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 § 101
35 U.S.C. 101 reads as follows:
Whoever invents or discovers any new and useful process, machine, manufacture, or composition of matter, or any new and useful improvement thereof, may obtain a patent therefor, subject to the conditions and requirements of this title.
Claim 1-6 and 8-20 rejected under 35 U.S.C. 101 because the claimed invention is directed to abstract idea without significantly more. The claim(s) recite(s) mental processes - concepts performed in the human mind (including an observation, evaluation, judgment, opinion) coupled with data outputting. This judicial exception is not integrated into a practical application because the claim is directed to an abstract idea with additional generic computer elements, the generically recited computer elements do not add a meaningful limitation to the abstract idea because they amount to simply implementing the abstract idea on a computer. The claim(s) does/do not include additional elements that are sufficient to amount to significantly more than the judicial exception because the additional limitations only store and retrieve information in memory, these are well-understood, routine, conventional computer functions as recognized by the court decisions listed in MPEP § 2106.05(d).
Deeper analysis explained below:
1. A system comprising one or more processors coupled with memory, the system to:
receive, from a first plurality of sensors of a first sensor type, first sensor data; (data gathering)
receive, from a second plurality of sensors of a second sensor type, second sensor data; (data gathering)
generate, based on the first sensor data and the second sensor data, an environmental map; (concepts performed in the human mind (including an observation) and data processing)
identify, based on the environmental map, a plurality of objects and an indication of a route; (concepts performed in the human mind (including an observation, evaluation, judgment, opinion))
classify the plurality of objects and the route; and (concepts performed in the human mind (including a judgment, opinion))
display, based on the classification, of a plurality of first visual representations corresponding to the plurality of objects and a second visual representation based on the route. (data outputting)
2. The system of claim 1, comprising the system to generate the environmental map according to a fusion of:
first features extracted from the first sensor data; and (data processing)
second features extracted from the second sensor data, (data processing)
wherein the identification of the plurality of objects is based on third features extracted from the environmental map. (concepts performed in the human mind (including an observation, evaluation, judgment, opinion))
3. The system of claim 1, wherein the identification of the route comprises:
an identification of a lane marking; and (concepts performed in the human mind (including an observation, evaluation))
a flow of one or more of the plurality of objects. (concepts performed in the human mind (including an observation, evaluation, judgment))
4. The system of claim 1, wherein the plurality of first visual representations corresponding to the classification comprises at least one first visual representation for:
a pedestrian;
a vulnerable road user;
a motorized vehicle; and
a traffic control device.
(concepts performed in the human mind (including an observation, evaluation, judgment, opinion))
5. The system of claim 1, comprising the system to:
validate, subsequent to an identification and prior to the display of the plurality of objects and the indication of the route, a position of the plurality of objects and the route, the validation according to a temporal dependency between the position and a previous position. (concepts performed in the human mind (including an observation, evaluation, judgment, opinion))
6. The system of claim 1, wherein the first sensor type and the second sensor type is an optical camera. (data gathering using generic computer component)
8. The system of claim 1, comprising the system to:
update, periodically, the identification of the plurality of objects; and (concepts performed in the human mind (including an observation, evaluation, judgment, opinion))
update the identification of the indication of the route asynchronously to the update of the identification of the plurality of objects. (concepts performed in the human mind (including an observation, evaluation, judgment, opinion))
9. The system of claim 1, wherein:
identifying the plurality of objects comprises identifying a first object of the plurality of objects in a same lane and forward of a vehicle comprising the first plurality of sensors and the second plurality of sensors; and (concepts performed in the human mind (including an observation, evaluation, judgment, opinion))
depicting the plurality of first visual representations corresponding to the first object with elevated prominence relative to the other of the plurality of objects. (concepts performed in the human mind (including an observation, evaluation, judgment, opinion))
10. The system of claim 1, wherein the display of the first visual representations and the second visual representation is based on a receipt of a user selection of a driving mode. (concepts performed in the human mind (including an observation, evaluation, judgment, opinion) and data outputting)
11. The system of claim 1, comprising the system to:
detect an omission of the first sensor data; and (concepts performed in the human mind (including an observation, evaluation))
generate, responsive to the detection of the omission, the environmental map based on the second sensor data. (concepts performed in the human mind (including an judgment, opinion))
12. The system of claim 1, comprising the system to classify the route based on at least one of stored route data or a global navigation satellite system (GNSS) sensor. (concepts performed in the human mind (including an observation, evaluation, judgment, opinion))
13. The system of claim 1, comprising the system to:
encode the first sensor data into a first data structure; (data processing)
extract first features from the first data structure; (data processing)
encode the second sensor data into a second data structure; (data processing)
extract second features from the second data structure; and (data processing)
generate the environmental map using the first features and the second features.
