DETAILED ACTION
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
1. 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.
2. Claims 1, 6-8, 13-15 and 20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. § 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by Mikan et al, U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2010/0158203 (hereinafter Mikan).
Regarding claim 1, Mikan discloses a method (from abstract, see method) comprising:
establishing a virtual meeting having a plurality of participants, each participant of the plurality of participants exchanging one or more audio or video streams via the virtual meeting (from paragraph 0018, see FIG. 1 illustrates a system 100 including communications devices, a network, and a network device that may be in use during a telephonic communication. User 101 may be participating in a telephonic communication with users 102 and 103. This may be a three-way call, a conference call, or any other form of voice communications. It is contemplated that any other number of users, including one user may be participating in a telephonic communication with any other users and/or devices. For example, a user may be communicating with an automated system rather than one or more other users);
receiving, from a first client device before the end of the virtual meeting, a request to customize a recording (from paragraph 0025, see For example, user 101 may press one or more keys on the keypad of mobile communications device 111 during the telephonic communication. The activation of the one or more keys may cause a signal to be transmitted to network device 104 that instructs network device 104 to perform a task or alter a configuration parameter. The signal may be the form of traditional telephony tones, or any other form of communication, such as a data command, packet or frame containing the instructions, etc), the request comprising an identification of customizable content and a modification action (from paragraph 0037, see In one embodiment, space, blanks, or "dead air" may be removed from the recorded telephonic communication as it is recorded, or before or during transmission. For example, in the interest of reducing the time required to play back a recorded telephonic communication, pauses between conversation may be removed. Network device 104 may be configured to discriminate between pauses and spaces between words, in one embodiment, using a predetermined amount of time of dead air as an indicator that a pause is to be removed. Means and methods of determining pauses in a recorded conversation are known to those skilled in the art, and all such means and methods are contemplated as within the scope of the present disclosure);
recording, based on an indication from one of the plurality of participants, the one or more audio or video streams from the plurality of participants (from paragraph 0027, see Network device 104 may be configured, or instructed, to begin recording the telephonic communication as soon as it begins, or at a specific time. For example, as a subsystem of a conference calling system, network device 104 may be connected to the conference call and begin recording the telephonic communication on the call at the call's inception. Alternatively, each user of the conference call system may have the ability to send an instruction to network device 104 that instructs network device 104 to begin recording the telephonic communication. Such recorded telephonic communication may then be accessible by the user who sent the instruction and/or by other users. In another alternative, in a conference call system, a chairman or other user in control of the conference call may be the only user that is permitted to instruct device 104 to begin recording the telephonic communication. Any other permutation of users and/or devices that are permitted or configured to instruct network device 104 to record a telephonic communication are contemplated as within the scope of the present disclosure);
generating the recording of one or more audio or video tracks corresponding to the one or more audio or video streams exchanged during the virtual meeting (from paragraph 0024, see Network device 104 may be configured to record the telephonic communication between users 101, 102, and 103. Network device 104 may also be configured to perform other network tasks, or may be configured only for recording telephonic communications. The recording may be performed using any means known to those skilled in the art, including storing the communication on one or more computer storage devices, such as a hard disk drive or random access memory, recording the communication on magnetic or digital tape, disks, or other media, or any other effective recording means. Network device 104 may also be configured to accept instructions and/or commands from users and/or other network devices directly and/or through network 110); and
generating and storing a customized recording based on applying the modification action to the identified customizable content (from paragraph 0048, see In some embodiments, alterations may be performed on the telephonic communication before or during the recording of the recorded telephonic communication. For example, instead of removing dead air from a conversation, the spaces that make up the dead air may not be recorded at all. Alternatively, the recording may be made in a higher speed so that it may be played back at normal speed in a shorter amount of time. In yet another alternative, sonic characteristics of the telephonic communication may be modified before it is recorded. In still another embodiment, a transcription may be made of the telephonic communication, and the transcription may be stored instead of recording the telephonic communication. All other alterations of a telephonic communication that may be performed before, during, or after such a telephonic communication is recorded are contemplated as within the scope of the present disclosure).
Regarding claim 6, Mikan discloses the identification of customizable content comprises an indication of a topic or a speaker, and the modification action comprises generating the customized recording based on the topic or the speaker (from paragraph 0029, see In another alternative, playback of the recorded telephonic communication may be implemented through the detection of voice commands. For example, a user may say a word or phrase (e.g. "play back") which, when detected by network device 104 or a related device, instructs network device 104 to play back a portion of a recorded telephonic communication. Alternatively, network device 104 may be configured to detect the spoken name or other identifier of a participant and play back a portion of the recorded telephonic communication to the identified participant. For example, users John and Bob may be participants on a conference call utilizing a conference call system incorporating a call replay system as described herein. John may say at some point in the conversation "Bob, what do you think about that?" Network device 104, or an associated device, may detect the word "Bob" and recognize that word as an instruction to play back a portion of the recorded telephonic communication to Bob. Any other means or method of communicating and/or transmitting instructions to network device 104 is contemplated as within the scope of the present disclosure).
