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 .
Information Disclosure Statement
1. The information disclosure statement (IDS) document submitted on May 16, 2025, August 21, 2025, September 29, 2025 are in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner.
Priority
2. Acknowledgment is made of applicant's claim for foreign priority under 35 U.S.C. 119(a)-(d). Receipt is acknowledged of papers submitted under 35 U.S.C. 119(a)-(d), which papers have been placed of record in the file.
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 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)(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.
3. Claims 1,2,3,5,6,7,11,12,13,14,15,16 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a) (1) as being anticipated by Cramer et al. (US Pub. No.: US 2022/0030162 A1).
Regarding claim 1, Cramer et al. discloses an information processing apparatus (Para 41; Dental consumer/patient system 102 generally represents any type or form of computing device capable of reading computer-executable instructions) comprising:
one or more hardware processors (Para 47; physical processor(s) 130); and
one or more memories ( Para 47; memory 140) storing one or more programs configured to be executed by the one or more hardware processors, the one or more programs including instructions to:
obtain approval information indicating that an approval has been obtained from
an authorization source regarding an act of image capturing ( Para 54,55, 73; the virtual care dental system 106 may send the one or more photo parameters to the dental consumer/patient system 102) , and image capturing rule information indicating a rule regarding image capturing (Para 54; one or more photo parameters; the dental professional system 150 may provide a doctor with a user interface and/or other software that allows the doctor to review doctor guidance templates, make any changes to a doctor guidance template, and/or approve/finalize a doctor guidance template so that it can be applied to a specific patient, such as the consumer/patient using the dental consumer/patient system 102. As an example, in some implementations, a doctor may provide instructions to override a specific part of a doctor guidance template based on one or more factors, such as factors related to specific attributes of a specific consumer/patient. The dental professional system 150 may, in an operation 180h, send a reviewed/edited/approved doctor guidance template to the virtual dental care system 106. This operation may occur as a file and/or data transfer over the computer-readable medium 104.); and edit data of an image captured by performing image capturing, so as to conform to the rule, in a case where image capturing in compliance with the rule is not performed in a state where the approval information has been obtained (Para 115; The feedback may include instructions to system 200 for performing automatic actions when requirements 234 are not satisfied. Guidance prompts 228 may instruct camera module 204 to automatically adjust one or more camera settings. For example, rather than instruction the patient
to adjust the camera settings, camera module 204 may automatically make the adjustments).
Regarding claim 2, Cramer et al. discloses the information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the one or more programs further include instructions to:
obtain verification information to obtain the approval from the authorization
source regarding the act of image capturing ( Para 55-56; use the one or more photo parameters to intelligently guide the consumer/patient to capture clinically relevant photos of their dentition. The dental consumer/patient system 102 may gather image-capture rules that guide capturing the clinically relevant photos based on the photo parameters. The rules that guide capturing can be considered as information), and obtain the approval information using the verification information (Para 74; the virtual care dental system 106 may use the captured photos that were captured at the dental consumer/patient system 102 and a doctor guidance template reviewed, edited, and/or approved by the dental professional system 150 to generate intelligent patient guidance rules for the consumer/patient. After the captured photos are approved, the further guidance rules can be applied).
Regarding claim 3, Cramer et al. discloses the information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the one or more programs further include instructions to:
edit data of a frame, among the data of the captured image, for which image
capturing in compliance with the rule is not performed ( Para 112-115; guidance prompts 228 may include instructions for the user to manipulate system 200 into a configuration that may take images satisfying requirements 234. For example, the instructions may include an instruction to adjust a camera view of the camera to include a particular body part in the camera view, such as moving the camera closer or farther, pan/tilt/zoom the camera, change an angle, tracking or otherwise moving the camera, etc. The feedback may include instructions to system 200 for performing automatic actions when requirements 234 are not satisfied. Guidance prompts 228 may instruct camera module 204 to automatically adjust one or more camera settings. For example, rather than instruction the patient to adjust the camera settings, camera module 204 may automatically make the adjustments), SO as to conform to the rule, in a case where the captured image is a moving image (Para 94; 178; Examples of image data streams include, without limitation, one or more photos, video, etc. An image data stream may include additional sensor data, such as depth data. Video or image showing the proper use of a chewie).
Regarding claim 5, Cramer et al. discloses The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the image capturing rule information includes at least one of information indicating a type of object for which image capturing is permitted (Para 115; guidance prompts 228 may instruct camera module 204 to automatically capture image data 232 if requirements 234 are satisfied ) and information indicating a type of object for which image capturing is prohibited (Para 116; guidance prompts 228 may prevent certain actions, such as preventing capture of image data 232 of the body part when at least one of requirements 234 is not satisfied ).
