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 Objections
In claim 4, the word “and” after the “receiving a second operation of the user” should be removed, because it is not the penultimate step of the claim.
Appropriate correction is required.
Claim Rejections – 35 U.S.C. § 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 7 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 7 lacks antecedent basis for “the server.”
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.
Claim(s) 1–15 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. § 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2016/0050160 A1 (“Li”).
Claim 1
Li discloses:
A method performed by an interconnected control device for controlling a cross-device application, comprising:
“FIG. 8 illustrates an example sequence diagram for sharing resources among devices. In this exemplary scenario for sharing resources (800), we have User A’s secondary client device 802, central server 804, and User A’s primary client device 806.” Li ¶ 69.
In this rejection, the interconnected control device, first device, and second device correspond to central server 804, secondary device 802, and primary device 806, respectively.
obtaining application capability information of a plurality of devices comprising a first device and a second device,
“Primary client device 806 may request a resource list from secondary client device 802 (828),” Li ¶ 75, and in response, secondary client device 802 compiles and sends the list “via server 804” in step 830. Li ¶ 76.
wherein the application capability information comprises at least one of an application sharing capability, an application receiving capability, or an application control capability;
“The resource list may contain a list of items on secondary client device 802 that primary client device 806 may request for sharing. For example, the resource list can be a list of applications on secondary client device 802 that may be shared.” Li ¶ 75.
receiving a first operation from a user, wherein the first operation indicates that the first device is to perform application sharing with the second device; and
“Once the resource list is populated, User A may now issue a command to share a resource from secondary client device 802 (834) . . . via server 804.” Li ¶ 77.
sending group configuration information to the first device,
After server 804 receives the command, “the request may be sent to secondary device 802 via server 804.” Li ¶ 77.
wherein the group configuration information indicates to the first device to perform application sharing with the second device.
“The request may specify which resource is to be shared, for how long, with which user or client device, with what type of privilege (e.g., for viewing only, partially interactive, fully interactive, etc.), and other specifications.” Li ¶ 77.
Claim 2
Li discloses the method according to claim 1, further comprising:
displaying a first interface indicating an application that is allowed to be shared by the first device or the second device.
Upon receiving the list at 830, “[p]rimary device 806 may then use the list to populate its user interface so that User A may be able to identify which resources on secondary client device 802 are available for sharing.” Li ¶ 76; see also FIG. 6.
Claim 3
Li discloses the method according to claim 1,
wherein the group configuration information further indicates that a third device is a control device of the second device, and the third device is configured to control an application displayed on the second device.
As shown in FIG. 9, “system 200 can receive, at a server from a first client device, a command for a second client device to share a resource with a third client device, wherein the first client device, the second client device, and the third client device are participating in an online meeting managed by the server.” Li ¶ 81. The FIG. 9 example operates the same way as with process 800, see Li ¶¶ 82–86, except that the devices that claim 3 incorporates from claim 1 are mapped differently in this ground of rejection:
Claim 3 Devices
Li’s Devices
interconnected control device
server
first device
second client device
second device
third client device
third device
first client device
Note that this re-mapping is permissible because claim 3 is a separate claim that merely incorporates all of claim 1 by reference. In other words, if claim 1 were amended to roll-up the limitations of claim 3, the mapping for the entire claim would stay consistent with the table provided above.
Claim 4
Li discloses the method according to claim 1,
wherein the interconnected control device has an application sharing capability,
Server 804 also has an application sharing capability because “secondary client device 802 transmits media data 836 that represents the shared resource to server 804,” where “[s]erver 804 may then distribute media data 836 to its intended recipients such as other client devices belonging to users other than User A.” Li ¶ 77.
and wherein the method further comprises:
“Having disclosed some basic system components and concepts, the disclosure now turns to some exemplary method embodiments shown in FIGS. 9–11.” Li ¶ 80.
receiving a second operation of the user, wherein the second operation indicates to the interconnected control device to share an application with a fourth device having an application receiving capability; and
“[S]ystem 200 can receive, at a server from a first client device, a command for a second client device to share a resource with a third client device, wherein the first client device, the second client device, and the third client device are participating in an online meeting managed by the server.” Li ¶ 81.
It should be understood that in this mapping, the claimed fourth device corresponds to Li’s third client device, and the command for the second client device to share its resource with the third device is an indication for the server to share the application, because, as discussed above, it is ultimately the server who forwards the data from the second client device to the third client device. Li ¶ 84; see also Li ¶ 77 (quoted at the beginning of this claim rejection). And, again, recall that “[t]he resource can be an application, a desktop environment, [or] a system environment.” Li ¶ 81.
connecting to the fourth device; and sharing the application with the fourth device.
“The third client device may be configured to present, to the second user via a user interface on the third client device, only one client device that is associated with the first user.” Li ¶ 84.
