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 .
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b):
(b) CONCLUSION.—The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
Claim(s) 8 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
Regarding claim 8, there is insufficient antecedent basis for the limitation(s) "the two strings of IR lights,” which is/are not pre-established in this claim or any preceding claims on which this claim is dependent. Therefore, the claim is indefinite and is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b).
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 taught 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.
Claim(s) 1-12 and 14-20 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kelly et al. (US 20160232410) (hereinafter Kelly) in view of Jo (US 20210370846) (hereinafter Jo), further in view of Potter et al. (US 20200204713) (hereinafter Potter), and further in view of Athalye (US 20130069535) (hereinafter Athalye).
Regarding claim 1, Kelly teaches A license plate recognition (LPR) camera assembly, comprising:
[LPR cameras] configured to capture videos containing one or more license plates of one or more vehicles involved in a traffic violation event (see Kelly paragraphs 2-3 and 27 regarding LPR camera with both visible and IR camera and synchronized IR flash with the IR camera that detects License plate for matching with vehicle records);
a control circuit operably coupled to a power source and the plurality of IR lights (see Kelly paragraphs 2-3 and 27 regarding LPR camera with both visible and IR camera and synchronized IR flash with the IR camera that detects License plate for matching with vehicle records- obviating a control circuit), the control circuit comprising:
wherein the energy storage capacitor is configured to discharge responsive to receiving a camera frame capture pulse wherein the camera frame capture pulse is timed to arrive in accordance with a camera frame rate of at least one of the one or more LPR cameras (see Kelly paragraphs 2-3 and 27 regarding LPR camera with both visible and IR camera and synchronized IR flash with the IR camera exposure frame that detects License plate for matching with vehicle records- broadly this is synchronization with a single frame rate in time- in combination with Athalye below, which teaches a capacitor, current limiter, transistor, resistor, and current sink arrangement, the circuitry of Kelly can cause the capacitor of Athalye to discharge upon receiving an activation signal of the camera, and the lights may be IR lights),
wherein responsive to the camera frame capture pulse passing, the transistor is configured to disconnect, the plurality of IR lights is configured to turn off, and the energy storage capacitor is configured to begin to recharge (see Kelly paragraphs 2-3 and 27 regarding LPR camera with both visible and IR camera and synchronized IR flash with the IR camera that detects License plate for matching with vehicle records- the IR pulse flash may be interpreted as a turning off after a particular period of time after the image being taken- in combination with Athalye below, that would entail the disconnection of the transistor connection, the deactivation of lights, and the recharging of the capacitor in the light circuit of Athalye, and the lights may be IR lights).
However, Kelly does not explicitly teach a housing as needed for the limitations of claim 1.
Jo, in a similar field of endeavor, teaches an LPR camera housing containing one or more LPR cameras (see Jo paragraphs 12 and 18 and figures 4 and 5 regarding a pair of cameras in a housing mounted at the windshield of a vehicle with light shielding skirts to block unwanted light, where the cameras do not necessarily have to be stereo cameras, if Jo suggests that cameras could be disposed in opposite directions in addition to simultaneous forward directions- in combination with Kelly, which teaches an LPR camera, one camera may be a context camera, and the other camera may be the LPR camera, both mounted within the vehicle windshield with their own light-blocking shield skirts)
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the application to modify the teaching of Kelly to include the teaching of Jo so that in combination with Kelly, which teaches an LPR camera, one camera may be a context camera, and the other camera may be the LPR camera, both mounted within the vehicle windshield with their own light-blocking shield skirts.
One would be motivated to combine these teachings in order to mount a camera to a vehicle in an efficient manner (see Jo paragraphs 12 and 18 and figures 4 and 5).
However, the combination of Kelly and Jo does not explicitly teach IR lights as needed for the limitations of claim 1.
