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.
Claims 1-5, 8-12, and 15 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Tang et al. (US 2022/0219063 A1), hereinafter Tang, in view of Scholz (US 2024/0334902 A1).
Regarding claim 1, Tang teaches (note: what Tang does not teach is struck through),
A position correction device (para. 0107, “In the embodiment of the present disclosure, when the relative position difference between the position data of the wearable device and the third route point or the relative position difference between the position data of the wearable device and the fourth route point exceeds the second difference threshold, that is, the athlete user deviates from the competition route and exceeds a set allowable distance, so it is necessary to re-navigate the athlete user back to the competition route. The deviation distance from the position data of the wearable device to the feature position data may be calculated and the prompt information corresponding to the deviation distance is output on the wearable device, so as to re-navigate the user back to the competition route) comprising:
a first acquisition unit attached to a contestant participating in a competition in which the contestant moves along a course, and configured to acquire, from a GNSS system, first position information indicating a position of the contestant (para. 0075, “In the embodiment of the present disclosure, the wearable device may be any device capable of providing navigation and prompt functions such as a mobile phone, a wearable device (such as a sports watch, a smart watch, smart glasses, and a smart bracelet). The route data of the competition route and data information related to the check-in point may be acquired through an external device or a data platform, or graphic navigation data may be acquired first through a global positioning system (GPS), an altimeter, geomagnetic (compass) data or the like to obtain whole-course route data, an altitude curve and current position data of the athlete equipped with the wearable device, where the athlete is waiting for a detection device or a person.”);
a second acquisition unit a specific position in the course [text in italics added for clarity] (para. 0076, “In an implementation, a GPS recording device may be used for collecting longitude and latitude data of the route points, and altitude data of the route points along the competition track to form the competition route. For example, 100 route points may be provided on a competition track having a length of 3 km to form the competition route. After the competition route is obtained, the GPS recording device may be used for noting a part of the route points as check-in points while collecting the route points. A notation of a check-in point position includes longitude and latitude information, altitude information, a name, an accumulative climbing altitude, a distance from the start point and the like of the check-in point. Computer-side map-making software, such as Google Earth, may also be used for copying along the competition track to form the competition route. After the competition route is obtained, the computer-side map-making software may also be used for noting the check-in point positions on the route. The notation of the check-in point position includes the longitude and latitude information, the altitude information, the name, the accumulative climbing altitude, the distance from the start point and the like of the check-in point. After the above operations are completed, a file may be exported from the GPS recording device or a route file is saved in a specified format (such as a gpx format) by using the computer-side map-making software, and transmitted to the wearable device including a GPS navigation or the like.”);
a determination unit configured to determine whether a difference between a position of the contestant that is indicated by the first position information and the specific position is a first threshold value or more when the contestant arrives at the specific position (para. 0107, “In the embodiment of the present disclosure, when the relative position difference between the position data of the wearable device and the third route point or the relative position difference between the position data of the wearable device and the fourth route point exceeds the second difference threshold, that is, the athlete user deviates from the competition route and exceeds a set allowable distance, so it is necessary to re-navigate the athlete user back to the competition route. The deviation distance from the position data of the wearable device to the feature position data may be calculated and the prompt information corresponding to the deviation distance is output on the wearable device, so as to re-navigate the user back to the competition route and assist the user to finish the competition quickly.”); and
a correction unit configured to correct the first position information, based on the specific position, when the determination unit determines that the difference is the first threshold value or more (para. 0107, “In the embodiment of the present disclosure, when the relative position difference between the position data of the wearable device and the third route point or the relative position difference between the position data of the wearable device and the fourth route point exceeds the second difference threshold, that is, the athlete user deviates from the competition route and exceeds a set allowable distance, so it is necessary to re-navigate the athlete user back to the competition route. The deviation distance from the position data of the wearable device to the feature position data may be calculated and the prompt information corresponding to the deviation distance is output on the wearable device, so as to re-navigate the user back to the competition route and assist the user to finish the competition quickly.” The examiner notes that guiding the user back to the course falls under the broadest reasonable interpretation of correcting the first position information).