Regarding claim 7, Mikan discloses wherein the modification action comprises one or more of segmenting the recording, sanitizing content within the recording, or normalizing the recording (from paragraph 0037, see In one embodiment, space, blanks, or "dead air" may be removed from the recorded telephonic communication as it is recorded, or before or during transmission. For example, in the interest of reducing the time required to play back a recorded telephonic communication, pauses between conversation may be removed. Network device 104 may be configured to discriminate between pauses and spaces between words, in one embodiment, using a predetermined amount of time of dead air as an indicator that a pause is to be removed. Means and methods of determining pauses in a recorded conversation are known to those skilled in the art, and all such means and methods are contemplated as within the scope of the present disclosure).
Regarding claim 8, Mikan discloses a system (from paragraph 0091, see from paragraph 0091, see system) comprising:
a non-transitory computer-readable medium (from paragraph 0091, see medium);
a communications interface (from paragraph 0026, see interface); and
one or more processors (from paragraph 0091, see processors) communicatively coupled to the non-transitory computer-readable medium and the communications interface, the one or more processors configured to execute processor-executable instructions stored in the non-transitory computer-readable medium to:
establish a virtual meeting having a plurality of participants, each participant of the plurality of participants exchanging one or more audio or video streams via the virtual meeting (from paragraph 0018, see FIG. 1 illustrates a system 100 including communications devices, a network, and a network device that may be in use during a telephonic communication. User 101 may be participating in a telephonic communication with users 102 and 103. This may be a three-way call, a conference call, or any other form of voice communications. It is contemplated that any other number of users, including one user may be participating in a telephonic communication with any other users and/or devices. For example, a user may be communicating with an automated system rather than one or more other users);
receive, from a first client device before the end of the virtual meeting, a request to customize a recording (from paragraph 0025, see For example, user 101 may press one or more keys on the keypad of mobile communications device 111 during the telephonic communication. The activation of the one or more keys may cause a signal to be transmitted to network device 104 that instructs network device 104 to perform a task or alter a configuration parameter. The signal may be the form of traditional telephony tones, or any other form of communication, such as a data command, packet or frame containing the instructions, etc), the request comprising an identification of customizable content and a modification action (from paragraph 0037, see In one embodiment, space, blanks, or "dead air" may be removed from the recorded telephonic communication as it is recorded, or before or during transmission. For example, in the interest of reducing the time required to play back a recorded telephonic communication, pauses between conversation may be removed. Network device 104 may be configured to discriminate between pauses and spaces between words, in one embodiment, using a predetermined amount of time of dead air as an indicator that a pause is to be removed. Means and methods of determining pauses in a recorded conversation are known to those skilled in the art, and all such means and methods are contemplated as within the scope of the present disclosure);
record, based on an indication from one of the plurality of participants, the one or more audio or video streams from the plurality of participants (from paragraph 0027, see Network device 104 may be configured, or instructed, to begin recording the telephonic communication as soon as it begins, or at a specific time. For example, as a subsystem of a conference calling system, network device 104 may be connected to the conference call and begin recording the telephonic communication on the call at the call's inception. Alternatively, each user of the conference call system may have the ability to send an instruction to network device 104 that instructs network device 104 to begin recording the telephonic communication. Such recorded telephonic communication may then be accessible by the user who sent the instruction and/or by other users. In another alternative, in a conference call system, a chairman or other user in control of the conference call may be the only user that is permitted to instruct device 104 to begin recording the telephonic communication. Any other permutation of users and/or devices that are permitted or configured to instruct network device 104 to record a telephonic communication are contemplated as within the scope of the present disclosure);
generate the recording of one or more audio or video tracks corresponding to the one or more audio or video streams exchanged during the virtual meeting (from paragraph 0024, see Network device 104 may be configured to record the telephonic communication between users 101, 102, and 103. Network device 104 may also be configured to perform other network tasks, or may be configured only for recording telephonic communications. The recording may be performed using any means known to those skilled in the art, including storing the communication on one or more computer storage devices, such as a hard disk drive or random access memory, recording the communication on magnetic or digital tape, disks, or other media, or any other effective recording means. Network device 104 may also be configured to accept instructions and/or commands from users and/or other network devices directly and/or through network 110); and
generate and store a customized recording based on applying the modification action to the identified customizable content (from paragraph 0048, see In some embodiments, alterations may be performed on the telephonic communication before or during the recording of the recorded telephonic communication. For example, instead of removing dead air from a conversation, the spaces that make up the dead air may not be recorded at all. Alternatively, the recording may be made in a higher speed so that it may be played back at normal speed in a shorter amount of time. In yet another alternative, sonic characteristics of the telephonic communication may be modified before it is recorded. In still another embodiment, a transcription may be made of the telephonic communication, and the transcription may be stored instead of recording the telephonic communication. All other alterations of a telephonic communication that may be performed before, during, or after such a telephonic communication is recorded are contemplated as within the scope of the present disclosure).
