DETAILED ACTION
Claims 1, 3-18, and 20 have been examined.
Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status
The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
Claim Rejections - 35 U.S.C. § 101
35 U.S.C. § 101 reads as follows:
Whoever invents or discovers any new and useful process, machine, manufacture, or composition of matter, or any new and useful improvement thereof, may obtain a patent therefor, subject to the conditions and requirements of this title.
The invention, as taught in Claims 1, 3-18, and 20, is directed to “mental steps” and “mathematical steps” without significantly more.
The claims recite:
• "document structure graph" (i.e., mental steps)
• "document" (i.e., mental linguistic expression)
• "knowledge graph" (i.e., mental steps)
• "corpus" (i.e., mental linguistic expression)
• "nodes" (i.e., part of mental steps of association)
• "edges" (i.e., part of mental steps of association)
• parent-child edges between nodes representing document items and nodes representing their respective parent document items in said structural hierarchy, thereby encoding structural context of document items in said knowledge graph
• "search queries" (i.e., mental linguistic expression)
• "hierarchy" (i.e., part of mental steps of association)
• "language" (i.e., mental linguistic expression)
• "traverse" (i.e., mental steps)
• "item-types" (i.e., mental linguistic expression)
• "searchable representation" (i.e., mental linguistic expression)
• parsing the document into a linear succession of document items;
(i.e., mental steps)
• annotating each document item with a predefined item type;
(i.e., mental steps)
• proceeding once through the linear succession of document items,
linking each document item in the structural hierarchy to
apparent document item in the structural hierarchy; (i.e., mental steps)
• generating knowledge graph data comprising first nodes, representing
document items in the corpus and second nodes representing language
items identified in those document items (i.e., mental steps)
• interconnecting the first nodes and second nodes by first edges
representing a defined relation between items represented by the
nodes interconnected by that first edge (i.e., mental steps)
• inserting second edges between respective first nodes wherein said
second edges include parent-child edges between respective first
nodes representing document items and first nodes representing
their respective parent document items in said structural hierarchy,
thereby encoding structural context of document items in said
knowledge graph (i.e., mental steps)
• searching the knowledge graph data by traversing edges of the
knowledge graph data to extract information responsive to the
search query (i.e., mental steps)
Claim 1
Step 1 inquiry: Does this claim fall within a statutory category?
The preamble of the claim recites “1. A computer-implemented method for producing search results from information contained in a corpus of documents, the method comprising…” Therefore, it is a “method” (or “process”), which is a statutory category of invention. Therefore, the answer to the inquiry is: “YES”.
Step 2A (Prong One) inquiry:
Are there limitations in Claim 1 that recite abstract ideas?
YES. The following limitations in Claim 1 recite abstract ideas that fall within at least one of the groupings of abstract ideas enumerated in the 2019 PEG. Specifically, they are “mental steps” and “mathematical steps”:
• "document structure graph" (i.e., mental steps)
• "document" (i.e., mental linguistic expression)
• "knowledge graph" (i.e., mental steps)
• "corpus" (i.e., mental linguistic expression)
• "nodes" (i.e., part of mental steps of association)
• "edges" (i.e., part of mental steps of association)
• parent-child edges between nodes representing document items and
nodes representing their respective parent document items in said
structural hierarchy, thereby encoding structural context of document
items in said knowledge graph (i.e., mental steps of association)
• "search queries" (i.e., mental linguistic expression)
• "hierarchy" (i.e., part of mental steps of association)
• "language" (i.e., mental linguistic expression)
• "traverse" (i.e., mental steps)
• "item-types" (i.e., mental linguistic expression)
• "searchable representation" (i.e., mental linguistic expression)
• parsing the document into a linear succession of document items;
(i.e., mental steps)
• annotating each document item with a predefined item type;
(i.e., mental steps)
• proceeding once through the linear succession of document items,
linking each document item in the structural hierarchy to
apparent document item in the structural hierarchy; (i.e., mental steps)
• generating knowledge graph data comprising first nodes, representing
document items in the corpus and second nodes representing language
items identified in those document items (i.e., mental steps)
• interconnecting the first nodes and second nodes by first edges
representing a defined relation between items represented by the
nodes interconnected by that first edge (i.e., mental steps)
• inserting second edges between respective first nodes wherein said
second edges include parent-child edges between respective first
nodes representing document items and first nodes representing
their respective parent document items in said structural hierarchy,
thereby encoding structural context of document items in said
knowledge graph (i.e., mental steps)
• searching the knowledge graph data by traversing edges of the
knowledge graph data to extract information responsive to the
search query (i.e., mental steps)
Step 2A (Prong Two) inquiry:
Are there additional elements or a combination of elements in the claim that apply, rely on, or use the judicial exception in a manner that imposes a meaningful limit on the judicial exception, such that it is more than a drafting effort designed to monopolize the exception?
