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
This Office Action is in response to communications filed on 03/28/2025. Claims 1-20 are pending for examination.
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 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.
Claims 1-3, 4, 7-9, 11-12, 13-15, 18-19 and 20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Fu et al. (U.S. Patent 10,750,128).
Regarding claims 1 and 11, Fu discloses a door system / door lock system (Figs 1-13) configured to be integrated with or coupled to a door (col 1:17-18; method and/or apparatus for implementing wireless integration of security camera and door lock), the door system comprising:
a controller configured to communicate with a motor to control a lock for the door (col 5:6-8; with authentication, the voice commands may be configured to provide wireless control of various network-connected devices (e.g., door locks, garage door openers; Examiner notes that the motor is inferred), the controller configured to:
receive an indication of a trigger event associated with the door (col 10:13-15; visitor 50 may be detected based on the seashell effect of a visitor shape on resonances of the environment (e.g., porch resonance));
responsive to receipt of the indication of the trigger event, initiate control of an audio device to collect a first dataset (col 21:65 – col 22:18; instructions 352 may combine a greeting with a request for information. For example, the instructions 352 may be, “Good morning, may I have your name? And how can I help you?” “Good evening, I see your cell phone MAC address. How are you?” The declaration that information has been collected may further deter a potential criminal. In still another example, the instructions 352 may provide context-aware intelligent conversation such as “It is 1 am and 40 degrees cold here, how can I help you?” The conversational AI may prompt the visitor 50 to respond in order to perform voice analysis and/or receive commands; also see col 10:16-20; an active swept frequency audio stimulus may be presented by the speaker (e.g., a bat ear echo detection). Ultrasonic, near ultrasonic and/or an audible chirp may be emitted and the return signal may be analyzed to determine dimensions of the visitor 50 and/or if the visitor 50 is carrying a package);
provide, via the audio device, responsive to initiation of control of the audio device, a prompt to provide an audio input (col 21:65 – col 22:18; instructions 352 may combine a greeting with a request for information. For example, the instructions 352 may be, “Good morning, may I have your name? And how can I help you?” The reply 354a may be analyzed for a specific name as the passphrase 364i... conversational AI may prompt the visitor 50 to respond in order to perform voice analysis and/or receive commands);
terminate collection of the first dataset based on criteria associated with the audio input (The user 50 may provide the vocal reply 354a. The vocal reply 354a may be analyzed to determine a vocal format/pattern and compared to the stored values 364e. In another example, the instructions 352 may request a passphrase and the vocal reply 354a may be analyzed for keywords to compare to the passphrase of the stored values 364i. The instructions 352 may further request that the visitor 50 perform a specific gesture (e.g., a wave; Examiner interprets moving on to a second request for response of a different type as being equivalent to terminating collection of first requested audio response data). or the trigger event (optionally not selected by Examiner); and
transmit the first dataset to an external device for processing by the external device (col 3:22-47; devices 102a-102n may be configured to communicate the sensor data and/or the inferences made in response to performing sensor fusion operations on the sensor data to the remote device 104 and/or the user devices 106a-106n via the network 60. The devices 102a-102n may operate independently of the network 60 (e.g., without instructions from the remote device 104 and/or the user devices 106a-106n). Communication with the remote device 104 and/or the user devices 106a-106n may enhance the capabilities of the devices 102a-102n. In one example, the processing capabilities of the remote device 104 may enable faster and/or more detailed video analysis of the video data and/or audio data captured by the devices 102a-102n. (21) The remote device 104 may be configured to provide processing and/or mass storage for the system 100. Generally, the remote device 104 may be located off-site from the devices 102a-102n. The remote device 104 may be configured to store data, retrieve and transmit stored data, process data and/or communicate with other devices. The remote device 104 may be implemented as part of a cloud computing platform (e.g., distributed computing). In an example, the remote device 104 may be implemented as a group of cloud-based, scalable server computers. By implementing a number of scalable servers, additional resources (e.g., power, processing capability, memory, etc.) may be available to process and/or store variable amounts of data).
Regarding claims 2 and 12, Fu discloses the door system of claim 1 and door lock system of claim 11, and Fu discloses wherein the controller is configured to:
receive, from the external device, one or more signals that include an indication to unlock the door (col 5:65 – col 6:8; the visitor 50 may approach one of the devices 102a-102n and speak, “This is Alice, 3467”. The authentication may comprise recognizing the voice of the visitor 50 (e.g., recognizing the voice as Alice). Other authentication factors may comprise a passphrase (e.g., correlating the spoken name of Alice to the vocal signature of Alice, correlating a code number to a code association with Alice). In the example, providing the code (e.g., 3467) may also provide a known command. For example, the code 3467 may be understood by the devices 102a-102n to be a command to open the door); and
cause, responsive to receipt of the one or more signals, the motor to control the lock for the door to unlock the door (col 9:57-60; user 50 may issue a command such as “Kung, open the door” (e.g., one of the IP devices 120a-120n may be configured to lock or unlock a door lock).