Claim 13 is rejected for the same reasons as claim 6.
Claim 14 is rejected for the same reasons as claim 7.
Regarding claim 15, Mikan discloses a non-transitory computer-readable medium comprising processor-executable instructions configured to cause one or more processors to (from paragraph 0091, see While example embodiments of call replay systems and methods such as those described herein have been described in connection with various communications devices and computing devices/processors, the underlying concepts can be applied to any communications or computing device, processor, or system capable of implementing the call replay systems and methods described. The various techniques described herein can be implemented in connection with hardware or software or, where appropriate, with a combination of both. Thus, the methods and apparatuses for call replay systems and methods, or certain aspects or portions thereof, can take the form of program code (i.e., instructions) embodied in tangible media, such as floppy diskettes, CD-ROMs, hard drives, or any other machine-readable storage medium, wherein, when the program code is loaded into and executed by a machine, such as a computer, the machine becomes an apparatus for a call replay system. In the case of program code execution on programmable computers, the computing device will generally include a processor, a storage medium readable by the processor (including volatile and non-volatile memory and/or storage elements), at least one input device, and at least one output device. The program(s) can be implemented in assembly or machine language, if desired. The language can be a compiled or interpreted language, and combined with hardware implementations):
establish a virtual meeting having a plurality of participants, each participant of the plurality of participants exchanging one or more audio or video streams via the virtual meeting (from paragraph 0018, see FIG. 1 illustrates a system 100 including communications devices, a network, and a network device that may be in use during a telephonic communication. User 101 may be participating in a telephonic communication with users 102 and 103. This may be a three-way call, a conference call, or any other form of voice communications. It is contemplated that any other number of users, including one user may be participating in a telephonic communication with any other users and/or devices. For example, a user may be communicating with an automated system rather than one or more other users);
receive, from a first client device before the end of the virtual meeting, a request to customize a recording (from paragraph 0025, see For example, user 101 may press one or more keys on the keypad of mobile communications device 111 during the telephonic communication. The activation of the one or more keys may cause a signal to be transmitted to network device 104 that instructs network device 104 to perform a task or alter a configuration parameter. The signal may be the form of traditional telephony tones, or any other form of communication, such as a data command, packet or frame containing the instructions, etc), the request comprising an identification of customizable content and a modification action (from paragraph 0037, see In one embodiment, space, blanks, or "dead air" may be removed from the recorded telephonic communication as it is recorded, or before or during transmission. For example, in the interest of reducing the time required to play back a recorded telephonic communication, pauses between conversation may be removed. Network device 104 may be configured to discriminate between pauses and spaces between words, in one embodiment, using a predetermined amount of time of dead air as an indicator that a pause is to be removed. Means and methods of determining pauses in a recorded conversation are known to those skilled in the art, and all such means and methods are contemplated as within the scope of the present disclosure);
record, based on an indication from one of the plurality of participants, the one or more audio or video streams from the plurality of participants (from paragraph 0027, see Network device 104 may be configured, or instructed, to begin recording the telephonic communication as soon as it begins, or at a specific time. For example, as a subsystem of a conference calling system, network device 104 may be connected to the conference call and begin recording the telephonic communication on the call at the call's inception. Alternatively, each user of the conference call system may have the ability to send an instruction to network device 104 that instructs network device 104 to begin recording the telephonic communication. Such recorded telephonic communication may then be accessible by the user who sent the instruction and/or by other users. In another alternative, in a conference call system, a chairman or other user in control of the conference call may be the only user that is permitted to instruct device 104 to begin recording the telephonic communication. Any other permutation of users and/or devices that are permitted or configured to instruct network device 104 to record a telephonic communication are contemplated as within the scope of the present disclosure);
generate the recording of one or more audio or video tracks corresponding to the one or more audio or video streams exchanged during the virtual meeting (from paragraph 0024, see Network device 104 may be configured to record the telephonic communication between users 101, 102, and 103. Network device 104 may also be configured to perform other network tasks, or may be configured only for recording telephonic communications. The recording may be performed using any means known to those skilled in the art, including storing the communication on one or more computer storage devices, such as a hard disk drive or random access memory, recording the communication on magnetic or digital tape, disks, or other media, or any other effective recording means. Network device 104 may also be configured to accept instructions and/or commands from users and/or other network devices directly and/or through network 110); and
generate and store a customized recording based on applying the modification action to the identified customizable content (from paragraph 0048, see In some embodiments, alterations may be performed on the telephonic communication before or during the recording of the recorded telephonic communication. For example, instead of removing dead air from a conversation, the spaces that make up the dead air may not be recorded at all. Alternatively, the recording may be made in a higher speed so that it may be played back at normal speed in a shorter amount of time. In yet another alternative, sonic characteristics of the telephonic communication may be modified before it is recorded. In still another embodiment, a transcription may be made of the telephonic communication, and the transcription may be stored instead of recording the telephonic communication. All other alterations of a telephonic communication that may be performed before, during, or after such a telephonic communication is recorded are contemplated as within the scope of the present disclosure).
