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.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph:
The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention.
Claims 2, 3, 7, 8 and 13 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as failing to set forth the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor, or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant regards as the invention.
Claims 1, 3, 7, 8 and 13 recite “the notification” is unclear whether it is referring to the first notification or the second notification .
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
The following is a quotation of the appropriate paragraphs of 35 U.S.C. 102 that form the basis for the rejections under this section made in this Office action:
A person shall be entitled to a patent unless –
(a)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claim(s) 1, 2, 4, 5, 7 and 12-15 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102 a (2) as being anticipated by CHO et al. (US 2025/0136136).
Claims 1, 14 and 15, CHO teaches an in-vehicle apparatus comprising a controller (Fig. 2, controller 170), the controller configured to provide a first notification to prompt a driver to start a vehicle in response to determining that the vehicle continues to stop until a first predetermined time elapses after detecting (par. 066: In Step 315, the controller 170 may provide or output the alarm related to vehicle driving to the driver … par. 71: In Step 411, the controller 170 performs Step 413 when the driving signal is turned on while the vehicle is in a stopped state. As described above, when the driving signal is turned on in a state where the vehicle is stopped, in step 413, the controller 170 may output or provide a starting alarm to allow the driver to drive the vehicle and return to Step 317 of FIG. 3.),
by image recognition of an image captured by a camera, that a traffic light has changed from red to green (par. 63: In Step 309, the controller 170 analyzes the image data and determines whether the reference object is detected in the image data. The controller 170 may perform Step 311 when the image data is analyzed and the reference object is detected in the image data, and return to Step 305 when the reference object is not detected, and continuously perform Steps 305 and 307. In this case, the reference object may include a traffic lamp and a stop line), and
perform a process of not providing a second notification to prompt the driver to start the vehicle in response to detecting that the traffic light has changed from red to green again while the vehicle continues to stop after providing the first notification (par
75: In Step 319, the controller 170 detects that the vehicle ignition is turned off. When the vehicle ignition is turned off, the controller 170 may terminate the process, and when the vehicle ignition is not turned off, the controller 170 may perform Steps 305 to 317 again. Another notification will not be issue after the first notification due not detecting a traffic lamp situation where the vehicle already started of left the intersection as shown in step 309 of Figure 3).
Claim 2, CHO teaches wherein the controller resets the process of not providing the notification to prompt the driver to start the vehicle in response to detecting that the vehicle has started (par. 63: In Step 309, the controller 170 analyzes the image data and determines whether the reference object is detected in the image data. The controller 170 may perform Step 311 when the image data is analyzed and the reference object is detected in the image data, and return to Step 305 when the reference object is not detected, and continuously perform Steps 305 and 307. In this case, the reference object may include a traffic lamp and a stop line. Another notification will not be issue after the first notification due not detecting a traffic lamp situation where the vehicle already started of left the intersection as shown in step 309 of Figure 3).
Claim 4, CHO teaches wherein in response to detecting a shift signal of the vehicle indicates parking, the controller determines that the vehicle is stopped (par. 62, 64: a state in which a right-turn traffic lamp is turned on, a state in which an emergency lamp is turned on, a state in which the transmission is placed in P (parking), and a state in which the preceding vehicle exists in front of the host vehicle).
Claim 5, CHO wherein in response to detecting the vehicle is in a parking monitor mode in which recording is performed during parking, the controller determines that the vehicle continues to stop (par. 62: Step 307, the controller 170 may receive the vehicle's internal data obtained by the sensor 130 through communication with the sensor 130. In this case, the vehicle's internal data may include a vehicle speed of the vehicle, a state of whether a brake pedal is input and transmission information which are data provided which indicate whether vehicle is in a parking monitor mode).
Claim 7, CHO does not teach wherein in response to detecting the traffic light has changed from red to green in a state where a forward vehicle has not started, the controller does not provide the notification to prompt the driver to start the vehicle, and in response to the traffic light has changed from red to green again and then the forward vehicle has started, the controller provides the notification to prompt the driver to start the vehicle (Fig. 3, par. 64: a state in which the preceding vehicle exists in front of the host vehicle, this is true so step 311 goes to step 319 which would skip providing alarm at step 315 whenever a leading vehicle remained detected).
Claim 12, CHO teaches wherein in response to detecting the traffic light has changed from green to red while the vehicle continues to stop, the controller performs the process of not providing the second notification (Fig. 3, after providing the first alarm at step 315, continuing down to step 319 to determine the vehicle ignition is off to exit the loop and not providing another alarm, thus the traffic light would continue through the cycle back to red light from green while the vehicle is parked).
Claim 13, CHO teaches wherein before providing the notification to prompt the driver to start the vehicle, in response to detecting that the vehicle is parked based on information of a vehicle speed sensor mounted in the vehicle, the image captured by a camera, or positional information, the controller does not provide the notification to prompt the driver to start the vehicle (par. 64: In Step 311, the controller 170 identifies whether the vehicle is in an exceptional situation based on the vehicle's internal data identified in step 307. At Step 311, the exceptional situation may include, for example, but not limited to, a state in which the right-turn traffic lamp is turned on, a state in which the emergency lamp is turned on, a state in which the transmission is placed in P (parking), and a state in which the preceding vehicle exists in front of the host vehicle. As a result of the identification in Step 311, if the vehicle is in an exceptional situation, Step 319 is performed, and if the vehicle is not in an exceptional situation, Step 313 is performed).
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.
Claim(s) 8 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over CHO et al. in view of Salomonsson et al. (US 2014/0222280).
Claim 8, CHO does not teach wherein in response to detecting the vehicle has not started and continues to stop even after the controller provides the notification to prompt the driver to start the vehicle by display and voice, the controller provides either the notification by display or the notification by voice.
In the field of endeavor, Salomonsson teaches a vehicular system responsive to detection of the leading vehicle moving forward (indicative of, for example, the traffic light changing to a green light), an alert or notification or output from the vehicle alert system may be communicated to the driver's PDA or cell phone or smartphone or communication device or the like as a means for the start notification. Such an alert may be useful since the driver, who is not moving the vehicle forward with the vehicle ahead of the equipped vehicle, may already be looking at his or her PDA or cell phone or smartphone display or the like, and even if not looking at the PDA or cell phone or smartphone or the like, will not be annoyed by any audible (such as a chime or voice message) notification or visual notification from the vehicle. For example, the driver's PDA or cell phone or smartphone or communication device may display "get moving" or any similar text or message or icon or the like (and such a visual message may be coupled with any audible alert or chime if the user so chooses) (par. 24).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of filing to modify CHO’s vehicle alert system to output various type notification in the form of visual and/or audible alert as taught by Salomonsson for the purpose of providing an alternative way in which to capture driver’s attention (Salomonsson par. 24).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 3, 6 and 9-11 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.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to An T Nguyen whose telephone number is (571)270-5167. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Friday 9-5 ET.
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/AN T NGUYEN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2686
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