Appeal No. 2003-1121
Application 09/189,179
The examiner’s argument that Fisher’s tactile input glove is
for a user to wear to control the movement of a virtual object on
a display is correct. However, the examiner’s interpretation of
Fisher as disclosing that a user wearing a tactile input glove
feels the touch when a virtual glove contacts a virtual object on
a display is incorrect. As indicated by the above-cited portion
of Fisher, the term “tactile” as used by Fisher refers to the
interaction between the glove and the displayed virtual
environment, an exemplified interaction occurring when the
tactile input glove is used to cause a virtual glove to pick up
and manipulate virtual objects. Fisher does not disclose
feedback from the virtual environment to the user through the
glove.
The examiner argues that “[i]t would have been obvious to
have modified Fisher with the teaching of Fallacaro et al, since
Fisher and Fallacaro both provide feedback to an operator”
(answer, page 3). Actually, neither Fisher nor Fallacaro
provides tactile feedback to an operator. Fisher’s tactile input
glove provides input to the virtual environment, but there is no
feedback to that input through the glove. Fallacaro’s system
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