DETAILED ACTION
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 .
Applicant filed a response dated January 30, 2026 in which claims 35-40, 42, 44, 46-49, and 56 have been amended; claims 1-34, 41, 45, 50-51, and 54-55 have been canceled; and claims 57-58 have been added. Therefore, claims 35-40, 42-44, 46-49, 52-53, and 56-58 are currently pending in the application.
Priority
Application 17/839,163 filed on June 13, 2022 is a CON of 15/314,840 November 29, 2016 PAT 11361299, which is a 371 of PCT/US15/33255 May 29, 2015, which claims benefit of 62/005,622 May 30, 2014.
Examiner Request
The Applicant is requested to indicate where in the specification there is support for amendments to claims should Applicant amend. The purpose of this is to reduce potential 35 U.S.C. § 112(a) or § 112 1st paragraph issues that can arise when claims are amended without support in the specification. The Examiner thanks the Applicant in advance.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. §§ 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. §§ 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status.
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.
Claims 35-40, 42-44, 46-49, 52-53, and 57-58 are rejected are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Trevino, U.S. Patent Application Publication Number 2015/0100152; in view of Pallas, U.S. Patent Application Publication 2015/0242969; in view of Kim, U.S. Patent Application Publication 2015/0304171; in view of Malnoe, U.S. Patent Application Publication 2003/0200108; in view of Harrell, U.S. Patent Application Publication 2007/0106559.
As per claim 35,
Trevino explicitly teaches:
A method, comprising: emitting a Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) signal from a [fuel] dispenser [at a fueling station comprising a plurality of fuel dispensers]; detecting, by the [fuel] dispenser, a mobile user device in proximity to the [fuel] dispenser using the BLE signal emitted by the [fuel] dispenser,
(Trevino US20150100152 at paras. 34-42, 47-49) ("[0034] In an embodiment, the BLE device may be a very small, battery powered device that has reduced control functionality but still serves as an application endpoint. An embodiment includes a BLE device (e.g., iBeacon by Apple® Inc.) that transmits a proximity “beacon” signal, which is detectable by compatible mobile computing node devices. The BLE device continuously transmits this beacon and is therefore always ready for a transaction. The transmitted beacon signal is used to “awaken” the corresponding application on a consumer's mobile computing node that is in nearby proximity to the BLE enabled VM. In other words, once a consumer is in close enough proximity to a BLE enabled VM; the application will activate and connect to the VM over the BLE wireless protocol. Once this data connection is established, the mobile computing node application serves as a client endpoint for the sales transaction.”)
wherein detecting the mobile user device comprises automatically establishing a secure two-way BLE connection with the mobile user device that allows secure communication between the mobile user device and the [fuel] dispenser using a BLE communication protocol; and
(Trevino US20150100152 at paras. 47-49, 53-55) ("[0054] FIG. 7 includes a process for creating a secure channel in an embodiment of the invention. Application 104 and vending device 103 require a secure communication channel (element 702) to exchange purchase and monetary information with each other. In an embodiment there is also the need for a persistent insecure channel which will be used to enable key exchange and the creation of the secure channel. The following sequence may be used for technology (e.g., BLE) where services may be defined such that a secure service and an insecure service are provided. In a normal state, element 103 will advertise (over insecure channel 701) a locally stored unique identifier (UUID). As application 104 remains in Proximity Detect mode and appears within signal range of an element 103 device(s), element 104 will detect the UUID advertisement upon close proximity (element 703) to device 103. Element 104 will validate the format of the UUID and generate a cryptographic nonce value. Element 104 will relay the nonce to element 103 via the insecure channel (element 704). At that point, both element 103 and element 104 will independently generate a key value using the UUID, the nonce, and a proprietary hash/encode (elements 705, 706). The logic of this method represents a shared secret between elements 103 and 104 and will result in the identical key value being generated independently by elements 103 and 104. Various embodiments may use varying protocols to generate symmetric keys (e.g., Diffie-Hellman, SIGn and MAc (Sigma), and the like). At this point, elements 103 and 104 may begin using secure channel 702 by utilizing the derived keys to encrypt payloads for all traffic over this service (element 708) using, for example, Advance Encryption Standard (AES) and the like. Note that insecure payloads may be exchanged via channel 701 at any time (element 707). Element 104 may also regenerate the nonce value and resend the key generation command. This allows for increased security by allowing a rolling key value based on time or other event information." "[0048] the communication protocol “may be Bluetooth®, BTL, Wi-Fi, NFC, and the like.”)
exchanging data between the [fuel] dispenser and the mobile user device using the secure two-way BLE connection
(Trevino US20150100152 at paras. 34-42, 47-49, 75-77) ("[0035] The mobile computing node application can serve as the “dashboard” for the transaction itself. Accordingly, an embodiment includes VM with no buttons or user interface (UI) with which a user interacts to select a good. Such a VM may include no such UI, but may still include a display whose interaction with the user is little beyond pure marketing. All user interaction for selecting a vended product in response to a user initiated selection is between the consumer and the mobile computing node application. In such an embodiment the VM is little more than a cooler (for VMs that vend goods that need to be cooled) with an electronic door or product lock mechanism for dispensing a good, under the control of the BLE and mobile computing node application. As used herein, a UI is defined as the junction between a user and logic including an interface coupled to a set of commands or menus through which a user communicates with the logic." "[0076] An embodiment includes a distributed network of Vending/Point of Sales machines consisting of a simple VM containing no additional communications systems beyond a single a BLE communications function used in both secure and insecure modes to communicate with the mobile computing node application.")
wherein the [fuel] dispenser receives input from the mobile user device relating to controlling operation of the [fuel] dispenser to dispense [fuel] therefrom responsive to the GUI receiving a first input selecting a first selectable indicator identifying the [fuel] dispenser, and
(Trevino US20150100152 at paras. 52-54) ("[0053] Upon receipt and validation of the payment authorization by element 104 a delivery/vend actuation command (element 609) is sent to element 103 (from application 104) to deliver the physical goods. Note that element 609 will be specific to the type of device 103 and to the type of goods delivered. For the purposes of this description, element 609 is considered to be a remote command to unlock a door or drawer that contains the product to be purchased (or in other embodiments, for example, display a QR with purchased content encoded therein, and the like). Upon receiving actuation command (element 609), element 103 performs the action requested and the product is delivered (element 610) and its delivery is validated by element 103. This validation may occur in several forms. In an embodiment element 103 has an array of sensors, such as optical sensors or weight measurement sensors, which detect product removal from 104. User 105 receives goods (element 610) and the validate delivery status is relayed (element 613) by element 103 to element 104. Element 104 formats a complete sales session and transaction record and transmits (element 611) this information to element 102. Element 102 utilizes this information to update all information (element 614) related to elements 105, 104, 103, 101. This portion of the process ends with element 104 displaying a Confirmation/Thank You user interface (UI) to user 105 (element 612) after which, all devices return to normal state.")
Trevino does not explicitly teach, however, Pallas does teach:
a fueling station comprising a plurality of fuel dispensers…
(Pallas US20150242969 at paras. 73-75, 101-103) "[0074] In the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 1, the main server 12 is illustratively connected to one or more local servers 161-16K via a private network 14, and each local server 161-16K is illustratively implemented at a fueling (or filling) station, i.e., a fuel sales facility or “fuel center”, 521-52K respectively." ("[0102] The various components of the fuel dispenser 18 illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2 are illustratively carried in a single housing 240 which may be formed using one or more panels of one or more suitable materials such as glass, plastic, metal or the like. The housing 240 may have any shape, and in one embodiment is generally rectangular in shape. In some embodiments, the housing 240 may carry a single fuel dispenser, and in other embodiments the housing 240 may carry multiple fuel dispensers, e.g., two fuel dispensers, each facing in opposite directions.")
wherein the fuel dispenser receives payment data from the mobile user device allowing a payment transaction to be performed between the fuel dispenser and the mobile user device that pays for the fuel to be dispensed from the fuel dispenser
(Pallas US20150242969 at paras. 27-29) ("[0028] In a tenth aspect, a method is provided for remotely activating an electromechanically controlled fuel dispenser using a mobile electronic device having a processor coupled to a display monitor and to a wireless communication circuit, the mobile electronic device having stored therein payment information identifying at least one system of payment specific to a user of the mobile electronic device via which payment can be processed for the purchase of fuel. The method may comprise automatically or in response to user input to the mobile electronic device, controlling with the processor the wireless communication circuit to establish a wireless communication link with one of the electromechanically controlled fuel dispenser and a server coupled thereto that is within a wireless communication range of the mobile electronic device, controlling the display monitor to display the payment information, transmitting the payment information to the one of the fuel dispenser and the server coupled thereto via the wireless communication link, and in response to receipt by the mobile electronic device from the one of the fuel dispenser and the server coupled thereto, via the wireless communication link, of information indicating whether the at least one system of payment identified by the payment information is accepted for processing of payment for the purchase of fuel to be dispensed from the fuel dispenser, controlling the display monitor to display at least one of (a) a message indicating acceptance of the at least one system of payment identified by the payment information for processing of payment for the purchase of fuel to be dispensed from the fuel dispenser, and (b) a plurality or a subset of the plurality of different fuels that are dispensable from the fuel dispenser.")
to a vehicle associated with a user of the mobile user device,
(Pallas US20150242969 at Fig. 1, paras. 67-69, 73-75, 101-103) ("[0068] The terms “customer,” “fuel purchaser,” “purchaser” and “user,” and variants thereof, are used interchangeably in the following description. Such terms should be understood to define and refer to any purchaser of fuel from a retail fueling station including, but not limited to, an operator and/or any passenger of a motor vehicle to be or being refueled, an operator and/or any passenger of a motorized or non-motorized vehicle carrying, towing or otherwise transporting a motor vehicle to be or being refueled, an operator and/or any passenger of a motorized or non-motorized vehicle carrying, towing or otherwise transporting a fuel container to be or being filled with fuel, or the like." "[0225] In any case, at some point while the beacon(s) 224 is/are broadcasting the one or more unique wireless signals, the customer, carrying the customer's the mobile communication device 80 or approaching in a vehicle carrying the vehicle communication device 90, approaches one of the fuel dispensers 181-18N, 181-18M for the purpose of commencing a fuel purchase transaction. This scenario is depicted in FIG. 19 which illustrates one such beacon 224, mounted to, in, on or near the fuel dispenser 18, periodically broadcasting unique wireless signals which are represented in FIG. 19 by the semi-circular dashed lines emanating outwardly from the beacon 224." "[0226] FIG. 19. When within the broadcast range of the beacon 224, the mobile electronic device 80, 90 is able to detect the unique identification signals being periodically (or non-periodically) broadcast by the beacon 224. Illustratively, the broadcast range of the beacon is sufficiently large, wide and/or oriented to be detected by customers' mobile electronic devices 80, 90 during the normal approach to the fuel dispenser 18 by vehicle 76 and/or by foot, while is at the same time sufficiently small, narrow and/or oriented so as not to be detected by mobile electronic devices 80, 90 of customers being processed by one or more adjacent fuel dispensers 181-18N, 181-18M." ")
historical data characterizing fuel dispenser locations where the vehicle was previously fueled by the user of the mobile user device.
