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 .
Priority
Receipt is acknowledged that application claims priority to foreign application with application number CN202311689039.4 dated 12/08/2023. Copies of certified papers required by 37 CFR 1.55 have been received. Priority is acknowledged under 35 USC 119(e) and 37 CFR 1.78.
Objection - Specification - Abstract
Applicant is reminded of the proper content of an abstract of the disclosure.
A patent abstract is a concise statement of the technical disclosure of the patent and should include that which is new in the art to which the invention pertains. The abstract should not refer to purported merits or speculative applications of the invention and should not compare the invention with the prior art.
If the patent is of a basic nature, the entire technical disclosure may be new in the art, and the abstract should be directed to the entire disclosure. If the patent is in the nature of an improvement in an old apparatus, process, product, or composition, the abstract should include the technical disclosure of the improvement. The abstract should also mention by way of example any preferred modifications or alternatives.
Where applicable, the abstract should include the following: (1) if a machine or apparatus, its organization and operation; (2) if an article, its method of making; (3) if a chemical compound, its identity and use; (4) if a mixture, its ingredients; (5) if a process, the steps.
Extensive mechanical and design details of an apparatus should not be included in the abstract. The abstract should not contain legal language such as comprising. The abstract should be in narrative form and generally limited to a single paragraph within the range of 50 to 150 words in length. The sheet or sheets presenting the abstract may not include other parts of the application or other material.
See MPEP § 608.01(b) for guidelines for the preparation of patent abstracts.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status.
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.
(a)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claims 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 12, 13, 14, 15, and 16 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) and (a)(2) as being anticipated by US Patent Publication 2024 0212184 A1, (Du et al.).
Claim 1
[AltContent: textbox (Figure 6 shows the steps for creating the panoramic expansion view.)]
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Regarding Claim 1, Du et al. disclose an image generation method for eliminating a splicing seam, comprising: inputting input information into an AIGC image generation model; ("The first depth prediction can be based on both the first panorama and the second panorama. The first depth prediction can use a machine learned model to determine the depth of the panorama(s)," par. 69) and obtaining a panoramic expansion view generated by the AIGC image generation model based on the input information, ("The fuse 120 block can be configured to generate the synthesized panorama 125 based on at least two differentially rendered panoramas," par. 32) wherein a padding method of a convolutional layer in the AIGC image generation model comprises circular padding ("The fusion network 265 can be configured to use circular padding at each convolutional layer, simulating Circular convolutional neural network (CNNs) to join the left and right edges," par. 42).
Claim 2
Regarding Claim 2, Du et al. disclose the image generation method according to claim 1, wherein the input information is an initial panoramic expansion view, the generated panoramic expansion view is a target panoramic expansion view, and the AIGC image generation model is configured to transform a content and/or style of the initial panoramic expansion view to obtain the target panoramic expansion view ("a synthesized panoramic image is generated by fusing the first differential mesh with the second differential mesh. For example, a fusion network (e.g., fusion network 265) can fuse an RGB-D image associated with the first differential mesh and an RGB-D image associated with the second differential mesh (e.g., RGB 255-1 with RGB 260-1). The RGB-D(s) can include holes due to occlusions in the synthesized view are synthesized at the target position 245, 250. Therefore, the fusion can include in-painting the holes. The fusion can generate the synthesized panorama using a trained model," par. 73).
Claim 3
Regarding Claim 3, Du et al. disclose the image generation method according to claim 1, further comprising splicing the panoramic expansion view to obtain a seamless panoramic image ("The fusion can generate the synthesized panorama using a trained model … The fusion can include using circular padding at each convolutional layer, simulating Circular convolutional neural networked (CNNs) to join the left and right edges," par. 73).
Claim 4
Regarding Claim 4, Du et al. disclose the image generation method according to claim 3, wherein the splicing the panoramic expansion view comprises: splicing the panoramic expansion view in a first direction, wherein the padding method of the convolutional layer in the first direction is the circular padding ("The fusion network 265 can be configured to use circular padding at each convolutional layer, simulating Circular convolutional neural network (CNNs) to join the left and right edges," par. 42).
Claim 5
Regarding Claim 5, Du et al. disclose the image generation method according to claim 2, further comprising: fusing a target area ("the synthesized image is inserted into the image sequence between the two or more panoramic images," par. 67) based on the initial panoramic expansion view with the target panoramic expansion view to obtain a fused panoramic expansion view ("target position 245, 250 can be a differential position based on the position associated with the panorama 205, 210. The target position 245, 250 can be associated with one or more gaps in a sequence of images," par. 36).