Regarding claims 3 and 14, Fu teaches door system of claim 1 and the door lock system of claim 11, and Fu discloses wherein the controller is configured to provide, responsive to receipt of one or more signals from the external device, an audible feedback (play welcoming music) to indicate a result of the processing by the external device (col 31:29-33; If the user 50 has entered the correct code, the method 700 may move to the step 720. In the step 720, the outdoor hub device 102 may welcome the guest (e.g., provide a greeting, grant access, play welcoming music, etc.).
Regarding claims 4 and 15, Fu discloses the door system of claim 1 and the door lock system of claim 11, Fu discloses wherein the controller is configured to transmit the first dataset to the external device without any modification (col 3:22-47; devices 102a-102n may be configured to communicate the sensor data to the remote device 104 via the network 60) or evaluation of the first dataset by the controller (optionally not selected by Examiner).
Regarding claim 7 and 18, Fu discloses the door system of claim 1, and Fu discloses wherein the audio input includes at least one of a recitation of one or more digits, a recitation of one or more words, a recitation of a string of characters, or a recitation of a combination of the one or more digits, the one or more words, or the string of characters (col 5:65 – col 6:8; the visitor 50 may approach one of the devices 102a-102n and speak, “This is Alice, 3467”. The authentication may comprise recognizing the voice of the visitor 50 (e.g., recognizing the voice as Alice). Other authentication factors may comprise a passphrase (e.g., correlating the spoken name of Alice to the vocal signature of Alice, correlating a code number to a code association with Alice). In the example, providing the code (e.g., 3467) may also provide a known command. For example, the code 3467 may be understood by the devices 102a-102n to be a command to open the door).
Regarding claim 8, Fu discloses the door system of claim 1, and Fu discloses wherein the external device includes a third-party device supported by a third-party service (col 27:15-18; the outdoor hub device 102 may provide communication with a central monitoring service (e.g., a third-party security alarm monitoring service, police, etc.).
Regarding claim 9, Fu discloses the door system of claim 1, further comprising the audio device (see claim 1), and Fu also discloses wherein the audio device and the controller are disposed within a common housing (Fig 5, and col 14:53-58; circuit 212a may further comprise a block (or circuit) 220, a block (or circuit) 222, a block (or circuit) 224 and/or a block (or circuit) 226. The circuit 220 may implement a speaker (e.g., the audio output device). The circuit 222 may implement an audio processor. The circuit 224 may implement a microphone (e.g., the audio input device).
Regarding claim 13, Fu teaches the door lock system of claim 11, and Fu discloses wherein the controller is configured to provide, via at least one of a speaker or a display, responsive to initiation of control of the microphone, a prompt for a user to provide the audio input (col 21:65 – col 22:18; instructions 352 may combine a greeting with a request for information. For example, the instructions 352 may be, “Good morning, may I have your name? And how can I help you?” The reply 354a may be analyzed for a specific name as the passphrase 364i... conversational AI may prompt the visitor 50 to respond in order to perform voice analysis and/or receive commands).
Regarding claim 19, Fu discloses a system (Figs 1-2 & 5) comprising:
one or more non-transitory computer-readable storage media (Fig 5, col 14:56-62; circuit 228 may implement storage (e.g., memory)). storing instructions thereon that, when executed by one or more processors (Fig 5, col 14:56-62; circuit 222 may implement an audio processor), cause the one or more processors to:
provide, to a controller via one or more signals (col 5:6-8; with authentication, the voice commands may be configured to provide wireless control of various network-connected devices (e.g., door locks, garage door openers, responsive to detection of a trigger event associated with a door, an indication of the trigger event (col 10:13-15; visitor 50 may be detected based on the seashell effect of a visitor shape on resonances of the environment (e.g., porch resonance));
receive, from the controller via one or more second signals, data collected by the controller as a result of the trigger event (see Fig 7, elements 364a – 364i; also col 21:65 – col 22:18; instructions 352 may combine a greeting with a request for information. For example, the instructions 352 may be, “Good morning, may I have your name? And how can I help you?” “Good evening, I see your cell phone MAC address. How are you?” The declaration that information has been collected may further deter a potential criminal. In still another example, the instructions 352 may provide context-aware intelligent conversation such as “It is 1 am and 40 degrees cold here, how can I help you?” The conversational AI may prompt the visitor 50 to respond in order to perform voice analysis and/or receive commands; col 4:24-32; devices 102a-102n may be configured to use artificial intelligence to generate context-relevant speech (e.g., a greeting when a visitor is detected; also see col 10:16-20; an active swept frequency audio stimulus may be presented by the speaker (e.g., a bat ear echo detection). Ultrasonic, near ultrasonic and/or an audible chirp may be emitted and the return signal may be analyzed to determine dimensions of the visitor 50 and/or if the visitor 50 is carrying a package);