Applicant’s claims contain the following “additional elements”:
(1) A "storing"
(2) A "knowledge graph database"
A “storing” is a broad term which is described at a high level. M.P.E.P. § 2106.05(d)(II) recites:
The courts have recognized the following computer functions as well‐understood, routine, and conventional functions when they are claimed in a merely generic manner (e.g., at a high level of generality) or as insignificant extra-solution activity.
***
iv. Storing and retrieving information in memory, Versata Dev. Group, Inc. v. SAP Am., Inc., 793 F.3d 1306, 1334, 115 USPQ2d 1681, 1701 (Fed. Cir. 2015); OIP Techs., 788 F.3d at 1363, 115 USPQ2d at 1092-93;
This “storing” limitation does not integrate the additional element into a practical application and represents “insignificant extra-solution activity”. (See, M.P.E.P. § 2106.05(I)(A)).
A “knowledge graph database” is a broad term which is described at a high level. M.P.E.P. § 2106.05(d)(II) recites:
The courts have recognized the following computer functions as well‐understood, routine, and conventional functions when they are claimed in a merely generic manner (e.g., at a high level of generality) or as insignificant extra-solution activity.
***
iii. Electronic recordkeeping, Alice Corp. Pty. Ltd. v. CLS Bank Int'l, 573 U.S. 208, 225, 110 USPQ2d 1984 (2014) (creating and maintaining “shadow accounts”); Ultramercial, 772 F.3d at 716, 112 USPQ2d at 1755 (updating an activity log);
This “knowledge graph database” limitation does not integrate the additional element into a practical application and represents “insignificant extra-solution activity”. (See, M.P.E.P. § 2106.05(I)(A)).
The answer to the inquiry is “NO”, no additional elements integrate the claimed abstract idea into a practical application.
Step 2B inquiry:
Does the claim provide an inventive concept, i.e., does the claim recite additional element(s) or a combination of elements that amount to significantly more than the judicial exception in the claim?
Applicant’s claims contain the following “additional elements”:
(1) A "storing"
(2) A "knowledge graph database"
A “storing” is a broad term which is described at a high level. M.P.E.P. § 2106.05(d)(II) recites:
The courts have recognized the following computer functions as well‐understood, routine, and conventional functions when they are claimed in a merely generic manner (e.g., at a high level of generality) or as insignificant extra-solution activity.
***
iv. Storing and retrieving information in memory, Versata Dev. Group, Inc. v. SAP Am., Inc., 793 F.3d 1306, 1334, 115 USPQ2d 1681, 1701 (Fed. Cir. 2015); OIP Techs., 788 F.3d at 1363, 115 USPQ2d at 1092-93;
Therefore, the claim as a whole does not amount to significantly more than the exception itself (i.e., there is no inventive concept in the claim). (See, M.P.E.P. § 2106.05(II)).
A “knowledge graph database” is a broad term which is described at a high level. M.P.E.P. § 2106.05(d)(II) recites:
The courts have recognized the following computer functions as well‐understood, routine, and conventional functions when they are claimed in a merely generic manner (e.g., at a high level of generality) or as insignificant extra-solution activity.
***
iii. Electronic recordkeeping, Alice Corp. Pty. Ltd. v. CLS Bank Int'l, 573 U.S. 208, 225, 110 USPQ2d 1984 (2014) (creating and maintaining “shadow accounts”); Ultramercial, 772 F.3d at 716, 112 USPQ2d at 1755 (updating an activity log);
Therefore, the claim as a whole does not amount to significantly more than the exception itself (i.e., there is no inventive concept in the claim). (See, M.P.E.P. § 2106.05(II)).
Therefore, the answer to the inquiry is “NO”, no additional elements provide an inventive concept that is significantly more than the claimed abstract ideas the claimed abstract idea into a practical application.
Claim 1 is, therefore, NOT ELIGIBLE subject matter under 35 U.S.C. § 101.
Claim 3
Claim 3 recites:
3. A method as claimed in claim 1 wherein said predetermined item-types comprise at least a plurality of item types selected from the group consisting of: document title; subtitle; document author; document abstract; author affiliation; chapter; section heading; subsection heading; paragraph; table; picture; caption; keyword; citation; table-of-contents; list item; sub-list item; table; table column-header; table row-header; table cell; list in table cell; code; form; formula; and footnote.
Applicant’s Claim 3 merely teaches a set of data designed for mental steps. It does not integrate the abstract idea to a practical application, nor is it anything significantly more than the abstract idea. (See, 2106.05(a)(II).)
Claim 3 is, therefore, NOT ELIGIBLE subject matter under 35 U.S.C. § 101.
Claim 4
Claim 4 recites:
4. A method as claimed in claim 1 wherein said language items comprise named entities.
Applicant’s Claim 4 merely teaches a set of language data designed for mental steps. It does not integrate the abstract idea to a practical application, nor is it anything significantly more than the abstract idea. (See, 2106.05(a)(II).)
Claim 4 is, therefore, NOT ELIGIBLE subject matter under 35 U.S.C. § 101.