(Pallas US20150242969 at paras. 16-18, 133-135, 190-193) ("[0016] In the second aspect, each of the plurality of fuel dispensers may be part of a retail enterprise, and the at least one database may have stored therein a plurality of purchase histories each containing a record of purchases previously made from the retail enterprise by a different one of the plurality of customers members of the membership service program, and a plurality of mobile communication device codes each identifying a different mobile communication device carried by different one of the plurality of customer members," "[0134] In any case, all such purchase transaction data relating to fuel purchased by such an identified customer during a purchase transaction carried out via one of the fuel dispensers 18 of the retail enterprise is illustratively stored in the customer purchase history database 808 where it is associated with the identified customer via the customer's EMSID." "[0190] Referring to FIG. 14A, for example, a modified embodiment 802′ of the server database within the software environment 800 of the main server 12 may in some embodiments include fuel center/dispenser location data 816 having stored therein location data identifying locations of the various fuel centers 521-52K and/or of the various fuel dispensers 181-18N, 181-18M relative to one or more known locations and/or structures, or from which the locations of the various fuel centers 521-52K and/or of the various fuel dispensers 181-18N, 181-18M can be determined by the processor 20 of the main server 12 and/or by the processor of a mobile electronic device, e.g., the processor 300 of a mobile communication device 80 or the processor 400 of a vehicle communication device 90. Examples of such location data stored in the fuel center/dispenser location data 816, as well as example processing of such data, will be described hereinafter with respect to FIGS. 18-22.")
Therefore, it would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teachings of Trevino and Pallas, because it allows for a system of wirelessly activating a plurality of electromechanically controlled fuel dispensers for subsequent dispensation of fuel into motor vehicles and/or fuel storage containers. (Pallas at Abstract and paras. 1-5).
Trevino and Pallas do not explicitly teach, however, Kim does teach:
such that responsive to automatically establishing the secure two-way BLE connection, the mobile device is configured to automatically provide a graphical user interface (GUI) on a display of the mobile device, the GUI depicting a plurality of first selectable indicators characterizing respective [fuel dispensers of the plurality of fuel dispensers] and a plurality of second selectable indicators characterizing a selection of operational data associated with respective [fuel dispensers of the plurality of fuel dispensers],
(Kim US20150304171 at paras. 50, 98, 115-118) ("[0050] In some embodiments, direct communication between network devices 102, 104, 106 and mobile device 108 may occur using various communications protocols, such as Universal Plug and Play (UPnP), Bluetooth®, Zigbee®, Ultra-Wideband (UWB), WiFi-Direct, WiFi, Bluetooth® Low Energy (BLE), sound frequencies, and/or the like." "[0098] The process 500 utilizes intra-network communications to inform a cloud network server of the existence of network devices and to provide interface modules for the network devices to a mobile device and/or a gateway. At 502, the process 500 includes receiving communications indicating that network devices have been detected in a network. As shown in FIG. 5, 502 can be performed as part of device discovery." "[0117] In some embodiments, the displays of FIGS. 6, 7, 8A, and 8B can be rendered by performing a computer-implemented method. For example, the method can include receiving, at a computing device, one or more interface modules, wherein each interface module defines a tile associated with a corresponding network device on a network, and then presenting, on a display of the computing device, a graphical interface including the one or more tiles, wherein each tile includes information identifying the corresponding network device and one or more interactive elements usable to control the network device. For example, the computing device can be mobile device 108, the display can be display 222, and the tiles can include tiles 602A, 602B, 602C and 702A. The one or more interactive elements can correspond to a primary setting or function of the network devices, such as, for example, power buttons 608A, 608C and 708A. In embodiments, the information identifying the network devices can include an icon, name, and state for each of the network devices. For example, the information identifying the network devices can include icons 604A, 604B, 604C and 704A, and corresponding device names 606A, 606B, 606C, and 706A. The information identifying a state of a network device can be status indicators 610B, 610C, and 710. In some embodiments, the method can also include receiving, at the computing device, input corresponding to a selection of a primary setting for the network device, and the tile can include a contextual menu or drawer, such as sub-menu 714, corresponding to a secondary setting or functionality for the network device, wherein the secondary setting or functionality is associated with the primary setting or functionality. According to certain embodiments, a tile 702A associated with a network device having extended or tertiary functionalities includes a full menu or drawer 826, wherein the full menu 826 is displayed in response to receiving input corresponding to a selection of interactive element 712. For example, the full menu 826 can include interactive elements 830, 832, 836 for selecting settings or actions corresponding to tertiary or extended functions of the network device. The full menu 826 can be embodied as a drawer including a status indicator 610B, 610C, 710 for the network device, schedule data 834, and historical data associated with the network device, such as, for example, temperature readings 828.")
the GUI is configured to display the selected operational data associated with the [fuel] dispenser responsive to receiving a second input selecting the operational data associated with the [fuel] dispenser,
(Kim US20150304171 at paras. 50, 97-107, 116-118) ("[0100] At 508, the process 500 includes displaying, within an application executing on the mobile device and/or gateway, tiles corresponding to the transmitted user interface modules. This can be accomplished by rendering the display 222 described above with reference to FIG. 2. Next, at 510, input corresponding to a selection of a setting for a primary function for one of the network devices is received. In an embodiment, 510 can include receiving a touch input at an interactive element of a tile for a given network device. Then, at 512, the process 500 includes determining whether a secondary function is related to the primary function. If it is determined that there is a related secondary function, control is passed to 514 where a sub-menu, such as, for example, a peekaboo drawer, is displayed with options for the secondary function. In an embodiment, 514 can include automatically displaying the sub-menu and indicating a default selection for the secondary function. For example, if the primary function selected at 510 turned on a space heater network device, step 514 can include displaying low, eco, medium, and high secondary operational modes for the space heater and indicating that a default setting of eco mode has been selected." "[0106] Throughout FIGS. 6, 7, 8A, and 8B, displays are shown with various tiles, interactive elements, icons, links, command regions, windows, toolbars, sub-menus, drawers, and buttons that are used to initiate action, invoke routines, monitor network devices, configure network devices, control network devices, or invoke other functionality. The initiated actions include, but are not limited to, displaying a current state of a network device, displaying historical data associated with a network device, displaying a last known status of a network device, selecting one or more primary settings for a network device, selecting one or more secondary or tertiary settings of a network device, and other inputs and gestures. For brevity, only the differences occurring within the figures, as compared to previous or subsequent ones of the figures, are described below.")
Therefore, it would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teachings of Trevino, Pallas, and Kim, because it allows for a system of initiating action(s) using an interface configured to control operation of IoT devices. (Kim at Abstract and paras. 9-39).
Trevino, Pallas, and Kim do not explicitly teach, however, Malnoe does teach:
the profile data including vehicle data characterizing at least one of a make, model, and year of the vehicle and
(Malnoe US20030200108 at paras. 83-87) ("[0084] At the dispenser position, the refueling transaction is executed. In particular, the refueling equipment is configured according to the transaction parameter selections communicated from the user device, and billing/payment is finalized according to the billing/payment information communicated from the user device. Once the transaction is completed, operation 106 is executed in order to transmit the generated virtual transaction receipt to the user device at the user position. [0085] Referring to FIG. 4, the illustrated operating sequence includes the operating sequence shown in FIG. 3, but further comprises operation 108 involving communication of customer vehicle information from the user device to the dispenser position, and operation 110 involving communication of maintenance-service recommendations from the dispenser position to the user device. [0086] As an enhancement, the user device furnishes the dispenser position with vehicle information that is analyzed and processed to determine any vehicle servicing or maintenance recommendations based upon the vehicle information analysis. For example, the vehicle information can include, but is not limited to, mileage, vehicle year/make/model, and repair history. The vehicle information can be furnished to the dispenser position in a user profile that also includes the information pertaining to operations 100, 102, and 104. For purposes of performing the analysis, the dispenser position will be equipped with any suitable maintenance and service analysis/evaluation units, such as conventional forms.")
Therefore, it would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teachings of Trevino, Pallas, Kim, and Malnoe, because it allows for an improved system to control the dispensing operation in conventional manner by properly configuring the dispensing equipment according to input selections indicative of values for certain refueling parameters. For example, processor 22 could be connected to the fuel pump and flowmeter to control the amount of fuel that is dispensed and improved communication of vehicle servicing or maintenance recommendations based upon the vehicle information analysis. For example, the vehicle information can include, but is not limited to, mileage, vehicle year/make/model, and repair history. (Malnoe at Abstract and paras. 2-10, 56, 86).
Trevino, Pallas, Kim, and Malnoe do not explicitly teach, however, Harrell does teach:
wherein the fuel dispenser is operably coupled to a controller remote from the fuel dispenser and configured to authorize the payment transaction based on profile data associated with the user of the mobile user device and stored in a memory of the controller,
(Harrell US20070106559 at paras. 47-48, 74, 180, 183) ("[0047] Typically, at least some customer identification data is sent from the fuel dispenser to facility controller 120. The facility controller may then determine the validity of the customer identifier. Determining the validity of the customer identifier may include performing a checksum of the data received therefrom or contacting the issuer of the customer identifier to determine whether the customer identifier is valid. Also, the facility controller may check the authorization of the customer identifier. For example, the facility controller may contact a payment card issuer to determine the credit limit of a payment card. [0048] If the facility controller determines that the customer identifier is valid and/or authorized, the facility controller may activate the fuel dispenser, which may then dispense fuel to the customer. [0074] a remote computer (e.g., a facility controller). [0180] use business rules to determine whether the customer identifier is valid (e.g., by performing a checksum) and whether the amount of the order is within predetermined a limit (e.g., less than $50), which may be based on a customer profile. [0183] The customer-related data may be acquired based on customer interaction with a fuel dispenser, or other components at a fueling facility, or based on customer-specified criteria, entered at the fuel dispenser, a local fueling facility computer, or a remote computer (e.g., through a Web interface). The customer-related data may be stored locally at the fueling facility (e.g., at a facility controller) and/or remotely (e.g., at a remote server).)
Therefore, it would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teachings of Trevino, Pallas, Kim, Malnoe, and Harrell, because safety, reliability, and efficiency for fueling facilities may be improved by intelligent control of fuel dispensers. (Harrell at Abstract and paras. 2-17, 37).
As per claim 36,
Trevino explicitly teaches:
further comprising the [fuel] dispenser transmitting [fuel] dispenser identification data to the mobile user device using the secure two-way BLE connection,
(Trevino US20150100152 at paras. 35-37, 52-54) ("[0036] In an embodiment the BLE device collects and caches operational information regarding that individual VM. This information may include alert/exception data, visits by technicians and product restock personnel, and/or any event data that occurs during the period of sales inactivity. This information will be relayed to the mobile computing node application upon an established BLE connection with the mobile computing node.")
wherein the [fuel] dispenser identification data is transmitted automatically in response to the secure two-way BLE connection being established.