Claim 12
Regarding Claim 12, Du et al. disclose a computer device, comprising at least one memory and at least one processor, wherein the at least one memory stores a computer program, and the at least one processor, when executing the computer program, is configured to: ("The processor 1102 can process instructions for execution within the computing device 1100, including instructions stored in the memory," par. 97) input input information into an AIGC image generation model; ("The first depth prediction can be based on both the first panorama and the second panorama. The first depth prediction can use a machine learned model to determine the depth of the panorama(s)," par. 69) and obtain a panoramic expansion view generated by the AIGC image generation model based on the input information, ("The fuse 120 block can be configured to generate the synthesized panorama 125 based on at least two differentially rendered panoramas," par. 32) wherein a padding method of a convolutional layer in the AIGC image generation model comprises circular padding ("The fusion network 265 can be configured to use circular padding at each convolutional layer, simulating Circular convolutional neural network (CNNs) to join the left and right edges," par. 42).
Claim 13
Regarding Claim 13, Du et al. disclose the computer device according to claim 12, wherein the input information is an initial panoramic expansion view, the generated panoramic expansion view is a target panoramic expansion view, and the AIGC image generation model is configured to transform a content and/or style of the initial panoramic expansion view to obtain the target panoramic expansion view ("a synthesized panoramic image is generated by fusing the first differential mesh with the second differential mesh. For example, a fusion network (e.g., fusion network 265) can fuse an RGB-D image associated with the first differential mesh and an RGB-D image associated with the second differential mesh (e.g., RGB 255-1 with RGB 260-1). The RGB-D(s) can include holes due to occlusions in the synthesized view are synthesized at the target position 245, 250. Therefore, the fusion can include in-painting the holes. The fusion can generate the synthesized panorama using a trained model," par. 73).
Claim 14
Regarding Claim 14, Du et al. disclose the computer device according to claim 12, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to splice the panoramic expansion view to obtain a seamless panoramic image ("The fusion can generate the synthesized panorama using a trained model … The fusion can include using circular padding at each convolutional layer, simulating Circular convolutional neural networked (CNNs) to join the left and right edges," par. 73).
Claim 15
Regarding Claim 15, Du et al. disclose the computer device according to claim 14, wherein the splicing the panoramic expansion view comprises: splicing the panoramic expansion view in a first direction, wherein the padding method of the convolutional layer in the first direction is the circular padding ("The fusion network 265 can be configured to use circular padding at each convolutional layer, simulating Circular convolutional neural network (CNNs) to join the left and right edges," par. 42).
Claim 16
Regarding Claim 16, Du et al. disclose the computer device according to claim 13, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: fuse a target area based on the initial panoramic expansion view with the target panoramic expansion view ("the synthesized image is inserted into the image sequence between the two or more panoramic images," par. 67) to obtain a fused panoramic expansion view ("target position 245, 250 can be a differential position based on the position associated with the panorama 205, 210. The target position 245, 250 can be associated with one or more gaps in a sequence of images," par. 36).
1st Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status.
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.
This application currently names joint inventors. In considering patentability of the claims the examiner presumes that the subject matter of the various claims was commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the claimed invention(s) absent any evidence to the contrary. Applicant is advised of the obligation under 37 CFR 1.56 to point out the inventor and effective filing dates of each claim that was not commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the later invention in order for the examiner to consider the applicability of 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(2)(C) for any potential 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) prior art against the later invention.
Claims 6, 7, 8, 17, and 18 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as obvious US Patent Publication 2024 0212184 A1, (Du et al.) in view of US Patent Publication 2019 0230295 A1, (Pincenti).
Claim 6
Regarding claim 6, Du et al. teach the image generation method according to claim 5, wherein the fusing the target area based on the initial panoramic expansion view with the target panoramic expansion view to obtain the fused panoramic expansion view as noted above and fusing the target area in the intermediate panoramic expansion view with the target panoramic expansion view ("the synthesized image is inserted into the image sequence between the two or more panoramic images," par. 67) to obtain the fused panoramic expansion view ("target position 245, 250 can be a differential position based on the position associated with the panorama 205, 210. The target position 245, 250 can be associated with one or more gaps in a sequence of images," par. 36).