Scholz teaches,
A position correction device (abs., “a processor unit configured for generating output tracking data based on the current GPS/GNSS data of the respective TAG modules and correction data generated from the calibrated GPS/GNSS data and the current GPS/GNSS data of the RTK base station”) comprising:
a first acquisition unit attached to a contestant participating in a competition in which the contestant moves along a course (fig. 1, tag module 3 is on the horse as it travels around the racetrack. See also para. 0034), and configured to acquire, from a GNSS system, first position information indicating a position of the contestant (para. 0037, “With reference to FIG. 2, each tag module (3) comprises a GPS/NSS receiver (20) for receiving its GPS/GNSS data from multiple GPS/GNSS Satellites (5, FIG. 1), which is subjected to inaccuracies such as caused by the atmosphere layers. Furthermore, in this example embodiment each tag module (3) uses a processing element (21) such as a computer chip to calculate it's position data based on the GPS/GNSS data received from the Satellites”);
a second acquisition unit arranged at a specific position in the course (fig. 1, RTK base station), and configured to acquire second position information from a second communication device that stores the second position information indicating the specific position (para. 0034, “Because the actual position of the RTK base station (4) is known, the RTK base station (4) generates correction data accounting for inaccuracies such as caused by the atmosphere layers and sends the correction data to the Processor Unit (9) via the mobile network (7), e.g. in the form of a 5G mobile network. Specifically, in this example embodiment the RTK base station (4) obtains calibrated GPS/GNSS data indicating the fixed location of the RTK base station during a calibration mode, and receives current GPS/GNSS data indicating the fixed location of the RTK base station received from a GPS/GNSS satellite, which can vary due to inaccuracies such as the atmosphere layers, during a correction data generation mode, as is understood in the art.”)
…a correction unit configured to correct the first position information, based on the specific position (para. 0037, “Furthermore, in this example embodiment each tag module (3) uses a processing element (21) such as a computer chip to calculate it's position data based on the GPS/GNSS data received from the Satellites (5, FIG. 1) and based on the correction data from the RTK base station (4, FIG. 1) received via the Processor Unit (9, FIG. 1) or directly from the RTK base station (4, FIG. 1), using a 5G mobile network interface (22) such as SIM card or eSIM. Each tag module (3) transmits its position data to the Processor Unit (9, FIG. 1) via the 5G mobile network interface (22) (compare mobile network 7, in FIG. 1).” The examiner notes that the RTK correction data is determined based on a comparison between the known position of the RTK base station and the GPS/GNSS-indicated position).
Scholz and Tang are analogous to the claimed invention because they are in the same field of endeavor. It would have been obvious to someone of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the position correction unit of Tang with the RTK base station of Scholz. The position correction system of Tang relies on accurate GPS/GNSS signaling to give accurate position correction information. The RTK base station of Scholz increases the accuracy of the GPS/GNSS positioning, and placing an RTK base station at a check-in or feature point would ensure that the position correction information was most accurate at the most critical moments in a race course.
Regarding claim 2, Tang in view of Scholz teaches the position correction device according to claim 1. Tang further teaches,
…wherein when the determination unit determines that the difference is the first threshold value or more, the correction unit corrects the position indicated by the first position information to the specific position (para. 0107, “In the embodiment of the present disclosure, when the relative position difference between the position data of the wearable device and the third route point or the relative position difference between the position data of the wearable device and the fourth route point exceeds the second difference threshold, that is, the athlete user deviates from the competition route and exceeds a set allowable distance, so it is necessary to re-navigate the athlete user back to the competition route. The deviation distance from the position data of the wearable device to the feature position data may be calculated and the prompt information corresponding to the deviation distance is output on the wearable device, so as to re-navigate the user back to the competition route and assist the user to finish the competition quickly.”).
