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 .
Priority
Receipt is acknowledged of certified copies of papers required by 37 CFR 1.55.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 23 May 2025 is in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner.
Status of Application
Claims 1-19 are pending.
Claims 1, 10, and 16 are independent.
This NON-FINAL action is in response to communications received 23 May 2025.
Claim Objections
Claims 8, 14, and 18 are objected to because of the following informalities:
Claim 8 – “wherein generating an output signal” introduces antecedent issues with claim 1. Please correct to, “wherein generating the output signal”.
Claim 14 – “wherein generating an output signal” introduces antecedent issues with claim 10. Please correct to, “wherein generating the output signal”.
Claim 18 – “wherein generating an output signal” introduces antecedent issues with claim 16. Please correct to, “wherein generating the output signal”.
Appropriate correction is required.
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 1-19 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 101 because the claimed invention is directed to an abstract idea without significantly more.
101 Analysis – Step 1
Claim 1 is directed to a process. Therefore, Claim 1 is within at least one of the four statutory categories.
Claim 10 is directed to an apparatus (system). Therefore, Claim 10 is within at least one of the four statutory categories.
Claim 16 is directed to an apparatus (system). Therefore, Claim 16 is within at least one of the four statutory categories.
101 Analysis – Step 2A, Prong I
Regarding Prong I of the Step 2A analysis in the 2019 PEG, the claims are to be analyzed to determine whether they recite subject matter that falls within one of the follow groups of abstract ideas: a) mathematical concepts, b) certain methods of organizing human activity, and/or c) mental processes.
Claims 1, 10 and 16 include limitations that recite an abstract idea (emphasized below) and Claim 10 will be used as a representative claim for the remainder of the 101 rejections.
Claim 10 recites: A system for detecting functional states of a user, the system comprising:
one or more sensors to detect one or more signals, wherein the signals are representative of a plurality of physiological parameters of the user;
and at least one processing device coupled to the sensors and configured to:
determine a plurality of conditions associated with the user based on values of the physiological parameters;
determine a functional state of the user based on a combination of the conditions;
and generate an output signal to indicate the functional state of the user.
The examiner submits that the foregoing bolded limitation(s) constitute a “mental process” because under its broadest reasonable interpretation, the claim covers performance of the limitation in the human mind. Specifically, the “determining” steps encompass a person deciding if another person is fit to operate a motor vehicle. Accordingly, the claim recites at least one abstract idea.
101 Analysis – Step 2A, Prong II
Regarding Prong II of the Step 2A analysis in the 2019 PEG, the claims are to be analyzed to determine whether the claim, as a whole, integrates the abstract into a practical application. As noted in the 2019 PEG, it must be determined whether any additional elements in the claim beyond the abstract idea integrate the exception into a practical application in a manner that imposes a meaningful limit on the judicial exception. The courts have indicated that additional elements merely using a computer to implement an abstract idea, adding insignificant extra solution activity, or generally linking use of a judicial exception to a particular technological environment or field of use do not integrate a judicial exception into a “practical application.”
In the present case, the additional limitations beyond the above-noted abstract idea are as follows (where the underlined portions are the “additional limitations” while the bolded portions continue to represent the “abstract idea”):
For the following reason(s), the examiner submits that the above identified additional limitations do not integrate the above-noted abstract idea into a practical application.
Regarding the additional limitations of “processing device…configured to”, the examiner submits that these limitations are an attempt to generally link additional elements to a technological environment. In particular, the “processing device” is recited at a high level of generality and merely automates the determining steps, therefore acting as a generic computer to perform the abstract idea. Additionally, the processing device is claimed generically and are operating in their ordinary capacity and do not use the judicial exception in a manner that imposes a meaningful limit on the judicial exception, such that the claim is more than a drafting effort designed to monopolize the exception. The additional limitations are no more than mere instructions to apply the exception using a controller. Furthermore, the examiner submits that the recitations of determining a functional state of a user is a mere definition that does not necessarily impose any meaningful limits on performing the steps in the human mind, as it only compares data where a user could in fact perform this mentally or using paper and pencil. In addition to that, the examiner submits that generate an output and using a processing device, are insignificant extra-solution activities that merely use a processing device to perform the process. In particular, the detecting steps are recited at a high level of generality (i.e. as a general means of gathering data for use in the determining step), and amounts to mere data gathering, which is a form of insignificant extra-solution activity.
Thus, taken alone, the additional elements do not integrate the abstract idea into a practical application. Further, looking at the additional limitation(s) as an ordered combination or as a whole, the limitation(s) add nothing that is not already present when looking at the elements taken individually. For instance, there is no indication that the additional elements, when considered as a whole, reflect an improvement in the functioning of a controller or an improvement to another technology or technical field, apply or use the above-noted judicial exception to effect a particular treatment or prophylaxis for a disease or medical condition, implement/use the above-noted judicial exception with a particular machine or manufacture that is integral to the claim, effect a transformation or reduction of a particular article to a different state or thing, or apply or use the judicial exception in some other meaningful way beyond generally linking the use of the judicial exception to a particular technological environment, such that the claim as a whole is not more than a drafting effort designed to monopolize the exception (MPEP § 2106.05). Accordingly, the additional limitation(s) do/does not integrate the abstract idea into a practical application because it does not impose any meaningful limits on practicing the abstract idea.