Claim 5
Claim 5 recites:
5. A method as claimed in claim 1 wherein the knowledge graph further includes edges, representing ancestral relations, between nodes representing document items in each document and nodes representing at least one ancestor of their respective parent document items, in said structural hierarchy for that document.
Applicant’s Claim 5 merely teaches data arrangements for mental steps. It does not integrate the abstract idea to a practical application, nor is it anything significantly more than the abstract idea. (See, 2106.05(a)(II).)
Claim 5 is, therefore, NOT ELIGIBLE subject matter under 35 U.S.C. § 101.
Claim 6
Claim 6 recites:
6. A method as claimed in claim 5 including, in generating the knowledge graph:
applying a machine learning model to identify relations between language items identified in document items and language items identified in nodes representing at least one ancestor of their respective parent document items in said structural hierarchy; and
for each relation between a pair of language items identified by said model, including an edge, representing that relation, in the knowledge graph between the nodes representing those language items.
Applicant’s Claim 6 merely teaches application of a mathematical machine learning model. It does not integrate the abstract idea to a practical application, nor is it anything significantly more than the abstract idea. (See, 2106.05(a)(II).)
Claim 6 is, therefore, NOT ELIGIBLE subject matter under 35 U.S.C. § 101.
Claim 7
Claim 7 recites:
7. A method as claimed in claim 5 including:
providing a graphical user interface, for display by a user computer, for input of search queries to the knowledge graph database; and
providing in said interface a mechanism for selecting traversal of edges representing ancestral relations between document items in search operations for input search queries.
Applicant’s Claim 7 merely teaches provision of a generic graphical user interface. The edges may be numbered and the selected number entered to the generic graphical user interface. It does not integrate the abstract idea to a practical application, nor is it anything significantly more than the abstract idea. (See, 2106.05(a)(II).)
Claim 7 is, therefore, NOT ELIGIBLE subject matter under 35 U.S.C. § 101.
Claim 8
Claim 8 recites:
8. A method as claimed in claim 5 including:
providing a graphical user interface, for display by a user computer, for input of search queries to the knowledge graph database; and
providing in said interface at least one predefined template defining a type of search query, said template specifying traversal of an edge representing an ancestral relation between document items in a search operation for said type of search query.
Applicant’s Claim 8 merely teaches provision of a generic graphical user interface. It does not integrate the abstract idea to a practical application, nor is it anything significantly more than the abstract idea. (See, 2106.05(a)(II).)
Claim 8 is, therefore, NOT ELIGIBLE subject matter under 35 U.S.C. § 101.
Claim 9
Claim 9 recites:
9. A method as claimed in claim 1 wherein the knowledge graph further includes edges, representing neighbor relations, between nodes representing document items in each document and nodes representing their respective succeeding document items in said succession of document items, for that document.
Applicant’s Claim 9 merely teaches data arrangements for mental steps. It does not integrate the abstract idea to a practical application, nor is it anything significantly more than the abstract idea. (See, 2106.05(a)(II).)
Claim 9 is, therefore, NOT ELIGIBLE subject matter under 35 U.S.C. § 101.
Claim 10
Claim 10 recites:
10. A method as claimed in claim 6 including:
providing a graphical user interface, for display by a user computer, for input of search queries to the knowledge graph database; and
providing in said interface at least one predefined template defining a type of search query, said template specifying traversal of an edge representing a neighbor relation between document items in a search operation for said type of search query.
Applicant’s Claim 10 merely teaches provision of a generic graphical user interface. It does not integrate the abstract idea to a practical application, nor is it anything significantly more than the abstract idea. (See, 2106.05(a)(II).)
Claim 10 is, therefore, NOT ELIGIBLE subject matter under 35 U.S.C. § 101.
Claim 11
Claim 11 recites:
11. A method as claimed in claim 9 including:
providing a graphical user interface, for display by a user computer, for input of search queries to the knowledge graph database; and
providing in said interface a mechanism for selecting traversal of edges representing neighbor relations between document items in search operations for input search queries.
Applicant’s Claim 11 merely teaches provision of a generic graphical user interface. It does not integrate the abstract idea to a practical application, nor is it anything significantly more than the abstract idea. (See, 2106.05(a)(II).)
Claim 11 is, therefore, NOT ELIGIBLE subject matter under 35 U.S.C. § 101.
Claim 12
Claim 12 recites:
12. A method as claimed in claim 1 wherein the knowledge graph includes:
edges between a node representing a document item and nodes representing language items identified in that document item; and
edges between a node representing a document and nodes representing document items in that document.
Applicant’s Claim 12 merely teaches data arrangements for mental steps. It does not integrate the abstract idea to a practical application, nor is it anything significantly more than the abstract idea. (See, 2106.05(a)(II).)
Claim 12 is, therefore, NOT ELIGIBLE subject matter under 35 U.S.C. § 101.
Claim 13
Claim 13 recites:
13. A method as claimed in claim 1 wherein generating the knowledge graph further comprises:
applying a machine learning model to identify relations between language items identified in document items and language items identified in their respective parent document items; and
for each relation between a pair of language items identified by said model, including an edge, representing that relation, in the knowledge graph between the nodes representing those language items.
