DETAILED ACTION
The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 103 which forms the basis for all obviousness rejections set forth in this Office action:
A patent for a claimed invention may not be obtained, notwithstanding that the claimed invention is not identically disclosed as set forth in section 102, if the differences between the claimed invention and the prior art are such that the claimed invention as a whole would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to a person having ordinary skill in the art to which the claimed invention pertains. Patentability shall not be negated by the manner in which the invention was made.
The factual inquiries set forth in Graham v. John Deere Co., 383 U.S. 1,148 USPQ 459 (1966), that are applied 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.
4. Claims 1-5, 9-10, 14-18, and 20 are rejected under AIA 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Cole et al. (US Publication 2015/0341617) in view of Jayaram et al. (US Publication 2011/0249100).
Regarding claim 1, Cole discloses an adjustable stereoscopic camera system comprising:
a first camera (210) mounted to a first mounting plate (220) (Cole, fig’ s 3-5; para’s 0050-0060, a first camera of a camera pair mounted to a mounting plate); and
a second camera (250) mounted to a second mounting plate (260) (Cole, fig’ s 3-5; para’s 0050-0060, a second camera of the camera pair mounted to a mounting plate);
wherein the first mounting plate (220) is movable along a y axis in an x, y, z coordinate system and rotatable (Cole, fig’ s 3-5; para’s 0035, 0047, and 0060-0064, stereo alignment, via adjustable mounts and calibration target, enables proper left/right eye matching and optical calibration; the assembly 700 shown in FIG. 4 allows for the position of individual cameras to be adjusted from the top by loosing the screws securing the individual camera mounting plates to the camera pair mounting plate and then adjusting the camera position before retightening the screws. The position of a camera pair can be adjusted by moving the camera pair mounting plate after loosening the screws accessible from the bottom side of the support structure 720, moving the plate and then retightening the screws. Accordingly, what the general position and direction of the camera pairs is defined by the slots in the support plate 720, the position and direction can be finely adjusted as part of the camera calibration process to achieve the desired camera alignment while the cameras are secured to the support structure 720 in the field where the camera rig is to be used; a single camera pair can be mounted on the support structure and rotated around the center support of the rig and allowed to capture different scenes at different times allowing for a 360 degree scene capture).
Cole does not explicitly disclose but Jayaram discloses the first mounting plate (220) is movable along a y axis in an x, y, z coordinate system and rotatable in α and γ directions about the x and z axes where α, β, and γ indicate directions of rotation about x, y, and z axes respectively (Jayaram, para’s 0060-0064, FIG. 14 illustrates assembly of a typical camera 32 onto base plate 42 with articulating support structure 56. By adjusting the threaded engagement of individual fasteners 74, camera 32 can be adjusted relative to plate 42 to induce (relative to lens 64) pitch 101 and roll 103 (see FIG. 15). According to an alternative construction depicted in FIG. 17, yaw 102 can also be induced. FIG. 16 illustrates construction of articulating support structure 56. More particularly, structure 56 includes a support plate, or frame 68 that has a semi-spherical seat, or recess 80 on a central bottom surface for receiving a spherical bearing 70 (either plastic or hardened steel). Camera 32 is rigidly secured onto a top surface of plate 68 with threaded fasteners 84 passing through bores 78 in plate 68 and into threaded bores (not shown) in the bottom of camera 32. Threaded cap screws 74 (with fine threads) pass through bores 76 in base plate 42, through coil steel springs 72, and into threaded bores 86 in plate 68. Ball bearing 70 also seats in another semi-spherical seat 82 in a top surface of plate 42. Bearing 70 is larger in diameter than the combined depths of seats 80 and 82 so that plate 68 is spaced from plate 42 in assembly. By tightening the front pair of fasteners 74 and loosening the rear pair of fasteners, camera 32 can be pitched forward, thereby enabling relative adjustment of the field of view compared to an adjacent camera. Likewise, tightening of a left pair of fasteners 74 and loosening of a right pair of fasteners 74 will cause camera 32 to roll left. It is understood that total compression is still maintained against the bearing 70 after this adjustment is made. In this manner, a horizontal alignment and an angular alignment between adjacent cameras can be performed. FIG. 17 illustrates another embodiment for an image capture adjustment mechanism, or articulating support structure 156 that further enables adjustment to rotate camera 32 in order to induce yaw 102. More particularly, a turret plate 170 is captured for constrained rotation between an upper plate 168 and a lower plate 169. A radial arm 171 on plate 170 is constrained within a slot 172 to enable rotational adjustment of turret plate 170 relative to plates 168 and 169. As shown in FIG. 17, a set screw 173 is used to fix positioning of turret plate 170 and camera 32 relative to plates 168 and 169. More particularly, threaded fasteners 84 pass through bores 179 in plate 170 and into complementary threaded bores (not shown) in the bottom of camera 32. Camera 34 is similarly mounted. Threaded recessed head screws 184 pass through bores 182 in plate 169 and into complementary threaded bores 180 in plate 168 to hold together plates 168-170. Threaded fasteners 74 pass through the base plate (not shown), springs 72, and into complementary threaded bores 182. The traps bearing 70 in a manner similar to that shown in FIG. 16 and adjustment of screws 74 enables pitch and roll adjustment of camera 32, while turret 170 enables yaw adjustment).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate Jayaram’s features into Cole’s invention for enhancing user’s viewing experience by providing high quality stereoscopic images generated based on by adjusted translational and rotational angles between pair of stereo cameras.
