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 Status
Claims 1-20 are pending.
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.
Claims 1-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 101 because the claimed invention is directed to grouping of abstract ideas without significantly more. The claims, as exemplified by independent Claim 1, recites limitations directed to a grouping of abstract ideas such as:
1. A game control system based on a visual recognition algorithm, comprising:
a camera provided in an interior of a vehicle to acquire an image including a human body;
a first processor configured to:
receive the image from the camera;
determine a left and right tilt posture value corresponding to a posture of the human body in the image acquired by the camera and a forward and backward tilt posture value corresponding to the posture of the human body in the image, -certain method of organizing human activity and/or mental process;
determine a leftward tilt of the human body or a rightward tilt of the human body, or a forward tilt of the human body or a backward tilt of the human body by comparing the determined left and right tilt posture value and the determined forward and backward tilt posture value with a left and right tilt posture threshold and a forward and backward tilt posture threshold, respectively, -certain method of organizing human activity and/or mental process; and
transmit a signal indicating at least one of the leftward tilt, the rightward tilt, the forward tilt, or the backward tilt of the human body determined by the first processor and a second processor configured to control a game play of a game in the vehicle based on the signal indicating at least one of the leftward tilt, the rightward tilt, the forward tilt, or the backward tilt of the human body determined by the first processor. – certain method of organizing human activity.
The claims are found to recite a grouping of abstract ideas because they recite a series of steps and/or instructions for managing a game including instructions to control a game play by a body tile of the human body which is analogous to a certain method of organizing human activity. Furthermore, the claims recite steps for managing the game that amount to mental processes because they recite an observation, judgment, evaluation, and/or opinion that is capable of being performed in the human mind or by invoking a computer as a tool to implement the abstract idea or provide a technological environment (see MPEP 2106.04(a)). For at least these reasons, the claims, as exemplified by independent Claim 1 is found to recite a grouping of abstract ideas under Step 2A-prong 1.
This judicial exception is not integrated into a practical application because the additional limitations such as: “receive the image from the camera;” “transmit a signal indicating”, “determined by the first processor and a second processor configured” and “determined by the first processor” are found to recite mere data-gathering and/or steps for receiving or transmitting data which recite a high level of generality of components performing their ordinary general functions to perform a desired result which amount to invoking a highly-generalized computer component as a tool to implement the abstract idea, insignificant extra solution activity, and/or provide a technological environment in which to perform the abstract idea (see MPEP 2106.05(f)-(h)). The remaining limitations such as: “a camera provided in an interior of a vehicle to acquire an image including a human body;” and “a first processor configured to” recite highly generalized components performing their ordinary general function that amount invoking a computer component as a tool to implement the abstract idea and/or provide a technological environment in which to perform the abstract idea (see MPEP 2106.05(f) and (h)). For at least these reasons, the claims, as exemplified by independent Claim 1, are not found to integrate the claim into a practical application under Step 2A-prong 2.
The claims, as exemplified by independent Claim 1, do not include additional elements that are sufficient to amount to significantly more than the judicial exception because the additional element such as: “a game control system”, “a camera provided in a vehicle” “a first processor” and “a second processor” when viewed individually and/or as a collection of elements are found to amount to a technological environment in which to perform the abstract idea (see MPEP 2106.05(h)). A review of the Specification indicates that the recited “camera”, “a vehicle”, and “a first processor” and “a second processor” indicate that these additional elements are utilized to perform their ordinary and necessary function in a computing environment (see Specification, pg. 11, line 12-pg. 12, ln 21). It follows that the additional elements are similar to the case in Alice v. CLS, wherein the additional elements are found to amount to invoking a computer as a tool to implement the abstract idea and/or provide a technological environment in which to perform the abstract idea. It follows that when the additional elements are viewed individually and/or as a collection of elements they do not amount to significantly more than the abstract idea under Step 2B.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Williams et al. (US 2012/0056800 A1) is relevant to a game control system for recognizing and tracking a user by a camera capturing real-time images of a human body by applying a skeletal key point detection algorithm to determine the posture and movement of the human body by tracking a skeletal key point model to determine postures of the game participant in the image (see Williams, Fig. 1-18, 0029-0035, 0064-0065, 0072, 0078-0086, 0098-00104, 0117-0123, 0127-0135, 0140-0154).
Shigeta et al. (US 2017/0036111 A1) is cited for relevance to a game control system for a VR/AR system with a game console and a head mounted display that determines the left, right, forward, and back tilt of the posture of a player (e.g., the head and torso of the player) to be converted into a position of a head in a user coordinate system and providing a signal to generate an image of motion parallax to the viewpoint in the virtual environment of the game (see Shigeta, Figs. 1-19, 0019-0020, 0028, 0062-0067, 0096-00100, 0105-0114). Shigeta further discloses that a method for detecting a position of an object existing within an environment using an infrared camera, a depth camera, an ultrasonic sensor, a magnetic sensor, or the like is known in the gaming field (see Shigeta, 0066).
Sarria, Jr. et al. (US 2022/0314120 A1) discloses a gaming control system of a virtual reality scene by a computing system for interacting with a head mounted display to use a camera to capture an image of part of the human body to use a gaze or physical actions of the user to control a movement of a virtual object in the virtual reality scene(see Sarria, Jr., 2A1-7, 8B—11, 0045-0049, 0060-0064).
Kim (US 2016/0176272 A1) discloses a system and technique for a vehicle control apparatus that uses a camera to sense an eyeline of a passenger in the vehicle to operate a multimedia or navigation device of the vehicle (see Kim, Fig. 1-15B, 0045, 0108-0110, 0118-0122-0123).
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to RYAN HSU whose telephone number is (571)272-7148. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Friday 10:00-6:00 PM.
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/RYAN HSU/EXAMINER, Art Unit 3715
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