Applicant’s Claim 13 merely teaches application of a mathematical machine learning model. It does not integrate the abstract idea to a practical application, nor is it anything significantly more than the abstract idea. (See, 2106.05(a)(II).)
Claim 13 is, therefore, NOT ELIGIBLE subject matter under 35 U.S.C. § 101.
Claim 14
Claim 14 recites:
14. A method as claimed in claim 1 including:
providing a graphical user interface, for display by a user computer, for input of search queries to the knowledge graph database; and
providing in said interface a mechanism for selecting traversal of edges representing parent-child relations between document items in search operations for input search queries.
Applicant’s Claim 14 merely teaches provision of a generic graphical user interface. It does not integrate the abstract idea to a practical application, nor is it anything significantly more than the abstract idea. (See, 2106.05(a)(II).)
Claim 14 is, therefore, NOT ELIGIBLE subject matter under 35 U.S.C. § 101.
Claim 15
Claim 15 recites:
15. A method as claimed in claim 1 including:
providing a graphical user interface, for display by a user computer, for input of search queries to the knowledge graph database; and
providing in said interface at least one predefined template defining a type of search query, said template specifying traversal of an edge representing a parent-child relation between document items in a search operation for said type of search query.
Applicant’s Claim 15 merely teaches provision of a generic graphical user interface. It does not integrate the abstract idea to a practical application, nor is it anything significantly more than the abstract idea. (See, 2106.05(a)(II).)
Claim 15 is, therefore, NOT ELIGIBLE subject matter under 35 U.S.C. § 101.
Claim 16
Claim 16 recites:
16. A method as claimed in claim 1 including generating the document structure graph for a document via a recursive process which identifies a parent document item for each document item, sequentially in order of said succession, in dependence on relative location in said predefined hierarchy of the item-type of that item and the item-type of items earlier in said succession.
Applicant’s Claim 16 merely teaches “generating” a graph. It does not integrate the abstract idea to a practical application, nor is it anything significantly more than the abstract idea. (See, 2106.05(a)(II).)
Claim 16 is, therefore, NOT ELIGIBLE subject matter under 35 U.S.C. § 101.
Claim 17
Claim 17 recites:
17. A method as claimed in claim 1 including preprocessing each document in said corpus to parse the document into said succession of document items annotated with said item-types.
Applicant’s Claim 17 merely teaches parsing a document (i.e., mental steps). It does not integrate the abstract idea to a practical application, nor is it anything significantly more than the abstract idea. (See, 2106.05(a)(II).)
Claim 17 is, therefore, NOT ELIGIBLE subject matter under 35 U.S.C. § 101.
Claim 18
Step 1 inquiry: Does this claim fall within a statutory category?
The preamble of the claim recites “18. A computer program product for producing a searchable representation of information contained in a corpus of documents, said computer program product comprising a computer readable storage medium having program instructions embodied therein, the program instructions being executable by a computing system to cause the computing system to…” Therefore, it is some sort of “program product” that comprises a “computer readable storage medium”, rather than a “computer readable medium”, itself. A “program product” is not the same as a “computer readable medium”. Therefore, the answer to the inquiry is: “NO”.
Step 2A (Prong One) inquiry:
Are there limitations in Claim 18 that recite abstract ideas?
YES. The following limitations in Claim 18 recite abstract ideas that fall within at least one of the groupings of abstract ideas enumerated in the 2019 PEG. Specifically, they are “mental steps” and “mathematical steps”:
• "document structure graph" (i.e., mental steps)
• "document" (i.e., mental linguistic expression)
• "knowledge graph" (i.e., mental steps)
• "corpus" (i.e., mental linguistic expression)
• "nodes" (i.e., part of mental steps of association)
• "edges" (i.e., part of mental steps of association)
• parent-child edges between nodes representing document items and nodes representing their respective parent document items in said structural hierarchy, thereby encoding structural context of document items in said knowledge graph (i.e., mental steps of association)
• "search queries" (i.e., mental linguistic expression)
• "hierarchy" (i.e., part of mental steps of association)
• "language" (i.e., mental linguistic expression)
• "traverse" (i.e., mental steps)
• "item-types" (i.e., mental linguistic expression)
• "searchable representation" (i.e., mental linguistic expression)
• parse the document into a linear succession of document
items; (i.e., mental steps)
• annotate each document item with a predefined item- type;
(i.e., mental steps)
• proceeding once through the linear succession of document
items, link each document item in the structural hierarchy to a
parent document item in the structural hierarchy; (i.e., mental steps)
• generate knowledge graph data comprising nodes
representing document items in the corpus, nodes representing
language items identified in those document items, and edges
representing a defined relation between items represented by
the nodes interconnected by that edge (i.e., mental steps)
• set edges include parent-child edges between nodes
representing document items and nodes representing their
respective parent document items in such structural hierarchy,
thereby encoding structural context of document items in said
knowledge graph; (i.e., part of mental steps of association)
• search the knowledge graph data, by traversing edges of the
knowledge graph data in response to input search queries
wherein traversal of said parent-image edges enables retrieval
of structural context for search results (i.e., mental steps)
Step 2A (Prong Two) inquiry:
Are there additional elements or a combination of elements in the claim that apply, rely on, or use the judicial exception in a manner that imposes a meaningful limit on the judicial exception, such that it is more than a drafting effort designed to monopolize the exception?