Regarding claim 2, Cole-Jayaram discloses the adjustable stereoscopic camera system of claim 1, wherein the first mounting plate (220) is coupled to a carriage plate (240) via a three-point spring/screw mechanism comprising three machine screws (222, 224, 226) that extend through corresponding compression springs (222a, 224a, 226a) (Cole, para’s 0055-0057, the first camera pair mounting plate 710 includes threaded screw holed 741, 741′, 741″ and 741′″ through which screws 704, 740′, 740″, 740″ can be inserted, respectively through slots 738 and 738; to secure the plate 710 to the support structure 720. The slots allow for adjustment of the position of the support plate 710. The cameras 750, 750′ of the first camera pair are secured to individual corresponding camera mounting plates 703, 703′ using screws that pass through the bottom of the plates 703, 703′ and extend into threaded holes on the bottom of the cameras 750, 750′. Once secured to the individual mounting 703, 703′ the cameras 750, 750′ and mounting plates 703, 703′ can be secured to the camera pair mounting plate 710 using screws. Screws 725, 725′, 725″ (which is not fully visible) and 725′″ pass through corresponding slots 724 into threaded holes 745, 745′, 745″ and 745′″ of the camera pair mounting plate 710 to secure the camera plate 703 and camera 750 to the camera pair mounting plate 710. Similarly, screws 727, 727′(which is not fully visible), 727″ and 7257″ pass through corresponding slots 726, 726′, 726″ and 726′″ into threaded holes 746, 746′, 746″ and 746′″ of the camera pair mounting plate 710 to secure the camera plate 703′ and camera 750′ to the camera pair mounting plate 710; Jayaram, para’s 0060-0064, FIG. 14 illustrates assembly of a typical camera 32 onto base plate 42 with articulating support structure 56. By adjusting the threaded engagement of individual fasteners 74, camera 32 can be adjusted relative to plate 42 to induce (relative to lens 64) pitch 101 and roll 103 (see FIG. 15). According to an alternative construction depicted in FIG. 17, yaw 102 can also be induced. Furthermore, bearing 70 can be made out of an elastic material, such as a plastic, which can be slightly compressed, enabling vertical adjustment by tightening and loosening all of the fasteners. FIG. 15 depicts two adjacent stereoscopic pairs 20 and 21 of left cameras 32 and right cameras 34, each mounted atop a dedicated articulating support structure 56. It is understood that system 10 of FIGS. 1-3 merely supports these pairs in an up-side-down configuration in order to produce a more compact housing when the housing is supported on a table, as the individual lenses are spaced further apart from the table top surface which might otherwise interfere with image capture. FIG. 16 illustrates construction of articulating support structure 56. More particularly, structure 56 includes a support plate, or frame 68 that has a semi-spherical seat, or recess 80 on a central bottom surface for receiving a spherical bearing 70 (either plastic or hardened steel). Camera 32 is rigidly secured onto a top surface of plate 68 with threaded fasteners 84 that pass through bores 78 in plate 68 and into threaded bores (not shown) in the bottom of camera 32. Threaded cap screws 74 (with fine threads) pass through bores 76 in base plate 42, through coil steel springs 72, and into threaded bores 86 in plate 68. Ball bearing 70 also seats in another semi-spherical seat 82 in a top surface of plate 42. Bearing 70 is larger in diameter than the combined depths of seats 80 and 82 so that plate 68 is spaced from plate 42 in assembly. By tightening the front pair of fasteners 74 and loosening the rear pair of fasteners, camera 32 can be pitched forward, thereby enabling relative adjustment of the field of view compared to an adjacent camera. Likewise, tightening of a left pair of fasteners 74 and loosening of a right pair of fasteners 74 will cause camera 32 to roll left. It is understood that total compression is still maintained against the bearing 70 after this adjustment is made. In this manner, a horizontal alignment and an angular alignment between adjacent cameras can be performed. By placing a horizontal object in front of an adjacent pair of cameras (two lefts, two rights, or a left and a right), scan lines can be adjusted to be both parallel and in alignment horizontally between adjacent cameras using articulating support structure 56. FIG. 17 illustrates another embodiment for an image capture adjustment mechanism, or articulating support structure 156 that further enables adjustment to rotate