Du et al. do not explicitly teach all of performing color matching on the initial panoramic expansion view and the target panoramic expansion view to obtain an intermediate panoramic expansion view, wherein the intermediate panoramic expansion view has a similar hue to the target panoramic expansion view.
However, Pincenti teach performing color matching on the initial panoramic expansion view and the target panoramic expansion view to obtain an intermediate panoramic expansion view, wherein the intermediate panoramic expansion view has a similar hue to the target panoramic expansion view ("the image blending module alters or enhances the color, tone, and/or intensity of the pixels of the image to channel blend the images without altering image content," par. 17).
Therefore, taking the teachings of Du et al. and Pincenti as a whole, it would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the time of the effective filing date of the claimed invention of the instant application to modify the panoramic expansion view generation techniques as taught by Du et al. to use color matching and transparency fusion as taught by Pincenti. The suggestion/motivation for doing so would have been that, “The image blending module can blend the digital images of the combined image by applying channel gains in a color space to enhance pixels of one of the digital images. This effectively removes the appearance of the seam artifact from the combined image, generating a blended image in which the seam artifact does not appear. Generally, the image blending module can be implemented for real-time operation to blend digital images using color space channel gains without introducing blurring artifacts or degrading texture and image content of the combined image, thereby generating the blended image in which the seam artifact does not appear” as noted by the Pincenti disclosure in paragraph [0012], which also motivates combination because the combination would predictably have a higher image clarity as there is a reasonable expectation that applying color space channel gains and transparency fusion to the combined digital images would successfully eliminate seam artifacts without degrading texture or blurring the final panoramic expansion view; and/or because doing so merely combines prior art elements according to known methods to yield predictable results.
Claim 7
Regarding claim 7, Du et al. teach the image generation method according to claim 6, wherein the fusing the target area in the intermediate panoramic expansion view with the target panoramic expansion view to obtain the fused panoramic expansion view comprises as noted above.
Du et al. do not explicitly teach all of using the target panoramic expansion view as a foreground image and the target area in the intermediate panoramic expansion view as a background image to perform transparency fusion to obtain the fused panoramic expansion view.
However, Pincenti teach using the target panoramic expansion view as a foreground image and the target area in the intermediate panoramic expansion view as a background image to perform transparency fusion to obtain the fused panoramic expansion view ("In other implementations, the overlap region that encompasses the seam between two digital images may generally be a horizontal region that overlaps top and bottom digital images forming respective top and bottom halves of a combined image along the seam. Notably, the overlap region may be aligned as a vertical region, horizontal region, or in any other region configuration encompassing the seam between digital images that are blended to form a combined image," par. 14).
Du et al. and Pincenti are combined as per claim 6.
Claim 8
Regarding claim 8, Du et al. and Pincenti teach the image generation method according to claim 7 as noted above.
Du et al. teach wherein the target area ("The target position can be associated with one or more of the gaps," par. 31) is Antarctic region and/or Arctic region ("The gaps 40-1, 40-2 can be detrimental to a user experience while viewing a 360-degree video. Therefore, example implementations, as briefly described with regard to FIG. 1C, can include a technique used to reduce or eliminate gaps," par. 28 wherein the most gaps exist in the pole regions of a 360 panorama).
Du et al. and Pincenti are combined as per claim 6.
Claim 17
Regarding claim 17, Du et al. teach the computer device according to claim 16, wherein the fusing the target area based on the initial panoramic expansion view with the target panoramic expansion view to obtain the fused panoramic expansion view comprises as noted above and fusing the target area in the intermediate panoramic expansion view with the target panoramic expansion view ("the synthesized image is inserted into the image sequence between the two or more panoramic images," par. 67) to obtain the fused panoramic expansion view ("target position 245, 250 can be a differential position based on the position associated with the panorama 205, 210. The target position 245, 250 can be associated with one or more gaps in a sequence of images," par. 36).
Du et al. do not explicitly teach all of performing color matching on the initial panoramic expansion view and the target panoramic expansion view to obtain an intermediate panoramic expansion view, wherein the intermediate panoramic expansion view has a similar hue to the target panoramic expansion view.
However, Pincenti teach performing color matching on the initial panoramic expansion view and the target panoramic expansion view to obtain an intermediate panoramic expansion view, wherein the intermediate panoramic expansion view has a similar hue to the target panoramic expansion view ("the image blending module alters or enhances the color, tone, and/or intensity of the pixels of the image to channel blend the images without altering image content," par. 17).