Applicant’s claims contain the following “additional elements”:
(1) A "computer readable storage medium"
(2) A "computing system"
A “computer readable storage medium” is a broad term which is described at a high level. M.P.E.P. § 2106.05(d)(II) recites:
The courts have recognized the following computer functions as well‐understood, routine, and conventional functions when they are claimed in a merely generic manner (e.g., at a high level of generality) or as insignificant extra-solution activity.
***
iv. Storing and retrieving information in memory, Versata Dev. Group, Inc. v. SAP Am., Inc., 793 F.3d 1306, 1334, 115 USPQ2d 1681, 1701 (Fed. Cir. 2015); OIP Techs., 788 F.3d at 1363, 115 USPQ2d at 1092-93;
This “computer readable storage medium” limitation does not integrate the additional element into a practical application and represents “insignificant extra-solution activity”. (See, M.P.E.P. § 2106.05(I)(A)).
A “computing system” is a broad term which is described at a high level and includes general purpose computers. M.P.E.P. § 2016.05(f) recites:
2106.05(f) Mere Instructions To Apply An Exception [R-10.2019]
Another consideration when determining whether a claim integrates a judicial exception into a practical application in Step 2A Prong Two or recites significantly more than a judicial exception in Step 2B is whether the additional elements amount to more than a recitation of the words “apply it” (or an equivalent) or are more than mere instructions to implement an abstract idea or other exception on a computer. As explained by the Supreme Court, in order to make a claim directed to a judicial exception patent-eligible, the additional element or combination of elements must do “‘more than simply stat[e] the [judicial exception] while adding the words ‘apply it’”. Alice Corp. v. CLS Bank, 573 U.S. 208, 221, 110 USPQ2d 1976, 1982-83 (2014) (quoting Mayo Collaborative Servs. V. Prometheus Labs., Inc., 566 U.S. 66, 72, 101 USPQ2d 1961, 1965). Thus, for example, claims that amount to nothing more than an instruction to apply the abstract idea using a generic computer do not render an abstract idea eligible. Alice Corp., 573 U.S. at 223, 110 USPQ2d at 1983. See also 573 U.S. at 224, 110 USPQ2d at 1984 (warning against a § 101 analysis that turns on “the draftsman’s art”).
This “computing system” limitation does not integrate the additional element into a practical application and represents “insignificant extra-solution activity”. (See, M.P.E.P. § 2106.05(I)(A)).
The answer to the inquiry is “NO”, no additional elements integrate the claimed abstract idea into a practical application.
Step 2B inquiry:
Does the claim provide an inventive concept, i.e., does the claim recite additional element(s) or a combination of elements that amount to significantly more than the judicial exception in the claim?
Applicant’s claims contain the following “additional elements”:
(1) A "computer readable storage medium"
(2) A "computing system"
A “computer readable storage medium” is a broad term which is described at a high level. M.P.E.P. § 2106.05(d)(II) recites:
The courts have recognized the following computer functions as well‐understood, routine, and conventional functions when they are claimed in a merely generic manner (e.g., at a high level of generality) or as insignificant extra-solution activity.
***
iv. Storing and retrieving information in memory, Versata Dev. Group, Inc. v. SAP Am., Inc., 793 F.3d 1306, 1334, 115 USPQ2d 1681, 1701 (Fed. Cir. 2015); OIP Techs., 788 F.3d at 1363, 115 USPQ2d at 1092-93;
Therefore, the claim as a whole does not amount to significantly more than the exception itself (i.e., there is no inventive concept in the claim). (See, M.P.E.P. § 2106.05(II)).
A “computing system” is a broad term which is described at a high level and includes general purpose computers. M.P.E.P. § 2016.05(f) recites:
2106.05(f) Mere Instructions To Apply An Exception [R-10.2019]
Another consideration when determining whether a claim integrates a judicial exception into a practical application in Step 2A Prong Two or recites significantly more than a judicial exception in Step 2B is whether the additional elements amount to more than a recitation of the words “apply it” (or an equivalent) or are more than mere instructions to implement an abstract idea or other exception on a computer. As explained by the Supreme Court, in order to make a claim directed to a judicial exception patent-eligible, the additional element or combination of elements must do “‘more than simply stat[e] the [judicial exception] while adding the words ‘apply it’”. Alice Corp. v. CLS Bank, 573 U.S. 208, 221, 110 USPQ2d 1976, 1982-83 (2014) (quoting Mayo Collaborative Servs. V. Prometheus Labs., Inc., 566 U.S. 66, 72, 101 USPQ2d 1961, 1965). Thus, for example, claims that amount to nothing more than an instruction to apply the abstract idea using a generic computer do not render an abstract idea eligible. Alice Corp., 573 U.S. at 223, 110 USPQ2d at 1983. See also 573 U.S. at 224, 110 USPQ2d at 1984 (warning against a § 101 analysis that turns on “the draftsman’s art”).