camera 32 in order to induce yaw 102. More particularly, a turret plate 170 is captured for constrained rotation between an upper plate 168 and a lower plate 169. A radial arm 171 on plate 170 is constrained within a slot 172 to enable rotational adjustment of turret plate 170 relative to plates 168 and 169. As shown in FIG. 17, a set screw 173 is used to fix positioning of turret plate 170 and camera 32 relative to plates 168 and 169. More particularly, threaded fasteners 84 pass through bores 179 in plate 170 and into complementary threaded bores (not shown) in the bottom of camera 32. Camera 34 is similarly mounted. Threaded recessed head screws 184 pass through bores 182 in plate 169 and into complementary threaded bores 180 in plate 168 to hold together plates 168-170. Threaded fasteners 74 pass through the base plate (not shown), springs 72, and into complementary threaded bores 182. The traps bearing 70 in a manner similar to that shown in FIG. 16 and adjustment of screws 74 enables pitch and roll adjustment of camera 32, while turret 170 enables yaw adjustment. Three screws can be used as design option).
The motivation and obviousness arguments are the same as claim 1.
Regarding claim 3, Cole-Jayaram discloses the adjustable stereoscopic camera system of claim 2, wherein the compression springs (222a, 224a, 226a) bias the first mounting plate (220) away from the carriage plate (240), and adjustment of the machine screws (222, 224, 226) alters alignment of the first camera (210) (Jayaram, para’s 0060-0064, threaded cap screws 74 (with fine threads) pass through bores 76 in base plate 42, through coil steel springs 72, and into threaded bores 86 in plate 68; Cole, para’s 0060-0064, stereo alignment, via adjustable mounts and calibration target, enables proper left/right eye matching and optical calibration; the assembly 700 shown in FIG. 4 allows for the position of individual cameras to be adjusted from the top by loosing the screws securing the individual camera mounting plates to the camera pair mounting plate and then adjusting the camera position before retightening the screws. The position of a camera pair can be adjusted by moving the camera pair mounting plate after loosening the screws accessible from the bottom side of the support structure 720, moving the plate and then retightening the screws. Accordingly, what the general position and direction of the camera pairs is defined by the slots in the support plate 720, the position and direction can be finely adjusted as part of the camera calibration process to achieve the desired camera alignment while the cameras are secured to the support structure 720 in the field where the camera rig is to be used).
The motivation and obviousness arguments are the same as claim 1.
Regarding claim 4, Cole-Jayaram discloses the adjustable stereoscopic camera system of claim 3, wherein: (a) adjustment of all three screws (222, 224, 226) translates the plate (220) along the y axis, (b) adjustment of screws (222 and 224) rotates the plate in the γ direction, and (c) adjustment of only one of the screws (222 or 224) rotates the plate in the α direction (Cole, fig’ s 3-5; para’s 0035, 0047, and 0060-0064, stereo alignment, via adjustable mounts and calibration target, enables proper left/right eye matching and optical calibration; the assembly 700 shown in FIG. 4 allows for the position of individual cameras to be adjusted from the top by loosing the screws securing the individual camera mounting plates to the camera pair mounting plate and then adjusting the camera position before retightening the screws. The position of a camera pair can be adjusted by moving the camera pair mounting plate after loosening the screws accessible from the bottom side of the support structure 720, moving the plate and then retightening the screws. Accordingly, what the general position and direction of the camera pairs is defined by the slots in the support plate 720, the position and direction can be finely adjusted as part of the camera calibration process to achieve the desired camera alignment while the cameras are secured to the support structure 720 in the field where the camera rig is to be used; a single camera pair can be mounted on the support structure and rotated around the center support of the rig and allowed to capture different scenes at different times allowing for a 360 degree scene capture; Jayaram, para’s 0060-0064, FIG. 14 illustrates assembly of a typical camera 32 onto base plate 42 with articulating support structure 56. By adjusting the threaded engagement of individual