Potter, in a similar field of endeavor, teaches a plurality of infrared (IR) lights configured to illuminate an event scene of the traffic violation event (see Potter paragraphs 35-36 and 44 regarding plurality of IR bandpass filtered lights that can be arranged around an IR camera to surround it or as an array- in combination with Kelly, which already teaches using an IR light for a flash pulse, the IR light can come from an arrangement of Potter); and
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the application to modify the combination of Kelly and Jo to include the teaching of Potter so that in combination with Kelly, which already teaches using an IR light for a flash pulse, the IR light can come from an arrangement of Potter.
One would be motivated to combine these teachings in order to provide an efficient arrangement of IR lights around a camera (see Potter paragraphs 35-36 and 44).
However, the combination of Kelly, Jo, and Potter does not explicitly teach circuitry as needed for the limitations of claim 1.
Athalye, in a similar field of endeavor, teaches an energy storage capacitor; a current limiter configured to limit a charging current delivered to the energy storage capacitor; and a transistor connected in series between at least one of the plurality of IR lights and a resistor, (see Athalye figures 1 and 5 and paragraphs 8, 12-13, 45, and 52-54 regarding LED lighting circuit with energy storage capacitor, current limiter, transistor in series between lights and resistor, and current sink flow direction during discharge, where the transistor is illustrated to be a BJT transistor, and the lights may be arranged in any combination of series and parallel in relation to the capacitor, including in parallel with the capacitor, as two strings of multiple lights in series, and as two strings of multiple lights in parallel with the capacitor- in combination with Kelly, which already teaches LED lights for a camera, the circuity of Athalye may be incorporated as the circuitry of the LED lights of Kelly),
wherein current is configured to flow through the plurality of IR lights and the resistor into a current sink responsive to the energy storage capacitor being discharged (see Athalye figures 1 and 5 and paragraphs 8, 12-13, 45, and 52-54 regarding LED lighting circuit with energy storage capacitor, current limiter, transistor in series between lights and resistor, and current sink flow direction during discharge, where the transistor is illustrated to be a BJT transistor, and the lights may be arranged in any combination of series and parallel in relation to the capacitor, including in parallel with the capacitor, as two strings of multiple lights in series, and as two strings of multiple lights in parallel with the capacitor- in combination with Kelly, which already teaches LED lights for a camera, the circuity of Athalye may be incorporated as the circuitry of the LED lights of Kelly),
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the application to modify the combination of Kelly, Jo, and Potter to include the teaching of Athalye so that in combination with Kelly, which already teaches LED lights for a camera, the circuity of Athalye may be incorporated as the circuitry of the LED lights of Kelly.
One would be motivated to combine these teachings in order to enhance the power efficiency and functionality of LED light sources (see Athalye figures 1 and 5 and paragraphs 8, 12-13, 45, and 52-54).
Regarding claim 2, the combination of Kelly, Jo, Potter, and Athalye teaches all aforementioned limitations of claim 1, and is analyzed as previously discussed.
Furthermore, the combination of Kelly, Jo, Potter, and Athalye teaches further comprising an LPR camera mount coupled to the LPR camera housing and configured to mount the LPR camera housing to an interior of a carrier vehicle at an angle with respect to a windshield of the carrier vehicle (see Jo paragraphs 12 and 18 and figures 4 and 5 regarding a pair of cameras in a housing mounted at the windshield of a vehicle with light shielding skirts to block unwanted light, where the cameras do not necessarily have to be stereo cameras, if Jo suggests that cameras could be disposed in opposite directions in addition to simultaneous forward directions- in combination with Kelly, which teaches an LPR camera, one camera may be a context camera, and the other camera may be the LPR camera, both mounted within the vehicle windshield with their own light-blocking shield skirts).
One would be motivated to combine these teachings in order to mount a camera to a vehicle in an efficient manner (see Jo paragraphs 12 and 18 and figures 4 and 5).
Regarding claim 3, the combination of Kelly, Jo, Potter, and Athalye teaches all aforementioned limitations of claim 2, and is analyzed as previously discussed.