(data outputting)
14. A vehicle (as for claim 1) comprising:
an in-cabin display; and (commonly used device)
one or more processors coupled with memory, to: (generic computer elements)
receive, from a first plurality of sensors of a first sensor type, first sensor data; (data gathering)
receive, from a second plurality of sensors of a second sensor type, second sensor data; (data gathering)
generate, based on the first sensor data and the second sensor data, an environmental map; (outputting data)
identify, based on the environmental map, a plurality of objects and an indication of a route; (concepts performed in the human mind (including an observation, evaluation, judgment, opinion)
classify the plurality of objects and the route; and (concepts performed in the human mind (including an observation, evaluation, judgment, opinion)
present on the in-cabin display, based on the classification, of a plurality of first visual representations corresponding to the plurality of objects and a second visual representation based on the route. (concepts performed in the human mind (including an observation, evaluation, judgment, opinion) and data outputting)
15. The vehicle of claim 14, further comprising the one or more processors to:
execute a navigational action responsive to the plurality of the objects and the indication of the route identified based on the environmental map. (concepts performed in the human mind (including an observation, evaluation, judgment, opinion))
16. A method (as for claim 1) comprising:
receiving, by one or more processors, from a first plurality of sensors of a first sensor type, first sensor data; (data gathering)
receiving, by the one or more processors from a second plurality of sensors of a second sensor type, second sensor data; (data gathering)
generating, by the one or more processors, based on the first sensor data and the second sensor data, an environmental map; (concepts performed in the human mind (including an observation, evaluation, judgment, opinion)
identifying, by the one or more processors based on the environmental map, a plurality of objects and an indication of a route; (concepts performed in the human mind (including an observation, evaluation, judgment, opinion)
classifying, by the one or more processors, the plurality of objects and the route; and (concepts performed in the human mind (including an observation, evaluation, judgment, opinion)
displaying, by the one or more processors, based on the classification, a plurality of first visual representations corresponding to the plurality of objects a second visual representation based on the route. (concepts performed in the human mind (including an observation, evaluation, judgment, opinion) and data outputting)
17. The method of claim 16, comprising:
classifying, by the one or more processors, an object of the plurality of objects as a standoff object; (concepts performed in the human mind (including an observation, evaluation, judgment, opinion)
displaying, by the one or more processors based on the classification of the standoff object, an ego lane in a subset of an area between lane markings corresponding to the ego lane; and (outputting data)
displaying, by the one or more processors based on the classification of the standoff object, a restricted portion of the area. (outputting data)
(concepts performed in the human mind (including an observation, evaluation, judgment, opinion) and data outputting)
18. The method of claim 16, comprising:
receiving, by the one or more processors, an indication of a lane change; (data gathering)
determining, by the one or more processors, an occupancy of a lane adjacent to an ego lane; (concepts performed in the human mind (including an observation, evaluation, judgment, opinion) and data outputting)
and displaying, by the one or more processors, a destination in the adjacent lane. (concepts performed in the human mind (including an observation, evaluation, judgment, opinion) and data outputting)
19. The method of claim 16, comprising:
receiving, by the one or more processors, an indication of a vehicle target speed; (data gathering)
identifying, by the one or more processors, a speed of a portion of the plurality of objects in an adjacent lane to an ego lane; and (concepts performed in the human mind (including an observation, evaluation, judgment, opinion) and data outputting)
adjusting, by the one or more processors, the vehicle target speed to reduce a difference between the vehicle target speed and a speed associated with the portion of the plurality of objects. (concepts performed in the human mind (including an observation, evaluation, judgment, opinion) and data outputting)
20. The method of claim 16, comprising:
determining an intersection between an ego lane and a second lane; and (concepts performed in the human mind (including an observation, evaluation, judgment, opinion) and data outputting)
presenting an indication of the intersection prior to arrival at the intersection based on a detection of a vulnerable road user in the second lane. (data outputting)
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 (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 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.