fasteners 74, camera 32 can be adjusted relative to plate 42 to induce (relative to lens 64) pitch 101 and roll 103 (see FIG. 15). According to an alternative construction depicted in FIG. 17, yaw 102 can also be induced. FIG. 16 illustrates construction of articulating support structure 56. More particularly, structure 56 includes a support plate, or frame 68 that has a semi-spherical seat, or recess 80 on a central bottom surface for receiving a spherical bearing 70 (either plastic or hardened steel). Camera 32 is rigidly secured onto a top surface of plate 68 with threaded fasteners 84 that pass through bores 78 in plate 68 and into threaded bores (not shown) in the bottom of camera 32. Threaded cap screws 74 (with fine threads) pass through bores 76 in base plate 42, through coil steel springs 72, and into threaded bores 86 in plate 68. Ball bearing 70 also seats in another semi-spherical seat 82 in a top surface of plate 42. Bearing 70 is larger in diameter than the combined depths of seats 80 and 82 so that plate 68 is spaced from plate 42 in assembly. By tightening the front pair of fasteners 74 and loosening the rear pair of fasteners, camera 32 can be pitched forward, thereby enabling relative adjustment of the field of view compared to an adjacent camera. Likewise, tightening of a left pair of fasteners 74 and loosening of a right pair of fasteners 74 will cause camera 32 to roll left. It is understood that total compression is still maintained against the bearing 70 after this adjustment is made. In this manner, a horizontal alignment and an angular alignment between adjacent cameras can be performed. FIG. 17 illustrates another embodiment for an image capture adjustment mechanism, or articulating support structure 156 that further enables adjustment to rotate camera 32 in order to induce yaw 102. More particularly, a turret plate 170 is captured for constrained rotation between an upper plate 168 and a lower plate 169. A radial arm 171 on plate 170 is constrained within a slot 172 to enable rotational adjustment of turret plate 170 relative to plates 168 and 169. As shown in FIG. 17, a set screw 173 is used to fix positioning of turret plate 170 and camera 32 relative to plates 168 and 169. More particularly, threaded fasteners 84 pass through bores 179 in plate 170 and into complementary threaded bores (not shown) in the bottom of camera 32. Camera 34 is similarly mounted. Threaded recessed head screws 184 pass through bores 182 in plate 169 and into complementary threaded bores 180 in plate 168 to hold together plates 168-170. Threaded fasteners 74 pass through the base plate (not shown), springs 72, and into complementary threaded bores 182. The traps bearing 70 in a manner similar to that shown in FIG. 16 and adjustment of screws 74 enables pitch and roll adjustment of camera 32, while turret 170 enables yaw adjustment).
The motivation and obviousness arguments are the same as claim 1.
Regarding claim 5, Cole-Jayaram discloses the adjustable stereoscopic camera system of claim 4, wherein the adjustment screws (222, 224, 226) are accessible through a housing (200) enclosing the cameras (210, 250) (Cole, fig’ s 3-5; para’s 0035, 0047, and 0060-0064, stereo alignment, via adjustable mounts and calibration target, enables proper left/right eye matching and optical calibration; the assembly 700 shown in FIG. 4 allows for the position of individual cameras to be adjusted from the top by loosing the screws securing the individual camera mounting plates to the camera pair mounting plate and then adjusting the camera position before retightening the screws. The position of a camera pair can be adjusted by moving the camera pair mounting plate after loosening the screws accessible from the bottom side of the support structure 720, moving the plate and then retightening the screws. Accordingly, what the general position and direction of the camera pairs is defined by the slots in the support plate 720, the position and direction can be finely adjusted as part of the camera calibration process to achieve the desired camera alignment while the cameras are secured to the support structure 720 in the field where the camera rig is to be used; a single camera pair can be mounted on the support structure and rotated around the center support of the rig and allowed to capture different scenes at different times allowing for a 360 degree scene capture; Jayaram, para’s 0060-0064, FIG. 14 illustrates assembly of a typical camera 32 onto base plate 42 with articulating support structure 56. By adjusting the threaded engagement of