Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status
The present application is being examined under the pre-AIA first to invent provisions.
DETAILED ACTION
This communication is a first Office Action on the Merits. Claims 21-30, 36-39, and 42-54, as originally filed 30 SEP. 2025, are pending and have been considered as follows:
Continued Examination Under 37 CFR 1.114
A request for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, including the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e), was filed in this application after final rejection. Since this application is eligible for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114. Applicant's submission filed on
30 SEP. 25 has been entered.
Drawings
The drawings are objected to as failing to comply with 37 CFR 1.83 or 1.84 because of the following informalities:
The drawings must show every feature of the invention specified in the claims, therefore the following must be shown or the feature(s) canceled from the claim(s):
Cl. 21, ln. 1-2: “integrated mounting infrastructure” has/have not been explicitly pointed out
Cl. 21, ln. 8-9: “communication interface between” before “an interface to one or more…” have not been explicitly pointed out; it is not clear if these are the same element or how “an interface” is defined if not the previously introduced “communication interface”
Cl. 21 ln. 18: “structure attachment” has not been explicitly pointed out;
Cl. 21 ln. 21: “electronic component attachments” has/have not been explicitly pointed out;
Cl. 44 ln. 2: “bar joists” have not been explicitly pointed out
Cl. 44 ln. 3: “respective structures” have not been explicitly pointed out
Corrected drawing sheets in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(d) are required in reply to the Office action to avoid abandonment of the application. Any amended replacement drawing sheet should include all of the figures appearing on the immediate prior version of the sheet, even if only one figure is being amended. The figure or figure number of an amended drawing should not be labeled as “amended.” If a drawing figure is to be canceled, the appropriate figure must be removed from the replacement sheet, and where necessary, the remaining figures must be renumbered and appropriate changes made to the brief description of the several views of the drawings for consistency. Additional replacement sheets may be necessary to show the renumbering of the remaining figures. Each drawing sheet submitted after the filing date of an application must be labeled in the top margin as either “Replacement Sheet” or “New Sheet” pursuant to 37 CFR 1.121(d). If the changes are not accepted by the examiner, the applicant will be notified and informed of any required corrective action in the next Office action.
The objection to the drawings will not be held in abeyance.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of 35 U.S.C. 112(a):
(a) IN GENERAL.—The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor or joint inventor of carrying out the invention.
The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112:
The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor of carrying out his invention.
Claim 44 rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(a) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), first paragraph, as failing to comply with the written description requirement. The claim(s) contains subject matter which was not described in the specification in such a way as to reasonably convey to one skilled in the relevant art that the inventor or a joint inventor, or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the inventor(s), at the time the application was filed, had possession of the claimed invention.
Cl. 44 ln. 2: “bar joists” was not disclosed in the specification as filed.
Cl. 44 ln. 3: “respective structures” was not disclosed in the specification as filed.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b):
(b) CONCLUSION.—The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph:
The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention.
Claim 21-26, 36-37, 43, 44, and 47-48 rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor, or for pre-AIA the applicant regards as the invention.
Cl. 21 ln. 16; Cl. 47 ln. 16: the recitation of “structural flexibility” are vague, indefinite, and confusing as having not been disclosed in the specification as filed. The specification did no provide for “structural flexibility” and no nexus to a “substrate” or “mesh” can be thereby discerned. For examination purposes, this phrase will be treated broadly.
Cl. 44, ln. 2-3: the recitation(s) of “bar joists” and “respective structures” is/are vague, indefinite, and confusing as lacking proper antecedent basis because the specification did not provide for “bar joists” or “respective structures”, making it unclear what these recitations mean. For examination purposes, these phrases will be granted little weight.
Any claim not particularly referenced in this section is rejected as being dependent upon an indefinite claim.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
The text of those sections of Title 35, U.S. Code not included in this action can be found in a prior Office action.
CLAIMS PRESENTED BELOW IN ORDER OF DEPENDENCE
Claim 21-26, 36-37, and 47-48 rejected under pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 103(a) as being unpatentable over Brown US 20030097806 A1 in view of Feng et al. US 20090144220 A1 (Feng) and Kassanoff et al. US 9814310 B2 (Kassanoff).