(Trevino US20150100152 at paras. 35-37, 52-54) ("[0036] In an embodiment the BLE device collects and caches operational information regarding that individual VM. This information may include alert/exception data, visits by technicians and product restock personnel, and/or any event data that occurs during the period of sales inactivity. This information will be relayed to the mobile computing node application upon an established BLE connection with the mobile computing node.")
Trevino does not explicitly teach, however, Pallas does teach:
the fuel dispenser identification data identifying the plurality of fuel dispensers at the fueling station;
(Pallas US20150242969 at paras. 192-194) ("[0193] The beacon module 848 is illustratively included in embodiments in which wireless signal broadcasting devices, e.g., beacons 224 and/or 710, are used to locate fuel dispensers 181-18N, 181-18M at which EMS member-customers are located and from which such customer-members desire to dispense fuel. In such embodiments, the beacon module 848 is illustratively operable to determine the identity of a beacon 224 (and/or 710) associated with the fuel dispenser 18 from which a customer-member of the EMS program wishes to dispense fuel, and to thus identify the associated fuel dispenser 18 for purposes of controllably activating the dispensing section 204 of the identified fuel dispenser 18 for subsequent dispensation of fuel. In such embodiments, the fuel center/dispenser location data 816 illustratively contains information about each beacon 224, 710 in the retail enterprise. In some embodiments, such beacon information includes the unique identification codes (UID) of each beacon 224, 710. In other embodiments, the beacon information may additionally include beacon type information identifying or associating a beacon type, BT, with each beacon 224, 710. In some such embodiments, the beacon information may be stored, e.g., separately, in the database 816 according to beacon type. In some embodiments, the database 816 may include additional information including, for example, but not limited to, positional information corresponding to the coordinates of some or all of the beacons of the retail enterprise and/or of one or more fuel centers 521-52K thereof, relative to one or more sets of base coordinates or positional information corresponding to the coordinates of some or all of the fuel dispensers 181-18N, 181-18M of the retail enterprise and/or of one or more fuel centers 521-52K thereof, relative to one or more sets of base coordinates. In such embodiments, the beacon module 848 is illustratively operable to process beacon-related information transmitted to the main server 12 by customers' mobile electronic devices, e.g., 80 and/or 90, and to control transmission of corresponding and related information back to the customers' mobile electronic devices. Referring to FIG. 14C, modified memories 304′ of mobile communication devices 80 and/or 404′ of vehicle communication devices 90 likewise illustratively include in such embodiments a customer/fuel dispenser identification module 522, 622 respectively. An example embodiment of a process executed in-part by the beacon module 848 and in-part by the customer/fuel dispenser identification module 522, 622 is illustrated in FIG. 18 and will be described in detail hereinafter.")
Therefore, it would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teachings of Trevino, Pallas, Kim, Malnoe, and Harrell, because it allows for a system of wirelessly activating a plurality of electromechanically controlled fuel dispensers for subsequent dispensation of fuel into motor vehicles and/or fuel storage containers. (Pallas at Abstract and paras. 1-5).
As per claim 37,
Trevino explicitly teaches:
wherein the [fuel] dispenser receives the first input after transmitting the information.
(Trevino US20150100152 at paras. 35-37, 52-54) ("[0053] Upon receipt and validation of the payment authorization by element 104 a delivery/vend actuation command (element 609) is sent to element 103 (from application 104) to deliver the physical goods. Note that element 609 will be specific to the type of device 103 and to the type of goods delivered. For the purposes of this description, element 609 is considered to be a remote command to unlock a door or drawer that contains the product to be purchased (or in other embodiments, for example, display a QR with purchased content encoded therein, and the like). Upon receiving actuation command (element 609), element 103 performs the action requested and the product is delivered (element 610) and its delivery is validated by element 103. This validation may occur in several forms. In an embodiment element 103 has an array of sensors, such as optical sensors or weight measurement sensors, which detect product removal from 104. User 105 receives goods (element 610) and the validate delivery status is relayed (element 613) by element 103 to element 104. Element 104 formats a complete sales session and transaction record and transmits (element 611) this information to element 102. Element 102 utilizes this information to update all information (element 614) related to elements 105, 104, 103, 101. This portion of the process ends with element 104 displaying a Confirmation/Thank You user interface (UI) to user 105 (element 612) after which, all devices return to normal state.")
Trevino does not explicitly teach, however, Pallas does teach:
fuel dispenser...
(Pallas US20150242969 at paras. 73-75, 101-103) "[0074] In the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 1, the main server 12 is illustratively connected to one or more local servers 161-16K via a private network 14, and each local server 161-16K is illustratively implemented at a fueling (or filling) station, i.e., a fuel sales facility or “fuel center”, 521-52K respectively." ("[0102] The various components of the fuel dispenser 18 illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2 are illustratively carried in a single housing 240 which may be formed using one or more panels of one or more suitable materials such as glass, plastic, metal or the like. The housing 240 may have any shape, and in one embodiment is generally rectangular in shape. In some embodiments, the housing 240 may carry a single fuel dispenser, and in other embodiments the housing 240 may carry multiple fuel dispensers, e.g., two fuel dispensers, each facing in opposite directions.")
Therefore, it would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teachings of Trevino, Pallas, Kim, Malnoe, and Harrell, because it allows for a system of wirelessly activating a plurality of electromechanically controlled fuel dispensers for subsequent dispensation of fuel into motor vehicles and/or fuel storage containers. (Pallas at Abstract and paras. 1-5).
As per claim 38,
Trevino explicitly teaches:
wherein the detection of the mobile user device in proximity of the [fuel] dispenser automatically causes the graphical user interface (GUI) to be displayed on the mobile user device prior to the secure two-way BLE connection being established.
(Trevino US20150100152 at paras. 60-62) ("[0061] FIG. 13 a-j depict a series of GUIs that provide a user experience (e.g., see FIG. 6) in an embodiment. FIG. 13 a depicts a user, who has vending application 104 on his computing node, near a vending device 103 (but unlinked or undiscovered by application 104). The application 104 mentions “VB” which, for purposes of this discussion, is an abbreviation for “vending box”. FIG. 13 b depicts application 104 and device 103 engaged in device discovery (e.g., see FIG. 8 or element 601 of FIG. 6) resulting in elements 103, 104 successfully discovering one another and each entering into Device Discovered state. FIG. 13 c depicts application 104 and device 103 engaging in creating a secure communication channel with each other (e.g., see element 602 of FIG. 6 and generally FIG. 7). FIG. 13 c shows “ID” passing between elements 103, 104, which is analogous to block 703 of FIG. 7. FIG. 13 d corresponds to element 603 of FIG. 6 and FIG. 13 e corresponds to element 604 of FIG. 6. FIG. 13 f corresponds to element 605 of FIG. 6. FIG. 13 g shows how the same application 104 may also engage a different device 103 (shown in FIG. 13 g as device “E” whereas FIG. 13 c corresponds to device “A”). FIGS. 13 h, 13 i, and 13 j correspond to FIGS. 13 d, 13 e, and 13 f but, again, relate to device E instead of device A.")
Trevino does not explicitly teach, however, Pallas does teach:
fuel dispenser…
(Pallas US20150242969 at paras. 73-75, 101-103) "[0074] In the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 1, the main server 12 is illustratively connected to one or more local servers 161-16K via a private network 14, and each local server 161-16K is illustratively implemented at a fueling (or filling) station, i.e., a fuel sales facility or “fuel center”, 521-52K respectively." ("[0102] The various components of the fuel dispenser 18 illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2 are illustratively carried in a single housing 240 which may be formed using one or more panels of one or more suitable materials such as glass, plastic, metal or the like. The housing 240 may have any shape, and in one embodiment is generally rectangular in shape. In some embodiments, the housing 240 may carry a single fuel dispenser, and in other embodiments the housing 240 may carry multiple fuel dispensers, e.g., two fuel dispensers, each facing in opposite directions.")
Therefore, it would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teachings of Trevino, Pallas, Kim, Malnoe, and Harrell, because it allows for a system of wirelessly activating a plurality of electromechanically controlled fuel dispensers for subsequent dispensation of fuel into motor vehicles and/or fuel storage containers. (Pallas at Abstract and paras. 1-5).
As per claim 39,
Trevino explicitly teaches:
further comprising, in response to establishing the secure two-way BLE connection, automatically identifying a user associated with the mobile user device based on the profile data.
(Trevino US20150100152 at paras. 60-62) ("[0061] FIG. 13 a-j depict a series of GUIs that provide a user experience (e.g., see FIG. 6) in an embodiment. FIG. 13 a depicts a user, who has vending application 104 on his computing node, near a vending device 103 (but unlinked or undiscovered by application 104). The application 104 mentions “VB” which, for purposes of this discussion, is an abbreviation for “vending box”. FIG. 13 b depicts application 104 and device 103 engaged in device discovery (e.g., see FIG. 8 or element 601 of FIG. 6) resulting in elements 103, 104 successfully discovering one another and each entering into Device Discovered state. FIG. 13 c depicts application 104 and device 103 engaging in creating a secure communication channel with each other (e.g., see element 602 of FIG. 6 and generally FIG. 7). FIG. 13 c shows “ID” passing between elements 103, 104, which is analogous to block 703 of FIG. 7. FIG. 13 d corresponds to element 603 of FIG. 6 and FIG. 13 e corresponds to element 604 of FIG. 6. FIG. 13 f corresponds to element 605 of FIG. 6. FIG. 13 g shows how the same application 104 may also engage a different device 103 (shown in FIG. 13 g as device “E” whereas FIG. 13 c corresponds to device “A”). FIGS. 13 h, 13 i, and 13 j correspond to FIGS. 13 d, 13 e, and 13 f but, again, relate to device E instead of device A.")
As per claim 40,
Trevino explicitly teaches:
further comprising the [fuel] dispenser communicating with the mobile user device using the secure two-way BLE connection
(Trevino US20150100152 at paras. 35-37, 52-54) ("[0036] In an embodiment the BLE device collects and caches operational information regarding that individual VM. This information may include alert/exception data, visits by technicians and product restock personnel, and/or any event data that occurs during the period of sales inactivity. This information will be relayed to the mobile computing node application upon an established BLE connection with the mobile computing node.")
Trevino does not explicitly teach, however, Pallas does teach:
fuel dispenser...