Furthermore, the combination of Kelly, Jo, Potter, and Athalye teaches further comprising at least one LPR camera skirt coupled to and protruding outwardly from the LPR camera housing, wherein the at least one LPR camera skirt is configured to prevent reflected IR light from interfering with the videos captured by the one or more LPR cameras (see Jo paragraphs 12 and 18 and figures 4 and 5 regarding a pair of cameras in a housing mounted at the windshield of a vehicle with light shielding skirts to block unwanted light, where the cameras do not necessarily have to be stereo cameras, if Jo suggests that cameras could be disposed in opposite directions in addition to simultaneous forward directions- in combination with Kelly, which teaches an LPR camera, one camera may be a context camera, and the other camera may be the LPR camera, both mounted within the vehicle windshield with their own light-blocking shield skirts).
One would be motivated to combine these teachings in order to mount a camera to a vehicle in an efficient manner (see Jo paragraphs 12 and 18 and figures 4 and 5).
Regarding claim 4, the combination of Kelly, Jo, Potter, and Athalye teaches all aforementioned limitations of claim 3, and is analyzed as previously discussed.
Furthermore, the combination of Kelly, Jo, Potter, and Athalye teaches wherein the LPR camera mount is configured to mount the LPR camera housing such that a distal skirt edge of the at least one LPR camera skirt is positioned less than 3.0 cm from a windshield of the carrier vehicle but does not physically contact the windshield of the carrier vehicle (see Jo paragraphs 12, 18, and 25-31 and figures 2-5 regarding a pair of cameras in a housing mounted at the windshield of a vehicle with light shielding skirts to block unwanted light, where the cameras do not necessarily have to be stereo cameras, if Jo suggests that cameras could be disposed in opposite directions in addition to simultaneous forward directions- in combination with Kelly, which teaches an LPR camera, one camera may be a context camera, and the other camera may be the LPR camera, both mounted within the vehicle windshield with their own light-blocking shield skirts- the edge of the skirt as illustrated in figures 2-3 would be understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to be positioned less than 3cm from the windshield without touching it).
One would be motivated to combine these teachings in order to mount a camera to a vehicle in an efficient manner (see Jo paragraphs 12 and 18 and figures 4 and 5).
Regarding claim 5, the combination of Kelly, Jo, Potter, and Athalye teaches all aforementioned limitations of claim 1, and is analyzed as previously discussed.
Furthermore, the combination of Kelly, Jo, Potter, and Athalye teaches wherein the transistor is a bipolar junction transistor (see Athalye figures 1 and 5 and paragraphs 8, 12-13, 45, and 52-54 regarding LED lighting circuit with energy storage capacitor, current limiter, transistor in series between lights and resistor, and current sink flow direction during discharge, where the transistor is illustrated to be a BJT transistor, and the lights may be arranged in any combination of series and parallel in relation to the capacitor, including in parallel with the capacitor, as two strings of multiple lights in series, and as two strings of multiple lights in parallel with the capacitor- in combination with Kelly, which already teaches LED lights for a camera, the circuity of Athalye may be incorporated as the circuitry of the LED lights of Kelly).
One would be motivated to combine these teachings in order to enhance the power efficiency and functionality of LED light sources (see Athalye figures 1 and 5 and paragraphs 8, 12-13, 45, and 52-54).
Regarding claim 6, the combination of Kelly, Jo, Potter, and Athalye teaches all aforementioned limitations of claim 1, and is analyzed as previously discussed.
Furthermore, the combination of Kelly, Jo, Potter, and Athalye teaches wherein each of the plurality of IR lights are connected in parallel with the energy storage capacitor (see Athalye figures 1 and 5 and paragraphs 8, 12-13, 45, and 52-54 regarding LED lighting circuit with energy storage capacitor, current limiter, transistor in series between lights and resistor, and current sink flow direction during discharge, where the transistor is illustrated to be a BJT transistor, and the lights may be arranged in any combination of series and parallel in relation to the capacitor, including in parallel with the capacitor, as two strings of multiple lights in series, and as two strings of multiple lights in parallel with the capacitor- in combination with Kelly, which already teaches LED lights for a camera, the circuity of Athalye may be incorporated as the circuitry of the LED lights of Kelly).
