Prior art — US Patent 9832017

To identify the most relevant prior art for US patent 9832017, I will examine the "Cited By" and "Citations" sections from the Google Patents link provided in the initial prompt, as this already contains the direct citations for the patent. A live search of the USPTO database for citations would require navigating a complex search interface and is unlikely to yield different citation lists than those already compiled by Google Patents, which draws directly from official patent data. I will then analyze these citations for potential anticipation under 35 U.S.C. § 102.

Based on the provided full patent text, here are some of the most relevant prior art documents cited by US9832017, along with their details and potential anticipatory claims:

Cited by Examiner and Applicant in US9832017

The patent US9832017 makes several cross-references to related applications that represent its own family of patents, stemming from a very early priority date. These "ancestral" patents are highly relevant as they often disclose similar subject matter and are directly incorporated by reference.

US6996251B2 (Forensic Communication Apparatus and Method)
- Full Citation: U.S. Pat. No. 6,996,251, issued on Feb. 7, 2006. [cite: The "Definitions" and "Description" sections of US9832017]
- Publication/Filing Date: Claims benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/414,449, filed Sep. 30, 2002. [cite: The "Definitions" and "Description" sections of US9832017]
- Brief Description: Describes a forensic communication apparatus and method. It's focused on capturing information, creating a composite data set including metadata and a hash, and securely transmitting it to a storage facility for validation and storage. It emphasizes authenticity and integrity of the captured data. [cite: The "Description" section of US9832017]
- Potential Anticipation (35 U.S.C. § 102): This patent, being an ancestor, likely anticipates many elements of claims 1, 6, and 13, particularly regarding the general concepts of capturing external information, processing it with metadata (time, date, operator identification), combining data, and transmitting it to a storage facility. For example, the description of "capture device 100" creating a "data element" and "meta data" and transmitting it to a "storage facility 128" closely aligns with the broader architecture of claims 1, 6, and 13. [cite: The "Description" section of US9832017]
US7184573B2 (Apparatus for Capturing Information as a File and Enhancing the File with Embedded Information)
- Full Citation: U.S. Pat. No. 7,184,573, issued on Feb. 27, 2007. [cite: The "Description" section of US9832017]
- Publication/Filing Date: Filed Jan. 4, 2006. [cite: The "Description" section of US9832017]
- Brief Description: Focuses on capturing information as a file and enhancing it with embedded information. This likely includes the concept of embedding metadata directly into the data element, possibly using steganography, to ensure authenticity. [cite: The "Description" section of US9832017]
- Potential Anticipation (35 U.S.C. § 102): This patent anticipates the idea of enhancing captured files with embedded information, which relates to the association of "context tags" with the digital image in claims 1, 6, and 13. The discussion of steganography in US9832017's detailed description for embedding metadata directly into the data element is a strong indicator of overlap. [cite: The "Description" section of US9832017]
US7778438B2 (Method for Multi-Media Recognition, Data Conversion, Creation of Metatags, Storage and Search Retrieval)
- Full Citation: U.S. Pat. No. 7,778,438, issued on Aug. 17, 2010. [cite: The "Description" section of US9832017]
- Publication/Filing Date: Filed on Jan. 8, 2007. [cite: The "Description" section of US9832017]
- Brief Description: This patent directly addresses "multi-media recognition, data conversion, creation of metatags, storage and search retrieval." It outlines methods for analyzing media content (e.g., speech-to-text for audio, image recognition for visuals) to generate searchable tags. [cite: The "Description" section of US9832017]
- Potential Anticipation (35 U.S.C. § 102): This patent is highly anticipatory of the core "metatag" creation aspects of claims 1, 6, and 13. Specifically, claim 1, element 5 (converting digital audio to a text-based searchable file) and element 6 (creating an image recognition searchable context tag), as well as the corresponding elements in claims 6 and 13, appear to be directly anticipated by this reference. The description in US9832017 regarding the storage facility adding "context tags" by methods dependent on the type of data, including "speech-to-text algorithm" and "image recognition and identification," is nearly identical to the title and concepts of US7778438B2. [cite: The "Description" section of US9832017]

Other Relevant Cited Prior Art (from the "Citations" section of Google Patents)

Beyond the direct family, several other patents cited by US9832017 are highly relevant:

US5995936A (Brais): Report generation system and method for capturing prose, audio, and video by voice command and automatically linking sound and image to formatted text locations.
- Full Citation: US 5,995,936 A
- Publication Date: November 30, 1999
- Filing Date: February 4, 1997
- Brief Description: Brais describes a system that captures audio and video, often via voice command, and automatically links this multimedia content to formatted text. This implies speech-to-text conversion and the association of the generated text with the media.
- Potential Anticipation (35 U.S.C. § 102): This patent potentially anticipates elements of claims 1, 6, and 13, specifically:
  - Capturing external audio and image: Brais discusses capturing "audio, and video by voice command."
  - Converting audio to text: The phrase "automatically linking sound and image to formatted text locations" strongly suggests a speech-to-text conversion to create searchable text.
  - Associating text with media: The core concept of linking text with sound and image directly anticipates associating text context tags with the digital image.
US5737491A (Eastman Kodak): Electronic imaging system capable of image capture, local wireless transmission and voice recognition.
- Full Citation: US 5,737,491 A
- Publication Date: April 7, 1998
- Filing Date: June 28, 1996
- Brief Description: This patent describes an electronic imaging system that can capture images, transmit them wirelessly (locally), and perform voice recognition.
- Potential Anticipation (35 U.S.C. § 102): This patent potentially anticipates elements of claims 1, 6, and 13, specifically:
  - Camera for capturing an image: The title "Electronic imaging system capable of image capture" explicitly states this.
  - Wireless transmission: "local wireless transmission" covers a method of transmitting captured data.
  - Voice recognition: "voice recognition" directly implies the capture and processing of audio information, which can be used to generate text tags.
US5828809A (Matsushita): Method and apparatus for extracting indexing information from digital video data.
- Full Citation: US 5,828,809 A
- Publication Date: October 27, 1998
- Filing Date: October 1, 1996
- Brief Description: Matsushita focuses on methods and apparatus for extracting indexing information directly from digital video data. This directly relates to the concept of image recognition for creating searchable tags.
- Potential Anticipation (35 U.S.C. § 102): This patent directly anticipates elements of claims 1, 6, and 13 relating to "creating an image recognition searchable context tag with image recognition of at least a portion of the digital image."
US5835667A (Carnegie Mellon): Method and apparatus for creating a searchable digital video library and a system and method of using such a library.
- Full Citation: US 5,835,667 A
- Publication Date: November 10, 1998
- Filing Date: October 14, 1994
- Brief Description: This patent describes a system for creating and using a searchable digital video library, implying the storage of video with associated metadata or indexing information to enable search and retrieval.
- Potential Anticipation (35 U.S.C. § 102): This patent anticipates the broader system architecture of claims 1, 6, and 13 concerning the storage of digital images with associated searchable tags in a database and the subsequent search and retrieval of that information. The "searchable digital video library" inherently requires the association of searchable elements with the video content.