Prior art — US Patent 8649971

Analysis of Prior Art for U.S. Patent 8,649,971

Under 35 U.S.C. § 102, a claim is anticipated if every element and limitation of the claim is found, either expressly or inherently, in a single prior art reference. The following analysis examines the most relevant prior art references cited by the USPTO examiner during the prosecution of patent 8,649,971 and assesses their potential to anticipate the independent claims (1 and 19) of the '971 patent.

Key Prior Art References Cited by the Examiner

The following patents and patent applications were cited by the examiner as relevant to the claimed invention.

1. U.S. Patent 5,926,118 A (Aisin Aw Co., Ltd.)

Full Citation: US 5,926,118 A, "Vehicular navigation apparatus," Assignee: Aisin Aw Co., Ltd.
Filing Date: June 28, 1995
Publication Date: July 20, 1999
Brief Description: This patent describes a navigation system that can set a "passing point" (waypoint) and a destination. If the vehicle deviates from the recommended route to the passing point, the system can perform a search for an alternate route. The system determines deviation and can automatically re-calculate a route to either guide the vehicle back to the original passing point or find a new route to the destination that bypasses it.
Potential Anticipation of Claims:
- Claim 1 & 19 (Device and Method): This reference teaches most elements of the claims, including setting waypoints ("passing point") and a destination, searching for a route, providing guidance, and detecting deviation. However, it appears to fall short of anticipating the claims because the re-routing process is largely automatic. The '118 patent does not explicitly disclose outputting a specific message to the user that they are on a route after the waypoint and then waiting for a user command on whether to proceed to that missed waypoint. The decision-making process is system-driven rather than user-prompted in the specific manner claimed by the '971 patent.

2. U.S. Patent 6,018,697 A (Aisin Aw Co., Ltd.)

Full Citation: US 6,018,697 A, "Navigation system for vehicles," Assignee: Aisin Aw Co., Ltd.
Filing Date: December 26, 1995
Publication Date: January 25, 2000
Brief Description: This patent focuses on a navigation system that provides route guidance and handles route deviation. When the vehicle deviates from the calculated path, the system determines the deviation and can re-calculate a new route from the current position to the destination. It discusses various conditions for triggering a re-route search.
Potential Anticipation of Claims:
- Claim 1 & 19 (Device and Method): Similar to the '118 patent, this reference discloses the core functions of a navigation system: setting a destination, route calculation, guidance, and handling deviations. The system can automatically re-calculate the route if the driver goes off-course. However, it does not appear to teach the specific inventive step of the '971 patent: detecting that the vehicle has not only deviated from the path to a waypoint but is now on a subsequent leg of the journey, and then explicitly prompting the user for a decision ("whether or not to travel via said first next waypoint"). The automated nature of its re-routing functionality means it likely does not anticipate the user-command element as claimed.

3. U.S. Patent Application Publication 2007/0106469 A1 (Denso Corporation)

Full Citation: US 2007/0106469 A1, "Navigation system," Assignee: Denso Corporation.
Filing Date: November 9, 2005
Publication Date: May 10, 2007
Brief Description: This application describes a navigation system that sets multiple "pass-by points" (waypoints) and guides a vehicle. If the user deviates and misses a pass-by point, the system can determine whether to guide the user back to the missed point or to the next point on the route. The system can make this decision based on factors like the distance to the missed point versus the next one.
Potential Anticipation of Claims:
- Claim 1 & 19 (Device and Method): This reference is highly relevant as it directly addresses the scenario of missing a waypoint. It discloses determining that the vehicle has passed a waypoint and then deciding the next action. However, the decision logic described in the '469 application appears to be based on system-calculated conditions (e.g., comparing distances) rather than a direct command from the user in response to a specific message. The '971 patent claims require an "input unit configured to input a command indicating whether or not to travel via said first next waypoint in response to the message." Because the '469 application leans toward an automated or conditional system decision, it likely does not contain every element of the claims and therefore does not anticipate them.

Summary of Analysis

While the cited prior art references describe sophisticated navigation systems with features for handling route deviations and missed waypoints, none appear to fully anticipate the independent claims of US 8,649,971. The key distinguishing feature of the '971 patent is the combination of:

Detecting that the vehicle has deviated from the route to a waypoint and is now traveling on a section of the route after that waypoint.
In response to this specific condition, outputting a message to the user.
Waiting for and accepting a direct user command on how to proceed regarding the missed waypoint.

The prior art systems tend to handle such deviations automatically based on pre-set conditions or calculations, without the explicit user-in-the-loop decision-making step that is central to the '971 patent's claims.