Claim 20 is rejected for the same reasons as claim 6.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
3. 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.
4. Claims 2-5, 9-12 and 16-19 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Mikan in view of Schachter et al, U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2013/0266127 (hereinafter Schachter).
Regarding claim 2, Mikan does not teach further comprising identifying content within the recording containing private information, and wherein the modification action comprises replacing or removing the private information. All the same, Schachter discloses identifying content within the recording containing private information, and wherein the modification action comprises replacing or removing the private information (from abstract, see Systems and methods for, among other things, removing sensitive data from an recording. The method, in certain embodiments, includes receiving an audio recording of a call and a text transcription of the audio recording, identifying events which occur during the call by detecting characteristic audio patterns in the audio recording and selected keywords and phrases in the text transcription, determining, from the identified events, a first event which precedes sensitive data in the call and a second event which occurs after sensitive data in the call, determining a portion of the call containing sensitive data with a start time at the first event and an end time at the second event, and removing the portion of the call between the start time and end time from the audio recording). Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to modify Mikan with identifying content within the recording containing private information, and wherein the modification action comprises replacing or removing the private information as taught by Schachter. This modification would have improved security by removing sensitive data as suggested by Schachter.
Regarding claim 3, Mikan as modified by Schachter discloses the identification of customizable content comprises one or more keywords from the first client device, and identifying the content within the recording containing private information based on the one or more keywords (from paragraph 0037 of Schachter, see The station 128 may allow a diagnostic center analyst to configure the redaction process performed by call data processor 126, for example by providing a list of IVR options, inputs, responses, keywords, phrases, or other detectable components within the recording. These components may be employed as features of an event. Thus, an event may be a larger pattern of recorded features, such as the detection of the phrase "classified information", or "credit card number", both of which may be features the system detects and identifies as an event or combines with other features, such as the recitation of a string of numbers, or the recitation of geographic location, to represent an event).
Regarding claim 4, Mikan as modified by Schachter discloses replacing the private information with replacement content (from paragraph 0011 of Schachter, see The portions of the call with sensitive information are removed from the audio recording, typically by replacing the portion of the call with nondescript audio, such as a flat tone, white noise, or silence. In addition to being removed from the audio recording).
Regarding claim 5, Mikan as modified by Schacter discloses removing the private information comprises replacing a portion of an audio track corresponding to the private information with silence (from paragraph 0011 of Schachter, see The portions of the call with sensitive information are removed from the audio recording, typically by replacing the portion of the call with nondescript audio, such as a flat tone, white noise, or silence. In addition to being removed from the audio recording).
Claim 9 is rejected for the same reasons as claim 2.
Claim 10 is rejected for the same reasons as claim 3.
Claim 11 is rejected for the same reasons as claim 4.
Claim 12 is rejected for the same reasons as claim 5.
Claim 16 is rejected for the same reasons as claim 2.
Claim 17 is rejected for the same reasons as claim 3.
Claim 18 is rejected for the same reasons as claim 4.
Claim 19 is rejected for the same reasons as claim 5.
Conclusion
5. Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to OLISA ANWAH whose telephone number is 571-272-7533. The examiner can normally be reached Monday to Friday from 8.30 AM to 6 PM.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Carolyn Edwards can be reached on 571-270-7136. The fax phone numbers for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned are 571-273-8300 for regular communications and 571-273-8300 for After Final communications.
Any inquiry of a general nature or relating to the status of this application or proceeding should be directed to the receptionist whose telephone number is 571-272-2600.
Olisa Anwah
Patent Examiner
September 17, 2026
/OLISA ANWAH/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2692
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