(Pallas US20150242969 at paras. 73-75, 101-103) "[0074] In the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 1, the main server 12 is illustratively connected to one or more local servers 161-16K via a private network 14, and each local server 161-16K is illustratively implemented at a fueling (or filling) station, i.e., a fuel sales facility or “fuel center”, 521-52K respectively." ("[0102] The various components of the fuel dispenser 18 illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2 are illustratively carried in a single housing 240 which may be formed using one or more panels of one or more suitable materials such as glass, plastic, metal or the like. The housing 240 may have any shape, and in one embodiment is generally rectangular in shape. In some embodiments, the housing 240 may carry a single fuel dispenser, and in other embodiments the housing 240 may carry multiple fuel dispensers, e.g., two fuel dispensers, each facing in opposite directions.")
such that the fuel dispenser transmits information to the mobile user device during a time when the fuel dispenser is dispensing the fuel;
(Pallas US20150242969 at paras. 164-166) ("[0165] At step 926A, the processor 60 of the wirelessly connected fuel dispenser is operable to transfer to the mobile electronic device, via the wireless communication link, the fuel upgrade offer, if any, transferred thereto by the main server 12. Such a fuel grade upgrade offer enters the mobile electronic device at step 918, e.g., along with current fuel type/grade pricing information. The customer may, in some embodiments, have the option of applying the fuel grade upgrade offer to the current purchase of fuel, or to store the fuel grade upgrade offer in the user data section of the data storage 308 for subsequent use or transfer to the customer's rewards repository 814 in the main server 12. At step 926B, the processor 60 of the wirelessly connected fuel dispenser 18 is further operable to store, e.g., within the data storage 66 or the memory 64, any general and/or customer-specific rewards generated by the main server 12 and transferred to the wirelessly connected fuel dispenser 18 at step 92. Any such general and/or customer-specific rewards may, for example, be transferred to the mobile electronic device during fueling. If no such fuel upgrade offer is generated at step 922, the “NO” branch of step 924 skips step 926A and proceeds directly to step 918.")
wherein the information is selected based on the identified user.
(Pallas US20150242969 at paras. 164-166) ("[0165] At step 926A, the processor 60 of the wirelessly connected fuel dispenser is operable to transfer to the mobile electronic device, via the wireless communication link, the fuel upgrade offer, if any, transferred thereto by the main server 12. Such a fuel grade upgrade offer enters the mobile electronic device at step 918, e.g., along with current fuel type/grade pricing information. The customer may, in some embodiments, have the option of applying the fuel grade upgrade offer to the current purchase of fuel, or to store the fuel grade upgrade offer in the user data section of the data storage 308 for subsequent use or transfer to the customer's rewards repository 814 in the main server 12. At step 926B, the processor 60 of the wirelessly connected fuel dispenser 18 is further operable to store, e.g., within the data storage 66 or the memory 64, any general and/or customer-specific rewards generated by the main server 12 and transferred to the wirelessly connected fuel dispenser 18 at step 92. Any such general and/or customer-specific rewards may, for example, be transferred to the mobile electronic device during fueling. If no such fuel upgrade offer is generated at step 922, the “NO” branch of step 924 skips step 926A and proceeds directly to step 918.")
Therefore, it would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teachings of Trevino, Pallas, Kim, Malnoe, and Harrell, because it allows for a system of wirelessly activating a plurality of electromechanically controlled fuel dispensers for subsequent dispensation of fuel into motor vehicles and/or fuel storage containers. (Pallas at Abstract and paras. 1-5).
As per claim 42,
Trevino explicitly teaches:
wherein at least one of: the mobile user device is one of a mobile phone, a tablet computer, and a laptop computer.
(Trevino US20150100152 at paras. 34-42, 47-49) ("[0034] In an embodiment, the BLE device may be a very small, battery powered device that has reduced control functionality but still serves as an application endpoint. An embodiment includes a BLE device (e.g., iBeacon by Apple® Inc.) that transmits a proximity “beacon” signal, which is detectable by compatible mobile computing node devices. The BLE device continuously transmits this beacon and is therefore always ready for a transaction. The transmitted beacon signal is used to “awaken” the corresponding application on a consumer's mobile computing node that is in nearby proximity to the BLE enabled VM. In other words, once a consumer is in close enough proximity to a BLE enabled VM; the application will activate and connect to the VM over the BLE wireless protocol. Once this data connection is established, the mobile computing node application serves as a client endpoint for the sales transaction.")
As per claim 43,
Trevino does not explicitly teach, however, Pallas does teach:
wherein the mobile user device is located in the vehicle.
(Pallas US20150242969 at Fig. 1, paras. 67-69, 73-75, 101-103) ("[0068] The terms “customer,” “fuel purchaser,” “purchaser” and “user,” and variants thereof, are used interchangeably in the following description. Such terms should be understood to define and refer to any purchaser of fuel from a retail fueling station including, but not limited to, an operator and/or any passenger of a motor vehicle to be or being refueled, an operator and/or any passenger of a motorized or non-motorized vehicle carrying, towing or otherwise transporting a motor vehicle to be or being refueled, an operator and/or any passenger of a motorized or non-motorized vehicle carrying, towing or otherwise transporting a fuel container to be or being filled with fuel, or the like." "[0225] In any case, at some point while the beacon(s) 224 is/are broadcasting the one or more unique wireless signals, the customer, carrying the customer's the mobile communication device 80 or approaching in a vehicle carrying the vehicle communication device 90, approaches one of the fuel dispensers 181-18N, 181-18M for the purpose of commencing a fuel purchase transaction. This scenario is depicted in FIG. 19 which illustrates one such beacon 224, mounted to, in, on or near the fuel dispenser 18, periodically broadcasting unique wireless signals which are represented in FIG. 19 by the semi-circular dashed lines emanating outwardly from the beacon 224." "[0226] FIG. 19. When within the broadcast range of the beacon 224, the mobile electronic device 80, 90 is able to detect the unique identification signals being periodically (or non-periodically) broadcast by the beacon 224. Illustratively, the broadcast range of the beacon is sufficiently large, wide and/or oriented to be detected by customers' mobile electronic devices 80, 90 during the normal approach to the fuel dispenser 18 by vehicle 76 and/or by foot, while is at the same time sufficiently small, narrow and/or oriented so as not to be detected by mobile electronic devices 80, 90 of customers being processed by one or more adjacent fuel dispensers 181-18N, 181-18M." ")
Therefore, it would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teachings of Trevino, Pallas, Kim, Malnoe, and Harrell, because it allows for a system of wirelessly activating a plurality of electromechanically controlled fuel dispensers for subsequent dispensation of fuel into motor vehicles and/or fuel storage containers. (Pallas at Abstract and paras. 1-5).
As per claim 44,
Trevino explicitly teaches:
further comprising the [fuel] dispenser communicating with the mobile user device using the secure two-way BLE connection
(Trevino US20150100152 at paras. 35-37, 52-54) ("[0036] In an embodiment the BLE device collects and caches operational information regarding that individual VM. This information may include alert/exception data, visits by technicians and product restock personnel, and/or any event data that occurs during the period of sales inactivity. This information will be relayed to the mobile computing node application upon an established BLE connection with the mobile computing node.")
Trevino does not explicitly teach, however, Pallas does teach:
fuel dispenser...
(Pallas US20150242969 at paras. 73-75, 101-103) "[0074] In the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 1, the main server 12 is illustratively connected to one or more local servers 161-16K via a private network 14, and each local server 161-16K is illustratively implemented at a fueling (or filling) station, i.e., a fuel sales facility or “fuel center”, 521-52K respectively." ("[0102] The various components of the fuel dispenser 18 illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2 are illustratively carried in a single housing 240 which may be formed using one or more panels of one or more suitable materials such as glass, plastic, metal or the like. The housing 240 may have any shape, and in one embodiment is generally rectangular in shape. In some embodiments, the housing 240 may carry a single fuel dispenser, and in other embodiments the housing 240 may carry multiple fuel dispensers, e.g., two fuel dispensers, each facing in opposite directions.")
such that the fuel dispenser transmits information to the mobile user device during a time when the dispenser is dispensing the product.
(Pallas US20150242969 at paras. 164-166) ("[0165] At step 926A, the processor 60 of the wirelessly connected fuel dispenser is operable to transfer to the mobile electronic device, via the wireless communication link, the fuel upgrade offer, if any, transferred thereto by the main server 12. Such a fuel grade upgrade offer enters the mobile electronic device at step 918, e.g., along with current fuel type/grade pricing information. The customer may, in some embodiments, have the option of applying the fuel grade upgrade offer to the current purchase of fuel, or to store the fuel grade upgrade offer in the user data section of the data storage 308 for subsequent use or transfer to the customer's rewards repository 814 in the main server 12. At step 926B, the processor 60 of the wirelessly connected fuel dispenser 18 is further operable to store, e.g., within the data storage 66 or the memory 64, any general and/or customer-specific rewards generated by the main server 12 and transferred to the wirelessly connected fuel dispenser 18 at step 92. Any such general and/or customer-specific rewards may, for example, be transferred to the mobile electronic device during fueling. If no such fuel upgrade offer is generated at step 922, the “NO” branch of step 924 skips step 926A and proceeds directly to step 918.")
Therefore, it would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teachings of Trevino, Pallas, Kim, Malnoe, and Harrell, because it allows for a system of wirelessly activating a plurality of electromechanically controlled fuel dispensers for subsequent dispensation of fuel into motor vehicles and/or fuel storage containers. (Pallas at Abstract and paras. 1-5).
As per claim 47,
Trevino explicitly teaches:
A method, comprising: a mobile user device simultaneously detecting a Bluetooth Lower Energy (BLE) signal emitted from each of [a plurality of fuel dispensers at a fueling station], each [fuel] dispenser of the plurality of [fuel] dispensers being configured to dispense [fuel] therefrom;
(Trevino US20150100152 at paras. 32-36, 118-120) ("[0119] In an embodiment the first and second VMs can simultaneously be in Device Discovered mode by a single mobile node." "[0032] An embodiment includes architecture comprising a simple VM controller (VMC) that is generally equivalent in terms of complexity to conventional electromechanical servo devices. In other words, the embodiment includes a controller with the capacity to actuate and control simple tasks of managing the environment of the machine (e.g., cooling mechanism for the VM) and vending a product (e.g., actuation of controls that make product accessible to the buyer). ")
in response to detecting the BLE signals, causing a secure two-way BLE connection with the mobile user device to be established automatically that allows secure communication between the mobile user device and each [fuel] dispenser using a BLE communication protocol;
(Trevino US20150100152 at paras. 47-49, 53-55) ("[0054] FIG. 7 includes a process for creating a secure channel in an embodiment of the invention. Application 104 and vending device 103 require a secure communication channel (element 702) to exchange purchase and monetary information with each other. In an embodiment there is also the need for a persistent insecure channel which will be used to enable key exchange and the creation of the secure channel. The following sequence may be used for technology (e.g., BLE) where services may be defined such that a secure service and an insecure service are provided. In a normal state, element 103 will advertise (over insecure channel 701) a locally stored unique identifier (UUID). As application 104 remains in Proximity Detect mode and appears within signal range of an element 103 device(s), element 104 will detect the UUID advertisement upon close proximity (element 703) to device 103. Element 104 will validate the format of the UUID and generate a cryptographic nonce value. Element 104 will relay the nonce to element 103 via the insecure channel (element 704). At that point, both element 103 and element 104 will independently generate a key value using the UUID, the nonce, and a proprietary hash/encode (elements 705, 706). The logic of this method represents a shared secret between elements 103 and 104 and will result in the identical key value being generated independently by elements 103 and 104. Various embodiments may use varying protocols to generate symmetric keys (e.g., Diffie-Hellman, SIGn and MAc (Sigma), and the like). At this point, elements 103 and 104 may begin using secure channel 702 by utilizing the derived keys to encrypt payloads for all traffic over this service (element 708) using, for example, Advance Encryption Standard (AES) and the like. Note that insecure payloads may be exchanged via channel 701 at any time (element 707). Element 104 may also regenerate the nonce value and resend the key generation command. This allows for increased security by allowing a rolling key value based on time or other event information." "[0048] the communication protocol “may be Bluetooth®, BTL, Wi-Fi, NFC, and the like.”)