101 Analysis – Step 2B
Regarding Step 2B of the 2019 PEG, representative independent Claim 10 does not include additional elements (considered both individually and as an ordered combination) that are sufficient to amount to significantly more than the judicial exception for the same reasons to those discussed above with respect to determining that the claim does not integrate the abstract idea into a practical application. As discussed above with respect to integration of the abstract idea into a practical application, the additional element of the apparatus, the processing device amounts to nothing more than applying the exception using a generic computer component. Generally applying an exception using a generic computer component cannot provide an inventive concept. And as discussed above, the additional limitations of detecting signals and generating an output, the examiner submits that these limitations are insignificant extra-solution activities.
Further, a conclusion that an additional element is insignificant extra-solution activity in Step 2A should be re-evaluated in Step 2B to determine if they are more than what is well-understood, routine, conventional activity in the field. The additional limitations of receiving the data and determining errors are well-understood, routine, and conventional activities because the background recites that the sensors from which the data is acquired/received are all conventional sensors. MPEP 2106.05(d)(II), and the cases cited therein, including Intellectual Ventures I, LLC v. Symantec Corp., 838 F.3d 1307, 1321 (Fed. Cir. 2016), TLI Communications LLC v. AV Auto. LLC, 823 F.3d 607, 610 (Fed. Cir. 2016), and OIP Techs., Inc., v. Amazon.com, Inc., 788 F.3d 1359, 1363 (Fed. Cir. 2015), indicate that mere collection or receipt of data over a network is a well‐understood, routine, and conventional function when it is claimed in a merely generic manner. Hence, Claim 10 is not patent eligible.
Further Claims 1 and 16 are not patent eligible for the same reasons.
Dependent Claims 2-9, 11-15, and 17-19 when analyzed as a whole, are held to be patent ineligible under 35 U.S.C. 101 because the additional recited limitation(s) fail(s) to establish that the claim(s) is/are not directed to an abstract idea. The additional elements, if any, in the dependent claims are not sufficient to amount to significantly more than the judicial exception for the same reasons as with Claims 1, 10, and 16. Particularly claims 8, 14, and 18 recite the limitation:
controlling the vehicle, in particular adjusting a user interface in the vehicle or adjusting one or more vehicle control systems;
which suggests overcoming patent ineligibility under 35 U.S.C. 101 by reciting a control step. However, upon further consideration, [0037] of the Specification supports that the control step results in displaying a generated output result. Merely outputting a result or report on a display is a form of insignificant extra-solution activity that does not integrate the abstract idea into a practical application
Office Note: In order to overcome this rejection, the Office suggests further defining the limitations of the independent claims, for example linking the claimed subject matter to a non-generic device and explicitly controlling a vehicle (e.g., steering/braking if supported in the Specification) with the generated output. Limitations such as these suggested above would further bring the claimed subject matter out of the realm of abstract idea and into the realm of a statutory category.
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.
Claims 1-6, 8-12, and 14-16, are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Breed (US 20140276090 A1).
Regarding claim 1, Breed discloses:
A computer-implemented method for detecting functional states of a user, the method comprising (Abstract, Method and arrangement for optically monitoring a driver of a vehicle in which a portion of the driver is illuminated with electromagnetic radiation in an infrared portion of the electromagnetic spectrum using at least one illumination device, images of the illuminated driver are obtained using at least one image obtaining device and the images are analyzed to derive a measure of flow of blood in at least one blood vessel, capillary and vein in the face of the occupant. The blood flow over time is analyzed to determine whether the driver has lost the ability to continue to control the vehicle. The loss of ability to continue to control the vehicle exemplifies the driver becoming drowsy, falling asleep or otherwise being incapable of controlling the vehicle after initially having been awake or otherwise capable of controlling the vehicle; [0002], The present invention relates generally to systems and methods for optically monitoring a driver of a vehicle to determine at least one characteristic, condition, property and/or state of the driver, for example, whether the driver is falling asleep or otherwise unable to operate the vehicle.):
obtaining one or more signals from one or more sensors, wherein the signals are representative of a plurality of physiological parameters of the user ([0098], The driver emits electromagnetic signals that are used in some Electroencephalogram (EEG) and electrocardiogram (EKG or ECG) devices to monitor brainwaves and electro cardio functions of the body and use of sensors placed in the seat, seatbelt, seatback and headrest to monitor these signals is also contemplated herein and some are discussed below. Other observables include IR radiation from the driver and particularly his or her face indicative of the driver's face or other location temperature. All of these monitoring techniques are included herein as driver health and condition monitoring systems; [0246], Furthermore, the invention provides for new uses of weight sensors, such as bladders, strain gages, load sensors and/or displacement sensors, to determine the heartbeat and/or respiration rates of the driver and/or other occupants of a vehicle, new uses of radar-based sensors or accelerometers to determine the heartbeat and/or respiration rates of the driver and/or other occupants of a vehicle, and new analyzers that analyze the heartbeat and/or respiration rates of the driver and/or other occupants of a vehicle to determine the state of drowsiness or health state of the driver or other occupant of a vehicle. The invention also contemplates use of any of these apparatus and methods to control a vehicle component.);
determining a plurality of conditions associated with the user based on values of the physiological parameters ([0002], The present invention relates generally to systems and methods for optically monitoring a driver of a vehicle to determine at least one characteristic, condition, property and/or state of the driver, for example, whether the driver is falling asleep or otherwise unable to operate the vehicle.);
determining a functional state of the user based on a combination of the conditions ([0163], there are at least six optical clues to drowsiness that can be used in combination with the heartbeat and respiration methods described here);
and generating an output signal to indicate the functional state of the user ([0141], Another display that can be used when sufficient data is available is a light or other visual display that shows or otherwise depicts the calculated awake state of the driver. A driver can monitor this display and get an indication as to whether the system thinks that he/she is falling asleep or otherwise experiencing a decrease in his/her ability to operate the vehicle. A driver that sees that he/she is gradually becoming drowsy can, and will ideally, plan when to stop and rest or get a cup of coffee. Also if the driver is sure that the system is in error, he/she can provide feedback to the system that can be taken into account to improve the system accuracy. One candidate device is the Ambient Orb from Ambient Devices, Cambridge, Mass. which is programmed to change color based upon the output of a state detection system.).
