Appeal No. 1998-2676
Application 08/655,423
fails to anticipate the step of modifying the generated error
value based on an effective spot area value. Appellants argue
that in Lin the modification is based on a conventional set of
weighting coefficients and not on an effective spot area value
which is grey level dependent as claimed [brief, pages 5-7].
The examiner responds that the effective spot area value in
Lin is the actual area or region of data which is being
subjected to the processing by circuits 120, 130, 160 and 150.
In other words, the examiner finds that the claimed effective
spot area data is obtained from the reconstruction circuit 100
of Lin [answer, pages 13-16].
We agree with appellants’ position as set forth in the
brief. We do not understand the examiner’s reasoning that the
output of reconstruction circuit 100 in Lin is an effective
spot area value and that this value is used to modify the
error value generated as a result of the reduction process.
Claims 1 and 15 recite that the error value which is generated
as a result of the reduction step or the thresholding step
must be further modified based on an effective spot area
value. We fail to see how the output of reconstruction
circuit 100 in Lin constitutes such an effective spot area
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