As per claim 21 the primary reference of Brown teaches a system for distributed file storage with integrated mounting infrastructure, comprising:
a plurality of data farms (see “Bridge Router Interstitial Space Commuter 943”, FIG. 162; this is considered exemplary of a data storing and transferring assembly) having at least
a first data farm (see “Bridge Router Interstitial Space Commuter 943”, FIG. 162; this is considered exemplary of a data storing and transferring assembly) in
a first building (see “garden apartment commuter station 937a, b, c, a passenger vehicle commuter station 938a using a cellular communication 950 and satellite communication 951, and a workplace commuter station in a campus of mixed type enterprise buildings 939c using satellite communication 951 to a satellite 976” [0877]; this is recognized as teaching the data farms of FIG. 162 are installed in separate and independent buildings, as broadly claimed; also FIG. 164) and a second data farm (see “Bridge Router Interstitial Space Commuter 943”, FIG. 162; this is considered exemplary of a data storing and transferring assembly) in a second building (mixed type enterprise buildings 939c, FIG. 164; this is recognized as at least a second building) separate and independent from the first building (see “garden apartment commuter station 937a, b, c, a passenger vehicle commuter station 938a using a cellular communication 950 and satellite communication 951, and a workplace commuter station in a campus of mixed type enterprise buildings 939c using satellite communication 951 to a satellite 976” [0877]; this is recognized as teaching the data farms of FIG. 162 are installed in separate and independent buildings, as broadly claimed; also FIG. 164), each data farm (see “Bridge Router Interstitial Space Commuter 943”, FIG. 162; this is considered exemplary of a data storing and transferring assembly) comprising:
a data storage module (“storage devices” [0142]);
a local control module (“switches” [0142]) comprising a data protection module (“configuring devices” [0142]); and
a communication interface(“routers” [0142]) between said data farm (see “Bridge Router Interstitial Space Commuter 943”, FIG. 162; this is considered exemplary of a data storing and transferring assembly) and a wide-area network(“wide area networks” [0142]);
an interface to (“devices, components, appliances” [0142]) one or more remote data servers (“servers” [0142]), the remote data servers (“servers” [0142]) configured to transmit data to each data farm (see “Bridge Router Interstitial Space Commuter 943”, FIG. 162; this is considered exemplary of a data storing and transferring assembly) and to receive data from each data farm (see “Bridge Router Interstitial Space Commuter 943”, FIG. 162; this is considered exemplary of a data storing and transferring assembly) by communicating with the communication interface(“routers” [0142]) of each data farm (see “Bridge Router Interstitial Space Commuter 943”, FIG. 162; this is considered exemplary of a data storing and transferring assembly) through the wide-area network(“wide area networks” [0142]); and
a backing material (“downwardly hinged panels” [0875]; note elements 913, 914, 915, 917, 999, transceiver 639, FIG. 162) for supporting at least the first data farm (see “Bridge Router Interstitial Space Commuter 943”, FIG. 162; this is considered exemplary of a data storing and transferring assembly) installed within a structural space ("The interstitial spaces show bridging 611 cross-tying the channel joist units and apertures 133 aligning with channels and cores of the structural interstitial architectural matrix 129" [0875]; FIG 162) of the first building (see “garden apartment commuter station 937a, b, c, a passenger vehicle commuter station 938a using a cellular communication 950 and satellite communication 951, and a workplace commuter station in a campus of mixed type enterprise buildings 939c using satellite communication 951 to a satellite 976” [0877]; this is recognized as teaching the data farms of FIG. 162 are installed in separate and independent buildings, as broadly claimed; also FIG. 164), wherein the backing material (“downwardly hinged panels” [0875]; note elements 913, 914, 915, 917, 999, transceiver 639, FIG. 162) comprises:
a substrate comprising a structural material (see ceiling at FIG. 162) configured to provide structural flexibility while maintaining positional stability of the first data farm (see “Bridge Router Interstitial Space Commuter 943”, FIG. 162; this is considered exemplary of a data storing and transferring assembly);
a structure attachment (see bottom face of control rack 913, FIG. 162) disposed along at least one surface of the substrate and configured to attach the substrate to a wall stud (see rack 913 configured to “attach… to a wall stud” on the left side of FIG. 162) within the structural space (“The interstitial spaces show bridging 611 cross-tying the channel joist units and apertures 133 aligning with channels and cores of the structural interstitial architectural matrix 129” [0875]; FIG 162) of the first building (see “garden apartment commuter station 937a, b, c, a passenger vehicle commuter station 938a using a cellular communication 950 and satellite communication 951, and a workplace commuter station in a campus of mixed type enterprise buildings 939c using satellite communication 951 to a satellite 976” [0877]; this is recognized as teaching the data farms of FIG. 162 are installed in separate and independent buildings, as broadly claimed; also FIG. 164); and
one or more electronic component attachments (see hinge of panel, upper left, FIG. 162) disposed on a major surface of the substrate and configured to secure at least the first data farm (see “Bridge Router Interstitial Space Commuter 943”, FIG. 162; this is considered exemplary of a data storing and transferring assembly) to the substrate.
Brown but fails to explicitly disclose:
an administrative module configured to record a quantity of data received or transmitted by the communication interface of each data farm;
the structural material is a mesh.
Feng teaches data farms in buildings with a provision for monitoring traffic, specifically:
an administrative module(record 50 [0037]) configured to record a quantity of data received or transmitted by the communication interface (transaction bank 22, FIG. 1) of each data farm (REGION 1, REGION 2 FIG. 1)
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to modify the assembly of Brown by including the record keeping apparatus as taught by Feng in order to monitor individual use of the system.
