Ex Parte BOUAZIZ et al

Patent Trial and Appeal Board

Sep 25, 2018

14764761 (P.T.A.B. Sep. 25, 2018)

UNITED STA TES p A TENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE
APPLICATION NO. FILING DATE
14/764,761 10/13/2015
21171 7590 09/27/2018
ST AAS & HALSEY LLP
SUITE 700
1201 NEW YORK A VENUE, N.W.
WASHINGTON, DC 20005
FIRST NAMED INVENTOR
Tahar BOUAZIZ
UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
United States Patent and Trademark Office
Address: COMMISSIONER FOR PATENTS
P.O. Box 1450
Alexandria, Virginia 22313-1450
www .uspto.gov
ATTORNEY DOCKET NO. CONFIRMATION NO.
2319.1171 3776
EXAMINER
SILVERMAN, SETH ADAM
ART UNIT PAPER NUMBER
2145
NOTIFICATION DATE DELIVERY MODE
09/27/2018 ELECTRONIC
Please find below and/or attached an Office communication concerning this application or proceeding.
The time period for reply, if any, is set in the attached communication.
Notice of the Office communication was sent electronically on above-indicated "Notification Date" to the
following e-mail address(es):
ptomail@s-n-h.com
PTOL-90A (Rev. 04/07)
UNITED STATES PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE
BEFORE THE PATENT TRIAL AND APPEAL BOARD
Ex parte TAHAR BOU AZIZ, MICHAEL BETZ, and SIMONE PAULA
Appeal2018-008293
Application 14/764,761
Technology Center 2100
Before JEAN R. HOMERE, CARL W. WHITEHEAD JR., and
NABEEL U. KHAN, Administrative Patent Judges.
WHITEHEAD JR., Administrative Patent Judge.
DECISION ON APPEAL
STATEMENT OF THE CASE
Appellant1 is appealing the final rejection of claims 11-31 under
35 U.S.C. § 134(a). Appeal Brief 2. We have jurisdiction under 35 U.S.C.
§ 6(b) (2012).
We reverse.
Introduction
"The present invention comprises a method for displaying and/or
outputting a system-initiated help for operating a device allocated to a
vehicle, and a correspondingly configured device allocated to a vehicle."
Specification, paragraph 2.
1 The real party in interest is AUDI AG (Appellant). Appeal Brief 2.
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Application 14/7 64,761
Illustrative Claim ( disputed limitation emphasized)
11. A method for providing a system-initiated help for
operating a device allocated to a vehicle, comprising:
receiving at an operating facility, characters input by a
user, that can be assembled to form a group of characters;
displaying by a display the characters and group of
characters in at least one input field;
while receiving characters input by the user at the
operating facility, using a processor to recognize with a
predeterminable degree of probability based on the characters,
whether a space will or must be input by a user as a next input
action before a next character;
when it is recognized that a space will or must be input
by a user, providing, by a processor, help information to the
user, the help information providing assistance to the user on
how to operate the operating facility to input a space at the
operating facility by an operating action, immediately before
the next character, wherein
the help information is acoustically output by a
loudspeaker and/or visually output by displaying an assistance
to the user on a display device separate from any display device
functioning as the operating facility.
Rejections on Appeal2
Claims 11, 12, 14, 16-18, 23-25, 27, and 29 stand rejected under pre-
AIA 35 U.S.C. § I03(a) as being unpatentable over Ouyang (US Patent
Application Publication 2014/0115519 Al; published April 24, 2014), Mori
(US Patent Application Publication 2010/0070908 Al; published March 18,
2010), and Electric_ Teacher ("Microsoft Office Assistant," copyright 2009,
http://www.electricteacher.com/wassistant.htm). Final Action 9-22.
2 The 35 U.S.C. § 101 rejection was withdrawn by the Examiner. Answer 3.
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Application 14/7 64,761
Claims 13 and 26 stand rejected under pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. § I03(a) as
being unpatentable over Ouyang, Mori, Electric_ Teacher, and Yamada (US
Patent Application Publication 2012/0084075 Al; published April 5, 2012).
Final Action 22-24.
Claims 15 and 28 stand rejected under pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. § I03(a) as
being unpatentable over Ouyang, Mori, Electric_ Teacher, and Gupta ("How
to Tum Off Auto-Correct in Android and iPhone," published: 8/27/2012,
http://theitechblog.com/2868/how-to-turn-off-auto-correct-in-android-and-
iphone/). Final Action 24-26.
Claims 19, 21, 22, and 30 stand rejected under pre-AIA 35 U.S.C.
§ I03(a) as being unpatentable over Ouyang, Mori, Electric_ Teacher, and
Lui (US Patent Application Publication 2004/0071344 Al; published April
15, 2004). Final Action 26-29.
Claim 20 stands rejected under pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. § I03(a) as being
unpatentable over Ouyang, Mori, Electric_ Teacher, Lui, Lee (US Patent
Application Publication 2012/0306927 Al; published December 6, 2012),
and Aritsuka (US Patent Application Publication 2011/0154216 Al;
published June 23, 2011). Final Action 29-31.
Claim 31 stands rejected under pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. § 103(a) as being
unpatentable over Ouyang, Mori, Electric_ Teacher, and Lee. Final Action
31-37.
ANALYSIS
Rather than reiterate the arguments of Appellant and the Examiner,
we refer to the Appeal Brief ( filed April 23, 2018), the Reply Brief ( filed
August 14, 2018), the Answer ( mailed June 25, 2018) and the Final Action
(mailed November 30, 2017) for the respective details.
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Application 14/7 64,761
35 U.S.C. § 103 Rejections
The Examiner finds Ouyang discloses "using a processor to recognize
with a predeterminable degree of probability based on the characters,
whether a space will or must be input by a user as a next input action" in
paragraph 2. Final Action 10 ( emphasis omitted). Ouyang discloses in
paragraph 2:
[T]he input indicating a plurality of characters and determining,
by the computing device, a sequence of at least three character