Regarding claim 2, Breed discloses:
determining at least one of the conditions based on at least one other of the conditions ([0163], there are at least six optical clues to drowsiness that can be used in combination with the heartbeat and respiration methods described here).
Regarding claim 3, Breed discloses:
determining at least one of the conditions based on a combination or pattern of other ones of the conditions ([0163], there are at least six optical clues to drowsiness that can be used in combination with the heartbeat and respiration methods described here).
Regarding claim 4, Breed discloses:
wherein each of the conditions is representative of a level of cognitive load, stress or drowsiness of the user, and/or wherein the functional state of the user is indicative of the user’s fitness to operate, in particular drive a vehicle ([0021], Analysis of human heartbeat and respiration rates and in particular their variability during waking and sleeping has been reported in the literature. For example, a simple observation that the heartbeat rate shows less variability when sleeping but shows a noticeable jump on waking can be detected and used for drowsiness detection. As shown by several simulator tests, a driver often experiences a succession of micro-sleeps for several minutes prior to an accident. Thus, on a preliminary basis, the variability of the basic heartbeat rate shows a period of low variability followed by a jump on waking for each of these micro-sleeps and can, when applied in one embodiment of the invention, be a reliable predictive measure of drowsiness leading to an accident with a several minute lead time; [0003], A primary focus of at least one embodiment of the present invention is to measure the heartbeat rate and respiration rate of the driver using electric fields or optics, and through analysis of these rates, predict whether the driver is losing his/her ability to safely operate the vehicle.).
Regarding claim 5, Breed discloses:
wherein the cognitive load includes cognitive load related and/or unrelated to operating, in particular driving the vehicle by the user ([0192], The LF component, known as the baroreflex band, is of chief interest as an indicator of cognitive workload. This component, commonly referred to as the 0.10 Hz component, reflects short-term changes in blood pressure and spans a range from 0.04-0.15 Hz. That is, there are approximately 6 fluctuations of the heart per minute due to changes in blood pressure. A peak in this component is indicative of lower cognitive workload conditions. A flattening of this component reflects conditions of greater mental workload. Other influencers of HRV include smoking and the acute ingestion of alcohol both of which reduce HRV.).
Regarding claim 6, Breed discloses:
wherein determining the functional state of the user comprises selecting one of a plurality of predetermined states, wherein each of the plurality of predetermined states is associated with a respective combination or pattern of the conditions ([0002], The present invention relates generally to systems and methods for optically monitoring a driver of a vehicle to determine at least one characteristic, condition, property and/or state of the driver, for example, whether the driver is falling asleep or otherwise unable to operate the vehicle.[0003], There are several different vehicular situations that are lumped together and called the distracted or inattentive driver problem. These situations include cases where the driver is wide-awake but eating, putting on make-up, texting and talking on the phone; cases where the driver is physically fatigued and may or may not also be sleepy; medical condition cases where the driver suffers a medical condition such as a stroke or heart attack; cases where the driver is under the influence of alcohol or drugs; and cases where the driver is just sleepy.).
Regarding claim 8, Breed discloses:
wherein the method is implemented in a vehicle, and wherein generating an output signal to indicate the functional state of the user comprises one or more of ([0260], Methods described herein for using the heartbeat and respiration rates for determining drowsiness can be combined with each other as well as with other methods, disclosed herein or elsewhere, or otherwise known or applied in the field to which this invention pertains, such as optical eye closure monitoring methods, in order to improve the forecasting accuracy and reduce false alarms. These other measures can include a physiological diagnostic based on the eyelid motion observation and a behavioral diagnostic based on the observation of the vehicle lateral control behavior. They can be combined with additional in-vehicle and contextual information to provide a final decision about the driver's vigilance state, as reported in the literature; [0141], the output of a state detection system):
Regarding claim 9, Breed discloses:
alerting the user of the vehicle ([0124], The health monitoring system ECU 91 can also receive information from the electric field monitoring system ECU 9, via a coupling or electrical connection therebetween (not shown), and notify the driver that the electric field monitoring system detects that he or she may no longer be capable of operating the vehicle and ask for feedback. A message to the driver can be in any form, such as a display, sound, light or any other system that can get the attention of the driver. The health monitoring system ECU 91 can also receive information from an occupant information providing sensor 90 mounted in the A-pillar, which sensor 90 may use waves (as represented) to enable a determination of information about the occupant (e.g., in the manner of ultrasonic sensors 77 described herein); [0141], Another display that can be used when sufficient data is available is a light or other visual display that shows or otherwise depicts the calculated awake state of the driver. A driver can monitor this display and get an indication as to whether the system thinks that he/she is falling asleep or otherwise experiencing a decrease in his/her ability to operate the vehicle. A driver that sees that he/she is gradually becoming drowsy can, and will ideally, plan when to stop and rest or get a cup of coffee. Also if the driver is sure that the system is in error, he/she can provide feedback to the system that can be taken into account to improve the system accuracy. One candidate device is the Ambient Orb from Ambient Devices, Cambridge, Mass. which is programmed to change color based upon the output of a state detection system.);
controlling the vehicle, in particular adjusting a user interface in the vehicle or adjusting one or more vehicle control systems ([0141], Another display that can be used when sufficient data is available is a light or other visual display that shows or otherwise depicts the calculated awake state of the driver. A driver can monitor this display and get an indication as to whether the system thinks that he/she is falling asleep or otherwise experiencing a decrease in his/her ability to operate the vehicle. A driver that sees that he/she is gradually becoming drowsy can, and will ideally, plan when to stop and rest or get a cup of coffee. Also if the driver is sure that the system is in error, he/she can provide feedback to the system that can be taken into account to improve the system accuracy. One candidate device is the Ambient Orb from Ambient Devices, Cambridge, Mass. which is programmed to change color based upon the output of a state detection system);
communicating the functional state of the user to another vehicle or an external server or control station ([0100], notifying a remote site, allowing a remote site to assess the situation and take partial control of the vehicle, etc.).
