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 .
Status of Claims
This Office Action is in response to the application filed on 07/27/2026. Claim 13 is cancelled. Thus, claims 1-12, and 14 have been examined.
Priority
Receipt is acknowledged of certified copies of papers submitted under 35 U.S.C. 119(a)- (d), which have been placed of record in the file.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 03/21/2025 has been reviewed by the examiner and is considered in accordance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97.
Specification
The specification has not been reviewed in detail to determine the presence of all possible minor errors. Applicant's attention is directed to the specification, and applicant is requested to make any necessary corrections of which applicant is aware.
Response to Amendments/Arguments
Applicant’s remarks regarding the rejection of Claim 13 under 35 USC § 101 rejection have been fully considered. In view of Applicant’s cancellation of claim 13, the rejection under 35 USC § 101 rejection is withdrawn as moot.
Applicant's arguments filed 07/27/2024 regarding 35 USC § 103 with respect to the rejection(s) of claim(s) 1, 9, and 14 have been fully considered but are not persuasive. Applicant argues that Gao ¶[0026] and ¶[0110] /Fig.8 fail to disclose or suggest the claimed structural relationship between the profiles. Applicant further argues that “the combination of Wang and Gao fails to disclose or suggest all of the features recited in the independent claims.”
However, Applicant considers Gao ¶[0026] and ¶[0110] /Fig.8 too narrowly and essentially in isolation, Gao ¶[0026] expressly teaches profile-based signaling, in which a profile number identifies that a video bitstream conforms to a main 10 video coding for machine (VCM) profile and Main 10 VCM still-picture profile. Gao ¶[0110] and Fig. 8 further explain the processing associated with the VCM architecture, namely that the decoded output is primarily intended for machine consumption/machine vision and that an interface for a neural-network (NN) module may be included. Thus, Gao does more than merely mention machine vision; Gao expressly associates identified VCM profiles with an architecture directed to machine-oriented processing and accommodating NN processing.
Further, Gao claim 4 expressly recites that a syntax element includes a profile number indicating that the video bitstream conforms to one of a Main 10 VCM profile and a Main 10 VCM still picture profile, and Gao ¶[0065] teaches that a profile may select particular coding tools as the tools available for use under that profile from all the tools available in the video compression technology or standard. Accordingly, Gao further establishes that the VCM profiles are associated with particular profile-dependent processing capabilities.
Moreover, the rejection is based on the combined teachings of Wang and Gao. Wang teaches PTL/profile signaling using general_profile_idc (Wang, [0058]) and further teaches that profile information may be used to determine the applicable codec/profile (Wang, ¶[0153]). Importantly, Wang expressly contemplates operation according to a video coding standard or extensions thereof. (Wang, ¶[0035]) and teaches reserving bits or bytes such that, in a future version, new fields may be specified for signaling additional important video information “To be extensible, a certain number of bits or bytes may be reserved…in future versions of the file format specification, new fields within the range may be specified to signal other important video information” (Wang,¶[0171]).
Thus, Wang expressly provides an extensible profile-signaling framework, while Gao teaches specialized machine-oriented profiles, profile-specific coding tools, and machine-vision/NN processing. Accordingly, one of ordinary skill in the art would have found it obvious to extend Wang’s existing profile signaling to identify additional specialized profiles corresponding to the machine-analysis and neural-network processing taught by Gao.
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.
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 1-2, 9-10, 12, and 14 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over WANG YE-KUI (KR-102420676-B1) (translation provided and citation given from the translated document) hereinafter “Wang” in view of Gao et al (US-20220201321-A1) hereinafter “Gao”.
Regarding Claim 1 Wang-Gao
Wang discloses 1. An image decoding (Wang, Fig, 1 “a video decoder 30”) method comprising:
obtaining profile tier level (PTL) information of an image; (Wang, [0058] “layers and levels may be signaled by the syntax structure profile_tier_level () syntax structure….”) and
determining a profile and a tier of the image based on the PTL information, wherein the PTL information includes a profile indicator indicating a type of the profile for the image, (Wang, [0058] “The profile_tier_level () syntax structure may include a general_profile_idc syntax element, a general_tier_flag syntax element, and a general_level_idc syntax element. The general_profile_idc syntax element may indicate a profile that CVS conforms to. The general_tier_flag syntax element may indicate a layer context for interpretation of the general_level_idc syntax element. The general_level_idc syntax element may indicate a level that CVS complies with. Other values of these syntax elements may be reserved.”) and
Wang does not explicitly disclose
wherein the profile type includes a basic profile or an expanded profile, the expanded profile includes a neural network (NN)-based profile and a machine analysis-based profile.