Claim(s) 1-10 and 12-20 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by THEVERAPPERUMA et al. (US 20220024485 A1).
1. THEVERAPPERUMA discloses (abstract) a system comprising one or more processors coupled with memory (FIG.1 and 11), the system to:
receive, from a first plurality of sensors 110 of a first sensor type, first sensor data; [0142]
receive, from a second plurality of sensors 110 of a second sensor type, second sensor data; [0142]
generate, based on the first sensor data and the second sensor data, an environmental map; (FIG.5-6) [0051, 0061, 0114, 0147]
identify, based on the environmental map, a plurality of objects and an indication of a route; [0060-61]
classify the plurality of objects [0059] and the route [0059, 0129]; and
display, based on the classification, of a plurality of first visual representations corresponding to the plurality of objects and a second visual representation based on the route. (FIG.5-6) [0054, 0060]
2. THEVERAPPERUMA discloses [0048] the system of claim 1, comprising the system to generate the environmental map according to a fusion of:
first features extracted from the first sensor data; and
second features extracted from the second sensor data,
wherein the identification of the plurality of objects is based on third features extracted from the environmental map. [0109]
3. THEVERAPPERUMA discloses (FIG.5-6) the system of claim 1, wherein the identification of the route comprises:
an identification of a lane marking; and
a flow of one or more of the plurality of objects.
4. THEVERAPPERUMA discloses (FIG.5-6) the system of claim 1, wherein the plurality of first visual representations corresponding to the classification comprises at least one first visual representation for:
a pedestrian; [0040]
a vulnerable road user; [0040]
a motorized vehicle 618; and
a traffic control device. 506
5. THEVERAPPERUMA discloses [0056, 0086, 0108, 0148] the system of claim 1, comprising the system to:
validate, subsequent to an identification and prior to the display of the plurality of objects and the indication of the route, a position of the plurality of objects and the route, the validation according to a temporal dependency between the position and a previous position.
6. THEVERAPPERUMA discloses [0007] the system of claim 1, wherein the first sensor type and the second sensor type is an optical camera.
7. THEVERAPPERUMA discloses [0090] the system of claim 1, wherein the first sensor type is an optical camera and the second sensor type is one of an ultrasonic sensor, a radar sensor, or a LiDAR sensor.
8. THEVERAPPERUMA discloses [0044, 0056-58, 0063-0065, 0070] the system of claim 1, comprising the system to:
update, periodically, the identification of the plurality of objects; and
update the identification of the indication of the route asynchronously to the update of the identification of the plurality of objects.
9. THEVERAPPERUMA discloses (FIG.5-6) the system of claim 1, wherein:
identifying the plurality of objects comprises identifying a first object of the plurality of objects in a same lane and forward of a vehicle comprising the first plurality of sensors and the second plurality of sensors; and
depicting the plurality of first visual representations corresponding to the first object with elevated prominence relative to the other of the plurality of objects.
10. THEVERAPPERUMA discloses [0159] the system of claim 1, wherein the display of the first visual representations and the second visual representation is based on a receipt of a user selection of a driving mode.
12. THEVERAPPERUMA discloses [0039] the system of claim 1, comprising the system to classify the route based on at least one of stored route data or a global navigation satellite system (GNSS) sensor.
13. THEVERAPPERUMA discloses [0092-99] the system of claim 1, comprising the system to:
encode the first sensor data into a first data structure;
extract first features from the first data structure;
encode the second sensor data into a second data structure;
extract second features from the second data structure; and
generate the environmental map using the first features and the second features.