Regarding claim 10, Breed discloses:
A system for detecting functional states of a user, the system comprising (Abstract, Method and arrangement for optically monitoring a driver of a vehicle in which a portion of the driver is illuminated with electromagnetic radiation in an infrared portion of the electromagnetic spectrum using at least one illumination device, images of the illuminated driver are obtained using at least one image obtaining device and the images are analyzed to derive a measure of flow of blood in at least one blood vessel, capillary and vein in the face of the occupant. The blood flow over time is analyzed to determine whether the driver has lost the ability to continue to control the vehicle. The loss of ability to continue to control the vehicle exemplifies the driver becoming drowsy, falling asleep or otherwise being incapable of controlling the vehicle after initially having been awake or otherwise capable of controlling the vehicle; [0002], The present invention relates generally to systems and methods for optically monitoring a driver of a vehicle to determine at least one characteristic, condition, property and/or state of the driver, for example, whether the driver is falling asleep or otherwise unable to operate the vehicle.):
one or more sensors to detect one or more signals, wherein the signals are representative of a plurality of physiological parameters of the user ([0098], The driver emits electromagnetic signals that are used in some Electroencephalogram (EEG) and electrocardiogram (EKG or ECG) devices to monitor brainwaves and electro cardio functions of the body and use of sensors placed in the seat, seatbelt, seatback and headrest to monitor these signals is also contemplated herein and some are discussed below. Other observables include IR radiation from the driver and particularly his or her face indicative of the driver's face or other location temperature. All of these monitoring techniques are included herein as driver health and condition monitoring systems; [0246], Furthermore, the invention provides for new uses of weight sensors, such as bladders, strain gages, load sensors and/or displacement sensors, to determine the heartbeat and/or respiration rates of the driver and/or other occupants of a vehicle, new uses of radar-based sensors or accelerometers to determine the heartbeat and/or respiration rates of the driver and/or other occupants of a vehicle, and new analyzers that analyze the heartbeat and/or respiration rates of the driver and/or other occupants of a vehicle to determine the state of drowsiness or health state of the driver or other occupant of a vehicle. The invention also contemplates use of any of these apparatus and methods to control a vehicle component.);
and at least one processing device coupled to the sensors and configured to ([0002], The present invention relates generally to systems and methods for optically monitoring a driver of a vehicle to determine at least one characteristic, condition, property and/or state of the driver, for example, whether the driver is falling asleep or otherwise unable to operate the vehicle; [0100], the driver monitoring system in accordance with the invention includes an algorithm embodied on storage media that is accessed by the processor to select requests, i.e., a request selection algorithm, based in part on a history of requests that may be maintained in a memory unit also accessed by the processor):
determine a plurality of conditions associated with the user based on values of the physiological parameters ([0002], The present invention relates generally to systems and methods for optically monitoring a driver of a vehicle to determine at least one characteristic, condition, property and/or state of the driver, for example, whether the driver is falling asleep or otherwise unable to operate the vehicle.);
determine a functional state of the user based on a combination of the conditions ([0163], there are at least six optical clues to drowsiness that can be used in combination with the heartbeat and respiration methods described here);
and generate an output signal to indicate the functional state of the user ([0141], Another display that can be used when sufficient data is available is a light or other visual display that shows or otherwise depicts the calculated awake state of the driver. A driver can monitor this display and get an indication as to whether the system thinks that he/she is falling asleep or otherwise experiencing a decrease in his/her ability to operate the vehicle. A driver that sees that he/she is gradually becoming drowsy can, and will ideally, plan when to stop and rest or get a cup of coffee. Also if the driver is sure that the system is in error, he/she can provide feedback to the system that can be taken into account to improve the system accuracy. One candidate device is the Ambient Orb from Ambient Devices, Cambridge, Mass. which is programmed to change color based upon the output of a state detection system.).
Regarding claim 11, Breed discloses:
determine at least one of the conditions based on at least one other of the conditions, and in particularly based on a combination or pattern of other ones of the conditions ([0163], there are at least six optical clues to drowsiness that can be used in combination with the heartbeat and respiration methods described here).