Regarding claim 6, Cramer et al. discloses The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein, in the image capturing rule information, type information indicating a type of object and condition information indicating a condition for image capturing related to the object are associated with each other ( Para 303; receiving one or more photo parameters to define clinically acceptable criteria for a plurality of clinically relevant photos of a person's dentition, the clinically acceptable criteria including at least a plurality of clinically acceptable positions and a plurality of clinically acceptable orientations of teeth relative to a camera; gathering a plurality of image-capture rules to capture the plurality of clinically relevant photo ) , and wherein the one or more programs further include instructions to: edit the data of the captured image so that a representation of the object included in the captured image satisfies the condition for image capturing (Para 112-115; the instructions may include an instruction to adjust a camera view of the camera to include a particular body part in the camera view, such as moving the camera closer or farther, pan/tilt/zoom the camera, change an angle, tracking or otherwise moving the camera, etc. The instructions may include an instruction to insert or remove a particular appliance. The instructions may also include an instruction to move a particular body part, such as open or close the patient's bite, open the patient's jaw wider, etc. The instruction may include an instruction to adjust one or more camera settings, such as zoom, focus, turn on/off a flash, etc.).
Regarding claim 7, Cramer et al. discloses the information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the one or
more programs further include instructions to:
select one of a plurality of processing modes, including a first processing mode
in which the data of the captured image is edited in compliance with the rule (Para 55; he dental consumer/patient system 102 uses camera parameters to modify one or more photo settings (add/disable flash, adjust zoom, adjust brightness, adjust contrast, adjust shadows, adjust silhouettes, etc. so that clinically relevant photos are captured under various conditions; Para 114-115) and a second processing mode in which editing of the data of the captured image is not performed ( Para 115; guidance prompts 228 may instruct camera module 204 to automatically capture image data 232 if requirements 234 are satisfied ) ; and
select and switch to the first processing mode in a case where the approval
information has been obtained (Para 115; when the adjustment of the camera settings are updated. The images can be captured without modification automatically after reviewing the feedback) .
Regarding claim 11, Cramer et al. discloses The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the one or more programs further include instructions to:
output a warning indicating a violation of the rule in a case of capturing a
representation of an object different from an object for which image capturing is permitted under the rule (Para 116; guidance prompts 228 may include sending a notification. System 200 may send a notification to server 106 or other computing device to inform the practitioner of certain results. For instance, the notification may indicate if an attachment has fallen off of a tooth, that a plaque buildup is detected, or other abnormal condition that may be highlighted for the practitioner. guidance prompts 228 may prevent certain actions, such as preventing capture of image data 232 of the body part when at least one of requirements 234 is not satisfied.) .
Regarding claim 12, Cramer et al. discloses The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the one or more programs further include instructions to:
store the data of the captured image in a storage medium ( Para 57,113; the virtual dental care system 106 may store the captured clinically relevant photos. In various implementations, the virtual dental care system 106 may store the captured clinically relevant photos in a treatment database associated with a consumer/patient, a clinical data file associated with a consumer/patient, and/or in any relevant datastore. guidance prompts 228 may instruct the patient to take the photo to save as image data 232.) ; and store, in the storage medium, edited data of the captured image in a case where
the data of the captured image is edited to conform to the rule (Para 115; guidance prompts 228 may instruct the patient to take the photo to save as image data 232. the steps of method 300 may be repeated as needed to provide continuous feedback until the desired images are captured. Thus, certain steps may be repeated, and requirements 234 and/or guidance prompts 228 may be continuously updated until image data 232 is sufficiently captured.).
Regarding claim 13, Cramer et al. discloses the information processing apparatus according to claim 12, wherein the one or more programs further include instructions to:
store, in the storage medium, data of the captured image to which the approval
information is added and the edited data of the captured image in a case where the
approval information has been obtained. ( Para 57, The virtual dental care system 106 may store the captured clinically relevant photos in a treatment database associated with a consumer/patient, a clinical data file associated with a consumer/patient, and/or in any relevant datastore Para 55,113, 115, The dental consumer/patient system 102 uses camera parameters to modify one or more photo settings (add/disable flash, adjust zoom, adjust brightness, adjust contrast, adjust shadows, adjust silhouettes, etc. so that clinically relevant photos are captured under various conditions; guidance prompts 228 may instruct the patient to take the photo to save as image data 232).