Therefore, the claim as a whole does not amount to significantly more than the exception itself (i.e., there is no inventive concept in the claim). (See, M.P.E.P. § 2106.05(II)).
Therefore, the answer to the inquiry is “NO”, no additional elements provide an inventive concept that is significantly more than the claimed abstract ideas the claimed abstract idea into a practical application.
Claim 18 is, therefore, NOT ELIGIBLE subject matter under 35 U.S.C. § 101.
Claim 20
Step 1 inquiry: Does this claim fall within a statutory category?
The preamble of the claim recites “20. An information extraction system for producing a searchable representation of information contained in a corpus of documents each comprising a succession of document items of predetermined item-types defined for the corpus, the system comprising…” Therefore, it is a “system” (or “apparatus”), which is a statutory category of invention. Therefore, the answer to the inquiry is: “YES”.
Step 2A (Prong One) inquiry:
Are there limitations in Claim 20 that recite abstract ideas?
YES. The following limitations in Claim 20 recite abstract ideas that fall within at least one of the groupings of abstract ideas enumerated in the 2019 PEG. Specifically, they are “mental steps” and “mathematical steps”:
• "document structure graph" (i.e., mental steps)
• "document" (i.e., mental linguistic expression)
• "knowledge graph" (i.e., mental steps)
• "corpus" (i.e., mental linguistic expression)
• "nodes" (i.e., part of mental steps of association)
• "edges" (i.e., part of mental steps of association)
• parent-child edges between nodes representing document items and
nodes representing their respective parent document items in said
structural hierarchy, thereby encoding structural context of document
items in said knowledge graph (i.e., mental steps of association)
• "search queries" (i.e., mental linguistic expression)
• "hierarchy" (i.e., part of mental steps of association)
• "language" (i.e., mental linguistic expression)
• "traverse" (i.e., mental steps)
• "item-types" (i.e., mental linguistic expression)
• "searchable representation" (i.e., mental linguistic expression)
Step 2A (Prong Two) inquiry:
Are there additional elements or a combination of elements in the claim that apply, rely on, or use the judicial exception in a manner that imposes a meaningful limit on the judicial exception, such that it is more than a drafting effort designed to monopolize the exception?
Applicant’s claims contain the following “additional elements”:
(1) A "memory"
A “memory” is a broad term which is described at a high level. M.P.E.P. § 2106.05(d)(II) recites:
The courts have recognized the following computer functions as well‐understood, routine, and conventional functions when they are claimed in a merely generic manner (e.g., at a high level of generality) or as insignificant extra-solution activity.
***
iv. Storing and retrieving information in memory, Versata Dev. Group, Inc. v. SAP Am., Inc., 793 F.3d 1306, 1334, 115 USPQ2d 1681, 1701 (Fed. Cir. 2015); OIP Techs., 788 F.3d at 1363, 115 USPQ2d at 1092-93;
This “memory” limitation does not integrate the additional element into a practical application and represents “insignificant extra-solution activity”. (See, M.P.E.P. § 2106.05(I)(A)).
The answer to the inquiry is “NO”, no additional elements integrate the claimed abstract idea into a practical application.
Step 2B inquiry:
Does the claim provide an inventive concept, i.e., does the claim recite additional element(s) or a combination of elements that amount to significantly more than the judicial exception in the claim?
Applicant’s claims contain the following “additional elements”:
(1) A "memory"
A “memory” is a broad term which is described at a high level. M.P.E.P. § 2106.05(d)(II) recites:
The courts have recognized the following computer functions as well‐understood, routine, and conventional functions when they are claimed in a merely generic manner (e.g., at a high level of generality) or as insignificant extra-solution activity.
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iv. Storing and retrieving information in memory, Versata Dev. Group, Inc. v. SAP Am., Inc., 793 F.3d 1306, 1334, 115 USPQ2d 1681, 1701 (Fed. Cir. 2015); OIP Techs., 788 F.3d at 1363, 115 USPQ2d at 1092-93;
Therefore, the claim as a whole does not amount to significantly more than the exception itself (i.e., there is no inventive concept in the claim). (See, M.P.E.P. § 2106.05(II)).
Therefore, the answer to the inquiry is “NO”, no additional elements provide an inventive concept that is significantly more than the claimed abstract ideas the claimed abstract idea into a practical application.
Claim 20 is, therefore, NOT ELIGIBLE subject matter under 35 U.S.C. § 101.
