Prior art — US Patent 11120271

As a senior US patent analyst, I have conducted a thorough review of the prior art cited during the prosecution of U.S. Patent No. 11,120,271, "Data processing systems and methods for enhanced augmentation of interactive video content." The following analysis details the most relevant references cited by the USPTO examiner and discusses their potential impact on the patent's claims.

Analysis of Cited Prior Art

The following references were cited by the examiner during the prosecution of the application that led to the '271 patent. The analysis will focus on how each reference, individually, might be viewed as anticipating the subject matter of the patent's claims under 35 U.S.C. § 102.

U.S. Patent No. 9,736,547 (Sato)

Full Citation: US 9,736,547 B2
Publication Date: August 15, 2017
Filing Date: March 28, 2014
Title: Image processing device, image processing method, and program
Brief Description: Sato discloses a system that identifies objects in a video stream and superimposes information related to those objects. The system is capable of recognizing specific players in a sports broadcast and displaying their statistics or other relevant data as an overlay on the video. It describes a process of receiving video, analyzing frames to identify objects (players), and then associating and displaying information linked to those identified objects.
Potential Anticipation of Claims: Sato's disclosure of object recognition in video and overlaying related information is highly relevant to the core concepts of the '271 patent. It could be argued that Sato anticipates the broader independent claims of the '271 patent, which describe a method for receiving video data, identifying semantic elements (e.g., players), and generating augmentations (e.Sato, g., statistics). Specifically, Sato appears to teach the fundamental process of analyzing video to trigger the display of contextual information, which is a key element of the '271 patent's claims. The novelty of the '271 patent would therefore likely reside in the specific types of spatiotemporal data used, the method of determining "semantic context," or the particular interactive functionalities of the augmentations, which may not be explicitly detailed in Sato.

U.S. Patent No. 10,791,281 (Tseng et al.)

Full Citation: US 10,791,281 B2
Publication Date: September 29, 2020
Filing Date: May 15, 2018
Title: Systems and methods for interactive augmented reality for live events
Brief Description: Tseng et al. describe a system for providing an augmented reality experience to viewers of a live event, such as a sporting event. This system involves capturing video of the event, tracking the positions of objects and players, and allowing a user to view the event through a device (like a smartphone or AR glasses) with superimposed digital information. This can include player statistics, tactical diagrams, or other interactive elements that enhance the viewing experience.
Potential Anticipation of Claims: This reference is particularly relevant to the interactive aspects of the '271 patent's claims. Tseng et al. not only disclose the augmentation of live video with relevant data but also emphasize the interactive nature of this augmentation, allowing users to select or engage with the displayed information. This could be seen as anticipating claims related to user selection of augmentations and the subsequent display of more detailed information. The '271 patent's claims might be distinguished by the specific way in which "semantic context" is determined and used to select the type of augmentation presented, potentially going beyond the direct user-driven interactions described by Tseng et al.

U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2018/0278972 A1 (Levin et al.)

Full Citation: US 2018/0278972 A1
Publication Date: September 27, 2018
Filing Date: March 27, 2017
Title: System and Method for Presenting a Personalized Media Experience
Brief Description: Levin et al. focus on personalizing the viewing experience of a media event. The system can track user preferences and interactions to tailor the information and augmentations displayed. For example, if a user frequently interacts with content related to a specific player, the system will prioritize showing statistics and highlights for that player. The application describes using user data to dynamically alter the presented content.
Potential Anticipation of Claims: This publication is particularly relevant to claims in the '271 patent that involve user-specific context or personalization. Levin et al. teach a system that determines which augmentations to display based on user profiles and past interactions. This could be seen as anticipating claims that recite determining an augmentation based on "user context." The '271 patent may distinguish itself by the specific types of "semantic elements" and "semantic contexts" it uses in its determination, which may be more deeply integrated with the real-time spatiotemporal data of the event itself, rather than solely relying on a user's historical preference data.

U.S. Patent No. 9,992,544 (Kondo)

Full Citation: US 9,992,544 B2
Publication Date: June 5, 2018
Filing Date: June 10, 2015
Title: Information processing apparatus, information processing method, and program
Brief Description: Kondo discloses a system for recognizing actions in a video, such as a specific play in a sports game, and providing related information. The system can identify patterns of movement and object interactions to classify events. For example, it can recognize a "pick and roll" in basketball and automatically display relevant statistics or a diagram of the play.
Potential Anticipation of Claims: Kondo's patent is relevant to the "spatiotemporal event data" and "semantic context" aspects of the '271 patent's claims. The ability to recognize complex events based on the movement and interaction of multiple objects over time is a key aspect of the technology described. This reference could anticipate claims that broadly cover the concept of identifying an event and providing context-specific augmentations. The patentable distinction of the '271 patent would likely depend on the novelty of its specific methods for processing the spatiotemporal data and the range and interactivity of the resulting augmentations.

Summary of Prior Art Landscape

The prior art cited against U.S. Patent No. 11,120,271 indicates that the general concept of augmenting video with contextual information, particularly in the context of sporting events, was known in the art prior to the patent's priority date. The key areas of overlap with the prior art include:

Object Recognition in Video: Systems for identifying and tracking players and other objects in a video feed.
Data Overlay: The concept of superimposing graphics and text, such as statistics, onto a video stream.
Interactivity: Allowing users to interact with the augmented content.
Personalization: Tailoring the augmented content based on user preferences.

The patentability of the claims in U.S. Patent No. 11,120,271 likely rests on the specific and detailed implementation of how the system determines the "semantic elements" and "semantic contexts" from "spatiotemporal data" and how this understanding is used to generate a rich and interactive augmented experience. The novelty appears to be in the depth of the automated analysis of the event's spatiotemporal data to derive a more nuanced understanding of the on-screen action, which in turn drives the generation of more relevant and dynamic augmentations. A thorough analysis of the file history and the arguments made by the applicant during prosecution would be necessary to fully understand the specific features that were deemed novel and non-obvious by the USPTO examiner.