One would be motivated to combine these teachings in order to enhance the power efficiency and functionality of LED light sources (see Athalye figures 1 and 5 and paragraphs 8, 12-13, 45, and 52-54).
Regarding claim 7, the combination of Kelly, Jo, Potter, and Athalye teaches all aforementioned limitations of claim 1, and is analyzed as previously discussed.
Furthermore, the combination of Kelly, Jo, Potter, and Athalye teaches wherein the plurality of IR lights comprise two strings of multiple IR lights connected in series (see Athalye figures 1 and 5 and paragraphs 8, 12-13, 45, and 52-54 regarding LED lighting circuit with energy storage capacitor, current limiter, transistor in series between lights and resistor, and current sink flow direction during discharge, where the transistor is illustrated to be a BJT transistor, and the lights may be arranged in any combination of series and parallel in relation to the capacitor, including in parallel with the capacitor, as two strings of multiple lights in series, and as two strings of multiple lights in parallel with the capacitor- in combination with Kelly, which already teaches LED lights for a camera, the circuity of Athalye may be incorporated as the circuitry of the LED lights of Kelly).
One would be motivated to combine these teachings in order to enhance the power efficiency and functionality of LED light sources (see Athalye figures 1 and 5 and paragraphs 8, 12-13, 45, and 52-54).
Regarding claim 8, the combination of Kelly, Jo, Potter, and Athalye teaches all aforementioned limitations of claim 1, and is analyzed as previously discussed.
Furthermore, the combination of Kelly, Jo, Potter, and Athalye teaches wherein each of the two strings of IR lights are connected in parallel with the energy storage capacitor (see Athalye figures 1 and 5 and paragraphs 8, 12-13, 45, and 52-54 regarding LED lighting circuit with energy storage capacitor, current limiter, transistor in series between lights and resistor, and current sink flow direction during discharge, where the transistor is illustrated to be a BJT transistor, and the lights may be arranged in any combination of series and parallel in relation to the capacitor, including in parallel with the capacitor, as two strings of multiple lights in series, and as two strings of multiple lights in parallel with the capacitor- in combination with Kelly, which already teaches LED lights for a camera, the circuity of Athalye may be incorporated as the circuitry of the LED lights of Kelly).
One would be motivated to combine these teachings in order to enhance the power efficiency and functionality of LED light sources (see Athalye figures 1 and 5 and paragraphs 8, 12-13, 45, and 52-54).
Regarding claim 9, the combination of Kelly, Jo, Potter, and Athalye teaches all aforementioned limitations of claim 1, and is analyzed as previously discussed.
Furthermore, the combination of Kelly, Jo, Potter, and Athalye teaches wherein the plurality of IR lights is configured to be off until the arrival of a subsequent camera frame capture pulse (see Kelly paragraphs 2-3 and 27 regarding LPR camera with both visible and IR camera and synchronized IR flash with the IR camera that detects License plate for matching with vehicle records).
Regarding claim 10, the combination of Kelly, Jo, Potter, and Athalye teaches all aforementioned limitations of claim 1, and is analyzed as previously discussed.
Furthermore, the combination of Kelly, Jo, Potter, and Athalye teaches wherein the one or more LPR cameras include an LPR camera configured to capture videos in the IR spectrum (see Kelly paragraphs 2-3 and 27 regarding LPR camera with both visible and IR camera and synchronized IR flash with the IR camera that detects License plate for matching with vehicle records).
Regarding claim 11, the combination of Kelly, Jo, Potter, and Athalye teaches all aforementioned limitations of claim 1, and is analyzed as previously discussed.
Furthermore, the combination of Kelly, Jo, Potter, and Athalye teaches further comprising an IR bandpass filter that is configured to cover the plurality of IR lights (see Potter paragraphs 35-36 and 44 regarding plurality of IR bandpass filtered lights that can be arranged around an IR camera to surround it or as an array- in combination with Kelly, which already teaches using an IR light for a flash pulse, the IR light can come from an arrangement of Potter).