individual fasteners 74, camera 32 can be adjusted relative to plate 42 to induce (relative to lens 64) pitch 101 and roll 103 (see FIG. 15). According to an alternative construction depicted in FIG. 17, yaw 102 can also be induced. FIG. 16 illustrates construction of articulating support structure 56. More particularly, structure 56 includes a support plate, or frame 68 that has a semi-spherical seat, or recess 80 on a central bottom surface for receiving a spherical bearing 70 (either plastic or hardened steel). Camera 32 is rigidly secured onto a top surface of plate 68 with threaded fasteners 84 passing through bores 78 in plate 68 and into threaded bores (not shown) in the bottom of camera 32. Threaded cap screws 74 (with fine threads) pass through bores 76 in base plate 42, through coil steel springs 72, and into threaded bores 86 in plate 68. Ball bearing 70 also seats in another semi-spherical seat 82 in a top surface of plate 42. Bearing 70 is larger in diameter than the combined depths of seats 80 and 82 so that plate 68 is spaced from plate 42 in assembly. By tightening the front pair of fasteners 74 and loosening the rear pair of fasteners, camera 32 can be pitched forward, thereby enabling relative adjustment of the field of view compared to an adjacent camera. Likewise, tightening of a left pair of fasteners 74 and loosening of a right pair of fasteners 74 will cause camera 32 to roll left. It is understood that total compression is still maintained against the bearing 70 after this adjustment is made. In this manner, a horizontal alignment and an angular alignment between adjacent cameras can be performed. FIG. 17 illustrates another embodiment for an image capture adjustment mechanism, or articulating support structure 156 that further enables adjustment to rotate camera 32 in order to induce yaw 102. More particularly, a turret plate 170 is captured for constrained rotation between an upper plate 168 and a lower plate 169. A radial arm 171 on plate 170 is constrained within a slot 172 to enable rotational adjustment of turret plate 170 relative to plates 168 and 169. As shown in FIG. 17, a set screw 173 is used to fix positioning of turret plate 170 and camera 32 relative to plates 168 and 169. More particularly, threaded fasteners 84 pass through bores 179 in plate 170 and into complementary threaded bores (not shown) in the bottom of camera 32. Camera 34 is similarly mounted. Threaded recessed head screws 184 pass through bores 182 in plate 169 and into complementary threaded bores 180 in plate 168 to hold together plates 168-170. Threaded fasteners 74 pass through the base plate (not shown), springs 72, and into complementary threaded bores 182. The traps bearing 70 in a manner similar to that shown in FIG. 16 and adjustment of screws 74 enables pitch and roll adjustment of camera 32, while turret 170 enables yaw adjustment).
The motivation and obviousness arguments are the same as claim 1.
Regarding claim 9, Cole-Jayaram discloses the adjustable stereoscopic camera system of claim 1, wherein the mounting plates (220, 260) are machined from aluminum and are approximately 3 mm thick (Cole, para. 0078, aluminum plate having approximately 3 mm thickness are considered design option).
Regarding claim 10, Cole-Jayaram discloses the adjustable stereoscopic camera system of claim 1, further comprising a housing (202) enclosing the cameras (210, 250) and mounting plates (220, 260), wherein the housing remains stationary relative to the first mounting plate (220) during movement thereof (Cole, para. 0065, housing; Jayaram, para. 0031, housing of the cameras).
The motivation and obviousness arguments are the same as claim 1.
Regarding claim 14, Cole-Jayaram discloses the adjustable stereoscopic camera system of claim 1, wherein the cameras (210, 250) are positioned to simulate interpupillary distances (IPDs) ranging from 55 mm to 70 mm (Jayaram, para. 0047, the inter-camera spacing between stereoscopic pairs of cameras for a typical eye spacing for a human is about 2.5 inches, i.e., 63.5mm).
The motivation and obviousness arguments are the same as claim 1.
Regarding claim 15, Cole-Jayaram discloses the adjustable stereoscopic camera system of claim 1, wherein the camera system is configured to cover a stereoscopic range of at least 5.4 cm to 27.0 cm spatial distance for a user (Jayaram, para. 0056, fig. 10, t(0) indicates stereoscopic range based on distance between the left camera and the right camera wherein t(0) is about 2.5 inches, i.e., 6.35cm).
The motivation and obviousness arguments are the same as claim 1.