Claim 5
Li discloses the method according to claim 1,
wherein the interconnected control device has an application sharing capability,
Server 804 also has an application sharing capability because “secondary client device 802 transmits media data 836 that represents the shared resource to server 804,” where “[s]erver 804 may then distribute media data 836 to its intended recipients such as other client devices belonging to users other than User A.” Li ¶ 77.
and wherein the method further comprises:
“Having disclosed some basic system components and concepts, the disclosure now turns to some exemplary method embodiments shown in FIGS. 9–11.” Li ¶ 80.
connecting to a fifth device having an application sharing capability; and
“[S]ystem 200 can receive, at a server from a first client device, a command for a second client device to share a resource with a third client device, wherein the first client device, the second client device, and the third client device are participating in an online meeting managed by the server.” Li ¶ 81.
displaying an application shared by the fifth device.
“The third client device may be configured to present, to the second user via a user interface on the third client device, only one client device that is associated with the first user.” Li ¶ 84.
Claim 6 — First Ground of Rejection (First Device Shares to Second)
In claim 6, it is unclear which device is which (first device versus second device) because the phrase “performing application sharing with the second device” could either mean that the first device shares its application with the second device, or, that the first device uses the second device to perform the task of application sharing (using an application on the second device).
For the sake of compact prosecution, this Office Action will provide a rejection for both interpretations, starting with the interpretation where “performing application sharing with the second device” means that the first device shares its own application with the second device.
To that end, Li discloses:
A method performed by a first device for controlling a cross-device application, comprising:
“FIG. 8 illustrates an example sequence diagram for sharing resources among devices. In this exemplary scenario for sharing resources (800), we have User A’s secondary client device 802, central server 804, and User A’s primary client device 806.” Li ¶ 69.
In this rejection, the interconnected control device, first device, and second device correspond to central server 804, secondary device 802, and primary device 806, respectively. Secondary device 802 is the claimed “first device.”
receiving, from an interconnected control device, group configuration information comprising application capability information of the first device and a second device, wherein the application capability information comprises at least one of an application sharing capability, an application receiving capability, or an application control capability; and
Server 804 sends secondary device 802 two pieces of information that constitute the claimed group configuration information—both individually and collectively (in other words, the Examiner asserts that each individual piece of information independently anticipates this claim element, as well as both pieces of information as a whole).
The first piece of information that falls within the scope of the claimed group configuration information is message 820, which contains a request that the server 804 sends to the secondary user device 802 that secondary user device 802 be controlled by primary user device 806 in a resource sharing session. Li ¶ 72.
The second piece of information falling within the scope of the claimed group configuration is message 828, which contains a request for the secondary client device 802 to provide a list of sharable resources that it has, including applications available for sharing.” Li ¶ 75.
connecting to the second device based on the group configuration information; and
“Once the control session is established between computer 802 and mobile 806, server 804 may designate mobile device as the primary client device, if it has not already done so. Consequently, computer 802 can be designated as a secondary client device that can be controlled by the primary device. Primary client device 806 may now assume partial or full control over secondary client device 802.” Li ¶ 73.
performing application sharing with the second device.
“Upon receiving the request to share one or more resources, secondary client device 802 transmits media data 836 that represents the shared resource to server 804. Server 804 may then distribute media data 836 to its intended,” including “to User A’s primary client device 806.” Li ¶ 77.
Claim 6 — Second Ground of Rejection (Second Device Shares to First)
Li also discloses:
A method performed by a first device for controlling a cross-device application, comprising:
“FIG. 8 illustrates an example sequence diagram for sharing resources among devices. In this exemplary scenario for sharing resources (800), we have User A’s secondary client device 802, central server 804, and User A’s primary client device 806.” Li ¶ 69.
Careful readers will observe that claims 6–10 recite opposite functions for the first and second devices, relative to claims 1–5. In claims 6–10, the first device performs the application sharing, while the second device performs the application receiving, whereas claims 1–5 recited the opposite. Consequently, in this rejection, the interconnected control device, first device, and second device correspond to central server 804, primary device 806, and secondary device 802, respectively.
receiving, from an interconnected control device, group configuration information comprising application capability information of the first device and a second device,
Server 804 sends primary device 806 two pieces of information that constitute the claimed group configuration information—both individually and collectively (in other words, the Examiner asserts that each individual piece of information independently anticipates this claim element, as well as both pieces of information as a whole).
The first piece of information that falls within the scope of the claimed group configuration information is a “confirmation message 824,” which confirms for the primary device 806 that the primary device 806 is authorized and designated to control applications on the secondary device. Li ¶ 72.