Reasons Claims are not Rejected Over the Art of Record
The closest art of record of Dorpinghaus, et al., Towards Context in Large Scale Biomedical Knowledge Graphs, arXiv:2001.08392v1 [cs.DB], 23 JAN 2020, pp. 1-26 fails to expressly teach:
Claim 1’s, 18’s, and 20’s "structural context of document"
Claim 1’s, 18’s, and 20’s "document structure graph"
Relevant Art
Art that is relevant to this action, but not cited is the following:
Dorpinghaus, et al., Towards Context in Large Scale Biomedical Knowledge Graphs, arXiv:2001.08392v1 [cs.DB], 23 JAN 2020, pp. 1-26
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed 06 JUL 2026 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive. Specifically, Applicant argues:
Argument 1
The Examiner has asserted that the claims are directed to abstract ideas, including mental processes and mathematical relationships.
Even though certain limitations involve a broad array of techniques and/or activities that may involve or rely upon mathematical concepts, the limitations do not set forth or describe any mathematical relationships, calculations, formulas, or equations using words or mathematical symbols. The limitations are not abstract ideas.
The claims have many abstract ideas in them. Examples from the claims are: “search queries” (i.e., mental steps), “language” (i.e., mental steps), “document structure graph” (i.e., mental steps regarding language), etc.
Applicant’s argument is unpersuasive.
The rejections stand.
Argument 2
Applicant does not concede that the claims are abstract, but for purposes of argument, addresses the analysis under Step 2A, Prong Two.
Step 2A, Prong Two - Integration into a Practical Application
As described in the specification, paragraph [0022]
[0001] By providing parent-child edges in the knowledge graph based on the document
structure graphs for documents, methods embodying the invention assimilate the structures of the documents themselves in the overall knowledge representation. Information which is implicit in the hierarchical structure of a document as a whole can be embedded in the knowledge graph and extracted via search operations. The structural layout of a document, such as titles, section headers, and sub-headers for sub-sections at various nested levels, expresses valuable information that may not otherwise be expressed in the text of individual document items. For example, a key term may be stated in a section header and not repeated in paragraphs under that header, or information in an introductory statement may relate to all items in a subsequent list. Methods embodying the invention can capture such additional information encoded in the structural hierarchy of each document. The resulting knowledge graph thus enables extraction of more information from a corpus than can be derived from individual document items in the documents. This constitutes a significant advance in knowledge extraction systems, offering improved search processes, better search results, and better solutions to the real-life problems supported by these searches.
Applicant submits that this improvement is embodied in the independent claims by way of the amended limitations:
"parsing the document into a linear succession of document items;
annotating each document item with a predefined item-type;
generating a document structure graph indicating a structural hierarchy of document items in that document based on a predefined hierarchy of the predetermined item-types, and
proceeding once through the linear succession of document items, linking each document item[[s]] in the structural hierarchy to a parent document item in the structural hierarchy;
generating [[a]] knowledge graph data comprising first nodes, representing document items in the corpus and second nodes representing language items identified in those document items, interconnecting the first nodes and second nodes by first edges representing a defined relation between items represented by the nodes interconnected by that first edge, inserting second edges between respective first nodes wherein said second edges include parent-child edges between respective first nodes representing document items and first nodes representing their respective parent document items in said structural hierarchy, thereby encoding structural context of document items in said knowledge graph;
storing the knowledge graph data in a knowledge graph database"
and,
"receiving a search query to the knowledge graph database;
searching the knowledge graph data by traversing edges of the knowledge graph data to extract information responsive to the search query; and
outputting the extracted information for the search query"
Applicant submits that the Office Action improperly considered and dismissed claim elements associated with "storing" and a "knowledge graph database" as well-understood, routine and conventional functions when the USPTO guidance explicitly excludes such considerations at step 2A. The analysis at step 2A, Prong 2 is therefore flawed.
In addition to Applicant’s points, Examiner stated that :
This “storing” limitation does not integrate the additional element into a practical application and represents “insignificant extra-solution activity”. (See, M.P.E.P. § 2106.05(I)(A)).
And that:
This “knowledge graph database” limitation does not integrate the additional element into a practical application and represents “insignificant extra-solution activity”. (See, M.P.E.P. § 2106.05(I)(A)).
To further illustrate the point, M.P.E.P. § 2106.05(g) recites:
2106.05(g) Insignificant Extra-Solution Activity [R-10.2019]
Another consideration when determining whether a claim integrates the judicial exception into a practical application in Step 2A Prong Two or recites significantly more in Step 2B is whether the additional elements add more than insignificant extra-solution activity to the judicial exception. The term “extra-solution activity” can be understood as activities incidental to the primary process or product that are merely a nominal or tangential addition to the claim. Extra-solution activity includes both pre-solution and post-solution activity.