Regarding claim 3, Tang in view of Scholz teaches the position correction device according to claim 1. Tang further teaches,
…a transmission unit configured to transmit the first position information to an information processing device (paras. 0112-0115, “The position acquisition module is configured to acquire position data of the wearable device…The relative position calculation module is configured to calculate relative position data between the position data of the wearable device and the feature position data…The prompt module is configured to output corresponding prompt information on the wearable device according to the relative position data.” The examiner notes that for the prompt module (an information processing device) to output prompt information according to the relative position data, the relative position calculation module must transmit the first position information to the prompt module), wherein when the determination unit determines that the difference is the first threshold value or more, the transmission unit transmits, to the information processing device, the first position information corrected and correction completion information indicating that the first position information is corrected by the correction unit (paras. 0112-0115, “The position acquisition module is configured to acquire position data of the wearable device…The relative position calculation module is configured to calculate relative position data between the position data of the wearable device and the feature position data…The prompt module is configured to output corresponding prompt information on the wearable device according to the relative position data.” See also para. 0107, “In the embodiment of the present disclosure, when the relative position difference between the position data of the wearable device and the third route point or the relative position difference between the position data of the wearable device and the fourth route point exceeds the second difference threshold, that is, the athlete user deviates from the competition route and exceeds a set allowable distance, so it is necessary to re-navigate the athlete user back to the competition route. The deviation distance from the position data of the wearable device to the feature position data may be calculated and the prompt information corresponding to the deviation distance is output on the wearable device, so as to re-navigate the user back to the competition route and assist the user to finish the competition quickly.” The examiner notes that, for a situation when a user was off track, was prompted to get back on the course, and successfully returned to the course, the relative position calculation module will transmit the corrected first position (i.e., the new, correct position of the competitor) and correction completion information (i.e., an indication that the competitor is within the required threshold)).
Regarding claim 4, Tang in view of Scholz teaches the position correction device according to claim 1. Tang further teaches,
…wherein the second position information is acquired from the GNSS system by the second communication device (para. 0076, “In an implementation, a GPS recording device may be used for collecting longitude and latitude data of the route points, and altitude data of the route points along the competition track to form the competition route. For example, 100 route points may be provided on a competition track having a length of 3 km to form the competition route. After the competition route is obtained, the GPS recording device may be used for noting a part of the route points as check-in points while collecting the route points. A notation of a check-in point position includes longitude and latitude information, altitude information, a name, an accumulative climbing altitude, a distance from the start point and the like of the check-in point. Computer-side map-making software, such as Google Earth, may also be used for copying along the competition track to form the competition route. After the competition route is obtained, the computer-side map-making software may also be used for noting the check-in point positions on the route. The notation of the check-in point position includes the longitude and latitude information, the altitude information, the name, the accumulative climbing altitude, the distance from the start point and the like of the check-in point. After the above operations are completed, a file may be exported from the GPS recording device or a route file is saved in a specified format (such as a gpx format) by using the computer-side map-making software, and transmitted to the wearable device including a GPS navigation or the like.”).
Regarding claim 5, Tang in view of Scholz teaches the position correction device according to claim 1. Tang further teaches,
a course storage unit configured to store course information indicating the course (para. 0039, “The route providing module is configured to provide route data of a competition route. The route data of the competition route includes check-in point data.”), wherein the first acquisition unit acquires information indicating a position in the course as the first position information (fig. 9, position indicated by arrow indicates the position of the competitor along the course).
Regarding claim 8, Tang’s position correction system includes a first communication device (para. 0075, “In the embodiment of the present disclosure, the wearable device may be any device capable of providing navigation and prompt functions such as a mobile phone, a wearable device (such as a sports watch, a smart watch, smart glasses, and a smart bracelet).”), a second communication device (para. 0076, “After the competition route is obtained, the GPS recording device may be used for noting a part of the route points as check-in points while collecting the route points. A notation of a check-in point position includes longitude and latitude information, altitude information, a name, an accumulative climbing altitude, a distance from the start point and the like of the check-in point. Computer-side map-making software, such as Google Earth, may also be used for copying along the competition track to form the competition route. After the competition route is obtained, the computer-side map-making software may also be used for noting the check-in point positions on the route. The notation of the check-in point position includes the longitude and latitude information, the altitude information, the name, the accumulative climbing altitude, the distance from the start point and the like of the check-in point. After the above operations are completed, a file may be exported from the GPS recording device or a route file is saved in a specified format (such as a gpx format) by using the computer-side map-making software, and transmitted to the wearable device including a GPS navigation or the like.”), and an information processing system configured to communicate with both communication devices (paras. 0112-0115, “The position acquisition module is configured to acquire position data of the wearable device…The relative position calculation module is configured to calculate relative position data between the position data of the wearable device and the feature position data…The prompt module is configured to output corresponding prompt information on the wearable device according to the relative position data.” The examiner notes that for the prompt module (an information processing device) to output prompt information according to the relative position data, the relative position calculation module must transmit the first position information to the prompt module). Claim 8 is otherwise rejected for the same reasons and using the same citations as claim 1.
Claim 9 is rejected for the same reasons and using the same citations as claim 2.
Claim 10 is rejected for the same reasons and using the same citations as claim 3.