Regarding claim 16, Cole-Jayaram discloses the adjustable stereoscopic camera system of claim 1, wherein an adjustment mechanism enables camera alignment without opening A housing (200) (Jayaram, para’s 0045-0064, FIG. 14 illustrates assembly of a typical camera 32 onto base plate 42 with articulating support structure 56. By adjusting the threaded engagement of individual fasteners 74, camera 32 can be adjusted relative to plate 42 to induce (relative to lens 64) pitch 101 and roll 103 (see FIG. 15). According to an alternative construction depicted in FIG. 17, yaw 102 can also be induced. FIG. 16 illustrates construction of articulating support structure 56. More particularly, structure 56 includes a support plate, or frame 68 that has a semi-spherical seat, or recess 80 on a central bottom surface for receiving a spherical bearing 70 (either plastic or hardened steel). Camera 32 is rigidly secured onto a top surface of plate 68 with threaded fasteners 84 that pass through bores 78 in plate 68 and into threaded bores (not shown) in the bottom of camera 32. Threaded cap screws 74 (with fine threads) pass through bores 76 in base plate 42, through coil steel springs 72, and into threaded bores 86 in plate 68. Ball bearing 70 also seats in another semi-spherical seat 82 in a top surface of plate 42. Bearing 70 is larger in diameter than the combined depths of seats 80 and 82 so that plate 68 is spaced from plate 42 in assembly. By tightening the front pair of fasteners 74 and loosening the rear pair of fasteners, camera 32 can be pitched forward, thereby enabling relative adjustment of the field of view compared to an adjacent camera without opening up the assembly. Likewise, tightening of a left pair of fasteners 74 and loosening of a right pair of fasteners 74 will cause camera 32 to roll left. It is understood that total compression is still maintained against the bearing 70 after this adjustment is made. In this manner, a horizontal alignment and an angular alignment between adjacent cameras can be performed. FIG. 17 illustrates another embodiment for an image capture adjustment mechanism, or articulating support structure 156 that further enables adjustment to rotate camera 32 in order to induce yaw 102. More particularly, a turret plate 170 is captured for constrained rotation between an upper plate 168 and a lower plate 169. A radial arm 171 on plate 170 is constrained within a slot 172 to enable rotational adjustment of turret plate 170 relative to plates 168 and 169. As shown in FIG. 17, a set screw 173 is used to fix positioning of turret plate 170 and camera 32 relative to plates 168 and 169. More particularly, threaded fasteners 84 pass through bores 179 in plate 170 and into complementary threaded bores (not shown) in the bottom of camera 32. Camera 34 is similarly mounted. Threaded recessed head screws 184 pass through bores 182 in plate 169 and into complementary threaded bores 180 in plate 168 to hold together plates 168-170. Threaded fasteners 74 pass through the base plate (not shown), springs 72, and into complementary threaded bores 182. The traps bearing 70 in a manner similar to that shown in FIG. 16 and adjustment of screws 74 enables pitch and roll adjustment of camera 32, while turret 170 enables yaw adjustment).
The motivation and obviousness arguments are the same as claim 1.
Regarding claim 17, Cole-Jayaram discloses the adjustable stereoscopic camera system of claim 1, wherein the mounting plate (220) includes fine thread adjustment holes (223, 225, 227) for high precision alignment (Jayaram, para’s 0045-0064, FIG. 14 illustrates assembly of a typical camera 32 onto base plate 42 with articulating support structure 56. By adjusting the threaded engagement of individual fasteners 74, camera 32 can be adjusted relative to plate 42 to induce (relative to lens 64) pitch 101 and roll 103 (see FIG. 15). According to an alternative construction depicted in FIG. 17, yaw 102 can also be induced. FIG. 16 illustrates construction of articulating support structure 56. More particularly, structure 56 includes a support plate, or frame 68 that has a semi-spherical seat, or recess 80 on a central bottom surface for receiving a spherical bearing 70 (either plastic or hardened steel). Camera 32 is rigidly secured onto a top surface of plate 68 with threaded fasteners 84 that pass through bores 78 in plate 68 and into threaded bores (not shown) in the bottom of camera 32. Threaded cap screws 74 (with fine threads) pass through bores 76 in base plate 42, through coil steel springs 72, and into threaded bores 86 in plate 68. Ball bearing 70 also seats in another semi-spherical seat 82 in a top surface of plate 42. Bearing 70 is larger in diameter than the combined depths of seats 80 and 82 so that plate 68 is spaced from plate 42 in assembly. By tightening the front pair of fasteners 74 and loosening the rear pair of fasteners, camera 32 can be pitched forward, thereby enabling relative adjustment of the field of view compared to an adjacent camera without opening up the assembly. Likewise, tightening of a left pair of fasteners 74 and loosening of a right pair of fasteners 74 will cause camera 32 to roll left. It is understood that total compression is still maintained against the bearing 70 after this adjustment is made. In this manner, a horizontal alignment and an angular alignment between adjacent cameras can be performed. FIG. 17 illustrates another embodiment for an image capture adjustment mechanism, or articulating support structure 156 that further enables adjustment to rotate camera 32 in order to induce yaw 102. More particularly, a turret plate 170 is captured for constrained rotation between an upper plate 168 and a lower plate 169. A radial arm 171 on plate 170 is constrained within a slot 172 to enable rotational adjustment of turret plate 170 relative to plates 168 and 169. As shown in FIG. 17, a set screw 173 is used to fix positioning of turret plate 170 and camera 32 relative to plates 168 and 169. More particularly, threaded fasteners 84 pass through bores 179 in plate 170 and into complementary threaded bores (not shown) in the bottom of camera 32. Camera 34 is similarly mounted. Threaded recessed head screws 184 pass through bores 182 in plate 169 and into complementary threaded bores 180 in plate 168 to hold together plates 168-170. Threaded fasteners 74 pass through the base plate (not shown), springs 72, and into complementary threaded bores 182. The traps bearing 70 in a manner similar to that shown in FIG. 16 and adjustment of screws 74 enables pitch and roll adjustment of camera 32, while turret 170 enables yaw adjustment).
