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 .
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments, see Remarks, filed 7/15/26, with respect to the rejection(s) of claim(s) 22 under Young have been fully considered and are persuasive. Therefore, the rejection has been withdrawn. However, upon further consideration, a new ground(s) of rejection is made in view of Jain. After further analysis claim 22 is also rejected under 35 USC 101.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 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.
Claim(s) 22 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 101 because the claimed invention is directed to an abstract idea without significantly more.
Step 1- Claim 22
Claim 22 is drawn to a system and thus meet the requirements for step 1.
Step 2a (prong 1) - Claim 22
Claim 22 recites the step of “classify the sleeper into a classified physical state for the sleep session based on the feature vector”, Under the broadest reasonable interpretation, this step covers a concept capable of being performed in the human mind, and thus falls within the mental processes grouping of abstract ideas. Other than reciting the system is “computer system configured to” in the claim, nothing in the claim precludes the step from practically being performed in the mind.
Accordingly, claim 22 recites an abstract idea.
Step 2a (prong 2) – Claim 22
The judicial exception is not integrated into a practical application. Claim 22 recites the additional elements of:
Sense one or more physical phenomena is insignificant extra-solution activity (i.e., data gathering),
Receive data signals is insignificant extra-solution activity (i.e., data gathering), and
Generate, from data signals…, a feature vector is recited at a high level of generality (i.e., as generic devices, a “computer-implemented” method, performing generic computer functions like sending, receiving, and visually displaying data) is insignificant extra-solution activity (i.e., data output).
Classify the sleeper … based on the feature vector… is recited at a high level of generality (i.e., as generic devices, a “computer-implemented” method, performing generic computer functions like sending, receiving, and visually displaying data) is insignificant extra-solution activity (i.e., data output).
These steps do not integrate the abstract idea into a practical application because they are insignificant extra solution activity.
Step 2b- Claim 22
The additional elements when considered individually and in combination are not enough to qualify as significantly more than the abstract idea. As discussed above with respect to the integration of the abstract idea into a practical application, providing a classifying a the sleeper into a classified physical state is recited at a high level of generality (i.e., as generic devices, a “computer-implemented” method, performing generic computer functions like sending, receiving, and visually displaying data). Further, one or more sensors configured to sense one or more physical phenomena is considered data gathering. It is noted that generic sensors are recited at a high level of generality.
The additional elements that were considered insignificant extra solution activity have been re-analyzed and do not amount to anything more than what is well-understood, routine and conventional when considered individually and in combination with evidence provided. Specifically:
Sense one or more physical phenomena of a sleeper is well understood, routine, and conventional (i.e., receiving data MPEP 2106.05(d)(II)).
Generate, from data signals of a sleep-session … a feature vector of features is well-understood routine and conventional (i.e., gathering data/statistics MPEP 2106.05(d)(II)).
Classify the sleep into a classified physical state is considered to be well-understood, routine, and conventional (i.e., presenting data MPEP 2106.05(d)(II)).
Claim 22 is thus consider to be directed to an abstract idea without significantly more.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 103 which forms the basis for all obviousness rejections set forth in this Office action:
A patent for a claimed invention may not be obtained, notwithstanding that the claimed invention is not identically disclosed as set forth in section 102, if the differences between the claimed invention and the prior art are such that the claimed invention as a whole would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to a person having ordinary skill in the art to which the claimed invention pertains. Patentability shall not be negated by the manner in which the invention was made.
Claim(s) 22 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Young et al. (U.S. Pub. 2020/0110194 hereinafter “Young”) in view of Komine et al. (U.S. Pub. 2020/0315512 hereinafter “Komine”).
Regarding claim 22, Young discloses a system comprising: a bed (e.g. 102) having a mattress (e.g. 20); one or more sensors (e.g. 106) configured to: sense one or more physical phenomena of a sleeper on the bed (e.g. ¶36); generate data signals based on the sensed physical phenomena (e.g. ¶36); and send, to a computing system, the data signals (e.g. ¶36); the computing system (e.g. 200) comprising one or more processors and computer memory, the computing system configured to: receive the data signals (e.g. ¶37); generate, from data signals of a sleep-session of the sleeper, a feature vector of features, each feature having a feature value that represents one of the physical phenomena (e.g. ¶¶34, 43); and classify the sleeper into a classified physical state or illness for the sleep session based on the feature vector (e.g. ¶¶34, 38). Young discloses the claimed invention except for the system classifying and treating Covid-19. However, Jain teaches a similar classifier that utilizes the same bed sensors as taught in Column 65, lines 48-61; Column 112, lines 1-20 and Column 120, line 57 to Column 121, line 2 to analyze a disease score that monitors and classifies a person as Covid-19 positive and suggest treatment. It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was made to modify the system as taught by Young, with identifying Covid-19 as taught by Jain, since such a modification would provide the predictable results of analyzing the sensor information to predict illnesses including the well-known Covid-19 virus that was discovered after the filing of the Young reference.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Jain et al. (U.S. Pat. 11,342,051); Poltorak (U.S. Pub. 2021/0338973) and Jain et al. (U.S. Pat. 11,127,506) which are all directed toward utilizing sensor information to predict Covid-19 and suggest and/or provide treatment.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to REX R HOLMES whose telephone number is (571)272-8827. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Thursday 7:00AM-5:30PM.
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/REX R HOLMES/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3796
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