after the GUI is displayed, receiving a first user input to the mobile user device selecting a first selectable indicator identifying the [fuel] dispenser and
(Trevino US20150100152 at paras. 52-54) ("[0053] Upon receipt and validation of the payment authorization by element 104 a delivery/vend actuation command (element 609) is sent to element 103 (from application 104) to deliver the physical goods. Note that element 609 will be specific to the type of device 103 and to the type of goods delivered. For the purposes of this description, element 609 is considered to be a remote command to unlock a door or drawer that contains the product to be purchased (or in other embodiments, for example, display a QR with purchased content encoded therein, and the like). Upon receiving actuation command (element 609), element 103 performs the action requested and the product is delivered (element 610) and its delivery is validated by element 103. This validation may occur in several forms. In an embodiment element 103 has an array of sensors, such as optical sensors or weight measurement sensors, which detect product removal from 104. User 105 receives goods (element 610) and the validate delivery status is relayed (element 613) by element 103 to element 104. Element 104 formats a complete sales session and transaction record and transmits (element 611) this information to element 102. Element 102 utilizes this information to update all information (element 614) related to elements 105, 104, 103, 101. This portion of the process ends with element 104 displaying a Confirmation/Thank You user interface (UI) to user 105 (element 612) after which, all devices return to normal state.")
after the first user input is received, causing the mobile user device to control operation of the [fuel] dispenser;
(Trevino US20150100152 at paras. 33-35) ("The transmitted beacon signal is used to “awaken” the corresponding application on a consumer's mobile computing node that is in nearby proximity to the BLE enabled VM." "[0117] FIG. 18 includes an embodiment of a UI and a process for viewing inventory of disparate VMs. At element 1801 BLE detects nearby VMs and gets their respective information from server 102. The UI of element 1801 is for VM #198 and it is one out of 5 machines nearby as the reference dots in the bottom part of the screen show. At element 1802, the user may want a product not listed for VM #198 so the user “swipes” to the next VM (that has been discovered) to see what products are available.")
Trevino does not explicitly teach, however, Pallas does teach:
a plurality of fuel dispensers…configured to dispense fuel…
(Pallas US20150242969 at paras. 73-75, 101-103) "[0074] In the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 1, the main server 12 is illustratively connected to one or more local servers 161-16K via a private network 14, and each local server 161-16K is illustratively implemented at a fueling (or filling) station, i.e., a fuel sales facility or “fuel center”, 521-52K respectively." ("[0102] The various components of the fuel dispenser 18 illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2 are illustratively carried in a single housing 240 which may be formed using one or more panels of one or more suitable materials such as glass, plastic, metal or the like. The housing 240 may have any shape, and in one embodiment is generally rectangular in shape. In some embodiments, the housing 240 may carry a single fuel dispenser, and in other embodiments the housing 240 may carry multiple fuel dispensers, e.g., two fuel dispensers, each facing in opposite directions.")
after the secure two-way BLE connection is established, transmitting payment data from the mobile user device to the [fuel] dispenser allowing a payment transaction to be performed between the selected [fuel] dispenser and the mobile user device that pays for the [fuel] product to be dispensed from the [fuel] dispenser and
(Pallas US20150242969 at paras. 27-29, 82, 105, 192, 264) ("[0028] In a tenth aspect, a method is provided for remotely activating an electromechanically controlled fuel dispenser using a mobile electronic device having a processor coupled to a display monitor and to a wireless communication circuit, the mobile electronic device having stored therein payment information identifying at least one system of payment specific to a user of the mobile electronic device via which payment can be processed for the purchase of fuel. The method may comprise automatically or in response to user input to the mobile electronic device, controlling with the processor the wireless communication circuit to establish a wireless communication link with one of the electromechanically controlled fuel dispenser and a server coupled thereto that is within a wireless communication range of the mobile electronic device, controlling the display monitor to display the payment information, transmitting the payment information to the one of the fuel dispenser and the server coupled thereto via the wireless communication link, and in response to receipt by the mobile electronic device from the one of the fuel dispenser and the server coupled thereto, via the wireless communication link, of information indicating whether the at least one system of payment identified by the payment information is accepted for processing of payment for the purchase of fuel to be dispensed from the fuel dispenser, controlling the display monitor to display at least one of (a) a message indicating acceptance of the at least one system of payment identified by the payment information for processing of payment for the purchase of fuel to be dispensed from the fuel dispenser, and (b) a plurality or a subset of the plurality of different fuels that are dispensable from the fuel dispenser." "[0082] Generally, the communication circuitry 28 may be configured to use any one or more, or combination, of conventional secure and/or unsecure communication protocols to conduct communications between the main server 12 and the one or more local servers 161-16K. As such, the network 14 may include any number of additional devices, such as additional computers, routers, and switches, to facilitate communications between the main server 12 and the one or more local servers 161-16K. Communication between the one or more local servers 161-16K and the one or more electromechanically controlled fuel dispensers 181-18N, 181-18M may take place via one or more conventional wired or wireless communication interfaces." "[0109] The communication circuitry 310 is illustratively identical to the communication circuitry 68 of the fuel dispenser 18, particularly in embodiments in which a wireless communication link will be established between the fuel dispenser 18 and the mobile communication device 80 and/or between the mobile communication device 80 and another electronic system, e.g., one of the plurality of local servers 161-16K and/or the main server 12. In the illustrated embodiment, the communication circuitry 310 illustratively includes a wireless communication circuit 310, and in some embodiments the wireless communication circuit 310 further illustratively includes a Bluetooth® module 314 configured to conduct radio frequency communication in accordance with one or more known Bluetooth® communications protocols (including, for example, Bluetooth® Low Energy). If and when wirelessly communicating with the main server 12, a local server 16 or a fuel dispenser 18, the mobile communication device 16 may use any suitable communication protocol.")
historical data characterizing fuel dispenser locations where the vehicle was previously fueled by the user of the mobile user device, the vehicle data and
(Pallas US20150242969 at paras. 16-18, 133-135, 190-193) ("[0016] In the second aspect, each of the plurality of fuel dispensers may be part of a retail enterprise, and the at least one database may have stored therein a plurality of purchase histories each containing a record of purchases previously made from the retail enterprise by a different one of the plurality of customers members of the membership service program, and a plurality of mobile communication device codes each identifying a different mobile communication device carried by different one of the plurality of customer members," "[0134] In any case, all such purchase transaction data relating to fuel purchased by such an identified customer during a purchase transaction carried out via one of the fuel dispensers 18 of the retail enterprise is illustratively stored in the customer purchase history database 808 where it is associated with the identified customer via the customer's EMSID." "[0190] Referring to FIG. 14A, for example, a modified embodiment 802′ of the server database within the software environment 800 of the main server 12 may in some embodiments include fuel center/dispenser location data 816 having stored therein location data identifying locations of the various fuel centers 521-52K and/or of the various fuel dispensers 181-18N, 181-18M relative to one or more known locations and/or structures, or from which the locations of the various fuel centers 521-52K and/or of the various fuel dispensers 181-18N, 181-18M can be determined by the processor 20 of the main server 12 and/or by the processor of a mobile electronic device, e.g., the processor 300 of a mobile communication device 80 or the processor 400 of a vehicle communication device 90. Examples of such location data stored in the fuel center/dispenser location data 816, as well as example processing of such data, will be described hereinafter with respect to FIGS. 18-22.")
the historical data acquired anonymously at the fuel dispenser locations where the vehicle was previously fueled by the user of the mobile user device.
(Pallas US20150242969 at paras. 16-18, 69-72, 133-135, 190-193) ("[0070] In some embodiments, the enterprise served by the main (or “enterprise”) server is 12 a retail enterprise that offers for sale goods and/or services in addition to fuel. As will be further described below, the main server 12 in some such embodiments illustratively hosts an enterprise member services (EMS) program which includes or otherwise has access to a database containing a plurality of virtual customer rewards repositories each configured to store and manage virtual rewards/offers for a different one of a corresponding plurality of customer-members of the EMS program. The EMS program further illustratively includes a customer purchase history database containing purchase histories of one or more customers of the retail enterprise. In addition to virtual discount coupons offered to all customers of the EMS program, the EMS program also illustratively includes, in some embodiments, a customized reward/offer feature in which the purchase history of each customer-member is collected over time and stored, and customer-specific rewards or offers for goods and/or services offered for sale by the enterprise are then generated from a database of rewards/offers based on the customer's purchase history. Such customer-specific rewards or offers are then typically stored in the customer's rewards repository in the form of virtual rewards or offers; i.e., virtual discount coupons, that may be subsequently redeemed by the customer toward the purchase of corresponding products and/or services offered for sale by the enterprise. As used herein, the term “enterprise member services program,” “enterprise membership services program” or EMS and “shopper membership service” are interchangeable and refer to a shopper or customer service which may offer to customer members one or more services such as making available to customers one or more virtual discount coupons that may be redeemable by the retail enterprise against the purchase of from the retail enterprise of various goods, which may include fuel, and/or services and/or tracking and maintaining customer purchase histories in the customer purchase history database accessible by the main server 12. In this regard, the terms “shopper membership account” and “EMS account” are likewise interchangeable and refer to a mechanism by which the retail enterprise may make available to customers one or more virtual discount coupons and/or by which a customer's purchase history and information about the customer can be maintained by the main server 12 in a database separately from purchase histories of and information about other customers. Further in this regard, the term “EMS identification code” or EMSID illustratively refers to at least one collection of letters, symbols and/or numbers that is different for, and therefore unique to, each customer member of the enterprise membership services program, and which is used to uniquely identify a customer's EMS account within the enterprise membership services program. In one embodiment, for example, the EMSID for each customer may include a unique, several-digit access code and a separate and unique, several-digit password, although in other embodiments the EMSID may include more, fewer and/or different codes and/or passwords.")
