Reexamination Control No. 90/005,742
Patent 5,253,341
1 Thus, whereas Sugiyama's differential encoding system is designed to be used to encode a series
2 of successive television frames containing similar images, Pocock transmits still video pictures.
3 The rejection of claim 95 over Pocock in view of Sugiyama is therefore is reversed, as is
4 the rejection of claim 98 over those references.
5 (4) Claim 99 – obvious over Pocock in view of McCalley?
6 Claim 99, which depends on claim 93, adds that the "said compressed or non-compressed
7 response comprises audio data in digital format and wherein said displaying step comprise
8 audible playback of said audio data." Neither claim requires compression of the audio data.
9 Pocock, in discussing the analog embodiment of this invention, describes two types of
10 audio information. The first is background audio, which is combined with the video information
11 in modulators 72 (Fig. 2) for transmission in analog form to subscribers over, for example, the
12 coaxial cables of a CATV system. Pocock, col. 6, ll. 29-39. The second type of audio
13 information (hereinafter “presentation audio”) consists of audio messages transmitted in analog
14 form to the user over the telephone lines. Id. at col. 4, ll. 62-65. The user terminal (Fig. 5)
15 includes (a) a video demodulator 106 for separating the video and background audio, (b) a
16 telephone interface circuit 122 for receiving the presentation audio, (c) an audio processing
17 circuit 110 which combines the two types of audio for application to the speakers of a television
18 receiver via a modulator 116 and switch 100, and (d) a mute circuit 108 for controlling the level
19 of the background audio relative to the presentation audio. Id. at col. 8, ll. 11-22 and 41-55.
20 Although Pocock explains that the video signal alternatively can be transmitted in digital form
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