strings included in the plurality of characters, such that the
sequence of at least three character strings does not include any
space characters. The method further includes modifying, by the
computing device, the plurality of characters by inserting at least
two space characters within the plurality of characters to
demarcate the at least three character strings from one another.
The Examiner further finds, "Multiple-space prediction module 8 may
match the character string 'lazy' to a lexicon entry accessible to computing
device 2, and insert the space characters on either side of the recognized
character string." Final Action 10 ( emphasis omitted) ( citing Ouyang,
paragraph 22).
Ouyang discloses:
[T]he literal string of text suggestion 14A reads "thwlazydpg,
which is identical to the last ten characters of character set 22.
In contrast to the literal string of text suggestion 14A, text
suggestion 14B includes two space characters. More specifically,
multiple-space prediction module 8 may insert the space
characters based on various criteria. As one example, multiple-
space prediction module 8 may match the character string "lazy"
to a lexicon entry accessible to computing device 2, and insert
the space characters on either side of the recognized character
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Application 14/7 64,761
string .... By inserting the two space characters at the described
locations, multiple-space prediction module 8 may generate text
suggestion 14B, which reads "thw lazy dpg." As shown,
multiple-space prediction module 8 implements the techniques
of this disclosure to insert the two space characters to demarcate
three character strings included in character set 22, thus forming
text suggestion 14B.
Ouyang, paragraphs 21-22.
The Examiner acknowledges that "Ouyang does not teach using a
processor to recognize [ whether a space will or must be input by a user] as a
next input action before a next character; the help information providing
assistance to the user at the operating facility by an operating action,
immediately before the next character." Final Action 11. The Examiner
finds, "Mori teaches using a processor to recognize whether a space will or
must be input by a user as a next input action before a next character." Final
Action 11 (citing Mori Figure 3, paragraph 29).
The Examiner attempts to clarify her position and finds that "Ouyang
teaches a prediction module, executed by a processor, that shows to a user
where a space should go on either side of a word" and a multiple-space
prediction module 8 that "insert the space characters on either side of the
recognized character string" therefore indicating that "a space would be a
next character." Answer 3--4.
Appellant contends that Ouyang "detects when spaces should have
previously been entered in a sequence of characters. After a plurality of
characters have been input, a space prediction is made." Appeal Brief 23.
Appellant further contends Ouyang's "Paragraph [0022] is describing how it
is determined that spaces were needed in the previously-entered text string"
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and "entering a space on either side of 'lazy' does not enter a space as a next
operating action before a next character." Appeal Brief 24.
The Examiner further clarifies her position by indicating that "Mori is
only relied on to teach that [the space] prediction is done as a next input
action before a next character." Answer 4.
Appellant argues:
In Mori et al. it is the user that recognizes whether a space will
or must be input by the user. On the other hand, the independent
claims require for one or more processers to recognize whether
a space will or must be input by the user.
Mori et al. provides that one or four options inputs a space.
Mori et al. thus provides a tool that allows a user to input a space.
This nothing more than an alternative to a traditional space bar
on a traditional keyboard. Both are irrelevant to the claim
requirements.
Appeal Brief 24.
We find Appellant's arguments persuasive of Examiner error. Claim
11 recites, "using a processor to recognize with a predeterminable degree of
probability based on the characters, whether a space will or must be input by
a user as a next input action before a next character." Ouyang only enters
the spaces after completion of the user's input and not during the user's
input as required by the claim limitation. See Ouyang, paragraph 22. Mori
does not address Ou yang' s noted deficiency because Mori merely provides
the user with options for responding to a suggested text correction. See
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Mori, paragraph 44. 3 Electric Teacher was relied upon by the Examiner to
disclose that providing assistance to a user on how to operate an operating
facility to input a space or perform an operation was well known in the art at
the time of the invention. Final Action 12-13. However, Electric Teacher
does not address the noted deficiency of the Ouyang/Mori combination. We
also find that Yamada, Gupta, Lui, Lee and Aritsuka references fail to
address the noted deficiency of the Ouyang/Mori/Electric Teacher
combination. Accordingly, we reverse the Examiner's obviousness rejection
of independent claim 11, as well as, the rejections of independent claims 24
and 31 commensurate in scope. Dependent claims 12-23 and 25-30 stand
with the independent claims.
DECISION
The Examiner's 35 U.S.C. § 103 rejections of claims 11-31 are
reversed.
REVERSED
3 Specifically, the user may accept the suggested text correction
and continue inputting text with the automatic insertion of a
space, reject the suggested text correction and continue inputting
text with the automatic insertion of a space, accept the suggested
text correction and end the message ( or type a character that does
not require the insertion of a space first), or reject the suggested
text correction and end the message ( or type a character that does
not require the insertion of a space first).
Mori, paragraph 44.
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