Therefore, it would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teachings of Trevino and Pallas, because it allows for a system of wirelessly activating a plurality of electromechanically controlled fuel dispensers for subsequent dispensation of fuel into motor vehicles and/or fuel storage containers. (Pallas at Abstract and paras. 1-5).
Trevino and Pallas do not explicitly teach, however, Kim does teach:
in response to automatically establishing the secure two-way BLE connection, causing a graphical user interface (GUI) to be automatically displayed on the mobile user device, the GUI depicting a plurality of first selectable indicators characterizing respective [fuel dispensers of the plurality of fuel dispensers] and a plurality of second selectable indicators characterizing a selection of operational data associated with respective [fuel dispensers of the plurality of fuel dispensers]
(Kim US20150304171 at paras. 50, 97-99, 111-118) ("[0050] In some embodiments, direct communication between network devices 102, 104, 106 and mobile device 108 may occur using various communications protocols, such as Universal Plug and Play (UPnP), Bluetooth®, Zigbee®, Ultra-Wideband (UWB), WiFi-Direct, WiFi, Bluetooth® Low Energy (BLE), sound frequencies, and/or the like." "[0098] The process 500 utilizes intra-network communications to inform a cloud network server of the existence of network devices and to provide interface modules for the network devices to a mobile device and/or a gateway. At 502, the process 500 includes receiving communications indicating that network devices have been detected in a network. As shown in FIG. 5, 502 can be performed as part of device discovery." "[0117] In some embodiments, the displays of FIGS. 6, 7, 8A, and 8B can be rendered by performing a computer-implemented method. For example, the method can include receiving, at a computing device, one or more interface modules, wherein each interface module defines a tile associated with a corresponding network device on a network, and then presenting, on a display of the computing device, a graphical interface including the one or more tiles, wherein each tile includes information identifying the corresponding network device and one or more interactive elements usable to control the network device. For example, the computing device can be mobile device 108, the display can be display 222, and the tiles can include tiles 602A, 602B, 602C and 702A. The one or more interactive elements can correspond to a primary setting or function of the network devices, such as, for example, power buttons 608A, 608C and 708A. In embodiments, the information identifying the network devices can include an icon, name, and state for each of the network devices. For example, the information identifying the network devices can include icons 604A, 604B, 604C and 704A, and corresponding device names 606A, 606B, 606C, and 706A. The information identifying a state of a network device can be status indicators 610B, 610C, and 710. In some embodiments, the method can also include receiving, at the computing device, input corresponding to a selection of a primary setting for the network device, and the tile can include a contextual menu or drawer, such as sub-menu 714, corresponding to a secondary setting or functionality for the network device, wherein the secondary setting or functionality is associated with the primary setting or functionality. According to certain embodiments, a tile 702A associated with a network device having extended or tertiary functionalities includes a full menu or drawer 826, wherein the full menu 826 is displayed in response to receiving input corresponding to a selection of interactive element 712. For example, the full menu 826 can include interactive elements 830, 832, 836 for selecting settings or actions corresponding to tertiary or extended functions of the network device. The full menu 826 can be embodied as a drawer including a status indicator 610B, 610C, 710 for the network device, schedule data 834, and historical data associated with the network device, such as, for example, temperature readings 828.")
a second user input to the mobile device selecting the operational data associated with the [fuel] dispenser
(Kim US20150304171 at paras. 50, 97-107, 116-118) ("[0100] At 508, the process 500 includes displaying, within an application executing on the mobile device and/or gateway, tiles corresponding to the transmitted user interface modules. This can be accomplished by rendering the display 222 described above with reference to FIG. 2. Next, at 510, input corresponding to a selection of a setting for a primary function for one of the network devices is received. In an embodiment, 510 can include receiving a touch input at an interactive element of a tile for a given network device. Then, at 512, the process 500 includes determining whether a secondary function is related to the primary function. If it is determined that there is a related secondary function, control is passed to 514 where a sub-menu, such as, for example, a peekaboo drawer, is displayed with options for the secondary function. In an embodiment, 514 can include automatically displaying the sub-menu and indicating a default selection for the secondary function. For example, if the primary function selected at 510 turned on a space heater network device, step 514 can include displaying low, eco, medium, and high secondary operational modes for the space heater and indicating that a default setting of eco mode has been selected." "[0106] Throughout FIGS. 6, 7, 8A, and 8B, displays are shown with various tiles, interactive elements, icons, links, command regions, windows, toolbars, sub-menus, drawers, and buttons that are used to initiate action, invoke routines, monitor network devices, configure network devices, control network devices, or invoke other functionality. The initiated actions include, but are not limited to, displaying a current state of a network device, displaying historical data associated with a network device, displaying a last known status of a network device, selecting one or more primary settings for a network device, selecting one or more secondary or tertiary settings of a network device, and other inputs and gestures. For brevity, only the differences occurring within the figures, as compared to previous or subsequent ones of the figures, are described below.")
after the second user input is received, causing the GUI to display the selected operational data associated with the [fuel] dispenser; and
(Kim US20150304171 at paras. 50, 97-107, 116-118) ("[0100] At 508, the process 500 includes displaying, within an application executing on the mobile device and/or gateway, tiles corresponding to the transmitted user interface modules. This can be accomplished by rendering the display 222 described above with reference to FIG. 2. Next, at 510, input corresponding to a selection of a setting for a primary function for one of the network devices is received. In an embodiment, 510 can include receiving a touch input at an interactive element of a tile for a given network device. Then, at 512, the process 500 includes determining whether a secondary function is related to the primary function. If it is determined that there is a related secondary function, control is passed to 514 where a sub-menu, such as, for example, a peekaboo drawer, is displayed with options for the secondary function. In an embodiment, 514 can include automatically displaying the sub-menu and indicating a default selection for the secondary function. For example, if the primary function selected at 510 turned on a space heater network device, step 514 can include displaying low, eco, medium, and high secondary operational modes for the space heater and indicating that a default setting of eco mode has been selected." "[0106] Throughout FIGS. 6, 7, 8A, and 8B, displays are shown with various tiles, interactive elements, icons, links, command regions, windows, toolbars, sub-menus, drawers, and buttons that are used to initiate action, invoke routines, monitor network devices, configure network devices, control network devices, or invoke other functionality. The initiated actions include, but are not limited to, displaying a current state of a network device, displaying historical data associated with a network device, displaying a last known status of a network device, selecting one or more primary settings for a network device, selecting one or more secondary or tertiary settings of a network device, and other inputs and gestures. For brevity, only the differences occurring within the figures, as compared to previous or subsequent ones of the figures, are described below.")
transmitting at least one of a maintenance log, an error log, and a fuel purchase log included in the selected operational data and associated with the selected [fuel] dispenser to the mobile user device,
(Kim US20150304171 at paras. 40, 81, 97-107, 116-118) ("[0040] In some embodiments, a modular tile framework is provided for displaying a visual interface including a navigable list of tiles, each tile representing one discovered, controllable network device. For instance, the navigable list can be a scrollable table of modular tiles with each tile including a collection of independent user interface elements for monitoring and/or controlling aspects of a respective discovered network device. In some embodiments, each tile has an icon representing a network device, a name of the device, and one or more interactive interface elements for interactively controlling and/or monitoring the device. In certain embodiments, tiles can include textual and/or graphical elements that convey state or status information for a network device. According to an embodiment, each tile has a consistent look and feel with respect to other tiles rendered within a sortable list of network devices by an application used to control the devices. For example, each tile within the framework can have a similar layout with icons having substantially the same sizes, text such as device names having similar font types and sizes, and similar color schemes or palettes. Depending on the properties and functionalities of a network device being controlled, a tile for the network device can include one or more interactive interface elements usable to control a primary functionality of the device. For example, a tile may include a button, a toggle switch, a dial, and/or a slider element that can be selected in order to control primary functions such as turning a network device on and off. In certain embodiments, the status or state of a network device can be indicated within the tile with text and/or graphically. For instance, coloring or shading of an interactive element, such as a power button element, can indicate whether a network device is connected to the network, powered off, on, restarting, or in a standby, sleep or hibernation mode. In accordance with these examples, part of a power button interface element in the tile can be shaded green when the device is powered on, red or un-shaded when the device is off, and pulsating and/or yellow when the device is in a transitional state. Examples of devices in transitional states include devices that are booting up, restarting, connecting to a network, or re-connecting to the network. In additional or alternative embodiments, the state of a network device can be conveyed by text displayed within a modular visual interface. For example, for a sensor device, text indicating the time and sensor-specific type of the most-recent activity detected (i.e., motion, temperature, sound, presence of a gas, or presence of a liquid) can be indicated as a text message within a tile. [0081] Display 222 can also include an indicator representing a state of network device 102. In embodiments, communications 212 and/or 214 can include a last known state of the network device 102 and/or historical data associated with the network device 102. In one embodiment, such state information can be based on information received via communication 212 from the network device 102 when the mobile device 108 is connected to the local area network 100. In this way, display 222 of the mobile device 108 can reflect a current state and historical data for the network device 102 when the mobile device is not connected to the local area network 100. In additional or alternative embodiments, the state information can be based on information received via communication 216 from the cloud network 114 when the mobile device 108 is connected to the cloud network 114. Using the state information, an interface module or tile for the network device 102 within display 222 can indicate an ‘on’ or ‘off’ state for the network device 102 when the network device is powered on or off.")
Therefore, it would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teachings of Trevino, Pallas, and Kim, because it allows for a system of initiating action(s) using an interface configured to control operation of IoT devices. (Kim at Abstract and paras. 9-39).
Trevino, Pallas, and Kim do not explicitly teach, however, Malnoe does teach:
the profile data including vehicle data characterizing at least one of a make, model, and year of the vehicle and
(Malnoe US20030200108 at paras. 83-87) ("[0084] At the dispenser position, the refueling transaction is executed. In particular, the refueling equipment is configured according to the transaction parameter selections communicated from the user device, and billing/payment is finalized according to the billing/payment information communicated from the user device. Once the transaction is completed, operation 106 is executed in order to transmit the generated virtual transaction receipt to the user device at the user position. [0085] Referring to FIG. 4, the illustrated operating sequence includes the operating sequence shown in FIG. 3, but further comprises operation 108 involving communication of customer vehicle information from the user device to the dispenser position, and operation 110 involving communication of maintenance-service recommendations from the dispenser position to the user device. [0086] As an enhancement, the user device furnishes the dispenser position with vehicle information that is analyzed and processed to determine any vehicle servicing or maintenance recommendations based upon the vehicle information analysis. For example, the vehicle information can include, but is not limited to, mileage, vehicle year/make/model, and repair history. The vehicle information can be furnished to the dispenser position in a user profile that also includes the information pertaining to operations 100, 102, and 104. For purposes of performing the analysis, the dispenser position will be equipped with any suitable maintenance and service analysis/evaluation units, such as conventional forms.")