Regarding claim 12, Breed discloses:
wherein the processing device is configured to determine the functional state of the user by selecting one of a plurality of predetermined states, wherein each of the plurality of predetermined states is associated with a respective combination of the conditions ([0002], The present invention relates generally to systems and methods for optically monitoring a driver of a vehicle to determine at least one characteristic, condition, property and/or state of the driver, for example, whether the driver is falling asleep or otherwise unable to operate the vehicle.[0003], There are several different vehicular situations that are lumped together and called the distracted or inattentive driver problem. These situations include cases where the driver is wide-awake but eating, putting on make-up, texting and talking on the phone; cases where the driver is physically fatigued and may or may not also be sleepy; medical condition cases where the driver suffers a medical condition such as a stroke or heart attack; cases where the driver is under the influence of alcohol or drugs; and cases where the driver is just sleepy.).
Regarding claim 14, Breed discloses:
wherein the system is an in-vehicle system, and wherein generating an output signal to indicate the functional state of the user comprises one or more of ([0260], Methods described herein for using the heartbeat and respiration rates for determining drowsiness can be combined with each other as well as with other methods, disclosed herein or elsewhere, or otherwise known or applied in the field to which this invention pertains, such as optical eye closure monitoring methods, in order to improve the forecasting accuracy and reduce false alarms. These other measures can include a physiological diagnostic based on the eyelid motion observation and a behavioral diagnostic based on the observation of the vehicle lateral control behavior. They can be combined with additional in-vehicle and contextual information to provide a final decision about the driver's vigilance state, as reported in the literature; [0141], the output of a state detection system):
alerting the user of the vehicle ([0124], The health monitoring system ECU 91 can also receive information from the electric field monitoring system ECU 9, via a coupling or electrical connection therebetween (not shown), and notify the driver that the electric field monitoring system detects that he or she may no longer be capable of operating the vehicle and ask for feedback. A message to the driver can be in any form, such as a display, sound, light or any other system that can get the attention of the driver. The health monitoring system ECU 91 can also receive information from an occupant information providing sensor 90 mounted in the A-pillar, which sensor 90 may use waves (as represented) to enable a determination of information about the occupant (e.g., in the manner of ultrasonic sensors 77 described herein); [0141], Another display that can be used when sufficient data is available is a light or other visual display that shows or otherwise depicts the calculated awake state of the driver. A driver can monitor this display and get an indication as to whether the system thinks that he/she is falling asleep or otherwise experiencing a decrease in his/her ability to operate the vehicle. A driver that sees that he/she is gradually becoming drowsy can, and will ideally, plan when to stop and rest or get a cup of coffee. Also if the driver is sure that the system is in error, he/she can provide feedback to the system that can be taken into account to improve the system accuracy. One candidate device is the Ambient Orb from Ambient Devices, Cambridge, Mass. which is programmed to change color based upon the output of a state detection system.);
controlling the vehicle, in particular adjusting a user interface in the vehicle or adjusting one or more vehicle control systems ([0141], Another display that can be used when sufficient data is available is a light or other visual display that shows or otherwise depicts the calculated awake state of the driver. A driver can monitor this display and get an indication as to whether the system thinks that he/she is falling asleep or otherwise experiencing a decrease in his/her ability to operate the vehicle. A driver that sees that he/she is gradually becoming drowsy can, and will ideally, plan when to stop and rest or get a cup of coffee. Also if the driver is sure that the system is in error, he/she can provide feedback to the system that can be taken into account to improve the system accuracy. One candidate device is the Ambient Orb from Ambient Devices, Cambridge, Mass. which is programmed to change color based upon the output of a state detection system);
communicating the functional state of the user to another vehicle or an external server or control station ([0100], notifying a remote site, allowing a remote site to assess the situation and take partial control of the vehicle, etc.).
Regarding claim 15, Breed discloses:
wherein the system is an in-vehicle system, and/or wherein the one or more sensors comprise one or more image sensors, in particular an RGB and/or an infrared camera ([0146], FIG. 11A is a view of an optical monitoring system that monitors the face of the driver from a camera and illumination system 200 mounted on or near a ceiling 204. One preferred location, for example, is on or adjacent to the rear view mirror 202 (schematically illustrated) since that location usually has a good view of the driver's face and is not obstructed by the visor. The optical monitoring system comprises a camera and a source of illumination, represented by the camera and illumination system 200, which is usually in the non-visible part of the electromagnetic spectrum and in particular, in the infrared (IR) portion of the electromagnetic spectrum. The optical monitoring system also comprises a processor or processing unit coupled to the camera, and optionally the illumination source (the processor may be resident or part of the ECU 210 described below with reference to FIG. 11B). This processor is configured to analyze the images to obtain information or data therefrom, and specifically, from images of blood vessels, capillaries and/or veins in a face of the occupant (driver) being imaged.).