However, Wang expressly contemplates operation according to a video standard or extensions thereof. (Wang, ¶[0035]) and teaches that , to be extensible, bits or bytes may be reserved such that new fields may be specified in future versions for signaling additional important video information” (Wang,¶[0171]). Gao further teaches specialized profile-based signaling for machine-oriented processing. In particular, Gao teaches a profile number indicating that a video bitstream conforms to one of a main 10 video coding for machine (VCM) profile and Main 10 VCM still-picture profile. (Gao, [0026]; Claim 4). Gao further teaches that a profile may select particular coding tools available for use under that profile (Gao ¶[0065]). Gao additionally teaches that the VCM architecture provides decoded output primarily for machine consumption, i.e., machine vision, and may include an interface for a neural-network (NN) module(Gao, ¶[0110],Fig. 8).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before
the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Wang’s extensible PTL/profile-signaling framework to distinguish a conventional/basic profile from additional specialized profiles corresponding to the machine-analysis and neural-network processing taught by Gao, thereby providing an expanded profile including machine-analysis-based and NN-based profile types and enabling selection of the corresponding profile-dependent processing tools in order to improve compression and processing efficiency. (Gao, ¶[0143])
Note: The motivation utilized in the rejection of claim 1 applies equally to claims 2, 9-10, 12, and 14.
Regarding 2 Wang-Gao
Wang-Gao discloses 2. The image decoding method of claim 1,
wherein the expanded profile further includes a human analysis-based profile. (Gao, [0108] “…video coding or image coding often utilizes characteristics of the human visual system for a better compression efficiency while maintaining a good subjective quality.” [0110] “the output of the video decoding module can also be used for human vision, as indicated in FIG. 8. In addition, an interface for neural network (NN) module can be included in the exemplary VCM architecture.”)
Regarding 9 Wang-Gao
The independent claim 9 recites limitations that are substantially similar to those of independent claim 1, except that claim 9 is directed to encoder rather than a decoder.
It is well established in the art that video compression systems comprise complementary components, namely encoder (compressor) and a decoder (decompressor), which perform reciprocal operations. The encoder compresses source data to reduce the bit rate for transmission or storage, while the decoder reconstructs the data from the compressed bitstream by performing a corresponding inverse process.
Regarding 10 Wang-Gao
Wang-Gao discloses Claim 10. The image encoding method of claim 9,
wherein the expanded profile further includes a human analysis-based profile. (Gao, “the output of the video decoding module can also be used for human vision, as indicated in FIG. 8. In addition, an interface for neural network (NN) module can be included in the exemplary VCM architecture.)
Regarding 12 Wang-Gao
Wang-Gao 12. The image encoding method of claim 11, further comprising encoding the detailed profile indicator. (Gao, [0026] “the syntax element includes the profile number, and the profile number indicates that the video bitstream conforms to one of a Main 10 video coding for machine (VCM) profile and a Main 10 VCM still picture profile.”)
Regarding 14 Wang-Gao
Wang discloses 14. A method for transmitting a bitstream for an image, the method comprising transmitting the bitstream generated by an image encoding method, (See, e.g., [0013], [0015] : “transmitting a bitstream generated by an image encoding method”). The limitations following “wherein the image encoding method comprises:” are addressed with respect to independent claim 9. Accordingly, the reasoning and analysis provided with respect to claim 9 applies equally to claim 14.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
Claims 3-8, and 11 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Wang-Gao further in view of Hannuksela et al (US-20220217406-A1) hereinafter “Hannuksela”.
Regarding 3 Wang-Gao-Hannuksela
Wang-Gao discloses 3. The image decoding method of claim 1,
Wang-Gao does not explicitly disclose
wherein a detailed profile indicator for the type of the profile is further obtained based on the profile indicator.