Therefore, it would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teachings of Trevino, Pallas, Kim, and Malnoe, because it allows for an improved system to control the dispensing operation in conventional manner by properly configuring the dispensing equipment according to input selections indicative of values for certain refueling parameters. For example, processor 22 could be connected to the fuel pump and flowmeter to control the amount of fuel that is dispensed and improved communication of vehicle servicing or maintenance recommendations based upon the vehicle information analysis. For example, the vehicle information can include, but is not limited to, mileage, vehicle year/make/model, and repair history. (Malnoe at Abstract and paras. 2-10, 56, 86).
Trevino, Pallas, Kim, and Malnoe do not explicitly teach, however, Harrell does teach:
wherein the fuel dispenser is operably coupled to a controller remote from the fuel dispenser and configured to authorize the payment transaction based on profile data associated with the user of the mobile user device and stored in a memory of the controller,
(Harrell US20070106559 at paras. 47-48, 74, 180, 183) ("[0047] Typically, at least some customer identification data is sent from the fuel dispenser to facility controller 120. The facility controller may then determine the validity of the customer identifier. Determining the validity of the customer identifier may include performing a checksum of the data received therefrom or contacting the issuer of the customer identifier to determine whether the customer identifier is valid. Also, the facility controller may check the authorization of the customer identifier. For example, the facility controller may contact a payment card issuer to determine the credit limit of a payment card. [0048] If the facility controller determines that the customer identifier is valid and/or authorized, the facility controller may activate the fuel dispenser, which may then dispense fuel to the customer. [0074] a remote computer (e.g., a facility controller). [0180] use business rules to determine whether the customer identifier is valid (e.g., by performing a checksum) and whether the amount of the order is within predetermined a limit (e.g., less than $50), which may be based on a customer profile. [0183] The customer-related data may be acquired based on customer interaction with a fuel dispenser, or other components at a fueling facility, or based on customer-specified criteria, entered at the fuel dispenser, a local fueling facility computer, or a remote computer (e.g., through a Web interface). The customer-related data may be stored locally at the fueling facility (e.g., at a facility controller) and/or remotely (e.g., at a remote server).)
Therefore, it would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teachings of Trevino, Pallas, Kim, Malnoe, and Harrell, because safety, reliability, and efficiency for fueling facilities may be improved by intelligent control of fuel dispensers. (Harrell at Abstract and paras. 2-17, 37).
As per claim 48,
Trevino explicitly teaches:
further comprising the mobile user device communicating with the selected [fuel] dispenser of the plurality of [fuel] dispensers using the secure two-way BLE connection.
(Trevino US20150100152 at paras. 34-42, 47-49, 75-77) ("[0035] The mobile computing node application can serve as the “dashboard” for the transaction itself. Accordingly, an embodiment includes VM with no buttons or user interface (UI) with which a user interacts to select a good. Such a VM may include no such UI, but may still include a display whose interaction with the user is little beyond pure marketing. All user interaction for selecting a vended product in response to a user initiated selection is between the consumer and the mobile computing node application. In such an embodiment the VM is little more than a cooler (for VMs that vend goods that need to be cooled) with an electronic door or product lock mechanism for dispensing a good, under the control of the BLE and mobile computing node application. As used herein, a UI is defined as the junction between a user and logic including an interface coupled to a set of commands or menus through which a user communicates with the logic." "[0076] An embodiment includes a distributed network of Vending/Point of Sales machines consisting of a simple VM containing no additional communications systems beyond a single a BLE communications function used in both secure and insecure modes to communicate with the mobile computing node application.")
Trevino does not explicitly teach, however, Pallas does teach:
a plurality of fuel dispensers...
(Pallas US20150242969 at paras. 73-75, 101-103) "[0074] In the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 1, the main server 12 is illustratively connected to one or more local servers 161-16K via a private network 14, and each local server 161-16K is illustratively implemented at a fueling (or filling) station, i.e., a fuel sales facility or “fuel center”, 521-52K respectively." ("[0102] The various components of the fuel dispenser 18 illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2 are illustratively carried in a single housing 240 which may be formed using one or more panels of one or more suitable materials such as glass, plastic, metal or the like. The housing 240 may have any shape, and in one embodiment is generally rectangular in shape. In some embodiments, the housing 240 may carry a single fuel dispenser, and in other embodiments the housing 240 may carry multiple fuel dispensers, e.g., two fuel dispensers, each facing in opposite directions.")
Therefore, it would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teachings of Trevino, Pallas, Kim, Malnoe, and Harrell, because it allows for a system of wirelessly activating a plurality of electromechanically controlled fuel dispensers for subsequent dispensation of fuel into motor vehicles and/or fuel storage containers. (Pallas at Abstract and paras. 1-5).
As per claim 49,
Trevino explicitly teaches:
further comprising the mobile user device communicating to the selected [fuel] dispenser of the plurality of [fuel] dispensers, using the secure two-way BLE connection,
(Trevino US20150100152 at paras. 34-42, 47-49, 75-77) ("[0035] The mobile computing node application can serve as the “dashboard” for the transaction itself. Accordingly, an embodiment includes VM with no buttons or user interface (UI) with which a user interacts to select a good. Such a VM may include no such UI, but may still include a display whose interaction with the user is little beyond pure marketing. All user interaction for selecting a vended product in response to a user initiated selection is between the consumer and the mobile computing node application. In such an embodiment the VM is little more than a cooler (for VMs that vend goods that need to be cooled) with an electronic door or product lock mechanism for dispensing a good, under the control of the BLE and mobile computing node application. As used herein, a UI is defined as the junction between a user and logic including an interface coupled to a set of commands or menus through which a user communicates with the logic." "[0076] An embodiment includes a distributed network of Vending/Point of Sales machines consisting of a simple VM containing no additional communications systems beyond a single a BLE communications function used in both secure and insecure modes to communicate with the mobile computing node application.")
additional information controlling operation of the selected [fuel] dispenser of the plurality of [fuel] dispensers to dispense [fuel] therefrom.
(Trevino US20150100152 at paras. 52-54) ("[0053] Upon receipt and validation of the payment authorization by element 104 a delivery/vend actuation command (element 609) is sent to element 103 (from application 104) to deliver the physical goods. Note that element 609 will be specific to the type of device 103 and to the type of goods delivered. For the purposes of this description, element 609 is considered to be a remote command to unlock a door or drawer that contains the product to be purchased (or in other embodiments, for example, display a QR with purchased content encoded therein, and the like). Upon receiving actuation command (element 609), element 103 performs the action requested and the product is delivered (element 610) and its delivery is validated by element 103. This validation may occur in several forms. In an embodiment element 103 has an array of sensors, such as optical sensors or weight measurement sensors, which detect product removal from 104. User 105 receives goods (element 610) and the validate delivery status is relayed (element 613) by element 103 to element 104. Element 104 formats a complete sales session and transaction record and transmits (element 611) this information to element 102. Element 102 utilizes this information to update all information (element 614) related to elements 105, 104, 103, 101. This portion of the process ends with element 104 displaying a Confirmation/Thank You user interface (UI) to user 105 (element 612) after which, all devices return to normal state.")
Trevino does not explicitly teach, however, Pallas does teach:
a plurality of fuel dispensers…to dispense fuel…
(Pallas US20150242969 at paras. 73-75, 101-103) "[0074] In the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 1, the main server 12 is illustratively connected to one or more local servers 161-16K via a private network 14, and each local server 161-16K is illustratively implemented at a fueling (or filling) station, i.e., a fuel sales facility or “fuel center”, 521-52K respectively." ("[0102] The various components of the fuel dispenser 18 illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2 are illustratively carried in a single housing 240 which may be formed using one or more panels of one or more suitable materials such as glass, plastic, metal or the like. The housing 240 may have any shape, and in one embodiment is generally rectangular in shape. In some embodiments, the housing 240 may carry a single fuel dispenser, and in other embodiments the housing 240 may carry multiple fuel dispensers, e.g., two fuel dispensers, each facing in opposite directions.")
Therefore, it would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teachings of Trevino, Pallas, Kim, Malnoe, and Harrell, because it allows for a system of wirelessly activating a plurality of electromechanically controlled fuel dispensers for subsequent dispensation of fuel into motor vehicles and/or fuel storage containers. (Pallas at Abstract and paras. 1-5).
As per claim 52,
Trevino explicitly teaches:
wherein the mobile user device is one of a mobile phone, a tablet computer, and a laptop computer.
(Trevino US20150100152 at paras. 34-42, 47-49) ("[0034] In an embodiment, the BLE device may be a very small, battery powered device that has reduced control functionality but still serves as an application endpoint. An embodiment includes a BLE device (e.g., iBeacon by Apple® Inc.) that transmits a proximity “beacon” signal, which is detectable by compatible mobile computing node devices. The BLE device continuously transmits this beacon and is therefore always ready for a transaction. The transmitted beacon signal is used to “awaken” the corresponding application on a consumer's mobile computing node that is in nearby proximity to the BLE enabled VM. In other words, once a consumer is in close enough proximity to a BLE enabled VM; the application will activate and connect to the VM over the BLE wireless protocol. Once this data connection is established, the mobile computing node application serves as a client endpoint for the sales transaction.")
As per claim 53,
Trevino does not explicitly teach, however, Pallas does teach:
wherein the mobile user device is located in a vehicle.
(Pallas US20150242969 at Fig. 1, paras. 67-69, 73-75, 101-103) ("[0068] The terms “customer,” “fuel purchaser,” “purchaser” and “user,” and variants thereof, are used interchangeably in the following description. Such terms should be understood to define and refer to any purchaser of fuel from a retail fueling station including, but not limited to, an operator and/or any passenger of a motor vehicle to be or being refueled, an operator and/or any passenger of a motorized or non-motorized vehicle carrying, towing or otherwise transporting a motor vehicle to be or being refueled, an operator and/or any passenger of a motorized or non-motorized vehicle carrying, towing or otherwise transporting a fuel container to be or being filled with fuel, or the like." "[0225] In any case, at some point while the beacon(s) 224 is/are broadcasting the one or more unique wireless signals, the customer, carrying the customer's the mobile communication device 80 or approaching in a vehicle carrying the vehicle communication device 90, approaches one of the fuel dispensers 181-18N, 181-18M for the purpose of commencing a fuel purchase transaction. This scenario is depicted in FIG. 19 which illustrates one such beacon 224, mounted to, in, on or near the fuel dispenser 18, periodically broadcasting unique wireless signals which are represented in FIG. 19 by the semi-circular dashed lines emanating outwardly from the beacon 224." "[0226] FIG. 19. When within the broadcast range of the beacon 224, the mobile electronic device 80, 90 is able to detect the unique identification signals being periodically (or non-periodically) broadcast by the beacon 224. Illustratively, the broadcast range of the beacon is sufficiently large, wide and/or oriented to be detected by customers' mobile electronic devices 80, 90 during the normal approach to the fuel dispenser 18 by vehicle 76 and/or by foot, while is at the same time sufficiently small, narrow and/or oriented so as not to be detected by mobile electronic devices 80, 90 of customers being processed by one or more adjacent fuel dispensers 181-18N, 181-18M." ")
Therefore, it would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teachings of Trevino, Pallas, Kim, Malnoe, and Harrell, because it allows for a system of wirelessly activating a plurality of electromechanically controlled fuel dispensers for subsequent dispensation of fuel into motor vehicles and/or fuel storage containers. (Pallas at Abstract and paras. 1-5).
