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 .
Status of Claims
This action is in reply to the claims filed on 11 December 2024.
Claims 1-7 are currently pending and have been examined.
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) 1-6 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Farsi et al. (US 20250124738 A1), hereinafter Farsi, in view of Zhang et al. (US 20220283296 A1), hereinafter Zhang.
Regarding claim 1, Farsi discloses an apparatus, comprising [Note: what is not clearly disclosed is strike-through]:
at least one radio frequency (RF) transmitter comprising an antenna (Farsi [0054] “For example, the apparatuses, devices, and systems illustrated in FIGS. 1-8 may also include and/or represent additional analog and/or digital circuitry, onboard logic, transistors, RF transmitters, RF receivers, transceivers, antennas, resistors, capacitors, diodes, inductors, switches, registers, flipflops, digital logic, connections, traces, buses, semiconductor (e.g., silicon) devices and/or structures, processing devices, storage devices, circuit boards, sensors, packages, substrates, housings, combinations or variations of one or more of the same, and/or any other suitable components.”) integrated into at least one component of the wearable device (Farsi Fig. 5, element 502(2) “Transmitter element”), the at least one RF transmitter configured to periodically transmit at least one RF waveform (Farsi [0044] “In some examples, radar devices 104(1), 104(2), and 104(N) may each be directed and/or aimed to transmit a signal toward a facial feature of the user and/or to receive the signal from the facial feature of the user.”, further, Farsi [0027] “Examples of radar devices 104(1)-(N) include, without limitation, mmWave radar devices, FMCW radar devices, sinusoidal-wave radar devices, sawtooth-wave radar devices, triangle-wave radar devices, square-wave radar devices, pulse radar devices, variations or combinations of one or more of the same, and/or any other suitable radar devices.”);
at least one RF receiver comprising an antenna (Farsi [0054] “For example, the apparatuses, devices, and systems illustrated in FIGS. 1-8 may also include and/or represent additional analog and/or digital circuitry, onboard logic, transistors, RF transmitters, RF receivers, transceivers, antennas, resistors, capacitors, diodes, inductors, switches, registers, flipflops, digital logic, connections, traces, buses, semiconductor (e.g., silicon) devices and/or structures, processing devices, storage devices, circuit boards, sensors, packages, substrates, housings, combinations or variations of one or more of the same, and/or any other suitable components.”) integrated into the at least one component of the wearable device (Farsi Fig. 5, element 504(N) “Receiver elements”), the at least one RF receiver configured to receive the at least one RF waveform subsequent to the at least one RF waveform contacting an anatomy of a wearer of the wearable device (Farsi [0043], “Additionally or alternatively, radar devices 104(1), 104(2), and 104(N) may include and/or represent receiver elements 504(1), 504(2), and 504(N), respectively. In one example, radar devices 104(1), 104(2), and 104(N) may each include and/or represent multiple receiver elements configured and/or arranged to receive and/or detect signals emitted by transmitter elements 502(1), 502(2), and 502(N), respectively.”, further, Farsi [0028] “Additionally or alternatively, radar devices 104(1)-(N) may each receive and/or detect frequency-modulated radar signals returned from and/or reflected by such facial features.”);
one or more data processing apparatus (Farsi [0032] “In another example, circuitry 106 may include and/or represent a central processing unit (CPU).”); and
a computer-readable medium operatively coupled to the one or more data processing apparatus and the at least one RF receiver (Farsi [0054] “For example, the apparatuses, devices, and systems illustrated in FIGS. 1-8 may also include and/or represent additional analog and/or digital circuitry, onboard logic, transistors, RF transmitters, RF receivers, transceivers, antennas, resistors, capacitors, diodes, inductors, switches, registers, flipflops, digital logic, connections, traces, buses, semiconductor (e.g., silicon) devices and/or structures, processing devices, storage devices, circuit boards, sensors, packages, substrates, housings, combinations or variations of one or more of the same, and/or any other suitable components.”), the computer-readable medium having stored thereon:
instructions which, when executed by the one or more data processing apparatus, cause the one or more data processing apparatus to perform a method comprising:
; and
selecting the texture map of the wearer’s anatomy (Farsi [0051] “In some examples, circuitry 106 may generate, render, and/or produce an avatar 802 based at least in part on information, data, and/or measurements received, obtained, or detected by radar devices 104(1)-(N). In one example, avatar 802 may include and/or contain a three-dimensional (3D) representation and/or depiction of the head and/or face of the user wearing and/or donning eyewear frame 102.”)
Farsi fails to disclose the limitations below. Zhang discloses
estimating a CSI from the received at least one RF waveform (Zhang [0066] “In some aspects, RF sensing data (e.g., CSI data) can include information that can be used to determine the manner in which an RF signal (e.g., TX waveform 216) propagates from RF transmitter 206 to RF receiver 210.”, Here Zhang establishes that “RF sensing data” includes CSI data);
comparing the estimated CSI with CSI entries in the database to determine the closest matching CSI in the database (Zhang [0119] “For example, the input image 802 can be an image that is compiled utilizing RF sensing techniques. In one example, a device may utilize an RF interface that is capable of transmitting extremely high frequency (EHF) signals or mmWave technology”, Here it is established that an input image is generated using said RF sensing data, further, Zhang [0122] “In another example, several different facial signatures can be captured by using RF sensing techniques. Facial features of the different images or signatures can be extracted and saved as templates. For instance, a template can be stored for each image/signature”, further, Zhang [0120] “In some examples, the template storage 808 can include a database.”, Here it is established that RF sensing data can generate an image, i.e. a 2D texture, which is referenced to a database, further, Zhang [0126] “In some implementations, a similarity between features of an enrolled face of a template (from the template storage 808) and features of a query face (of the input image 802) can be measured with distance.”, further, Zhang [0127] “The highest similarity score (corresponding to the best match) can be used as the similarity score 807.”); and
associated with the CSI in the database (Zhang [0120] “The feature representation of the face can be compared to a face representation (e.g., stored as a template in template storage 808) of a person authorized to access the device. In some examples, the template storage 808 can include a database.”)