Kassanoff teaches a structural material can be a mesh, specifically:
the structural material is a mesh (“top panel… side panels… shelves… display support panel… storage… parts of top... side panels… shelves… display support panel… storage 112 and/or side support panel… may be made of, composed of… or otherwise include… steel, stainless steel, aluminum, metal, mesh” 8:62).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to modify the assembly of Brown in view of Feng by substituting mesh as the structural material as taught by Kassanoff in order to provide a cheap and breathable support layer as it is known in the art to provide ventilation where electronic devices are located.
As per claim 22 Brown in view of Feng teaches the limitations according to claim 21, and Feng further discloses wherein the administrative module(record 50 [0037]) is configured to record a quantity of data (see “Applications, which use the system 10 to store data” [0042] this is recognized as “configured to record a quantity” as broadly claimed) received or transmitted by the interface to one or more remote data servers). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to modify the assembly of Brown in view of Feng by including the capability of the assembly to record data as taught by Feng in order to monitor data traffic across the system.
As per claim 23 Brown in view of Feng teaches the limitations according to claim 21, and Feng further discloses a storage network module (see "multiple records" abstract ln. 5) configured to determine an association between at least one data farm of the plurality of data farms and the one or more remote data servers. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to modify the assembly of Brown in view of Feng by including the capability of the assembly to determine multiple record of associations as taught by Feng in order to monitor usage of the data farms.
As per claim 24 Brown in view of Feng teaches the limitations according to claim 21, and Brown further discloses wherein the local control module (“switches” [0142]) is configured to determine an association (see “each having a processor with the power and capability equal to or exceeding that of a Pentium or a PowerPC processor to provide the substantive processing, RAM and storage capabilities necessary to provide the optimum user friendliness” [0117]; this is recognized as being “capable” of determining associations as broadly claimed) between data stored in at least one data farm (see “Bridge Router Interstitial Space Commuter 943”, FIG. 162; this is considered exemplary of a data storing and transferring assembly) of the plurality of data farms (see “Bridge Router Interstitial Space Commuter 943”, FIG. 162; this is considered exemplary of a data storing and transferring assembly) and the one or more remote data servers (“servers” [0142]).
As per claim 25 Brown in view of Feng teaches the limitations according to claim 21, and Feng further discloses wherein substantially each data farm is in an untrusted (see "revert to trusting" [0068]) data relationship to other data farms. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to modify the assembly of Brown in view of Feng by including the capability of the data farms to be in an untrusted relationship as taught by Feng in order to reduce the risk of single point failure.
As per claim 26 Brown in view of Feng teaches the limitations according to claim 21, and Feng further discloses further comprising a module (see "multiple records" abstract ln. 5) configured to monitor a state of health of at least one data farm of the plurality of data farms. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to modify the assembly of Brown in view of Feng by including the capability of the assembly monitor a state of health of the farms as taught by Feng in order to predict and prevent failure of the system.
As per claim 36 Brown in view of Feng teaches the limitations according to claim 21, and Feng further discloses wherein a physical location of the remote data server (router 14, FIG. 1) is not known to the data farm (see "both within a farm and across farms" [0041]; this is recognized as teaching "physical location… not known" as broadly claimed). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to modify the assembly of Brown in view of Feng by including the capability of the assembly to operate without known precise locations of the data farms as taught by Feng in order to increase the applicability of the system to a larger region.
As per claim 37 Brown in view of Feng teaches the limitations according to claim 21, and Brown further discloses wherein at least one of the first building (see “garden apartment commuter station 937a, b, c, a passenger vehicle commuter station 938a using a cellular communication 950 and satellite communication 951, and a workplace commuter station in a campus of mixed type enterprise buildings 939c using satellite communication 951 to a satellite 976” [0877]; this is recognized as teaching the data farms of FIG. 162 are installed in separate and independent buildings, as broadly claimed; also FIG. 164) and the second building (mixed type enterprise buildings 939c, FIG. 164; this is recognized as at least a second building) has a primary purpose (see “passenger vehicle commuter station 938a” [0877]) unrelated to data storage.