Further, M.P.E.P. § 2106.05 (f)(2) recites in part:
(2) Whether the claim invokes computers or other machinery merely as a tool to perform an existing process. Use of a computer or other machinery in its ordinary capacity for economic or other tasks (e.g., to receive, store, or transmit data) or simply adding a general purpose computer or computer components after the fact to an abstract idea (e.g., a fundamental economic practice or mathematical equation) does not integrate a judicial exception into a practical application or provide significantly more. See Affinity Labs v. DirecTV, 838 F.3d 1253, 1262, 120 USPQ2d 1201, 1207 (Fed. Cir. 2016) (cellular telephone); TLI Communications LLC v. AV Auto, LLC, 823 F.3d 607, 613, 118 USPQ2d 1744, 1748 (Fed. Cir. 2016) (computer server and telephone unit). Similarly, “claiming the improved speed or efficiency inherent with applying the abstract idea on a computer” does not integrate a judicial exception into a practical application or provide an inventive concept. Intellectual Ventures I LLC v. Capital One Bank (USA), 792 F.3d 1363, 1367, 115 USPQ2d 1636, 1639 (Fed. Cir. 2015). In contrast, a claim that purports to improve computer capabilities or to improve an existing technology may integrate a judicial exception into a practical application or provide significantly more. McRO, Inc. v. Bandai Namco Games Am. Inc., 837 F.3d 1299, 1314-15, 120 USPQ2d 1091, 1101-02 (Fed. Cir. 2016); Enfish, LLC v. Microsoft Corp., 822 F.3d 1327, 1335-36, 118 USPQ2d 1684, 1688-89 (Fed. Cir. 2016). See MPEP §§ 2106.04(d)(1) and 2106.05(a) for a discussion of improvements to the functioning of a computer or to another technology or technical field.
TLI Communications provides an example of a claim invoking computers and other machinery merely as a tool to perform an existing process. The court stated that the claims describe steps of recording, administration and archiving of digital images, and found them to be directed to the abstract idea of classifying and storing digital images in an organized manner. 823 F.3d at 612, 118 USPQ2d at 1747. The court then turned to the additional elements of performing these functions using a telephone unit and a server and noted that these elements were being used in their ordinary capacity (i.e., the telephone unit is used to make calls and operate as a digital camera including compressing images and transmitting those images, and the server simply receives data, extracts classification information from the received data, and stores the digital images based on the extracted information). 823 F.3d at 612-13, 118 USPQ2d at 1747-48. In other words, the claims invoked the telephone unit and server merely as tools to execute the abstract idea. Thus, the court found that the additional elements did not add significantly more to the abstract idea because they were simply applying the abstract idea on a telephone network without any recitation of details of how to carry out the abstract idea.
Applicant’s argument is unpersuasive.
The rejections stand.
Argument 3
Considered as a whole, representative claim 1 provides the practical application of extracting more information from a corpus of documents than can be derived from the individual document items of the respective documents. Generates and stores a searchable representation of a corpus of documents including that information as knowledge graph data relating to nodes and edges connecting those nodes, and provides results of a search of that knowledge graph data to a user in response to a query.
Through the steps of the method, the claimed invention acts upon each document of a corpus of documents and extracts explicit knowledge and additional knowledge from the documents of the corpus. The claimed method parses and annotates all document items of each document of the corpus. creates a linear succession of document items for each corpus document, linearly processes that succession once, yielding a linking of each document item to its respective parent document item, thereby reducing the processing necessary to yield such a complete linking of all document items to their respective parents in a single pass through such a succession. The method stores the accumulated knowledge graph data regarding nodes and edges in a database and then responds to user queries by searching the stored knowledge graph data. A set of tasks which Applicant submits cannot practically be performed by a human mind.
These features go beyond mere data manipulation or generic computer implementation. They reflect a technological improvement in how document structure and semantic relationships are captured and leveraged to enhance search functionality as well as achieving the linking of all items of a document according to the structure of that document in a single pass through the annotated document items.
As such, for at least the reasons discussed above, claim 1 is not directed to an abstract idea.
Applicant argues that the claimed method:
“…parses and annotates all document items of each document of the corpus. creates a linear succession of document items for each corpus document…”
Humans parse and annotate documents every day when writing in their own natural languages. So-called “linear succession of document items” may be words, sentences, paragraphs, pages, chapters, sections, etc. All of these things produced by mental steps. The argued “knowledge graph” may be produced by humans in many ways. One of which is parsing language into “parse trees.”
Improvements in “document structure and semantic relationships” are merely improvements to mental steps and not improvements to any identified “technology.”
Applicant’s argument is unpersuasive.
The rejections stand.
Argument 4
Dependent claims 3-17 are also allowable as are analogous independent claims 18, and 20. Applicant respectfully requests that the 35 U.S.C. § 101 rejections of these claims be reconsidered and withdrawn.
Regarding independent claims 18 and 20, similar arguments for similar claims are similarly unpersuasive.
There is no eligible matter to be found in the independent claims. Therefore, regarding the dependent claims there is no eligible matter that may be incorporated by reference from the independent claims to the dependent claims in order to cure the defects of all the dependent claims.
Applicant’s argument is unpersuasive.
The rejections stand.
Conclusion
THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action.
Any inquiries concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Wilbert L. Starks, Jr., who may be reached Monday through Friday, between 8:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. EST. or via telephone at (571) 272-3691 or email: Wilbert.Starks@uspto.gov.
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/WILBERT L STARKS/
Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2122
WLS
16 SEP 2026
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