The second piece of information falling within the scope of the claimed group configuration is a “compiled list” of “sharable resources” on the secondary device 802, which “can be a list of applications on secondary client device 802 that may be shared.” Li ¶ 75.
wherein the application capability information comprises at least one of an application sharing capability, an application receiving capability, or an application control capability; and
The confirmation message 824 falls within the scope of information about an application control capability for the primary device 806, and arguably also the application sharing capability for the secondary device 802. Likewise, the compiled list of sharable resources, at a minimum, falls within the scope of the application sharing capability for the secondary device 802 as well.
connecting to the second device based on the group configuration information; and
“User A may now issue a command to share a resource from secondary client device 802 (834). The request may specify which resource is to be shared, for how long, with which user or client device, with what type of privilege (e.g., for viewing only, partially interactive, fully interactive, etc.), and other specifications. The request may be sent directly to computer 802 to reduce network traffic between client devices and server 804.” Li ¶ 77.
performing application sharing with the second device.
“Upon receiving the request to share one or more resources, secondary client device 802 transmits media data 836 that represents the shared resource to server 804. Server 804 may then distribute media data 836 to its intended recipients such as other client devices belonging to users other than User A. In some embodiments, server 804 may also distribute resource media data 836 to User A’s primary client device 806 or User A’s other secondary client device(s).” Li ¶ 77.
Claim 7 (First Ground of Rejection, First Device Shares to Second)
Li discloses the method according to claim 6, further comprising:
sending the application capability information of the first device to the server.
Regarding message 820 as the application capability information, Li discloses that “[u]pon receiving the request [from 820], computer 802 can send a confirmation message to server 804 (822).” Li ¶ 72.
Regarding message 828 as the application capability information, Li discloses that “
Claim 7 (Second Ground of Rejection, Second Device Shares to First)
Li discloses the method according to claim 6, further comprising:
sending the application capability information of the first device to the server.
“In order to establish the session, mobile device 806 can first send a request to server 804 to create a control session (818).” Li ¶ 72. (This is what the server later confirms in step 824).
Claim 8
Li discloses:
The method according to claim 6,
Since claim 8 explicitly requires the first device to have the application sharing capability, this rejection builds on the first ground of rejection of claim 6 above (and incorporates its findings by reference).
wherein the first device has an application sharing capability, and the second device has an application receiving capability,
As was discussed in the rejections of earlier claims, the role of secondary client device 802 is to share its application(s) with other devices, including the primary client device 806 in particular. Li ¶ 72; see also Li ¶ 77 (disclosing that server 804 may distribute media data 836 to many different recipients, including “primary client device 806.”).
and wherein the method further comprises:
receiving a first operation indicating that the first device is to share an application with the second device; and
“Once the resource list is populated, User A may now issue a command to share a resource from secondary client device 802 (834).” Li ¶ 77.
sharing the application with the second device.
“Upon receiving the request to share one or more resources, secondary client device 802 transmits media data 836 that represents the shared resource to server 804. Server 804 may then distribute media data 836 to its intended recipients,” including “User A’s primary client device 806.” Li ¶ 77.
Claim 9
Li discloses the method according to claim 8, further comprising:
receiving a second operation indicating that the first device is to stop sharing the application with the second device; and
“Once the resource sharing is complete, the control session can be terminated. In some embodiments, the user can initiate the destruction of the control session.” Li ¶ 79.
stopping sharing the application with the second device.
“In example scenario 800, computer 802 sends a request to server 804 to destroy the previously established control session with mobile device 806 (840). Likewise, mobile device 806 can also send the request to destroy the control session. Upon receiving the request, server 804 may then destroy the control session and send out confirmation messages 842A-B. After control session is over, primary client device 806 can no longer control secondary client device 802.” Li ¶ 79.
Claim 10
Li discloses:
The method according to claim 6,
This rejection of claim 10 builds on the first ground of rejection of claim 6 above, and incorporates its findings by reference.
wherein the first device has an application control capability,
“Server 804 may require that User A first establish a control session between mobile device 806 and computer 802. In order to establish the session, mobile device 806 can first send a request to server 804 to create a control session (818).” Li ¶ 72.
and wherein the method further comprises: receiving a third operation indicating that the first device is to control the application shared with the second device.
“At any time, system 200 may receive, from the second client device, a request to designate the second client device as the primary device associated with the first user. This may happen when the first user decides to use the second client device as the active device. Upon authenticating the second client device, system 200 can designate the second client device as the primary device associated with the first user, and designate the first client device as the secondary device associated with the first user.” Li ¶ 86.
Claims 11–15
Claims 11–15 recite an electronic device comprising a memory storing executable instructions, and a processor configured to execute the executable instructions to perform all of the operations recited in claims 1–5. Li discloses those operations for the reasons given in the rejections of claims 1–5, and further discloses the device, memory, and processor for executing the same. See Li ¶¶ 36–43 (describing the hardware architecture for system 200, which paragraph 80 explains has the role of server 804 from method 800).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Justin R. Blaufeld whose telephone number is (571)272-4372. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 9:00am - 4:00pm ET.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, James K Trujillo can be reached at (571) 272-3677. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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Justin R. Blaufeld
Primary Examiner
Art Unit 2151
/Justin R. Blaufeld/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2151
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