One would be motivated to combine these teachings in order to provide an efficient arrangement of IR lights around a camera (see Potter paragraphs 35-36 and 44).
Regarding claim 12, the combination of Kelly, Jo, Potter, and Athalye teaches all aforementioned limitations of claim 1, and is analyzed as previously discussed.
Furthermore, the combination of Kelly, Jo, Potter, and Athalye teaches wherein the one or more LPR cameras includes a daytime LPR camera configured to capture videos in a visible spectrum and a nighttime LPR camera configured to capture videos in the IR spectrum (see Kelly paragraphs 2-3 and 27 regarding LPR camera with both visible and IR camera and synchronized IR flash with the IR camera that detects License plate for matching with vehicle records).
Regarding claim 14, the combination of Kelly, Jo, Potter, and Athalye teaches all aforementioned limitations of claim 12, and is analyzed as previously discussed.
Furthermore, the combination of Kelly, Jo, Potter, and Athalye teaches wherein emission of IR light by the plurality of IR lights is configured to be synchronized with a frame rate of the nighttime LPR camera (see Kelly paragraphs 2-3 and 27 regarding LPR camera with both visible and IR camera and synchronized IR flash with the IR camera exposure frame that detects License plate for matching with vehicle records- broadly this is synchronization with a single frame rate in time).
Regarding claim 15, the combination of Kelly, Jo, Potter, and Athalye teaches all aforementioned limitations of claim 1, and is analyzed as previously discussed.
Furthermore, the combination of Kelly, Jo, Potter, and Athalye teaches wherein the plurality of IR lights are arranged to at least partially surround at least one of the one or more LPR cameras (see Potter paragraphs 35-36 and 44 regarding plurality of IR bandpass filtered lights that can be arranged around an IR camera to surround it or as an array- in combination with Kelly, which already teaches using an IR light for a flash pulse, the IR light can come from an arrangement of Potter).
One would be motivated to combine these teachings in order to provide an efficient arrangement of IR lights around a camera (see Potter paragraphs 35-36 and 44).
Regarding claim 16, Kelly teaches A perception system for detecting a traffic violation, the perception system comprising:
a license plate recognition (LPR) camera assembly comprising: an LPR camera housing containing one or more LPR cameras configured to capture videos containing one or more license plates of one or more vehicles involved in a traffic violation event (see Kelly paragraphs 2-3 and 27 regarding LPR camera with both visible and IR camera and synchronized IR flash with the IR camera that detects License plate for matching with vehicle records);
a control circuit operably coupled to a power source and the plurality of IR lights (see Kelly paragraphs 2-3 and 27 regarding LPR camera with both visible and IR camera and synchronized IR flash with the IR camera that detects License plate for matching with vehicle records- obviating a control circuit), the control circuit comprising
wherein the energy storage capacitor is configured to discharge responsive to receiving a camera frame capture pulse, wherein the camera frame capture pulse is timed to arrive in accordance with a camera frame rate of at least one of the one or more LPR cameras (see Kelly paragraphs 2-3 and 27 regarding LPR camera with both visible and IR camera and synchronized IR flash with the IR camera exposure frame that detects License plate for matching with vehicle records- broadly this is synchronization with a single frame rate in time),
wherein responsive to the camera frame capture pulse passing, the transistor is configured to disconnect, the plurality of IR lights is configured to turn off, and the energy storage capacitor is configured to begin to recharge (see Kelly paragraphs 2-3 and 27 regarding LPR camera with both visible and IR camera and synchronized IR flash with the IR camera that detects License plate for matching with vehicle records- the IR pulse flash may be interpreted as a turning off after a particular period of time after the image being taken, and in combination with Athalye below, that would entail the disconnection of the transistor connection, the deactivation of lights, and the recharging of the capacitor in the light circuit of Athalye).