As per claim 47 the primary reference of Brown teaches a system for distributed file storage with integrated mounting infrastructure, comprising:
a plurality of data farms (see “Bridge Router Interstitial Space Commuter 943”, FIG. 162; this is considered exemplary) having at least a first data farm (see “Bridge Router Interstitial Space Commuter 943”, FIG. 162; this is considered exemplary) in a first building (see “garden apartment commuter station 937a, b, c, a passenger vehicle commuter station 938a using a cellular communication 950 and satellite communication 951, and a workplace commuter station in a campus of mixed type enterprise buildings 939c using satellite communication 951 to a satellite 976” [0877]; this is recognized as teaching the data farms of FIG. 162 are installed in separate and independent buildings, as broadly claimed; also FIG. 164) and a second data farm (see “Bridge Router Interstitial Space Commuter 943”, FIG. 162; this is considered exemplary) in a second building (mixed type enterprise buildings 939c, FIG. 164; this is recognized as at least a second building) separate and independent from the first building (see “garden apartment commuter station 937a, b, c, a passenger vehicle commuter station 938a using a cellular communication 950 and satellite communication 951, and a workplace commuter station in a campus of mixed type enterprise buildings 939c using satellite communication 951 to a satellite 976” [0877]; this is recognized as teaching the data farms of FIG. 162 are installed in separate and independent buildings, as broadly claimed; also FIG. 164), each data farm (see “Bridge Router Interstitial Space Commuter 943”, FIG. 162; this is considered exemplary) comprising:
a data storage module (“storage devices” [0142]);
a local control module (“switches” [0142]) comprising a data protection module (“configuring devices” [0142]); and
a communication interface (“routers” [0142]) between said data farm (see “Bridge Router Interstitial Space Commuter 943”, FIG. 162; this is considered exemplary) and a wide-area network (“wide area networks” [0142]);
an interface to (“devices, components, appliances” [0142]) one or more remote data servers (“servers” [0142]), the remote data servers (“servers” [0142]) configured to transmit data to the data farm (see “Bridge Router Interstitial Space Commuter 943”, FIG. 162; this is considered exemplary) and to receive data from the data farm (see “Bridge Router Interstitial Space Commuter 943”, FIG. 162; this is considered exemplary) by communicating with the communication interface (“routers” [0142]) of the data farm (see “Bridge Router Interstitial Space Commuter 943”, FIG. 162; this is considered exemplary) through the wide-area network (“wide area networks” [0142]);
a backing material (“downwardly hinged panels” [0875]; note elements 913, 914, 915, 917, 999, transceiver 639, FIG. 162) for supporting at least the first data farm (see “Bridge Router Interstitial Space Commuter 943”, FIG. 162; this is considered exemplary) installed within a cavity inside a wall space (see cavity comprising sensor 914, control rack 913, detector 915, interactive interstitial space device 999, and hub 917, FIG. 162; "The interstitial spaces show bridging 611 cross-tying the channel joist units and apertures 133 aligning with channels and cores of the structural interstitial architectural matrix 129" [0875]; FIG 162) of the first building (see “garden apartment commuter station 937a, b, c, a passenger vehicle commuter station 938a using a cellular communication 950 and satellite communication 951, and a workplace commuter station in a campus of mixed type enterprise buildings 939c using satellite communication 951 to a satellite 976” [0877]; this is recognized as teaching the data farms of FIG. 162 are installed in separate and independent buildings, as broadly claimed; also FIG. 164), wherein the backing material (“downwardly hinged panels” [0875]; note elements 913, 914, 915, 917, 999, transceiver 639, FIG. 162) comprises:
a substrate comprising a structural material (see ceiling at FIG. 162) configured to provide structural flexibility while maintaining positional stability of the first data farm (see “Bridge Router Interstitial Space Commuter 943”, FIG. 162; this is considered exemplary of a data storing and transferring assembly);
a structure attachment (see bottom face of control rack 913, FIG. 162) disposed along at least one surface of the substrate and configured to attach the substrate to a rigid support member within the cavity inside the wall space ("The interstitial spaces show bridging 611 cross-tying the channel joist units and apertures 133 aligning with channels and cores of the structural interstitial architectural matrix 129" [0875]; FIG 162) of the first building (see “garden apartment commuter station 937a, b, c, a passenger vehicle commuter station 938a using a cellular communication 950 and satellite communication 951, and a workplace commuter station in a campus of mixed type enterprise buildings 939c using satellite communication 951 to a satellite 976” [0877]; this is recognized as teaching the data farms of FIG. 162 are installed in separate and independent buildings, as broadly claimed; also FIG. 164); and
one or more electronic component attachments (see hinge of panel, upper left, FIG. 162) disposed on a major surface of the substrate and configured to secure at least the first data farm (see “Bridge Router Interstitial Space Commuter 943”, FIG. 162; this is considered exemplary of a data storing and transferring assembly) to the substrate .
Brown fails to explicitly disclose:
an administrative module configured to record a quantity of data received or transmitted by the communication interface of the data farm; and
the structural material is a mesh.
Feng teaches data farms in buildings with a provision for monitoring traffic, specifically:
an administrative module (record 50 [0037]) configured to record a quantity of data received or transmitted by the communication interface of the data farm.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in before the effective filing date to modify the assembly of Brown by including a second building as taught by Feng in order to monitor usage of the data farms.
Kassanoff teaches a structural material can be a mesh, specifically:
the structural material is a mesh (“top panel… side panels… shelves… display support panel… storage… parts of top... side panels… shelves… display support panel… storage 112 and/or side support panel… may be made of, composed of… or otherwise include… steel, stainless steel, aluminum, metal, mesh” 8:62).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to modify the assembly of Brown in view of Feng by substituting mesh as the structural material as taught by Kassanoff in order to provide a cheap and breathable support layer as it is known in the art to provide ventilation where electronic devices are located.