retrieve, from a database (memory 228 for example), information associated with the door (col 19:9-23; memory 228 is shown comprising a block (or circuit, or module) 360, a block (or circuit, or module) 362 and/or blocks (or circuits, or modules) 364a-364n. The block 360 may represent an approved list of users (e.g., a whitelist). The block 362 may represent a list of undesired users (e.g., a blacklist). The blocks 364a-364n may comprise various known values and/or factors for the users. In an example, each user on the whitelist 360 and each user on the blacklist 362 may have one or more associated stored values 364a-364n. Each user on the whitelist 360 or the blacklist 362 may not have every one of the stored values 364a-364n. The number and/or type of stored values 364a-364n associated with the users on the whitelist 360 or the users on the blacklist 362 may be varied according to the design criteria of a particular implementation);
evaluate, responsive to retrieval of the information, the data collected by the controller (Fig 10, elements 558 & 560) based on the information associated with the door (Fig 11, element 604, i.e., the comparison);
detect, responsive to evaluation of the data, a match between at least a portion of the data collected by the controller and at least a portion of the information (Fig 11, elements 610, 614, 616); and
transmit, responsive to detection of the match, one or more third signals, to the controller, to provide an indication of to unlock the door (Fig 11, element 620, Fig 12, elements 664 & 666).
Regarding claim 20, Fu discloses the system of claim 19, and Fu wherein the instructions further cause the one or more processors to:
receive, from the controller, the data without modification (col 3:22-47; devices 102a-102n may be configured to communicate the sensor data to the remote device 104 via the network 60) or evaluation by the controller (optionally not selected by Examiner); and
execute, responsive to receipt of the data, a multi-factor authentication protocol (Fig 10, elements 560, 562 & 564,566 with 570) using the data and one or more sets of information stored in the database (Fig 7; memory 228).
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 5 and 16 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Fu et al. (U.S. Patent 10,750,128) in view of Everett (WO 2021092676). (¶000
Regarding claims 5 and 16, Fu discloses the door system of claim 1 / the door lock system of claim 11, but Fu is silent on wherein the first dataset is transmitted via Ultra Low Energy (ULE) specifications.
Everett from an analogous devices communication art discloses the concept wherein the first dataset is transmitted via Ultra Low Energy (ULE) specifications (¶099; Pressure or force (or other sensor-based) data from the input device may be transmitted via a low-profile, ultra-low energy wireless protocol to an output device).Therefore, it would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of filing the invention to combine the door/lock system of Fu with the concept wherein the first dataset is transmitted via Ultra Low Energy (ULE) specifications, as taught by Everett transmit sensor data in order to transmit sensor/sensed data via a low-profile, ultra-low energy wireless protocol to an output device.
Claim 6 and 17 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Fu et al. (U.S. Patent 10,750,128) in view of Casarez et al. (U.S. Patent Application Pub. 2021/0191236). Whitley. (U.S. Patent Application Pub. 2023/0162549).
Regarding claims 6, Fu discloses the door system of claim 1, and Fu is silent on the features in claim 6. Casarez from an analogous visual indicator art teaches wherein the controller (¶043 includes a recording indicator 658 located at image side of camera aperture. recording indicator 658 may include two or more light sources (e.g., LEDs) arranged around the outer edge of a glass or plastic element 659 (e.g., a glass or plastic plate) located at the image side of the camera aperture, also see LED recording indicators ¶047-¶049) is configured to:
control one or more light emitting diodes (LEDs) to provide a visual output to indicate initiation of the collection of the first dataset (¶057-¶062 and ¶077-¶079). and
terminate, responsive to an amount of time exceeding a predetermined threshold, the visual output to indicate an end to the collection of the first dataset (¶055; Conventional video recording systems (e.g., conventional handheld video cameras) may include indicators (e.g., red or green LED lights) that are turned on when the cameras are recording video, and turned off when the cameras are not recording video. These recording indicators signal to persons in the environment that the video recording system is (or is not) recording video of the environment in front of the camera. Therefore, it would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of filing the invention to combine the door/lock system of Fu with the concept of controlling one or more light emitting diodes (LEDs) to provide a visual output to indicate initiation of the collection of the first dataset, as taught by Casarez in order to visually indicate to users an active state of a collection of data.
Fu and Casarez are both silent on being responsive to an amount of time exceeding a predetermined threshold. Whitley teaches the concept of responsive to an amount of time exceeding a predetermined threshold terminating an LED (¶107; a visual indicator, (e.g., an LED light, or other indicator) may provide a visual indication to the user that the threshold period of time has been exceeded and that a status of the host device has been changed. Therefore, it would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of filing the invention to further combine the door/lock system of Fu and Casarez with the concept of being terminating an LED output after a specific amount of time has passed, as further taught by Whitley in order to provide user’s a limited time for their input in order to reduce power usage in the system.
