risk
Based on 959 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allowance rate.

Sign in with your work email

Enter your email to receive a magic link. No password needed.

Personal email addresses (Gmail, Yahoo, etc.) are not accepted.

Free tier: 3 strategy analyses per month