Du et al. and Pincenti are combined as per claim 6.
Claim 18
Regarding claim 18, Du et al. and Pincenti teach the computer device according to claim 17, wherein the fusing the target area in the intermediate panoramic expansion view with the target panoramic expansion view to obtain the fused panoramic expansion view comprises
Du et al. do not explicitly teach all of using the target panoramic expansion view as a foreground image and the target area in the intermediate panoramic expansion view as a background image to perform transparency fusion to obtain the fused panoramic expansion view.
However, Pincenti teach using the target panoramic expansion view as a foreground image and the target area in the intermediate panoramic expansion view as a background image to perform transparency fusion to obtain the fused panoramic expansion view ("In other implementations, the overlap region that encompasses the seam between two digital images may generally be a horizontal region that overlaps top and bottom digital images forming respective top and bottom halves of a combined image along the seam. Notably, the overlap region may be aligned as a vertical region, horizontal region, or in any other region configuration encompassing the seam between digital images that are blended to form a combined image," par. 14).
Du et al. and Pincenti are combined as per claim 6.
2nd Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
Claims 9, 10, 19, and 20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as obvious US Patent Publication 2024 0212184 A1, (Du et al.) and US Patent Publication 2019 0230295 A1, (Pincenti) in view of US Patent Publication 2014 0078172 A1, (Systrom et al.).
Claim 9
Regarding claim 9, Du et al. and Pincenti teach the image generation method according to claim 7, wherein the using the target panoramic expansion view as the foreground image and the target area in the intermediate panoramic expansion view as the background image to perform the transparency fusion to obtain the fused panoramic expansion view comprises as noted above.
Du et al. do not explicitly teach all of obtaining an initial mask, wherein a size of the initial mask is consistent with a size of the target panoramic expansion view; and using the target panoramic expansion view as the foreground image and the target area in the intermediate panoramic expansion view as the background image to perform the transparency fusion based on the initial mask to obtain the fused panoramic expansion view.
However, Pincenti teach using the target panoramic expansion view as the foreground image and the target area in the intermediate panoramic expansion view as the background image to perform the transparency fusion based on the initial mask to obtain the fused panoramic expansion view ("In other implementations, the overlap region that encompasses the seam between two digital images may generally be a horizontal region that overlaps top and bottom digital images forming respective top and bottom halves of a combined image along the seam. Notably, the overlap region may be aligned as a vertical region, horizontal region, or in any other region configuration encompassing the seam between digital images that are blended to form a combined image," par. 14).
Additionally, Systrom et al. teach obtaining an initial mask, ("Based on the configuration information, mask engine 208 generates a desired mask," par. 28) wherein a size of the initial mask is consistent with a size of the target panoramic expansion view ("the mask is configured by the user via a touchscreen interface. The user can specify configuration parameters including mask location, shape, size," par. 19).
Therefore, taking the teachings of Du et al., Pincenti, and Systrom et al. as a whole, it would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the time of the effective filing date of the claimed invention of the instant application to modify the panoramic expansion view generation techniques as taught by Du et al. and color matching and transparency fusion as taught by Pincenti to use edge masking and blurring as taught by Systrom et al. The suggestion/motivation for doing so would have been that, “the mask is applied to combine the image and the BIV to render a composite image that includes an unblurred portion and a blurred portion. The unblurred portion includes a portion of the image corresponding to the unblurred region of the mask, and the blurred portion includes a portion of the BIV corresponding to the blurred region of the mask. Thus, the combined image gives the visual effects of having a shallow DOF” as noted by the Systrom et al. disclosure in paragraph [0035], which also motivates combination because the combination would predictably have a higher quality as there is a reasonable expectation that the edge masking and blurring techniques would successfully create the intended shallow depth-of-field effect across the combined panoramic boundaries; and/or because doing so merely combines prior art elements according to known methods to yield predictable results.
Claim 10
Regarding claim 10, Du et al., Pincenti, and Systrom et al. teach the image generation method according to claim 9 as noted above.
Du et al. do not explicitly teach all of blackening a preset edge region of the initial mask, wherein the preset edge region corresponds to a region in the intermediate panoramic expansion view to be fused into the target panoramic expansion view; and blurring the initial mask after the blackening to obtain a target mask, and wherein the using the target panoramic expansion view as the foreground image and the target area in the intermediate panoramic expansion view as the background image to perform the transparency fusion based on the initial mask to obtain the fused panoramic expansion view comprises: using the target panoramic expansion view as the foreground image and the target area in the intermediate panoramic expansion view as the background image to perform the transparency fusion based on the target mask to obtain the fused panoramic expansion view.