Regarding claim 16, Breed discloses:
A system for detecting functional states of a user, the system comprising (Abstract, Method and arrangement for optically monitoring a driver of a vehicle in which a portion of the driver is illuminated with electromagnetic radiation in an infrared portion of the electromagnetic spectrum using at least one illumination device, images of the illuminated driver are obtained using at least one image obtaining device and the images are analyzed to derive a measure of flow of blood in at least one blood vessel, capillary and vein in the face of the occupant. The blood flow over time is analyzed to determine whether the driver has lost the ability to continue to control the vehicle. The loss of ability to continue to control the vehicle exemplifies the driver becoming drowsy, falling asleep or otherwise being incapable of controlling the vehicle after initially having been awake or otherwise capable of controlling the vehicle; [0002], The present invention relates generally to systems and methods for optically monitoring a driver of a vehicle to determine at least one characteristic, condition, property and/or state of the driver, for example, whether the driver is falling asleep or otherwise unable to operate the vehicle.):
one or more sensors to detect one or more signals, wherein the signals are representative of a plurality of physiological parameters of the user ([0098], The driver emits electromagnetic signals that are used in some Electroencephalogram (EEG) and electrocardiogram (EKG or ECG) devices to monitor brainwaves and electro cardio functions of the body and use of sensors placed in the seat, seatbelt, seatback and headrest to monitor these signals is also contemplated herein and some are discussed below. Other observables include IR radiation from the driver and particularly his or her face indicative of the driver's face or other location temperature. All of these monitoring techniques are included herein as driver health and condition monitoring systems; [0246], Furthermore, the invention provides for new uses of weight sensors, such as bladders, strain gages, load sensors and/or displacement sensors, to determine the heartbeat and/or respiration rates of the driver and/or other occupants of a vehicle, new uses of radar-based sensors or accelerometers to determine the heartbeat and/or respiration rates of the driver and/or other occupants of a vehicle, and new analyzers that analyze the heartbeat and/or respiration rates of the driver and/or other occupants of a vehicle to determine the state of drowsiness or health state of the driver or other occupant of a vehicle. The invention also contemplates use of any of these apparatus and methods to control a vehicle component.);
and at least one processing device coupled to the sensors and configured to: ([0002], The present invention relates generally to systems and methods for optically monitoring a driver of a vehicle to determine at least one characteristic, condition, property and/or state of the driver, for example, whether the driver is falling asleep or otherwise unable to operate the vehicle; [0100], the driver monitoring system in accordance with the invention includes an algorithm embodied on storage media that is accessed by the processor to select requests, i.e., a request selection algorithm, based in part on a history of requests that may be maintained in a memory unit also accessed by the processor):
determine a plurality of conditions associated with the user based on values of the physiological parameters ([0002], The present invention relates generally to systems and methods for optically monitoring a driver of a vehicle to determine at least one characteristic, condition, property and/or state of the driver, for example, whether the driver is falling asleep or otherwise unable to operate the vehicle.);
determine a functional state of the user based on a combination of the conditions ([0163], there are at least six optical clues to drowsiness that can be used in combination with the heartbeat and respiration methods described here);
and generate an output signal to indicate the functional state of the user ([0141], Another display that can be used when sufficient data is available is a light or other visual display that shows or otherwise depicts the calculated awake state of the driver. A driver can monitor this display and get an indication as to whether the system thinks that he/she is falling asleep or otherwise experiencing a decrease in his/her ability to operate the vehicle. A driver that sees that he/she is gradually becoming drowsy can, and will ideally, plan when to stop and rest or get a cup of coffee. Also if the driver is sure that the system is in error, he/she can provide feedback to the system that can be taken into account to improve the system accuracy. One candidate device is the Ambient Orb from Ambient Devices, Cambridge, Mass. which is programmed to change color based upon the output of a state detection system.), wherein the processing device is configured to:
determine at least one of the conditions based on at least one other of the conditions, and in particularly based on a combination or pattern of other ones of the conditions, wherein the processing device is further configured to determine the functional state of the user by selecting one of a plurality of predetermined states, wherein each of the plurality of predetermined states is associated with a respective combination of the conditions ([0021], Analysis of human heartbeat and respiration rates and in particular their variability during waking and sleeping has been reported in the literature. For example, a simple observation that the heartbeat rate shows less variability when sleeping but shows a noticeable jump on waking can be detected and used for drowsiness detection. As shown by several simulator tests, a driver often experiences a succession of micro-sleeps for several minutes prior to an accident. Thus, on a preliminary basis, the variability of the basic heartbeat rate shows a period of low variability followed by a jump on waking for each of these micro-sleeps and can, when applied in one embodiment of the invention, be a reliable predictive measure of drowsiness leading to an accident with a several minute lead time; [0003], A primary focus of at least one embodiment of the present invention is to measure the heartbeat rate and respiration rate of the driver using electric fields or optics, and through analysis of these rates, predict whether the driver is losing his/her ability to safely operate the vehicle; [0192], The LF component, known as the baroreflex band, is of chief interest as an indicator of cognitive workload. This component, commonly referred to as the 0.10 Hz component, reflects short-term changes in blood pressure and spans a range from 0.04-0.15 Hz. That is, there are approximately 6 fluctuations of the heart per minute due to changes in blood pressure. A peak in this component is indicative of lower cognitive workload conditions. A flattening of this component reflects conditions of greater mental workload. Other influencers of HRV include smoking and the acute ingestion of alcohol both of which reduce HRV.).
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 13 and 17-19 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Breed in view of Sarkar et al. (US 20210093254 A1), hereinafter Sarkar, and further in view of Huiku et al. (US 20210219882 A1), hereinafter Huiku.
Regarding claim 13, Breed does not specifically state:
determine that some of the conditions are mutually exclusive;
and discard one or more or all of the mutually exclusive conditions when determining the functional state of the user.