Claim 11 is rejected for the same reasons and using the same citations as claim 4.
Claim 12 is rejected for the same reasons and using the same citations as claim 5.
Claim 15 is rejected for the same reasons and using the same citations as claim 8.
Claims 6-7 and 13-14 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Tang in view of Scholz and further in view of Shin (US 2013/0214967 A1).
Regarding claim 6, Tang in view of Scholz teaches the position correction device according to claim 1. Tang in view of Scholz does not teach,
…at least one of an acceleration sensor or a gyro sensor; and a detection unit configured to detect movement of the contestant, based on a detection result of at least one of the acceleration sensor or the gyro sensor, wherein in a case in which the first acquisition unit acquires the first position information from the GNSS system, when the number of satellites that receive, from the GNSS system, a position signal whose SN ratio is a second threshold value or more is less than four, the first acquisition unit acquires the first position information, based on a detection result of the detection unit.
Shin teaches,
…at least one of an acceleration sensor or a gyro sensor (para. 0008, “The INS estimates the relative location information by analyzing movement component and status information of a moving object using inertial sensors (e.g., accelerometer, gyroscope, and altimeter)”); and a detection unit configured to detect movement of the contestant, based on a detection result of at least one of the acceleration sensor or the gyro sensor (para. 0008, “The INS estimates the relative location information by analyzing movement component and status information of a moving object using inertial sensors (e.g., accelerometer, gyroscope, and altimeter)”), wherein in a case in which the first acquisition unit acquires the first position information from the GNSS system, when the number of satellites that receive, from the GNSS system (para. 0063, “The satellite information analysis is described in brief. In an environment such as expressway out of town (e.g., the first road section 110 of FIG. 1), the number of the current visible satellites is 10, the number of the satellites used for the positioning is 6, the receive strength of each satellite signal exceeds 35 dB, and the satellites are spatially placed widely. When this satellite information is compared with and equal to the previous satellite information, the analysis result value is 90/100. By contrast, in a downtown environment (e.g., the second road section 120 of FIG. 1) with the densely sited skyscrapers, the number of the current visible satellites is 4, the number of the satellites used for the positioning is 3, the satellite signal receive strength is below 30 dB, and the satellites are spatially placed narrowly. When this satellite information is compared with and lower than the previous satellite information, the analysis result value is 20/100. When the satellite information is not received, the analysis result value is 0/100.”), a position signal whose SN ratio is a second threshold value or more is less than four, the first acquisition unit acquires the first position information, based on a detection result of the detection unit (para. 0053, “Next, the positioning system compares the calculated reliability and thresholds (a first threshold<a second threshold<a third threshold<a fourth threshold) and determines the corresponding one of the INS operational levels based on the comparison. The number of the thresholds compared is related to the number of the operational levels of the INS. While the number of the operational levels of the INS is, but not limited to, 5 in FIG. 2, the operational level of the INS can be subdivided into five or more operational levels. The INS operational levels can be divided into first through fifth sensor operational levels based on a sampling cycle and an on/off status of the inertial sensors (e.g., accelerometer, gyroscope, and altimeter) and the additional sensors (such as terrestrial magnetism sensor). Herein, the first sensor operational level (or “Sensor OFF”) indicates that no INS is in use because of the high reliability of the GNSS, the second sensor operational level (or “Low Range”) determines only the stop or the movement of the vehicle, the third sensor operational level (“Mid Range”) determines whether the running vehicle rotates (more than 30 degrees or so), the fourth sensor operational level (“High Range”) determines the approximate rotation angle (about 10 degrees) when the vehicle is in motion, and the fifth sensor operational level (“Full Range”) indicates the level allowing the accurate positioning using only the INS.”).
Shin is analogous to the claimed invention because it is in the same field of endeavor. It would have been obvious to someone of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the invention of Tang in view of Scholz with the GNSS/INS sensor fusion of Shin. The position correction device of Tang is taught as being intended for use in cross-country running, hiking, and mountaineering (see paras. 0003-0005). These sports are frequently performed in areas with limited GNSS service, such as forests, swamps, and other remote locations. Therefore, having a backup INS system that turns on when GNSS signals are unreliable like that of Shin would increase the reliability of the invention of Tang for use in these types of sports because doing so would allow the system to be used even in areas with reduced satellite reliability.