As per claim 48 Brown in view of Feng and Kassanoff teaches the limitations according to claim 47, and Brown further discloses wherein at least one of the first building (see “garden apartment commuter station 937a, b, c, a passenger vehicle commuter station 938a using a cellular communication 950 and satellite communication 951, and a workplace commuter station in a campus of mixed type enterprise buildings 939c using satellite communication 951 to a satellite 976” [0877]; this is recognized as teaching the data farms of FIG. 162 are installed in separate and independent buildings, as broadly claimed; also FIG. 164) and the second building (mixed type enterprise buildings 939c, FIG. 164; this is recognized as at least a second building) has a primary purpose (see “passenger vehicle commuter station 938a” [0877]) unrelated to data storage.
Claim 43 rejected under pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 103(a) as being unpatentable over Brown in view of Feng and Kassanoff as applied to claim 21 above and further in view of Biffis et al. US 7690170 B2 (Biffis).
As per claim 43 Brown in view of Feng and Kassanoff teaches the limitations according to claim 21, and Brown further discloses wherein the structural space ("The interstitial spaces show bridging 611 cross-tying the channel joist units and apertures 133 aligning with channels and cores of the structural interstitial architectural matrix 129" [0875]; FIG 162) of the first building (see “garden apartment commuter station 937a, b, c, a passenger vehicle commuter station 938a using a cellular communication 950 and satellite communication 951, and a workplace commuter station in a campus of mixed type enterprise buildings 939c using satellite communication 951 to a satellite 976” [0877]; this is recognized as teaching the data farms of FIG. 162 are installed in separate and independent buildings, as broadly claimed; also FIG. 164) comprises an aperture through a support member within a wall structure (see apertures 133, FIG. 162).
The combination fails to explicitly disclose:
between adjacent wall studs.
Biffis teaches mounting electrical components between adjacent wall studs, specifically:
between adjacent wall studs (components 46a, 46b, between studs 42, 52, 54, FIG. 5).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to modify the assembly of Brown in view of Feng and Kassanoff by including the ability of the components to extend through and between wall studs as taught by Biffis in order to utilize as much wall space as possible, unencumbered by vertical structures.
Claim 45-46 rejected under pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 103(a) as being unpatentable over Brown in view of Feng and Biffis et al. US 7690170 B2 (Biffis).
As per claim 45 the primary reference of Brown teaches a system for distributed file storage, comprising:
a plurality of data farms (see “Bridge Router Interstitial Space Commuter 943”, FIG. 162; this is considered exemplary of a data storing and transferring assembly) having at least a first data farm (see “Bridge Router Interstitial Space Commuter 943”, FIG. 162; this is considered exemplary of a data storing and transferring assembly) in a first building (see “garden apartment commuter station 937a, b, c, a passenger vehicle commuter station 938a using a cellular communication 950 and satellite communication 951, and a workplace commuter station in a campus of mixed type enterprise buildings 939c using satellite communication 951 to a satellite 976” [0877]; this is recognized as teaching the data farms of FIG. 162 are installed in separate and independent buildings, as broadly claimed; also FIG. 164) and a second data farm (see “Bridge Router Interstitial Space Commuter 943”, FIG. 162; this is considered exemplary of a data storing and transferring assembly) in a second building (mixed type enterprise buildings 939c, FIG. 164; this is recognized as at least a second building) separate and independent from the first building (see “garden apartment commuter station 937a, b, c, a passenger vehicle commuter station 938a using a cellular communication 950 and satellite communication 951, and a workplace commuter station in a campus of mixed type enterprise buildings 939c using satellite communication 951 to a satellite 976” [0877]; this is recognized as teaching the data farms of FIG. 162 are installed in separate and independent buildings, as broadly claimed; also FIG. 164), each data farm (see “Bridge Router Interstitial Space Commuter 943”, FIG. 162; this is considered exemplary of a data storing and transferring assembly) comprising:
a data storage module (“storage devices” [0142]);
a local control module (“switches” [0142]) comprising a data protection module (“configuring devices” [0142]); and
a communication interface (“routers” [0142]) between said data farm (see “Bridge Router Interstitial Space Commuter 943”, FIG. 162; this is considered exemplary of a data storing and transferring assembly) and a wide-area network (“wide area networks” [0142]);
an interface to (“devices, components, appliances” [0142]) one or more remote data servers (“servers” [0142]), the remote data servers (“servers” [0142]) configured to transmit data to the data farm (see “Bridge Router Interstitial Space Commuter 943”, FIG. 162; this is considered exemplary of a data storing and transferring assembly) and to receive data from the data farm (see “Bridge Router Interstitial Space Commuter 943”, FIG. 162; this is considered exemplary) by communicating with the communication interface (“routers” [0142]) of the data farm (see “Bridge Router Interstitial Space Commuter 943”, FIG. 162; this is considered exemplary) through the wide-area network (“wide area networks” [0142]); and
wherein at least the first data farm (see “Bridge Router Interstitial Space Commuter 943”, FIG. 162; this is considered exemplary) is installed within a concealed location (see 943, near matrix site 170, top of FIG. 162) of the first building (see “garden apartment commuter station 937a, b, c, a passenger vehicle commuter station 938a using a cellular communication 950 and satellite communication 951, and a workplace commuter station in a campus of mixed type enterprise buildings 939c using satellite communication 951 to a satellite 976” [0877]; this is recognized as teaching the data farms of FIG. 162 are installed in separate and independent buildings, as broadly claimed; also FIG. 164) and comprises an aperture through a support member within a wall structure (see apertures 133, FIG. 162).