The motivation and obviousness arguments are the same as claim 1.
Regarding claim 18, Cole-Jayaram discloses the adjustable stereoscopic camera system of claim 1, wherein the system is portable and a spring assembly absorbs vibration during transport (Jayaram, para. 0062, coil steel springs).
The motivation and obviousness arguments are the same as claim 1.
Regarding claim 20, Cole-Jayaram discloses the adjustable stereoscopic camera system of claim 1, wherein additional floating plates are orthogonally arranged to enable adjustment in all six directions: x, y, z, α, β, and γ (Jayaram, para. 0060, FIG. 14 illustrates assembly of a typical camera 32 onto base plate 42 with articulating support structure 56. By adjusting the threaded engagement of individual fasteners 74, camera 32 can be adjusted relative to plate 42 to induce (relative to lens 64) pitch 101 and roll 103 (see FIG. 15). According to an alternative construction depicted in FIG. 17, yaw 102 can also be induced).
The motivation and obviousness arguments are the same as claim 1.
5. Claim 6 is rejected under AIA 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Cole-Jayaram, as applied to claim 5 above, in view of Oh et al. (US Publication 2020/0378553).
Regarding claim 6, Cole-Jayaram discloses the adjustable stereoscopic camera system of claim 5.
Cole-Jayaram does not explicitly disclose but Oh discloses wherein each adjustment screw includes a recessed hexagonal key hole (292) for tool access (Oh, para. 0040, keyhole openings 102 can be hexagonal in order to guide installation of screws for particular electrical boxes).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate Oh’s features into Cole-Jayaram’s invention for effectively adjusting stereoscopic camera using special adjustment tool.
6. Claims 7-8 are rejected under AIA 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Cole-Jayaram, as applied to claim 1 above, in view of Akiyama (US Publication 2005/0073627).
Regarding claim 7, Cole-Jayaram discloses the adjustable stereoscopic camera system of claim 1, wherein the second mounting plate (260) is fixed to a carriage plate (240) (Cole, para. 0065, FIG. 1 depicts a six (6) camera assembly 100 also sometimes referred to as a rig or camera array, along with a calibration target 115. The camera rig 100 illustrated in FIG. 1 includes a support structure (shown in FIGS. 4 and 5) which holds the cameras in the indicated positions. The support structure includes a base 720 also referred to herein as a mounting plate (see element 720 shown in FIG. 4) which supports the cameras and to which plates on which the cameras are mounted can be secured).
Cole-Jayaram does not explicitly disclose but Akiyama discloses wherein the second mounting plate includes a 4.6-degree angled edge cut (265) (Akiyama, para. 0053, FIG. 2, an upwardly inclined plane beginning with the side of the light source 114 and inclined at an angle alpha of 4.6 degrees is formed extending a distance of L1=245 micron and a downwardly inclined plane beginning with the point at which the upwardly inclined plane is terminated and inclined at an angle beta of 20 degrees is formed extending a distance of L2=55 micron. In this case, the prism 112b has a height H of 20 micron. The prism 112b is repeated at a pitch of 0.3 mm in the longitudinal direction of the light guide plate 112. Those prisms are formed using an injection molding process to ensure that occurrence of optical distortion is avoided as possible; see also Fu, English Translation of Chinese Publication CN109671108 07-2020).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate Akiyama’s features into Cole-Jayaram’s invention for effectively generating stereo images by closely aligning camera plates using special alignment technique and angle.
Regarding claim 8, Cole-Jayaram-Akiyama discloses the adjustable stereoscopic camera system of claim 7, wherein the angled edge cut (265) allows the first and second cameras (210, 250) to be positioned closer together for improved stereoscopic effect (Akiyama, para. 0053, FIG. 2, an upwardly inclined plane beginning with the side of the light source 114 and inclined at an angle alpha of 4.6 degrees is formed extending a distance of L1=245 micron and a downwardly inclined plane beginning with the point at which the upwardly inclined plane is terminated and inclined at an angle beta of 20 degrees is formed extending a distance of L2=55 micron. In this case, the prism 112b has a height H of 20 micron. The prism 112b is repeated at a pitch of 0.3 mm in the longitudinal direction of the light guide plate 112. Those prisms are formed using an injection molding process to ensure that occurrence of optical distortion is avoided as possible; performing the technique above enables the cameras to be positioned closer together and have similar effect as human eyes when generating three dimensional images).