However, Kelly does not explicitly teach a housing as needed for the limitations of claim 16.
Jo, in a similar field of endeavor, teaches a context camera assembly comprising: a context camera housing containing a context camera configured to capture videos of a traffic violation event, a context camera mount coupled to the context camera housing and configured to mount the context camera housing to an interior of a carrier vehicle, and a context camera skirt coupled to and protruding outwardly from the context camera housing, wherein the context camera skirt is configured to block unwanted ambient light (see Jo paragraphs 12 and 18 and figures 4 and 5 regarding a pair of cameras in a housing mounted at the windshield of a vehicle with light shielding skirts to block unwanted light, where the cameras do not necessarily have to be stereo cameras, if Jo suggests that cameras could be disposed in opposite directions in addition to simultaneous forward directions- in combination with Kelly, which teaches an LPR camera, one camera may be a context camera, and the other camera may be the LPR camera, both mounted within the vehicle windshield with their own light-blocking shield skirts);
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the application to modify the teaching of Kelly to include the teaching of Jo so that in combination with Kelly, which teaches an LPR camera, one camera may be a context camera, and the other camera may be the LPR camera, both mounted within the vehicle windshield with their own light-blocking shield skirts.
One would be motivated to combine these teachings in order to mount a camera to a vehicle in an efficient manner (see Jo paragraphs 12 and 18 and figures 4 and 5).
However, the combination of Kelly and Jo does not explicitly teach IR lights as needed for the limitations of claim 16.
Potter, in a similar field of endeavor, teaches a plurality of infrared (IR) lights configured to illuminate an event scene of the traffic violation event (see Potter paragraphs 35-36 and 44 regarding plurality of IR bandpass filtered lights that can be arranged around an IR camera to surround it or as an array- in combination with Kelly, which already teaches using an IR light for a flash pulse, the IR light can come from an arrangement of Potter); and
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the application to modify the combination of Kelly and Jo to include the teaching of Potter so that in combination with Kelly, which already teaches using an IR light for a flash pulse, the IR light can come from an arrangement of Potter.
One would be motivated to combine these teachings in order to provide an efficient arrangement of IR lights around a camera (see Potter paragraphs 35-36 and 44).
However, the combination of Kelly, Jo, and Potter does not explicitly teach circuitry as needed for the limitations of claim 16.
Athalye, in a similar field of endeavor, teaches an energy storage capacitor, a current limiter configured to limit a charging current delivered to the energy storage capacitor, and a transistor connected in series between at least one of the plurality of IR lights and a resistor (see Athalye figures 1 and 5 and paragraphs 8, 12-13, 45, and 52-54 regarding LED lighting circuit with energy storage capacitor, current limiter, transistor in series between lights and resistor, and current sink flow direction during discharge, where the transistor is illustrated to be a BJT transistor, and the lights may be arranged in any combination of series and parallel in relation to the capacitor, including in parallel with the capacitor, as two strings of multiple lights in series, and as two strings of multiple lights in parallel with the capacitor- in combination with Kelly, which already teaches LED lights for a camera, the circuity of Athalye may be incorporated as the circuitry of the LED lights of Kelly),
wherein current is configured to flow through the plurality of IR lights and the resistor into a current sink responsive to the energy storage capacitor being discharged (see Athalye figures 1 and 5 and paragraphs 8, 12-13, 45, and 52-54 regarding LED lighting circuit with energy storage capacitor, current limiter, transistor in series between lights and resistor, and current sink flow direction during discharge, where the transistor is illustrated to be a BJT transistor, and the lights may be arranged in any combination of series and parallel in relation to the capacitor, including in parallel with the capacitor, as two strings of multiple lights in series, and as two strings of multiple lights in parallel with the capacitor- in combination with Kelly, which already teaches LED lights for a camera, the circuity of Athalye may be incorporated as the circuitry of the LED lights of Kelly),
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the application to modify the combination of Kelly, Jo, and Potter to include the teaching of Athalye so that in combination with Kelly, which already teaches LED lights for a camera, the circuity of Athalye may be incorporated as the circuitry of the LED lights of Kelly.