Regarding claim 7, Tang in view of Scholz teaches the position correction device according to claim 3. Tang does not teach,
…an identification storage unit configured to store identification information for identifying the position correction device, wherein in a case in which the first acquisition unit acquires the first position information from the GNSS system, when the number of satellites that receive, from the GNSS system, a position signal whose SN ratio is a second threshold value or more is less than four, the transmission unit transmits the first position information and the identification information to the information processing device via the second communication device.
Scholz teaches,
…an identification storage unit configured to store identification information for identifying the position correction device (para. 0036, “Each of the Processor Unit (9), the RTK base station (4) and the tag modules (3) are configured to communicate via the mobile network (7) using respective network interfaces such as a subscriber identification module (SIM) card or eSIM.”), wherein (para. 0037, “Furthermore, in this example embodiment each tag module (3) uses a processing element (21) such as a computer chip to calculate it's position data based on the GPS/GNSS data received from the Satellites (5, FIG. 1) and based on the correction data from the RTK base station (4, FIG. 1) received via the Processor Unit (9, FIG. 1) or directly from the RTK base station (4, FIG. 1), using a 5G mobile network interface (22) such as SIM card or eSIM. Each tag module (3) transmits its position data to the Processor Unit (9, FIG. 1) via the 5G mobile network interface (22) (compare mobile network 7, in FIG. 1).”).
Shin teaches
…an identification storage unit configured to store identification information for identifying the position correction device (para. 0090, “In addition, the communication unit 430 preferably includes the RF IC unit 431 and the baseband processor 432…The RF IC unit 413 includes an RF transceiver, an amplifier, a tuner, an oscillator, a digital signal processor, a COding DECoding (CODEC) chip set, and a Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) card, which are not shown in the drawing.”), wherein in a case in which the first acquisition unit acquires the first position information from the GNSS system, when the number of satellites that receive, from the GNSS system, a position signal whose SN ratio is a second threshold value or more is less than four (para. 0063, “The satellite information analysis is described in brief. In an environment such as expressway out of town (e.g., the first road section 110 of FIG. 1), the number of the current visible satellites is 10, the number of the satellites used for the positioning is 6, the receive strength of each satellite signal exceeds 35 dB, and the satellites are spatially placed widely. When this satellite information is compared with and equal to the previous satellite information, the analysis result value is 90/100. By contrast, in a downtown environment (e.g., the second road section 120 of FIG. 1) with the densely sited skyscrapers, the number of the current visible satellites is 4, the number of the satellites used for the positioning is 3, the satellite signal receive strength is below 30 dB, and the satellites are spatially placed narrowly. When this satellite information is compared with and lower than the previous satellite information, the analysis result value is 20/100. When the satellite information is not received, the analysis result value is 0/100.”), the transmission unit transmits (para. 0091, “Moreover, the RF IC unit 431 communicates with the communication network and other communication device using the radio waves. For example, the RF IC unit 431 can communicate with the Internet, an Intranet, a network, a cellular telephone network, and a wireless network such as wireless LAN or wireless Metropolitan Area Network (MAN). Using the wireless communication, the RF IC unit 431 can communicate with other electronic device.”).
It would have been obvious to someone of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the invention of Tang in view of Scholz with the additional step of transmitting the position of the user to a separate information processing device using a 5G protocol as taught by Scholz because transmitting the user position during an off-road competition increases the safety of the competitors by ensuring that race organizers know their position. The further modification to include the detection of unreliable GNSS signals of Shin further increases safety by ensuring that the system can use alternative locating systems in the event of the loss of a signal. The position correction device of Tang is taught as being intended for use in cross-country running, hiking, and mountaineering (see paras. 0003-0005). These sports are frequently performed in areas with limited GNSS service, such as forests, swamps, and other remote locations. Therefore, having a backup INS system that turns on when GNSS signals are unreliable like that of Shin would increase the reliability of the invention of Tang for use in these types of sports because doing so would allow the system to be used even in areas with reduced satellite reliability.
Claim 13 is rejected for the same reasons and using the same citations as claim 6.
Claim 14 is rejected for the same reasons and using the same citations as claim 7.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Anna K Benjamin Gosling whose telephone number is (571)272-0401. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Friday, 9-5 Eastern.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Vladimir Magloire can be reached at (571) 270-5144. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/Anna K. Gosling/Examiner, Art Unit 3648
/NAZRA NUR WAHEED/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3648
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