Regarding claim 14, Cramer et al. discloses The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the one or more programs further include instructions to:
control an image capturing apparatus to disable image capturing by the image
capturing apparatus in a case where the approval information has not been obtained ( Para 116; guidance prompts 228 may prevent certain actions, such as preventing capture of image data 232 of the body part when at least one of requirements 234 is not satisfied. In some examples, requirements 234 may include hardware requirements (e.g., camera resolution, zoom, etc.) such that guidance prompts 228 may prevent capture of image data 232 if the hardware requirements are not satisfied. In some examples, guidance prompts 228 may include sending a notification. System 200 may send a notification to server 106 or other computing device to inform the practitioner of certain results. For instance, the notification may indicate if an attachment has fallen off of a tooth, that a plaque buildup is detected, or other abnormal condition that may be highlighted for the practitioner. Therefore, the images are not captured until doctor reviews the abnormal condition (highlighted section)).
Regarding claim 15, Cramer et al. discloses an image capturing apparatus (Para 41; Dental consumer/patient system 102 with camera 132 generally represents any type or form of computing device capable of reading computer-executable instructions) comprising:
an information processing apparatus (Fig. 1A; Para 40-42; The dental consumer/patient system 102, dental professional system 150, and virtual dental care system 106 may communicate to one another over the computer-readable medium 104.) configured to
obtain approval information indicating that an approval has been obtained from an authorization source regarding an act of image capturing (Para 54,55, 73; the virtual care dental system 106 may send the one or more photo parameters to the dental consumer/patient system 102 ), and image capturing rule information indicating a rule regarding image capturing (Para 54; one or more photo parameters; the dental professional system 150 may provide a doctor with a user interface and/or other software that allows the doctor to review doctor guidance templates, make any changes to a doctor guidance template, and/or approve/finalize a doctor guidance template so that it can be applied to a specific patient, such as the consumer/patient using the dental consumer/patient system 102. As an example, in some implementations, a doctor may provide instructions to override a specific part of a doctor guidance template based on one or more factors, such as factors related to specific attributes of a specific consumer/patient. The dental professional system 150 may, in an operation 180h, send a reviewed/edited/approved doctor guidance template to the virtual dental care system 106. This operation may occur as a file and/or data transfer over the computer-readable medium 104),
and edit data of an image captured by performing image capturing, so as to conform to the rule, in a case where image capturing in compliance with the rule is not performed in a state where the approval information has been obtained (Para 115; The feedback may include instructions to system 200 for performing automatic actions when requirements 234 are not satisfied. Guidance prompts 228 may instruct camera module 204 to automatically adjust one or more camera settings. For example, rather than instruction the patient to adjust the camera settings, camera module 204 may automatically make the adjustments);
an image capturing device ( Para 41; camera 132) ; and a generation device configured to control the image capturing device to generate the captured image ( Para 47,48; Physical processor(s) 130 generally represents any type or form of hardware-implemented processing unit capable of interpreting and/or executing computer-readable instructions.).
Regarding claim 16, the subject matter disclosed in claim 16 is similar to the subject matter disclosed in claim 1; therefore, claim 16 is rejected for the same reasons as set forth in claim 1.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
3. 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.
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 of this title, 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. Claim 4 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Cramer et al. (US Pub. No.: US 2022/0030162 A1), in view of Bhide et al. (US Pub. No.: US 2017/0046340 A1).
Regarding claim 4, Cramer et al. does not disclose The information processing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the one or more programs further include instructions to: edit the data of the captured image, so as to conform to the rule, by deleting, from the data of the captured image, the data of the frame for which image capturing in compliance with the rule is not performed.
Bhide et al. discloses the one or more programs further include instructions to: edit the data of the captured image, so as to conform to the rule, by deleting, from the data of the captured image, the data of the frame for which image capturing in compliance with the rule is not performed (Para 13; Additionally, the present embodiment may mark images for deletion based on a predefined criteria and may display the marked images to a user. For example, the pictures that may be marked for deletion may be a picture with handwritten text, a picture with no face or person depicted in it, or a picture without any scenery or animals, such as pets. Therefore, when the images do not satisfy requirements of content such as no face or person depicted it, the images are deleted).
It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Cramer with the teaching of Bhide to automatically deleted images that do not satisfy certain requirements to
save memory and improve system efficiency.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 8-10 are objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter:
regarding claim 8, Cramer et al. discloses a type of object ( Para 54; teeth condition of the patients.).
However, the prior art does not disclose “ specify a type of object included as a representation in the captured image by analyzing the captured image; and
edit the data of the captured image in a case where the captured image includes a
representation of an object different from an object for which image capturing is permitted under the rule, based on the rule and a result of the analyzing “ in combination of other limitation in its base claims.
Claims 9 and 10 are objected to as being dependent from claim 8.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to XI WANG whose telephone number is 469-295-9155. The examiner can normally be reached on 9:00 am-5:00 pm.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, SINH TRAN can be reached on 571-272-7564. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/XI WANG/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2637
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