Brown fails to explicitly disclose:
an administrative module configured to record a quantity of data received or transmitted by the communication interface of the data farm,
comprising a space within a wall structure between adjacent wall studs, and wherein the wall studs include apertures configured to enable communication between data storage modules positioned on opposite sides of a wall stud.
Feng teaches data farms in buildings with a provision for monitoring traffic, specifically:
an administrative module (record 50 [0037]) configured to record a quantity of data received or transmitted by the communication interface (transaction bank 22, FIG. 1) of the data farm.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to modify the assembly of Brown by including the record keeping apparatus as taught by Feng in order to monitor individual use of the system.
Biffis teaches mounting electrical components between adjacent wall studs, specifically:
comprising a space within a wall structure between adjacent wall studs (components 46a, 46b, between studs 42, 52, 54, FIG. 5), and wherein the wall studs include apertures (see aperture at 46a, middle of FIG. 5) configured to enable communication between data storage modules positioned on opposite sides of a wall stud.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to modify the assembly of Brown in view of Feng by including the ability of the components to extend through and between wall studs as taught by Biffis in order to utilize as much wall space as possible, unencumbered by vertical structures.
As per claim 46 Brown in view of Feng and Biffis teaches the limitations according to claim 45, and Brown further discloses wherein at least one of the first building (see “garden apartment commuter station 937a, b, c, a passenger vehicle commuter station 938a using a cellular communication 950 and satellite communication 951, and a workplace commuter station in a campus of mixed type enterprise buildings 939c using satellite communication 951 to a satellite 976” [0877]; this is recognized as teaching the data farms of FIG. 162 are installed in separate and independent buildings, as broadly claimed; also FIG. 164) and the second building (mixed type enterprise buildings 939c, FIG. 164; this is recognized as at least a second building) has a primary purpose (see “passenger vehicle commuter station 938a” [0877]) unrelated to data storage.
Claim 27-29, 38-39, and 44, rejected under pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 103(a) as being unpatentable over Brown in view of Feng.
As per claim 27 the primary reference of Brown teaches method of operating a distributed file storage system, comprising:
providing a plurality of data farms (see “Bridge Router Interstitial Space Commuter 943”, FIG. 162; this is considered exemplary of a data storing and transferring assembly) in a geographically diverse network environment, each data farm (see “Bridge Router Interstitial Space Commuter 943”, FIG. 162; this is considered exemplary of a data storing and transferring assembly) comprising:
a data storage module (“storage devices” [0142]);
a local control module (“switches” [0142]) comprising a data protection module (“configuring devices” [0142]); and
a communication interface(“routers” [0142]) between said data farm (see “Bridge Router Interstitial Space Commuter 943”, FIG. 162; this is considered exemplary of a data storing and transferring assembly) and a wide-area network(“wide area networks” [0142]);
the remote data server(“servers” [0142]) configured to transmit data to the plurality of data farms (see “Bridge Router Interstitial Space Commuter 943”, FIG. 162; this is considered exemplary of a data storing and transferring assembly) and to receive data from the plurality of data farms (see “Bridge Router Interstitial Space Commuter 943”, FIG. 162; this is considered exemplary of a data storing and transferring assembly) by communicating with the communication interface(“routers” [0142]) of each data farm (see “Bridge Router Interstitial Space Commuter 943”, FIG. 162; this is considered exemplary of a data storing and transferring assembly) through the wide-area network(“wide area networks” [0142]);
wherein at least some of the plurality of data farms (see “Bridge Router Interstitial Space Commuter 943”, FIG. 162; this is considered exemplary of a data storing and transferring assembly) are installed within structural spaces (“The interstitial spaces show bridging 611 cross-tying the channel joist units and apertures 133 aligning with channels and cores of the structural interstitial architectural matrix 129” [0875]; FIG 162) of respective structures that are separate and independent from one another, and
wherein each data farm (see “Bridge Router Interstitial Space Commuter 943”, FIG. 162; this is considered exemplary of a data storing and transferring assembly) further comprises a storage housing (see rectangular outline as shown around 943, FIG. 162) configured to contain at least the data storage module (“storage devices” [0142]),
the storage housing (see rectangular outline as shown at 943, FIG. 162) including wireless transceivers (see “interactively controlled by any of the Occupied Space Commuters” [0035]; also “accessed by wired and wireless means” Cl. 1) positioned on multiple surfaces thereof (see “network of conductors and flexible circuits passes from node site to node site in various upgradable configurations, with or without passing through transceivers providing wireless communication between the modular-accessible-matrix site or modular accessible node site and the equipment, robot or person operating in the enterprise alterable distributed architectural multinetgridometry within any interstitial accommodation matrix formed between the ceiling, wall, partition, column or floor accessible membrane barrier” [0250]; this is recognized as teaching all of the components are wirelessly connected).