One would be motivated to combine these teachings in order to enhance the power efficiency and functionality of LED light sources (see Athalye figures 1 and 5 and paragraphs 8, 12-13, 45, and 52-54).
Regarding claim 17, the combination of Kelly, Jo, Potter, and Athalye teaches all aforementioned limitations of claim 16, and is analyzed as previously discussed.
Furthermore, the combination of Kelly, Jo, Potter, and Athalye teaches wherein the one or more LPR cameras includes a daytime LPR camera and a nighttime LPR camera (see Kelly paragraphs 2-3 and 27 regarding LPR camera with both visible and IR camera and synchronized IR flash with the IR camera that detects License plate for matching with vehicle records).
Regarding claim 18, the combination of Kelly, Jo, Potter, and Athalye teaches all aforementioned limitations of claim 17, and is analyzed as previously discussed.
Furthermore, the combination of Kelly, Jo, Potter, and Athalye teaches wherein the nighttime LPR camera is an infrared (IR) camera (see Kelly paragraphs 2-3 and 27 regarding LPR camera with both visible and IR camera and synchronized IR flash with the IR camera that detects License plate for matching with vehicle records).
Regarding claim 19, the combination of Kelly, Jo, Potter, and Athalye teaches all aforementioned limitations of claim 17, and is analyzed as previously discussed.
Furthermore, the combination of Kelly, Jo, Potter, and Athalye teaches wherein emission of IR light by the plurality of IR lights is synchronized with a frame rate of the nighttime LPR camera (see Kelly paragraphs 2-3 and 27 regarding LPR camera with both visible and IR camera and synchronized IR flash with the IR camera exposure frame that detects License plate for matching with vehicle records- broadly this is synchronization with a single frame rate in time).
Regarding claim 20, the combination of Kelly, Jo, Potter, and Athalye teaches all aforementioned limitations of claim 16, and is analyzed as previously discussed.
Furthermore, the combination of Kelly, Jo, Potter, and Athalye teaches wherein the plurality of IR lights is periodically powered off to avoid overheating, wherein the powering off of the plurality IR lights is controlled by the control circuit (see Kelly paragraphs 2-3 and 27 regarding LPR camera with both visible and IR camera and synchronized IR flash with the IR camera that detects License plate for matching with vehicle records- the IR pulse flash may be interpreted as a turning off after a particular period of time after the image being taken that would avoid overheating better than a constant IR illumination).
Claim(s) 13 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kelly et al. (US 20160232410) (hereinafter Kelly) in view of Jo (US 20210370846) (hereinafter Jo), further in view of Potter et al. (US 20200204713) (hereinafter Potter), further in view of Athalye (US 20130069535) (hereinafter Athalye), and further in view of Lundberg et al. (US 20180184054) (hereinafter Lundberg).
Regarding claim 13, the combination of Kelly, Jo, Potter, and Athalye teaches all aforementioned limitations of claim 12, and is analyzed as previously discussed.
However, the combination of Kelly, Jo, Potter, and Athalye does not explicitly teach an IR blocking filter as needed for the limitations of claim 13.
Lundberg, in a similar field of endeavor, teaches further comprising an IR blocking filter that is configured to cover at least part of the daytime LPR camera (see Lundberg paragraph 5-6 regarding daytime IR blocking filter that covers a part of the camera during the day- in combination with Kelly, the daytime camera may include an IR blocking filter).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the application to modify the combination of Kelly, Jo, Potter, and Athalye to include the teaching of Lundberg so that in combination with Kelly, the daytime camera may include an IR blocking filter.
One would be motivated to combine these teachings in order to help protect a visible imager from IR light (see Lundberg paragraph 5-6).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Matthew D Kim whose telephone number is (571)272-3527. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Friday: 9:30am - 5:30pm EST.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Joseph Ustaris can be reached at (571) 272-7383. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/MATTHEW DAVID KIM/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2483
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