However, in the same field of endeavor Hannuksela discloses more explicitly the following:
wherein a detailed profile indicator for the type of the profile is further obtained based on the profile indicator. (Hannuksela, [0144] “a profile may be defined as a specified subset of the syntax of a coding standard. A level may be defined as a set of limits to the coding parameters that impose a set of constraints in decoder resource consumption. Alternatively, a level may be defined as a defined set of constraints on the values that may be taken by the syntax elements and variables of a coding standard. “)
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before
the effective filing date of the application to modify the teachings of Wang-Gao with Hannuksela to create the system of Wang-Gao as outlined above to provide “wherein a detailed profile indicator for the type of the profile is further obtained based on the profile indicator.” as suggested by Hannuksela, and one of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to do so “to improve the quality of the output video before passing it for display and/or storing it as prediction reference for the forthcoming frames in the video sequence.” (Hannuksela, [0095])
Note: The motivation that was utilized in the rejection of claim 3 applies equally as well as to claims 4-8 and 11.
Regarding 4 Wang-Gao-Hannuksela
Wang-Gao-Hannuksela discloses 4. The image decoding method of claim 3,
wherein the detailed profile indicator includes information on a detailed profile capable of level expansion. (Hannuksela, [0144] “ a profile may be defined as a specified subset of the syntax of a coding standard. A level may be defined as a set of limits to the coding parameters.” [0146] “A tier may be defined as a specified category of level …where the level constraints are nested within a tier… to a certain tier and level would be capable of decoding all bitstreams....”)
Regarding 5 Wang-Gao-Hannuksela
Wang-Gao discloses 5. The image decoding method of claim 1,
wherein expanded level presence information indicating whether a level is expanded is further obtained based on the profile indicator. (Hannuksela, [0144] “ a profile may be defined as a specified subset of the syntax of a coding standard. A level may be defined as a set of limits to the coding parameters…the same set of levels may be defined for all profiles, with most aspects of the definition of each level being in common across different profiles, although aspects may also differ between profiles. The profile and level can be used to signal properties of a media stream…the capability of a media decoder. Each pair of profile and level may be considered to form an “interoperability point.”)
Regarding 6 Wang-Gao-Hannuksela
Wang-Gao-Hannuksela discloses 6. The image decoding method of claim 5,
wherein information on a required resource is further obtained based on the expanded level presence information. (Hannuksela, [0144] “A level may be defined as a set of limits to the coding parameters that impose a set of constraints in decoder resource consumption. [0311] “Each Segment may have assigned Segment Index information that may be provided in an explicitly declared Index Segment. The presence of explicit Index Segment information may be indicated…”)
Regarding 7 Wang-Gao-Hannuksela
Wang-Gao-Hannuksela discloses 7. The image decoding method of claim 6,
wherein the information on the required resource includes at least one or more of a maximum operation amount, a maximum memory, or additional resource presence information. (Hannuksela, [0144] “A level … impose a set of constraints in decoder resource consumption….” [0145] “…a decoder can declare…whether it is capable of decoding a stream….”)
Regarding 8 Wang-Gao-Hannuksela
Wang-Gao-Hannuksela 8. The image decoding method of claim 7,
wherein additional resource information is further obtained based on the additional resource presence information. (Hannuksela, [0144] “A level may be defined as a set of limits to the coding parameters that impose a set of constraints in decoder resource consumption. [0311] “The presence of explicit Index Segment information may be indicated …”)
Regarding 11 Wang-Gao-Hannuksela
Wang-Gao discloses 11. The image encoding method of claim 9,
wherein a detailed profile indicator for the type of the profile is further determined based on the profile indicator. (Hannuksela, [0144] “ a profile may be defined as a specified subset of the syntax of a coding standard. A level may be defined as a set of limits to the coding parameters that impose a set of constraints in decoder resource consumption. Alternatively, a level may be defined as a defined set of constraints on the values that may be taken by the syntax elements and variables of a coding standard. “)
Regarding 13 Cancelled
Conclusion
THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to ASTEWAYE GETTU ZEWEDE whose telephone number is (703)756-1441. The examiner can normally be reached Mo-Fr 8:30 am to 5:30 pm.
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/ASTEWAYE GETTU ZEWEDE/Examiner, Art Unit 2481 /WILLIAM C VAUGHN JR/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2481
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