Sarkar teaches:
determine that some of the conditions are mutually exclusive ([0035], In some examples, processing circuitry may determine a joint diagnostic state based on multiple physiological parameters that are independent of one another; [0037], Diagnostic states of the physiological parameters may be independent for each physiological parameter. For example, a diagnostic state for a first set of one or more physiological parameters may be independent of diagnostic states associated with one or more other physiological parameters.);
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate the teachings of Sarkar into the invention of Breed to include identifying some physiological parameters as mutually exclusive or independent from other parameters as Sarkar discloses with a reasonable expectation of success. One would be motivated to incorporate aspects of the cited prior art to create a more robust system that can determine a plurality of diagnostics based on a set of physiological parameters that contains both dependent and independent parameters. Additionally, the claimed invention is merely a combination of old, well-known elements of a driver monitoring and alertness system as disclosed by Breed and determine a diagnostic state of a user/driver as taught by Sarkar. The combination each element merely would have performed the same function as it did separately, and one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention would have recognized that the results of the combination would have been predictable.
However, Breed in view of Sarkar does not specifically state:
and discard one or more or all of the mutually exclusive conditions when determining the functional state of the user.
Huiku teaches:
and discard one or more or all of the mutually exclusive conditions when determining the functional state of the user ([0067], indications may be filtered to remove artifacts such as those generated by interference such as movement, indications with the highest levels of variability may be removed from any further calculations, indications over a duration may be sorted and at least one of the largest and one of the smallest values may be removed from each series, indications that exceed a threshold percentage difference between a maximum indication and a minimum indication may be removed, variation cycles that do not match the respiration rate of the patient are removed,).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate the teachings of Huiku into the invention of Breed in view of Sarkar to include discarding portions of data which may include artifacts, data having high variability, etc. as Huiku discloses with a reasonable expectation of success. One would be motivated to incorporate aspects of the cited prior art to create a more robust system that can accurately identify a user/driver functional state without the inclusion of data which may skew a diagnostic output. Additionally, the claimed invention is merely a combination of old, well-known elements of a driver monitoring and alertness system as disclosed by Breed and data filtering as taught by Huiku. The combination each element merely would have performed the same function as it did separately, and one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention would have recognized that the results of the combination would have been predictable.
Regarding claim 17, Breed does not specifically state:
determine that some of the conditions are mutually exclusive;
and discard one or more or all of the mutually exclusive conditions when determining the functional state of the user.
Sarkar teaches:
determine that some of the conditions are mutually exclusive ([0035], In some examples, processing circuitry may determine a joint diagnostic state based on multiple physiological parameters that are independent of one another; [0037], Diagnostic states of the physiological parameters may be independent for each physiological parameter. For example, a diagnostic state for a first set of one or more physiological parameters may be independent of diagnostic states associated with one or more other physiological parameters.);
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate the teachings of Sarkar into the invention of Breed to include identifying some physiological parameters as mutually exclusive or independent from other parameters as Sarkar discloses with a reasonable expectation of success. One would be motivated to incorporate aspects of the cited prior art to create a more robust system that can determine a plurality of diagnostics based on a set of physiological parameters that contains both dependent and independent parameters. Additionally, the claimed invention is merely a combination of old, well-known elements of a driver monitoring and alertness system as disclosed by Breed and determine a diagnostic state of a user/driver as taught by Sarkar. The combination each element merely would have performed the same function as it did separately, and one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention would have recognized that the results of the combination would have been predictable.
However, Breed in view of Sarkar does not specifically state:
and discard one or more or all of the mutually exclusive conditions when determining the functional state of the user.
Huiku teaches:
and discard one or more or all of the mutually exclusive conditions when determining the functional state of the user ([0067], indications may be filtered to remove artifacts such as those generated by interference such as movement, indications with the highest levels of variability may be removed from any further calculations, indications over a duration may be sorted and at least one of the largest and one of the smallest values may be removed from each series, indications that exceed a threshold percentage difference between a maximum indication and a minimum indication may be removed, variation cycles that do not match the respiration rate of the patient are removed,).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate the teachings of Huiku into the invention of Breed in view of Sarkar to include discarding portions of data which may include artifacts, data having high variability, etc. as Huiku discloses with a reasonable expectation of success. One would be motivated to incorporate aspects of the cited prior art to create a more robust system that can accurately identify a user/driver functional state without the inclusion of data which may skew a diagnostic output. Additionally, the claimed invention is merely a combination of old, well-known elements of a driver monitoring and alertness system as disclosed by Breed and data filtering as taught by Huiku. The combination each element merely would have performed the same function as it did separately, and one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention would have recognized that the results of the combination would have been predictable.