However, Pincenti teach wherein the using the target panoramic expansion view as the foreground image and the target area in the intermediate panoramic expansion view as the background image to perform the transparency fusion based on the initial mask to obtain the fused panoramic expansion view comprises: using the target panoramic expansion view as the foreground image and the target area in the intermediate panoramic expansion view as the background image to perform the transparency fusion based on the target mask to obtain the fused panoramic expansion view ("In other implementations, the overlap region that encompasses the seam between two digital images may generally be a horizontal region that overlaps top and bottom digital images forming respective top and bottom halves of a combined image along the seam. Notably, the overlap region may be aligned as a vertical region, horizontal region, or in any other region configuration encompassing the seam between digital images that are blended to form a combined image," par. 14).
[AltContent: textbox (Figure 14D shows the blackened and blurred mask.)]
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Additionally, Systrom et al. teach blackening a preset edge region of the initial mask, wherein the preset edge region corresponds to a region in the intermediate panoramic expansion view to be fused into the target panoramic expansion view; ("disk-shaped mask," par. 41) and blurring the initial mask after the blackening to obtain a target mask, ("There is a transitional area between the area of interest and the area to be blurred. Pixels in this region transition from black to white according to a transition function that gives the mask a soft edge," par. 41).
Du et al., Pincenti, and Systrom et al. are combined as per claim 9.
Claim 19
Regarding claim 19, Du et al. and Pincenti wherein the using the target panoramic expansion view as the foreground image and the target area in the intermediate panoramic expansion view as the background image to perform the transparency fusion to obtain the fused panoramic expansion view comprises as noted above.
Du et al. do not explicitly teach all of obtaining an initial mask, wherein a size of the initial mask is consistent with a size of the target panoramic expansion view; and using the target panoramic expansion view as the foreground image and the target area in the intermediate panoramic expansion view as the background image to perform the transparency fusion based on the initial mask to obtain the fused panoramic expansion view.
However, Pincenti teach using the target panoramic expansion view as the foreground image and the target area in the intermediate panoramic expansion view as the background image to perform the transparency fusion based on the initial mask to obtain the fused panoramic expansion view ("In other implementations, the overlap region that encompasses the seam between two digital images may generally be a horizontal region that overlaps top and bottom digital images forming respective top and bottom halves of a combined image along the seam. Notably, the overlap region may be aligned as a vertical region, horizontal region, or in any other region configuration encompassing the seam between digital images that are blended to form a combined image," par. 14).
Additionally, Systrom et al. teach obtaining an initial mask, ("Based on the configuration information, mask engine 208 generates a desired mask," par. 28) wherein a size of the initial mask is consistent with a size of the target panoramic expansion view ("the mask is configured by the user via a touchscreen interface. The user can specify configuration parameters including mask location, shape, size," par. 19).
Du et al., Pincenti, and Systrom et al. are combined as per claim 9.
Claim 20
Regarding claim 20, Du et al., Pincenti, and Systrom et al. teach the image generation method according to claim 19 as noted above.
Du et al. do not explicitly teach all of blacken a preset edge region of the initial mask, wherein the preset edge region corresponds to a region in the intermediate panoramic expansion view to be fused into the target panoramic expansion view; and blur the initial mask after the blackening to obtain a target mask, and wherein the using the target panoramic expansion view as the foreground image and the target area in the intermediate panoramic expansion view as the background image to perform the transparency fusion based on the initial mask to obtain the fused panoramic expansion view comprises: using the target panoramic expansion view as the foreground image and the target area in the intermediate panoramic expansion view as the background image to perform the transparency fusion based on the target mask to obtain the fused panoramic expansion view.
However, Pincenti teach wherein the using the target panoramic expansion view as the foreground image and the target area in the intermediate panoramic expansion view as the background image to perform the transparency fusion based on the initial mask to obtain the fused panoramic expansion view comprises: using the target panoramic expansion view as the foreground image and the target area in the intermediate panoramic expansion view as the background image to perform the transparency fusion based on the target mask to obtain the fused panoramic expansion view ("In other implementations, the overlap region that encompasses the seam between two digital images may generally be a horizontal region that overlaps top and bottom digital images forming respective top and bottom halves of a combined image along the seam. Notably, the overlap region may be aligned as a vertical region, horizontal region, or in any other region configuration encompassing the seam between digital images that are blended to form a combined image," par. 14).