14. Same as for claim 1, a vehicle 120 comprising:
an in-cabin display 1114; and [0112]
one or more processors 1108 coupled with memory 1110, to:
receive, from a first plurality of sensors of a first sensor type, first sensor data;
receive, from a second plurality of sensors of a second sensor type, second sensor data;
generate, based on the first sensor data and the second sensor data, an environmental map;
identify, based on the environmental map, a plurality of objects and an indication of a route;
classify the plurality of objects and the route; and
present on the in-cabin display, based on the classification, of a plurality of first visual representations corresponding to the plurality of objects and a second visual representation based on the route.
15. THEVERAPPERUMA discloses [0035-44] the vehicle of claim 14, further comprising the one or more processors to:
execute a navigational action responsive to the plurality of the objects and the indication of the route identified based on the environmental map.
16. As for claim 1, a method comprising:
receiving, by one or more processors, from a first plurality of sensors of a first sensor type, first sensor data;
receiving, by the one or more processors from a second plurality of sensors of a second sensor type, second sensor data;
generating, by the one or more processors, based on the first sensor data and the second sensor data, an environmental map;
identifying, by the one or more processors based on the environmental map, a plurality of objects and an indication of a route;
classifying, by the one or more processors, the plurality of objects and the route; and
displaying, by the one or more processors, based on the classification, a plurality of first visual representations corresponding to the plurality of objects a second visual representation based on the route.
17. THEVERAPPERUMA discloses (FIG.5-6) the method of claim 16, comprising:
classifying, by the one or more processors, an object of the plurality of objects as a standoff object;
displaying, by the one or more processors based on the classification of the standoff object, an ego lane in a subset of an area between lane markings corresponding to the ego lane; and
displaying, by the one or more processors based on the classification of the standoff object, a restricted portion of the area.
18. THEVERAPPERUMA discloses [0061] the method of claim 16, comprising:
receiving, by the one or more processors, an indication of a lane change;
determining, by the one or more processors, an occupancy of a lane adjacent to an ego lane; and
displaying, by the one or more processors, a destination in the adjacent lane.
19. THEVERAPPERUMA discloses [0038, 0054, 0061] the method of claim 16, comprising:
receiving, by the one or more processors, an indication of a vehicle target speed;
identifying, by the one or more processors, a speed of a portion of the plurality of objects in an adjacent lane to an ego lane; and
adjusting, by the one or more processors, the vehicle target speed to reduce a difference between the vehicle target speed and a speed associated with the portion of the plurality of objects.
20. THEVERAPPERUMA discloses [0085] the method of claim 16, comprising:
determining an intersection between an ego lane and a second lane; and
presenting an indication of the intersection prior to arrival at the intersection based on a detection of a vulnerable road user in the second lane.
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.
Claim(s) 11 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over THEVERAPPERUMA et al. (US 20220024485 A1) in view of MULLINS et al. (US 20170092220 A1).
However, THEVERAPPERUMA et al. (US 20220024485 A1) fails to explicitly disclose:
11. The system of claim 1, comprising the system to:
detect an omission of the first sensor data; and
generate, responsive to the detection of the omission, the environmental map based on the second sensor data.
MULLINS et al. (US 20170092220 A1) teaches (abstract) in a similar field of invention [0024] wherein a dynamic sensor array is operated using other sensor data to replace missing data from a defective sensor.
The prior art also teaches the known technique of using sensor data from a properly operating sensor when a data omission is detected due to a defectively operating sensor. A person of ordinary skill in the art would have recognized that applying the known technique of generating data based on another sensor would have yielded predictable results and would have improved the reliability of the system, if a sensor is defective.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to CARLOS E GARCIA whose telephone number is (571)270-1354. The examiner can normally be reached M-Th 9-6pm F 9-5pm.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Brian Zimmerman can be reached at (571) 272-3059. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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CARLOS E. GARCIA
Primary Examiner
Art Unit 2686
/Carlos Garcia/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2686 4/14/2026
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