Regarding claim 18, Breed in view of Sarkar and Huiku teaches:
wherein the system is an in-vehicle system, and wherein generating an output signal to indicate the functional state of the user comprises one or more of (Breed: [0260], Methods described herein for using the heartbeat and respiration rates for determining drowsiness can be combined with each other as well as with other methods, disclosed herein or elsewhere, or otherwise known or applied in the field to which this invention pertains, such as optical eye closure monitoring methods, in order to improve the forecasting accuracy and reduce false alarms. These other measures can include a physiological diagnostic based on the eyelid motion observation and a behavioral diagnostic based on the observation of the vehicle lateral control behavior. They can be combined with additional in-vehicle and contextual information to provide a final decision about the driver's vigilance state, as reported in the literature; [0141], the output of a state detection system):
alerting the user of the vehicle (Breed: [0124], The health monitoring system ECU 91 can also receive information from the electric field monitoring system ECU 9, via a coupling or electrical connection therebetween (Breed: not shown), and notify the driver that the electric field monitoring system detects that he or she may no longer be capable of operating the vehicle and ask for feedback. A message to the driver can be in any form, such as a display, sound, light or any other system that can get the attention of the driver. The health monitoring system ECU 91 can also receive information from an occupant information providing sensor 90 mounted in the A-pillar, which sensor 90 may use waves (Breed: as represented) to enable a determination of information about the occupant (Breed: e.g., in the manner of ultrasonic sensors 77 described herein); [0141], Another display that can be used when sufficient data is available is a light or other visual display that shows or otherwise depicts the calculated awake state of the driver. A driver can monitor this display and get an indication as to whether the system thinks that he/she is falling asleep or otherwise experiencing a decrease in his/her ability to operate the vehicle. A driver that sees that he/she is gradually becoming drowsy can, and will ideally, plan when to stop and rest or get a cup of coffee. Also if the driver is sure that the system is in error, he/she can provide feedback to the system that can be taken into account to improve the system accuracy. One candidate device is the Ambient Orb from Ambient Devices, Cambridge, Mass. which is programmed to change color based upon the output of a state detection system.);
controlling the vehicle, in particular adjusting a user interface in the vehicle or adjusting one or more vehicle control systems (Breed: [0141], Another display that can be used when sufficient data is available is a light or other visual display that shows or otherwise depicts the calculated awake state of the driver. A driver can monitor this display and get an indication as to whether the system thinks that he/she is falling asleep or otherwise experiencing a decrease in his/her ability to operate the vehicle. A driver that sees that he/she is gradually becoming drowsy can, and will ideally, plan when to stop and rest or get a cup of coffee. Also if the driver is sure that the system is in error, he/she can provide feedback to the system that can be taken into account to improve the system accuracy. One candidate device is the Ambient Orb from Ambient Devices, Cambridge, Mass. which is programmed to change color based upon the output of a state detection system);
communicating the functional state of the user to another vehicle or an external server or control station (Breed: [0100], notifying a remote site, allowing a remote site to assess the situation and take partial control of the vehicle, etc.).
Regarding claim 19, Breed in view of Sarkar and Huiku teaches:
wherein the system is an in-vehicle system, and/or wherein the one or more sensors comprise one or more image sensors, in particular an RGB and/or an infrared camera (Breed: [0146], FIG. 11A is a view of an optical monitoring system that monitors the face of the driver from a camera and illumination system 200 mounted on or near a ceiling 204. One preferred location, for example, is on or adjacent to the rear view mirror 202 (schematically illustrated) since that location usually has a good view of the driver's face and is not obstructed by the visor. The optical monitoring system comprises a camera and a source of illumination, represented by the camera and illumination system 200, which is usually in the non-visible part of the electromagnetic spectrum and in particular, in the infrared (IR) portion of the electromagnetic spectrum. The optical monitoring system also comprises a processor or processing unit coupled to the camera, and optionally the illumination source (the processor may be resident or part of the ECU 210 described below with reference to FIG. 11B). This processor is configured to analyze the images to obtain information or data therefrom, and specifically, from images of blood vessels, capillaries and/or veins in a face of the occupant (driver) being imaged.).
Documents Considered but Not Relied Upon
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant’s disclosure.
Kasukame et al. (US 20170020432 A1) discloses a method for predicting an arousal level used by a computer of an arousal level prediction apparatus that predicts an arousal level of a user includes obtaining current biological information regarding the user detected by a first sensor, calculating a current arousal level of the user on the basis of the current biological information, obtaining current environment information indicating a current environment around the user detected by a second sensor, predicting a future arousal level, which is an arousal level a certain period of time later, on the basis of the current arousal level and the current environment information, and (i) issuing a notification to the user or (ii) controlling another device, on the basis of the future arousal level. Lee (US 20200215294 A1) discloses a vehicle may include: a feedback device; a bio-signal sensor configured to measure a bio-signal of a user; and a controller operatively coupled to the feedback device and the bio-signal sensor, the controller including a memory configured to store at least one program instruction and processor configured to execute the at least one program instruction. The controller may be configured to: determine information characterizing a current emotional state of the user based on the bio-signal; calculate, based on a difference value between the current emotional state and a target emotional state, an operation ratio between a first mode for controlling operation of the feedback device to decrease a degree of excitability of the user and a second mode for controlling the operation of the feedback device to increase a degree of positivity of the user; and control the operation of the feedback device for a predetermined time based on the operation ratio. Roach et al. (US 10877444 B1) discloses a system for biofeedback, the system including one or more processors and a memory, the memory being a non-transitory computer-readable medium having executable instructions encoded thereon, such that upon execution of the instructions, the one or more processors perform operations including using a first biometric sensor during performance of a current task, acquiring first biometric data, and producing a first biometric value by assessing the first biometric data. The one or more processors further perform operations including determining a first relevance based on a first significance of a first correlation between the first biometric value and the current task, and controlling a device based on the first relevance and the first biometric value. Kannan et al. (US 9955925 B2) discloses drowsiness onset detection implementations that predict when a person transitions from a state of wakefulness to a state of drowsiness based on heart rate information. Appropriate action is then taken to stimulate the person to a state of wakefulness or notify other people of their state (with respect to drowsiness/alertness). This generally involves capturing a person's heart rate information over time using one or more heart rate (HR) sensors and then computing a heart-rate variability (HRV) signal from the captured heart rate information. The HRV signal is analyzed to extract features that are indicative of an individual's transition from a wakeful state to a drowsy state. The extracted features are input into an artificial neural net (ANN) that has been trained using the same features to identify when an individual makes the aforementioned transition to drowsiness. Whenever an onset of drowsiness is detected, a warning is initiated.
Conclusion
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/I.A.R./ Examiner, Art Unit 3666
/SCOTT A BROWNE/ Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3666
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