In other words, the examiner's position is that Brown inherently has a wireless transceivers positioned on multiple surfaces of the Bridge Router Interstitial Space Commuter.
However, in the alternative, if Brown does not disclose that the Bridge Router Interstitial Space Commuter has transceivers positioned on multiple surfaces thereof, then it certainly would have been obvious to a skilled artisan art at the time of filing to modify the Bridge Router Interstitial Space Commuter of Brown by including a plurality of transceivers on multiple surfaces thereof order to increase the accessibility of the commuter.
Brown as modified fails to explicitly disclose:
accepting data from a remote data server,
selecting a data farm from among the plurality of data farms in which to store the data; and
storing the data in the selected data farm, wherein at least some of the plurality of data farms are installed within structural spaces of respective structures that are separate and independent from one another, and
Feng teaches data farms in buildings with a provision for controlling traffic, specifically:
accepting data from a remote data server (see "both within a farm and across farms" [0041]),
selecting a data farm (storage units 20, FIG. 1; also “basic storage unit of the system 10 is the tablet 60. A tablet 60 contains multiple records 50” [0033] and “selecting a customer record” [0091]) from among the plurality of data farms in which to store the data; and
storing the data (see “The transaction bank propagates updates made in one record to all other replicas of the record” abstract, ln. 10) in the selected data farm (storage units 20, FIG. 1).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to modify the assembly of Brown by including the ability to transfer data to different farms as taught by Feng in order to in order to reduce the risk of single point failure.
As per claim 28-29 Brown in view of Feng teaches the limitations according to claim 27, and Feng further discloses the steps of:
recording (record 50 [0037]) a quantity of data transferred to the selected data farm; and
providing a credit to an owner of the selected data farm based upon the quantity of data transferred (“return all of the records 50 that they store” [0038]; this is considered “providing a credit” as broadly claimed); and
recording a quantity of data transferred from the remote data server (record 50 [0037]); and
charging a fee to the remote data server based upon the quantity of data transferred (“return all of the records 50 that they store” [0038]; this is considered “charging a fee” as broadly claimed because a third party would be required to evaluate the record and assess an appropriate fee). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to modify the assembly of Brown in view of Feng by including the capability of the assembly to record quantities of data and distributing records as taught by Feng in order to balance user fees across the system in relation to use.
As per claim 38 Brown in view of Feng teaches the limitations according to claim 27, and Feng further discloses wherein a physical location of the remote data server (router 14, FIG. 1) is not known to the data farm (see "both within a farm and across farms" [0041]; this is recognized as teaching "physical location… not known" as broadly claimed). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to modify the assembly of Brown in view of Feng by including the capability of the assembly to operate without known precise locations of the data farms as taught by Feng in order to increase the applicability of the system to a larger region.
As per claim 39 Brown in view of Feng teaches the limitations according to claim 27, and Brown further discloses wherein the respective structures in which at least some of the plurality of data farms (see “Bridge Router Interstitial Space Commuter 943”, FIG. 162; this is considered exemplary of a data storing and transferring assembly) are installed have a primary purpose (see “passenger vehicle commuter station 938a” [0877]) unrelated to data storage.
As per claim 44 Brown in view of Feng teaches the limitations according to claim 27 and Brown further discloses at least some of the plurality of data farms (see “Bridge Router Interstitial Space Commuter 943”, FIG. 162; this is considered exemplary of a data storing and transferring assembly) are installed within the structural spaces (“The interstitial spaces show bridging 611 cross-tying the channel joist units and apertures 133 aligning with channels and cores of the structural interstitial architectural matrix 129” [0875]; FIG 162) of the respective structures, but the combination but fails to explicitly disclose:
between bar joists
In a separate embodiment, Brown teaches the use of Bar joists (trussed bar joists 843, FIG. 16).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to modify the assembly of Brown in view of Feng by substituting trussed bar joists —where appropriate— as taught by Brown in order to provide a stronger support assembly.
Claim 30 rejected under pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 103(a) as being unpatentable over Brown in view of Feng as applied to claim 27 above and further in view of Chiu et al. US 20100306286 A1 (Chiu).
