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 . All the claims have been examined on the basis of the merit of the claims.
Priority
The present application is a 371 of PCT/JP2023028735 filed 08/07/2023 which claims foreign priority from JP2022132278 filed 08/23/2022. Receipt is acknowledged of certified copies of papers required by 37 CFR 1.55.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 02/14/2025 is considered and attached.
Specification
The title of the invention is not descriptive. A new title is required that is clearly indicative of the invention to which the claims are directed.
The following title is suggested: INFROMATION PROCESSING APPARATUS AND INFORMATION PROCESSING METHOD, AND NON-TRANSITORY COMPUTER READABLE MEDIUM COMPRISING A TOUCH DISPLAY UNIT.
Claim Objections
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(d):
(d) REFERENCE IN DEPENDENT FORMS. —Subject to subsection (e), a claim in dependent form shall contain a reference to a claim previously set forth and then specify a further limitation of the subject matter claimed. A claim in dependent form shall be construed to incorporate by reference all the limitations of the claim to which it refers.
The following is a quotation of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, fourth paragraph:
Subject to the following paragraph [i.e., the fifth paragraph of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112], a claim in dependent form shall contain a reference to a claim previously set forth and then specify a further limitation of the subject matter claimed. A claim in dependent form shall be construed to incorporate by reference all the limitations of the claim to which it refers.
Claim 14 recites an “operation unit” which does not further specify limitation of the subject matter claimed because claim 1 on which it depends on already recites “an operation unit.”
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.
the claimed invention is directed to non-statutory subject matter. The claim(s) 16 does/do not fall within at least one of the four categories of patent eligible subject matter because it claims a software per se. MPEP 2106.03 (I) “Products that do not have a physical or tangible form, such as information (often referred to as "data per se") or a computer program per se (often referred to as "software per se") when claimed as a product without any structural recitations.”
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)(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) 1-16 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by WANG et al. (US-20240253687-A1, hereinafter as WANG).
In regard to claims 1, 15-16, WANG discloses an information processing apparatus, an information processing method, a program for causing a computer to perform the processes comprising: a function setting unit that sets a function to be carried out by an operation unit (referring to figs. 3-b, 4-a, 6 and others, touch display unit of the steering wheel which comprises an intelligent digital vehicle platform and the associated processing units and memory units. Para 0223, the touchscreen (402, 412) provided in embodiments of this application may display the operation interface and may receive an operation instruction of the user. By performing an operation on the touchscreen (402, 412), the user can control the vehicle and/or a vehicle-mounted device), on a basis of a setting condition based on at least one of a state of a vehicle and a state of an occupant of the vehicle (only one limitation, state of a vehicle, para 0240-0241, includes vehicle information or vehicle status though Wang teaches both the limitations because driving status at para 0242, para 0070 is disclosed which teaches the state of an occupant or a state of a driver or user of the vehicle); and a display control unit that controls display, on the operation unit, of function information regarding the function set for the operation unit (displays the operation interface that matches the scenario, fig.6).
In regard to claim 2, WANG discloses the information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the function setting unit sets each of functions to be carried out by a plurality of operation regions of the operation unit on the basis of the setting condition, and the display control unit controls display of the function information on each of the operation regions (each of the touch display screen displays various operation regions (UI objects), fig.5-a).
In regard to claim 3, WANG discloses the information processing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the operation unit is variable in arrangement of the operation regions, the function setting unit divides the operation unit into the plurality of operation regions, and sets the function to be carried out by each of the operation regions, on the basis of the setting condition, and the display control unit controls display of each of the operation regions, and display of the function information on each of the operation regions (fig. 5-a, para 0006, Diversified operation interfaces and an adaptive interface adjustment mechanism are provided, so that the user may obtain an operation interface that is more suitable for the user's requirement. The operation interface is divided in several UI object icons to carry out specific functions and the operation interface when selected by user performs the corresponding functions that is displayed thereon).
In regard to claim 4, WANG discloses the information processing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the operation unit includes a touchscreen panel (touch display unit 402, fig. 4-a).
In regard to claim 5, WANG discloses the information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the state of the occupant includes any one of a state of enjoying content, a state of playing a game, and another state (interpreted according to current guidelines of the Technology Center 2600, one of A or B and C: which is interpreted as (A and C) or (B and C); table 1: entertainment scenario includes a game mode in which the game operation interface is displayed and another state such as cinema).
In regard to claim 6, WANG discloses the information processing apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the function includes a function related to an operation of content, a function related to an operation of a game, and a function related to driving of the vehicle (content of the specific scenarios, para 0230, game operation table 1, driving status para 0018).
In regard to claim 7, WANG discloses the information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the state of the vehicle includes any one of a state of being during manual driving, a state of being during automated driving, and a parked state (para 0137, in addition to the instructions 153, the memory 152 may further store data, such as a road map, route information, a location, a direction, a speed, and other vehicle data of the vehicle, and other information. This information may be used by the vehicle 100 and the computing platform 150 during operation of the vehicle 100 in an autonomous mode, a semi-autonomous mode, and/or a manual mode).
In regard to claim 8, WANG discloses the information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the function information includes at least one of a name or abbreviation of the function, a description of the function, an image representing the function (any one of figs. 5a-5f, any one of functions as displayed by an UI object icon or a name or abbreviation of the function), and an operating method of the function (and corresponding to these functions are associated respective operation methods in the processing unit of WANG. The limitation does not claim that any operating method is displayed on the touch display unit).
In regard to claim 9, WANG discloses the information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the operation unit is operated by a driver (touch display unit 402 is operated by a user or a driver).
In regard to claim 10, WANG discloses the information processing apparatus according to claim 9, wherein the operation unit is disposed on a steering wheel of the vehicle (touch display unit of the steering wheel, fig. 4-a).
In regard to claim 11, WANG discloses the information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the operation unit is disposed on an information processing terminal that is used to operate the vehicle (touch display unit formed on the steering wheel 400).
In regard to claim 12, WANG discloses the information processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising: a learning unit that learns characteristics of the occupant on a basis of at least one of an operation history of the occupant and a history of use of the function by the occupant (only one limitation is read), wherein the function setting unit sets the function to be carried out by the operation unit, on a basis of the setting condition and the characteristics of the occupant (para 0288, when a new user uses a vehicle, the user can create a user account and save related user setting information (saved profiles are used to learn the characteristics of the driver to generate the driving scenarios. This would be equivalent subject matter to that of operation history of the occupant). In a possible implementation, a method for creating a user account may include the following steps: creating a user account, where the user account is bound to user identity information (user identify discloses characteristics of the user and his driving profile)).
In regard to claim 13, WANG discloses the information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the function setting unit sets the function to be carried out by the operation unit in each of the setting conditions, on a basis of a user operation (user sets and operates the functions of scenarios in which the operation interface contains function icons to be operated, figs. 5a-5f, and fig. 6, para 0224-0231).
In regard to claim 14, WANG discloses the information processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising: the operation unit (touch display unit 402, fig. 4-a).
Conclusion
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/DEEPROSE SUBEDI/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2627