Additionally, Systrom et al. teach blacken a preset edge region of the initial mask, wherein the preset edge region corresponds to a region in the intermediate panoramic expansion view to be fused into the target panoramic expansion view; ("disk-shaped mask," par. 41) and blur the initial mask after the blackening to obtain a target mask ("There is a transitional area between the area of interest and the area to be blurred. Pixels in this region transition from black to white according to a transition function that gives the mask a soft edge," par. 41).
Du et al., Pincenti, and Systrom et al. are combined as per claim 9.
3rd Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
Claim 11 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as obvious US Patent Publication 2024 0212184 A1, (Du et al.) and US Patent Publication 2019 0230295 A1, (Pincenti) in view of US Patent Publication 2023 0140759 A1, (Ha et al.).
Claim 11
Regarding claim 11, Du et al. and Pincenti teach the image generation method according to claim 8 as noted above.
Du et al. do not explicitly teach all of wherein the Antarctic region is an image region composed of first pixels in the initial panoramic expansion view or the intermediate panoramic expansion view, and the first pixels are pixels whose distance from a bottom edge in a height direction of the initial panoramic expansion view or the intermediate panoramic expansion view is within a first preset distance; the Arctic region is an image region composed of second pixels in the initial panoramic expansion view or the intermediate panoramic expansion view, and the second pixels are pixels whose distance from a top edge in a height direction of the initial panoramic expansion view or the intermediate panoramic expansion view is within a second preset distance; and each of the first preset distance or the second present distance is a preset multiple of a height of the initial panoramic expansion view or the intermediate panoramic expansion view, and the preset multiple is less than 1/2.
However, Ha teach wherein the Antarctic region is an image region composed of first pixels in the initial panoramic expansion view or the intermediate panoramic expansion view, and the first pixels are pixels whose distance from a bottom edge in a height direction of the initial panoramic expansion view or the intermediate panoramic expansion view is within a first preset distance; ("the lower rectangular region 423 of the rectangular image 420 may be downsampled to become a small rectangular region that itself may be subdivided into a polar sub-region 521 and a non-polar sub-region," par. 35) the Arctic region is an image region composed of second pixels in the initial panoramic expansion view or the intermediate panoramic expansion view, and the second pixels are pixels whose distance from a top edge in a height direction of the initial panoramic expansion view or the intermediate panoramic expansion view is within a second preset distance; ("the upper rectangular region 421 of the rectangular image 420 may be downsampled to become a smaller rectangular region that itself may be subdivided into a polar sub-region 511 and a non-polar sub-region 512," par. 34) and
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each of the first preset distance or the second present distance is a preset multiple of a height of the initial panoramic [AltContent: textbox (Figure 5 shows the predetermined polar region and that the height is a multiple of the total height of the image.)]expansion view or the intermediate panoramic expansion view, and the preset multiple is less than 1/2.
Therefore, taking the teachings of Du et al., Pincenti, and Ha et al. as a whole, it would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the time of the effective filing date of the claimed invention of the instant application to modify the panoramic expansion view generation techniques as taught by Du et al. and color matching and transparency fusion as taught by Pincenti to use the determination of polar regions of an image as taught by Ha et al. The suggestion/motivation for doing so would have been that, “the spherical image 410 (e.g., composed of spherical pixels and depicting a field of view that spans 360 degrees horizontally and 180 degrees vertically) includes an upper polar region 411, an equatorial region 412, and a lower polar region” as noted by the Ha et al. disclosure in paragraph [0024], which also motivates combination because the combination would predictably have a higher efficiency as there is a reasonable expectation that targeting the polar regions would reduce visible stitching artifacts and blending errors, because those specific areas face the highest pixel distortion and are the most likely to form seams when combining panoramic images; and/or because doing so merely combines prior art elements according to known methods to yield predictable results.
Reference Cited
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant’s disclosure.
US Patent Publication 2008 0259223 A1 to Read et al. discloses multi-projector image tiling with optical seam blending and real-time alignment.
Conclusion
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/Karsten F. Lantz/Examiner, Art Unit 2664
Date: 8/12/2026
/JENNIFER MEHMOOD/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2664
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