The motivation and obviousness arguments are the same as claim 7.
7. Claim 11 is rejected under AIA 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Cole-Jayaram, as applied to claim 1 above, in view of Owen (US Publication 2010/0020330).
Regarding claim 11, Cole-Jayaram discloses the adjustable stereoscopic camera system of claim 1.
Cole-Jayaram does not explicitly disclose but Owen discloses wherein the system is configured to display a virtual crosshair overlaid on a video stream from each camera to aid in alignment calibration (Owen, para. 0034, during calibration of metrology system 100, optical system 40 operates in an imaging mode in which it forms an image on the surface of calibration wafer 60 on which the fiducial marks are located. Additionally, in imaging mode, optical system 40 superimposes on the image a real or virtual pair of crosshairs having an accurately defined location relative to armature 32. In imaging mode, the image with the crosshairs superimposed thereon can be observed by means of a suitable eyepiece or, more typically, by means of a video camera and monitor; see also Ravasz et al, US2024/0320930 as disclosed below, para’s 0526 and 0533, in response to the angular distance between anchor location 1706 and viewpoint location 1708 exceeding the first alignment threshold as a result of movement 1712, HMD X700 displays alignment indicator 1714, another crosshair virtual object superimposed over the environment being captured in the spatial video media).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate Owen’s features into Cole-Jayaram’s invention for effectively calibrating the image capturing system using crosshair overlaying.
8. Claim 12 is rejected under AIA 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Cole-Jayaram-Owen, as applied to claim 11 above, in view of Schlemmer et al. (US Publication WO 2010058010).
Regarding claim 12, Cole-Jayaram-Owen discloses the adjustable stereoscopic camera system of claim 11.
Cole-Jayaram-Owen does not explicitly disclose but Schlemmer discloses a crosshair target frame configured to align with virtual crosshair overlays during calibration (Schlemmer, page 6, the reference image can be designed, for example, as a crosshair or crosshair structure and can be punched out of a carrier element (for example made of sheet metal) or etched into it).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate Schlemmer’s features into Cole-Jayaram-Owen’s invention for effectively calibrating the image capturing system using a crosshair target frame.
9. Claim 13 is rejected under AIA 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Cole-Jayaram-Owen, as applied to claim 1 above, in view of Ravasz et al. (US Publication 2024/0320930).
Regarding claim 13, Cole-Jayaram discloses the adjustable stereoscopic camera system of claim 1.
Cole-Jayaram does not explicitly disclose but Ravasz discloses a time-of-flight sensor aligned with a center point of fields of view of the first and second cameras for determining a stereoscopic range (Ravasz, para. 0528, HMD X700 can determine how the viewpoint of the spatial video capture changes with respect to the initial viewpoint of the environment seen in FIG. 17B (e.g., at the onset of the spatial video capture) by detecting the displacement of anchor location 1706 with respect to the viewport through which the environment is visible (e.g., with respect to the user's current field-of-view of the environment via HMD X700), for instance, using first camera 704A and second camera 704B as stereoscopic camera sensors. In some embodiments, HMD X700 can determine how the viewpoint of the spatial video capture changes with respect to the initial viewpoint of the environment seen in FIG. 17B using one or more other sensors (e.g., sensor X704), such as depth sensors (e.g., structural light sensors and/or time-of-flight sensors).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate Ravasz’s features into Cole-Jayaram’s invention for effectively determining stereoscopic range using a time-of-flight sensor.
10. Claim 19 is rejected under AIA 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Cole-Jayaram, as applied to claim 1 above, in view of Riederer (US Publication 2015/0281675).
Regarding claim 19, Cole-Jayaram discloses the adjustable stereoscopic camera system of claim 1.
Cole-Jayaram does not explicitly disclose but Riederer discloses wherein an electromechanical actuator is substituted for the spring/screw mechanism to automate alignment adjustments (Riederer, para’s 0092-0093, Fig. 2, means to adjust the interpupillary distance (IPD), in this embodiment it is a slider traveling on a rail (11a), controlled by an electromechanical actuator (11b); Means to adjust the vertical alignment of the cameras' images, in this embodiment it is an actuator-driven screw).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate Riederer’s features into Cole-Jayaram’s invention for effectively adjusting the stereoscopic camera using an electromechanical actuator.
11. The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant’s disclosure. These include:
Muller, US Patent 10,547,827
Miura et al., US Patent US 4,879,596
Bojarski et al., US Patent 11,857,378
Fu, English Translation of Chinese Publication CN109671108 07-2020
Conclusion
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/LOI H TRAN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2484
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