Regarding claim 17, Fu teaches the door lock system of claim 11, and Fu is silent on the features in claim 17. Casarez from an analogous visual indicator art teaches wherein the controller (¶043 includes a recording indicator 658 located at image side of camera aperture. recording indicator 658 may include two or more light sources (e.g., LEDs) arranged around the outer edge of a glass or plastic element 659 (e.g., a glass or plastic plate) located at the image side of the camera aperture, also see LED recording indicators ¶047-¶049) is configured to:
control one or more light emitting diodes (LEDs) to provide a visual output to indicate initiation of the collection of the audio input (¶057-¶062 and ¶077-¶079) and
terminate, responsive to an amount of time exceeding a predetermined threshold, the visual output to indicate an end to the collection of the audio input (¶055; Conventional video recording systems (e.g., conventional handheld video cameras) may include indicators (e.g., red or green LED lights) that are turned on when the cameras are recording video, and turned off when the cameras are not recording video. These recording indicators signal to persons in the environment that the video recording system is (or is not) recording video of the environment in front of the camera. Therefore, it would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of filing the invention to combine the door/lock system of Fu with the concept of controlling one or more light emitting diodes (LEDs) to provide a visual output to indicate initiation of the collection of the audio input, as taught by Casarez in order to visually indicate to users an active state of a collection of data.
Fu and Casarez are both silent on being responsive to an amount of time exceeding a predetermined threshold. Whitley teaches the concept of responsive to an amount of time exceeding a predetermined threshold terminating an LED (¶107; a visual indicator, (e.g., an LED light, or other indicator) may provide a visual indication to the user that the threshold period of time has been exceeded and that a status of the host device has been changed. Therefore, it would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of filing the invention to further combine the door/lock system of Fu and Casarez with the concept of being terminating an LED output after a specific amount of time has passed, as further taught by Whitley in order to provide user’s a limited time for their input in order to reduce power usage in the system.
Claim 10 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Fu et al. (U.S. Patent 10,750,128) in view of Casarez et al. (U.S. Patent Application Pub. 2021/0191236). Whitley. (U.S. Patent Application Pub. 202/30162549).
Regarding claims 10, Fu discloses the door system of claim 1, and Fu further discloses comprising one or more non-transitory computer-readable storage media storing instructions thereon that, when executed by one or more processors ( col 31:65 – col 32:2; may also include a computer product which may be a storage medium or media and/or a transmission medium or media including instructions which may be used to program a machine to perform one or more processes or methods in accordance with the invention; also see col 32:2-17) of the external device (col 2:18-36; elements of the invention may form part or all of one or more devices, units, components, systems, machines and/or apparatuses). The remainder of the claim is interpreted and rejected the same as claim 19 above, including all the claimed features except for the specific reference made to the device being an “external device”.
However, since Fu explicitly further teaches that elements of the invention may form part or all of one or more devices, units, components, systems, machines and/or apparatuses and that the devices may include, but are not limited to, servers, workstations, storage array controllers, storage systems, personal computers, laptop computers, notebook computers, palm computers, cloud servers, personal digital assistants, portable electronic devices and that those skilled in the relevant art(s) would understand that the elements of the invention may be implemented in other types of devices, as well, to meet the criteria of a particular application (col 2:18-36). A person of ordinary skill in the art, upon reading the reference, would also have recognized the desirability of improved methods and/or systems whereby an external smart device with a memory means can functionally perform the same functions as an internal smart device with like memory in a given system since elements of the system may form part or all of one or more devices, units, components, systems, machines and/or apparatuses and that the devices may include, but are not limited to, servers, workstations, storage array controllers, storage systems, personal computers, laptop computers, notebook computers, palm computers, cloud servers, personal digital assistants, portable electronic devices. Likewise, a controller may be installed in a finite number of solutions where the controller is either mounted remotely away from the door, on the outside of the door, or partially dispersed/shared within/amongst different components mounted remotely away and on the outside of the door. One of ordinary skill in the art would have had good reason to position a non-transitory computer-readable storage media storing instructions thereon that, when executed by one or more processors in the external device simply as a physical means of structural protection and also protection from environmental factors. It would require no more than "ordinary skill and common sense," to utilize the non-transitory computer-readable storage media of the external device. Thus it would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of filing the invention to try using the non-transitory computer-readable storage media of the external device, as a person with ordinary skill would have good reason to pursue known options within his or her technical grasp.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to MANCIL H LITTLEJOHN JR whose telephone number is (571)270-3718. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 8:30-5 (CST).
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/QUAN ZHEN WANG/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2685
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