As per claim 57,
Trevino does not explicitly teach, however, Pallas does teach:
wherein the operational data comprises at least one of a maintenance log of the fuel dispenser, an error log of the fuel dispenser, a fuel purchasing history of the fuel dispenser, health information of the fuel dispenser, performance data of the fuel dispenser as compared to the plurality of fuel dispensers, and sensor data acquired via one or more sensors operatively coupled to the fuel dispenser.
(Pallas US20150242969 at paras. 16-18, 133-135, 190-193) ("[0016] In the second aspect, each of the plurality of fuel dispensers may be part of a retail enterprise, and the at least one database may have stored therein a plurality of purchase histories each containing a record of purchases previously made from the retail enterprise by a different one of the plurality of customers members of the membership service program, and a plurality of mobile communication device codes each identifying a different mobile communication device carried by different one of the plurality of customer members," "[0134] In any case, all such purchase transaction data relating to fuel purchased by such an identified customer during a purchase transaction carried out via one of the fuel dispensers 18 of the retail enterprise is illustratively stored in the customer purchase history database 808 where it is associated with the identified customer via the customer's EMSID." "[0190] Referring to FIG. 14A, for example, a modified embodiment 802′ of the server database within the software environment 800 of the main server 12 may in some embodiments include fuel center/dispenser location data 816 having stored therein location data identifying locations of the various fuel centers 521-52K and/or of the various fuel dispensers 181-18N, 181-18M relative to one or more known locations and/or structures, or from which the locations of the various fuel centers 521-52K and/or of the various fuel dispensers 181-18N, 181-18M can be determined by the processor 20 of the main server 12 and/or by the processor of a mobile electronic device, e.g., the processor 300 of a mobile communication device 80 or the processor 400 of a vehicle communication device 90. Examples of such location data stored in the fuel center/dispenser location data 816, as well as example processing of such data, will be described hereinafter with respect to FIGS. 18-22.")
Therefore, it would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teachings of Trevino, Pallas, Kim, Malnoe, and Harrell, because it allows for a system of wirelessly activating a plurality of electromechanically controlled fuel dispensers for subsequent dispensation of fuel into motor vehicles and/or fuel storage containers. (Pallas at Abstract and paras. 1-5).
As per claim 58,
Trevino does not explicitly teach, however, Pallas does teach:
the historical data are acquired anonymously at the fuel dispenser locations where the vehicle was previously fueled by the user of the mobile user device.
(Pallas US20150242969 at paras. 16-18, 69-72, 133-135, 190-193) ("[0070] In some embodiments, the enterprise served by the main (or “enterprise”) server is 12 a retail enterprise that offers for sale goods and/or services in addition to fuel. As will be further described below, the main server 12 in some such embodiments illustratively hosts an enterprise member services (EMS) program which includes or otherwise has access to a database containing a plurality of virtual customer rewards repositories each configured to store and manage virtual rewards/offers for a different one of a corresponding plurality of customer-members of the EMS program. The EMS program further illustratively includes a customer purchase history database containing purchase histories of one or more customers of the retail enterprise. In addition to virtual discount coupons offered to all customers of the EMS program, the EMS program also illustratively includes, in some embodiments, a customized reward/offer feature in which the purchase history of each customer-member is collected over time and stored, and customer-specific rewards or offers for goods and/or services offered for sale by the enterprise are then generated from a database of rewards/offers based on the customer's purchase history. Such customer-specific rewards or offers are then typically stored in the customer's rewards repository in the form of virtual rewards or offers; i.e., virtual discount coupons, that may be subsequently redeemed by the customer toward the purchase of corresponding products and/or services offered for sale by the enterprise. As used herein, the term “enterprise member services program,” “enterprise membership services program” or EMS and “shopper membership service” are interchangeable and refer to a shopper or customer service which may offer to customer members one or more services such as making available to customers one or more virtual discount coupons that may be redeemable by the retail enterprise against the purchase of from the retail enterprise of various goods, which may include fuel, and/or services and/or tracking and maintaining customer purchase histories in the customer purchase history database accessible by the main server 12. In this regard, the terms “shopper membership account” and “EMS account” are likewise interchangeable and refer to a mechanism by which the retail enterprise may make available to customers one or more virtual discount coupons and/or by which a customer's purchase history and information about the customer can be maintained by the main server 12 in a database separately from purchase histories of and information about other customers. Further in this regard, the term “EMS identification code” or EMSID illustratively refers to at least one collection of letters, symbols and/or numbers that is different for, and therefore unique to, each customer member of the enterprise membership services program, and which is used to uniquely identify a customer's EMS account within the enterprise membership services program. In one embodiment, for example, the EMSID for each customer may include a unique, several-digit access code and a separate and unique, several-digit password, although in other embodiments the EMSID may include more, fewer and/or different codes and/or passwords.")
Therefore, it would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teachings of Trevino and Pallas, because it allows for a system of wirelessly activating a plurality of electromechanically controlled fuel dispensers for subsequent dispensation of fuel into motor vehicles and/or fuel storage containers. (Pallas at Abstract and paras. 1-5).
Trevino, Pallas, and Kim do not explicitly teach, however, Malnoe does teach:
wherein the vehicle data and
(Malnoe US20030200108 at paras. 83-87) ("[0084] At the dispenser position, the refueling transaction is executed. In particular, the refueling equipment is configured according to the transaction parameter selections communicated from the user device, and billing/payment is finalized according to the billing/payment information communicated from the user device. Once the transaction is completed, operation 106 is executed in order to transmit the generated virtual transaction receipt to the user device at the user position. [0085] Referring to FIG. 4, the illustrated operating sequence includes the operating sequence shown in FIG. 3, but further comprises operation 108 involving communication of customer vehicle information from the user device to the dispenser position, and operation 110 involving communication of maintenance-service recommendations from the dispenser position to the user device. [0086] As an enhancement, the user device furnishes the dispenser position with vehicle information that is analyzed and processed to determine any vehicle servicing or maintenance recommendations based upon the vehicle information analysis. For example, the vehicle information can include, but is not limited to, mileage, vehicle year/make/model, and repair history. The vehicle information can be furnished to the dispenser position in a user profile that also includes the information pertaining to operations 100, 102, and 104. For purposes of performing the analysis, the dispenser position will be equipped with any suitable maintenance and service analysis/evaluation units, such as conventional forms.")
Therefore, it would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teachings of Trevino, Pallas, Kim, Malnoe, and Harrell, because it allows for an improved system to control the dispensing operation in conventional manner by properly configuring the dispensing equipment according to input selections indicative of values for certain refueling parameters. For example, processor 22 could be connected to the fuel pump and flowmeter to control the amount of fuel that is dispensed and improved communication of vehicle servicing or maintenance recommendations based upon the vehicle information analysis. For example, the vehicle information can include, but is not limited to, mileage, vehicle year/make/model, and repair history. (Malnoe at Abstract and paras. 2-10, 56, 86).
Claim 46 is substantially similar to claim 35, thus, it is rejected on similar grounds.
Claim 56 is rejected are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Trevino, U.S. Patent Application Publication Number 2015/0100152; in view of Pallas, U.S. Patent Application Publication 2015/0242969; in view of Kim, U.S. Patent Application Publication 2015/0304171; in view of Malnoe, U.S. Patent Application Publication 2003/0200108; in view of Harrell, U.S. Patent Application Publication 2007/0106559; in view of Lewis, U.S. Patent Application Publication Number 2003/0159752.
As per claim 56,
Trevino explicitly teaches:
transmitting, by the [fuel] dispenser via the secure two-way BLE connection, the sensor data to the mobile user device, and
(Trevino US20150100152 at paras. 34-42, 47-49, 75-77) ("[0035] The mobile computing node application can serve as the “dashboard” for the transaction itself. Accordingly, an embodiment includes VM with no buttons or user interface (UI) with which a user interacts to select a good. Such a VM may include no such UI, but may still include a display whose interaction with the user is little beyond pure marketing. All user interaction for selecting a vended product in response to a user initiated selection is between the consumer and the mobile computing node application. In such an embodiment the VM is little more than a cooler (for VMs that vend goods that need to be cooled) with an electronic door or product lock mechanism for dispensing a good, under the control of the BLE and mobile computing node application. As used herein, a UI is defined as the junction between a user and logic including an interface coupled to a set of commands or menus through which a user communicates with the logic." "[0076] An embodiment includes a distributed network of Vending/Point of Sales machines consisting of a simple VM containing no additional communications systems beyond a single a BLE communications function used in both secure and insecure modes to communicate with the mobile computing node application.")
Trevino does not explicitly teach, however, Pallas does teach:
fuel dispenser...
(Pallas US20150242969 at paras. 73-75, 101-103) "[0074] In the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 1, the main server 12 is illustratively connected to one or more local servers 161-16K via a private network 14, and each local server 161-16K is illustratively implemented at a fueling (or filling) station, i.e., a fuel sales facility or “fuel center”, 521-52K respectively." ("[0102] The various components of the fuel dispenser 18 illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2 are illustratively carried in a single housing 240 which may be formed using one or more panels of one or more suitable materials such as glass, plastic, metal or the like. The housing 240 may have any shape, and in one embodiment is generally rectangular in shape. In some embodiments, the housing 240 may carry a single fuel dispenser, and in other embodiments the housing 240 may carry multiple fuel dispensers, e.g., two fuel dispensers, each facing in opposite directions.")
Therefore, it would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teachings of Trevino, Pallas, Kim, Malnoe, Harrell, and Lewis, because it allows for a system of wirelessly activating a plurality of electromechanically controlled fuel dispensers for subsequent dispensation of fuel into motor vehicles and/or fuel storage containers. (Pallas at Abstract and paras. 1-5, 74).
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments filed on January 30, 2026 have been fully considered but are not persuasive for the following reasons:
With respect to Applicant’s arguments as to the § 103 rejections for now pending claims 35-40, 42-44, 46-49, 52-53, and 56-58, Examiner notes that the arguments are moot in light of the new grounds for rejection.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure and is available for review on Form PTO-892 Notice of References Cited.
Applicant's amendment necessitated the new ground(s) of rejection presented in this Office action. Accordingly, THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. See MPEP § 706.07(a). 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 extension fee 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 date of this final action.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to MERRITT J HASBROUCK whose telephone number is (571)272-3109. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 9:00-5:00.
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/MERRITT J HASBROUCK/Examiner, Art Unit 3695
/CHRISTINE M Tran/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3695
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