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate the features as disclosed by Zhang into the invention of Farsi. Both Farsi and Zhang are considered analogous arts to the claimed invention as they both disclose radar sensing methods for facial features. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the apparatus as disclosed by Farsi to utilize CSI in the transmitted waveform, then associated the received CSI information with a database as taught by Zhang. One of ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective filing date of the claimed invention would have been motivated to modify the apparatus in order to perform the distance sensing measurement required for the mapping of a facial structure, or determine the manner in which the RF waveform propagates between the transmitter and receiver (See Zhang [0043-0044], [0065-0066]).
Regarding claim 2, Farsi in view of Zhang discloses the device of claim 1. Farsi further discloses:
The wearable device of claim 1, wherein the method further comprises:
rendering an avatar based on the selected texture map (Farsi [0032] “In some examples, circuitry 106 may launch, perform, and/or execute certain executable files, code snippets, and/or computer-readable instructions to facilitate and/or support sensing facial expressions for avatar animation.”).
Regarding claim 3, Farsi in view of Zhang discloses the device of claim 1. Farsi further discloses:
The wearable device of claim 1, wherein the wearable device comprises a device selected from the groups consisting of: headphones, earbuds, earphones, ear cuffs, hearing aids, over the ear hooks, in ear devices, devices attached by piercings, glasses, smart glasses, monocles, goggles, virtual reality or augmented reality goggles or glasses, contact lens, devices attached to one or both eyes, nose attachments, piercings, hat, cap, helmet, visor, headband, hair clip, support extensions mounted to the body, wrist and ankle bands, bracelets, necklaces, finger and toe rings, garment, suit, undergarment, shoe, glove, microphones, cameras, phones, smartphones, watches, smart watches, pendants and subcutaneous devices (Farsi Fig. 10, further, Farsi [0012] “FIG. 10 is an illustration of exemplary augmented-reality glasses that may be used in connection with one or more implementations of this disclosure.”).
Regarding claim 4, Farsi in view of Zhang discloses the device of claim 1. Farsi further discloses:
The wearable device of claim 1, wherein the wearer’s anatomy comprises anatomy selected from the groups consisting of: face, eyeballs, head, hair, ears, lips, inner mouth, teeth, tongue, nostrils, jaw, neck, shoulders, chest, breasts, torso, genitals, buttocks, arms, hands, fingers, legs, feet, toes, piercings, tattoos, scarification, prostheses, joints and deformable parts of the body (Farsi [0035] “In some examples, eyewear frame 102 may include and/or represent any type or form of structure and/or assembly capable of securing and/or mounting radar devices 104(1)-(N) to the user's head or face.”).
Regarding claim 5, Farsi in view of Zhang discloses the device of claim 1. Farsi further discloses:
The wearable device of claim 1, wherein the wearable device is a pair of glasses (Farsi Fig. 5, further, Farsi [0035] “In some examples, eyewear frame 102 may include and/or represent any type or form of structure and/or assembly capable of securing and/or mounting radar devices 104(1)-(N) to the user's head or face.”).
Regarding claim 6, Farsi in view of Zhang discloses the device of claim 1. Farsi further discloses:
The wearable device of claim 5, wherein the at least one component of the pair of glasses comprises frames of the pair of glasses (Farsi Fig. 5, further, Farsi [0035] “In some examples, eyewear frame 102 may include and/or represent any type or form of structure and/or assembly capable of securing and/or mounting radar devices 104(1)-(N) to the user's head or face.”).
Claim 7 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Farsi et al. (US 20250124738 A1), hereinafter Farsi, in view of Zhang et al. (US 20220283296 A1 ), hereinafter Zhang, and further in view of Duan et al. (US 20240183934 A1), hereinafter Duan.
Regarding claim 7, Farsi in view of Zhang discloses the device of claim 1. Farsi in view of Zhang fails to disclose the limitation below. Duan discloses:
The wearable device of claim 1, wherein the at least one RF waveform comprises a sounding reference signal (SRS) (Duan [0152] ” The plurality of RSs may include at least one of the CSI-RSs, at least one of the PRSs, and at least one of the SRSs for the radar sensing based on the requisite range resolution.” Examiner notes that “SRS” means “sounding reference signal”.).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate the features as disclosed by Duan into the invention of Farsi in view of Zhang. The set of Farsi, Zhang, and Duan are considered analogous arts to the claimed invention as they disclose radar sensing methods for the sensing of user properties by user devices. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the apparatus as disclosed by Farsi in view of Zhang to use a sounding reference signal in the transmitted waveform as taught by Duan. These are often incorporated into wireless communications that transmit CSI, and adding a sounding reference signal would merely mean adding such a signal to the waveform / packet. One of ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective filing date of the claimed invention would have been motivated to modify the apparatus in order to perform sensing measurements with a requisite range and resolution considered (See Duan [0026], [0107], [0152]).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to THOMAS JAMES HALLORAN whose telephone number is (571)272-8643. The examiner can normally be reached Mon-Fri. 7:30am-5pm.
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/T.J.H./Examiner, Art Unit 3648
/RESHA DESAI/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3648
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