As per claim 30 Brown in view of Feng teaches the limitations according to claim 27, but the combination fails to explicitly disclose:
the step of selecting a data farm comprises the step of using a Hadoop process.
Chiu teaches a cluster using a Hadoop process, specifically:
the step of selecting a data farm comprises the step of using a Hadoop process (“second Hadoop cluster… to process log data” [0014] ln. 4).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was made to modify the assembly of Brown in view of Feng by including the Hadoop process as taught by Chiu in order to process data using a known method as an obvious common sense choice and because it is obvious to perform a simple substitution of one known element —in this case, data processing method used to select the server— for another to obtain the predictable result of processing information (MPEP 2141).
Claim 42 rejected under pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 103(a) as being unpatentable over Brown in view of Feng as applied to claim 27 above and further in view of Van Rossum US 20060029093 A1.
As per claim 42 Brown in view of Feng teaches the limitations according to claim 31 but the combination fails to explicitly disclose:
the step of selecting the data farm comprises the step of using a BitTorrent process.
Van Rossum teaches information transferring using BitTorrent, specifically:
the step of selecting the data farm comprises the step of using a BitTorrent process (“peer-to-peer protocol may include a BitTorrent or equivalent protocol” Cl. 31).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was made to modify the assembly of Brown in view of Feng by including the BitTorrent process as taught by Van Rossum in order to distribute files by a known process capable of handling high transfer speeds and because it is obvious to perform a simple substitution of one known element —in this case, data processing method— for another to obtain the predictable result of processing information (MPEP 2141).
Claim 49-50 rejected under pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 103(a) as being unpatentable over Brown in view of Feng and Shoemaker et al. US 9343797 B2 (Shoemaker).
As per claim 49, the primary reference of Brown teaches a system for distributed file storage, comprising:
a plurality of data farms (see “Bridge Router Interstitial Space Commuter 943”, FIG. 162; this is considered exemplary of a data storing and transferring assembly) having at least a first data farm (see “Bridge Router Interstitial Space Commuter 943”, FIG. 162; this is considered exemplary of a data storing and transferring assembly) in a first building (see “garden apartment commuter station 937a, b, c, a passenger vehicle commuter station 938a using a cellular communication 950 and satellite communication 951, and a workplace commuter station in a campus of mixed type enterprise buildings 939c using satellite communication 951 to a satellite 976” [0877]; this is recognized as teaching the data farms of FIG. 162 are installed in separate and independent buildings, as broadly claimed; also FIG. 164) and a second data farm (see “Bridge Router Interstitial Space Commuter 943”, FIG. 162; this is considered exemplary of a data storing and transferring assembly) in a second building (mixed type enterprise buildings 939c, FIG. 164; this is recognized as at least a second building) separate and independent from the first building (see “garden apartment commuter station 937a, b, c, a passenger vehicle commuter station 938a using a cellular communication 950 and satellite communication 951, and a workplace commuter station in a campus of mixed type enterprise buildings 939c using satellite communication 951 to a satellite 976” [0877]; this is recognized as teaching the data farms of FIG. 162 are installed in separate and independent buildings, as broadly claimed; also FIG. 164), each data farm (see “Bridge Router Interstitial Space Commuter 943”, FIG. 162; this is considered exemplary of a data storing and transferring assembly) comprising:
a data storage module (“storage devices” [0142]);
a local control module (“switches” [0142]) comprising a data protection module (“configuring devices” [0142]); and
a communication interface (“routers” [0142]) between said data farm (see “Bridge Router Interstitial Space Commuter 943”, FIG. 162; this is considered exemplary of a data storing and transferring assembly) and a wide-area network (“wide area networks” [0142]);
an interface to (“devices, components, appliances” [0142]) one or more remote data servers (“servers” [0142]), the remote data servers (“servers” [0142]) configured to transmit data to the data farm (see “Bridge Router Interstitial Space Commuter 943”, FIG. 162; this is considered exemplary of a data storing and transferring assembly) and to receive data from the data farm (see “Bridge Router Interstitial Space Commuter 943”, FIG. 162; this is considered exemplary of a data storing and transferring assembly) by communicating with the communication interface (“routers” [0142]) of the data farm (see “Bridge Router Interstitial Space Commuter 943”, FIG. 162; this is considered exemplary of a data storing and transferring assembly) through the wide-area network (“wide area networks” [0142]); and
wherein each data farm (see “Bridge Router Interstitial Space Commuter 943”, FIG. 162; this is considered exemplary of a data storing and transferring assembly) further comprises a storage housing (see rectangular outline as shown around 943, FIG. 162) configured to contain at least the data storage module (“storage devices” [0142]), the storage housing (see rectangular outline as shown around 943, FIG. 162) including wireless transceivers (see “interactively controlled by any of the Occupied Space Commuters” [0035]; also “accessed by wired and wirel